Yan's Garden

A second chance. Or in this case, a 20th chance. There was a time we would frequent Yan's Garden for both Dim Sum and dinner. And why not? There is not much to choose from in terms of decent Chinese food in and around the Lougheed and North Road area. However, I stopped eating at Yan's because their service just plain sucked. In fact, it sucked even for a Chinese restaurant. They would routinely make mistakes and not own up to it and their servers really needed some attitude adjustments. Hence, my last post on this place was not at all glowing. However, it was time for a re-visit and to see if things have changed. JuJu did his usual Facebook shout-out for food and once again, I was first to respond affirmatively. He wanted Dim Sum and I wanted a redo at Yan's. Perfect. Interestingly, the first thing I noticed was some familiar staff members from Wah Lun.

JuJu arrived first and just like the ravenous eater he is, there was a plate of Shrimp Spring Rolls already missing a few pieces. So for the record, there should be four rolls, not three. These were pretty good with big crunchy chunks of shrimp in a perfectly fried wheat wrapper. Most of the time I scoff at the sweet 'n sour sauce served with spring rolls (since it should be Worcestershire sauce instead); but in the case of a shrimp-filled spring roll, it works alright - almost in the same way as a fried shrimp wonton. Since Yan's still employs push carts, we were at the mercy of what was available at the time. So no Haw Gow at the beginning; yet we did track down some Sui Mai. These were okay. The pork was slightly chewier than we would've liked. It didn't exhibit the desired "bounce" texture; rather it was too much like regular pork. Furthermore, the dumplings stood to be seasoned more aggressively.

Next up was the Blackbean Spareribs. As you can tell in the picture, they were mainly meaty pieces with little to no cartilage (which is a good thing). The meat was tenderized so that it was easy to chew while not completely pulverized either. There was a good amount of black bean and garlic seasoning as well. This was a solid dish. We had the Deep Fried Glutinous Pork Dumpling next. This item is not as popular as it once was, especially during the 80's. Since they had it here, we jumped at the chance. Now, these "Ham Sui Gock" are not the most healthy items available; but they are soooo good. It is basically ground pork, shiitake mushrooms and pickled vegetable in a starch thicken sauce encased in glutinous rice cake (think mochi), then deep fried. These were pretty good except that the outer layer of glutinous rice was too thick. Other than that, the outside was crisp while the filling was tasty and plentiful.

For no other reason that it was in the cart that next arrived at our table, we got the Beef Meatballs. That's the thing about push carts, you end up ordering stuff because it's there, not because you really wanted it. In the end, it was not a bad choice since these meatballs were good. The texture was perfect being moist with a slight bounce. We really liked the pronounced dried orange peel flavour, it added a lot to the dish. For us, Dim Sum is not complete without a rice noodle roll. In this case, it was a Shrimp Rice Noodle Roll. This was quite average. The rice noodle was on the stiffer side while the soy sauce was surprisingly bland. It was probably watered down too much when they made the soy & sugar mix. At the very least, the shrimp was cooked properly and it was somewhat cold-water crunchy.

Once again, the lure of food on push carts struck again. We were not planning to order the Deep Fried Squid with chili salt; yet we did. I guess we were talked into it. Well, it really didn't take much convincing since JuJu and I are easily influenced by anything edible. Unfortunately, this was a bad decision. The squid itself was very good, in large pieces and with a great chewy texture that was still easy to eat. Furthermore, there was plenty of seasoning in the form of salt, chilis and garlic. The problem was with the batter. The large pieces of squid made the batter soggy and in some inner parts, not cooked completely. They really needed to make the pieces smaller or cut them in a different manner.

Once again, we got the Xiao Long Bao for no other reason than JuJu must have it for Dim Sum. Yes, we realize it is a Shanghainese specialty served in a Cantonese restaurant. The chances of it being actually good? Nil. Now if we look at it from the perspective that it is merely a pork dumpling, then it was acceptable. This had to be the attitude going into it because the XLBs had no juice whatsoever and the dumpling skin was thick. Getting through the skin, the non-gritty meat was actually okay being well-seasoned with a hint of ginger. Just don't call them XLBs. As if there wasn't enough food already, JuJu wanted to get the Salted Fish and Chicken Fried Rice. It arrived on a clamshell-like plate that was deceiving in terms of the amount of food. There was a lot of rice and well-priced at $8.95. Now the rice itself was good being dry with not much in the way of clumps. The chicken was moist and there was a decent amount of salted fish. However, the rice lacked seasoning and wasn't as salty as we would've liked. No problem though, it was still a very acceptable attempt.

Now the Minced Beef Congee was not an acceptable attempt. As evidenced in the picture, the congee was on the watery side while totally lacking in flavour. It would give home-cooked congee a run for its money. Wait, I make congee better than this, so scratch that. However, the worst thing about this congee was the beef itself. It was gritty, chewy and totally flavourless. The meat was neither tenderized nor marinated
enough. This was a very bad version of congee. Now, if you have been paying attention and reading this (rather than just looking at the pictures! LOL...), there is one significant item missing. Yes, it is the Haw Gow or Steamed Shrimp Dumpling. For some reason or another, it was not available from the push carts. I would like to believe that they wanted to make it fresh and not have it sit in the cart for too long. But in reality, I suspect they don't want someone taking 10 orders of it as the cart passes by. So we had ordered it near the beginning of the meal and it arrived as we were almost about to give up and just get the bill. Was it worth the wait? Not really. The dumpling skin was okay, maybe a little on the gummy side. On the inside, the shrimp was mostly in little pieces (albeit a good snap texture) and there was a good amount of binding agent, which was not pleasant. So, just like my previous visits here, the food has its highs and its lows; but it is mostly decent. Considering the location, Yan's is probably one of the better Chinese restaurants in the neighbourhood. The service was better this time around; but it is still very indifferent and inattentive. I guess that is an improvement over the rude and "screw-you" attitude on previous visits.

The Good:
- It's a fairly spacious restaurant
- Food is generally acceptable
- Prices are fair

The Bad:
- Service is not really a high point
- The parking lot is truly insufficient for the amount of businesses in the complex

C-Lovers Fish & Chips (Surrey)

*Restaurant is now closed*

For all the fish 'n chip joints I've tried, there has always been one that I've been to countless times before, yet never had a chance to blog about. Now, if told you it was C-Lovers, it might be a bit surprising. Why? Well, it is a chain and there are multiple locations in the Lower Mainland. So what has taken me so long? Honestly, I'm not sure. It's not like I didn't have the chance in the past 3 years. Maybe it is one of those "oh it's always going to be there" type places. I have to admit, C-Lovers was our go-to place for the longest time during and shortly after University. We'd meet up with at the North Van location and mingle with the seniors for the AYCE special. I think once Chill had too much and he disappeared into the washroom for 30 minutes... But I'm sure you don't want any more details about that!

Well, once again, I took advantage of their AYCE Cod 'n Chips special, albeit at the Surrey Newton location. The one thing one would immediately notice with the AYCE version of the fish 'n chips is that the pieces of fish are smaller. They almost resemble big fish sticks rather than the regular long filets of cod. However, our fish was still moist and flaky with a light batter, much like it has been every time I've had C-Lovers. The fries were fresh cut, potatoey and crisp. I have always thought the tartar sauce at C-Lovers to be rather mild, yet it does the job. Since the pieces of fish were small, I was able to have a bit more. I probably shouldn't have though... But that is the temptation of AYCE. On the topic of temptation or just plain power of suggestion, I noticed that the table next to us enjoying a bowl of their Seafood Chowder. So what would I do? Of course, get an order for myself! I can see buffet aficionados rolling their eyes already... Ordering more food at an extra cost when I have already paid for an AYCE? Blasphemous!

Well, the Seafood Chowder was a bit different than the typical creamy version. It was more of a broth which was fishy (in a good way). Personally, I like the cream-based chowder more, but this was okay too. All-in-all, the meal was pretty much as expected which was consistent with other meals at C-Lovers. For the price, it a more than acceptable fish 'n chip joint.

The Good:
- Pretty consistent from location-to-location (I've been to most of them)
- AYCE is a good value

The Bad:
- Although a good value, the AYCE yields smaller pieces of fish

Cafe Savoureux (formerly La Cuisson)

*Cafe has closed*

We've all seen it before. You know, those comments left on sites such as Urbanspoon, Yelp and Dinehere that merely state: "the food tasted like sh*t". Yah, that's useful. And I suppose people have eaten sh*t to legitimize this statement. How about the food wasn't really good? I'm sure there is not much in the way of food out there that tastes worst than poo. On that note, I can honestly say that eating poo is not exactly at the top of my to-do list. However, Costanza sent me an email that his co-worker had raved about the Civet Coffee at Cafe Savoureux in Richmond. For those unfamiliar, a civet is a cat- like animal that eats coffee beans and we harvest it from their dung. Yup, we clean it up and roast it. Whoever thought of this great idea might be slightly disturbed. This was not the first time I've ever seen or heard about this prized and expensive coffee. When I lived in Downtown, I came across it at Urban Fare. One look at the price and I was not really into spending my pay cheque on Cat Poo Coffee. That and the French bread flown in from Paris daily, as well as the square watermelons.

As for the Civet Coffee at Cafe Savoureux, it is $60.00. We ended up sharing it which made it a more bearable at $20.00 each between Vandelay, Costanza and myself. There were 4 "courses" starting with the rich, full-bodied first press. It was dark, yet curiously smooth and not bitter. The second press was much weaker and not very flavourful. The third press tasted like tea and we didn't care much for it. The final press was gritty and thick. So was it worth it? Depends. I'm not a huge coffee drinker. However Costanza and Vandelay are coffee aficionados. They enjoyed the first pass, but they agreed that it is one of those "been there, done that" things.

The Good:
- Calm, inviting seating area
- Friendly service
- Lots of choice

The Bad:
- Sure, we had an expensive coffee, but the rest of their prices are on the higher side

Pho Queen

*Restaurant is closed*

The hockey season is upon us. Time to grab a six-pack, open up a bag of Doritos and order up some pizza. Viv and the kids can reacquaint themselves to their dad in about 8 months. However, that isn't the real reason to get excited... It's hockey pool time! The yearly traditional gathering with McKeen's in hand (and a laptop), spending 3+ hours drafting players, has exercised its mesmerizing grip. Who will go first? Who really wants the first overall pick anyways? Ovechkin? A Sedin? Stamkos? The anticipation and drama continues onto the later rounds where the pool is actually won. Pick a rookie that has a great year, a dark horse or some other player
everyone has passed up - the thrill of snatching a player that you want late.

Well, that was the deal for Costanza, Vandelay and myself as we headed over to Chill's house in Tsawwassen for his annual hockey pool. However, we wouldn't pass up this opportunity driving past Richmond and not get some eats... Besides, Costanza really wanted to try the Civet Coffee from Le Cuisson (cat poop coffee to be exact). But before the poo beverage, we got our nourishment nearby at Pho Queen. With the regular Pho claimed by Vandelay, I resorted to the Bun Bo Hue (which I equally like anyways). This was a healthy portion with plenty of nicely texture noodles and tender meats. There wasn't any pork knuckle, but there was a large piece of pork with skin. It was quite tough and dry. The broth was actually not bad with a decent amount of spice and aromatics. As for Vandelay's Pho, the broth was a bit heavy on the salt and MSG. With that, it was quite flavourful though. With meats similar to my order, they were fine as well. A solid bowl of Pho.

Costanza went for the Grilled Lemon Grass Chicken and Pork Chop on Rice, which made me happy since the last thing I wanted was another bowl of noodles to write about! On cue, he set aside a portion for me to try. You gotta love Costanza, always looking out for me! I found the chicken to be super moist and tender with plenty of lemongrass flavour. Although a touch dry, the pork chop was also good with a nice grilled aroma. Now Costanza was not at all satisfied with only one dish, so he asked if I wanted to share the Beef Stew with French Bread. Boy, he is a heaven sent! The perfect dining companion - orders lots and lets me try it all! Unfortunately, the stew itself was a little weak. It was not as rich as we would've liked. In fact, it wasn't even that oily, which is a trademark of this dish. On the positive side, the beef was moist and the French bread was crunchy and light in the middle. "Pretty good" is probably the best way to describe Pho Queen. Nothing stands out, yet nothing offended us either. Personally, I would take Pho Queen over Green Lemongrass if one was in Richmond.

The Good:
- Inexpensive (like most other Vietnamese joints)
- Fairly large parking lot (if it isn't full... LOL...)
- Friendly service

The Bad:
- Portions are modest

The Pourhouse

I'm not sure what to think about preseason hockey... (yes, this was written almost a month ago). On one hand, it's nice to see the boys in action again after summer, however, the "boys" are usually a collection of prospects and veterans who won't make the team. Despite this, I jumped at the chance to go to a preseason game when Rich Guy asked if I wanted to watch from Richer Guy's suite at Rogers Arena. Furthermore, Richer Guy graciously offered up his parking spot at Rogers Arena as well! Ballin'! Egads... Despite the high-rollin' parking spot and suite, the game was a total bore. I was more interested in tweeting than watching the game. As such, I found out that Dee from Meplusfood was at the game and so was Costanza and Snake. After the game, Snake decided to meet up with Rich Guy and myself for some late night eats. At the suggestion from Vandelay (from one of the many phone calls I made during the game), we headed over to the Pourhouse. Or as Snake put it, the poorhouse since he was sitting in the nosebleeds and completely envying our suite deal.

After dusting off popcorn and a poutine at the game, I was not exactly hungry so we started with a very modest appie - Devils on Horseback. This version was pitted prunes stuffed with cheese (asiago?) and wrapped with bacon. The whole thing was drizzled with a balsamic reduction. These little bites packed a nice flavour punch which included a salty smokiness from the bacon that worked well with the sweetness of the prunes. Snake really liked this appie and didn't need to be asked twice about the last piece. I guess he needed more fiber in his diet... Do snakes need more fiber? As for his main, he went for the Braised Short Rib with egg noodles and sour cream. It was like a Stroganoff but not. I was able to sample the short rib and it was prepared perfectly. Super moist and tender with a very rich flavour. It was so enticing on the menu that Rich Guy got an order to go for Rich Gal. For his meal, he had the Trout with gnocchi, brussel sprouts in beurre blanc. The fish was prepared perfectly. It was moist and flaky, however, it was slightly fishy. The gnocchi was a bit firm, but personally I like it that way. With subtle flavours, the beurre blanc did not intrude on the other components of the dish.

For myself, I was eying the Pourhouse Burger. The meat is ground in-house to order, so I was eager to have it medium-rare. This is the best way to eat a burger in my opinion. Otherwise, the beef becomes dry and much of the juices (where the flavour resides) are lost in the cooking process. Unlike the one I had recently from The Oakwood, this burger was actually medium-rare. Thus, there was still plenty of rare meat texture and flavour. It may not be for everyone, but I really loved the natural beef juices. In fact, the whole thing was quite greasy from the fat, mayo and whatever else was in there. My mouth, hands and cheeks were completely glistening with oil. Reminded me of my teenage years... LOL... Ah, a messy burger, excellent. As for the side of fries, they were the fried multiple times variety. Hence, they were crisp and full of fried flavour. Yes, I liked them too. Pretty decent eats here at the Pourhouse. I wouldn't have guessed honestly. Sure, the prices are on the higher side and the place is darker than a cave, but it just adds to the ambiance. Go for the burger medium-rare, probably one of the best I've had in the city.

The Good:
- It may be dark, but the dining space is cool
- Simple, focused menu
- As its name suggests, plenty of drinks available

The Bad:
- A tad pricey
- If you don't like it dark inside

The blog turns 3!

Can you believe it? I certainly cannot... My little blog, which started out as a dare of sorts, has reached the ripe ol' age of 3! I never set out to take it this far, but my thirst for eating (and taking photos) has kept this up daily since November 2008. This has been and always will be my personal experience with food, hence, you have to put up with my rambling about unrelated matters. I'm not sure what the future holds since life is busy and well, food is expensive. I guess I'll have to take it day-by-day and enjoy life. For now at least, I'll keep doing what I love to do. As with years past, I will hold another draw for a $50.00 restaurant gift certificate. This, in no way, shape or form is sponsored by anyone other than myself. To enter the draw, just simply leave a comment on this post with your first name and last initial. I will randomly draw a winner on Nov 8th. For now, be happy, eat lots and try some offal! :)

Signature Dish Dining Festival (Burnaby)

Okay, here we go again. Just like Merry & Pippin and their 2nd breakfast, I was about to embark on another night of the Signature Dish Dining Festival food tour with our 2nd and 3rd dinners. Much like the pig-out session I did last time in Richmond, we were doing 3 restaurants in Burnaby. Although Burnaby doesn't even hold a candle to Richmond's outstanding selection of Chinese restaurants, they seemed to have picked 3 good ones for the tour. Great, I thought. One less restaurant than last time, hence less food? Yah, wishful thinking on my part. When I arrived at our first destination, I quickly learned that the number of restaurants was insignificant when they start serving more dishes! So this was exactly the case at Alvin Garden. The owner was so gracious, she took requests which bumped our dish total to 10. Uh... After this full meal, we were to go eat again at 2 other restaurants? Oh man... And why exactly are we doing this? For those who didn't read my Richmond post on the Signature Dish Dining Festival, this is part of the Chinese Restaurant Awards where restaurants do a sort of Chinese "Dine-Out" with set menus at some pretty reasonable prices. For me, I was lucky enough to be part of it and got to try some of the best Chinese dishes in the city.

Our first dish at Alvin Garden was their Award-Winning Hunan Smoked Duck. Smoked with Pu'er Tea or Bo-Lay as I know it, the duck had a good amount of flavour that didn't mask the inherent gaminess of the meat. This, combined with meaty, yet tender flesh made for a great smoked duck. Too many times, smoked duck can be dry and too salty. Not in this case. Next up was the Spicy-Flavoured Chicken which was essentially shredded poached chicken doused in a chili oil hot sauce. Despite looking like a bowl of fiery hot food, this was merely all bark, no bite. We would later learn that they had prepared the food at 1/5th of the regular spice level (so not to scare or maim any media members). That was bit disappointing for some, including myself, but I can see why they did it. As for this dish, the chicken was almost jelly-like in texture due to the perfect poaching and immediate cool down. The chili oil sauce on top was a bit nutty, a touch vinegary and only mildly spicy.

One of the requested dishes from our table was the Sliced Pork Heart with Five Spices tossed in chili oil. Hot damn, I was pretty happy with this special dish. I love offal and especially spicy offal! Well, this was prepared very well. The texture of the heart slices was chewy while easy to eat. In addition, the slices were the right size, which may seem trivial, but is essential for eating enjoyment! It was very mild-tasting with classic 5-spice flavouring, yet again, it was due to the conservative spice level. One dish that I thought could've been better was the Stir-Fried BC Prawns & Scallops with asparagus. Although the scallops were just barely cooked, the prawns almost appeared to be boiled. Either the wok heat was slightly lacking or there was too much moisture (as evidenced by the liquid at the bottom of the plate). On the other hand, the seafood could've been water-blanched first which would explain everything. I found the prawns to be a touch rubbery and visually, they were not all that pleasing. However, I did like the flavouring agents. There was a good combination of garlic, sweetness and a touch of spice. Moreover, the asparagus was still crunchy.

Yet another dish that was not on our menu for the tasting was the Home Made Tofu with Pork. Nothing really interesting about this dish other than the nicely textured fried tofu (which was the right balance between being dense, but not too dense). The rest of the items (peppers, wood ear mushroom and pork slices) were pretty typical. Okay, someone please enlighten me here. Although the Cauliflower with Alberta Pork arrived plated in an interesting pan situated atop a wooden basket, the dish itself was boring. What we got was some cooked cauliflower with overdone pork. In addition, the bottom of the pan was watery. Hence, any hint of spice (which was dumbed-down for this meal) was washed out. This was very "meh" to me at least.

As for the next dish, I was really not sure what it was. I mean, I could tell it was beef with cilantro, peppers and pickled vegetable, yet it did not completely correspond with any of the menu items. So, I'm only guessing that it was the Stir-Fried Beef with Pickled Green Chili? Why the confusion? Well, the predominant flavour for me was the cilantro combined with some spice. Was it from the pickled green chili? Could be, but it was overshadowed by the cilantro. The meat was tender and not dry (despite its appearance) though. One of my favourite dishes here was the Stir-Fried Spicy Chicken with Peanuts and Amoy dark soy sauce. Really good wok heat in this dish as illustrated by the the great colour and lack of moisture on the plate. The chicken was tender and full of flavour while the crunchy peanuts was the textural contrast. Once again, the reduced heat level of the dishes prevented this dish from being a home-run.

Moving along to the Pan-Fried Green Beans with Minced Pork, we were treated to just slightly past crisp oil-blanched beans. The combination of easy-to-eat minced pork, chili peppers and pickled vegetable provided a mix strong flavours. Once again, this was fairly mild, so there was no "pop", but that was the intention. Now, even with a "dumbed-down" version of their Ma Po Tofu, I still found it to be very good. Despite being soft and almost silky, the tofu retained its shape. Furthermore, there was no pool of liquid other than the slightly spicy meat sauce. We needed to get some rice for this, which ultimately soaked up the tasty flavours.

Finally at the end of the unexpected 10 dish foray at Alvin Garden, we headed over to Metrotown for our second restaurant - Fortune House. With a much more sane menu (fewer items!), we had the Deep Fried Crab Claw stuffed with Shrimp. This is a typical offering seen at Chinese weddings and baby one-month dinners. These were served on individual plates with a side of fruit salad. The exterior was fried perfectly crisp without being chewy (this happens sometimes and makes it hard to bite). Inside, the minced shrimp was sweet and had a nice snap. For me, I'm not a huge fan of mayo and fruit, so I was indifferent about the fruit salad. However, the mayo went really well with the claw. Call it a Chinese-version of ebi mayo... We were presented with an appetizing plate of Sauteed B.C. Geoduck with Asparagus and Pine Nuts next. Personally, it was a treat to see geoduck on the menu since I haven't had it in awhile. Gosh, these mollusks used to be 99 cents a pound. Before it became a staple in Asian cuisine... The thin slices of geoduck in the dish were sweet and crunchy. It is very important not to overcook geoduck as it will take on the properties of rubber. The accompanying asparagus was vibrant in colour while still crisp. Not sure how the pine nuts worked in this dish, but I love pine nuts, so I really didn't care.

Continuing with the seafood theme, we were treated to an impressive plate of Pan-Fried Jumbo Prawns with Spicy Hawthorn Sauce. These huge suckers were sweet and meaty. One bite into them and yup, that was what we all crave from prawns - that lovely snap and crunch. So good. The hawthorn sauce was sweet with a nice zip. For those who grew up eating haw flakes, you will be well-versed in the flavour profile of this dish. Yup, haw flakes come from the fruit of the Chinese hawthorn plant. Moving away from seafood, we had the Pan Fried Alberta Beef Tenderloin with roasted walnuts in bird's nest. This was a pretty straight-forward stir-fry. The beef tenderloin was predictably moist and tender, especially since it was cooked just right (as in slightly past medium rare). There was a nice sear on the outside which added flavour while the veggies were colourful and crunchy. We were served a portion of the bird's nest as well and it was still fairly crispy despite the moisture from the food sitting atop of it.

Our last savoury item at Fortune House was the Fried Rice with shrimp and dried scallops encased in lotus leaves. Prior to them opening up the lotus leaf package, it resembled a circus top, which was quite neat-looking. We were served a bowl of rice each and I found it to be fragrant from the dried scallops and influence of the lotus leaves. However, it could've stood to be a little less dry. As mentioned, the dried scallops were quite prominent as a flavouring agent while the shrimp only served as a texture more than anything. For dessert, it was a pleasant surprise that we got something a little different than the usual. The Five Flavour Rainbow Pudding, as offered on their menu for six and Mango Pudding, as offered in their menu for four, were interestingly plated with fresh fruit. Chinese desserts will never be in the same class as say... French desserts, but at the same time, I appreciate their attempt at being more creative. In terms of flavour and texture, the pudding was pretty good. Nothing Earth-shattering, but pleasant nonetheless. On the other hand, the mango pudding shaped as a koi fish exhibited plenty of real mango flavour.

As I waddled my way out of Fortune House, I was preparing myself for our 3rd meal at Grand Dynasty. The newest restaurant of the 3, Grand Dynasty is located in the Villa Casinos complex near Hwy 1. We were presented with the Signature Cold Cut Platter to begin. Similar to the one we had at Northern Delicacy, in terms of both plating and items, the bean curd skin roll was a bit different being fried. I like both versions, however, the fried one is naturally more oily and less healthy. The other items on the platter (clockwise from the bean curd roll) were sliced beef shank, jellied pork, marinated jellyfish and pig's ear. Not everyone was as enthusiastic about the pig's ear as much as I was. If I had to make an analogy, think of it as a form of head cheese, except for the cartilage.

Then, a platter of what I though was shrimp toast arrived. In fact, the menu name was Pan-Fried Prawn Dumplings with Custard Powder. Okay... whatever, to me these were a high-class version of the long-forgotten Dim Sum dish of shrimp toast. Rather than minced shrimp meat, there was a whole prawn sitting atop a round piece of toast. Deep-fried until golden brown, this little bite was predictably oily. Nothing against the dish, rather, when you place a piece of white bread into hot oil, it'll act like a sponge. This was good, albeit a strange item for a dinner menu.

The most visually stunning dish of the night was the Roast Alberta Beef Dragon Bone with ground biscuit powder. It was majestically plated with its delicious bone marrow beckoning for us to eat it. The meat and tendons were super tender and moist where it practically melted in my mouth. However, the flavour profile of the entire thing reminded me of a beef stew. A good beef stew though, just lacking some impact. It just didn't match its prominent appearance. The biscuit topping was an interesting mix of dry pork floss and ground biscuit. With all of the interesting things we had tried, it was pretty much anti-climatic when the Pan-Fried Double Lobsters with Amoy home-made sweet sauce arrived. Yah, pretty pathetic to not be excited about lobsters eh? Well, despite being completely full and not really all that enthusiastic, I still enjoyed the lobsters because of the flawless preparation. The lobsters were fried until just cooked while just the right amount of sweet and savoury sauce clung to each piece.

Our final dish of the night was probably my favourite, which was the Roast Alberta Pork Chops with Amoy black vinegar sauce. There are times when the pork chops are either over or under-tenderized, but not in this case. The pork chops maintained a meaty texture while being tender at the same time. Furthermore, the sauce was rich, sweet and had a tartness that exhibited depth. And much like the lobsters, there was the perfect amount of sauce that clung to every chop. *Burp* Excuse me. What an incredible amount of eats! And I thought I had already seen it all on the Richmond portion of this Signature Dish Dining Festival tour. Once again, I'd like to thank the organizers for inviting me. If you want to sample some of these dishes, check out the website and make a reservation.