RedBeef Noodle Kitchen

So you'd think after 2 burgers, fries and poutine at Hundy, it would be enough to call it a night...  Nope, no can do.  Eating is a sport and eating more means winning!  So we made the short walk across the street (probably burned off 10 calories) to RedBeef Noodle Kitchen for 2nd dinner!  I've been meaning to try the place out for quite some time and even though we were already stuffed, we couldn't pass up the opportunity.  For those who have seen on IG, they are famous for their premium beef noodles, but that wasn't the only thing we ate.

Before we got to the noodles, we had the an order of the Salt & Peppery Chicken which was well-portioned.  This was very good with large chunks of dark meat that was juicy and tender.  On the outside, the batter was thin and crispy.  It was also impactful with the right amount of saltiness and spice.  Moreover, the dish wasn't overly greasy either.  Although it looked more like a garnish, the fried string beans were also texturally on point with a crunch.  Sporting a large slice of braised pork belly, the Taiwanese Pork Bun was just as good.  Even though the mantou sat there while we took photos, it remained soft and fluffy.  Inside, the pork belly was tender and meaty with only a bit of fat.  The classic combination of peanuts and sugar was spot on and provided a nice balance with the spicy pickled mustard greens.

Off to the noodles, of course we had their signature Premium Beef Noodles with soup served table-side.  The raw slices of beef cooked in the hot broth.  They were absolutely heavenly with a buttery texture that only sported a bit of meaty chewiness.  Underneath, the noodles were appealingly al dente while soaking up the flavourful broth.  Some have remarked that the soup wasn't flavourful enough, but to me, it was meaty and full of depth.  The pepperiness was just right where it was noticeable without being too strong.  We also got the Beef Noodle Trio with braised beef shank, tripe and tendon.  The broth here tasted the same except with the tangy punch of the pickled mustard greens.  Noodles were just as good while the beef practically melted in our mouths.  Tripe had a tender chewiness whereas the tendon was a bit too soft.

Lastly, we had the Beef Potstickers which didn't resemble the typical shape of the Taiwanese version.  One bite and yes, the dumpling wrapper was fairly thin and appealingly chewy, but the beef filling was far too fatty.  In fact, there was liquid fat leaking out.  Not a great mouth-feel.  They did taste good (maybe because of the fat) with an aromatic meatiness.  Overall, we were quite happy with the food at RedBeef especially the premium beef noodles.  Service was actually quite good.  We didn't like the beef dumplings, but that was the only negative of the meal.

The Good:
- Legit premium beef noodles
- Their regular noodles are good too
- Service was decent

The Bad:
- Prices are a bit higher, but okay given the location and quality
- Beef dumplings were not good

Rhinofish Noodle Bar

When Rhinofish Noodle Bar first opened in Chinatown a year and a half ago, I was invited to try the place out.  Well, I never did make it out there due to my busy schedule.  Now with that being said, there was another reason I wasn't super-motivated to head out there as well.  Based on the comments of some fellow foodie-friends, the place had some work to do still.  Although there was some positive elements, there was equal concerns over the beef broth in the Taiwanese Beef Noodle.  So I just didn't end up going until recently (more than one visit).

Of course, the aforementioned Taiwanese Beef Noodle was at the forefront.  So much so, we ordered 3 bowls.   Upon hitting the table, we liked how it was plated where the ample amount of pickled mustard greens were piled high.   The individual components of the bowl were actually very good.  We found the noodles to be perfectly al dente with a rebound that resulted in an appealing chew.  Ample in portion, the beef was tender and gelatinous where the light seared added a nice bark that resulted in an extra layer of texture.  Onto the soup, it was definitely different than most of the other versions in town.  There seem to be a wine essence and finish which was pretty pronounced.  The meatiness and salt content of the soup was acceptable but definitely could've been more strong.  For myself, I went for the Zhang Ji Mein that was topped with a plethora of finely julienned carrot and cucumber.  There was also more than enough meat sauce with pressed tofu.  Although there was a noticeable garlickiness and slight spice, the meat sauce needed more punch.  Possibly a bit more chilis and more salt.  However, that was easily rectified by the side of hot sauce.  As with the previous noodles, these were perfectly al dente.

For our sides, we tried their Chicken Nuggets with nanjing sauce.  At first glance, they appeared to be dry and over-fried.  However, that was not the case at all.  The crunchy exterior gave way to truly succulent and juicy dark meat.  Each nugget was spiced enough that we could taste the five-spice without it being too licorice-focused.  On the side, the dip was lightly tangy and sweet.  We also ordered a couple of the Bao stuffed with pork belly, mustard greens and ground peanut.  This was classic Taiwanese and ate really well.  The bao was soft while the pork belly was just fatty enough where it nearly melted in our mouths while retaining a meatiness.  There was a nice balance of ingredients where the combination of sweet, savoury and tangy was on point.  Overall, the food was actually decent.  However, the TBN could've had more depth and impact.

The Good:
- Clean and modern
- A few appealing modern modifications
- Good service

The Bad:
- TBN could be more flavourful
- Prices are not cheap

Myst Asian Fusion

Earlier in the year, a new Taiwanese joint opened up in the former location of Lester's (for those old enough to remember...).  I wasn't able to attend the ChineseBites tasting which yielded mixed reviews, yet I was still intrigued.  Due to the fact, it is open late, it automatically became a late night destination after hockey.  To get a sense of the large menu, this post is an amalgamation of 3 visits.  In fact, I've been here 5 times and I've gotten a clear sense of the place.  One thing is for sure, it gets pretty busy at times since there is a general lack of competition nearby other than The One.

On my first visit with Milhouse and Lionale Hutz, we shared the Fried Basket consisting of chicken nuggets, fish cake and Taiwanese sausage accompanied by fried green beans and shrimp chips.  Surprisingly, the best part of the basket was the green beans.  They were oil blanched just a touch where they retained their firm texture.  Futhermore, they were well-seasoned.  Next best thing was the chicken nuggets as they featured rendered and crispy skin while only lightly seasoned and not overdone with the 5-Spice.  The sausage was pretty typical while the fish cake was not nearly crispy enough.  For my drink, I tried the Lychee Slush 1/3rd sweet.  This was far too icy and chunky for my liking as it was hard to "drink".  It was lightly flavourful due to the sugar level.

For my main, I had the Mini-Lamb Hot Pot which included a bowl of rice, cucumbers and marinated gluten.  I found the broth for the hot pot pretty flavourful, yet salty at the same time.  It had a hint of lamb gaminess while plenty of sweetness as well.  The lamb was fairly tender with gelatinzed skin.  There was also tofu and Napa cabbage in the mix.  Milhouse went for the Stir-Fried Noodles with Beef that did its best impersonation of a "gon chow ngau ho".  Rather than flat rice noodles, we found hand pulled noodles normally used in beef noodle soup.  They were chewy and well-seasoned with dark soy.  The dish was rather wet though and the ample slices of beef were too chewy.

Lionel Hutz had the Stir-Fried Rice Cake with pickled snow cabbage and pork.  This was pretty decent with chewy slices of rice cake and tender slivers of pork.  Although there appeared to be enough flavouring agents, the dish was rather mild-tasting.  He had to resort to soy sauce for impact.  On another visit, I decided to give their Beef, Tendon and Tripe Noodles a shot.  I found the thick and wide noodles to be on point being firmly al dente while cooked through.  Although the broth was flavourful, it was pretty gamy from the tripe.  I personally didn't mind it, but Viv thought it was overpowering.  The tripe itself was tender with a bite while the beef was super tender and melted in my mouth.  The tendon was also on point being soft with some texture.

We also had an other of the Potstickers which were fried up nicely golden brown on the bottom.  It was lightly crispy while the dumpling skin was a chewy medium thickness.  Inside, the meat filling was juicy and flavourful.  It was succulent and tender with just enough greens to compliment the meat.  After hockey once again, Bear, Milhouse, Lionel Hutz and myself hit up Myst for late night eats.  Bear wasn't particularly hungry and went for the Beef Green Onion Pancake Roll.  By looks alone, it looked thick and doughy.  It ate exactly how it appeared with a decent amount of thinly sliced 5-spiced beef in the middle.  It could've used more hoisin though as it was pretty bland.

I had 2 items starting with the Xiao Long Bao.  Okay, before you start throwing fruit and knives at me, I realize that Myst is a Taiwanese restaurant and XLBs would probably not be their specialty (but some Taiwanese spots do a good job).  Well, this was not one of them as the dumpling skin was thick albeit tender.  Inside, there was barely any soup which wasn't a surprise.  The meat filling was good though being tender and plump.  Next was a plate consisting of Beef Tendon, Pork Intestine and Beef Tripe.  This was the second time having this dish and it was more than acceptable.  I found the tendon a bit firm, but not hard to eat.  The intestine was fatty and not too gamy while the tripe was also on the firmer side, but not hard to chew.

For my beverage, I went for the Mango Slush which was missing the usual "eyes".  This type of inconsistency was actually normal since I've had this drink 3 times and it has been different every time.  Smooth and slushy, this was good however, the last 2 times, it was icy and and frankly terrible.  Lastly, Milhouse had the Kimchi Fried Rice that was quite good.  Although the rice was on the softer side, it was subjected to enough wok heat to create caramelization.  There was a noted spiciness balanced with enough sweet and savoury elements.  Overall, after so many visits to Myst, it is clear that there are some decent eats to be found.  However, the consistency is just not there.  My slush drinks have come out differently every time while even the chicken nuggets have ranged from crispy to completely oil-logged.  They really need to work things out.

The Good:
- Lots of choice
- Open late
- If you are lucky, some good eats

The Bad:
- Super inconsistent
- Service can range from good to terrible

E-Tea

Sometimes it's easier said than done when selecting a restaurant for late night eats.  Sure, there are actually a decent amount, especially in and around the Downtown core.  However, it is a crap shoot everywhere else.  Since it was only Milhouse, Bear and Lionel Hutz joining me for food, it meant we didn't need to head West (because all of us live either in Burnaby or East Van).  There was a brief thought about going to Golden Oscar, but since we still bore the scars of our last visit (it sucked), we decided to go kitty corner to E-Tea. 

We decided to share 2 items in the Chicken Nuggets and Deep-Fried Squid Tentacles.  Sporting a light and crispy coating, the chicken nuggets were fairly succulent and tender.  Although the skin remained attached, it was well-rendered and crunchy.  We thought the flavour was decent with enough salt and light pepperiness.  Universally, we weren't huge fans of the squid though as it was too chewy and somewhat fishy-tasting.  On the other hand, the batter on the outside was crunchy and not greasy.  It was a bit thick though and bready.

For myself, I had the Hand Pulled Beef Noodle Soup.  Okay, maybe I'm being picky here, but the noodles were too uniform to be hand pulled.  With that being said, they were decent being slippery and chewy.  As for the broth, it was pretty weak as it tasted more like something you'd find with instant noodles.  It was thin and had more MSG taste than beefiness.  There was a slight spice due to the hot paste on top.  I did like the beef shank though as it was super tender and moist.  Bear did the predictable and had the Chicken Steak with black pepper sauce.  The chicken was well-seared and succulent inside.  We found the sauce to have a nice silky consistency while being peppery and spicy due to the addition of red chili peppers.

Lionel Hutz ended up with the Thai Chicken Fried Rice that was glistening with oil.  Due to that, there was enough wok heat and chewiness.  Beyond the on point texture of the rice, as well as the tender pieces of chicken, we found the flavour to be similar to a pad Thai.  It was rather sweet with some savoury elements complimented by spice.  For Milhouse, it was all about the Sweet and Sour Fish with rice.  Good choice because the sauce was nicely thick and well-balanced.  There were impactful hits of sweet and tang to go with a touch of spice.  The fish was moist and flaky while sporting a crunchy exterior. 

Of course we didn't leave out the Bubble Tea out of the equation since the place is a BBT joint.  From left to right, we had the Mango, Milk Tea and Oreo.  I thought all of them were okay and for those who didn't ask for half-sweet, like me, the drinks were a bit on the sweet side.  I didn't think the flavours were overly memorable, but they weren't bland either.  Definitely an acceptable option for late night.  That pretty much sums up E-Tea as the food was alright except for the squid and noodles.  Prices were pretty cheap though, which would somewhat offset some of their shortcomings.

The Good:
- Cheap
- Serviceable for late night

The Bad:
- Food is so-so
- Drinks are so-so   

TRUE'STEA Restaurant

For all of the late night spots in Richmond, it baffles me that I could miss one, especially one that is located on Restaurant Row (aka Alexandra Road).  An invite to True'stea finally solved that mystery as I knew it by its old name...  Yes, just remove the "tru" and you will magically see the clever (or maybe not-so-clever) name change from Estea.  True'stea happens to be one of the participating restaurants during Chopstick Fest (think Dine-Out for Chinese restaurants) and we were going to sample their special menu for the event.

So what is a visit to a Taiwanese joint without Chicken Nuggets?  Well of course we started with them, plated interestingly with a swash of hot sauce and some garnish.  I found the nuggets to be more firm than crispy.  The meat was still relatively tender though, but not succulent.  I thought the 5-spice was pretty strong, but at the same time, it wasn't overpowering either.  Up next was the Green Onion Pancake with Egg which was also plated nicely with different garnishes.  I liked this dish as the pancake was soft and thin while the egg was fluffy.  I didn't notice a whole lot of green onion essence though.

We had the obligatory nuggets, so it was no surprise we had the 3-Cup Chicken as well.  I liked how the sauce wasn't overly greasy and there was just enough of it.  I found it more on the sweeter side with the slightest of tang and aromatics from the sesame oil and basil.  The pieces of leg meat sported rendered skin while being fairly succulent.  As mentioned, I would've liked to see a touch more zing to the dish though.  I thought the Ma Po Tofu looked pretty good aesthetically with the right colours and texturally with soft, yet intact tofu.  Furthermore, the ground pork was had a nice meaty and moist texture.  Although there was spice and tang to the dish, I would've personally liked to see it spicier.

The Fish with Pickled Mustard Greens was a dish that kept on giving as there was so much of it.  There was very little filler other than the sour greens and some frozen tofu.  Most of it was tender consisting of soft basa.  There was a definite spice to the dish to go with the ample preserved sourness of the mustard greens.  The Dry Squid and Double Cooked Pork with chili sauce was a tasty dish despite being prepared in a different manner.  Sliced razor-thin, the pork ended up to be rather chewy, but for some reason, this didn't kill the dish.  The chewiness combined with the pressed tofu and seasoning was quite nice, especially with rice.

Served to us in individual bowls, the Braised Beef Rice Noodle in soup was visually appealing.  However, for the life of us, we couldn't figure out why they cut up the noodles.  Hence, they were difficult to eat and a bit soft.  The soup was meaty enough, yet lacking impact.  The beef was quite tender though.  Naturally, we didn't get out of their without having a few bevvies as well.  On their recommendation, I had the Grass Jelly Milk Tea with a twist.  In addition to the grass jelly as evidenced in the picture, they blended more grass jelly into the drink.  This made it pretty thick and more bitter (in a good way).  Texturally, it was a bit strange, but the flavour was impactful.  Overall, the drinks were all decent while the food was merely serviceable.  However, since the place is open late, it does the job when others are closed.

*All food, beverages and gratuities were complimentary*

The Good:
- Open late
- Reasonably-priced for the portion size
- Lots of activities such as electronic darts and mah jong

The Bad:
- Food is serviceable, but not the highlight
- Place could use a reno
  

Wang's Taiwanese Beef Noodle House

Boss Woman loves to share.  No, she is not going to randomly give us money nor does she surprise us with gifts.  Rather, she is really adamant about eating food that is sharable when choosing a restaurant after softball.  I think even if the food we order is not exactly a share-plate, we still make it work...  So how do you split a burger 5 ways?  Anyways, we ended up heading to Wang's Taiwanese Beef Noodle out in South Granville since we could technically split some dishes.  Not sure if the noodles were the easiest to divvie up, but again, we made it work...  for Boss Woman.

To get a bit of variety, we had the Tripe, Tendon and Beef Noodles.  We chose the wide noodles and they were on point.  Chewy while cooked through, these were al dente despite sitting in hot broth.  Nicely balanced, the broth exhibited elements of saltiness, spice and sweetness.  It wasn't incredibly full of meat depth, but it was flavourful nonetheless.  As for the meats, they were on point as well with fall-apart beef, tender tripe and soft tendon.  We also got the Beef Noodles in Clear Soup.  This was predictably and understandably rather bland and light.  We did like the aromatics of the sesame oil though.  The noodles were al dente like the previous bowl while the beef shank was tender and gelatinous.

For our rice dish, we chose the Pork Hock with Rice.  There was a decent amount of gelatinous and tender pork hock that exhibited plenty of depth from the stewing.  I liked how the skin, fat and cartilage were super tender, but not falling apart either.  This was accompanied by tofu, veggies and rice.  Combined with the flavourful and full-of-collagen sauce, there was lots of richness to be had.  We took a risk and ordered the Xiao Long Bao (it was a risk because this is not a Shanghainese restaurant).  With that in mind, they were pretty decent.  The dumpling skin was thin except for the top twirl.  I found the meat to be slightly gritty but still moist and tender.  There was a bit of soup that was flavoured by a good amount of xiao shing wine.

We got 2 appies to round out our meal with the Crispy Peppery Chicken Nuggets and the Fried Squid Tentacles.  Exhibiting an appealing saltiness accented by white pepper and 5-spice, the chicken nuggets were succulent and juicy with a slight crispy exterior.  I liked how they minimized the amount of skin.  When there was skin, it had been completely rendered being crispy.  As for the squid, it was appealingly chewy while coated with a crunchy, non-greasy batter.  This was a good end to a fairly enjoyable meal.  However, the service was a bit slow in reacting to our requests.  Specifically, we never got share bowls or plates despite asking a few times.

The Good:
- Solid eats
- Comfortable dining space

The Bad:
- Slow service