Juicy Dumpling

Walking up and down Spadina for a whole week meant I would be passing by Juicy Dumpling on a daily basis.  Although there are rave reviews of the place on the internet, I was a bit skeptical.  But the place seemed busy most of the time.  Also, the lure of the $2.99 XLBs prominently on their window (with minimum purchase of $10.00), I just couldn't help myself.  Despite already finishing off some tacos from Seven Lives, we stopped by for another quick bite.

So let's get right to the mini-sized Xiao Long Bao shall we?  At first glance, these did not look all that impressive with its deflated shape and also the thick top twirl.  Despite having a good amount of soup in these, the actual dumpling wrapper was a bit too doughy for my tastes.  That was mainly the top of the dumpling though as the bottom was appreciably thinner.  I would've liked to see more elasticity though.  The pork filling itself was decent being tender, if not a touch gritty.  Soup was mostly sweet with some savoury elements.  Interestingly, we had to ask for vinegar as the default sauce that came with these was hot sauce.

To get to the minimum spend for the XLB special, we got a few more items including the Pan-Fried Dumplings.  These were aggressively-seared on the bottom resulting in crunchy parts that were nutty and smoky.  The dumpling skin as a whole was medium-thick and had a chew to it.  I thought it was a bit stiff, yet it did have some elasticity.  Inside, the pork and cabbage filling was not overly dense being tender with some soup mixed with fat.

I couldn't pass up the Spicy Wontons as that is one of my favourite things to eat.  These were not bad where the filling was juicy and bouncy while mildly seasoned.  These were cooked just enough where the wrapper was delicate and buttery without being to soft and falling apart.  As for the chili oil "sauce" it wasn't too spicy where it was more nutty and smoky than anything else.  Other than those flavours, we found a bit of saltiness and mild sweetness.

Last item was the Salty Donut which had quite a bit of girth (okay, let the jokes fly here...).  Anyways, this was good where the outside was crunchy and not too greasy (despite it soaking up a decent amount of oil).  Inside, it was fluffy with some salty chewiness.  I only wish there was some congee or salted soy milk for me to dip this into!  Overall, the stuff from Juicy Dumpling is serviceable.  Not a huge fan of the XLBs despite being cheap.  I guess it is fine for those who want an inexpensive meal or something for late night eats.

The Good:

- Cheap

- Open late

- Salty donut was great

The Bad:

- Dumplings are serviceable but not memorable

Seven Lives Tacos y Mariscos

While wandering around Kensington Market, we had the obligatory Jamaican Patties from Golden Patty and also some mochi donuts from Marry Me Mochi.  But another spot that we were wanting to try was Seven Lives Tacos.  The place was certainly busy with a line that was almost to the door.  No matter because the place is quick service and hey you stand and eat.  Perfect for sending people on their merry way after downing some tacos.

Beyond their fully stuffed and legit tacos, the other draw here is the Sauce Bar.   We found spicy and tangy Habarero, bright Salsa Verde, an even brighter and acidic Verde Cruda & Lime, Apricot and Arbol which was both sweet and spicy, a rich Roasted Tomato Sauce, a nutty and very slightly spicy Salsa Macha, a sweet and smoky Strawberry Chipotle and a Poblano Crema which was the most subtle of the bunch.  I felt the sauces could go with anything and really up to one's preference.

We ended up with 4 tacos starting with the Baja Fish Taco.  The pictures don't really show the size of the tacos.  Having 2 of them each was enough for lunch.  Maybe 3 if you are a bigger eater.  The large piece of battered and fried fish was good being buttery soft and flaky.  Thin and light, the batter was crispy and didn't overwhelm the fish.  On top, there was cabbage, cilantro and onion as well as Baja sauce.  I added some strawberry chipotle to this and the fruitiness seemed to go well with the fish (even though fruit may not go with fish most of the time).  There was a light spice to accent the sharpness of the onions.

 

The Gobernador was an interesting one with the combination of smoked yellowfin tuna, grilled shrimp, cheese and pickled onions.  Naturally, the tuna was dry due to the complete cook on it, but it did have really good smokiness.  Moreover, whatever they rubbed it in, there was plenty of earthiness.  The pickled onions provided some acidity and crunch while the shrimp had a buttery snap.  The melted cheese was ooey gooey and held things together.  I put some salsa macha on this and the subtle spice nuttiness went well with the smoke.

 

The most usual of our tacos was the Carnitas with tender braised pork shoulder, onion and cilantro.  Pictures doesn't do this one justice as it was stuffed full of meat (much like the other ones, but this was the most).  Hence, you can see why we only ordered 4 tacos!  Really enjoyed the juicy and flavorful pork that was ready for one of their sauces.  We decided on something spicier in the habanero.  That was indeed hot and had a background smokiness.

 

Lastly, we had the Blackened Ahi (which was a daily special) with cabbage, crema, onions and cilantro.  Despite looking quite blackened, the fish was still moist and not cooked to a crisp.  The smokiness and earthiness of the blackening spices really came through.  We used the mild poblano cream with this one to cool things down without obscuring the inherent flavours.  Overall, the tacos at Seven Lives are fully stuffed and delicious at a reasonable price.  Love that they have a variety of sauces to compliment them as well.

 

The Good:

- Inexpensive

- Fully-loaded

- Delicious

 

The Bad:

- Standing only, but it worked for us

- Limited space, so lineups go out the door 

 

Dessert Artisanaux

Although there are a decent amount of Chinese dessert spots in town, I feel there aren't that many that truly stand out.  I guess Snackshot would be one that is fairly memorable partly due to their unique-looking desserts (such as the Mahjong one).  There is Blackball, which I've been to many times before.  It is fine and I have no problem going there too.  One of the busier spots is Tina Cakes on Kingsway, which I've been to twice without blogging about it (not sure why I haven't), but there is a newer spot nearby called Dessert Artisanaux.  They are constantly busy and their stuff ain't cheap.  Well, I drop by 2 times and yes, I'll blog about it!

The thing to get here is the Mochi Pistachio Paste.  I've had this twice and it is so texturally pleasing due to the soft spoonable mochi.  It is super delicate and has a great mouth-feel.  Beyond that, the bright green pistachio paste is nutty, sweet and aromatic.  It compliments the mochi well since it is not overpowering.  It allows the natural sweetness of the mochi to come through.  Some chopped pistachios add some crunch and extra nuttiness.

They have a pretty solid Pomelo Mango Sago here.  It is lightly creamy, purposefully sweet and refreshing.  Now that gets kicked up a few notches with the Coconut Jelly Noodles and Mini Glutinous Rice Balls with Mango Pomelo Sago.  Yes, that is a mouthful, but when eaten, it is truly a mouthful!  Beyond the good parts of the basic version, this one has the creamy coconut jelly noodles.  This adds aromatics and more sweetness.

If you think that is a mouthful, try the Taro ball, Taro, Coconut Jelly Noodles,Sago,Peach Gum,Mini Glutinous Rice Balls with Coconut Milk.  Yah, this has everything but the kitchen sink and well, it is quite good mainly due to the creamy and nutty taro paste.  Combining it with the aromatic coconut noodles, we have a lot of flavours going on.  The chewiness of the mochi balls and peach gum add more texture and believe it or not, this isn't all that sweet either.

The Taro with Coconut Milk Black Glutinous Rice is also aromatic with the same creamy taro paste and sweet coconut milk.  We have chewy black glutinous rice that offers up its own sweetness and texture.  You can order anything in a takeout container if you wish, so you can take anything you don't finish home.  We did that because we order lots!  Overall, the desserts here are good and there are many choices on the menu.  Prices are on the higher side though, but as you can see, I have been here more than once.  That means, I will be coming back for more...

The Good:
- Lots of choice
- Above average
- Not too sweet

The Bad:
- A bit expensive
- Needs more servers
- Parking is a bit difficult at times

Pelicana Chicken (Robson)

It goes without say that there are a bleep-load of KFC joints all over the Lower Mainland.  I'm not talking about Kentucky Fried Chicken either, rather, I'm referring to Korean Fried Chicken.  Once upon a time, it was merely a menu item at some Korean restaurants and we had late night spots such at Ajuker.  Now, we have several chains in town and a spattering of independent shops to compliment the restaurants that already serve KFC.  I have yet to try Pelicana Chicken and luck would have it, we were invited to try them out, specifically the Robson location.

So Pelicana ups the ante somewhat as they not only serve KFC, but also some classic items too.  Case in point, they have a variety of Kimbap.  We chose to try the Beef and Tuna Mayo.  These were crammed full of ingredients with just enough rice surrounding it.  The beef was tender, meaty and slightly spicy.  Veggies were tender with a bit of crunch from the spinach and pickled radish.  I really loved the tuna mayo as it was creamy, fishy (in a good way) and also a bit spicy.

For our selection of KFC, we had 3 small orders of Spicy Yang Nyum, Original and Soy Chicken.  These large dark meat nuggets were super juicy (literally juice and fat running out of it) and tender.  On the outside, the thin batter was crispy, even after being tossed in sauce.  I loved the spicy yang nyum as it was sweet with a nice kick.  Original was pretty typical with only a light brine on the chicken.  The soy was good too with enough saltiness balanced by some sweetness.

If some of the components of this Bibimbap look familiar, then you would be right.  Smartly using the some of the veggies and the beef for both this dish and the kimbap, they are able use these for more than one item.  This bibimbap was definitely rustic looking, but it ate really well with lots of toppings.  The veggies were well-prepared while the kimchi radish provided some spicy crunch.  We had some gochujang on the side where we mixed it into the rice.  Satisfying.

Staying with rice bowls, we also tried the Spicy Chicken Rice Bowl.  This not only included a chewy rice base, there was a bit of fried noodle and salad on top too.  The spicy chicken did live up to its namesake with a rice red pepper spiciness that had a touch of tanginess and sweetness. I felt the white onions were necessary for texture and taste, but it could've been cooked through just a bit more as it was rather sharp tasting.  Otherwise, this was a very flavourful dish.

Our last rice bowl happened to be the Pork Katsu Curry also with fried egg noodle and salad in addition to the rice.  The cutlet itself was tender while somewhere in between dry and moist.  The breading was crispy while not being particularly greasy-tasting. With the curry on the side, it allowed us to keep the breading crispy until we poured it on top.  I found the flavour to be strong enough that I could taste the curry spices.  It was nicely balanced and not as sweet as the Japanese version.

I know, I know, the Tornado Potato is quite the novelty item that can be found at the Night Market or PNE, but I really like it!  This one was crispy, well-seasoned and we enjoyed picking it off the skewer!  We ended our meal with the Bungeopang stuffed with custard and also sweet red bean paste.  Nicely browned and crispy on the outside, it yielded warm and sweet insides.  Nice treat for adults and kids alike.  Overall, the food at Pelicana is solid and reasonably-priced.  Great for takeout!

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

The Good:
- Juicy and flavourful KFC
- Solid rice bowls
- Biiiig Kimbap

The Bad:
- Not the best place to eat in, limited seating

  

Rice & Noodle (Granville)

Sometimes, simple is good.  We have so many food options in Vancouver, it can get pretty overwhelming and more recently, completely unaffordable.  Sure, we could just drop by any random fast food restaurant or food court stall, but many are rather boring.  One option that I never knew existed is Rice & Noodle.  This counter quick-service restaurant offers up Asian rice & noodles (hence the name) at reasonable prices and well-portioned plates.  Jackie and I checked out the new Granville location in Downtown.

The first item we tried as not a plate at all, rather, it was a bowl of Laksa with prawns.  For all their dishes, you can choose your protein, whether it be beef, pork, chicken, prawns or tofu.  As you can see from the picture, this looked pretty good.  That it was with a creamy coconutty broth that had the aromatics which included lemongrass, galangal and lime.  There was the sweetness of palm sugar and a touch of spice too.  Now we would never confuse this with the best Laksa I ever had, but this was more than acceptable.  Prawns had a sweet snap and even the egg wasn't overcooked.

Another soup noodle was the Tom Yum, which we also go with prawns.  Hidden within the fragrant broth, we found a wealth of al dente rice noodles.  It has partially soaked up the tangy and briny broth that had the brightness of lemongrass, lime leaves and galangal.  I could also get the fish sauce with its salty brininess.  Nice tang from the tomatoes too.  Again, not the best Tom Yum out there, but a very competent one.

Onto the Pad Thai, we also got this with prawns and it came with the usual bean sprouts, crushed peanuts and wedge of lime.  Even though it was stir-fried beautifully with some smokiness and caramelization from the high wok heat, I wasn't a fan of this dish.  It tasted ketchupy and one note.  I can see how some would like this flavour profile as it can be found extensively in North America.  But I really enjoy a tamarind-forward version more with caramelized palm sugar.

Now the Pad See Ew was considerably better.  It consisted of narrow rice noodles instead of the usual wide ones.  In this case, it worked well as it took on the caramelization and had sweet smokiness.  We got this with sliced beef and it was decently tender, if not a touch dry.  The veggies were cooked through but still had a nice crunch.  Overall, this was a good dish and I wouldn't have a problem ordering it again.

Another dish that had some great wok hei was the Mongolian Stir-Fry.  We got this with tofu and there was some pretty good caramelization and aroma.  All the veggies were cooked through, but still had an appealing crunch.  With the sweet and savory sauce, there was more than enough to enhance the natural sweetness of the veggies.  The smokiness of the stir-fry and intense sweetness of the palm sugar made for a nice compliment to the white rice.

We also got the Pineapple Fried Rice with chicken and it exhibited the same good wok hei as the rest of the dishes.  Each grain of rice was discernible and dry (in a good way).  There was some smokiness and nuttiness to compliment the sweetness of the pineapple.  There was also sufficient salt added so that the dish wasn't lacking seasoning. Love the ample amount of fried egg nestled within the rice.  It was so fluffy and well-seared.  

For our curry selection, we had the Penang Curry with prawns.  I would've preferred for the curry to be in a bowl next to rice rather than all on the plate.  Despite this, I found the curry to be sweet, aromatic and a bit spicy.  Once again, we found hits of lemongrass, galangal, lime leaves, coconut milk and fish sauce.  Very competent curry given the quick service concept.   Overall, the food at Rice & Noodle is more than acceptable and in fact, quite flavourful with wok caramelization.  Of course prices are reasonable and dishes come out quick.

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

The Good:

- Flavourful

- Proper wok hei

- Well-priced for what you get

The Bad:

- Not a fan of the Pad Thai flavour

OZen Japanese Restaurant

Typically, when we want good value sushi (that is actually decent), we look at places such as Sushi Garden or Sushi Town.   Sure, there are others, but I won't list them all here.  However, as much as the 2 aforementioned spots are acceptable for casual eats, there are limitations as to how satisfied you will be.  What I mean by that is that their menu is fairly basic with not a lot of unique dishes.  I'm not going to get into the argument about them not being Japanese-run because I don't care who makes my food, as long as it is prepared properly.  This brings us to OZen Japanese located in the T&T shopping complex on 152nd.  Taking over from Maguro, they offer large portions of well-made dishes that are reasonably-priced.

Before we got to the larger plates, we started with the Assorted Tempura.  Now this was a pretty large portion despite not being a main.  It consisted of 4 ebi, 2 yam and 1 piece each of sweet potato, kaboucha and asparagus.  The batter was relatively light while being crispy on the outside.  It was easy on the greasiness, even after biting into each item.  The ebi was buttery and sweet with a slight snap.  The other items were fully cooked while not being mushy.

We had something a bit different in the Deep Fried Sablefish Collar.  Now I've had kama many times before, but not battered and deep fried like this.  Personally, I enjoy grilled kama, but this was still good.  Due to the fact it was fatty sablefish and also that the batter locked in the moisture, the meat was super juicy and buttery.   It was also well-seasoned, only needing a squeeze from that lemon for acidity.

Neatly arranged on a sushi boat, we had the Assorted Sashimi.  This was plenty appetizing to look at with fresh slices of fish.  Colour and sheen were appealing with the hamachi being the best of the bunch.  It was super buttery with a natural sweetness with a taste of the sea.  We also found tuna, red tuna, Atlantic salmon, hokkigai, saba and tako as well.  As much as Atlantic salmon gets a bad rap, I liked this one as it was soft and fatty.

We didn't end there with the raw stuff as we also added the Deluxe Nigiri Combo consisting of Atlantic salmon, tuna, ebi, tamago, sockeye salmon, hamachi tako, unagi, ika, chopped scallop and ikura.  Much like the sashimi, the fish was fresh and visually-appealing.  They ate well too, with once again, the hamachi being the highlight.  But the salmon (both kinds) were good too as well as the tamago.  It was fluffy and layered properly.

For our one specialty roll, we selected the Aburi Popping Roll consisting of a imitation crab, cucumber and aburi salmon inside with aburi sauce, tobiko and jalapeno on the outside.  I found this quite pleasant with chewy sushi rice (that was also not laid on too thick) encasing soft salmon and creamy imitation crab mix.  The aburi sauce on the outside was creamy with a bit of a tang.  Since it was torched, it was caramelized with some smokiness.

On the topic of aburi sushi, we went for both the Aburi Saba and Aburi Salmon Oshi.  As you can see, the torching was evenly distributed.  Hence, we got the smokiness right off the bat with each bite.  The creaminess of the mayo-based sauce complimented the fish.  About that fish, the slice of saba and salmon was thick enough for impact.  Really liked the flavour of the saba as it was richer than the salmon.  I thought the jalapeno pepper slice could've been thinner though.

Now the best things to order here are actually "Sets".  For their Unagi Donburi Set, you can see that they include a considerable amount of food.  For $34.40, you get a large bowl of chewy rice topped with buttery slices of sauced unagi.  Then you also receive salad, miso soup, agedashi tofu, karaage, chawanmushi tsukemono and daily dish (this one was aburi oshi).  The unagi was buttery and soft with enough glaze to help flavour the rice.  Side dishes were solid where the karaage was juicy with crispy rendered skin.

We also ordered the Grilled Gindara Kama Set consisting of salad, miso soup, karaage, agedashi tofu, chawanmushi, onigiri and aburi oshi.  So I got my wish for grilled sablefish collar and it was fantastic.  Nicely marinated, these were buttery and flavourful with smokiness and caramelizatoin.  Sides were essentially same as the other set.  Overall, the food at OZen is above average and well-portioned.  Prices are reasonable for what you get too.

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

The Good:

- Above average eats

- Large portions

- Good value

The Bad:

- Super busy, prepare to wait

Captain's Oven Pizza

I'm sure you've noticed that where there is a Skytrain station, there will be development.  It makes sense though because building condos and the sort is a good way to increase density near transportation hubs.  Ultimately, services will inevitably be part of the deal as all these residents need things like grocery stores, medical offices, pet stores, insurance agencies, hair salons and restaurants.

The last one is of particular interest to me since many of these are tucked away within the residential complexes and mainly serve the local residents.  However, many of these places don't solely exist because they have a captive audience.  Rather, they are worth visiting, even if you do not live nearby.  Captain's Oven Pizza would be an example of this as I was rather impressed with their wares.  We started things off with a Caprese Salad which was good.  The tomatoes were pretty ripe (which you can clearly see in the picture) where the texture was possibly a bit soft, but I enjoyed the natural tomato sweetness.  Large slices of fresh mozzarella completed things.

Onto the pizzas, we went ahead and did half and half versions so we could try more flavours.  For the first, we had the Superb Soppresata and Pesto Chicken.  Nice leoparding on the crust which meant we had crispiness and smokiness.  Nice nutty flavour as well to go with the properly-seasoned dough.  I liked the spicy zestiness of the soppresata while the chicken pesto was bright with lots of tender chicken.  It was good to see the chicken being moist despite being double-cooked.

So you would think that the Meat Lover's pizza would've been my favourite, but in reality, it wasn't.  Nothing particularly wrong with it since it had a good mixture of meats, yet I felt the other flavours were more interesting.  This was true with the Oceanside as it combined prawns and bay scallops with capers, red onion, grape tomatoes and arugula.  So we got the sweet brininess that was complimented by the tangy sweetness of the capers and freshness of the tomatoes.  Nothing overwhelmed the seafood and let it stand on its own.

Although the half and half veggie pizza was nothing much to look at, I assure you that they tasted great.  For one half, we had the Chef's Special and the other was the Truffle Mushroom.  In reality, these were rather similar having an Alfredo base and mushrooms, truffle oil and arugula.  However, the Chef's Special added pesto, pine nuts and sundried tomatoes.  That afforded some herbaceous notes and nuttiness with the tang of the tomatoes.  

One pizza caught out eye on the menu and we decided to get the whole thing rather than doing half and half.  Consisting of jumbo prawns, crab, bay scallops and smoked salmon, the Fisherman's Catch was super seafoody and briny.  The natural sweetness really came out and was tempered by the salty smokiness of the salmon.  We had aromatics provided by the garlic oil.  One byproduct of having so many things on top, the crust became softer.  But that didn't bother me since the flavours were appealing.

One look at the Chocolate Pizza and you might conclude that it was a default dessert due to the use of the same pizza crust.  However, it turned out be much better than expected.  The crust was crispy as per usual, but the chocolate sauce they used was delicious and not crazy sweet.  The fresh ripe strawberries slices provided that fresh fruitiness.  As for their Tiramisu, it was unique as the mascarpone cream was super light and airy.  It was also purposefully sweet.  It was a bit light on the coffee flavour though.  Overall, the pizzas at Captain's Oven are delicious and feature well-charred pizza dough.  I wouldn't mind getting some takeout from this location from time-to-time.

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

The Good:

- Fresh well-seasoned pizza dough

- Brick oven cooks things fast with nutty charring

- Lots of choice for the pizza toppings

The Bad:

- Free parking is limited, otherwise you need to pay park