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1920 Ellesmere Road, Toronto ON 416-439-9234 Map Approx $20 per person Local Food? some local ingredients Local Wine/Beer? very small selection |
Lunch, Dinner Mon to Sun: 11am to 11pm |
Dubbed as the first Hakka restaurant in East Toronto, Federick’s is an inconspicuous landmark nestled in an office building in a quite neighborhood. I’ve been told by a familiar waiter that they’ve been open for about 14 years. Quite a landmark indeed.
Okay, so Hakka (or Haka) is Chinese food by Manchurian expression. You can taste the Indian influences, the spices, but by tradition it of Mongolian influence. In all essence, it represents some of the most delicious and spicy dishes you can find. Be prepared to drink plenty of water if you have a sensitive stomach. In my opinion, I cannot think of better fusion, than that of Chinese and Indian together, and this is a formidable supplier of such.
The restaurant itself is quite bare in décor, reflecting the design theme of the neighborhood that it’s about the food not the drapes or the cheesy paintings. Albeit, I did spot a few Chinese lanterns on the wall, and a Kaliya Daman figurine on the bar. Don’t be fooled by the line at the front of the restaurant. The takeout section (located at the front, your orders are taken through a window) is equally as busy as the restaurant itself on most nights. Step into the cozy seating room, and follow the aged tiles over to your table. Glass table covers, porcelain plates, and cheap dining chairs. Yes, this is about as cliché as East Toronto gets. The service is quick. The servers are well-versed in the menu as most of them have been working there for many years. Most greet you with a pleasant smile and an eagerness to fill your appetite. Be warned, the dishes are a mouthful. In both size AND taste.
The credit to that claim we discovered one night as we forked our way through a heaping bowl of crab corn soup, mounds of succulent, Manchurian chicken fried rice, and Federick’s delicious garlic shrimp, hot-off-the-pan from the kitchen. The soup is probably one of the best so far in the city. The fried rice by far tops any Rice dish you can find at your average Chinese restaurant.
On a typical night, expect a 10-20 minute before you’re seated. Once seated, your knives and forks will be busy within the first 15.
The Szechuan Beef is heavy on the saucy side. Ample amounts of Beef. The Chicken Pakoras are an imitation of the real thing at best, but quite the appetizer snack. Patrons dare not forgo the deep fried banana with ice cream. A dish that tastes a lot better than it looks.
Other dishes worth mentioning; American Chop Suey Vegetable with Crispy noodle brings a big dollop of flavour (mix with fried beef for extra taste), as does the Kung Pao Chi Ting Chicken. This is the pièce de résistance on group outings. Try the Chicken with cashew nut sometime. The juliennes of chicken, cashew and vegetables were tossed in a vibrant mélange and a dense sweet and sour sauce, giving it a sharp albeit subtle expression, which tantalizingly wafted up and teased our senses.
Sample world famous Kingfisher beer, brewed in India (For religious reasons, some states in India are prohibitionist, yet the country still manages to support more than 30 breweries.) or Tsingtao (one of Asia’s finest exports). Asian countries typically produce pilsner-style lagers that are smooth, have pleasant malt sweetness, and pair quite well with native dishes. Indian beers in particular accentuate the spicy feel of most of their dishes.
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