Dunn’s Famous – Relaunch Media Event

October 31, 2015October 31, 20151 Comment

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

I’ve been to Dunn’s Famous during the PaintNite events, so I was excited when Peak Communicators contacted me about the Dunn’s Famous Relaunch Media Event. As I was away during the actual event, Peak Communicators was able to arrange for me to visit the restaurant at another time. I met with Yonathan Delgado, the General Manager who gave me a thorough tour of the newly re-opened restaurant.

Dunn’s Famous is the only franchise outside of Quebec. The store launched in 2011 and the grand re-opening was on October 9, 2015. They have revamped their menu to focus more on their signature dishes, but have also added a couple of new items. My immediate reaction when I entered was how bright the restaurant is now.

You’ll find brick walls on one side and tables with black and white photography of Quebec.

The new addition is the deli experience where customers can purchase both quick lunches and also goods to take home. They offer a variety of smoked meat, pickles, salads, and soups. Of course, you can also choose sit-down dining, but it’s great that there’s an option for Downtown workers for a quick sandwich.

Dunn’s Famous specializes in authentic Montreal smoked meat, an artisan meat product produced from beef brisket that is cured and spiced using old-world techniques before a slow cooking process. It is then steamed again and hand sliced to order, before used to create the iconic Canadian Montreal smoked meat sandwich.

Montreal Smoked Meat Sandwich

Of course I had to try their signature item, so I ordered the Montreal Smoked Meat Sandwich. For the sandwiches, you can choose the size, cut of your meat, mustard, and any side add ons. I asked for advice from one of the servers (who by the way, are extremely well-trained and knowledgeable with the products) and chose the smallest size, a 4 oz meat sandwich, with a medium cut, and Dijon mustard. They use rye bread which comes from the local bakery, Brekka, so the bread is extremely fresh. All sandwiches also come with a pickle, which is refreshing to eat between the sandwich. The smoked meat is seriously some of the most melt-in-your-mouth meat I’ve had though. This is because Dunn’s offers the only hand-sliced Montreal smoked meat in Vancouver. The hand slicing is an art that takes years to perfect and allows the meat to be cooked for a longer period of time and it can be cut against the grain. This would not be achievable with a machine. With a medium cut, you get a mix of lean and fat meat, so you still get the perfect melt-in-your-mouth texture.

Quebecoise Poutine

For my add-on, I chose the Quebecoise Poutine. The fries are hand cut and made from Kennebec potatoes, and topped with fresh Canadian cheese curds covered in an original BBQ beef gravy. The gravy is made in house from scratch using roasted beef bones and a signature barbecue spice mix, which I thought was quite different from your typical gravy sauce. I quite liked this and the fries were extremely crispy.

Overall, I was extremely satisfied with the service and food at Dunn’s Famous. There are very few, if any, Montreal smoked meat restaurants that I’m aware of so it’s great that Dunn’s still keeps the traditions and authenticity of this delicious artisan meat. Great location and I’m loving the new vintage retro ambiance at the restaurant. Plus, you can now bring home the smoked meat to assemble your own sandwich!

The Roof at Black+Blue (Happy Hour)

September 8, 2015September 6, 2015Leave a comment

SP, SK and I are always on the lookout to find a new happy hour place. We have our gatherings every few months and we usually go after work, and it’s the perfect time to try new restaurants at a good price. SP is always looking for a deal for drinks too, so what better way than to go for happy hour. This time, we decided to go to The Roof at Black+Blue. Their happy hour is from 2:30-5:30 every day and there is a select menu with 50% off their original price. Select beers, highballs, and featured drinks are $5.

You enter from Black+Blue door and to your left is an elevator which will take you up to the third floor. You’ll arrive with a huge bull facing you.

We arrived at 5pm and the place was already bumping. The hostess warned us that we would only be allowed to stay until 7:30pm for happy hour as they have the next group of diners coming in. The patio is awesome but it was also extremely sunny and we were not smart enough to bring our shades like everyone else. The ambiance is nice but not overly fancy. You’ll find a mix of tourists and business people here.

Charcuterie ($18)

All prices I’ve listed is the regular price, so we got everything 50% off. The Charcuterie came with prosciutto, a selection of salami, parmigiano-reggiano, seasonal marmalade, olives, cornichons, and forno bread. I loved the cheese and the selection of meats were great. A good deal at $9.

Salt Spring Island Mussels ($18)

Next up were the Salt Spring Island Mussels which came in a coconut Thai curry broth, cilantro, crispy shallots, and another side of forno bread. These were delicious with the mussels being fresh and plump and the broth having a strong coconut flavour. The broth was great to dip your bead in. We soon realized that all our dishes came with the same bread though and that we were filling up with bread…

Crab and Spinach Dip ($16)

The Crab and Spinach Dip was a gooey mix of artichokes, and sun-dried tomatoes. It was very heavy and cheesy but I quite enjoyed it. Again, it came with forno bread to dip.

Atlantic Lobster Flatbread ($24)

Our last item was the Atlantic Lobster Flatbread, which came topped with tomatoes, mozzarella, garlic, tarragon, lobster bisque, corn, and pickled onions. This was quite tasty with the corn bringing a sweetness of flavour to the typical savoury dish. We were disappointed that there wasn’t too much lobster though. If you were lucky, you got a few strands on your piece.

The girls got the feature drink which was a Blueberry Champagne Spritzer, while I had the Driftwood Whitebark Beer. Overall, we were quite pleased with the food, other than the fact that almost all the dishes came with the same bread for the side, so we got a bit sick of that. Our server was pretty friendly at the end, but started off being a bit cold. Not sure what that was all about. She also forgot our order of Calamari, but we were too full to eat that anyways. Prices are reasonable during happy hour, with each of us paying under $20 for our share of food and drinks after tips.

I do want to note that I was quite disappointed with the service I received subsequent to this dinner. I had left my lunch bag from work under the table and went home without it. When I called to ask if it was still there, the manager said that they were not aware and that they would look after closing since there were still diners. She said she would call me back if they found anything. Since I didn’t hear anything back, I called again a few days later, and they said that they were still looking and would call me back. It’s been more than two weeks since, and I have heard nothing back. What I lost is not a big deal and it isn’t their responsibility, but I am quite annoyed at the fact that they disregarded the whole situation. I rather they call me and tell me they looked and could not find anything. The fact that they said they were still looking seemed like they had not even tried to look. As the restaurant is part of such a large restaurant group and consider themselves an upscale restaurant, I would think they know how to better please their customers.

Pros:
– Reasonable prices during Happy Hour
– Nice ambiance

Cons:
– Too much of the same bread on each dish!
– Service was just average for an upscale restaurant

Price Range: $15-25

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

Food: 3.5 Service: 2.5 Ambiance: 4 Parking: 2.5 Overall: 3

Li’l Cheese Steak Spot

August 28, 2015August 28, 2015Leave a comment

Li’l Cheese Steak Spot recently opened up in Royal Centre’s food court. Since I was nearby for work, I headed over to grab take out. The food takes a little longer to get prepared since they make the sandwich when you order. You can wash the cook grill your steak and veggies on spot. They also have other sandwiches and soups to order.

Cheese Steak Sandwich

I went for their signature, which is the Cheese Steak Sandwich. It doesn’t look appealing because it was all wrapped up and the sauces got all smothered, but this was delicious! If you love steak and cheese, this is for you. The beef was tender and you actually got quite a lot of it. It was also filled with onions, melted cheese, banana peppers, tomatoes, and a white sauce. Only downside is that the sandwich is quite pricey at $9. Nevertheless, it’s filling and the quality of steak is great.

Pros:
– Steak is tender
– Sandwiches are made to order

Cons:
– Pricey sandwich for food court

Price Range: $10

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

Food: 3.5 Service: 2 Ambiance: 2 Parking: 3 Overall: 3.5

The Fish Shack (Happy Hour)

July 20, 2015July 19, 2015Leave a comment

Fish Shack is part of the Glowbal Group of restaurants. It is one of their more casual restaurants and is located conveniently on Granville Street. We decided to go for happy hour, which is between 2:30 and 5:30 pm. They have a small patio, but it was already filled since it was a sunny day. We ended up sitting indoors.

The interior is modern with red, black, and brown as their colour theme. They have a huge chalkboard listing the different types of fish, which was pretty cool.

Captain Jack’s Lemonade

During Happy Hour, there are select drinks for $5. Everyone at my table decided to go for the featured cocktail, which was Captain Jack’s Lemonade. This had Jack Daniel’s whiskey, triple sec, fresh lemon juice, and syrup. It was actually very sweet and tasty. You could barely taste the alcohol.

Red Truck Lager

For myself, I had the Red Truck Lager, which was 20 oz. I later realized that their draught beers are usually around $6 for a 20 oz anyways, so I didn’t think it was that great of a deal. A 10 oz is roughly $4, so the restaurant is an affordable place to grab a drink.

Kusshi Oysters

I wanted to try Fish Shack’s Happy Hour because they have oyster specials. During Happy Hour, their specials include their featured oysters, sawmill bay, kusshi, and okeover. All are 50% off their regular price. The Kusshi Oysters after discount were roughly $1.50, so a pretty good deal, since they are usually on the pricier side or not featured during happy hour. They were small, but quite fresh and sweet. I probably only had one that had a bit of shell in it, so the shucking was done quite well.

They also provide a variety of sauces for the oysters. Their are your traditional mignonette with shallots and cocktail sauces. Then there was one that was a spicy thicker sauce. It gave a kick, but not too overpowering. The last sauce, I couldn’t really figure it out. It wasn’t that good though.

Salmon and Crab Cakes

During Happy Hour, they also feature a list of items which are 50% off their regular price. We shared the Salmon and Crab Cakes, which came with a chipotle tartar sauce. You don’t usually find the cakes mixed with both salmon and crab, so I found this to be a nice change. However, I don’t think it was executed too well. There could have been more seasoning, the meat seemed to be overcooked.

Fish and Chips

S got his favourite Fish and Chips, which featured battered ling cod, fries, tartar sauce, lemon & a coleslaw. This was a pretty good deal, at a little more than $5 after the discount. However, I thought the batter was fried to a really dark golden brown. Seemed like the oil being used was old…

Creole Fish Tacos

For myself, I got the Creole Fish Tacos. The flour tortillas were filled with battered fish, avocado, lime, sour cream & fried onions. An order comes with two tacos and fries. This came to around $6 after discount. I found these to be quite sloppily made. The fish were also bits of fish, rather than a whole piece of fish being fried. Felt like this might’ve been scraps of leftover fish… I guess it’s okay for the price, but I wouldn’t pay full price for it.

Popcorn Shrimp

Lastly, we also shared the Popcorn Shrimp, which comes with a house-made cocktail sauce. The batter on these shrimp were not crispy, but rather soggy. I felt like I could get better ones at the supermarket where you baked them yourself…

Overall, I was quite disappointed with the food at The Fish Shack based on the items we tried at Happy Hour. The oysters and drinks however were quite a good value and the oysters were fresh. Service was also quite poor. The server didn’t seem too friendly and it was really difficult to get their attention when we needed service.

Pros:
– Oysters are fresh and good value at Happy Hour
– Drinks are reasonably priced

Cons:
– Food we tried at Happy Hour was pretty bad
– Service was poor and unfriendly

Price Range: $20-25

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

Food: 2 Service: 2 Ambiance: 3 Parking: 3 Overall: 2

Chewies (Coal Harbour Happy Hour)

June 8, 2015June 8, 2015Leave a comment

I’ve been on an oyster craze lately, so when SP and SK asked where to eat, I suggested Chewies at Coal Harbour. We decided to get there right after work so we could get our orders in for happy hour. There’s some construction going around here right now so it’s a bit hidden, but they do have some signs directing you.

The restaurant wasn’t too busy on a random Thursday night. The patio outside did fill up, but the indoor seating was still quite free. I hear they are quite packed on Fridays and weekends though. The Coal Harbour location has happy hour from 3-6pm daily, and the people were quite nice about it even though we arrived at 5:45. They made sure we got our orders in right before 6pm.

Whistler Paradise Valley Grapefruit Ale

Several of their BC craft beers and boutique wines were featured on their happy hour menu for $5, which is a pretty good deal. Their pints of beer are all 20oz, so it’s actually quite a bit! I chose the Whistler Paradise Valley Grapefruit Ale, which I loved! You got that hint of citrusy flavour and I liked how it wasn’t very bitter.

Parallel 49 Gypsy Tears Ruby Red Ale

SP got the Parrallel 49 Gypsy Tears Ruby Red Ale, which is more of a bitter ale. You could definitely taste the contrast from the grapefruit ale, but it’s definitely a lighter beer compared to some of the really strong bitter ones I’ve had.

We were obviously here for their buck a shuck oysters, so they first started us off with the sauces that go along with the oysters. They have four: a cucumber vinegar, your classic mignonette, cocktail sauce, and a spicy habanero. They also bring you some Tabasco sauce. Our favourite was probably the spicy habanero, but it really wasn’t even that spicy.

$1 BC Beach Oysters

We got a dozen of their $1 BC Beach Oysters, which were extremely fresh. They switch up their oysters depending on what’s in season, and the server explained to us the name and all, but I didn’t catch it.

They also offer $2 oysters during happy hour for their premium oysters. These were quite big, but they were still very sweet! The only issue I had was that one oyster or so had some shell bits in it. Always a sign of how good the shucker is.

Pan Seared Calamari

Their happy hour menu also features a selection of their ‘first bites’. They actually offer quite a large variety – so many that we ended up ordering almost the whole menu… Since it’s 50% off their regular price…why not? Well, first off, we started off with the Pan Seared Calamari. Like its name says, the calamari is seared rather than fried. These were actually really good though and a good alternative to the oily fried calamari. The squid had a nice char to it and was super tender! It came with a cucumber, mint and jalapeno salad with creme fraiche dressing and remoulade. That salad was a killer though as it was way too spicy!

Dungeness Crab Cakes

Next up were the Dungeness Crab Cakes with a lemon aioli and an avocado & cucumber salad in a cilantro-lime vinaigrette. They come with three pieces, so were perfect for us to share. These were pretty good although I wish they were slightly more seasoned. The lemon aioli helped bring more flavour for sure.

Fried Fanny Bay Oysters

And then there were the Fried Fanny Bay Oysters. These were parsley and cornmeal battered Fanny Bay oysters and came along with Chewies’ tartar sauce. I felt like these had more batter on it than the actual oyster. I was expecting more fatty oysters, but they were pretty small and felt rather overcooked. Not a huge fan of these.

Brioche Garlic Toast

The fried fanny bay oysters also come with the Brioche Garlic Toast, which were pretty delicious. Tastes just like your typical garlic bread with a nice crispy texture to it.

Oysters Rockefeller

Since we’re at Chewies, might as well keep loading up with the oyster dishes… So we got the Oysters Rockefeller, which featured fresh hand shucked BC oysters, absinthe, spinach and herb puree, and topped with Parmesan cheese bread crumbs. An order came with 5 oysters and these were pretty good. The oysters were quite large and fatty and I loved the spinach and herb puree underneath. I still prefer the ones at Joe Fortes a bit more though.

All Dressed Cajun Fries

We also got the All Dressed Cajun Fries. At first, I was skeptical to order this, since I’m not a huge fries person and I can only imagine how much they can do with fries. However, this was beyond my expectations! It ended up being very simliar to a poutine, with Andouille sausage, fresh garlic, diced tomatoes, cheese curds, Parmesan and garlic mayo. The fries were crispy and sizzling in the pan. The sausage and seasoning gave it a slight kick, but nothing overwhelming. Definitely a great dish to share.

Crocs & Hush Puppies

Lastly, we got the Crocs & Hush Puppies, which we were all curious about. Yes – crocs meant fried crocodile! Well the menu acutally detailed it as “chicken fried crocodile,” so I’m not really sure if we were eating crocodile or not. The meat was definitely much more chewy, but I actually quite liked the texture. Hush puppies refer to these cornbread balls and these were nothing too special. The dish came with a house vinaigrette and some jalapeno jelly which definitely had a level of spice.

Overall, happy hour at Chewies definitely met my expectations. They have a good selection of dishes with 50% off, and most of them were good, if not really good. My favourites had got to be the calamari and fries. Their oysters are also extremely fresh and you can even upgrade to their premium! Ambiance is also really nice with high ceilings and a modern environment. Great patio during the summer as well. Service on the other hand was a bit of a hit and miss. Our last two dishes actually didn’t come for the longest time and we had to remind them to cook it up. The server at the end was pretty nice though and apologized for our wait. Oh and by the way, if you end up like us ordering pretty much the whole menu, your happy hour deal isn’t so happy after all since the bill will add up. But hey, at least we left with a full tummy!

Pros:
– Fresh oysters for $1 or $2 during happy hour
– Good selection of dishes during happy hour for 50% off

Cons:
– They forgot two of our dishes at the end

Price Range: $25-30

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

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

Twisted Fork Bistro

March 29, 2015April 2, 2015Leave a comment

Twisted Fork is a busy little bistro on the Granville strip in downtown Vancouver. No reservations mean long waits, but as we arrived at the restaurant around 6:00PM, we managed to get seating almost immediately.

The restaurant features an open kitchen concept with seating that features an ample amount of pillows. In a word, it’s “chill.” Service is friendly.

The menu features a “fresh sheet”, featuring dishes which may change daily (updates are provided on their website).

The complimentary bread was average, suffering from being both cold and tough to the chew.

Duck Confit

S ordered the Duck Confit with bacon braised cabbage, jus and pickled pumpkin. He said that it was “not bad.”

Mussels with Frites

I got the Mussels with Frites, which feature a pound of mussels tossed in cream sauce and topped with fries. I think the fries were actually yam fries, so that’s always a plus. However, the fries were quite soggy. The mussels were small, but sweet. Quite good

Pros:
– Quality food
– Cozy ambiance with friendly service

Cons:
– Bread was disappointing
– Usually long waits and no reservations

Price Range: $20-30

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

Food: 3
Service: 3
Ambiance: 3
Parking: 3
Overall: 3

Diva at the Met

March 1, 2015Leave a comment

For Valentine’s Day, S took me to Diva at the Met, which is located at the Metropolitan Hotel. On the day, they only offered the set menu and you were not able to order off the a la carte menu.

Complementary bread and butter

Dinner started off with complimentary bread and butter. There were two types of bread. One had raisins, while the other had nuts. The bread was pretty good, but I would have preferred if it was served warm.

The restaurant has an open kitchen concept with glass, so you can see the cooks prepare your food. That night, they offered a four course menu for $80 a person. There are two choices: the Diva or the Divo. The Diva is supposed to be catered for the girl, while the Divo is for the guy. However, you are open to choosing either depending on which menu you prefer more. Of course, I wanted to try everything, so I went for the Diva, while S got the Divo.

Lobster Bisque

The Divo menu starts off with the Lobster Bisque, which has a truffle cappuccino foam. The consistency is rather thick and you can definitely taste hint of the truffle cappuccino.

Octopus Carpaccio

For the Diva, it starts with the Octopus Carpaccio, which was probably my favourite of the night. The dish was beautifully presented, with lots of colours. It featured lobster, quail egg, and heirloom tomatoes. The octopus was thinly cut and cooked perfectly. It had just the right chew and the tomatoes made the dish very refreshing. The lobster was fresh and the meat was tender.

Smoked Ham Hock Terrine

Divo’s second course was the Smoked Ham Hock Terrine, which featured pickles, onion jam, and bread tuile. The terrine had a smokey flavour and the ham wasn’t too salty. Paired with the onion jam, it made a great dish. The bread tuile was thin and crispy, but there could have been more of that to complement the terrine.

Arugula & Granny Smith Apple Salad

The Diva’s second course was the Arugula & Granny Smith Apple Salad. I wasn’t too happy with this dish since I felt like I already sort of had a salad like dish for my first course. Seemed like they thought the ladies only eat salads… Anyways, this was a huge portion of arugula, and it was topped with a cider vinaigrette. It also came with blue cheese, which I’m not a fan of, so it wasn’t something I really enjoyed. However, I liked the candied walnuts, grapes, and Granny Smith apples that were paired along. The apples were slightly sour so it was really appetizing.

Grilled Angus AAA Rib Eye

The Divo’s main course was the Grilled Angus AAA Rib Eye. S ordered the steak medium rare and indeed, the inside was cooked to a beautiful pink. It was dijon herb crusted with a brandy jus. The cut was perfect and so tender. I wish I had ordered this myself. It also came with roasted honey garlic and a potato and gruyere pave as sides.

Roast Pheasant Coq au Vin

The Diva’s entree was the Roast Pheasant Coq au Vin. The pheasant was stuffed with stone fruit, and came with red rice, barley and honey carrots. The meat was actually pretty moist and the fruit stuffing gave it some sweetness. It came with a red wine sauce. Everything about the dish felt a little too healthy though. Not bad, but I probably wouldn’t order this again.

Passion Fruit Curd and Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Mousse

Lastly, for dessert, both the Diva and Divo’s came on the same dish. For the Diva, it was the Passion Fruit Curd, while the Divo’s was the Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Mousse. The passion fruit curd was filled within a genoise, or Italian sponge cake, and had layers of white chocolate mousse. It came with some berry coulis and fresh fruit. I enjoyed both the desserts. The chocolate mousse wasn’t too sweet and I liked the hint of hazelnut flavour. Tasted sort of like eating a Ferro Rocher. I also liked how it was presented so you can share the plate with your significant other.

Chocolates

Lastly, as your bill comes, they bring you a plate with chocolate truffles and a rose for the girl. Pretty sweet. Service was attentive and friendly. It didn’t feel pushy at all and the ambiance was nice but not over the top. Great place for date night.

Pros:
– All our dishes were pretty good and presented nicely
– Service was attentive and friendly

Cons:
– Wish we could’ve ordered off the a la carte menu

Price Range: $80/person for Valentine’s Day set menu

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

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

Miku – DOVF 2015

February 2, 2015February 2, 2015Leave a comment

Whenever people ask me what my favourite restaurants are in Vancouver, I usually respond with Miku as one of them, but I think I might have to take this off my list now… I had a very disappointing meal in terms of service, and it might have just ruined it for me now. My parents hadn’t gone back to Miku since they moved locations, so we decided to go for their Dine Out Vancouver Festival menu for lunch. Their lunch menu is $28 and my visit last year during this festival didn’t disappoint. We could only get reservations at 2:00pm, but that didn’t matter. The restaurant was still busy with diners rolling in. We were seated and given menus, and then for a good 15 minutes or more, we had no service whatsoever. No one came by to ask if we were ready to order, and people who were seated after us had already gotten their orders in. It was to the point where my mother needed to wave someone down and that wasn’t even our server. I believe she was a hostess, but she took our order down. But throughout the whole dinner, we had no server. Quite disappointing since my past experiences have been very well with servers introducing themselves and such. Finally, by the time our dessert came along, some guy that looked like an actual server presented us with our desserts. But other than that, no server. Did our table not have a server assigned at all? A restaurant that markets themselves as one with exceptional service did not showcase that at all that day. However, let’s get on to the food, which didn’t disappoint as usual.

Enoki Mushroom Miso Soup

Lunch starts off with their Enoki Mushroom Miso Soup. The soup is not as salty as other restaurants and there are enoki mushrooms as well as tofu. A nice way to start your meal.

Zen

Your first course is the Zen box, which they describe as a “selection of Aburi specialty items served in our traditional Japanese hinoki wood box.” However, ours was served on a plate. I guess they ran out of the wooden boxes?

Ebi Fritter

The box included the Ebi Fritter, which featured a jumbo prawn battered and deep fried and topped with a sweet chili aioli. It came on top of a fresh green salad with a soy-balsamic reduction. The prawn was juicy and I liked how the batter was light.

Fresh Market Salad

Next was the Fresh Market Salad. The menu says it’s based on the chef’s daily selection, and today it was a King Crab Salad. Loads of shredded crab meat on top of a fresh green salad with a umami soy dressing. I can never get over how good their salads are! Their dressings always make it so delicious!

Aburi Albacore Tuna

Also in the box was the Aburi Albacore Tuna, which is lightly flame seared. It came with a masatake sauce, which is a mixture of onions, garlic, soy sauce, and sesame oil. Nothing too special, but I did enjoy the sauce more than your typical ponzu.

Braised Beef Shank

Lastly, there was the Braised Beef Shank, which was very tender. It came on top of a yukon potato puree, which was buttery and delicious, as well as a wasabi-veal jus, which gave it that horseradish flavouring.

Miku Signature Sushi

The entree is the Miku Signature Sushi, which features a selection of Aburi, Nigiri, and Oshi Sushi. Starting from the top left was the Albacore Tuna Nigiri Sushi, which is flame seared with a miso glaze and welsh onion. The tuna was fatty and melted in your mouth. Next to that was the Ebi Nigiri Sushi, which is also flamed seared with a creamy pesto. I love the use of pesto here. On the right was the Sunrise Roll, which has a wasabi marinated tuna tartare in the center, and is wrapped with red tuna. It’s then topped with wasabi aioli. We all agreed that this was just average and nothing too memorable. The two rectangular pieces were the Aburi Salmon Oshi Sushi, which is basically why I love Miku so much. It’s their signature pressed and flamed seared sushi with two layers of sockeye salmon, the irresistible Miku sauce, and topped with a slice of jalapeno and cracked black pepper. The salmon just melts in your mouth and the jalapeno gives it a slight kick. I could honestly just order plates of this and be satisfied.

Feature Mango Sorbet

To finish, the dessert was a choice of house made vanilla bean ice cream or the Mango Sorbet. Our whole table went for the mango sorbet, which came presented with candied sugar and a lemon coconut cookie and seasonal fruits. We found that the mango sorbet was slightly tart, but paired with the cookie, which was rather bland, it balanced it out.

Overall, the food didn’t disappoint once again, but service was a huge miss. One that sort of deters me from coming back. But then again, they have my favourite Aburi Salmon Oshi… and the ambiance is beautiful with the waterfront views.

Pros:
– Aburi Salmon Oshi is absolutely delicious
– Beautiful views by the waterfront

Cons:
– We had no service this time around
– Prices on their regular menu are quite expensive for the amount of food you get

Price Range: $30-40

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

Food: 4
Service: 1
Ambiance: 4
Parking: 3
Overall: 3

Every Day is a Food Day

Category: Downtown

Dunn’s Famous – Relaunch Media Event

The Roof at Black+Blue (Happy Hour)

Li’l Cheese Steak Spot

The Fish Shack (Happy Hour)

Chewies (Coal Harbour Happy Hour)

Twisted Fork Bistro

Diva at the Met

Miku – DOVF 2015