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I often get asked where are the best places for brunch in Vancouver. Each and every time, I draw a blank. Yah, go figure right... That shouldn't be the case as there are many choices for breakfast and brunch in the city. But with the emphasis on "best", it gets a bit dicey. Sure, we can list off the obvious places such as The Red Wagon and Cafe Medina. However, what about something really different? Well, Miss Y and I were invited to try out Calabash and their tropical Caribbean brunch menu.
We were started off with their Coconut Dumplings (like fritters) which were similar to the Reef's Johnny Cakes except with the aromatics of coconut. These crispy and fluffy nuggets were further enhanced by the side of mango butter which afforded a tropical sweetness. Furthermore, the background tartness helped lighten up the heaviness of both the fritter and butter. Our first dish was the Escovitch Fish which was pan-seared and served with fried plantain, fresh cucumber and rice & peas. We found the fish flaky and moist. The tangy escovitch sauce added acidity while a dollop of mango hot sauce livened up the flavours. Slightly crisp, the fried plantains were sweet and soft on the inside.
Next, we had the Rise & Shine Roti consisting of jerk scrambled free-range eggs, roasted cumin potatoes, tomato and garlic choka, jerk pork belly and coconut rundown Hollandaise. Atop the flaky & crispy roti, the scrambled eggs were slightly too done for our tastes, but the jerk spices were apparent. We liked the spicy bark on the fatty and meaty pork belly. As for the Hollandaise, it was plenty creamy with a strong coconut milk presence. Onto the sweet item of the meal, we sampled the Salara French Toast made with fresh baked Guyanese coconut bread accompanied by spiced mango maple syrup, banana cream and fresh fruit. For us, the bread reminded us of Chinese Gai Mei Bao (which is a good thing). However, with a considerable amount of coconut, there was no mistaking the main ingredient in terms of texture and taste. With the addition of fragrant banana cream and the sweet tropical syrup, this was certainly something different.
Lastly, we asked to try the Oxtail Brunch Bowl because others raved about it. Since we were pretty full, it was served with only one egg (rather than the regular 2). This concoction consisted of rice and peas, braised ox-tail, fried plantains, poached free-run egg and coconut rundown Hollandaise. The star of the show was definitely the ox-tail as it was moist and meaty with a peppery-clove thing going on. Mixed with the rest of the ingredients, it was a decadent creation. From the items we sampled, it is pretty clear that Calabash offers something different for brunch compared to the regular. For roughly the same price, it is definitely worth trying out.
*All food and drinks excluding tip were comped*
The Good:
- Something different
- Although quite mild, the multitude of non-typical flavours (esp for brunch) makes it interesting
- Reasonably-priced considering the ingredients
The Bad:
- Neighbourhood still in transition
Meeting Choobee for lunch can be an exercise in frustration. In her opinion, anywhere East of Fraser Street is another country. Furthermore, she has this fascination with either eating in Kits or in Richmond. Both of which are very far from where I live. Hence, I didn't even flinch when she suggested we meetup at the Uncle Lu (located in the old G-Men Ramen). Yes, that meant I had to drive into Richmond once again. For a place I want to avoid, I spend an amazing amount of time there...
We had originally ordered the Fermented Shrimp Fried Rice due to the glorious picture in the menu. However, Choobee was dismayed since there was far less shrimp than advertised. Despite this, the rice wasn't bad as it was dry and chewy (maybe a bit too dry). It was fragrant with nuttiness and salty shrimpiness. Next up was the Fermented Pork Chop which was paler than expected. Compared to the one at Pearl Castle a few doors down, this version was less pungent. It was actually quite mild with only a light saltiness. The meat itself was fatty, which meant there was no issue with texture as it was tender and buttery.
Without a doubt, we would get the Chicken Nuggets as well. These were pretty good with a light crispiness while not heavy on the grease. There was enough saltiness to them, but we didn't get much pepper nor 5-spice. Usually, I'm not a huge fan of the skin being left on, but in this case, it was rendered enough so it offered up both texture and flavour. We also got the Beef Noodle which was pretty average. Okay, let me rephrase that, the noodles were chewy while the thick slices of meat were tender without being mushy. However, the real issue was the broth as it was mostly sweet with very little body or impact.
Lastly, we had another typical Taiwanese dish being the 3-Spice Chicken. Hidden beneath the plethora of fried ginger, there was a bevy of chicken. I found the meat to be quite dry, yet being decently flavourful at the same time with hits of ginger and sesame oil. Again, not bad, but not great either. In the end, we went away feeling somewhat neutral about the place. It wasn't as if the food wasn't good, it just wasn't that memorable.
The Good:
- Fairly comfortable space
- Okay portions
The Bad:
- Average eats
- Not very attentive staff considering we were one of 2 tables there
"If you want to try Bufala... I'm game", texted Choobee. Okay, that sounded like a great idea... I love Neapolitan-style pizza! However, the next text I got was: "Didn't realize it was their first night! I went... haha...". Oh I see it goes, I'm only important until I'm not. Hey I have feelings too you know! Not to be outdone, I grabbed the softball team and we visited the place 3 days later after our game. From the same people who brought you Wildebeest, Bufala adds to the growing collection of Neapolitan pizza joints in the city.
Instead of taking rock star metered parking in front, I opted to do the Chinese-thing and drove down one block to squeeze into a free spot. I noticed Judes and Miss Y doing the same thing, but not Bear, he paid. We longer consider him Asian... Anyways, we ended up sharing everything starting with the Kale Caesar Salad consisting of green & purple kale, parmigiano reggiano, egg yolk, anchovy and crispy bacon. This was pretty good in our opinion due to the purposeful amount of lemon which brought a certain brightness to an otherwise heavy dressing. The crispy bacon added both saltiness and a great texture. Next, we tried the Meatballs with ricotta and basil. These were soft while still maintaining some meatiness. The creamy ricotta balanced out the mild tomato sauce while the basil really stood out.
We also added the Roasted Mortadella (with pickled cippolini onions, shallot crumb, mustard and parsely) at our server's suggestion. Glad we listened as each piece of mortadella was slightly crispy, appealingly chewy and purposefully salty. This was nicely balanced by the sweet and tart cippolini onions. Seemingly a simple dish, but done right. On the other hand, we were not as enthused with the Polenta Gnocchi accompanied by braised ox-tail, English peas, mint, asparagus and goat cheese. As a group, we love polenta, but it wasn't really doing it for us as a gnocchi. It had a crumbly-texture that was also a touch too soft. As much as we liked the rich oxtail, there was very little of it. Furthermore, we felt that the entire dish lacked impact.
Onto the main event, we began with the standard being the Margherita with the basics including fior di latte, basil and tomato sauce. Although I would've liked to see a bit more leoparding, the crust was on point. It was crispy from the crust all-the-way to the centre. The dough was seasoned enough to stand on its own, but of course it was better with the mild tomato sauce, stringy cheese and fresh basil. Next, we tried the Finocchiona consisting of fresh fennel sausage, castelvetrano olives, caramelized onion, smoked provolone, basil and tomato sauce. With a decent amount of sausage, this pizza had more body and hence was a bit softer at the centre as well. There was a light fennel taste to go along with the sweetness of the onions and aromatics of the basil. Strangely, I didn't really notice the olives.
With the smell of pungent truffle oil in the air, we knew the Funghi was next. It was made with shimeji and portobello mushrooms, goat cheese, watercress, pecorino tartufo and bianco sauce. Naturally, it was a considerably Earthy concoction which helped wet the centre even more. It wasn't mushy though where the dough held up to the plethora of ingredients. This was probably my favourite of the night. Lastly, we sampled the Carparccio with bresaola, grana padano, gribiche, horseradish, arugula and bianco sauce. I really liked this pizza as it had plenty of flavours at play. These flavours were layered where I got the peppery arugula first, then the gribiche and horseradish, finally finishing off with the bresaola. I had a hard time deciding which one I liked after this one. All-in-all, we enjoyed our meal at Bufala. From the service-to-the-food, it was a pleasant experience and we will probably be back.
The Good:
- Attentive service
- Crispy, chewy pizza crust
- Not overly expensive given its location
The Bad:
- Could use a bit more leoparding
Almost like clockwork, the first few games of the softball season in April are either rained out or extremely cold. Hence, it has become an annual tradition of sorts that our first post-game meal of the year tends to be hot pot. Unbeknownst to my team, I had planned that we visit the newly-opened Tak Heng Hot Pot in Richmond. What's the big deal you ask? Well, what if I told you that this is the new venture brought to you by Dragon Lady (formerly of Po King and Big Lai Palace)? I decided to tell my teammates once we had sat down and ordered (so they couldn't run away screaming). Well, there wasn't any screaming from Dragon Lady... Apparently, she has mellowed out...
However, the lady that greeted us was a bit intense. Not in the way of being rude, rather, she was a little too pushy with the "Special Sauce". Instead of informing us of the complimentary sauce bar near the kitchen, we were told that everyone was ordering the sauce. Sure, it was indeed tasty with all of the available flavours such as sweet, salty, tart and spicy, but it cost us $7.00. Of course, that was on top of the soup base (which is an industry standard where they charge extra) and of course the AYCE price. We actually thought the soups were rather bland. As for our meats, we had the Beef Rib-Eye, Sliced Lamb and Pork Cheek. Nothing amiss with these as they were tender and buttery. I particularly liked the beef as it was really soft, but maintained some meat texture.
We also had the freshly-made Meatballs which were texturally on point (maintaining some bite). The plate of Seafood was typical with frozen white shrimp, Kiwi mussels and basa. Of course we had to get some Offal which happened to be sliced tendon and bible tripe. I thought the tendon was a bit soft where it melted partially in the broth. There is not much to say about the plate of chikuwa, fish tofu, fried gluten, wonton and corn because it was pretty typical. However, the Fish "Sui Mai" were rather mushy and unappetizing. Also on the table was mushrooms, fried bean curd skin, spinach and watercress. Our side order of Stir-fried Sticky Rice was pretty good with a nice chewy texture while being well-seasoned. We ended off the meal with some Mango and Coconut Pudding which were more like artificially-flavoured Jello. Overall, other than the special sauce thing, we were satisfied with the AYCE hot pot.
The Good:
- Food quality is decent
- Comfortable digs
The Bad:
- Special sauce is an expensive upsell
- Soup base could be more impactful
The gentrification of Chinatown has been a hot topic in the past few years for good reason. The once bustling array of grocery stores and fresh seafood shops are now practically empty as many patrons have gone to T&T, Richmond or their local markets. In their place, a variety of establishments have set up shop, creating their own brand of hipster vibe. Even the Chinatown Night Market is no more as of this year. After visits to The Union and The London Pub, we decided to hit up Mamie Taylor's after our softball game at Strathcona Park.
If I was to tell someone that they could find Southern cooking in Chinatown even 10 years ago, it would've ended up in laughter. But not anymore... Milhouse, Miss Y and I ended up sharing the Cornbread & Biscuit served with jalapeno bourbon butter. I found the biscuit to be dry and crumbly where it really needed the sweet butter. However, Bear (who had his own order) disagreed and thought that it was just right. For me, I preferred the corn bread as it was moist and sweet. To feel a bit better about the impending heavy meal, we got the Brussel Sprout Salad. We liked the presentation as it was piled high with a rainbow of colours. There was an appealing crunch that went with the plethora of creamy and spicy horseradish ranch dressing. There seemed to be more of everything else other than the brussel sprouts though.
Onto one of the more interesting items, we tried the Turducken scotch egg with turkey and duck sausage, tomatillo sauce and garlic mayo. Unlike many versions of scotch eggs, this one was practically perfect as the it was buttery soft with a slightly runny centre. It was encased in a meaty, while not greasy, sausage. The tart tomatillo underneath added a certain brightness that balanced the heaviness of the egg. Much to our delight, they had Fried Green Tomatoes on the menu. It was battered in a Parmesan crust accompanied by anchovy aioli and pine nuts. This was a well-executed dish as the green tomatoes were firm (as red tomatoes would become a wet mess) with a crunchy browned exterior. The spicy and salty aioli went well with the tart tomatoes as it added a creaminess.
Off to some bigger items, we tried the Shrimp & Grits with spicy tomato, roasted okra, chorizo and bottarga. Although the grits were somewhat lumpy, I still enjoyed it since the flavours were on point. The combination of the spiciness of the chorizo, sweetness of the shrimp, saltiness of the bottarga and acidity of the tomato created a flavour party. As for the texture of the shrimp, it was meaty with a light snap. This was a result of properly cooking them just to the point of doneness. Of course we couldn't get out of there without trying the Fried Chicken with buttermilk biscuit, grilled corn, pickled peach baby kale salad and gravy. We found the breast meat to be relatively moist while the drumstick to be juicier (since it was dark meat). The skin was rendered where there was a definite crunch. The chicken and batter itself was not aggressively seasoned, but the balanced gravy (with a touch of booze) made up for it.
Judes went for the other dish we were contemplating in the Pozole Blanco consisting of pork belly, crackling, avocado, radish, hominy grits & chicken consume. Surprisingly, the star of the show was the consume as it was super flavourful. The pork belly was no slouch either being moist with a crispy skin. The cracklings didn't hurt things as they were light and crispy. For dessert, Bear did the honours in ordering the Deep Fried Apple stuffed with vanilla ice cream and coated with a rice crispy crust atop milk caramel. A spattering of diced Granny Smith and raisins completed the dish. We all gave it a try and universally liked it. The soft apple gave way to "still frozen" ice cream which was accented by the sweetness of the caramel and raisins. You know what? We were glad to have persevered in trying out Mamie Taylor's, even though it was closed the last time. Turns out, the food is both interesting and pretty good.
The Good:
- Something different
- Generally solid eats
- Nice vibe
The Bad:
- Well, it ain't health food (we didn't care!)
- Biscuits could be less dry (but Bear seemed to like them)
Often, good food and great service can only go so far. A great location can make or break a restaurant or any business really. Case-in-point, Teapot Bubble Tea & Noodle House opened up where Pho Golden used to be (and that lasted only a few months). Before that, it was a Thai/Italian joint (yes, really) and before that, it was Italian. None of these places worked for various reasons, but there was one constant - the hidden location not really visible from Nordel Way nor Scott Road. I was able to sample some items from the new place on the house thanks to Bookworm.
We ended up trying the standard being the Pho Dac Biet. With a clean broth that was MSG-free, the flavours were predictably mild. I really didn't get a whole lot of distinctive flavours, but there was an appealing sweetness. The noodles were plentiful and al dente while the meats were a bit rustic-looking but sufficiently tender. Arriving on a large plate, the Sate Beef with rice noodle salad was a substantial portion. The beef was generally tender with some chewy portions. It was tossed in a sweet and salty sauce that was peanutty. When combined with all of the other ingredients, there was plenty of textures to go with the soft noodles.
Since 2 dishes was hardly representative of the menu, I returned on another day on my own dime. Looking overly dark and greasy, the Spring Rolls were better than their appearance. Despite the use of wheat wrapper rather than rice, the exterior was crunchy. Looking past the greasiness, the filling was actually quite good being moist and flavourful. For my main, I had the Lemongrass Pork Chop and Chicken on Rice. I wasn't a huge fan of the pork chop as it was super thin which was subsequently dry and hard. It did taste good though. The chicken was much better being well-charred, flavourful and tender. Ultimately, whether the food is good or not (in this case, it is just okay), the location of the restaurant will ultimately decide its fate.
The Good:
- Large portions
- Reasonably-priced
The Bad:
- Food is a bit hit and miss
- Location is a problem
With the impending arrival of his first child, Polka King has decided to milk all the free time he has left. Hence, his sudden re-introduction back into the blog. For awhile there, it was almost as if he mysteriously disappeared, only to be re-casted with another person posing as Polka King. Luckily for us, we didn't have to introduce an evil twin or explain his long disappearance (yes, I used to watch soap operas...).
Although it would be hard-pressed to compete with places in Richmond, the Wonton Noodles were solid nonetheless. I found the broth to mild with some aromatics. The wonton noodles were al dente with a nice elastic chew. Comprised mostly of whole crunchy shrimp, the wontons were good with a nice hit of sesame oil. They were on the smaller side though. As for my side (I always get a side), the Tripe was not overly gamy, but not overly flavourful either. It was a bit pale and on the chewier side. This was a fairly large portion.
Milhouse ordered the Fook Chow Fried Rice and it was a massive. The fried rice base was the beneficiary of good wok heat where it was slightly dry and chewy. The seafood sauce on top was on point as it had a nice silky consistency and was seasoned just enough. The seafood was barely cooked with buttery scallops and crunchy shrimp. Lionel Hutz had the Brisket with Rice Noodles and it was also very large. The brisket was very well executed as it was tender and still moist while not difficult to chew. The sauce was flavourful and thick.
Emilicious had the Preserved Egg and Salted Pork Congee with a Salty Donut on the side. Polka King had the Sliced Fish Congee (not pictured because white on white was not really all that interesting). Although not super thick, the congee broth was not watery, but trended towards that at the end. It was seasoned enough while the ingredients were sufficient. The Salty Donut was not good though being really over-fried and dense. Yet, the food in general was decent enough and decently priced for Burnaby.
The Good:
- Decent eats
- Good portion size
- Open late
The Bad:
- Restaurant could use a makeover
- ...and a good cleaning
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