Whiffies Fried Pies

If splitting an 18" pizza at Apizza Scholls wasn't enough, Viv and I headed down to Hawthorne and 12th for some food cart action. Unlike Vancouver, B.C., Portland embraces the street food concept. Yes, Vancouver is experimenting with food carts; but it has a long way to go. The one place we wanted to visit was Whiffies Fried Pies. Hey, not since the days of fried apple pies at McD's have I had one of these. Of course we'd get an Apple Pie just of ol' times sake. Since they fry 'em to order, it took a little while; yet it was oh-so-worth-it. With a filling reminiscent of McD's and a very flaky crust, the apple pie was awesome. My daughter practically ate all of it. My son... nada... It may look like a Pizza Pop, but the crust is very light and easy to eat. Either I was in denial or something; but it didn't seem oily at all. I'm sure that was an illusion, it's fried dough after all!

Like I needed anymore food, I decided to try out the Chicken Pot Pie as well. Sounded good in theory. It was like eating a pot pie with flaky pastry. There wasn't much in the way of chicken, although the few pieces in there were tender. The filling was floury thick; yet that is probably intentional to make sure it doesn't all spill out. Texture aside, the filling was conservatively seasoned, it could've been more savoury. Originally, when I brought the pies back to share with Viv, she was wondering why I had only ordered 2. Uh, cuz we were full from dinner? You see, she was expecting the BBQ Beef and Mozza Pie. We spotted someone having one and it sure looked good with cheese oozing out. Well, the very next day, we visited the food carts again and got the BBQ beef pie (and a Berry Pie as well). Okay, this is a case of something sounding and looking better than it tasted. Don't get me wrong, the fried pie was still good. However, the BBQ beef was laced with a tomato paste sauce that was weak and lacked depth. If it had been a smokier, richer BBQ sauce, this would've rocked. Still the great flaky pastry and melted mozza helped make this still very decent. Hey, not the healthiest way to eat; but I gotta say these pies hit the spot, especially the dessert ones. Really good fair food which is available year round. I'm glad that it is over 650km away for me. Otherwise, my stomach would start looking like a pie...

The Good:
- Nice flaky, non-oily pastry
- Great grab 'n go food
- Interesting fillings

The Bad:
- The savoury fillings need a little work flavourwise
- Healthy eating? Nope

Cool Moon

While we were watching the kiddies get all wet in their street clothes at the wading pool, I noticed Cool Moon nearby. Ah yes, we wanted to try this out last year. Too bad we were so overstuffed with eating. No room for it! This time around, since we were eating nearby at Piazza Italia, I made it a priority to give it a shot. After all, it was a steaming hot day, perfect for ice cream. What started off as a simple walk from dinner to get ice cream became a gong show. Once we reached Cool Moon, my daughter needed to do washroom #2. With no washroom in sight, it meant that we had to find one somewhere else. Ugh. Viv had to take her back to Piazza Italia for that. While she did that, I went about ordering my ice cream. Lots of interesting flavours. I finally settled on Thai Chili and Ginger Cookies 'n Cream. Viv thought I was nuts to pick those.

My son wanted no part in the ice cream, so it further encouraged me to try something different. A kid who doesn't want ice cream... Geez... Maybe I should've tried him with the Thai Chili? No, that would've scarred him for life. Anyways, I really liked the Thai Chili, it was spicy, sweet and nutty. Hey, like eating Thai food, except cold creamy Thai food! The other flavour, Ginger Cookies 'n Cream was also very good. I found the ginger to be a good contrast to the sweet ice cream (wasn't too sweet though). The ample nuggets of cookie were a real treat. From this one cup, I could tell that the ice cream is definitely smooth and made with care. I ended up dusting off the ice cream all-by-myself. When I met up with Viv later, she was wondering where all the ice cream went. By her initial reaction of the flavours I had chosen, I assumed she didn't want any. How wrong I was. I don't suppose they make Doghouse ice cream do they?

The Good:
- Interesting flavours
- Smooth and not too sweet
- Okay pricing

The Bad:
- Limited selection of flavours (but that is a good thing too)
- Not much in the way of seating

Roaming Dragon @ PNE

Arriving back from Portland the night before near midnight, we had planned a day at the PNE. Poor planning on our part. Barely waking up in time to make it for the 11:00am opening time, we ended up parking quite far away. Not a really big deal unless you consider the fact I had forgotten my camera in the car. I had to run back to get it and catch up with Viv and the kids. I did so with considerable amount of effort. Sweating and hungry, I had to take my son on enough rides to make up for the all-day ride pass we had purchased. By then, it was well past lunch and considering the fact I hadn't eaten breakfast, I was on the verge of eating the first thing I saw. I resisted the urge and decided to try something different - The Roaming Dragon.

Once again, the dirty "F" word rears its ugly head again. No, no, not that F word. Rather, what we are talking about is Fusion. You know, take one cuisine and do an interpretation of it. Or in really bad cases, merely an excuse for bad food. So we ended up going for all 3 offerings starting with the Pork Belly Sliders. With a fatty and tender piece of pork belly, hoisin sauce, pickled cucumber and scallions served in a steamed mantou (seems like the new trendy bread), the slider looked promising. In actuality, it was good with one slight problem. I liked the soft sweet mantou contrasting the savouriness of the pork belly. However, the liberal use hoisin sauce overwhelmed everything else including the cucumber. Personally, I find far too many places using hoisin sauce as an "Asian" flavouring agent (like Terracotta).

As for the Korean Tacos with shortrib, sprouts, shiitake mushrooms, spinach and carrots encased in a nori/tortilla combo with kimchi dressing, I found them to be only okay. They weren't terrible, but the flavours were muddled. I couldn't get any kimchi flavour or much of anything else really. And for me, the thing was too wet. Finally, the Asian-Spiced Fries with curry mayo was decent from a taste perspective. Lots of flavour with a hint of curry. I wasn't a huge fan of the fries themselves. Yes they were crispy; but they were generic-like. Would've liked to see some creativity like thick-cut potato chips or Belgian-style fries. There is certainly potential here. Good ideas that need some tweaking. In terms of pricing, the regular prices are $6.00 for 2 sliders or 2 tacos and $10.00 for both. Not exactly cheap; but completely in line with other street food offerings in Vancouver.

The Good:
- Dares to be creative and different
- Some good ideas

The Bad:
- Some tweaks are needed, flavour profile a bit off
- Not exactly cheap; but then again, no Vancouver street food is

Apizza Scholls

Among many, there is much respect for Anthony Bourdain. And why not? He speaks his mind and is willing to try almost anything. In fact, I have his book on my coffee table for all to see. So when No Reservations hit Portland, in particular Apizza Scholls, I knew that it would be a must try. However, for one reason or another, Viv and I did not make it out there last summer. This time around, I wasn't going to let it slip through my fingers. Even though we had kids in tow and another possible lineup staring us in the face, we were determined. Almost every place we've hit so far has resulted in a wait of some sort. And I hate lineups! To make sure we didn't do the "wait for the first seating to finish" scenario from happening again (at Screen Door and Saburo's), we arrived at Apizza Scholls at 4:50pm. We found ourselves to be 3rd in line and thus; easily got a table. In fact, everyone in line got a table and by the time we left, there was no lineup at all. Must've been a quiet night?

So why the lineup? Sure, the exposure of being on TV certainly helps. Also, the fact that they only have a limited amount of dough per night triggers the supply and demand phenomena. If there is only so much to go around, it is human nature to get in on the action before it is all gone. Being that we were only 2 people with 2 kids who don't eat a whole lot, we could only order one pizza. We did start with a Caesar Salad and anchovies. Unlike regular Caesars, the romaine was not cut up into small pieces. Rather, they were left whole and tossed with just enough dressing (fresh raw egg yolk to be exact) with plenty of shaved Parm and 4 anchovies on top. The combination of crisp hearts of romaine, a flavourful dressing, salty anchovies and Parm made for a very good salad. Viv thought it may have needed a bit more acidity in the form of lemon juice. I agree; but that did not make or break the salad, it was good anyways.

As for the pizza, we had 1/2 Pig & Pineapple and 1/2 New York White Pie (with sauce). All their pizzas come only in 18" and are NY-style thin crust. What sets they pies apart is the extremely hot oven that literally burns the crust until it blisters. If you haven't had this type of pizza before, you are missing out. The crisp, chewy, blistered crust is like no other. Very easy to eat while being unique in texture and taste. By merely picking it up, you'll get a limp center. You must do the NYC fold. The New York White Pie, consisting of mozzarella (whole milk & fresh), pecorino romano, ricotta, fresh garlic, herbs, black pepper, sea salt and EVOO, was really good. Simple; yet ultimately flavourful and delicious, it allowed the crust to be the star. The Pig & Pineapple was good too (lots of tender ham); but honestly, more toppings leads to crust degradation (in terms of moisture). We really shouldn't have gotten sauce with the NY White; however, it was just in case the kiddies wanted some of it. Simple and few toppings make for a better pizza in this case.

Usually, very few restaurants live up to the hype.
Unrealistic expectations combined with a lineup usually tempers any preconceived enthusiasm. However in this case, I thought the pizza, particularly the crust, to be one of the best I've had. Toppings were good quality and well- balance. Furthermore, the prices are quite reasonable for what you get. No disappointment here. In fact, I ate all of the crust, including the edge. That really says it all since I usually stop eating where there is no more sauce or toppings.

The Good:
- If you like thin crust, this is damn good
- Reasonably-priced
- They specialize in one thing and do it right

The Bad:
- Usually a lineup and when they run out of dough, that's it
- If you don't like thin crust or burnt anything

Cattle Cafe (Burnaby)

What has happened to our hockey team? We were once the toast of the division, now we are just plain toast. After our 5th loss in a row, in crushing fashion (9-0), we needed to refocus. What better way to do that than to go eat? Well, at least that's what I was gonna do. Drown my sorrows in food, lots of it. Polka King was so distraught, I had to drop him at home prior to meeting up with the rest of the team to eat. Well, either that or he had more important plans. Is there a Polka Queen in the works? Hmm... Anyways, Gadget Girl and I had already settled on the restaurant of choice a few nights ago. Rather than standing in the foyer of the ice rink looking at each other in complete confusion as to where to eat, it seemed like a good idea to make plans first. Seeing how she and Mr. Blueberry had to be near the Metrotown area, Cattle Cafe came to mind. Actually, it was Snake who alerted to me this new location in the former digs of Swish Swish (and before that Death by Chocolate). Coincidentally, Jacqueline (a faithful reader) emailed me the same day alerting me of Cattle Cafe as well. Was this a sign? Well, either that or Snake has a pseudonym! You know, he does look good in pink...

As expected, there was a wait when we arrived at the place. You see, Cattle Cafe has a few things going for it. Portions are large, prices are fair and quality is decent. A pretty good recipe for success. Now a wait at this location is a bit tricky. You see, since Death by Chocolate was the original occupant of this unit, it wasn't exactly the biggest place. Furthermore, it was never meant to house a full-service kitchen. Thus, there is a very limited amount of seats. Being curved on the exterior side doesn't help the cause. Well, I guess we were lucky because it didn't take too long for our table, probably 20 minutes or so. Pretty impressive considering we had 9 people. Too bad they gave us a table that really was meant for 8. We ended up sticking Milhouse at one end of the table, with the back of his seat pushed up against the neighbouring table. Problem solved! LOL...

We took the longest time to decide what to eat since the menu is pretty extensive. Being that we were seated in time for the late night menu (starts at 9:00pm), we took advantage of it. However, Chipmunk decided to go for the full-sized version of the Pork Chop in Creamy Onion Bacon Demi-Glaze on Rice. Alright, I'm not even sure if the sauce is an actual demi-glace; but it sure tasted great. I could definitely get the saltiness of the bacon and the sweetness of the onions. Furthermore, the pork chop itself was super tender and juicy. Rollergirl (no, not Heather Graham) went for the Brisket & White Turnip Hot Pot. Looking quite pale and sliced razor thin, the brisket was bland. In fact, the whole thing was bland. I think that was the intention since there was a side of XO sauce. At least the meat was tender. Rice and 2 small dishes rounded out the meal. Emilicious ordered the same hot pot as well (gasp! duplicates!) and she struggled to finish it.

Gadget Girl and Mr. Blueberry were quite ambitious and decided on 3 dishes to share starting with the Pork Chop in Coconut & Mango Creamy Sauce with Rice (mini-meal size). Despite looking like a 2-year old plated the dish, it tasted a whole lot better than it appeared. The creamy sauce was not heavy at all exhibiting a refreshing mango flavour. The Boneless Chicken Mushrooms in Black Pepper Sauce on Rice was a stark contrast to the mango sauce. Definitely peppery with a good amount of salt, this was a bold and heavy sauce. By all accounts, the chicken was tender as well. Lastly, they shared the Basa Filet & Tofu Hot Pot. This was a complete bust. The small pieces of fish were overly battered; thus the texture suffered. The sauce was alright being your typical oyster/soy sauce blend. It was quite watery though.

Milhouse ended up with the Fish Filet in Creamy Almond Sauce on Rice. I tried some of the sauce and there was certainly a quasi-pesto thing going on with it. Milhouse and Bear seemed to have the same observation. It was a bit strange; but in the end, it worked, especially with the fish. Boss Woman took forever to decide on her order and finally settled on the Tom Yum Seafood Hot Pot. I warned her that it would be slightly spicy and indeed it was. I should've warned her that by virtue of ordering seafood, she might not get full. Too late, she complained it wasn't fulfilling. I swear she can out eat us all. Personally, I felt there was a good amount of seafood for the money.

At first, I was tempted to order one of their signature soup noodles. The method here is to choose what type of noodle, soup base and toppings to create your own personalized bowl. In the end, I went for the mini-meal Brisket & White Turnip with Rice Noodle in Soup. Being almost exactly like the hot pot, everything was just plain bland. It wasn't bad per se; but some people may want more flavour. Well, I did get extra flavour in the form of a wayward mosquito that landed smack dab in the soup. I proceeded to pick it up with my chopsticks and chuck it onto the table. I continued eating my noodles to the horror of the people around me. Hey, I'm Chinese! As if one meal wasn't enough, I actually ordered the Baked Pork Chop with Tomato Sauce on Rice. Crispy on the outside while tender and juicy on the inside, I thought the pork chops were perfect. The lack of pork fat made it even better (not that I don't like pork fat; but not in my pork chop). The sauce was a typical Hong Kong-style cafe tomato sauce. It was flavourful with some tartness.

Bear ended up with the mini-meal version of the baked pork chop, except with spaghetti instead of rice. For $2.00 less, it wasn't much smaller! I should've ordered that one instead! Most meals include coffee or tea; add $1.00 for cold drinks and $2.00 for specialty drinks. In terms of value, Cattle Cafe has that nailed down easy. Portions are fair for the price while food quality is generally quite good. That would probably explain the constant line of people waiting at the front door.

The Good:
- Fair price
- Fair portions
- Pretty good sauces (even though they don't look it)

The Bad:
- This location has a severe lack of seating
- Service is pretty basic

Wong's King

Dim Sum... in Portland??? Okay, I'm not pulling your chicken feet here. There really is such a thing. And no, it is not some place serving up frozen "Asian" appetizers from Costco or Safeway. I'm talking about an actual Chinese restaurant with push carts and authentic Cantonese Dim Sum. Okay, coming from the land of excellent Dim Sum, otherwise known as Vancouver, B.C. (or more specifically, Hong Kong #2 = Richmond), I am quite picky about my Chinese food. So much so, whenever I am in San Francisco (which is a lot since I have family there), I put up with the "Chinese" food they have there. We all know Portland is no San Francisco in terms of Chinese food, let alone Vancouver. I remember back in the 80's when my parents would take me on road trips down to San Fran. We would stop in Portland occasionally for a meal. Let's just say Chinese food was slim pickins' back then. With a growing Asian community, it was only time that Portland got a taste of real Chinese food. Of course the $6.99 lunch special with sweet 'n sour pork and chicken chow mein still exists; but the real stuff can be had without doing the Panda Express thing.

So we find ourselves heading out to SE Portland in search for authentic Dim Sum at Wong's King. Apparently, this place is so busy on weekends, there is a massive lineup out the door. This is just all-too-common in Vancouver, so I wouldn't be surprised especially since this is the place for Dim Sum here. Now heading West on Division Street, we totally missed Wong's King. You see, the storefront is angled such that it faces Southwest and you'd never see it unless you were heading East on Division. Just FYI, because we almost thought it didn't exist. Entering the fairly large parking lot, we had our pick of spots. Visiting the place on a weekday morning has its perks. Lots of parking and no wait. We walked in and had our pick of tables. Naturally, I picked the one right next to the window. Too bad the light was doing weird things - shadows everywhere! Sorry for the bad pics!

Like a moth to a flame, all the Dim Sum carts came flying by faster than a Brett Farve comeback. We started with the 2 staples of Dim Sum in the Haw Gow (Steamed Shrimp Dumplings) and Sui Mai (Pork & Shrimp Dumplings). The haw gow were filled with whole cold-water shrimp that had a nice "snap". Very mildly seasoned. I wish there was more sesame oil. As for the dumpling skin, it was far too thick and gummy. The sui mai were filled with plenty of shrimp, shiitake mushrooms and slightly chewy pork. Topped with tobiko while being lightly seasoned, I could still taste the pork and shrimp. This was quite good. We got an order of the Beef Meatballs next. Normally, the meat in these are processed with baking soda, which gives their distinctive tender bounce. With the wrong amount, these become a mushy mess. These ones were on the stiffer side; yet were still quite good. Not too much green onion and with a touch of water chestnuts, these would've been good with Worcestershire sauce (this is normally the condiment, which we were never provided with).

Another popular Dim Sum dish is the Black Bean Steamed Pork Spareribs. I found these to be over-tenderized; thus losing some of its texture. Well, let me rephrase that. Some pieces were too soft while others were good. Maybe a uneven mix of marinade? Now to one of our favs - Bible Tripe. Yup, not really a fan favourite if you've never had it before. The main feature of this dish is the "crunchy" texture of the tripe while being soft enough to chew. This one was done right with a modest amount of seasoning. From one tripe to another, we go the Honeycomb Tripe with daikon. With this form of tripe, it has to be cooked long enough so it's chewable with a slight resistance. Like the other tripe, this was a well-executed dish. Each piece of tripe did not degrade in appearance or texture while being easy to chew. The daikon was also very good, maintaining its shape and being soft at the same time.

We waited for awhile for the Beef Rice Noodle Roll to come out since the kiddies generally eat this dish. Turns out they were more interested in the desserts instead. Well, I guess they were onto something. The rice noodle itself was too thick and not really all that soft. With that being said, it wasn't terrible and the beef filling was plentiful (and soft). Well, other than the desserts, my daughter did tackle the BBQ Pork Buns. These were pretty good. With a nice steamed soft exterior and savoury BBQ pork inside, there is not much to complain about. Often, the thing that annoys me with BBQ pork buns is that the filling is too sweet and full of fatty pork. Neither was the case here. No chunk of pork fat (well, some people like that) to be found.

While my daughter was munching on the BBQ pork bun, my son didn't want any of it. Instead, he had his eyes set on the Pineapple Buns with custard filling. Well, he likes the bun part. The custard? Not so much. Don't get me wrong here, the custard was good. He's just used to the regular pineapple bun (which has no pineapple whatsoever, the top only resembles a pineapple). In the end, he did eat the whole thing with the custard because he discovered that it was sweet and tasty. Imagine that, custard being sweet and tasty... These were done very well. Sugary top, soft baked bun and sweet custard. What's not to like? Onto another classic Dim Sum dessert - Baked Egg Tarts. This is a favourite of the kiddies. Essentially egg custard in a puff pastry shell, these were very good. Light-tasting egg custard in a flaky shell. Very well done. The kiddies loved it.

Well, well, decent Dim Sum... in Portland of all places. Of course compared to Vancouver, B.C., it would not even be fair to do so. It put away the my memories of great Dim Sum in Vancouver, B.C., I can truly appreciate what Wong's King does for Dim Sum here. Of course there is better Dim Sum elsewhere, albeit 300+ miles North and 600+ miles South. Thus, when in Portland, Wong's King is best and most authentic place to get Cantonese-style Dim Sum, complete with matching uniformed Dim Sum Cart ladies.

The Good:
- Authentic Cantonese Dim Sum
- Good variety
- Decent service

The Bad:
- Of course there is better... but not very close by
- Very busy on the weekends

Re-Up BBQ Foodcart

Having just returned from Portland (food cart heaven) a few weeks ago, I still had street food on my mind. You see, Vancouver is still in the stone age of food carts compared to the City of Roses. Sure, city council has finally given in to the street food experiment. However, the ridiculous lottery system which determined who got licenses, has not exactly set things up for success. In fact, most of the "winners" didn't even set up shop in time to take advantage of the summer months. Finally, we see several popping up, especially in the Downtown Core. The one that is getting all the attention is Re-Up BBQ. Focused on doing only one product and doing it well, their Pulled-Pork Sandwich is the talk of the town. People are flocking over to the small setup on Hornby at Burrard. There seems to be a consistent lineup of people willing to fork over $6.00 for street food. On that note, you'll notice that "street" food in Vancouver is not exactly cheap. In fact, it seems to contradict the whole premise. Sadly, unlike street food in other parts, our fees, health codes and taxes do not allow vendors to charge any less. Thus, our "street" food is more for the "spirit" of the concept rather than actually being dirt cheap.

With that in mind, I made the trek into Downtown to get a taste of the new Vancouver street food scene. I arrived shortly after 1:00pm and the lineup wasn't too bad, probably 5 minutes or so. They get the food out quick and the line moves. I noticed that they were constantly making fresh coleslaw. That in itself made me feel good about this operation. You see, many places will make a large batch of coleslaw way in advance, resulting in a soggy product. I finally made it to the front and after snapping some photos, I returned to the car anxiously waiting for a taste. Many different things hit me when I took the first bite. The roll was fresh and soft which made it easy to eat without things falling all over the place. The crunch of the fresh coleslaw with an obvious spicy mustard flavour combined with the vinegary BBQ sauce really complimented each other. It seemed to me that there was some horseradish-type kick too (not completely sure though). Finally, the pulled pork itself was plentiful and moist. Due to the limitations of the cart, the meat is not prepared on site; thus it becomes a bit wet. However, looking at the sandwich as a whole, it was very satisfying. Sure, some might think $6.00 (now $7.50) is a bit steep for a food stand; yet I was full and in no need for more eats. From that standpoint, it was well worth it.

Oh alright. Here is an addition to this post... You see, Viv sometimes misses out on some of my food adventures and I really do feel bad. Really! Well, not while I'm enjoying the food, maybe afterwards. I hope she isn't reading this! So, I made a trip out to the 2nd location (no longer at this spot) just to get her a sandwich to try. After all, Costanza and I keep raving about the sandwich in front of her! Unlike the Downtown location, the Re-Up on the corner of Granville and Broadway looks more like a hot dog stand than anything. Probably explains why they have a sign explaining that they are not a hot dog stand... Well, Viv essentially echoed what we've been saying: moist pulled pork with a flavourfully tart BBQ sauce with fresh crunchy non-overdressed coleslaw on a soft bun. She was really full after the large meat-filled sandwich. Looks like they're consistent.

The Good:
- Meat is moist, coleslaw is fresh & crunchy and bun is soft
- Reasonable price considering everything
- No absence of flavour

The Bad:
- Meat lacks smokiness and/or BBQ flavour