B House

I've seen B House featured on a few IG reels and stories in the past, which definitely intrigued me.  The eclectic menu isn't easily categorized as it jumps from one Asian cuisine to another with fusion elements.  Normally, that would be cause for concern but if you think about it, most restaurants have some form of fusion going on.  Hey, the best food on Earth are results of fusing 2 cuisines (e.g. Vietnamese & French).  Jackie and I dropped by to check them out on a Sunny Sunday.

To illustrate the fusion focus of the menu, the Tuna Sushi Bombs were a bit Japanese, a bit Korean and a touch Westcoast.  It featured a crispy rice base topped with soy-marinated ahi tuna, sesame seeds, green onion, Korean sauce, jalapenos, cucumbers, watermelon radish, truffle aioli, miso glaze and tobiko.  So as you can see, there was a lot going on with each bite.  Was it a bit muddled?  I would say yes, but it was still pretty tasty.  Surprisingly, I still noticed the buttery tuna despite everything on top of it.  The good thing was that no one component dominated the other.  I got the spice from the Korean sauce, the creamy truffle from the aioli and the saltiness of the soy.  The crispy rice was definitely living up to its namesake while not being too firm.

On the same theme, we had the Yellowfin Tuna Tartare next.  It was beautifully plated (fine-dining worthy) with a smear of miso glaze topped with an edamame salad with tomatoes, green onions and herbs.  As for the tartare itself, we found cubed citrus soy yellowfin tuna, avocado, tobiko, sesame seeds and green onion.  This had a lot less going on so that the tuna was more at the forefront.  Similar to the sushi bombs, the tuna was not aggressively marinated, so it was still the star of the plate.  Combined with the creamy avocado and the miso glaze, we had a balanced bite atop a crispy taro chip.

Something that was not quite fusion, we had the Simple Wings.  These were essentially Vietnamese-inspired with salt, pepper, garlic, jalapeno and chili flakes.  I thought these wings were decent with a crispy rice flour coating.  The skin was somewhat rendered and the meat was indeed juicy.  What I would've liked to see some sort of brine as the wings were not flavourful on their own.  Even with the ample amount of aromatic garlic and jalapenos, it didn't do enough to make an impact.

Our last small plate was the Char Siu Bao which, unlike the Chinese version, was Japanese-style char siu nestled within a Chinese mantou-type bao.  These were pretty decent with thick slices of fatty char siu that had a salty sweet glaze on them.  In addition, we found lettuce, aioli, jalapenos, pickled shallots and sesame seeds.  This helped brighten up the whole thing with tanginess, heat and nuttiness.

My favourite dish of the meal was the Dragon Noodle Bowl with stir-fried egg noodles, blackened boneless lemongrass chicken leg, greens, crispy garlic and herbs topped with bang bang shrimp.  These chewy noodles were so flavourful, it was addictive eating them.  Lots of sweetness and savoury elements as well as the crunch from the veggies.  That chicken was superb being juicy and moist while caramelized and charred.  On top of that, literally and figuratively, the bang bang shrimp were slightly crispy and with spice and sweetness.

I had mixed feelings about the Miso Wild Sockeye Salmon.  On one hand, the salmon was overcooked but then the rest of the dish was really good.   The salmon was naturally sweet and was complimented by the rich flavour of the miso.  Some nuttiness was provided by the sesame seeds.  Rice was nicely done being chewy while the veggies were vibrant.  Avocado salsa was creamy and went well with the salmon.  A bit of truffle aioli afforded some creamy woodsiness.

Another favourite of mine was the Korean Chicken Burger.  I'll talk about the other components a bit later, but I would like to focus on the croissant bun.  What a fantastic choice!  It was crispy, yet flaky and buttery.  Even better than brioche!  Now about that chicken, it as juicy and fried beautifully.  I found it sauced just enough to give it some sweet heat.  Lots of crunchy coleslaw to balance out the burger. Those fries were pretty good too, super crispy!

We had another bowl in the Pork Belly that consisted of rice, daikon slaw, cucumber, tomato, pineapple, green onion, soy marinated egg, house aioli, sesame seeds and crispy garlic.  Once again, there was quite a bit going on here, but the pork belly was definitely the most noticeable ingredient.  It was beer braised being tender with just the right amount of fat.  All of the other ingredients did help lighten the bowl with some sweetness and crunch.

We had one more dish in the Thai Red Curry with Chicken Leg.  This was a creamy and generally mild curry that had some hints of spice.  It was plenty aromatic with the coconut cream coming through in texture and in taste.  The fresh herbs and cherry tomatoes provided some brightness.  The whole chicken leg was the star of the plate as it was juicy and tender while sporting crispy and rendered skin.  The side of rice was quite good being fluffy while not too wet.

We also had a couple of cocktails to go with our meal in the Lychee Raspberry Cosmo and the Mango Crema Cosmo.  As you can see, both were fruity in appearance and in fact, were refreshing and sweet.  Definitely great for those who don't want something strong.  As for dessert, we had the Chocolate Molten Brownie.  This was pretty good with a slightly crisp exterior then giving way to an ooey gooey centre.  It was purposefully sweet and plenty chocolatey.  Overall, the meal at B House was definitely interesting with some real strong dishes.  Possibly there maybe a few too many components, but for some odd reason, it seems to work.  There is also a nice patio outside for sunny days.

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

The Good:
- Some strong flavours
- Most proteins were quite good
- Nice vibe (a la The Drive)

The Bad:
- Salmon was quite overdone

Havana

Ever since our recent trip to Miami (been there a few times before though), it got me thinking about the lack of Cuban food in these parts.  Wait, is there technically only one place where we can get "Cuban" food in the GVRD?  Yes, that place is Havana located on the Drive.  Much like ICBC, they have the market cornered and other than hopping on a plane heading Southeast for 6 hours, there is no other option.  So nearly 7 years from my last foray, we decided to hit up Havana after play softball at nearby Strathcona Park.

As the food came out pretty much all at the same time, we had to do our version of Tetris to fit everything onto the table.  I attacked the Tostones with chipotle mayo first.  These were quite good as they were crispy and sliced just thin enough.  They were of a good size with very few broken pieces. Surprisingly, they were comparable to the ones I've had in Miami.  Next, I sampled the Tostados with house made mesa sauce, feta cheese and chorizo sausage.  Light, crunchy and not overloaded with toppings (would make it wet and soggy otherwise), we didn't mind this dish.  The mildly spiced mesa sauce was amped by the chorizo.

Onto Bear's favourite, we had the Fresh Baked Corn Bread with smoked chili butter.  This was also quite the pleasant surprise as it was toasty on all surfaces due to the light sear on the grill.  By no means was it dry though as there was a certain moistness to the inside.  I thought the butter was nicely understated in its smokiness that it didn't overwhelm the sweet corn taste.  We weren't overly impressed with the Albacore Tuna Crudo with garlic, lemon and jalepeno with crispy tortilla chips though.  Not sure if the artistic plating really worked as there was too much blank space on the plate.  Moving past that, the actual crudo was chunky and rather lifeless.  The promise of garlic, lemon and jalapeno did not come to fruition.

Onto some bigger items, we had the Paella with West Coast mussels, prawns, house made chorizo sausage, peppers, onions, tomatoes, saffron, rice, coconut milk and Pernod. Okay, let's get this out of the way first - as you can clearly see, this was not really a "Paella".  Hence, there was no rice crust and furthermore, the dish resembled more of a risotto (due to the creaminess) than a paella.  Flavourwise, the dish was the beneficiary of garlic, spice and a understated richness.  Deceptively filling, the Ropa Veija (Braised Beef on Cuban rice) was meaty and sufficiently moist.  The flavours were understated with hits of green and red peppers throughout.

Despite the absence of a Cuban sandwich on the menu, we went for the next best thing in the Media Noche with spicy BBQ sauce.  Consisting of roasted pork, ham, Swiss cheese, house made spicy BBQ sauce, chipotle mayo and pickles, this was a decent sandwich.  There was a good amount of tender pork that was spiked with a lingering spicy BBQ sauce.  What was most memorable about the dish was actually the side of Parmesan Fries.  These were crispy, light and full of salty, cheesy flavour.  One of our favourite items was the Fried Chicken featuring a crispy chicken breast, sour cream & onion mash, coconut gravy, asparagus and corn.  Considering that the chicken was white meat, they did a great job in keeping it moist.  The coconut gravy was aromatic and rich while the veggies were crunchy and sweet.

For dessert, we shared the Caramel Bread Pudding with praline ice cream.  Sadly, this was dud as the pudding was far too dry and lacking in caramel sauce.  It wasn't overly sweet as a result, but the texture was not appealing.  Really, this was an unfortunate ending to a relatively enjoyable meal.  Sure, it ain't real Cuban food, but taken for what it is, there were not many other complaints other than the dessert.

The Good:
- Generally well-executed food
- Nice vibe
- We got attentive service

The Bad:
- On the pricier side
- Not true Cuban food, if you haven't noticed

La Mezcaleria

At one point, when locations of Taco Bell and Taco Time had outnumbered true Mexican restaurants, it exemplified the sad state of the cuisine in Vancouver.  Fortunately, those days seemed to be in the rear-view mirror, much like a car tailgating along #3 Road. With the increasing number of "as-authentic-as-can-be for Vancouver" joints opening up, we no longer have to accept tatar tots as Mexi-fries.  One of the newest places is La Mezcaleria on Commercial, brought to you by the same people as La Taqueria.

Due to a mix-up on the first visit, I was ultimately treated to 2 meals with Miss Y as my trusty eating companion. So I'll merely bunch everything into one post.  We started with the Pacific Snapper Ceviche consisting of tomato, lime, red onion, serrano peppers and cilantro with a side of freshly-fried tortilla chips.  We found the fish tender while still firm.  There was a good amount of lime as well as a low rumble of heat. Ultimately, it was light and refreshing.  At first, we were wanting some more seasoning, but the salt on the crunchy chips provided that balance.  Accompanied by the same chips, our side of Guacamole with ripe avocado, lime, cilantro, onions, jalapeno and tomato was good.  Since it was made-to-order, everything was vibrant and fresh.  I liked how it wasn't over mixed where there was still some chunkiness. I would've liked to see more acidity though (but there was a wedge of lime).

Of course we couldn't eat at a place named La Mezcaleria without trying the Mezcal Flight. I'm not too familiar with Mezcal, so don't expect an in-depth analysis. What I do know is that Mezcal and Tequila are both made from the agave plant, yet with Mezcal, it is roasted (which imparts a smokier flavour). So from left to right, I had Mezcal from Coyoacan, Espadin and lastly an Aged Mezcal.  It was served with spiced orange wedges, sangrita and lime.  You're not supposed to "shoot" the drinks, rather, it is best to sip with alternating samples from the sangrita and lime.  I quite liked experimenting to create different flavours.  Probably the most interesting dish we tried was the Queso Fundido with chorizo.  Essentially a cheese fondue, it was served in a volcanic rock molcajete and accompanied by soft tortillas.  Suffice to say, this was extremely cheesy and stringy.  And yes, by the visuals, it was pretty greasy too with the moist and flavourful chorizo.

Onto some other mains, we had the Pirillada consisting of grilled short-ribs marinated in a home-made pasilla chili sauce, chorizo, nopalitos, toreado peppers and green onions.  The moist and flavourful short ribs exhibited a nice char and was quite mild, salty and slightly sweet.  Miss Y remarked it tasted like somewhat like a smokier Korean short ribs.  The side of nopalitos (or cactus) was remarkably not slimy and had a nice hit of lime and spice.  We liked the meaty and mildly spicy chorizo on the side.  We also sampled the Chicken Enchilada topped with red tomato salsa, onion, cream and Mexican cheese.  The star of the dish was the wonderful roja as it was slightly smoky, zesty and layered with flavour.  It started off sweet and ended with a low rumble of spice.  The chicken itself was moist and lightly seasoned.

Saving the best for last, we really enjoyed the Tostadas de Pato made with duck confit, guava, fruit mole sauce, chayote and radish.  These were very good with a crunch from both the corn tortilla and veggies.  The duck itself was smoky, sweet and mildly spicy.  It was suggested we eat them by hand, but there was so much stuff on top, it was pretty difficult.  The fruit mole added a nice creaminess which brightened up the flavours.  And of course we had to try some Tacos (since they are the same people as La Taqueria).  From left to right, we had the Lengua (tongue), Carnitas (pork confit), Asada (flank steak) and Cachete (beef cheeks).  The tongue was moist and fatty while the carnitas was tender with depth and nicely accented by the pickled onions.  The asada was smoky with caramelized flavours.  Lastly, the beef cheek was also moist exhibiting natural flavours from the braise.

For dessert, we shared the Flan which was made with condensed and evaporated milk, hence the dulce de leche-type consistency and sweetness.  Although it was on the denser side, we enjoyed it nonetheless for its richness and controlled sweetness.  Even the caramel on the bottom wasn't stingingly sweet, rather, it was smoky and a touch bitter.  Overall, for all the dishes we tried, the meal(s) were good. The thing we noticed the most was the freshness of all the ingredients (which never hurts).  And also, if you are a fan of Mezcal, there is probably no other place in Vancouver that can rival La Mezcaleria.

*Note - this was an invited dinner where all food was comped except for a 2 items and gratuities

The Good:
- Reasonably-priced
- Fresh ingredients
- Well-executed proteins

The Bad:
- Room is cozy, but that also means a bit cramped too