Bubble Waffle Cafe – ChineseBites Media Event

NOTE: All food and beverages were complimentary, but all opinions are my own.

Bubble Waffle opened a sit-in location in Kerrisdale and ChineseBites invited us to a media tasting.

The interior is rustic and the owner said he wanted to give a HK style feel to it. The prices here are a little higher than the food court stalls, but they are still affordable.

They even have a mural painted on the wall showcasing Hong Kong.

I sat with Instagrammers, Tina, Sharon, and Elaine. First up, we got to sample all the different soup bases. This was great since there are a few soups that I wouldn’t normally order, like the really spicy ones.

We then got to sample a selection of their Bubble Waffles.

They have a variety of flavours here, including original, chocolate, Oreo, cheesecake, matcha and cinnamon. These were okay, but not crispy enough.

My favourite was still the original although I found the cheesecake flavour surprisingly quite good. The cinnamon flavour was probably my least favourite.

Next up were some Taiwanese snacks. The Taiwanese Sausages were quite a hit at our table. They are a mix of sweet and savoury and have a firm texture.

My favourite snack was the Deep Fried Stinky Tofu. The outside was very crispy and the inside was piping hot. Along with the sweet and spicy sauce, this was delicious. A miss for some because of the fermented smell.

The Fish Siu Mai was quite typical and I found that it was soaked in too much soy sauce. I kind of wished it had a chili sauce on the side.

I enjoyed the Takoyaki quite a lot as these were filled with a generous amount of octopus bits and the inside wasn’t doughy like some I’ve tried.

The Taiwanese Chicken Nuggets were a hit as they were crispy with the chicken itself very moist. I loved the salt and pepper flavouring.

The Fried Shrimp Balls were a beautiful orange colour but I found them to be slightly bland. It needed a sauce to go with it.

Overall, Bubble Waffle Cafe has a great variety of snacks which you can order on its own or pay extra to add on as a side with your noodles.

The drinks came along and I got the HK Style Iced Milk Tea. Their milk teas are actually made with a blend of 5 different Sri Lankan teas. The tea also goes through a filter and is pulled, a common way of making milk teas in Hong Kong. Very silky smooth as a result.

Finally our noodles which we got to customize arrived! E got the Laksa soup base which is one of my usual orders. The soup is flavourful without being too spicy.

T got the Satay soup base which again is very flavourful. It almost tastes like you’re having hot pot!

For myself, I chose the Chiu Chow Style Minced Pork Fish Soup along with rice noodle, sliced beef, sliced beef brisket, fried shrimp ball and fish ball with shrimp. All noodles come with cabbage and bean curd. For some reason, my soup also came with corn.

Overall, Bubble Waffle is great when you’re craving hot noodles in soup on a rainy day. I also love the ability to customize everything from the soup to the toppings. You’ll be very full by the end of your meal for sure with the large portion sizes and affordable prices. A nice option to be able to eat at a location with a nicer ambiance compared to the food court now.

Bubble Waffle Cafe Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Ken’s Chinese Restaurant – ChineseBites Media Event

NOTE: As part of the ChineseBites media event, all food was free, but all opinions are based on my own personal experience.

Last month, I was invited by ChineseBites to do a tasting at Ken’s Chinese Restaurant. The restaurant has been around for many years and serves traditional Chinese dishes as well as some HK style cafe dishes.

Fish Soup with Winter Melon & Dried Scallop 瑤柱冬瓜粒魚湯

Chinese dinners always start with soup, and we got to sample the Fish Soup with Winter Melon & Dried Scallop. Flavourful with lots of ingredients and great for a cold rainy night.

Ken’s Specialty Chicken 南軒走地雞

Ken’s Specialty Chicken was tender with a nice layer of jelly under the skin.

Lobster with Konnyaku in Hot Pot 芋絲龍蝦煲

One of their signature dishes is the Lobster with Konnyaku in Hot Pot. This was very flavourful with the lobster cooked just right and the konnyaku noodles soaking up the delicious broth. A must order!

Crab with Garlic & Spicy XO Sauce XO 金蒜炒蟹

We got to sample two of their signature crab dishes. The first was the Crab with Garlic & Spicy XO Sauce. The sauce is more of a dry sauce and great if you love spicy flavours. I could eat the whole dish if I didn’t have to share!

Golden Dungeness Crab 金沙蟹

The Golden Dungeness Crab was one of my favourites as I love crab or lobster that is coated with a salty egg yolk batter. Very flavourful but some found it to be too filling because of the egg yolk. I loved it though!

Braised Fatty Layer Pork 杭州東玻肉

The Braised Fatty Layer Pork seems like a must order at ChineseBites events, and this one didn’t disappoint. A good layer of fat to meat ratio but I did find that this one felt more oily than others I’ve had.

Pan Fried Chicken Fillet with Spicy Thai Sauce 泰汁煎雞扒

The Pan Fried Chicken Fillet with Spicy Thai Sauce was quite average for me as I didn’t find it too special. The chicken was quite tenderized, but nothing too special with the sauce as it tasted like store bought Thai sweet chili sauce.

Malaysian Style Fried Rice 馬拉臘味炒飯

I actually quite enjoyed the Malaysian Style Fried Rice as it had a bit of a kick to it. Good amount of ingredients in the rice.

Black Pepper Diced Beef Tenderloin 七彩黑椒牛柳粒

I was pleasantly surprised with the Black Pepper Diced Beef Tenderloin as I find that this dish can be easily overdone. This was however delicious with the beef extremely tender and cooked to a nice medium to medium rare. The colourful peppers also made the dish visually appetizing and tasted great.

Baked Seafood on Rice 焗海鮮飯

Lastly, we had the Baked Seafood on Rice. This was quite average with a nice layer of white cream sauce and melted cheese. Nothing too special compared to your typical HK style cafes.

Overall, there were some hits and misses, but I would highly recommend trying their crab and lobster dishes. A great casual Chinese restaurant for families but ambiance is rather dated. Reasonable prices and some great dishes though.

Ken's Chinese Restaurant Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Firebird Cafe

NOTE: As part of the ChineseBites media event, all food and beverages were free, but all opinions are based on my own personal experience.

ChineseBites invited Naomi (Constant Cravings) and I along with our guests to sample some dishes from Firebird Cafe. Located in Continental Plaza, it took over Tasty Rice Noodles, which was short-lived in the original Deer Garden spot.

The interior looks exactly the same as Deer Garden and the menu is fairly similar.

They are famous for their customized noodle soups and have pretty much the same order sheets as Deer Garden and the previous Tasty Rice Noodles. All of us were not really feeling a noodle soup that night, so we skipped this.

A new addition is their custom sizzling grills as well as their custom steamed rice. For $13.95, you can choose two items for your custom sizzling grill. It comes with your a soup of the day, choice of a side (rice, spaghetti, fries, or mashed potatoes) and choice of a sauce (black pepper, mushroom, onion, garlic, and gravy). Coffee or tea is included with additional charges for cold or specialty drinks. Additional toppings are $3.95.

House Special Milk Tea with Grass Jelly, Taro Milk Tea with Pearls, Peach Green Tea with Pearls, Mango Slush with Coconut Jelly

We started off with an assortment of their specialty drinks. They were all pretty well made but don’t expect them to be as good as the ones from a specialty bubble tea shop.

Deep Fried Taiwanese Chicken Nuggets

For appies, we had the Deep Fried Taiwanese Chicken Nuggets which were surprisingly really good at a HK style type of cafe. Topped with loads of basil and lightly battered, these were extremely flavourful with the chicken remaining moist inside.

Custom Sizzling Grill

W got the Custom Sizzling Grill with Chicken Wings, Fish Fillet, Chicken Steak, Spaghetti and Mushroom Sauce. We were suprised how moist the grilled items remained. The grilled items were all very flavourful so the sauce was not really needed. I do find that for additional toppings, it can get a bit pricey.

Custom Sizzling Grill

S got the Custom Sizzling Grill as well but with Chicken Wings, Ribeye Steak, Chicken Steak, Fries and Black Pepper Sauce. I really enjoyed the ribeye steak as it was very tender. Veggies were rather bland, but again, all the meats were very flavourful.

Baked Pork Chop on Rice

For myself, I chose the Baked Pork Chop on Rice. This was a huge portion for under $10. The pork chop was moist and crispy, but I wish there was more sauce as I found myself left with lots of rice near the end.

Curry Boneless Chicken with Rice

N got the Curry Boneless Chicken with Rice which I really enjoyed! It was a lot spicier than most HK style curries. I liked the crispy potatoes and sauce!

Deep Fried Squid Tentacles

Lastly, we got the Deep Fried Squid Tentacles which took quite a while to arrive. We suspect that it was because they were taking the time to plate it so nicely… Anyways, they were slightly disappointing because the batter was slightly soggy. The squid itself was pretty good as it was chewy without being tough. They use a seaweed seasoning on top along with a sweet chili mayo, which is a little odd. This was just alright.

Overall, I quite enjoyed their baked dishes and custom sizzling grills. Portions are great for the price. Not a bad spot if you are looking for HK style cafe food.

Firebird Cafe Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

8th Annual Chinese Restaurant Awards Ceremony

On March 2nd, 2016, we were invited to the 8th Annual Chinese Restaurant Awards (CRA) ceremony held at the River Rock Show Theatre.

The afternoon recognized the winners of the Critic’s Choice Signature Dish Awards and Social Media Choice Awards.

We were able to sample some of the winner’s dishes along with some drinks thanks to sponsors.

Each year, the CRA recognizes a Canadian food product-of-excellence that has incorporated into Chinese cuisine. This year’s winner is the B.C. Geoduck by Underwater Harvester’s Association.

We got to sample a dish using geoduck by the award winning Chef Sam Leung from Dynasty Seafood Restaurant. They presented to us a plate of B.C. Geoduck with Dungeness Crab Roe and Yuzi. This was creamy and the flavour and texture of the geoduck was right on.

Others who were present included the chefs from Peninsula Seafood Restaurant, including executive chef Yao Wei Guang and dim sum hed chef Keong Wong. Peninsula won the 2016 Diner’s Choice Awards for Best Fine Dining Restaurant.

They served us Chef’s Special Red-braised Pork which had just the right amount of fat to meat ratio. This was also extremely flavourful.

Memory Corner won Diner’s Choice Awards for the best Taiwanese Braised Pork Rice which we got to sample. Flavourful and fatty pork with a side of marinated hard boiled egg.

Saint Germain Bakery won Diner’s Choice Awards for best bakery shop and showcased a variety of their delectable cakes. Light and fluffy and not overly sweet.

Mission Hill Family Estate helped cover us for wines and we got to sample their Five Vineyards 2013 Chardonnay.

Hennessy showcased their Very Special Cognac.

K sampled the cognac with a mix of ginger ale.

Heineken was also at the event to cover the guests who wanted some beer.

Dawn Chubai from Breakfast Television, CityTV and William Ho Wood Kuen from Fairchild TV and Radio were the emcees for the afternoon and we got to congratulate all the winners of the recipients of the Critic’s Choice Signature Dish Awards and Social Media Choice Awards.

Another great year of delicious food and congratulations to all the chefs and restaurant winners!

To see the list of winners for the Chinese Restaurant Awards’ 2016 Diners’ Choice Awards which was released earlier, check out Vancity Buzz’s article.

Winners of the Critics’ Choice Signature Dish Awards  – Metro Vancouver

  1. SALT AND PEPPER CRUSTED DUNGENESS CRAB

Landmark Hotpot House
4023 Cambie Street, Vancouver (604) 872-2868

  1. SABLEFISH WITH SHREDDED PORK, LUFFA, PICKLED VEGETABLES IN CONGEE SOUP

Dynasty Seafood restaurant
#108-777 West Broadway, Vancouver (604) 876-8388

  1. STEAMED EGG WITH CLAMS

Shroom Restaurant
6555 Fraser Street, Vancouver (604) 568-7797

  1. CHEF TONY’S SPECIAL CHARCOAL GRILLED DUCK

Chef Tony Seafood Restaurant
#101-4600 No.3 Road, Richmond (604) 279-0083

  1. CHICKEN WITH STICKY RICE IN CLAYPOT

Golden Eats Seafood Restaurant
2141 Kingsway, Vancouver (604) 336-3389

  1. LAMB HOTPOT

The Jade Seafood Restaurant
8511 Alexandra Road, Richmond (604) 249-0082

  1. LAMB IN SOUP

Old Xian’s Food
#2010-8580 Alexandra Road, Richmond (604) 370-3888

  1. BRAISED WINTER MELON WITH VEGETABLE AND MUSHROOM

Dynasty Seafood restaurant
#108-777 West Broadway, Vancouver (604) 876-8388

  1. TOFU SKIN WRAPPED MUSHROOMS WITH VEGETABLES

Hoitong Chinese Seafood Restaurant
#155-8191 Westminster Hwy, Richmond (604) 276-9229

  1. DURIAN EGGTART

Yue Delicacy Restaurant
8077 Alexandra Road, Richmond (604) 233-1219

 

Winners of the Social Media Choice Awards  – Metro Vancouver

  1. BEST SICHUAN WATER-BOILED FISH

Tian Shi Fu Restaurant
8151 Alexandra Road, Richmond (604) 273-3388

  1. BEST TAIWANESE BRAISED PORK RICE

Corner 23
4008 Cambie Street, Vancouver (604) 879-8815

  1. BEST HONG KONG-STYLE ROAST DUCK

Parker Place (Aberdeen) Meat & B.B.Q.
#1020-4380 No.3 Road, Richmond (604) 233-1138

  1. BEST SHANGHAI-STYLE DRUNKEN CHICKEN

Top Shanghai Cuisine Restaurant
#120-5880 No.3 Road, Richmond (604) 278-8790

  1. BEST MANGO SAGO WITH POMELO/GRAPEFRUIT

Doolami Dessert
8030 Granville Street, Vancouver (778) 737-7123

BiBo Restaurant -Media Launch

NOTE: All food and beverages were complimentary, but all opinions are based on my own personal experience.

Last month, I was invited by Peak Communicators to attend the official launch of Bibo Restaurant at Richmond’s McArthurGlen Designer Outlet Mall. They had their soft opening back in October last year, but the official launch was on February 29, 2016. This is now their second location, with the first in Kitsilano.

During the media launch, we were greeted by the owners Andrea and his wife and business partner, Michela. As native Italians, the owners are passionate about creating an authentic atmosphere at the restaurant that mirrors traditional Italian values, heritage, and ambiance.

The interior is bright and modern with long tables for communal type seating.

At the end of the restaurant is a large bar and we were able to sample a variety of drinks.

The Cortese Gavi di Gavi DOCG is a distinguished white wine produced in a very small region surrounding the little town of Gavi. It has a medium body and notes of limes. This wine is exclusive to BiBo.

All other wines are carefully selected and sourced by the owners to ensure it’s consistent with the authentic Italian ambiance and complimentary to the traditional Italian dishes.

We also got to sample some of their Italian sodas which I fancied. These are are imported from Italy and are great for both children and adults.

They had set up a buffet style event for us to showcase some of their best menu items. On one side were a selection of meats.

Bio boasts a selection of fresh and natural ingredients sourced from Italy, including many of these cheese.

Olive oil is imported from Tuscany and Campania, and Porcini mushrooms from Piedmont. The olives and artichokes are from Michela’s uncle who owns a farm in Salerno.

I asked the servers to give me a sample of everything. This included the Coppa Piacentina, which is a seasoned meat left to age for at least six weeks.

So many choices of fresh meats and cheese, so a perfect place to get a charcuterie board along with a glass of wine.

Risotto Balls were Crispy on the outside and gooey in the inside.

There were also a selection of polenta bites. They also offer gluten-free and vegetarian options.

We then got to watch the pizza chefs in action. BiBo’s pizza chefs are all from Napoli and have trained at the Neapolitan Pizza School. All pizza crusts are hand-stretched and baked in a wood0fired oven and topped with the highest quality ingredients.

This was the Butternut Squash Pizza. I liked the sweetness of the squash along with the salty meat. The crust is definitely really light and crispy. This is what you call thin crust! Usually I’m not a fan of eating the crust, but this was really good.

They have a good variety of choices including this Spicy Chorizo as well as classics like the Margherita.

Lastly, we got to sample some of their pastas, including this meat ravioli and risotto.

Overall, a great new addition to Richmond’s vast choices of restaurants. Perfect to stop by after a day of shopping at the outlet. BiBo’s owners also announced that they will be opening its third location in the Olympic Village district this summer!

In celebration of the grand opening, BiBo is offering promotions at its new Richmond location only. This includes discounts on all bottles of Italian wines exclusive to the restaurant every Tuesday and Wednesday. As well, there is a special Pizza and Beer for $18 every Monday until May 30, 2016.

BiBo Pizzeria Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Shiny Tea

Shiny Tea opened up shortly after the new addition to Aberdeen Centre, called Aberdeen Square, finished renovations. It’s actually really close to the Canada Line skytrain connector. I heard a lot about their tiny white pearls so I finally decided to come check it out.

On a Sunday afternoon around 4pm, this place was PACKED. This is a take away only location and the lineup to order was massive. There were also tons of people waiting for their drinks when we arrived.

They have an extensive list of drinks and many choices if you enjoy tea flavours. They claim that they are authorized by the inventor of Taiwanese’s tapioca milk tea. Prices are around the same as Chatime and they offer large and medium sizes.

Panda Milk Tea

We both got the Panda Milk Tea as it features a mix of small white pearls and regular sized black pearls. You are able to customize your drink by sugar and ice level, just like Chatime. We went for 50% sugar level and found that it was barely sweet, whereas if we got 50% at Chatime, it would still be very sweet. I would suggest getting 25% less sugar then if you want your drink to still be a little sweet. We found that the small white pearls were really just sago which you find when you order mango sago desserts. Therefore, I didn’t find it that special. Plus, they are so small so I found that I swallowed them without chewing which probably isn’t very good for you… Anyways, their milk tea is quite smooth and you can smell the brew of tea all around the surroundings. Still, I think I prefer Chatime’s roasted milk tea, but Shiny Tea is pretty good if you want bubble tea and you’re near Aberdeen. Overall, we waited 10 minutes in line to order and another 20 minutes for our drinks.

Pros:
– Great choice of tea flavoured drinks
– Choice of small and big pearls
– Able to customize sugar and ice level

Cons:
– Long waits to order and receive drink

Price Range: $5/person

1: Terrible 2: Poor 3: Average 4: Good 5: Excellent

Food: 3.5 Service: 3 Ambiance: N/A Parking: 2.5 Overall: 3.5

Shiny Tea Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Applause Japanese Restaurant

S and I have been on a roll trying out new restaurants around the Marpole area since it’s on our way home from work anyways. This time we tried Applause Japanese Restaurant in a small strip mall. There is some parking on the side of the mall.

We arrived pretty early (around 6pm) so the restaurant was not too busy yet. However, food still took quite a long time to come out. Service was friendly though.

For myself, I got the Chirashi Don which came with miso soup. All their dons come with miso soup. Quite average and wished there was more tofu.

Chirashi Don

The Chirashi Don was a huge bowl of assorted sashimi on rice. Toppings included tuna, octopus, hokkigai, hamachi, saba, ebi, salmon, and tamago. All the sashimi was very fresh and the rice was pretty good with a nice ratio of rice vinegar. For under $14 and the amount and quality of the sashimi, I thought it was pretty reasonable

Yakiudon

S got the Yakiudon which comes with chicken and baby shrimp. This was a huge plate even to share between two people, let alone to finish by one. It was sizzling hot when it arrived and we really enjoyed the flavours of this dish. Great deal for under $10!

Overall, I quite enjoyed the quality of food at Applause Japanese Restaurant. Some of their rolls are slightly more expensive than other restaurants, but the quality of their sashimi seem pretty good based on the chirashi don I had. Will be back to try other items.

Pros:
– Good quality sashimi
– Reasonable prices for portion and quality

Cons:
– Interior is not the nicest (odd curtains)

Price Range: $10-20/person

1: Terrible 2: Poor 3: Average 4: Good 5: Excellent

Food: 3.5 Service: 3 Ambiance: 2.5 Parking: 2.5 Overall: 3.5

Applause Japanese Restaurant Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Le Crocodile (2016 Valentine’s Menu)

For Valentine’s this year, S spoiled me with a fancy five course dinner at Le Crocodile. Le Crocodile has been around for over 30 years now and is known to Vancouverites for being the classic fine dining spot featuring French cuisine. This elegant restaurant is known to impress.

Surprisingly, the restaurant was quite brightly lit, although they did dim the lights later in the evening. Many couples had already been seated when we arrived. I don’t know if the seating is as tight on normal nights, but I found that we were quite close to the other couples next to us, so it wasn’t the most intimate experience. Perhaps they tried to fit more people in during this night to maximize capacity.

Dinner started off with complimentary bread, which featured both white and whole wheat. Slightly warm but not the best I’ve had. I found it on the harder side.

Dungeness Crab Cake Lady Purse

Our first appetizer on the menu was the Dungeness Crab Cake Lady Purse which was served with a heirloom tomato and fennel salad with lemon and yam aioli. The presentation was beautiful with the puff pastry shaped into a beautiful fan. However, it got quite messy as the pastry got everywhere on the table when we began to eat it. The crab cake itself was pretty good and I really enjoyed the salad which has a nice acidity to it.

Wild Mushroom Ravioli

Next up was the Wild Mushroom Ravioli served with thinly sliced duck breast in a foie gras veloute. The duck was nicely cooked to a medium rare and I loved the earthy flavour of the mushroom filling paired with the foie gras sauce. However, I did find that the ravioli was slightly undercooked for mine. The edges were still quite hard. Not sure if they did that on purpose.

Grilled Beef Tenderloin and Roasted Lobster Tail

For our mains, we could choose between the Grilled Beef Tenderloin and Roasted Lobster Tail or Sablefish with Tagliatelle Pasta and Grilled Alaskan Scallops. However, S and I both ended up choosing the Grilled Beef Tenderloin and Roasted Lobster Tail. This was served with a pinot noir and black truffle reduction. The tenderloin itself was quite a large portion and I liked the crispy edges. However, I had asked mine for medium rare and I found it to be slightly more of a medium. Only the very centre was more rare. S’s was cooked on point though. The lobster was slightly too salty for my liking. However, I really loved the red wine and black truffle reduction. I couldn’t stop dipping my meat into it!

Pineapple and Vodka Sorbet

We were then served a palette cleanser which was the Pineapple and Vodka Sorbet. It was really refreshing and definitely cleaned our palettes from all the previous flavours.

Valentine’s Dessert Creation

Lastly, for dessert, you get to share their Valentine’s Dessert Creation. This was perfect since we were already really full! It came with a delicious coconut soufflé. This was super light and fluffy! My favourite of the three. In the middle was a chocolate brownie with maple caramel ice cream. On the very end were two lemon curd tarts topped with raspberries. I found these a little too tart for my liking.

And of course dinner ends with their signature crocodile chocolates (one milk and one dark). Nothing too special about these to be honest…

Overall, we enjoyed our evening at Le Crocodile with a great fine ding experience and service. However, I had higher hopes for the food and left feeling everything was good but nothing “wowed” me. You know that feeling when you want to go back already and have the dish again? That didn’t happen based on the dishes on the Valentines’ menu… I guess they settled for dishes that could be easily executed during the busy night, so I think I will have to come back again on a regular day to get the full experience and choose dishes they are famous for. Plus for $98 a person, this was quite a hefty dinner.

Pros:
– Consistent and good quality dishes
– Professional and attentive service

Cons:
– Expensive, although portions are very reasonable
– Dishes from the Valentine’s menu were good but nothing amazing

Price Range: $98/person (Valentine’s menu)

1: Terrible 2: Poor 3: Average 4: Good 5: Excellent

Food: 3.5 Service: 4 Ambiance: 4.5 Parking: 3 Overall: 3.5

Le Crocodile Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato