Dine Out @ C Restaurant

At this stage in my gastronomical adventures, I'm not a huge fan of Dine Out. No, I'm not being a food snob or anything. It's just that I've had some pretty underwhelming experiences in the past.
The main problem is that some restaurants choose to meet the price points by offering food that is not truly representative of their regular menu. Hence, it does not give a clear overall picture which then in turns defeats the purpose of Dine Out in the first place. I find the whole event becoming watered-down. Now, that is not to say that there are no diamonds in the rough to be found. Seeing how I eat enough as it is, I wasn't planning to do Dine Out this year. However, I was contacted by C Restaurant to try their Dine Out menu. Okay, I was conflicted. First, do I go back on my original plan and actually do a Dine Out meal? And secondly, the rating for C Restaurant on Urbanspoon can be only described as horrible. What to do? A little more information gathering led me to the conclusion that C would be worth trying since they traditionally have good Dine Out menus and the rating on Urbanspoon is a bit misleading. Furthermore, Chef Robert Clark is back in the kitchen since Lee Humphries is away for a few weeks.

Others invited to the meal were Melody, Joyce, Diana, Stephanie and Alvin (who I have to credit for the picture of the restaurant). We started with an Amuse Bouche which included (from right to left) Smoked Salmon Cannelloni stuffed with goat cheese topped with creme fraiche and preserved lemon, Seared Tuna, Spot Prawn, Quail's Egg topped with truffle aioli and crispy bacon and Golden Beet. My favourite had to be the quail's egg (since I love eggs!) because it was poached perfectly with a runny yolk. Furthermore, the truffle aioli and bacon combined put a mouthful of flavours in one little bite. Our first official course was the North Arm Farms Beet Panzanella Salad served with harissa dressing and shaved ricotto salata. I really liked the beets as they were soft while still retaining some firmness. Loved the harissa dressing as it added an ethnic taste to the salad. I wasn't particularly fond of the croutons as they had a fairly hard, yet not crunchy texture. The Dine Out menu at C Restaurant has a few supplemental courses if one wishes to add for an extra charge. One of these is the Sauteed Spot Prawns with kale, chilli, lime and romesco sauce.
This was a nice plate of food consisting of perfectly cooked spot prawns, just barely-cooked kale and a flavourful sauce. The romesco exhibited its classic nutty texture and with this version had a real acidity to it. A nice counterbalance to the sweet prawns (if used sparingly).

Next up was the second course consisting of Seared Albacore Tuna with Winter minestrone, Parmesan pistou and crisp basil. As evidenced in the picture, the tuna was seared ever-so-lightly and served mostly rare. That allowed the natural sweetness of the tuna to shine as well as keeping the texture light. The sprinkle of salt really intensified the delicate tuna. I thought the minestrone underneath was done nicely with some crunch and tartness. The droplets of basil added some herbal qualities to the dish. Our third course, the Seared Lake Babine Salmon continued on with the fish theme. It was served on a bed of squash puree and topped with an almond tapenade. The fish was beautifully prepared being moist, sweet and slightly rare in the middle. Loved the even sear on the outside. The squash puree was smooth and mild while it intermingled with the cubes of squash and firm brussel sprouts. The real surprise of the dish was the almond tapenade on top. It provided both texture and acidity.

The optional supplement for the salmon was the Roasted Beef Tenderloin. It was served with a walnut polenta, tarragon butter and confit of portabello mushrooms. I absolutely loved the demi-glace as it was silky and luxurious. The tenderloin was meaty and exhibited a deep roasted flavour. I really wish this was a bigger portion. Lastly, for dessert, we were served a Spiced Chocolate Pudding with vanilla Chantilly and caramel puffed rice. I liked their spin on the pudding with the Asian spices. It almost felt like there was five-spice in the pudding (well, not really but you get the idea). The crunch of the sweet puffed rice added the necessary texture to the smooth pudding. And as a final treat, a plate of Lemon Poppyseed Biscotti with a side of candied ginger arrived at our table. These were crunchy and we could not mistake what they were made of - buttery and a good lemon hit. Loved the candied ginger on the side.

I gotta admit that this Dine Out meal was a whole lot better than I expected it to be (and it is not because it was comped either). I can't comment on the service (as much as it was good) because it was a media dinner. However, if one was to start adding the supplemental dishes, the cost of the meal would go North of $70.00 in a hurry. Furthermore, if one was to look at the basic $38.00 menu without additions, it is predominantly comprised of fish and would leave individuals with bigger appetites longing for more food. Now, that is not to say that the $38.00 menu is not a good value. Considering the raw materials, the venue and the fact Robert Clarke is cooking in the kitchen, it is quite reasonable. This is fine dining folks, not a buffet. That is probably why I don't get too excited about Dine Out these days. Considering the quality of food I got at C Restaurant, I'd definitely return and would much rather order off their regular menu gladly paying the extra cost for more food.

*Note: This was an invited dinner where all food was comped*

The Good:
- Good execution with the proteins
- The basic Dine Out menu is reasonably-priced with all factors considering
- Nice location

The Bad:
- The supplements are enticing and will bump up the bill significantly (but that is a personal choice, no one is forcing you to do this)
- If we look at just the basic Dine Out meal, it may not satisfy big eaters

Swallow Tail Secret Supper Soiree

Back in May 2010, I had the pleasure of breaking bread with fellow bloggers at Swallow Tail
Supper Club. If you have no clue what I'm talking about, I don't blame you. Swallow Tail is not a restaurant, rather, it is a "secret" place where people meet to "donate" money towards a meal. Sounds like a restaurant in a different form right? Well, it is what we call an underground restaurant, much like No Fixed Address and The Birds Nest. To kick it up a notch, the folks at Swallow Tail have moved into the culinary tours and events business. And have they ever raised the bar. From the humble lil' house, the dinners have moved considerably more upscale. I was fortunate enough to be invited along with other bloggers to experience their Secret Supper Soiree. We were instructed to meet in front of the Pacific Central Station where we would be picked up by a double-decker bus.

We all hopped onto the pink bus and were whisked away to... of all places, the Vancouver Police Museum! Shuffling into the autopsy room, past the morgue, we were presented with a cocktail. After some mingling, we all congregated into the another room where we were served a Beet Salad consisting of blood orange granita, BB microns and pomegranate seeds. This was a refreshing, if not tiny start to our 5-course meal. Next up was the Tomato Consume with pickled cauliflower and Hijiki seaweed. It was served in a large beaker with a skewered pickled cauliflower. Although the concept seemed visually impressive, we had quite a bit of difficulty removing the cauliflower from the beaker. As for the consume, I felt it was overwhelmed by the pickling juices. I couldn't taste the base of the consume let alone the seaweed. There was definitely a novelty factor here with the venue, serving vessels and whatnot. Once finished, we loaded back onto the bus and took the short 3 block jaunt over to a totally new place called the Vancouver Urban Winery.

This was an unexpectedly nice venue. With a high ceiling and adorned with wine barrels as decor, the place was beautiful. There was several
long picnic-type tables set for us to enjoy our final 3 courses of the meal. For our appetizer, we were presented with a Poached Hen's Egg with forest mushrooms and a red wine reduction. The eggs were probably prepared in a thermal immersion circulator (if not, they were very skilled at using a regular pot!) and they were poached perfectly. Check out the beautiful free-range yolk! I love eggs and this was exactly how I like them. The mushrooms provided a good level of woodsiness and texture while the piece of baguette was cold and not that appealing texturally. Next up was the Pitt Meadows Flat Iron Steak with potato pave, root veggies and a huckleberry & rosemary jus. Due to the amount of guests and by virtue of cooking at a venue rather than a restaurant kitchen, the food was not as hot as I would've liked. Yet again, this was completely understandable. The medium to medium-rarish meat itself was tender and moist. It lacked the "seared" texture and flavour we normally would associate with a flat iron steak, but we need to take into account the venue. I loved the jus, it was super silky. I wished there was more of it. The shaved white carrot was
aesthetically-appealing and provided a nice crunch. As for the potato pave, it was good in both presentation and texture.

Lastly, for dessert, we had the Riesling Baba with Orange Blossom SemiFreddo, persimmon and pistachios. I like the semifreddo, it had a floral quality to it (as Kevin suggested) which was complimented by the pistachios. However, I found the baba to be too wet and overly sweet. Add in the sweet persimmon and this dessert was crying out for a touch of tartness as balance. In the end, I thought the secret supper soiree was a unique and interesting experience. Although I nit-picked at the food, it was pretty decent considering the challenges of multiple venues and whatever kitchen facilities that were at their disposal. The price for the soiree without wine pairings goes for $89.00 and $129.00 with wine. A group rate of 10+ with wine will set you back $99.00. In my opinion, I consider these prices to be reasonable if you take into account all the logistics (staffing, venue(s), food and wine). Of course, for someone who is only food-focused and are not interested in gimmicks and/or something out of the ordinary, they might not want to pony up the money. However, if you are the type who looks at the overall experience of an event and can appreciate the challenges of putting it all together, then it is worth a try for sure.

*Note: This was an invited dinner where all food was comped*

The Good:
- Unique experience
- Okay pricing considering everything that is involved (if you look beyond just the food)

The Bad:
- Pricey (if you are food-focused only)
- Not the most elegant of seating arrangements (if you care about that)

Faubourg

If I was given a choice between an appetizer platter or a selection of desserts, the appies would always take the cake (pardon the pun). It's not that I don't like sweets, I just happened to prefer the savoury eats more. Hence, this is partly the reason I have taken so long to visit Faubourg. In actuality, I wasn't even supposed to visit it at all this time around. You see, my mom has wanted to do afternoon tea for the longest time, but my dad has no interest whatsoever (runs in the family eh?). In fact, when they were in Hong Kong, she so desperately wanted to try out the high tea at the Peninsula, yet my dad had no desire to wait in line. As a result, Viv volunteered to take her for afternoon tea instead. I tried to coerce Viv into doing another post, much like her visit to Adonia. No dice. She'd rather put up with my suggestive humour (or is it non-humour in her opinion) than to take pictures and write up a blog post. Hence, I had really no choice but to tag along.

We made a reservation to have their Pink Afternoon Tea which costs a competitive $25.50 per person. If you've never had afternoon or high tea before, there will be some sticker shock. Believe it or not, this is actually reasonable considering some can go in excess of $60.00 per person (The Fairmont Empress in Victoria). Of course, the selection and amount of food varies from place-to-place. Located in Kerrisdale, Faubourg is a quaint little place which serves up French pastries and a limited bistro menu in addition to the afternoon tea. We were seated in the reserved section at the back as opposed to the open seating in the front. Our Pink Afternoon tea arrived in a 2-tiered serving tray with the sweets on the top. We started on the bottom with the 3 sandwiches which included a Smoked Salmon & Cream Cheese Pinwheel, Roast Beef and Chicken Salad. I guess there is only that much one can expect out of tea sandwiches and these were no exception. I mean, they were pleasant enough to eat with fresh bread that was soft (except for the pin wheel since it was compressed slightly) and ingredients that were equally good. I liked the chicken salad the most due to the crunch of the celery.

As we moved from the sandwiches over to the warm Poppyseed Cranberry Scones, things started to get more interesting. The scone had a firm outer shell which gave way to a buttery soft interior. We could've eaten this without the marmalade or cream on the side. Loved the burst of sweet tanginess from the cranberries. Despite my preference for savoury eats, there are times when I actually appreciate sweets. In this instance, one would have to be impressed with the little treats on the top tier. From the bottom right to left, we had the Passionfruit Souffle, Spiced Hazelnut Apple Cake, Lemon Tart, Opera Cake, Berry Yogurt and Chocolate Mousse. The Passionfruit Souffle was super light and bursting with flavour. There was plenty of sweetness as well as tartness while the souffle was on the sweeter side in general. I loved the Spiced Apple Cake since it was super moist
where it was far from being dry. One bite and the spices immediately make their presence known with hits of nutmeg and cinnamon. Loved the tart apples on top which provided a balance to the sweetness.

Despite my indifference about desserts, I'm a sucker for Lemon Tarts. The one here at Faubourg was really good. I liked the firm tart shell which gave way to a creamy and tart lemon curd. I could've done without the rocks of sugar on the rim of the tart since it was sweet enough already. The Opera Cake looked appealing and was very pleasant to eat. The silky dark chocolate ganache was only semi-sweet and complimented the coffee syrup-laced sponge cake. Maybe it was too simple, but I wasn't a huge fan of the Berry Yogurt. It was essentially vanilla yogurt with berries and oats on top. Not sure why it was even on the plate. The Chocolate Mousse was of the denser variety, yet still smooth, rich and chocolatey. I particularly liked the candied ginger on top which added something different.

As we were leaving, there was no chance we'd pass up taking some pastries to go. Queuing up in the long lineup that almost went out the door, we had to get the Croissants. Herbie the Lovebug swears by and highly recommended them. Well, he was right since these had all the attributes one looks for in a good croissant. Crispy, flaky, buttery and aromatic, I could eat a half-dozen of these in one sitting. Well, I'd probably need a defibrillator nearby though. We also got a few tarts to go including a Pear Tart. The tart shell, much like the lemon tart, was buttery, yet held up to the wet ingredients. The pears were fragrant (in a pear kind of way, if that makes sense), however, it could've been a touch sweeter since it was very light tasting. In the end, Faubourg met our expectations and that in itself is an accomplishment. Prices are on the higher side which is common in Kerrisdale. On the other hand, the afternoon tea is competitively priced in comparison to Adonia and Secret Garden. From we could tell, Faubourg seems to fit into the neighbourhood and should maintain a constant clientele.

The Good:
- Delicately-made pastries
- Reasonably-priced afternoon tea (you have to compare with others since AT is not supposed to fabulous deal)
- The place has an air of decadence (if that makes sense)

The Bad:
- Service was a touch indifferent
- Fitting in the neighbourhood, prices are on the higher side
- Reserved section not really all that special

Phoenix Garden

A really long time ago, when I was pre-school age, we lived near Broadway and Nanaimo. Interestingly, if we had not moved to Oakridge, I would've went to Laura Secord Elementary and subsequently Van Tech, which incidentally were the schools Viv attended. Wonder how things would've turned out if that had happened? Her answer: no way she'd go out with me... Thank goodness the things turned out the way they did! Back then, sandwiched in between Bon's and Trocadero, there was a restaurant called Golden Phoenix. It was eventually sold and the former owners went on to open up Golden Swan on Victoria (which was bought by Golden Ocean). Golden Phoenix went on to bite the dust and become East Ocean. Rising from the ashes like in Harry Potter, Golden Phoenix existed once more (under a new Chinese name). Now, all of sudden, it closed again and now is Phoenix Garden. Confusing? Yeah. But for me, that just means more eating...

As such, we met up with Viv's parents for Dim Sum. For a weekday, the place was packed and bustling with activity. Due to the physical size of the restaurant, the tables were very close to one another and having push carts didn't help either. The result of having push carts in such a small restaurant was the instantaneous appearance of food. Our table was full after 2 carts since they had most of the stuff we wanted. Starting with the classics, we had the Haw Gow and Sui Mai. As illustrated in the picture, the shrimp dumplings were pretty large. The filling was a good mix of whole crunchy shrimp and shrimp mousse. It was well-seasoned and sweet. It was really too bad that the dumpling skin was a tad thick and chewy. We weren't that enthused with the Sui Mai as it was pale and "loose"-looking. In fact, the appearance pretty much summed up the pork dumpling. It was too soft, possibly either over-tenderized or mixed with too much filler (fat). Hence, there was not much texture nor meaty flavour.

The same could be said about the Beef Meatballs as well. Once again, they were fairly pale which wasn't exactly aesthetically pleasing. I don't know about you, I like my balls with colour... er... One bite into these and yup, these were some mushy balls. Too much baking soda and/or processing. Too bad really since there was a nice balance of seasoning from the green onion and dried orange peel. On the other hand, the Bible Tripe was properly tenderized where it was soft, yet still retaining a certain level of chewiness. It was a fairly large portion as you can see in the picture as it was spilling out of the sauce dish into the bamboo steamer. Funny how I just mentioned this recently in my Golden Lake (what's with all these "golden" restaurants?) post. Anyways, there was ample seasoning with good hits of ginger.

From tripe, we moved onto chicken feet or Phoenix Talons as they are more affectionately known. Well, despite the restaurant's namesake, these phoenix talons were pretty average. Definitely overcooked with the skin and gelatin detaching from the bones. Hence, it was clumpy, especially with the abundance of overly sweet sauce. A bit heavy on the MSG here. The Shrimp Stuffed Eggplant was good and bad at the same time. First with the good where we found a large amount of whole shrimp atop the large slices of eggplant. We surmised that they used the haw gow filling as the stuffing. This was further enhanced with the flavourful black bean sauce. However, the whole thing was fried probably too long which made the exterior too crispy which in turn made the dish taste oily. I could actually taste the oil when I bit into the shrimp, which was not really all that appealing.

Despite its plain appearance, the Steamed Pork Spareribs were pretty good. The best thing going for it was the meat itself - there was plenty of it. With very little fatty or cartilage-laced pieces, we got the cream of the crop in terms of spareribs. Furthermore, the meat was tenderized and marinated properly where it was soft enough to chew while still exhibiting the "bounce"-like texture at the same time. Lastly, it was seasoned with plenty of garlic and sodium (yes, it is necessary). So far into the meal, we were munching away, including my daughter. She was happily eating most things. Not my son though. He was waiting for the rice noodle rolls. So we grabbed the first one that passed by being the Shrimp Rice Noodle Roll. Of course I had to take all the shrimp out for him (his loss!). Overlooking the poor preparation of the roll (see the exposed shrimp on top), it was pretty good. Inside the fairly soft noodles were large whole shrimp that exhibited the requisite "snap".

Then finally, the dish my son had been waiting for passed by - the Pan-Fried Soy Rice Noodle Rolls. Good thing I acted fast, since it was the last one on the push cart. Plated neatly and showing a pleasant caramelized colour from the dark soy, the noodles looked good. And yes, they were good. I particularly liked the balanced sweet soy mixture they used while frying up the noodles. It really did exhibit a caramelized flavour which matched its appearance. Texture-wise, it was soft while still having enough chew that it didn't fall apart during cooking. By now, we weren't really all that hungry anymore due to the generous portion sizes. However, with push carts, food kept coming around and hey, it did have an influence. Hence, the Fried XO Daikon Radish Cakes caught our attention. Normally, these are sliced into squares and pan-fried, but the fried cubed version is becoming more prevalent. In fact, this preparation would in theory result in a less oily product due to the quick flash frying in high heat. It was such the case here where the daikon cake was crispy and not greasy-at-all. It was tossed in XO sauce which added some spiciness. However, we felt the daikon cakes were far too dense and lacking in inherent flavour.

In order to defeat the evil "Chinese Dim Sum food expeditor" and his sinister ways, where s/he sends out dessert first, we asked for it last. And wow, did they really save the best for last. After an uneven Dim Sum service, we didn't expect these awesome Egg Tarts. We agreed that these were some of the best Dim Sum egg tarts we've had lately. The puff pastry tart shell was light and buttery (or lardy). It was baked beautifully where we could taste the nuttiness from the copious amount of butter (or lard). It was flaky from top to bottom. Moreover, the egg custard filling was light and just sweet enough. Again, the nuttiness from the butter really helped make this egg tart. That was a sweet finish to an up and down Dim Sum service. Although pretty average as a whole, the large portion sizes and reasonable pricing makes Phoenix Garden an option for those who are not picky.

The Good:
- Large portions
- Inexpensive

The Bad:
- And I thought the seating at Western Lake was super tight, it's worse here
- Hit and miss food

Wild Rice

*Location is now closed*

You might wonder why I have never been to Wild Rice. After all, the place has been around for over 10 years. It would be within the realm of possibility that I could have eaten here, especially since I've lived nearby at one point. Nope. Did not and really had no burning desire either. You see, the "Modern Chinese" part concerned me a bit. Since I am so used to eating traditional and/or Hong Kong-style Chinese cuisine, it is almost a given I would be biased even before the food hit the table. However, with my recent visits to Terracotta and Bao Bei, I have gained an appreciation that we need to accept food for what it is - not for what it should be. The authenticity and the question of value always come into play when we deal with a take on ethnic food. However, shouldn't we just base everything on whether the food tastes good regardless of anything else? So what if it is a bastardization of something? Or does it really matter if the staff are not of that ethnicity? If we are that picky, then we have overlooked what is most important, which is the food itself.

So Viv and I decided to give the Wild Rice a go with no preconceived expectations nor any "Chinese" food snobbery. We started with the Hot and Sour Soup which was exactly as advertised. It was definitely spicy with a noticeable tang. The spice was thanks to red chili peppers which had a lingering effect on our tastebuds. There was a good amount of julienned carrots and bamboo shoots with shiitake mushrooms, green onions and tofu. The soup was not starch-thickened, yet there was enough flavour to make up for any concerns about the lack of body. Next up was the Seared Albacore Tuna with ginger shallot daikon and a black vinegar reduction. I gotta admit I liked this one, especially the shredded daikon underneath the tuna. The ginger infusion was so intense, I didn't even realize it was daikon. The tuna itself was seared nicely with a rare centre. I thought it went with the other components, in particular, the sweet sticky vinegar reduction.

We moved onto another fish offering in the form of the Steamed Ling Cod with fried ginger, pickled radish and honey soy marinade. This was beautifully presented in which we thought the fried ginger would add texture and flavour. Well, not really. It did look nice, but it was neither that flavourful nor crunchy. The fish itself was a little overdone and became stiff. We did like the pickled radish though, it contributed a crunch and tang to every bite. Something that could've been a great dish was the Sticky Beans with roasted peanuts. I stress the "could've" since the beans had a boiled consistency to them. I mean, they most likely were wok-fried or something, but they did not exhibit such texture. Hence, the sauce just "slid" off each bean resulting in a bland product. What we would've liked to see was oil-blanched beans that would be further wok-tossed with the sweet sticky mixture. That would've resulted in a flavour explosion, especially combined with the good roasted peanuts.

On the other hand, the Sweet Soy Chicken Wings were a winner. The wings were perfectly fried until crispy while the meat was moist and juicy. The sweet and sticky sauce clung onto each wing providing just enough flavour. There was a little of everything from sweet, tangy, spice and savoury. However, it was predominantly sweet though. Our last item was a large plate which was recommended as a favourite. It happened to be the Kung Pao Chicken with rice noodles and twice cooked peanuts. The peanuts, by far, were the star of the show. Fried, baked and then dusted with icing sugar, these were a treat by themselves. There was a rich roasted flavour that was accented by a sweet glaze. As for the noodles, the best word to describe them would be clumpy. Due to the deep serving bowl, the noodles were compressed. That didn't mean they were overcooked (in fact they were still chewy), yet picking them up was not easy (came out in actual clumps of noodles). This would've been much better if served on a plate. Actually, serving it on a plate would showoff the massive amount of food, rather than being hidden in a bowl. In the end, I liked the flavours (albeit sweet). There was a good coconut milk kick combined with some spice and the aforementioned peanuts. So really, to be honest, the food was better than I expected. Now, this is from the perspective of eating the food with my "Chineseness" temporarily on hold. Even with that, there were some dishes that could probably need some injection of authenticity such as the beans (I know I am contradicting myself, but it's true).

The Good:
- Loved the high ceilings in the main dining space
- Some dishes were surprisingly good
- The service we got was very good

The Bad:
- Well, it ain't cheap, but then again, this is not a wonton noodle joint (can't compare)
- Dishes like the beans could benefit from injection of some "authenticness"