Kirin Seafood Restaurant (Starlight)

Quality dim sum place in Canada

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 4

Service: 4

First time to try order food by Door Dash App. The soup tastes a bit sour and little bit spicy. But overall food is okay for me.

Food: 5

Kirin restaurants are always top notch when it comes to Chinese banquet-style dishes. This location is next to Starlight casino, which might not be the easiest place to visit on a rainy evening. I was expecting a bigger crowd in the evening but it was good that our table received prompt attention.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 5

Service: 5

I had dim sum today and left feeling really upset. The environment was very nice and quiet, and I was actually having a good time. But near the end of my meal, something happened that completely ruined the experience.

When I took my last bite, I had just placed the dim sum paper on the side plate. The server immediately came over and took away my plate and chopsticks without saying a single word, even though I still had food in my mouth. That action made me feel very uncomfortable.

After that, she continued clearing our table very quickly and noisily, which felt rushed and unpleasant. I asked for the bill right away, saying, “Could I please have the check?” But even after 10 minutes, no one brought it to me.

Overall, the service at the end was very disappointing, and it really affected what should have been a relaxing meal

Atmosphere: 5

Service: 1

We visit Kirin this morning. Very satisfied with them this time, way better than our feeling a few years ago. Will definitely return more often. They are friendly and helpful. They don’t have order sheet for clients, they do it in the traditional way - they take clients’ order personally. Kirin is with contemporary and elegant design. Wide gap between tables and wide corridors. Special thanks to waitress, Angela. She is very friendly, always wear a smile, gentle, helpful and very well mannered. She is nice enough to alert us that we may like to refrain from ordering more as our 5 dim sums and 1 seafood noodle is more than good enough for 2 people, and, she is totally right, we could hardly finish the food, although we still manage to do it finally. So, I give this Kirin a 5 star. Highly recommended. I am glad we visit Kirin for my husband birthday this time, well worth it. And they are especially expensive, level with other nice restaurant. 👍👍👍👍

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

We visited on a weekday (Tuesday) at noon as a party of two. Since no small tables were available, we were seated at a larger round table. A few years ago, there used to be fewer small tables, but now—at least during lunch—it seems there are more small tables than before. It’s only natural that Chinese restaurants also need to adjust their marketing to keep up with the times.
We ordered three dishes: Braised Flat Rice Roll (C$12.95), Steamed Shrimp Dumpling (C$9.95), and Pork Chow Mein (C$29).
The Braised Flat Rice Roll came served piping hot in a small ceramic pot. The meat had no unpleasant smell, was very tender, and the flavors were well absorbed, making it quite delicious.
The Steamed Shrimp Dumplings, ordered from the dim sum menu, were served in a traditional bamboo steamer, also freshly made and steaming hot.
The Pork Chow Mein felt slightly oily, though not in an unpleasant way—the soy-sauce-based seasoning blended well overall.
The pacing of the dishes was just right—not too fast and not too slow—allowing us to enjoy each dish freshly prepared at a relaxed pace.
As for hospitality, it was better than many other Chinese restaurants, though not particularly impressive; the staff seemed to go through the motions in a straightforward manner. If they wish to remain one of the high-end Chinese restaurants in the Vancouver area, perhaps a bit more interaction and communication with guests would be beneficial.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 5

Service: 3

Dinner on a Sunday night was calm and a relaxed dining experience. The food is really good in that is flavourful and the portion sizes are fair. Peking duck two ways was excellent. We will be back for the suckling pig with a bigger group. Service was very good here as well.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 4

Service: 5

Wished they had more dim sum dishes but most restaurants have reduced the selections since COVID.

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 3

Service: 4

Kirin is always our go to restaurant for celebration, their suckling pig is the best. Their dim sum selections are always delicious. Services is always excellent! Atmosphere is actually better than the Richmond’s restaurant. Their tables are not as close to each other, there’s less noise compared to Richmond, and the best part is you can always book one week in advance, not like Richmond where you have to book one month ahead.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

This is our new dim sum spot, it was delicious. This is comparded to the other Vancouver dim sum spots.

We ordered a number of dishes, but the stand outs were the beef cilantro rice rolls, shrimp dumplings, shrimp and scallop dumplings, and the durian mochi. Shrimp dumplings are like you expect, very thin skin, lots of meat, tons of shrimp flavor. Beef rolls with cilantro were amazing, the cilantro really cuts the beefyness and adds a fresh flavor to it, really enjoyed those. The scallop dumplings were also very well made, little hard to grab but packed with meat. Lastly the durian mochi was as close to Japan level quality we have seen. Tons of durian flavor and extremely fresh, highly recommend for desert.

You will need a reservation ahead of time, maybe at least a week prior in order to guarantee a spot. People line up early before entering.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 5

Service: 4

We pre-ordered had half of the suckling pig and lobster dinner set because it was meant for 10 people and we only had 5, but there was quite a bit of food, so we couldn't finish at all. My friend said they went and had the same. They had 7 people and couldn't finish too. The taste of everything was really not bad. The chicken surprised me. It was very well made with crispy skin. There were also 2 kinds of dessert, so even though I don't eat one of them, there was another one that I could choose from. The only thing is some things were dirty. One of the bowls still had rice inside as if it wasn't washed, and one of the takeout boxes they gave us was also oily inside. It was obviously used. They gave us new ones after of course, and they were polite and apologized.

Food is average, price is right, service is good. Like the atmosphere, and spacious seating dinning area. Large group or small gathering, no charge on tea fees. Distance is a bit farther than city center in Richmond, but the driving is worth it, plenty of free parking space. Good dim sum place for my family. Reservation is recommended.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 4

Service: 5

Probably the best Chinese food and service I have had, and will ever have.

Had a family style banquet set dinner with a large (20+ people) party for the Autumn Moon festival.

Like others have said, this is on the pricer side, but you get what you pay for. The food is exceptional. Their chicken and suckling pig had both had very crispy skin and succulent meat. Their dumplings are a signature for good reason - the shrimp was fresh and the mushroom provided great texture.

The service was exceptional. Servers were attentive and friendly - they were prompt to refill tea and drinks, rotate plates, and even replate dishes to make room, all without being pushy or rushing. They speak Chinese and English.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 5

Service: 5

Located just next to casino, lots of parking places. There is lots of space between each table which is nice for a Chinese restaurant. The servers are generally very professional and I would have given 5 -star if the young server had not tried hard to promote expensive seafood. But overall, this is a place I will definitely come back!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 4

The food quality and taste was excellent. Everything tasted extremely fresh and well made. Service was pretty good but they forgot one dish.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5