Exploring Downtown Toronto's Chinatown Malls

[@salgor752]

Thanks!

[@JohnnyStrides]

Thank you!!!

[@paulstark1832]

Just one level down from.AGI ( Virtual Reality). Imagery is just fascinating. Great job Johnny

[@NanaDots]

Nice walk, however not as busy as most Malls. Unusual layout . The windows show a great view of the surrounding area.❤

[@brentsarazin6597]

Boy. It sure has a feeling like the 1st Malls days are numbered but some of those clothing shops appeared to have some very reasonably priced items for sale...TY

[@kerrymark2669]

Hotel 8 used to be a really nice Chinese restaurant. It was a pretty fancy place with great food and high-end service, but it was affordable. It served a fantastic dim sum and had an outside patio. When this mall first opened, it was busy and a lovely place to visit. It is sad to see that it is no longer popular.

[@oiygfdxssfgg]

I never visited that mall, thanks for posting this.

[@martym61]

Enjoyed the walk through the Chinatown malls. That jacket was $97.24 in Canadian dollars.

[@iguana9173]

I can’t believe that the super 8 hotel is no longer there.

[@theresesilvawalker8407]

Good morning! I wonder if you could do Sherwood.Park (near bayview and Eglinton)

[@dylanreynolds8264]

good morning everyone

[@canadafree2087]

I stayed at the Super 8 with the expectation of seeing Chinatown awaking in the early morning; seeing all the food being put out onto the streets. Sadly it doesn't waken until about 10am lol. It was cool to have a mall below us but the saddest food court ever, only 4 stalls were open and food not very good. We did have a decent meal at the Owl however. We also enjoyed eating at 3am at the 24 hour noodle joint around the corner on Dundas West if I remember correctly.

[@jacquelines9966]

Good morning

[@dannyc.1552]

i still remember as a kid pre 2000s these place use to be packed. My grand father use to go down all the time. We moved to the suburbs in early 2000s and he would still go down for a couple of years and then he realized market village and pacific mall was the better hang out spot. But even these places have a lot less foot traffic nowadays. I think small shops lost its appeal because you can basically buy most of the stuff online for cheaper.

[@HeadlessChickenTO]

Way back in the haydays, Chinatown Center had a half decent buffet in the 3rd level, and i think it was the only thing up there. Chinese New Years would be very packed. The food court ran into troubles when city health inspectors hit them several times consecutively for pest infestation. At Dagon City Mall, there use to be an aquarium and pet shop right at the stairs. And I'd argue Dragon City restaurant has (or at least had since its been over a decade when i last ate there) one of the worst dim sum around. But the view from their terrace is awesome.

[@InTecknicolour]

dragon city restaurant was pretty good like 20 years ago I agree. Haven't been in nearly that long.

[@wseto09]

Brings back long fond memories when it was a busy area. The covid lock down probably really hurt these places sadly. Also long time ago when dvd movies were the things to get before the internet online movies and roku . There was roughly two of these mall places in downtown known for pirated dvd movies raided by the Toronto police I believe.

[@canman5060]

I remember there was a huge issue at the time when the owner developer handed in their development application for Dragon City Centre (Now Chinatown Centre) which was used to be a church site in 1986.

[@jacklocastro963]

@@canman5060 If memory serves, I think it was a Hungarian church.

[@BlueHeron654]

1:42 Best currency exhange in Toronto

[@JB50713]

That intro shot was great.

[@texedomel01]

The basement level of the Dragon City mall used to be a food court but it has been long dead. The stairs used to be roped off going down is not allowed. Chinatown Center used to be THE place to be until mid to late 90s when the new immigrants from HK and China prefers living in the suburbs and new Chinese malls open.

[@drewlorens1686]

Chinatown centre was the place to be in chinatown...20 years ago. However many families moved out to Markham and opened Pacfic centre, since then downtown Chinatown has been on a sharp decline. In recent years, the stores you see were "fronts". False goods outside, TripleA designer in backroom which you could only buy if you knew the owner or had a friend who already shopped there. You would've been kicked out trying to walk around with a camera 8 years ago lol...however that came to an end after a few police raids, stores shuttered and people charged for selling illegal / counterfit goods fresh off the boat! I may have purchased LV and Prada items 10 yrs ago

[@canman5060]

Used to be Scarboro and then Markham Unionville starting in the early 1990's.

[@manchuk1d]

Damn so sad to see Chinatown is pretty much dead now, use to be tons of people in the malls.

[@good_to_be_gold8]

It’s also colder. People just don’t want to be out if they don’t want to

[@manchuk1d]

@@good_to_be_gold8 Wrong , its dead everyone from back then left or passed away and the next generation doesn't want anything to do with it.

[@adeptturtle2829]

When I went to Toronto in 2018, I saw a lot of beautiful things, one of them is the Sky Dragon restaurant in Chinatown. There used to be tons of people walking on the streets, indeed. I really want to go back.

[@manchuk1d]

its dead now, no much anymore except the old chinese and drug addicts its sad.@@adeptturtle2829

[@j_m_3590]

Warms my heart to see dragon city still has the foosball table atleast. Probably not free anymore tho lol

[@orospakr]

Shouting out Canteen, that place is awesome. Gf and I go there weekly. Malaysian Cantonese cha chanteng food.

[@bonniediep5324]

Thanks Johnny! Excellent tour of the sort of dead Chinese mall on a weekday. I'm sure weekends are so crowded there, as most Chinatowns are. I wondered what Chinatown Toronto's like and it's not really different than Alberta or Vancouver. Interesting.

[@miguelbotelho2613]

China court was actually back in the late 1978 to around early 1990s if I remember correctly.

[@anthonychan199221]

u should go to markham area

[@pauly5418]

Dragon City Mall is doing better than Chinatown Centre....the central location helps. I wonder if the Ontario Line station at Queen and Spadina will help the latter when it opens. RMB is renminbi...the name of the currency in China aka Yuan. PS I think there' s hope for CC. DCM didn't look so well a few years ago, but it's doing better now.

[@totoroutes5389]

Your channel is more relaxed than the “Charles Veitch” channel.

[@miguelbotelho2613]

Use to live in the government housings behind this mall. It was actually another mall called China court. Sad to see it like this , brings back memories though.

[@EmperorBeef]

Its a sad state of affairs at Chinatown Centre. It could really use some new life! Dragon City Mall is doing better, but not by much. I wish there was some kind of major anchor or attraction.

[@mariagillinson8527]

Johnny where is the actual Chinatown food market

[@donnastephenson4747]

Interesting

[@NightOwwl728]

Haven't ever been in either of two malls. Chinatown Centre looks like it's on its last legs and Dragon City gives me a feeling of bad feng shui with its claustrophobic architectural design. I thought I was in the Matrix-code world or something with its feeling of busyness. Can't remember either what was on that corner before DC.

[@canman5060]

6:02 Goodness they are like some of the dead mall in Hong Kong !

[@Perogiii]

Shitty wok is still open! (If you’re familiar with South Park and the city wok). Sometimes I miss living downtown 💔

[@tiffanyszymanski5956]

I’ve been to that arcade in dragon city mall a bunch of times yet have only won something twice 😅

[@JohnnyStrides]

lol

[@JB50713]

Ghost town of a mall.

[@canman5060]

Just like the many in Hong Kong after the National Security Law.I guess the Chinese CCP is also running Toronto chinatown !

[@TP-yw6hj]

Wow you are so disconnected from China town. Most stores/booths in Chinatown Center open around noon. And it's not 'BBQ duck' it's Peking Duck.

[@canman5060]

Sad to see the inside of Toronto Chinatown Mall is like the many dead malls in Hong Kong.

[@SuperEnterenter]

Saddest Chinatown I have ever seen 😢

[@gametri-eq6lj]

most of the shops open at noon he went too early

[@raazan1128]

Both locations are in need of serious renovations

[@Daniel_IFC]

Dragon City Mall is literally worse than Pacific Mall!

[@eek0h]

Liminal spaces

[@Holion5604]

This place really aged poorly, i remenber going there in the early 2000s. business seemed to have gone worse since then.

[@itcu185]

oooohhhh is that restaraunt "Siagon Charlies" still there