Kona Kitchen (Lynnwood)

Not trying to be overly complicated for our dinner plans, we merely made our way to the Lynnwood location of Kona Kitchen for some Hawaiian eats.  For those who not familiar, Hawaiian cuisine is highly influenced by the different nationalities that have moved there.  These include Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Filipino, Portuguese and many others.  Hence, there is a mish mash of things and they even have plates of mixed cuisine since workers would share their lunches with each other.

We started with the classic Spam Musubi where the influences were definitely Japanese with American injection of Spam.  Normally, the Spam would be seared with some sweet soy glaze to cut some of the saltiness.  Then it would be placed on a fairly thick block of sushi rice and then crispy nori wrapped around it.  Such a simple concoction, but ultimately super delicious.  The sushi rice is critical as it cuts the Spam's saltiness.  This particular version had a balance amount of components, but I wished there was more glaze on the Spam to cut the saltiness.  The rice was quite good being chewy yet still moist.

Viv went big with the Waimea Plate with thinly-sliced teriyaki beef, katsu pork, spring rolls, mac salad and 2 scoops of rice.  Loved the beef as it was full-flavored and tender.  Katsu was a bit thin and hence not as moist as it could've been.  Panko coating was crispy and not greasy.  Spring rolls were crunchy and some would call them lumpia (Filipino influence).  Mac salad was a bit too soft for me, but the amount of mayo was right and the seasoning was on point.

I went for the Hamburger Steak complete with gravy, grilled onions, 2 scoops of rice and mac salad.  Yes, this has elements of the Japanese Hamburg steak which itself is already a fusion dish of a Salisbury steak.  This one was excellent with large and thin rectangular patty.  It was moist and juicy while completely seared on both sides.  Gravy had a nice viscosity and was plenty savoury while being influenced by the sweetness of the onions.

I ended up adding a small Saimin to go with my main dish and it really did bring back memories of having it at Hamura on the island of Kauai.  This simple bowl of chewy thin noodles fuses mainly Chinese and Japanese cuisine together that features a clean dashi, half a hard-boiled egg and char siu.  Nothing mind-blowing, but comforting and satisfying.  This particular version was exactly that but I wished the char siu was less dry.  Overall, Kona Kitchen did do the trick and satisfied our Hawaiian food cravings.

The Good:

- Fairly generous portions

- Decent eats

- Good service

The Bad:

- Although it did the job, I was wanting a bit more with some items

Siam 65 Thai Street Food

For many different reasons, Portland is a surprising hotbed for Thai food.  I strongly believe that the Portland Thai food game is better than Vancouver, B.C. (where I'm from).  However, what gets lost in all this is that Seattle has a say in this too.  In fact, I've had some excellent Thai meals in the Seattle Metro Area.  The most recent of this was at a hidden little spot called Siam 65 located in Lynnwood.  You would never spot it from the Hwy 99 as it is tucked behind a few other restaurants.

We began with the Chicken Wings which were deep-fried to a beautiful golden brown.  Hence, they were crunchy with generally rendered skin.  The meat itself was quite moist but not exactly juicy.  As much as the menu description promised garlic pepper and Thai spices, the flavours were just not there.  They could've been considerably more aggressive with the seasoning.  However, there was a Thai sweet chili sauce on the side.

With a wealth of wok hei and caramelization, the Pad Thai was full-flavoured.  The rice noodles were chewy, completely loose and not clumpy.  Hence, it was very easy to eat and pick up with our chopsticks.  There was a good mix of briny and tangy elements with balanced spice.  At the same time, the dish did not have too much moisture either.  The prawns were meaty with a sweet snap texture.  Really good version of this dish.

Equally delicious, the Pad Kra Pow with fried egg was served in a generous portion.  There was more than enough tender ground pork and veggies to go with the modest amount of rice.  Flavors were impactful with caramelized sweetness, smokiness and spice.  Thai basil came through too.  As you can see, the fried egg on top of the rice was perfect with a crispy bottom and a runny yolk.  Mixed with the rice, there was silkiness and also crunch.  

We also had the Chicken Green Curry which was also full-flavoured.  It was slightly briny, plenty aromatic, creamy and a bit herbaceous.  Of course it went well with the side of rice.  The chicken breast meat was actually rather moist while the baby eggplant had a wonderful texture that was not mushy.  Overall, the dishes we had at Siam 65 were flavorful and impactful.  Caramelization from the wok hei was evident and the portion sizes were good.  

The Good:

- Impactful flavors

- Good wok hei

- Fair portions

The Bad:

- Wings could've been seasoned more aggressively

Kita Steak & Ribs

Trying to find another spot in Beaverton to visit while in the Portland area, we decided on Kita Steak & Ribs.  Located in a new residential development on SW Tualatin Valley Highway, the place features traditional Southern Vietnamese eats along with steak & ribs (like their name implies).  The place sports welcoming decor with a modern twist which also translates to the entire menu including cocktails.  We were excited to try the place out since it has received some local acclaim.

Right off the bat, we were served with one of the best dishes of the meal - Vietnamese Nuoc Mam Chicken Wings.  These were plump and gigantic with perfectly rendered skin.  They were super crispy and devoid of the dreaded flabby chicken skin.  Sweet and briny, the caramelized glaze was intoxicatingly delicious.  As for the chicken meat itself, we found it to be juicy and beautifully brined.  One of the best wings we've had in awhile!

We went for their Pho Kita Special as well.  This consisted of rare beef, brisket and meatballs.  As much as the broth was clean and had good natural sweetness and some aromatics, the rice noodles fell apart on contact (hence we used a spoon to lift the noodles instead of chopsticks).  Strangely, they weren't mushy per se, there was still somewhat of a chew to them.  It's just they didn't stay in noodle form.  The good news was that the meats were plentiful and tender.  Loved they also included saw leaf herb to the mix of bean spouts, Thai basil, lime and peppers.

The dish we were most looking forward to was the 28-day dry-aged 12oz Kita's Fusion Angus Ribeye.  This is what started it all where Chef Chinh started marinating his steaks at home and serving it to guests.  Now with a B&M restaurant, we can all enjoy these steaks as well.  Oh and did we ever enjoy it!  It was cooked to our specifications and was well-rested.  Hence, the meat was juicy and super tender.  It had been charred well, so that the caramelization was evident and the smokiness added depth.  Best of all, the marinade created a briny and aromatic flavor to every bite.  Hits of lemongrass and fish sauce were at the forefront.  One of the better steaks I've had lately (and I just went to Ringside too!).

Since their name also includes ribs, we got the Half-rack of Pork Ribs to truly represent their menu.  Using gigantic side ribs, this half-rack was thick and meaty.  I can only imagine how big a full-rack would be!  Meat was fall-off-the-bone tender while still maintaining a certain meatiness.  These BBQ ribs were coated with chef's special sauce that was tangy, sweet and plenty garlickly and gingery.  Nice fusion of Western and Asian flavors here.

Both mains came with a side and we subbed the mashed potatoes with Fries and Cucumber Salad.  Really generous with the metal bowl of shoestring fries.  They could also be had as thicker steak fries as well.  As for the ones we ordered, they were crispy and had some McD's vibes to them.  Nothing wrong with that!  As for the salad, the shaved cucumber were crunchy with a nice marinade that was tangy, sweet, aromatic and slightly spicy.  Really refreshing.

Onto dessert, we tried the Mango Strawberry Tiramisu which was only okay for us.  They did recommend the olive oil cake and maybe we should've went with that instead.  The Tiramisu was creamy and a bit fruity, but no particular flavor stood out.  Furthermore, the ladyfingers were a touch dry.  Now on the other hand, the rest of the meal was fantastic (maybe except for the Pho) and I highly recommend you come for the ribeye steak if you are ever in Beaverton.

The Good:

- The wings!

- That ribeye steak

- Nice people

The Bad:

- Pho noodles were fragile

Binh Minh Sandwiches

With not a lot of time for lunch since we woke up pretty late, we made out way to Binh Minh Sandwiches for some banh mi.  This place is pretty OG as it has been around since the early 2010's.  It's essentially a family-run hole-in-the-wall on SE Powell serving up not only sandwiches, but also a small menu of hot items as well as to-go Southern Vietnamese specialties.  They have a small and narrow parking lot in the front, but we opted to park around the corner instead as backing out onto Powell seemed a bit risky.

We started with the baseline or most well-known in the Combo Banh Mi.  This cold cut sandwich happens to also be my favorite consisting of ham, head cheese and pâté with house mayo, pickled carrots & daikon, cucumbers and jalapeño on house-baked bread.  We omitted the cilantro though.  Really solid starting with the crusty bread that had a great crunch giving way to a nice chewiness.  There was enough filling for the amount of bread.  Loved the creamy pâté.

We also tried the Grilled Pork Banh Mi that also came with house mayo, pickled veggies, cucumber and jalapeño.  Once again, there was enough meat for impact where it was tender with a meaty texture.  It was marinated and grilled where it was sweet and caramelized with a bit of brininess.  Add in the crunch and tang from the veggies along with the freshness of the cucumber and slight spice of the jalapeño, there was plenty of flavor to be had.

Our final sandwich was the Chicken Lemongrass Banh Mi.  This had all of the same items as the grilled pork, so it had similar textures and flavors.  However, since it was chicken thigh, the meat was more moist and tender.  Also, with the use of a lemongrass marinade, the chicken had a certain brightness. As you can see in the picture above, there was a good ratio of bread to meat, much like the other sandwiches.

I also decided to grab a Pâté Chaud.  This consisted of tender pork that was juicy and well-seasoned.  It was plenty sweet and savory.  It was encased in flaky puff pastry that had good lamination but was a touch doughy in the middle.  However, that didn't decrease my eating enjoyment by much as it was such a sinful treat with butteriness.  Overall, this was a satisfying meal and I would love to come back sometime to try their other items including a few hot noodle dishes.  I just will park around the corner...

The Good:
- Solid Banh Mi
- Inexpensive
- Really nice owner

The Bad:
- Love that they have a parking lot, but nah, too dangerous to park there

Hiyaku Buffet

Okay, here we go with another Asian buffet, but this time, it has pretty good reviews.  In fact, it has a 4.1 average rating on Google.  Yes, yes, I know that Google may not be the most reliable place to get a restaurant review, but I decided to check it out myself.  The place is fairly new and sports a pretty large parking lot.  That is completely necessary because the restaurant is fairly large and for the time being, it is generally packed (for all the times I drove by, which was 8 or 9 times). 

Upon walking into the place, it was pretty clear they do a good job in keeping things clean.  Sure, the place is new, but for all the time we were there, the food was replaced quickly and the counters were kept relatively clean (until the next person messed it up).  The buffet started with a selection of Fruit (Watermelon, Orange Slices, Honeydew, Banana Salad and Lemon Wedges).  It was okay, but the fruit was a bit lackluster.  Right next to it, we found Jello, Mango Jelly, Canned Peaches, Banana Pudding and Tapioca Pudding.  Once again, not super inspiring, but I liked the mango jelly (despite not tasting too much like mango).  Next section over, we had some Asian Appetizers including Edamame, Sliced Beef Shank, Seaweed Salad, Marinated Pig's Ear, Cucumber Salad and Cold Chicken Feet.  Yes, this would not be everyone's fancy, no matter what ethnicity.  However, I'm strange and I ate everything here.  Pretty decent.  

So let's get to the good stuff right?  They had Cocktail Prawns, Mussels and Snow Crab on ice right after the fruit, quasi-desserts and Asian bites.  They kept these stocked at all times and the snow crab was quite meaty and had a nice rebound texture.  We got our fill of that.  Right around the corner, we found the Sashimi.  The sashimi (as stated in the picture) is only available during dinner and featured Red Snapper, Atlantic Salmon and Tuna.  There was also some Wood Ear Salad, Fish Skin Salad, Seaweed Salad and Tako Wasabi.

There was quite the selection of Maki Sushi available.  Many were based on California rolls or Dynamite Rolls and then topped with various fish, fruit or vegetables. I found the rice to be just slightly gummy, but otherwise, had a good chew still and was mildly seasoned. The amount of rice was average, so it wasn't cumbersome to eat the sushi, but for an experienced buffet eater, you would be best to only eat a modest amount of these.

There was a small selection of Nigiri as well.  This included Kani, Tamago, Mackerel, Inari, Wakame, Red Snapper, Atlantic Salmon and Tuna.  The ratio of rice to fish was quite good.  Normally, we would find too much rice and a thin sliver of fish, not here though.  Around the corner, we found some Fried Sushi and also more fried things in the Glutinous Sesame Balls, Tempura Fish, Chicken Katsu and Tempura Vegetables.  Nothing out of the ordinary here, but the veggies were kinda of greasy though.

Moving along, we got to the meat of the buffet, literally.  We had Teriyaki Chicken, Beef Short Ribs, Grilled Salmon and Octopus.  Chicken was decently tender and flavorful while the shortribs were tender and sweet.  They were a bit fatty though.  Salmon was overcooked whereas the octopus was tender with a chew.  Right next to it, we found Chicken Gyoza, Pan Fried Sole and Beef Ribs.  I liked the sole as it was crispy but still flaky inside.

The next station featured the second best thing (for me that is) in the Salt & Pepper Crabs.  These were full of meat which was fresh being delicate with a slight bounce (and not mushy). The Salt & Pepper Shrimp were good too but without being deveined, it was slightly a turnoff.  The Salt & Pepper Calamari was good though with a chewy, but tender texture.  Baked oysters were great too being fresh (they were going fast!).  Rounding the corner, there was an array of steamers with mostly Steamed Buns.  I didn't try those.  I did sample the Deep Fried Shrimp, which were not bad as well as the crunchy Spring Rolls.  The Deep Fried Chicken Wings were juicy with crispy rendered skin.

I really love Steamed Scallops in the shell with vermicelli.  So I was happy to see them.  However, those must've been the smallest scallops I've ever seen.  No matter, it still tasted good and I had a few of them.  The Honey Shrimp were tasty, but the batter had gotten soft, so it wasn't crispy anymore.  We also found some Mushrooms and Potatoes (that I didn't try).  Shockingly, the Gai Lan was outstanding.  Not only were they fresh and cooked perfectly (being crunchy), the seasoning was on point.  So tasty!  The Chili Chicken, Chicken & Broccoli and Mongolian Beef were okay, but you could skip it for more seafood!

We had even more seafood in Steamed Clams, Cajun Seafood Boil, Stir-Fried Shrimp and Crayfish.  Really enjoyed the clams as they were buttery and plump.  Seafood boil was slightly spicy and garlicky but the blue crabs were difficult to eat.  Shrimp was alright being cold-water crunchy.  Didn't touch the crayfish as they are notoriously a lot of work for very little meat.  Yes, that is Orange Chicken you see in the picture and no, it wasn't as good as Panda Express.  However, they were serviceable, being not as flavorful.  We had the requisite Fried Noodles and Fried Rice.  Both were acceptable.

We finally got to the Desserts and there was a selection of cake squares and cookies.  I didn't have any of these because I was more interested in the individually-packaged ice cream and popsicles.  These were actually decent quality and I loved how they offered these rather than messy soft-serve machines and even messier scoop yourself ice cream.  Overall, I enjoyed Hiyaku Buffet.  Of course we need reasonable expectations when it comes to buffets in general, but Hiyaku's food was decent in quality and execution.  Seafood was fresh and refilled often.  I would come back if I was back in town.

The Good:
- Food is fresh
- Lots of selection
- Clean

The Bad:
- Fruit was so-so
- Desserts were so-so (except for the ice cream and popsicles

Hot Spot Buffet

As you already know by now, AYCE is a thing again.  In fact, they are coming up with different ways of doing things compared to the past.  Once upon a time, AYCE meant ordering off a checklist and waiting for staff to bring you the items or in most cases, the items did not arrive and/or you got the wrong items and also the incorrect amount.  Well, Hot Spot Buffet on Kingsway has solved that problem by offering most of the items available for Korean-style BBQ and hot pot as self-service (a la Bigway).  Hence, you can get exactly what you want and how much you want every time (keep in mind, if you waste food, it is $10.00 for every 100 grams).

So how much is this AYCE?  For the basic Korean BBQ, it is $24.99 for lunch & late night.  $35.99 for Korean BBQ and skewers for dinner and an extra $2.99 for hot pot.  We had both and it was a lot of food for 2 people.  Probably best to grab some friends and make it a group thing to try more items.  First and foremost, there is a Large Big Way-esque refrigerated display case with hot pot items on one side and BBQ items on the other.  Considering the reasonable pricing, the selection is quite good.

We got roughly everything in for our hot pots with Tender Beef, Basa, Chicken Thigh, Chicken Giblets, Cuttlefish, Beef Aorta, Crab Stick, Luncheon Meat, Quail's Egg and a variety of fish ball products.  As for non-meats, we had Tong Ho, Lettuce, Mushrooms, Wheat Gluten, Wood Ear, Corn, Konjac Noodle Bundles, Kelp, Wintermelon, Bean Curd Stick, Yam Noodles and Dried Instant Noodles.  There was more things available, but we didn't get them.  Nothing amiss with the items as things looked and ate fresh.  

On the bottom of the hot pot ingredients section, we found plates of meat including Lamb, Pork Shoulder, Pork Belly and Fatty Beef.  These cooked up quickly in our individual broths (Mala for me and Mushroom for Jackie).  I found my spicy broth to be mildly hot, but fairly flavourful.  The mushroom was better in our opinion since it was plenty mushroomy while well-seasoned so that it helped flavour the meats.

Onto the Korean BBQ portion of our meal, we got a selection from the display that included Thinly Sliced Beef (plain or marinated), Chicken Wings (different marinades), Chicken, Spicy Pork, Zucchini, Squash, Pork Shoulder (plain or marinated), Mushrooms, Marinated Shortribs and Shrimp.  The BBQ grill was relatively even and cooked things quickly on the high setting.  Need to pay attention as it could burn.  We thought the wings were great being well-marinated and juicy.  Shortribs were great too with a tender chew.  In fact, all the meats were quite good.

There was also a Self-Serve hot and cold food section near the front of the restaurant.  We helped ourselves to Shredded Potato Salad, Pork Ear & Cucumber, Edamame, Pickled Radish and Kimchi.  Across from it, we found some hot dishes in Fried Rice, Spicy Chicken, Sweet & Sour Pork and Shrimp & Fishballs.  Right next to that was a warming oven with Fried Glutinous Sesame Balls, Portuguese Tarts, Spring Rolls, Fried Chicken Skin and Chicken Wings.  Next to that, we had some Steamed Dumplings and Bao.  The food was okay but some of it was not hot enough, which diminished its appeal.  Wings were good though.  There was also some dessert and also a soda dispenser.  However, the diet cola ran out and was not refilled.

Of course there was a Sauce Bar with also some seasoning salts above.  Had all of the usual items to create your own custom dipping sauce for hot pot and Korean BBQ.  In addition to the pricing aforementioned pricing, there are also 2 more options including a Premium menu for $45.99 and a Tasting menu for $58.99.  As much as they add some really appealing items to each tier, the basic already includes so much.  I'd stick to that personally.  Overall, we felt the basic was a great value since it included essentially everything.  I do think that one should save their appetite for the hot pot and BBQ and skip the cooked food.  It was fine, but more of a filler than anything else.

*All food was complimentary for this blog post*

The Good:

- Excellent value

- Meats and veggies were vibrant and fresh

- Lots of choice, even for basic

The Bad:

- Cooked food and sides were only okay and the hot food wasn't hot enough

- Soda machine needed attention