Richmond Hill – Michael Eats

Lamb Overload at Bareh Sefid

Published on June 7, 2026 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 9325 Yonge Street, Richmond Hill
Website: https://barehsefid.net/

I was pretty excited to check out Bareh Sefid after seeing it on Suresh Doss’ great show, Locals Welcome. They specialize in big platters of various braised lamb parts. I feel like lamb is seriously underappreciated, so yeah, I’m all over that.

Their menu consists entirely of lamb, and if you want to try it all, you’ve gotta go with the Darbari plate: “2 Sides Lamb Head Meat, 1 Tongue, 2 Eyes, 3 Lamb Trotters, 1 Brain, 2 Bowls Of Lamb Broth, With Full Service: Pickled, Home Made Bread, Lime.”

The lamb is all seriously well prepared and unctuously tender. The head and tongue are probably the most straightforward — you’d never know that they’re off cuts just by tasting them. The eyes and trotter both have a similarly squishy texture, and are also quite tasty, if a bit one-note soft. The brain is the most interesting of the bunch, with a firm texture and a slightly liver-esque mineraly flavour.

It’s all nicely spiced, but mostly, the preparation ensures that the lamb flavour is front and centre. The meal comes with a side of lime wedges and zippy pickle relish, with the relish, in particular, doing a great job of cutting through the richness of the lamb.

It’s so much lamb. The platter consists entirely of fatty/collagen-rich lamb along with a couple of types of flatbread to eat it with, and while I was in lamb heaven for the first few bites, eventually, I kinda wanted some other flavours? I like lamb a whole lot, but — for me, at least — this might have been too much of a good thing.

Delicious Wonton Noodle Soup at Jim Chai Kee

Published on July 28, 2024 by Michael Nusair1 Comment

Location: 270 West Beaver Creek Road, Richmond Hill
Website: https://www.jimchaikee.ca/

It’s been several years since I’ve been to Jim Chai Kee, but my recollection is that they serve some of the best wonton noodle soup in the GTA.

And hey, what do you know — other than the prices (which have, naturally, gone up a bit), they’ve remained remarkably consistent over the years. It’s still a superb bowl of wonton noodle soup and, yeah, probably the best in the city.

Every element is right where it should be. The noodles are at just the right level of chewiness; the chicken-infused broth is light, but also bursting with flavour; and the wontons are really tasty, with perfectly cooked shrimp.

That’s not to mention the chili oil, which is smoky, flavourful, and extremely spicy. They sell jars of this stuff for $20, which seems like a lot, but when it’s this much better than basically any chili oil you’ve had, it’s hard to quibble with the price. It’s also so spicy and packed with flavour that you’ll inevitably need less of it than you would otherwise, so I have to imagine that the small jar — which, yes, I absolutely bought — will last a while.

I ordered the assorted bowl that also comes with beef and fishballs, and while they’re both very tasty, those amazing wontons are where it’s at. I think I’ll just stick with the wontons next time.

Fancy Dim Sum at Yu Seafood

Published on December 30, 2019 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 270 West Beaver Creek Road, Richmond Hill
Website: http://www.yuseafood.com/

If you have anyone you’re looking to impress with a fancier dim sum joint, you could do worse than Yu Seafood. The restaurant itself is quite a bit more sleek than your average dim sum place, and the presentation of the dishes is a bit snazzier.

And of course, it also has the prices to match — it’s not outrageous, but it’s noticeably more expensive than the norm.

The food is all solid, though nothing quite blew me away. I think pretty much everything was slightly (or more than slightly) underseasoned.

One of their specialties is the visually striking Bamboo Charcoal & Egg Yolk Bun. It looks impressive and tastes pretty good, but the molten custard filling was broken; it was lumpy and oily.

Everything I tried was quite tasty — but given the hefty pricing, it’s not quite as amazing as you’d hope.

Tasty (and Cheap!) Eats at Shanghai Dim Sum

Published on October 18, 2019 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 330 Highway 7, Richmond Hill
Website: http://www.shanghaidimsum.ca/

If you’re looking for a delicious and delightfully affordable meal, you could absolutely do worse than Shanghai Dim Sum. If you show up before 11:00 AM (and you should definitely do this) you can order off a special early morning menu that includes an order of four soup dumplings for 99 cents.

99 cents! Are they they best soup dumplings you’ll ever have? No, but they’re quite tasty, and for the price, they’re outstanding.

Everything else was quite good as well. We managed to try a generous amount of stuff (I was quite full by the end of the meal) — the total bill? About 30 bucks for three people. You can’t argue with that price.

The restaurant also has the distinction of serving what might be the garlickiest dish I’ve ever had. The boiled pork with garlic paste features tender slices of pork belly doused in a sauce that’s effectively pure, uncooked garlic. It was actually quite tasty, but that garlic taste lingered on my palate for a solid 24 hours.

Tasty Chinese Dessert at Sweet Turtle Desserts

Published on December 19, 2018December 19, 2018 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 550 Highway 7, Richmond Hill
Website: None

Sometimes, Asian desserts can be a bit of an acquired taste. With their emphasis on ingredients you don’t necessarily associate with sweets (like beans or tofu), unusual spices, and a very restrained level of sweetness, they can seem a bit odd if you’re not used to them.

If you are used to them, however? They’re delicious.

Sweet Turtle Desserts in the Times Square plaza in Richmond Hill is an absolute cornucopia of various Chinese puddings and sweet drinks (there are easily over a hundred items on the menu). I ordered the soya bean jelly with sesame, which is a creamy tofu-based pudding topped with a black sesame sauce.

The tofu itself is completely unsweetened, with a luxuriously silky texture but very little flavour. It doesn’t seem like much, but that silkiness is surprisingly addictive.

The black sesame topping suits it very well, with a nice hit of sesame and just enough sweetness to keep things interesting. It’s quite good.