Hotluck

About a month ago, our hockey team tried to eat at Hotluck after the game. I emphasize "try" because we had arrived at roughly 9:55pm. Hey, no problem right? The placard in the front window clearly states they close at 11:00pm. Nope. When we tried to enter the restaurant, we were promptly denied. "No, we close" was the broken English answer. Huh? Close a full hour early? WTF? Honestly. I really, really cannot stand restaurants that make up random hours based on their own convenience. Yes, I do understand that the staff have their own lives too. But, what is the point of having any posted hours at all if they are not followed? Much like Poco Ocean, it's a crap shoot. Hey, what kinda job can you go in if you feel like it? Wait, I forgot about politicians... Anyways, Viv and I were looking for eats around Metrotown and ended up at Hotluck. Hey, at least they were open this time.

We ended up ordering their Hotluck Pot combo which included 2 predetermined appetizers, soup and rice. The soup was a pretty standard "lo foh tong" or old fire soup, which really means a soup that has been boiled for a long time. We got carrot, daikon and pork soup. Not bad, moderately seasoned with nice big meaty chunks of fatty pork - my favourite part of any lo foh tong. One of the appetizers was the Pickled Daikon and Carrots. To me, that is not really an appetizer. It's more of a throw-in. Whatever, it was pickled and crunchy. The second appetizer was the Szechuan-Style Spicy Pea Curd. I liked the flavour, it wasn't too spicy and there was a nice vinegary kick. The pea curd itself was a bit hard to eat since it was very soft. For the main event, the Hotluck Pot arrived in a very big bowl. Packed with cabbage, celery, seaweed, lotus root, wood ear mushrooms, chiyote, peppers, bean curd stick, tripe, pork, chicken and ham, this was not regular-sized dish. We asked for medium and even at that, it was very spicy. Normally, Viv and I can eat pretty spicy; but this was tongue-numbing. I can see how some people who really like it hot enjoying it; but for us, I found that it was slightly overkill. We could not taste any of the individual components. With that being said, the dish was cooked quite well. Veggies were crunchy and meats easy to chew. Although, we were a bit troubled by the really large pool of chili oil at the bottom of the plate.

Okay, I'm probably basing everything on personal tastes here. As mentioned, I'm sure there are people who will like the tongue-numbing spiciness of the food here. However, for me, it was all I tasted. Hey, I've eaten my fair share of Szechuan cuisine and it can be more balanced than this. Furthermore, the prices seemed a bit high in relation to what you get. Don't get me wrong here, the food was alright and there is nothing inherently wrong. Probably just not on my list of re-visits anytime soon.

The Good:
- If you like spicy food...
- Portions seem good
- They don't skimp on flavour

The Bad:
- If you don't like spicy food...
- To think of it, it's kinda pricey
- Food is greasy

Katana-Ya

Here it is. The last meal before heading off to SFO. After nearly 4 days of endless eating, it has come down to Katana-Ya Ramen. We really wanted to try this since the first night; but late night eats never came to fruition. Chalk it up to being too full. Or maybe we are collectively just getting too old. Sleep over eating? What has this world come to??? Honestly, I wasn't even aware of this place until we noticed a fairly large lineup every night as we walked back to our hotel. Generally, when there is a long lineup, it is either very good, has big portions or both. The fact that we heard people speaking Japanese in the lineup made it extra attractive. Despite a rich breakfast at Brenda's Soul Food and then lunch at L'Osteria, I met up with Kim at Katana-Ya for a second lunch or extremely early dinner. At first, it was only me in the lineup. I had put my name on the list hoping he'd arrive by the time a table opened up. No dice, 2 people had already been seated and Kim hadn't arrived yet. Out of pure luck, as I saw him strolling up the block, the only window seat in the whole restaurant became available. Score! Natural light for our photos! Right there, I had a premature “foodgasm”. Yah, and we hadn't even eaten yet!

As I calmed down, we quickly figured out what to eat and ended up starting with the Mixed Seafood Salad. A selection of tuna, salmon, black cod, hamachi, tai, tako, ika and ebi atop spring mix and onions, this was a nice looking salad for the price. Other than the salmon and tai (which were fishy and texturally strange), the seafood was what it was supposed to be. The dressing was a bit heavy on the shoyu; but went well with the components nonetheless. We also decided to try out the Hawaiian Roll consisting of tuna, salmon, butterfish and unagi. The rice was slightly on the gummier side while exhibiting some vinegar hits. Not great; but not bad either. The components were fresh resulting in a satisfying roll. Of course we could not eat here without giving the Ramen a shot, so we got the most expensive one being the Katana-Ya Ramen. There was a lot going on with this bowl of ramen, it included pork, fried gyoza, chicken karaage, corn, wakame and egg. We went for the rich shio broth and it was indeed heavy, especially on the fat. It wasn't exactly full of depth; yet it was flavourful enough without being too salty. The noodles were slightly chewy; however, we would've liked to see more “snap”. All-in-all, a very decent ramen. With that being said, we agreed that Hokkaido Ramen Santuoka is better for the same price.

Just for kicks, we added the Curry Katsu. Wow, when it arrived, we were taken aback at the portion size. More than enough for one person. Unlike some other Japanese curries I've had, this one was more spicy and curry-like. In fact, it exhibited much less sweetness that is typical of Japanese curries. Personally, I liked the thick spicy curry. Lots of carrots and potatoes along with a large, perfectly fried pork cutlet. The rice itself was not bad exhibiting some chewiness. Well done, I'd order this again. My goodness, 3 meals within 4 hours of each other. Oh well, at least I did a lot of walking. Was the Ramen worth lining up for? For me, if the lineup is short, sure. If it was crazy long, then maybe not. Bottom line is that all we ordered was solid and well- portioned. Nothing wrong with that.

The Good:
- Large portions
- Pretty decent eats

The Bad:
- The washroom is almost as big as the dining space
- Not expensive; yet not cheap either

L'Osteria Del Forno

While relaxing in my hotel room after a filling breakfast at Brenda's French Soul Food, I decided to call up TS/JS. Hey, I had 3 hours to kill before meeting up with Kim at Katana-Ya. Turns out that they were about to head up to North Beach via the famous San Francisco street car. It was a nice day, so I decided to tag along. Besides, I haven't been on a street car for 20+ years. Now I know why I haven't. I got stuck with hanging onto the side which is both uncomfortable and slightly dangerous. I think the person behind me almost lost her camera and arm as another streetcar passed by. When they say stay close to the car and not stick your arms out, they mean it. We ended up taking the wrong car and ended up at the Wharf instead.

Looks like another walk to the next eating destination. We ended up walking up Columbus until we got to North Beach. With the help of my iPhone, we determined that L'Osteria del Forno would be that destination. Good thing too since I would've walked past it otherwise. Ain't technology wonderful? Except when it crashes whilst talking to someone!!! Yes, my small iPhone pet peeve. In terms of what we ordered, I let the girls do the choosing. I wasn't all that hungry anyways after Brenda's French Soul Food and an impending visit to Katana-Ya later. My only request was to order as light as possible. Thus, we started with the Burrata Mozzarella alla Panna with arugula. Heavenly. That is what I would describe the fresh mozzarella. Simply presented with EVOO, it was texturally pleasing. The arugula provided some bitterness as a contrast. TS/JS really enjoyed this dish and so did I! Another light dish in the Insalata Rustica consisting of tuna, white beans, celery, oregano, olive oil and balsamic vinegar. This was very mild, possibly a bit too mild. We all agreed that there needed to be more acid in this. Nice textures, no impact in the flavour department though.

Now onto their specialty - thin crust pizzas. We ordered 2 small to share starting with the Pizza Margherita. When it arrived, something struck me as being odd. The crust looked too uniform. It was almost like it was in a mold while it baked. The crust was indeed quite crispy and decently thin. In fact, it was not bad at all. Only thing - it wasn't blistered or even burnt. Maybe I was expecting something different? The Margherita was very mild and I didn't get too much in the way of basil even though I could see it. Maybe some fresh basil would've helped? I know I'm being a bit hopeful here; yet I really wanted to see buffalo mozzarella. Guess not.

The Pizza Salsiccia had a bit more impact in the flavour department. The portabello mushrooms offered up earthiness and body while the Italian sausage gave the pizza some saltiness and depth. Maybe I'm just a sucker for meat pizzas... Finally, TS decided to have some sausage. Okay, I'm not being gross here, she really wanted the Salame di Cioccolato or Chocolate Salami. It consisted of bittersweet chocolate and French butter cookies. It was not too sweet (hence, bittersweet) and the crunchy cookies were a nice textural contrast. A nice, sharable dessert to end off the meal. Nothing blew us away; but everything was solid and the Burrata was just plain tasty. Pizza threw us for a loop; yet it was good to eat and that's all that matters right?

The Good:
- Quaint place
- Decent eats
- Service was good for us (despite other negative comments)

The Bad:
- Not expensive; but not cheap either
- Pizza wasn't bad; yet the crust was not what we expected

Brenda's French Soul Food

Last year, I dared to walk the length of the TL to arrive at my eating destination of Brenda's French Soul Food. Was it worth it? To risk life and limb (and my camera) by strolling through one of the roughest parts of town? Turns out to be yes. It was worth it. Not only does Brenda's serve up something a bit different for Breakfast, it doesn't hurt the wallet either. Fast forward to 2010 and once again I took the scenic route on my way to try some Banh Mi at Saigon Sandwich. You'd think that I was done with the TL for the time being; but oh no, not a chance. In search of breakfast, Kim and I wanted to see if we could get into Dottie's this time around. Good luck there. Nope, an hour wait. Forget about it, we gave up. Off to find other eats. Well, that was easier said than done. In a sea of diners in the Downtown core, they seem to serve the same safe things over and over again. Bacon and eggs is all we saw. We didn't come all the way to San Francisco for that. Consequently, I suggested we head to Brenda's French Soul Food. It was nearby and honestly, I already knew the food would be good. Safe bet.

To our utter surprise, there was no lineup. Last time, I was lucky to score a single seat. This time we not only got a table, we got one with decent lighting. It's really too bad TS/JS couldn't join us! LOL. They didn't wake up in time. Those lazy asses! Unlike the last time, where I dined alone, we could order the Beignet Flight which consisted of all 4 beignets - Crayfish, Apple, Chocolate and Plain. For some reason or another we started with the "best" one in the Crayfish with scallions, cheddar and cayenne. This time, the beignets were softer; but the crayfish filling was still the same, which is a good thing. Savoury and slightly sweet, oozing out cheese with a nice kick from the cayenne, words cannot describe this tasty treat. I was not as enthused with the Ghiradelli Chocolate. Possibly because I am not a dessert person or the fact there was just too much chocolate. Quite heavy as a result. The Granny Smith Apple with cinnamon honey butter was quite good. Reminded me of a fried apple pie.

For my main, I went for a classic Southern dish in the Shrimp & Grits. Compared to the one I had at the Screen Door in Portland, this version was much more savoury and rich. Lots of grits with melted cheddar, nicely cooked shrimp with a mildly spicy bacon tomato relish. Truly satisfying. Kim had another of their daily specials with the Crayfish & Andouille Pot Pie. Hidden beneath the baked cheddar topped biscuit lay nuggets of crayfish and andouille in a savoury spicy roux. Another hearty and heart-stopping dish. Really bold flavours. I was really happy to return to a familiar place where the food is good and the prices are reasonable. It doesn't hurt that it is something out of the ordinary, if not a bit challenging to ones' cholesterol.

The Good:
- Inexpensive
- It's different and tasty
- Bold flavours

The Bad:
- Extremely small
- Lineups

Eight 1/2 Restaurant Lounge

Oh great. Viv went on a shopping trip with her co-workers down to the States and both kiddies end up being sick. What horrible timing! I guess I deserve it though. She puts up with my exploits. Call it payback. Yet, an opportunity was born out of a potentially truly ugly situation. You see, my parents decided to give me a hand and feed the kiddies dinner. Hey, a 2-hour window to go out and grab a bite! I wasn't too enthused about doing it alone though, so I decided to check with good 'ol JS/TS from Eating Club Vancouver. They were game with one caveat. We had to go to Eight 1/2 Restaurant Lounge. You see, TS bought a Groupon not too far back and really wanted to redeem it. No problem with that. We were having a heck of a time figuring out where to go anyways. You see, TS doesn't like to travel very far for food. There is like this imaginary wall around Knight Street and beyond. I'm surprised she even made it out to Surrey once for dinner! That's like another country for her!

Situated in a multi-level heritage house, Eight 1/2 is a quaint little restaurant tucked away on 8th Ave, a block West of Main Street. If the outside looks traditional and conservative, it doesn't prepare you for the nice renovations within. Looking very much like your typical modern bar/restaurant, it's a welcoming dining space. Better yet, the Canucks game was on! I could go eat and still watch the game. Unfortunately for us, there was no more pizza dough. So no pizza. What we did end up ordering were 2 appies to start with the first being the Mini Ukrainian Perogies. It seems that the trend towards making mini versions of popular foods is moving along without end. It's just something about little pieces of food. They're so darn cute! Anyways, cute doesn't necessarily mean good tasting. In this case, it did taste fine with the usual potato and cheese filling with caramelized onions. The exterior dough was not too thick and fried up until crisp. A good amount chrizo with sour cream and ancho chipotle drizzled on top rounded out the dish. The only issue I had was the temperature. Everything on the plate was lukewarm. Our second appie was the Halibut, Tuna & Shrimp Ceviche. This was not one of my favourites. There was too much acidity in the mix; thus overwhelming every single component. Furthermore, it appears they blanched the seafood rather than having it "cook" in the lemon juice. Not a huge issue; but I found that some of the seafood taste was lost as a result.

For my main, I went for meat in the form of the 10 oz Grass Fed Steak. I asked for mine to be cooked medium rare (closer to the rare side) and it was beautifully executed. Moreover, the meat was very tender and required very little effort to chew. The simplicity of its preparation allowed for the natural meat flavour to shine. Fluffy, creamy and garlicky, the roasted garlic mashed potatoes were also very good. The same can be said about the fresh, barely cooked carrots. TS went for something usually reserved for salmon. We see cedar plank salmon all the time; but not Cedar Plank Halibut. She thought the halibut was cooked perfectly. The dipping sauce was a citrus-soy sauce concoction that worked although there was not much lemongrass flavor as per the description on the menu. The fish and sauce components of the dish were good. The "risotto" that accompanied the fish was not. It wasn't a risotto by any stretch of the imagination and it was seriously bland. Also, she wasn't sure this risotto-type dish, even if it were successful, complemented the citrus-soy direction towards which the fish was heading.

JS had a hard time deciding and settled on the Pacific Bacon Mini-Burgers. As described on the menu, they are 3 local BC beef patties, Pacific pepper cheddar, alder smoked bacon, Dijon aioli and fresh corn salsa. Overall, the burgers were pretty good except slightly oversauced. Furthermore, the artistic sauce underneath made it messy to pick up. Mind you, sometimes the messier the burger is, the tastier it is. In general, the food with this visit to Eight 1/2 was not bad, except for a few things. With that being said, all of the proteins were cooked perfectly and were quite good. It's really too bad we couldn't try their pizzas because they ran out of dough (and really the reason why TS wanted to try the place out in the first place). However, with the items we did try, it showed that Eight 1/2 is a decent enough place to grab a drink, feed oneself and even catch the game on TV.

The Good:
- Well-executed proteins
- Relaxed and comfortable atmosphere

The Bad:
- A few misses with the food
- Not expensive; but not inexpensive either

Incanto

The celebrity chef. You know, the one you see on Food Network. Generally, they either have a show or guest star on one of many other shows. They are usually critically acclaimed and have won awards such as the James Beard. With so much fame and publicity, it is no wonder that their establishments are usually destination restaurants. Such is the case here. Myself, Mijune, Kim, TS/JS and Grayelf were all going to be in San Francisco, which would mean some planned eating (Gastrognome joined us as well!). Where to go for dinner? How about Chris Consentino's Incanto in Noe Valley? Sure, he's probably too busy with Aaron Sanchez running around in Chefs vs. City to be at the restaurant; but no matter, we had a hankering for offal. Well, at least most of us did. You see, Chef Consentino loves offal and rightly so, I do too! Thus, the menu is a reflection of that belief.

After settling in and doing some strategic ordering (no duplicates, well at least we tried), we anxiously waited for our food. I was actually quite hungry since I exercised considerable restraint in the afternoon and didn't really eat anything substantial. Hence, I ordered 2 appetizers starting with the Cod Milt. For those who are unfamiliar with it, milt is the male genitalia of fish containing sperm. Yes, insert joke here. However, Mijune had a good amount of the milt and she swallowed it all... Uh... yah... Anyways, I have eaten this lots before... Damn, there is no way to make this sound classy... However, it has always been steamed Chinese-style with ginger. So having it prepared any other way was a bit different. For me, it was very similar to sweetbreads. I liked how they pan-seared it so there was a nice crust. It was a little fishy; but for me, that just gives it some flavour. The runny egg yolk provided moisture to an otherwise gummy product. On the topic of Sweetbreads, that was my other appetizer. Accompanied by fingerling potatoes and dressed in a green walnut salsa, the sweetbreads were texturally pleasing. With an even better crust than the milt, it provided a nice crunch in contrast to the soft sweetbread. The salsa had a nice herb/lemon combination that really accented the natural sweetness.

For my main, I went for something a bit more "normal" in the Pork Belly with Buddha's hand citron, arugula, yuzu marmallata and citron salsa. The pork belly was braised to perfection. With a nice sear which provided a slight smokiness combined with the fatty melt-in-your mouth meat, there was a lot to like. Furthermore the marmallata provided a thick, sweet glaze which resulted in very little savouriness. The arugula and Buddha's hand salad helped counteract the intense sweetness of the dish. However, maybe a bit too much. Very bitter and tart, it was not really all that pleasant to eat - even combined with the sweet components. To further up the tart/bitter ante, there was a citron salsa with capers atop the pork belly.

Being right next to Mijune has it's privileges and no, it's not because she's cute either. Rather, I could sample her dishes easily (did that come out right???). Anyways, she started with the Paccheri al Nero or squid ink pasta with calamari, fennel and garlic. The pasta itself was al dente with a slight bounce, probably due to it being made with egg and being fresh. As with any squid ink pasta, there is not much difference in taste. The accompanying calamari was tender while the garlic/fennel was quite subtle. For her main, she had the California Yellowtail with pumpkin and erbette. As with almost all fully cooked yellowtail, this one was dense and slightly dry since the flesh is lean. Despite this, it was still flaky and exhibited a natural sweetness. Having never had erbette (beet tops) before, I wasn't sure what to expect. However, to me it resembled any other leafy green such as chard. I'm usually not a huge fan of pumpkin; but this one had good flavour with a slight caramelization.

Kim was also in the sharing mood, as always, and selected something I would've ordered if not for the milt - Pig's Blood Pappardelle. Being Chinese, I grew up eating pig's blood, particularly the cubed version. The taste is a bit gamy with a whole lot of iron aftertaste. In this case, it was almost exactly that. The extremely al dente pasta (how I like it) was dressed in a silky sauce with raisins which also had some essence of pig's blood. It was mostly sweet with some saltiness. For his main, Kim also chose a dish that I originally wanted to try - Offal Bollito Misto served with mustard, salsa verde and horseradish. I guess we were both thinking offal... Imagine instead of the Arby's hat, there was like a pig's tongue instead? Would for a highly disturbing commercial though... And about that pig's tongue, that was one of the components of the bollito misto which also included a piece of brisket, sausage and some other mystery meat. The meats were quite tender and I liked how the tongue was still slightly chewy; but that sausage was not very good. Melting away upon puncturing, it was fatty and bland. The accompanying condiments added the necessary flavour to an otherwise mild-tasting stew (which it is supposed to be). Nothing technically wrong with this dish per se, it's just not to my liking.

What turned out to be my favourite dish of all was ordered by Mijune's cousin. She started with the Spaghettini with Sardinian cured tuna heart, egg yolk and parsley. With the "soft" al dente pasta tossed in the punctured egg yolk, it created a luxurious silky glaze that was both garlicky and spicy. The egg yolk helped cut the saltiness of the dish while the tuna heart "shavings" provided a nice textural chew. Initially, I was mocking the Pomegranate-Glazed Poussin with ciopolini and Treviso. C'mon, who wants to eat poultry in a place like Incanto??? Well, serves me right for being a smart-ass. Turns out this was the best dish of them all in my opinion. The poussin was tender and moist, even the white meat. The reduced pomegranate glaze had a complex tartness and sweetness. A good amount of radicchio lay underneath to counteract the sweetness.

While we were munching away madly at the different portions of food we were sharing, 2 more dishes came our way. From the other side of the table, Grayelf sent the Hankerchief Pasta with rustic pork ragù. Since this was well into our meal, the pasta had sat in the sauce for quite awhile. Thus, I'm not sure if it was past al dente or was it a result of it sitting around. It was quite obvious that there was basil onion and fresh tomatoes used in the simmered sauce; however, it was not that rich. Nothing particularly wrong with the taste, it just didn't have as much depth as I would've hoped. The second dish was the Golden Chantrelle & Nepitella Risotto. This one was not too bad. Nothing something to write home about; solid nonetheless. The rice had a nice bite while being creamy at the same time. The chantrelles were little nuggets of joy; but as expected didn't add an abundance of flavour. First time trying nepitella and it was quite mild with a hint of mint.

TS/JS had 2 dishes that I didn't get to sample much starting with the Marinated Local Sardines with sunchokes, sunflowers and capers. TS enjoys sardines, so it was not a stretch for her to enjoy the flavourfully briny dish. She thought that the quantity of sardines fillets to be quite generous. With somewhat of a brain cramp, TS admittedly wasn't thinking when she ordered the Rapini, Baccala, Olives & Boiled Meyer Lemon. 2 salted fish dishes... Thus, she wasn't too enthusiastic to say anything about it, other than she liked the sardines more. TS not saying much... That's a first! I did get to try the Best Parts of Chicken Risotto tough. Since this is Chris Cosentino's restaurant, the best parts of chicken don't include the breast. Rather, you have gizzards and crispy skin. Indeed the best parts! Once again, the ristotto was beautifully prepared. The entire dish was quite mild. I didn't find the chicken skin that crispy. Maybe it had been sitting atop the hot risotto too long.

Although we were quite full from the amount of food, some of us saved room for dessert. With some subtle coercion from Mijune (of course it would be her), I got the Seckel Pear Bread Pudding with pear sorbetto. The pudding was quite moist with a nice crispy top. Lots of tender pear strewn throughout the lightly sweetened bread pudding. I really liked that the pear was unpeeled. Gave it nice texture. The pear sorbetto was also very light and not really all that sweet. Rather, it had a nice pear aroma. Not spectacular; but a solid offering. Mijune decided to go with the Celery Root Cake with wet walnuts and vanilla ice cream. Apparently they had her at "wet walnuts". I don't even want to begin speculating what she was thinking... Well, serves her right for having a one-track mind since the dessert sucked. The cake was basically inedible since it was as dry as a loufa sponge. Despite the nicely burnt caramel sauce caressing the walnuts (did I just say that? Guess I did...) and the ice cream, it wasn't enough to save this lifeless cake.
Fortunately, Greyelf's choice of the Douglas Fir Panna Cotta and bush berries was both interesting and good. A definite woodsy taste gave the panna cotta some originality. It had a balanced texture of being completely set while still being velvety smooth. The berries added both colour and some extra fruitiness to the dessert. As for the cookie, I believe it was an orange peel sugar cookie.

Here we go. The full meal deal at Incanto. Home base of celebrity chef Chris Consentino. Whenever there is hoopla, fame and hype, expectations fairly or unfairly are heightened. The question is: did it meet our expectations? On a personal level, I didn't really go in thinking anything about Chris Consentino. I approached this as any other fine dining experience. As such, I felt that the overall meal was decent. Some highlights mixed in with some pretty average parts as well. The one thing that I really appreciated was the reasonable pricing. Service was pretty spot on as was most of the execution. In terms of personal likes and dislikes, it was due to conceptualization; rather than the actual cooking (Celery Root cake withstanding). If you can appreciate the variety of dishes we had, I can confidently say that the food is more than acceptable. Furthermore, you really have to tip your hat for the simple fact that Chris Consentino tries to offer something a little bit different than the run-of-the-mill fine dining establishments.

The Good:
- Reasonable pricing
- Unique menu
- Spot-on service

The Bad:
- Surprisingly, some dishes were rather boring
- Desserts were okay; but not the strong point here