Dinner @ Kirin (City Square)

For Viv and I, we honestly thought that the wedding blitz for us was well over. We watched as most of our friends got married year after year. For the last few years, it has been rather sparse. So it was much to our surprise we'd being going to 4 within a month and half. In fact, this was the 2nd wedding in 2 days for us! Tonight, it was my brother-in-law's wedding at Kirin (City Square). I used to frequent this location of Kirin quite often when I still lived in downtown. Now the closest location is in Coquitlam, which in my opinion is not as good, especially for Dim Sum. We got to the restaurant quite early because the actual wedding ceremony was being held there. My son and daughter were going to be the ring bearer and flower girl respectively. As you can imagine, Viv and I were quite nervous as to what would happen because the first 2 times my son was not very cooperative. This time, we had to rely on him to guide his younger sister down the aisle without incident. Even the officiant gave us a "good luck with that" during the rehearsal. As if on cue, just before they were supposed to walk down the aisle, both kids had meltdowns. It's amazing how candy lego blocks can suddenly be the magical cure! To our utter amazement, both kids made it down the aisle without incident. It's like going to Richmond without being cut off, it was a miracle!

After a brief ceremony, the officiant announced that they were man and wife. Their kiss was one of the longest I've ever seen! Usually with people watching, newly married couples often do a short ceremonial kiss. This one lasted what seemed like an eternity! Go get a room already! Well, that certainly takes all the fun out of clinking of the glasses during dinner. And talking about dinner, it started quite expeditiously which was another pleasant surprise. First up was the requisite appetizer platter which consisted of Vegetarian Goose, Smoked Salmon, Braised Beef Shank, Marinated Jellyfish and Roasted Suckling Pig. Not much to complain about this dish, the jellyfish was well-seasoned and had good elasticity. Tender and not too salty, the roasted pig was delicious. I particularly liked the vegetarian goose since it was filled with plenty of tender mushroom pieces.

The appetizer platter was followed up by the Sauteed Scallop, Geoduck, Chicken and Organic Mushrooms. This dish was a curious one. The snap peas were cooked perfectly exhibiting a sweet crunch; however, some of the scallops were a bit overdone. Viv had a nice juicy one; yet some other people had some chewy ones. Despite this, the dish was seasoned conservatively, which allowed us to taste each individual flavour. To be brutally honest (I hope my brother-in-law doesn't read this!), the Fried Crab Claws were horrible. Either they fried them too long or they were refried because the outer coating was as tough as a leather jacket. Everyone had great difficulty chewing through. The one positive is that the shrimp inside was not too bad. Thankfully, the Shark's Fin Soup with Crabmeat and Fish Maw was pretty good. Every bowl had plenty of large pieces of crabmeat and shark's fin. It was quite thick; yet was delicately seasoned. Since my son didn't want his, I had a second bowl. Too bad for him!

Of course, after the soup comes the star of any Chinese wedding banquet - the Lobster in Consomme Sauce. Overall, the lobster was cooked well and the sauce was a nice compliment. Much like the other dishes so far, the sauce was not over-seasoned which allowed us to taste the lobster itself. Up next was the Sliced Fresh Abalone Braised with Shiitake Mushrooms. For some people at our table, the dish was a bit too bland. Personally, I didn't mind it so much because I really am not a big fan of salty Chinese food. Also, depending on which piece of mushroom, some where quite soft and some were not. However, the texture of the abalone was good, being slightly chewy and soft at the same time.

If you've ever have been to a Chinese wedding banquet before, I'm sure you can guess what the next dish is - Crispy Skin Chicken (sometimes substituted with Squab). Don't you love the picture I took? I emphasized the head. Enough to give vegetarians (and even carnivores) the heeby jeevies. The chicken was pretty good. The skin was crispy and the meat wasn't too overcooked. A pretty standard dish really. The Steamed Whole Live Rock Cod was also a tad overcooked; but it was still pretty good. The flesh still had a bit of elasticity around the fins and the fillet meat was a bit soft.

The next 2 dishes are what we call the fillers - Special Fried Rice (Fook Jow) and E-Fu Noodles (Yee Mein). When we get to this part of the wedding banquet, not many people have the appetite or the will to eat both a bowl of rice and noodles. More often than not, these dishes are packed up as leftovers. Well, I was pretty full at this point; but decided to give the rice a try just because it looked pretty tasty. Well, it turned to be surprisingly good. The delicate sauce on top was accompanied with shrimp, BBQ pork, veggies, shiitake mushrooms and squid. For the purposes of this blog, I took a quick taste of the Fried E-Fu Noodles in Abalone Sauce. No, I didn't have a whole bowl, I passed the bowl of noodles when Viv wasn't looking. Besides, it probably would've caused me to puke. Honestly, regurgitated noodles do not look very good. On that wonderful note, the noodles were also quite good. They retained some chewiness and once again the flavours were delicate.

Suffice to say, I had no room for dessert. I never got to try any of it; but it looked good. The 3 desserts consisted of Mini-Almond Cookies, Taro Coconut Jelly and Sweetened Red Bean Soup. Although I'm pretty sure they were almond cookies, there was a piece of walnut on top. So, without trying it myself, I could be totally wrong. Overall, the meal was decent and pretty standard. No real surprises other than the crab claws. There were some issues here and there; but that happens with most meals, especially one that involves serving a whole restaurant full of people. With that being said, currently I enjoy Red Star's execution of this menu. Mind you, I will get to relive the Red Star menu in a couple of weeks because that is the restaurant of choice for the next wedding. After that, I get to do the Kirin wedding meal again at the Richmond location next month. That's a whole lot of shark's fin, lobster and abalone! But I'm not complaining!

The Good:
- Superb service (even for a wedding)
- Nicely decorated and kept
- Plenty of validated underground parking

The Bad:
- Restaurant is extremely cramped
- Execution of food could've been a bit better (usually this location is quite good)

Iki Japanese

What a beautiful day for a wedding! Yes, the endless days of sunshine for the GVRD have been a blessing for all those who are getting hitched. Fortunately for us, today's wedding was indoors at the Vancouver Museum. However, much like all weddings, we had to wait around for photos, while my stomach was growling. When it was over and done, we headed back to the car and I did my best "Superman" routine and changed into casual wear. Not fun being in a black suit on a warm summer day! Since we were in Kits, we headed out to Iki Japanese Bistro for some lunch. I've tried to visit Iki for a while now; but nobody on my softball team seemed too interested. Every time I mentioned about going to Iki, I get the usual, "It sounds like icky!".

When we arrived, it actually took a little while to find a parking spot. There were actually quite a few spaces available; but most of them were under trees. You might be wondering why that is significant. Well, I have this thing about parking my car under trees where it subsequently gets "sapped". So, I would rather circle around for treeless parking spot than park closer. I was lucky to spot one nearby and all was well. It's good that I didn't take too long, because not long after we got seated, the restaurant began to really fill up. Since Iki is a relatively small restaurant, it doesn't take a lot of customers to fill the place. On that note, I think there ought to be more staff because the servers seemed overworked. Despite this, they provided friendly service and attended to everyone the best that they could. What sets Iki apart is their brown rice sushi. Yes, there are other places that serve brown rice sushi; but Iki supposedly was one of the first and one of the best.

One dish that they are known for are their Yam Fries. I noticed almost everyone in the place ordering the fries. It's much like Phnom Penh where everyone orders the fried chicken wings, you can't go there without eating it. Well, there is a reason why everyone orders the yam fries because they are in one word - awesome. For $4.oo, you get a mound of these delicately battered fries that are kissed with a balsamic reduction. I really liked how crispy they were; yet the yam was still a bit firm. Served on the side was a Hollandaise sauce, which really tasted more like honey mustard. We much preferred the spicy mayo on the bottom of the dish as a dipping sauce. One item that caught my eye and I really wanted to try was the Lobster Miso Bisque. When it arrived, it wasn't really what I was expecting; but it did have a nice fragrance to it. Essentially, it was miso soup infused with lobster (possibly using the shells). At first, I was a bit disappointed since it just tasted like miso soup. Viv was having the regular miso soup and told me to compare. After I did that, I began to appreciate the taste of my lobster miso a bit more. However, I still enjoy a traditional lobster bisque much more.

Still on the lobster theme, we decided to try the Lobster Roll. For $9.00, it was a pretty good value. Wrapped in a crispy tempura coating, the roll consisted of lobster meat, asparagus and avocado with lobster miso sauce on the side. The roll itself was a bit bland and even the lobster miso couldn't bring it to life. However, with a touch of soy, the roll tasted much better. Seeing how an 8-piece sashimi order would cost $10.00 already, we went for the Bento Box F ($11.50) which included 6 pieces of Tuna and Salmon Sashimi, Chicken Teriyaki with Brown Rice, Edamame, Tempura, California Roll and Salad. This seemed like a much better deal and offered a good selection of items to sample. The brown rice California Roll was really large with a plethora of imitation crab nestled inside. The texture of brown rice isn't for everyone; but we didn't mind it. With perfectly cooked white meat and only modestly dressed with sauce, the teriyaki was solid. Much like the yam fries, the tempura was crispy without being oily. Although being only modest in size, the slices of sashimi were fresh and sweet. As you can ascertain, the meal at Iki was solid all around. The prices seemed reasonable for the quality and quantity of food. I most certainly do a return visit. Now only if I could convince my softball team to try it...

The Good:
- Food made with care
- Available choice of brown rice
- Reasonable prices

The Bad:
- They need more staff
- Not really good for big groups

Flying Wedge

Got a google message today from Rich Guy. He wondered if I could drop by his place and check it out since he was out of town. Well, since I took multiple joyrides in his M3 the last time I looked after his place, I felt that I owed him that much. So on my way over, I stopped at a place I've not visited in quite some time - Flying Wedge Pizza. After reading Kim's (I'm Only Here for the Food!) post about Flying Wedge, it gave me the munchies. I've always enjoyed Flying Wedge pizza. Just like their mission statement, they use fresh ingredients and take care in making their gourmet pizzas. One slice will set you back $3.49, which is not exactly cheap. Usually, one slice is enough to satisfy my appetite. Well, not really, but it's enough to keep me from starving (which apparently rarely happens).

I ended up going for one of my favourites, the Meat Master Blaster Pizza. If you look at the slice, they certainly do not skimp on the toppings. There was a generous helping of pepperoni, ham, salami, Italian sausage, mushroom and crumbled beef nestled within a cheese blend on top of a herb crust. The crust itself is a good combination of crispy and soft without being oily. I also decided to get a slice of Tropical Pig for Viv. I got to tell you, the slice was heavy in the takeout box. No shortage of ham, pineapple and cheese. Honestly, there will be detractors who will point out that Flying Wedge is a chain store and it's expensive. That is true, but it started out as one store and I liked it then, and I still like it now. Only issue is that with so many pizza slice stores around that charge a lot less, Flying Wedge is comparatively overpriced. However, the bottom line is that they make good pizza if you are willing to pay for it.

The Good:
- Many different types of pizza to choose from by the slice
- Excellent crust
- Fresh ingredients

The Bad:
- Some people will find it pricey compared to other pizza slice joints

Washington Avenue Grill

In the latest installment of "On the Hottest Day of the Year", Ma (not my own mom) and I made our way out to White Rock for some lunch. I owed her some money and decided to repay her with a nice meal. So with the T-tops off, we hopped into her 300ZX. It was a pleasant ride, except for the really hot wind that kept blowing in my face and the sun beating down on me. We decided to try out the Washington Avenue Grill right on Marine Drive. WAG, as it's called is affiliated with The Vault out in Cloverdale. That would probably explain a familiarity with the menu at first glance. Situated in an old house right on the beach, WAG offers a beautiful view and a nice sea breeze. That breeze was very welcome since there was no A/C. I personally think I'm on a streak in visiting non-A/C restaurants in the last month (also the hottest month so far).

We started off with 2 appies, Dry Ribs and Rice Noodle Wrapped Fried Shrimp. Fried probably a tad too long, the dry ribs were indeed dry; but the dipping sauce helped rectify it. The fried shrimp reminded me of the ones I had at Eat Vancouver, which is actually a good thing. Encrusted with a crispy noodle coating, the perfectly fried shrimp were a delight to eat. For our mains, I went for the Seafood Hot Pot. I assumed it would arrive in an actual hot pot; however, it was served in a large square bowl instead. Maybe it was cooked in a hot pot? A bounty of shrimp, salmon, halibut and mussels resting on top of rice noodles were bathed in a considerable amount of red curry broth. The whole dish would've benefited from a little less broth. Not only does it hinder the presentation of the seafood; it would be a little hard to finish it all anyways. I had to order a side of bread to soak up some of the liquid. With that being said, the seafood was fresh and cooked perfectly. The broth itself was quite light and did not overwhelm. Ma had the Chicken Penne with Portabello Mushroom Sauce. This dish was very rich. The pine nuts on top added both texture and flavour to the pasta.

For dessert, I had to go with the NY Cheesecake with Blueberry Compote. It was beautifully presented. Despite being rich, the cheesecake was not all that smooth. It almost had a doughy quality to it. Taste wise, I really liked the blueberries - good flavour without being too sweet. However, I wished there was a stronger cream cheese taste. On the other hand, Ma's souffle was outstanding. It was chocolate decadence without being overly sweet. The sweetness came in the form of ice cream on top of the souffle. The overall experience at WAG was pretty good. The beautiful scenery on a nice day with the cool sea breeze in between bouts of heat and sweat added to the ambiance. In addition to the view, the location has loads of character and charm. The food was more than acceptable, if not a bit standard. Prices were very reasonable for the venue and the portion size. However, I didn't notice until we were gone that I had been charged much more than the menu prices. I'm not sure how that happened. Either the server made a mistake and charged me dinner prices or the menu prices had changed. Whatever the case, that bothered me somewhat. But, I won't take away the fact that the service was very good. Much like the Vault, WAG doesn't blow me away; yet it is a decent place to grab some food and enjoy the view.

The Good:
- Excellent venue, inside and out
- Reasonable prices and good portion sizes
- Good service

The Bad:
- Food was not bad, yet it was predictable
- Discrepancy between bill and menu prices

Dai Tung

Alright, who turned on the furnace in the GVRD? When the mercury rises above 34 degrees Celsius, it becomes really uncomfortable. There was no way that I would even consider turning on the stove in heat like this. Sure, I could go out and use the BBQ; but really, standing over a hot grill in the blazing sun was not an option as well. We really needed to find a place with A/C. For some strange reason, Dai Tung came to mind. Yes, the very same Dai Tung that has some pretty good Dim Sum at reasonable prices which I never get to eat. I've only been successful a handful of times getting a table for Dim Sum since the place is pure nuts. This is further complicated by the fact I hate lineups. Seeing the lineup at Dai Tung is the equivalent of me following a full-faced visor wearing driver going 30 km/h down a one-lane street. I avoid at all costs!

Fortunately, dinner is never even close to being that busy. However, for the price, the dinner menu is actually quite good here. Ever since they renovated the place, they have maintained a level of cleanliness that includes the washrooms. But, for some strange reason, there is a part of the faucet that is missing which makes it quite difficult to use. Well, at least the washroom is relatively clean which is a serious bonus at a Chinese restaurant. Since the A/C was freakishly cold, we actually decided to have the Daily Soup which was Watercress with Pork. Despite there being a good selection of other soups, I usually go for the daily soup because it's slow cooked and that results in a flavourful broth. The watercress soup was served boiling hot and it was not salty. We also got the Live Crab with Cream Sauce on top of a bed of noodles. Although the crab was cooked perfectly, the cream sauce was not really all that creamy. Instead, it was more of a starchy milk sauce. Mind you, it still tasted quite good. The server recommended the next dish - Fried Whole Talapia Hot Pot. Turns out it was a great choice. The whole fish was fried perfectly with crispy skin and soft flesh. Plenty of onions, green onions, ginger and whole garlic cloves provided a aromatic flavour to the dish.

We couldn't go to Dai Tung and not have their signature dish - 5-Cup Spiced Duck. The meaning behind the name is that there are exactly 5 cups of ingredients used to make the duck. The result is an extremely tender duck bathed in a sweet vinegary sauce. Trying to satisfy the veggie quota, we ordered the Pea Shoots in Broth with Beancurd Stick, Gingko Nuts and Wolfberries. This is a very delicate dish that is only lightly seasoned. The natural flavour of the pea shoots are not masked by the usual garlic stir-fry. The dish was cooked perfectly and was a refreshing contrast to the flavourful duck. As always, we were presented with the complimentary Sweet Red Bean Dessert Soup. This version had small tapioca pearls and was only slightly sweet.

For those who only go for the Dim Sum, I encourage you to try the dinner at Dai Tung. It's pretty good and the prices won't break the bank. Service was friendly and attentive. Our plates were changed consistently and our tea was refill promptly. Add into the fact that the restaurant is kept clean, you have a solid choice for Chinese food.

The Good:
- Food is quite good, dinner and Dim Sum
- Prices are reasonable
- Relatively clean restaurant

The Bad:
- Dim Sum lineup is pure chaos
- Very few parking spaces available

Stella's Tap & Tapas Bar

*Now Biercraft*

The last softball game of the regular season, it is a time of mourning. Do you know what this means??? No more eating out as a team until next summer! The horror! Since it was the last game, many teammates that usually do not join us for grub did so tonight. Joining the usual crew were Ranger, Ketchup and Inspector Gadget. You might be wondering why somebody would be named after a condiment. Well, Ketchup is named as such because she eats practically everything with ketchup. She even eats carrot tempura with... you guessed it - ketchup. I can imagine the horrified faces when she squirts ketchup as a topping for her desserts. So after another victorious game in the blazing heat, we were really looking for a wonderfully air conditioned place to eat. Not knowing that they did not have A/C, we chose Stella's Tap and Tapas. Imagine the shock on everyones' face when all that separated us from the heat were a couple of rotating fans.

While we were already seated, Miss Y and Judes wandered in with a creepy story. They had parked a couple of blocks away. When they got out of the car, a pot-bellied shirtless man approached them and expressed his admiration of their beauty. Um... what's next? A trenchcoat? They were seriously creeped out by the guy. Luckily he didn't know Miss Y was a screamer. On that note, the whole table got into a discussion whether I should permanently change her nickname to screamer. We picked a dish in her honour - Charcuterie & Cheese plate. It was a pretty standard dish (prosciutto, ham, cheese, bread, cornichons, olives & pickled pearl onions), nothing to "scream" about; but there was a good amount of food.

There were a wide range of tapas available at Stella's; but the prices seemed a bit high. The average price for each dish was roughly $13.00, which is an actual meal at other establishments. In addition to the Charcuterie & Cheese plate, we each picked a dish. Miss Y opted for the Black Sesame Crusted Yellowfin Tuna. The tuna was beautifully cooked and painted with a wasabi aioli. However, the wasabi aioli was too weak and didn't compliment the natural sweetness of the tuna. Predictably, Bear ordered the Short Ribs; in fact we doubled up on the order. The guy can live on short ribs alone! Bathed in sweet Korean BBQ marinade, the ribs were pretty good. It probably could have used a bit less marinade. Inspector Gadget selected the Stella Mussels (Stella Artois, cilantro, lime butter) with Frites and I went for the Normandie Mussels (Granny smith apples, mushrooms, bacon, shallots, Calvados, cream) with Bread. Unfortunately, we got it mixed up. I should have clued in when there were no apples in my broth; but I was really too busy taking pictures. I really liked the many different variations available for preparing the mussels. Moreover, it could be had in 1/2 pound and 1 pound servings. Despite hijacking Inspector Gadget's mussels, I personally preferred my original choice (Normandie) because how can you not like bacon?

Milhouse selected the Belgian Poutine and it was disappointing. The frites themselves were very good since we had mooched off of Hot Chocolate's order of Belgian Frites. They were served hot and crispy with a side of citrus aioli. However, when doused with an inordinate amount of watery Blanche de Chambly & Miso gravy on the bottom, it became a soggy mess. Boss Woman really didn't know what to order, so I suggested the Piquin chili & Pomegranate Molasses Glazed Chicken Wings. The wings were fried perfectly crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside. Too bad the glaze was a bit uneven because some pieces were quite flavourful and some others were bland.

Impressively presented, the Achiote Rubbed Flat Iron Yucatan Steak Tacos chosen by Ranger appeared to be delicious. I didn't get a chance to sample it; but Ranger seemed really happy. Well, either it was the tacos or the beer. Ketchup went with the Soy Kissed Sambal Green Beans. I was utterly shocked that she didn't bathe the whole thing in ketchup. I did get to sample this dish and personally, I thought the beans could have used a bit more cooking. They were essentially raw and did not absorb much of the seasoning. It would have been a much more successful dish if they had deep-fried the beans first, then quickly stir-fry with the soy and sambal.

Arriving quite a long time after everything else was Judes selection - the Sea salt & Sarawak pepper Dusted Pork Riblettes. The ribs themselves were a bit flavourless; hence the 3 dipping sauces (sweet chili sauce, cucumber raita and cilantro crème fraiche). The sweet chili was the consensus choice; yet the other 2 sauces confused us a bit. They were so light and bland, it did not add anything to the flavourless ribs. As you can see, the food at Stella's was hit and miss. Nothing was really terrible; but it wasn't memorable either. The prices weren't necessarily unreasonable, after all some of the portions were quite good. However, being that it was tapas, we weren't full and had paid close to $20.00 each. With that being said, if you are not intending to get stuffed; Stella's is a pretty cool venue to grab a cool beverage. I'm just not sure if it's the best place to actually go eat a meal.

The Good:
- Solid service
- Great selection of drinks
- A wide variety of tapas

The Bad:
- Food is hit and miss
- No A/C?!?!?

Balkan House

Once again, we were meeting with MagMagMug for some eats. TS and Donna Chang were not able to meet up with us at Rodney's, so we set up another rendezvous. Trying something a bit different this time, we settled on the Balkan House. TS was not exactly pleased since that would mean she would have to drive all the way out to Edmonds. I think there is an imaginary line around Fraser Street in Vancouver that she never crosses. Next time, I'm going to setup a dinner in Langley just to spite her. We really don't eat Eastern European food that often and didn't know what to expect. Thankfully, days prior, Jessica (Yum-O-Rama) had visited the Balkan House and blogged about it. Since we were going on a Sunday, we had the opportunity to try the buffet which runs from 4:00pm - 8:00pm. Vandelay, Donna Chang and myself arrived relatively on time after navigating through the street closure on Edmonds. It's part of the Sunday street closures in the GVRD.

Now, if you are ever in a restaurant with a buffet, it's hard not to look at it and wanting to try it while waiting. We gave TS half-an-hour to arrive before we decided to attack the food. Among the items at the buffet included Coleslaw, Bread, Scalloped? Potatoes, Rice, Roasted Potatoes, Veggies, Pork with Mushroom Sauce, Roast Pork, Vienna Schnitzel, Veal & Pork Sausage, Roast Chicken and cake. For $15.99, the price was reasonable since most of the dishes were around that price already. Because the food at Balkan House is predominantly heavy meats, don't expect to go back too many times to refill your plate. I only made it back twice and the second plate was modest. By virtue of being a buffet, I found most of the meats a bit overcooked. Thus, it was not the best indicator of how good the food should be. The meats were conservatively seasoned except for the roast pork, which was a bit salty. However, that was probably the best meat at the buffet since it was really tender. It reminded me of the Kintaro fatty pork.

The service at the Balkan House was quite friendly and attentive. The servers did their best to make us comfortable. In terms of ambiance, I found the restaurant to be stuck in a 70's time warp. It has the 70's lounge type decor and atmosphere. Either they are trying to be retro or they have no intentions of renovating. The clientele was predominantly European which indicates authenticity and popularity. The place was bustling with activity throughout our dinner. The buffet provided a good sampling of the various dishes at the Balkan House. I'm looking forward to trying some of the other dishes on a non-buffet night. I'm not sure if TS is going to join us though since New Westminster is like another world to her.

The Good:
- Really good service
- Unique cuisine, especially in the GVRD
- Great for carnivores

The Bad:
- You're not going there for the decor
- Food can be a bit heavy (if you do not like meat, but I do!)