Pearl Oakville Chinese Cuisine — Restaurant in Oakville

I was looking to have a celebratory dinner with my family, and I thought it would be a great opportunity to try the recently opened, Pearl Chinese Restaurant located in Oakville. It was a special occasion and we were looking for an above average dining experience. It was a major disappointment to say the least. We went on a weeknight and the place was virtually empty; hence there really was no excuse for the poor service we received. We were one of three families in a restaurant with 40 plus tables (we had a party of 7). The food was extremely overpriced for the quality and service that was provided. Asides from being new, the decor was mediocre at best, and waitstaff wore jeans and running shoes. Worst of all, the food was a complete and utter disappointment. The peking duck looked and tasted like they simply went and purchased a barbeque duck from T&T and reheated it in a toaster oven. It wasn’t carved tableside like most Chinese restaurants do. Instead, it was brought out on a plate, and you could tell it was carved earlier in the day because it was totally dry and discoloured (see photo). How does one pre-carve a peking duck? It came with a total of 4 pieces of skin, and the wraps were so dry from being microwaved that they broke apart while being picked up! The ‘peking duck’ (if you can even call it that) was $76 on its own! We ordered it in a set meal that was priced $250 but came with a few other dishes. For clarification, I am in no way complaining about the price itself. It is about the quality of food and service one would expect to receive when paying substantially above the average price for Chinese food – I would not order their ‘peking duck’ even if it was only $30! I’m Chinese and have had numerous restaurants’ peking duck before. Never in my life have I come across such a terrible variation of the dish. They should be ashamed! While I admit, the other dishes we ordered were not terrible, they were nothing more than average. Cynthia’s Chinese is located 10 minutes away, is reasonably priced, and puts this place to shame. As bad as it was , I still left a $55 Tip. It wasn't the wait staff's fault that the food wasn't up to par and that they weren't trained properly. Yes I could have complained about the food, but I did not want to risk any extra MSG added to my food by speaking out about the kitchen staff. Some might say they are famous for their Dim Sum and should go for lunch. It's the same frozen Dim Sum from the same suppliers as other restaurants that charge half the price. This place will not be here long, and I will most certainly not...

Everything is jacked up 200%, 3 dishes 90$, wasn’t any different than congee queen but double the price, if your going to overcharge at least have refills on the pop, the Cantonese chow mein had some old bbq pork on it that tasted nasty must have been old meat they didn’t want to throw out, the whole restaurant was empty, they could easily lower the prices to fill up the restaurant, it totally is a one time place, I’ll only go there once. Your better off going to August 8 for AYCE. I bought a AAA steak from Fortinos for 9$ and a bunch of broccoli for 1.27$ from Superstore which would have made 2 dishes. Here they charged 24$. Which is approximately 5$ to make. The high rent isn’t the customers fault. It wasn’t bad but it wasn’t a 5 either. If you really want to be ripped off go there for the Dim Sum, what August 8 offers for the AYCE dim sum is way better than here, for instance 10$ for a small dish of tripe and at August 8 AYCE. After 4 pathetic trip dishes you can have a buffet of choices. The rice was mediocre and we left disappointed. Not worth the money, you can get twice the amount somewhere else. The atmosphere was classy until I noticed the waitress wearing faded black jeans. They will not get return customers if they charge these prices. I always wish new businesses success but if they don’t nip this in the butt it will continue to be empty and the doors will close eventually. With these outrageous prices give your customers refills, that’s the least you can do. You are not a Michelin...

We visited Pearl Chinese Cuisine in Oakville for a company celebration — a group of about 15. We had a reservation but were split into two tables instead of one long one, which wasn’t ideal for a group function. Service was quite slow and felt fragmented; drinks took a while to arrive, and my blueberry cocktail was disappointing — more like fizzy water with a few berries.

I started with the sweet & sour seafood soup, which was just okay — I’ve had better elsewhere, especially for a restaurant positioned as gourmet. The shrimp fried wontons were the highlight among the starters — really tasty and a great way to kick things off.

The duck platter was very good — tender, flavorful, and nicely complemented by the condiments, sauces, and soft buns. Unfortunately, the lobster was underwhelming — it tasted bland and some pieces didn’t feel fully cooked. The beef plates were excellent: tender, juicy, and well-seasoned. The chicken dish, however, felt overdone and didn’t have the authentic Chinese touch I expected.

The pineapple fried rice was fine but arrived too late — after the mains — which threw off the flow of the meal.

Overall, we had a good time as colleagues, but the experience didn’t feel like great value for money considering the gourmet label. I might give them one more chance, but I’m not in a...