Restaurant Review: Restaurant Imperial
As a kid, I spent a lot of time in Montreal, summers were punctuated by trips from my small town to the big city to spend time with my grandparents sailing, biking, baking and making trips to Chinatown for Dim Sum.
While I can’t say I remember the exact Dim Sum place I used to go as a child, I thought I would bring back the tradition. A quick google search of the best places for Dim Sum brought up a few results and I did look for the most photogenic places as well but eventually decided to go to the place with amazing reviews, an online version of the menu and came in number six on Eater Montreal’s list of Dim Sum restaurants to visit.
On the outskirts of ChinaTown, this restaurant is located in the Swatow Building on the top floor. It is a bit of a maze to figure out how exactly to arrive (the escalator was down when I visited) but when you finally get there it is classic Montreal Chinatown. Arrive early because there’s a heck of a lunch rush starting to happen only an hour after they open.
Definitely start with Har Gow, a shrimp dumpling, and then make your way through items like SiuMai, ChiuChow, Sticky Rice, Turnip Cakes, Cuttlefish, CharSiu Bao, and crispy seaweed rolls. If you’re more adventurous you can try steamed chicken feet (very gelatinous) or Cantonese roast goose (lots of five-spice).
The wait between carts (a complaint I’ve seen online) is a great chance to digest the large portions you just ate, which trust me you’ll need a moment especially with larger items like noodles or fried cuttlefish. If it’s your thing to Instagram what you eat, then this is a great place to do it. The wicker baskets and pale dumplings make for great contrast in your shot.
Of course, beauty is not the true measure of a good restaurant, although the presentation is important. Taste is key. To be honest, I am not a connoisseur of Dim Sum although maybe if I keep this tradition alive I might one day be, so maybe I’m not the best judge of authenticity or how great this restaurant is but as a foodie I was impressed. Each bite had different flavours, textures and pleasantly surprised me.
The only thing I disliked was the chicken feet and that’s more from a personal preference standpoint. It also doesn’t help that my boyfriend reminded me those chicken feet once belonged to chickens like the ones roaming about in his back garden. What if I had eaten their feet? Cue dramatic sobbing because my flock is precious to me in ways I couldn’t have imagined before meeting my boyfriend and I would never eat their feet (I recognize the hypocrisy, try not to judge too harshly).
All in all, this was a great place to go for Sunday DimSum and a great way to revive a family tradition. If there are any places you recommend I visit or want me to go check out I would love to hear from you, hit me up through the contact link or on Instagram!
