Dining Out: Christmas Day 2025 Dinner at Xiang Zi Hot Pot

My mom and I decided to go for Christmas dinner at Xiang Zi Hot Pot after last year's rousing success. We invited her bestie and got a 5:30PM reservation. It seems like they decided to do two seating times this Christmas instead of having reservations at any time like they usually do, because when we got there, it was a full house.

Tofu puffs, fish balls, quail eggs, beef tendon balls, luncheon meat, lotus root, daikon, and winter melon
Chrysanthemum greens and tender beef slices
Bean curd rolls, lettuce, napa cabbage, king oyster mushrooms, and spring rolls
White fish, squid, beef tripe, and tender beef slices
Premium abalone
Fresh-cut beef slices
Mushroom and pork bone soup

So, last year, we were blown away by the assortment and set up they had at Christmas. They had a huge buffet-style spread of various prepared dishes and snacks as well as extra raw items to pick up ON TOP of their full tablet menu. But they decided to do things a little different this year. They cut down about half the menu and put almost everything out buffet-style. A bunch of our favourite things — various slices of meat, prepared cold dishes like lettuce stem salad or spicy cucumber salad — weren't available. A lot of the ready-to-eat foods weren't being refilled fast enough. There were only about 10 items we could order from the tablet to the table. Disappointing, since the sheer variety of food is what we love about coming here over other hot pot places.

An issue this evening, though, is that we were seated upstairs. I don't really mind myself (hey, extra steps means I can eat more, right?), but my mom and her best friend are in their 70s and have bad knees and arthritis. And the buffet? Where all the food is? It's downstairs. There's no elevator. So I ended up walking up and down the stairs about 8 times to get enough food for everyone. And that's fine because that's as much exercise as I'm getting this holiday week. No biggie. The real problem? They FORGOT OUR HOT POTS. You know, the actual pots with the broth that we can cook all of our raw food in? Yeah. All three of us ordered the same type of broth — mushroom and pork bone. Not a particularly complicated order. They usually get our pots to us within minutes. But tonight, it took them 45 MINUTES for them to bring our broth pots to our table. This was after asking three different servers to check on them for us. And, mind you, every table gets a 2-hour seating limit here. The server sheepishly had to assure us that they wouldn't have a time limit for us tonight — frankly, the least they could do. If we weren't hungry when we arrived, we were starving by the time we could actually eat our food. 

So, yeah. Xiang Zi's Christmas dinner service this year was a disappointing, disorganized mess. Judging by how long they took to get our hot pots to us, how many empty chafing dishes there were at the buffet, how long it took them to refill all the different ingredients, and just the lack of variety that they usually have, I'd say they were way too understaffed for the sheer amount of customers there tonight and had to cut way back on food costs. I've never had a less-than-excellent time at Xiang Zi, so this dinner was particularly disappointing. (I also just discovered that they don't even have an official website anymore. Are they going out of business?)

On that note, I hope everyone had a merry Christmas and a better dinner experience than we did!

Xiang Zi Hot Pot

Uptown Market Shopping Centre

3989 Highway 7

Markham, ON L3R 5M6

(905) 305-9888

Dining Out: Christmas Eve 2025 Dinner at Ruth's Chris Steak House

We originally wanted to have our annual family Christmas Eve dinner at The Keg, but obviously, they were fully booked unless we wanted to eat at 4:00PM or 9:00PM. (We didn't.) We were scrambling to find somewhere decent to eat for the holiday that had a reservation time from 5:00PM to 7:00PM, and then my brilliant mind thought of Ruth's Chris Steak House — definitely pricier than we were seeking, but then my brother insisted that Christmas dinner was on him because he and his family weren't coming up this year. And lo and behold, they had one 6:45PM reservation slot left. It was meant to be!

Arugula salad with goat cheese, cranberries, and grapes tossed in cranberry pomegranate vinaigrette
6 oz. centre-cut filet with shrimp
Garlic mashed potatoes
Maple-glazed butternut squash with maple candied pecans
Creamed spinach
Roasted Brussels sprouts with applewood-smoked bacon and honey butter
Mini white chocolate cheesecake

All four of us went for the Ruth's Classics prix fixe menu, which includes a starter, an entrée, a personal side, and dessert for $97. I got the cranberry arugula salad (the perfect combination of sweet, bitter, and tangy — I could honestly eat this everyday), the 6-ounce centre-cut filet and shrimp (okay, The Keg does great steak, but Ruth's Chris does IMPECCABLE steak — the beef is so melt-in-your-mouth tender, I almost didn't need a steak knife), and my mom shared the garlic mashed potatoes and the maple-glazed butternut squash. We also got the creamed spinach (the ultimate steakhouse side dish and the unanimous favourite) and roasted Brussels sprouts (sweet, salty, smoky, crunchy — addictively delicious) for the table to share. For dessert, a perfect mini white chocolate cheesecake with raspberry coulis and two pieces of dark chocolate bark — rich, sweet, and decadent, but small enough to keep us from feeling too guilty (and bursting out of our pants because they know how full we'd be by the time dessert rolled around).

This was the best Christmas dinner I've had in years. I think this might be a new Christmas tradition in the making. (At least, I will make it so. My family will have no say in the matter because I make the reservations and therefore hold all the power.)

Ruth's Chris Steak House

170 Enterprise Blvd., Unit J101

Markham, ON L6G 0G5

(647) 794-0170

Dining Out: Christmas Eve 2025 Dim Sum at NKS Banquet Hall

I had a half-day of work today and it would've been churlish not to go out for lunch since it's Christmas Eve and all, so I made plans for dim sum with my mom and her bestie at their regular spot:

Dough fritter rice noodle rolls with yuk sung
Steamed BBQ pork buns (char siu bao)
Steamed shrimp dumplings (har gao)
Steamed pork and shrimp dumplings (siu mai)
Pan-fried turnip and preserved pork patties (lo bak go)
Deep-fried shrimp and chive dumplings
Deep-fried pork and egg yolk glutinous rice (zong)
Baked egg custard tarts (daan tat)

I know I've talked endlessly about how great and totally underrated NKS Banquet Hall is, but honestly, if we're talking quality vs. value, their dim sum is absolutely the most worth it. Their decor isn't as fancy as Casa Victoria or trendy as Luna, and they keep it simple and traditional with their dishes (no truffle oil or gold foil here), but NKS is cheaper than both and the quality of their food is consistently excellent (similar to Casa Victoria; significantly better than Luna). The tea fee, at $2 per person ($1.80 if you're a regular, apparently), is on par with most dim sum places, but if you spend $20, you get your choice of siu mai or beef meatballs FOR FREE. IN THIS ECONOMY!

Also, if the room filled almost exclusively with Cantonese-speaking senior citizens isn't indication enough (and most of them are regulars since no less than five people came to greet my mom), NKS is — at least in Markham (which, honestly, is more Chinese than Toronto's Chinatown) — the best place to come for dim sum. And there's never a line-up because all the Millennials are going to the trendy, Instagram-able dim sum places. (I admit I have been guilty of this a time or two.) But y'all, when it comes to dim sum? Always trust the Hong Kong immigrant boomers! They don't give a shit about Google reviews or ratings — they just want good, authentic Cantonese food.

NKS Banquet Hall

New Kennedy Square

8360 Kennedy Rd., Unit B06

Markham, ON L3R 9W5

(905) 948-8668

Dining Out: Christmas Day 2024 Dinner at Xiang Zi Hot Pot

Every year, my mom and I go out for Christmas dinner, usually a set menu type of deal. But I wanted something a little more comforting this year, and more warming because I've had a runny nose and nasal congestion since Sunday. And what could be more warming than hot pot?

Ready-to-serve dishes: Cucumber salad, lettuce stem salad, and marinated duck tongues

Premium item: Abalone

Napa cabbage, lettuce stems, king oyster mushrooms, and enoki mushrooms

Beef tripe, beef tendon, fish and beef balls, winter melon, daikon, and lotus root

Premium item: Tender beef

Angus beef, beef brisket, beef sirloin, New Zealand lamb, pork belly, and basa fillet

Cooking in mushroom and pork bone broth

Dessert: Fresh-cut papaya, oriental melon, honeydew, and watermelon

On top of their regular menu, they also had a Christmas-exclusive buffet-style spread around the main centre booth, which included ready-to-eat foods like marinated quail eggs, braised tofu, and stewed beef tendon; raw items already separated into dishes that you could pick up instead of ordering from the tablet; a huge variety of all-you-can-drink canned pop; as well as an assortment of cakes, Melona bars, and fruits for dessert. This was awesome. Kinda wish they had this all year round, but I know it's a lot to maintain and it makes the restaurant way more hectic than it needs to be since so many more people are getting up to roam. Still, the food was excellent, the service was excellent, and therefore, Christmas was excellent. 

Hope everyone had a similarly delicious and merry Christmas!

Xiang Zi Hot Pot

Uptown Market Shopping Centre

3989 Highway 7

Markham, ON L3R 5M6

(905) 305-9888

Take Out: Apple Cider, Tanghulu, and Churros at Holiday Fair in the Square

After our downtown adventure, Minji, Daniel, and I went to check out the Holiday Fair in the Square.

Tanghulu
Churros
Custard bungeoppang

It was... disappointing. We dropped by to see what kind of sweet treats we could get, and though Minji picked up a couple boxes of baklava and Turkish delight to bring home, we only got some apple cider, a skewer of tanghulu, and a couple of churros. There were no funnel cakes, no cookies, no crazy holiday-themed hot chocolates. Maybe it's because we went on a Friday, but there were only about 10 food stalls in total, so I'm guessing they open way more stalls on Saturday and Sunday. Either way, we ended up having to make up for the lack of food variety by getting some custard bungeoppang up the street. 

Sigh. This is what we get for not wanting to pay the admission fee for the Winter Village.

Holiday Fair in the Square

Mel Lastman Square

5100 Yonge St.

North York, ON M2N 5V7

(416) 338-3343

Bing Crosby x V of BTS — "White Christmas" Official MV

I'm not into Christmas songs, but when Bing Crosby's estate decides to collaborate with V on "White Christmas" (his most famous song and the world's best-selling single), it's a pretty goddamn big deal. 

Dining Out: Christmas Dinner at La Piazzetta Ristorante

My mom and I decided to switch it up this year and went for Christmas dinner at La Piazzetta instead of Maxim. It did take 30 minutes for our main courses to come out (the kitchen was way too understaffed for such a busy day, but they apologized profusely) and they don't offer an all-you-can-eat cake buffet like Maxim (which I can't take full advantage of anyway because I'm diabetic), but overall, the food was excellent.

Prosciutto honeydew salad
AAA striploin steak with red wine sauce
Tiramisu cake
I decided to get the salad to start instead of soup, and while they offer the same house salad all year round, they decided to serve it with prosciutto and honeydew today, a perfect pairing of sweet and salty. I originally wanted the duck breast for my main course, but they were sold out of it by the time we got there for our 7:30 seating, so I got the AAA striploin instead. It occurred to me that I pretty much got the exact same thing as I did the last time I went there, but this steak was significantly better — juicy, tender, flavourful, and cooked perfectly medium rare (like an actual red middle, not pink). They only have one dessert offering, which is their tiramisu cake, but I'm not mad about it because, you know, it's a freaking good cake. (They serve it cold so it actually tastes like ice cream, which I love.)

Anyway, a successful Christmas dinner — they have less options than Maxim and they're not as creative with their dishes, but it's cheaper and it's way closer, so I can't complain. Would definitely come here again next year. I hope everyone had a great holiday!

La Piazzetta Ristorante

Monte Carlo Inn Toronto Markham

8900 Woodbine Ave.

Markham, ON L3R 5K6

(905) 513-8100

Winterfest 2023 at Canada's Wonderland

For some reason, I didn't know that Canada's Wonderland was open during the winter. For years, I thought they closed right after Halloween Haunt and then re-opened in the spring. But I saw someone's post on IG about the Winterfest funnel cakes at Canada's Wonderland a couple of weeks ago and I was like, "I MUST GO." So I asked my friend Iris if she was interested in going since she loves all things Christmas, and she immediately agreed. 

Winterfest at Canada's Wonderland
Winterfest at Canada's Wonderland
Winterfest at Canada's Wonderland
Winterfest at Canada's Wonderland

Even with a discounted price through Perkopolis, one admission ticket with parking still added up to $48 per person. Pretty goddamn steep for a three-hour visit, but once we walked in, we were met with a truly spectacular sight. And I gotta admit, with the amount of time and labour it took to set all of those lights, it's worth the price. It's once a year, after all.

Turkey Dinner Ball at the Holiday Dining Hall

Our main goal, aside from looking at all the pretty lights, was to eat as many Christmas-themed foods as possible. Of the main dishes, the Turkey Dinner Ball ($14.99) surprisingly ended up being the unanimous favourite. It's exactly as it sounds: turkey meat and stuffing shaped into a ball, battered and deep-fried, and then sat atop a bed of mashed potatoes, with gravy drizzled on top and cranberry sauce on the side. I do wish there was more gravy on the side because the batter ends up absorbing most of it, but the cranberry sauce was a saviour to keep the turkey from getting too dry. 

Turkey Dinner Poutine at the Holiday Dining Hall

The Turkey Dinner Poutine ($14.99) was decent; the quality of the gravy and the cheese curds were great, but the turkey meat sitting on top was a little too dry and also way too smoked. To the point where it overwhelmed all the other flavours of the poutine. Even the cranberry sauce couldn't save it. We ended up taking the turkey off and just ate the poutine as it was meant to be. (Surprised that we found such a good poutine at Canada's Wonderland, of all places.) 

Turkey Maple Cranberry Stromboli at the Holiday Dining Hall

We also decided to get the Maple Turkey Cranberry Stromboli ($13.99), which actually sounded really promising, like a turkey dinner pizza pocket. Except when we got our stromboli, which is made to order, it didn't have maple or cranberry. Upon first bite, we found tomato sauce, cheese, and turkey as expected, but also... beets. Yes, beets. I'm not that mad about it because I love beets, but did they really think we wouldn't notice the replacement of cranberry sauce for beets? (NOT ALL DARK PINK FOOD IS CREATED EQUAL.) So it was basically a pizza pocket with turkey and beets. Like the poutine, you're better off getting the original. 

Gingerbread funnel cake at Festive Funnel Cakes

Finally, we lined up to get a funnel cake — the main reason for our visit to Winterfest. There are three Winterfest options on top of the original Strawberry, but we decided to go for Gingerbread since it seemed the most festive but also the most enticing. Like all the funnel cake options, it comes with the vanilla soft serve ice cream, but this one is topped with gingerbread pieces, drizzled with caramel sauce, and then topped with sprinkles and a sugar cookie. (It was supposed to be a gingerbread man-shaped cookie, but they ran out, so we got a tree-shaped one instead. A little disappointing when gingerbread is actually the theme of your food.) I don't need to tell you that it was hecking delicious, but I do think that it could have benefitted with more sauce because the addition of gingerbread pieces made the funnel cake a little dry. Then again, it probably has two days' worth of calories, fat, and sugar so... maybe not.

Winterfest at Canada's Wonderland
Winterfest at Canada's Wonderland
Winterfest at Canada's Wonderland

We did want to end the night with some hot chocolate, which was surprisingly inexpensive (for a theme park) at $4.99 a cup, but then we saw that they were using the instant Carnation hot chocolate and realized why it was so affordable. We refused to get it because you can literally get a 7-sachet variety pack of Carnation hot chocolate for $5.99 at any supermarket here, so we decided to get some apple cider instead. But upon closer look at the menu board, we saw that one cup (with no alcohol, mind you) started at $11.99, which is just highway robbery. So we refused that, too. But we made up for our failed drink quest with getting some ginger molasses cookies (3 for $10, a total steal) in the Christmas Market, which turned out to be one of the best cookies I've ever eaten in my life.

Overall, I'd say that Winterfest was a success. This is as Christmassy as I'm gonna get.

Canada's Wonderland

1 Canada's Wonderland Drive

Vaughan, ON L6A 1S6

(905) 832-8131

Dining Out: Christmas Dinner at Maxim Restaurant

It's only my mom and I celebrating Christmas together this year, but we still upheld our annual tradition of Christmas dinner at Maxim this evening:

Jumbo prawn with avocado, aburi salmon, and mushroom arancini with seaweed and tobiko crab salads

Tournedos Rossini: Filet mignon with pan-seared foie gras on top of mashed potatoes with roasted vegetables and Madeira sauce

Totally satisfied with this year's menu. (There was also lobster bisque au Cognac for the soup course, but a bowl of brown soup looks really boring and isn't particularly photogenic, so there is no picture. But all you gotta know is that it was rich and full of delicious lobster flavour.) Their appetizer course is always interesting to me because it includes three of the most random selections, ever, and you wouldn't think they would be cohesive at all, but they're always really delicious. Speaking of which, I was pleasantly surprised that my steak was actually cooked such a perfect medium rare, because usually only steakhouses can keep the centre a full red instead of veering into pink. I'm also not usually a huge foie gras lover, but there's so little fat in filet mignon that the foie gras added a really nice buttery flavour and perfect creamy texture to the meat. The heart-shaped puff pastry on top was also a super cute touch.

Black sesame mousse cake

Hazelnut mocha mousse cake

Strawberry almond meringue cake

Of course, the main draw of the Christmas menu at Maxim is the all-you-can-eat cake buffet, which only occurs once a year. Maxim, while having a really decent and varied continental menu, is really known for their cakes. Both my mom and I have to watch our sugar intake, but we still managed to share three slices: the black sesame mousse, the hazelnut mocha mousse, and the strawberry almond meringue. Both mousse cakes were sadly really underwhelming — the black sesame literally had no flavour (I thought it was just me because I was also drinking coffee, but my mother confirmed that there really was no flavour), and the hazelnut mocha mousse had some flavour but literally did not taste like either hazelnut nor mocha (the best adjective I could use is "nut-milky"). The strawberry almond meringue saved the day, and is why it has been my go-to for the last 20 years. It just never disappoints.

I hope everyone had a very merry Christmas and got to eat as much as I did! 😁

Maxim Restaurant

Village Gate Plaza

9665 Bayview Ave.

Richmond Hill, ON L4C 9V4

(905) 883-1465