197 1 St SW

We were visiting Calgary for the 1st time and saw on social media about this place. We are dim sum when were there and it was good. The only down side that they don't speak English so we were limited on conversation Price range is OK

This place has good food and good service as well. To night was the second time in last three days that we came for dinner, not just food were good, the waitstaff were attentive even though it was just two of them.

I personally mostly come for dimsum, they have good specials and love their fried taro dumpling. They also have a rotating lunch special menu every month for excellent value. Check out their IG for all their specials! Recently went to try the Peking duck special for $38 you get duck wings, duck fried rice, duck tofu soup and Peking duck. Limited time only. Quality was really good, I was very impressed!

I ordered through DoorDash because I couldn't get out to pick it up myself. $35 for heaping portions of seafood crispy chow mein, beef shank tendon stew and one bowl of steamed rice. Noodles were super crispy. Seafood and sauce were kept in a separate container, so that the noodles retained its integrity. I liked the smoky flavour In the seafood sauce. You don't see this wok hei technique at a lot of Chinese restaurants in Calgary. Loved the generous amount of gai lan (Chinese broccoli) with the squid, shrimp and scallops. Beef shank and tendon were cooked well, the tendon was soft and jelly-like. The sauce was also fragrant from the wok. Lots of lettuce mixed in the hotpot, which I enjoyed immensely. There was plenty of beef and tendon in this serving. I could taste the freshness in the food. We two more meals out of our dinner and the leftovers were just as good. What I really appreciate about the Chinese Cultural Centre Cuisine is that I can get my authentic dishes (chef's specials) and order my husband the more western style Chinese food like chow mein, salt and pepper squid and ginger beef. I love that the owner put the "chef's specials" in English. These items are usually written in Chinese only, because most non-Chinese diners don't care for these dishes as it has more unusual ingredients and textures. I plan to order the three course Peking Duck for our Christmas meal. This is my to go restaurant for Chinese takeout.

Last night, I ordered from this restaurant on Uber Eats, because well it's one of the BEST Chinese places in the city. I love their food and order something at least twice a month from them. I ordered 3 items with them on Uber and was told the delivery would be approx. 1 hour. My Mom was driving down to have dinner with me - during the COVID this is the only time I really see anyone I care about, so it was special. We cracked wine and patiently awaited our dinner. At 6:35pm I got a call from the driver. He obviously had no idea where he was, as he yelled at me, "I'm at your door come and get your order, you're supposed to be here." I replied with, "I can't see you, you aren't at MY door, where are you? Also, I gave instructions for you to buzz my apartment, so I didn't know I had to be at the door earlier." At that moment he screamed at me and hung up the phone. When I tried to call him back I was instantly forwarded to his voicemail, stating he had blocked my number? So where was my food? I quickly called the Cultural Centre to ask about the food. The lady who picked up had a hard time understanding me, but promptly handed me over to someone who could. The man was a delight and couldn't believe what had happened to my order. They told me they were sad about the service and scared they would loose me as a customer. I reassured them that I just wanted my dinner sent over and knew that this was a driver related issue and not their fault. I felt bad for them. During a time like this making product just so some irresponsible person - hired by a third party delivery system - could run away with the order. Everyone is struggling and this selfish ass hat took it upon himself to screw over the hand that feeds his paycheck.... slightly unbelievable. My food was rushed to the front of the order line and completed and sent out via another Uber driver - who was very pleasant. They even included an extra item to apologize. AMAZING! and I'm not just talking about the service from the CCC, but also the food! If you haven't had the time to check this place out I HIGHLY recommend it! The food is out of this world delicious and the people who own it have hearts of gold and know the true value of their customers. As for the Uber driver who screwed everyone over. SHAME ON YOU.

Had Dim sum today.... it was my first time having dim sum here, but others who had come here before said that the quality has gone downhill. Basic dim sum fare. Gone are the days of ladies pushing carts and shouting out the menu items! Oh man - how it will date us when we are telling these stories to our kids! :) So... dim sum withOUT the lovely ladies is: 1) less entertaining 2) and there is no more pointing and ordering... "oh! I want that one! "... so you must know your menu items or just blindly order! haha but the good thing about ordering on a sheet is that it is "steamed" to order and comes out hot (and most places now use this method of ordering). Food was ok, some good, some bad. The bad was the rice paper rolls - it was ridiculous how thick the rice paper was ! hahah. RANT.... and now my ranting. I used to be able to eat dim sum - back in the days when the only shrimp you'd find would be in a shrimp dumpling, or shrimp toast. Then I became allergic to shrimp, and now shrimp is added to almost every dim sum item!!! WTF?!?!?! Pork dumplings should be pork dumplings! Not pork dumplings with shrimp on top (note: shrimp is not even listed on order sheet), and the pork and chives dumpling had shrimp IN it too (again no shrimp listed on the order sheet)!! =O Oh Em Gee! Why not just make 2 dumplings and charge more for the ones with shrimp on top?!?! hahah wouldn't that make more sense?! ... But really, it's a Chinese restaurant and no one will read this and it will never change... unless... UNLESS!!! someone has an anaphylactic reaction because they eat a pork dumpling but instead is surprised with pork and shrimp!! ....I call "NOT IT"!! :) It's all fun and games until someone loses an eye (or goes to the ER)!! ;-P

Tried a few times since. The food is actually pretty good. We must have had. A bad night the first time. The dishes we have ordered from the $10 special menu have been really good value. Solid comfort food with occasionally real spot on Cantonese flavour. It may be which chef is working in a particular night!

Very authentic Chinese food! A great visit. This place is spacious, clean and with decent Chinese decor, as much as you would expect from a Chinese restaurant here. The price is very reasonable and the portions are good, a little on the large side, we ordered the four person package and it was enough for five people. The meat and seafood had variety (Duck, pork, lobster, beef and shrimp) and there were lots of vegetables. Service is was organized, the server always noticed when we needed a refill. Overall, we were very satisfied with the experience and would definitely come again when we are in town.

What lies beneath the main floor of the Chinese Cultural Centre here in Calgary? Why, it's a restaurant. In fact, it's a CHINESE food restaurant. Go figure! I know what you're thinking, it was a restaurant once before too. The difference? It's under new ownership. The Chinese Cultural Centre restaurant may be in a basement, but the space itself is bright and cheery. Red and white are the main colours, with a variety of different pieces adorning the walls. One flat screen tv played kids cartoons while the other across the room was set to the football game. Behind a sliding red and white door there was a banquet room ideal for private functions. We arrived at 1030 for brunch on a Sunday and did not have an issue getting a table for our party of 6. But by the time we left after noon, it appeared that this restaurant was a popular spot for dim sum. The food was mighty tasty. Dumplings, steamed buns, tripe, rolls, it all agreed with my belly quite nicely (ok, I didn't actually eat the tripe). Six of us ate for just shy of $60 + tip. Not bad for a dim sum brunch I must say. The service was above par. Our teapot was replaced a couple of times without us having to ask, the food came out at regular intervals, and the servers were on top of things. The only issue we had was when we asked for another order form. I don't think the woman we spoke to understood what it was we were asking for. There's no cart service here, but that shouldn't stop you from trying out their dim sum. I know I'll be back. Four yums up!

What an absolute bar-goon! I went there for lunch with approximately 10 people for lunch. It was a friend's birthday and we all gathered here to raise a won-ton to Kim. :) The buffet was small in size co mpared to Regency Palace (as an example), but the food choices were awesome! They had dim sum (which I avoided - its not my thing) but the chinese buffet was amazing! The ginger beef, arguably, is the best I have had in this city. It was cooked to perfection! The standard chinese fare was available and all tasty. The group i was with was all over the Dim Sum and every one was happy with the results. What was most impressive was the price! The buffet was only $10.95. You heard it - only $10.95! I can barely get out of a food court for that price. An all you can eat buffet is a fantastic deal, especially when the food is great! So why not four stars? My only complaint (which is inconsequential to me going back), is that the lineups are insane. It makes sense, since the prices are fair and the food is good. However, the one small buffet table is not very efficient for the size of the restaurant. So go in hungry - not starving, because you will be in a lineup for your grub. And it moves slow. Once you get your food though, the world is right. The staff are friendly and helpful as well. Everyone I interacted with - the bus boys, the serving staff and the nice dude that you pay on the way out, were all friendly, smiley individuals. I will definately be back!

There are many things to like about this restaurant, which I was lucky enough to visit for Sunday morning dim sum. The decor really works. Red pillars and gold Chinese patterns line the interior. The place is very clean, including the staff. The staff are very professional and friendly. The price is pretty reasonable (paid about $12/person). And it even has a few TVs in the place, which came in handy watching the Sunday morning football game. However, what puts this place over the top is the food. It tasted fresh, was delicious and even, dare I say it, was well presented and had the right textures. The dumpling whites were snow white and fluffy, the dumpling yellows were golden, the spring rolls had that perfect juicy-crispy texture to it. My sense is someone is paying attention to the quality of the food here. It's one of the few places I've been to where the food looks as good as it tastes. A remarkable feat, hats off! There is no cart service here, which takes away from the all important visual dim sum experience. However, this may be a place where I don't need see the product before purchase. A first for me ever in a dim sum place. I know this place has undergone renovations and new ownership, perhaps they are looking to impress. Will be back to see if the quality still persists over time. If they continue this, I'm going to have to up them to five stars!

Thought I should point out that you cannot get Hot Pot here during the summer. So our Hot Pot UYE was a little derailed, but luckily they still serve food so we were not forced to eat the serving utensils. With our group of 8 we all ordered one dish to share, we were given all the english menus in the restaurant, meaning they have 5 total. Luckily we didn't have to point to order and ended up with plenty to dine on. Highlights were the war won ton soup, which I have never had before and I do not know why because shrimp in your won ton is amazing! Take plain boring won ton soup and then make it super! The ginger beef was very nice, the breading wasn't overpowering and the beef was also not cooked within an inch of its life. We also had a really nice fried rice, some crispy noodles, mushrooms and pea tips, other ginger beef that has been cooked with ginger, and chicken in black bean sauce. I wouldn't hesitate to order any of those dishes again. I had an accident with my chair and the chair rail, smashing my finger then almost bleeding over the dessert buffet. Oh yeah free dessert buffet! There was stuff in slow cookers that I had no idea what any of it was. Being too white, I stuck to the cookies, and the red bean and mango jelly cups. The best part of our dining experience was, I didn't feel like crap later that evening. With the 8 of us, it came to 20 bucks a person, we had tea as well as 5 beers. Not too shabby!

We went for "Chinese Hot Pot," which is essentially fondue but with flavored broth instead of oil. I'll tell you, if you're not used to being the minority in Calgary, go here for a healthy dose of minority report! It was nice to be that way for a change! The food was good, the broths were good, and eating takes a looooong time as you're cooking it all in small portions. The hot pot "all you can eat" was pretty pricy for us at $25, so make sure you're good and hungry, or that it's a special occasion, before going. I see another review says $18. Perhaps we had a higher price because it was New Year's Eve. We got a special tour and orientation though, as we clearly had no idea what we were doing. Fun experience all around!

We ordered peking duck, garlic stir fry snow pea leaves, braised pork belly, salt & pepper pork chop and stir fry chicken and green beans. Flavour is good...plates were big. The peking duck is small, which sucks. It is pretty good but not the best Chinese food i ever had.

This is not an update but more of a review of the hot pot buffet fare at Chinese Cultural Centre Restaurant. Hot Pot is on only in the evenings which starts at 5 p.m. From Fri to Sun, the buffet price is $22.95 per person and from Mon to Thu, the price is $20.95 per person. We went for the Sat night hot pot dinner and found the restaurant at about 65% full. We picked our 2 soup bases of chicken broth with ginseng and another with different chinese herbs and broth. Off we went to the buffet and selected our food items to cook at the hot pot at our table. There was all kinds of seafood like prawns with the shell on, shrimps without the shell, fish paste, squid paste, meat paste, oysters, squid, calamari, fish balls, squid balls, meat balls, pork blood cubes, beef, lamb, pork, enoki mushrooms, tofu, deep-fried tofu, and greens of all kinds. Then, there's the table with all kinds of sauces to go with your cooked food items. There's a 2 hour limit on eating hot pot. There are 4 kinds of hot desserts, jellos, and some mini cookies. All in all, the wait service was good - they kept coming to take our dirty dishes away and filled up our hot pot with more water to keep the soup going. We also ordered a 1.5 litre bottle of plum juice to cool our mouths as we ate our hot cooked food items. Lots of Asians that evening which is a good sign for a Chinese restaurant. Hot pot food on a cold evening sure was good!

By far the BEST ginger beef I've ever eaten! It actually tasted like ginger! Go figure!!! I went with a friend for the lunch buffet and it was reasonably priced (about $12 per person). The restaurant was very clean and the food was hot and fresh, being replentished by the kitchen many times during out brief stay. They served sushi, classic chinese foods, sweet and sour soup and a wide variety of desserts. The staff were very friendly and the owner took the time to come talk to us about the dim sum and shabu shabu meals they put on. Cant wait to go back!!!

Not even a friendly hello or welcome to this place.I used to go here quite a bit, and always had wonderful service. But as time goes by, the quality goes along with it. The service is very poor, we had to wait over a 1/2 hour for a food to arrive and only after I mentioned the fact that the table across from us, who showed up 20 minutes after us, got served first. And also the house special fried rice had a piece of bamboo wood splinter in it. if I did not find this piece of wood, it would of caused injury. Not even a sorry when I showed them this wood splinter. Our waiter who's name starts with a J was also a a-hole, with a lazy I do not care attitude. Stay away from this place, the food is not that great, and customer care is rude and not friendly to you.

I didn't know this place existed until my uncle had to relocate his wedding reception to here due to the flood. They were pretty accommodating for the most part considering a last minute change. I say pretty accommodating because I thought it was weird that even with a 200+ guest event, they still kept the back dining area open so we had randoms walking past our seating area throughout the evening. We had the traditional 10 course dinner which was catered by the restaurant. The food was ok, nothing too amazing. Some dishes (like the seafood soup and fried rice) were bland, but nothing a little soy sauce couldn't fix. I think it's hard to judge a restaurant when it's a large event they're catering. I think I'd be up for having dinner here to see what they really have to offer.

I took my family here for their first authentic Chinese restaurant experience. The staff were very helpful and the food was good but we were very saddened to see that they still serve Shark Fin soup. This is a particularly cruel and inhumane fishery practice that is contributing to the decimation of the shark species and for this reason alone we will not return or recommend.

Bummer In The Summer! - The AYCE dim sum for $10.99 is no more! It was a nice respite from all the overpriced dim sum restos in the Chinahood. Unless you're eating at Dick Lee's in San Fran, you're not going to get decent, cheaper, and SAFER (I'm looking your way Dick Lee's) dim sum like this. Will have fond gastronomical memories of the Har Gow and Rice Crepes; farewell AYCE Cultural Centre!

The service was exceptional, though their food hasn't live up to its standards when I use to come years ago. If you spend over 200$ they give you coupons to get you to come back. They also will trick you into spending more with these coupons. Not worth coming if you have to trick your customers to make profit.

I've been here several times for AYCE hot pot during dinner and for weekend dimsum. For hot pot, the selection is fairly good with different types of meats, tofu, fish balls and veggies. There's different types of broths so there's something for everyone, including a dessert spread, which isn't good or impressive but I'm not there for the dessert, really. For dimsum, the food is fine - nothing mind blowing but fairly decent. I'm from Vancouver where the dimsum is generally excellent so my standards are high and I haven't had dimsum in Calgary that I found to be on par with Vancouver restaurants. The dimsum here is generally on par with other places in Calgary. A plus is that you dont need to wait for a table here as it's quite large and never that busy (which is rare for a Chinese restaurant!).

Very very disappointed!! I've been here before several times and would have gladly recommended this restaurant to others but I will not do that again!! Took my grandparents out to dinner there tonight and when it came time to pay the bill, they flat out tried to rip us off!! We ordered 4 dishes and at around $12 each I expected the total of approx $50...maybe a bit more considering we ordered a fish dish which is market price. My grandparents insisted on paying cash so they gave the waiter $100 bill. He returns with $12 and change. There was no way that meal cost $88 dollars. There was no check or receipt with the change so we asked for it. When we finally got the bill it was for $76..... They tried to steal $10 dollars from a pair of senior citizens!!! Also, when I confronted the waiter he didn't hesitate at all to ask if we were going to leave a tip before going to correct this error. Absolutely unacceptable business conduct!!! You try to steal $10 from us but will only give us the proper change if you get a tip?! I will be telling everyone I know of this and all the review boards!!

Came here for dinner one night. By far the worst service we have received from a restaurant. We ordered off the menu, after waiting about 20 minutes our first three dishes came and then we waited about another 20 to 30 minutes before the rest came. We had to ask for our tea 3 times before the waiter actually got them. And then half our dishes came out cold, the servers came out with dishes looking pissed off. Definitely their service has a huge room for improvement.

My party of 10 and i just came back from this restaurant. The food was good as always. However the customer service was horrid. We had 4 people who joined us later on just for a drink they barely ate anything (even though it was all you can eat). As we were leaving we paid all of our bills. Our total tips came to about 30 dollars. At this point the manager was present and seemed displeased and was reluctant to finish our bill. He actually asked people from my party saying "You didn't give us a good tip, its customary to tip more" I was flabbergasted. So i went and explained that half my party came later and didn't even eat more than 5 or 6 pieces of anything. Not to mention having to walk up to the front every time we needed to get the attention of a waiter. The service was lacking as we sat half the time with empty glasses waiting for water. The sign outside advertises all you can eat hot pot $18, but it doesn't say monday to thursday only. Which the reply was a very snarky "Usually people tip 15-20%, you need to tip more". As he poked the bill with his finger. How rude is that???? So i said fine here ill put another 20 on my debit for you. So at this point i was thoroughly offended. Now to add insult to injury the same said manager who grabbed my debit card right out of my hand and swiped it behind the till didn't give me my card back. I will not recommend this restaurant to anyone ever.