Kinton Ramen (North Vancouver)

As much as there are many locations of Kinton Ramen, I haven't been back since I first visited the one at UBC.  I remember coming away impressed that they have the great combination of quality, quantity and price.  We made our way to the North Vancouver spot right on Lonsdale, steps away from city hall.  They are currently offering their Summer Ramen Tour, featuring a selection of 3 cold noodles and one hot until August 28th, 2025.  The promotion includes a stamp card where you will earn one free ramen after 9 visits.  Also, you get an entry into a draw for a trip to Japan!

Now we made trip to North Van (which wasn't far) to try this new menu beginning with the Chilled Tsukemen.  This featured tender pork, seasoned egg and shredded nori served with a house-made dipping sauce.  We also found daikon, wasabi and scallions on the side.  First of all, the amount of al dente noodles was generous.  Definitely enough for one person to be full.  Secondly, the dip was really flavourful without being overly salty.  It had some sweetness and a nice hit of aromatic sesame.   Pork was tender and fall-apart as advertised while the egg was custardy and well-marinated.

Next, we had the Golden Chill Ramen Salad with thick noodles in a creamy sesame dressing topped with tender chicken, mini tomatoes, arugula, bamboo shoots, sweet corn, crispy noodles, and a seasoned egg.  Oh I really liked this as the sesame dressing was nutty, sweet, tangy and all things good about sesame.  The aroma from the sesame really made this dish and with little nuggets of moist chicken, each bite was similar to Chinese hand-shredded chicken with sesame sauce.  Loved the contrast of textures including the crunch from the crispy noodles on top, the sweet pop from the corn niblets and the bite from the bamboo shoots.

For those who like floral and tanginess, the Yuzu Chill Ramen would be a great choice.  It consisted of yuzu chicken broth, topped with tender chicken, mini tomatoes, arugula, bamboo shoots, lemon and seasoned egg.  This was super light and refreshing.  Something perfect for a hot summer's day.  Once again, the noodles were both plentiful and al dente.  Despite being a light-tasting broth, the flavour and impact was still there.  Each mouthful of noodles yielded umaminess and tanginess.

The last featured item from their Summer menu was the Spicy Mazemen.  This brothless creation featured warm beef, mini tomatoes, corn, arugula and a poached egg with thick noodles in a spicy house-made sauce.  This did have a kick, but not so much we couldn't taste the other ingredients.  Good chew on the noodles and the sauce had plenty of savoury elements that meshed well with the sweetness of the corn and silkiness of the egg.  

They also have a ramen combo with the choice of Gyoza or Fries as well as a choice of drink for $15.99.  I found the Gyoza to be fair standard.  This particular version was deep fried and topped with spicy mayo.  The wrapper was crispy while not overly greasy while the filling was fairly moist with pork and cabbage.  I personally would've liked dipping this into a tangy gyoza dip rather than the mayo.  The fries were the typical Cavandish starch-covered variety, but there was nothing wrong with that.  It came out crispy without potatoey insides.

We didn't stop there as we tried some of their regular menu items including the classic Pork Original with thin noodles.  This was essentially a shio broth as it was seasoned with sea salt.  There was a nice silkiness to the soup without it being too rich nor thick.  Definite pork umami vibes with enough salt for impact.  The slices of pork were buttery and soft while not overly fatty.  This also came with bamboo shoots, nori, wood ear mushrooms, green onion and seasoned egg.  Noodles were plentiful and al dente.

Next up, we tried the Chicken Miso with a rich soybean paste that had the rich fermented saltiness we are accustomed to.  Once again, the broth had a certain thickness to it but at the same time, it wasn't heavy nor greasy.  I thought the miso gave the broth more depth and impact with a pleasant funkiness.  As with the other dishes, the noodles had a nice chewiness that stood up to the broth.  This came with the same accompaniments including the custardy egg.

Our favourite of the bunch was the Beef Spicy Garlic with a huge scoop of minced garlic on top.  That in itself made the whole thing extremely garlicky with a certain sharpness.   As for the soup, naturally, it took on the garlic flavour but it was already inherently spicy.  It was not too harsh, so we could taste the different layers including the smokiness of the chili pepper and the umaminess of the base pork soup.  Suffice to was one of the, if not the most, impactful of the bunch.

We ended up getting the Takoyaki as well as the Pork Donburi as sides for our ramen.  Topped with the usual kewpie mayo, tonkatsu sauce and bonito flakes, these were as typical as they could get.  Now that doesn't mean they weren't good though.  They were fluffy in the middle while sporting a slightly crispy exterior.  As for the donburi, it featured chewy rice that had the rice moisture content.  It was topped with enough tender and salty pork to be present in every scoop of rice.  

To compliment our Summer ramen bowls, we had some drinks including the Orange Lemonade, Virgin Mojito and Sake Lemonade.  By looks alone, these may appear refreshing and yup, they were definitely so.  With just enough sweetness to balance the tang, the orange lemonade would satisfy those looking for a non-alcoholic beverage to go with their ramen.  The mojito was less sweet with the usual herbaceous hit.  The one alcoholic drink we had was the sake lemonade, which was fruity and lightly sweet with the brightness of sake.  Overall, the food and drinks at Kinton are solid, well-portioned and reasonably-priced.  This is something that I can go for on any night of the week.  I will be back soon!

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

The Good:

- Solid eats

- Well-portioned

- Reasonable pricing

The Bad:

- Parking in the area is limited

Coastal Cravings

Piggybacking off my last post on Yummy BBQ, we have another cheap eats to blog about...  Coastal Cravings, located near the boundary of upper and lower Lonsdale offers up delicious brunch for well under $20.00 per dish.  In fact, most are around $15.00!  Not only are the prices attractive, the portion size is also generous and as mentioned, the food is actually good.  I don't know much about Coastal Cravings, but they did replace the Garage Grill.  Not sure if they have any affiliation with the former Fresh Cravings that was in North Delta.  Whatever the case, Jackie and I sampled their wares on snowy February day.

Although our first dish was nothing really sexy on paper, The Signature Smash Avocado Toast ended up to be more than just avocado and toast.  Sure, it did have those components with fresh creamy avocado and a nicely toasted Savour sourdough bread.  However, there was also 2 perfectly poached eggs on top with sauteed mushrooms, cherry tomatoes and blueberries.  With runny egg yolks, it made the toast much more fulfilling and more than just avocado toast.

Another seemingly simple item was the Sunrise Croissant Sandwich.  Being one of the least expensive items on the menu at $11.99, it was still pretty substantial.  As you can see, they overstuffed the croissant with fresh guacamole, lettuce and perfectly-prepared soft scrambled eggs.  I can tell you that this was really a study in texture with the fluffy eggs and creamy avocado having a great mouth-feel.  The toasted croissant was able to hold things together.

One of the more interesting dishes was the Waygu Omelette for $15.99.  Not sure if I prefer ground wagyu anything (including burgers), but for this omelette, it was okay.  The meat was pretty tender was moist.  However, I really couldn't tell you if it was Wagyu or not (that is why I don't like ground Wagyu).  I mean it did taste beefier, which would be an indication there was more fat.  I did like the addition of mushrooms as it provided some complimentary flavours.

My favourite dish was the Chicken & Waffle where they essentially made it into a quasi-Eggs Benny.   The mini-waffles were thick with a crunchy exterior and soft chewy interior.  On top, we found Thai Fried Chicken and I did notice some spice to it.  The chicken was juicy and the batter was crunchy while not being overly greasy.  On top, we found runny poached eggs with a dollop of Hollandaise on top.  I found the Hollandaise to be creamy with proper seasoning.

So we actually got a Benny for our last dish in the Bacon Eggs Benny served on a classic toasted English muffin.  There was a good amount of crispy and meaty bacon topped with the same runny poached egg.  I liked how the muffin was toasted enough that it wasn't doughy.  Egg yolk was perfectly runny while there was a sufficient amount of Hollandaise.  Hashbrowns were crispy, well-seasoned and fully.  Overall, the food at Coastal Cravings is quite good and well-priced.  A really good combination given the uncertain economic times we are experiencing.  

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

The Good:

- Solid eats

- Well-priced

- Good portion size

The Bad:

- Limited staffing, so service can be slow

The Soup Meister's Nephew

Okay, here is a classic spot located at Lonsdale Quay - The Soup Meister's Nephew.  What?  Wait...  Wasn't this The Soup Meister???  Sadly, he passed away, but his nephew took over and is using the original recipes.  That is definitely a relief for me as I've always enjoyed their soups.  There is something homemade about them (because they are), which makes them healthier, but still hearty.  Jackie and I were invited to revisit an ol' favourite on a very wet day in Raincover.

The best example of their soups being less commercialized and "healthier" is with the Boston Seafood Chowder.  I found it to be more broth-like and since it was thickened with starch rather than a roux, it was less heavy.  Sure, it wasn't creamy per se, but I could easily finish the bowl due to this.  This was pretty chunky with tender potatoes, little cubes of fish and clams.  I decided to kick it up a few notches and added hot sauce.  

Filled with more ingredients than broth, the Steak & Vegetable Soup was a homemade version of Chunky Soup.  The broth was meaty, well-seasoned and peppery.  The veggies were soft but still retained some texture.  I could taste the natural sweetness of the veggies as well as the beef in the broth.  About that beef, it was lean, but had been cooked down enough that it was tender.  Texturally, it was on the drier side though, but I guess it was better than overly fatty cuts.

With a squash and root vegetable base, the Winter Harvest was the heartiest soup of the bunch.  So warming and comforting, this was definitely the best for a rainy day.  The natural sweetness of the components were able to shine while being balanced by the savoury herbs and seasoning.  This was the thickest soup by virtue of natural thickeners of the ingredients.  There was also some rice and chicken to compliment.

Lastly, the Moroccan Chickpea was the most exotic-tasting soup.  It was thanks to the spices that gave it an earthiness and aromatics.  Once again, the veggies were cooked through, but not mushy.  The chick peas also had some bite left.  To give more texture, we found some black-eyed peas too.  Another healthy soup the nourished our soul.  Oh, and each soup came with a fresh roll from Cobs next door.  You could choose from white, whole wheat or focaccia.

Of course you can get all the soups to go served hot, but another way to enjoy them is to buy them in packaged containers for you to heat up at home.  They have all their favourites in both small and large sizes.  It can make for a convenient meal or in the larger containers, soup to share!  In addition, they have hummus and salad dressings.  Nice to see the Nephew has kept it in the family and didn't changes things.  We can still get the same hearty soups that also includes a freshly-baked roll.  Can't go wrong with that, especially when the weather is getting colder.  Go check them out!

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

The Good:
- Hearty, homemade soups
- A bowl is quite a bit of food!
- You can get all their soups to heat up later (from their display fridge)

The Bad:
- Maybe not rich enough compared to other soups, but they don't do it that way  

Sushi Mahana

Remember from my last post where I mentioned that most Omakase experiences run you $250+ per person in the Lower Mainland?  Let's talk about one of those shall we?  Viv and I recently visited Sushi Mahana out in North Vancouver where they have been receiving quite the accolades.  Chef Hiroshi Hoshiko presents a Kyushu-style sushi Omakase that focuses on mainly whitefish and shellfish.  When we arrived, we were greeted warmly by owner Yuki Aida.  We sampled some Sake and ultimately, I went for the Sake paring with my meal.

Now about that meal...  We began with the Surinagashi which is a fish soup that features seasonal vegetables.  This was full of umaminess and a sweet fishiness.  Definitely impactful but still subtle at the same time.  From there we moved onto the Ainame (Ling Cod) with Sudachi.  Not that I would be surprised, but the fish was beautifully cut and displayed a nice sheen.  It was lightly sweet with a semi-firm, yet buttery texture.  The sudachi provided citrus to compliment while a bit of salt really elevated the nigiri.

Striking in presentation, the Tenshi No Ebi (Paradise Prawn) featured both cooked and raw components hence the contrast in colour.  I found the prawn to be super sweet while having both a soft texture (raw) and firm texture (cooked).  On top, we found some aromatic egg yolk powder.  With uni and multicoloured sesame seeds on top, the Aka Ika (Squid) was bright and fresh with natural sweetness.  We found some lime and a touch of spice giving way to the nuttiness of the sesame seeds.

We moved onto a more robust fish after the aka ika with the Aji (Horse Mackerel).  Showing off the knife skills of the chef, the aji was beautifully presented.  It was sweet and fishy (in a good way).  There was a light brush of soy which was complimented by the aromatic and sweet basil on top. Ending this portion of the menu, we were served the Gindara (Sablefish).  The warm sablefish was flaky and buttery.  Nice contrast of textures with the chewy rice and the crispy nori.  The sharpness of the onions was balanced by sweetness and saltiness.

To start our next portion of the menu, we were served the Hotate & Zuwai Gani with local vegetables.  Presented in a crispy shell (figuratively and literally), we found little bites of scallop and snow crab mixed with yuzu, sesame paste and maple syrup.  There was plenty of sweetness going around as well as acidity.  The crispy shell provided textural contrast.  On the side, we had baby corn, fig, grape and mushroom. 

Topped with the same multicoloured sesame seeds as the Ika, we had the Suzuki (Sea Bass) nigiri.  There was some chew to this with a fresh taste of the sea.  This was complimented by the nuttiness of the sesame.  With beautiful sea grapes on top, the Shima-Aji (Stripe Jack) was buttery with a snap.  It was sweet with elements of the sea.  Loved the crunch from the sea grape as well as the salty sea-tasting elements to it.

Continuing on with the whitefish, we had the Kijihata (Grouper), topped with pickled kiku flower.  With a firmer and chewier texture, the grouper was lightly sweet and had definite subtly.  The pickled flower did provide some impact to the nigiri.  The Tachiuo (Swordfish) was comparatively more impactful where the sweetness and appealing fishiness came through.  It was slightly smoky from the torching (of the skin).  This was further enhanced by the sweet tang of the ume plum and tanginess of the myoga.

From here, we transitioned into the 3rd part of the meal starting with the Tako (Octopus).  This was cooked perfectly where it was tender with a wonderful chewiness.  It was naturally sweet and was accompanied by a mountain yam puree with spice.  Then we went onto 3 types of bluefin tuna beginning with the Akami.  Being the leanest part of the fish, this was predictably more meaty.  However, by virtue of being bluefin tuna, it was still buttery soft and sweet.  Nice fishiness and just enough brush of soy.  There was some crunch from the shiso seeds too.

Heading up the spectrum of butteriness, we moved onto the Chutoro (getting closer to fatty part of the fish).  Naturally, this was more buttery and flavourful.  Remember, most of the flavour in any meat is from the fat!  With black garlic on top, there was some fermented umaminess going on.  So we then had the fattiest part of the bluefin (the belly) being the Ohtoro topped with nori and yuzu peel. This was literally melting at room temperature.  Super buttery and lots of tasty fishiness.  We got some bitter tanginess from the yuzu peel and umami from the nori.

The final dish in this 3rd portion of the menu was the Kegani (Hairy Crab) served in a covered bowl that revealed warm, fluffy and bouncy crab.  There was chewy rice to go with the ample amount of crab while all of it sat in a sweet buttery broth.  Not only did the broth flavour the crab, the rice happily soaked it up.  Loved the pops of subtle tanginess from the berries strewn around.  This was topped with a crispy zucchini blossom.

The 4th portion of the menu began with the Renkon (Lotus Root) where the beautiful green colour of the shiso leaf peaked through the thinly sliced lotus root. The lotus root had a delicate crunch that was also a bit tangy.  The herbaceousness of the shiso leaf came through after the initial tang.  Next, we had the Tekkamaki featuring a big piece of tuna inside while the whole thing was topped with uni and ikura.  With the first bite, the creamy sweetness of the uni came through while the tuna was soft and sweet.  Rice was perfectly chewy.

Colourful and vibrant, the Kinmedai (Golden Eye Snapper) featured torched skin.  Therefore, we had immediate smokiness that gave way to a buttery texture with a slight bite.  I found the fish mildly sweet while amped by the watermelon radish with tanginess.  Next up, the Anago (Seawater Eel) was lightly brushed with sauce and then garnished with sudachi zest.  It was buttery soft and sweet due to the glaze.  Although there was zest on top, it was rather subtle.

Ending off this portion of the menu, we had the Miso Soup and a piece of Tamago.  So you might be wondering why we were having miso soup at the end of our meal...  Well, it actually helps in the digestion, so after eating sushi is a good plan.  This particular miso soup was rich with fermented flavours.  It was salty but sweet at the same time.  As for the Tamago, it was brûléed on top.  Therefore, we had a hit of smoky and sweet to go with the custardy texture of the egg.

For dessert and the final part of our Omakase experience, we had the Hojicha Ice Cream with Purple Yam Mont Blanc.  Loved the gorgeous puple colour of the yam, but also sweetness it imparted.  The creamy ice cream was nutty and sweet while the crunch from the rice crackers was welcomed.  Overall, the Omakase at Sushi Mahana is excellent with expertly-prepared bites that were respected by the chef.  Definitely worth the $250.00 and belongs in the higher-end of Omakase experiences in the Lower Mainland.

The Good:
- Passionate staff from the Owner to the chef
- Quality ingredients
- Expertly-prepared

The Bad:
- Not really anything here other than the fact you need to have that kind of money to enjoy it?

Sushi Bella (North Vancouver)

I'm not sure if you have noticed, but AYCE (All-You-Can-Eat) is making a comeback in the GVRD.  It was all the rage in the 90's up until the early 2000's, but then many of the AYCE spots began to disappear.  Now we have an array of AYCE yakiniku, hot pot and Japanese.  We even see the non-buffet endless brunch at ARC Dining.  Is it because of the economy and inflation?  Do people regard AYCE a good value considering that it costs just as much, if not more, to dine a la carte?  Not really sure, but I must shamelessly admit that I do enjoy the occasional AYCE just for the variety.  I go in with reasonable expectations (shocking how many people do not and then complain afterwards).  That we did when Jackie and I visited Sushi Bella for lunch. 

To get a sense of the menu, we ordered almost everything starting with Edamame, Green Salad, Sunomono, Spicy Tofu and Agedashi Tofu.  Not a whole lot to say about these as they were pretty standard.  I thought the sunomono was nicely sweet and tangy with al dente noodles.  The tofu was a bit stiff for both dishes.  Next set of dishes included the Ebi/Veggie Tempura, Fried Gyoza and Chicken Karaage.  Although the batter was a bit thick, the tempura still ate quite well and crispy.  The gyoza were crunchy with a moist filling.  Also crispy, the chicken karaage was juicy while properly seasoned.

Although not cut in a particularly attractive manner, the Atlantic Salmon & Albacore Tuna Sashimi were decent with a pleasant texture and sheen.  We got a bunch of Nigiri as well including Chopped Scallop, Inari, Tamago, Salmon, Ebi and Tuna.  Again, these were quite typical for AYCE with a little less ingredient-to-rice ratio.  With that being said, the chopped scallop was quite good with a buttery texture and tasty mayo mix.  The sushi rice was decent, being chewy with not too much moisture.  Would've liked a bit more seasoning though.

Also had the Spicy Sashimi and it featured fairly large chunks of fish.  Texture was fine and the sauce was sweet and slightly spicy.  We ordered a selection of Sushi Cones that consisted of the Spicy Salmon Cone, Spicy Tuna Cone, Negitoro Cone, Chopped Scallop Cone, Spicy Chopped Scallop Cone, California Cone, Yam Tempura Cone and Dynamite Cone.  Since we had to take pictures, the nori had softened up. To be fair, they were still crispy when they arrived.  I thought there was a good amount of ingredient-to-rice ratio in these and they were worth ordering.  I particularly enjoyed the scallop cones as well as the spicy cones.  These had the most moisture and flavour.

Onto the Maki Sushi portion of our meal, we got everything and as you can see, they were constructed decently, especially for AYCE. I'm not going into each individual roll, but the highlights included the really large BC Roll with lots of ripe and creamy avocado and salmon skin (with lots of meat on it).  Shockingly, I also enjoyed the Veggie Roll with lots of crunchy beet, daikon and carrot.  All of the other rolls were decent with a fairly thin layer of rice (so they weren't trying to stuff us full of rice).

Onto some cooked food (other than the appies), we had the Teriyaki Beef, Teriyaki Chicken and Teriyaki Tofu.  Again, nothing out-of-the-ordinary here with the beef being in thin slices and drizzled with some teriyaki sauce.  I did appreciate that it wasn't doused with too much.  The beef was decently tender.  I found the chicken to be more moist and juicy (which is usually the case) while the tofu was stiff like the other items we had earlier.

Our final set of dishes were the carbs including the Tempura Udon, Veggie Yaki Soba, Chicken Yakisoba and Beef Yakisoba.  I thought the yakisoba were all quite good with chewy noodles and not being overdressed with sauce.  The udon was pretty typical and was non-offensive.  In general, the AYCE at Sushi Bella is serviceable and decent in quality.  Naturally, you need to have reasonable expectations (which means you know that it won't be comparable to the best in town).  Considering it is $32.99 for weekdays and $34.99 on weekends for lunch, this is fair pricing.

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

The Good:
- With reasonable expectations, the food quality is actually decent
- Good selection, especially for a lunch AYCE
- They didn't overload the sushi with rice

The Bad:
- Sashimi was sliced strangely (probably due to the fact they weren't the prime cuts)
- Without reasonable expectations, your experience might be different