Zakkushi (Main St.)

July 27, 2015July 27, 2015Leave a comment

Zakkushi is a fun place to go if you love Japanese grilled skewers (yakitori) and drinks. They get very busy after dinner time, because people come here for snacks and drinks. We came for dinner, so it wasn’t as packed, but still quite full. Be sure to make reservations beforehand to guarantee yourself a spot since it’s quite small. There are two locations (previously three). What’s left is the one on Denman and the one we visited, on Main St. Both locations are very small, but the one on Main can fit slightly larger groups.

Sockeye Salmon and Toro Tuna Sashimi

Zakkushi is known for their grilled items, but they do have a section of their menu dedicated to a few types of sashimi. We decided to give the Sockeye Salmon and Toro Tuna Sashimi a try. The salmon had a vibrant orange-red colour, but I found it slightly mushy even though it was Sockeye. Usually Sockeye has more bite to it. The toro wasn’t the melt-in-your-mouth type either. The pieces were rather small for the price at roughly $10 for each fish. We didn’t find it too be too good overall. Stick with their cooked food!

Norimayo Tsukune and Teriyaki Tsukune

We then ordered a variety of yakitori. We got some Tsukune, which are chicken meat balls. They come in a variety of flavours at different prices. You order by skewer, and usually meat skewers will start at around $2 or so. The Norimayo Tsukune was my favourite as it had seaweed and mayonnaise on top. Some of us also tried the Teriyaki Tsukune. These are very flavourful, although we found it to be slightly on the salty side.

Teba (Chicken Wing) and Sea Salt Momo (Chicken Thigh)

More chicken! The Teba or Chicken Wings were stretched out on the skewers and grilled. We were all surprised that these were quite flavourless. Seems like they missed the seasoning on these. The Sea Salt Momo were pretty good. The Momo is the chicken thigh. These were salted with the right amount.

Uzura Maki (Quail Egg)

Another favourite was the Uzura Maki. These were quail eggs wrapped with bacon! They were then drizzled with mayonnaise and topped with seaweed. These were a favourite at the table!

P-Toro (Pork)

Another must order is the P-Toro. This is a delicious cut of pork since it’s extremely tender and juicy. However, K was unlucky, and near the end of her pork skewer, she realized it was raw! She told the server and she took the skewer back. She came back with the same skewer that was half eaten but had gotten it grilled for longer. You would’ve thought they would give you a new skewer though… Seemed kind of unsanitary since they placed a half eaten skewer back on the grill…

G Beef

The G Beef was extremely flavourful since it was marinated in teriyaki sauce and topped with garlic chips. The beef was very tender and cooked to medium.

Duck Breast

The Duck Breast was marinated in yuzu citrus chili and had the right amount of fat to meat proportion. The meat was very tender.

Ebi Mayo

We were surprised that the Ebi Mayo came on skewers as well, but these were jumbo and delicious. It came drenched in their house chili mayo sauce.

Ikayaki (Grilled Squid)

One of my favourite grilled dishes is the Ikayaki, or Grilled Squid. The squid was slightly too charred at parts on the top, but nevertheless, it was tender and flavoured well with the teriyaki sauce. It came with a side of spicy mayo.

Mentai Kimchi Yakiudon

We then ordered some rice and noodle dishes to fill up. The Mentai Kimchi Yakiudon features pan fried udon with spicy roe and kimchi. Very flavourful with that hint of sourness from the kimchi. It’s not very spicy though. Perfect for those who like kimchi.

Negi P-Toro Don

The last rice dish was the Negi P-Toro Don. It featured the same P-toro pork, which we loved, along with a half boiled egg, green onion, onion sauce, and nori seaweed on top of steamed rice. You mix it all together, and it is very tasty and flavourful!

Dorayaki Matcha Ice Cream

Onto some desserts to finish our meal off! The Dorayaki Matcha Ice Cream reminded me of Doraemon’s favourite snack. The Japanese pancake is fluffy and filled with matcha ice cream and red bean paste. They are quite big, so great for sharing!

Kinako Mochi Ice Cream

An interesting dish was the Kinako Mochi Ice Cream. This had vanilla ice cream and sticky rice with soy powder sprinkled on top and drizzled with maple syrup. The sticky rice is quite flavourless, but along with the condiments, it makes a very tasty dessert.

Hojicha Pudding

Lastly, we had their featured dessert, which switches up daily. This was the Hojicha Pudding, which is roasted green tea. The flavour isn’t very strong, but you can definitely taste the tea flavour. It was topped with whipped cream and red bean paste. The pudding itself was very smooth.

Overall, Zakkushi was pretty good. Definitely stick to their grilled items, but their desserts are also very good for the price. Great place to have drinks and snacks if you come later at night as they open til late. Ambiance is similar to izakaya style shops, so it is rather loud, but lots of fun.

Pros:
– Yakitori is excellent and large variety to choose
– Desserts are surprisingly very well executed

Cons:
– Can be very busy later at night
– Your bill can add up quickly

Price Range: $25-35

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

Food: 4 Service: 3 Ambiance: 3.5 Parking: 2 Overall: 4

Flying Beaver Bar & Grill

July 26, 2015Leave a comment

The Flying Beaver can be a bit out of the way as it is situated on Inglis Drive near the YVR airport. However, during summer, their patio is the perfect place to chill since you can watch the planes take off and land and also get some views of the Islands. We decided to check their Wings Wednesdays deal after work which begins at 5:00 pm. The place was bustling when we arrived! You look for your own seat, so there was a bit of standing around stalking for a seat, but we luckily found one within 15 minutes.

Coke Zero, Sleeman Honey Brown Lager

Their Wednesday drink deal was the Sleeman Honey Brown Lager for $4.56 a sleeve. We were also told that to get the wings deal, each diner had to purchase at least some sort of drink, even if it was non-alcoholic.

Honey Garlic

On Wednesdays, the wings are 49 cents after 5:00 pm. They have a decent list of flavours, including Honey Garlic, BBQ, Teriyaki, Thai Chili, Hot, Salt & Pepper, and Lemon Pepper. Our first flavour was the Honey Garlic. It was lathered with honey, but I found it to be slightly flavourfuless. I wished it had more garlic flavour to it.

Salt & Pepper

Next up were the Salt & Pepper, which was probably my favourite. Seasoned with simply just salt and pepper, these were crispy and tasty. The meat was also for the most part moist. You get one or two that are a bit dry.

Teriyaki

Lastly, we got the Teriyaki which had a good amount of sauce.

Overall, Flying Beaver is a nice choice for a bar in Richmond. Most of our pubs don’t have the best patios, so this is great without needing to go downtown. Not the cheapest deal for wings, but still a pretty good deal. Service is your typical pub service, but it was quite attentive. They also have a large menu for other food and drinks.

Pros:
– Wings are decent and reasonably priced on Wednesdays
– Awesome views out on the patio

Cons:
– Extremely busy
– You have to look for your own seat

Price Range: $10-15

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

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

G-Men @ NanChuu (Revisit)

July 24, 2015July 23, 2015Leave a comment

It’s been many years since I’ve posted about G-Men @ NanChuu. Not because I haven’t revisited in all these years, but sometimes when I revisit a restaurant, I just simply want to eat and enjoy my food. Well after go-karting with SS, SF, and J, we decided to grab some ramen in Richmond and G-Men was what was suggested. There is literally always a line up here – and I’m not really sure why because I don’t think it’s as good as the ones in downtown. I guess there’s few ramen joints in Richmond, so this will do. We ended up waiting over 30 minutes for a table.

RCMP Ramen

SF was craving spicy so she got the RCMP Ramen which comes with thick noodles in a red chili miso pepper flavour soup. The soup looked pretty red, but SF said it actually wasn’t that spicy.

Tonkotsu Miso Ramen with Ajitama

SS and J both got the Tonkotsu Miso Ramen and paid an additional $1.50 for an ajitama (marinated egg). The thick noodles are in a miso flavour pork bone broth. SS thought this was pretty good.

I didn’t like how the eggs were overcooked. I like it when the yolk is still runny.

Miso Cheese Kimchi Ae Soba

For myself, I decided to be adventurous and try something new. The Miso Cheese Kimchi Ae Soba is soupless according to the menu. The special thick noodle tossed in a small amount of miso flavour pork bone broth. I found that the broth was really thick so it got really salty. It’s topped with a marinated egg, cha-shu, corn, kimchi, seaweed, a slice of cheese, and green onions. I mixed everything together and the cheese and ramen were odd at first, but it actually works out. Not bad, but probably a one time try. I think I’d like to stick with the originals.

Pros:
– Good variety of choices
– Decent and consistent eats

Cons:
– Long waits
– I find the soup base to usually be too salty

Price Range: $10-15

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

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

Nu Chinese Bistro – ChinesBites Media Event

July 23, 2015Leave a comment

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

Nu Chinese Bistro is located on the second floor in Richmond’s Cosmo Plaza on McKim Way. It used to be called Nu Shanghainese Bistro, but has since changed names because of new ownership. I was invited by ChineseBites along with 10 other food bloggers to taste their menu. Since we had a large group, we got seated in a private room. The interior of the restaurant is pretty nice.

Xiao Long Bao 南翔小籠包

Right off the bat, we were served the Xiao Long Bao with vinegar sauce on the side. These were decent with the skin not being too thick and there was a good amount of soup.

Sautéed Black Fungus 涼拌木耳

We were then presented with three cold appetizer dishes. At first, I thought the Sautéed Black Fungus was underwhelming since there was nothing but the fungus in the dish. However, we later realized that the black fungus was seasoned with wasabi! Sort of odd, but I sort of enjoyed it after eating a few more spoons.

Traditional Shanghai Smoked Fish 老上海熏魚

Another cold appetizer was the Traditional Shanghai Smoked Fish. This was flavourful and smoked nicely. I personally didn’t really like the dish just because there are bits of thin bones in it, which you can technically eat.

Soy-Braised Kaofu Bran with Assorted Mushrooms 四喜烤麩

The last cold appetizer was the Soy-Braised Kaofu Bran with Assorted Mushrooms, which I quite enjoyed. This is a typical Shanghainese appetizer. The gluten, mushrooms, and black fungus were soaked in a flavourful sauce.

Clay Pot Wonton Chicken Soup 砂鍋竹笙餛飩雞

Next up was the Clay Pot Wonton Chicken Soup, which I really enjoyed. The soup was sweet and flavourful and filled with chicken, wontons, black fungus, and pea shoots. The pea shoots were tender and delicious. The wontons were just average with the skin being a bit too thick.

Special Beef Wrap 撈餅牛肉卷

The Special Beef Wrap was just average. I still enjoy the one at Peaceful Restaurant the best. The dough was a bit too thick and not crispy enough.

BC Dungeness Crab with Fried Shanghai Rice Cake BC肉蟹炒年糕

Next up, the BC Dungeness Crab with Fried Shanghai Rice Cake was a messy but flavourful dish. The dish came with two crabs and was braised in a savoury sauce with green beans. I usually love rice cake, but I thought they overcooked them a bit too much so it was mushy. The crab itself was fresh and filled with meat.

Stone Pot Braised Pork Belly Shanghainese Style 石鍋紅燒肉

As usual at Chinese dinners, there is pork belly. The Stone Pot Braised Pork Belly Shanghainese Style came with knotted bean curd and was quite flavourful. However, I found this to be slightly on the oilier side.

Braised Tofu with Seafood 瓊山海鮮豆腐

The Braised Tofu with Seafood would’ve been great served with rice. The tofu was smooth and silky. A good dish.

Zhenjiang Style Ribs 鎮江骨

One of my favourites of the night was the Zhenjiang Style Ribs. It was sweet but you can also taste the vinegar that was used to flavour it. Meat was tender and fell off the bone.

Fried Green Beans with Minced Pork 幹煸四季豆（攬菜肉鬆）

The Fried Green Beans with Minced Pork was pretty average. I thought it was flavoured enough and they were quite oily.

Sichuan Style Boiled Fish 蜀香水煮魚

Another one of my favourites was the Sichuan Style Boiled Fish. I am not one that can take a lot of spice, but I like to eat spicy food once in a while. I liked how they give you a ladle that has wholes so that you don’t end up scooping the soup onto your plate too. The fish was tender and numbing because of the fish, but the spiciness didn’t last long. It was a good numb!

Xiang Jiang Tea Smoked Duck 湘江樟茶鴨

The Xiang Jiang Tea Smoked Duck comes with little buns. The skin was crispy, but some of the meat is a little dry. It depends which part you get.

Beef Tenderloin and Eggplant with Black Pepper Sauce 黑椒茄子牛柳粒

Another veggie dish was the Beef Tenderloin and Eggplant with Black Pepper Sauce. Quite flavourful with the meat being tender and eggplant cooked well. Again, it seems that their veggies are slightly too oily for my liking.

Eight Jewel Sweet Rice 八寶飯

To finish our huge meal, we had the Eight Jewel Sweet Rice. This reminded me of the lotus wrapped rice you eat during Mid Autumn Festival, but the sweet kind. The rice is flavoured mostly with red bean paste. Flavour-wise, I thought it was okay, but it didn’t look too attractive.

Overall, Nu Chinese Bistro had some hits and misses. Service is also a bit sparse. The ambiance is quite nice to host family dinners though.

Maruwa Sushi

July 21, 2015July 21, 2015Leave a comment

Beef Roll, Chicken Roll, California Roll

Maruwa Sushi is a Japanese restaurant in Ironwood Mall. I felt like I should switch it up with my usual sushi take out spots and try a new one, so we ended up going to the restaurant to place our order. A short 15 minutes, and our food was ready. S got the not-so-traditional rolls as he usually goes for. The Beef Roll and Chicken Roll both looked packed with meat. S said that the rolls were decent.

Chopped Scallop Roll, Negitoro Roll, Salmon Roll

As for myself, I went for my usual favourites, which are the Chopped Scallop, Negitoro and Salmon Roll. I found that they were rolled pretty nicely and tight. However, I did find that there was slightly a bit too much rice. I liked how they put wasabi in the rolls already. The seafood was fresh and overall, it was quite good.

Overall, Maruwa Sushi is a decent choice for take out sushi. Prices are reasonable and quality is pretty good. Service was also quite friendly.

Pros:
– Decent sushi
– Reasonably priced

Cons:
– A bit too much rice to filling ratio

Price Range: $10-15

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

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

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

Coco Hut

July 19, 2015July 19, 2015Leave a comment

I think I’ve been to Coco Hut a long time ago, but it’s been years since. Since S is Singaporean, we decided to check it out and see whether it was up to par.

The restaurant is rather small, but it was quite packed during dinner. Service is average as there is basically one women taking orders and serving the dishes.

Pearl Barley Tea, Lemon Tea

We decided to get the Meal for Two Combo which is priced at $20.95. You get two drinks, an appetizer, and two entrees. We both added $0.50 extra to make our beverages cold. I got the Pearl Barley Tea, which has a slight barley flavour which tasted quite refreshing. S said that he has had much better though. Lemon Tea was quite your typical.

BBQ Satay Skewers

For our appetizer, we got the BBQ Satay Skewers. You can choose from chicken, pork, or beef. We went for chicken and you actually get 4 skewers. I think the menu said only 2 skewers, so I was quite surprised. It comes with some peanut satay sauce with chopped up peanuts in it. The chicken had a nice char, but I didn’t find them to be mind blowing.

Hainanese Chicken with Flavour Rice

S got the Hainanese Chicken with Flavour Rice. I hear that they are famous for them, but S said he was extremely disappointed. Mainly because the rice was not flavoured as he expected. It had only a very slight flavour, and he said this was not even close to being comparable to the ones in Singapore or at home. I found the chicken to be decent, with a nice jelly on the skin. I guess S is the expert with the chicken, since he’s had lots of it. He claimed it was very sub par.

Laksa Noodle in Soup

For myself, I got the Laksa Noodle in Soup, which was a huge bowl. It was filled with seafood, bean sprouts, and even some chicken. The soup was spicy, but definitely one that I could handle. I sort of wished it had more spice actually.

Overall, I thought Coco Hut was decent, but S really didn’t enjoy it. I guess if you’re not an expert in Singaporean cuisine and you don’t eat it too often, then you’ll find Coco Hut to be pretty decent. Prices were decent for two and there is decent parking at this mall.

Pros:
– Laksa and Hainanese Chicken was decent
– Prices were reasonable

Cons:
– If you’ve had Hainanese chicken in Singapore, you may find it to be below average
– Service is a bit lacking

Price Range: $10-20

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

Food: 3 Service: 2 Ambiance: 2.5 Parking: 3 Overall: 3

Uncle Willy’s

July 16, 2015July 16, 2015Leave a comment

Uncle Willy’s brings back memories when you were a kid and buffets were the best things ever. And that’s exactly why K and I were craving it… I mean it’s still around, so we decided to go check it out to see if the food has improved or what.

Arriving on a Saturday night, the place was actually decently packed with 80% of the tables filled. Dinner on a weekend goes at around $17 after tax, so it’s not exactly the cheapest thing ever to get a meal for dinner, but quite a good price for a buffet.

I had read reviews beforehand that pictures were not allowed in the restaurant, so I had to sneakily get these at my table. The choices are quite your typical and basic. I started off with some chicken noodle soup, corn, pasta salad, lasagna, lamb curry, mashed potatoes, ham and their famous fried chicken. I mean, everything was just average or below average. The fried chicken was decent, but the skin wasn’t very crispy. The ham is sliced when you ask, and I found this to be too salty for my liking.

My second round was a different type of pasta salad, some more mashed potatoes with gravy, the roast beef, and fried chicken again. The mashed potatoes here are done quite well and the gravy is also not too salty. The roast beef was much better than the ham, and this is also sliced when you ask the server to. All in all, everything was mediocre. You could try to fill up on the roast beef and fried chicken to get your money’s worth.

The main courses were pretty average, so I decided to go for their desserts. Most of their desserts look either overly sweet or just did not look appealing. Looked like they had sat there for quite a while, so I skipped the cakes and pastries. Instead, I went to another favourite of the regulars here which is their soft serve ice cream. I also got a bowl of jello, which of course is a no brainer to make. You can also get chocolate sauce on your soft serve. This was pretty good with the soft serve being quite thick so it wasn’t watery.

Overall, Uncle Willy’s is what it is. It’s a place to go back because it’s nostalgic, but K and I have both agreed that it’ll probably be our last time. Unless you can eat tons of roast beef and fried chicken, you’re better off spending that $17 elsewhere. Plus, the ambiance wasn’t the prettiest thing. I almost felt like it was a bit dirty…

Pros:
– Fried chicken and roast beef are pretty good
– One of the cheaper buffets around town

Cons:
– Rest of food was mediocre or below average
– Ambiance isn’t nice and felt a bit dirty

Price Range: $10-20

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

Food: 2 Service: 2 Ambiance: 2 Parking: 4 Overall: 2