Ravenswood Winery Dinner @ The Flying Pig

As much as blogging has been a money-losing proposition (because food is so darn expensive!), there are perks - like being invited to various dinners.  This was the case with a recent soiree at the Flying Pig hosted by Ravenswood Winery. Viv and I were treated to a 4-course formal meal with wine pairings (naturally from Ravenswood).  There were a few familiar faces, including Kevin and Terry David Mulligan (who is quite the wine connoisseur).  Now, I'm not going to pass myself off as any wine expert, because I'm not.  However, I do enjoy wine, knowing what I like and do not like.  Having been to the Flying Pig for lunch, I was excited to see what was in store for dinner.

Before the food arrived, the wine was already flowing with the Ravenswood VB Chardonnay 2010 and the VB Zinfandel 2009.  I think I might've only sampled one of them as I was a bit late arriving.  In terms of the food, we started with the Quadra Island Honey Mussels with tomzito corn and speck broth and a side of matchstick frites.  The mussels were sweet and plump with saltiness provided by the pancetta.  An extra burst of sweetness from the corn niblets was a nice surprise.  The accompanying frites were crispy and light, yet very salty.  Fortunately, our wine pairing, the Sangiacomo Chardonnay, was fruity and strong which help offset the saltiness.  Our second course started off with 2 wine pairings which included the Lodi Zinfandel 2009 and the Sonoma Zinfandel County Series 2008.  Viv and I disagreed as to which one worked better with our second course - the Bromme Lake Duck Duo consisting of braised leg and sweet pea garganelli with crispy duck breast cases in a red wine reduction.  Regardless of wine, I think we disagree in general on a lot of things!  LOL...I liked the Lodi Zinfindal since it went down smooth with some berry notes. Viv preferred the other wine indicating it had more pronounced tannins.  As for the duck, the silky reduction was rich and balanced.  We found the braised duck a touch stringy, yet meaty in flavour without being salty.  The breast was moist while the skin being a bit chewy.  Soaking up the delicious sauce was the al dente garganelli.
 
Onto our 3rd course, we had the Duo of Vension consisting of bacon wrapped venison striploin and a skillet roasted chop with parsnip puree and wild cherries.  Served with this dish was the Barricia Zinfandel 2008 and Old Hill Zinfandel 2008. Again, Viv and I did not agree where I thought the Old Hill was more balanced than the really strong Barricia. Moving onto the venison, the chop was tender and cooked beautifully.  The sauce had a considerable impact in terms of depth and consistency.  The cherries definitely added a welcomed level of sweetness.  We were surprised to find the striploin to be equally tender since venison is quite lean (being cooked rare didn't hurt either).  Also, I loved the fried brussels sprouts on the side.  With the onset of a meat coma, we were presented with the Braised Organic Beef Short Rib with aged Canadian cheddar mashed potatoes and Dry Creek Valley bone marrow jus. The best part of this dish was the bone marrow as it was fatty, roasted in flavour and just downright tasty.  We found the mash to be a touch dry while the short rib was meaty, mostly tender and dry in some spots.  The au jus was flavourful where we could definitely taste the wine (in a good way).  This was served with Teldeschi Zinfandel 2009 which definitely was full-bodied with strong tannins.

Lastly, we were presented with the Chevrot Cheese Brulee with candied pecans and fresh fruit.  Personally, I've never been a fan of cheese for dessert, but this was okay, although Viv didn't like the gaminess of the Chevrot. The wine pairing of the Late Harvest Gewurztraminer was sweet as expected.  I won't deny that this was definitely a treat where there was good food to go along with the many different glasses of wine.

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

Trocadero

"Hey, do you wanna hit up Trocadero?", queried Costanza out-of-the-blue.  What's with the randomness?  I hadn't been there in like over 3 years. Well, it turned out that he had a Groupon and wanted to use it before it expired.  Yes, Costanza has a nasty habit of buying these types of coupons and not having enough time to use them all.  Some have such short expiry dates!  And not to mention the multitude of restrictions such as coupon limits, when they can be used (if it is lunch or dinner) and what dishes are excluded.  We actually had 2 coupons, but were only able to use one because there was a house rule that only one could be used at a table, regardless of the party size.

Whatever the case, we went ahead and ordered a good variety of food despite that. We started with an order of the Calamari which was very dark in colour and chewy.  Despite the thorough frying, it was not crispy at all.  The only saving grace for this dish was the thick, garlicky and chunky tzatziki.  The same good tzatziki accompanied the Spankopita which was much better than the calamari. Within the beautiful golden brown crispy exterior was a tender and cheesy filling where the spinach was not mushy. It was almost the perfect balance between enough moisture without being wet.  Moving onto the mains, I suggested we get roast lamb, but there were no takers.  Sadly, I had to go lambless for this meal and resorted to ordering the Moussaka (which incidentally, usually has lamb!  LOL...). We found the portion size to be fairly good as well as the product itself.  The meat was moist and well seasoned with a nice hint of cinnamon.  There was a good ratio between meat and bechamel sauce (which had the right consistency and a hit of nutmeg).  The layer of eggplant and potato was also done well -  they were not too soft.  We found the rice to be slightly soft while somewhat bland. Strangely, there was no potato on the dish, rather some garlic bread took its place.

For the kiddies, we ordered 2 items that they might possibly eat starting with the Spaghetti & Meatballs.  This was a pretty typical version for this type of restaurant.  The pasta was somewhat past al dente while the sauce was meaty and mild flavoured.  The meatballs were rather firm and a touch dry, yet they were not bad. 
Lastly, we ordered 2 pizzas, one for the adults and one for the kiddies (cheese pizza).  For the adults, we had the Meatlover's which, as the name implies, had all the meats.  Due to the plethora of toppings, the pizza was naturally on the soggier side.  Furthermore, the meats made the pizza salty.  If we ignore that fact, the pizza was okay and was pretty much standard (for this type of pizza).  And that really sums up the place - food is okay, yet hardly memorable either.  Prices are on the higher side, so if you don't have a coupon, it's not an inexpensive option.

The Good:
- Food is alright
- Fairly spacious and comfortable digs

The Bad:
- Pricey
- Food is alright

chocolaTas

Despite the fact I am not really a sweets guy, I do go on the rampage at times.  Generally around the holidays, I start to get the urge for chocolates.  So much so, I have dusted off a whole box in one sitting in the past.  Yes, I do realize that is a daily ritual for Mijune, but hey, I don't have that type of metabolism. So I was just rounding into form (how ironic) for the month of December when I got an email from chocolaTas to try out their gourmet Belgian chocolates.  Perfect timing I must say...  So I sauntered down to the Market at Granville Island to pick up a sample box of 10 chocolates. From the top left and clockwise, we have the Romana, Lavendar, O Canada, Berry Berry, Grapefruit, Sea Salt, Maple, Mint and in the centre, Caramel Ganache.  

The heart-shaped Romana was dark raspberry ganache in a jacket of raspberry chocolate.  This was one of the sweeter chocolates I tried where the raspberry really came through.. The ganache was smooth and provided another hit of raspberry with the expected touch of bitterness. The Maple was appropriately adorned with a leaf and it contained caramelized pecans in Maple syrup with milk chocolate ganache.  Again, the flavours came in layers with the nuttiness of the pecans followed by a appropriate amount of Maple, then ending off with the chocolate ganache. The O Canada consisted of lightly roasted hazelnut praline paste wrapped in dark chocolate.  The flavour of the centre was not heavy and only sweet enough.  It was aromatic and pleasing to the palate. The Mint was comprised of organic fresh leaves infused in dark chocolate ganache.  I found this one subtle and almost refreshing.  The mint was not overpowering as it let the chocolate do its thing.  The Lavendar was as expected - flowery.  I'm not a huge fan of lavendar anything, but this was subtle enough that I could tolerate it.

The Grapefruit consisted of zest and a splash of vodka.  The first layer of flavour was the vodka itself in a subtle fashion, then the tang of grapefruit hit and finished off smoothly. The Sea Salt was essentially pure dark chocolate ganache enhanced by the salt itself and it delivered.  The smooth balanced ganache began with a low rumble but then was amped by the finish of sea salt which really heightened the flavours (which were complex and diverse). The Berry Berry was a slight departure being a milk chocolate where it was sweeter and obviously had a different texture.  The berry flavour was unmistakable as it lingered after the ending hit. The chocolate in the middle appeared to the the Traditional Caramel Ganache and it was sweet.  This was compounded by the encasement of white chocolate.  All-in-all, some pretty chocolates which allowed the flavourings to do their thing with little interference from too much sugar.  Textures were smooth while the chocolate itself is high in quality.

The Good:
- Flavours are prominent when they need to be and subtle when it needs to take a back seat
- Textures were smooth
- They're pretty

The Bad:
- Accessibility of this location is a bit tough with parking and all
- Expensive (but you pay for quality right?)

Lido

"The best Bo Loh Bao in the city" is Lido's claim to fame.  So how is it that I've never blogged about it?  Furthermore, being my son's favourite food, why have I not gone?  Those are some pretty legit questions.  Well, it's not like we haven't tried...  Each time, they ran out!  Are they that good???  Well, I was about to find out as we visited Richmond for the 2nd straight weekend.  Now, we all know about the adventures in parking which usually afflicts every visit to Richmond.  Since Lido is located in a plaza which severely lacks enough parking spots, it creates a real dilemma: park at Aberdeen or Parker Place?  It's like choosing between listening to Justin Bieber or One Direction...  Well, at least for me it is...  So we decided on Aberdeen for no other reason than there was no good choice!

We walked over to Lido and luckily, didn't have to wait long for a table. I decided to go for a set meal which included Borscht.  Now if you are familiar with HK-style cafes, you will know borscht stands for vegetable soup.  Yet, it was a relatively thin-tasting vegetable soup.  And (drum roll please) ta da - the Bo Loh Bao (or Pineapple Buns).  So are they the best in the city?  I would say "yes" with an asterisk.  Why?  Well, they are served fresh and hot out-of-the-oven, so naturally they would be "better" than most places (that have them sitting around).  With that being said, they were pretty darn good.  The quality of the dough was apparent as it was soft and light.  The crispy topping was substantial, yet not overbearing.  It wasn't too sweet either.  My son loved it.  Since he's the bo loh bao expert in the family, I'll let him declare they are the best.  What can make it even better (to some) is to add a slice of butter.

And as greasy as butter, the Shredded Chicken and Ham Spaghetti with Cream Sauce slid down our throats ever-so-easy.  Except, the cream sauce was clumpy and overly thick.  This was not a very well-executed dish.  In fact, it was rather gross where the sauce resembled somewhere between snot and... (not gonna even mention it, you use your imagination). For my main, I had Three Meats that included Tripe, Curry Brisket and Ox Tongue.  The tripe was overdone and salty while the ox tongue was razor-thin, dry and oversauced.  The one saving grace was the curry brisket where the beef was tender while the sauce was coconutty and thick.  As you can see from my small sample size, the bo loh bao was the highlight (and quite possibly the only highlight).  However, it is enough for me to return.

The Good:
- Bo Loh Bao
- Prices are decent

The Bad:
- The other items we had were subpar
- Service is sparse

Ouisi Bistro

Since I could bring a guest to the Pop Up Soda Shoppe by Swallow Tail, I immediately thought of Bear.  After all, he is my defacto dessert expert. Wait.  I really wasn't intending on asking him first...  I was going to ask Mijune, but she was already invited on her own.  So yes, Bear was my second choice.  Sorry Bear...  Mijune looks better than you.  It's a fact.  But similar to Mijune, Bear loves to eat and we decided to meet up for dinner prior to hitting the sweets. Hey, there were no objections on my part!  So we headed down somewhere close by to our final destination of the night, which was the Ridge Theatre.

Located amongst high-end stores and other established restaurants such as West and Vij's, it would appear that Ouisi Bistro is somewhat of a curiosity in the neighbourhood.  Judging by their pricing, we thought it fit in just fine...  As a starter, we were presented with some Cornbread.  A touch dry, we found it to be pretty decent and of course, it didn't hurt to have a side of butter. The most interesting appetizer in my eyes was the Gator Bites.  These were sauteed in a hot n' spicy sauce with a dollop of Cajun tartar sauce.  I've had alligator in the past and this was pretty much what I expected.  The texture was akin to pork with only the slightest tinge of fishiness.  The sauce was indeed spicy and zesty.  We were okay with this dish, but didn't love it either.

Next up was the Seafood Chowder in a tomato broth with sweet potatoes and veggies.They split into 2 bowls so we could share (therefore, the regular portion is double what you see in the picture).  I found the chowder to be quite mild and tomatoey.  The veggies were crunchy while the use of salmon belly resulted additional flavour.  I really wished that there was more depth of flavour.  We ended up sharing 2 main dishes starting with the Jambalaya.  It consisted of tomatoes, smoked ham, andouille & chorizo sausage and two sautéed Gulf prawns. This was a very hearty offering where there was barely any rice.  Instead, there were large chunks of sausage and 2 nicely prepared prawns.  The spice level was noticeable while not really spicy.  The dish was quite tomatoey and tart.  The veggies in the dish were firm, yet tender.
 
Our second dish was the Ale Marinated Chicken Thighs & Hot Smoked Duck Sausage Gumbo.  It arrived looking very rich and dark.  The roux was thick, nutty and buttery with a noticeable ale hit.  The sauce started with a bite and finished with an unpleasant ale bitterness.  The chicken thigh was super moist and tender while the duck sausage had a firm, yet easy-to-eat texture.  There was no mistaking it was made of duck due to the "duckiness" (is that a word?).  As part of the entrees, we could select 2 sides each. We decided on Rice & Beans, Creamed Corn, Potato Salad and Veggies. Everything was pretty typical except for the veggies as they were soggy.  Also, the creamed corn was pretty good being creamy and buttery, yet there was too much vinegar which we didn't care for.  Overall, our meal was fine for what it was.  Sure, some Louisiana purists might think otherwise, but then again, there aren't a whole lot of Cajun restaurants in Vancouver either...

The Good:
- Something different
- Energetic vibe

The Bad:
- Food is quite heavy, but that is not really a bad since it usually is
- Food is okay, but not really that memorable either

Sal Y Limon

"Some fans of yours want to have dinner with you", explained Whipping Girl.  Fans?  You mean the type that go back and forth with 3 speed settings?  No, she meant actual fans of the blog.  Oh...  Honestly, I don't take myself too seriously.  It's a blog for heaven's sake.  But whatever.  I'm always up for food, so sure, dinner it was.  And Whipping Girl's restaurant of choice?  It was a place that was on my radar for awhile - Sal y Limon out on Kingsway and Fraser.  In the same complex as Ba Le, it boasts authentic Mexican cuisine in a city that is full of Taco Time and Taco Bells.  Okay, okay, I realize that if the food satisfies the masses, authenticness should not be an issue.  However, if people give real Mexican food a try, they'll realize what they are missing.

Luckily for me, Whipping Girl, Mosquito and Mr. Bunz love to eat, so we ordered at least one item from each category on the menu.  We started with the Cordero al Cilantro Hurache, which is fried masa topped with, in this case, lamb cooked in cilantro pesto, shredded cabbage and queso fresco. First off, the fried masa base was super crunchy.  The lamb was a touch dry, yet flavourful from the cilantro and good char.  The fresh crisp cabbage lightened up the dish as well as the cool crumbly queso fresco.  What we had next was probably the highlight of our meal being the Shrimp Tacos.  Nestled on top of 2 corn tortillas was one large fried shrimp.  It was really crunchy while there was a nice snap.  There was a slight spice from the aioli on top as well as a freshness from the cabbage and salsa.  

In addition, we got 2 each of the Chorizo, Cordero al Cilantro and Carne Asada Tacos.  We found the chorizo dry with a meaty texture and a touch salty.  The lamb was very similar to the hurache where it was dry.  The carne asada was more moist with good caramelization of flavours.  As with all of the tacos, the tortilla could've stood to be less dry as well. Moving along, we tried the Al Pastor Torta which was fairly large stuffed with moist pork.  We found the bread a bit too soft, but in the end, there was plenty of filling and it was a pleasant sandwich.  Continuing our tour of the menu, we had the Pierna Burrito (pulled pork).  Despite the visuals, the burrito wasn't exactly bursting with filling, yet it wasn't exactly sparse either.  I guess this was a whole lot better than being too dense.  We found the pulled pork to decently moist, but really salty. The tortilla was slightly moist and gummy.  

At this point, we were officially experiencing simultaneous food comas.  Therefore, I got up, went to the counter and...  ordered more food!  Take that Mijune!  I actually went to get more of the fantastic shrimp tacos - one for each of us.  AND to try the last section of the menu we didn't touch, which was the Taquitos Dorados.  No, not the one you'd find in the freezer section of your local supermarket.  These ones were freakin' huge!  I got one each of the chorizo & potato and eggplant & potato.  These suckers were fried crisp and filled with moist ingredients (except for the dry chorizo).  Hence, I preferred the eggplant one more.  There was a mild level of spice and the queso fresco was a refreshing balance to the fried taquito.  Although this was not the best Mexican food I've ever had, it is some of the best I've had in Vancouver.  For a city that doesn't have a whole lot of authentic Mexican cuisine, that is good enough.

The Good:
- For those who cringe at the sight of Taco Bell, this is your place
- Decent pricing
- Friendly staff

The Bad:
- Some meats are dry
- Small little place not meant for big groups

Sushi Hachi

Consider this scenario.  You run a Japanese restaurant.  It is located in an awkward location on the outside of a plaza in Richmond (where there is only parking on the inside of the building).  You decide to only open 5 days a week.  Furthermore, you decide on serving dinner from 6:00pm to 9:00pm.  The menu will be simple with no specialty rolls and barely any cooked food.  The entire staff will consist of husband and wife only too.  Oh and you figure that premium pricing must be charged too.  Sounds like shaky business principles right?  On the contrary, that is definitely not the case.  Welcome to Sushi Hachi, an authentic Japanese sushi bar that survives despite the aforementioned challenges (although I've heard that the owner doesn't need to operate it for anymore hours).

Due to the limited hours, I have found it a challenge to eat there.  Finally, I just had to make time and I enlisted the help of Whipping Girl as an eating partner.  We started with the Ankimo (monkfish liver) which was accompanied by the usual green onions, daikon and ponzu dressing.  We found the liver to be smooth and definitely lived up to being the "foie of the sea" where we did taste the ocean (in a good way).  Next up was the Grilled Squid which was only so-so.  It wasn't as grilled as we would've liked as it was chewy and had a "steamed" quality to it.  But honestly, we weren't here for the squid, it's all about the sushi.  As such, we got the Chef's Choice Sashimi which was definitely more about quality than quantity.  On the plate (starting from the front middle and clockwise) was Tako, Aji, Kampachi, Hamachi, Skipjack Tuna and Flounder.  The beautiful sheen only accentuated the lovely sweet flavours of the fish (where we could taste the fishiness, in an appetizing way).  The textures were on point and although it set us back a hefty $25.00, it was worth every penny.

Seeing how we had the Chef's choice of sashimi, we went for the Chef's Choice Sushi as well.  It included (starting from the front and counterclockwise) flounder, hamachi, amberjack, skipjack, ika, hotate, bonito, tuna, seared black cod, chopped scallop and 2 types of tekka maki.  Once again, the fish was fantastic while the sushi rice was on point - it was chewy with the right balance of vinegar and sugar.  The rice-to-fish ratio was also good.  At the end of the meal, we were impressed and thought it was well-worth the price.  One word of caution though, if one was looking for fancy fusion rolls and large portions sizes, it would be best they move along because Sushi Hachi is about the simplicity of sushi - fresh and well-made.

The Good:
- Quality ingredients
- Careful preparation
- Focused menu

The Bad:
- Pricey
- Not for those who care about quantity
- Tiny place with only 2 people, best keep the group small and have some patience