I ventured down Queen St. West and stumbled upon Shangri-La, a quaint little Tibetan restaurant with a few splashes of South Asian cuisine and tried my hand at a mouthful of their menu items. Having recently moved to the Parkdale neighbourhood in Toronto, I wanted to start experiencing some of the city’s gems and see for myself if they were worth the hype. This was the perfect place to start.
Crispy Cauliflower
fresh cooked cauliflowers sautéed with chopped onions and served roasted.
I’m really not a fan of cauliflower and can only ever tolerate it in certain situations. The key word here is tolerate. However, that wasn’t the case with this dish and I was delightfully surprised. This dish was pan fried allowing for a crispy exterior and a nice and tender interior. The seasoning on this dish was phenomenal. In addition to this, the chilli sauce that it was served with packed quite a punch whilst working with the already existing medley of flavours very cohesively.
Se-ku-wa
tender pieces of pork marinated in mixture of spices and special sauce. served with lemon, pickled radish and snacks.
This dish was pulverized before I could nab a picture of it. The pieces of pork came on two skewers and were not as tender as I would have expected them to be, it was a lot more on the drier side. However, they weren’t bad. They were pretty flavour and were tasty with a squeeze of lemon and the pickled radish that it was served alongside.
Shangri-La Chilli Chicken
boneless strips of chicken marinated and sautéed with herbs, green chilli, onion, garlic and cilantro
This was by far the best chilli chicken I’ve ever had. I had ordered it dry because I’m not an excessively saucy individual, unless we’re talking attitude. Irrespective of that, the meat was incredibly moist and tender. It wasn’t too spicy, and was savoury beyond a point I can explain. I would highly recommend trying this.
Beef Chowmein
fresh homemade noodles served with vegetables and beef
Although these noodles didn’t taste like they were freshly hand made, they weren’t too bad. I don’t regret trying them, however I know that I more than likely would not be ordering these again, as I’d rather try some of the other noodle and rice dishes available on the menu.
Steamed Chicken Momo
ten pieces of juicy special flavour momo served in bamboo basket with house special chilli sauce
I was told that momos are the Tibetan dumpling prior to ordering these. I have to say, I love the flavour in these and how juicy the meat was. Definitely worth the try and I would absolutely re-order these.
Verdict:
Shangri-La isn’t fine dining in the least nor is it guised to be so. However, I’d categorize it as a highly accessible comfort food that is friendly to all palates. Shangri-La works as a wonderful introduction to the flavours of Tibet whilst allowing for an easy-going experience. Check it out for yourself, and let me know how you like it!
Good vibes.
