Chop Steakhouse & Bar

Sometimes, heading into Downtown Vancouver is not very practical.  First, you have the traffic.  Second, many of the parking spots have been eliminated by bike lanes and certain right turns as well.  Third, it might actually be far away for some people.  Therefore, if one wanted the Downtown experience, particularly a steakhouse, it generally means The Keg.  But hold on there.  We do have some other options including Chop in Richmond.  Recently, I was invited to check out some of their most popular items.

We started with some appies including the marinated Steak Bites. Served on the side were dijon-BBQ dip and horseradish aioli.  Caramelized and seared appealingly on the outside, the sirloin bites were tender with a nice meatiness.  There was a noticeable pepperiness on the outside and a considerable amount of saltiness from the marinade.  I found the horseradish aioli very necessary to bring down the salt content with a soothing creaminess and a slight tangy kick.  Next, the Albacore Tuna Tataki was served on a bed of daikon radish, jalapeño peppers & edamame.  It exhibited a fresh sheen that was confirmed by its sweet buttery texture.  There was no absence of impact from the soy garlic lime vinaigrette as well as wasabi aioli and togarashi.  The dish could've done without the peppers though as they were pretty overwhelming.

Served with crispy and airy crostinis, the Beef Carpaccio sported seared tenderloin, capers, arugula, lemon truffle aioli, extra virgin olive oil & shaved Grana Padano.  I liked the bright colour of the beef as it looked fresh and vibrant.  Sliced super thin, the tenderloin really did melt-in-my-mouth.  I enjoyed the restraint used with the truffle as it was evident without being too strong.  When eaten with the crispy crostinis, there was a mouth-satisfying textural contrast.

Onto the mains, we had the Slow Baked Salmon with butternut squash purée & arugla pesto and herb quinoa.  The salmon was so soft, buttery and barely done that we mistakenly thought it was sous-vide.  Texturally it was on point and I didn't mind the slightly pink interior.  However, when fish is cooked so slow, caramelization on the exterior is often missing, which meant the flavours were pretty mild.  Somewhat of a surprise, the Half Oven-Roasted Free Range Chicken was both attractive to look at and a delight to eat.  I found the meat to be succulent (even the white meat) as well as being nicely seasoned.  Furthermore, the skin was well-rendered and tasty on its own.  The basil lemon pan jus added an extra shot of flavour and moisture to the already tender chicken.

As for the steaks, we were presented with a selection of sustainable 28-day aged beef.  The New York Striploin was done a beautiful medium rare with an even and aggressive sear on the outside. This resulted in a slightly crispy exterior with a good deal of smokiness. The steak was well-seasoned and richly meaty in flavour.  It was fairly tender with a few chewier parts. My favourite of the bunch was the Smoked Rib-Eye that delivered on the promise of smoky flavour as it really came through.  The smoke was pretty strong, but that was fine for me since it was impactful.  Furthermore, the steak was also done a perfect medium-rare where it was tender and juicy.

Lastly, we had the Bone-In Rib-Eye with garlic and shallot confit.   This was a massive steak that was a little more rare than medium-rare.  As such, the meat was pretty juicy while being a touch chewier.  It tasted great with the aromatics provided by the confit though.  From the items we tried, most were quite good.  Naturally, being a tasting, they were probably on their A game, but as I've said before, chefs are only as good as they can be.  Therefore, Chop remains in my mind a decent option for steak if you didn't want to head into Downtown Vancouver.

*All food, beverages and gratuities were complimentary*

The Good:
- Decor is consistent with Downtown steakhouses
- On point steak
- Non-steak items were good too

The Bad:
- Not unlike other steakhouses, it is not a cheap night out (but beef is expensive ATM)
- Meat was tender for sure, but could've been even softer IMO      

Richmond Station

Of all the places we were planning to eat at while in TO, there was one high on the list - Richmond Station.  Co-owned by Top Chef winner Carl Heinrich, the place has great reviews and personal recommendations from friends.  The actual deal-breaker was not actually on the aforementioned reason.  Rather, it was that there were things on the menu our kids were interested in eating.  Yes, when traveling with kiddies, tasting menus and the such are not very practical.  "Dad!  I don't want to eat this foie gras...".

We were able to secure a reservation and enjoyed a private car ride courtesy of our stay at the Park Hyatt all the way to the restaurant (so that is how the rich live...).  To begin our meal, we went for one the kiddies would love in the Crispy Polenta Fries.  These were a hit since the contrast in textures was on point.  Super crunchy on the outside while soft and pillowy on the inside, these were well-seasoned and cheesy.  The truffled aioli was not super pungent which was good as it didn't overwhelm.  For the adults, we shared the Duck Liver Pate served on pretzel toast with apricot chutney and maldon.  Smooth, airy and creamy, the pate was well-seasoned with a balanced amount of duckiness, sweetness and cognac.  The maldon helped round out the flavours as well as the sweet chutney.  The only thing I would've liked to see was a crispier toast.

For my main, I had the Pan-Seared Skate Wing which was prepared as well as one could hope for.  It was buttery and soft while sporting a crispy exterior.  It was also properly seasoned while complimented beautifully by the tart and creamy Hollandaise.  Underneath, the aggressively crispy potatoes held up to the moisture while the squash rode the line between soft and firm.  Completing the plate was a salsa featuring red onion which was just pungent enough without being too sharp.  Viv also had fish in the featured dish being the Roasted Wild Spring Salmon.  This was also expertly prepared with crispy skin while flaky and moist.  It sat on a bed of sweet corn and bacon chowder graced with smaller pieces of crunchy potato.  For me, I love the pop of fresh corn and the saltiness of the bacon.  I would've liked to see the chowder even richer (but that is just me).  The crunch from the potatoes was a nice textural contrast to the rest of the dish.  On top, there was a celery salad and garlic scape.

For my son, it was all about the Stn. Burger with lettuce, beet chutney and aged cheddar on a milk bun accompanied by rosemary fries and dill pickle.  Since they grind their meat to order, we were able to get it medium-rare (yes my kids were taught to not eat anything well-done).  The result was an extremely juicy and meaty-tasting burger.  We thought the soft milk bun was the right texture to stand up to the moisture while not being too dense.  The sweetness of the beet chutney worked well with the pickled onions in our opinion.  My daughter ended up with the Scallop Capellini with red pepper rouille, fennel, bacon, parmigiano, cherry tomato and pea shoot salad.  Loved this pasta as it was fresh and sauced just enough with a tangy creaminess accented by salty fatty bacon and the crunch from the fennel.  The cherry tomato provided pops of tartness and the large amount of buttery scallops made this a fulfilling dish.  As you can ascertain, we enjoyed out meal at Richmond Station which was reasonably-priced to boot.

The Good:
- Solid eats
- Not skimpy on the portion size
- Attentive, yet relaxed service

The Bad:
- We liked the focused menu, but for some a little bit more variety might be preferred
- Food is not light, but we liked it