Hong Kong Dim Sum

*Restaurant is permanently closed*

While we were dining at Lucky Buffet, Viv noticed that they were related to Hong Kong Dim Sum, a restaurant she had passed by earlier while shopping.  Yah, the kids and I were conveniently holed up at the hotel while she did her power shopping at Ross.  I despise Ross and its crowds, clothes on the floor and long lineups. It was way more fun clearing jelly and the evil chocolate on Candy Crush while comfortably in bed.  Did I just admit that?

So the next morning, we decided to do Dim Sum in Everett.  No, it didn't really sound that promising, but hey, we just had Dim Sum 3 times in Florida, so our expectations were quite low.  Located in an expansive former buffet hall, the dining space was super spacious, yet strange at the same time with booth seating mixed in with larger tables.  We started with the Phoenix Talons (Chicken Feet) which were extremely plump with a soft and gelatinous texture.  The flavours were mild with a bit of garlic and some spice.  Despite the lack of sauce, the Bean Curd Skin Rolls were soft inside and out.  The pork filling could've stood for more chew while the wood ear mushrooms lacked crunch.

Onto the most important dishes of the meal, we had the Haw Gow (Shrimp Dumplings) and Sui Mai (Pork & Shrimp Dumplings).  Unfortunately and not unexpectedly the haw gow was not up to par.  Exhibiting a meatiness rather than a snap, the shrimp filling was salty and overcooked.  Hence, the dumpling skin was gummy and chewy while being a bit wet on the bottom.  On the other hand, the sui mai was better  The first thing that came to my mind was that it tasted like a typical sui mai with a meatiness accented by shiitake and seasoning (salt, sugar, white pepper, soy etc...).  The texture was a bit soft though lacking the desired bounce and chewiness.

As per usual, we got the Lo Mei Gai (Sticky Rice) for the kiddies.  Numbering 2 per steamer, these were fairly large and stuffed full of ground pork filling.  In the end, we felt there was probably too much pork and not enough rice.  It could've stood for more shiitake mushroom.  As for the sticky rice, it was soft and well-seasoned.  Normally, my son gets excited when there are Shrimp Spring Rolls on the menu.  However, it was a complete let down in this case.  The shrimp filling was soft and mushy.  Inexplicably, there was a significant amount of slimy cabbage mixed in with the shrimp.  To top it all off, the exterior was greasy and not crunchy at all.

Moving on, we had the Steamed Spareribs.  These suffered from over-marination where there was either too much baking soda and/or were marinated too long.  Therefore, the texture was far too soft.  Flavour-wise, we could get a white pepper hit as well as come garlic.  For myself, I couldn't help myself and got the Tripe (as no Dim Sum is complete without offal).  Although not exactly super soft, the tripe was still easy enough to chew.  Some pieces were a little clunky though.  It was a touch gamy, but the adequate amount of seasoning (mostly sweet with some garlic) helped mask it.

Another important indicator of good Dim Sum is the rice noodle roll.  Thus, we got an order of the BBQ Pork Noodle Roll (since we had already established that the shrimp was no good already).  The rice noodle itself was somewhat firm which didn't make or break the dish.  It was thin enough that it wasn't too heavy.  The BBQ pork was lean, yet the addition of onion was a bit strange as it totally dominated the flavour profile. With the same meat filling, we had the BBQ Pork Pineapple Buns.  These were actually pretty good with a soft dough and a slightly sweet filling.  The top was sweet and crumbly.

Lastly, we had the Egg Tarts where the shell was flaky yet quite dry.  The filling was silky and not too sweet, but had this strange aftertaste. At the very least, with push carts, we were able to eat these last.  All-in-all, this was an acceptable Dim Sum service given its location.  Naturally, it would be unfair to compare this with Vancouver regardless of its proximity.  It does the job for the locals and in a pinch, gives the option of Dim Sum in Everett.

The Good:
- Really spacious
- Acceptable given its location
- Service was okay

The Bad:
- Although we shouldn't compare with Vancouver, it must be noted that the stuff is pretty average
- Large dining space stretches out the staff

Lucky Buffet

Buffets and the United States.  They seem to go hand-in-hand.  As a result, I fall under the spell and make my way to the nearest one whenever I'm there.  Or maybe it is merely the fact I'm out of town and there is no one to catch me being a pig.  Yes, that's it.  I won't be embarrassed or make excuses for my attraction to mediocre food served in large chaffing trays where people hoard all the good stuff.  Wait, then why am I blogging about it?  Doh...

So, let me size up the situation.  We were staying in Everett for the Labour Day weekend and like a moth to a flame, I was attracted to the nearest buffet - which happened to be Lucky Buffet.  Yet another Asian-theme all-you-can-eat, the place was plain massive with a wide range of eats.  On a really large sushi boat, there was peel n' eat shrimp, oysters on the half-shell and some salad.  Nearby, there was a sushi bar with various rolls and side dishes (including kimchi, seaweed salad, tofu, marinated egg and squid.  I found the sushi rolls to be sub par with bland dry gummy rice while the sides were even worse.  The kimchi was particularly awful being pale and salty.

After that, there were 6 full hot buffet stations that featured almost everything one could think of.  These included crab, fried shrimp, sole, crawfish, scallops, Kiwi mussels, salmon, clams, honey shrimp, Chinese BBQ ribs, fried rice, fried noodle, Chinese dishes, pork hock, fried plantains, soups, Dim Sum, BBQ ribs, pizza, corn, garlic bread, snails, stuffed mushrooms and a bunch of fried items.  Yes, if you think this was an eclectic array of eats, I did too.  Nothing particularly stood out as good but most things were edible.  I didn't think the crab was particularly fresh, but the clams were plump though.  For me, most of the food was either too bland or too sweet (mostly the Chinese food).

Thankfully, they had a Mongolian grill section where you could choose your veggies, meats and noodles.  It was freshly prepared with choice of sauces.  Despite the beef being a bit chewy (and being overdone), the plate of food was piping hot and fresh.  Right next door to the grill was as much pop as one could drink.  Moreover, there was a choice of 8 different hard ice creams.  And it didn't stop there, as there was a whole section dedicated to desserts consisting of fruit, jello, cookies and cake.  No, nothing was made in house (well, except for the fruit gelatin) and hence, I really didn't eat any other than the fruit.  However, to be fair, the whole point of Lucky Buffet is to fill one up for a relatively reasonable price.  That it did and the kids seem to enjoy themselves.  I would say the food was pretty average overall, but nothing was exactly inedible either.

The Good:
- Holy selection Batman!
- Spacious
- Food was refilled promptly

The Bad:
- Average eats
- A bit chaotic
- Collection of dirty plates was slow

Ivar's Mukilteo Landing

Having just returned from a 3-week vacation in Florida, my son was tired and not really all that interested in leaving town again.  However, with school starting up, he needed new clothes and in particular new shoes.  Despite the noticeable holes on the bottom, he flatly refused to head down to the States for some shopping. After some convincing and the threat of leaving him at home (of course we wouldn't do that...), he reluctantly joined us.  So off we went down to Seattle (actually Everett) for a one nights stay.  Of course we couldn't shop without nutrition, so we stopped by Ivar's at Mukilteo Landing.

We started with the Pacific Northwest Steamer with clams and mussels in a Thai red curry coconut lime broth.  Both shellfish were prepared very well where the mussels were plump and buttery.  The broth had a definitive kick while bordering on salty (but that was needed to flavour the seafood).  We liked the aromatics, yet would've liked to see a bit more lime.  For myself, I got a bowl of their Dungeness Crab Bisque made with crab & lobster stock, cream, sherry, corn, tomatoes, sour cream and crab meat.  Although rich and creamy, the ample amount of tomato helped add a tang and helped cut through the heaviness.  I really liked the fluffy crab meat and the pop of the sweet corn as it added both texture and another layer of flavour.

For my main, I had the Fresh Alaska Halibut and Chips.  As much as halibut is expensive, the portion size was a bit small for the price.  However, whatever was lost in quantity was made up with quality.  The halibut was really fresh and sported a really thin layer of crisp breading.  The fish was slightly overdone, but it did not make or break the dish.  I really enjoyed the tartar sauce as it was creamy and flavourful from the bits of onion and tart pickles.  Although the fries were crisp and not greasy, I found them slightly generic.  Viv went for the half Classic Mulkiteo Crab & Shrimp Melt with a cup of Ivar's Famous Clam Chowder.  The hollowed out open-faced sandwich was topped with dungeness crab, snow crab, Oregon bay shrimp and Tillamook cheddar.  It was a pretty heavy concotion which could've benefited from a bit more seafood.  As for the soup, it was typical Ivar's being creamy and full of ingredients exhibiting a taste of the sea.  There was considerable sweetness from the onions and smokiness from the bacon.  As usual, my son had the Grilled Cheese...  Pffft...

My daughter stayed with the seafood theme (I know she's my kid for sure) and had the kid's Grilled Coho Salmon with Yukon gold mash potatoes and green beans.  Despite being a nice piece of salmon, it was overcooked and dry.  It did taste good though being properly seasoned.  The beans were vibrant and crunchy while the mash was very potatoey rather than creamy. In addition to the great service, we enjoyed the ambiance and great view of the waterfront location.  Food was okay (with the exception of the overcooked fish), yet the prices were on the higher side. 

The Good:
- Exceptional service
- Great ambiance and view

The Bad:
- Fish a bit overcooked
- Slightly pricey

Draw Winner!

Just a quick note that B. Wong won the draw!  Please email me at admin@shermansfoodadventures.com.  Congrats!

The Boss (Chinatown)

It goes without saying I love to eat.  Yet there was a time when I had a ferocious appetite.  Yes, even more so than now...  In my teens, I could down 4 Big Macs easily or even a whole Church's 10 piece.  When it came to Asian food, I remember dusting off a plate of rice, noodle and a whole dinner combo at The Boss to the shock of my parents and their poor pocketbook...  Gosh, thankfully my kids don't eat that much yet...  So to do a bit of reminiscing.  JuJu and Kaiser Soze joined my for a visit to The Boss after our last Sunday hockey of the year.

In an attempt to relive my youth, I decided to tackle a lunch combo and another dish.  I started off with a bowl of "Borscht" and a roll (I chose a mini-pineapple bun).  The use of "borscht" is a loose association when dining at a Hong Kong-style cafe. Don't expect beets nor sour cream, instead think vegetable soup.  And that it was being hearty with lots of veggies and a very mild tomato broth.  For my main, I had a choice between 2 items and I ultimately went for the Baked Seafood Rice because my Chineseness prescribed that I pick the best value item.  On that note, why did I park in front and use pay parking when I could've gotten free parking from the parkade?  Did I lose my mind?  I digress...  Anyways, the fried rice base was topped with plenty of well- prepared seafood including fish, shrimp, scallops and squid.  Being more goopy then creamy, the starch-thickened sauce was mild and did the job in providing moisture.

My second dish was the Fried Vermicelli with Duck and Pickled Vegetable.  Interestingly, the plate of food was noticeably bigger in portion compared to the Metrotown location.  It exhibited good wok heat where there was caramelization of flavours.  There was an adequate amount of duck meat, but it was a bit light on the pickled veg and soy.  Hence, the flavours were too mild bordering on bland.  Not to be outdone, JuJu had 2 dishes as well starting with the Fried Satay Rice Noodle with Beef.  A little on the greasy side, the plate of noodles was also a good portion consisting of tender beef and just cooked peppers.  The flavours were good with the sweetness of pineapple and the slight spice from the thick sauce.  However, we detected a bit of curry which may or may not have been intentional.  Don't get me wrong, we liked the taste, but we were just not sure it was a mistake (leftover flavours from the previous dish in the wok, or it was supposed to have curry in it).

Ironically, his second dish was Chicken Curry with Rice.  The dark hue of the sauce gave intentions of spiciness and bold flavours.  Alas, it was actually quite mild with a certain level of sweetness.  It had a good consistency and an appealing taste.  The chunks of chicken were surprisingly moist while the fried potatoes did they job.  Kaiser Soze ended up with the Baked Ox-Tongue on Rice.  He offered some of his tongue and I bit.  Uh.  It was moist with a bit of chew and was bathed in a tomato sauce which exhibited more tomato paste than ketchup.  Therefore, it wasn't as sweet with more of a tang.  Remarkably, The Boss has not changed much from years past.  The menu items are all still there and tasting very much like they did before.

The Good:
- Decent portions
- Decent eats across the board
- Food comes out quick

The Bad:
- Service is pretty basic
- Can be quite busy

Pelican

There I was, happily sleeping in on a Sunday morning since I had played late night hockey the night before.  Awakened by a phone call, Viv announced we were going to Dim Sum at Pelican with her mom.  #$)#)$*#)$* honestly?  It was already 11:15am.  Has the MIL ever gone for Dim Sum last minute on a Sunday at that time?  Lineups and the MIL.  I'd rather have my nose hairs plucked out with rusty tweezers.  Oh, it gets better...  Not only was the MIL at her obnoxious and inappropriate best, she managed to enrage the whole table where we were all arguing amongst ourselves.  Who needs Syria to create World disorder when the MIL is around?  Makes Kim Jong Un look like your best fried (a la Dennis Rodman).  Anyways, despite all the turmoil, I still managed to take pictures and eat.

We started with the Gai Lan which were blanched just enough that it was cooked while retaining a nice crunch.  My son was happy to see the Shrimp Spring Rolls and I decided not to tell him what the green stuff was (wasabi).  I crossed my fingers and he ate it.  The shrimp was okay with a slight snap being well-seasoned. Despite this, I personally didn't like it because there was far too much grease.  Continuing with shrimp, we had the Haw Gow (Shrimp Dumplings) that featured a soggy wet wrapper.  The filling was soft and mushy while the bits of shrimp were alright.  However, the whole thing was severely under-seasoned.

Strangely topped with a sweet chili sauce, the Stuffed Fried Silken Tofu was served almost ice cold. They obviously had prepared this dish far in advance and didn't bother warming it back up.  Didn't matter though as the shrimp mouse was mushy and really, the sweet chili sauce did not go with the tofu as it was too sweet.  At least the XO Fried Daikon Cake was served hot (I guess we were luckier this time).  Although a bit firm, the cubes were crispy and not overly greasy (probably soaked up by the cake).  The wok toss in the XO sauce (dried shrimp & scallops, chili flakes, garlic, oil) added the necessary flavour and spiciness.

Onto the next set of dishes, we had the  Phoenix Talons (Chicken Feet).  Sadly, these were not prepared properly as the skin was dry and chewy.  Furthermore, the cartilage underneath was chewy and lacking.  At the very least, it was seasoned nicely with lots of garlic and peppery notes.  As for the Bean Curd Skin Roll, it was not exactly that great either.  First of all, the bean curd skin was too lightly fried, hence, it was soft and lacking in texture.  Second, the meat filling was dense and chewy.  Lastly, it was as if they forgot to season the entire dish because both the filling and sauce were bland.

Predictably, I had to get my one token offal dish being the Tripe and Tendon.  The tendon was cut into large pieces which were soft while retaining their shape.  The same could be said about the tripe as well. There was no lack of seasoning especially the use of black pepper.  Unfortunately, the large pieces of cracked pepper were not enjoyable to eat.  Equally peppery, the Beef Short Ribs were properly tenderized being easy to chew while retaining some texture.  Interestingly, despite the obvious peppery flavour, the dish itself was under-seasoned.  Hence, it was spicy without any savouriness.

Arriving mid-meal rather than at the end and thankfully not at the start, the Egg Tarts were really, really flaky.  Naturally, that meant that they were buttery as well in taste (or lard...) and aroma.  The custard was smooth and silky without being heavy on the sugar.  Next, we had the dreaded Shanghainese dish in a Cantonese restaurant being the Xiao Long Bao (Soup Dumplings). Surprisingly, these contained a decent amount of soup, however, it was rather greasy.  The dumpling skin was thick while not overly dense and the meat filling was moist and loose.  Naturally, the flavours were not close to what it should be, but we expected that.

Lately, the kiddies have been on a Lo Mei Gai (Sticky Rice) kick, so of course we ordered some.  Egads!  This wasn't executed particularly well either.  The rice was dry where the filling was equally so.  The meat was mealy and mushy at the same time while a general lack of seasoning made us wish for soy sauce.  The Sui Mai (Pork & Shrimp Dumpling) was not really all that interesting either being quite loose.  The meat was chewy with no bounce texture.  On the other hand, the bits of shrimp were okay though with some snap.  Flavourwise, it did taste pretty good though with a meatiness tempered by sweetness.

Back to a good item, the Beef Meatballs were large and exhibited a mouth-pleasing bounce texture.  There would've been a good balance of flavours except they were too heavy-handed with the cilantro as it dominated all of the other seasonings.  Continuing on with good food (yes, the meal was inconsistent), the Shrimp Rice Noodle Roll featured plenty of shrimp which had a slight snap.  They were decently seasoned as well as being accented with flowering chives.  As for the rice noodles, they was buttery soft while still maintaining some elasticity.

Mercifully (because of the food and the MIL), our last dish was the Crystal Noodles with Spareribs.  Chewy with a nice elasticity, the crystal noodles were very good.  The well-seasoned garlicky spareribs provided the necessary flavour for the dish (albeit overly salty).  Texture-wise, the ribs were chewy with a slight bounce.  Interestingly, this is where the MIL exclaimed that the noodles were made of tapioca starch...  Uh, they're made of mung bean...  She then claimed to know that and proceeded to argue with everyone again...  This was our cue to leave...

The Good:
- Large portions
- Okay pricing
- Dim Sum available late night

The Bad:
- Dim Sum below average
- Crowded seating
- Service subpar