Tobiko Sushi

My original experience with Tobiko Sushi was completely random.  I had just finished up a meeting in the area and was in search for eats.  I was going to head to the Wendy's, yet out of the corner of my eye, I spotted Tobiko Sushi.  Hey, Japanese food on the whole is better than eating burger and fries right?  That could be totally false dependent what you order I guess...  Whatever the case, I ordered the chirashi don and to my surprise, it was one of the better ones I've had of late.  Since I was in the area again, I stopped by to have that dish and a few others as well.

Look at the picture.  Look at it!  The Chirashi Don in all its glory with only a tiny amount of sushi rice.  This was only $16.95 where it could rival most assorted sashimi plates.  It consisted of salmon, tuna, ebi, tamago, imitation crab, tuna tataki, tobiko, ikura, seared salmon and baby scallops.  Judging from the fresh sheen, we were confident that the fish would be on point.  That is was being the right textures and surprisingly flavourful (given the price point).  The sushi rice had enough moisture while still retaining an appealing chewiness.  Although the don was not plated in its usual bowl, I preferred this as I could eat more easily.  Much like the last time, I also had the Assorted Tempura which was a generous portion.  Each piece was relatively crispy and light except for a few portions where the batter was thick.  It didn't matter much as it wasn't much of a hindrance. 

We decided to give the Aburi Salmon Nigiri a try and it was interesting.   This was rather saucy, but not as flavourful as it appeared.  The salmon was buttery soft while lightly seared.  A more aggressive char would've helped adding smokiness and caramelization.  The rice was good though being chewy with enough moisture while lightly seasoned.  For no apparent reason other than needing to get a standard maki roll, we also added the House Roll consisting of tuna, salmon, tamago, imitation crab, cucumber, carrot and tobiko.  This was carefully constructed where the ingredients stayed put while the layer of rice was thin.  Similar to the aburi nigiri, the rice was chewy and had just the right amount of moisture.  Ingredients were fresh too.

Lastly, we got the Katsu Don for good measure (like we actually needed more food).  As you can see, the portion size was massive. Mostly crispy, the breaded chicken was tender and succulent.  I thought that the amount of sauce made the rice a bit mushy on the bottom.  However, when mixed together, it wasn't too bad.  Interestingly, even though there was so much sauce, we could've used a bit more impact though.  Tobiko Sushi is very much another neighbourhood Japanese restaurant.  Therefore, I wouldn't suggest driving out there for a meal.  However, if you are in the area, it is good quality food for a reasonable price.

The Good:
- Reasonable pricing
- Quality eats
- Awesome people

The Bad:
- Small place, very few seats
- A bit inconsistent where things are different such as the Chirashi Don, it was not the same as my first visit

Full Ramen

*Restaurant is now closed*

For all the ramen that is available in the GVRD, most of it is found in a small radius in the Downtown core.  In fact, most of them do not stray far from Robson Street and hence the people that live there are in Ramen heaven (or not, if you hate ramen...).  But what about the burbs?  Yes, there is one in Coquitlam, a few in Burnaby and surprisingly few in Richmond.  Hey, how about Surrey???  Okay, stop laughing (or it you aren't, good for you).  That is exactly the mission Hot Mama and I were on where we visited Full Ramen in Fleetwood.  Yes, kinda random, but what the hey, you never know until you try...

Hot Mama decided to go for the Tonkotsu Ramen with chashu, half golden yolk egg, kikurage mushrooms (wood ear), menma (bamboo shoots), bean sprouts and scallions.  As much as the bowl didn't look especially large, there was a substantial amount of noodles which were appealingly toothsome.  As for the broth, it had a natural pork flavour that was accented by the usual dose of salt.  I wouldn't say it had incredible depth nor richness, but it was decent.  As for the chashu, it was fatty which in turn helped achieve a melt-in-our-mouth texture.  For myself, I had the Kakuni Ramen in a miso broth.  It included the same items as the aforementioned ramen except with braised pork belly.  As such, the meat was fatty and richer in taste.  Due to being in larger chunks, the meat wasn't overly soft, but it wasn't chewy either.  The miso broth was unmistakable in flavour but not overly salty.  It had a bit more impact than the tonkotsu.

We also shared an order of Gyoza that featured a relatively thin and chewy exterior skin.  Inside, the ratio between cabbage and pork was good while the meat was not dense.  I felt that they could've done a better job with the exterior sear.  After it was all said and done, we were mildly impressed with the food at Full Ramen.  Sure, it wasn't exactly Downtown quality, but for Fleetwood, it was more than acceptable.  So stop laughing will ya?

The Good:
- Decent ramen given its location
- Decent pricing
- Decent service (I can't think of another word than "decent")

The Bad:
- Decent, but of course Downtown is better (but not as much as you would think)

Al & Jan's Fish & Chips

*Restaurant is closed*

In search of food one day (when am I not in search of food?), I wanted to get away from anything Asian. Trust me, it's pretty hard in the GVRD, especially in certain neighbourhoods. That would be the case in most of Surrey except for certain pockets. As I was driving down 152nd, I did my best to look the other way when I passed by Il Uk Jo. Can't understand why the place is still in business... Once past that intersection, I remembered a fish 'n chip joint called Al & Jan's. Formerly a Cod Father's franchise, Al & Jan went independent and continued to fry up fish for the locals. And while I was settling into my seat, it became very apparently they have a loyal following. It's nice to see customers welcomed like friends. You don't get that much anymore. Hey, this was my first visit and I felt at home!

Being a fish 'n chip joint, the menu is pretty focused. Therefore, the options are limited, but honestly, do one thing and do it right. Other than my fish 'n chip order, I did start with the Seafood Chowder. I wouldn't exactly categorize it as creamy, rather, it was more like a thick broth. That didn't really matter since I could taste the sea. The abundance of pepper was a pleasant surprise since most chowders are pretty mild. The best thing about this chowder was the insane amount of ingredients. It might as well been named seafood stew. Lots of flaky halibut, shrimp and clams made for a very hearty soup. For variety purposes, I got the Halibut and Chips with an extra piece of Cod. I gotta say that when the plate arrived, it was piping hot. So much so, I burned my tongue while being too eager with my first bite. The halibut was moist and flaky (which can easily be overcooked, but not here). The batter was crunchy and not too greasy.

As for the cod, it was soft and also cooked nicely. Due to the oilier nature of cod, it was super moist and soft. Hence, one end of it was slightly greasier than the rest of the fish. Not a huge problem though since the darn thing is fried. The fresh cut fries were fantastic. Crisp, hot and still plenty of potato goodness inside. Al & Jan's is definitely a little gem tucked in the Save-On-Foods complex. Not necessarily the first place you'd expect good fish 'n chips. However, it is better than a place like Pajo's (where it is in a more usual location I suppose).

The Good:
- Super friendly proprietors
- Solid eats

The Bad:
- Fish could've been bigger/thicker (in particular the halibut)

Prairie Cafe

*Restaurant is closed*

Sometimes pure randomness leads to pleasure. No, I'm not talking about something dirty (get your minds outta the gutter!). Rather, when we end up at a restaurant by fluke or accident, it could lead to a surprise or two. Well, the surprise could be actually bad as well since random visits are a 50/50 proposition. This was the case when we tried to visit Davidson Pitt Stop in Fleetwood. Upon arriving at our destination (after several wrong turns thanks to the GPS, how ironic), we discovered it was closed (apparently for good). Yikes! What now? Thankfully, I had a backup plan in the Prairie Cafe. However, I had no clue about the place and upon walking up to the front door, it was a bit confusing. The name Prairie Cafe gave me thoughts about farms, small communities and good ol' comfort food. However, the fact that the signage had Chinese characters was totally unexpected.

I guess being Asian kinda confused them as well, since they look a bit surprised when I walked in. I won't lie to you, from the outside, the place looked like a dump. On the inside, it was way nicer than I would've guessed. Quite homey with nice Korean proprietors actually. So I wasn't surprised to see Bulgogi on the menu in that case. The fact that I ordered it at 9:45am might've been unusual though (for Western standards). However, rice and some form of meat is not really a stretch for breakfast in Asia. Take Tocilog for instance. Although the veggies looked vibrant and the rice had a chewy texture, the lack of meat made it underwhelming. I could've eaten another meal after this one. Furthermore, there wasn't enough wok heat (or pan heat or whatever they used), thus the food was watery and kinda bland.

Mrs. Spray Bottle did the right thing and ordered the Bacon & Eggs with hashbrowns and toast. She asked for over easy eggs and they were more or less that. Bacon was aesthetically-pleasing and crisp while the hashbrowns were okay. We liked how the breakfast was neatly prepared and not merely slapped on the plate. For reference purposes, the Ham & Eggs was equally good with fluffly scrambled eggs and a generous helping of ham. What else to eat in a diner? How about a BLT with fries? Yah, not the most exciting thing in the world. The trick with simple food is to have good ingredients and proper execution. That was mostly the case here. The tomatoes and lettuce were fresh while the bacon was crispy. Fries were pretty good too (for generic fries that is). We just would've liked to see the toast with more colour. It was a pasty white which didn't even look toasted at all. Yet, what did we really expect from a random food adventure anyways? Prairie Cafe does the job for most people looking for a quick freshly made meal. Nothing fancy, yet nothing life-changing either.

The Good:
- Polite staff
- Carefully made food
- Kinda homey inside

The Bad:
- Not sure of the Bulgogi
- With carefully made food, it takes awhile

On Yuen

So you have 5 bux in your wallet and you're plenty hungry. What are the options? Nachos with mystery cheese sauce at 7-11? Nope, not that, I'm talking about a real meal. There are the usual fast food joints such as McD's, Wendy's, Burger King and so on. So sure, it is possible to get a full meal for that amount of money. Now if we ignore these places, where else can one go? Pizza slices, sandwich shops and something like Kent's Kitchen could do the job as well. And let's not even mention food carts. I dare anyone to get full from any of the new food carts in Vancouver for less than $6.00. A good bet is Chinese food. Generally inexpensive and plentiful, it is one of the best values out there. Sure, it ain't pretty sometimes and generally greasy; but for quantity, it can't be beat. Yet, even with that being said, for $5.00, that is still a tough thing to find even at a Chinese restaurant.

So imagine my curiosity when I heard that On Yuen in Surrey had lunch specials for $4.95. Normally, when it is advertised that there are lunch specials from $4.95, there are usually a token dish while everything else is much more expensive. Not here though. The majority of the lunch specials were indeed $4.95. With all the choices available, I went for the Brisket in Portuguese Sauce on Rice. Now, this was more of a curry sauce than Portuguese. Even with that, a "Portuguese" sauce is actually a Chinese interpretation, so don't expect anything remotely related to Portugal. This was the result of the Portuguese influence on their colony of Macau. Anyways, the curry was actually very flavourful and had a noticeable amount of heat. There was a considerable amount of sauce for the rice on the plate. The brisket itself was not too fatty while being extremely moist.

Ma had the Yeung Chow Fried Rice, which is better known as the BBQ Pork and Shrimp Fried Rice. I found the rice to be too soft. It was probably either not day-old rice or it was too wet to begin with. Hence, it ended up to be a bit clumpy. It was properly seasoned though; yet the shrimp was very bland. Too much cold-water rinsing? It probably washed away all the flavour and they didn't do anything to season it. At the very least, the cold-water rinsing resulted in a desirable texture. When the Chicken in Cream Sauce on Rice arrived, it looked a bit too saucy. However, it was better than it appeared. The sauce itself wasn't exactly creamy. It was more milky-starchy than anything else. However, it had a good flavour with tender slices of chicken and vibrant veggies. With that being said, I would take a HK-style cream chicken rice over this.

Looking over the menu, it was baffling to some that there was no Chicken Chow Mein. In place of that, there was a Broccoli Beef Chow Mein. I've seen this on rice; but rarely on noodles. In the end, I thought it really didn't work. Possibly it was the wrong choice of noodles though. We got the soft noodles and the whole thing ended up to be wet. Maybe it would've fared better with the fried noodles. If we looked at the broccoli and beef independently, it was okay. The beef was sufficiently tender without losing its texture while the broccoli was still crunchy. I wasn't a big fan of the sauce though, it was a bit heavy on the oyster sauce.

Moving along, we also had the Satay Beef with Rice Noodles. The rice noodles were fried up nicely where there was still texture without being clumpy. However, the entire dish was extremely oily including the sauce. The sauce was decently flavourful without being spicy at all. Once again, the beef was properly tenderized without losing its texture. On the same note, the Beef Fried Rice Noodles were equally greasy. That was not surprising though since the only way to keep the rice noodles from sticking to the wok is the use of oil and high heat. Overall, the food was okay. Hey, what can we expect for $5.00 + tax and tip? While we were there, we noticed a diverse crowd getting takeout. Hey, if you can get a meal for $5.00 that doesn't involve a drive-thru, it's a deal.

The Good:
- Cheap lunch specials
- Friendly if not sparse service (it got really busy)
- Food is alright

The Bad:
- Food is alright (there is definitely better; but probably not nearby)

Noodle Island

After an exhaustive day of shopping, I really only wanted to go home. While I can easily shop for clothes and be out of a store within 10 minutes, Viv can take 10 times as long easily. We already hit the outlets, Ross, Fred Meyer and now Target. The only reason we didn't end up at Wal-Mart was that she suddenly realized the total amount spent exceeded $600.00 in only a 5-hour period. And that was only on clothes... for the kids mostly! They'd better thank us for this... someday. Gawd, I sound like my parents! Thus, we hightailed it out of there and made our way to the border. Of course we had to eat before heading straight home. Nothing too fancy and definitely nothing too expensive either. So we decided to drive through Fleetwood and stop off at Noodle Island. Advertised as a Vietnamese restaurant, we were curious to find items like Broccoli and Beef on the menu. Oh well, trying to be everything to everyone?

Well, we weren't here for that so we stuck with the Vietnamese food staring with the Banh Cuon with are rice noodle rolls filled with ground pork and wood ear mushrooms topped with Vietnamese ham, fried onions and served with a fish sauce dip. Also on the side was blanched bean sprouts, pickled daikon/carrots and a green salad with cucumber. For $6.95, the was a fair amount of food. As for the rolls, the noodle itself was made with too much water; thus it fell apart when we tried to pick it up. I did like the tasty filling though. Of course I would have the Pho, in particular the Pho Dac Biet (with everything). Once again, there was a good amount of food for the price. Lots of noodles and tender meat. No complaints there. The broth was on the blander side; yet was still not bad exhibiting some aromatics.

Viv had the Vermicelli Bowl with pork patty and spring rolls. Despite being crispy with a nice filling, it was too bad they used wheat wrappers for the spring rolls. The pork was predictably sweet and salty with nice charring. The picture doesn't do it justice because the bowl was very large. Yes, for whatever the food lacks in execution, it is completely made up in quantity. The prices aren't necessarily cheap; but you do get a lot of food. Considering its location, Noodle Island is an okay choice if you are not too picky about your Vietnamese food (or available Chinese food too in this case...).

The Good:
- Large portions
- Okay food
- Pretty good service

The Bad:
- Food is only okay
- Not expensive; but not exactly that cheap either

Il Uk Jo

*Restaurant is closed*

Alright, I'll admit it. There once was a time that I feasted on all-you-can-eat joints. Yah, I was hungry and quality did not matter much. However, as time passed, it became apparent that this type of gorging was unhealthy and not very tasty. Mind you, there are some exceptions to the rule; but for the most part, we really do make compromises when we do a buffet. Naturally, there must be realistic expectations and trust me, I do go into an AYCE with minimal needs. Despite those minimalistic expectations, there are some places that just defy the point of a restaurant. You know, that place that you must travel to, spend money on and hopefully be an edible experience. If you've been reading this blog, you know that Kawawa would inevitably be mentioned. Yah, it's not a fine-dining experience nor is it even authentic Japanese food, so I should not complain right? That's what someone told me to do. Hello!?!? I'm paying well over $20.00 per person for unacceptable food. I don't care if I'm paying $2.00. If it ain't good, it ain't good. Okay, with that off my chest, I now bring you to the next candidate for worst AYCE in the GVRD. When you think that it can't get much worse than Kawawa, we have Il Uk Jo (or should I call it "Ill, Yuk, No!").

Proclaiming themselves as a Japanese and Korean buffet, I should've known better already. However, ever since I spotted the place quite a while ago and then being almost tempted to try it when I ate next door at Saigon Pho To Go, I finally did it. A few people had asked if I had tried it and were quite curious. Well, I think curiosity not only killed the cat, I probably would've done better eating it. So originally, Pomegranate and I were going to eat at another place; but due to certain events, it led us to Il Uk Jo. Either it was fate or someone wanted me to suffer today. Everything started alright as we got a good parking spot and were led to a nice semi-private booth. Unfortunately the place was devoid of natural light and I had to use the flash.

We had 2 choices for the AYCE lunch menu. There is the standard AYCE for $12.99 and the deluxe for $15.99 (or should I say "delux" like the misprint on the menu). We went for the deluxe since it included sashimi, sushi and prawn tempura. As with most Korean meals, we started with some Banchan which consisted of bean sprouts, stewed potatoes, kimchi and gomae (yah I know, that's Japanese, but I threw it in there anyways). Although it was a crunchy kimchi, I actually liked it, as with the other items. The gomae was a bit too sweet though. After that, this is where the roller coaster ride starts. Looking more like perogies than Gyozas, these pathetically oily things were terrible. Despite its deep-fried appearance, these are actually pan fried (in how much grease, I can only imagine). Pan-fried gyozas should not have the texture of fried wontons. Oh, it gets better (or worse should I say). The Tonkatsu sure looks alright in the picture; yet looks can be deceiving. The pork hidden within the crunchy breading had the texture of cartilage. Yes, it would've been okay if we were expecting cartilage... And don't even get me started on the sauce. Let's just say they make a great sweet & sour cartilage.

However, the Prawn Tempura was fantastic! Yah, you heard me right, it was excellent. Served hot and crispy, the prawn itself was sweet and cooked perfectly. Mind you, that was probably the eye of the storm passing through because the sushi was terrible. Okay, looking at the Dynamite Roll, it looks decent, right? Well, one bite into it and *crunch*. Oh, the prawn tempura must be crunchy, yes? Nope. Huh??? Look at the piece of avocado. It had the texture of an apple. For the love of... why put a severely unripe piece of avocado in the roll??? Were they looking for a textural contrast with the gummy rice, which was devoid of any flavour? No idea, but it sucked. Surely the rest of the sushi was better right? The picture sure looks decent! Yah, it does look okay eh? However, the rice, as mentioned, is just horrible. It was hard, gummy and dry all at the same time. Don't ask me how they accomplished that. As for the fish, the salmon was decent, while the tuna was not. I'm not sure if they were mimicking Lost because the Spicy Salmon and Tuna were in an alternate reality when spicy means sweet.

But the strangest thing of the entire meal was the Korean BBQ. All the beef and chicken (in its marinade) arrived on the grilling plate. So when placed on the burner (which was weaker than a hotplate), it essentially began boiling the meat in its own marinade. So, trying to prevent having a weird version of shabu shabu, we moved the meat onto the cooking surface (which was stone cold). As you can see, the result was essentially boiled meat that finished cooking on a lukewarm "BBQ". This has to be the most unsatisfying version of Korean BBQ I've ever had. We've had hot pot that is closer to BBQ than this (at Grand Honour).

Fortunately, the Chicken Karaage was quite juicy and flavourful. However, there was enough batter on these things to make Tammy Faye Baker's face look normal. I had to remove it so I could actually get to the meat. When the Motoyaki arrived, I was a bit confused at the serving vessel. Looking like French-Japanese fusion gone wrong, the various versions of motoyaki (oyster, mussel and fish) were actually quite decent. The tangy almost like "thousand islands" sauce with the fish was surprisingly good. In the same class as Kawawa, this unsatisfying meal was not to be unexpected considering the location. However, it had some extremely low points such as the sushi rice, pathetic Korean BBQ, gyozas and tonkatsu. Yes, there were some good items; but honestly, for the price we paid, it cannot be considered acceptable. Luckily for them, there is not much in the way of competition nearby.

The Good:
- Good selection of items on the AYCE menus
- For us at least, the service was decent
- It made me forget about Kawawa

The Bad:
- Other than a few decent items, overall food quality is poor
- Hot items were not really all that hot
- The Korean BBQ is a joke

Saigon Pho To Go & Deli

*Restaurant is closed*

It always happens. While basking in the joy of being illness free for a whole year, I get sick for the second time in 2 months. I guess it's Murphy's Law... It's like every time I wash my car, a big bird decides to defecate on it. Or how my preciously sought-after parking spot in Richmond is ripped away from me like the last pack of toilet paper on sale at Stupidstore... However, unlike last time (stomach flu), I am mobile. No need for facilities within 15 feet. All I have is this nasty cough. Maybe that'll get me somewhere in a lineup at Aberdeen Centre, they'll think I have H1N1. Quick! Where are the face masks??? Kidding aside, it really stinks to be sick, especially when food needs to be eaten.

Needing to take my son for a doctor's appointment in the Fleetwood area, I decided that we had to stop for food first (of course we do). For me, I needed something soupy for my cough and something that my son might eat. So I decided to stop for pho. The first place that caught my fancy was a small little Vietnamese restaurant on 152nd near Fraser Hwy. While entering the parking lot, I was tempted by the AYCE Japanese/Korean place (Il Uk Jo) on the corner; but alas, with my son, it would be more like all-he-won't-eat. So off to Saigon Pho to Go next door.

We were greeted by the very friendly owner and despite the restaurant being relatively empty, my son decides to pick the table in the corner with the worst lighting possible. Oh well... I went for a large order of their "everything" Pho and plus an order of the Grilled Pork Vermicelli Bowl with spring rolls for my son (yah, I know he won't eat half of the stuff, I ended up taking it home). If you have a hard time making out the noodles in my pho, the reason for that is the enormous amount of tender meat. As for the noodles, they were a nice al dente texture. However, the broth itself was quite weak, bordering on bland. I could barely make out any distinctive flavours at all.

The Vermicelli Bowl was quite good. The pork skewer was cooked perfectly with a bit of charring. Plenty of flavours from the marinade. Although we both liked the spring rolls, I would've preferred the rice wrapper rather than the flour wrapper (to me, it's just more Vietnamese). For what it's worth, the food was pretty decent considering its location. Also the owner is quite a friendly guy.

The Good:
- Good portions
- Heavy on the meat in the pho
- Reasonable prices

The Bad:
- Pho broth is a bit weak