Pallas Athena Greek Kouzina

Coquitlam??? That was the shocked response of both Emilicious and Gadget Girl when Polka King mentioned where he planned for the team to eat after Friday hockey. Yes, that would be a huge stretch considering that we don't even eat in North Vancouver after hockey (and we play in North Van!). So this needed a bit of convincing. Well, the fact that Polka King has stopped coming out to eat with us was a mitigating factor. Since he got married to Polka Dot and moved into Coquitlam, we see him as much as a proper lane change in Richmond. So it would be a favour of sorts to head into Coquitlam for some eats. Turns out that it was the biggest turnout of the year as Emilicious, Gadget Girl, Polka King, Polka Dot, Ginseng, Zac-Attack, Apu, Manjula, Groundskeeper Willy, Milhouse, Gordo along with Viv and the kids all attended. We ended up at Pallas Athena Greek Kouzina as Polka Dot had a good experience there recently.

For the kiddies, I tried to go for some "different" items for them to experience. I figured crunchy squid would appeal to them. The Calamari was a decent portion. However, the batter was extremely dense and overly crunchy. Thus, the pieces of squid were a bit lost because too much effort was used in breaking down the hard exterior. The one saving grace was the thick tzatziki. It was nicely texture and had a nice hint of lemon. My daughter only had a passing interest in this dish. So I figured that fried cheese would work with my son and he did eat it to my surprise. The Saganaki was a contrast in textures, which was the whole point. The exterior was crisp while the inside was chewy and gooey. I liked that it had a lemon zing to it, but that didn't help mask the over abundance of salt. The accompanying pita bread was good though. It was soft in the middle and slightly crisp on the outside.

My Roast Lamb (as I always order in a Greek restaurant) was not as moist as I would've liked. It wasn't tough per se, but there were some hard parts and it did require some effort to chew. In terms of flavour, it was pretty nice with a good amount of rosemary and lemon. The lemon roast potato was soft, yet could've benefited from a touch more tang. The rice was a bit pale, but it has a nice slightly chewy texture. It was a bit one note in flavour and that note was not too strong. Viv had the Chicken Souvlaki which was a healthy portion of meat. It was well-seasoned with an attractive and tasty char. She pretty much echoed my sentiments about the sides except for the green beans. She hated them as they were woefully overcooked and mushy.

Both Polka Dot and Ginseng had the Dolamades and they were not bad. The grape leaves were soft to chew yet weren't mushy. The filling was moist yet not that impactful. Neither was the sauce, not much in the way of tang nor saltiness. Ginseng thought the side of rice was a bland for her liking. Zac-Attack had the Lamb Souvlaki (not pictured) where the meat was moist and tender. It was perfectly grilled and in large pieces. He thought the tzatziki was a very nice compliment. Polka King and Polka Dot shared the Scallop Souvlaki which was a bit disappointing. Despite the appearance of big juicy scallops, they were in fact quite rubbery (due to being overcooked). However, at the same time, there was a lack of grill marks or charring which in turn resulted in a lack of flavour as well. Much like everyone else, they thought the sides were not bad except for the mushy beans. They also shared a Calamari, which Groundskeeper Willy had as well, and thought that the batter was too crunchy. This echoed our sentiments as well. However, on a previous visit, the batter was not as crunchy and thick. Therefore, we can only surmise that this might have been a one-off due to the many orders of food we put in at the same time.

Gordo went for the Seafood Fettuccine which arrived in quite a bit of sauce. Despite this, his pasta was not soft. The sauce was creamy and well-seasoned. The scallops and shrimp were cooked nicely having the right textures. Not a true Italian pasta, but then again, we were in a Greek restaurant! Milhouse went all out and had the Chicken & Ribs. The ribs were fairly moist despite its appearance. The meat fell off the bones being well-seasoned and moist. He wasn't a big fan of the chicken though as it was overcooked and noticeably dry. Furthermore, there wasn't a whole lot of flavour either. As you can ascertain, there were some issues with a few items across the board. Yet, the food was okay enough that it could be considered a decent meal. Considering our large group, it would be unreasonable to expect perfection (and that never occurs anywhere anyways). One thing we did notice was that our water glasses were not refilled very often. In fact, mine was never refilled and we were the only table there for the latter half of our meal.

The Good:
- Relatively decent food
- Decent portions

The Bad:
- Some items were overcooked
- The service wasn't bad per se, but it wasn't attentive either

Dragon House

While doing my research for late night eats on the computer, I stumbled upon Dragon House. A quick look at its location and it didn't seem to ring a bell, especially since I drive by that area often. Even a quick peak at Google Street View and all I got was an Indian restaurant. Well, apparently it does exist. Driving by late one night, the place was bustling with activity. Late night spicy Szechuan eats? Not sure how that would "sit" with everyone. After our weekly Friday night hockey game, I suggested to the group that we give it a go. The promise of Szechaun beef noodles seemed to seal the deal. Yes, I realize that there are many more than that in terms of representing Szechuan cuisine, but Milhouse, Gordo and Emilicious aren't exactly fans of super spicy food.

With that in mind, we kept the extreme spicy dishes to a minimum starting with a mild one being the - Beef Pancake. We loved how they grilled it so it wasn't overly oily on the outside. Instead, it was crisp and pleasing visually. The beef filling was moist and flavourful with a sweet onion slant. I've had many version of this dish where the meat is bursting with oil, yet this one did not have this problem. A few drops of vinegar really brought the pancake to life. So our next items were their specialty - Skewers. We had 2 each of the Lamb, Pork and Beef. The spice level was pretty mild since the rest of the gang requested it. Not it wasn't devoid of flavour by any means. There was still a kick and well-seasoned. The meats were moist per se, yet they weren't too dry either. The lamb was super fatty though.

Now these were the smaller skewers which were about $1.00 - $2.00 each. There were much larger ones going for around $3.00 - $5.00. The one that caught Milhouse's eye was the Bacon-wrapped Fish Balls. Yes, that drew a reaction from all of us and he insisted we try the balls. I asked if they would be "salty"... due to the bacon... Well, they weren't salty. In fact, for something I didn't have high hopes for, it was pretty tasty. The bacon was fried up crisp and the mayo/spicy seasoning really completed the flavours. Who doesn't like mayo on their balls? One dish I insisted on trying was the Double-Cooked Pork (no, not more balls!). I really liked their version as the sauce consisting of black beans, chili oil, chilis and soy hit my tastebuds with authority. It wasn't too spicy (again, we requested medium). If I was here by myself, I would've asked for a few notches higher. The entire dish was cooked with plenty of wok heat where the caramelization of the ingredients was visually evident as well as a smoky flavour. The pork was fatty and tender (a touch dry from the cooking), however, the dish could've stood for more of it.

Now for the dish that lured everyone here in the first place - the Szechuan Beef Noodle. When we started to eat it, the Szechuan peppercorns started to do their thing and the numbing sensation settled in. I liked this spicy flavourfulness while others were yearning for the milder Taiwanese version. Wimps! Anyways, the hand-pulled noodles were the best part. They were chewy and fresh. How fresh? They were made-to-order. The beef was fairly tender, but since they were in small little bits, there were some drier portions. We also got the Fried Noodles with Lamb and Cumin (insert joke here). Hey, nothing like lamb and cumin eh? And yes, there was a definite cumin hit (get your minds outta the gutter!). The noodles were chewy while completely covered in grease. The lamb was tender though and with a decent amount of spice coupled with the copious amount of cumin, we enjoyed this dish nonetheless.

This was supposed to be the last of our dishes, but somehow Milhouse became fixated on the Frog Legs. Was he watching Sesame Street in the morning and had Kermit on his mind? Whatever the case, we had it as an add-on. The legs were fried and tossed in red chili peppers, sesame seeds, salt and fried Szechuan Peppercorns. The legs were moist while the batter was soft and greasy. There was some spice, but it really wasn't as bad as it looked. Ultimately, we never requested a higher spice level, so the meal could've been hotter. For most of the group, the flavours were fine. We were pretty satisfied with the food, especially for late night.

The Good:
- Plenty of flavour
- Okay pricing
- Open late

The Bad:
- Greasy
- Tight seating

Copper Club

*Restaurant is now closed*

As with every April, I needed to find a restaurant that would accommodate the kiddies for my mom's birthday. Ruling out chain restaurants and Asian joints, it got a bit tough. Of course there were the usual Downtown hotel restaurants, but we were thinking more along the lines of something local (that is, in the burbs). We already checked out Tivoli's in the Executive Plaza near Brentwood Mall, so might as well do the Copper Club at the Executive Plaza in Burquitlam right? Ya, not the most sexist of choices, but it fit the criteria of being kid-friendly without being a chain restaurant. And besides, who needs sexy when you got the whole family with you? Wait. Did that come out right???

Sitting down in the dimly lit dining room reminiscent of a stuffy steakhouse, this was as far from sexy as a place could get. Definitely not the most modern of establishments, yet still classy in their own way. Whatever the case, we were comfortable and the kiddies had a menu to order off of. As for us, we got a bunch of appies to share beginning with the Lamb Lollipops. These were bathed in yellow mustard, pepper, paprika, lemon, garlic and turmeric. When I first laid eyes on the lollipops, I thought "Vij's". Now, these were not as tasty as Vij's (and I didn't expect them to be either), but were good with all things considering. The lamb was tender and perfectly cooked medium-rare. There was a nice char that added a nuttiness as well as a pleasing appearance. I thought it was a bit heavy on the yellow mustard, which made the flavour profile a touch too tart. Next up were the Salt & Pepper Tiger Prawns with chili, garlic, salt and pepper. Served on the side was a mango chutney. The prawns had a nice snap texture while there was no absence of flavour. It was spicy and of course salty-peppery. Maybe it is the Chinese in me, but personally, I would've liked a crunch of some sort on the exterior of the prawns as they were a little wet.

The most disappointing item we had for the entire meal was the Crab & Shrimp Cakes. They were served with a balsamic reduction, chipotle lime aioli, pea sprouts and cherry tomato. One bite into the cakes and it had the texture of tuna. It was mushy, fishy and stale tasting. Obviously, this was not made with fresh ingredients. Furthermore, the exterior was not crisp at all and the whole thing was too salty. Other than a few lines on the plate, there wasn't enough aioli nor balsamic vinegar to make any impact. Lastly, we had the Honey Garlic Chicken Drummettes which were quite good. The drummettes were fried up crispy while the meat was moist and tender. There was just enough glaze for a good honey garlic hit without softening up the crispy wings.

For my main, I went for the Seafood Spaghettini with prawns, mussels and tomato. Not sure if these 2 items constituted a "seafood" pasta (maybe some fish too?). Anyways, the pasta was slightly pasta al dente while the prawns and mussels were cooked nicely. The flavours were mild yet there was an obvious garlic, white wine, Parmesan and olive oil hit to it. I would've preferred Roma tomatoes, but that is nitpicking. My mom had her favourite (which is mine as well) in the Lamb Shank. It was prepared beautifully as the meat fell off the bone. It was moist, fatty and flavourful. The demi-glace (with red Zinfandel) was silky and rich with plenty of depth. The asparagus tips were done nicely retaining some crunch. However, the double-cooked potato was not good. It was stiff and dense.

My dad opted for the Prime Rib which was almost perfectly prepared. The large cut of meat was a nice medium-rare and was very tender. The sauce added a proper amount of saltiness to the fatty meat. Although it didn't make or break the dish, the Yorkshire pudding was terribly overbaked and was burnt and hard. It was mostly inedible. The side of roast potatoes and veggies were good. Viv went for something lighter with the Steamed PEI Mussels. They were neatly arranged in a circular pattern and every one of them were fully opened. The meat was plump and naturally sweet. The broth consisting of BC Chardonnay, tomato, garlic, shallot, butter and basil was fairly weak as it didn't offer much additional flavour. Again, we would've preferred a stronger tasting tomato in this dish.

As for the kiddies, my son (drum roll please...) had the... Grilled Cheese. Yes, he has the eating diversity of a Yak. Then again, Yaks eat grass... He has an adverse reaction to anything green... Anyways, the grilled cheese made with real cheddar on multigrain bread. The whole thing was crisp without being completely soaked with butter. It came with a pile of fries. He ate it. It did the job. For my daughter, she had the Fish n' Chips. I'm sorry to say that the batter on the fish was no good. It was doughy and far too dense. Hence it didn't even really cook all the way through. The lack of colour was not that appealing either. However, the fish was okay being flaky and just done.

Lastly, we shared a few desserts including the Duo of Vanilla Bean & Ginger and Chocolate Crème Brule. First, the good news: the sugar topping was the right thickness where it was present without overwhelming the dessert. It was mostly torched on the top for that burnt sugar flavour. The ginger vanilla brulee wasn't too sweet and we could definitely taste the ginger. Now for the bad news: the custard was on the watery side. Furthermore, the chocolate creme brulee was not all that chocolaty. For our second dessert, we got the Warm Okanagan Apple Tart Tatin. Okay, if you are familiar with a tart tatin, you might be wondering what was in the picture. Merely a pile of cooked apples on top of a crust of some sort served with ice cream. We didn't like this. What amounts to essentially an apple upside down tart, a tart tatin should not look like a pile of stuff. Furthermore, there was a serious lack of moisture and overall flavour. Now with this dessert withstanding, there were some decent dishes in this meal. Considering the price point and the portion size, we found it to be reasonable. However, the not-so-decent dishes were complete flops. Therefore, a meal at the Copper Club would truly depend on what you order.

The Good:
- Reasonably-priced
- Good service

The Bad:
- When there was a flop, it was a colossal failure
- Stale ambiance (but good if you didn't want any noise)

Richmond Night Market

Can you believe it? I've never been to the Summer Night Market. Yes, it's true. Hey, it's not like I haven't tried. On a few occasions in fact. Every time, I've left in frustration due to the fact I couldn't find parking. And when you have kids in tow, parking far, far away is not an option. So when I heard of the new Richmond Night Market near the River Rock Casino with over 1000 parking spots, that was my cue to do a visit. To make things easy, we only brought our son because he wouldn't complain about walking too much. On the other hand, for such a picky eater, we were a bit nervous as well.

Not to fear because the first thing we spotted was the BBQ Duck Wrap at a place that really didn't have a name, but had the wrap boldly displayed. These were okay, if not a bit pricey (at 3 for $10.00). They were essentially freshly made crepes with egg which contained BBQ duck segments, hoisin, cucumber and scallion. Not bad, yet with chewy skin, this was not as enjoyable as a true Peking duck. Walking along, I noticed The Squid Company offering up different flavours of freshly pan fried tentacles. I went for the Signature Cup of Squid which consisted of all the sauces (satay, hot & spicy and garlic). This was probably my favourite item of the things we tried. First of all, I happen to love tentacles for their chewiness and snap more than the body of the squid. They were cooked up just right and the combination of seasoning agents gave it a good balance of the 5 main tastes. Only problem was that the 2 bamboo skewers were clumsy as eating utensils.

My son was not satisfied with his BBQ duck wrap, so we went in search for something else he'd try. We spotted the Japanese Corn Dog and he happily agreed to have one. This was essentially a hot dog wiener on a stick covered with a "hashbrown-like" batter. The result was a pretty starchy exterior that was crunchy on the outside, yet soft on the inside. Interesting item, not sure if this would necessarily be at the top of my list when there was so much more exotic items at the market. Also, they normally lace the thing with ketchup, but my son didn't want any. Actually they had to make up a new one for him because they forgot and drenched the darn thing with ketchup. For me, I love octopus' balls aka Takoyaki, so I went to a random takoyaki stand where the name was all in Japanese. Turns out it was a mistake because they were some mushy octopus' balls. The had been panfried in the takoyaki mold earlier and were sitting around. Hence, they got soft. Too bad really as the octopus wasn't chewy and the ample amount of toppings made it quite flavourful.

As much as I was tempted to get a Rotato or some Dim Sum, I went to Zhang's for their World Famous Terracotta Noodle. A bold claim and really, who checks these things anyways? As seen in the picture, it was a combination of wheat noodle, bean sprouts, cucumber, cilantro, sesame paste and chili oil sauce. We liked this as the noodles were chewy and the classic combination of chili oil and sesame paste appealed to our senses. The only thing we would've liked to see was a bit less water on the bottom and a touch of sodium. While I was in line for the noodles, Viv went over to get some Gai Dan Jei or a waffle that looks like a bunch of little eggs. We decided on chocolate because my son wouldn't want anything else. This was pretty good fresh out of the iron with a crisp exterior and a chewy interior. I wouldn't classify them as chocolaty, but they were semi-sweet.

We were planning on eating more, but it was getting late and upon leaving, Viv got one last thing which was the Mango Slush with real mango bits. This was refreshing, not too sweet and aromatic. Blended smooth and tasting like mangoes, this was another favourite of ours. We ended up parking at one of the farther lots and had to walk a bit to get there. On the plus side, we were able to leave and avoid the traffic. Yet, it seemed like they had a good handle on it and the fact they had parking in the first place is a major selling point.

The Good:
- There's parking!
- Convenient location if you wanted to take Skytrain
- Near other businesses and not in the middle of nowhere

The Bad:
- There's parking, but only one way in and out
- Not exclusive to this market, but if you plan to eat dinner, it'll add up

Ming Dynasty Cuisine

*Restaurant is now closed*

To me, the block of Nanaimo between Broadway and 8th Ave has a sentimental significance. You see, when I was very young, my family lived nearby and we would either frequent the 4 restaurants on that block. 2 of which still exist: Tracadero and Bon's. The new Phoenix Garden used to be Golden Phoenix, which was East Ocean, which used to be Golden Phoenix. Yes, confusing isn't it? Now one of the other originals (Tsui Woo) has changed hands to become Ming Dynasty Cuisine. Whipping Girl had recently experienced their Dim Sum service and thought it was decent. Hence, I targeted it for after Sunday Hockey eats. JuJu's was hoping for AYCE, however, Dim Sum is essentially AYCE, except you don't know how much you are paying until you're done (if you eat a lot).

So what else to start off Dim Sum on a hot Summer day other than Sliced Beef & Conpoy Congee? As evidenced in the picture, the congee was full of beef. It was in large slices and tender. The good amount of conpoy (dried scallops) add lots of flavour in a salty-seafoody way. The congee base was thick and smooth. We got the Haw Gow (shrimp dumplings) next and they were quite large. At first, the dumpling skin appeared thick, but it was actually not. It had a good consistency where it wasn't too chewy nor too wet. The shrimp filling consisted of whole pieces and exhibited a good bounce texture. There were obvious hits of sesame oil which complimented the natural sweetness of the shrimp. However, we also thought they might've used too much salt or MSG.

For me, I can't have Haw Gow without Siu Mai (pork & shrimp dumplings). I don't know about you, but these were some of the ugliest Sui Mai I've ever seen. The whole thing was put together haphazardly with chunks of meat and shrimp protruding out from what would be a uniformly made dumpling. Despite the visuals, these large monstrosities had plenty of shrimp and lean pork. However, they were overcooked which meant the shrimp was not bouncy nor was the meat either. Furthermore, the darn things fell apart easily as they were packed loosely. They were predominantly sweet with a touch of shiitake. From a loose dumpling to some tightly packed balls, we had the Beef Meatballs. These were also large and barely fit on the sauce plate. The texture was soft with a good bounce A good amount of water chestnuts added a nice crunch. Furthermore, there was just enough green onion for flavour which didn't overwhelm the meat.

As a group we love Rice Noodle Rolls, so we got both the beef and the shrimp (only the beef is pictured). Although the layers of rice noodle were on the thicker side, the texture remained soft without being too wet. The shrimp filling was in little pieces mixed in with pasty mousse. We liked the addition of flowering chives as it added some texture. We preferred the beef rice noodle roll since it was the same bouncy beef from the meatballs. Once again, JuJu loves his Xiao Long Bao, no matter where we are. To repeat my disclaimer: we know Ming Dynasty is not a Shanghainese restaurant, hence, we should not expect good XLBs. With that out of the way, the XLBs were actually acceptable given all the considerations. The skin was thick, yet it was soft enough that we didn't mind it. The meat was gritty with some pieces of cartilage, yet it had a good meaty flavour. Surprisingly, there was some soup inside, which was on the fattier side. It didn't really taste like XLB broth (missing gingery notes), but not bad for a Cantonese restaurant.

It seems like Chinese restaurants are trying to get with the times in terms of plating when we begin to see Shrimp Spring Rolls cut on the diagonal. Maybe they do care about making the food look nice, rather than the ''cook-it-and-slap-it-on-the-plate-technique". These spring rolls were served hot and very crunchy. They were not greasy and were bursting with filling. Yet, the filling was more like a mousse, much like the shrimp rice noodle roll. The shrimp was slightly overcooked where it lost some of its bounce. The filling was aggressively seasoned which meant that dipping it into the Worcestershire sauce was unnecessary. Actually, I personally don't even like that sauce with shrimp spring rolls. It works much better with the pork or veggie version.

If we weren't already shrimped already, we got the Shrimp Mousse on Silken Tofu. The silken tofu was good as it was not overcooked. The familiar shrimp mousse was slightly rubbery, possibly a tad overcooked. It was very sweet though, probably a combination of natural flavours and aggressive seasoning. The ample amount of tobiko on top made for an aesthetically-pleasing dish. For the purposes of ensuring we were full (or that JuJu wouldn't order another 10 dishes), we got some filler items starting with the Sparerib Rice. The rice was somewhere in between being chewy and soft, which was acceptable. The meaty ribs were slightly chewy, yet still tender at the same time. There was a noticeable garlic hit with some hints of black bean and chili flakes. As you can clearly see in the picture, they were not shy about the loading up the pot with spareribs.

On the topic of filler, you can't get much more filling than Pan Fried Sticky Rice. The rice had a good bite while not being hard. Considering the amount of oil it takes to make this dish, it wasn't overly greasy. There was plenty of soy seasoning as well as Chinese sausage. Lastly, we had the Singapore Fried Vermicelli which featured the thinner type of rice noodle. This was a touch dry and fairly salty with not much in the way of curry flavour. The noodles had a good texture though and the shrimp were big and crunchy. Moreover, we didn't find it greasy either much like the sticky rice. After these 3 dishes, we were pretty stuffed and even JuJu agreed to not order anymore food. That was partly due to the large portion sizes as well. A real pleasant surprise was the attentive service. We noticed that the staff was younger and seemed more "in touch" with the customers. Overall, it was a good experience at Ming Dynasty even though the food wasn't exactly outstanding. Yet, it was decent enough and the good service didn't hurt either.

The Good:
- Great service
- Large portions

The Bad:
- Aggressive seasoning at times
- Shrimp mousse mixture could be improved