Alvin Garden

Last time we had a blogger's dinner, Ben (Chowtimes) organized it. While at the that dinner (@ Long's), he suggested that I should organize the next one. Reluctantly, I agreed. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy organizing things, I seem to be doing that all the time anyways. However, I certainly couldn't invite everyone, I don't think they made tables that large. I actually ended up giving Ben a call for some advice. He really had no solution for it either, you can't really please everyone. Well, I ended up inviting as many as I felt comfortable with and we ended up with the following participants: Kevin (604Foodtography), Jessica & Mark (Yum-o-Rama), Gigi & Jenkins (Ho Yummy!), Drea (TBDFBTI), Christina and ET (Doesn't TaZte Like Chicken), TS (eating_club Vancouver), Wilson (La Petite Vancouver) and Kim (I'm Only Here for the Food!). It was actually Kim who suggested Alvin Garden and we'll see if his recommendation makes him look good or not. See how I like to pass the buck?

From the outside, I would have never known that the inside was actually quite nice and clean. However, the tables are situated quite close together, so everything is a tight fit. We took quite a bit of time trying to decide what to order because frankly, we weren't familiar with most of the dishes. You see, Hunan cuisine is not very common in the GVRD. The dominant Chinese cuisine is Cantonese food. Thus, we just randomly ordered items off the menu with a little help from the server. We found out at the end that our dishes may have not been the right ones to order. Oh well, it just means we have to come back and do it all over again! While we waiting for our food, we got into the typical banter about food and my favourite topic - Richmond. One person posed the question which parking lot was worse: Aberdeen or Crystal Mall. Well, my personal choice would be Crystal Mall because why would you design a lot that is a big circle with only one entrance/exit? Futhermore, as a result of this circle, each parking spot is shaped like a pie slice. Imagine the difficulty for someone trying to use the lines as a guide to park straight! No joke, I once watched someone spend 10+ minutes going back and forth trying to park in one spot.

The food actually arrived pretty quickly; mind you, we really didn't get to eat until much later. Imagine 7 cameras taking turns snapping photos of EACH dish. Kevin was getting a little impatient because he appeared to be very hungry. I guess we got a taste of our own medicine since people who eat with me have to suffer the "don't touch it, let me take some photos first" procedure. Curiously, 5 dishes arrived before we even got the large soup we had ordered. It appears that they do not have a food expediting system present. The first dish was the Hunan-Style Braised Pork. Essentially, it was pork belly stewed in a mostly sweet soy broth. It was enjoyable to eat, while the dish itself was nothing special. The next dish, Duck Braised with Beer was quite spicy. By just tasting the sauce, you'd never know that there was beer. I guess all the alcohol had been cooked away or that the spice overwhelmed any other flavour that was present. Although I enjoyed the sauce with my rice, the duck itself was chopped into really small pieces. Therefore, it was tough to find any pieces with any meat on them. I mostly got bones in every spoonful.

Now the next dish was really good. The Dong Ting Broiled Fish in Chili Soup was a symphony of flavours. The sweetness of the fish combined with the spicy and salty broth was absolutely delicious. Continuing on the spicy theme, the Pan Fried Spicy Chicken was quite an intimidating dish. The small pieces of chicken were hidden in a mound of fried red chilis. Although the dish itself wasn't incredibly spicy, the chilis made it look spicier than it really was. The chicken was very well-seasoned; but yet again much like the duck, it was cut up into little pieces. By now I was starting to sweat; but I think Kim was sweating much more than I was. Luckily he brought his own towel (smart move). The Ma Po Tofu looked spicier than it tasted; however, it was very well spiced. Another great dish to go with a big bowl of white rice.

Alright, someone tell me why we got the soup as our 6th dish? As mentioned before, the expedition of dishes was quite odd. I guess they merely brought out stuff as the kitchen cooked it. But soup in the middle of the meal? The soup we ordered was the Daily Soup which happened to be Corn and Pork. It arrived in a really large pot packed with corn and slow simmered pork. I really liked the soup, it was not very salty; in fact, it was rather sweet because of the corn. From sweet, right back to the spicy, the Pan-Fried Green Beans with Minced Pork had just enough heat. Combined with the sweetness of the crunchy beans and the saltiness of the minced pork, this was a balanced dish. Next up was the Double-Cooked Pork with Garlic and Chilis. I bet they buy their chilis in bulk at Alvin Garden, because they used them like there was no tomorrow. In this dish, the fatty pork appears to have been stewed first, then sliced and pan-fried; thus the double-cooked moniker. This was a solid dish, with many different textures and flavours.

Alright, here we go with the incorrect order of dishes once again. We got the sweet Pumpkin Cakes filled with red bean paste too early since there were a couple more dishes yet to arrive. Suddenly I felt like I was having Cantonese Dim Sum because of the randomness of the dishes. The pumpkin cakes were not really that sweet, even with the red bean paste. I liked the texture, it was very similar to that of a Lo Po Beng; however, the cake itself was rather bland and a bit oily. Now, from dessert, back to the entrees! The Steamed Ling Cod Head with Hunan Chilis was another intimidating looking dish. It was topped with a large amount chilis; yet, once again, it was not as spicy as it looked. In fact, the flavours were quite nice being a bit spicy and sweet. However, since it was Ling Cod head, it was boney and a bit hard to eat. I would have much preferred that they didn't cut up the head into little pieces.

Bringing down the spicy quotient was the Steamed Egg with Mince Pork. This is somewhat of a "home-cooking"-type dish that is usually very light in texture and flavour. For those who don't normally eat it, it could be misinterpreted as being bland. It was alright; but it was a bit on the watery side. The last dish of the meal was the Corn Cakes and it arrived in a big steamer. Once the lid was removed by our server, it revealed cone-shaped pastries. The consensus from the group was that the cakes were not very good. In fact, Jessica's boyfriend probably summed it up best - "it had the texture of Playdoh". This is not a ringing endorsement for the corn cakes. At the very least, they showed up in the proper order.

I generally enjoyed my meal despite the awful expedition of the dishes. I liked some of the dishes more than others; but that would be my personal preference. One thing I didn't like was the fact they cut up some of their meats into really small pieces. This is not good for eating or the actual cooking process itself. But really, Kim said it best. The main focus is enjoying each others' company. We had a blast chatting about our common interest - FOOD. Thus, the dinner almost became secondary. Mind you, some of our dishes seemed grossly overpriced such as the duck for $16.98, Ling Cod head for $19.98 and the soup for $14.98. After our meal was over, we looked around and noticed that we didn't order some really good looking dishes at other tables. I guess that alone warrants another visit.

The Good:
- Dishes that you would probably not find at other Chinese restaurants
- If you like it spicy, this is your place
- Service was a bit hectic, yet it was still friendly and helpful

The Bad:
- Some of the dishes seemed a bit overpriced
- They like to cut up their meats into little pieces
- Proper expedition of dishes was non-existant

Business Hours:
11:30am - 9:30pm (Mon - Fri)
12:00pm - 9:30pm (Sat & Sun)

Ki Sushi

Alright, I think for the very first time, my son actually decided where we were going to eat tonight. We asked him if what he wanted to eat and he insisted on udon noodles in soup. That pretty much narrowed down our choices; thus we headed off to Ki Sushi in New Westminster. I've been meaning to try the place out for awhile and since we needed udon, I guess this was as good as any time to try it out. When we arrived, the parking lot was completely full, so we had to circle around a bit until we found a spot on Columbia. We figured out why the parking lot was full when we entered the restaurant - there was a lineup. No matter, it didn't take long to get a seat. Fortunately for us, the table was fully enclosed into it's own little room. This was good since the kiddies could do there thing and not bother anyone. Also, I could take many pictures and no one would even notice. We overheard the servers chatting in Mandarin amongst themselves. So I guess this is not a Japanese-run restaurant? No matter, for me if the food is good, I don't give a damn who is making it.

The first thing I noticed about the menu were the prices - they are very reasonable. Taking a peak at what other people were eating, it also appears that the portions are good as well. This looked promising. Viv and I decided on the Dinner for 2 which included Assorted Sashimi, California Roll (6pcs), Kappa Maki (6pcs), Sushi (4pcs), Prawn & Vegetable Tempura, Oyster Motoyaki or Chawan Mushi, Kara-age, Sunomono, Miso Soup and Ice Cream for $34.95. We added a Vancouver Roll and also a Chicken Udon for the kiddies.

The sashimi and sushi arrived on one platter and they were quite good. Each slice of sashimi was fresh and quite large. We particularly like the wild sockeye salmon sashimi; it was deliciously sweet. I must mention that there was very little rice in every one of the rolls - a very good thing. The Tempura was also very good. It was perfectly fried and the batter was ever so light. It wasn't particularly oily either. The same goes with the boneless Chicken Karaage. Outside was not oily and very crispy; but the inside was tender and juicy. Included in the meal was a choice between Oyster Motoyaki and Chawan Mushi. We couldn't decide on either, so we had one of each. The motoyaki was a bit different than I am accustomed to. Rather than a whole oyster baked in sauce, it was diced-up oyster, mushrooms and spinach mixed in with sauce. For me, it was alright; but I wouldn't want to eat another. The mushi was very light and velvety. I really liked eating it and was a bit amused by the happy face created by the edamame beans and shrimp on top.

The Vancouver Roll was a bit of a disappointment. The roll itself was prawn tempura, avocado and masago on the inside. It was topped with more avocado and unagi with sauce on the outside. This is similar to a Dragon Roll found at other Japanese restaurants. Yet, compared to other places such as Toyotomi and Tomoya, the Vancouver roll here at Ki was not as good. It was generally flavourless and seemed a bit empty inside. Definitely not worth the $10.00 price tag. However, the meal in general was solid and I certainly enjoyed eating it. The portions were generally pretty good and the prices make Ki Sushi a good value. Service was generally quite attentive and friendly; if not a bit absent minded. It took us 3 tries to replace a dirty bowl. Not the best Japanese food I've ever had; yet still a solid choice in New West.

The Good:
- Reasonable prices
- Good portion size
- Pretty decent food

The Bad:
- Small parking lot, fills up quick

Pied-à-Terre

Wow, we haven't dined with M&M since Dine-Out at Hart House! No, we didn't go pick up some chicken wings, a flat of Sheppard's pie and apple blossoms from M&M on our way to Hart House. Rather, M&M are 2 friends of ours whose names happen to start with the letter M. Too bad they didn't name their kids M names. Otherwise they'd be mini-M&M's (lame joke, I know...). Tonight, we were all childless and decided to try out Pied-à-Terre on Cambie. There are so many of these small moderately-priced French bistros popping up all over the place. French food is becoming more accessible and affordable. We arrived promptly at 6:30, however, due to some extenuating circumstances, both M&M were late. We'll refer to the wife as Bubbly because she has enough energy to run a small town. Also, we'll refer to the husband as Chill because nothing ever seems to faze him. Bubbly was stuck on the Oak Street bridge for almost 20 minutes. Second, Chill was stuck behind some bike parade in downtown for about the same time. It was almost like fate was working against them for this meal. No matter, the staff at Pied-a-Terre were extremely understanding and professional about the matter. When Bubbly did arrive, she hijacked my camera and starting snapping photos like there was no tomorrow. She is an avid photographer and I have to give her credit for some of the pictures. She's definitely got an eye for the artistic flair. One thing I do know is she made me look normal for once, because she was taking more photos than I would normally. So that's how someone appears when they are madly snapping photos of food. No wonder people stare at me!

Viv and Bubbly both decided to have the Table D'hote which gave them a choice of appetizer, main and dessert for $31.00. Viv chose the Terrine Maison to start. She figures it was pork terrine with some bacon. She thought it was pretty good because it was well-seasoned. The sweet figs, horseradish cream and sour cornichons complimented the Terrine really well. Bubbly got the Fennel Cream Soup for her first course and it was luxurious in texture. There was only a slight fennel taste to the soup. I opted for the Steamed Mussels to start and it was a decent portion. Bathed in a white wine and onion broth, each mussel was opened and very sweet. I got extra bread to soak up every last bit of the
broth.

Viv went for the Coq au Vin as her main. The perfectly stewed chicken rested on a rich red wine sauce with carrots, peas, onion, lardons, and mashed potato. I tried some and the chicken was tender and the wine had penetrated nicely into the meat. Bubbly had the Onglet Steak & Frites with a Marchand du Vin sauce. The server gave the heads up that it was a hanger steak and it could be a bit tough. Normally, a hanger steak cannot be cooked past medium-rare and should be cut against the grain. I tried a piece of the steak and although it wasn't tender, it was not overly tough either. It definitely had plenty of flavour due to the cut of meat and the sauce.

Chill had the Rib Eye Steak & Frites with Marchand du Vin as well. His steak was cooked perfectly medium-rare and was predictably tender. The fries were very crispy and light. He was quite hungry and plowed through it. All I could get out of him was that it was "good". I was going to have the steak as well; but seeing that 2 people were already having steak, I went for the Muscovy Duck Confit with Cassoulet Beans. The duck leg was beautifully cooked with an extremely crispy skin. Normally, I'm not really into eating skin or fat of any kind; but I enjoyed every piece of the duck skin. The meat itself was melt-in-your mouth tender (due to being simmered in duck fat). It was a bit saltier than I would have liked; however, salt is an integral part of duck confit. However, eaten with the orange slices, it did balance the flavours. Although the beans were a side to the duck, I personally thought they were the star of the dish. The soft, haricot beans were prepared beautifully.

For dessert, Bubbly decided on the Chocolate Mousse and Viv got the Creme Caramel. Simply presented, the creme caramel was absolutely divine. It was silky smooth with a rich caramel finish. Viv remarked that there was a hint of orange as well. Bubbly thought that the mousse was the better of the 2 desserts and I will agree on that. At first, I didn't enjoy the mousse as much because I'm not really a big chocolate lover. However, the mousse was fluffy and full of chocolate flavour without being too sweet. Good food aside, the rest of the dining experience was very positive as well. The staff were quite efficient and very knowledgeable. The ambiance was cozy and warm, partly because the restaurant itself is quite small. Value-wise, it was very good. The prices were reasonable and the portions were more than adequate. Pied-a-Terre is another great bistro among many in the GVRD.

The Good:
- Generous portions
- Food is spot on
- Reasonably-priced
- Quaint
- Excellent service

The Bad:
- Make reservations, it's a small bistro, walk-in diners will not get a table

Guildford Station Pub

After an eventful and fun visit to La Charcuterie last week, Miss Y and Kc joined me again for some eats today. Boss Z and Lady Mustang also tagged along for this food adventure. We weren't going to travel all the way to Port Kells or Cloverdale this time for food; rather we only made it out to Guildford. The destination: Guildford Station Pub. Okay, before you make any assumptions or judgements, pub food can be really good! And in the case of Guildford Station, that seems to be the norm according to many Internet reviews.

At least from the outside, the pub looks quite inviting and clean. Inside, it is not different. This is a nice pub! I got pretty excited looking over the menu (yes, my life revolves around food). It appeared that other than the steaks, there was practically nothing over $9.00. That's the kind of pricing I like! In fact, the specials of the day were very well priced, especially the BBQ Ribs with coleslaw and roasted potatoes. With a beverage order, the ribs would only set you back $6.95! Although it was not a huge rack of side ribs (looked like it was cut vertically in half), it was more than enough for lunch. The ribs were tender without being mushy and the BBQ sauce was not Kraft-like (Kraft is generally very tart and vinegary without much in the way of smokiness).

I also ordered the Pacific Clam Chowder hoping to erase the paper mache version I got at Fresgo Inn. I must say this chowder was like a good Psychiatrist; it made me think happy thoughts. Although it wasn't exactly that thick, the chowder was still creamy with plenty of seafood flavour. I had to do a double take as to where I was eating this - a pub! Lady Mustang had the chowder too and she had quite the same reaction after her first spoonful. Despite a reputation of having good beef burgers, Boss Z goes ahead and orders a veggie burger??? She's not even a vegetarian! Well, regardless of that, she enjoyed her burger and yam fries.

Miss Y opted for the 2 piece Fish & Chips. I can never understand how she stays so thin. She really does eat the crappiest food sometimes. While I take a pass on the Krispy Kremes, she goes ahead and eats 4. I hate her and her metabolism. Anyways, the batter for the fish was probably the issue we had with the food. It was very thick and doughy. A definitely sub-par fried fish. I would stay away from this or any of the battered seafood items on the menu. Overall, we were quite satisfied with our visit to Guildford Station. It seems to have the winning formula of good eats, cheap prices, great ambiance and in this case - booze.

The Good:
- Prices are really good
- Most of the food is surprisingly good
- Really nice pub; clean and inviting

The Bad:
- Tables are a bit small
- Stay away from battered items

Vault

What in the world am I doing in Cloverdale you might ask? Well, the rodeo was a few weeks ago, so I'm certainly not here for that. I'm not heading down to the states, so that's outta the question. Maybe I was lost? No, no, that's reserved for Miss Y. I was in Cloverdale with a few of my colleagues to have lunch. Lunch? But is there anything good to eat out in Cloverdale other than the requisite bar? You might not think so, ah... but many people are mistaken. Hidden amongst the many shops in Cloverdale on 176th is the Vault. It is named as such because there is an actual vault at the back of the restaurant. We can only surmise that this location used to be a financial institution of some sort. And yes, inside the vault is a very private table.

Unfortunately for me, I couldn't get a window seat again! There was a big group that took over half of the restaurant. I was tempted to take the plates over to the entrance... Anyways, Ma got the Dry Ribs to start and it was a generous portion of meaty ribs. It was not over fried and had a good dusting of pepper and kosher salt. She also had the Ale Braised Short Rib Sandwich and it certainly looked appetizing. On top of the tender meat were fried onions which apparently made the dish. There was a complaint that the glaze was a bit sweet; but I guess it's personal preference.

Blondie had the Prawn, Scallop and Goat Cheese Salad. The dish itself had a bevy of seafood, strawberries and goat's cheese. I tried some of it and it was every so lightly dressed, which is a good thing. This way, I could actually discern different flavours in the salad. Although the scallops were large and had good colour from the sear; they were a bit chewy and possibly overcooked. The prawns on the other hand were perfectly prepared. Continuing on the seafood theme, I went for the Mixed Seafood Grill with Asian BBQ Glaze. In addition to the same prawns and scallops as the salad, I also got a piece of salmon. Surprisingly, the rice that accompanied the seafood was quite flavourful and beautifully cooked. The reason I mention this is that most times the rice is an afterthought. The salmon was soft and not overcooked. The prawns were cooked correctly; yet I had the same problem with the scallops, they were slightly overcooked and had a slight fishy taste. In terms of the hoisin glaze, it was pretty standard being quite sweet and not really having any other complex flavours present. Unfortunately, that is the flavour profile of hoisin sauce.

Ma was the only one at our table who went for dessert. Mind you, she chose NY Cheesecake and it was fabulous. It was a really large piece of baked cheesecake with an ultra thin crust. I tried it and it was ever-so-smooth and full of cream cheese flavour. It's definitely nice to get a baked hard cheesecake rather than the whipped ones. The depth of flavour and texture are just not the same. For being out in Cloverdale, which is hardly the mecca for fine dining, The Vault was not bad. If it were located in Downtown Vancouver, it might face stiff competition. The food in general was pretty decent. It's location works in their favour because there is not another restaurant like this close by.

The Good:
- Reasonable prices
- Eclectic, funky atmosphere
- Great service

The Bad:
- A bit far for most people other than the locals

Business Hours:
11:00am - 2:00pm, 5:00pm - 9:30pm (Mon - Thu)
11:00am - 2:00pm, 5:00pm - 10:30pm (Fri)
5:00pm - 10:30pm (Sat)
5:00pm - 9:30pm (Sun)

Twisted Fork

My day started at 8:00am and didn't end until 5:30pm with a meeting in Ladner. Yes, call me a wimp, I'm not used to this type of schedule! I had made arrangements to meet up with Whipping Girl and TS from [eating_club Vancouver] for dinner after my meeting. Now, if you ever tried driving in from Ladner into downtown during rush hour, you'll understand my utter frustration. When 5 lanes of highway traffic must merge into 1 lane, mass chaos and congestion erupts. After I got through the tunnel, I had to navigate Vancouver traffic to get to downtown. Most people want to escape downtown during this time. Of course I was doing the complete opposite and got stuck on the Burrard street bridge. What was I doing on the Burrard street bridge when our destination was on Granville??? You see, Whipping Girl did not want to walk to the restaurant. Thus, I had to fight through Burrard all the way to Dunsmuir to pick her up. Upon picking her up, I had to navigate through traffic back to Granville and Helmcken. That detour took over 30 minutes. When we arrived, we tried to get the only window seat; but it was taken by a large group. Now if we were on time...

Well, I hold no ill feelings towards Whipping Girl because she is a good dining partner and those are not easy to find! Together with TS, we decided to share 2 pounds of the mussels to start. On Tuesdays, 1 pound of mussels is only $8. Another special was their 3 course meal for $25.00. TS and I were all over that. TS ordered the Prawns and the Pan-Seared BC Halibut. I went for the Snails and the Beef Bourguignon. Whipping girl decided on the Cured BC Duck Breast. We actually all decided to share everything so we could get a taste of every dish.

The Mussels arrived with frites on top and that probably contributed to them being soggy. They tasted fine, especially dipped into the tomato herb cream; yet they lacked crispiness. The mussels themselves were sweet and not a single one was unopened (although they weren't that plump). Luckily we got complimentary rolls since we used them to mop up any remaining cream at the bottom. One note about the dinner rolls, they are quite dense, one is more than enough. Up next were the Grilled Prawns with chipotle, thyme, garlic & fresh melon salsa. The prawns were cooked nicely retaining it's crunch when bitten into. Eaten with the melon, the sweetness of the melon and prawn was quite refreshing. I would have have liked a bit of acidity like lime juice to further enhance the flavours.

The Garlic Snails were prepared with leek, mushrooms, caramelized shallots, tomato basil sauce, fresh arugula. There was an impressive quantity of snails on the plate. As we kept eating them, there always seemed to be more. Personally, I'm not a big fan of snails and tomato sauce. I prefer them in a simple butter and garlic sauce. That way I can enjoy their flavour and texture without anything overpowering. I find the acidity in tomato sauce a poor compliment to the tender snails. It's also the same with frog legs, I really don't like them with tomato sauce, only butter and garlic. With that being said, the dish wasn't horrible, in fact, I enjoyed eating them despite the fact I don't prefer them.

While we were waiting for our mains to show up, we realized that the big group ended up moving to a table in the back. I was so choked that the one window seat was never used! Argh! Anyways, the Beef Bourguignon was very rich in red wine flavour. It was prepared very well since it had the richness of the red wine and shallots; but did not have much in the way of bitterness. Although the beef had been cooked for a long time in the sauce, it was curiously dry. We hypothesized that the cut of meat might have been too lean. Regardless of that, the dish itself was quite good.

The Cured BC Duck with ratatouille, potato puree and cherry chutney was impressively presented on the plate. The duck itself was quite salty due to the curing. However, if combined with the chutney and ratatouille, it helped cut the saltiness and became more balanced. With that being said, we probably would have all preferred the duck confit instead. TS' Halibut came with ratatouille, artichoke puree, baby carrots and corn relish. The halibut itself was ever-so slightly overcooked; yet was still quite good. Combined with the relish and ratatouille, the sweetness from the corn and peppers really complimented the halibut. One nit-picking observation was that the asparagus was overcooked, although the green beans and carrots were excellent.

Rounding out the 3 course meal were the desserts. I went with the Lavender Creme Brulee and TS opted for the Profiteroles with Hazelnut Ice Cream. We peer pressured Whipping Girl into getting the Chocolate Terrine so we could try it. She folded like a deck of cards or maybe she just felt guilty in getting me to pick her up. Again, we shared the desserts. We thought that the creme brulee was a little on the light side and could have stood to be a bit more luxurious. Yet, it was still very good and TS enjoyed cracking the burnt sugar on top. The profiteroles were a bit hard to eat since the choux pastry was a bit stiff, possibly from the cold hazelnut ice cream (which was divine). The terrine was quite large and beautifully presented. The chocolate was decadent and the layer of coulis running through it gave a nice fruity contrast to the dish. The sorbet added some much needed lightness to the rich chocolate.

After we finished our meal, we were stuffed and I wasn't even remotely thinking of having a Filet-o-Fish. Overall, the food was pretty good and at these prices, it was downright excellent. The Twisted Fork is a little gem hidden among XXX shops along Granville. It is an area in transition; but with restaurants like the Twisted Fork, it definitely helps change the landscape.

The Good:
- Outstanding value
- Food is both plentiful and delicious
- Service was friendly and casual

The Bad:
- Small restaurant, it can fill up fast
- The location is still in a seedy area, but it's changing