Luckee

Came here for winterlicious dinner and I was super underwhelmed by their food.
We got the chilled soba noodle salad, dim sum basket, luckee duck (like those Beijing duck wraps), cod wrap and their trio of desserts (mango panna cotta, chocolate sponge roll and sesame rice donut). The soba salad tasted pretty bland except for a tiny bit of spiciness. The cod was crispy but the lettuce wasn’t big enough to serve as a wrap so trying to eat it became this messy ordeal. I tried a bit of the luckee duck and it was on par with most other duck wraps I’ve had, with just a little tartness from the apple.
I was hoping the dessert trio would be the one saving grace but it was all very meh. I don’t think the dark chocolate sauce paired well with the sesame rice ball.
The servers were nice enough but I don’t think the food warrants a return visit.

4.5 stars
Beautiful décor — love the modern take on traditional Chinese décor, especially the giant neon lucky character. Staff were very accommodating and there was even a coat check! We came in for Winterlicious and we found the food to be very good overall. The Luckee soba salad that I had for my appetizer was surprisingly filling! It was also my first time eating salad with edible flowers in it. Surprisingly, the fragrant flavour of the flowers actually compliment the more «ordinary» ingredients of the salad such as the soy sauce, soba noodles and parsley. As for the Peking duck, the pancakes were cooked perfectly as was the duck. Wish the portions for the main was bigger! The dessert trio was also really good — my favourite was the chocolate covered jin dui! Given the intimate vibes of the restaurant, the good service and the awesome food, I highly recommend Luckee for anyone who is craving for some Chinese fusion!

We went during winterlicious but ordered off of the al la carte, we definitely had some yummy dishes. The chicken ‘fun’ dish and rice were my favourites, don’t order the veggie spring rolls it was bland at best, tasted generic like you picked it up from the freezer section but pay for 2 what you could get 20 frozen for.

Without a doubt, I think I would have to say that this place… is probably the best chinese food in Toronto :) Okay price wise it’s probably one of the most expensive… but every dollar spent on this restaurant was totally worth it!
We ordered a prix fix menu, which had a variety of choices :)
Their dim sum are some of the best I’VE ever had. and lets just say i’ve had my fair share of dim sum in my days here on Earth lol. Anyway, even though it was just a sample, those flavours, omg, they just stay with you! I can’t quite put into words how delish it is, but just all the flavours that Susur lee uses… Love his cooking!
the rice dish that came with our menu, was also super delicious. Again, it’s more of an elegant twist to Chinese dishes, but certainly a delightful one, because I enjoyed every spoonful of that rice!
The desserts at the end… omg. a trio. and each one of them so unique and different that i just dind’t have much to say at the end (i was just enjoying bites of the three different desserts!). Anyway, yes I know the dishes offered at this restaurant isn’t cheap, but if anyone is looking to spend some good money towards a top of the line chinese style dining, this is the place :)
This place is super busy though, so do make sure you reserve! They have some seats along the kitchen where you can also look at the chefs preparing the food :)

For the price the food misses the mark more often then it should. The lobster dumpling really lacks flavor and texturally the lobster itself is subpar. A standard har gow from most of the dimsum places nearby taste much better. The worst dish I had here was the vermicelli with crab. The price for the dish was very steep and there was no flavor at all to the dish. There were a few lumps of crab scattered throughout but the dish was bland. If you took the crab out no one would notice and then it would be a 3 $ dish.
The white fish and softshell crab dish is a neat idea and plates beautifully but eats rather poorly. The crab stuffed with fish already has a fried texture and so the accompaniments of an entire plate of fried things (egg, garlic, etc) adds flavour but just doesn’t eat well.
It seems with Susur’s restaurants you really can have a good meal IF you order the right dishes. Though for the price I don’t think I’ll experiment a 3^rd time. Most everything I’ve had here is definitely sub-​par and I’m embarrassed to say I took a friend here on her birthday .
The dimsum sauces brought to the table though interesting are unimpressive. The shrimp cheung fun and cocktails are the only highlights. I do believe Susur is a great chef with tremendous knowledge (displayed in how well the meat is usually cooked) but he really does need to start trying again because this just makes me sad.

Chinese food done well. I suggest the duck, Chen Fung dumplings either in chicken or shrimp. The duck is served with mini pancakes, apple slices and green onions to make your own dish. These were my favourite from the 12 dishes we tried. The food was overall quite delicious and the service was on point. The ambiance was nice as well and I would hope to return again for these dishes I described above.

We had been looking forward to tonight’s dinner for a week since we waited that long for the reservation. Susur and his team did not disappoint. Food was amazing and staff /​service was impeccable !!
Ordered a pot of wonderful jasmine tea which was so fragrant and fresh tasting.
This was likely the best Chinese dinner I’ve ever had in my life. That being said — it’s not your everyday Spadina good Chinese food prices — it’s expensive. Dinner, Sake, Tax and Tip came to $ 270. Truth be told the Sake came to $ 90 on its own… A little pricey… but it sure was yummy. And I will certainly go back and try some other items like the duck.
We started with the «lucky basket» which had four dim sum appetizers inside; a lobster and asparagus dumpling, chicken & shrimp dumpling topped with a scallop, a beef dumpling with maitake, and har gow (shrimp dumpling). When served explained all the ingredients as he opened the little steam basket and each one was absolutely wonderful — each one certain elevated from the typical dim sum and some flavour profiles nothing like anything I’ve had before… Delicious
We had fried wok fried green beans which were just so wonderful and crispy with a garlic sauce that they were delicately fried in. Not greasy & truly very delicious.
Ordered Berkshire Sweet & Sour Pork that was served with fresh pineapple and the sauce was the best.
Kung Pao Chicken that was just amazing with peppers and your lips had a nice after mild heat sensation — just beautiful dish !!
Fried rice with scallops & bacon which was just so yummy.
We ordered too much food but thankfully we took the leftovers home.
Had warm Sake (which could have been a little warmer). But it was served very nicely in a container that had hot water bath and the warm sake resting in another container inside.
All in all the dinner was amazing. The restaurant was beautiful and relaxing from the décor to the table setting. Lots of beautiful details with nothing overlooked.
Can’t wait to return for possibly a weekend brunch or another dinner. Just a wonderful restaurant to add to the many that you bookmark and return to. Would be great for groups or even a quite diner for two.

Love Susur spots, like to try them all!
Came by for dinner, the service was great and we were seated quickly. We had a bunch of different dietary restrictions across the table from my shellfish allergy to my wife’s meat allergy (vegetarian). They were extremely accommodating and made a lot of good recommendations. Luckee Duck was awesome, Hot and Sour was great too.

Four of us for just under $ 300 (not much booze) but we got really full and had a good time.
They serve food very fresh and hot — oh so hot! I yelled at the server for serving it too fresh and not letting the food cool for 20 to 30 like other restaurants :)
Their version of the ‘Singapore Slaw’ of Lee is back in season now. It’s quite good.
The soup dumplings were too fragile and most broke pulling them out. Hmm… That wouldn’t happen in Shanghai.
It’s a fun place to go, pretty loud, easy going staff.
Pretty stressless.
Oh, the hotel washroom should be cleaner. It also is not funky. I personally think a restaurant’s washroom should be 10x as whacky as the restaurant itself. This is the only place I was let down. :)

Ohh so sad and angry at myself, I came here for a first time when they just opened abut a year ago the food was on point the sweet and sour chicken was incredible and the scallops were to die for I had dreams about it they were like butter and melted in your mouth I actually ordered twice that time they were seared to perfection and glazed with a beautiful amber sauce. So I decided to come back for my bday and what a disappointment the s&s chicken was dry and not crispy enough and the scallops were breaded !!! What??? Doughy chewy and uncooked omg why did I have to erase such a beautiful memory fortunately the manager removed from the bill not coming back !! Forgettable

If you think this place has good dim sum, you’re either new or one of those douchebags who shops at whole foods. Been (taken here) twice and both times were incredibly disappointing.
Dim sum should come hot and quick and flavorful. Luckee did not meet any of these requirements. Both times.
Do yourself a favor and go to Asian Legend where you’ll get way better dim sum and service for a fraction of the price.

I was taken here for my birthday two weeks ago and had an amazing time. Not your typical dim sum place. This place lives up to its reputation.
Environment: great ambience which helps set an intimate vibe but not too dim. Very nice décor. It also has large tables if you are here with a group. if you plan on taking photos you definitely will need a decent camera with a flash.
Service: helpful, fast and on point (Particularly with respect to the dim sum items).
Food: myself and my fiancé enjoyed everything we ordered which was recommended by our wait staff. There is a great selection of meat and vegetarian items. The dim sum came out very fast. I had the chicken CHEUNG FUN which was delicious and I would highly recommend ordering it. Alsop since it was my birthday the waiter gave us a complimentary desert (no questions asked). The deserts at this place are not as good as the food.
Price: I believe the prices are reasonable given the portion size and the quality of the food.
Overall I had a good experience and I would come back
Tip: Get the Chicken Cheung Fun!

After being up all night for good fun, I got up early to get Luckee.
The highlights:
Long Xia Gao ($ 9) — 2 x dumplings filled with lobster with asparagus. Susur added a very subtle, almost undetectable coconut flavour, making it one of the most unique Gaos I’ve had. Fun fact of the day, «Long Xia» in the title is Chinese for lobster. Pronounced like «Noon Shia» and not a «Long Shia.»
Shrimp Cheung Fun ($ 12) — I felt quite hesitant to get a plate of cheung fun for $ 12 when it can be had for $ 2.80 at a Middle-​Aged-​Chinese-​Lady-​Cart-​Pushing dimsum place. And so, I looked at the waiter and said …“I’m quite hesitant to get a plate of cheung fun for $ 12 when it can be had for a quarter of the price at $ 2.80, at a Cart-​Pushing-​Middle-​Aged-​Chinese Lady dimsum place.” Not amused, the waiter insisted that «trust me, this is special.» He was right. Filled with deep fried rice pieces surrounding the shrimp surrounding the cheung fun, it was the perfect chewy-​crunchy –soft combo.
Almond and crab cake ($ 7) — Imagine a Haagen Daz bar. But salty. And not sweet. And crunchier. And hot. Okay fine. It tastes nothing like a Haagen Dazs bar. But it looks like one and that’s just as cool!
The dessert with the most tang and flavour, the mango passion fruit pudding ($ 8)
Overall, a great spot for a slightly more unique, more upscale dim sum experience with no Middle Aged-​Chinese-​Lady pushing carts in sight.

If this is the best Asian restaurant in Toronto, then I suggest it needs more.
This is a name meets location meets… declining standards story.
Grumpy service and waiter, even in a mostly empty restaurant mid week, one would expect he would be nicer, perhaps cordial and even, pleasant given we must have been 1 of maybe 3 covers he had that evening. I didnt like the service nor the attitude this old guy gave off. You dont like your job? Get another. Dont get grumpy on me when we are spending $ 400 on dinner and having a nice time.
As for the location, its in the SoHo hotel and right downtown, so easy. Thats the highlight — the décor and location.
The food was quite average. Luckee needs to offer more. They need better, higher quality ingredients and prep. I didnt find the dumplings, seared or otherwise — as anything to mention to friends, let alone celebrate. And the crispy beef, meh. Shrimp Cheung fun? Not for me. The glass noodle salad thing was just a complete write off.
And when compared to another Canadian place I have enjoyed that has a similar focus — Dim Sum, Asian Chinese Fusion, etc… I think Bao Bei in Vancouver is probably half the price yet on another level in terms of quality, prep and experience when compared to the ‘famous’ Mr Lee.
And also, trendy.
Speaking of which — after hearing all the name dropping, it appears Mr Lee needs to spend a little more time on what is eaten here, and a little less on who eats here.
Oh, and a waiter that isn’t a complete dick.

Disclaimer: I’ve only spent time in the bar end rather than the full restaurant.
This place is the definition of ‘alright’. The setting is not bad. While there’s a great mix of different kinds of relaxing seating, it’s a bit of a cold atmosphere (there’s a giant painting of an old naked lady with an oddly tight body staring down at you and you’re surrounded by spray-​painted cement walls/​cinder blocks).
But while the atmosphere may not totally be for everyone (perhaps I’m ignorant), the food is fantastic. Their chicken Cheung Fun is to die for! I don’t think anyone can criticize the amazing food concoctions of Susur Lee, I think you’d be surprised by how often he walks around and how friendly he is. It’s a real treat to have the chance to see such a talented chef.
The drinks themselves are pretty tasty. The service is… well they all look very pretty and wear great clothes. Sometimes it’s attentive and friendly, and at other times I have to work a little to grab attention.
All and all if you want to stop by at a spot to grab nice drinks, this is a nice place to start. I wouldn’t grab too many though.

The dining space at Luckee is casual and open. Nice for groups or families. The lighting is poor for photos as there were unflattering shadows cast down on the tables from above. I wasn’t crazy about the music. It was some sort of ambient/​house music thing going on. Finally, my chair had a crack in it and snagged my nylons. Kind of a no-​no in a somewhat swanky restaurant.
But that’s where the negativity ends. The service was great. Our servers were attentive and professional. Each dish came with a short description. Our orders came at a nice pace. We never felt rushed but neither were we kept waiting very long between plates. We were given several useful recommendations when ordering.
The food was very good. Complex, creative combinations of flavours based on traditional Chinese dishes. Each one with that Susur Lee flair. I particularly liked that many of the dishes and even some of the cocktails were sprinkled with edible flower petals. It gives a common visual theme running through the meal that I found brilliant.
Our favourite selections were the chicken cheung fun, crispy squid and the lucky duck. All very tasty and satisfying portions. On the dessert menu, the sponge roll, although beautiful, fell a little flat. If you want something with a more intense flavour, try the mango passion fruit pudding.

From the décor to the service to the food, Luckee was amazing! The room is spacious with red walls adorned with Chinese art. The tables had charming printed paper tablecloths. The service was prompt and friendly. Our water glasses were never empty.
I came with my boyfriend on a Saturday night. I suggest making a reservation well in advance, as we made ours on Thursday and 6 pm or 10 pm were the only available time slots.
We had:
Taro and turnip pancakes — ⁵⁄₅ so unique and delicious.
Chicken cheung fun −5÷5 — This dish is all about texture. Crispy chicken inside the rice roll– a really interesting take on dim sum. *this is a really big appetizer, I recommend getting it with a larger group.*
General Tao Beef — ⁴⁄₅ very tasty, nice and crispy, not at all spicy.
3-​cup chicken clay pot — ⁵⁄₅ OMG STANDOUT DISH. Chicken was cooked to perfection, the space was delicious and i loved the baked apricot.
Vermicelli noodles (the ones without crab) ⁵⁄₅ — light, tasty noodles.
Spinach and chrysanthemum leaf salad — ⁵⁄₅ if you like vegetable dishes, this is a great one. I loved the peanut sauce!
Dessert: — coconut rice balls ⁴⁄₅ — Really interesting flavours and textures. Not overly sweet.
I highly recommend Luckee!

Took a friend here for dinner. Food was delicious! We had a few dim sum appetizers such as Har Gow, Turnip Cake and Shrimp Chung Fun (apologies for the possible incorrect spelling) all were delicious!
For cocktails, we had the Sangria and a spicy cocktail which was so good. I love spicy cocktails!
For our mains, we had the Fried Rice and the 3 cup Chicken! Highly recommend! So delicious!!!
I was not a fan so much of the dessert menu. We had the Chinese Profiteroles drizzled in Chocolate Sauce and had lemon cream custard filling inside served with a bit of raspberry sauce and a small scoop of ice cream.. Not a fan. Would love to see like a mango pudding though in the dessert menu. Overall great eats, great décor and lively atmosphere. Portions are for sharing for sure!

This was a last minute pick on the long weekend. Kind of my approach towards all religious holidays (one should have Chinese food and stay neutral :)
My friends had already made reservations and all we needed to do was show up. The place was somewhat busy on the dinning side as they bar area was spartan (though it seems like it fills up being in a hotel etc.)
First off the dinning area had a very strong food smell so (maybe we felt it strongly as we were seated near the cooking area)
We were a group of 4 so decided to share some dim sum items and and ordered a few mains that could have been shared.
The dim sum fared well
Har Gow a yardstick for dim sum IMO was done non traditionally. It was quite good. Nice crunch on the shrimps with a delicate wrapper.
Chicken Pot Stickers again decent IMO. I am not a fan of pot stickers but these were just fine
STEAMED SPINACH & CHINESE CELERY DUMPLINGS. This was again quite good.
So far so good as the dim sum menu with a modern take on classics was worth a visit and recommended for sharing.
Now on to the mains
We decided to order mains for each of us though I did taste all the items
SPICY SOYA BEAN CRUMBLE SHRIMP. Despite it being labeled hot it had a sweet finish. My friends even asked for hot pepper flakes to elevate the taste.
Sweet and sour chicken. Even for sweet and sour chicken this one was way too sweet. Nice presentation but the taste faltered.
CHAR SIU BEEF SHORT RIBS. Cooked very well as was just falling apart. It could have been a home run if it wasn’t for the overly sweet notes.
The mains were all a generous portion.
A tricky rating for moi as the dim sum was quite good with the mains being the downer.
3.5 stars

Another Winterlicious meal, another opportunity to eat at a Susur Lee restaurant. And in the case of Luckee, it epitomizes that culinary world’s cliché word «elevated» as applied to dim sum (and also a variation of cliché words used in Chinese restaurant names – feel free to ask me about it).
Heck, I even caught sight of the local celebrity chef himself on my way out – he was at the bar chatting with some folks. Luckee you.
The restaurant is divided into two areas: a very spacious lounge and bar that also serves the hotel it is in, and the dining room. Both with furniture choices and interior design evocative of old midcentury classic Chinese banquet hall-​style restaurants (the work of wife Brenda Bent and her design firm, as with Lee’s other Toronto restaurants), and yet modern and sexy. There is another bar area I wish I knew of earlier, where you can eat as you watch the kitchen staff at work from behind a glass wall, whilst stacks of dim sum bamboo steamer baskets pile up. Luckee you.
As loud chillout house music blares away and the light goes from dim to near-​pitch-​dark to dim again from time to time (do the staff have a habit of bumping into light switches or are they really trying for a nightclub ambiance?), it is impossible to overlook what you’re getting into here: Susur Lee’s take on dim sum and other Chinese dishes, at celebrity chef’s prices – but only hints of the usual fusion influences of Lee. The stuff in the dim sum menu hovers around a median charge of $ 9, while meat and seafood dishes command at least $ 20. How Luckee.
The Winterlicious 2015 menu ($ 35) features some stuff from the usual menu and some new dishes too. The ‘Luckee Duck’ – Lee’s version of the Peking duck – was at the right kind of soft and crispy, although the Singaporean Curry Noodles, which came unknowingly wrapped pita-​style, sadly lacked that spicy curry punch I love about Singapore noodles like what you get at your usual Chinese mall food court stall lah.
We went off-​course and tried their ha gow and siu mai ($ 9’s), because what the hell is dim sum without those two? Both were… ah, very indescribably interesting, with the use of ingredients and flavours that makes them that (here’s that word again) elevated kind of dim sum experience. Like creamed butternut squash, and… is that really a slice of truffle on top of my siu mai? They were fun to try, and delicious in its own way that makes them incomparable to any average restaurant out there – not Chinatown, not Richmond Hill nor Scarborough-​land. Definitely in its own league, much like the whole idea of eating here in the first place.
Luckee is a hip and upscale, novel Chinese dining experience more suited for the King Street gwai lo yuppie crowd, where you dip your credit card in soy sauce and see if that ballooning check ever gets Chopped, as you listen to the equally hip servers try to pronounce names like «har gow» with whatever semblance of Cantonese they can muster. Absolutely not a place to take your frugal grandma for her birthday, but maybe a cute hip date. You Luckee bastard.
{TTC: the 504 to Peter Street/​Blue Jays Way, or Spadina it to King. Either way, there’s still the block walk to the Soho Metropolitan Hotel.}