Coquette Brasserie

So as many of you might know (if you read this blog regularly), we were in France last year.  I don't believe that we have dined on French food since then (at least from what I can remember).  So I was quite excited to try Coquette Brasserie where Gramercy Grill used to be located.  Met up with Steph for this one and we were greeted to a truly French experience with French staff and true brasserie-like feel, except with more space.  After going over the menu, we went ham with the dishes.

We started with the Tartare de Bison with gribiche sauce and egg yolk jam.  We also found some pickled shallots on top and caperberries.  Despite being lean, the bison was fairly buttery and tender.  I found the seasoning a bit weak, so the shallots and caperberries had to do the heavy lifting in terms of acidity and saltiness.  The side of crostinis were light, airy and crispy.  They were the perfect compliment to the tartare.

Next, we had La Jambon Persillé with cornichons, grainy mustard and toasted baguette.  Upon digging into the terrine, it resembled more of a ham hock rillette rather than a terrine.  No matter though as it ate quite well with a meatiness that was also tender and full-flavoured.  The tanginess of the pickles and mustard went a long way into keeping things bright and balanced.  Wished there was more baguette, but I'm sure you could ask for more.

However, we didn't need to ask for more bread because we ordered La Corbeille de Pain featuring bread from Bad Dog Bakery with foie gras butter.  The best small plate we had was the Tartelette à L’échalotes.  To me, it looked and ate more like an onion tart, but it really didn't matter as the tart was caramelized, sweet and aromatic.  Despite being broken, the tart shell was nicely textured being soft and firm at the same time.  On the side we found a frisée salad and goat cheese.

Despite it being categorized as a main course, we got the Moules Frites as another appetizer.  This consisted of 1lb of PEI mussels in a marinière sauce.  All the mussels were open and cooked just right maintaining a briny butteriness.  As for the sauce, there was only a bit of it on the bottom of the pot.  It was aromatic and sweet with the brininess of mussel nectar.  The side of frites were thin but and mostly crispy.

The best main dish we had was Le Canard sporting a confit leg, pomme purée, beets and whole grainy mustard & orange sauce.  The duck leg itself was fall-apart tender with crispy rendered skin.  The meat itself was only salty enough, so that the sweet and tangy sauce was able to compliment.  Buttery and smooth, the pomme purée was great with the shreds of duck meat while the beets added a sweet earthiness.

When we were deciding what to order, there was no hesitation to add Le Burger to the list.  Turns out it was a good decision as the Wagyu beef patty was moist and juicy (well, actually fatty, but tasty!).  It had a good sear and was dressed in a caramelized onion jam. gruyère, burger sauce and arugula.  As a whole, the burger was delicious where the bun was toasted properly and things go messy.  This had savoury, sweet and umaminess.

Our last main dish was the Steak Frites sporting 6oz flat iron prepared medium rare.  In general, the steak was good being tender with a nice char on the outside.  It was could've been salted a bit more though.  It came with the same frites and a side salad.  I liked the fact that the steak was medium rare by default.  For me personally, that is the way to go with moist steaks.  Since the steak was well-rested, there was no pools of steak juice leaking onto the plate.

Onto dessert, we didn't mess around and ordered all of them!  The Tarte Tartin was pretty good with a flaky and buttery crust.  Inside, the apple was tender and sweet with some background tang.   Nice caramelization throughout.  It came with buttermilk ice cream and drizzles of salted caramel.  The Crème Brûlée was one of the best versions we've had in quite some time.  It was a fairly large portion served in a shallow oval ramekin.  The custard was creamy and light while being semi-sweet and aromatic from the vanilla.  On top, the sugar was evenly torched creating a smoky and sweet crunch.  Delicious.

The other 2 desserts were the Mousse au Chocolat and Panna Cotta aux Fruits de la Passion.  These were also solid with the mousse having some body, yet still light and airy.  It was purposefully sweet with background chocolate bitterness.  As for the panna cotta, it was on the firmer side but not heavy.  Naturally, it was refreshing with fruitiness and tangy sweetness.  Overall, we thought the meal at Coquette was good with some highlights.  It did remind me of my time in Paris last year down to the ambiance and the "Frenchness" of the place.

The Good:

- Above average

- Nice ambiance

- Authentic experience

The Bad:

- Definite highlights, but some other dishes were just okay

Moltaqa Moroccan

Trying to hit up the last few restaurants on the Michelin guide for Vancouver, it has brought me to Moltaqa Moroccan.  This has actually been on my radar for quite some time even before it became Michelin-recommended.  However, it is the same thing over and over again - too many places to eat at and so little time.  We made it a point to go there since we actually do like Moroccan cuisine, in particular a lamb or chicken tagine.

So before those tagines, we had went for their Moroccan Hummus and bread.  This was an extremely smooth and creamy hummus with the strong nuttiness of sesame seeds that were on top.  I got a bit of the garlic, yet was wanting more lemon.  Even the squeeze of the lemon wedge wasn't enough.  Maybe I like things more acidic, so the hummus overall was very good.  The side of Moroccan bread was fantastic.  A bit crispy on the outside and plenty fluffy inside, it was perfect for mopping up the hummus.

Our next small plate was the Duck Pastilla.  Oh my, this was absolutely mind-blowingly delicious.  Beyond the flaky and crispy phyllo casing, the ample amount of duck inside was moist and well-spiced.  There was definitely the sweetness of the onions while the powdered sugar made this almost a quasi-dessert.  But it all worked well with the combination of savoury and sweet.  Loved the almonds too as it added texture and nuttiness.

Continuing with the same protein, we had the Flambe Duck with cherie sauce.  The flambe was served tableside and that was pretty cool.  However, this dish was not only for show, it was also super delicious.  The skin of the duck breast was blackened with Moroccan spices and hence had rich fall flavours cinammon and cloves.  The duck itself was moist and tender while complimented perfectly by the sweet and tart sauce.  The side of roasted root vegetables were prepared nicely.

Finally, here we are with the tagines!  The first was the Lemon & Olive Halal Chicken Tagine with saffron.  This was truly an aromatic dish with the saffron coming through.  The chicken itself was super tender and moist with the salty brininess of the olives and the tangy lemon being quite evident with each bite.  There was also the earthiness of the turmeric as well.  With olives and thinly sliced lemon at our disposal, we could make each bite even more flavourful.  We had rice as our side dish for this tagine.

For me it was all about the Tagine of Lamb with saffron prunes and almond.  This was delicious where the lamb fell off the bone and was at its fatty best.  The meat had the gelatinous fattiness that I was looking for.  Due to the lamb being more robust than the chicken, the saffron was much more muted, but still present.  There was a certain sweetness to go with the rich Moroccan spices.  I had the side of cous cous with chickpeas with this.

We had a few cocktails to go with our meal in the Moroccan Cherie Sour and La Bel Aicha (we were also served some olives at the outset of the meal).  I found the sour to be quite nice and appetizing with the classic fall flavours of Moroccan spice paired with bourbon and white cherries.  A bit of sweetness to go with that tang.  As for the other cocktail, it was floral and refreshing with some ginger notes.  Overall, we quite enjoyed our meal at Moltaqa.  The portions were generous and the flavours were exotic.  Considering its Yaletown location and the deliciousness of the food, the prices were fair too.  Will come back.

The Good:
- Impactful exotic spices
- Generous portions
- Reasonably-priced

The Bad:
- Maybe a few repetitive spices, but I didn't mind

Silom Thai Cuisine

As much as it isn't hard to find a Thai restaurant in the Lower Mainland, it is truly difficult to find a good one.  I've had better luck doing so in Portland, Oregon than here.  So it really did pique my interest when a small Thai spot opened up on Knight near Kingsway.  Silom Thai only sports 6 or 7 tables, but it features a menu that features a surprisingly diverse array of dishes.  Some of which I've never seen on any other menu locally.  Of course I made resos to try the place out ASAP.  Thank goodness that I did because they were fully-booked, on a weekday!

We were only able to snag a small table for 2, but that didn't stop us from going ham on the menu.  We started with the Yum Pork Roll with salted egg.  This was literally cha lua sliced into quarters and tossed in a fermented fish sauce, spicy & sour sauce, shallots, green onion, cilantro, chili flakes and salted duck egg yolks.  This was indeed yummy since the seasoning was all the good things about SE Asia.  We had a combination of tanginess, spiciness, sweetness, herbaceousness and also saltiness.  The pork roll was merely a textural component of the dish.

At first, when I spotted the Crispy Enoki Mushrooms on the menu, it made me nervous.  I thought back to the version I had at Miso Taco and remembered how greasy they were.  Well, turns out that at Silom Thai, they know how to deep fry them perfectly.  Still delicate and retaining their unmistakable chewy texture, the enoki were coated with a crispy and non-greasy batter.  So delightful to eat them with the sweet chili sauce.

To get a taste of more items, we also ordered the Silom Platter with Green Papaya Salad, Grilled Chicken Wings, Grilled Pork Jowl and Deep Fried Pork Balls.  The best thing on the plate was the pork jowl since it was doing its bouncy textural thing while being nicely charred.  The wings were good too being juicy and well-spiced  I was on the fence with the pork balls.  They were nicely textured with a bounce and being crispy outside, but it wasn't as interesting.  The papaya salad was crunchy, bright and tangy.

I always compare Pad Si Ew to my favourite in town being Sen Pad Thai.  This one here at Silom was pretty close.  I think the wok hei (or wok's breath) was sufficient enough to caramelize the flavours and add a sear to the mung bean noodles.  They were chewy and had a nice elasticity.  The dish was fairly well-seasoned but could've used just a bit more saltiness.  We decided on chicken as the protein and it was a bit dry.  Gai lan was vibrant and crunchy.

Naturally, we also had to try the Pad Thai and this version was made with glass noodles (more mung bean).  We opted to make this vegetarian with tofu.  I'm not sure if having such big slices of fried tofu was the best choice here.  I would've liked smaller pieces instead.  As for the noodle, it had great mouth-feel with a bouncy chewiness.  Seasoning was a bit sweet, yet there was enough tanginess from the tamarind to balance.  There was the slightest of spice too.

Now if this Green Curry Crispy Chicken looks good in the picture, imagine eating it.  This was absolutely fantastic with a crunchy piece of fried chicken.  The meat was moist and when dunked into the curry, there was a flavour explosion.  It was lightly creamy while definitely spicy.  However, we could still pick out the aromatics of the coconut milk and the slight brininess of the green curry.

Last dish was the Tom Yum Dry Noodle with ground pork, deep fried wontons, green onion, cilantro and beansprouts.  Of all the dishes, I felt this was least successful.  I do think that the individual components were good including the chewy noodles and the tangy tom yum sauce.  I think there needed to be more sauce since the pork and beansprouts watered down the flavours.  Those wontons were excellent with a crispy dumpling skin and juicy flavourful filling.  Overall, the food at Silom Thai is very good where they put care into preparing the food.  This is a definite return visit for me as I'd like to try some of the other dishes on the menu.

The Good:
- Well-prepared eats
- Impactful flavours
- Inexpensive

The Bad:
- Really small place, not many seats and they are not spacious

New Fuji

From the same group that has brought us great restaurants such as Kingyo, Suika and Raisu, we now have another in New Fuji on 1st Ave in Kits steps away from one of my favourite restaurants, AnnaLena.   The menu here is quite extensive with grilled meats, battera sushi, udon and desserts.  Jess and I decided to come here for lunch so we could take advantage of their Gozen menu.  These combos feature 4 items with an udon, battera sushi, salad and karaage from $30.00 and up.

As such, we got the Uni Kamameshi Gozen with the Uni Eel Kamameshi, Uni & Scallop Miso Cream Udon, Sashimi Salad and 2 kinds of Karaage (Chicken and Corn).  Originally, the rice had a lid on it and we were instructed to mix in the uni and ikura (and chopped shiso and wasabi stems) when the hourglass timer was up.  That we did and the results were fabulous.  The chewy and flavour-infused rice was mixed with generous amounts of buttery eel, king oyster mushrooms, bamboo shoots, uni kombu broth and kansai dashi.  There was a wealth of flavours and textures.  Truly a luxurious rice that was well-worth the price (this gozen was $50.00).  The udon was quite good too with a creamy and sweet broth with a considerable uni flavour.  Sashimi salad was fresh and full of fish while the karaage was solid.  The chicken was juicy with a crispy exterior.  It was well-seasoned too.  Corn was sweet with pops from the niblets.

We couldn't just have that right?  Staying with eel, we had the Fluffy "Rare" Unagi Omelette.  As you can see, there was still quite a bit of moisture in the bowl, but the result was buttery soft eggs blessed with the sweetness of unagi and unagi sauce.  This was a study about soft textures and no, it didn't need any textural contrasting component because the mouth-feel from the eggs was what this was all about.

Another textural-focused dish was the Cheese Tofu that was super creamy and of course cheesy.  This was topped with figs and syrup that made it taste more like a dessert (like a soft cheesecake).  This was spread onto crunchy crostinis and it was super addictive.  The sweetness of the syrup only helped enhance the cheesiness while the crunch from the crostinis added that textura contrast (yes, unlike the last dish).

I always like to order Ebi Mayo whenever I see it on a menu (even when I shouldn't).  Well, it was a good decision this time around as each ebi was quite large and also fried beautifully crispy.  The ebi itself was meaty with a bounce texture.  It was aggressively dressed with a ginger & scallion chili mayo that was creamy and a bit heavy.  However, the brightness from the ginger and scallion did balance that out to a degree.

The other Gozen lunch specials featured battera sushi, so we were having serious fomo and decided to order the full Bluefin Negitoro Battera and half each of the Aburi Salmon and Wagyu Yukhoe Battera.  I found the sushi rice to be chewy, but quite loose.  So when we picked each piece up, it was hard to keep its shape.  In terms of toppings, the bluefin was buttery soft and sweet.  The flavours in this was quite complex due to the addition of apples, shiso, kelp, shiso chimichurii, sweetened soy, scallion ginger sauce and fresh green onions.  Lots of sweetness, umaminess and brightness.  The aburi salmon was buttery soft too with some bright yuzu koshu mayo, sweetened soy, ikura and chives.  The wagyu was beefy and also soft with crispy rice cracker bits, onion, apples, shiso chimichurri, sweetened soy, crushed garlic chips and soy.  So there was texture and also sweetness and aromatics to go around.

We decided on two desserts being the Ichigo Cake Daifuku and Tiramisu Parfait alle Fragole.  For the daifuku, it was good with a fresh strawberry (amazingly during these months) atop a layer of sweet red bean and thin sponge cake.  Then the whole thing was topped with mascarpone sauce and wrapped in mochi.  This was about sweetness and the chewy texture of the mochi.  Quite good and not as heavy as it sounds.  For the tiramisu, it featured a base of cocoa cookie crumbles topped with tart strawberry sauce and sliced strawberries.  From there, it was more traditional tiramisu with sweet mascarpone cream and cocoa powder.  I quite liked this as it was a lot lighter than having espresso-soaked ladyfingers.  Very refreshing, lightly sweet and full of texture due to the cookie crumbles.  In the end, we really enjoyed our meal at New Fuji. It is obvious there has been plenty of thought put into each dish with some sporting many components to create both flavours and textures.  Sure, it a bit pricey, but worth it in my opinion.

The Good:

- Lots of textures and flavours from a multitude of components

- Things are fresh

- Attentive service

The Bad:

- On the pricier side

The Grey Olive

For some reason or another, I haven't been paying much attention to The Grey Olive for the past few years.  After the initial hype, I just stopped going.  It wasn't because the food wasn't good.  I've always enjoyed their solid execution of breakfast and lunch items.  I do believe one of the reasons I stopped going was the lack of seats.  However, that has been rectified as they have taken over the space next to them that used to be an insurance agency (as you can see in the picture because I didn't take a new one).  So it was with great pleasure that we waltzed in and got seated immediately.

We had to get their G.O. Breaky Sandwich with crispy cheese, scrambled egg, black truffle aioli and bacon (can choose sausage or smoked tofu too) on a toasted brioche bun.  Solid sammie with crispy and meaty bacon.  The egg was fluffy and not overdone while the crispy cheese was nutty and indeed texturally awesome.  The bun was soft and held everything together.  There was just enough aioli in there without being too strong.

Now I'm not doing my Fried Chicken Sammie quest anymore, but just had to get the one here.  It was a good decision as the fried chicken thigh was juicy and tender.  The batter on the outside was crunchy and stayed as such even with all the sauce on it.  Now the sauce wasn't exactly super spicy (add $1.00 for that), but it did have a slight kick.  It came with the usual compliments such as crunchy slaw and pickles.  It was also served on brioche and I would say this was pretty solid.  Fries were crispy too.

Moving back to breakfast, we had the Crab Cake Benny with hashbrowns.  The deep fried crab cakes were actually quite good with a crispy exterior and fluffy interior.  The poached eggs were perfectly runny while the Hollandaise was actually not overly heavy.  It was still silky though and had all of its buttery goodness.  A bit more tang would've been perfect.  The side of hashbrowns were super crispy and just somewhat greasy.

Although the French Toast was not really a dessert, we treated it as such.  It featured egg & milk soaked baguette which had a custardy bread pudding like consistency.  That was perfect in our opinion.  It came with whipped cream, butter and syrup.  Overall, The Grey Olive lived up to its past history, but now with more seats!  I don't have many complaints now!  I guess I'll be back more often.

The Good:

- More seats!

- Solid breakfast

- Pricing is reasonable for what you get

The Bad:

- Service was friendly, but a bit hard to get anyone's attention at times

Cantonese BBQ

There are some pretty good choices for Chinese BBQ within Greater Vancouver.  Naturally, the first thought that comes to mind is HK BBQ Master or the one across from it at Parker Place.  However, there is a another in Vancouver that could be spoken in the same breath.  It is Cantonese BBQ on Kingsway near Joyce.  I've been here countless times and finally got to eat in (rather than merely taking out, things are fresher when eating in of course).  We ended up with one of their lobster dinners that included some other dishes.

Naturally, we started with some of their famed BBQ including the Roast Pork and BBQ Duck.  As you can see in the picture, both looked pretty legit.  I've had these before but first time dine-in and yes there was a difference.  The duck skin was low in fat (must be the breed of duck) and whatever fat there was, it was rendered.  Hence it was crispy and delicious.  The duck meat was moist and well-brined as well.  As for the roast pork, it featured crispy and light crackling with juicy pork.  Very good.

So they have a couple of Lobster specials and we picked the one that included 2 Lobsters on Sticky Rice.  These were pretty small lobsters, but there was enough meat to go around.  Lobster was cooked right and it was coated in a flavourful starch-thickened sauce.  Might've needed a bit more of it since the sticky rice underneath was a bit bland and dry.  Overall, it was decent, but the one at Ho Yuen Kee is superior.

For our 3 dishes, the best of the bunch was the Peking Pork Chops.  Just on appearance alone, the sauce looked on point, especially with just enough of it to coat each piece.  Despite the sauce, each pork chop still had some crispiness on the outside while the meat itself was juicy and tender with a rebound texture.  As for the sauce, it was nicely balanced with sweetness and tanginess.  I feel this is one of the better versions I've had lately.

Since my son loves beef brisket, we decided to go for the Beef Brisket and Daikon Hot Pot.  This ended up to be pretty brothy, but we didn't mind.  Some places tend to thicken the sauce a bit more.  The pieces of brisket, which was more like beef rib finger meat, was tender and full-flavoured from the stewing.  Since the daikon was cooked separately and then added to the hot pot, it didn't take on as much flavour, but better than being too salty.

Being a bit boring, we got some veggies into our meal with the Yau Choy in consommé. This was merely whole stalks of yau choy cooked in broth with some ginger and fried whole garlic cloves.  As you can imagine, this was quite light in flavour and unless we actually ate one of the garlic cloves, it was almost undetectable.  The point of the dish is to be more "ching" or clean.  The yau choy was cooked properly maintaining a light crunch.  I won't add the pictures of my takeout orders in the past, but I can say that the BBQ Pork is just "okay" here.  The marinade doesn't penetrate the meat enough, hence it relies heavily on the dextrose glaze for impact.  I went for half-fat, half-lean and it was still not completely juicy.  Stick with the BBQ Duck here, it is one of the best in town.  In terms of dining in, the food is above average and of course you get to eat the BBQ at its optimal state.  Be aware that they are very busy and the seating is very tight.  Also, the BBQ Duck usually sells out before dinner time, so either come earlier or reserve one.

The Good:

- Excellent BBQ Duck

- Roast pork is good too

- Other dishes are above average

The Bad:

- Very busy, things sell out and seating is tight

- Horrible parking lot

Ju Contempory Cuisine (New Menu)

The original menu at Ju when it first opened was quite ambitious due to the many options of canapes, appetizers, entrees and desserts.  Although most of the dishes were delicious, there was a lack of focus.  Now hitting its stride, they have streamlined the menu so that it prominently features a tasting menu for $88.00 (which is a steal).  To compliment this, there are a select few a la carte dishes available.  This post will feature the other dishes we had in addition to the tasting menu (featured in the previous blog post).

One of the most interesting items was the Teriyaki Chicken.  Yes really.  It was an oven-roasted chicken leg that was super tender and juicy.  The teriyaki was quite balanced with sweet, savoury and tanginess.  To compliment this, there was a mildly spice serrano aioli.  To provide a bit more acidity and bite, we had some pickled ginger.  Lastly, some katsuobushi (or bonito flakes) provided the usual combination of salty umaminess.

Something a bit more conventional but with a twist, we had the Gochujang Yook Hwei.  This was essentially a beef tartare but with the quintessential Korean condiment in the sweet & spicy gochujang.  The CAB was soft and tender while the use of gochujang showed restraint.  That ensured that the meat flavours were still present and the subtle sweetness of the Asian pear was noticeable.  The seaweed on the side served as a vessel for the beef.  However, I would've personally liked some tapioca chips for more crunch.

Looking like merely a slaw of some sort, the Creamy Green was actually quite good.  Sure, it wasn't anything complex or super amazing, but at the same time, very welcomed.  Something so fresh, crunchy and light acted like a palate cleanser and also made us feel just a bit healthier.  It was comprised of shredded cabbage and field greens dressed in a creamy coconut dressing.  Naturally, it was aromatic and sweet, but there was a balancing tanginess as well. 

Trying to stay with the Korean influence on the menu, the Miso Jjajang-Myun was their take on the classic dish.  Rather than a black bean sauce, we found a fermented soybean, which gave similar salty richness, but in a more subtle manner.  Naturally, this dish would be incomplete without the onion and they were sweet and well, oniony.  There was also tender zucchini, cabbage and mushrooms which added both texture and a bit of extra earthy sweetness.  Noodles were perfectly al dente.

Off to another noodle, the Vongole Kal-Guksu was another interpretation of the Korean dish.  I very much enjoyed this as the knife cut noodles had so much bite and rebound.  Very nice mouth feel and chew.  The ample clams afforded sweetness and a bit of brininess.  The addition of garlic and shallots upped the aromatics and overall flavour profile.  Some zucchini provided soft textures and just a tiniest bit of bitterness.  So unassuming, but delicious.

For reference only, I will refer to a previous time I visited Ju and talk about another item that is still currently on the menu.  It is the Poached Oyster with roasted garlic mushroom espuma, rosemary oil and togarashi crunch.  This is particularly great for people who don't eat raw oysters.  However, it was poached just enough, so that all of the butteriness and brininess was still present.  It was not obscured since the espuma was subtle.  Loved the crunch on top.

They also have an array of unique cocktails including the Rose-Merry, Maple Cinnamon, Snowy Battle Field and Rice Punch.  Despite my love for fruity drinks, my favourite of the bunch was the Maple Cinnamon with its milky "eggnog" like vibes.  Just sweet enough and Fall-tasting.  With the rosemary being torched, there was some definite woodsy aroma going around.  But then, the actual cocktail was fruity with pomegranate and vodka.  The Rice Punch had some vodka and sik-hye (which is a sweet rice drink), hence this was lightly sweet and plenty nutty from the rice.  Lastly, the Snowy Battle Field consisted of Calpico, gin, vodka and red wine.  This looked quite Halloween-like, but was went down easy due to the addition of sweet and tangy Calpico.  There is one more item on the menu that I didn't feature, which is the Galbi.  However, it is in the tasting menu, so you can refer to it in the previous post.  I would say that these items were good, but the tasting menu is still the best bet.  You get all of the highlights and it is only $88.00.

*All food and beverages were complimentary for this blog post*

The Good:

- Overall tasty

- Reasonably-priced

- Unique cocktails

The Bad:

- Theses dishes can supplement your meal, but the highlight is the tasting menu

- Noodles may need more colour