Best Fortune

For all of the different types of Chinese cuisine, Sichuan is one of my favourites.  The combination of spice and spices along with meat and noodle dishes, it is something that is much more impactful than say, Cantonese food.  However, due to the influx of immigrants from Hong Kong specifically, that is the most prevalent Chinese cuisine in the Lower Mainland.  So when there is another option for Sichuan eats (and really any Northern or Uygher restaurants), I'm there with bells on.  So I dug out those bells when Jackie and I were invited to try out Best Fortune on Alexandra Road.

We were here mainly to try their Deluxe Sichuan Set Menu that offers 5-courses for $88.00.  There are options for each course.  The 2 choices for the first course included the classic Big Plate of Mouth-Watering Chicken (yes, that is what the description said, big plate...).  Indeed, it was a big mound of tender poached chicken that featured tender meat and gelatinized skin.  Naturally, the chicken was only a blank canvas for the sauce.  About that sauce, it was definitely spicy, a bit nutty and smoky.  There was enough seasoning to add more than just spice, so in general, it was good!

The other option is the Spicy Beef & Tripe.  This featured thinly-sliced beef shank that had been stewed until tender and chilled.  The tripe has also been cooked until it was buttery soft.  Then it was tossed in a chili oil mix that also had some soy and plenty of garlic.  This was a good version of this dish as the textures of the tripe and beef were on point while the flavours were spicy, but not to the point we couldn't taste anything else.

For the second course, there were 2 options, with first being the Green Peppercorn & Sauerkraut Fish.  This featured some glass noodles underneath and a wealth of sliced fish (looked like snakefish?), pickled mustard greens, seaweed and bean curd skin.  Loved the texture of the fish as it was almost crunchy, but that initial texture gave way to flakiness.  The broth was tangy with numbing spice from the peppercorns.

 

If you didn't want the fish, you could choose the Sichuan Boiled Beef.  This is another classic dish that featured sliced beef atop bean sprouts in a spicy broth.  There was a considerable amount of tender buttery beef within the large bowl.  They had been tenderized perfectly where the meat texture was still present.  In terms of flavour, there was the same smoky nuttiness from the chili oil.  It wasn't so spicy that we couldn't taste anything else which meant there was balance.

The third course had 2 choices that would go well with rice.  The first being the Spicy Blood Tofu & Tripe Stew.  It was a pretty large bowl of food that featured large strips of mung bean noodle underneath with some bean sprouts and other veggies.  There was a mix of luncheon meat, intestines, pork's blood cubes and bible tripe.  This all sat in a spicy broth that was rather flavourful and a bit smoky from all the chili oil.

 

The other option was the Braised Bean Curd in Mapo Sauce (aka Mapo Tofu).  Unlike the Cantonese version, this one was much more robust, spicy and deep-flavoured.  They used medium-firm tofu here and it stood up well to the cooking process.  Each cube of tofu took on the flavours of the starch-thickened sauce.  It was a bit spicy, a bit sweet and plenty savoury.  The ground pork added some meaty texture.

Moving onto the fourth course (which was the vegetable dish), the first option was the Dry Pot Cauliflower.  This was essentially stir-fried Taiwanese cauliflower with an array of spices including Sichuan peppercorns.  There was plenty of caramelization and aroma as well as a noticed numbing spice.  The cauliflower was cooked-through but had a nice crunch.

The alternative option from the cauliflower was the Specialty Eggplant Stir Fry.  I absolutely loved this dish since they coated the pieces of eggplant with starch first and deep fried it.  So that ensured each piece was cooked-through and was sealed with a crispy starch coating.  The result was that the eggplant didn't get soggy and melt while help soaking up the delicious black bean-based sauce.  It had a bit of spice as well.

For the fifth course, we had 3 noodle options including Noodles with Peas, Minced Pork Noodle and Sour & Spicy Yam Noodles.  So the 2 noodles were essentially a form of Ja Jeun Mein where you would mix up the components with the boiled white noodles.  For the first one, the chickpeas were soft but still intact while the ground pork was plenty spicy.  With peanuts and sesame seeds, there was plenty of nuttiness too.  The second noodle was similar except it had some mustard greens.  Hence, there was a bit more tanginess.  The yam noodles had a nice chewiness to them and there was plenty of heat to go with the sourness.  If I had to choose, the minced pork noodle would be the best bet.  Overall, the 5-course set meal for $88.00 is a steal considering how much food you are getting as well as it being delicious.  Love that there are choices for most courses, so you can get almost exactly what you want.  The spice level here is right up my alley being hot yet we can still taste the other components and flavours.  If you only have 2 people, you can get the first two courses for $39.00 and it includes rice and pop.  Hard to find cheap eats these days, but this would be it. Definitely a revisit for me sometime down the road.

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

The Good:
- Well-priced set meal
- Good spice, but not overwhelming
- Large portion size

The Bad:
- One of the employees was away, so there was only one person handling the entire restaurant. Even if they had the other person, service would be stretched. She did a good job though and never got frustrated
- Parking at the back can be chaotic

 

Lu Lu Kitchen

As I've mentioned over and over again, it always seems like Vancouver goes through phases of food crazes.  I'm sure this happens in other places as well, but since I live here, I get to witness the over-saturation of things when they become popular.  However, I've been wrong before about fads because bubble tea seems completely overdone yet it still seems to be going strong after all these decades.  One trend that has been around for a bit is the BBQ skewer.  We find dedicated restaurants as well as food stalls at the Richmond Night Market.  Originally, we were about to head into Richmond, but noticed there is finally one near my house. We decided to check it out with Nikita and Bluebeard.

Getting right to it, we had the Chicken Heart and Pork Rib.  I liked how they only require a minimum of 5 skewers for most of their items.  Some places require 10 and it greatly reduces the variety for small groups.  We found the chicken hearts to be cooked just enough so they were still juicy.  There was considerable heat to go with some sweetness.  The pork rib was mostly cartilage, yet there was a decent amount of meat as well.  Nice crispiness on the exterior.  Mild spice on this one with plenty of cumin.

Now the first 2 skewers we had were pretty solid, but the one that surprised us the most was the Chicken.  Yes, possibly the most boring item we ordered was also the most flavourful.  Also, they didn't skimp with the meat either.  These chunks of dark meat were marinated aggressively where they were sweet with caramelization from the grilling.  There was only a light char that added some smokiness.  

This is where the skewers started to arrive fast and furious (in a green Eclipse with Axis wheels no less! LOL).  Anyways, the next 2 skewers consisted of Lamb and Beef.  To differentiate, they put the lamb on longer skewers.  For me, the seasoning was very similar for both where there was some heat.  However, the lamb seemed to have a bit more cumin (like it should as it compliments the meat well).  In terms of texture, the lamb was fattier and hence more tender.

Our last 2 skewers were the Bean Curd Skin and Shrimp.  I really appreciated that the shrimp were deshelled.  This made it less messy to eat and frankly, for the marinate/spices to penetrate easily.  The shrimp were good having a snap texture.  I'm thinking that the bean curd skin could've been less chewy if they hydrated it more or grilled it less.  With that being said, it still had the appealing chewiness and was nicely spiced.

We got some sides as well including Cucumbers, Mung Bean Noodles, Eggplant and Green Beans.  I thought the cucumbers were good being crunchy and fresh.  Plenty of garlic to go with it too.  The mung bean noodles were their usual chewy slippery texture, but the sesame dressing was too thin making it rather messy to eat.  We loved the eggplant as it was full-flavoured and tender.  However, we hated the green beans because they were old and stringy.  But green beans withstanding, the rest of the food was generally decent and well-priced.  A good neighbourhood alternative to driving all the way to Kingsway or Richmond for skewers.

The Good:
- A reasonable minimum on skewers
- Well-priced
- Not skimpy on the portion size

The Bad:
- Some skewers could use more spice
- Those beans were not so good

 

Kuan Zhai Road

If you haven't noticed, Chinese Skewer restaurants are becoming more and more prevalent in a city that rarely had any just 5 years ago.  Something about meat on a stick has created an appetite that hasn't been satiated as of yet (as there are more and more opening up as of this post).  We all know the usual places such as the popular Happy Tree as well as Meat Up.  One spot that has relatively flown under the radar is Kuan Zhai Road tucked into a small strip mall just down the road from Happy Tree on Kingsway in Vancouver.  It isn't apparent what the place is called because the English name is in tiny font.

In addition to their grilled skewers, they have spicy hot pot options with "Help Yourself" Skewers in their refrigerated displays.  Priced at a reasonable 69 cents each, these one bite skewers are cooked in your choice of broth.  We had the extra spicy broth with chilis, chili oil, spices and Szechuan peppercorns.  This was super hot and kept my lips burning long after I had finished.  Totally tasty!  We ended up with a variety of skewers including duck tongue, tripe, tendon, fish and conch.  Things were texturally on point (including the normally too chewy tripe) and nicely spiced by the hot pot broth.  We actually returned a few weeks later and asked for super hot and it was actually very spicy!  

As for the BBQ Skewers, we got a selection including lamb, meatball, prawns, beef and chicken wing.   Compared to other skewers spots in town, I found the amount of meat to be a little more than average.  In terms of pricing, it is pretty competitive.  I thought the lamb skewers to be the best being tender and moist with a decent char on the outside.  Flavours were mildly spicy (you can get spicier) while the cumin really came through.  Naturally, the beef was a bit more robust with an appealing chewy meatiness.  Flavours were quite similar except for the meat of course.  Didn't really enjoy the meatballs as they were far too dense.  Shrimp were sweet with plenty of the usual shrimp aromatics but it was a bit overdone in my opinion.  Loved the honey chicken wings as they featured rendered skin and super juicy meat.

Just for kicks, I got the Lao Chengdu Hot and Sour Noodles as well as the Spicy Chicken.  The slippery noodles were mildly spicy with a bit of tang.  I really thought they could've amped the spice level way higher than it was.  Of course, we only needed to ask for it, so not a big deal really.  However, the amount of moisture was an issue as it made the dish wet.  As for the chicken, it was inherently seasoned enough.  Texturally, it was tender while nicely gelantized including the skin.  Once again, it wasn't as spicy as we would've liked (to be fair, we like it flaming hot).  Yet, as mentioned, we could've asked for it to be prepared spicier, such as the hot pot.  For those who like it milder, this would've been fine and pretty good.  If I had to compare with the nearby Happy Tree, I would say Kuan Zhai is pretty similar without the loud pop music.

The Good:
- Well-prepared skewers
- More low key than the nearby Happy Tree
- Better service than Happy Tree

The Bad:
- A smaller restaurant, so when it gets busy, not as many seats
- Parking is an issue