Elephant

I've been a fan of Chef Justin Lee (known as Justin Ell as well) since his days at Crowbar.  His eclectic and sometimes vegetable-forward food is heavily influenced by creating flavours by employing fermentation, aging and rendered animal fats.  He had a brief stint at Superflux and then moved into some fancy digs at Miantiao in the Shangri-La.  However, I've always found his food to be accessible with little fuss.  Hence, it was completely out-of-its-natural-element in Downtown.  I was truly pleased to see him head the compact restaurant, Elephant, steps away from another favourite of mine - Straight & Marrow.  It is almost like the prodigal son has returned home.  Now sporting a well-deserved status of being a Michelin-Recommended restaurant, it was a matter of time I had to visit the place.

Beyond the "must-have" Cabbage Bolognese, the Omakase menu is the thing to get here.  You can actually ensure you get the aforementioned dish if you add a supplement.  To start our meal we has some snacks including the roasted Seiglinde Potato with tofu aged in cannellini miso, preserved beans, pickled onion and peanuts.  Essentially a fancy potato salad, this was packed with umami.  Beyond the firm, yet tender potatoes, there was a thick creaminess that had a nice mouth feel.  The crunch from the tangy beans as well as the acidic onions added texture and brightness.

We went from subtle umaminess to absolute flavour bomb with the Rutabaga with dangerous crab seasoning and peanuts.   The first thing to hit was the spice, then I got the aroma of the peanuts and then at the tail end, there was sweet brininess from the crab. Again, umami strikes again where flavours were not reliant on the usual ingredients.  The crunch of the rutabaga was appealing and appetizing.  I could've eaten a whole bowl of this.

Our last snack was the Roasted Radish with Southern Thai curry with fermented spot prawns.  We loved the burst of sweet juices from the turnips upon our first bites.  The curry was full of body and depth.  Once again, fermentation struck again where the richness of the curry was thanks to the excellent balance between spice, sweetness and aromatics.  Similar to the last dish, the brininess from the fermented spot prawns made this curry.

Onto another genius creation by Chef Justin was the Cloudy 2 Kinds of Turnip Soup.  Although there was no dairy in this, it was so rich and creamy thanks to the aged pork fat.  The collagen from the pork fat created a nice silky viscosity as well as offering a meatiness to compliment the sweetness and earthiness of the turnips.  I found the aroma to be intoxicating with every sip as my nose was in direct line with the warm vapours.

On the topic of using animal fats to bring out textures and flavours, we had the Chicories & Daikon with tarragon, apple, walnut and roast beef dressing.  One bite and it was rather obvious we weren't not dealing with olive oil.  The creaminess and fattiness of the dressing was full of body and bite.  It was nicely balanced by the equal parts of acidity and sweetness.  Lots of crunch from the ingredients and hidden underneath, delicious juicy roast nuggets of daikon.

Other than the rutabaga, our favourite dish was the Kohlrabi with smoked pig's head and egg.  This featured tender slices of kohlrabi that still maintained a bite.  The smokiness from the meat was definitely there as well as the creamy fattiness that had been rendered.  Again, full of umami and further amped by the ample amount of clothbound aged cheddar.  With just enough fresh cracked pepper, there was a little bit of cacio e pepe vibes in this dish.

Moving onto the Risotto, it was made with cabbage and potato as well as super aged 5-year toma.  This was expertly prepared where the rice was cooked through while still being chewy.  Furthermore, the risotto spread on the plate evenly.  It was plenty cheesy and rich, but the cabbage did provide interludes of juicy vegetableness.  Now with the aged toma, it was nutty, a bit salty and plenty sharp.  Loved this dish.

For dessert, we were served Preserved and Fermented Peaches with milk and topped with olive oil.  This was whipped and served much like a Melona bar.  Hence it was creamy, sweet and tang with the a "semi-freddo" form of texture.  This was a nice little bite to end a very Chef Justin meal.  His methods of creating flavour are thoughtful and creative.  The food is where it belongs - in a small restaurant on the East Side where it is both accessible and delicious.  Bravo.

The Good:
- One word: Umami
- Well-priced
- No fuss

The Bad:
- Limited space, so make a reso or you will be out-of-luck
- Be patient, it is a one man show in the kitchen, however, Chef Justin Lee is very efficient

Ramen Bella

Sigh, another year, another birthday...  I am indeed getting old...  Well, the positive part of it is all of the birthday dinners!  One of them is with Jacqueline, because her birthday is literally 2 days after mine.  We originally, planned to hit up Matsuzushi for their good value Omakase, but I had no luck calling to make a reservation as they do not answer their phone nor clear their mailbox.  I gave up after 5 days and resorted to heading there when they opened to see if I could score a table.  Well nope and really, they had no really good excuses for the frustrating way to make a reservation there.  So we decided to drive a bit further and just do something simple in Ramen Bella in Poco.

Gosh, the place is so hidden in a corner next to Michael's, we initially thought we were in the wrong parking lot.  We eventually found it and sat down in one of their 5 available tables.  We started with the Chicken Karaage and it was quite good.  We found 5 large pieces of fried chicken thigh that were juicy and tender.  There was enough seasoning with the chicken and the batter than we really did not need to dip it into the sauce.

Jacqueline went for the Double Pork Ramen with spicy miso chicken broth, pork chashu, ground pork, green onion, garlic flakes, nori flakes and half ajitama egg.  We found the broth quite creamy, but not overly thick.  There was the definite fermented flavour of miso and a decent amount of spice.  This was satisfying due to the amount of pork involved.  Although the egg was perfectly custardy in the middle, it was not marinated enough and had no flavour.

For myself, I had the Shoyu Black Ramen with firm noodle, soy sauce based chicken broth, chopped pork, 3 slices of pork chashu, black garlic oil, mushroom, green onions, garlic flakes, sushi nori, spinach, ajitama egg and corn.  Again, the broth was creamy and full of depth.  I liked how it wasn't too salty.  The chashu was fatty and melted in my mouth.  Loved the amount of black garlic oil as some places don't give you enough.  I found the noodles not as firm as I would've personally liked, but they weren't soft either.  Again, the egg was a disappointment as it has no flavour whatsoever.  

For good measure, I added the Tonkatsu Set that included rice, miso soup, sesame dressing, cabbage salad and tonkatsu sauce.  This was a pretty good value at $17.50 as it included 2 pretty decently-sized pork cutlets.  I found the panko coating to be crispy without being greasy.  The pork was a bit over-marinated as it lost some of the natural pork texture.  With that being said, it was still good.  Overall, we thought the food at Ramen Bella to be good especially since the Tri-Cities isn't known for great ramen spots.

The Good:
- Chicken broth is silky and full of umami
- Fair portions
- Nice people

The Bad:
- Ajitama egg prepared well, but not marinated enough

Kumo Sukiyaki

Remember Posh?   It was the only AYCE sukiyaki spot (with several locations) in the Lower Mainland.  I didn't mind the place and in fact, was a very good value.  Was it truly authentic?  Well, let's not dwell on that because Vancouver is not exactly teeming with authentic Japanese food in general.  Now there is a new spot in Richmond where Toyotomi used to be (and a rice noodle place more recently).  It is rumoured this new restaurant, Kumo Sukiyaki, is run by the same people behind Shin Ka Gyuu.  Yes, there is some controversy over their business practices, but without actual experience on my part, I'm going to stay out of that and concentrate on the food and service.

So the AYCE is available in 3 levels (weekday/weekend) - Silver ($30.99/$32.99), Gold ($54.99/$56.99) and Black ($76.99/$78.99).  Silver gives you 3 meat options, Gold adds 2 Wagyu choices while Black adds 2 more Wagyu items as well as one slice of A5.  Unlike Chinese hot pot, Sukiyaki involves very little liquid in the hot cast iron pan/pot.  There is a mix of soy, sugar, sake and water.  There is a "setup service fee" of $17.99 (good if you have a big group, but not so much with 2 people), so consider this like paying for your broth at Chinese hot pot places.  It really should only be $5.00pp in my opinion.  Traditionally, we only see beef and pork options, but I've seen other meats included sometimes.  After quickly cooking the meat, dipping it into raw egg is the way to finish the sukiyaki experience.

We ended up with the Gold series menu that included the 3 meats in the Silver series menu (Pork Belly, Angus Beef Short Plate, AAA Boneless Chuck Flap) and 2 Wagyu choices (Wagyu Beef Striploin, Wagyu Beef Short Plate).  I thought the 2 extra Wagyu meats were well-worth it in my opinion.  We thought the Wagyu Beef Striploin was fantastic being meaty yet super tender.  With that being said, I can see most people being happy with the 3 Silver series menu choices as well.  They were also fatty enough and tender. 

There was also a small selection of Veggies that included cabbage, winter melon, crown daisy, tofu, shiitake, enoki, oyster mushroom, shimeji, radish, carrot and yam noodles.  They also have fish tofu, beef balls and sprouts on the menu, but they didn't include it in our bowl even though we asked for everything.  Furthermore, rice, udon and glass noodles are also included, but we didn't order any but the glass noodles (which we also didn't receive).

There was also some appies including Ebi Mayo, Takoyaki, Kimchi, Tako Wasabi and Seaweed Salad.  On the menu, 2 items were blanked out and I really thought a few more options would've been nice.  As for the things we did have, the tempura shrimp were decent but a bit greasy.  Takoyaki was a little shriveled but still decent.  Even though the tako wasabi was cooked, it was tasty and nicely textured.  The seaweed salad was standard while the kimchi was on the tangier side.

Onto dessert, we were surprised to find Chocolate Mini-Ice Cream bars (from Costco) that were quite good.  There was also Mochi Ice Cream (not sure where the mochi was though) and Fresh Pineapple.  Also, they offer unlimited drinks for $5.00pp (pop, juices and yakult).  With all things considered, I thought the pricing was fair for what we got.  Meat quality was good and the service was friendly despite the place being super busy.  If you do the Silver series menu, I consider it a good value especially if you eat a lot.  The free parking in the lot above is also a bonus as the area is not known to have a lot of street parking. I do feel the setup fee for $17.99 is unnecessary though.

The Good:
- Good meat quality
- Good service despite being busy
- Reasonable pricing

The Bad:
- They really need checklist ordering system to reduce the errors and for better efficiency
- Set up fee of $17.99 is a bit steep
- Need better exhaust system, the place was getting rather humid

 

Bin 4 (Burnaby)

Ever since my first visit to Bin 4 in Victoria, I've become quite fond of their burgers.  Are they best I've had?  Well no, but they are still good and since they include sides and also a choice of dip, I believe they are a decent value.  Even more so after 9:00pm as they have their 50% off special as long as you order a drink of some sort.  Therefore, we've made it a regular spot on Monday nights after softball during Spring/Summer.  However, I've never gone with my family as the closest one is on Granville Street.  Now they have a new location in the former ABC/Ricky's in the Accent Inn on Boundary.  Well, I guess we just had to go right?

So other than some appies (that seem to reuse many of the ingredients in their burgers, which is smart), their menu is focused on burgers.  My son went for the Big Spenny with Brant Lake Wagyu, aged orange cheddar, smoked bacon, Bin 4 burger sauce and lettuce (he omitted the tomatoes and pickles).  He found the patty to be a bit well-done but still moist and very beefy tasting.  That thick-cut and lean bacon was impactful texturally as well as being smoky and salty.  For his dip, he went for the roasted garlic aioli which was aromatic and garlicky.

For myself, I had the Black & Blue featuring 63 Acres premium beef (I went for a 1/2lb patty), Bin 4 blackening spice, Emrite blue cheese, crispy onions, chipotle aioli, lettuce and tomato.  I found the patty a touch dry since it was cooked a bit too much.  The exterior was a bit crispy and there was good meat flavour though.  Since there was so much blue cheese, the whole burger was quite sharp.  For my dip, I went for the curry aioli, which is my personal favourite.

My dad went for something a bit more healthy in Off The Hook with seared rare sesame-crusted ahi tuna, crispy wonton strips, sriracha cilantro sauce, fresh cilantro, tapenade, chipotle aioli, lettuce, tomato and red onion.  As you can see, the tuna was prepared perfectly.  It was soft and delicate while the crispy wonton strips added crunch.  Not sure if the burger needed all those condiments though as the tapenade was a bit too salty.  He chose a side salad rather than fries.

Viv ordered the Italian Job with Fraser Valley free-run chicken breast, smoked bacon, bruschetta, fresh basil, balsamic reduction, roasted garlic aioli and lettuce.  This was quite good with all of the flavours making an impact.  The chicken itself was a bit thin, but not dry though.  The bacon was quite pronounced.  Would've liked even more balsamic.  She had the red onion rings and they were good.  Loved the crispy breading.  For her dip, she chose the chipotle aioli that did have a kick.

My daughter ended up with The Bistro with the same chicken breast, smoked bacon, double cream brie, balsamic onion jam, roasted garlic aioli, lettuce and tomato.  This was all about the bacon and onion jam where it was both salty and quite sweet.  Nice soft brioche keeping things light and airy.  I haven't mentioned the kennebec fries yet and well, they were okay.  Not as crispy as I've had before.  Chalk it up to a new location with new everything?  She went for the truffle aioli for her dip.  My mom ended up with the same thing, so nothing more to talk about here.  All-in-all, the meal was good and considering how expensive everything is these days, it was reasonably-priced.

The Good:
- Specializes in one thing and generally gets it right
- Side and dip included, so decent value
- Easy to get to and easy to park

The Bad:
- Fries were not as crispy as I would've liked

Max Noodle House

Boy, I haven't been back to Max Noodle in Richmond for over 10 years!  Good news is that they are still around and I had the chance to visit it again.  It used to be Mak's Noodle (at least the English name) which was related to the Hong Kong store in Central.  However, it is just Max Noodle now and at the very least, brings Mak's Noodle vibes to the Lower Mainland.  Portions are not large here, rather, they concentrate on quality and execution.  

Naturally, the thing to get is their Wonton Noodles, but I decided to add Siu Gau as well.  Siu Gau are bigger than wontons and have the addition of wood ear mushrooms.  I would like to point out that, although the bowl is smaller than most other wonton noodles in town, the amount of dumplings and noodles seem to be the same.  There is just less soup.  About that soup, it was flavourful with a nice briny saltiness and aroma.  The noodles were chewy with a snap, just perfect.  I found the wontons to be excellent with bouncy shrimp that were sweet with a bit of white pepper.  Siu Gau were equally good with the crunch of the wood ear.

We also got the Lo Mein with Shredded Pork in spicy brown sauce.  This is another classic and although I love the flavour, the amount of pork fat was a bit much.  Back to the taste, it was meaty and packed full of salty sweetness with a kick.  Noodles were chewy and dry where there was just enough moisture (and fat) with the meat to coat each strand.  For the strips of pork that wasn't fat, they were tender with the sauce completely soaking into it.

Something a bit more mild was the Sampan Congee (called seafood on the menu) with fresh squid, dried squid and pork skin.  I found the congee itself to be rather mild, but still adequately seasoned.  The viscosity was thick enough to coat a spoon without being clumpy.  It was smooth and silky where it benefitted for the slow cooking process.  There wasn't enough ingredients in my opinion so it lacked the usual body.  We got a side of Salty Donut and it was hot and crispy.  Inside, it was airy and light while the amount of salt was enough to flavour the dough.

We ordered the Deep Fried Bean Curd (Tofu) and it was also very good.  These silky tofu triangles were super crispy on the outside while still buttery smooth inside.  They were coated in spiced salt and although it was good, we wished there was more of it.  Served on the side was raw garlic vinegar dip, which added a sharp tanginess.  Overall, the food at Max Noodle was as good as I had remembered.  I think it is one of the best places for Wonton Noodles even though some people consider it too small of a portion.  I think it is enough and the quality is top-notch.

The Good:
- Excellent wonton noodles
- Focused menu
- That fried tofu is stealthily good

The Bad:
- Small portions for those who care
- Parking is typical Richmond small parking lot and tight spots

Riley's Fish & Steak

The Glowbal Group is often a very easy target for foodies and restaurant critics.  Often sporting the ritziest decor and a place to see or be seen, the food almost appears to be secondary.  To be fair, I've had some good meals at Glowbal Group restaurants and I'm not afraid to admit it.  I personally feel that many people consider it an embarrassment to say such a thing.  I will agree that for the price, there are many other choices in the city to choose from, so I do not deny that is the case when we talk about Glowbal, Coast, Black+Blue, Italian Kitchen and Trattoria.  I won't comment on Five Sails, as I've not been there since they took it over.  Recently, their newest venture, Riley's Fish & Steak, has earned a Michelin-Recommendation.  I can just see some people rolling their eyes right now.  However, I would like to judge this for myself and decided it would be the place where I would celebrate my birthday.

Originally, I had visions of a seafood tower in my mind, but ultimately ordered a selection of appies to get a better sense of the menu.  One of their recommendations is the Wagyu Beef Carpaccio and I would have to say it was quite good.  The thinly-sliced beef was buttery and soft while topped with smoked tomato jam, aioli, parmigiano reggiano, onion rings and chimichurri toast.  There was no shortage of seasoning for this dish due to the saltiness of the cheese and creaminess of the aioli.  The smoked tomato jam was something a bit different and although I was concerned about it being too strong, there was just enough of it to provide some sweet tanginess.

Featuring the same crispy onion rings, the Crab Louie sported a considerable amount of lump crab meat, baby gem lettuce, avocado, soft poached egg and tomatoes in a 1000 island dressing.  I also thought this was pretty solid where the lettuce was fresh and crisp.  There was just enough dressing coating each leaf where there was just the slightest hint of heat in the tangy sweet dressing.  As mentioned, there was enough fluffy crab for the entire salad.

Initially, I was not aware how big Riley's Brioche would be, so we didn't end up finishing it.  Now it wasn't because we didn't like it.  Rather, it was fantastic with a crunchy exterior giving way to a soft and buttery interior.  Even without touching the aromatic lobster oil and or whipped butter with smoked maldon salt, the brioche was super tasty on its own.  The butteriness combined with the garlic and gruyère made it aromatic with enough saltiness on its own.

We also got one of their Classic Steamers with half mussels and half clams (1.5lbs in total).  With the classic broth, it consisted of white wine, garlic, herbs and butter.  It was plenty flavourful (bordering on salty) with properly cooked-down wine.  This great for dipping with the chimichurri bread.  Both the mussels and clams were buttery and plump while not overcooked.  We did find 2 unopened clams though.

Other than the carpaccio, the other highlight with the appies was the Lumb Crab Cake with black pepper mayonnaise.  Often, I am rather dismayed with crab cakes with all forms of filler.  Not only does it reduce the amount of crab in the cake, the crab is overwhelmed by the ingredients.  Not here though.  This was all crab with a panko coating on the top and bottom.  Hence, it was fluffy and texturally consistent.  Also, we could really get the crab flavour and essence from the cake.  It was also nicely browned on both sides giving it a crispy nuttiness.

Moving along, our next appie was the Smoked Salmon & Caviar Potato Rosti with egg, chives and shallot crème fraîche.  I thought the rosti was a little greasy, even though I know it is not supposed to be a health food.  The exterior was definitely crispy and well-browned.  On top, the smoked salmon was appealing colour and buttery in texture.  The small dollops of sevruga caviar were a real briny treat (wish there was more, but I understand since it is expensive).

Last appie was the Seafood Chowder served in a sourdough bread bowl. I quite enjoyed this as the viscosity of the chowder was just right.  Definitely rich and thick enough while still able to be drinkable.  There was obvious hit of smoked bacon to go with the slight seafoodiness of the broth.  I could get the natural sweetness of the seafood and onions while the salt might've been a bit too aggressive.  Overall, it was a good chowder.

Onto the mains, we ended up with 3 cuts of steak including the 8oz Prime Beef Tenderloin ($64.00), 16oz Prime Beef Ribeye ($98.00) and 14oz Prime Beef Striploin ($64.00).  Now the reason I put the prices in parentheses is our favourite was not the most expensive.  We asked them all to be prepared medium-rare and they were prepared as such.  The most buttery tender was actually the striploin.  It was packed with flavour and required little chewing.  Nice crust on the outside and well-salted.  Second favourite was the ribeye because it was so delicious from all of the fat.  Lastly, the tenderloin was good and also well-seasoned, but by virtue of being the leanest, it had the least beefy flavour.  It was tender though.

Viv decided on the Sablefish marinated in miso maple. With all of their seafood entrees, they include a potato risotto, parsley puree and confit cherry tomatoes.  Not mentioned, but included on the plate was broccolini and arugula salad.  Although sablefish is very forgiving when it comes to preparation, this one was done perfectly.  It was flaky and buttery with a nice smoky and caramelized exterior.  The marinade had penetrated the entire piece of fish.

My daughter ordered her usual with the Chinook Salmon Steak.  Also known as King Salmon, this was super buttery and soft.  Not only was it cooked beautifully, it was super fresh with a clean taste.  As you can see in the picture, the skin was seared until it was crispy.  It was also properly seasoned.  As with Viv's dish, the same accompaniments were on the plate. Risotto featured cooked-through, yet still firm cubes of potato.  It was plenty creamy.  Broccolini was vibrant and crunchy.

My dad ended up with the Jumbo Scallops because I encouraged him not to order the same dish as my daughter...  Turned out to be a good idea because the 6 scallops were beautifully seared while still being a bit rare in the middle.  The result was tender buttery scallops that were well-seasoned and nicely caramelized.  Again, the plate as completed with the same accompaniments as well as some charred lemon.

Since our steaks needed some sides, we got 3 of them including Truffle Fries, Creamed Spinach and Crispy Brussels Sprouts.  I thought the fries were pretty typical, yet quite crispy with only the slightest hint of truffle oil.  It came with some tasty black pepper mayo.  The creamed spinach was sinfully prepared with Boursin, hence it was both creamy and flavourful.  Some feta on top made it even cheesier.  A Glowbal classic, the Brussels sprouts were indeed crispy and tender.  There was plenty of parm on top for a salty nuttiness while the side of chipotle mayo added spice.

Since I had a birthday cake sitting at home, we only ordered 2 for the table to share.  Not surprisingly, the kids didn't really share the Devil's Marquis featuring devil's food cake, caramel chocolate ganache, crispy chocolate crunch, dark chocolate crème and bittersweet chocolate mousse.  This was truly decadent and rich with so many layers of chocolate.  I was able to try this and there was a mix of textures and different sweetness of chocolate.

For myself, I'm always partial to fruity desserts and especially tangy ones.  Therefore, I only had eyes for the Lemon Tart with torched Italian meringue, raspberry cream, candied lemon zest and berries.  I really liked this as the crust was firm and crunchy.  Inside, the lemon curd was creamy and tangy while the lemon zest added a nice sweet bitterness.  I was a bit surprised at this because it was one of the better lemon tarts I've had lately.  In fact, the whole meal was unexpected because we uniformly thought it was good.  Yes, I'm going on record on say that dinner we had at Riley's was on point.  Proteins were prepared properly and the quality of the ingredients was plain to see.  You will be paying a pretty penny for it though, yet if you want to be spendy, it is definitely an option for your dollar (or many many dollars).

The Good:
- Proteins were prepared properly
- Overall, solid food
- Attentive service

The Bad:
- One of the most expensive restaurants in the city, even though it was good, lots of choices to be had at this price point
- Too bad the parking lot below (which is expensive as well) is not attached to the restaurant