New City Restaurant — Restaurant in Markham

I very rarely leave reviews but this one was just outstanding for the worst reasons. Meals had here: Steak meal - pretty good for the price. Beef brisket ho fun soup - terrible; the soup was watered down, the brisket tasted gamey, and the worst part was the ho fun as it was so overcooked that it was completed broken down (I.e., instead of strands of noodles, it was basically just sticky, wet and mushy small pieces) Toast and butter - decent, it was 1 slice of toast with spreadable butter but the toast was very thin Coffee and Milk Tea mix - was not good; tasted very sour as if the coffee had gone bad. Milk tea - pretty good

I have been here a few times, and unfortunately, I have not had many good experiences with this restaurant. The first time I came here, it was a fine, normal experience. Second time, we waited almost 30mins to be seated despite there being a booth available the entire time (amazingly enough, when we got seated, it was that same booth they gave us), and after ordering, it took us another 30mins to receive our food after we inquired with the waiter so they most likely forgot about our order. Third time was the worst experience: we got seated quickly and apart from the terrible ho fun, thinnest toast ever, and coffee/MT drink, it was going to be a normal meal, but towards the end, when we got the bill, we saw a $2.50 charge which we asked the waiter about as on their menu, it said "Add toast $0.30" to a meal, which is what I did, and according to the waiter, "YOU ordered the toast so it's $2.50, but if SHE (my partner who ordered a different meal set) ordered it, it would have been $0.30". I was completely taken aback that this even exists since we both ate everything together in a way, and I was about to be fine with this weird ruling until the other waiter (the one that took our order) completely unannounced, came up to our table in a very accusatory manner, pointed at me and shouted "yeah it's HIM who ordered it, not her so it's correct". Who does that? Either way, I will never be coming back to the place and recommend no one does as their food quality does not at all justify their predatory sales tactics and disgusting...

We came here for lunch as I have been craving a HK style dish that I haven't had in a very long time: baked ox tongue with tomato sauce over rice. We also ordered baked Portuguese chicken, and a bowl of noodle soup.

After a short wait that was less than 10 minutes, we were seated at a booth. A complimentary cup of tea or water is included. The service was fast, and efficient.

New City has different menu specials for breakfast, lunch, or tea time (2:30pm to 6pm). We liked that a choice of soy milk, hot lemon water or HK tea was included with the meal combos that were all reasonably priced from $13 to $14.50 each. You can choose to start with either a borscht or cream soup for the baked specials. The portions were also pretty good as we had to pack up some of the chicken and noodle soup to go.

We will definitely be back and with friends and family next time to try the sizzling plate set as well as other specials.

UPDATE: Aug 2, 2025 We stopped by again as my wife and daughter were craving borscht soup with their favourite lunch specials: Fried Vermicelli w/Sweet & Sour Sauce, and Shredded Pork with Corn on Rice. I had the Chicken Breast on Rice with Garlic Gravy. The price for the specials have gone up slightly to $13.50 - that is still very reasonable considering what is included. Once again, the portions were generous, hot, and very tasty.

New City is one of our go-to restaurants because the food is consistently good for the price, and service is always fast and friendly. No worries if your Cantonese speaking skills are not the best.

Today, my wife and daughter couldn't finish their meals. When we asked for the bill, they immediately brought us two takeout containers with a bag without needing to ask for it. That is great customer service!

Oh yes, I finally tried the sizzling plate a few months ago for dinner and it was great: The steak and pork chop arrived on a hot sizzling cast iron plate over a bed of fries. Add in the borscht soup, HK tea, and ice cream, and what more can I say - hunger completely satisfied! Sorry, no pictures because I too hungry and ate most of it before I remembered to take a photo. I will try to remember...

I visited New City Restaurant with my friends for a very filling meal, and it was an experience with plenty of stories to tell. The restaurant was very busy, and we had to wait outside for over 15 minutes. We received a numbered paper, but due to the server's English, we felt we lost our position because we couldn't tell if she was calling our number or asking about our party size. Eventually, we had to go inside and stop another server for our seat. I'm fairly sure they missed us initially. Inside, the atmosphere was lively, with many people chatting, like a bustling cafe in Hong Kong. We did notice a very strong AC blowing directly on our table, but we got used to it, and it didn't make us too uncomfortable during our stay. Our server had accents, but she took great care to check and double-check our order, which was good. Here's what I ordered: #F Baked Pork Chop with Tomato Sauce: I chose the Russian Borscht, spaghetti, and added cheese on top, as recommended by my friend. The soup was more like a cabbage soup but did a great job of warming up my stomach for the big meal ahead. The baked pork chop with spaghetti was served in a huge bowl with lots of meat and noodles. The extra cheese was grilled to a golden brown, adding a delicious touch. The tomato-based sauce was mild and helped me finish the noodles. The pork chops were huge and meaty, and while I wasn't used to eating pork with tomato sauce, it was quite enjoyable. I managed to finish the entire bowl, though I was very full afterward. Milk Tea: For just a dollar more, I added a milk tea to my meal. It was a strong, unsweetened milk tea that was a perfect ending to the large meal. Overall, I was impressed by the amount of food they served. It was such a great value. Despite the initial confusion with seating, I had a good time and would like to return to try some of their...