Hong Kong Cafe Toronto: Breakfast for 4 at New City, Markham
By Michael · October 17, 2026
A Hong Kong cafe, or cha chaan teng (茶餐廳), is where a lot of Hong Kong people grew up eating breakfast: noodles or macaroni in soup, eggs, buttered toast and a strong cup of milk tea. Our first proper meal of this stretch in the Toronto area was at one of the original ones, New City Restaurant in New Kennedy Square, Markham.
The bottom line: three set breakfasts with drinks came to $36 before tax, $40.70 CAD with tax, and it fed our family of four. It tasted the way we expected, which is the whole point of a place like this. Michael’s word for it was consistent.
We filmed the whole visit: watch the episode.
Quick facts
- Place: New City Restaurant, New Kennedy Square, Markham
- What we paid: $40.70 CAD with tax for three set breakfasts (drinks included)
- Set breakfast prices: $10.50 to $12.50 each
- Set breakfast hours: until 11:30 am (we got in just before 11)
- Good for: a classic Hong Kong style breakfast, families with little kids
- Good to know: some dishes have a real kick, so check before sharing with kids
What a Hong Kong cafe breakfast is
At a cha chaan teng, breakfast comes as a set. You pick a main, it comes with sides like eggs, bacon or toast, and a hot or cold drink is part of the deal. It’s fast, filling and cheap for what you get. The menus mix Hong Kong comfort food with things like macaroni, hash browns and gravy, which is exactly why people who grew up with it miss it.
New City is an old-school one. We’ve eaten here before, and Michael called it one of the OG Hong Kong cafes in the area. It’s in New Kennedy Square, a plaza full of small shops and food that feels like stepping back in time.
How ordering works
We sat down, opened the set breakfast menu and checked the time first. It was almost 11, and the set breakfast runs until 11:30, so we made it. If you’re going for breakfast, don’t leave it later than that.
Each set was between $10.50 and $12.50, and as far as we could tell they all came with a drink. We ordered three sets for the four of us. Spencer is 3 and Archie is about 1, so they shared from our plates.
What we bring into a restaurant with two kids: a few snacks, some toys, Archie’s booster seat, the boys’ own utensils and a bottle of our own drinking water from the van.
What we ordered
Satay beef macaroni in soup (沙嗲牛肉通粉)
Rina got the set with satay beef macaroni in soup, plus bacon, eggs and buttered toast. Her verdict was one word: legit. This is the dish Spencer ended up eating most of, because it was milder than Michael’s.
Spicy diced pork noodles
Michael ordered the diced pork in soup and asked to swap the noodles for instant-style ramen noodles. This is the kind of thing we ate when we were young in Hong Kong, and he hadn’t had it in a long time. The pork cubes were tender with some fatty pieces, and there was a lot of flavour in the soup.
It’s on the spicy side. The first bite had a real kick, and once it was mixed in it was milder. We gave Spencer some, and it was too spicy for him, so he switched over to Rina’s macaroni.
Grilled chicken with hash brown, scrambled eggs and toast
The third set was grilled chicken with a hash brown, scrambled eggs and white toast. We had the gravy put on the side so the boys could have chicken without it. The gravy is thick, like a chicken gravy, and the chicken was a little crispy outside and juicy inside. Hearty is the right word.
This was the boys’ plate. Archie ate chicken, eggs and a whole slice of toast. One more thing we always do: sprinkle a little sugar on the buttered toast. It’s a fun way to eat it.
Hong Kong milk tea (奶茶) and iced lemon tea
The milk tea is Michael’s drink. You want it to look dark and strong, and this one did. He stirred in some sugar, and it was rich, with a lot of tea flavour. In his words, a really good cup of classic milk tea. The other drink at the table was a classic iced lemon tea with three slices of lemon on top, which was lemony and not too sweet.
Our honest verdict
We left full, and we’d go back. The food here is the same every time we come, and Michael thinks that’s why it’s lasted so long. If you want to know what a classic Hong Kong cafe breakfast tastes like, this is a good place to start, and $40.70 for a family breakfast is reasonable.
Two things to know. The diced pork is genuinely spicy for a 3-year-old, so order something mild for kids. And this was one breakfast at one cafe. We plan to try more Hong Kong cafes while we’re in the area, the classic ones and some new ones, and they don’t all stay good, so we’ll tell you how each one goes.
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After breakfast: walking New Kennedy Square
We walked off breakfast around the plaza. Michael calls it one of the oldest Chinese plazas around, with a lot of shops and restaurants that have been there a long time.
A few things we saw:
- A snack shop with the candy we grew up on. Rina’s dried squid snack ($11.99 per 100 g), White Rabbit candy (including a coffee flavour) and honey lemon candy. Spencer got to try a few. He mostly held the honey lemon one and smelled it.
- Lanterns for the Mid-Autumn Festival. The festival was the next day, and the shops had everything from Paw Patrol lanterns to the classic paper ones.
- A big food court with Chinese barbecue, stir fries and another Hong Kong style cafe stall. We’ve never eaten there.
- Shops selling frozen dumplings and wontons, a takoyaki stand, a karaoke spot and a couple of other bakeries.
Tofu pudding, black sesame and soy drink
We stopped at a soy shop in the plaza we’d never tried and got tofu pudding (豆腐花), black sesame paste (芝麻糊) and a fresh soy drink. All three came to $15.50.
Our verdict when we tasted them later: the tofu pudding is silky, but not sweet enough on its own. The syrup comes on the side, so you sweeten it yourself. The black sesame paste was really good, creamy and not too sweet, so it’s perfect if you don’t like things sweet. The soy drink was smooth, but also not sweet enough for us. Our number one tofu pudding is still Yan’s Soy Foods, which isn’t in this plaza.
Egg tarts and pineapple buns
Rina went back to the corner bakery for egg tarts (蛋撻), which were freshly made and $2.75 each. We usually buy pineapple buns (菠蘿包) at this bakery. They were $1.80 each, but we were too full from breakfast, so we skipped them this time.
What we didn’t do
We didn’t eat at the food court, the takoyaki stand or the clay pot rice spot in the same plaza that has good reviews. We were too full. Those are for another day.
A side note: Markham community centres
After the plaza, we went to a community centre nearby. It has free hot showers, which matters when you live in a van with a 35-gallon water tank, plus a two-floor library with a toy library you can borrow from, a gym and an indoor playground (about $3.70 for kids 3 and up). It’s also where Spencer starts swim lessons: $163.46 CAD for 11 sessions, even as non-residents.
FAQ
When does the set breakfast end at New City Restaurant?
The menu we saw said set breakfast runs until 11:30 am.
How much is a Hong Kong cafe breakfast at New City?
The set breakfasts we saw were $10.50 to $12.50 each, with a drink. Our three sets came to $40.70 CAD with tax.
Is the food OK for little kids?
Mostly. The grilled chicken, eggs, toast and macaroni were fine for our boys. The diced pork noodles were too spicy for our 3-year-old.
Next, we keep eating our way slowly through Markham and Toronto, one place at a time. We filmed this whole day: watch the episode on YouTube.
