Splendid China Tower

I remember when this mall first opened, and there was pretty much nothing inside.
I also remember when they were planning to do Splendid China Tower #2, but backed out because nobody comes here.
Yesterday was the first time I visited Splendid China Tower in about 5 years. Quite frankly, not a lot has changed. Most of the second floor is still vacant, and the food court has even less choices than when it first opened. However the first floor is now relatively occupied, which is nice to see. There’s also a couple of restaurants added, and I have noticed an increase in foot traffic.
Aside from events that Chinese radio stations love hosting here due to the abundance of space, there still really isn’t anything that attracts me from coming here.

There isn’t really much to say about the Splendid China Tower.
I mean … It’s kinda like the poor man’s Pacific Mall. And it’s literally right across the street.
It reminds me a lot of Oriental Center that’s at Brimley/​Sheppard. Just a big clean space with big window glass shops. Not much to see here.
There’s hair salons, nail places, animé/​hobby places etc.
The only time I’m here is to eat really. But last time I was here, there was this Japanese buffet (i can’t remember the name) that seemed to have gathered a crowd. Like literally people waiting outside of it. I might just return to try that place.

Splendid China Mall is the newest of the three Asian malls in the Kennedy/​Steeles area, and the only one on the Toronto (south) side of Steeles Avenue. The old name «Splendid China Tower» still graces the main entrance. Why it was called that is well beyond me, for it is obviously not a tower structure at all – more like Splendid China SPRAWL.
Built on what used to be a Canadian Tire, the mall developers must have had splendid megalomaniac ambitions to compete with Market Village and also the world-​famous Pacific Mall and its micro-​retail experience. Apparently what the area needs is MORE OF IT.
The resultant product is a half-​assed, two-​storey stillborn attempt at replicating the Pacific Mall experience, warehoused literally inside a splendid warehouse. The mall design seemed more motivated by cheap thoughtless economics than anything else – no windows, endless sprawling corridors that seem to lead to dark corners. No wonder the Mall is not doing well, and tenants are suffering from its fundamental flaws.
The parking lot is always packed, which I bet is because Pacific Mall/​Market Village shoppers park here to avoid the parking lot hell across the street. It gives a false impression of the Mall itself, which upon entering, yeah, this is definitely the place to be (*insert cricketing sounds here*). Empty and failed storefronts are a dime a dozen, scattered and sprawling everywhere, a homage to the effects of what poor atmosphere and architectural design can do to foot traffic – the dead and deep gridded corridors have the feel of a sketchy alley.
Of the businesses that do stick around, some look like they haven’t seen a customer in days, others may keep irregular hours. The variety are almost the same as with the other two malls – many cell phone accessories and repair shops, automobile parts, electronics and Asian bootleg movies, imported Asian confectioneries and herbs, castaway Asian fashions – nothing standing out. There’s also a restaurant. The Mall has quite a handful of beauty salons that seem to do better business than most others here. There’s also a Chinese bakery stall under the escalator – yes, it’s an Aroma Bakery that serves one of the last remaining decent lo poh banh in the GTA.
Upstairs at the southwest corner lies the Mall’s sad excuse of a food court. All it is really is a bunch of empty arranged tables with a TV in a corner. There are stalls set up for quick-​service food business, but only a couple appear to be still operational enterprises, including one selling printer ink refills. Yeah, I’ll drink that with tapioca, please.
At the building’s centre lies a performance space courtyard like you’d find in most other GTA Asian malls, where most remaining signs of life is concentrated. They do put on events here, especially during Lunar New Year. Such splendid shows however have little effect on life in the deep corners of the mall.
I look at Splendid China as a case study in how poor design can affect the performance of a shopping mall, because it is obvious that the way it is set up contributes much to its «splendid» atmosphere and ability to compete with the more established malls across the street. When it first opened, the developers were proudly advertising plans for a phase 2 expansion. Chances are obvious that it will never happen, or ever.
Perhaps there is a saving grace for this Mall that still remains open. With the cheaper rents that come with less desirable difficult-​to-​fill retail space, perhaps an opportunity exists for the more pioneering of Toronto’s hipsters to escape the downtown scene and set up shop here, far far away from the downtown-​centric gaze of
writers and tastemakers. Hey, once the gwai-​lo hipsters and yuppies that so love to fetishize and appropriate Chinese culture are done gentrifying both old downtown Chinatown and East Chinatown, they can come up here and start a new scene. Fuck food trucks and fly-​by-​night pop-​up restaurants and vintage shops; the next big thing in hipsterdom start-​up entrepreneurship is micro-​retailing in depressed suburban Asian malls! To hell with being close to the subway; Milliken GO train station is right behind the Mall!
That might be more splendid an idea than what it is right now: a knockoff Pacific Mall with little hope, and little reason to visit other than potentially cheaper stuff than P-​Mall. And old wife cakes.

Great place to price shop as the larger pmall across the street attracts all the foot traffic. Lots of nail salons and one off clothing shops to be found. Not many restaurants but the price vs quality is great. Parking is also not too bad compared to the monster across the street. Free WiFi and lots of seating too

This is pretty much the quieter replica of Pacific Mall across the street — most stores weren’t even open for business on a Saturday afternoon.
The food court only offers three options — Fruit Jungle (bubble tea & light snacks), herbal tea vendor and egg cake shop (there’s also a chestnut truck outside). I came by only to fix my phone and buy a screen protector — there are several shops here that sell cell phone accessories and offer repair services.
The parking lot was pretty packed, so it was surprising to see how empty it was inside this mall. A lot of shop spaces are unoccupied and many of the existing stores sell miscellaneous items. One store I passed by had earrings on sale along with archery equipment. ?!
Overall, not much of an attraction besides the cheap cell phone accessories (ie. phone cases at $ 3 each). I wouldn’t suggest visiting Splendid China Tower if you’re hungry or looking for the same shopping experience as Pacific Mall.

What a bizarre experience. How many stores of the same kind can you house in close proximity? This is full of small shops for chinese herbs, small electronics (i.e. cell phone accessories,) beauty salons (i.e. facials,) foot massage/​acupuncturists.
The only thing they’ve got going for it here is a bubble tea shop that sells fresh fruit juice and non-​poweder based bubble teas with tasty fishball snacks.
What’s worse is that parking can be difficult despite the lack of patrons inside.
Oh yeah, there is no «tower» at the Splendid China Tower. I guess they are just being optimistic that someone will want to launder their money *ahem*…invest further in this place.

Yuck.
I mean it’s a new-​er mall just across the street from Pacific Mall/​Market Village in Toronto.
But the worst thing about this place is the bathroom… None of the bathrooms were flushed or cleaned. I see entire strands of fecal matter in all of the toilet stalls, on the first floor and second floor. I gagged.
Immediately I left. I prefer somewhere that is cleaner. How nasty is that? yuck.

Just look at the parking lots! Market Village VS Splendid China Mall…
I mean if you really want to have tons of parking, then comes to Splendid China Mall.
The stores I really don’t understand how they stay in business. The restaurants and the odd bubble tea places might have a patron or 2… but all the rest of the stores never have much business and some even have not regular business hours!
The sad things is Splendid China Mall has been opened for years and they are thinking about building the 2^nd phase… but what in the right mind would invest here? and if no interesting stores opening up, then who is going to come to the Mall? Just a really vicious cycle…
Seriously do we need another Chinese Mall?!

The Splendid China Mall is not really that splendid, if I may be so candid. On the Saturday before Chinese New Year, husband and I, were in search of iPhone cases and a cheap wedding ring to replace his (second) lost one. We saw the line of cars approaching Pacific Mall and balked at how crazy it would be there. So, we made a quick turn into SCM (which is across the street) to try and avoid the crowd.
SCM was practically empty, save for the few people near the stage who were trying out for something called «Canadian Chinese Idol.» (Yes, gentle reader, it is as sad as it sounds. The «oh OH oh oh oh“s of a girl warbling through «It’s a Beautiful Life» could be heard all throughout the little mall.) Many of the shops were closed or empty. We did, however, find the iPhone cases we were looking for, and at a a good price. Unfortunately, there were no jewelers to be found so we had to head over to Pacific Mall, anyway.
SCM is definitely not a replacement for Pacific Mall; I wouldn’t bother coming here until they fill it out a little more. Too bad, it coulda been a contendah.

The signage says Splendid China Tower but the web site and site url say Splendid China Mall, so I’ll go with the latter.
Anyway, north side of Steeles we have the Pacific Mall and the south side of Steeles we have the Splendid China Mall. This is phase 1 of what appears to be a still born two phase development of an old Canadian Tire lot into a competitor to the Pacific Mall. Phase 2 I believe was supposed to be a condo development and additional dining/​retail space. The tanking economy seems to have put Phase 2 on hold, leaving Phase 1 looking like its ass is just hanging out in the wind.
The plan seemed to be creating a bit more of an upscale adjunct to the Pacific Mall but they’ve pretty much just created some over flow parking. Things aren’t so splendid inside the mall/​tower itself. It is pretty dead. I’ll refer you to my photos, which were taken Sunday 1pmish, a time when pretty much the Pacific mall is a sea of humanity.
They do have a center stage for various Chinese themed performances and that was pretty interesting to take in.
Parking wise, it’s less chaotic that Pacific Mall, especially if you’re coming from the occidental side of Toronto. Park, check out if things are going splendidly and then cross (at the light!) and visit the Pacific Mall. Getting out of the parking lot is a bit more complicated as you might have to take a left against traffic coming out of the Pacific Mall.
Food court wise, I didn’t see a lot. A few stalls but nothing like the more interesting food court on the second floor of the Pacific Mall itself.