Penny Restaurant

The first time I blogged about Penny Restaurant was after Wednesday late night hockey over a year ago. At that time, Polka King and I had only 3 items which were extremely underwhelming. However, after reading several other posts and comments about Penny, it has convinced me to do a revisit in order to try a much wider variety of dishes. This time around, I got the whole hockey team to join me including Polka King once again. This is no small feat because he has become quite anti-social after getting engaged to Polka Dot. Hey, I don't blame him! Although he is the butt of jokes courtesy of Milhouse and Lionel Hutz. Something about doing his best impression of cream... whipped... Anyways, we all decided to order one dish each and do a typical Chinese shared meal.

Milhouse really wanted congee and thus ordered the really large bowl of Preserved Egg and Salted Pork Congee. Much like last time, the congee base was more like an homemade one than being restaurant quality. That maybe attractive for some; but for me, I do not mind the MSG-laden thick restaurant congee base. Consequently, the base was neither thick nor flavourful enough. There was, however, a good amount of preserved duck egg and diced salted pork. And once again, just like last time, Polka King ordered his favourite being the Beef Fried Rice Noodles (or Gawn Chow Ngau Hor). I think Polka King only knows how to order this one dish in Cantonese. That's why he orders this all the time. This was an average attempt. The noodles didn't have an appealing colour and it was oily as per usual. The lack of colour didn't only affect its appearance, it was very bland as well. This needed hot sauce badly. At the very least, the beef was tender.

Boss Woman loves Scramble Eggs with Shrimp, so she ordered it again. Man, we seem to have the same dishes over and over again! Anyways, this dish was a fail. The scrambled eggs were very greasy and in little clumps. It had actually separated while being wok fried, so most of it resemble spatzle rather than scrambled eggs. Although the shrimp was cold-water crunchy, it was underseasoned and bland. All around a very substandard attempt. I'm not sure who ordered the Sweet & Sour Pork; but I didn't mind because I actually like it. It's really too bad this was another disappointing attempt. The sweet and sour sauce was not typical of an authentic Chinese restaurant. Rather, it resembled one you'd find at Manchu Wok. Radioactive in colour and really too sweet, this was not good. There was a lack of pork itself since everything was almost gone after one circle of the lazy Susan. The pork was in small chunks which led to crunchy bits with very little meat texture.

With a total lack of greens, I decided to get the Gai Lan and Beef. This was a significantly better dish than the rest so far. The gai lan was reasonably fresh in texture with a nice crunchy while not being too old. The wok heat was sufficient since there was no pool of water at the bottom of the plate. The beef was tender and there was a good amount of garlic and seasoning. Another decent dish was the Yeung Chow Fried Rice or BBQ Pork and Shrimp Fried Rice. As evidenced in the picture, there was an ample amount of cold-water shrimp, BBQ pork, peas and egg. While the rice could've been more dry and chewy, it wasn't a big deal since there was enough seasoning. Lastly, we got the Cod and Tofu Hot Pot. It arrived bubbling hot and looking slightly pale. The positive? There was a huge amount of food stuffed into the hot pot. The fish was fried up crispy while being flaky on the inside. The tofu was fried perfectly as well being silky in the middle. However, the whole hot pot lacked seasoning. Once again, I had to resort to using hot sauce to liven it up.

Alright, I think there is enough food evidence here to make a re-evaluation of Penny Restaurant. And as expected, it has confirmed what I concluded last time - the food is very average. There were some decent dishes mixed in with subpar efforts. Seeing how there are quite a few late night options for Chinese food in town, Penny would not be anywhere on my radar. Furthermore, not mentioned in this post was the terrible wonton noodles I had last time. The pork wontons were gritty and bland while the noodles did not have the desired chew-bounce texture. The only thing they got going for them are the cheap prices and the late opening hours.

The Good:
- Cheap
- Open late

The Bad:
- Below average food
- Epitome of a dive

Hawksworth

Ever since the first time I heard that David Hawksworth was scheduled to open his restaurant in the renovated Georgia Hotel (at the time, it was under renovations and still ongoing today), I was planning my future visit. Little did I know that my visit would take place over a year later. You see, Hawksworth was supposed to go live in late 2009. Fast forward to mid-2011 and the place has only been open for a couple of months. Well, better late than never. It seemed like the refurbishing of the Hotel Georgia was taking longer than a total rebuild (which can be the case, I've been told). Well, one look at the decor of the place and it is quite obvious that a total transformation has taken place. Gone are the traditional furnishings. They have given way to a modern look which has a very New Yorkish feel to it.

So why was there so much anticipation for this restaurant? Well, it has a lot to do with David Hawksworth. Formerly of West, he was awarded Chef of the Year in 2005 by Vancouver Magazine and inducted into the BC Restaurant Hall of Fame in 2008. However, for most people, they can recognize him from his appearances on the Food Network. For me at least, it is all about the food. Nothing really matters much if the food isn't good. So when I got the chance, I rounded up the whole family for an elegant lunch at Hawksworth. And when I say whole family, I mean the kiddies as well. You see, being in a hotel, they have a kid's menu. Score!

Normally, the lunch menu at most fine dining establishments are slightly less expensive than dinner. In this case, it was about $2.00 less per entree. The one peculiar thing on the menu was the charge for Bread. It was $4.00. Hey, it was good bread and high quality olive oil; yet not being complimentary caught us off guard. At the top of the menu, there was a selection of zero proof drinks. Viv had the Aloe Vera which resembled a mojito when it arrived. In certain aspects, it did taste like one due to the mint. However, there was no mistaking this was aloe vera with the chunks of jelly (much like the Asian drink). Except for the kiddies and my dad, we all started with appetizers. My mom had the Roasted Tomato and Fennel Soup with spot prawn, bacon and basil served table side. The soup was packed with flavour from the tartness of the smoky tomatoes exhibiting only a hint of fennel. The spot prawns were cooked perfectly being delicate and sweet. The added hit of herbiness from the basil and saltiness of the bacon provided balance.

For myself, the Dungeness Crab Salad caught my eye. It turned out to be the right decision. Resting on a bed of celery leaves was a plethora of perfectly cooked crab meat. It was sweet and delicate. Thinly sliced heart of palm, chives, parsley, roe and lemon foam finished the plate. I thought the amount of acidity in the salad was perfect. It really made the flavours pop which livened everything else. Viv had the other appetizer that I had my eye on, which was the 48-Hour Beef Shortrib with black pepper jam, honeydew, green papaya, red chili, peanut and Thai basil. There may have been only 3 pieces of shortrib on the plate; but there was a lot of impact nonetheless. The meat was super tender and bursting with flavour. The black pepper jam really had a punch which was accented by the sweet honeydew cubes and tart green papaya salad.

As if the shortrib wasn't enough meat, Viv had the Roasted Hanger Steak for her main. It was served medium-rare (the only way it should be prepared by-the-way) and served with chimmichurri, arugula salad and thrice cooked frites. The reason why a hanger steak should not be cooked past medium-rare is due to the cut of meat. It is typically a bit tougher while being quite flavourful. This particular steak was cooked beautifully where it was both very tasty and remarkably tender. The chimmichurri sauce was not particularly impactful; but it didn't need to be. It added only a faint level of garlic and saltiness to the steak. As for the frites, they were large, crispy and very potatoey on the inside. There weren't a lot of them on the plate and it wasn't necessary either. They were quite heavy and filling. For my main, I had the same frites which accompanied the Hawksworth Beef Burger. I know, I know... A burger at a fine dining establishment? I've done it before, when DB Bistro was still open. However, this time around, the burger didn't have things like shortrib, foie gras or truffles in it. It was just a plain burger with applewood smoked bacon, aged cheddar, tomato, butter lettuce, spiced mayo and a fried red onion ring on a toasted sesame (and black sesame) bun. Hold on there, there is one thing that makes it really special - the fact you can get it cooked medium-rare. Yup, they can do that. Since they prepare their own burger patties as you order them, it is safe to cook it less than well-done. Therefore, the quality of the meat combined with the medium-rare preparation results in an extremely moist and juicy burger. Something that is a rarity these days (pardon the pun). Not since my visit to Chee Chee burger in the States have I had ground beef prepared this way.

My mom always looks for the lamb dish on any menu and since the Tagliatelle was the only item with it, her decision was easy. It consisted of slow cooked lamb, tomatoes, sundried olive, pine nuts, shaved Parmesan and mint. Despite the large amount of pulled lamb, the whole pasta was not gamy. There was only a hint of lamb flavour, which was enough in this application. There was a pronounced tartness from the olives and strong impact from the mint. There wasn't enough pine nuts to add anything significant to the dish. The pasta was al dente and slowly started absorbing the excess cooking liquid from the sauce. At first, I thought there was too much liquid; but as we ate the tagliatelle, it disappeared. My dad had the Pan Seared Sooke River Trout with fingerling potato, haricot vert, olive and brown butter. First of all, the fish was cooked perfectly. Flaky and moist flesh welcomed us as we enjoyed the crispy skin on the exterior. The fish was seasoned just enough to add flavour without being overpowering. It allowed the brown butter to do its thing. The accompanying veggies were cooked perfectly with crisp green beans and crispy potatoes.

I'll give you one guess what my son had. Yes, he had the Mac 'n Cheese. Well, in this case, it was more like orichetti & a blend of cheeses. The orichetti was al dente which is a nice departure from overcooked pasta usually associated with mac 'n cheese. The blend of cheeses was really tasty. It was creamy with a bit of sharpness. We suspected there was some Gruyere in there. My son loved it, he ate it without protest. For my daughter, she had the Cheese Pizza. Reminiscent of a pizza Margherita sans the basil, this was actually very good. The crust was crisp and only a bit soft at the centre. The fresh mozzarella and tomatoes really made this pizza gourmet compared to most kids pizzas around. Granted, this one cost $14.00! It better be good!

At this point, we were debating whether to have dessert or not. Surprisingly, Viv was leaning towards dessert. Was she possessed by Mijune? Whatever the case, we decided to share 2 beginning with the Yogurt Panna Cotta served with grapefruit segments, orange coulis, grapefruit sorbet and a basil lemon gelee. The yogurt itself had vanilla bean as well. This was an extremely refreshing dessert. There was a whole lot of tartness going on from the yogurt and citrus elements. Yet, there was enough sweetness to balance it out. For our second dessert, we tried the Mango Custard with vanilla bean, coconut and lime. This was a very light offering which was not particularly sweet. This suited me just fine since I can't stand overly sugary desserts. The mango custard was very smooth and aromatic while the tang from the lime made up for the lack of zing from the mango. The little meringues provided a textural contrast to the custard.

If I had to describe this meal with one word, it would be "solid". The execution level was high and the attention to detail was evident. Despite what appears to be high menu prices, I thought it is fair considering the location, the chef and the level of refinement. Of course, by virtue of having a kids menu, it suddenly makes it alright for families to dine here. However, the "kids meals" can be deemed expensive. The service we received was generally attentive and consistent. If we take everything into account, it appears that Hawksworth is a winner.

The Good:
- Almost flawless execution
- Attentive service
- Wonderful dining space

The Bad:
- A bit pricey (however, I think it's fair)
- Kids menu is a plus; but not at those prices

Northern Meixi Fast Food

Fresh off ordering the XLBs from Xu's in the Crystal Mall food court, Mijune and I were not satisfied. We needed more food. With all the stalls offering their wares, it was too hard to resist. So we headed over to the stall with the most amount of people milling around. Hey, Mijune reasoned that if there are people around the food should be good. Well, I'm not so sure about that. There are plenty of cars milling around in the parking lot and I'm certain they are not happy. So we'd just have to put this theory to the test.

We got a couple of things starting with the Ja Jeun Mein. When we first got it, it sure looked appetizing with the good amount of meaty sauce and vibrant cucumber slivers. Well, for me at least, this was a fail. The good part was the noodles. They were hand-pulled and had a very desirable elasticity to them. However, the meat sauce was extremely oily. In fact, there was a large pool of oil at the bottom of the plate. Rather than pickled turnip, there was potato in the sauce. Nothing particularly wrong with that except the sauce was predominantly sweet with no other distinguishing flavours nor textures. Furthermore, the cucumber must've been put through a grater because it was no longer crunchy and was slivered far too fine.

As a comparison of sorts, we got an order of the Xiao Long Bao. Well, lemme get straight to the point. There is no comparison. Xu's is significantly better. The dumpling skin was gummy and mushy at the same time while there was a noticeable absence of juice. Furthermore, the meat was gritty and bland. Okay, maybe a different dumpling might be better right? After all, the lady there did boast about it. So we got an order of the Boiled Pork & Vegetable Dumplings as well. If I had to compare, the boiled dumplings at Lao Shan Dong are better than the ones here. These weren't necessarily bad; they were just pretty average. The meat filling was quite soft with an adequate amount of seasoning. However, I would've preferred a dip of some sort (soy/vinegar?). Actually, they didn't even supply vinegar for the XLBs.

The last item ended up as a mistake - figuratively and literally. We originally wanted the Pork Pastry and ultimately ended up with the Green Onion Pancake with egg and salty donut. The one word that can describe this is doughy. The donut was dense while the pancake was soft. The whole thing was dense and bland. We did not enjoy it. If the donut was crispy and light, it would've dramatically changed the outcome. However, similar to all of the other items we tried, it was not memorable. The food is cheap though... and the ladies that run the place are really nice; yet there are better choices. Looks like we might go for a place without a lineup next time...

The Good:
- Inexpensive
- Good portions
- Friendly ladies who run the place
The Bad:
- Unmemorable food

Xu's Wonton House

When it comes to Xiao Long Bao, it is a well-known fact that Richmond is money. Pick from any of Shanghai River, Shanghai Wonderful, Chen's, Suhang, Top Shanghai, Dinesty and #1 Shanghai - you will come away satisfied. Despite it's loyal following, Wang's located in the Crystal Mall food court was still somewhat of a hidden gem. With its excellent XLB's freshly made on the spot and steamed, they were a good value. They did brisk business and there always seemed to be a continual lineup. So imagine the surprise when it suddenly became Xu's Wonton House a few months ago. I guess one can never depend on a good thing, much like a sunny day in Vancouver...

So finding myself and Mijune at Crystal Mall, there was only one thing to do... Well, other than trying to park the car without incident in the crazy parking lot... was to try Xu's out! From the exterior, not much has changed. The signage is still yellow with the familiar looking makeshift menu and ladies making fresh XLB's out front. We got a few other items as well; but c'mon, we were here for the Xiao Long Bao! Keeping with tradition, they were served directly in their steamers fresh from the heat. So far, everything looked familiar from the storefront to the XLB themselves. That is where the similarities stopped. First of all, the skin seemed to be slightly thicker; yet not being able to hold together very well when transferred to a spoon. I found the meat to be okay; but the broth was a bit one-dimensional with very little ginger. A decent XLB for sure; but it ain't Wang's.

We also got an order of the Tan Tan Noodles. From the looks of it, once again, it resembled the Wang's version. And yes, it was pretty much the same with a predominantly peanutty broth with just a hint of spice. The noodles were a little soft; but all-in-all, a good tan tan noodle. So despite not being exactly the same as Wang's, the XLB's are still respectable here. I'll probably pay them a return visit to see if any of the other offerings are good or not. After all, it is inexpensive and the things I did try were passable. It only means I'll have to once again play Russian Roulette in the Crystal Mall parking lot.

The Good:
- Inexpensive
- Freshly made XLBs

The Bad:
- Not as good as Wang's (but still okay)

Hilltop Cafe

How far will one travel for food? Well, I guess it really depends on the eats doesn't it? Also, we are not referring to traveling to other cities and countries either. Now most people would immediately discount Langley as a culinary destination due to its distance from Downtown Vancouver. However, has anyone ever considered where people out in the burbs eat then? It's not like everyone can just hop in a car and make the trek out to Vancouver you know. Also, there must be good eats if you look hard enough. So lost among the plethora of chain restaurants in Langley, we find ourselves at
Hilltop Cafe. What? Yes, this little ol' unassuming diner out on Fraser Highway was an intended food adventure. Why? Well, there are several reasons. First, it is a diner. I love diners and this was is an actual diner which has been around for 65 years (however, it just changed hands recently). So the prices are good and the food is honest. Second, it is out in Langley. For me, I think good food can be found anywhere and Langley gets no foodie love. Third, they have something known affectionately as the Everest Burger. If climbing the mountain is considered tough, eating this burger may test ones' will, desire and intestinal fortitude. It's $20.00 of pure gluttony.

Ah zut! It was not meant to be... They can't do the Everest Burger during proper lunch hours because it takes up the entire grill. It is only available during non-peak hours. That only means one thing. I need to make the trek out here again just for that! So a bit dejected, I had to settle on the Chili Burger instead. With 2 large handmade beef patties smothered in obscene amount of chili and served open-faced, this was a mountain of food in itself. The beef patty was very meaty; yet on the drier side. However, the large amount of chili helped moisten the entire burger. As for the chili itself, it was hearty and quite mild. The banana peppers on top added a kick to it though. The fresh cut fries were thin and very crispy. Not much in the way of potato texture left; but I liked them nonetheless.

Hot Mama had the Classic Burger and as evidenced in the picture, all of the ingredients from the thick sliced tomato to the grilled onions were fresh and top-notch. The warm bun was soft while strong enough to stand up to the filling. She quite enjoyed her food and thought it was reasonably-priced. Ma went for the blue plate special which consisted of a BLT and choice of soup. The sandwich was solid. The toast was perfect while the ingredients were similarly as good as the burger. As simple as it is, everything was there: thick fresh-cut tomato, fresh crisp lettuce and crispy bacon. The side of tomato soup was creamy and well-balanced. Not too tart, not too sweet nor too salty.

Whenever there is Poutine on the menu, it is a given we'll try it and it looked promising when it arrived. The gravy was flavourful and just the right consistency. The "cheese curds" were not exactly so; but I give it to them they did not use shredded mozzarella. Although we loved the crispy thin fries on their own, they did not exactly work in the poutine. A thicker cut fry that could soak up the gravy a bit more would've been texturally more pleasing. Another sandwich at our table was the Clubhouse. Do you know what irks me the most about some clubhouse sandwiches? If you answered chicken deli meat, you get a gold star! As you can clearly see, the chicken meat is real, plentiful and house made. Add in real cheddar, crisp lettuce, the same fresh tomato and perfectly toasted bread, we have a solid clubhouse.

Now afterwards, we really couldn't leave without pie... It does say "the home of famous pies". Well, then again, we have places saying they have the "best coffee" and "best pizza" as well. Usually, there is usually as much truth in those statements as proclaiming Richmond has the "best drivers"... But hey, the pie is decent here. Ma had the Peach Pie a la mode. The crust was really flaky and somewhat moist. I would've preferred for it to be little drier; but I'm being picky here. The pie was pretty solid, not too sweet or wet either. The ice cream was fantastic being hard and creamy. However, the Banana Cream Pie was even better. I'm normally not fond of anything banana in a dessert; but this one was pretty good. The crust on this one was drier (due to filling not being baked with the crust) while the filling was very flavourful and sweet (maybe a touch too sweet). We particularly liked the layer of bananas at the bottom.

Now, you probably would've guessed that I was pretty choked that I didn't get a chance to try the Everest Burger. So it was only fitting that I made the trek out to Hilltop again. To tackle this burger monstrosity, I needed someone that loves meat and had a big appetite - Mijune. So what does $20.00 get you in a burger? Try 4-5oz beef patties, baked ham, cheddar cheese, mozza cheese, bacon, farmer's sausage, sauteed mushrooms & onions, lettuce, tomato, pickle and mayo served with a mound of fresh cut fries. So let's cut to the chase here. This is what you call a novelty item. People will order this just for the shock value; rather than really wanting to put their heart and stomach through torture. With that being said, there were some really good components here at work. First, the fries were even better than last time. They were very crisp and fresh-tasting. As for the burger itself, it is definitely a fork & knifer. The patties were homemade and very meaty. They weren't particularly moist or juicy; but they weren't incredibly dry either. I really enjoyed the farmer's sausage. It was meaty, easy on the fat and flavourful without being salty. On the other hand, the bacon could've been more crisp.

Of course we couldn't only have one item, despite its size. So we also tried the Sausage Benny. Essentially a classic eggs benny with the substitution of housemade sausage, we found this to be quite good. The eggs were poached perfectly while the sausage was meaty, not fatty and easy on the seasoning. I found the Hollandaise to be rather sweet and lacking in lemon; but it was still okay. Believe it or not the hashbrowns were the star of this plate. It consisted of smashed potatoes which had been panfried until crispy. So there were parts that resembled mash potatoes intermingled with chunks of whole potatoes. They were well-seasoned which made them some of the best non-typical hashbrowns I've had in awhile. Of course a meal with Mijune would not be complete without dessert. Thus, we did the pie thing again. This time, we shared a slice of Coconut Cream Pie. It is basically the same as the banana cream pie except with coconut. Thus, it was pretty solid with tonnes of coconut in and on top of the pie. I would've liked some of the toasted slivers to be drier to give some crunch. Once again, the filling was good; yet really sweet.

Now one slice of pie would not be enough right? So enter the second slice being the Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie a la mode. Again, it came with the fantastic hard vanilla ice cream. We inquired about the brand and it turns out they use Mountain Dairy out of Abbotsford. It was really good! Anyways, the pie filling was quite tart. No matter, I like it tart, so it suited me just fine. In fact, there was more filling than crust. The crust was almost an afterthought, which again, suited me just fine because I like filling more than crust. About that crust... Just like the peach pie, the crust was wetter than I would've liked; but it's forgivable due to the amount of filling. Okay, after 2 visits, it is clear to me that the Hilltop Cafe has character. From the staff to the decor down to the food, it is not just your run-of-the-mill diner wannabees. This is a full-fledged diner. Of course it is located pretty far out in Langley; but if you are in the neighbourhood, it is a great place to grab a bite to eat (or a large one if you go for the Everest).

The Good:
- Staff that care
- Real diner decor, not the "modernized" diner look
- The food ain't gonna win any awards; but it is solid nonetheless

The Bad:
- Was featured in the movie the "Butterfly Effect" (yah, I'm stretching here for a bad...)