Mr Mikes

For some people, the mere mention of "Mr Mikes" brings back memories of mediocre food and a crappy salad bar. Yes, Mr Mikes was the laughing stock of chain restaurants in the GVRD. How times have changed. First, all the old locations of Mr Mikes are practically gone. Second, there are now 4 new locations of Mr Mikes in the lower mainland. This may be a shock to many people since Mr Mikes was essentially left for dead as it was squeezed out by newer and better options to eat. Much like Moxie's and Joey's, Mr Mikes has revamped their image, decor and menu. On the recommendation of JH and ES, I pay Mr Mikes a visit for the first time in over 20 years (gasp)!

We head out to the Surrey location of Mr Mikes, which used to be the old location of Canadian Tire (insert joke here). Upon entering the restaurant, I quickly knew we weren't in Kansas anymore (Wizard of Oz reference). Mr Mikes has grown up (or gotten younger)! The staff is definitely more hip and younger than before. Moreover, the decor is modern, along the lines of the Moxie's, Joeys, Catcus Club et al. We were seated promptly in the lounge/bar area since the actual restaurant-side is only open for dinner.

Since Mr Mikes called itself a steakhouse, I went ahead and ordered the Mikes Classic Combo which included a 7 oz Sirloin Steak with Mushrooms, Baked Potato and a bowl of Clam Chowder to start. I have to say this is the biggest bowl of clam chowder I've ever had in a restaurant. It was the size of a wonton noodle bowl and it was nearly FULL! This is easily 3 times larger than anywhere else. Of course quantity isn't the most important thing, if it tastes bad, I don't care how much they give me. Well, the chowder was actually not bad. It had plenty of clam flavour and there were an ample amount of clams, potatoes and celery. The clam chowder was also very creamy; however, it was a tad salty and had no other distinguishing flavour (herbs).

I asked for the steak to be medium-rare; but more on the rare side. To my surprise, it was cooked perfectly (I'm still haunted by the old Mr Mikes). It was topped by a generous amount of mushrooms. The amount of mushrooms here would be enough for 3 Earl's dishes. A decent sized baked potato and 2 large onion rings completed the dish. Although the steak tasted great, it was not really all that tender. I'm not sure what grade of beef they use, I couldn't find that information from the menu or website. The baked potato was really good though. It was fluffy inside and topped with sour cream and real bacon bits. The onion rings are the breaded variety and were very good (according to JH).

Looking at the Mikeburger, it looked almost the same it was 20+ years ago! The large beef patty nestled in a garlic French loaf. It was smothered in Mike's Sauce (insert your own joke here), which is essentially a variation of Thousand Islands dressing. According to the 2 people who had the burger, the French loaf was soft and the beef patty was moist and juicy. The fries were pretty good; yet it was not any better than other fries I've had at chain restaurants. JH had the Grilled Chicken and Red Pepper Quesadilla. It looked very good, with plenty of big chunks of chicken in a crispy quesadilla. JH said it was very good and I believe her. The other dishes at our table included Chicken Tenders, Roast Beef Dip and Hot Wings. They all looked a bit generic, where you would not be able to differentiate them from any other chain restaurant.

So how does the newly made over Mr Mikes do in this re-visit? Well, Mr Mikes looks a whole lot better, with a nicer decor and trendier demeanor. However, most of the food is not distinctive. There are some highlights; but it doesn't set itself apart from anyone else. Moreover, with the steak that I tried, it won't send any fear into places like The Keg. Yet, the prices and portions at Mr Mikes are better than it's competitors. This is probably what will set Mr Mikes apart from places like The Keg, Cactus Club and Joey's. It's possible that Mr Mikes does not intend to compete directly with these places. Rather, it could fill the gap in between Red Robin and Earl's. I'm curious to see what will be the ultimate result of this relaunch of an old name.

The Good:
- Decent prices, decent portions
- Decor is pleasant
- Service is good

The Bad:
- It's a steakhouse, but steak is tough?
- Food is quite generic

Mr Mikes
8140 120th Street
Surrey, B.C.
778-565-7857
mrmikes.ca

Business Hours:
11:00am - 11:00pm (Sun - Wed)
11:00am - 12:00am (Thu - Sat)

Anna`s Cake House

I really wasn't planning on getting anymore Chinese Bakery items today. But since I was out shopping at Coscto, I figured, "why not?" I quickly made it over to Anna's Cake House on North Road because I was missing the Canucks game (the horror!). This is my 4th stop in my quest to find the best Chinese bakery in the GVRD. I've been to Anna's many times before and their cakes are definitely some of the best. I've never minded their bakery items and today was my chance to compare it with Maxim's, New Town and Pine House. Of course there are smaller independent bakeries that can be surprising; but I'll leave that to after I finish up with the bigger stores first (St Germain and T&T).

Nearing the end of the day, the parking lot in front of Anna's was quite empty. Normally, this parking lot is a mess because there are too many businesses and too few spaces. I quickly snapped a picture of the storefront and made my way in. Just as I was snapping a picture of the display case, I heard the 2 staff members mumbling in Chinese about me taking the photo. They then warned me not to take any photos (in English). Unbeknownst to them, I understood them when they were mumbling. I replied that I wrote an internet blog and it is essentially free advertising for them, especially since I like Anna's products. They both were unimpressed and probably thought I was a wacko. I know it's private property and it's their right to stop me from taking photos, but really, what am I going to do with a picture of Char Sui Baos??? When they did decide to speak with me, they tried to push the egg tarts at a discount. I guess they needed to get rid of them.

From their limited selection, we got some Egg Tarts, Coconut Tarts, BBQ Pork Buns, Wiener Buns (yes, hot dog wieners), Ham & Egg Buns and Loh Por Beng. The last one, if translated, means "old wife cake". I know, it's not a flattering name; but it was very good. It was flaky and the filling was sweet, but not too sweet. If you look at the picture of the tarts and if you are an egg tart aficionado, you'll notice that the tart shell is not flaky. Well, it wasn't and that ruins the egg tart, even if the filling was good. Mind you, that hard "pie-shell" was actually quite good with the coconut tart.

The BBQ Pork was both good and bad. From the picture, you can see that they really need to put more filling into the bun. However, the bun itself was very good, it was both soft and a bit chewy. I know this is personal preference, but I don't prefer onions in my BBQ pork bun. I believe it kills the taste of the pork. Moreover, the filling was a bit too sweet for my tastes. The one positive is that the quality of the bun itself bodes well for the other bakery items since the dough is used universally. Overall, if you take the cakes into consideration, Anna's is a solid choice for Chinese buns and pastries. Anna's products are certainly more delicate than the others; however, New Town still takes the "cake" in overall execution.

The Good:
- Products are made with care
- Outstanding cakes (especially wedding cakes)
- Pastry and doughs are very well done (except for the egg tart)

The Bad:
- More expensive than other bakeries
- Lack of filling
- Snooty staff (according to JA, it's common at all locations)

Anna's Cake House
4333 North Road
Burnaby, B.C.
604-444-3332
www.annascake.com

Business Hours:
10:00am - 6:30pm (7 days a week)

Leela Thai

Okay, I know what you're thinking, Thai food in White Rock? Yes, Viv and I made the journey out to White Rock to meet Nikita and Bluebeard. They have have frequented quite a few Thai restaurants and rave about this place. They've been right about many restaurants in the past, so I was game for this adventure. Leela Thai, unlike many of the Thai restaurants in the GVRD, is run by actual Thai people. This might be one of the reasons why it is so popular out in the White Rock/Surrey area. Nikita made a reservation for the buffet, since it is apparently quite popular. Every year, Leela Thai celebrates Songkran, which is the traditional Thai new year, by offering a buffet for 5 days (normally they do not have a buffet). This year, it is from April 14 - 19th.

Upon arriving at Leela Thai, I noticed the buffet on the back wall, there seemed to be a good selection of items. We spotted Nikita and Bluebeard and quickly settled in. While the others began to get their food, I started snapping photos. I don't think I got to eat until everyone had almost finished their first plate. I'm so dedicated! Actually, one of the servers starting chatting me up as to what is better - Nikon or Canon. Well, I really didn't have an answer for that since I'm such an amateur with my DSLR right now.

When I finally got some food to eat, I started with the Me-ung Sod, which is essentially a lettuce wrap. The filling consisted of ground beef, chili paste, garlic, basil, onion and bell peppers. It was quite spicy and Viv made the mistake of adding more chili peppers. Suffice to say, it was fiery experience for her. I liked the dish, it was flavourful and spicy, it's just too bad it was a bit cold. I also tried the Spring Rolls and they were quite crispy and not oily at all. Combined with the sweet dipping sauce, it was quite pleasant to eat. Up next, I got some Tom Yum Gai, which is a popular Thai soup (this one had chicken, thus the "gai"). Unfortunately, the soup was lukewarm, I think the heating apparatus was insufficient. Overall, the soup was quite flavourful with lots of lemongrass and lime hits. However, I think they were a bit heavy with the Nahm Plah (fish sauce) since the soup was a bit salty.

The Pad Thai was a stripped down version of the regular version. It only had tofu, salted radish and eggs, while the shrimp, bean sprouts, green onions and peanuts were missing. I guess the carrots took the place of the bean sprouts. Despite being the bare-bones version of Pad Thai, it was still quite good. The noodles were soft, yet still firm and the taste of fish sauce were present. It could've used some tamarind though for more zing. I also tried a piece of the Thai Gai Yang, which is essentially Thai BBQ chicken. The chicken had really good colour and was super tender. The marinade completely penetrated the entire piece of chicken and every bite was flavourful.

There was an interesting dish called Ruam-mit Seafood, that I've never tried before. It consisted of mussels, prawns and squid sauteed in a chili sauce with peppers, garlic, onions and basil. I quite enjoyed this dish. It was very flavourful and a bit spicy; yet it didn't take away from the delicate flavours of the seafood. One dish that really didn't work was the Pad Ped Moo, which is fried pork spareribs sauteed in a roasted chili sauce with bell peppers, garlic, onions and basil. The flavours were really good; but the pork was severely overcooked. Fortunately the Pla Laht Prig was cooked perfectly. It's filets of Tilapia which are deep-fried and sauteed with a sweet & sour-type sauce.

Last on the buffet line were 3 types of Thai curry, there was a tofu red curry; a chicken yellow curry and a pork green curry. Being quite full, I only tried the yellow and green curry. Both were quite good. Lastly, I tried the Tub Tim Grob, which is a dessert soup consisting of sweetened coconut milk. What's in the soup is quite interesting. There were bits of pear that had been coated with tapioca flour and red/green food colouring (apparently, the traditional method uses water chestnuts). In addition, there were slices of jack fruit, young coconut and lychee. I really enjoyed this dessert and if I wasn't so full, I would have had a few more bowls of it.

Eating a buffet is both a blessing and a curse, especially for a restaurant that usually doesn't do buffets. The blessing is that you can try so many more items than a regular meal. The curse is that most the food is not exactly how it is supposed to be. The food may not be at the right temperature since it's been sitting there and the flavours could be a bit off since the food is being cooked in big batches. Moreover, meats and vegetables may overcook as it sits in the warming tray. Thus, I gave Leela Thai the benefit of the doubt for the issues with some of the dishes. But, the flavours were generally quite good and nothing was terrible. I saw a table having the regular menu and the portions seemed very decent compared to the pathetic-sized portions from Sala Thai. Combined this with personable service, I can see why Leela Thai is so popular in this area.

The Good:
- Food is decent
- Portion size is adequate
- Friendly service

The Bad:
- Some of the items were salty
- Probably due to the buffet, some items were not representative

Leela Thai
1310 Johnston Road
White Rock, B.C.
604-541-9631
www.leelathairestaurant.com

Business Hours:
12:00pm - 2:30pm, 5:00pm - 10:00pm (Mon - Fri)
5:00pm - 10:00pm (Sat & Sun)

Fuel

*Fuel is now Refuel*

Quick... When you think of fried chicken in Vancouver, what comes to mind? KFC? Church's? Popeye's? Lee's? LA Chicken? Depending on your preference, you most certainly can get decent fried chicken at these places (well, maybe not KFC). Now I bet not many people would associate Fuel with fried chicken. After all, there is no drive-thru! However, you can get some pretty good fried chicken at Fuel from 12:00pm - 2:00pm every Friday until the end of summer. Mind you, at $19.50 (including beer), it'd better be good! Of course, the fried chicken at Fuel is not something you'd find at the aforementioned restaurants. The organic chicken are sous-vide in buttermilk before they are dusted with seasoned flour and deep-fried (you can watch the video of this here).

I have to give credit to Vandelay for our visit to Fuel. He has definitely been a great resource when it comes restaurants. Rich Guy and Donna Chang joined us for this meal as well. Vandelay and I both ordered the fried chicken, Donna ordered the Pork Schnitzel Sandwich and I bribed Rich Guy into ordering the Confit Albacore Tuna Melt. I promised him a drumstick for his troubles. I really didn't want 3 orders of the fried chicken, I'd have nothing to talk about! Before we got our entrees, we started off with complimentary bread with butter and sea salt. I usually don't talk about complimentary bread; however, the butter was so creamy and tasty. I just had to mention that.

The fried chicken consisted of 3 pieces, one side, a buttermilk biscuit and gravy. The side and biscuit change every week. This week, it was a red onion biscuit and a kale/black-eyed peas mix. The chicken was pretty good. It was very tender and juicy due to the sous-vide process. This involves placing the meat in vacuum sealed bags which are dipped into a temperature-controlled water bath. The chicken at Fuel is cooked for 2 hours in the water bath before they are fried.

One bite into the chicken and I immediately knew this was no ordinary fried chicken. It was so tender and juicy. It was as if the chicken was roasted, rather than being fried. I personally thought that the chicken was delicately flavoured, despite the fact some have considered it salty (have you not tried KFC, that's salty!). One complaint is that the chicken could have been a little more crispy. The biscuit was soft and fluffy with just a hint of red onion. Vandelay and I both dipped it into the gravy and it was very tasty. I didn't like the kale and black-eyed peas very much. It was cooked with shallots and the flavour was light; but I didn't enjoy the texture of the peas. They were done al dente and personally I prefer them a bit softer. However, I'm sure someone else will have a different opinion about them.

The schnitzel sandwich was good, but nothing special. The pork was well-seasoned and it was fried-up perfectly. However, it tasted like any other schnitzel that I've had. The tuna melt was a bit disappointing. The fish was good, but it was overcooked. I'm not sure if it was meant to be this way; but overcooked tuna has the texture of chicken breast meat. If the tuna was undercooked a bit, the melt would've been better. However, the homemade chips that came with the melt were quite good.

We decided to share 2 desserts and that ended up to be quite the gong show. We ordered the Tahitian Vanilla Doughnuts with pumpkin ice cream and house made root beer. Also, we got the Kentucky Bourbon Creme Brulee with spearmint ice cream and cocoa nib biscuit. If you can imagine, sharing the donuts was no problem; but the root beer and the brulee were another matter. Let's just say it was a bit messy in the end. We really liked the donuts, they were crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. There's nothing better than warm donuts! The pumpkin ice cream was dropped into the root beer so it became a float. We thought the root beer was very good, it had lots of root beer taste without too much sugar. The carbonated jelly on the bottom was a treat! The brulee was pretty ordinary; yet the top was caramelized perfectly. We like crunchy, caramelized sugar!

Of course, by virtue of having only one lunch at Fuel does not provide a true representation of the restaurant. However, I did enjoy my visit. I liked the open-kitchen, the decor and the ambiance. Moreover, the service was solid. Our server was knowledgeable, attentive and pleasant. Everything came expeditiously and I noticed the little details such as all of our meals arriving at the same time (with help from other staff of course). Although I wasn't fond of all the food, the combination of service and ambiance made it a good experience.

The Good:
- Impeccable service
- Modern decor and ambiance
- Good fried chicken (only limited time though)

The Bad:
- Some of the other dishes were average
- Parking could be an issue

Fuel
1944 West 4th Avenue
Vancouver, B.C.
604-288-7905
fuelrestaurant.ca

Business Hours:
12:00pm - 2:30pm, 5:30pm - close (Mon - Fri)
5:30pm - close (Sat & Sun)

Tasty Sweets & Restaurant

Alright, I was thinking about what I would eat for lunch today. I considered going to Mehfil for their Indian buffet. I decided to throw that thought up on Facebook and almost instantaneously, Nikita makes a comment that I should avoid at all costs. Well, I have heard conflicting stories about Mehfil. Some say it's good and some suggest to avoid it like a full-face-visor-wearing Corolla driver in Richmond. As I was just finishing responding to Nikita's comment, I got another comment from someone else suggesting Tasty Sweets and Restaurant. Well, that idea sounded good since Tasty Sweets is less than 5 minutes away.

Having never been to Tasty Sweets before, I really didn't know what to expect. From what people had told me, I expected it to be some fast food joint. However, it sure didn't look like one. In fact, it was quite nice inside. But, it was quite dark inside since all the blinds were drawn. Moreover, all the furnishings and decor were dark coloured as well. Why does it seem like every Indian restaurant I go to is dark? It makes for difficult photo-taking! Anyways, I looked over the menu and it's the usual assortment of items. Since I was eating alone (gasp!), I decided to get the lunch special for $9.95. It included a choice of Butter Chicken or Goat Curry, Palak Paneer, Tandoori Chicken (2 pcs), rice, naan and Gulab Jaman. There is a vegetarian lunch special for $8.95 which includes 3 vegetable curries, rice, naan and dessert. You'll find similar lunch specials at many of the Indian restaurants in the area. These specials are an excellent way of sampling an array of items from each restaurant. Similar to Mahek, the pop that I ordered was bottomless.

While I was waiting, I picked up a takeout menu. I was told that the prices on the menu were out-of-date. So for reference purposes, add about a dollar to each of the major items and 50 cents to the smaller items. My food arrived on a platter similar to Desi Junction. However, the one at Desi Junction was more aesthetically pleasing. There was ample amount of food for $9.95. There were 2 full pieces of naan that had been cut into halves. However, the naan itself was far from fluffy. It was doughy despite not being very thick. The Butter Chicken was full of large pieces of chicken; but it was super salty. All I could taste was salt and tomato; rather than the smooth delicate flavours that it is synonymous with. On the other hand, the Palak Paneer was quite good. It was a bit spicy, with nice fluffy chunks of paneer (cheese) nestled in creamy-textured spinach. The Tandoori Chicken was quite average. Compared to the flavours at Mirch Masala, it was a bit bland and overcooked. Yet, it was still better than the Tandoori Chicken at Mahek. Lastly, the Gulab Jaman was sweet, but not unbearably sweet. I'm not really a big fan of this dessert; but this one wasn't too bad.

Tasty Sweets was okay, I didn't hate the meal, but it definitely lags behind the other Indian restaurants in the area. Yet, I was intrigued by the good selection of sweets available for takeout. I will return to get a box of those one day.

The Good:
- Good value
- Comfortable surroundings
- Good service

The Bad:
- Food is inferior to other places (at least the things I tried)

Tasty Sweets & Restaurant
12047 80th Avenue
Surrey, B.C.
604-543-9113

Business Hours:
9:30am - 10:00pm (7 days a week)

Sea Harbour

Didn't I just have dinner in Richmond yesterday? Yes I did. Don't you fear Richmond traffic and drivers? Don't even get me started! Why am I back in Richmond again in less than 24 hours? The answer to this is that one of the best places to have Dim Sum in the GVRD is Sea Harbour Restaurant. Yes, the same Sea Harbour that looks like any other run-of-the-mill Chinese restaurants you'd find in a strip mall. Don't let the laughable exterior scare you away, once inside you are treated to a clean, modern and upscale dining room. If you think of Sea Harbour, you also have to consider the competition: Imperial, Victoria, Fortune House, Fisherman's Terrace, Red Star, Sun Sui Wah, Spicy Court and Kirin. All of the aforementioned restaurants are solid choices for Dim Sum, and there is very little to choose between them all. However, taking personal preference and location into consideration, there would be a considerable debate as to which one is the best.

Sea Harbour is definitely one of the best places to have Dim Sum in the GVRD. We'll see if this visit affirms that or not. Luckily for Viv and I, we didn't have to work on the Good Monday; thus we could go for Dim Sum. Knowing that Sea Harbour can get quite busy, we made a reservation for 11:00am. Although there is a decent-sized parking lot in front of the restaurant, it can get full pretty quick. Best to arrive early or carpool. We were pretty early, so we didn't have any problems getting a parking spot. Moreover, this reduces the chance of going insane trying to fight for a spot (see Bo Kong post).

After a bit of thinking, we decided on the following dishes: Shrimp Dumpling, Beef Noodle Roll, Mini-BBQ Pork Rolls, Shrimp Spring Rolls, Beef Tripe & Tendon, Black Bean Spareribs, Pot Stickers, Seafood Yee Mein, Lap Mei Fan, Beef Tripe/Tendon/Brisket/Daikon Hot Pot, Egg Tarts and Steamed Sponge Cake. I mentioned that the shrimp dumpling (haw gow) at Red Star as being one of the best in the GVRD. Well, the one at Sea Harbour is either just as good or better (depending on your preference). The shrimp dumpling were large and bursting with crunchy whole shrimp. The skin was not as thin as Red Star, but it was still good. The rice roll was very good as well. The noodle was so quite thin that you could see mostly through it. There was plenty of perfectly spiced beef filling, with just enough cilantro that it didn't overpower the dish. The spareribs were meaty and delicately flavoured. Unlike Floata (msg overload), I could actually taste the pork. This is one of the differences between a good Dim Sum place and a bad one.

The pork bun was soft; but a tad too sweet. Also, it had onions in it. This, of course is personal taste; however, I don't believe there should be onions in a pork bun. The onion ultimately ends up overpowering the flavour of the BBQ pork. The shrimp spring rolls were uniquely served in a glass. Not only was this aesthetically pleasing, it help the rolls stay crisp. When spring rolls are placed flat, the bottom tends to get soggy from the oil and juices settling on the bottom. Moreover, the residual heat essentially steams the bottom of the spring roll. The rolls themselves were very crispy, even through multiple layers; yet not very oily. In addition, there were plenty of whole shrimp in them. Despite having a very tasty, meaty centre, the pot stickers were pretty average. The skin was a bit thick and it could've been fried for a little bit longer (bottom not crispy enough).

The tripe/tendon/brisket/daikon hot pot was very light; yet still delicately flavourful. Unlike the more rustic, traditional version, the sauce did not have much depth. However, it was less heavy as a result. All the items were just right - soft, but not too soft. The yee mein (Chinese egg noodle that has been fried and then dried), was cooked perfectly, still retaining it's elasticity. There was a decent amount of seafood and the dish was lightly flavoured with soy. The lap mei fan (cured duck and sausage on rice) was cooked in a hot pot and was pretty good. The rice was cooked correctly being a bit dry. Combined with the cured meats, the rice is supposed to be dry and aromatic. A side of sweetened dark soy helps soften the rice a bit and to provide flavour. The best parts are actually the rice that has stuck to the pot itself. The beef tripe and tendons (don't know why we ordered 2 dishes with the same things) were not very good, it was way too sweet.

For dessert, we ordered the egg tarts and the steamed sponge cake. The egg tarts didn't look very good, with too much pastry and a sunken centre. However, they tasted much better than they looked. The sponge cake was much darker than we were used to because they used brown sugar. Taste-wise, they gave the cake a much more richer flavour. However, the cake was not fluffy enough, as you can see, it didn't rise very much while cooking. The service at Sea Harbour was quite good. The servers were always responsive and pleasant to deal with. Overall, I thought the Dim Sum was pretty good. I wouldn't say it is the best in the GVRD; but definitely up there with the best.

The Good:
- Food was not over salted, flavours were delicate
- Unique items for Dim Sum
- Service is pretty good

The Bad:
- Dining room is tight (but nice though)
- Parking spaces can be hard to come by

Sea Harbour Seafood Restaurant
3711 No. 3 Road
Richmond, B.C.
604-232-0816

Business Hours:
10:30am - 3:00pm, 5:00pm - 10:30pm (Mon - Fri)
10:00am - 3:00pm, 5:00pm - 10:30pm (Sat & Sun)