LEE

 LEE 

LOCATION:
601 King Street West
Toronto (416) 504 7867

www.susur.com/lee/

RATINGS:
Service: 3 . 5 / 4
Ambiance: 3 .75 / 4
Food: 3 . 5 / 4
Price: $$$$

As a huge Top Chef fan, LEE has been a on the top of my must go list for the past while. When my mom's birthday came around, I knew it would be a great time to check this restaurant out. Although on the night we went Susur Lee was not in, we still had a fabulous meal enjoying his unique creations. The decor is classy yet causal,  providing both lounge and restaurant seating depending on your preference.  Our waiter recommend we order about a dish and a half per person, so we ordered six of the family-style dishes for the four of us. We found that to be plenty for us.

As soon as we saw the CHEESE BURGER SPRING ROLL we knew we would have to give them a try; when else would we get a chance to try this? The hot, crispy spring roll was stuffed with seasoned ground beef, cheddar cheese and drizzled with a smoked chili mayo which packed some heat. Our waiter informed us that the chef intended for the roll atop iceberg lettuce and  pickled veggies  to be eaten as a one package deal.  It really did taste just like a cheese burger. It was definitely a must try once menu item, but  I don't know if we would order it again.

Of course we had to try the famous SINGAPOREAN STYLE SLAW, one of LEE's most well-known dishes. We were all impressed by the presentation of this dish and couldn't wait to dig in. The waiter explained the ingredients - all 19 of them. He then tossed the slaw for us explaining that it needed to be mixed thoroughly in order to get all 19 flavours in each bite. My mom could not stop raving about the tastes. She loved the sweet, sour and spicy mix that came from all items blending together.

We also ordered the GARLIC TIGER SHRIMP. They were grilled with a tangy spiced tomato jam and soya bean crumbs. The huge  shrimp were well flavoured. The spicy jam went well with the fresh pickled green papaya which lay on top of the succulent prawns. The dish also came with two potato pea croquettes. The croquettes reminded me of a veggie samosa because of their light curry flavour. Mmmmmm - all of the elements on the plate were to perfection.

If you know my family then you know we love scallops. So the SPICED CRUSTED DIVER SCALLOPS were a no brainer. The crust was made of spiced Chinese bean pesto, which added a nice texture to the smooth scallops. Atop each scallop was  a slice of fresh grapefruit and crispy fried bacon. The citrus from the fresh grapefruit was a pleasant companion to the salty bacon and earthy flavour of the scallops.

Since I was the Top Chef fan at the table, I convinced my family to order the TOP CHEF GREEN CURRY CHICKEN(Susur's winning dish as made in the show). Large chunks of chicken were splashed with the spiced tomato jam, chili mint and coconut green curry sauce. The chicken was accompanied by a pea polenta pancake that was delicious - better than the chicken, to be honest. Although it was award-winning on the show, it was not our favourite dish of the night; as we found the chicken to be a little dry.

Lastly, was the succulent JERK SPICY PORK RIBS. The ribs were coated in a scotch bonnet sauce, ginger, fresh mango, diced veggies and a mango puree. The pork was juicy and extremely tender; it easily fell of the bone. This dish left us all licking our fingers.  We could not get enough of that scotch bonnet sauce.

Would we go back? Yes

STANDOUT DISH OF THE NIGHT:
Garlic Tiger Shrimp