Hong Kong Island Bakery - Toronto

We did not come here for the bakery, only for dim sum. The critique is ONY of the dim sum. The portions were as pictured. However, the shrimp dumplings were fried to a burned crisp and the Shrimp dim sum and the Green Onion Pork dim sum were GLOP of overcooked rice noodles that could only be eaten by tearing the glop apart. The shrimp, onion and pork were only placed on top of the noodles. Very unappetizing. Having only US dollars the exchange is 1:1 so we overpaid by more than 33%. Won't be back here for dim sum. Did not try any bakery items, but they did look good.

The bakery items are very good and the price is very reasonable. The dim sum is reasonably priced but average quality. It’s a quick meal if you just want a snack.

Besides the usual sweet baked goods, there are a variety of savory baked goods as well, in case you don't want your lunch to be nothing but egg tarts and pineapple buns!

Baked BBQ buns (chaxiu bao) had little fat or gristle. Every bun was very freshly baked. Red bean buns were fluffy, bigger than one's palm. Polo baos (pineapple buns) were crusty and soft on the inside. We also got bubble tea with bouncy jelly. Perfect tea time snacks to take back to the hotel.

We were looking forward to visiting this bakery. The baked goods are fresh and the Sesame balls are delish! We had hoped to sit and enjoy a drink and a nosh but the staff seemed purposefully obtuse. When asked what they had to drink other than bubble tea, I was ignored. It seemed odd to me that I was required to put my baked goods on a tray without any paper underneath. I wasn't the only one that seemed confused and they didn't receive any help either. I ended up buying a water and we took our baked goods back to the hotel.