Selene Aegean Bistro

Here we go with another restaurant on my "to eat at" list but it has taken me until now to actually pay them a visit.  When Bluebeard and Nikita wanted to meet up for dinner, it was as good as any time to suggest Selene Aegean Bistro out on Pentiction at Hastings.  Not be confused with Chez Celine out on Fraser, this place features a Mediterranean menu as its name suggests.  We really loved the front facade of the place as it created the right atmosphere even before we set foot inside.  After discussing what to have on the menu, we ended up with their Tasting Menu for $80.00 per person.

Things got off on the right foot with a trio of items including Babaganoush.  We found the eggplant to be silky smooth and quite pleasant with a touch of earthiness.  We would've liked to see a bit more smokiness though.  It went really well with the fresh pita as it contrasted the crispiness of the pita (where it was fluffy inside).  

With much more impact, the Tirosalata had plenty of kick from the fermented red chilis as well as a balancing amount of tanginess.  It was also slightly creamy from the feta and of course nuttiness from the walnuts.  Although not as prominent in size, the small cup of Stuffed Olives was impactful.  Beyond the initial briny and tangy notes, the creaminess of the feta really came through.  

Lastly, the Amberjack Crudo was a pleasant dish with meaty slices of fish in a strawberry ouzo broth.  Nice sweetness with only a touch of licorice.  As amberjack can typically be, it started off with a fairly firm texture, but it got much softer as I chewed it.  The slices of jalapeno were thin and did not overwhelm the fish.  Rather it gave the necessary bite for impact.

Second course featured Horiatiki and Mussels.  As you may already know, I rarely fawn over a salad.  However, the tomato-forward horiatiki was magnificent.  The fresh tomatoes were plump and the marinated ones were sweet like candy.  These were balanced off by the pickled onions and some olives as well as some creamy red wine feta.  Consisting of plump out-of-the-shell mussels, these sat in a spicy loukaniko butter.  So many layers of flavour here including briny, sweet, nutty and of course spiciness.  Some freshly-shaved fennel added crunch and brightness. The toasted and oiled olive focaccia was the perfect thing to sop up all of the sauce.   

Since Nikita cannot have any gluten, they were able to make the Kalamari with potato starch for the Kalamari to accommodate.  Honestly, if no one told me this was gluten-free, I would've accepted it as the standard dish.  I found it really good with tender squid with a nice bite while the coating was firmly crispy.  That tzatziki was money with notable dill hits and purposeful tanginess.

Third course had the bigger dishes in the Arctic Char and Bavette Steak.  This set of dishes were okay, but not as good as the the first two courses.  We found the Arctic Char to have a uniformly crispy skin that was well-seasoned, but the fish itself was a bit overdone.  It wasn't dry though, so still pretty good.  Underneath, we found spinach sitting in an avgolemono which had a nice viscosity and brightness.  As much as I enjoyed the ezme underneath (which was tangy, mildly spicy and earthy), the Bavette Steak was not as tender as we would've liked.  It was prepared a perfect medium-rare though and properly rested.  Loved the white anchovies and pickled pearl onions on top as it added some brininess to the dish.

The side of triple cooked Patatas were super crunchy and nutty with creamy potatoey insides.  Loved the creamy feta mayo on the side.  Smoky with slight bitterness, the Oyster Mushroom Souvlaki was sitting on a bed of walnut skordalia, which was thick (from the bread), nutty and tangy.  I didn't mind it, but others at the table thought it tasted off.

Onto dessert, we were served the Mahalepi and Amygdalota Ice Cream Sandwich.  We really enjoyed the ice cream sandwich as the tahini ice cream was nutty, sweet and nicely sweetened by the honey caramel.  The almond cookie had a crumbly crunch and of course nuttiness.  The fig-infused pannacotta to be smooth and silky with just the right consistency.  The macerated strawberries add a sweet tanginess while the brown sugar kataifi (served on the side) added crunchiness.  Overall, it was a pleasant meal at Selene.  We felt the prices were reasonable for the amount and quality of food we were served.

The Good:

- Generally delicious food

- Well-priced

- The calamari

The Bad:

- Steak was not as tender as we would've liked

Food by Fanta

If you've ever been to Baan Lao out in Steveston, you will know that they take Thai cuisine to a whole new level while still honoring the traditional techniques and ingredients.  I've been a few times and it has been fantastic, if not a major indulgence (it's expensive).  However, what if I told you that Food by Fanta out in Langley has similar elements while being significantly more affordable.  Jackie and I went out for a tasting and came away rather impressed.

This isn't my first time visiting Food by Fanta, but as you will soon see, I got to experience some carefully curated smaller bites.  This included the Miang Kham which literally translates to "one bite wrap".  This it was with pomelo, dried shrimp, ginger, pineapple, lime, peanuts and herbs in a betel leaf.  Combined with the sweet and savoury miang sauce, this had all the flavours such as brininess, sweetness, tang, nuttiness and herbaceousness.

Next little bite was the Kratong Tuna Tartare sitting in delicate pastry cups.  Delicate was the operative word here as the tuna was buttery and lightly sweet.  The other bite was the Yum Som with a mix of pomelo, herbs, toasted coconut, crispy shallots and garlic with Nam Prik Pao dressing and crispy prawn sprinkles.  This was aromatic and toasty with tangy sweetness.

Served on a handheld metal spoon/serving vessel, the Tom Kah Scallop Bites were one of my favourite dishes.  It featured a fairly large scallop that was beautifully seared.  It was slightly rare in the middle being buttery and soft.  Plenty of natural scallop sweetness that was concentrated due to the caramelization from the sear.  In addition to being properly seasoned, the scallop all benefitted from the creamy and aromatic tom kha which had balancing tanginess.

Another little bite that was neatly presented was the Shrimp Toast.  I was amazed that the toast was not greasy at all despite its thickness.  Depending on your preference, this could've been too dry also.  Personally, I would've liked to see the toast be less thick and surprisingly, a bit oiler.  However, it was still good since the shrimp mixture was bouncy and sweet while the layer of herbs provided plenty of flavour.

In addition to the shrimp toast, we had another trio of items from their high tea service including the Khanom Krok.  This crispy crepe was nutty and had a great hit of creamy coconut with the smoothness of blended rice.  I absolutely loved the Khao Kriap Pak Mor which was steamed rice-flour dumpling that had a beautiful soft texture with appealing elasticity.  It was filled with a tender savoury minced chicken mixture.  At the top, we found the Khanom Buang which was a crispy pancake filled with grated coconut, diced shrimp and lime leaves on top of lemon meringue.  This pancake had a light crunch coupled with the sweet and briny filling.  Lots of aromatics going on here.

One of their most beautiful dishes happens to be the Chor Muang Flower Dumplings.  These glutinous rice flour dumplings were texturally on point with a delicate chewiness with elasticity.  Inside, we found 3 fillings including chicken, pork and veggie.  Believe it or not, my favourite was the veggies with its combination peanuts, sweet radish, onion and cilantro.  It was not hurting for texture or flavour.  Loved the sweet tanginess with aromatics.

Colourful and presented as individual components (prior to mixing), the Khao Yum Salad consisted of 22 fresh-cut ingredients.  I'm not going to list them all here but the crispy rice made this dish.  Not only did it add texture, but the aromatics and nuttiness blended well with the crunchy vegetables, sweet fruit and herbaceous components.  This was dressed with tangy tamarind and that brought out even more sweetness and tang.

One dish I've had before was the Bechamel Taro Nachos.  Featuring thin waffle-cut taro chips, these were topped with tamarind prawns, melted Swiss and mozzarella and of course, an avocado bechamel.  Beyond the crispiness of the thin taro chips, the best part of this dish was the little bits of prawns.  Due to the cook on them, they were rather meaty and held up to the rest of the components.  They were sweet with a slight tang while the cheese held everything together.

Another nicely-plated dish was the Miso-Orange Roasted Carrots.  This consisted of a variety of carrots that had been butter-poached.  As such, they were super tender to the point they were almost breaking apart, but stayed intact.  The natural sweetness was definitely there with background earthiness.  Complimenting the nutty peanut sauce, we found a bright and tangy beet vinaigrette.

One of the more interesting dishes was the Seared Eggplant with Green Curry.  This acted almost like a vegetarian pate with a silky baked eggplant topped by poached carrots.  This was spread onto toasted and buttered ciabatta served on the side.  Texturally, this only worked because the toasted bread was the contrast.  Eggplant and carrots by themselves were very soft and hence spreadable.

Something a bit more usual was the Confit Chicken Leg Khao Soi.  The combination of delicate egg noodles and crispy noodles helped soak up the rich and coconut curry soup.  It was aromatic, slightly sweet, a bit earthy and plenty creamy.  The large chicken leg was definitely meaty and tender, but at the same time, it was maybe too tender?  I loved the crispy skin though.

One of the most impactful dishes we had was the Khao Khluk Kapi Bowl Thai Fried Rice.  This was not only due to the fact it was the beneficiary of smoky wok hei (high BTUs), but the fermented shrimp paste afforded plenty of umaminess.  With that being said, it wasn't so pungent that it was overwhelming.  Just enough of it.  As evidenced in the picture, the plate was also loaded with crunchy veggies as well as crispy shallots and fried garlic.  Lots of textures and further aromatics.

Encased with an egg lattice, the Pad Thai featured 2 large prawns on top.  They were meaty with a bounce texture.  Inside the lattice, the chewy rice noodles were coated with just enough homemade tamarind sauce.  It was quite balanced as the noodles weren't too tangy nor too sweet.  It had plenty of savouriness with smokiness from the wok hei.

I was happy that we got to try the Coconut Crème Brûlée since I enjoyed it very much the last time I was here.  Presented beautifully in a half-coconut, the dessert benefitted from the fresh coconut meat on the sides.  Beyond that, the custard was creamy and had a light thickness.  Sweetness was balanced and the brûlée was crunchy and caramelized.

Seemingly super simple, the Som Choon consisted of lychee, pineapple, strawberry, jackfruit, and orange in jasmine-scented syrup,

with orange zest, ginger and crisp shallots. The trick with this was to drizzle the syrup to your fancy and then serve it with ice. The result was something that was fruity, refreshing and pretty cold.  I loved it!

Colourful with a variety of ingredients, the Pandan Chocolate & Strawberry Khunafeh was full of different textures.  The crunch from the khunafeh was reminiscent of that in a Dubai Chocolate.  Heck, the chocolate drizzle helped it even more so.  The house-made pandan custard even looked like pistachio, but instead, it gave off a different form of nuttiness.  It was like a Jedi mind trick as it looked like Dubai Chocolate, but it had a twist of slightly different flavours.

A stealthily delicious dessert was the Gluay Buad Chee.  It featured a coconut cream mousse that was silky and rich.  It had plenty of aromatics and sweetness.  That in itself was quite satisfying already but we found a brûléed slice of banana on top.  The contrasting textures between the soft banana and the smoky crunchiness of the torched sugar was appealing and gave the dessert some body.

Of course we ordered some bevvies to go with our meal too. We thought the Watermelon Mule was the most refreshing with fresh-squeezed fruit.  Loved the natural flavours and the texture of the drink.  Mango Supreme was floral and also fruity.  The Mojito was refreshing from the passionfruit and also the mint.  Being savoury, the Tom Yamgrita was a bit spicy with the usual fragrances of lemongrass and galangal.  Overall, the meal was impressive as it featured traditional Thai flavours with some twists and a dose of modern presentation.  Definitely something to consider as the prices are quite reasonable given the quality of the food.

*All food and beverages were complimentary for this blog post*

The Good:

- Traditional Thai flavours but with a certain refinement

- Reasonable pricing

- Unique dining space

The Bad:

- Confit chicken was far too soft

Mauna

As often as I visit Mauna out in Surrey, I don't think I've posted about them in quite some time.  Ironically, prior to this visit, I had eaten then 5 times in the last few months!  Anyways, this post will mostly focus on their new meal sets as well as some new maki sushi rolls.  Of course, I had to get some of the classics as well!  For those who not familiar with Mauna, the chef used to work at Minami and his menu features quality renditions of Aburi Oshi and many other delicious dishes at prices that are truly affordable.

In this economy, it is not easy to find food that features quality ingredients for reasonable prices.  However, their Set Menus for $28.95 include a bounty of dishes that reflect many of the best items on the regular menu.  With a bounty of dishes, the Botan Set includes 6 pcs Sashimi, Chicken Karaage, Miso Tofu Salad, Fried Brussels Sprouts, 3 pcs Aburi Nigiri, 2 pcs Oshi Bites, Mini Poke and Miso Soup.  Yes, the amount of food shown in the picture is an accurate representation.  This is more than enough for one person and worth every penny of the $28.95.  All of their set menus include the same sides, but only rotate 2 of the mains.  In this one, the Chicken Karaage and 6 pcs of Sashimi are the unique dishes.  I've always love the karaage here as it has a flavourful marinade with a nice hit of ginger.  Chicken is tender and juicy too.  Sashimi is fresh and presented in generously-sized slices.

For the Momiji Set, everything is the same except we find a Mini-Chirashi Don and Ika Maruyaki replacing the aforementioned karaage and sashimi.  If you were feeling a little bit more hungry and also wanted more rice, this is the set for you as the chirashi don is essentially the sashimi, but with rice added.  As for the squid, it is grilled beautifully and is completely tender with a nice rebound texture.  

The Sakura Set features Kaisen Soba and 3 pieces of Ebi Fritter in place of the other main items.  As much as I enjoy the seafood with the chewy soba noodles and the crispiness of the ebi fritters, I feel this is the least amount of food in comparison to the 3 set menus.  But I understand the combination as it features much less raw items than the other sets.  Good for those who want cooked food in their combos.

Before I get to the classics, I will discuss the "newer" specialty rolls including the Medford Roll.  It doesn't have anything to do with the town in Oregon, so no reference to the mountains even though there is a mountain of deep fried baby scallops on top of a what is essentially an oversized dynamite roll.  Yes, you will normally find this type of roll at a Korean-run Japanese restaurant.  For the record, I don't mind these types of rolls, it just depends on my mood.

Another large specialty roll is the Hinderer Roll consisting of a deep fried "dynamite-like" roll with a mound of spicy sashimi in the middle.  Since the roll is fried, the centre is slightly warm and has a softer texture.  Outside, the tempura batter is crispy and not greasy.  As for the spicy tuna sashimi, it is slightly sweet with a bite.  Crunchy cucumbers add some texture to this.  For $19.95, this is a considerable amount of food.

So this is the "New" Galaxy Roll and I guess the new part is the crumbled wasabi peas on top.  It adds a crunch that has a mild bite to go with the spicy prawn, hotate and red tuna in the middle while hamachi wrapped around the top.  The roll is almost juicy and eats a bit wet, but the peas do add a textural contrast.  To top it off, we there is some spicy powder for more heat.

Striking in its appearance from the fried lotus root chip on top, the Wataru Roll features real crab, hotate and asparagus in the centre with tuna tartare, slightly seared red tuna and nikiri on the top.  The fluffiness and moisture of the real crab meat is unmistakable while the tuna does the heavy lifting with texture and the spice from the tartare.  It is a bit awkward to get the full lotus root chip in every bite, but when you do, it is crispy and airy.

Onto some classics, we cannot forget about the big daddy of the bunch in the Explosion Roll.  With a good amount of imitation crab, spicy tuna and cucumber, the whole thing is wrapped with tobiko and topped with torched aburi sauce.  Fantastic pops from the tobiko and smoky sweetness from the aburi sauce.  Secondary layers of buttery soft and spicy tuna give this roll extra impact.

We cannot forget about their other "must order" item in the Mauna's Aburi Tart.  Sporting with sushi rice, ripe avocado, spicy tuna, sockeye salmon and seared aburi sauce, this has all of the best things in one package.  Buttery and flavourful with hits of spice and sesame oil, the spicy tuna anchors the dish but gives way to the creamy smokiness of the aburi sauce.  It has a little bit of tang that helps keeps things from being heavy.  Love this dish.

A visit to Mauna isn't complete without ordering their Aburi Oshi.  Two of my favourites are the Wild Salmon Oshi and the Ebi Oshi.  Comparing it to the pioneer of these dishes (Miku/Minami), these ones here at Mauna have more content (as in fish and components) to go with the sushi rice.  Aburi sauce is creamy and tangy without being greasy.  The lime zest on the ebi oshi really adds brightness.

We also go for the Saba Oshi and Hotate Oshi.  If you are a fan of the briny fishiness of mackerel, then the Saba Oshi is for you.  It has just a touch of miso aburi sauce on it.  On the other hand, the scallop oshi has quite a bit of sauce that is slightly spicy.  Since scallop is buttery and sweet yet subtle, the sauce adds some impact.  However, it doesn't overwhelm the delicate scallop though.  The texture of the sushi rice is more on the moist side with an appealing chewiness.  In the end, a visit to Mauna is always a treat since the food is great and affordable.  Definitely a surprise given its location.  Now with the meal sets, there is a wider selection of dishes to share if you have a smaller party.

*All food and beverages were complimentary for this blog post*

The Good:

- New meal sets offer a great variety of their best items

- Large portions at a reasonable price

- The classic aburi oshi is excellent and much less expensive than other places

The Bad:

- Being a small neighbourhood restaurant, the place gets slammed at times, so you'll have to be patient

White Rock Burger Co.

For all the places that boast smashburgers, not many actually do it right.  Sure, they are indeed smashing a ball of ground beef with a cast iron burger press on a flattop.  However, only a few places create a maillard where we have that nuttiness and aromatics.  Furthermore, a smashburger isn't a smashburger if there aren't crispy edges.  That is why Between 2 Buns has been my goto place for a proper smashburger.  Yet, there maybe a serious contender with White Rock Burger Co.  We dropped by to check them out and their take-out window at the back of the Wooden Spoon.  They operate from 4:00pm on from Wednesday to Saturdays.   

To get a baseline of sorts, we ordered the Big Rock sporting 2 smashed patties, double American cheese, pickles, caramelized onions, lettuce and co. sauce on a potato bun.  Remember when I mentioned that smash patties should have crispy edges?  This had it in spades where the fully seared meat was also nutty and aromatic.  Nicely seasoned as well where the cheese was a bit crispy as well.  Having the sturdy potato bun helped keep things together without being too dense.

Fully-loaded and sporting 2 slices of crispy pepper jack cheese, we had the Fuego with double patties, pickled jalapeños, pickles, caramelized onions, shredded lettuce and chipotle mayo on a potato bun.  This was monstrous with the crispy and nutty cheese as well as the equally crispy beef patties.  Lots of tanginess and bite from the crispy fried jalapeños.  Extra spice was provided by the earthy chipotle mayo and extra crunch from the pickles.

Another large burger was The OG on brioche and stuffed with double patties, aged cheddar, thick cut bacon, crispy onion rings, shredded lettuce, dill pickles and co. sauce.  Since they used a brioche bun here, the bread was lighter and just slightly less sturdy. However, that allowed the crunchy breaded onion rings and crispy bacon to be the main textures.  They piled onto that with crispy cheese and of course, the seared edges of the smashed patties.

Going in a different direction, but also maintaining a crunch of some sort, we had the Spicy Southern Fried Chicken.  I found the chicken itself to be fairly moist with a uniformly crunchy coating.  It was definitely spicy and a touch sweet.  Those bread & butter pickles provided crunch and another layer of sweetness to cut the spice.  However, fried jalapeños provided more tang and spiciness as well.  This was also served on brioche and that is the proper bun for this in my opinion.

Last burger was the Cajun Chicken which featured a grilled chicken breast.  It was well-charred being smoky and a bit spicy from the Cajun rub.  I wouldn't have called it juicy, but the chicken breast was far from dry.  It was nicely complimented by the crispy thick-cut bacon and that tangy tomato jam.  Completing the burger was some melted cheddar, lettuce and co. sauce.  Once again, this was on a brioche bun which was soft and light. 

Naturally, we had to get some sides too!  Fries were crispy with some potatoness left.  Really enjoyed the Mac & Cheese as they used Cavatappi which held onto the cheesy sauce well.  Poutine was solid with a mild gravy and legit cheese curds.  Loved that their Onion Rings were breaded (my preference).  They were very crunchy where the onions didn't fall out.  Lastly, my favourite was the Dirty Fries as they were completely coated being spicy with the cooling of the mayo sauce.

We tried some of their Dips including the Garlic Aioli, Co. Sauce, Spicy Honey Mustard, Cool Ranch BBQ and Chipotle Mayo.  For me, the classic aioli was the best as it was creamy and had big roasted garlic flavours.  Chipotle mayo was great too with earthy, smoky and spicy vibes.  Honey mustard was great with the onion rings with its spicy sweetness.  I found the Cool Ranch BBQ to be tangy with some herbaceous notes.

For drinks, we had one each of the Sparkling Lemonade and the Strawberry Sparkling Lemonade.  Truly refreshing to wash down the big burgers with measured sweetness and some fizziness.  Overall, we were really impressed with the smash burgers at White Rock Burger Co.  They do their patties right with crispy edges and compliment them further with crispy cheese.  Great textures and accompaniments.  Will be back in a heartbeat.

*All food and beverages were complimentary*

The Good:

- Smashburgers done right

- Textures on point

- Large burgers

The Bad:

- Only takeout, so better have a place to eat it if you aren't going home