Top Cantonese

Chinese restaurants, other than the ones which reside in Downtown, Richmond and on the West side of Vancouver are generally reasonably-priced. Sure, there are some exceptions, such as Fortune House at Metrotown, Grand Dynasty in at the Villa Casino, Top Gun at Crystal Mall and Kirin at Starlight Casino and Henderson Centre. There are many factors for this including rent, "prestigious" location and an affluent customer base. Kirin (City Square, Downtown & Richmond), Spicy Court, Red Star, Fortune, Victoria, Imperial, Sea Harbour, Shiang Garden and Fisherman's Terrace are such examples. What we generally see for the rest of the GVRD are mid-range restaurants and hole-in-the-walls. For me, the very best Dim Sum do not necessarily reside at the most expensive Chinese Restaurants. In fact, some dives can do Dim Sum quite well. However, to get the best of both worlds, the mid-priced restaurant is the best bet. Top Cantonese on Kingsway at Earles is somewhat of an anomaly where it fits into the middle-tier while the overall pricing is somewhat higher than its peers . From the outside, I wouldn't expect it to be any pricier than Come Along, which is just a block away. However, one look at the menu and it is indeed more expensive. Now, not by a lot; but it is more. With higher prices than the immediate competition nearby, there comes a level of expectations. Nicer decor, better food and service all come with the territory. In terms of decor, it is indeed inviting and clean. However, they seemed to have stopped at the washrooms. They need to work on that. Today, Goose joined our family for Dim Sum along with my parents. Mother Goose decided to stay in Bellevue, leaving the kiddies with Goose. I think he got the raw end of this deal!

We were seated in a section that was separated from the rest of the restaurant. Doubling as a VIP room during dinner service, this section is a result of them taking over an adjacent storefront. Good thing for us! Noisy kids and mad picture taking on my part. Privacy. Now as for the food, what else would we start with other than the Haw Gow (Shrimp Dumplings) and Sui Mai (Pork & Shrimp Dumplings). Honestly, not a good start in terms of the haw gow. The skin was too thick and steamed too long. At the very least, the filling was good though. Lots of whole shrimp; yet maybe a little heavy on the seasoning. The sui mai were much better. With a large shrimp atop well-seasoned pork exhibiting a nice snap, these were well-executed. A good amount of shiitake mushroom added an earthy flavour. From the normal, we head to the offal. Personally my favourite part of Dim Sum, I ordered the Assorted Offal consisting of beef tripe (honeycomb & bible), tendon and spleen. Another well-seasoned dish with each item being tender enough to chew while still retaining some chew (which is good). If that didn't tickle your fancy, we also got the Duck Tongue. This is not a complex dish really. Just duck tongues parboiled and then steamed with an oyster-based sauce. The texture should be soft, slightly fatty and gelatinous. This was good; yet once again, aggressively seasoned.

Moving away from offal, we got the Ja Leun (or Rice Noodle Roll with Salty Donut). This is generally a dish that is more textural rather than flavourful. Consequently, the donut itself needs to be crunchy while the rice noodle needs to be soft (yet still structurally sound). I'm happy to say that it was both and with the addition of dried pork on top, this dish was a winner. With the same rice noodle, the Shrimp Rice Noodle Roll was very nicely executed as well. The rice noodle wasn't completely soft, it had lots of integrity (unlike some politicians...), so it didn't fall apart on contact. Large shrimp with a nice snap texture rounded out the solid offering. Next up was the Daikon Radish Cake. These had an acceptable amount of browning on them; but they were slightly on the greasier side. Furthermore, they were on the softer side as well. I personally don't mind that since there is nothing worse than a hard radish cake. Nice flavour to them, we could taste the daikon and the Chinese sausage (hey, don't make fun of anyone here!) provided the saltiness (I know what you are thinking...). Only problem is that picking these up was tricky.

Now for the dish my son absolutely loves... The Shrimp Spring Rolls or "crunchies" as he affectionately calls them. Well, they are indeed crunchy, so the nickname does work. Little do you know that it is only named as such because he only eats the wrapper. Tragically, he doesn't eat the shrimp. His loss, my gain. There were large pieces of shrimp in the crunchy spring roll. Well, at least my son said it was crunchy since I
didn't get any of that part! Believe or not, my son does eat something else other than spring roll wrappers. He actually eats the Sparerib Rice Hot Pot. Okay, let's rephrase that. He eats the rice only. Doesn't touch the spareribs, chicken feet and hell will freeze over before he touches the Shanghai bak choy. I think he's on the anti-Atkin's diet... Well, the rice was pretty good, not soggy with a nice chewy texture. It was a good canvas for the sweet soy sauce. The tender spareribs were meaty and garlicky. I liked how they weren't too oily; hence the rice was not oily either.

The next dish was the Steamed Chicken and Fish Maw. Fish maw is the name given to the fried air sac found in the body cavity of fish. It's often found in many Chinese herbal shops. It is dehydrated and then usually used in soups. There is also a dried version as well. The trick is to not overcooked the fish maw because one that occurs, it's plain mush. I'm happy to say that this was good. The fish maw was soft while still remaining in one piece. It was probably on the softer side; but still alright. The chicken was tender and the whole dish was not over-seasoned; thus we could taste the natural sweetness of the components.

As per usual, we finished off the meal with a couple of orders of the Egg Tarts. Yes, my son eats this! Of course he does, it's sweet. Despite the appearance of a thick pastry, it was actually very flaky and buttery (or lardy?). The egg custard was soft and semi-sweet. These were good egg tarts. In fact, most of the food was solid all-around. Of course it wasn't perfect; but what is really? Especially with all the variables of running a kitchen. We were pleased with our meal and there was even talk about a return visit. Sure, the prices are on the higher end in comparison to nearby restaurants; yet, the food quality and level of execution reflected that. In the end, it wasn't that much more expensive than Come Along, which is just down the street. With that being said, there was no lineup at Top Cantonese in comparison to Come Along, so I guess it really depends on the point of view. Maybe saving a few bucks does matter even if the food is better at Top Cantonese.

The Good:
- Solid Dim Sum
- Service was friendly and efficient
- It was comfortable, well in the section we sat in at least

The Bad:
- Costs a bit more than the immediate competition
- Some dishes were overseasoned
- Sure, there is a parking lot, but it's cramped

Gourmet Castle

*Restaurant is now closed*

To be honest, Milhouse and I had visited Gourmet Castle a little while ago; but for some reason or another, I didn't feel like doing a post about it. Maybe it wasn't all that interesting? I've actually been here many times in the past before it had changed hands (more than once). The food here was never the big draw; rather, it filled a void for late night eats. So now I've decided to write a post because we paid a return visit recently with the hockey team after Friday hockey. Fate would have it, we ordered some of the same dishes again. I guess we can see if they are consistent, whether it be good or bad... Okay, the real reason we chose Gourmet Castle was due to the immanency of snow. None of us wanted to go real far if we had to navigate through the first snowfall of the year.

When we arrived, it was almost too funny that there were no Asians in the restaurant despite it being a Chinese joint. Meh, it didn't matter to Milhouse and I. We eat anything. Moreover, the food was actually acceptable the last time we ate here. In fact, Milhouse ordered exactly the same dish as last time. Guess what it was? If you guessed Salted Fish & Chicken Fried Rice, you have been reading this blog too much... LOL... The first time we had it, the rice had a nice chewy texture and the entire dish was not oily. A good amount of tender chicken and crisp lettuce as well. One problem - the salted fish was dry and didn't provide enough flavour to the dish. This time around? Same thing. So at least they are consistent. Gordo ordered the Curry Brisket on rice, which I had last time. For the price, this is a substantial amount of food. The Chinese curry was typically not spicy and slightly sweet. Knowing this, it was decent. Lots of tender brisket and veggies to go along with the sauce. And just like last time, there was just not enough sauce for the rice. Once again, consistent (whether it is good or bad). Bear went for the Black Bean Chicken Chow Mein. Much like the curry, it was overflowing. Really large portion. For me, it didn't look so good; but Bear assured me that it tasted better than it looked. He opted for the fried noodles instead of the soft version. The noodles were crispy and not too oily; however, he didn't like how they cut them into small pieces. Hard to eat. For some reason or another, Sweet Tooth had a plate of Salt & Pepper Dry Ribs. Pretty normal as a appetizer at say... Cactus Club; but kinda weird in a Chinese restaurant. To think of it, I guess it is only a matter of perception. Nothing amiss with this dish, pretty standard.

While everyone was enjoying their own plate of food, Boss Woman, Polka King and myself shared the Dinner for 3 (with choice of dishes, complimentary appetizer, daily soup and rice). For our appetizer, we opted for the Jellyfish rather than the Empress Chicken. We particularly liked the nice "snap" in the nicely-sized strands of jellyfish. However, I felt that it would have benefited from more seasoning, in particular, salt and/or soy. There was no need for anything else since there was enough sesame oil and chili flakes. Portion-wise, this was more than enough for 3 people. For our first main dish, it was almost a given it would be the Scrambled Eggs and Shrimp. Both Boss Woman and Polka King love this dish. In fact, I believe that Boss Woman could live on this alone. The dish here was pretty good and extremely large. If you think I posed the shrimp so it would make for a good picture, think again. This was consistent throughout the dish. Lots of big shrimp (more like prawns) nestled within the mostly fluffy scrambled egg. I say mostly because it could've been cooked just a smidge less. The large shrimp were fantastic being crunchy and sweet.

Trying to eat a bit healthier, Polka King suggested we order the Gai Lan with Chicken. Typically, this dish has sliced tender beef or seafood rather than chicken slices. Despite the apparent healthiness of sliced chicken breast, I much prefer beef since it has a much stronger presence. With that in mind, the gai lan was still cooked correctly. It was crisp and just barely cooked. Good colour and texture. The dish could've used a bit more seasoning; but it wasn't a big deal. Now the next dish was a venerable explosion of flavour. My choice of dish was the Satay Beef Vermicelli Hot Pot. With a good amount of satay, pineapple, peppers and onions, there was a mix of spicy, sweet, savoury and acidity which made for some tasty vermicelli underneath. It arrived bubbling hot with lots of tender beef. Once again, this was a very large hot pot, more than enough food for 3 people. The meal for 3 cost us $36.00 before tips and taxes. Not exactly cheap; but considering the portion size and that the food was actually decent, we felt it was a good value.

It's interesting that I hesitated to blog about this place. I suppose it has a lot to do with my past experiences here, which have been less than stellar. Sure, the food is still hit and miss; but there are some good items to be found here. If you order the right stuff, it can actually be satisfying for a reasonable price. And really, that is all we can possibly hope for when there is not much else open at 3am in the morning.

The Good:
- Large portions
- Reasonable pricing
- Open until 4am!

The Bad:
- Food is still hit and miss

Chop

A sad day has beset us. Rich Guy is heading back overseas. That means my random eating adventures with him have to be put on hold until the new year. It's like a part of me has died like the golden amber leaves that are slowly departing the rain-soaked limbs of a Maple tree. You might as well rake 'em up and shove them into a clear plastic bag to be picked up from the curb. That's how I feel. Okay, enough wallowing in my own despair. It's pathetic I know. So as a last hurrah, I offered to drive him to the airport. Of course we'd have one more meal prior to that! Vandelay was able to escape daddy duties for one night and join us. Seeing how we do Izakaya every time, it was time for a change. However, it is a little difficult to escape Asian cuisine in Richmond. So the choice of restaurants ended up with Chop, located in the Sandman Inn. Operated by Moxie's, Chop tries very hard to be a high-end steakhouse. Inevitably, there will be comparisons with The Keg. However, by walking through the doors, you get the sense that Chop comes from the Cactus Club, Earl's and Joey's school of restaurants. From the attractive staff to the blinged out decor, it has trendy written all over it.

We were able to score a table despite the place being hopping for a Friday night. Unlike my usual mantra of looking for value, sometimes I do get impressed by style. After all, as I keep mentioning, there are times when good ambiance, service and decor trumps cheap eats. In terms of style, Chop does it well, including the washroom complete with leather chaise and large flat screen TV. Not sure if I'd necessarily want to hang out in the washroom in order to stimulate my senses though. After a visit to the washroom, we got down to ordering. For the purposes of trying as many things as possible, we got the Chop Platter. It consisted of Tuna Pillars, Steak Bites, Fire-Roasted Chicken Wings, Saratoga Chips and Lobster & Prawn Fritters. For $35.00, dare I say it was actually a decent value? There was a lot of food on the plate. We'll start with the positives first. The Steak Bites were our favourite by far. Essentially steak trimmings, there were super tender and flavourful. We surmised that they must've been brined and then deep-fried to achieve this. We didn't care, they were money. Second favourite were the Fire-Roasteed Chicken Wings. Presented on a long skewer, these were also quite moist with a very crispy coating. Slightly sweet and a touch spicy with a bourbon glaze, these actually really good. The Saratoga Chips were very crunchy (a la kettle chips) and served with 3 dips. As for the Tuna Pillars, it was a piece of ahi tuna wrapped in sesame noodles and ginger phyllo pastry. It was served with mango salsa and wasabi aoili. The tuna itself was fresh; but the doughy wrap destroyed the whole thing. It just became a mushy, chewy mess devoid of any real texture. It did taste okay, especially with the mango salsa. Nice combination of sweetness and some kick. But the biggest fail of all were the Lobster & Prawn Fritters with red pepper aoili. I was actually looking forward to these. C'mon, lobster and prawn! However, the fritters themselves were far too doughy with very little in the way of lobster nor prawn. I understand that would be impossible since those are 2 very expensive ingredients. In that case, make the fritters smaller or use a batter than is lighter. I had to resort to picking out the small bits of seafood at the end since they were so hard to eat.

Vandelay decided to have 2 appetizers as opposed to an entree. The first one was the Coconut Lime Mussels. We liked how the mussels were big and plump. Perfectly cooked as well. I was on the fence with the broth consisting of shallots, garlic, lime and coconut cream. It was indeed very creamy and coconutty. However, I didn't get much else. The second appy was the Beef Tenderloin Carpaccio with shaved Grana Padano Parmesan, red onions, capers, EVOO and herb crostinis. Nothing wrong with this dish, a textbook carpaccio. Tender and properly seasoned, it was good. For my main, I went for the 9oz Top Sirloin served with mashed potatoes and seasonal veggies. I requested medium-rare and as you can see, it was perfectly executed. I was really happy with the steak, it was moist and very easy to chew. However, I would've preferred more flavour, somehow it came across as a bit bland. The grilled zucchini and beets were perfectly cooked as well with some bite left. The mash potatoes were more potatoey than creamy; but that suited me just fine.

Rich Guy had the 12oz Prime Rib with Chop cut fries and seasonal veggies. He too asked for medium-rare and once again, it was perfect. Nicely marbled and being tender as well, this was a decent prime rib. Yet, once again, it was not as flavourful as we would've like. Initially, the first few fries were very good. I have to admit they were good for chain restaurant fries. However, as we got closer to the bottom, the fries didn't retain their crispy texture becoming a bit limp. They went well with the 3 dips though.

Alright, I'm not afraid to admit it. The meal at Chop was pretty decent. In fact, some parts were quite good. Sure, there were some misses as well; but nothing is perfect. I was actually surprised at the quality of food because I had heard otherwise. Sure, there is an inordinate amount of bling and style; yet, it is intentional. Judging by the clientele, they seemed to be enjoying themselves and their food. Now, on a personal level, I found the prices to be on the higher side. I'd be completely happy going to The Keg instead. I don't need a big screen LCD in the washroom. Then again, if you do and are willing to pay, Chop fits the bill.

The Good:
- They spent a lot of money on decor, ambiance and the bling
- Food is actually pretty decent
- Although a bit sparse at times, service was friendly

The Bad:
- Pricey
- For some people, it could be a little over the top
- As mentioned, service was friendly albeit spotty

Taqueria Vallarta

Flexible eating. That can mean a lot of different things. It could represent the variety of food someone eats. It also can mean eating anytime anywhere. Or in this case, it meant changing plans on where to eat. It was our original plan to meet up at Pizza Delfina for a "snack" before our dinner at Incanto. However, it seemed that I was the only person to show up. A bit concerned I made some phone calls. Turns out no one wanted to go! Gasp... What has this world come to? I had no one to eat with? The horror! There was a backup plan of sorts as I was able to track down TS/JS and Grayelf who were nearby in the Mission. Well, at least I thought it was nearby. What seemed like a short walk ended up to be a 12-block brisk jog. I finally made it to 24th & Folsom... from 18th & Guerrero! Oh well, I built up an appetite of sorts. Apparently, they were doing the grand tour of the Mission nibbling on various things. Okay, here goes my flexible eating to the test. We stopped off at Taqueria Vallarta first for what else? Tacos.

At only $1.50 each, we find it a relative bargain compared to the ones we get up in Vancouver. As a comparison, the ones from La Taqueria cost $1.00 more. The choices were quite diverse. We ended up getting one each of the Lengua, Buche, Al Pastor, Carnitas, Suadero. I originally wanted Tripita, but they were all out! Well, at least they had tongue... I offered TS some tongue and she willingly accepted it. Surprising... It was moist though! According to the menu, Buche was stated at pork neck. However, to me at least, it did not have the look or texture of pork neck. Upon further research, it is pork esophagus. Good thing too, I'm not sure the rest of the table would've not eaten it if they knew it wasn't pork neck. For me, the winner was the Suadera or tender beef. It was tender and quite flavourful.

As for the others, they were alright. Nothing much to say other than they were not dry. Depending on your personal tastes, the condiments were available for customization. One could pile on as much or as little onions, cilantro, radish, lime and salsa as they want. For me I went conservatively so I could taste the meats. Honestly, for $1.50 this was a nice "snack". They were good, as authentic as I've ever had and cheap. A great combination in my books.

The Good:
- Cheap
- Meats were not dry
- Lots of interesting choices

The Bad:
- Kinda divey, if that matters to you, adds to the charm in my opinion
- Some communication issues

Globe@YVR (Christmas Day Brunch)

Other than Asian restaurants, specifically Chinese, there are not a huge amount of options in terms of brunch on Christmas Day. For as long as who knows when, we would go out for Dim Sum if we wanted eats on the 25th. This time around, we figured something different was in order. But where? Ah, hotels! They are open year round including their restaurants. Seeing how we had already done the Burnaby Hilton, Hotel Vancouver, Waterfront and Pan Pacific already, there are only a few left which offer up a respectable brunch buffet. After perusing different menus, we settled on Glove@YVR. Normally quite busy, Vancouver International was quiet on a Christmas morning. With barely any cars on the road in Richmond, it was like Superstore late on a weeknight. Easy to navigate and frustration level at a minimum. The cool thing about Globe is the view of the domestic departure terminal. Nothing like plane-watching while dining. It's interesting to see planes at their gates moving along in an orderly fashion. This is probably the only place one would find any semblance of traffic order in Richmond.

Normally, the brunch buffet is not as elaborate as the holiday themed spreads; however, there are elements which are similar. Regularly, the buffet goes for $26.00. Today? $62.00. We'll get to the expensive stuff later. We were seated right next to what you'd normally find at this type of buffet - the Breakfast Station. Here you got Bacon, Sausages, Roasted Tomatoes, Sauteed Button Mushrooms, Hashbrowns, Mini-Pancakes and Eggs Benedict. Hey, the bacon was lean and crisp while the sausages were large and juicy (too easy of a joke, gonna leave it...). As for the Eggs Benedict, this was done in a traditional style with English muffin, Canadian back bacon, poached egg and Hollandaise. The free-range eggs were poached perfectly while the Hollandaise was not heavy with a nice hint of lemon. To the immediate left of the breakfast station sits the Omelet Bar. It is attended full-time by a chef who makes omelets to order. The available ingredients include tomatoes, peppers, cheddar cheese, asparagus, red onion, scallions, mushrooms, bacon, ham, sausage and shrimp. Pretty similar to any other omelet bar at a number of hotel brunches. Maybe this is wishful thinking; but I would like to see more interesting ingredients used. Could it be due to cost? Demand? Or any other logistical reasons? Whatever the case, I normally do not go for an omelet for the sole reason that it is a "filler" item. Yes, the Chinese in me takes over again. Go for the seafood, ignore carbs, veggies and the sort. However, I was going to be a rebel this time. In front of my parents no less! I got an omelet. Well, I shared it with Viv... LOL...

I ended up with an omelet with asparagus, ham, shrimp, mushrooms and cheddar cheese. I watched as my omelet was being made and I was impressed with the skill of the chef. As you can see in the picture, the omelet was cooked perfectly. It was fluffy and soft with no overcooking whatsoever. To the right of the hot breakfast items was the Fresh Fruit and Cereal Bar. In addition to a selection of prepackaged cereal and milk, there was a selection of pineapple, cantaloupe, honeydew, watermelon, whole oranges, apples and bananas. Rounding out the selection was yogurt and hot oatmeal with various toppings. Moving onto the Salads which were incidentally located on the other side of the restaurant. I liked this setup since it prevented any bottleneck. Everything was so spread out, it never seemed like I was lining up for anything. Furthermore, everyone moved along in an orderly fashion. A very strange sight for any restaurant in Richmond. This station was quite extensive consisting of Mesclun Greens with a choice of French Dressing, Soy Balsamic Dressing of Anchovy Dressing, Salad Niçoise, Caesar Salad with Condiments, Smoked Duck Breast Salad with Watercress, Apple and Hazelnuts, Char Grilled Asparagus with Truffle Cream and Chives, Slow Roasted Red Beets with Pea, Honey Sherry Vinaigrette, Oven Roasted Seasonal Mushrooms with Rosemary, Oven Roasted Sweet Potato with Turkey Bacon and Sage, Maple Sherry Vinaigrette, Classic Gazpacho, Greek Salad with Feta and Rosemary, Caprese Salad with Pumpkin Seeds, Basil Purée and Walnut Oil, and Black Olives with Roasted Garlic and Thyme. The highlight from this section for me was the Smoked Duck Salad. Viv thought the duck was rather salty; however for me, it was perfect since it provided all the flavour for the salad. The duck reminded me of a thicker proscuitto.

Now for the star of the show, the Seafood! This plate of goodies saw more action than Ron Jeremy. I gotta give it to the staff for keeping it fully stocked with fresh seafood. You might be wondering why this is generally served cold. Reason being is that seafood gets nasty when overcooked; hence if it is cold, it cannot cook no further. This section consisted of what you see in the picture (Prawns, Plump Mussels, Manila Clams and Dungeness Crab) in addition to Shrimp Cocktail with Spicy Gazpacho, Poached Salmon and Smoked Salmon. I liked all the seafood (overcooked salmon withstanding), especially the dungeness crab legs. They were very meaty and sweet. Love these way more than King Crab legs. The mussels were incredibly plump which were bathed in an excellent lemon butter.

To the immediate right of the seafood was the Hot Food Station. The first item was the Lobster Bisque. It was quite a pale looking soup that did not have a lot of impact. Sure, I could taste the lobster; but it was neither rich or had any depth. It was merely thick and sweet. My dad thought it was rather fishy too. In the next couple of chaffing trays were veggies (Mashed Potato, Brown Sugar Butter Yams & Brussels Sprouts). I skipped it. There were 2 more trays which consisted of Squid Spaghetti with Garlic Basil Rosé Sauce and Fruits De Mer Grilles with Thyme Butter Sauce. Going against the no-carb policy, I got a ramekin of spaghetti. Of course it was far from al dente (buffet, what can you expect?). The squid was excellent though being tender while not mushy. The rose sauce was not exactly that impactful. It did taste okay though. The mix of halibut, salmon and prawns was actually pretty good except for the overcooked salmon. Curiously, the halibut turned out to be decently moist. The beurre blanc sauce was very mild, allowing the seafood to shine.

Moving onto the Carving Station, there was Sage Butter Basted Tom Turkey, Cranberry Preserves, Giblet Gravy, Roasted Corn and Pine-nut, Foccaccia Stuffing, Clove Studded Honey Roast Ham Leg and Tarragon and Garlic Rubbed Alberta Prime Beef Top Side Roast with Yorkshire Pudding. Although the beef wasn't the desired prime rib, it was tender and full of flavour. A clear indication of high-quality aged meat. I didn't end up trying the ham since I had already made a roast ham a few days before (which I ate for many more days after). Viv tried the turkey and it was moist since it was a combination of both breast meat and dark meat.

The Desserts were located in 2 separate stations (fruit already mentioned at the Breakfast Station). There was a table with various cakes and cookies. Directly across was the chocolate fountain with strawberries, marshmallows and honeydew on skewers. A plate of Christmas cookies rounded out the table. I only gave a few desserts a try since I was incredibly full from trying almost everything. The general consensus was that the desserts were decent. Nothing that really stood out; but nothing that made us want to spit it out either. In terms of the brunch buffet as a whole, it had some high points and some lows as well. The breakfast items were good, as with the seafood. Most of the hot food was pretty average while the carving station was respectable. Desserts did their job and we got great service throughout. As mentioned, their regular brunch is much more scaled down and less expensive. Given that we dined on Christmas Day, the prices will naturally be inflated.

The Good:
- Excellent service
- Relaxing atmosphere with an interesting view of the airport
- Solid breakfast items (which is their regular brunch anyways)

The Bad:
- Unless you were here already (staying at hotel or flight), parking is not validated for brunch
- Specific to this particular Christmas Day brunch only - the hot food was mediocre

Seoul House Korean

*Restaurant is now closed*

Okay, I often eat out in Whalley despite its dubious reputation. Honestly, if you look at all the development taking place, this will be a very different place in the future. Alright, with that being said, there are some restaurants that still look quite dodgy. So much so, I'm a tad nervous to try them. Last time, it was nice that fellow bloggers accompanied me to Fireside House of Cheesecakes. This time around, Toolman was nice enough to join me in trying out Seoul House Korean (which was recommended by JuJu, who happens to be Korean). With an exterior that resembles an abandoned Asian supermarket, we were not even sure if it was open.

Yes, it was open and actually decently busy. We were greeted by a friendly Korean woman. Toolman and I wondered if she thought we were Korean. Both of us could pass off as such. Too bad we weren't because a good portion of the menu was written exclusively in Korean! Thus, I had to essentially order in Korean (which is completely laughable). We really wondered if the staff thought we were poor excuses for Korean people who didn't know the language. That happened to me before at Jang Mo Jib at their old Kingsway location. The server was slightly annoyed at me ordering in English and not understanding what she was yakking at me about. I'm a bad Chinese person who looks Korean... Sorry...

So we started off with the complimentary Banchan (actually we didn't, it showed up much later; but whatever...). Pretty good in my books. A little bit different variety than we are used to. We had Pea Curd, Kimchi, Wakame and Mustard Greens (?). For our first dish, we had Japchae. Pretty good portion for the price, although there seemed to be an inordinate amount of veggies to noodle ratio. Not too oily and nicely seasoned, this was good. Doing my usual Korean dishes (well, and the fact we couldn't read half of the menu), we got the Dolset Bibimbap. As you can see from the picture, the veggies were colourful and plentiful. The rice was on the mushier side; but some of it became drier since it cooked some more in the hot stone bowl.

For our last dish, I didn't remember the Korean name and I also didn't have time to Google it either. Thus, I had to ask for it in English which was somewhat of an exercise with the server. Her English was as good as my Korean... We did figure it out. That being the Pork Bone Soup. The bowl arrived packed to the brim with tender pork and a slightly spicy broth. The broth itself could've used a bit more depth, all I could taste was spice. But honestly, I'm nit-picking here. The food is pretty solid and inexpensive. We didn't try the Japanese food for obvious reasons and based solely on the Korean food, Seoul House is a good option in Whalley.

The Good:
- Reasonable pricing
- Friendly, if not slow service
- Decent portions

The Bad:
- Exterior looks uninviting
- Food takes awhile
- Didn't try the Japanese food... I guess that was a good decision?