Rol San

Ha ha… it is the Seinfeld soup nazi experience, but the dim sum is mediocre. You just can’t take offence to this behaviour. I’ve tried something new while eating out at rude Chinese joints, just play with them. Just continue with your conversation when they throw food at you. Since service doesn’t exist, the server’s existence is inconsequential. I’m only upset that the food wasn’t awesome to justify spending almost two hours of my Saturday in a dingy hole.

Welcome to CT pa town
Just another over priced awful Chinese American restaurant serving low quality sweet BS

This is my go to place when I’m downtown and craving for some late night dim sum. My most recent trip here was after a Raptors game — rather than spending $ 10 on 2 chicken fingers at the ACC, my friends and I came here right after the game and ordered the standard ha gow, beef tripe, curry squid, congee, etc. The quality of the food is decent — definitely not as good as the nicer places uptown or Markham, but good enough to leave you satisfied. The service here is very efficient and the food comes out fast.

This place is pretty busy but the line moves pretty fast. When you enter from the street, bee line to the back where they can give you a number. Food was excellent and cane out very fast. I was really impressed and left stuffed. My table of 3 over ordered but everything was very very good. I would definately come back here.

I think i can live of of dim sum so I’m quite fond of all day dim sum places. Came here with the family for a Sunday lunch and skate. From looking at other tables there were too many good looking items to try. Had squid tentacles, siu mai, har gow, rice rolls, ribs, eggplant with shrimp, onion pancake, dumplings and tripe. I think I may have missed a couple but all tasted pretty darn good. Can’t really say anything critical with any items. The place was also typical Chinese restaurant but a little more spacious. Service was OK. Some dishes were very slow and I didn’t like the fact that they don’t keep your order sheet on the table. It’s hard to remember all orders with a big group. Other than that it was pretty good and definitely will come back.

Second time in Canada and this is my first time here and the food were great. Me and my wife love them. Will return in summer time.

Finally made it to this unassuming all day and all night dim sum in TO’s Chinatown and we’re coming back!
We eat dim sum almost every weekend and out of the 14 items we tried at Rol San we’d order each one again! The chicken feet were plump and nicely sauced, sticky rice was packed with flavour, I could’ve eaten the Pork Ribs in Pepper Sauce all day, soup dumplings a burst of goodness, and the hot oil was actually nice and spicy!
Rol San will be a dim sum mainstay for weekend brunch

My friend called me up in the morning on January 1^st to ask if I was game for dim sum. Salad in my fridge or Chinese food: it was a no brainer so I went for the latter. I was naïve and thought that I would be the only Torontonian out at 10:00 AM on New Year’s Day; however, I was so wrong! The subway was packed as was the streetcar I rode on along with Rol San. We waited for a good twenty minutes, but it was worth it. Rol San is quite clean compared to some other places in the area. I didn’t realize how big this joint was; they have two dining rooms. They don’t have the ladies with the carts, but I feel that this is becoming obsolete. Between the two of us we ordered: sticky rice, pork buns, shrimp dumplings, and shrimp rolls … all for under $ 20. I can’t wait to return with a big group so that I can try more of their dishes.
Good for: dim sum

First tried Rol San when I was looking for a dim sum place that opened early.
This did not disappoint.
It gets very busy very quickly on weekends. I’ve waited 30+ minutes for a table of 2.
But it’s always been worth the wait.
Ordering from the menu instead of carts means everything was delivered fresh.
Dim sum mainstays (har gao, shiu mai etc) hit the spot. The taro puffs are delightful.
The sticky rice comes personal sized, which was both adorable and appreciated.
Out of the dozen or so dishes ordered on our most recent visit, only the curried cuttlefish and the tripe weren’t a hit with our table.
Note that although they serve dim sum all day, the menu changes (and shrinks) mid-​afternoon — go for brunch or lunch for the full experience.
And yes, they only accept cash or Visa. Which is odd. So grab cash ahead of time.

Rol San is such a staple dim sum place in Chinatown. Even if you don’t know the name of the restaurant (like myself for many years), it’s always «that place with the all day dim sum sign». And for all day dim sum it’s actually pretty good. The flavours are there and nothing tastes like it’s been sitting out for too long. I’m not a fan of fried foods but the deep fried tentacles are a must here — crispy and never too oily. This place is always busy but the turnover rate is actually pretty fast. It’s pretty effective that they just wrap all the dirty dishes up with the tablecloth and then it’s onto the next. This place is open late and serves a wide variety of Chinese food aside from dim sum.

I’ve come to this dim sum restaurant for about three years since I moved to the GTA. In many ways the quality of GTA Chinese Dim Sum is tops in Eastern Canada followed by Montréal. Alternately, you’d have to go out west.
This is a no frills dim sum place and the food does not disappoint. As in my previous reviews on dim sum the litmus test consists of three staples that a restaurant must not, cannot, and should not fail. The holy trinity is Har Gow (shrimp dumpling), Sui Mai (pork dumpling), and Sticky Rice in lotus leaf.
In short, Rol San passes with flying colours as the flavours are on the mark as is the texture.
Keep in mind this is your typical plastic over the table, no nonsense Chinese restaurant. If that turns you off then the place is not for you. Otherwise, enjoy, enjoy, enjoy.
Rating ⁴⁄₅ (minus one for the condition of the rest room).

This is my go to dim sum joint. A few must try’s if you’re ordering of the dim sum menu:
Hargow
Sui Mai
Steamed BBQ pork buns (!!!)
Fried bean curd with shrimp paste
Beef short ribs
Tripe
Eggplant with shrimp paste
Fried squid tentacle
Black sesame paste ball for dessert
They get really busy around dinner time but they are really good about managing the volume. I don’t think I’ve ever had to wait more than 20 mins for a table.

We agonized, for quite a long time, over which dim sum restaurant to visit on a recent visit to Toronto. We ruled out some of the pricier and higher end options, wanting a more basic (and honestly affordable) experience. Making that decision was tough; everyone had an opinion.
Usually those opinions seemed to come back to whether or not a location was better or worse than Rol San. So we decided to just bite the bullet, trust the wisdom of the crowd, and visit the place that everyone seemed to be using as a benchmark.
We were thoroughly pleased with our choice.
I have no doubt that there are better dim sum restaurants. But having had dim sum in a variety of cities, Rol San was as good or better than most that I have had. The staple dishes, like shiu mai and har gow were more flavorful and had more nuanced flavor than many that I’ve had.
And while I was put off at first by the absence of a cart, the fact that the dim sum was made to order meant that it came out hotter and fresher than I’ve experienced in most places.
The downside of the menu ordering process however is that it deprived us a little bit of the sense of discovery. With no pictures, and nothing to point to as it rolled by our table, we didn’t venture too far outside of the usual dim sum staples. And while we certainly had plenty to eat, I wouldn’t have minded trying something new and different. (But really we could have, our ordering was on us at the end of the day.)

One of the best dim sum I’ve ever had!
They come steamy hot just the way I like them. :D
We ordered:
–Har gow (shrimp dumplings)
–Siu mai (pork dumplings)
–Bamboo fungus and mushroom dumplings
–A soup with some crab meat, shrimps and a pork dumpling wrapped in a lettuce
–Lotus leaf sticky rice
I thought all the dishes were really good except the soup took a little getting used to of the taste. Dumplings were all yummy goodness.
Food was 5 stars out of 5 stars. Service was fast. My boyfriend did warn me that this place is not your typical date spot though. They didn’t have the best tea or the best tablecloth but who needs either of it when you got delish dumplings. Go for food, not atmosphere. I’d definitely come here for dim sum again and I’d try their non-​dim sum food as well. They accept credit cards for bills over $ 20.

Went with a group of four hungry rugby players at 11am on a Sunday. The wait was quick (~5 minutes), although the line looked longer when we left. Once seated, service was very quick. Don’t expect fine dining — the tables have layers of plastic tableclothes, so cleaning the table just consists of picking up the tablecloth and hauling it out of the dining room. The prices are very reasonable, 57 CAD for four hungry rugby players is very good.
Each of the 11 dishes we had were flavorful and hot, and the hot sauce was a big hit as well. In particular, we enjoyed the pork sticky rice, the shrimp dumpling, and the pumpkin dumpling for dessert.
–1 star because, as a dumb American, it was hard to order from the card without pictures or knowing more about what each item was. Really, that should be one star taken away from myself, as every item we got was tasty. However, I still walked out looking at other diners’ plates and thinking, «that looks good! what was that?».

I’m not a dim sum expert but this seemed just average. The ha gow and siu mai were good but did not like the chicken wings or deep fried squid tentacles. We also got pork dumplings, egg plant, and curry cuttlefish and they were decent but I doubt I would order them here again. The service is not great but we knew that going in.

This place was pretty average compared to dim sum places I’ve experienced. I’ve had way better Dim Sum from Los Angeles, Vancouver, Hong kong, to San Francisco…
At least the Siu-​mai here was decent and the egg-​white dan tats (egg tarts) were pretty tasty. Otherwise, if you’re looking for special dim sum, this place isn’t it.
3 stars.

LOVED IT!
Having tried only New York styled dim sum restaurants, I was perplexed by this place’s way of operating a restaurant.
Why werent there portable carts strolling down the aisles to serve us food? Why is everything freshly made on the spot by command? Why are the servers so friendly and attitude free? Why are the people dining here not crazy loud? Why is the tea at the perfect temperature? And why is the food here ten times better than the many dim sum restaurants I’ve had in new York?
AH I absolutely enjoyed my dining experience! I’m sad that once I go back to New York, I won’t be able to enjoy this again.

My guilty pleasure place for Dim Sum.
I love Dim Sum and this place is great! It is very Chaotic in the morning. It is a mad rush, with people going in and out. A server is directing people in and out. I just do not know how he does it, the tables are turned over at a fast rate. The wait is not that bad on a Saturday at lunch time!
All the classic dishes are there. I find that Ha Gao (Steamed Shrimp Dumplings) and Siu Mei (Steamed Pork Dumplings) a bit pricey ($ 4.95) but its worth it!
I go here all the time for Dim Sum and it fails to disappoint! You would probably see me here on Saturdays eating Curry Cuttlefish and Fried Squid in complete bliss. Chinese food just does that to you!

They need to grow their business larger! It was packed on the Sunday morning and there’s always a line of people waiting at the door. We were seated maybe after 20min. But once you are at a table, food arrives pretty fast. Due to limited space, they don’t have strollers of food like a typical dim sum place. However, you can order from the a la carte menu and there are also entrees you can order from on a different menu.
The manager there was very nice and made sure everyone is taken care of even on a busy day like that.
Food was on par with other dim sum places I’ve been to. I didn’t like their pepper sliced beef too much. And the congee doesn’t look very appealing but tastes the same as other places. All other plates were pretty amazing.

Vous aimez le ‘dim sum’? Cette cuisine cantonaise où vous pouvez déguster une quasi-​infinité de petits mets passés à la vapeur ou à la poêle? Rol San est sans conteste le meilleur ‘dim sum’ du quartier chinois. Le personnel peut parfois sembler braque, il suffira de faire un sourire ou de leur montrer votre connaissance de la cuisine pour gagner leur amitié.
Quelques conseils: si la carafe de thé est vide, retournez le couvercle ou mettez-​le en biais, on vous amènera une nouvelle carafe. Pour vous servir comme un véritable cantonais, prenez les mets avec le haut des bâtons et mangez avec l’extrémité plus fine de celles-​ci.