New Starlet Seafood Restaurant

BF and I have never tried Po King together and since the restaurant is gone, we decided to try the replacement which is New Startlet Seafood. We arrived fifteen minutes prior to closing (10:00pm) and were not rushed throughout the dinner, since the restaurant started a private room of MJ. Furthermore, the last thing we would want is to ever feel rushed, which is ironic because we subconsciously still felt rushed and got everything packed home to eat.

When we walked in, our first thoughts were that New Starlet is one of the cleaner restaurants on Kingsway Street. In addition, the interior is bright, has comfortable seating arrangements as well as nice chandeliers, and looks good.

SUPREME SHARK'S FIN SOUP WITH CRAB MEAT ($18.80/BOWL).

Unfortunately the soup tastes bland as well as watery, and the broth resembles a basic crab meat and fish maw soup. I definitely do not recommend ordering this, especially for the price.

BRAISED CRISPY SQUAB ($15.80).

The squab is quite a large size and has a nice shine as well as color. However, the meat tastes chewy as well as tough, and the skin does not have the slightest crispiness.

2 1/2LB CREAM AND BUTTER SAUCE CRAB ($12.80/LB) + YEE MEIN NOODLES ($15.00). The crab is fried well and the sauce is not bad. The sauce has a light creamy buttery flavour and the consistency is not too thick. As for the yee mein noodles, they taste sturdy with a pleasant chewiness; not under or overcooked.

EGGPLANT AND MINCED PORK WITH SPICY GARLIC SAUCE HOT POT ($14.80).

The sauce tastes very light and not heavy, which I prefer (although perhaps "bland" to most). However, the slices of eggplant taste slightly too mushy and although the top layer looks good, the ones underneath is all mashed up. The hot pot is more like mashed eggplants if anything.

COMPLIMENTARY CRYSTHANAMUM JELLO, CHINESE ALMOND AND SESAME BALL COOKIES.

The jello tastes light as well as refreshing, and not overly sweet. As for the cookies, the Chinese almond ones taste perfectly made and melts in the mouth. In addition, the sesame ball ones have a nice crunch but do not taste stale.

Overall, we did not order much food so cannot say if the dishes are good or not. However, for what we ordered, everything seems below average to average at best. As for the service, although we were one of the only two tables there, the staff was friendly. In the end, nothing really stood out for us to come back.

POSITIVES

- Nice atmosphere

- Always love crysthanamum or goji berry jello, and cookies

NEGATIVES

- Shark's fin soup was a fail

- Food could be better

LITTLE THINGS

- Items are $2.00 pricier than some Chinese restaurants in the area (although consider the atmosphere)

Food: 2/5

Service: 2.5/5