Yuan's Shanghai Serendipity Cuisine

If you haven't already noticed, the cost of dining out at a Chinese restaurant has gone up considerably in the last decade.  What was once an affordable way to dine has now entered the "fine dining" level.  Even cheap neighbourhood dives are becoming a thing of the past as those generally exist out in the burbs.  When Yuan's Shanghai Serendipity Cuisine opened a few years ago, I heard that it was expensive and overpriced.  If we fast forward to the present, it doesn't look all that unreasonable anymore since many other spots in Richmond are in the same price point.  I've been to their sister restaurant (Z&Y) before, so it was about time I actually ate at their original location.

We gathered up the family including the grandparents for a nice Shanghainese Dim Sum lunch.  Starting things off, we got right down to business with the Xiao Long Bao.  We only went for one order since we had quite a few items on deck already.  Turns out that we should've ordered more despite this as they were pretty good.  At first glance, the skin didn't look very thin, but it ate well being al dente while still tender.  Bursting with soup, the meat filling was tender with a bounce.  It was meaty in flavour with a hint of ginger (but could've used more xiaoshing wine).  Naturally, the soup tasted similar with a pleasant sweetness where the salt level was conservative.  Sporting an equally bouncy meat filling, the Pan-Fried Pork Buns were somewhat juicy.  I enjoyed the relatively thin exterior bun since many other versions are too thick and doughy.  

Arriving in a beautiful dark reddish brown hue, the Hot & Sour Soup was fairly spicy.  It wasn't as if it was painful heat, but it definitely got more pronounced as I ate it.  There was more heat than tanginess while the base broth had depth and exhibited a certain savouriness.  There was an adequate amount of ingredients including the usual wood ear mushroom, carrots, tofu, julienned pork, shrimp and egg.  I would've liked to see a bit more shrimp though as not everyone got one in their bowl.  Looking rather spicy, but in reality it really wasn't, the Wontons in Garlic Chili Sauce were not bad.  As pictured, the tender and bouncy pork filling was encased in a super thin wonton wrapper.  They were delicate and almost juicy while bathed in plenty of chili oil.  Personally I could've used more savouriness and even more heat.

Although the Smoked Duck appeared to be dry and chewy, it was actually wasn't.  I found the skin fairly well-rendered and crispy with only a few fatty portions.  Both the dark and breast meat were moist.  There was definitely some smokiness, but it wasn't as strong as I would've liked.  On the other hand, the meat was salty enough that it was far from bland.  The accompanying buns were fairly soft and were natural compliments to the flavourful duck.  We considered the Wok-Fried Rice Cake to be a dish that was both good and bad.  Exhibiting plenty of wok heat, the flavours were caramelized and the rice cakes were nicely seared.  However, the veggies were completely obliterated.  They were beyond mushy and oil-logged.  It would've been better than they stir-fried them separately and combined them at the end of the wok-frying. 

We also go one of my parent's favourite dishes in the Shredded Chicken and Mung Bean Noodle Salad.  For the picture, there was a mini-noodle pull because it was completely covered by a generous helping of peanut sauce.  This was quite textbook with chewy noodles, tender chicken and crunchy julienned cucumber.  As mentioned, there was enough sweet and salty peanut sauce to coat everything (and I mean everything).  As for my son, he loves Chee Fan (Sticky Rice Wrap with dried pork floss) mostly because of the salty donut.  This featured a thin layer of sticky rice that was not dried out nor too soft.  There was a crispy, albeit dense, donut in the middle with dried pork floss and pickled mustard greens.  Not a complicated dish, but this was done right and they didn't skimp on the ingredients.

Our last dish was one of the best-tasting - Pork Ribs with Black Vinegar Sauce.  It sported a classic sweet tanginess with the depth of black vinegar.  It was well-balanced and highly addictive.  The ribs were tender enough with a meaty chewiness.  However, the batter on the outside was a bit too thick.  Despite this, it was still crunchy.  Overall, the food was more than acceptable at Yuan's and frankly, I do not understand all of the bad reviews.  Yes, it is on the pricier side, but it isn't any more than Shanghai River and the sort.  Also, please do not compare this to smaller spots like Chen's or Shanghai Morning since they are in a different class of restaurant.  It's like comparing Bishop's to White Spot (he did have a curry on the menu before though... LOL).

The Good:
- Fairly solid eats
- Nice dining space
- Decent service

The Bad:
- As mentioned, on the pricier side
- That parking lot sucks goat nads...

Shun Feng Seafood Restaurant

A few posts ago, I remarked how I wanted to tackle the last few Dim Sum spots that I haven't been to in Richmond.  Strangely, there was one right in front of my face and I chose to ignore it.  Shun Feng Seafood Restaurant, located in Parker Place Mall, has been there in various iterations since the mall opened.  Originally, it was the 2nd location of Floata and yes, I went for Dim Sum there eons ago.  Newly renovated and completely different, we decided that Shun Feng would be the next place we would tackled on our Richmond Dim Sum Adventures.

At first, I was wondering why the heck they were charging almost $10.00 for the Lo Mei Gai (Sticky Rice wrapped in lotus leaves).  When it arrived, it made much more sense as it was enormous, reminiscent of the past where there was one large lo mei gai rather than the typical 3 mini-versions we find today.  One scoop into the middle revealed a large dried scallop atop a considerable amount of pork, mushrooms and salted egg yolk.  This resulted in an impactful mixture that was meaty, briny and full of umaminess.  My son was really happy with the BBQ Pork Pineapple Bun as it was texturally on point.  The sugary topping was crispy and didn't disintegrate while the bun was soft and fluffy beyond the crunchy exterior.  Inside, the pork was fatty and tender being sauced by a sweet glaze.

We ended up with 2 types of the rice noodle rolls including the Shrimp & Asparagus Rice Noodle Roll as well as the Donut Minced Fish Rice Noodle Roll.  For the shrimp roll, there were 4 smaller portions that featured whole medium-sized shrimp.  We thought the entire roll was on point with soft and buttery sheets of noodle that had slight elasticity.  The shrimp were cold-water crunchy while retaining a meatiness.  Although there was a side of sweetened soy, the shrimp were seasoned enough to stand on their own.  As for the larger donut roll, it featured a considerable amount of minced fish mousse in the centre.  We thought it was a little too dense.  Other than that, the noodle was just as good as the shrimp roll and the donut was lightly crisp.

Sporting cute swan head crackers, the Deep Fried Taro Dumplings were stuffed with a tender and saucy ground pork filling.  It was mixed with a Portuguese sauce (the Macao version) that was heavy on the coconut milk and light on the curry.  As such, the flavours were more subtle and in some sense not very impactful.  But that was fine in our minds as the robust nature of the dumpling with a smooth taro mash and crispy exterior didn't need a overwhelming filling.  As for the swan heads, the cracker was actually not tasty, more for decor only.  Stuffed with smoked salmon and shrimp encased in seaweed then fried with tempura batter, the Seaweed Rolls were polarizing.  I thought they were interesting with a light crunch that gave way to a meaty centre that was smoky and salty.  Viv remarked it was too fishy and dense.

Fairly large in size, the Ha Gau (Steamed Shrimp Dumplings) were pretty good.  The dumplings featured a medium-thick skin that had a good initial chew.  There was elasticity but at the same time was too dense nor doughy.  Inside, the filling consisted of shrimp mousse mixed with pieces of shrimp.  It was nicely seasoned with the aroma of sesame oil definitely coming through as well as a pronounced sweetness.  Texturally, there was an appealing bounce that was buttery and moist.  Topped with a whole piece of shrimp, the Siu Mai (Pork & Shrimp Dumplings) was equally tasty.  Much like everything else, the shrimp had a nice rebound and was not overdone.  Underneath, the pork had the desired bounciness that was juicy and well-seasoned, yet we could still taste the natural meat flavours.

Large and plump, the Phoenix Talons (Steamed Chicken Feet) were nearly flawless.  Often, we get scrawny over-fried feet, but this was still full of fat and cartilage underneath the buttery skin.  Furthermore, both components were neither under or overdone resulting in a tender texture.  I found the sauce to be quite balanced with sweet, savoury and slightly spicy elements.  Packed to the brim, the Steamed Pork Spareribs were also good.  In addition to the usual black beans and garlic, they incorporated preserved vegetable.  So we got typical flavours associated with this dish (which were impactful), but also the tangy and umami hits from the preserved veggie.  It was definitely different and tasty.  The spareribs themselves were meaty and bouncy while not overly fatty.

Last but not least, we had the Steamed Beef Meatballs with Watercress. Medium in size, but also beautifully executed, these were texturally on point.  There was a certain meatiness that was tender and of course bouncy.  The meat wasn't too dense, not too fluffy.  It was rather mild in flavour with a balanced amount of cilantro and green onion.  This and most of the other dishes, except for the seaweed rolls were pretty solid.  We thought the pricing was fair considering all of the other competition nearby and also the food quality.  Interestingly, the service was a bit hit and miss, but overall decent.  Maybe we had low expectations going in, but Shun Feng did surprise us and it slots in just fine with the rest of the Dim Sum joints in Richmond.

The Good:
- Solid eats
- Nicely renovated dining room
- Fair portion size

The Bad:
- Service was hit and miss
- On the pricier side, but comparable to other spots

Centro

Redevelopment.  That is the reality in Vancouver as precious pockets of land and storefronts are transformed into multi-level housing.  This led to the closing of Pronto on Cambie Street and the subsequent opening of Centro on Denman (until that also is redeveloped?).   We recently visited the place for dinner with Elaine and Costanza.  Upon entering, we were greeted with "Bino's-eque" 1970's decor that pays homage to the original building (where a Bank of BC used to reside).

Since we didn't ask them to course out our food, things came fast and furious.  We had to dig into the Wild Boar Pancetta-Wrapped Prawns quickly due to lack of space on the table (they did add another one to give us more room though).  These were baked and served with gremolata.  Meaty while retaining a firm snap, the briny prawns were amped by the salty and cooked-down pancetta.  I didn't notice much of the gremolata though.  Served with spicy pomodoro, the Calamari Fitto was well-executed.  Although the pieces were small, they were not dried out.  There was an appealing chewiness underneath a razor-thin batter that was crispy and well-salted.  The spicy sauce on the side really added a kick.

After that, a bunch of pastas arrived including the Spaghetti with mushrooms and veal cheek ragu.  This was a substantial portion of al dente spaghetti with a generous amount of ingredients.  Since it was piping hot and full of sauce, the longer it sat, the more soft the pasta got.  I was fortunate enough to sample some right away and it was very "mushroomy" with only intermittent hits of tender veal.  The sauce itself was quite mild and completely dominated by the mushrooms.  I personally love the taste of mushrooms, but for others, it was not balanced.  Another daily feature was the Capellini Nero with clams, mussels, calamari, tomatoes and plenty of garlic.  I thought this was pretty tasty with hits of brininess accentuated by plethora of roasted garlic.  Hence, there was a robust flavour that was blessed with strong umaminess.  The thin pasta was still relatively al dente while the seafood was on point.

We also selected one pasta from the regular menu in the Linguine Prawns Picante with capers, roma tomatoes, Calabrian chili, EVOO, lemon and fresh herbs.  This was the favourite of the table since it had plenty of punch from the chilis.  There was balanced combination of acidity, sweetness, saltiness and spice without going over the top.  Of all the pastas, the linguine was the most al dente (even as it sat for awhile since there was no "sauce", just EVOO).  The large prawns were also done right having a meaty snap and being properly seasoned.  Another daily feature was the Duck, Gorgonzola and Pear Flatbread.  This featured a soft crust that was only a bit crispy on the edges.  The wealth of ingredients on top helped soften it up.  On the other hand, the generous toppings ensured there was plenty of punch too with the sharpness of the gorgonzola paired with the muted sweetness of the pear.  The large slices of duck breast ranged from tender to a bit chewy.

Yet another daily feature was the Pork Belly with apple puree and roasted onions.  This was a pleasant with a meaty piece of roasted pork belly.  The fat had been rendered enough where there was a meatiness to the pork belly that was natural-tasting with the roasted aroma really coming through.  I found the apple puree to be lightly sweet but not really all that impactful.  This was probably the weakest dish that we had for the meal.  We also got a Caprese Salad to balance out our meal, but then I went ahead and substituted in burrata for $5.00 more.  They didn't hold back as the fresh campari tomatoes were coated in a good amount of burrata.  It was fresh, creamy and really made the salad.  The usual fresh basil, EVOO, arugula and balsamic reduction added the classic flavours, but we wished there was more vinegar.

The Good:
- Well-portioned
- Friendly service
- Solid eats

The Bad:
- Seating and tables are tight
- Smaller dishes were not as strong as the bigger ones

Crowbar

With a clever name that does capture the spirit of the place, Crowbar is in fact, a bar.  However, there is much more than balanced tasty cocktails to be found here.   Beyond the beverages we find a one-man show in the kitchen, Chef Justin Ell.  One could call him the mad scientist of chefs due to his background, but also the risks he takes with his creations. I've been waiting to try the place out, yet I needed some adventurous dining mates as there is offal on the menu.  I ultimately did find these people in Maggi, Kristina, David and Hanson.

Upon perusing the menu, there was no doubt we would be tackling the $60.00 tasting...  in addition to 2 orders of their off-menu burger!  More on that later, as we began with the house-baked Farro Honey Bread with shallot oil and black vinegar.  So this was just bread, but oh was it tasty bread.  Beyond the chewy and firmly crunchy exterior, the bread was soft and fluffy with a muted sweetness.  Aromatic and impactful, the shallot oil was beautifully married with the robust sweet and tangy vinegar.  Addictive to say the least.  I could dip my shoe into that and eat it.  Not particularly pleasant to the eyes, the Roasted Beets with cuttlefish ink and guajillo ate much better than it appeared. Tender and sweet, the beets were also smoky and lightly earthy.  Other flavours that were present included tang, saltiness and spice.  These were evenly layered with different tastes as we chewed.

We were each presented with bowl of Smoked and Braised Pork Tendon in hot and sour broth with confit potatoes and celtuce.  As much as the description of hot and sour often elicits thoughts of strong flavours, this was actually a very delicate dish.  As such, the broth was only light tangy and barely sweet.  Tendons were perfectly tender retaining a bite while the relatively firm potatoes were a nice counterbalance.  Nice touch to add the celtuce on top at the last minute as they retained their crunch and brightness where some of them cooked slightly in the broth.  Sporting stunning ingredients, the Heirloom Tomato Salad featured cannellini beans, wild boar nduja, Domenica Fiore olive oil, burrata and herbs.  I'm normally not a huge fan of tomato salads, but this was flavourful enough to win me over.  The tomatoes were sweet and juicy while dressed with peppery floral oil accented by acidity and spice.  Creaminess from the burrata and depth from the beans made this "meaty".

I was really looking forward to the Milk Braised Beef Tongue because if you didn't know by now, I love tongue!  This tongue here was seared and accompanied by gigande beans and turnip greens in a beef fat vinaigrette.  I've made beef tongue at home on my occasions and really, it isn't difficult to prepare.  However, to make it more interesting than merely braising it and then searing it can be challenge.  Pairing it with earthy sharp greens coated in a creamy and tangy dressing made the dish even more rich.  I guess the greens was the light part of the concoction?   Oh and the large beans were tender with a minor firmness.  Delicious.  Our made-to-order Dealer's Choice Pasta consisted of Cheese Tajarin.  As expected, the pasta was extremely eggy while retaining an appealing chew.  It was delicate, but completely cheesy with a yummy saltiness.  Super impactful while being refined at the same time.

Onto some serious meat action, we were presented with the Smoked Bone-In 18 oz. Pork Belly glazed in Korean hyssop and squid ink.  The large pork belly was definitely smoky, but the sauce was not our favourite.  It was sweet with a slight tang, but due to the richness of the pork belly, it could've used more acidity.  As for the belly itself, the meat was tender and melted-in-my-mouth while the fat was gelatinized.  Probably the best part was the meat attached to the bone as it was tender and full-flavoured.  Okay, behold!  Look at the Whole Roast Duck!  This gigantic thing was dark soy-brined and aged so the meat was succulent and well-seasoned.  It was tender, but at the same time, had a meaty chewiness to it.  As you can clearly see, the skin was beautifully roasted and rendered.  It was crispy and super tasty.  On the menu, it is $120.00 alone, but my word, it is worth it!

On the side, the duck included Duck Heart Sticky Rice (or a form of Lo Mei Gai).  For those who are familiar with Chinese cuisine, certain roast ducks are often stuffed with sticky rice and offal.  So this was a natural accompaniment in my opinion.  I found the rice a little on the wetter side, but it was still appealingly sticky.  Of course the little nuggets of duck heart were a nice treat as they were tender and not overdone.  Remember when I mentioned their off-menu burger?  It isn't some ordinary one as it is a 67-Day Aged Burger with taleggio and beef fat mayo on house-made challah bun.  Funky with a "blue cheese" sharpness, the meat was lean and fairly firm.  There was enough inherent flavour that the burger didn't need much else.  However, the mayo and cheese did contribute more richness and nuttiness.  The toast challah bun was soft with a touch of crispiness.

Onto dessert, the creative use of offal didn't end there because we were served the Blood Almond Nougat with whipped sea salt espresso.  Other than the colour (which looked like chocolate anyways), I really couldn't tell the nougat had blood in it.  There was just enough sweetness to go with the firmly crunchy nuts and the chewy nougat.  The airy whip was creamy with a light coffee taste that was elevated a bit by the salt.  Our last dish was the Caramelized Rice Panna Cotta with Sylvia's lavender, olive oil, cashew, roasted melon and herbs.  This was creamy and light with a buttery finish.  Due to the ingredients, there was a nutty sweetness as well as a bitter and spiced finish.  Geez, why did it take me this long to dine at Crowbar?  The creativeness and originality from the chef are already great reasons to dine here.  However, add in some killer dishes and tasty cocktails, it is a must-try in Vancity.

The Good:
- Inventive
- Some dishes were completely off-the-hook
- Balanced cocktails

The Bad:
- Be patient, food comes out as fast as the one-man show can pump it out
- Not exactly cheap (but worth it IMO)
- Limited seating

Crabro Restaurant

It seems that there is usually a select few restaurants that get all the coverage on social media while others exist with barely a mention.   Let's be frank here, many of the newer restaurants are well-known due to the immense social media exposure created by large group events.  I'm not being critical here, it is merely an observation and really, can you blame anyone?  Business is business, they are out to make money.  However, some independent joints get lost in the shuffle since they either have not clued into social media and/or do not have the budget to do any big promotions.  Crabro out on Edmonds seems to fit into that category as they've been around for a year with barely a whimper.

We headed out there to check it out randomly one day.  With a fairly limited menu, we decided to give the Cumin Lamb a try.  Although it was decently spicy with the unmistakable hit of earthy cumin, we felt they could've amped the flavours even more so.  The lamb itself was sliced a bit too thick which meant it was not exactly super tender.  Lastly, there was more veggies then lamb itself.  Conclusion - this dish was a miss.  Okay, the main event here is the choice of wet or dry hot pot with choice of seafood.  We went for the whole Crab Dry Hot Pot with added ingredients of lotus root, rice cake, pork belly, enoki mushrooms and cauliflower in medium spice.  This was not cheap at $29.99 for the crab and another $22.00 for the ingredients.  It was pretty tasty though with a noticeable spice that wasn't overwhelming.  Everything exhibited the right textures while the crab was fresh and not overdone.  It was a one-clawed crab though (there was a small regenerating claw).

To complete our meal, we got Steamed Oysters with Garlic and Steamed Scallops with Garlic.  They ended up serving us 3 oysters instead of the 2 that we originally ordered because they deemed them "too small".  That was very honest of them and I applaud them for that.  Much like the crab, the oysters were fresh and buttery.  They were a bit underdone, but I didn't mind that.  It was topped with vermicelli and a tonne of garlic as well as some red chilis.  The scallops were equally fresh and cooked just right.  They were soft with an appealing chew while being sweet and topped with the same condiments.   For a small restaurant like this, I was rather impressed at the quality and execution of these 2 dishes since they were better than some higher end restaurants in town.

For dessert, there was a slight confusion as we actually wanted coconut juice, but was served Coconut Jelly instead.  It was served inside a real coconut and cost us $12.00.  We lived with their error and it turned out to be really good.  It was lightly sweet and aromatic being delicate in texture.  There was plenty of it and after we were done, the fresh coconut meat on the side was a treat.  In general, most of the food at Crabro was pretty solid and tasty.  Seafood was on point, but the pricing was a little high with all things considered.

The Good:
- Fresh and well-prepared seafood
- Unique food experience
- Although not particularly attentive, service was friendly

The Bad:
- See above, service was somewhat aloof
- Pricey