What’s on the menu at Hutaoli, Markham’s Chinese version of Hard Rock Cafe

Name: Hutaoli Contact: #1-3760 Hwy 7 E., Markham, 365-608-5333, hutaolitoronto.com, @hutaolitoronto
Neighbourhood: Markham Owner: Kaitlyn Zhang

The food

Hutaoli is one of the latest Chinese chains to open a Toronto location. The popular spot for spicy Sichuan plates and live music is offering Canadians all the mega mainland hits. A few of the dishes, though, have been tweaked a bit—not because the chefs thought Toronto palates needed coddling, but because certain ingredients (like the cheese used on the durian pizza) weren’t available here.

The drinks

Signature cocktails, some beer and a selection of worldly wines (bottles of which are priced around the $50 mark). Instead of pop, Hutaoli serves fresh juices and house-brewed iced teas.

The space

Hutaoli is basically the Chinese Hard Rock Cafe: a restaurant chain that fuses music and food, with a stage anchoring every one of the 400-plus locations. The 200-seat room is decked out in faux greenery: fern chandeliers, ivy-festooned walls and wildflower-filled jugs. A random assortment of tchotchkes like vintage TVs, bird cages, lanterns and Grecian-style busts, give the 6,300-square-foot room a quirky, Alice in Wonderland-like air. Chairs upholstered with images of suit-sporting anthropomorphic hares and harts add to the Lewis Carroll vibe, while two cottages hanging from the ceiling (made to look like traditional ’60s-era Chinese houses) complete the surreal aesthetic.