While moving can be slog of packing, chaos, expenses, and yet more, endless packing, one of the fun…read morethings about moving to a new-to-you area is discovering what's in the neighbourhood. The main highlights of living in the Sullivan's Pond/Lake Banook area are readily apparent - the water, parks, trails, and nice houses - but sometimes you have to dig under the surface to know, oh, there's a food truck lot randomly on Prince Albert. One of those trucks is the pun-fully named Canton-Ease, and I had them in my sights while knees-deep in cardboard boxes and looking for a quick and, dare I say, easy dinner. Being a food truck, Canton-Ease's menu is much more compact than its brick and mortar forefathers, although that's not a bad thing. Another mark in the 'pros' column was the appearance of some legit Chinese dishes amongst the usual suspects. Ordering online is smooth , either through their own website's platform for pick-up or UberEats if you want delivery. I wasn't quite so tired from unpacking that I wanted to unnecessarily line Uber's pockets, so I did the pick-up myself. We started things off with the pan-fried dumplings. Takeout containers aren't the best friend of a food like this, but they still had some crispness by the time we got to them, and they had that great classic, dumpling flavour of pork and chives. I was very happy to see mapo tofu on the menu, and all the more so when I tried it. Even the Chinese places that have this on their menus often pull their punches a bit, but Canton-Ease's had a deep, rich flavour profile with spicy pops of chili, a little bit of funk from the mushrooms, and a hint of Sichuan peppercorn tingle. Together with the silky chunks of tofu and savoury bits of pork, this was an excellent map tofu! We had to get some noodles, and opted for the Singapore vermicelli, subbing in additional BBQ pork for the shrimp. While the noodles were broader than expected - more like a pho noodle - the curry flavour and crisp contrast of the veg made for a tasty dish nonetheless. Being the responsible adults that we are, we didn't completely forsake the Canada Food Guide, and ordered the stir-fried mix veg to get some much-needed green onto our plates. Tender-crisp chunks of broccoli, baby bok choy, mushrooms, carrots, bean sprouts and snow peas helped brighten up our plates and lighten our gluttonous guilt. Once we were more settled into the house, I made my way back to Canton-Ease for a lazy meal while my wife was out of town for work. The order was smaller this time, of course, but I did over-order ever-so-slightly so that my wife would have some leftovers to greet her when she got home the following night. Take notes, boys. I went for the boiled dumplings this time, figuring that they'd fare better as takeout than fried stuff does, and for my main I chose the Shanghai noodles. In a moment of weakness that I'll chalk up to culinary curiosity and not at all greediness, I tacked on a lone egg roll. The dumplings were expertly wrapped, with the supple wrapper perfectly hugging the juicy pork and cabbage filling. Dipped in some chili crisp, these were *chef's kiss* Not to be outdone, the egg roll was definitely made in-house, and leaned toward the "meat paste" style that used to be quite common in Halifax, but it still maintained some granular texture to the meat, and a rich, warm blend of seasoning further enhanced an egg roll that frankly puts its many cabbage-heavy competitors to shame. I love noodles of nearly any form, but the extra-thick ones in Shanghai noodles are always extra fun to slurp down. Once again, Canton-Ease's quality ingredients helped them stand out amongst the crowd, with the shiitake mushrooms bringing more to the table than their button cousins, and the rich, just-salty-enough-but-not-too-salty sauce gently coated every bite. While I didn't move to the Sullivan's Pond/Lake Banook area because it has a food truck lot, it *is* a nice little perk, and we'll definitely be ordering from Canton-Ease as long as they're our neighbours.

From the owner: Quality and freshness in every bite. We are a Chinese food truck offering local and authentic…read moreoptions. Our main staple is our egg rolls which we make in house with ground beef and a bespoke seasoning blend. Come try today.

Fong's Restaurant has the look of a place that has been around since Cole Harbour's early days,…read morewith the telltale flair of mid-century Orientalism that pervaded many North American Chinese restaurants. A pagoda-like structure dominates the middle of the symmetrical, brick building, with long eaves that don't quite curl up at the corners, but two, offset rows of yellow dentils do add some ornamentation to the roof. The paint has seen better days, but I suppose Chinese restaurants of that era aren't known for their capital investments. My wife and I stopped in while on our way to one of our nieces' softball games, and I came prepared knowing what I wanted to order. In my digital research, I saw that they have the local style of egg rolls, colloquially known as meat paste egg rolls, so I had to get those; BBQ pork fried rice checked the 'rice' box, ginger beef was our entree protein, Shanghai noodles are always a must for us, and the spicy tofu and veggies kept it from solely being a meat and carbs affair. The interior is showing its age, but has a lot of charming details - a slightly inset ceiling tile, wood paneling, Chinese wall hangings, and what I'm sure they're most well-known for - a massive model of an old time sail boat. And I don't mean a small pleasure craft boat, I mean an old naval frigate or cargo ship. It's hilariously out of place, and I guess that's why it works! It was relatively quiet for dine-in customers, with only a couple other tables occupied while we were briefly there, which wasn't surprising for a Monday evening, but a steady stream of takeout orders kept the lone server on her feet. Nonetheless, it didn't take long for our food to arrive. My egg roll's wrapper was golden brown and crisp, and we definitely benefited from having them fresh out of the kitchen as opposed to as takeout. I'm sure there's many people that don't like the "meat paste" style filling for its texture, and that's fair, but it doesn't bother me, and I enjoy the fact that we have our own style of egg roll (although it's no Ottawa-style burnt end egg roll!). The flavour even had hints of curry flavour to it, whether it was curry powder outright or some of its components. We also got to have the ginger beef in its best possible light, as anything battered, and certainly anything that's both battered and sauced, is best immediately after it's cooked. The batter was light and crisp, and the thinly sliced beef was tender. The sauce was a bit underwhelming in that the spice warning was not necessary at all, as there wasn't even any detectable hit of ginger let alone spiciness, so it mainly came off as a hoisin-like sauce, which is fine. Even at very well-regarded Chinese restaurants, the fried rice can be a bit of aside, so I was impressed by humble Cole Harbour stalwart Fong's as theirs had a very noticeable smokiness to it, known as wok hei. The BBQ pork added its tasty mix of sweet and savoury, but the wok hei was the main story of this rice. The spicy tofu and veg had a little more heat to it than the ginger beef, but only just enough to be detectable, although Fong's older customer base with more delicate palates might disagree with me. The stir fried veg was tender crisp and the thick wedges of tofu had a light crust encasing the fluffy interior. Thick Shanghai noodles are always fun to slurp up, and its rich sauce paired well them, and the noodles had a nice hit of wok hei as well. Fong's has a lot of charm from its classic Chinese-Canadian stylings, and while its menu doesn't venture beyond the typical Canadianized-Chinese fare, its doing well by it with a kitchen that knows how to make what the people want and make it well.

Planned to eat in at this restaurant but when we arrived the stale odor and dingy atmosphere was…read morevery off putting. It was late so we placed a to go order of chicken noodle soup which was bland and chicken lo mein which was also sub par. They need to upgrade the restaurant and the food in my opinion

I'm done with this place. Beef and broccoli might have 3 small slivers of beef and so salty. Won…read moreton soup not very good. The price for 2 soup, a bowl of broccoli pretty much and 4 egg rolls. 42.00 with no tip as it was a pick up, never again.

Happy with our order . Will definitely be back we ordered take out and it was ready in 20 minutes…read morewhich was pretty great

This place was close to the place we're staying. I got the chicken and cashews and my husband got…read morethe beef and broccoli. There were many different vegetables in mine and the flavor was good. The beef and broccoli was tasty too.

My husband ordered food for pickup on Saturday night July 30th, 2022. He said everything tasted…read moregood, til the next morning. He got really bad food poisoning from the few items he ordered and ate. He had egg rolls, sweet and sour chicken, the ribs and fried rice. I've never seen my husband so sick in my entire life of being his friend/ girlfriend and wife. We won't ever order here again.

The very best Chinese food in Halifax. No doubt about it. And authentic. Forget about the neon red…read morechicken balls and try some absolutely delicious food at Friends. The English is limited and they run out of specific combo options late evening, but their dumplings (Combo 2) are some of the best I've had. Real 5-spice taste, you are entering flavor-town. Modest interior but very reasonable prices. Thank you Friends!

From the owner: Authentic Chinese food. Best sell dishes: Spicy chicken ding. Sizzling steak on hot plate.read more

Kung Po Chicken and beef with broccoli was excellent. Even thou they were busy the food came very…read morequickly. Great service and a nice ambiance. We usually go to the other location and the other location has a Chinese menu. The Chinese menu has a cabbage dish that's beyond amazing! So both locations are excellent!

I ordered their Wednesday special. I got 4 small pieces of chicken and half of it is bean sprout!…read morethat's pretty special! (NOT coming back!)

After dropping my car off for some work at a nearby garage, I popped over to Fan's to try out this…read morenew-to-me restaurant. Strolling in just as the small, midweek lunch crowd was starting to peter out, I was sat by the window in the expansive dining room. The finishes in the room felt a bit newer than many of their peers', with the exposed duct work and ceiling having a modern black finish, plus nice light fixtures, and a lovely mural of a lake on the far wall. Fan's menu has an interesting mix of legit Chinese dishes, dim sum, and the inescapable Chinese-Canadian food. It's likely quite necessary in an area where I'm guessing that a lot of the workers and residents don't have a palate for the more authentic Chinese dishes, and you can't fault Fan's for the hustle. I had been hoping that more of the dim sum dishes would be available during the week, but it seems like it's only on the weekend, so I resigned myself to an order of dumplings and one of the chef's specials, garlic beef and gailan, plus an order of steamed rice. The dumplings may not have been the prettiest, with uneven folds and somewhat inconsistent shapes, but these were chunky bois, and with nine to an order for $13, it's a helluva deal too! The filling was the standard pork and chive, and the meat was tender and juicy, without being rubbery and overcooked. Arriving while I was only a few dumplings deep, the garlic beef and gailan was a sight to behold! A velvety-smooth sauce coated strips of beef, onions and mushrooms, as well as the verdant gailan. The snap of the thick, but tender-crisp, stems made for a sharp contrast against the wonderfully tender beef. The garlic featured prominently in the flavour of this savoury dish, of course, but didn't overwhelm. My next time there had me coming back during the spring festival, celebrating a somewhat late New Year with my wife as we always do - by ordering way too much Chinese food for two people. First up were the egg rolls - done in the Halifax-style (aka the unflatteringly-named "meat paste" style), these hefty egg rolls had a nice hit of curry powder for flavour and the cute bottle of seemingly house-made plum sauce was a nice touch. Our main courses came in quick succession afterward. Beef and broccoli was spot-on with slices of beef that were once again perfectly tender, plus crispy florets of broccoli and a rich, salt and savoury sauce slathering it all. The Shanghai noodles with shredded pork may not be the most visually-appealing dish, but the flavour was fantastic, as a prominent layer of smoky wok hei enveloped the thick noodles and strips of pork and cabbage. You don't always see it on Chinese menus in Halifax, so we had to get the mapo tofu. We were very glad that we did, as it was one of the best that we've in the city! Although it didn't have a strong layer of funk or Sichuan-peppercorn-induced tingling, the great mix of flavours was still very satisfying - earthy wood ear mushrooms, pops of spice from chilis, the sweet and savoury pork sauce, and again a welcome hit of wok hei. Fan's cooks undoubtedly know what they're doing with a wok! A platter of assorted stir fried veggies added some more vegetable content to our meal and was well-executed. Fan's is firing on all engines with a welcoming space, friendly and attentive staff, and a mix of authentic and Chinese-Canadian dishes that given equal attention and care, elevating themselves in a crowded field. PS. Not only is their website impressively built compared to local peers that generally don't have one at all, they've got a very sizable menu of gluten-free dishes, which is *very* uncommon among Chinese food place, so let the celiacs in your life know!

Great food, friendly staff, and consistently good service. Everything I've tried has been fresh,…read moreflavorful, and well prepared. Definitely a place I'll keep coming back to!

I will go to my grave regretting that I never got to sample Lemon Dogs' famed tacos at their stand…read morein Shubie Park, thanks to moving away from Halifax and not having a car when I was here. However, now that my wife and I have moved back to the city and have motorized transportation, both a walk in Shubie and a meal at the new resident of the food stand, Bao Journey, were on my radar. Bao Journey started out as a stall slinging their wares at farmers markets in the city, but took the leap to a more permanent location when the spot at Shubie Park opened up. We arrived in the mid-afternoon on a sunny weekend day, and there was a steady stream of people coming and going with varying degrees of refreshment and sustenance. Of course, you can't be a food shack in a park in Canada without crowd pleaser like ice cream, cold drinks and fries, but beyond those basics is where their menu gets interesting. Of course, there's a few different versions of their namesake item, bao - BBQ pork, chicken, vegetable and egg custard. Other Asian options include zongzi (sticky rice dumplings), pan fried dumplings, fried shrimp or pork siu mai, chow mein, sesame balls, both spring and egg rolls, and several types of Taiwanese omelettes. We weren't looking a full meal, so we went with the pan-fried dumplings and a BBQ pork bao, as well as a lemonade. We got the lemonade and bao right away, but the dumplings were cooked to order, so they took about 15 minutes. The lemonade tasted homemade and hit the spot on a hot, summer day. Our bao was a textbook example of a great bao - pleasantly chewy dough, with a perfect ratio of dough to filling, and the filling itself had tender, toothsome chunks of cha siu and that signature sauce that's sweet, savoury and a little salty. The only downside was that we had only bought the one to share! The pan-fried dumplings took a little time, but they were worth it. They were round dumplings, pleated in a similar fashion to xiao long bao (soup dumplings), and although they were quite juicy, I wouldn't say they were at a soup dumpling level. The meat was tender and flavourful, and the dipping sauce had a noticeable layer of sweetness. A second visit to Bao Journey found my wife and I there in the fall, during the last few weeks of their season. The Taiwanese omelettes were 86'd for the remainder of the season, so we decided to try out their chow mein with minced pork, and since it was the right season, a mooncake! The cute mooncake was ready right away, while the noodles were cooked to order. It was made with a cute little animal-shaped mold, and of the three fillings that were available, I went with the egg custard. It was generously filled, and the smooth and rich egg custard was a nice little pre-entrée dessert. The noodles didn't take too long since they weren't as busy as they would have been on a summer day, and we eagerly dug in when they were ready. The noodles and veg had a little hit of wok hei to them, and a dark, soy-based sauce covered the noodles in savoury and salty goodness. The minced pork was on the side doing its own thing, so we scooped it onto the noodles as we went, and it was impressively tender without being overcooked like some meat-based sauces can be. Happily satiated, we continued through the park, taking in the fresh air and beautiful fall colours. I'm glad that Shubie Park is attracting food vendors that go beyond the lowest common food denominator, and I'm looking forward to many future hikes that will hopefully be fueled by Bao Journey.