Sushi Mori

July 26, 2013Leave a comment

We were in Coquitlam and craving some Japanese food as usual. And of course J is always craving his nigiris. So we urbanspooned around for a while to see what was nearby. Sushi Mori popped up and the reviews seemed pretty good so off we went.

The inside is extremely nice! It’s filled with wooden furniture and cherry blossom trees with lanterns so it glows. It almost feels like you’re in a cherry blossom wonderland in Japan. The place seems to be operated by Koreans though, as they all knew how to speak Korean.

The tableware is extremely cute. The teapot has an ancient feel to it, and the tea cups are so petite! Okay, a little too small, making the need to repour yourself some tea after every sip… We were also given some Edamame Beans to start as a complementary appetizer.

Spicy Tuna Roll

J got the Spicy Tuna Roll, and it was drizzled with a lot of spicy sauce. Essentially just a normal tuna roll, but drizzled with the spicy sauce.

Crazy Boy Roll – Deep Fried California Roll, Masago

Everyday, they also have a list of items that are at a discounted prices. I think the Crazy Boy Roll was one of them for that night, hence we got it. I’ve tried this type of roll at another sushi restaurant, and it is essentially a california roll that has been battered and deep fried. It was covered with a spicy mayo and topped with masago. I thought it was pretty good, but anything deep fried is usually tasty.

Salmon Don

For myself, I got the Salmon Don. There was a large amount of salmon sashimi – a total of 8 fatty pieces. On the side was a bit of marinated squid and seaweed salad. I did find it quite bland though, and the rice wasn’t cooked that great and wasn’t well seasoned. Something was just lacking, and it tasted rather bland. I wouldn’t say that the salmon was extremely fresh either.

Complementary Salad

Halfway through dinner, we were also given a Complementary Salad. Sort of random, but we’ll take it if it’s free! It was actually a really large plate too. I’m guessing they had extra scraps of vegetables or something. It was filled with lettuce, julienned cucumbers, beets, and pineapples. The pineapples were a real surprise for me, but also my favourite part. I love how the sweetness gave the whole salad some flavour. The portion was definitely too big for us though and we didn’t end up finishing it.

Saba Nigiri, Hamachi Nigiri, Ebi Nigiri

And here were J’s Nigiris. I think the Ebi Nigiri was also on the special menu, hence he ordered quite a few. I didn’t try any, as none of the fish are really my favourites, but he said they weren’t good at all. He was quite disappointed and said they were priced at too high of a price for the quality you are getting.

Overall, I wasn’t too amazed by the food at Sushi Mori. J, on the other hand, was extremely disappointed and said he wouldn’t be coming back. I guess I can’t say much since I only had the Salmon Don, and it honestly isn’t too hard to make. J, however, had high expectations for his nigiris, so he wasn’t happy with them at all. We both agreed that the restaurants atmosphere and decor is probably the reason why people come here. Really nice looking place, but definitely just average food. Probably not coming back again.

Boiling Point

July 6, 20131 Comment

I’ve been seeing people’s pictures of their miniature hot pots and of course I decided to check it out on one of the hottest days… Bad idea, but I guess it satisfied my craving. Boiling Point is located in a small plaza on No.3 Road and boy did I never think parking would be so bad there. We literally waited around 15 minutes, circling around the lot. It’s weird because there really isn’t that many restaurants here, so you would think that parking would be relatively easy…

Inside, the place reminds me of Taiwanese bubble tea spots. I have to say the service is quite mediocre. It took forever to get the attention of a server just for us to place an order.

Green Tea

Apparently if you dine before 3pm, then you get a complementary choice of Green or Black Tea. I chose the Green Tea, and it was a refreshing way to enjoy your hot pot.

Curry Fishball Hot Soup (Tiny Spicy)

I’m not sure what’s up with me and curry fishballs lately… probably because I keep eating them at the night market, but after minutes of indecisiveness, I ended up getting the Curry Fishball Hot Soup with tiny spicy. It included Nappa, Vermicelli, Pork Sliced, Enoki Mushroom, Imitation Crabstick, Kamaboko, Fishball, Fired Tofu Skin, Corn, Tempura, Mountain Yam, and Chinese String Bean. I have to say I wasn’t too impressed with it. The curry was so thin that it lacked flavour. I was expecting a thicker soup base, but it was more like curry powder in water. The fish balls weren’t even coated in curry, which was quite disappointing.

Beef Hot Soup (Very Spicy)

N got the Beef Hot Soup. It included Nappa, Vermicelli, Beef Sliced, Enoki Mushroom, Tomato, Firm Tofu, Tempura, Corn, Meatball, Kamaboko, Fired Tofu Skin, and Imitation Crabstick. It looked pretty good and apparently it wasn’t too spicy for her. We did find that it was weird how the beef was still quite pink, even though it was cooked for a long time.

Beef Hot Soup (Flaming Spicy)

J is crazy for spicy food, so she also got the Beef Hot Soup, but with flaming spicy. I like how there was a warning sign on the menu, but she clearly did not think it was spicy at all. I tried a piece of her cabbage in it, and I thought it was really spicy!!

All hot pots also came with a bowl of rice, so the meal is quite filling in the end. I like how you get a variety of ingredients and the choice of how spicy you would like the soup base. At a price of around $11 for most of the hot pots, it’s a great place to grab a filling meal.

Tsuki Sushi Bar

July 4, 2013Leave a comment

I’m so behind on my posts again, but now that school is over, I’ll be more consistent with posting on time… Anyways, M, J and I wanted to grab some lunch and they put me in charge of where…as always. Trying to find something that everyone would enjoy and had good ratings, I ended up suggesting Tsuki Sushi Bar. The sign is pretty tiny, so I legit stood at the intersection for two minutes with my Google maps, trying to figure out where it was.

I was late, so the two had already gotten a seat. Inside, it’s very spacious, but there aren’t too many seats. I’m guessing it can be quite packed on a busy day. There’s also a sushi bar where you can see the sushi chefs prepare the sushi.

I love the wooden tables, and the lighting gives it a very clean and fresh look. We had a long table, so we did have to share a table with a few other diners, but we were still given enough space to have our own conversations.

Complementary Miso Soup

Shortly after placing our orders, we were each given a complimentary miso soup.

Sockeye Salmon

J got the Sockeye Salmon which was glistening in colour. It was fresh and sliced to the perfect size. Really good!

Enoki Mushroom Salad

M got an Enoki Mushroom Salad, which I believe isn’t on their menu normally. It was one of the items on their chalkboard for daily specials. It was flavoured nicely and was a refreshing appetizer.

Tuna Tataki – Seared Tuna with Ginger, Garlic, Tosazu Vinegar

J and I also shared the Tuna Tataki and the pieces were huge! I think you got around 5 pieces, but each piece was cut quite thick. It was lightly seared and there was a good bite to it.

I have no idea what M ordered, but I’m guessing the red nigiri is Sockeye Salmon. I think the white one was on their chalkboard, and I honestly have no clue what he ordered as the craft roll… It looks really good and he said it was delicious.

Smoked Salmon Nigiri, Scallop Special Nigiri, Special BC Roll(Seared Salmon and Ikura on top of BC Roll), Alaska Roll (Dungeness Crab, Cucumber, Masago w/ seared Sockeye, Mayo on top)

J got the Smoked Salmon Nigiri which was literally a piece of smoked salmon with a slice of lemon on top. Looked pretty good! As for myself, I got the Special Scallop Nigiri, and I enjoyed this as it was different from other restaurants where they slather a bunch of mayo on it. This one was strictly scallops, and you could feel the texture of each scallop. We also shared the Special BC Roll and Alaska Roll. The Special BC had salmon on top of an ordinary BC Roll, but the salmon was ever so lightly seared. It was also topped with lots of tobiko. Not bad! And the Alaska Roll was bascially like any other Alaska Roll, except they used dungeness crab instead of imitation crab.

I was quite pleased with each dish. It seemed that they took the time to craft them with care and they were all presented nicely. The price point also isn’t too bad. It’s actually quite reasonable for the quality of food you get. Most of the craft rolls were a little under $7 and they use some pretty good ingredients.

Dae Ji Pork Cutlet House

June 20, 2013Leave a comment

Dae Ji Pork Cutlet House opened just last month a few minutes away from J’s house. It’s near Coquitlam Centre, so it’s very convenient. We decided to go check it out, and I believe they literally just opened that day. They also have other locations, including one in Downtown.

The place reminds me of a cafeteria and is a very chill place to eat. However, you don’t need to order at the counter, since the man will come over to serve you. So it’s a bit fancier than a serve-yourself shop.

Pork Cutlet with Spicy Sauce

J got the Pork Cutlet with Spicy Sauce. It came with two large pieces of pork cutlet and an abundance of sauce. I found the sauce a little spicy, but J thought it was fine. Each of our dishes also came with a side of salad with thousand island dressing, corn, macaroni salad, daikon, and rice. J’s dish actually had less rice than mine, since he ordered it off the pork cutlet menu, and not the rice menu… confusing.

Pork Cutlet Curry Rice (comes with miso soup)

For myself, I was craving some curry, and got the Pork Cutlet Curry Rice. It was a large piece of pork cutlet, topped with curry and vegetables, all on top of a large scoop of rice. On the side, I also had the same sides as J. I actually found the curry really spicy! I thought it would be similar to Japanese curry and be sweet, but it also had tons of spice in it! Even J thought it was spicy, so it wasn’t just me…Pork Cutlet was extremely crispy and the batter was light. Delicious!

Miso Soup, Kimchi Soup

My meal also came with a miso soup, which was nothing special, and J’s came with a kimchi soup. Since it was the opening day, the man also gave us free pop.

The pork cutlets are definitely up to par, and for the price and quantity, I can see it being successful. On opening day, it wasn’t packed, but there was a consistent number of people going in and out. Not bad!

Jethro’s Fine Grub

June 12, 2013June 22, 2013Leave a comment

I’m extrermely behind on positing up my blog pieces these days, and let’s just blame that on school and exams. Anyways, probably around three weeks ago, my friends and I decided to go grab some early brunch on Victoria Day. Yea, Jethro’s Fine Grub is definitely not the place to go on a holiday or weekend unless you’re willing to wait an hour or get there at 8 a.m. We arrived at around 10:30 a.m. and were told that we would need to wait around 1.5 hours to get a seat, and that would mean two separate tables as well since we had a group of around 8. After a while of being indecisive, we finally agreed to grab take out and go to Kits Beach to eat. Our food was ready in around 30 minutes.

Smoked Salmon Benedict – Grilled English muffin topped with wild smoked salmon, poached eggs and hollandaise. Served with hashbrowns.

I’m always craving the eggs benny for brunch, so I opted for the Smoked Salmon Benedict. Sadly, by the time I started eating, my food had cooled down, so my review here is not going to be the same as someone who ate it fresh in the restaurant. My hollandaise sauce had cooled down, so the consistency was a little too thick.

I loved how the yolk was still runny in the middle and the smoked salmon along with the capers gave the eggs Benedict added flavour. However, the hashbrowns were quite disappointing. They were burnt and also soggy (which may be due to the lid being closed for too long).

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Alligator Nuggets – Battered and flash fried ‘gator over basmati rice with blonde barbeque sauce and a tossed salad

S got the Alligator Nuggets. I tried a piece of these nuggets and I must say the batter is quite unlike any others I’ve tried. The batter was extremely light and they had a distinct flavour to it. However, we both agreed, that it wasn’t the best nuggets we’ve had and it seems to be over praised for.

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The Cobb – Roast turkey, bacon, tomato, avocado, scallions and crumbled blue cheese. Served with hashbrowns and toast

M got The Cobb, which included an omelet filled with a variety of vegetables, roast turkey and blue cheese. This was served with hashbrowns and toast and made it a very filling meal. Because the food had cooled down, the blue cheese wasn’t as stringy as M would’ve liked it.

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Breakfast Burrito – Scrambled eggs, chorizo, 2 salsas, jack cheese, avocado and hashbrowns wrapped in a warm tortilla

T got the Breakfast Burrito, and I managed to snap a picture of the huge burrito! It’s definitely a huge burrito that could be easily shared between two people.

Overall, my review cannot be justified since most of our food cooled down by the time we ate it. I would imagine that the food is much better warm, as it was still alright with it being cold. Plus, there must be something special about Jethro’s with those huge line ups.

Akari Japanese Restaurant

June 3, 20131 Comment

Akari Japanese Restaurant is located just off Lougheed Highway. It’s a fairly large restaurant, but I believe it’s owned by non-Japanese owners.

The restaurant is full of wooden decor and green plants. Seating is abundant and we were seated right away. It’s interesting that they also have some Korean dishes on their menu, so don’t expect authentic Japanese food here.

Chopped Scallop, Tobiko with Quail Egg, Tuna, and Salmon Nigiri

We chose to get some Nigiri to start. J chose the Salmon and Tuna to share, while I chose the Chopped Scallop and Tobiko with Quail Egg for myself. The Salmon and Tuna were both fresh and decent. I enjoyed the Chopped Scallop as it was loaded with scallops and topped with tobiko to add some crunch. The Tobiko with Quail Egg is a nigiri that I’ve seen in many people’s pictures but haven’t actually tried myself. I don’t know if I would order it again, since the raw egg on the top gives it a slimy texture and your mouth is just full of popping tobiko as you chew. Not exactly my favourite texture to bite into, but flavour-wise, it isn’t too bad.

Nabeyaki Udon

For myself, I was craving some warm udon. I ended up choosing the Nabeyaki Udon after staring at the extensive menu and being so indecisive. This was decent and came with two ebi tempuras. It was loaded with vegetables and a poached egg. Not bad!

Mul Naeng Myeon

J chose to get the Mul Naeng Myeon from the Korean menu. I took a bite from it and I thought it tasted better than the one at Kimbab Cheongkuk. It was a little spicy because of the mustard, but not bad!

Sushi Garden (Revisit)

May 28, 2013Leave a comment

Spicy Salmon Sashimi (1/2 order)

With my friends living in Vancouver or Coquitlam and myself in Richmond, we needed to find a meeting point right in the middle! And Burnaby seems to do the job! However, I’m not familiar with the restaurants in Burnaby, so I never know where to go… We ended up going to Sushi Garden since the food is cheap. Don’t expect amazing quality, but the price does it justice. SP and I shared half an order of Spicy Salmon Sashimi. I usually don’t order spicy sashimi because I can’t take much spice, but decided to give this a try. It didn’t end up to be too spicy and I loved the cucumbers that came along with it. Zesty flavour and I enjoyed the sauce. Definitely a good variation to typical salmon sashimi I always get.

Alaska Roll & Chopped Scallop Roll

We also ordered two rolls. I didn’t go for the unique rolls this time, but opted for the Chopped Scallop Roll. The rolls are a little on the smaller side, but it was decent. I wouldn’t say the scallops were too fresh. SP recommended the Alaska Roll, which had avocado, tobiko and was topped with salmon sashimi and a special sauce. This was quite good as the sauce was delicious, but I found that it was a little on the mushy side.

Takoyaki

SK ordered an udon as well as the Takoyaki. I took a piece of the Takoyaki and it was decent. Not a lot of filling, but at least the batter wasn’t mushy. Not bad for the price I guess.

Yaki Udon (Udon noodles stir fried with beef and veggies)

Lastly, SP and I shared the Yaki Udon with beef and veggies. It was topped with a large amount of shredded seaweed as well. The beef was definitely overcooked, and therefore extremely tough. The udon was decent although I wish it has a bit more sauce. Portion-wise, it was huge for only $7. Definitely not the best udon I’ve had though.

If you’re near the Metrotown area and looking for cheap sushi, then Sushi Garden is the place to go. Don’t expect outstanding service or quality, and you’ll be happy. The wait is quite long as they don’t take reservations, so we had to wait around 15 minutes for a table for 3. Oh, and let me remind you that the place is extremely cramped! So privacy isn’t the top priority here. I would suggest take-out if you want to eat comfortably!

New Spicy Chili Restaurant 小四川

May 15, 2013Leave a comment

J’s home is in Sze Chuan and we always see her eating food that is drenched in red soup or chilies. I still don’t understand how she takes the heat but we finally decided to go try it out with her. She told us that New Spicy Chili Restaurant is a restaurant that serves dishes which are less spicy. Okay… sure… we’ll see about that…

The restaurant was around half empty when we arrived on a weekday afternoon, although there was a large table of diners who looked like they worked at the same office. Office lunch I suppose? Soon after, the place began to fill up though. Definitely do not expect any service whatsoever here. It is extremely hard to get the attention of the lady, and I saw her talking to the phone while speaking with another customer too… Some of us might think it’s rude, but I guess she gets her job done?

Chicken with Spicy Sauce

We started off with the Chicken with Spicy Sauce. In Chinese, the dish directly translates to Saliva Chicken. Sounds a bit gross eh, but it tasted really just like any other chicken, or perhaps it was free range chicken. However, it was drenched in a red liquid. It scared me at first, but guess what…this was probably one of the least spicy dishes we ordered. The chicken still had skin on the top, and it was topped with the spicy sauce which also consisted of the seeds inside the chilies. I didn’t dare try the chicken that was soaked at the bottom. I only grabbed the top pieces to be safe.

Sliced Beef with Special Spicy Sauce

Next up, we got the Sliced Beef with Special Spicy Sauce. This was definitely the next level of spicy! The beef was sliced thinly and was tender, and even though there didn’t seem to be as much sauce as the chicken, it was spicy! I’m guessing it was marinated in the sauce or something…

Spicy Bean Sprout

We wanted some veggies as well, so we chose the Spicy Bean Sprout, which was again topped with chilies… Funny enough, I actually began to be able to eat the food though. Either I was getting used to the spice, or my tongue was just plain numb, because I could barely taste anything by now. And so I just kept stuffing myself with food now. The Bean Sprouts are one of my favourite veggies as they are tender and easy to chew. I ended up eating a lot of this, as it was also one of the less spicy dishes.

Spicy Fish Hot Pot

The Spicy Fish Hot Pot had to be the spiciest dishes we ordered. It came in a sizzling hot pot and was literally a pot of red liquid… Inside were fish filets and potato or glass noodles. Yea, I definitely did not dare try the noodles since noodles always absorb the liquid, and there was no way I would be alive after eating that… I did try the fish, and I’m not even sure if it was hot in temperature or just spicy. Yea, I pretty much had no feelings on my taste buds by now… Fish was tender though!

Sizzling Fish

I’m not exactly why they call it the Sizzling Fish (actually the menu said suzzling fish, but I’m not sure if that’s even a word), because this should simply be called grilled squid. That’s basically what it was! What the heck is sizzling fish…? Anyways, this came hot and sizzling in a pan and the squid were placed on tin foil. It smelled and reminded me of night market squid! Yum! The squid was cooked tender and the spice level was medium. A more acceptable spice, or maybe I was just getting used to all this spicy food.

Oh and a tip if you can’t take spice is to never place your food that is soaked in the red sauce on your rice. Your rice ends up being so spicy, that you can’t use it to cool you down. I also wonder how people eat here during the summer… I swear I was sweating by the end of this lunch. But for all you spicy lovers, this is the place to go! Most of these dishes are also popular Sze Chuan dishes and are also chef recommended on the menu!