Benkei Ramen

*Restaurant is now closed*

It's not often I bring the whole family into Downtown for some eats. After all, parking is challenging and I'm not sure my kids would necessarily be impressed with scantily-clad hostesses and loud dance music. Well, I might be impressed; but Viv would probably slash me with her Easton. With that type of establishment not being an option and still needing to go Downtown. I had to pay a visit to Urban Fare today since I was picking up items for part 2 of my Indishpensable challenge. I had to recreate the dish they had supplied to me a week earlier. This required me to buy some specialty items not usually found at places such as Superstore or Safeway. Where should I eat??? Well, my kids do like noodles and I like noodles... Alright, with Kintaro Ramen closed on Mondays, we went to the next best thing nearby - Benkei Ramen. No scantily-clad hostesses or loud dance music here! Only the sweet sound of slurping noodles and ambient conversational noise. Good thing for us, we only waited for about 5 minutes for our table. I'm not completely convinced that this is a truly kid-friendly restaurant since it is small and the seating arrangements are challenging for a family. Whatever the case, there were other kids here and it was well-lit. Some of the places in Downtown are so dark, you can barely see the food, let alone catching your kids chuck sugar packets all over the place.

Unlike Kintaro, there are many different soup choices at Benkei. Viv was quite pleased since she wasn't as enthusiastic about Kintaro as I was. She opted for the Akaoni Ramen which looked intimidatingly hot with its red-orange tinge. One taste and it was really not all that spicy. It did have a nice kick to it though. Viv was a bit annoyed at the ground meat because the only way she could eat all of it was to drink all of the soup. I decided on the Shio Ramen which most closely resembled Kintaro for comparison purposes and also I happen to like rich tonkotsu broth. I added "all the toppings" for an extra $3.50. In addition to the sprouts, pork and bamboo shoots, it added spinach, kimchi, nori, corn, boiled egg and butter. I noticed right away that the portion size here is smaller than that of Kintaro. Secondly, the broth was not nearly as rich either. Not necessarily a bad thing, especially for those people who want something a bit lighter. With that being said, the noodles were a good balance of being soft and not overcooked. I wish the pork (or Chashu) was a bit more fatty; but I guess I can do that at Kintaro. Otherwise, an enjoyable bowl of ramen nonetheless.

The Shoyu ramen was essentially the same as the Shio, except with a light soy broth. We got some gyoza on the side and they were cooked up nicely and were not too heavy. Although I personally like Kintaro more, Benkei is a solid place to get ramen. Furthermore, it offers up more choice of broth and isn't as heavy.

The Good:
- Choice of different types of broth
- Good ramen, in terms of the noodles and the ingredients
- Reasonably priced

The Bad:
- If you had to compare, the portion size here doesn't compare to Kintaro
- Not the most comfortable place to sit

Desi Dosa Madras

*Restaurant is closed*

For the longest time, I've driven by Desi Dosa Madras and noticed that it was "opening soon". However, I was in no rush to try it. You see, the last time I had a dosa, it was good; but it wasn't great. The dosa I had at Mayuri looked good, tasted good; yet it was a bit too thick. Therefore, I was in no rush to have another dosa. Finally, I decided to go. Despite the fact I had to wait for it to open 5 minutes late, I was determined and waited. Finally entering the restaurant, the server was about to lead me to a choice booth seat; but I went ahead and chose a crappy seat which was by the window. Little does he know why I did that! I was quite surprised to be offered a take-out menu as the actual menu. Did they not have their menus yet? Whatever the case, the server promptly brought me a pitcher of water (albeit luke warm) while I was deciding what to eat.

I decided on a Lamb Dosa; however, knowing that dosas look larger than they are filling, I ordered a Chicken Korma with Roti for good measure. The korma arrived piping hot with large chunks of very tender white meat. This particular version of korma seemed to be a bit lighter in colour and taste than I've been used to. However, do not let the light colour fool you, there was an underlying heat hidden within the smooth yogurt base. I tried to soak up every last bit of sauce with the roti; but there was way too much sauce. I wish I had rice instead. While I was busy enjoying my korma, the Lamb Dosa arrived with a side of sambar, coconut chutney and spiced lentil soup. Unlike the dosa at Mayuri, the one here was extremely light and crispy. I really enjoyed the texture. Adding a robust flavour was the lamb curry hidden inside the dosa. Tender pieces of lamb mixed with onions provided the meatiness and a kick to an otherwise plain dosa. I
particularly enjoyed using the sambar with the dosa. The lentil soup was a bit spicy and temperature hot. I could've guzzled a whole bowl of it; but I'm not sure if my stomach would've appreciated it.

I was pleasantly surprised with my meal at Desi Dosa Madras. The dosa was excellent and so was the Chicken Korma. The flavours were complex and pleasing to the taste buds. Moreover, it's nice to try something different from the usual standard North Indian fare.

The Good:
- Something a bit different from the usual Indian food
- Good balance in flavours and textures
- Inexpensive

The Bad:
- Although friendly, service was a bit basic
- A bit nitpicking; but my water was warm (where's the ice?)

Beefy Beef Noodle

*Restaurant is closed*

Honestly, a league game at 11:00pm? Why does it seem like our hockey games are getting later and later? What's next? 1:00am? When we really should be preparing to go to bed; we were heading out to the rink to play our Friday night league game. It's really kind of pathetic since 11:00pm should be just the "start" of a Friday night (when we were younger)! So a really late game leads to very few choices for eats afterwards. Essentially, other than a few non-Asian places, you're stuck with the wonton noodle joints. However, there was one place I knew that was open late and had something other than congee. Kevin had blogged about Beefy Beef Noodle and it was open late - perfect! It's actually the sister restaurant to #1 Beef Noodle House. I guess they didn't want to call this new location #2 Beef Noodle House. Well, at least the name of the restaurant accurately describes their food. I only wish places like Po King and Floata rename themselves to Crappy Crap Service.

Other than another table, we were the only patrons at Beefy Beef Noodle. Well, it was 1:00am, so I guess most people were either sleeping or still in the clubs. It looked like the 2 servers there wanted to sleep too. Despite being quite friendly, they really seemed disinterested in being there. When someone got around to taking our order, I went for their signature dish - Spicy Beef Noodle. Just like their other restaurant, they used beef shank. However, I found the one here not as soft. I personally didn't mind it; but I can see some people not liking it. Sitting in a moderately spicy broth, there was plenty of al dente noodles. I liked the firm; yet not hard texture of the noodles. Furthermore, they were loose and not clumped together. All-in-all, a pretty solid bowl of noodles. For good measure, I ordered a combination platter of 3 marinated items. I chose Marinated Pig Ear, Intestines and Tripe. I tried really hard to trade some of the items with everyone else; but they did their best to avoid it. What's wrong with them??? Intestines rule! Well, they were actually pretty good. They did a good job in rinsing them to the point that it was devoid of any gamy taste. The pig ear was nice and gelatinous (I hope I am not grossing some people out at this point). However, the tripe was not that tender and required quite a bit of chewing.

Lionel Hutz went for their other signature dish - Crispy Salty Peppery Chicken. Looking like an Asian version of popcorn chicken, it was served piping hot, lightly crispy and full of flavour. This would go really well with beer. Lionel also ordered the Fried Squid. Looking freakish with really long tentacles, this fried squid would only appeal to those who like tentacles. Of course I do, but I'm sure some people would balk. If you can get over the visual, it is actually quite good. This dish was originally left off the bill for some reason or another. It took quite a while to flag down our server to correct it. Polka King opted for something a bit more conservative in the Prawns and Egg Fried Rice. I didn't get to try any of the fried rice; but he seemed happy with it. Milhouse ordered 2 dishes with the first being the Shredded Beef Fried Noodle. He only seemed moderately enthused about this dish. The noodles were a bit slimy and the dish lacked flavour. The second dish was a strange one. He ordered an Green Onion Pancake. What he got was a Green Onion Pancake with Egg. Something got lost in translation during the ordering process? Whatever the case, much like a beef roll, the fried egg came encased in an onion pancake. Unlike a beef roll, this was not really all that good. The egg doesn't add much in the way of flavour or texture.

Our late night eats at Beefy Beef Noodle was not bad. If you stick with the beef noodle and some of their snack items, you will come away happy. Some of their other dishes are pretty average. For most of the time, there were only 2 tables including ourselves. But the 2 staff members were too busy drinking their bubble tea to come around and check on us. By no means were they unfriendly, they just didn't seem to care. Not horrible, yet it was worth mentioning.

The Good:
- Solid beef noodles
- Open late
- Inexpensive

The Bad:
- Other food is quite average
- Cash only
- Very few parking spots

Provence Marinaside

In the latest edition of "places I used to frequent", we paid a visit to Provence Marinaside today. Joining me were Whipping Girl and Vandelay. Yes, it's Vandelay, after a long absence. You see, he and Donna Chang just had their first child - a boy! Congrats to them! Talking about absences, I haven't been back to Provence since I had moved from downtown 4 years ago. In fact, the reason we dined at Provence so often was that I lived in the same complex. Funny thing, it's the same complex that Daniel Sedin lived in. One time I saw him stroll out to the common driveway we shared with the complex beside us to meet up with Henrik who was driving... you guessed it, a Volvo! Let's just say they were better neighbours than Donald Brashear. He would mistaken the parkade for a go-kart track.

I arrived a bit early with Whipping Girl and Vandelay arriving shortly after. While I was waiting, I took the opportunity to peruse the menu and noticed that they had a 3-course lunch for $25.00. It seems like quite a few restaurants offer set menus for lunch and dinner these days. It almost defeats the purpose of Dine-Out. Anyways, we all decided to share an Antipasti platter with 3 items. There is a display case at the entrance with different antipastos which you can choose from. We settled on the Squid, Artichoke Hearts and Mushrooms. Served hot, the antipasti was really good. The grilled squid was perfectly cooked being a bit chewy and buttery soft at the same time. Don't ask me how that can be, but it was. The mushrooms (button, oyster and Portobello) were cooked just right, while the artichoke hearts equally good. For me at least, I find that $5.00 per item is a very reasonable price.

The dish that caught my eye was the Bouillabaisse consisting of potatoes, scallops, mussels, clams, salmon and halibut in a lobster broth. Served on the side were Gruyère, croutons and what I believe was lobster mayo. The Gruyère was meant to be mixed into the lobster broth when all the seafood had been finished. I gotta tell you, the broth was aromatic, a bit salty and with the Gruyère, I was making all sorts of suggestive noises. The seafood itself was just cooked allowing the natural sweetness to come to the forefront. The fish was also perfectly cooked with a good balance of tender meatiness.

Whipping Girl loves mussels. No, not Jean Claude Van-Damme. Well, he ain't muscular anymore anyways. Saw him at Victoria Restaurant a few times and he's got more of a one-pack than a six-pack. Rather, she loves steamed mussels. There was no doubt what she was going to order -
Steamed Mussels with White Wine and Cream. I didn't bother trying any mussels because I had some in my own dish; but I did sample the broth and it was delicious. A good combination of wine, cream, onions and herbs. It was flavourful; yet wasn't too strong that it was overpowering.
Going in a completely different direction, Vandelay ordered the Cannelloni. It arrived piping hot. I sampled a good chunk and the sauce was a bit tart and the beef was very moist. Maybe a bit too moist because it was quite loose and hard to eat. Otherwise, this was a pretty pedestrian dish. It was accompanied by a side salad.

Yet another solid meal at Provence. I find that during brunch and lunch, the food is pretty good for the prices that they charge. However, Dinner is a bit pricey for the portions that you get. The service was both attentive and friendly. Our server was quite pleasant; albeit he had this James Spader thing going with humongous 80's glasses. I know it's not polite to stare; but we did. Another plus is it's location. Situated right at the marina on False Creek, there is somewhat of a view and lots of light. Sitting outside on a nice sunny day, you can really soak in what Vancouver is all about. Mind you in Yaletown, you might only get a glimpse of what Vancouver is all about. Hey, you might even spot one of the Sedin twins in their Volvo!

The Good:
- Reasonable prices (Brunch & Lunch)
- Pretty good food
- Excellent location

The Bad:
- Flavours could be a bit more bold
- Dinner is not as good of a value as lunch

The Dock House

*Restaurant is now closed*

Have you ever continually passed by a restaurant and for some reason or another never have eaten there? Well, this is the case with the Dock House restaurant. In fact, I've avoided this place for so long, it has changed owners and name in the mean time. It used to be known as the Sea Shanty. Finally, I decided to try it out. Well, to be honest, there are not many choices out in North Delta left. So I really had no choice! The Dock House is your typical fish 'n chip joint, where everything is cooked in the deep fryer. Healthy eating this is not. Not being particularly hungry (which is a rare occurrence), I decided on the 1 piece Halibut and Chips. While waiting for my order, the students from the nearby high school descended on the place like a pack of hungry wolves. You see, they have a $2.00 special here that consists of a massive mound of fries. The place was completely taken over by the students to the point where they began sitting at my table without asking. They even reached over me to use the condiments on my table! Manners anyone?

Anyways, much like the time I went to Asian Spice, they left as fast as they arrived once they ravaged their fried potatoes. Good thing too, I'm not sure how I would've taken my pictures otherwise. They were taking invading personal space to a whole new level. As the restaurant was clearing out, a decent sized piece of halibut rested on a ridiculously large bed of crispy fries arrived. The batter was neither really thin nor thick, it resided somewhere in the middle. It was moderately crispy and not oily. The halibut itself was quite fresh and flaky. I thought it was cooked quite well. The fries are very much like White Spot fries being crisp and very starchy at the same time.

I was a bit indifferent with the homemade tartar sauce. I really wanted more zing. Rather, it was quite creamy and seemed more like mayo than tartar sauce. I did like the coleslaw, it was simple, tart and crunchy. Overall, for $9.00, it was a fair price for some decent fish n chips. I've heard and seen some negative reviews of this place; but I'm not sure if they've been fair. Sure, there are better fish n chip places; but it was more than acceptable.

The Good:
- Fish was fresh
- Not oily
- Reasonably-priced

The Bad:
- Tartar sauce needs more flavour
- Don't come during lunch on weekdays, the place gets taken over by high school students

Indishpensable

*Restaurant is closed*

What happens when you want to cook at home, but have absolutely no ingredients to do so? Well, the people at Indishpensable think that they have your solution. In addition to being a restaurant, they specialize in packaging fully prepped ingredients for you to cook at home. Exact quantities and detailed instructions should make it easy for even the worst of cooks (in theory that is). This would be a great way for anyone to fool dinner guests into thinking they were a gourmet chef. For this post, I was challenged by Indishpensable to try one of their pre-packaged take and make meals. After that, I needed to purchase all of the ingredients for that meal and make it again. The challenge was to make it for less than the meal would have cost at Indishpensable. Of course, the first meal was complimentary and the second meal was covered up to $50.00. Although I did get a freebie of sorts here, I was assured that I could say whatever I wanted about the product and the resulting challenge.

When I went to pick up my package, I was greeted by Brent, one of the co-owners of Indishpensable. He explained that all of the items are freshly prepared and packaged for each customer. Best thing to do is to call ahead, so the package is ready for pickup when you arrive. For the really busy or lazy person, there is also delivery (using a cooler bag) available as well. I was given a choice of 4 dinners for two and decided on the Oven-roasted Halibut & Rosemary wrapped in Prosciutto, smashed new potatoes with dill & truffle oil, confit of tomato, zucchini & capers. Upon inspecting the ingredients at the store, it was noted that they used local ingredients and the halibut was Ocean-Wise. Furthermore, the meal came with a coupon for 10% off a paired bottle of wine from Kitsilano Wine Cellar.

Upon getting home, I hastily started cooking because daylight was becoming scarce (for the pictures!). Following the instructions, I first started boiling the potatoes while preheating the oven. While that was going, I started on the tomato confit. As both things were happily cooking, Viv got home from work and helped me wrap the halibut and rosemary in the prosciutto. She stuck that in the oven and I continued cooking the confit. While that was finishing off, I drained the potatoes and added the prepackaged ingredients and proceeded to smash them. By then, the halibut was done and I merely plated it as per the instructions. What impressed me here was the accurate timing and organization of the cooking. Obviously, everything has been thought out thoroughly and made as easy as possible for the end user. That's a good thing, because some customers are probably not used to cooking.

As you can see in the picture, the dish looks pretty tasty. In fact, it was pretty good. Despite the large quantity of herbs used in this dish, they did not overpower any of the ingredients. The herbs added flavour without copious amount of salt. Presentation- wise, there was quite a bit of green on the plate though. I really liked the use of anchovies in the tomato confit because it gives a saltiness that is more complex than plain salt. The use of truffle oil added a subtle earthiness to the potatoes and the prosciutto helped flavour the halibut. However, I think a bit more seasoning was needed for the fish. Since you are cooking it, you can adjust the seasoning as you wish.

Now this meal for 2 purchased at Indishpensable would normally cost $38.00. The second part of the challenge saw me go out and purchase many of the ingredients to recreate the meal. Since some of the items would not be found in a regular grocery store, I chose to shop at Urban Fare. Wait a minute Sherman, you might be yelling out right now. Isn't Urban Fare expensive??? You are correct, but if I were to find truffle oil, there ain't any at Stupidstore! Moreover, if I went to different stores trying to find each item at it's cheapest, I'd waste more gas than any savings I would incur. The only other place I had in mind was Granville Island and it probably would have been a little bit cheaper.

Anyways, I bought most of the items at Urban Fare other than the white wine, rosemary, basil, dill, oregano, garlic, butter, and olive oil. The reason for this is that I had these items already. This is valid because for some people, they would have existing items on hand. The total bill at Urban Fare came to roughly $60.00. If you factor in the other ingredients, it would be well over $90.00 for this meal. Now, of course some of the items would not be completely consumed by this one meal such as the truffle oil, white wine, olive oil and herbs. But you get the gist of it though, there is absolutely no way that someone, purchasing through a retail outlet, could do this meal for $38.00. The only way you can do this meal for remotely the same price is to have most of the items on hand already. But if you did, you'd probably not be Indishpensable's target market. Mind you, if you were short on time, this still could be a dinner solution. Furthermore, you must remember that everything is prepped and cut. Ultimately, for those who want to cook a gourmet meal; but either do not have the know-how or a pantry/fridge stocked with ingredients, Indishpensable is their saviour.

The Good:
- Everything is pre-cut and ready to cook
- Very good portions of food
- It's fresh and everything is thought out carefully
- Can impress girlfriend/boyfriend/wife/husband

The Bad:
- Some people who have a stocked pantry and can really cook may not go for this
- Although there is delivery available, more locations would be handy (if they continue to be successful, I guess this won't be an issue)

Hatto Sushi

*Restaurant is closed*

Thinking that I hit all the sushi places in North Delta (Minori & Akari), I wasn't expecting to see another Japanese restaurant when I dined at the Green Lettuce. Hidden in the corner of the same shopping complex is Hatto Sushi. So far, Minori has been a decent choice for Japanese food out here. Akari was decent, but on subsequent visits, it hasn't impressed me. I was quite excited to eat Japanese for lunch today since most of the restaurants on Scott Road are Indian. Don't get me wrong, I love Indian food, but after awhile, I feel like I'm sweating curry!

Arriving a bit early, I expected Hatto to be closed. However, their door was ajar, even though the hours indicated they open at 11:30am. Oh well, I walked in and indeed they were open. They should really change that sign. I was greeted warmly and I got my choice of tables because I was the only one there. At that point, I was hoping it was because I was early! I was quite impressed with the selection of sushi on the menu, especially for a Japanese restaurant out here. I really hate when there is too much choice, I end up taking really long to order. Well, I did decide on the Salmon Sashimi and when it arrived, I was pretty surprised to see wild salmon. Happily digging in, the slices of salmon were sweet and fresh. A really nice start to the meal. The prices of the Nigiri Sushi were a bit high; but I decided to get some anyways. I got 2 pieces each of Toro, Unagi and Inari. Not particularly looking that impressive, they did taste better than they appeared. I liked the sushi rice, it was soft; but not mushy. The Toro could have been sliced a bit bigger in my opinion, especially for the price.

The last item I ordered was at their suggestion - the Caterpillar Roll. It sure looked impressive when it arrived with lots of avocado on the outside and 2 strips of cucumbers doubling as the antenna. It did taste good since the avocado was fresh and there was just enough sauce. However, far too much rice overwhelmed the unagi in the centre. I really didn't even notice it was there to tell you the truth. The 3 items that I got cost me close to $30.00; yet I really didn't seem overly full. Although the food was pretty decent, I'm not sure if I got good value. The salmon sashimi was a real treat; but the other items were pretty average. While I can't say that I didn't like Hatto Sushi, I wasn't all that excited about it either.

The Good:
- Decent Japanese food considering the location
- Friendly staff
- Good selection of items on the menu

The Bad:
- A tad pricey
- Portion size could be a bit better