Bentall Centre BX1 Food Court

The food court.  You know, a collection of food stalls that are located in malls where one would usually find: a Chinese combo spot, chain-burger joint, Japanese teppanyaki, KFC, Tim Horton's and the sort...  Well, thankfully, this has been gradually evolving as tastes have changed and people are generally looking for more interesting eats.  The Bentall Centre food court features 5 different stalls that offer more than the usual and they are definitely not some big corporate chain.  I was invited recently to try them all.

One of the most recognizable names is Zab Bite Thai Express.  Yes, it is run by the same people as the Michelin-Recommended spot on Fraser Street.  We were able to try some of Northerneastern Thai cuisine including their fabulous Pad See Ew.  This had plenty of wok hei with smokiness and caramelization.  Crystal noodles were full of elasticity and weren't overly clumpy.  We also tried the Tofu Green Curry.  Fragrant, sweet and briny, the mild green curry had a velvety viscosity.  I found the rice dry enough to accept the curry while retaining a chewiness.  The fried tofu was crispy and held up to the moisture of the curry.

Right next door, we found the almost viral Four-Bite Burger operated by the same people behind Bovine Rice Bowls.  These little sliders featured a smash patty that was crispy with a beautiful maillard.  Finely slivered onions were grilled into the smash patty adding sweetness and texture.  These were delicious with the addition of processed cheese and burger sauce.  Buns were soft too with good structure.  We got to try the Chicken Strips too and they were pretty typical, but were fried until crunchy with moist breast meat inside.  This was served with crispy curly fries and honey mustard.

Over at Little Seoul, we were got some pictures of their bento boxes.  We sampled a few of their wares including Beef Bulgogi, Spicy Pork, Mandu and Tteokbokki.  The pictures do not completely represent what we tried, but this is what you would get if you order a set.  I thought the tteokbokki were fantastic.  Texturally, they had a nice chew, but gave way to softness.  Mandu were great too with a thin skin that was crispy and coated with a gochujang sauce.  Inside, the filling was moist and tender.  We had the beef and pork in a bibimbap format and they ate really well.  The meats were tender and full-flavoured.

Also run by the same people (who operate the Frying Pan), we have Tori.  It features everything from Tori Paitan Ramen to Chicken Karaage.  We got to try Pork Katsu and Chicken Karaage.  I thought the karaage was juicy with a crispy batter on the outside.  It was mildly-seasoned and probably needed the side of mayo.  As for the pork katsu, it was rather lean meat, but was still moist and juicy.  Batter was lightly crispy.

The last food stall at the other end of the food court is Indish (which has a food truck too).  They feature a pan-Indian menu including the 2 things we tried.  I really enjoyed the Vegan Channa Kebab Kathi Roll.  Loved the flaky and crispy paratha and the crunchy vibrant slaw.  The vegan channa had a crispy exterior and a semi-dense tender interior.  It was nicely spiced with earthy notes.  Humungous in size, the Samosa was flaky and crispy with a tender and spiced potato filling.  On top, there was an earthy and spicy chickpea masala along with kachumber slaw, mint and tamarind chutney.  To say this was a flavour explosion would be an understatement.  Really great for anybody, but great for vegetarians too, much like the Kathi roll.

Running until November 13th, they will be running a Lunch Club Series where guests can pick up their lunch from one of the five food stalls and join a themed-activity based on the day.  On Tuesdays, there is casual drop-in Mahjong in a format that is welcoming to all experience levels.  Love the addition of all these activities to engage customers at the BX1 Food Court.  However, for me, it is all about the food.  It is much more interesting than the usual stuff we find in most food courts.  Definitely satisfying and something that fits into the tastes of the ever refining appetites of Vancouver foodies.  I might just have to find a way to come back when I'm on holidays because it is only open weekdays during lunch hours.

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

The Good:

- Quality food

- Lots of choice amongst the 5 vendors

- Portions are enough for most people

The Bad:

- Only open weekdays for lunch (but makes sense because on the weekends, no one would be in the offices

Nom House Vietnamese Kitchen

We are all pretty familiar with Vietnamese cuisine when it comes to rice and noodle bowls.  However, most of the time, it requires sitting down at a full-service restaurant.  With Nom House in Seattle (another location in Issaquah), it is a quick service concept where you can order specific bowls or create your own.  Rounding out the menu, we find Banh Mi and salads.  If you are thinking that the concept is fairly healthy, you are right, even their egg rolls are not deep fried!

About those Pork Egg Rolls...  They were pretty large and nicely browned in the oven.  I would say they were mostly crunchy with some softer spots.  That would be the byproduct of baking them rather than frying.  Hence, they were also not greasy at all.  Inside, the cabbage and carrot filling was a bit on the softer side, but the pork did provide texture and body.  This came with a sweet chili dipping sauce.

We ended up trying 3 of their Bacos (Bao + Tacos) with 3 different fillings.  There was Top Sirloin, Pork Belly and Tofu.  I liked how the bao were thin, so that it wasn't overly carby.  Rather, with the amount of filling that also included pickled carrots, cucumber, jalapenos, cilantro, fried garlic, fried shallots, nom nom sauce and sesame soy, the whole thing ate with a lot of flavor and texture. I liked the pork belly the most as it was buttery soft. 

Instead of creating our own bowls, we merely tried their signature items including the Nom Combo consisting of grilled sirloin, lemongrass chicken and all the veggies/sauces atop rice and salad.  Definitely on the healthish part of the quick-service eats spectrum.  As with the baco, the sirloin was tender with plenty of natural meatiness.  Chicken was moist and soft with a mild lemongrass kick.  Veggies were fresh and that nom nom sauce was creamy with plenty of herbaceousness.

Another signature item is the Pork Duo with pork belly and grilled pork with all of the same accompaniments as the nom combo except with the addition of a fried egg.  Pork belly was soft and buttery while the grilled pork had some smokiness and was mildly-seasoned with sweetness.  Since there was pork belly and egg present, this ate more robustly and had silkiness provided by the pork fat and the egg yolk.  The salad and veggies helped offset that to a degree.

We moved onto some of their specials including the Mini-Me & Salad as well as their Nom Special Banh Mi.  Loaded with cilantro (a lot of it!), pickled carrots, cucumber, jalapeno, nom nom sauce and house mayo, the banh mis were not devoid of filling.  Add the choice of meat (steak in the mini), then the sandwich was filling.  Bread was good too being crusty with a soft and chewy interior.  Personally, I would've lightened up on the cilantro, but that's just me...  The Nom Special Banh Mi was fully-stuffed with pork belly and grilled pork with 2 fried eggs.  That was definitely enough for one person due to the amount of protein.  Runny eggs added more moisture and some velvety texture.

Lastly, we had one of their Vermicelli Bowls with grilled sirloin.  This was not much different than the other bowls, except sub rice vermicelli for the rice.  Due to that, it did eat a bit lighter and it needed some sauce to go with it as a result.  On the topic of sauces, one is included with your order.  Choices include Nom Nom, Spicy Soy Sesame, Fish Lime Vinaigrette and Sesame Soy.  For the vermicelli, the fish lime vinaigrette was recommended and yes, that would be my choice too with brightness, saltiness and tang.  Otherwise, if I was having rice, I would go for the spicy soy sesame.  Nice kick to go with the aromatic saltiness.  So overall, the food at Nom House trends towards the healthier side without sacrificing flavor.  Definitely a modern take on Southern Vietnamese cuisine, but a good one.  Great for a quick lunch that won't break the bank or make you feel bloated.

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

The Good:

- On the healthier side

- Impactful flavors

- Decent value

The Bad:

- Due to being baked, the egg rolls are not as crunchy as I would've liked, but they are healthier

Billiard Hoang

I've been wanting to check out Billiard Hoang for many years now.  However, it just never worked out every time we've been in Seattle.  It wasn't only because we couldn't fit it into our schedule.  Rather, the place gets pretty busy during dinner time.  To combat this, we arrived at 5:00pm on a Sunday.  In turn, we had our pick of seats and also there was plenty of parking.  Our plan was to order lots, and then after our meal, play some pool!

We ordered a few appetizers including the Duck Salad.  With a bed of greens including herbs, cabbage, onion and pickled carrot & daikon, there was no shortage of crunch, tang and aromatics.  On top, there was a chopped duck leg which was super tender with the classic gelatinous texture.  It was well-salted where the meat was flavorful without being too salty.

Next we tried something I don't see very often - Roasted Quails.  These had some passing similarity to roasted squab, but just smaller.  Seasoning was supplied by some five-spice, soy and sugar.  There was a beautiful lacquered appearance where the skin was rendered and flavorful.  We found the meat to be succulent where we picked all of it clean from the bones.  This came with a salt & pepper lime sauce that helped brighten things up.

Those first 2 appies were solid, but we were really here for the Fish Sauce Chicken Wings!  Sporting only the flats, the wings were aggressively fried.  It resulted in fully-rendered skin that was crispy with no flabby portions.  This also meant the rest of the wing was a bit drier than expected.  However, that didn't result in overly dry meat though.  It just wasn't as juicy as other Asian-style wings I've had.  These were tossed in a fish sauce glaze that was sweet, salty and plenty briny.

For me, I have to order a Banh Mi whenever it is available.  Generally, ordering it at a full-service Vietnamese restaurant can be hit or miss though (I like dedicated Banh Mi shops more).  The one here was a hit since they loaded up with meats.  Hence, it was fulfilling and increased the flavor quotient.  That was further elevated by the generous portion of pâté and buttery mayo.  It added moisture and creaminess.  The bread itself was airy and crunchy on the outside.

Off to the bigger plates, we went for the Bò Lúc Lắc or Shaking Beef.  At first glance, this was not any different than most versions of this dish.  However, the smells emanating from the wok fry was pretty fragrant and exhibiting wok hei.  Our noses were correct as one taste of the beef and there was caramelization as well as umami from the fish sauce.  The beef itself was super tender and juicy.  Veggies were still crisp and vibrant.

Onto the requisite Phở Đặc Biệt, we found the broth to be a bit murky-looking, but it was fairly clean to the taste.  Flavors were definitely there with strong star anise and the sweetness of daikon as well as charred onion.  Cinnamon came through too.  With that being said, the broth was not overly salty though.  Noodles were plentiful and al dente.  They didn't skimp with the meats either as there was enough to go around with every bite.

We also got the Bún Riêu and it has to be one of the best we've had in awhile.  The tomato-based broth was rich and silky with moderate tang.  Crab brininess was apparent too and some sweetness a well.  Nice aroma from the soup.  Those meatballs were fluffy and light with plenty of brininess and only limited porkiness (which is a good thing in my mind).  Noodles were slippery and not overdone.

Out last item was the Mì Thập Cẩm or dry noodles with BBQ pork, shrimp, fish ball, imitation crab and squid.  Pretty solid version here with al dente noodles mixed with sweetened soy along with plenty of toppings.  When we were done eating, we sauntered over to the pool tables and played a few games.  Yes, a Vietnamese restaurant in a pool hall seems strange, but Billiard Hoang deserves all of their accolades.  Food is delicious, well-portioned and decently-priced.  The people there were super-friendly too.  Would come back!

The Good:

- Delicious eats

- Large portions

- Nice people

The Bad:

- Can get busy and you might have to wait, parking lot can fill up too

Rooster & Rice

This Asian chicken & rice thing is a fairly simple concept.  Poach some chicken in seasoned fragrant water.  Use that broth in addition to the rendered chicken fat to make some flavored oil rice.  Ensure there are the requisite dipping sauces and don't waste that chicken broth as it can be served as a soup on the side.  There are distinct, yet similar, versions all across Asia including Thai, Singaporean, Malaysian, Vietnamese and of course Chinese (Hainanese Chicken).  Now I'm not here to dispute where it originated, rather, I blogging about my latest food adventure at Rooster & Rice.  This chain has locations across several states in the West and serves up the Thai version (Khao Man Gai).  I recently checked out the Bellevue location.

Their menu is pretty simple with only 3 items on the menu.  We started with The Original, that featured boneless breast and thigh meat with skin.  I found the chicken breast to be sufficiently moist, but it wasn't juicy though.  On the other hand, the thigh meat was plenty tender and juicy.  Chicken was fragrant, but really, it had to be dipped into the KMG sauce.  This combination of soy, vinegar, sugar, garlic and ginger was reminiscent of the one found at Nong's Khao Man Gai, except being a bit more vinegary.  

With the same deboned breast and thigh atop chicken oil rice, The Bellevue, featured the classic ginger & scallion condiment.  This would be more like the Chinese version of the dish.  We really enjoyed the condiment as it was predominantly ginger with just a bit of scallion for effect.  It was seasoned nicely and brought the chicken alive with brightness and a bit of sharpness.  The chicken rice was quite good being flavorful, nutty and plenty al dente.  There was some crunchy cucumbers on the side as well as chicken broth.

Last item was the Hat Yai Chicken with crispy shallots on top.  We found the skin plenty crispy and flavorful while completely rendered.  I wouldn't say the chicken was moist inside as the deep-fry was pretty aggressive.  It was delicious though especially dipped into the sweet chili sauce.  We sampled their alternative sauces too including Habanero, Thai Sriracha and Pineapple Habanero sauces.  They were all spicy, with the habanero being the hottest.  There was background sweetness but the one with the pineapple had the most.  Definitely a great alternative or addition to the standard sauces.  Overall, the food at Rooster & Rice is good and the sauces are killer.  I do think that the chicken breast and the Hat Yai chicken could benefit from a bit more moisture though.

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

The Good:

- Well-portioned

- Okay pricing

- Delicious sauces

The Bad:

- White meat could be juicier

Mikiya Wagyu Shabu House

After doing an AYCE Wagyu Shabu Shabu in Kyoto on my recent trip to Japan, I was curious how Mikiya Wagyu Shabu House would compare.  Mikiya is a chain restaurant that operates in several states including Washington.  We visited the University District in Seattle to experience their Diamond Wagyu Set for $98.00 per person ($88.00 for members).   There are also 2 tiers below this being Silver at $55.00 per person ($48.00 for members) and Gold at $78.00 per person ($68.00 for members).  Main difference is Silver features Australian Wagyu and the Gold elevating to Japanese A5 Wagyu.  For the Diamond, we had all of the menu available for us to order in addition to even more cuts of A5 Wagyu.

Before we got to ordering our meats on the supplied tablet, we helped ourselves to the self-service items.  This included a Rice Dispensing Machine with curry on the side.  The Curry Rice was actually quite good.  We found the rice to be cooked through while being chewy and not overly wet.  The curry wagyu as well as the minced wagyu were tasty and well-textured.  Sauce bar was pretty typical with soy, ponzu, sesame sauce, sesame oil, garlic, onion and chili sauce.  We found raw eggs for the sukiyaki too.

Right next to the sauce bar, we had a selection of Veggies including lettuce, spinach, napa cabbage, taro, udon, mochi, broccoli, crab stick, fish ball pockets, konjac noodles, tofu and seaweed.  Things were definitely fresh and the display was kept tidy and stocked.  As much as these things were great, I personally would recommend you order more of the beef and only get a bit of veg to compliment.

Moving to the right, we found another station with Fruit (melon, grapes & rambutan), mushrooms, squash and several small appies. These appies included takowasabi and 2 types of seaweed salad.  Fruit was fresh like the veggies.  Really enjoyed the rambutan as we normally do not see that in any buffet.  Loved the seaweed salads, especially the one with birdseye chili.

The last 2 self-service stations included cans of pop (Sprite, Diet Coke and Coke), soft-serve (more on that later) and dispensed drinks.  These included hot tea, calpico, milk tea, guava tea, iced tea and lemon water.  Appreciate that they had cans of pop since they taste better than fountain drinks.  There was ice available so that drinks stayed cold.  The other beverages were fine, but on the sweeter side.

Moving onto the main menu, we could order a limited amount of items each time.  We went for some appies first with the Wagyu Tartare and the Wagyu Nigiri Sushi.  As you can see, the beef in the tartare was totally Wagyu fatty.  Despite being raw, it still ate buttery.  Normally, that much unrendered fat would be chewy.  Flavors were a bit mild though.  The nigiri were excellent with buttery soft thinly sliced wagyu.  Really enjoyed these.

Next, we had the Bluefin Nigiri and the Sweet Shrimp Sashimi.  As you can clearly see in the picture above, the bluefin was fresh with bright colors and a nice sheen.  It ate as such too with classic butteriness.  The shrimp was so sweet and delicate.  Loved how the meat was not mushy which was an indication of its freshness (as fresh as flash frozen can be).  

The Wagyu didn't stop there as we had the Wagyu Bone Marrow.  This was a roasted bone marrow with bits of Wagyu on top.  The result was a extra-luxurious bite atop the pieces of toast.  We got a selection of their fried items including the Tempura Shrimp, Fried Chicken and Fried Gyoza.  At first, I thought these were throwaway options but in reality, they were quite good.  The chicken was juicy with a crispy exterior while the tempura was fairly light with buttery shrimp inside.  The gyoza was the most surprising item as the skin was super thin and crispy while the filling was juicy with just the right amount of cabbage.

Now we got to the Shabu Shabu with a half-Tomato Broth and half-Sukiyaki.  Yes, the classic sukiyaki was great with sweet and salty vibes and the meat was so silky with the raw egg, but I loved the tomato.  It was velvety and rich with sweet tanginess.  Our first set of meats included the A5 Japanese Wagyu Chuck Ribeye, Wagyu Brisket, Wagyu Shoulder and Kurobuta Pork.  Suffice to say, these were buttery and melt-in-our-mouths tender after a quick cook in the broths.  My favourite of the bunch was the chuck ribeye as it was nicely marbled.

The next set of meats were a combination of Gold and Silver tiers (but included with the Diamond).  They consisted of Full Blood M9+ Australian Wagyu Chuck Ribeye and Shoulder Cut.  Also Premium Australian Wagyu Brisket, Chuck Ribeye and Shoulder.  Sure, the marbling was less than the A5, but it still cooked up buttery and tender.  If you aren't overly concerned about going for A5, Silver tier is perfectly fine.

All tiers include the Seafood Platter (and also a la carte).  This particular one in the picture featured snow crab legs, abalone, prawns, oysters, scallops grouper and izumi dai.  Things were fresh, including the oysters, where nothing was fishy.  Snow crab had plenty of meat and the scallops were buttery.  Since they weren't super large, the trick was to cooked them every-so-slightly.

We ended things off with more fruit, but also the Soft-Serve Ice Cream.  They had options of Strawberry and Sesame or in our case, a twist of both.  This wasn't the creaminest of ice creams, but it was fine nonentheless.  It was a tad sweet, but I did like this as a cool-down treat from the hot pot.  Overall, I found the food at Mikiya to be good quality and prepared quite well for an AYCE.  I've had more marbled A5 in Japan, but the fact this was Seattle and the pricing was more-than-reasonable for the quality, I would have to recommend Mikiya.  In fact, there is a great chance I'll be back with the fam!

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

The Good:

- Price point is reasonable, especially the Silver

- Quality is good for an AYCE

- Loved that drinks were included

The Bad:

- I've had better A5 in Japan, but this wasn't Japan and the pricing was reasonable