Lido Restaurant

Fresh off a visit to the newish AAA Restaurant in Richmond, it was evident that their pineapple bun does indeed give Lido Restaurant a run for its money.  Both are excellent and in fact, very similar.  There is a reason for that though.  The pastry chef at AAA used to work at Lido and the original recipe is being used at AAA.  With that being said, I'm convinced that they are not exactly alike though.  To confirm this suspicion, I enlisted the help of Tina (who can out eat me!) in a visit to Lido Restaurant.

So right off the bat, we went for the comparison with a couple orders of the Bo Loh Yau (Cantonese for Pineapple Bun with butter), even though I had plenty of food coming.  Just by appearance alone, the topping on the bun at Lido was smaller and slightly thinner, yet equally sweet and crispy.  Texturally, it was  tad softer, but that could've been that it was more warm too.  In general, they are both good and very similar.  As to which one I prefer, I'm going to disappoint you by saying that both are excellent and I would not have a problem with either.  Not a definitive answer, but it is really that close.

We didn't get out of there by just eating Bo Lo Yau, so we got 2 HK-style cafe classics in the Baked Spaghetti Bolognese and Baked Pork Chop Rice.  Although the spaghetti was overcooked and bordering on too soft, the meat sauce on top made up for it.  It was filled with tender nuggets of beef bathed in a flavourful and thick sauce.  The flavours were balanced with the sweetness being restrained.  As for the pork chop rice, the rice itself was also on the softer side.  Again, the tomato sauce came to the rescue being the right viscosity and having a noticeable, yet not overwhelming tang.  It was sweet enough, without being too much so.  The piece of pork chop was cut into pretty big pieces being tender and cooked just right.

Looking at the menu, we decided to try their Pork Spareribs Hot Pot Rice (that required 30 mins to prepare).  Since they cooked it the traditional way right in the clay pot, there was a rice crust that was nutty and not burnt.  However, the rest of the rice could've been even drier.  On top, the pieces of sparerib were meaty and tender.  They were well-seasoned and helped flavour the rice with a garlicky and soy saltiness.  Lastly, we got the 3-Item Meal consisting of Japanese-Style Sirloin, Japanese-Style Ox-Tail and Chicken Steak atop spaghetti and served with soup.  I guess the teriyaki-type sauce made this Japanese?  Whatever the case, the sirloin was super tender and nicely glazed.  The same could be said about the juicy chicken steak with rendered and crispy skin.  The ox-tail was sliced a bit too thin for our liking though.  Ultimately, the food we ate at AAA and Lido was decent, but it was all about the pineapple buns.  You really can't go wrong with either, so visit the one with a shorter lineup. 

*Food paid for Tourism Richmond*

The Good:
- Tied for best pineapple bun in the city
- Large portions
- Flavourful sauces

The Bad:
- Rice and noodles were overdone
- Service okay, but not particularly engaging 

AAA Restaurant

Growing up, Chinese pastries and baked goods were a staple in my household.  I have had my fair share of BBQ Pork Buns, Pineapple Buns, Egg Tarts and Cocktail Buns for breakfast and the random snack.  There have been many debates over who produces the best baked Chinese goods in the GVRD, but up until recently, there was almost a consensus for the best Pineapple Bun - Lido in Richmond.  Served warm from the oven with a slice of cold butter stuffed in the middle, the pineapple buns at Lido are drool-worthy.  However, AAA Restaurant on Alexandra Road has been offering up worthy competition with their pineapple buns straight from their oven.  We decided to drop by to see if this was really the case.

Without any delay, let's get right to the main event - the Pineapple Bun with a slice of cold butter.  Immediately, it was clear that the topping was the best thing about the bun.  It was crispy, light and appealingly sweet and buttery.  I would say this was more substantial than Lido.  However, the bun itself was more yeasty and chewy.  This was served semi-warm, so this might've had something to do with it.  I wonder if a fresh-out-of-oven bun would've been more soft and fluffy.  For an upcharge, the bun was part of the breakfast Combo A which included Sausage and Eggs (actually a hot dog wiener as usual).  I found the eggs to be fluffy in some parts with rubbery edges.  The wiener was a wiener, but the design at one end was interesting (looked like a banana from Mario Kart).

The second part of the combo was an enormous bowl of Ham & Macaroni in soup.  The soup was fairly mild, but the generous amount of ham added enough salt content to flavour the whole dish.  The only negative part of the bowl was the macaroni as it was certainly past al dente.  On the other hand, it wasn't mushy either.  Continuing on the soupy theme, we got a Hong-Kong Style Congee as well.  Consisting of the classic ingredients of pig stomach, pig skin and squid, this was a hearty concoction.  The broth itself was fairly thick but not overly smooth nor broken down.  It was more home-style in terms of texture and taste.  Mind you, there was enough seasoning for impact (unlike the home-made version). 

On the side, we chose the Daikon Radish Cake (Lo Bak Goh) which was nicely fried up with a caramelized sear on the outside.  Texturally, it was on the denser and powdery side, yet it wasn't a deal-breaker.  Beyond the crispy and aromatic exterior, the daikon cake needed more seasoning and/or Chinese cured sausage.  Mind you, with some hot sauce, none of this would matter. Lastly, we had the Wonton Lo Mein that featured chewy noodles that were on point.  The small wonton were also quite good being a combination of a whole small shrimp (that had a nice sweet snap) and moist pork.  Pineapple bun withstanding, AAA Restaurant serves as a capable cha chang teng (HK-style cafe) and offers up decent eats at a reasonable price.

*Food paid for by Tourism Richmond*

The Good:
- Worthy competition to Lido in terms of the pineapple bun
- Inexpensive
- Decent eats

The Bad:
- Fills up quick and then the lineup starts
- Service is not particularly attentive

Nonna's Table Cafe & Pizzeria

If I had to pick an era where I really identified with the music, I'd choose the 90's.  That is when I was really into it where I bought a gazillion CDs (yah, that was then...) and partied to the tunes.  So when I got tickets to the Earth, Wind and Fire with Chicago concert (yes this was awhile ago), it was a stretch.  Viv and I weren't even born when these bands formed!  Well on the bright side, we were a good 15 to 20 years younger than the majority of the crowd at Rogers Arena!  Prior to that, we ended up grabbing some dinner at Nonna's Table Cafe & Pizzeria with Lana Banana.

Seeing how this was going to be a carb-fest, we started with the Meatballs featuring Campagna Farm-raised beef, pomodoro sauce, arugula and grana padano served with grilled focaccia. These tender and moist meatballs were mildly spiced while doused in a tangy and fresh-tasting sauce.  There was a certain pepperiness to the meatballs that were accented by a different type of pepperiness from the arugula.  For our pizza, we ended up ordering the Funghi Misti with roasted mushrooms, bocconcini and shaved grana padano and fresh panna.  The crust was firmly crunchy from the edge to the middle.  I found it more "cracker-like" than the classic chewy and blistered type of crust.  It was well-seasoned while the large amount of buttery mushrooms added plenty of Earthiness.  The aggressive drizzle of balsamic reduction made everything a bit too sweet.

We decided to share 2 pastas including the Spaghetti alla Carbonara and Spaghetti alla Vongole.  If we purely looked at how the carbonara tasted, it was on point and a winner.  There was a plethora of nicely rendered bacon and shaved grana padano which afforded a rich saltiness.  Furthermore, the pasta was al dente and properly salted.  However, the egg had cooked through creating unappetizing clumps.  We found the vongole much better executed with the same al dente spaghetti dressed in olive oil, plenty of garlic, chili flakes, white wine and fresh clams.  There was a background brininess that was complimented by the heat of the chili flakes and garlic.  Overall, we found the food decent for a reasonable-price.  Nonna's may not be my first choice, but it is definitely fine for a casual meal.

The Good:
- Decent eats
- Super spacious (not sure if that is good or not in terms of atmosphere)
- Reasonably-priced

The Bad:
- Things were a touch greasy
- Carbonara was not executed properly 

Hugo's Restaurant

You can say what you want about Groupon (and there is a lot to say), but there have been adventures (food and non-food) that I would've never considered if there wasn't a deal.  Call it a "comfort zone" liberator of sorts.  This was definitely the case when we had to drive all the way out to the Horseshoe Bay for dinner one night.  I bought a coupon for Hugo's Restaurant not knowing where it was exactly located.  After driving down a narrow and sometimes treacherous road, we ended up at a little quaint lodge-type spot right along the water.

This would probably the last place to find Asian-inspired comfort food, but alas, that was the bulk of the menu.  Hence, the Wonton Nachos with sriracha aioli, pickled ginger, nori, white cheddar and wasabi guacamole definitely fit the theme.  I would say this dish in theory was solid, but it wasn't executed properly.  The darn thing wasn't hot where the generous amount of shredded cheese had not melted.  On the positive side, the wonton chips were airy and crunchy.  Loved the blend of flavours as it really worked.  Wished we had more nori as the umaminess was impactful.  Also served luke warm was the Mac 'n Cheese that was made with a bechamel sauce.  We found the noodles to be on point, but the flavours were definitely muted.  It was neither sharp or salty enough.  On the other hand, it was creamy and there was a good amount of melted cheese on top.

Continuing the theme of food that was served cold was the Gochujang Wings.  This was actually quite good but the fact it was not hot meant the flavours were not activated.  Surprisingly, the temperature did not compromise the firm crispiness of the exterior of the wings.  We found the gochujang hit to be on the sweeter side, but still impactful nonetheless.  The method of baking them first and then deep-frying created a unique and appealing texture.  Finally, we got something that was served hot in the Peking Express Pizza with BBQ duck, hoisin and roasted garlic.  This in theory sounded great and in fact, it was not bad.  The crust was fairly thin, yet only crispy and charred mostly on the edges.  There was a generous amount of melted cheese on top with only a spattering of duck (which was a bit dry).  Due to this, the pizza tasted mostly of cheese and hoisin.  This could've been more impactful if there was more duck.

Saving the best for last, we had to wait quite a while for the Beef Burger.  It was worth it though as the toasted brioche bun was really good.  It stood up well to the meaty 6 oz fresh beef patty that tasted completely natural except for some salt and pepper.  The cheddar cheese was nicely melted and the fresh tomato and mesclun greens provided some moisture (as the meat was pretty lean).  Topping it off was some mild sriracha mayo.  Now that was good, but the side of fresh cut fries were amazing.  Medium-sized and long, the fries were crunchy and light with considerable potato texture inside.  One of the better ones I've had in a while.  Now with that in mind, that was probably because they were served piping hot.  The same couldn't be said about most of the other dishes.  There is definitely potential here, but the kitchen has to be more efficient and organized.

The Good:
- Some interesting ingredients
- Friendly owner
- Those fries!

The Bad:
- Strangely, more than half of our dishes were cold
- Food too awhile