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

Secret Congee

It has been awhile since we've been out to Secret Congee located in the Ballard area of Seattle.  One look at the menu and you will immediately ascertain that this is no ordinary congee joint.  Rather, they take the traditional Chinese congee base and top it with mostly non-traditional components.  I've heard some criticisms that it isn't authentic, but c'mon, where does it state it is trying to be anyways?  Some of the best eats I've ever had was due to some place taking chances and doing things differently.  Besides, where do you think we got the Vietnamese cuisine we have now - fusion of French and Vietnamese cuisines...

Anyways, we headed out on a Saturday morning and yes, the place was hopping.  Congee is a great brunch item that is nourishing and comforting.  I personally like the congee base as it is velvety and mildly seasoned.  We skipped the chicken congee this time as we feel the meat is too dry.  So instead, we tried something quite different in the Mala Pork.  This featured a large serving of sliced pork shoulder that was dressed in a considerably spicy mala sauce that had numbing spice and lots of earthy elements.  Unlike the other bowls that included ginger and green onion, this one also had cilantro.

On the side, we needed to get the obligatory Yaoutiao or Fried Salty Doughnut.  This was pretty good being lightly crispy with a chewy interior.  It was nicely salted and could be eaten by itself, but c'mon, this was for dipping into the congee!  We liked how it wasn't overly greasy too.  Also, we had the side of Taro Chips.  Again, this was fine to eat as is, since they were crunchy and well-salted.  But, if you wanted a textural and aromatic component to your congee, you could crumble the chips and sprinkle it on top!

One of our favorites is the Shrimp Tom Yum and there was no doubt we would get it this time as well.  The fragrance of the tom yum was was full of lemongrass, tanginess, sharpness from the galangal and also the slightest bit of spice.  This really brought the mild congee base alive as every spoonful was now impactful and aromatic.  The large shrimp were meaty and had a sweet briny snap.

We had 2 versions of the Thai Meatball with one featuring the addition of century egg.  I've always loved this bowl of congee as the medium-sized meatballs provide plenty of body.  Other than the classic chicken (which we didn't order this time), this is the least expensive at $15.00.  Meaty with just enough fat, the meatballs were tender with a pleasant chew.  They were lightly seasoned and acted as a textural component rather than adding flavor.  With the supplement of century egg for $2.00, this provided the umaminess for the bowl of congee.  For the other bowl, we added a soft-boiled egg for also $2.00.

Heading to some more delicate creations, we had the Hokkaido Scallop.  Once again, this featured the same components as the other bowls of congee.  As expected, this was a subtle affair with the sweet scallops blending into the mild flavor of the congee.  This was more about texture as the buttery scallops still had the mantle, which added chewiness and even more scallop essence.  The same could be said about the the Barramundi Bass where the fish was delicate and slightly sweet.  We loved how they were able to keep the fish buttery soft while being cooked through.  For both of these, I added more white pepper for some kick.

Our last bowl of congee was also subtle in the Garlic Blue Crab.  Sure, it ain't cheap at $24.00, but looking at the picture, they did not skimp on the chunks of crab.  Furthermore, the crab was fluffy and fresh-tasting.  Plenty of sweetness to go with the brininess.  The addition of fried garlic provided aroma and texture to the congee.  So this was another delicious visit to Secret Congee.  I understand how some people would like this interpreation of congee.  However, modernizing it while keeping some traditional elements work for me.  I love their creative approach to their toppings and willingness to take a risk.  Yah, the prices are higher than typical Cantonese restaurants of this ilk, but they aren't serving up premium toppings either.

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

The Good:

- Velvety congee base

- Generous with the toppings

- Lots of choice

The Bad:

- Limited seating inside, and sitting outside is fine, if the weather cooperates

- Sure, it costs more (and it is valid for some people), but I personally think it is worth it

Okonomiyaki Jiban-Ya

Located at the front of the restaurant where Steak Easy is located, we find Okonomiyaki Jiban-Ya.  This place is also run by the same people who brought us Secret Congee and Ginger & Scallion.  After a month-long stay in Japan during the Summer, I was quite interested how this place would compare to the Okonomiyaki I had in Osaka.  They definitely are taking things seriously by importing Okonomiyaki Teppans straight from Japan.  They served the Okonomiyaki right onto the teppan so it keeps things hot and sizzling.

We started with some appies first including the Wasabi Greens Tsukemono.  This was a pungent dish that wasn't just your usual pickles.  There was definitely a fermented hit at the very first bite that was strong and impactful.  Nice crunch from the greens.  We also had the Furikake Butter Corn that did its best impression of Mexican Elote.  Corn was plump and had pops of sweetness while having just a touch of smokiness.  Butter was creamy and added saltiness while the furikake did it's spiced thing.

Topped with a considerable amount of black tobiko, the Miso Butter Crab Dumplings were chock full of crab.  They were a bit on the fishier side, but texturally, the crab was fluffy.  The dumpling wrapper itself was pretty al dente and really needed the miso butter for moisture.  Thankfully there was plenty of it.  We found it to be velvety with a rich saltiness.  Some chili oil provided a little something something.  Lastly, we had the Mala Koji Duck Breast.  The duck itself was juicy and fairly tender.  Skin was a bit flabby though, yet had lots of flavor.  That mala koji was spicy and full of umami.  Really addictive and could be eaten with anything!

Onto the Okonomiyaki, we tried the Hiroshima-Style (with noodles) with scallops and cheese.  After we let the noodles sear on the teppan for a bit, they turned out to be fairly al dente and smoky.  The cheese crisped up on the teppan and added some texture and nuttiness.  On top, we found large whole scallops complete with the mantle.  For our Osaka-Style Okonomiyaki, we had the Panko Oyster.  This was made with cabbage and egg.  Tender, but with a crunch, the cabbage was mildly-seasoned.  Naturally, we added the okonomiyaki sauce provided at the table.  Although the oyster was fried up well with a crispy breading, it was on the fishier side.  Despite that, the okonomiyaki itself was pretty legit.  Maybe next time, I'll go with the basic versions, as I didn't really need the toppings.

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

The Good:

- Keeping it legit with the teppan at your table

- Okonomiyaki are large

- Cabbage and noodles were optimal texture

The Bad:

- Some of the seafood was fishy