| R&D | |
| Established: | [1] |
| Current-Owner: | Alvin Leung Eric Chong |
| Head-Chef: | Eric Chong |
| Food-Type: | Asian Fusion Chinese |
| Rating: | Bib Gourmand (Michelin Guide) |
| Street-Address: | 241 Spadina Avenue |
| City: | Toronto, Ontario |
| Zip: | --> |
| Country: | Canada |
| Other-Label: | --> |
R&D is an Asian Fusion restaurant located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
The restaurant is co-owned by Alvin Leung, known for his 3 Michelin-starred Hong Kong restaurant Bo Innovation, and Eric Chong, the inaugural winner of culinary reality competition show MasterChef Canada.[1]
The restaurant opened in 2015 in Toronto's Chinatown neighbourhood, in collaboration between Leung and Chong, who met on MasterChef Canada. Chong was a competitor on the show's first season, while Leung was one of three judges on the show.[2] After winning the competition, Chong received an offer from Leung to train with him in Hong Kong and eventually open a restaurant together.[3]
The business's name, R&D, stands for Rebel & Demon - a moniker created to reflect the personalities of both chefs.[1] Chong is labeled the "Rebel" for pursuing a career in cooking despite his family's initial wishes for him to remain in engineering, while Leung is known as the "Demon Chef".[4] R&D's meaning is two-fold, also reflecting both chefs' engineering backgrounds, where 'r&d' (research and development) is an important aspect of the field.[1]
Chong initially started as the sous-chef for the restaurant, while the title of executive chef was given to Nelson Tsai.[1] Chong took over the reins as executive chef a year following the restaurant's opening.
The restaurant primarily serves Asian fusion dishes, anchored by Chinese cuisine and Canadian ingredients. It also draws upon French and Korean cooking techniques.[5] A core part of the restaurant's menu is its 'Canadian take on traditional Chinese dim sum', serving items such as char siu bao in icing sugar-topped "Mexico buns" and fun guo filled with chicken and black truffle.[6]
Chef Eric Chong, and the restaurant's, signature dish is the wok lobster (stylized: @WOK_LOBSTER) - a butter-poached lobster chow mein[5] based on the same dish which Chong served in the final round of his MasterChef win.[7]
The business was named a Bib Gourmand restaurant by the Michelin Guide at Toronto's 2022 Michelin Guide ceremony,[8] and retained this recognition in 2023 and 2024.[9] A Bib Gourmand recognition is awarded to restaurants who offer "exceptionally good food at moderate prices".[9]