The story
R&D brings together two self-taught chefs with an engineer’s precision and a rebel’s heart. Eric Chong, the first winner of CTV’s MasterChef Canada, grew up eating his grandfather’s dim sum. After training in Hong Kong with his mentor Alvin Leung (the “Demon Chef” behind Michelin-starred Bo Innovation) and working in Toronto’s Buca kitchen, Chong returned to the heart of Chinatown to open his own restaurant. The result is R&D, a modern take on Canadian-Asian cuisine that earned a Michelin Bib Gourmand in 2026 for its good quality, good value cooking.
The menu reads like a playful conversation between tradition and improvisation. Dim sum offerings include CSB—char siu in a housemade milk bun—and Grandpa’s Fun Guo, chicken dumplings with brown butter leeks, porcini, and fresh black truffle. Larger plates range from Khao Soi (tagliatelle with duck confit in coconut curry) to the Best Duck in the City, a whole roasted Pekin duck served with roasted garlic hoisin, cucumber, leeks, and steamed baos (requires 24 hours’ notice). The R&D Fried Rice layers mushroom xo, porcini butter, and maitake. Desserts lean into comfort: sticky toffee pudding with palm sugar toffee and calvados cinnamon ice cream, or honey toast with milk bread and oolong tea honey.
Located at 241 Spadina Avenue, R&D is open Wednesday through Sunday for dinner and takeout. The team describes the space as a modern eatery that pays tribute to traditional Asian flavours and beloved Canadian dishes—no fuss, no pretense. It’s a place where engineering minds and culinary instincts meet, and where the food speaks for itself.
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