Date of Visit: July, 2017
I failed to notice this place in several walks around Vancouver’s Chinatown, rather, I came across it while doing a Google search for places to have breakfast within walking distance of my hotel. What I liked about this place is that it opened at 7:30am, which suited me down to the ground… Continue reading “Review: Goldstone Bakery and Restaurant”
Date of Visit: July, 2017
I probably walked past Gain Wah three or four times before I noticed it. In fact, I was planning to eat at a restaurant next door on this particular but it was full when I arrived and I just happened to spy this place instead. It was a happy accident as I had a very nice meal… Continue reading “Review: Gain Wah Restaurant”
Date of Visit: July, 2017
I was first tempted by Sai Woo because of their interesting menu. It is clearly Asian inspired, and features some traditional fare such as Cantonese Dried Shrimp Fried Rice, but the majority of the dishes are fusions of ingredients and techniques from both east and west. The place has had some good reviews but, after my visit, I was left a little underwhelmed… [READ MORE]
The establishment is very upscale in ambience and décor, featuring lots of bare brick, interesting light fixtures, and sleek tables and chairs. The service, I have to say, despite my general feeling about the meal, was excellent. All the staff were exceptionally helpful and friendly and I was impressed by their smooth professionalism.
The premises are licensed and the bar very well stocked. I stayed with beer myself, but the wine list is pretty decent with many selections being available by the glass.
Taiwan Style Guo Tie – ‘Guo Tie’ is generally rendered in English as ‘pot-stickers’ but these dumplings were not that. The wrapper was not at all crisped and these could easily have been steamed dumplings going by the texture. They were stuffed, according to the menu, with pork belly, garlic chives, mushrooms and ginger, but the ginger and chive was undetectable and the pork was completely dominated by the mushrooms. There was a sauce, composed of fermented chili paste, garlic and mirin, but it wasn’t much different than a commercial plum sauce and didn’t add much. These weren’t bad, exactly, but they weren’t good either.
Korean Fried Chicken – This was described as being chicken in a fermented chili glaze with a pea shoot salad. The salad, as such, was really just a bed of pea shoots beneath large chunks of chicken meat in a mildly spicy sweet glaze, and the result was not much more than a mediocre attempt at the sort of General Tso’s chicken dish you can get anywhere. This might have been alright but the chicken was not only dry, it had a stale, almost ‘freezer-burned’ taste. This selection was not good at all.
Overall
Despite the excellent service and the pleasant surroundings, I was not impressed by meal experience. Possibly I didn’t choose the best selections the restaurant has to offer, or maybe it was just a bad night in the kitchen, but I was unimpressed and can only rate the place at a 3 out of 5.
Date of Visit: July, 2017
Floata has quite a presence on the web and I made a point of noting it as somewhere I wanted to try on my recent trip to Vancouver. It is situated in Chinatown, had a pretty good set of reviews, and sounded great. Unfortunately, my visit not only left me unimpressed but a little disgruntled… Continue reading “Review: Floata Seafood Restaurant”
Date of Visit: July, 2017
Oyster Express sits on the corner of Gore and Keefer in Vancouver’s Chinatown. It is very small and easy to miss given the minimal signage. It has seats for about 30 but, maximum capacity, it would be rather close. It is quite plain and understated in décor, but is functional and comfortable. The staff is very enthusiastic and friendly and the whole atmosphere is welcoming. The menu matches the size of the place and, aside from the raw oysters, which are listed separately according to availability, there are only 12 items. You can get steamed or fried oysters, mussels, two types of clam chowder and, should you wish it, a grilled cheese sandwich, along with a good variety of cocktails and some 23 wines. On this occasion, I came just for the oysters… [ Continue reading “Review: Oyster Express – Vancouver”
Date of Visit: July, 2017
The New Town Bakery and Restaurant is on East Pender Street, which runs right through the center of Vancouver’s Chinatown. Its bakery operation occupies the front portion of the premises while the restaurant lies in the rear. There is a very extensive menu available in the restaurant section but the dim sum they offer is what most drew me to the place… Continue reading “Review: New Town Bakery and Restaurant”
Date of Visit: July, 2017
I chose Salt as an interesting place to visit from their online menu. I made one abortive visit on a Monday, only to discover they are closed that day, and then attended for lunch later that week. Unfortunately I was disappointed on a couple of counts… First, the lunch menu is very abbreviated and, secondly, the dishes I chose, along with the overall service, were not great … Continue reading “Review: Salt – Ottawa”
Date of Visit: July, 2017
Le Kim Chi lies in the heart of Ottawa’s Little Italy, which seems vaguely appropriate for a Korean restaurant. Actually, there are several Asian restaurants in the immediate vicinity and I can say, after a recent visit, that this is one of the better ones… Continue reading “Review: Le Kim Chi”
Date of Visit – July, 2017
Allegro caught my eye because it has a very nice menu… Quite a few classic paste dishes, a good selection of veal preparations and, more importantly from my perspective, a nice range of appetizers. The place turned out to be quite pleasant, and the service decent, but I was less impressed with the actual food… Continue reading “Review: Allegro – Ottawa”
Today’s dish is my own take on an appetizer I was served a while ago in Yellowknife called ‘Flambé Sambuca Shrimp’. Now, I rather ‘panned’ that dish for what I felt was a rather poor execution but, after giving the basic idea a try, I rather owe the cook in question a (partial) apology. One of my criticisms was that the typical anise flavour of Sambuca was entirely absent, leading me to think that they had unfairly skimped on this part of the production. However, in my own attempt, I used quite a bit of the liqueur myself and experienced the very same result. Possibly, it is the flaming of the liquid that causes this? In any event, despite that particular ‘flaw’, I think my effort was the better of the two… Continue reading “Sambuca Flambéed Shrimp”
