The Victor (Mother's Day Brunch)

Normally, we don't celebrate Mother's Day on the actual day.  Being practical people that we are, we tend to avoid the crowds and the inflated prices that are generally found at restaurants.  Hence, we do it the day before or maybe even the week afterwards.  However, there are perks to do it on the actual day.  One of which is the elaborate brunches available at many of the hotel restaurants in town.  This year, we did do a proper Mother's Day at The Victor located in the Parq Hotel.  I've been to the Sunday Disco Brunch here before and it was great.  So we knew what to expect this time around.

To facilitate the Sunday brunch buffet, they have to spread out the food into different sections.  The main part of the spread is near the sushi bar, with the bar itself being the main focal point.  The "lineup" starts with some smaller items and Salads.  I didn't include the romaine and mesclun greens but they served as the base for the rest of the items and the salad dressings.  One item of note was the devilled eggs, they were really salty.

 

Once past the salads and little bites, we moved onto the Sushi Rolls as well as some Poké.  In general, the rolls were pretty typical, yet did feature some chewy sushi rice and fresh ingredients.  I thought the poke was quite good with large chunks of either salmon or ahi tuna mixed with their respective sauces.  I wished there was some rice to go with it.

 

Onto the showstopper section, we found a selection of Oysters on the half shell, Cocktail Prawns and split Snow Crab Legs.  Even though I would've preferred king crab, that would've put the cost up by a lot.  With that being said, the snow crab legs were pretty large and meaty.  Not bad.  Oysters were shucked well and they weren't too big, hence they went down easy.

 

Over at the Carvery, we found BBQ pork which was decent and BBQ Salmon, which was a bit over and dry.  The Ham was great being baked until super tender and buttery.  As much as it wasn't really a carvery item, the Shakshuka was tasty with silky eggs in a earthy, tangy and slightly spicy tomato sauce.  Right beside it, the Prime Rib Roast was tender, juicy and mostly medium-rare.

 

Adjacent to the Carvery was a selection of Breakfast Items that featured sausages, bacon, smashed potatoes and scrambled eggs.  As you can see, the eggs were completely runny and not cooked to oblivion.  Hence, they were silky and soft.  The bacon was lean and crispy while the sausages were meaty and well-seared.  Potatoes were crispy with a soft interior while tossed with peppers and onions.  Although I didn't have one, you could get a custom omelette as well.

 

Over at the bar, we found a Dessert Spread with different cakes, cupcakes and cookies.  I particularly enjoyed the carrot cake as it was moist, nutty and sweet.  Back across the sushi bar, we found a Power Bowl station with the usual ingredients as well as a bunch of fruit such as orange slices, green & red grapes, strawberries, pineapple and watermelon. 

 

Finally, one cannot leave any buffet brunch at The Victor without hitting up their famous Candy Bar.  Now the picture you see above is from their Disco Brunch because the one at the Mother's Day Brunch was super busy and some items were getting empty (although they were constantly refilling).  So this is a much better picture.  Overall, the brunch was quite good with quality items that were generally well-prepared.  Sure, it is pricey, but you must take into account the service, Downtown location, quality and selection of food as well as the beautiful dining space.

The Good:

- Generally solid eats

- Nice dining space

- Excellent service

The Bad:

- Since they have to makeshift their buffet stations, sometimes there is a bottleneck at the start of the lineup

- Dessert selection is fine, but could be more refined

Elem

Saying that restaurants are facing an uphill battle these days is a huge understatement.  With the state of the economy and rampant inflation, it is tough go for most businesses.  So when I heard that there was a break-in at Elem, I just had to go back and support them.  I went twice within a month and this particular post is a combination of both dinners.  On a happier note, Elem has recently won Vanmag's "Best New Restaurant".  Truly deserving and congrats to Chef Vish and the Elem team!

For the longest time, the featured bread on the menu was the rye parker rolls.  Well, they now have Milk Brioche Buns now and for this dinner, it was served with whipped butter topped by serrano & lime butter and lime salt.  Loved the fluffiness and butteriness of the buns.  The butter was super light and airy while having a brightness from the serrano.  It really wasn't spicy either.

If you don't already know, Elem is also known for their cocktail program and we went for the Anar and Mango Rasmalai.  For the anar, it was a light mix of gin, pomegranate and cardamomo.  Definitely floral and mildly sweet.  Along the same lines, the mango rasmalai was also comprised of gin mixed with mango and cardamomo.  With the addition of clarified saffron milk and saffron white chocolate paint, we had even more floral notes.

Believe it or not, this is only the 2nd time I've had the Yellowfin Tuna Bhel!  It wasn't because I didn't like it, but rather, no one I ate with ever wanted to order it.  Well, this time I did and yep, I know now what I was missing.  Beyond the buttery pieces of tuna, we found the classic flavours of a Bhel being herbaceous, tangy and bright.  Love the added crunch as it needed it.

One of their newer dishes was the Elk Tartare.  Not gamy (to me at least), the lean elk was surprisingly buttery and tender.  It was well-seasoned and beautifully topped with edible flowers.  What put this dish over the top was it rested on bone marrow.  The generous amount of buttery and sinful bone marrow only added to the luxuriousness of the dish.  Completing things was the crunchy housemade chips.

Normally, I'm not one to order a salad for any meal, but since I've had the Glorious Organics Salad before, we got it.  Despite its basic plating, you wouldn't have guessed that it consisted of a bevy of greens, 

elderflower-tahini dressing, walnuts and ricotta salata.  Just something refreshing and light as an interlude between heavier dishes.  The mix of greens afforded bitterness, pepperiness and sweetness to go with the floral and nutty dressing.

Hitting some featured cocktails, we had the Milo/Corn and the Elderflower Highball.  With a small piece of fresh corn on the cob, there was no mistaking what the milo/corn was about.  This was a combination of cognac, Nestle Milo and milk-washed corn.  Slightly strong due to the cognac, but also malty due to the milo and sweet from the corn.  I though this was a creative drink for sure.  As for the elderflower, it was floral as expected, but also not weak due to the fermented rice vodka.  With some peppercorn, there was a slight bite at the end.

For my past 2 visits, I was able to enjoy one of their classic dishes in the Dungeness Crab Toast.  Loved that they brought this back on to the menu with a slight twist.  For the aerated sauce underneath, it was Tom Yum and that added classic lemongrass and kaffir lime leaf aromatics to already briny and "crabby" flavours.  The generous amount of fluffy crab sat atop a soft slice of milk bread.  Best to order more of the brioche to soak up all that delicious sauce!

Another dish I do not get to order often at Elem is the Grilled Lamb Skewers.  Yes, once again, nobody that eats with me loves lamb.  Well, I decided to order it anyways and eat them by myself!  These pieces of lamb were super fatty, which in turn, made the meat buttery and soft.  However, due to the charring, there were some crispy and smoky bits on the outside.  Due to the fat, there was no mistaking it was lamb as it was gamy (which I love).  Providing a carmelized sweetness, the medjool date glaze was also syrupy and thick.  This all sat on ginger labneh which was creamy, tangy and bright.

Of course a salad wasn't enough in terms of veggies, so we had the Purple Broccolini.  The next time we were here (just 2 weeks later), they had replaced the broccolini with the New Potatoes.  Although simple in its preparation, the broccolini had a punch of brininess from the bagna cauda and white anchovy.  Some pecorino provided more saltiness and nuttiness.  As for the potatoes, they were still a bit firm yet still tender.  At the centre, there was a toma cheese fonduta that was creamy with just a bit of tang.

With a cute crab cracker on top, the Mezcal Sour was the best cocktail of the bunch.  It was smoky from the crab shell mezcal and also slightly tangy from the strawberry vinegar.  Add in the chili oil and there was a kick.  Definitely riding the line between savoury and sweet.  Topped with a spoon of sweet and nutty taro sorbet, the aptly named Taro also consisted of rum and coconut.  By itself, the cocktail was a bit aromatic with definite hits of rum.  I decided to mix the taro sorbet in and that balanced things off with some sweetness and the aforementioned taro notes.

 

Another variation of an OG dish we had was the Duck Fried Rice.  Featuring tender and flavourful pieces of confit duck, the rice ate quite meaty and rich.  Each grain of rice was discernible and nutty.  Adding in the side of chili crunch was imperative to add texture, aromatics and even more nuttiness.  It wasn't spicy per se, but added a background smokiness instead.  Herbs on top were more than garnish as it provided brightness and relief from the heaviness.

 

Gloriously green, the Spring Risotto was beautifully executed.  Spreading nicely on the plate while being creamy and rich, the rice was still chewy with a bite.  Yes, the whole thing did taste green with the brightness and sweetness of the peas as well as the earthiness of the nettles.  A soft poached egg on top added some silkiness from the yolk.

 

For both meals, I ended up ordering the BC Halibut.  Good call as each time, it was prepared well.  The fish featured a crispy hard sear which was seasoned properly.  The fish itself was flaky and moist.  It sat on top of a coconut curry that was creamy, earthy and of course aromatic.  There was also some crunchy bak choy and soft chunks of potato.

 

Prepared medium-rare, we had a beautiful Wagyu Bavette steak.  This was rather meaty, yet still wasn't difficult to chew.  The fat content ensured that the meat was flavourful on its own.  However, the smokiness from the salsa borracha was definitely evident and helped add depth-of-flavour and umami.  Some crunchy and vibrant gai lan was served on the side.

The last 2 cocktails I'll talk about are the Mai Tai and the Lemongrass Gimlet.  Topped with a spoon of passionfruit ice, the mai tai consisted of 3 types of rum and pistachio orgeat.  Hence, we had some floral sweetness as well as hits of rum.  The passionfuit helped make this fruity and light.  That lemongrass gimlet was so refreshing and dangerous.  The combination of Lebanese gin, pandan and yuzu was pretty sweet and fruity.  I could easily down 10 of these, no joke!  But then I would be out like a light too...

 

The first of these two recent visits, we had the Chocolate Tart to end our meal.  This was a substantial slice of rich chocolate cremeux that was only semi-sweet with an appealing bitter finish.  Texturally, this was smooth and silky where it melted on contact when put into our mouths.  Nice contrasting texture from the butter hazelnut crunch on the top.  we found a scoop of salted milk ice cream on the side.

One of their newest desserts is the PB & J with a disk of evaporated and condensed milk atop banana coffee.  We found crunchy peanuts and mixed berry jelly on the side.  This tasted like we thought it would and that in itself was a success.  That disk was so creamy and despite having condensed milk, it was purposefully sweet.  Definitely lots of peanut aroma and texture while the jelly was sweet with a slight tang.

 

Beautifully plated, the Lemon and Rhubarb consisted of house-made lemon ice cream with elderflower, poached rhubarb, bee pollen, butterscotch, hazelnut crumble and a ginger almond disk with shiso glaze.   I would say this would be one of the best composed desserts I've had at Elem.  A good combination of floral, tangy, sweetness and slight herbaceousness to go with the contrast in textures.  So there you have it, 2 of my recent visits to Elem.  I think by revisiting some of their greatest hits, with a twist, is a good move for the menu.  Also, they seemed to have leveled up with their desserts.  They are more composed and dare I say, more "normal".  I'm happy for them winning best new restaurant by Vancouver Magazine.  I'm looking forward to what is coming next!

The Good:

- They brought back some classics (but with a twist)

- More composed desserts

- Excellent service

The Bad:

- Maybe due to the limitations from the break-in, they didn't have any daily features

Hello Nori (The Amazing Brentwood)

I've been waiting a very long time for this.  It seemed like Hello Nori was never going to open their Brentwood location...  At first, we saw the signage go up and then it disappeared.  This was like 2 years ago.  My assumption was that they no longer were going to have a location in Burnaby.  As much as I love Hello Nori, I wasn't super enthused about driving into Downtown for my hand roll fix.  Lo and behold, the spot opened up all of a sudden!  I was both shocked and pleasantly-surprised.  Jackie and I went for a tasting a few days after their official opening.

In addition to their a la carte items, Hello Nori features 4, 5 and 6 roll set menus.  For those who haven't been, the hand rolls are constructed as you finish the last one, so it ensures the integrity of the crispy roasted seaweed as well as the warm rice and cold ingredients.  This combination results in a textural and temperature delight.  One must eat them immediately to experience optimal deliciousness.  But they aren't only hand rolls available.  They also have Sashimi that consists of Hamachi, Bluefin Tuna, King Salmon, Hokkaido Scallops, Tamago and diced sashimi.  It goes without saying that this looked beautiful with a nice sheen and vibrant colours.  It was also on point in terms of sweetness (quite impactful) and buttery texture.

Most people will go for the 6-hand roll set and it starts with the Toro (which is actually a Negitoro) with tuna belly and green onions.  I've always felt that their ingredient-to-rice ratio has been on point.  There is enough warm, seasoned chewy sushi rice to keep everything together while the amount of filling is substantial.  Hence, the hand rolls eat really well with this one sporting buttery soft tuna belly with fresh green onions.  Seasoning is spot on too with just enough to keep it from being plain.

Next hand roll is the Yellowtail (or Hamachi) that unsurprisingly is buttery and soft.  The natural sweetness of the fish comes through clearly.  The quality of the yellowtail is obvious with sweet hits of the sea accented by just a minimal amount of seasoning to enhance the natural flavours.  You can eat this without the aid of the soy on the side as well as the freshly-grated wasabi.  Yes, it is that naturally sweet that only a smattering of soy is necessary.

So one of the best hand rolls in the set is the Ora King Salmon.  I swear the salmon they use here is some of the sweetest natural-tasting fish around.  Not bad considering the price point.  If you've never had this type of fish before, you are truly missing out.  Beyond the taste, the fish itself is buttery soft and has a freshness about it (well as fresh as flash-frozen can get).  Once again, it is mildly-seasoned and does not need anything else really.

If having Ora King Salmon isn't a big enough treat, the hand roll with Hokkaido Scallop and tobiko is equally yummy.  The sweetness quotient of the scallops rivals that of the salmon where the conservative amount of mayo only helps accentuate the natural sweetness that already exists.  Already experiencing the sashimi itself, we know that this hand roll would be delicious.  Combine the buttery scallops with the mayo and crispy nori, this is even tastier.

Moving onto the last two hand rolls in the 6-roll set, we find the only two that feature cooked ingredients.  The first of which is the Snow Crab with delicate and fluffy crab that is mixed with just enough sweet mayo.  The contrast between the chewy and warm sushi rice with the soft snow crab creates a deluxe version of a California roll without the avocado.  Unlike the imitation crab in a Cali roll, this one here is so pure in sweetness and slight brininess.  Delicious.

Save the best for last right?  The 6th roll in the set is the Truffle Lobster.  They are not playing around here as the chunks of lobster are large and not the scraps.  It has the usual bouncy texture while being sweet and slightly briny.  With a bit of truffle mayo, this is so luxurious and expensive-tasting.  The truffle isn't overwhelming as it only compliments the natural flavours of the lobster.  Again, the warm rice and crisp nori makes this a textural delight.

There are a la carte items on the menu too including the Blue Fin Tuna hand roll.  Knowing that the slices of blue fin in the sashimi plate are already buttery and super sweet, it is only an expectation that it will be the same in the hand roll.  That it is and it is also the beneficiary of being marinated offering up the slightest in complimentary flavours.  To literally top it off, they freshly grind roasted sesame seeds to offer up some nuttiness.

Oh let's get even more bougie with the featured hand roll of the day with the A5 Wagyu and Hokkaido Uni!  Before they roll this up, the Wagyu is torched along with petrified Japanese oak to give it a unique smokiness.  Tack on a good amount of Hokkaido uni and you get the creaminess to go with the fatty meatiness.  Slight smoky notes come through too.  Since the Wagyu is so buttery soft, the roll can be eaten without fear of it sliding out.

Other than the handrolls and sashimi, there is also an option to add some Aburi Oshi in the form of salmon and ebi.  They are very much like the ones you will find at Miku/Minami and they eat as such.  The sushi rice is chewy and lightly seasoned with just enough mayo on top for moisture and flavour.  They do not feel greasy and are a nice addition to any hand-roll set.  All-in-all, Hello Nori is one of my go to spots in the city since they offer up fresh ingredients, on point execution and in my mind, reasonable pricing.  I'm so glad they opened up in my hood!

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

The Good:
- Fresh quality ingredients
- On point execution
- Their cocktails are pretty yummy too

The Bad:
- As with the other location, not a place where you sit for long (food comes out fast and it is bar seating)

Neptune Palace (The Amazing Brentwood)

It seems like there is some form of Neptune restaurant almost every mall in the Lower Mainland.  Whether it be Neptune Wonton, Neptune Seafood Restaurant or the higher-end Neptune Palace, this is the largest chain of Chinese restaurants locally.  So I've been to practically all of them and of course when they opened up a Neptune Palace at The Amazing Brentwood, I was there with bells on...  (because I live near there).  Finally!  A nicer Cantonese restaurant in the neighbourhood.

So the place isn't all that big, so I could imagine Dim Sum being overly packed.  We came for dinner first during their soft opening.  Hence, their menu was rather basic, but we made due.  We began with the Fish Maw & Crab Meat Soup which has to be one of the best we've had in quite some time.  First of all, the fish maw was good quality and prepared properly where it was silky and soft while not completely melted away.  Secondly, there was so much crab leg meat, it seemed like there was a whole crab in the soup.  It was good crab meat too being springy and fluffy.  As for the soup base, it was flavourful with depth and the viscosity was bang on.

Although it is generally thought of as a basic dish, we absolutely love Sweet & Sour Pork.  In fact, we like to judge restaurants on their execution as we feel it is something they should nail.  This they did with large chunks of pork belly which had a nice rebound and fattiness.  Hence, the meat was juicy and tender.  The sauce was a bit on the sweeter side, but the tanginess was definitely evident.  Moreover, there was just enough of it.

Off to some seafood, we got the Wok Fried Scallops and Prawns with snap peas and celery.  As illustrated in the picture, you can see the beautifully plump scallops and butterflied prawns.  They were prepared perfectly where the scallops were slightly rare while the prawns had a sweet snap.  Seasoning was a bit mild, but that was fine for this dish.  The veggies were crunchy and vibrant.

Since the choices were so limited, we went for a ol' standby being the Crispy Fried Chicken complete with classic shrimp chips.  This was also prepared nicely with crispy well-rendered skin.  The chicken itself was brined, so that the meat was juicy while completely seasoned.  Hence, the breast meat was not dry all and subsequently, the dark meat was super juicy and flavourful.

We went big with a meaty 3lb Crab prepared with cream sauce and on a bed of wonton noodles.  This live crab was really good as it was meaty with lots of bouncy and briny sweet leg and body meat.  The cream sauce was thickened just enough and had the rich taste of butter.  We opted for 2 bundles of wonton noodles and it was perfect for the amount of sauce.  Furthermore, it was cooked just enough that it was still al dente.

Lastly, we got the Yeung Chow Fried Rice with the usual BBQ pork, egg and suprisingly large shrimp rather than the smaller ones.  This had enough wok heat where the rice was nutty and dry.  The dish was properly seasoned and there was more than enough ingredients.  Overall, the meal was quite good and much better than any other Neptune I've been too.  Pricing is on the higher end though.  I think Neptune Palace is a good addition o the North Burnaby and they do not have much immediate competition nearby except for Grand Dynasty on the other side of the highway.

The Good:
- Above-average eats
- Excellent service
- Decent portion size

The Bad:
- Dining room is rather small
- Pricing is on the higher end