Cioppino's

While we were milling around the foyer after our Friday ice hockey game, Special K asked me if I had ever dined at Cioppino's before. As fate would have it, I had a reservation at 6:45pm to go the following night. Coincidentally, she had a reservation for 7:00pm on the same night! Right there and then, I devised a plan to take advantage of the situation. That's right folks, I have sunk to a new low. I asked if I could take pictures of their food, even though their table would likely be nowhere near mine.

Prior to our dinner at Cioppino's, Elaine, Costanza, Viv and I went to the Scotiabank Theatres to watch District 9. Let me just say that was one very odd movie. Somehow, I really was not in the mood for Prawns after watching it (if you've seen it, you'd understand). For my starter, I went for a different type of seafood - Grilled Tender Pacific Octopus with stewed Tuscan white beans. Although it was tender in some parts, most of the octopus was a bit chewy. Despite this, the combination of white beans, frisee and cherry tomatoes in a citrus vinaigrette (?) helped bring out the natural sweetness of the octopus. This ended up to be a filling appetizer and I knew right there and then that this wasn't going to be a Filet-O-Fish meal. For those who do not know what I am referring to, there is a story behind this. Once I had a meal at Feenie's (now DB Bistro Moderne) that was so small, I needed to go get a Filet-O-Fish afterwards! So from that point on, if a meal was unsatisfying, it would be deemed a Filet-O-Fish meal.

Viv loves smoked salmon and it was predictable that she would choose the Apple Wood Smoked Wild Salmon with toasted brioche. The salmon was buttery soft with gentle smoke undertones. The sweet toasted brioche provided a nice textural contrast. The sauce (looked like olive oil, mustard and shallots?) added a nice smoothness to the salmon without interfering with its delicate flavour. Elaine went for something completely different and bless her soul for doing so. More diversity for me to write about! Her choice of appetizer was the Porcini and Chestnut Soup with vanilla chantilly. This particularly soup was a Gold Medal Winner. When I think of chestnuts, I usually equate it heavy and hearty. Yet, one sip of this soup and I was pleasantly surprised by its lightness and depth of flavour. Thanks to the porcini mushrooms, there was a nice combination of earthiness and richness which was never heavy. I didn't get to sample the Chantilly on top of the soup; but I'm sure that it would have added an extra creaminess.

Costanza dined at Cioppino's recently and had sampled a dish with an exquisite balsamic dressing. He asked our server if they could whip something up using the same vinaigrette. The kitchen obliged and a simple Spring Salad with feta arrived. Honestly, the salad itself was none too exciting. Mind you, the kitchen could only do what it could with the special request. I must remark that the dressing was indeed very good since it was super smooth with only slight balsamic undertones. A less successfully executed dressing would've been sour. Thankfully, Costanza's main dish had much more substance. He opted for the Veal “Ossobuco” alla Milanese with saffron risotto. Looking quite rustic, the large portion of veal rested on a modest amount of risotto. The veal was super tender and delicately seasoned. Prepared much like a pot roast with root vegetables, there was a richness to the meat from the slow cooking. The risotto had a nice firm texture and it held up well to the addition of the roasting juices from the veal. Of course the real draw of osso buco is the bone marrow and Costanza devoured it all by himself.

I originally had difficulty selecting my main dish since I am conflicted when there is so much choice. Thankfully, Costanza recommended the Pappardelle with 4-hour-braised veal cheeks and porcini mushrooms. He had this dish on his last visit and swears by it. The first thing that I noticed was how the pasta was so perfectly cooked. It was teetering on the line between undercooked and just cooked. To me, that is perfection. The pasta is soft enough to eat; yet still retains bite and/or resistance. With just enough sauce clinging onto each ribbon of pasta, the flavours really worked. The slightly nutty flavour of the porcini helped offset the saltiness of the tender pork cheeks. It's one of those dishes where you would keep eating it if there was an unlimited supply.

Viv picked another one of her favourites, the Braised Beef Short Ribs in red wine with seasonal vegetables. Sandwiched in between 2 "interestingly" shaped mounds of potato puree were 2 melt-in-your-mount pieces of short rib. There was a pronounced red wine taste to the ribs and sauce. Some nice broccolini finished off the dish. Now, I've saved the best main course for last. Elaine smartly chose the Pan-Roasted Sablefish Fillet with soy sabayon and green vegetables. Apparently, this was one of the dishes Pino served at the James Beard Dinner in NYC. After trying it, we could see why. The fish was prepared to perfection with each moist flake of fish melting in our mouths. Flavoured with a soy sabayon (which is usually a dessert), the fish was well seasoned; yet there was no question it was the star of the show. Some may wonder why this dish costs $40.00. The answer to that is if you even had eaten something that you can remember for a long time and still taste it in your mouth through memory alone, it was worth it.

For dessert, I ended up with the Limoncello Cheesecake with citrus-vanilla confiture, aged Balsamico caramel and mascarpone-citrus sorbet. Once again, this was served at the James Beard dinner in NYC. I didn't know this before ordering it and I can see why it was chosen for the prestigious dinner. The soft, sweet and fluffy cheesecake was perfectly contrasted by the crunchy citrus rind shavings sprinkled on the outside. It gave an extra kick of flavour and tartness/bitterness to the delicately sweet cheesecake. Further enhancing the tartness of the dessert was the mascarpone-citrus sorbet. I thought that the mascarpone helped temper the tartness by offering a smoothness normally associated with gelato (despite this being a sorbet). Giving one last kick of sweetness and depth was the balsamico caramel.

Elaine had the Tiramisu with mascarpone custard, lady fingers and chocolate sauce. I love tiramisu and almost ordered it instead of the cheesecake. I got a good spoonful and it was delicate and only moderately sweet. There wasn't a pronounced coffee flavour. It was there, we could taste it; but it didn't dominate the dessert. Viv opted for a decadent dessert in the form of the Light Milk Chocolate Mousse with raspberry cream centre, sour cherries and mango coulis. Colourfully presented on a long white plate, the chocolate mousse melted in my mouth. As the name implied, the mousse was rather light and only semi-sweet. The raspberries and coulis added a nice tartness to the mousse. Costanza was intrigued by the Ricotta-filled Cannoli which was the dessert special. He thought they were a bit heavy and I would have to agree. Probably the weakest of the desserts we had. I did like filling though, it was light and creamy.

Now normally I would have pretty much summed up my thoughts and begin to do a concluding paragraph for this post; however, with Special K and Emilicious dining across the room, I couldn't pass up the opportunity for more pictures. In between our courses, I passed the camera to Special K and she graciously took pictures of all dishes at her table. Yes, I knew someday that I would sink to this level where I would have pictures from a table that I was not even sitting at! Their party started off sharing 2 appetizers. The first one was the Sautéed Calamari “alla Ligure” with spinach and Portobello mushrooms. I was told that the Calamari was tender and of course delicately seasoned. I considered it, but I think it would've been bad etiquette to start trying dishes from another table. Maybe I'll sink to that level one day. The second appetizer was the Crepes with buffalo mozzarella. According to Special K, the crepe was very tasty, it had a delicate flavour, definitely French influenced.

There was a dinner special which was a Risotto with Italian Truffles. It sounded really good until our server notified us it would be $100.00. Apparently, Special K and Emilicious had the same reaction too. So no comments on Truffle Risotto here, we'd like to eat for the rest of the week! Instead, their table had the Porcini Mushroom Risotto. Special K thought the risotto was really good. It was cooked perfectly and it was not too rich. Sometimes risotto is heavy-handed with a thick consistency, but this was just right. They also had the same pappardelle that I had and Special K thought that it was everyone's favourite. The veal was so tender and full of flavour, hardly needing any sauce.

Special K normally prefers beef tenderloin, but decided to give the Tuscan Rib-Eye a try. On the menu, it's described as the Tuscan style rib-eye of dry-aged triple A beef with rocket salad and Parmigiano. She thought the meat was cooked perfectly medium/medium rare and very tender. It was a large piece of meat, but they balanced it very nicely with a green salad and balsamic vinaigrette. For me, by looking at the dish, the beef seems to be cooked perfectly and evenly with a nice char on the outside. Emilicious seems to love pasta and clams, so it wasn't much of a surprise that she ordered the Spaghetti “alle Vongole” served in a white wine garlic sauce. According to her, it was very well done. Not as in overcooked but perfectly al dente tossed in a white wine garlic sauce - very simple and delicious. She added some crushed chillies for a bit of a kick as well. When I went to pick up my camera, they kept "ooo"ing and "aaa"ing about their Organic Lemon Tart. I'm sure they said "organic", not some other similar word... Emilicious thought the lemon filling had a good consistency and tartness to it. It was topped with a light and fluffy meringue that had just the right sweetness to offset the tang of the lemon. Crust was thin - good balance of crust to filling. Special K liked the tart, but she preferred the Tiramisu.

It's true that Cioppino's is pricey and it's very easy to drop $100.00 per person, if not more for a meal here. However, in my opinion, it's one of those dining experiences that is worth every penny (and that's a lot of pennies). The food in general was executed with precision and care, sometimes by Pino himself! Nice to see an Executive Chef in action rather than merely supervising. Service was professional and not pretentious in any way. The ambiance was a bit noisier than I expected; but it didn't detract from the overall experience. Cioppino's is definitely high on my list of "must eats" in Vancouver.

The Good:
- Food is prepared and executed with precision
- Service is top notch
- Excellent wine list

The Bad:
- Some might find it overpriced
- Atmosphere was a bit more boisterous than I thought it would be

Kawawa Japanese

After reading Kim's post about Kawawa Ramen. I decided to give it a go. However, I must've forgotten something because I didn't remember that they operated 2 separate restaurants in Metropolis. One being Kawawa Ramen and the other Kawawa Japanese Restaurant. I dragged the whole family out to try the ramen and ended up eating at the other place instead. It didn't even occur to me to look one store over. When I got there, I thought to myself, I don't see any ramen and what's with the All-You-Can-Eat??? Whatever, I reluctantly decided to try the AYCE here. This used to be Taisho, which was a crappy AYCE. We had to wait for around 10 minutes for our table and for the life of me, I don't know why I didn't look around for the ramen! Serious brain cramp. I'm not even sure why we had to wait since there were plenty of empty tables at the time. The only thing I could think of was that we were a bit early and they were short-staffed. Anyways, I was impressed with our hostess though. She did not even consider charging the kiddies for their meals since she noticed how small they were. Unlike Sui Sha Ya who was going to charge my 2 year old daughter!

Everything started off quite pleasant, we were seated and the server was prompt with the tea and even wiped down a booster seat for my son. They were indeed short-staffed; but they did their best to be friendly and efficient. Looking at the order sheet, I noticed that there was a pretty good selection of items for $19.95. It's definitely one of the lower priced AYCE Japanese in the GVRD. Upon further inspection of the menu, Viv spotted an error on the menu. At the bottom it said that "Aji Taro reserves the right to...". That's right, it's the same menu as Aji Taro in Richmond except for the header. They apparently forgot to change the footer before they reprinted these menus. Whatever the case, I decided to order a whole bunch of things quickly since I had a hockey game later. Note to self, do not eat AYCE anything before a hockey game ever again.

The first items to arrive were the Miso Soup, Ebi Sunomono and Green Salad. Pretty standard fare, alright so far... The next plate to arrive was the Sashimi and this is where it began to fall apart. Yes, you heard me, right at the start of the meal, it had already begun to go downhill. The tuna sashimi was plain gross. If they wanted to serve me something with the texture of mashed potatoes, then I'd rather grab a box of Betty Crocker and make it myself. The only good thing about the sashimi was that the salmon and tai were not as bad. That's not saying much though. Alright, exhibit B (yes, it feels like a crime scene because of the atrocities committed against Japanese cuisine here) is the Nigiri. Look at it! WTH is up with the rice? It was not only a bit gummy, it was practically falling apart when I picked it up! When did they start allowing children to make the sushi?

The Beef Tataki was just plain disgusting. Not only was it flavourless (the sauce was bland), but there was this weird discolouration on the outside of the meat. Freezer burn? Unfresh meat? Leftovers from Taisho? Whatever the case, it was terrible and it was tough to chew as well. On the topic of difficult to chew, look at the BBQ Corn. Look at it! WTF? If that is BBQ corn, then they need to get their grill checked out. It resembled more like a half-hearted attempt to make corn nuts rather than BBQ corn. It was dry, hard and absolutely horrid. Why did they even serve this? How do you expect someone to eat that??? Well, after trying to pick out hard corn niblets out of my teeth, I had to endure the Tonkatsu or how Viv put it "Ton-Can't-Chew". The poor piece of pork was so overcooked, it would look at home on the bottom of some Florsheims. I actually hurt my teeth trying to chew the darn thing. Again, WTF? At this point, I took the re-order sheet and crumpled it up. That's right folks, I didn't want anymore food! Please stop this torture! Let me go to ABC, Knight & Day or *gasp* Sui Sha Ya!!! Anything but this, please... please... I beg you, what did I do to deserve this??!?!?!

But wait, we were only half way through our
initial order. I had to eat more of this crap! And yes, the Ebi Tempura was crappy. Not only was it stone cold, the batter was gooey. I wasn't aware that plaster of Paris could double as tempura batter. If I hadn't rearranged the ebi tempura to make it look nice on the plate, you'd see a picture of randomly placed food which was half falling off the plate. The same could be said about the Chicken Karaage. They were served upside down and scattered all around on the plate. Did they put a 2 year-old in charge of plating? Because it sure looked like it! Again, the chicken wings were not hot and they were seriously over-fried. Plus, did they think unseasoned chicken would actually taste good? It was so bland that I had to put soy sauce on it. Furthermore, the slight dusting of raw flour as a garnish on the plate was a nice touch. It's nice to see creativity at work.

While the chicken wings were bland, at least they were room temperature. The Gyoza were chewy, cold and devoid of any flavour. The outer wrapper on these things were hard and the filling lacked seasoning. It's like they never actually cooked them. At this point, Viv and I were
wondering why everything was so cold. Obviously, they were precooking many items to expedite service. However, it wasn't like all the food came that fast either. Some items arrived much later and they were still cold. One of those items were the Mussels. Yes, they were cold and yes, they were very tough to chew. How can you possibly butcher New Zealand mussels??? They come pre-cooked! Viv had to give up on it because she could not even break it down. What are they trying to do? Kill us???

OMG! I have never and I mean NEVER had a meal as disgusting as this one. I realize that Japanese AYCE is not really the best venue to experience good food; but c'mon! This was ridiculous! At least serve food that can actually be chewed and swallowed. I can officially say that this is THE worst Japanese AYCE I've ever been to and that includes Nordel Sushi. I already didn't like Taisho and they replace it with this?

The Good:
- It's cheaper than other Japanese AYCE
- The service was actually friendly, if not sparse

The Really Ugly:
- Food was cold, poor quality and bland
- To heck with food presentation, let's just toss things on a plate and see how it ends up
- They should be ashamed to call it Japanese food
- If you can't even deep-fry things correctly, you have a big problem
- I would rather eat at 7-11

Round-Up Cafe

Here I am, in Whalley again. Some people wonder why I am in Whalley so often. Well, to tell you the truth, it's not as bad as people make it out to be. Yes, there are the lingering issues that Whalley faces; but honestly it's fine. Moreover, there are some pretty good eats in the neighbourhood. Today, we ended up visiting a restaurant that has been here since 1959. The place is Round Up Cafe on King George near 104th. From the outside, it doesn't look like much except for the cute neon signage. Now if you have a chance to look inside, it is a real gem. A bit similar to the decor at Moderne Burger with a little less polish, Round Up Cafe is a classic diner. If it ever made it onto TV, it would be featured on such shows as Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.

We were greeted by a very nice lady who I can only assume owned the place. It's hard to find a "real" diner with real people running it. Some places have the image of a diner; but are not really a diner at heart. This place does have character and heart. I ended up getting the Eggs Benny. Too bad they didn't use Canadian back bacon; but it wasn't a huge issue for me. The Hollandaise sauce was both plentiful and quite rich. The flavours were subtle; but I didn't detect a whole lot of lemon in it. No matter, it still was buttery goodness! Now, the egg was executed to perfection. With the whites completely cooked, the yolk was deliciously runny. That's how eggs should be poached. The last time I had a poached egg, it looked more like a boiled egg (that was at Brown's). The side of hashbrowns did their job, being no more or no less than what I expected. Waffle Guy had the Ham and 2 Eggs with a side of bacon. Included with the breakfast were hashbrowns and toast. You might be wondering what's so special about 2 eggs, toast, meat and hashbrowns. Well, despite the simplicity of it all, there are places that can actually mess this up. Not here though, the eggs were fluffly, the toast was nicely browned. The only negative was the bacon, it was not as crisp as Waffle Guy wanted it to be.

Another dish at our table was the Denver Omelet and it was loaded with filling. It was predictably prepared diner-style, so don't expect a French omelet here. It was served with hashbrowns and toast as well. For some odd reason, someone ordered Chicken Strips with Fries for breakfast. I shouldn't judge though because I've been known to eat whatever leftovers are in the fridge which have included ribs, pizza, lobster and tripe. Not much to say about the chicken strips other than they were tender and perfectly crisp. Fries were not bad too. The bottom line here is that the food is comforting, the service is honest and the prices are reasonable. Combine that with a nice retro decor, it's a cool place to grab some breakfast.

The Good:
- Solid diner food
- Friendly service
- It's comfort food

The Bad:
- When it's busy, food may take a bit of time

Sharkey's

Once again, I had a meeting in Ladner today and decided to grab a bite to eat first. I'm actually pretty lucky to be out in Ladner once in awhile because there are some neat places to eat here. I'm not necessarily implying they are the best places to eat in the GVRD; but there are some gems. One of which is La Belle Auberge, which I intend on trying eventually. Today it was something less fancy and a bit quicker since I needed to make the meeting on time. Pomegranate and I headed over to the edge of Ladner Village right along the water to Sharkey's. It was a glorious day today and we decided to sit out on the patio. I guess I should have warned Pomegranate since he wore all black. He looked a little warm while we were eating.

We both started with soups, he had the Clam Chowder and I went for the Seafood Chowder. From the picture, you won't be able to see the bounty of shrimp, clams and fish in a surprisingly light tomato broth. Despite being quite light tasting, there was a bit of a fishy aftertaste. One word for the clam chowder - thick. It was probably too thick; yet that didn't deter
Pomegranate from enjoying the rich bacon and clam flavoured base. Continuing on the seafood theme, I selected on of the Ladner Express (Clams, Mussels and Prawns) steamer. Not feeling quite adventurous today, I went with the classic white wine and herb butter broth. Presented in a large metal pot was a flavourful broth that contained a good amount of julienned veggies. A decent amount of fresh clams, mussels and prawns were sitting pretty in the steaming hot liquid. By either digging in with a spoon or with the accompanying bread, the white wine broth did not lack seasoning. Plenty of taste without being salty, there was quite a bit of it, I couldn't finish it. One important note - all the clams and mussels were completely open indicating freshness.

Pomegranate went a totally different direction and ordered the Garlic Prawn and Caesar Wrap. Interestingly, the wrap was exactly as advertised. It was a pretty large tortilla wrap which essentially contained the contents of a prawn Caesar salad complete with croutons. It sure looked tasty and Pomegranate affirmed it. We really enjoyed our lunch at Sharkey's and it didn't hurt that it was a fabulous day out on the patio. While not all the food at Sharkey's is great (I've been here before a few times), most of it is more than acceptable (I'd stay away from the pastas). Add that with great atmosphere and a nice location, it's a great place to grab a bite to eat or just hang out and grab a drink.

The Good:
- Reasonable prices
- Some great dishes (mixed in with some that are not)
- Great patio

The Bad:
- Food can be a bit inconsistent
- Service can be inconsistent

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

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?)

Kirin (Richmond)

It seems almost by fluke, I will have blogged about every location of Kirin by the years' end. I guess the only one left is the Downtown Kirin. It was Special Ed's wedding tonight which was the reason I was at the Richmond Kirin. FYI, his nickname is derived from the fact he used to teach Special Education and his name happens to be Ed! Just too funny... Much like me, Special Ed loves food and I believe he made a great choice of restaurants to hold his wedding banquet. He is such a foodie that he drove all the way to Redding, California so he could eat at In 'n Out Burger. I am not joking you, when Ed puts his mind to something, I think he will do it no matter how outrageous it is. While I was in Portland in August, he tried to talk me into doing the same thing. I may be crazy about food; but I do have my limits. Besides, I'll be in San Francisco in November and I'm gonna hit In 'n Out Burger for sure.

The last time I was at Kirin, it happened to be a wedding banquet as well. Unfortunately, it wasn't as stellar as I would have liked. Usually Kirin is known for it's carefully prepared food. However, it could've been just an "off-banquet". This was at the City Square location, so it was good that I could compare with the same menu (more or less) at the Richmond Kirin. As per Chinese custom, we didn't actually arrive for the 6:00pm start time since the wedding never gets started on time. However, we were the last people to arrive at our table. It was nice to see some familiar faces from work, present and past. Also at the table were Special Ed's current coworkers and there was one who was just as crazy about food as I! She was snapping photos of everything as well. It's nice to have 2 crazy people at the table, I get to blend in a bit more.

For once, the speeches were not only bearable, they were quite entertaining, especially from the bride's side. As you know, the speeches only get in the way of the food and everyone did look a bit famished because we didn't get to eat until 8:00pm. Pretty standard timing though, it's always the case at Chinese weddings. By virtue of being the only people who knew exactly what we were eating, Viv and I spent time explaining each dish to everyone (well, other than one other Chinese person at the table). The Assorted Seafood Platter arrived first and I had to stop our server from taking it away so I could take a picture. It seemed that they decided to divvy up all the food at a staging station for us. Therefore, for the rest of the night, I had to get up and walk over to the station to take pictures of the food. Suffice to say, I got quite a few stares from other tables. Luckily I had company and it made it look much less unusual.

Consisting of fried squid, eel, smoked salmon, jellyfish, scallops in the half shell and roasted suckling pig (never knew pig was seafood!), the platter was a solid start to the meal. We were a bit surprised with the inclusion of eel since it's not a common item we see in these platters. The next dish was a bit comical. It was the Baby Sea Cucumber, Scallops and Chicken with Mushrooms and Snap Peas. The dish itself wasn't too funny; but the looks on the faces of some of our fellow diners was classic. The description of the dish on the menu stated "Baby Sea Cucumber"; however, the actual items in the dish are the innards. When I mentioned this, there were some looks; but I give it to them that they ate it. The Deep Fried Crab Claws Wrapped with Minced Prawn were next and they were a bit different. No, the crab claws themselves were quite normal; rather it was the fried mashed taro that was unusual. Again, we haven't seen this very often as well. No matter, they sucked anyways (LOL). They were hard and flavourless. However, at least the crab claws were hot and easy to eat. I mention this because the ones at the City Square Kirin were as hard as rubber the last time.

Synchronizing with the bride's change of outfit, the Shark's Fin Soup with Crab Meat and Fish Maw arrived. The broth itself was very light, almost to the point of bland. Although, it's a whole lot better than being salty. A small addition of vinegar did the trick. There was a good amount of ingredients in the soup though. Alright, the dish I had been waiting for - the Lobster in Consume. It was perfectly cooked and the sauce was just the right balance of salty and sweet. Unfortunately, like the other dishes, they didn't allow us to serve ourselves. I wanted the lobster head (specifically the lobster brain)! Oh well, no brain, on to the Abalone with Sea Cucumber, Shiitake Mushrooms and Pea Shoots. I joked that we already ate the innards, let's eat the actual sea cucumber itself. Someone at the table replied that at least it's a vegetable. Someone else pointed out that it is more of a sea slug than a vegetable. Well, this dish was done right. Mushrooms were soft while maintaining their shape and texture. The same could be said about the sea cucumber. The star of the dish, which is the abalone, did not disappoint. However, the pea shoots were a bit soft. I guess it can be forgiven since they are cooking in such large quantities for a banquet.

All this time, I had to keep an eye on the staging station because food could arrive at anytime and I didn't want them to divide food before I took a picture. I was just about to take a photo of the Crispy Chicken when I remarked in Cantonese, "I can't even see the chicken under all those shrimp chips". The manager overheard me and moved the shrimp chips. How cooperative! Notice how I emphasized the head? I thought it looked freaky. Oh, the chicken was pretty moist and not too salty; but if you look at the picture, the skin was a bit mangled. The Steamed Live Rock Cod was a bit overcooked. Again, it is understandable under these conditions. After the cod, the 2 traditional "filler" dishes arrived. The Scallop Fried Rice with Dried Scallops was a bit hard and bland. On the other hand, the Fried E-Fu Noodles with Shiitake Mushrooms was good. Noodles were not overly mushy and there was a good amount of flavour.

If you think this meal is over, it's nearly there! We are now at the desserts and there are 3 of them (actually 4, because there were oranges as well). The first were the Fried Sesame Glutinous Balls with Lotus Paste. Technically, these should have been very good; but unfortunately by the time we got them, they were cold. Thus, they were a bit gummy and no longer crisp. The next dessert was a bit hard to figure out because on the inside, there was sweet coconut. The outer shell seemed to be made with glutinous rice flour; yet it was purple in colour. Viv and I thought that it was indeed rice flour with taro mixed in. Whatever it was, the dessert was good. Slightly sweet, aromatic (from the coconut) and a pleasingly soft texture. The last dessert and also the final course to this meal was the traditional Sweetened Red Bean Soup. However, this one had a twist, there were Glutinous Rice Balls with Black Sesame paste inside. This was a refreshing change from the plain ol' red bean soup.

Well, this was a pretty solid wedding banquet. Very few complaints about the food other than some minor issues. But it is more than understandable when the kitchen is cooking for so many people in such large quantities. Although someone at our table summed it up best when he said, "Every endangered species was represented in this one meal!" We had a chuckle at that.

The Good:
- Good execution despite the challenging conditions
- Good service despite the challenging conditions
- High quality of ingredients

The Bad:
- Normally, Kirin is a bit pricey
- I had to go to Richmond again!