Sherman's Food Adventures: The Meat Up 聚点串吧

The Meat Up 聚点串吧

After my initial visit to Happy Tree on Kingsway, I've been in search of another Chinese skewer spot that didn't blow my eardrums out with loud K-pop.  Furthermore, the thought of ordering minimum 10 skewers of each meat didn't impress either especially with only 2 people.  Let's just say that my recent visit to Chi House BBQ didn't challenge Happy Tree.  In fact, it merely reinforced the fact I would have to endure loud music while eating an over-ordered amount of skewers.  However, The Meat Up on Granville caught my eye after taking in dessert at the Snackshot right next door.  I returned to see if they could satisfy my urge for meat on a stick.

As with any of these skewer places we got the basics in the Traditional Lamb and Black Pepper Beef. Not that there wasn't any meat on the sticks, but as evidenced in the picture, there could be a touch more in my opinion.  In terms of texture, I thought the lamb was pretty moist with a good amount of cumin and spice.  The beef wasn't as flavourful since the black pepper was a bit weak.  The meat was definitely more firm, but yet again, it was tender.  Something that was different and interesting was the Signature XL Lamb Skewer for $9.95.  Yes, it was long, but in between the chunks of lamb, there was plenty of green pepper and onion.  Value is debatable, but in terms of eating enjoyment, this was excellent.  The meat was appealingly gamy and well-spiced while being super tender.  One of my favs of the meal for sure.

Just to get some variety, I decided to try the Spicy Pork Spareribs.  Since they were ribs, I already knew that half of it couldn't be eaten, so I'm not going to comment on the value.  In terms of texture, they were pretty good exhibiting the classic chewy bounciness.  It wasn't as spicy as I would've liked, but then again, I like things spicy.  At the very least, I wasn't forced to order 10 of these.  For some seafood, we had the Scallop, Spicy Shrimp and Squid.  The scallop was pretty mild-tasting which was fine as I prefer to taste the subtle sweetness rather than being overwhelmed with seasoning.  Texturally, it was a touch overdone.  Again, the spicy shrimp wasn't really that spicy, but there was a kick.  They had a nice snap texture.  The squid was good being just cooked being an appealing chewy.

Some items that didn't include skewers was the Cold Liang Pi Noodles.  As much as the colour was pretty monochromatic, the flavours were pretty good.  There was mild spice to go with some sweetness and plenty of peanut.  Personally, I would've liked more chili oil and vinegar though.  Yet at the same time, it wasn't as if this wasn't good either.  Texturally, the noodles were chewy, but could've been less soft.  For our one vegetable, we had the grilled Eggplant with plenty of minced garlic on top.  I enjoyed how the eggplant was tender and delicate without becoming mushy.  Due to the copious amount of garlic on top, there was no absence of aroma and flavour.  The only thing that I didn't like was the greasiness of the eggplant itself.

Back to the skewers, we got the Honey Chicken Wings and the Grilled Rice Cake.  Surprisingly to me, the wings were my second favourite items as the skin was well-rendered and crispy.  As advertised, they were indeed sweet and sticky with honey.  Also crispy on the outside, the rice cakes were chewy on the inside.  Our last item was the Special Spicy Tripe Pot featuring tripe, beef, beef throat, beef tendon, black fungus and seaweed.  One thing that struck me about these skewers was the meager amount of meat.  Aside from that, the spicy broth was delicious achieving the balance between heat and flavour without one dominating another. Overall, the skewers at The Meat Up were good and the service was fairly decent.  I thought the prices were consistent with other restaurants of this ilk.  A good option for those wanting this type of cuisine.

The Good:
- Above-average
- Decent service
- Flavours were good

The Bad:
- A bit meager with the meat on some skewers
- Total can get up there if you are not careful of what you order

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