Continuing my adventures with Hong Kong style cafes, The Fiance and I stopped by Hai Tang Cafe over the Easter weekend. Located near 16th Ave and the 404, we drive by Hai Tang Cafe on our way to his parents’ house, making it an easy stop. From the outside, the restaurant looked to take up a large corner of the strip mall. Walking in however, the space was actually narrow and quite tight. There were two dining areas and both were packed. At one point, a woman walked in and asked to seat 17 people, the waitress gave a pretty big sigh and an estimated wait time of at least an hour.

The restaurant decor was a little worn but the space was clean and tidy. We were seated at a table right by the front doors and a cold draft swept in each time it was opened. There were many better seats, but we were in a rush and didn’t want to wait. Service was quick and efficient. I liked that the servers stood around the centre of the dining area making them accessible and easy to flag down. While the restaurant was constantly packed, it didn’t feel as hectic and rushed as other Hong Kong style cafes, where I feel like I needed to eat and clear my seat quickly.

Hai Tang offered breakfast, lunch and dinner specials. The menu items were standard, (hainanese chicken, curries, club sandwich, etc.) but highly customizable. For their baked dishes, you can choose the type of carb and sauce to completed the dish. The Fiance ordered a baked pork chop with black pepper sauce on spaghetti and was only $5.50. There was lots of pasta, a rich sauce full of flavour and three hefty pork chops. I had the beef brisket in soup with thick rice noodles for $3.99. The noodles were soft, the soup tasty and the beef brisket tender. Usually, I add a few spoonfuls of chilli oil to my soup, which adds a lot of chili fragrance without much heat. At Hai Tang, the chili oil was hot. Two spoonfuls had me sweating. Delicious, but potent. Of the Hong Kong cafes I’ve been to so far, this bowl of noodles is close to the best for value and taste.

Our total bill came to $12 (before tip) for both dishes and two milk teas. A great deal for a great meal.

Rose & Sons has been on my restaurant wishlist since they opened a year ago. It’s a small space with no reservations taken for brunch. I anticipated a wait. So with the weather finally starting to warm up, I was willing to take the risk and suggested the diner for a catch up meal with a friend.

Atmosphere: Driving down Dupont St, we missed the restaurant completely. The storefront still uses the large “Food” sign from their predecessor and the small “Rose & Sons” signage is easy to miss. When we arrived at 11:30am, there was a queue outside the restaurant that moved at a steady pace. The dining area was small, composed of booths and 5 stools at the bar. Every square foot of space is used up. The open kitchen sits next to the bar in front of the entrance, greeting guests with savoury, rich scents from the grill. To help the wait, the hostess did offer to take down a number and call you back when a table is almost available. I wouldn’t recommend coming with a large group, no more than 4 people and it’s not a venue for lingering over coffee.

Service: The hostess was friendly and so were our servers. My group ended up sitting at the bar and we had front row seats to the kitchen prep. Food was a little slow to come out from the small kitchen but it was worth the wait. Utensils, napkins and sugar were set up on the table so we grabbed what we needed ourselves. Service was casual and relaxed but efficient.

Food: Between the three of us, we had five plates and dessert. Even with my friend eating for two, it was still a lot of food but we ate and enjoyed every bite.

I had the PLB special melt with fried egg, pickle, bacon, sausage, fried onions and a side of cherry jam. Of everything this was my favourite. I loved the thick cut bacon, the runny yolk on the egg and melted cheese. It was an overflowing breakfast sandwich, just perfect. I also liked the cherry jam that was tangy and used it on bites of cornbread as well. The griddled cornbread with brisket and hot sauce had a great balance of sweet, spicy and savoury flavours. I liked the fattiness of the brisket and the crunchy crust of the cornbread. The runny yolk added a creaminess to the dish.

The pastrami and lox scrambled eggs was only ok. This was the weakest dish for me but it was up against tough competition. My favourite component was the jalapeno challah bread that was fluffy, buttery and great for soaking up the yolk leftover from my PLB. The BF had the all day breakfast with sausage and added smoked pork chop. The hash was crispy but a little greasy. Overall it hit the breakfast craving on the dot and the smoked pork chop was an added bonus. The chop was juicy and had an awesome smokey flavour.

While we were waiting for our table a plate of apple fritters walked by and the smell was intoxicating. During the meal, we kept reminding ourselves to leave room for the dessert to come. Split between 3 people, the dish of five fritters was the perfect portion size (also after our 4 entrees). The fritters themselves were fried, rolled in cinnamon sugar and served on a bed of lemon ricotta cheese with candied walnuts. The tangy cheese balanced out the sweetness of the dish and lightened the textures.

In total, our bill was just over $100, a little pricey for brunch but the meal did include drinks and dessert. I also would’ve loved an option for drip coffee.