Dining Out: Markham Ribfest 2025

I, along with Minji and Daniel (and baby Lillian), embarked on my first ever ribfest this evening:

1/4 rack ribs and sausage with sides of baked beans, coleslaw, cornbread, and mac and cheese from Sticky Fingers BBQ

1/3 rack ribs and 1/2 pound beef brisket from Big Texas BBQ

Unanimous highlights were the ribs (moist, juicy, and excellent BBQ sauce that was just sweet and tangy enough), sausages (great bite, superb flavour), and beans (good combination of sweet and smoky, not too runny or thick) from Sticky Fingers BBQ and, surprisingly, the Dubai-style chocolate strawberries (the berries were super fresh and sweet, and worked really well with the combination of pistachio and chocolate flavours while the kataifi added a really nice crunch). 

Everything else was just... mediocre. At best. While the meats we tried from Sticky Fingers BBQ were great, most of the sides were quite disappointing: the coleslaw was bland (as if the dressing was too diluted?), the cornbread (not pictured) was on the drier side, and the mac and cheese (not pictured) needed to be both creamier and cheesier. (Had we had more stomach space, I would've loved to do a compare and contrast between these sides from all five rib teams.) The majority of the ribs from Big Texas BBQ were very dry (like, some of the meat wouldn't even come off the bone), the flavour of the BBQ sauce was rather forgettable, and all the lean pieces of beef brisket were tough. Not sure if it's the cooking conditions or the actual cooks, but the five featured rib teams at this ribfest have won numerous awards, titles, and trophies, so I was expecting way, way, way better quality offerings. 

Funnel cake with vanilla ice cream and strawberry sauce from Fabulicious Funnel Cakes

Churros with vanilla ice cream from Victoria's Churro Cone

Dubai-style chocolate strawberries

Aside from the chocolate strawberries (a real underdog at a festival like this), the desserts were honesty quite disappointing, too. The funnel cake was way too thick and dense and not nearly crispy enough, and the ice cream on top was way too icy, as if it was made with low-fat milk. And while the churros came with much smoother and creamier ice cream, the churros themselves were hard and crunchy rather than chewy with a crispy edge. We all regretted not getting a bloomin' onion or tornado potato instead of so many desserts. Alas, we were too full to even think about getting anything else.

Surprisingly, we only spent $39.81 each on food and drink, which actually ends up being cheaper than a dinner at an average sit-down restaurant after tax and tip. So, would I go to ribfest again? Yeah, it was still fun to try different BBQ and food vendors and soak in the summery vibes and live music (the band did some great covers from The White Stripes to Letters to Cleo to Queen). But I just need to lower my expectations next time. And maybe better strategize on how to divide and conquer all the food options.

Markham Ribfest 2025

Downtown Markham

179 Enterprise Blvd.

Markham, ON L6G 0A2

Dining Out: New Year Special at Uncle Qiang BBQ 犟贰叔

Happy New Year!

I rang in 2025 with Chinese takeout, bubble tea, and a Harry Potter movie marathon with my friends Minji and Daniel, which, frankly, was the best idea, ever. Since I got home at 4:00AM, we decided to go for a late lunch at my new fave, Uncle Qiang BBQ, where they are currently having a New Year Special Combo for $119.99:

Hand-smashed cucumbers
Flavoured sausage
Black pepper beef brisket
Pickled Chinese cabbage with chili oil
Chinese sausage and black pepper beef brisket
Garlic prawns
Miso beef brisket
Miso beef brisket and pickled cabbage
Egg fried rice
Uncle's Special beef
Uncle's Special lamb
Cheese corn

2025 is off to a great start.

Uncle Qiang BBQ 犟贰叔

350 Highway 7, Unit 105

Richmond Hill, ON L4B 3N2

(905) 751-7518

Dining Out: A Yakiniku Feast at Shinta Japanese BBQ

Minji, Daniel, and I took our friend Samuel out for his birthday at Shinta since he had never had Japanese BBQ and wanted to try it. Since it was his first time having Japanese BBQ and it was his birthday, we decided to spring for the Silver Wagyu AYCE menu and quite literally ordered every single item off of it:

Chef selected wagyu cuts
Chef selected wagyu cuts
Chef selected wagyu cuts
Chef selected wagyu cuts
Rack of lamb, miso toro beef, and pineapple
Australia Mg+ top sirloin steak and foie gras
Prime kalbi short rib
Toro beef with tare sweet soy sauce
Thick cut ox tongue
Berkshire pork belly and sous vide pork belly
Sukiyaki beef
Thin cut beef tongue, scallops, and shrimp
Hazelnut chocolate mochi jelly cake from Savorology

I didn't even include the non-meat items we ate: clams in sake, baked sweet potatoes with cheese, cheesy butter corn, vegetables, takoyaki, cold noodles, or bibimbap… Honestly, there was so much meat that we couldn't keep track of every single cut we ate. I can only tell you that there wasn't a single one we didn't like. That having been said, I think after you eat like, 12 different types of beef, you can't even really tell which one is the wagyu, so I can't say that the $53 price jump from their regular menu to the Silver Wagyu menu is worth it. Still, Samuel loved everything and had a great time, which is what really matters at the end of the day. And we even got him an adorable hazelnut chocolate mochi jelly cake from Savorology which is just as delicious as it is cute.

The only thing I have to complain about here is how much they rush you to leave when your seating time is almost up. They have a 2-hour seating limit, which is reasonable, but they come by the table to ask for "last call" orders about 30 minutes before your time is up. Of course, by the time your last call orders arrive and everything is grilled, you only have about 10 minutes to eat. So not only were they hesitant to bring out the birthday cake with only 5 minutes remaining in our seating time, they were also reluctant to bring out a knife or plates for it. And when we finally got a knife to cut the cake, our server lay down the bill on the table and got a bus boy to start cleaning up everything off our table and even asked if we wanted to get the cake we were IN THE MIDDLE OF EATING to go. I get that you want to get the next table seated, but you can give us an extra 5 minutes to eat a cake that was clearly for a birthday. Especially if we're spending over $100 per person. Again, I understand that it's apart of your policy, but it is somewhat unprofessional and ruins the vibe of what is clearly someone's birthday celebration. Seriously, your next party can wait 5 minutes. They can accommodate it at every other restaurant.

Shinta Japanese BBQ

280 West Beaver Creek Rd.

Richmond Hill, ON L4B 3B1

(905) 597-0305

Dining Out: Smoked Beef Brisket & Ribs, Savoury Jowl Bites, Crispy Octopus with Sous Vide Egg, Vietnamese Beef Stew with Puff Pastry, and Lemongrass Pork Chops at Electric Piggy

I had never heard of Vietnamese BBQ before, so when I kept seeing Electric Piggy (the sister restaurant to Nam) all over my social media, I knew I had to try it out ASAP. So my friends Minji, Daniel, Samuel, and I went there for an early dinner and MY GOD, IT WAS INCREDIBLE:

14-hour smoked beef brisket and 6-hour smoked pork ribs with house BBQ sauce and buttery corn bread
Savoury pork jowl bites served with vermicelli
Crispy octopus with sous vide egg, la lot sausage chorizo, and potato purée
Vietnamese beef stew with premium beef brisket, tomato, carrots, and lemongrass topped with puff pastry
Charcoal grilled lemongrass pork chop on hai nam rice with onion oil

The most tender, melt-in-your-mouth beef brisket and fall-off-the-bone pork ribs. Delectably juicy slices of pork neck. An impeccable combination of octopus and chorizo in an almost carbonara-like creamy egg concoction. A rich, savoury stew of tender beef brisket chunks and carrots topped with a flaky, crispy, golden puff pastry. Juicy lemongrass pork chops grilled over charcoal with perfectly oily hai nam rice. A perfect demonstration of how Vietnamese food is truly and beautifully fusion. 

I am apparently making it my goal to try out all the different Asian BBQs these days, and so far, I AM NOT DISAPPOINTED. 

Electric Piggy

8384 Woodbine Ave.

Markham, ON L3R 2N8

(905) 415-2122

Dining Out: Chinese BBQ Feast at Uncle Qiang BBQ

For some reason, I've had a lot of Korean and Japanese BBQ, but never Chinese BBQ. Frankly, I didn't even know it was a thing until my friend Iris and I discovered the absolute joy that is Uncle Qiang BBQ, where we had a most incredible feast:

Uncle's Special boneless beef rib
Uncle's Special boneless beef rib
Prime beef shoulder cubes
Prime beef shoulder cubes
Hand smashed cucumbers
Crispy chicken cartilage with pineapple
Grilled gluten with red onions
King oyster mushrooms
Freshly cut pork belly
Freshly cut pork belly and king oyster mushrooms
Sweet garlic beef short ribs
Sweet garlic beef short ribs
Cheese corn

High quality cuts of meat, amazing flavours, great presentation, and absolutely phenomenal service. In fact, they might have the best service I've ever come across in a Chinese restaurant. Our main server was so friendly (she offered Iris a hair tie upon seating us so her hair wouldn't get in the way while eating), gave us tips on sauce and seasoning combinations and cooking methods, and always made sure we had enough water and empty platters were cleared at all times. But all the servers were attentive and had great attitudes and cheerful demeanours that made it super, super pleasant to be around. They even have a table side hamper for you to put your coats and bags in so they don't smell. 

Basically, this place is my new favourite and I'm coming back ASAP.

Uncle Qiang BBQ 犟贰叔

350 Highway 7, Unit 105

Richmond Hill, ON L4B 3N2

(905) 751-7518

Dining Out: Pork Belly, Beef Short Ribs, Beef Rib Finger Meat, and Seafood Pajeon at Daldongnae

While I ate some amazing things in Orlando, the one thing I really started to miss was Asian food. Minji and I were hardcore craving Korean BBQ, so along with Daniel, we headed over to my favourite K-BBQ restaurant, Daldongnae, where we feasted on pork belly, beef short ribs, beef rib finger meat, and seafood pajeon, and MY GOD, IT HIT THE SPOT.

K-BBQ grill and banchan

Pork belly, beef short ribs, and beef rib finger meat

Pork belly

Pork belly

Beef short ribs and beef rib finger meat

Seafood pajeon

For some reason, the first meal I eat out when I come back home from traveling anywhere is Korean food, and it is always particularly satisfying.

Daldongnae

135 York Blvd.

Richmond Hill, ON L4B 3B4

(905) 707-0683