CHOCHO Hot Pot

I am really late to the party when it comes to blogging about Chocho Hot Pot.  However, better late than never right?  One of the reasons it has taken me so long is the difficulty getting a reservation.  I finally remembered the day I needed to book in advance to get the date and time I wanted.  So you know, there is 2 hour free parking at the back as long as you register your car.  Situated in the old Earl's, there isn't very much space for the serve-yourself portion of the AYCE hot pot.  We got a front row seat as we were sitting adjacent to it.

Most of the items are at the self-serve bar, but you must order the Soup Base and Meats from the supplied tablet.  We ended up having a variety of broths including my half-Tomato and half-Tom Yum.  I thought the tomato was decent with enough impact I could taste the tanginess.  However, it could've been even more powerful in my opinion.  Reduce it a bit more perhaps?  The same could be said about the Tom Yum.  It was fragrant but I was missing the bold flavours such as lemongrass, galangal and kaffir lime.  It was quite muted.  However, the Pork Broth was quite good with meatiness and natural sweetness.  We also had the Sukiyaki, which was balanced in terms of saltiness and sweetness.

Onto the meats, we ordered all them including the Rib-Eye, Fatty Beef Slices, Flat Iron Beef, AAA Chuck Slices, Pork Belly, New Zealand Lamb and Chicken Thigh.  Other than the Flat Iron, the rest of the meats were disappointedly chewy.  No matter how we cooked it (just barely cooked or cooked for a long time), the beef just wasn't tender.  On the other hand, the pork belly was quite nice being meaty with just enough fat.  It did come out tender and buttery.  Lamb was also good with just the right amount of marbling.  Chicken was great too, being tenderized and cooked up nicely, no matter how long you left it in the pot.

Onto the self-serve Sauce Bar, we found a modest array of options that do the job for most people.  For some odd reason, our server provided us with the house blend sauce that wasn't everyone's preference.  We ended up going to get a second custom sauce for ourselves.  There were the usual things like soy, sriracha, vinegar, oyster sauce, garlic, cilantro, green onion, chilis, seafood sauce, satay sauce, sesame sauce, sesame oil, chive sauce and chili oil.  On the side, we found some kimchi, edamame and fruit.

Over at the buffet bar, we had 2 sections dedicated to Vegetables, Soy Products and Noodles.  These were well-stocked and kept orderly by the staff.  These included Cabbage, Tong Ho, Spinach, Napa Cabbage, Fried Bean Curd Roll, Rice Noodles, Quail's Egg, Woodear, Seaweed Knots, Raw Egg, Bamboo Shoots, Yam Noodles and Tomatoes.  Across from these options, we found Corn, Pumpkin, Shiitake, Broccoli, Enoki, Taro, Lotus Root, Bean Curd Skin, Wintermelon, Tofu, Frozen Tofu, Yam and Carrot.

Other than the Meats we ordered from our tablet, there was a selection available in the self-serve section.  These included Mussels, Black Beef Tripe, Beef Tripe, Fish Ball with Roe, Crab Stick, Spam, Pork Blood, Fish, Head-on Shrimp, White Shrimp, Fish Tofu, Cuttlefish Balls, Pork Balls and Beef Balls.  Most of the items were pretty typical with the fish being tenderized.  The tripe was pretty chewy and needed to be cooked for a long time to soften.

Adjacent to the raw stuff, there was a selection of Dim Sum including BBQ Pork Buns, Salted Egg Yolk Buns, Ha Gau and Siu Mai (they were steaming the Siu Mai, hence none in the picture).  I thought these were all pretty decent with the salted egg yolk buns being on point with a runny aromatic centre.  Next to it, we found Portuguese Tarts, Beef Tarts, Fried Shrimp & Pork Wontons, Fried Cheese Wontons, Fried Sesame Balls, Brown Sugar Rice Cake and Yogurt Twist.  Really enjoyed the egg tarts where the shell was buttery and flaky.

Right next to these fried items, we found a section mainly dedicated to Noodles.  They had an array of fresh multi-colured noodles, dried noodles, udon and steamed rice.  I particularly enjoyed the fresh noodles as they had a chewy texture (as long as you don't overcook them). Moving onto the desserts, we had a Candy Station with various gummies including Fuzzy Peach, Coke Bottles and Worms.  These were still soft and a nice bite after a filling meal.

Right across from the gummies, we found the builid-your-own Tasty Iced Jelly dessert station.  It had all of the beans, jelly and syrup to make a custom dessert.  Due to all of the syrups around, the floor was rather sticky in this area.  That was fine and dandy but the Soft-Serve Ice Cream Cone is what we were waiting for at the end of our meal.  It was great, soft and silky with a real sweet milky taste.  Great finish to a surprisingly average meal considering all of the great reviews.  I do think it is still a good value considering that it is related to Dolar Shop, but compared to another AYCE such as Liuyishou, I think it is unnecessary to spend the extra money.  The meats at Liuyishou are more tender in general and you get most of the same items for about $20.00 less per person.

The Good:

- Personal hot pots are great IMO

- Lots of choice

- Service was great

The Bad:

- Meats were generally not tender

- Self-serve stations are cramped (too bad given the existing layout from the previous restaurant)

Sip Song Thai

Normally, most Thai spots in town are moderately-priced.  There are some exceptions including the fine dining Baan Lao in Steveston and Michelin Bib-Gourmand Song on Broadway.  If we look a bit further back, Maenam was probably the first pricier Thai restaurant in Vancouver.  Similar to the elevation of Chinese cuisine in the Lower Mainland (and hence higher prices), this trend might be hitting Thai food as well.  We find a brand new spot tucked away on West 16th at Arbutus in Sip Song Thai.

Don't let its cozy appearance fool you, the prices are on the higher end here.  However, they also sport a more unique menu compared to all of the typical Thai restaurants in town.  An example of this was the Raw White Prawns with seafood sauce and birds eye chili.  These butterflied and properly deveined prawns were buttery and sweet.  With a piece of garlic and chili, that meant there was heat and some sharpness.  To balance this, we had some sweet and tangy sauce in the middle of the plate.

Next up, we had the Pomelo Salad which, in my mind, was possibly the best dish of the meal.  It featured an abundance of juicy pomelo that burst with a mild sweetness accented by appetizing sourness.  It was dressed with the classic combination of briny and salty fish sauce, bright and tangy lime juice, intensely sweet palm sugar and the slight spice from bird's eye chili.  To top it off literally and figuratively, we found beautifully prepared prawns that had a sweet snap.

Another solid dish was the Tom Yum Goong (small size pictured here).  If I had to compare with one of my favourite versions in town (at Song YVR), this was almost just as impactful.  There was a big hit of flavours that were layered starting with the tanginess of the lime, then aromatics from the lemongrass and then brininess of the fish sauce as well as a considerable kick from the chili.  Being the creamy version, this had some viscosity and balancing sweetness.

There aren't many spots in town that offer Boat Noodles (they have it at Silom Thai), but they do here.  There were many options on the menu and we settled from Boat Noodles with Beef Balls.  This rich broth (as you can see in the picture) consisted of soy sauce, pork neck bones and a bunch of herbs.  It had a definite star anise hit as well as the saltiness of the soy.  The soup had some fall flavours and deep sweetness.  Normally, there is pork blood in this, but I didn't notice any for this version.  Noodles were cooked perfectly al dente while the meatballs were bouncy and tender.  On the side, we found sprouts, basil and various condiments to help make the soup spicy.

We got a couple of smaller dishes in the Grilled Pork Jowl and the Deep Fried Lemongrass Wings.  Now this was the best version of pork jowl I've had in a Thai Restaurant.  More superior than Song YVR!  This exhibited beautiful smoky grill marks and intense caramelization.  The meat was super buttery and the side of sweet and tangy dip helped cut the fat.  As for the chicken wings, they were crispy with fairly rendered skin.  They were plump and super juicy.  With bursts of aromatic lemongrass as well as some saltiness and sweetness from the marinade, the wings weren't longing for flavour.

For our curry, we selected the Red Curry Chicken with Rice.  Oh this was a fabulous curry with plenty of spice and aromatics.  It was rich, but not overly thick, hence it was natural-tasting where I could get the sweetness from the palm sugar, spice from the chillis and creaminess from the coconut milk.  There was a wealth of tender dark meat chicken which made this a very fulfilling dish.  Even the rice was perfect where it was al dente and on the drier side.  Perfect for accepting the delicious curry.

Our last dish was an add on in the Stir Fried Mixed Vegetables.   We were eating away and figured that we needed veggies!  Well, it was a great choice as this was delicious!  The cabbage was cooked through, but still crunchy.  Seasoning was on point where it was full of umami (from the mushrooms and mushroom sauce), yet not salty.  Overall, the food is quite good at Sip Song Thai.  I appreciated that they didn't use too much palm sugar and things were nicely spiced.  It is good to see more authentic Thai restaurants in town that are also elevating things as well.

The Good:

- Not overly sweet

- Good spice level

- Cozy space

The Bad:

- On the pricier side

El Comal Downtown

The El Comal that I'm familiar with is the lunch spot tucked way in an industrial park along Winston Street in Burnaby.  I've been there before quite a long time ago.  Now we find their brand-spanking new location in Downtown on Hornby Street.  It has taken over the space Toloache used to occupy.  Fortunately, they are continuing the Sunday Mexican brunch with some of the same dishes we've seen before plus a few new ones.

Their brunch buffet starts around 10:30am on Sundays, but the restaurant opens at 10:00am.  The setup includes many different items including a drink station that features Hibiscus, Lemonade and Horchata.   My favourite of the bunch was the Hibiscus as it was not too sweet and had a mild tanginess.  It was went well with the food as it acted like a palate cleanser.  Same could be said about the Lemonade as it was light on the sugar and was refreshing.  I found the Horchata to be on the sweeter side with the usual aromatics.

Onto the food, there was the usual Rice and Refried Beans.  Nothing unusual here but the rice had a pleasing texture where it was fluffy but still had a bite.  It was nicely seasoned too.  As for the beans, they were pretty smooth and almost creamy.  The viscosity was perfect, where it spread on the plate, but was not watery.   Next chaffing tray over, we found the Rajas and Mexican-style Wild Mushrooms.  The Rajas consisted of poblano peppers and corn in a creamy sauce.  I actually enjoyed this with the rice.  The mushrooms were also good with its usual woodsiness. 

Right next to it, we found the Chilaquiles in both Rojo and Verdes.  Personally, I'm a bit indifferent with Chilaquiles as I prefer my tortilla chips super crispy and dipped into queso with chorizo.  But even with that bias, these were decent with some crunch left with the chips on top and at the sides.  I thought both sauces were good with the red having more depth and a touch of spice.  The green was much brighter and milder tasting.   We found some Mexican Eggs and Tamales next to this and both were good.  The eggs were cooked with some tomatoes and onions while remaining fairly fluffy.  This was actually the last dish to be placed in the chaffing tray (which helped it from being totally overdone).  As for the tamale, it was decently moist while filled with chicken.

One of the better chaffing trays was the one that held the Chicken Enmolades and Ribs.   These enchiladas were filled with tender chicken and topped with a sweet mole that had elements of bitterness, fall spices and nuttiness.  As for the ribs, they were tender but still retained a meaty firmness.  Hence the meat didn't fall-off-the-bone, yet was not stuck to the bone either.  There was a savouriness to them while the seasoning was sufficient with earthy notes.

The last set of chaffing trays contained all the meats including Pork Chicharron in Red Sauce, Beef Birria, Cochinita and Chorizo.  I've complained in the past about dry meats when it comes to Mexican food, but these were moist and well-seasoned.  Perfect for complimenting all the previous items or using them with the supplied tostadas and/or warm tortillas.  I thought the Beef Birria was super tender while mildly spiced.  Wished there was some birria broth for us to dip the tacos into though.  The chorizo was the moist flavourful with spice and meatiness.  Went well on the tostada with some queso.

Right next to the meats, we found all of the Condiments including salsa, limes, sliced radish, greens, queso fresco, sour cream, queso, tomatillo, macha, cream, onions and cilantro.  We also had some fresh tortilla chips and tostadas.  Right in the middle, there was a delicious Shrimp Ceviche as well.  Soft tortillas could be found on the opposite side in a warming cabinet.  There was a Chicken Sopa right next to it as well.

Onto desserts, there was a selection of fresh fruit, Dulce de Leche Cake, Flan, Concha, Rice Pudding, Granola and Yogurt.  This was a modest, yet varied amount of items that ranged from fruit, to mildly sweet to quite sweet.  So therefore, it suited all tastes and besides, a coffee went well with the sweets.  Overall, the Sunday Brunch at El Comal in Downtown has a good variety of food that fits many different tastes and dietary preferences.  For $34.99 per person, it isn't expensive yet neither it is cheap either.  I would say it is exactly the right price considering its Downtown location and selection of dishes.

 

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

 

The Good:

- Enough variety for most people

- Meats were tender, moist and flavourful

- Things were fresh

 

The Bad:

- A little cramped on the buffet line, but it moves

- Parking is very expensive in the neighbourhood (Pro Tip: Use the parkade in Cathedral Square)

Big Star Sandwich Co.

It has been some time since I've been back to Big Star Sandwich Co.  It was way back when their original location in New West when it first opened.  Despite enjoying their fully-loaded sammies, especially the ones filled with Hickory Sticks, I never actually made it back.  They are now up to 9 locations and their newest is on Broadway at Willow in Vancouver.  Perfectly situated for all the hospital staff and visitors!  Jackie and I made our way down there to check things out.

We ended up ordering a variety of sandwiches that featured different proteins.  Also, we had all 3 sizes including snack, regular and large (so that we can compare the difference).  For our first, we went for The OG (#4) in snack size.  This had roast beef, bacon, cheddar, hickory sticks (missing in this one for some reason), lettuce and tomato.  What you see here was the snack size and it was more than enough for small appetites.  If you were a bit more hungry, a regular would be the best choice.  A large might be hard to finish unless you were famished.

Next, we had the Corned Beef on Marble Rye (#12)  with Swiss and deli mustard.  This would be considered a regular-sized sandwich in comparison to the fresh rustic filone.  In terms of texture, the light rye was fluffy with some bite.  It was aromatic and slightly sweet.  Of course it was a great match for the corned beef and mustard.  Totally a classic deli sandwich done right.  Other than the tender slices of meaty corned beef, the bread made this sandwich.

Sandwiched in between the same fluffy marble rye, we found roast beef, cheddar, lettuce, pickles, onions & Mack Sauce, the Big Mack (#14) did live up to its namesake.  Look at the amount of stuff in this!  Try to open your mouth wide enough for a bite.  With the addition of Hickory Sticks, there was crunchy salty smokiness to go with the real roast beef and cheddar.  Loved the soft bread as it helped accentuate the other textures.

Something along the same lines, we found the Tony Montana (#21) on the same rye bread with Pulled Pork, Ham, Swiss, Hickory Sticks, Lettuce, Pickles & Smoky Mustard.  This was a touch more salty due to the use of ham.  Texturally, it was a bit more tender due to the brined meat as opposed to the real roast beef.  With Swiss, there was a mustier flavour rather than the mild cheddar.  Once again, the Hickory Sticks provided crunch, saltiness and smokiness.

 

So the most surprising sandwich had to be the Beef Dip.  Okay, a beef dip isn't necessarily anything special,  but this one was legitimately delicious.  First off, we had the use of real roast beef that was tender and well, tasted like roast beef (not that salty brined Arby's stuff).  Then, we had the dip itself.  It was meaty and impactful with a slightly thick viscosity.  Hence, it not only soaked the bread, it also clung onto the meat as well.  This created a super saucy and savoury treat that I didn't want to stop eating.

 

Something that seemed rather familiar was the Turkey Day (#1) with its combination of real turkey, house-made stuffing, cranberry sauce & cranberry mayo.  I said familiar because it reminded me of a turkey dinner, but also it resembled something I've had at another sandwich place.  The one big difference was the lack of gravy in the sandwich.  In that sense, the bread didn't become soggy while the other ingredients stood out more.  I think the best way to do this sandwich would be a gravy dip on the side much like the beef dip (but with turkey gravy of course).  Otherwise, the turkey had a moist natural texture and the stuffing was nicely seasoned.  Would've liked to see more cranberry though.

 

With all of the fully-stuffed sandwich creations we had tried so far, the Santa Monica (#2) was more on the simpler side.  We got it in the snack size and it featured turkey, bacon, cheddar, guacamole, lettuce, tomato and creamy honey mustard.  Again, really appreciated the use of real turkey meat that was moist and tender.  The addition of bacon was key as it provided the necessary saltiness for the mild turkey meat.  Guac added a bright creaminess while the honey mustard provided sweetness and extra moisture.

 

Completely the opposite of the previous sandwich, the Inferno (#9) offered up plenty of impact with ham, capocollo, bacon, habanero jack, lettuce, tomato, pepperoncini and chipotle mayo.  Despite its namesake, this sandwich wasn't super spicy.  Rather, it was flavourful with hits of spice from the capocollo and jack cheese, but then had equal parts saltiness, smokiness and brightness.  Once again, this was in snack size, but still was fufilling.

 

Back to the overstuffed sammies, we had the Mack Daddy (#25) that sported turkey, bacon, provolone, crispy onions, lettuce, tomato and Mack sauce,  This was a bit similar to the Big Mack, but with turkey and provolone instead of roast beef and cheddar.  Hence, this was not as heavy in terms of the meat, but with the more robust bread compared to the fluffy rye, it was still filling.  The combination of crispy onions and Hickory Sticks made for lots of texture and added flavour.

Lastly, we had the Neeson (#28) that crammed roast beef, bacon, habanero jack, hickory sticks, lettuce, tomato, onions, chipotle mayo and bold BBQ sauce.  This was named after the Liam Neeson as he was filming in New West back in 2017.  He was offered a free meal and he showed up!  So this sandwich does live up to its namesake with a robust amount of meat (since Liam plays macho revenge-type characters) within a hearty sandwich.  Overall, all the sammies we tried were all stuffed full of meat (that was weighed, so the pictures are legitimate representations) and were not longing for flavour.  Sure, they cost more than Subway, but the quality of the meats and bread are superior.  In reality, it isn't even a comparison.  I think I need to visit Big Star more often because I like myself a good sandwich, especially with real meat.

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

The Good:

- Quality ingredients

- Real meat

- Hickory sticks!

The Bad:

- Will cost you more, but worth it IMO

Meltwich Food Co.

So it goes without saying that the veritable sandwich doesn't get the accolades it truly deserves.  Often dismissed as a quick lunch option generally in kid's lunchboxes, it is associated with fast food spots such as Subway.  However, if you go gourmet, you will likely find really great Italian sandwiches at some delis and even full-service restaurants.  Okay, how about something in the middle?  A bit more exciting and refined than a basic sandwich, but not something that is as expensive as a proper sit-down meal.  Well, we have Meltwich, where it is counter-service restaurant that is a step above your typical fast food joint.  As the name suggests, they specialize in grilled sandwiches with plenty of cheese.  We made our way out to the South Surrey location to sample some this 100% Canadian-Owned chain (this matters right now!).

We wanted to go basic first and went for their Classic Melt, which for all intents and purposes, is a grilled cheese sandwich.  Don't be fooled by the simplicity of the sandwich because it was prepared expertly.   I thought the bread choice was excellent as it grilled up beautifully to be crunchy with a buttery nuttiness.  However, it was not heavy as it ate with a robust texture but was not dense.  Best of all, it was packed with cheddar cheese that was completely melted and stringy.

Of course we had to get some fancier sammies and that we did with the Southern Fried Chicken Melt.  At first, we were concerned at how flat this looked as compared to the picture on the menu board.  However, it wasn't important how it appeared to us rather, the eating experience was king.  Beyond the crunchy buttery grilled slices of bread, there was a wealth of crispy fried chicken.  Although it wasn't juicy, the chicken remained moist and was well-seasoned.  Meshed with the American and cheddar cheeses, we had plenty of ooey gooey goodness and saltiness.  Add on the chipotle, buttermilk dill sauce, tomato corn salsa, pickles and shredded lettuce, there was no shortage of creaminess, added moisture, spice and tanginess.  Getting something that was from their value menu for under $10.00, we tried the Pesto Chicken Melt.  This really did have a great pesto hit and the chicken was moist.  Again, it was encased with the same excellent grilled buttery bread.

One of the most surprising items we had was the Philly Cheesesteak.  By looks alone, this didn't appear to be anything special.  However, beyond the soft brioche bun, we found beautifully seared thin slices of beef that were tender and well-seasoned.  I loved the texture as well since the meat had some crispy bits and some drier portions.  This created a textural contrast as well as offering up nuttiness.  The bun itself brought everything together with a soft hug.

 

In addition to their sandwiches, the menu features a variety of poutines.  We had 2 versions including the Classic (not pictured) and the Chicken Bacon Ranch.  These featured medium cut russet fries that were fairly crispy where there was no gravy.    There was a generous amount of legit cheese curds that had a nice squeak to them.  I found the gravy to have a good viscosity and not overly salty.  The buttermilk dill drizzle on top added plenty of creaminess and brightness.

 

They also have a variety of sides too and we ended up with 2 of them including the Mac & Cheese Wedges.  These were pretty typical with Kraft-esque mac & cheese coated with a crispy batter.  They were a bit dry on their own, but the side of dill dip, it was good.  We also had some Mac & Cheese and it was rather saucy.  The flavour was quite muted, but after adding a splash of their delicious gravy, it added the slight saltiness that this needed.

 

Lastly, we had some of their milkshakes to go with our meal.  We had both the Oreo and Mango Milkshakes.  Surprisingly, the mango was much sweeter than the Oreo.  I was expecting the opposite.  They were fairly smooth while not being particularly heavy.  There was some iciness with the Oreo.  I did like the flavour of the Oreo as it captured the essence of the cookie without being crazy sweet.  Overall, the sandwiches at Meltwich were really good!  Bread was grilled up beautifully with a nutty butteriness.  They were generous with the cheese, which made things ooey gooey.  Poutines were on point too with delicious gravy and legit cheese curds.  For those who want to support Canadian, Meltwich is totally a Canadian-based chain.  Check out their daily specials, the Philly Cheesesteak can be had with fries and drink for only $13.00.  

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

The Good:

- Delicious well-prepared melts

- Legit Poutine

- Specials make things affordable and also their under $10.00 menu

The Bad:

- I thought the mango shake was a bit too sweet