White Spot (Gilmore)

White Spot eh? You might be wondering why I'm here again... Well, the main reason is that my son really likes White Spot. There was one time we drove by a White Spot and ended up going to a different restaurant and he started crying. I'm really glad he doesn't like ABC! Today, we actually went to the Lougheed and Gilmore location instead of our usual North Road location. The other reason for visiting White Spot was to test the theory that not all locations are created equal. That's right, even with Chain restaurants, they have good and bad locations. Kim (I'm Only Here for the Food!) went to the Burnaby
Kingsway location recently and received indifferent service. Well, I've been to the Gilmore location before and it has never been my favourite White Spot. Why? First, it's small (I guess they can't do much about that). Second, the food and service is a bit slow. We'll see today if that is still true.

For starters, we were greeted at the entrance right away and seated. This is a very good start because in the past, we'd have to wait until someone noticed us. Once we were seated, our server came over and took our drink order. This is more like it! For the purposes of this blog, we decided to order a few different items from last time. We started with their very popular Zoo Sticks. With just the right amount of perfectly fried breading, the firm (but cooked) zucchini sticks were money. Hey, I'm not going to White Spot without having one of their burgers. As mentioned before, the burgers here are not really all that large (including the Bigger Better Burger) and contain enough mayo to make Hollandaise sauce look healthy. But for some reason, they rock! I went for a classic - the Monty Mushroom. A modest amount of sauteed mushrooms adorned the "bigger better" patty which was bathed in copious amounts of Triple-O Sauce (red relish and mayo). It's messy, but good!

Feeling a bit ol' school, Viv also ordered a classic - the CBC. No, not the TV station, but the Chicken, Broccoli and Cheese. Not quite a curry, not quite pot pie filling, the CBC is a White Spot original. It's got tender pieces of chicken with broccoli florets sitting in a creamy sauce with a hint of curry. Served separately was a colourful and fresh garden salad. The salad used to be on the same plate; but it appears that they have merely added more rice to the dish. Good thing because there was never enough rice with this dish before. I personally am indifferent towards the CBC; but my mom absolutely loves it. Viv thought it was alright; but she's not into creamy sauces anyways. As usual, my son got the pirate pack and he couldn't wait to get to the chocolate gold coin. Curiously he wasn't into the ice cream. He's such a picky eater.

Well, another predictable meal at White Spot, nothing more, nothing less. Maybe we'll visit another location next time and eat some other classic dishes. Unlike previous visits, this one at the Gilmore location was pretty good. We were greeted promptly, service was attentive and the food didn't take forever to come out (however, it was still a bit slow).

The Good:
- Predictable food
- Affordable eats
- Kid-friendly

The Bad:
- Try to stay away from the featured menus, something gets lost in translation
- This location has been a bit slow in the past for me
- Seating here is a bit tight

Taste of Singapore

*Restaurant is now closed*

Being relatively new, I never noticed Taste of Singapore, even though it resides in the same plaza as Bombay Se and Sandar's Thai Garden. However, I did notice that Ryan ("Oiboy" in Urbanspoon) had tried it out and blogged about it. Seeing that it got rave reviews, Toolman and I decided to give it a try today. No wonder I didn't notice it before. It's hidden among many more small shops and restaurants in the 7500 Plaza out on Scott Road. As we strolled into the restaurant, I noticed that there were very few seats. I guess it really didn't matter because we were the first to arrive for lunch. Naturally, with the choice of tables, I picked the seat near the window.

We asked what were the 2 best dishes and the owner picked out Beef Rendang and Ayam Masak Merah. I wanted to order more; but he said it would be enough. The two dishes arrived with a large serving of rice and fresh lettuce. We dug into the beef first and it was extremely tender without being fatty. The flavours were subtle (due to the coconut milk) with just a hint of heat from the chilis. The chicken (Ayam Masak Merah) was much more flavourful, being sweet, tart (from the tomatoes) and a bit spicy. While I was snapping photos of the food, the owner came by and amicably asked if I was a photographer. I nodded in agreement trying hard not to blow my cover. I guess it's hard to be discreet with a DSLR! As we were eating away, someone from the kitchen brought over a spicy Sambal Terasi sauce. I gave it a try and it was really spicy with a hint of seafood. I found out that the sauce consisted of fermented shrimp and chilis. Indeed, it reminded me of Chinese "Haw Jeun" which is fermented shrimp. Toolman didn't like the sauce very much; but I was all over it. However, my stomach might be not appreciate the torment I was putting it through.

The food at Taste of Singapore was a real surprise. It's definitely a gem hidden in a strip mall on Scott Road. The food was outstanding. On top of that, the prices are downright cheap! Our meals were $9.00 each and if we had opted for the daily special, it would have only been $6.00! Taste of Singapore combines the winning formula of honest service with great tasting food at very reasonable prices. If you are ever in the area, I encourage you to try them out.

The Good:
- Outstanding value
- Food is prepared with care
- Friendly and honest service

The Bad:
- Not a lot of seats (if it ever gets busy...)
- People not in the area are missing out

Pho T & A

Okay, the only reason I wanted to visit this place was its name. With the infamous Pho Bich Nga no longer in business, there has been a void of really good Pho restaurant names. Yes, there is Pho Dat Phu; but how can you argue against Pho T & A? Doesn't it just make you wonder what is really in the soup??? Pho sure! Not really knowing exactly where the place was, I actually ended up at Pho Tan first. Man, that place is busy! I heard good things about this place, I shall return when it's not as packed. So I continued my search of some T & A, err... I mean Pho in the heart of Whalley. It is an area in transition with the new SFU campus and many high rises and condo developments nearby. Parking my car in the lot of Pho T & A was a bit unnerving; but I'm sure it was all in my head.

So sitting there looking over the menu, I noticed the "cash only" sign and looked in my wallet. No cash! Doh! I quickly scrambled to my car looking for loose change. I was able to scrounge $9.00, enough for a bowl of pho; but not anything else. I decided on the large House Special Pho which included every meat. A really good value at $6.50. While waiting for my order, I noticed they were making fresh popcorn in a miniature machine at the front. Wait a minute! WTF? They're selling popcorn? This is not a T & A theatre is it? Nope, just Pho T & A. Strange. Whatever the case, the soup was pretty light and modestly seasoned. I could detect some spices and meat flavour; but it was not very rich. The noodles were a tad on the soft side; yet there was plenty of it. Same can be said about the meats, there was a decent amount of it for price. It was a decent bowl of Pho; but nothing to write home about. However, I could really care less because I satisfied my curiousity over this place!

The Good:
- It's not expensive
- Place is pretty clean
- Pho was decent

The Bad:
- Questionable area
- Popcorn?!?!?

Budgies Burritos

Let's face it, there are not many places to go for a good burrito in the GVRD. Sure, there's Taco Del Mar (which I actually like); but you'll get the usual people pointing out that it's a fast food chain. Okay, whatever the case, at least it is not Taco Bell nor Taco Time. Sure, there is Dona Cata; however, they only have one burrito on their menu (from what I can remember). I can go through a whole bunch of Mexican restaurants in town and the story will all be the same - either it is not very good or it's not worth the price. However, there is one place where you will find a pretty good burrito for a low price. Okay, let me get this out of the way before the "authentic burrito police" come knocking on this post - the burritos at Budgies aren't exactly "authentic'. However, they do not advertise as such and really, if it tastes good, who really cares?

On my way home from a doctors appointment, it was getting late and I needed to grab some dinner for Viv and myself. Since I was nearby, I paid a visit to Budgies Burritos. The first thing you'll notice when you walk into the place is the hipster vibe. From the unique artwork down to the minimalistic decor, it's got a certain grunge, punk, anti establishment, and hippie air to it. There could be something else in the air; but I won't speculate on that... I walked up to the order window and a very mellow dude took my order. He wrote down my choices on a small little whiteboard that he later passed to the "burrito-maker". One thing you need to know before I go on... The food here is vegetarian. Okay cue the dramatic music. Yes, I am eating a vegetarian burrito. No, my doctor didn't suddenly condemn meat in my diet; rather, I really wanted to see if these burritos would be good without meat. Honest!

The JameDog caught my eye with it's garlic roasted potatoes, rice, beans, cheese, chipotle sour cream, lettuce and salsa. There is a choice between refried beans and black beans. I chose the former. Wanting a kick in my burrito, I opted for chipotle salsa. I picked up the Henry for Viv which consisted of tofurkey sausage, rice, beans, cheese, sour cream, salsa and lettuce. To make it easy, I chose the refried beans and chipotle salsa for her as well. There are 2 sizes available, a 10" and a 12" (different of $1.00). Guess which size I got? The 12" of course!!! I've been told that upon leaving, make sure they got your order right and that you got the right amount of change. Apparently, mistakes are common. For me, no mistakes at all and the service was friendly.

So how were the burritos? First off, they are quite large, the thing weighs a tonne! Definitely good value for the $7.50 each. Second, especially with the chipotle salsa, they were not devoid of flavour or spice. Even the tofurkey was pretty darn good. Will never mistaken it for meat; but it had a good bite to it and had a nice texture. The potatoes in my burrito were soft, but not mushy. However, after awhile trying Viv's, I think the Henry was better because of the tofurkey. Definitely not a "wow" eating experience; but it was satisfying, inexpensive and I did not have any meat urges.

The Good:
- Burritos are quite large and heavy
- You really don't miss the meat (at least I didn't)
- Good value

The Bad:
- I guess if you're dead set on eating meat, then move along
- From other people, it looks like that mistakes happen here

Sushi & Main Tea House

I remember trying a bubble tea from Sushi & Main Tea House quite a few years ago. I had dropped off a friend and she went in to get it, so I have never been in the place. From the outside, it's really quaint and soon the curiosity factor sets in. It makes you really want to go inside and try it, even though it says clearly "Sushi & Main Tea House". Yes, the sushi part makes me nervous, partly because it doesn't look like place that should be serving sushi and honestly, is it any good? Well, I wasn't going to find that out today, especially since I was on my way to see my doctor.

So I stroll into the place and notice 2 youngsters waiting for their bubble tea. They looked at my strangely when I started snapping photos. I did the "I'm not a tourist" routine to explain what the heck I was doing. I'm not sure if it worked because they seemed a bit confounded. On the other hand, what confused me was the little girl who came out to take my order. I wasn't expecting that. They start them young these days! I went for a fresh fruit Lychee Slush with Coconut Jelly. As I was waiting for my drink, I soaked in the decor. I gotta say that it's one of the most eclectic combination of things I've ever seen. From the sticker wallpaper to the African art, there was a little of everything in there. I particularly enjoyed looking at the chandelier near the counter. Nice touch. It goes well with the uh... disco ball???

I did like the price of the bubble tea, it only cost me $4.50 for fresh lychees. The drink was quite light and refreshing. The contents were well-blended and the jelly provided all the sweetness I needed. Some might consider the drink a bit bland; but I do not like my bubble tea tasting like liquid candy. The little bits of lychee throughout the drink provided both texture and legitimacy of being a fresh fruit beverage. While I was taking my last photo of the drink at the front window, the little girl asked me what I was doing. I explained that I wrote a food blog. Her reply, "what's a food blog?". Um, it's like a website where I talk about food. She didn't seem to quite comprehend. I ended up giving her a Moo card. She seemed impressed. Look at me, I'm impressing 9 year-olds!

The Good:
- Garage sale decor, it's awesome!
- Pretty good bubble tea, not too sweet
- Inexpensive

The Bad:
- Although there are a couple of couches, this is not a place to really sit because it's so small
- The name of the place might scare some people off

Green Lettuce (Surrey)

I'm a big fan of Indian Chinese food; however, there are not many places that serve it within the GVRD. I've been to Hakka Masti and Asian Spice out in Surrey/North Delta and they were pretty good. However, I haven't been necessarily ultra impressed so far. In fact, I felt that the 2 aforementioned places over-seasoned their food to the point that it was overpowering. I'll use Italian food as an analogy. If a chef dumps a whole pile of Parmesan on a dish, does that make it right? No, just because certain spices and ingredients are used predominantly in a particular cuisine, it doesn't mean you can use copious amounts of it. At Hakka Masti and Asian Spice, I found that they may have been a bit heavy handed with some of their spices, despite the fact I enjoyed my meals there.

Today, I visited one of the most well known Indo-Chinese restaurants in the GVRD - Green Lettuce. Although I pass by the Vancouver location quite often, I found myself at the Surrey location today. For lunch, they have a few specials which include rice and tea for $8.99. The Szechuan Chicken caught my fancy; but I was a bit hungry and decided to get the Dry Chili Beef for good measure. I was quite impressed with the service and how fast I got my food. Arriving first, the tender slices of perfectly cooked chicken were bathed in a moderately spicy sauce. I could see the chili peppers, green and white onions; but the flavours worked together. This is the balance I was talking about. The special came with a bucket of rice which was more than enough for me.

The Dry Chili Beef was actually a good amount of food since there were no fillers other than the 3 shrimp chips. The tender pieces of beef were only lightly deep-fried and then wok-fried in a spicy chili sauce. Again, I could definitely see the chili and seeds; yet I could still detect sweetness, garlic and a vinegary tartness. Achieving balance in a spicy dish is not a given; but they did here. I really enjoyed my meal here at the Green Lettuce. I most certainly will be returning. And guess what? I have returned, albeit more than a year later. This time around I also had 2 dishes starting with the Peppering Fish. Although this was a lunch special, they did not skimp on the portion size. The plate was overflowing with fish and sauce with very little filler. From what I could gather, it was Basa. It was fried up perfectly being moist and still a bit crisp outside. The sauce was very tasty with a nice combination of chili flakes, garlic and saltiness. Once again, balanced spiciness.

My second dish was the Manchurian Chicken. Again, it was a good amount of food with very little in the way of anything other than meat. However, I found the meat to be stiff and overcooked. The sauce was pretty good with a combination of sweet, tart and spicy. For me, the texture of the chicken didn't do it for me, so this would be the only one of the 4 I've had that was so-so. However, 3 out of 4 is pretty good in my books, especially considering the portion size for the price. Let's see when is the next time I'll return, another year maybe?

The Good:
- Friendly and efficient service
- Spicy food; but not overspiced
- Reasonable prices

The Bad:
- Well, if you don't like spicy food, it ain't for you

McGrath's Fish House

*Restaurant is now closed*

Since we were near Seattle shopping at the Premium Outlets, I made plans to meet up with Goose to celebrate his birthday. I let him choose the venue and he selected McGrath's Fish House in Alderwood Mall. I've passed by this place a few times while dining at Claim Jumper and grabbing some drinks at Jamba Juice. McGrath's is actually a chain of restaurants specializing in seafood, particularly fish (hence the name). Immediately, comparisons to Red Lobster came to mind. Other than the complimentary scones, there is not much to like about Red Lobster (small portions, expensive, food not very good). Again, with an open mind, Viv and I headed 25 minutes south on I-5 from Tulalip to Lynnwood. Goose had to make a reservation a couple hours prior since McGrath's doesn't take reservations the day before. To my dismay, we were seated in a dark area of the restaurant. They didn't have a table for 6 near a window. I am using this excuse for the poor pictures!

Since I was treating, I encouraged Goose and Mother Goose to order lots of food. In actuality, I just wanted to take more photos. Yes, I always have an ulterior motive. Although this time, it cost me! So we started off with 3 appetizers - Crab Cakes, Calamari and 1/2 Pound of Peel n Eat Shrimp. Have you ever looked at a menu and from the description of the food, envision something grand? Well, imagine my reaction when the food arrived. Thinking that I had ordered 3 really large appetizers, it turned out to be 3 really small appetizers. Granted that they weren't too expensive; but the portions were small, especially the calamari. Although the 2 crab cakes looked quite good being nicely browned and all, they were a bit stiff. Furthermore, I didn't get any sweetness of crab. The shrimp were pretty good, they were crisp and accompanied by enough cocktail sauce to drink. However, the calamari was just plain terrible. First, there wasn't much of it (which was probably a good thing). Second, it was glistening with oil. Third, it wasn't fried long enough (or the oil wasn't hot enough) because the squid was chewy and slimmed with uncooked batter. To add insult to injury, the dipping sauce was bland.

At this point I was quite concerned about the rest of our meals. However, the house sour dough bread kept my mind off of it because it was pretty darn good. All entrees come with a garden salad. For a little bit more, you can substitute it with a different salad or soup. I decided to replace my garden salad with the Pear, Candied Walnuts, Fried Yam Strings and Blue Cheese Salad instead. This sounded quite delicious in theory. However, when it arrived, I could barely identify anything underneath the yam strings. There was so much dressing, the greens became soggy. In theory, if they had not overdressed the salad, the crunchy sweet walnuts and crispy yams would've been a great compliment to the pungent blue cheese. Chalk this up to lack of execution. On the other hand, Viv's Seafood Stew (Soup) was pretty good. I guess they called it a stew because there was more ingredients than broth. The tomato broth exhibited nice depth with a touch of "good" fishiness flavour. Goose and Mrs. Goose had the Garden Salad and Coleslaw respectively.

I am normally not a big fan of Tilapia since I find it a bit mushy; but I ordered it because of the lime butter. It's really too bad I didn't taste any lime; I did taste a lot of butter though (which is not necessarily a bad thing). Soft and not too mushy, the fish was actually cooked properly. The same could be said for the green beans and red potatoes. Strangely, there was tartar sauce served on the side. I wasn't sure what the purpose of it was since the fish was already seasoned and not fried. For me, it almost cheapened the dish. Well, then you can give me heck for using it on my potatoes (not sure why I did that). Anyways, I guess the only real complaint for this dish was the absence of lime flavour. Viv chose the Hazelnut Sole with came with a lemon dill sauce. Again, the fish was cooked properly and tasted quite pleasant. I would've like the hazelnut coating to be a bit more crispy; but it was not really a big deal. Furthermore, I did not detect much lemon flavour at all in the sauce, when we squeezed copious amounts of lemon juice on the fish, the flavours seemed to come alive. Not sure if that was the intention; but it sure seems like they shouldn't put "lime" or "lemon" in the description if the flavour is so weak.

Since it was we were celebrating Goose's birthday, I encouraged him to order something good. There was a Live Whole Lobster for $30.00 and King Crab Legs for the same price. In the end, he opted for Sirloin Steak with King Crab Legs. Honestly, it didn't look like a lot of food for $30.00; but Goose seemed to be satisfied with it. He was especially happy with the crab since there was quite a lot of meat packed into the 2 legs. Mother Goose had the Mixed Grill which consisted of a Crab Cake, Prawn Skewers and Wood Fired Salmon. She was really pleased with the perfectly grilled and seasoned salmon. Taking a quick peek, it was indeed flaky and moist.

I really have mixed feelings about McGrath's Fish House. It really has nothing to do with the fact it is a chain restaurant either. The service was predictably friendly and attentive (that's what most people are looking for in a chain restaurant - predictability). On one hand, we had some really average appetizers in terms of size and execution. On the other, we have perfectly cooked fish, albeit lacking in some aspects in terms of flavour. In retrospect, the prices at McGrath's aren't exactly unreasonable for this type of food. However, none of the food made me go "wow" or I really need to eat this again. So, in the end it was difficult to decide whether I liked it or not. When I have this dilemma, I always ask myself whether I return to a restaurant or not. In this case, the answer is not.

The Good:
- Service was very friendly
- Prices were reasonable
- Fish was done properly

The Bad:
- Flavours need a bit of work
- Appetizers were small and not very good
- For the price, you can go to a better independent seafood restaurant