Cento Notti

* Restaurant is now closed*

For the longest time, I had planned to visit Elixir at the Opus Hotel in Yaletown. That was well over 7 years ago, when I lived a stone's throw away. Apparently, I took too long because it closed in 2010 and gave way to a popup restaurant called 100 Days which later became 100 Nights. In fact, I attempted to get into 100 Days one time after hockey, which never worked out. I finally gave up and now the place has morphed into Cento Notti. Mijune and I were graciously invited for a meal and to make fresh pasta in their kitchen (with Executive Chef Paul Marshall, formerly of the Italian Kitchen). Well, Mijune made fresh pasta, I just took photos. She's more photogenic anyways... In addition to fresh pasta, they make their sausages in-house as well (to Mijune's delight... ahem...).

After the pasta-making and sausage-gawking (by Mijune only), we settled in for dinner. We started with their House-Made Burrata with rosemary oil, buttermilk bread and a side of roasted onion jam. Unlike a typical burrata, this one was prepared with truffles and has a texture that was more chunky and stringy. The whole thing was encased in mozzarella and received a drizzle of salted rosemary oil. It was an unexpected surprise when I first spread it onto the slice of bread. The texture really threw me off, however, I really liked the taste. The salty-woodsy-cheesiness really went well with the sweetness of the onion jam. Then, we were presented with 2 pastas. We tried the Spaghetti Bolognese first and it was pretty good. Due to the nature of fresh pasta, we can never expect it be super al dente. With that in mind, I found the pasta to be texturally fine. The bolognese consisted of pork neck and veal which had been cooked until it was super tender. I found the sauce to be on the saltier side, but at the same time very flavourful. Lots of sweetness from the carrots and tang from the tomatoes.

Despite the good pasta, we were disappointed with the Savory Island Clam Fettucine Vongole. Let me rephrase that. The one thing that ruined what was an otherwise solid dish was the clams. For some reason or another, the clams were mushy and fishy. What made it bizarre was that each and every clam had opened. So they were not dead. Maybe a bad batch? So ignoring the clams, the sauce consisting of preserved lemon, leeks and white wine butter was quite tasty. I loved the acidity and tang from the lemon which helped break up the buttery sauce. Now, if we had left the meal right there with those 3 items, I'd have to admit that there would be some indifference. However, we asked for one more item in the Bromme Lake Duck Cacciatore for variety purposes. Thank goodness we did because it was friggin' fantastic. There was sliced duck breast with a braised leg resting on top of taleggio polenta. First of all, the seared duck breast was perfect. It appeared they sous-vide the duck and then seared the skin. Hence the meat was super moist and tender while the skin was crispy and nicely rendered down. The braised duck leg was moist and mostly tender. The skin was beautifully prepared where most of the fat had rendered leaving a gelatinous texture. There was a depth of flavour which was rich and flavourful. Lastly, the polenta was super tasty and went well with the braised duck meat. The taleggio added a nice cheesy flavour and some texture as well.

Of course with Mijune around, we couldn't leave without dessert! We had their signature Warm Jumbo Cookie first, which was a leftover item from 100 Days and Nights. This large treat was prepared in an iron skillet and topped with vanilla gelato. Although I thought it was a little on the sweet side, I did enjoy the contrast between the crispy exterior and soft interior. It was certainly warm (actually hot) and the gelato made it even better. For our second dessert, we had the Sponge Cake with macerated cherries and olive oil gelato. I found the sponge cake itself a touch dry, yet the crunchy exterior sprinkled with sugar was yummy. The cherries inside added some tart sweetness while the macerated cherries (with rum?) on top added some brightness. The olive oil gelato was good texturally and it helped alleviate the dryness of the sponge cake. Not a bad end to a relatively decent meal. The highlight for sure was the duck, which unfortunately will be taken off the menu for the spring (so go get it now!). Too bad about the clams, maybe it was just bad luck. A real plus is that the new chef, Paul Marshall, has made it his mission to make as many things in-house as possible, which bodes well going forward.

*Note: This was an invited dinner where all food was comped*

The Good:
- Many ingredients made in-house such as the pasta
- Most of the prices are okay in relation to the area
- Some may not like it, but I love the funky interior

The Bad:
- Some items are priced a touch high
- To some, the place may be confusing: is it a nightclub, fine dining restaurant or is it casual?

Al & Jan's Fish & Chips

In search of food one day (when am I not in search of food?), I wanted to get away from anything Asian. Trust me, it's pretty hard in the GVRD, especially in certain neighbourhoods. That would be the case in most of Surrey except for certain pockets. As I was driving down 152nd, I did my best to look the other way when I passed by Il Uk Jo. Can't understand why the place is still in business... Once past that intersection, I remembered a fish 'n chip joint called Al & Jan's. Formerly a Cod Father's franchise, Al & Jan went independent and continued to fry up fish for the locals. And while I was settling into my seat, it became very apparently they have a loyal following. It's nice to see customers welcomed like friends. You don't get that much anymore. Hey, this was my first visit and I felt at home!

Being a fish 'n chip joint, the menu is pretty focused. Therefore, the options are limited, but honestly, do one thing and do it right. Other than my fish 'n chip order, I did start with the Seafood Chowder. I wouldn't exactly categorize it as creamy, rather, it was more like a thick broth. That didn't really matter since I could taste the sea. The abundance of pepper was a pleasant surprise since most chowders are pretty mild. The best thing about this chowder was the insane amount of ingredients. It might as well been named seafood stew. Lots of flaky halibut, shrimp and clams made for a very hearty soup. For variety purposes, I got the Halibut and Chips with an extra piece of Cod. I gotta say that when the plate arrived, it was piping hot. So much so, I burned my tongue while being too eager with my first bite. The halibut was moist and flaky (which can easily be overcooked, but not here). The batter was crunchy and not too greasy.

As for the cod, it was soft and also cooked nicely. Due to the oilier nature of cod, it was super moist and soft. Hence, one end of it was slightly greasier than the rest of the fish. Not a huge problem though since the darn thing is fried. The fresh cut fries were fantastic. Crisp, hot and still plenty of potato goodness inside. Al & Jan's is definitely a little gem tucked in the Save-On-Foods complex. Not necessarily the first place you'd expect good fish 'n chips. However, it is better than a place like Pajo's (where it is in a more usual location I suppose).

The Good:
- Super friendly proprietors
- Solid eats

The Bad:
- Fish could've been bigger/thicker (in particular the halibut)

Always Seafood Restaurant

Due to one of our late Friday games last year, we desperately searched for restaurants open real late (or real early). It was 1:15am and we hadn't even left the rink yet. There are not a whole lot of really good places to eat that are open until 4:00am (or 24 hours). Therefore, it was out of necessity we headed over to Always Seafood Restaurant. As such, we ended up trying their "da-lang" menu which features smaller dishes usually served with plain congee. Although the food wasn't horrible, it wasn't great either being really greasy. Hence, we have not made a revisit since. However, when I met up with Stephanie Yuen at C Restaurant, she insisted that the food we ate was not representative of the chef. In fact, she invited me to a wine tasting/dinner at Always. Since I respect her opinion, especially when it comes to Chinese food, I accepted.

Alvin, who was with us at C Restaurant, was also present at our dinner at Always. Man, I have major camera/lens envy when he is around. I gotta get myself a better lens! We started the meal with an Appetizer Platter consisting of 5-Spice Beef Shank, Honey Garlic Spareribs, Marinated Jellyfish, Honey Walnut Prawns, Jellied Pork Hock and Fried Squid. This was a great start with perfectly textured jellyfish which was in large strands (I hate little bits which are hard to pick up) and seasoned properly. There was good hits of sesame oil, white pepper, soy and chili flakes. The honey walnut prawns were very sweet and I would've liked more snap. The walnuts were crunchy with a candied exterior. Crispy on the outside and tender on the inside (with some chew still), the fried squid was also spiced nicely with wok salt, chilies and fried garlic. The 5-spice beef shank was somewhat on the chewier side, yet not overly so and exhibited plenty of flavour. Lastly, the pork hock (underneath everything) had the requisite jellied texture.

Next up was an interesting dish being the Sauteed Beef Tenderloin in Silver Fish Bird's Nest. Okay, first of all, let me get this straight. These were not the same silver fish you find crawling on your kitchen floor. Rather, they are little fish that are battered, fried and usually served with plain congee for late night eats. In this case, they used the fried silver fish as the ingredient for the "bird's nest" instead of potato or taro. This was both an interesting and tasty twist to this dish. Unfortunately, the beef tenderloin was far from tender. It needed more tenderization and/or less cooking. Next we had the Wok-Fried Fish Filet with decorative carrots slices, Shanghainese bak choy, scallops, straw mushrooms, flowering chives and julienned egg. This was a pleasant dish consisting of moist chili-spiced fish filets, perfectly cooked scallops and crisp veggies with a consume glaze on top.

After these "appetizers", we moved onto the Traditional Fish Maw Soup with crab and egg swirl. I really liked this since it was silky while not being too thick and there was a balance of flavours. The fish maw prepared nicely where it was soft without completely melting into the broth. With an intoxicating aroma, the Crabs Sauteed in Chef's Special Sauce was presented at our table. We tried to figure out what was in this special sauce since it was tasty and slightly different than the typical ginger and onion flavour. We soon found out it was the use of king onion which has a much more pronounced "spicy" flavour. The use of 2 types of soy also added to the depth of flavour. As for the crab itself, they were meaty and fried perfectly where the meat was fluffy and moist.

Moving along, we had the Double Cooked Goose presented in a "garden" of perfectly cooked and vibrant broccoli florets. This particular goose was first wok seared, then braised topped with a combination of bean sauces. I found the meat to be tender while still retaining quite a bit of texture. There was a mild amount of good gaminess which added to the flavour. The sauce was balanced and silky. Then the much anticipated Lobster Roll with king sauce arrived. Starting with the positives, the sauce was really good. It was a combination of butter and salted egg yolk. If you are familiar with salted duck egg yolk, the flavour is unmistakable. I liked how this was manipulated to form a silky sauce which was actually not salty, rather it was quite mild. As for the roll itself, it consisted of shrimp mousse, chicken and lobster. Honestly, I couldn't taste the lobster nor experience the texture of lobster. It was dry and mealy. It was disappointing. At least I could dip the crunchy cucumbers into the sauce.

After the forgettable lobster roll, we were presented with the Deep Fried Pipa Tofu in hot & sour sauce. My initial thoughts were, "a red sweet & sour sauce... really?". Oh how wrong was I! This sauce was fantastic. Imagine a really good sweet and sour sauce spiked with red hot chilies and you got yourself flavours that rocked. Add in the wonder texture of the pipa tofu, which is essentially a reconstructed fried ball of soft tofu with Chinese sausage, cilantro, shiitake and dried shrimp, you have a textural and flavour delight. Toss in some fried garlic chips and what we had here was the best dish of the night - hands down. Our last savoury dish was the typical filler item being the Gold & Silver Fried Rice with seafood, corn and golden squash. There was plenty of seafood which made the rice "meaningful" while the crunch from the corn and gai lan stalks added texture. I wasn't a huge fan of the squash as it detracted from the rice since it was dense and heavy. The rice itself was chewy and not greasy.

After this came the desserts starting with the Golden Squash with Sweet Walnut. Apparently, this dessert was mentioned in Conde Nast or something like that. Whatever the case, it is a signature dish of sorts here and I can honestly say it was pretty good. The fried squash and walnuts were lightly candied and it wasn't as heavy as I would've thought. However, I don't think I could've eaten more than my one piece of each though. Lastly, we were presented with the Diced Yam in Coconut Soup. Rather than coconut milk, this was a coconut broth (I think, didn't really taste any coconut) with yam, taro and tapioca pearls. We were indifferent about this one. Probably something to do with a bias towards sweet soups. However, this meal proved that the Executive Chef, Gordon Chan, is capable of creating delicacies that are not often found in a smaller Chinese restaurant. Sure, not everything was great, but when they were, it definitely exemplified his skill and creativity. Hence, my da lang experience was not really indicative of what you can get here during dinner hours.

*Note: This was an invited dinner where all food was comped*

The Good:
- Creative dishes
- Open late
- Okay pricing

The Bad:
- My late night experience was so-so
- Creative dishes, but some didn't work out

Jellie-D's

*Now Gordy's*

A while back, I had visited Jellie-D's and came away thoroughly unimpressed with their donuts. They were stale and very unappetizing. Even trying to hawk them off to my kids didn't work. Apparently, the place had just been bought out by people who were not exactly donut experts. Hence, I merely wrote it off never to return. Every day as I drove past it, I couldn't help being attracted to the signage. Yup, that was the reason I tried it in the first place. I'm a sucker for cool signage! Then one day, it appeared Jellie-D's changed ownership once more. This was confirmed by Mijune since she had went there for breakfast. I asked her about the donuts and she remarked that they were getting out of the donut-making business. Uh... Jellie-D's without donuts? Wouldn't that be akin to a PF Chang's without Chinese food? Wait, scratch that...

That certainly piqued my interest and considering they were advertising a complete breakfast for $3.00, I was game to return. I wasn't expecting much, but to my surprise, the breakfast was carefully prepared and quite filling. The proprietors were really friendly and did not seem the least bit concerned that I was only dropping the equivalent of spare change for a sit-down meal. I had the Sausage and Eggs with hashbrowns and toast which was more than respectable. Hey, some other breakfast joints charging way more couldn't do better than this. The sunny side eggs were perfect, the sausages were not overly fatty while the toast was nicely browned. I wasn't a huge fan of the hashbrowns, but hey, it's $3.00 we're talking about here! We also had the Bacon and Eggs which were also prepared properly. As you can see, the bacon was meaty and crisp while the over-easy egg was done right without any breakage.

Okay, this visit really made me curious about their $5.50 Burger Meal as well. Much like the one offered at Burger Burger, it includes a burger, fries and pop. For those keeping track, that is about the same price (and sometimes less) than a McD's meal. Again, I was not expecting much, yet was pleasantly surprised to find a homemade hamburger patty cooked with a nice crusty sear while being completely moist on the inside. It was a touch salty, but had the sweetness of onions to balance it out. While I was expecting a standard sesame bun, it actually turned out to be a toasted roll which was soft and went well with the meat, crisp lettuce, tomato and thousand island dressing. This was a solid burger for the price. As for the fries, they were actually fresh cut. Too bad they were limp and oil-logged. Whatever the case, I ain't gonna complain much. The place doesn't sell donuts anymore, but what they do have is cheap food which is actually pretty decent.

The Good:
- Very cheap
- Food is better than one would think
- Owners are really friendly

The Bad:
- They need to change the name, it confuses people

Pho Thuan An

*Restaurant is now closed*

While dining at C Restaurant, Alvin asked me whether I was attending the BC Food Expo. Well, I didn't apply for media accreditation nor was I directly involved in the restaurant industry. Therefore, my answer was no and I didn't even think of reconsidering. Then all of a sudden, my father-in-law (who used to be an Executive Chef) asked if Viv and I wanted to go. Um... I suppose... As much as the Food Expo is a good event for those in the industry, I really was in no hurry to see the latest in wok pit technology (although secretly I want one in my house). After watching the BC Chinese Chef of the Year competition hosted by Stephanie Yuen (where Mijune was a judge), we did a quick round and headed out of the Vancouver Convention Centre for eats.

We really had no predetermined destination, so we merely drove up Kingsway in search of Pho. With all the choices available, the world was our oyster. But for me, the one place that caught my eye was Pho Thuan An. The attractive red paint job on the outside along with the modern signage got my attention, unlike some other divy-looking places with an abundance of neon. Saying that this restaurant is small would be an understatement. I think my bedroom is bigger than the entire dining area. We were welcomed by a very friendly and courteous owner who seemed to be the only person on the floor. We wondered how he would handle everything when it got busy since it was already hard to flag him down with only one other table present.

So when we did get his attention, Viv ordered the Smoked Salmon Salad Roll to start. We really liked this different approach to a generally standard item. It consisted of smoked salmon, real crab meat, cucumber, romaine lettuce and green onion. There was a good combination of textures and flavours going on in the roll, yet the thing that brought it all together was the dip. It was a sweet peanut concoction with a small dollop of sriracha, fried garlic and fish sauce. This was some tasty sauce I tell you with a mix of sweet, spicy and aromatics. My father-in-law had the Pho and it arrived steaming hot, as it should be). The broth was light (good balance of sweet and savoury though), yet still had flavour at-the-same-time. There was very little in the way of an MSG hit. The noodles were a touch soft while the meats were tender.

For myself, I wanted something different and decided to go for the Cambodian Dry Noodles. Sitting on top of rice noodles, instead of the usual broad egg noodles, there was shrimp, quail egg, sliced pork and liver. This was a pretty large bowl of food with plenty of ingredients and noodles. I thought that there might've been a touch too much sweet soy sauce mixed in with the noodles, but when eaten with the rest of the components, it wasn't as salty. For her main, Viv had the Lemongrass Chicken on Rice. We loved how it was served with a fried sunny side egg (it always makes eating rice a better experience). The broken rice had a chewy texture which was not too dry nor wet. Loved the moist texture of the chicken and the abundance of lemongrass flavour, however, it really need more charring. It almost had a steamed quality to it.

Unexpectedly, we were presented with a complimentary order of Che Dau Trang at the end of the meal by the nice owner. This dessert consisting of sweet sticky rice & bean pudding with coconut milk was only semi-sweet and served warm. This was a nice ending to a surprising meal. For such a small place, Thuan An serves up solid eats at a reasonable price. Furthermore, the service, as sparse as it is, is warm and honest. In a sea of Vietnamese restaurants, it is very hard to differentiate the good from the bad. Yet, Pho Thuan An certainly succeeds in separating themselves from the regular.

The Good:
- Warm, honest service
- Solid eats
- No neon (hey, it is a plus to me)

The Bad:
- Kinda cramp inside
- Sparse service

Taqueria Jalisco

Since returning from San Diego, I have been craving Mexican food. No joke. Despite my biases (as in Mexican food is not my favourite cuisine), when one gets to eat the real stuff, it can have a profound effect on one's perception. Emerging from the darkness of tater tots posing as "Mexi-Fries" and enough ground beef (if it is in fact meat...) to make one turn vegan, real Mexican food can be downright tasty. This desire for the real deal was somewhat satisfied with my visit to Taqueria Playa Tropical in New West not too long ago. Of course we have La Taqueria, but it only focuses on one thing (and in my opinion, does it well). So where to next? While perusing Urbanspoon (and Mary's blog), I noticed a place in Whalley that I must've passed many a time without even considering eating there. While most might find Taqueria Jalisco shady, for me it makes it more legit. C'mon, it's Mexican food here. No need for glitz or unnecessary frills thank you very much. Concentrate on the food!

And yes, as much as the outside is nothing to look at, the inside is pretty much the same. Part grocery story and part restaurant, it really is about the food here. We got off on a good start with the requisite complimentary Tortilla Chips with fresh pico de gallo, salsa verde and salsa roja. Right away, we knew this was legit since the sauces had a kick. I particularly liked the salsa verde since it had a crisp, clean taste to go with the spice. Mrs. Spray Bottle went with the Chimichanga and the darn thing was massive. Stuffed in the perfectly fried flour tortilla was big pieces of chicken breast, cheese and pico de gallo. Despite being deep-fried, the chimichanga was not greasy at all. The oil must've been at the perfect temperature since the tortilla did not absorb much of it. There was a good mix of ingredients inside that kept things moist without making the entire thing soggy. Hoops had the Enchilada and requested that it be topped with a fried egg. Apparently, he had it this way at a Mexican joint in Bellingham before. Well, egg or not, the Enchilada was topped with a lot of cheese and just the right amount of sauce.

We also tried their Barbacoa (Shredded Beef) Torta and man was it a steal for $5.50! The darn thing was huge. The roll (which looked like French bread) was crusty and crunchy where it stood up to the combination of pico de gallo, tender shredded beef, lettuce and cheese. Although the location has a lot to do with it, this torta at $5.50 makes the one at Las Tortas seem incredibly over-priced. On the topic of big, the Burrito de Salsa Roja was absolutely massive. If you look at the picture, that is a really large plate and the burrito took up almost all of it. With a generous amount of salsa roja, melted cheese and a dollop of pico de gallo, the darn thing looked enticing. Now, unlike many burritos, this was not packed with fillers. Yes, there was the usual rice and beans, but there was an equal amount of tender shredded beef and cheese. The wonderful beef really put it over the top because gave the burrito an "oomph" which was filling, yet eliminated that "starchy" fill-up-the-tummy phenomenon. With that being said, this would still be a challenge for someone to finish in one sitting. I must mention that none of the dishes we had were particularly spicy. In fact, they were quite mild which would appeal to most people. If you want spicy, add the provided sauces.

By default, we had to try some of their Tacos as well with one each of the Pollo and Carne Asada. Unfortunately, we weren't huge fans of the ones we had though. The carne asada (steak) was tough, chewy and dry. Flavour was okay though, as it was seasoned with some spice. The same could be said about the chicken as well. Of course being breast meat, it would be more likely to be dry. I wouldn't say it was incredibly dry though. At the very least, they didn't skimp on the meat. Something a bit different was the Cocktail de Camarones (or shrimp cocktail). If you were expecting a few cooked shrimp with cocktail sauce, think again. This resembled a gazpacho with shrimp more than anything else. Essentially a cold "soup" consisting of tomato juice, avocado, peppers, cilantro and onions with shrimp, this was a surprising hit. A touch sweet and refreshing, the plump, perfectly cooked shrimp added a nice snap and natural sweetness.

As for myself, I had eyes for one thing on the menu and that was the Menudo (tripe soup). I gotta say, it was "offally" good (sorry for the bad pun). The soup was accompanied by tortillas, onions & cilantro and dry oregano. Unlike the one I had at Taqueria Playa Tropical, the one here was much lighter and less salty. That is not to say there was no flavour though. In fact, it was tasty with a balance of flavours (with only a hint of spice) and since they had properly cleaned the tripe, it wasn't very gamy. The tripe itself was perfectly prepared. The pieces were of a good size, tender and as mentioned, cleaned properly. I liked how it was soft while still maintaining a bite. Now a tripe soup wouldn't be enough for lunch would it? So I added a Tamale for good measure. Similar to a Chinese "juong", this combination of masa and shredded pork was wrapped in corn husks then steamed. This was a very good tamale since the masa was moist and had a pleasant texture. I even liked it better than the ones I had in San Diego actually. I'm sure the texture had to do with the good amount of lard used in the masa mixture. Moreover, the meat in the middle was not dry and well-seasoned. I could've eaten a few more of these, but that would blow my caloric intake... Yes, that is an important consideration since tripe is high in cholesterol as well.

Lastly, for no other reason than variety, we had the Chicken Quesadilla. Again, this thing was big and chalk full of large chunks of seasoned chicken breast meat and cheese. Loved the preparation on the flat top which didn't rely on grease for its colour or texture. This was served with a side of fresh guacamole, sour cream and pico de gallo. The only complaint was that the chicken was slightly dry. Yet, there really wasn't a whole lot to complain about in general. The food was plentiful and well-priced. Furthermore, the food is authentic and made with care. Sure, the area might scare some people, but believe me, there is really nothing to be worried about. It is definitely worth visiting if you are ever in the area. This is a whole lot better than most of the Mexican stuff found in Vancouver proper.

The Good:
- Good portions
- Inexpensive
- Friendly staff/owner

The Bad:
- It is a bit sketch for some people
- Some of the meats could've been cooked less or be more tender