So on Sunday afternoon I decided it was about time to head up to Chinatown to grab some groceries. I’ve been wanting to cook a proper Asian dish for some time now and let’s all face it – Chinese grocers are typically much cheaper than the fancy supermarket chains.

Chinatown ain’t too far from where I live. In fact it’s about 15 minute walk away and I pulled my shopper with me. But as I got to Spadina/Dundas, two blocks of Spadina Ave were closed off to traffic (From Dundas to up past College). There were so many stalls set up with various items (mostly food) and hundreds of people. I thought to myself: what the hell is going on?

I quickly realised (from a banner) that it was a Chinatown Festival. I’m not sure how often they have these things but I felt lucky that I was in the right place at the right time. There was so much lovely food! Japanese Squid Balls, Fish Balls, Beef Balls, Kashmiri BBQ, and much more!

I thought I would cruise past it all, but then I saw there was MALAYSIAN FOOD and decided I really needed my camera so I could show my parents back home. Suddenly feeling very hungry for food, I ran all the way home for my camera and ran all the way back.

I ate Murtabak which is like a Roti, but filled with curry. Delicious. Then I had my favourite dim sum dish – Radish Cakes. Then to accompany it all with Bubble Tea, of course.

There was lots of music and plenty of things (very Asian things) to buy. You definitely felt like you were in the middle of China but nope, you’re right in the heart of Toronto.

Some photos are below, but for more photos check out my Toronto Chinatown Festival Set at Flickr.