Chef Tony Seafood Restaurant (Richmond): A Pictorial Essay

[J_L]

Chef Tony Seafood Restaurant (in Richmond) represents “third-wave dim sum” in an ever-changing metropolitan Vancouver area. It is amongst the best and most popular of all dim sum / Cantonese restaurants in North America. Interesting fact: The restaurant’s namesake, Chef Tony He, was the original chef who opened Sea Harbour in Rosemead!

Luckily, we reserved a table waaaay ahead of opening time… Fortune smiles on the prepared!

Beautiful bone porcelainware, complete with tea candles stations to keep our Pu’erh, Jasmine, and Iron Goddess teas nice and warm!

Geoduck clam congee (rice porridge) in seafood broth, with ginger slivers, scallion and fried cruller bits… So gentle and satisfying.

Fried cruller… Fresh and piping hot! Super nice when eaten with the congee.

Marinated duck with brine… Served chilled, this was a great way to experience the density of the meat.

Sticky rice tamales with lap cheong sausage, braised chicken, mushroom & duck egg yolk, wrapped and steamed in lotus leaf… Let’s open this up…

Oh, what an incredible aroma! So fragrant! And the taste was startlingly wonderful! All the pieces of the puzzle were in perfect balance.

Creamy chicken noodle soup with cabbage & mustard greens… This broth was a bit too creamy for our liking, but the chicken pieces in the soup were very tender. The noodles were a bit too overcooked as well.

Deep fried taro & baby abalone dumplings… SO great. The abalone’s gorgeous texture really contrasted well with the flaky, yet earthy taste of the fried taro!

Shrimp & matsutake mushroom har gow… This was no ordinary har gow! The presence of the matsutake elevates this dish to a new level of umami. British Columbia is a wonderful area in which to sample the rich tastes of the matsutake mushroom.

Steamed char siu bao… Expertly prepared, and always a crowd favorite!

Rice pastry with shrimp & egg white paste in fried cruller, served with abalone sauce… Taste buds are in wonderland with this dish!

Lightly fried rice with taro, preserved meats, braised pork ribs, sausage & vegetables, served with oyster sauce… Terrific.

Stir-fried chow fun (rice noodles) with matsutake, Chinese broccolini & tender beef shoulder… Fantastic! This is yet another superb way to enjoy the matsutake mushroom.

Steamed seasonal assorted local mushroom & chicken soup dumplings… This was, without a doubt, a highlight of our meal!

Now, onto the sweets!!!

Ivory steamed bun with golden sweet runny egg yolk custard…

There’s liquid gold inside - So sweet and good!

Fried taro & pumpkin cake… The char from the grill lends an exquisite, smoky character to this very interesting cake!

Chef Tony’s signature dan taat (egg custard tarts)… Prepared delicately using only egg whites, this dessert alone was worth the price of admission!

Pan-fried ginger soft cake… Sublime. This was unlike anything I’ve eaten before - Slightly sweet, but infused with hint of ginger and with just a bit of outside searing. This cooking is light-years ahead of most other dim sum and yumcha places in North America.

Baked durian paste pastry… Flaky, and stuffed with a tropical custard and small bits of fresh durian inside, these bites will make almost any skeptic of durian into a fan!

King crab… This guy beckons you to join him at Chef Tony for dinner!

Geoduck clams… Live, in the holding tanks.

By the time we left, the hungry throngs had assembled… What a great dim sum experience!

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

Chef Tony Seafood Restaurant
101-4600 No. 3 Rd.
Richmond, BC V6X 2C2
Canada
604.279.0083
ChefTonyCanada.com

[catholiver]

Your descriptions are always succinct and photos are wonderful. And I love it that you give the ‘facts’ at the end. Thanks. But, PS: what do you calculate as the cost per person please? Some of those ingredients are pretty special!

[Sgee]

Trying to replicate the current higher end HK scene. esp. the little abalone atop the taro fritter(?). Looks good.

[ipsedixit]

If you’re still in Vancouver, you should stop by for dinner.

Better than dim sum. Much better.

[J_L]

The old adage of “Use the dim sum to draw’em in for dinner.” in full effect here…

[ipsedixit]

It’s usually the opposite for me.

“Use dinner to bring’em back for dim sum. Sometime.”

[lectroid]

atthe risk of being gauche, what’s the per person damage at this place? I’ve been to Sun Sui Wa for a dimsum, which was delicious, but I didn’t feel confident enough to venture off the usual shumai, buns, etc… and even there we were avout $20/person… Though a couple of us had to be rolled out to the car…

[J_L]

@lectroid

what’s the per person damage at this place?

Our total bill for the food in those photos came out around CND$145. Again: Total (not per person)…

That’s like USD$15.22, with the crazy exchange rates these days

[catholiver]

Er, you may want to check you credit card bill.

1 Canadian Dollar equals 0.73 US Dollar

CND145

USD106.35

How many people?

[J_L]

I see my attempts at humor were poor at best. XE.com is our friend everyday we are abroad.

[J_L]

@catholiver

How many people?

Total bill already disclosed. One may share this food (1 order of each dish) with as many (or as few) other people as one pleases.

[catholiver]

Oh whew. You’ve always seems pretty smart to me So how many people? PLEASE???

[J_L]

It’s irrelevant, no? I mean, you already know how much food we ordered. It could be enough for a school of smurfs, or half a sumo champion. Or I may have gone by myself and ate only one or two bites of each, and discarded the rest (an M.O. I often employ - food waste be damned).

[catholiver]

Well, since I’m trying to decide if it’s within my budget, it would be nice if you shared that. We visit Seattle regularly and recently had a great food time in Vancouver so I’m asking for a reason. But feel free to not answer. Sheesh.

[J_L]

But you already know the amount of food (16 dishes), and the total bill (CND$145). What does it matter how many people were in MY party that day?

Plus, I have no idea about the size of the gullets of you and the members of your party. You see how this is a question fraught with peril for me to answer?

[ipsedixit]

@catholiver

Well, since I’m trying to decide if it’s within my budget,

It’s very “affordable/person” considering the quality and variety.

If you enjoy and appreciate good food, then it should be within your budget.

Don’t overthink things.

[catholiver]

It seems obvious to me that JL is embarrassed by the cost per person. So be it. I won’t go there. Thanks for your input.

BTW, I wasn’t the only one to ask about price.

[catholiver]

@J_L

fraught with peril

Oh my. I had no idea this threatened you. My apologies.

[ipsedixit]

Actually, your question (not you) is just obtuse.

Chef Tony, as it is de rigueur for dim sum pricing, sets their menu based on the “size” of the particular dishes, or S M L and Special, with pricing ranging (if I recall correctly from my last visit there a couple of years ago, so may be a bit outdated) from approximately CDN 4, 5, 6 and 7+, respectively.

Most of the items are L. From @J_L review, it appears his party had several Special items.

There you go, do the math.

[J_L]

@ipsedixit

There you go, do the math.

THIS.