Wong's King

Dim Sum... in Portland??? Okay, I'm not pulling your chicken feet here. There really is such a thing. And no, it is not some place serving up frozen "Asian" appetizers from Costco or Safeway. I'm talking about an actual Chinese restaurant with push carts and authentic Cantonese Dim Sum. Okay, coming from the land of excellent Dim Sum, otherwise known as Vancouver, B.C. (or more specifically, Hong Kong #2 = Richmond), I am quite picky about my Chinese food. So much so, whenever I am in San Francisco (which is a lot since I have family there), I put up with the "Chinese" food they have there. We all know Portland is no San Francisco in terms of Chinese food, let alone Vancouver. I remember back in the 80's when my parents would take me on road trips down to San Fran. We would stop in Portland occasionally for a meal. Let's just say Chinese food was slim pickins' back then. With a growing Asian community, it was only time that Portland got a taste of real Chinese food. Of course the $6.99 lunch special with sweet 'n sour pork and chicken chow mein still exists; but the real stuff can be had without doing the Panda Express thing.

So we find ourselves heading out to SE Portland in search for authentic Dim Sum at Wong's King. Apparently, this place is so busy on weekends, there is a massive lineup out the door. This is just all-too-common in Vancouver, so I wouldn't be surprised especially since this is the place for Dim Sum here. Now heading West on Division Street, we totally missed Wong's King. You see, the storefront is angled such that it faces Southwest and you'd never see it unless you were heading East on Division. Just FYI, because we almost thought it didn't exist. Entering the fairly large parking lot, we had our pick of spots. Visiting the place on a weekday morning has its perks. Lots of parking and no wait. We walked in and had our pick of tables. Naturally, I picked the one right next to the window. Too bad the light was doing weird things - shadows everywhere! Sorry for the bad pics!

Like a moth to a flame, all the Dim Sum carts came flying by faster than a Brett Farve comeback. We started with the 2 staples of Dim Sum in the Haw Gow (Steamed Shrimp Dumplings) and Sui Mai (Pork & Shrimp Dumplings). The haw gow were filled with whole cold-water shrimp that had a nice "snap". Very mildly seasoned. I wish there was more sesame oil. As for the dumpling skin, it was far too thick and gummy. The sui mai were filled with plenty of shrimp, shiitake mushrooms and slightly chewy pork. Topped with tobiko while being lightly seasoned, I could still taste the pork and shrimp. This was quite good. We got an order of the Beef Meatballs next. Normally, the meat in these are processed with baking soda, which gives their distinctive tender bounce. With the wrong amount, these become a mushy mess. These ones were on the stiffer side; yet were still quite good. Not too much green onion and with a touch of water chestnuts, these would've been good with Worcestershire sauce (this is normally the condiment, which we were never provided with).

Another popular Dim Sum dish is the Black Bean Steamed Pork Spareribs. I found these to be over-tenderized; thus losing some of its texture. Well, let me rephrase that. Some pieces were too soft while others were good. Maybe a uneven mix of marinade? Now to one of our favs - Bible Tripe. Yup, not really a fan favourite if you've never had it before. The main feature of this dish is the "crunchy" texture of the tripe while being soft enough to chew. This one was done right with a modest amount of seasoning. From one tripe to another, we go the Honeycomb Tripe with daikon. With this form of tripe, it has to be cooked long enough so it's chewable with a slight resistance. Like the other tripe, this was a well-executed dish. Each piece of tripe did not degrade in appearance or texture while being easy to chew. The daikon was also very good, maintaining its shape and being soft at the same time.

We waited for awhile for the Beef Rice Noodle Roll to come out since the kiddies generally eat this dish. Turns out they were more interested in the desserts instead. Well, I guess they were onto something. The rice noodle itself was too thick and not really all that soft. With that being said, it wasn't terrible and the beef filling was plentiful (and soft). Well, other than the desserts, my daughter did tackle the BBQ Pork Buns. These were pretty good. With a nice steamed soft exterior and savoury BBQ pork inside, there is not much to complain about. Often, the thing that annoys me with BBQ pork buns is that the filling is too sweet and full of fatty pork. Neither was the case here. No chunk of pork fat (well, some people like that) to be found.

While my daughter was munching on the BBQ pork bun, my son didn't want any of it. Instead, he had his eyes set on the Pineapple Buns with custard filling. Well, he likes the bun part. The custard? Not so much. Don't get me wrong here, the custard was good. He's just used to the regular pineapple bun (which has no pineapple whatsoever, the top only resembles a pineapple). In the end, he did eat the whole thing with the custard because he discovered that it was sweet and tasty. Imagine that, custard being sweet and tasty... These were done very well. Sugary top, soft baked bun and sweet custard. What's not to like? Onto another classic Dim Sum dessert - Baked Egg Tarts. This is a favourite of the kiddies. Essentially egg custard in a puff pastry shell, these were very good. Light-tasting egg custard in a flaky shell. Very well done. The kiddies loved it.

Well, well, decent Dim Sum... in Portland of all places. Of course compared to Vancouver, B.C., it would not even be fair to do so. It put away the my memories of great Dim Sum in Vancouver, B.C., I can truly appreciate what Wong's King does for Dim Sum here. Of course there is better Dim Sum elsewhere, albeit 300+ miles North and 600+ miles South. Thus, when in Portland, Wong's King is best and most authentic place to get Cantonese-style Dim Sum, complete with matching uniformed Dim Sum Cart ladies.

The Good:
- Authentic Cantonese Dim Sum
- Good variety
- Decent service

The Bad:
- Of course there is better... but not very close by
- Very busy on the weekends

Re-Up BBQ Foodcart

Having just returned from Portland (food cart heaven) a few weeks ago, I still had street food on my mind. You see, Vancouver is still in the stone age of food carts compared to the City of Roses. Sure, city council has finally given in to the street food experiment. However, the ridiculous lottery system which determined who got licenses, has not exactly set things up for success. In fact, most of the "winners" didn't even set up shop in time to take advantage of the summer months. Finally, we see several popping up, especially in the Downtown Core. The one that is getting all the attention is Re-Up BBQ. Focused on doing only one product and doing it well, their Pulled-Pork Sandwich is the talk of the town. People are flocking over to the small setup on Hornby at Burrard. There seems to be a consistent lineup of people willing to fork over $6.00 for street food. On that note, you'll notice that "street" food in Vancouver is not exactly cheap. In fact, it seems to contradict the whole premise. Sadly, unlike street food in other parts, our fees, health codes and taxes do not allow vendors to charge any less. Thus, our "street" food is more for the "spirit" of the concept rather than actually being dirt cheap.

With that in mind, I made the trek into Downtown to get a taste of the new Vancouver street food scene. I arrived shortly after 1:00pm and the lineup wasn't too bad, probably 5 minutes or so. They get the food out quick and the line moves. I noticed that they were constantly making fresh coleslaw. That in itself made me feel good about this operation. You see, many places will make a large batch of coleslaw way in advance, resulting in a soggy product. I finally made it to the front and after snapping some photos, I returned to the car anxiously waiting for a taste. Many different things hit me when I took the first bite. The roll was fresh and soft which made it easy to eat without things falling all over the place. The crunch of the fresh coleslaw with an obvious spicy mustard flavour combined with the vinegary BBQ sauce really complimented each other. It seemed to me that there was some horseradish-type kick too (not completely sure though). Finally, the pulled pork itself was plentiful and moist. Due to the limitations of the cart, the meat is not prepared on site; thus it becomes a bit wet. However, looking at the sandwich as a whole, it was very satisfying. Sure, some might think $6.00 (now $7.50) is a bit steep for a food stand; yet I was full and in no need for more eats. From that standpoint, it was well worth it.

Oh alright. Here is an addition to this post... You see, Viv sometimes misses out on some of my food adventures and I really do feel bad. Really! Well, not while I'm enjoying the food, maybe afterwards. I hope she isn't reading this! So, I made a trip out to the 2nd location (no longer at this spot) just to get her a sandwich to try. After all, Costanza and I keep raving about the sandwich in front of her! Unlike the Downtown location, the Re-Up on the corner of Granville and Broadway looks more like a hot dog stand than anything. Probably explains why they have a sign explaining that they are not a hot dog stand... Well, Viv essentially echoed what we've been saying: moist pulled pork with a flavourfully tart BBQ sauce with fresh crunchy non-overdressed coleslaw on a soft bun. She was really full after the large meat-filled sandwich. Looks like they're consistent.

The Good:
- Meat is moist, coleslaw is fresh & crunchy and bun is soft
- Reasonable price considering everything
- No absence of flavour

The Bad:
- Meat lacks smokiness and/or BBQ flavour

Piazza Italia

After an early morning wake up in order to make it to Oaks Park, then the Portland Children's Museum, we were exhausted. Well, at least we were, seems like my son could've kept going. We had to literally drag him away from the museum. On our way back to the hotel, we stopped by Piazza Italia for some dinner. Being that we were early, we stopped by the water park across from Cool Moon for a bit. It was a scorcher of a day and it water was a nice way to cool down. Too bad neither of the kiddies had their swimwear on them. Of course, even with our constant instruction and reminders, they both decided to sit down in the water and get completely soaked. A parents' job is never done... Luckily we had a change of clothes in the car, albeit a pair of sweats for our daughter (which was not exactly the best choice for this weather). Located in the Pearl District in Downtown Portland, it is much like Soho in NYC and Yaletown in Vancouver. Trendy and expensive too.

Not knowing if the place was family-friendly, we took a chance. Throughout our dinner, the place was half-filled with kids. The staff were more than welcoming and even provided water in takeout coffee cups complete with straws. It's funny how one party spotted a high chair next to their table and requested to move as a result. I'm not sure what they were trying to accomplish since almost every other table had children. Furthermore, none misbehaved nor made a squeak throughout dinner. In absolutely no time, we were presented with complimentary bread (and they refill it lightning quick too). In addition, we got an Antipasto Plate as an appie. There was a selection of meats, goat cheese, marinated mushrooms, cucumbers and tomatoes. Nothing out of the ordinary, as it was your standard antipasto plate. It was good though.

For my main, I went for the Linguine alla Vongole (I seem to order this alot). The pasta was very al dente and tossed in garlicky olive oil & white wine. There was no absence of seasoning and clam flavour. I liked how there was no huge pool of oil at the bottom of the plate. A clear indication that there was just enough olive oil to coat the pasta. The fresh clams were also quite tender. Only complaint would be that it was a tad salty. Viv ended up with the Rigatoni Bolognese. Once again, the pasta was very al dente (which we prefer). Although there was a lot of meat sauce on the plate, it did not overwhelm the pasta with excess liquid. The rich sauce was not "wet"; rather it was full of meat, which was moist and flavourful. Definite hits of wine, tomato and Parmesan.

For kiddies, there was Spaghetti with Plain Tomato Sauce. They split it into 2 plates for us and it was only $8.00. As expected, the pasta was also al dente; but not as much as ours. Not sure if this was intentional; but it was very welcome since the kiddies prefer it a bit softer. The sauce was indeed simple; yet it was still good. Made with fresh tomatoes, there was a tang tempered with a touch of sweetness. Just enough sauce to coat the pasta once again. The kids enjoyed it, especially with extra Parm. Actually, we all enjoyed our meal here. Personally, this is the type of pasta I like (as opposed to large portions of mediocre pasta drenched in sauce). Prices are reasonable considering the location with well-executed food and attentive service. Being kid-friendly was a big bonus.

The Good:
- Well-executed pasta and sauces
- Attentive service
- Kid-friendly

The Bad:
- Portions aren't huge (if you were expecting that)
- Tight dining room

Arleta Bakery & Cafe

"Have you heard of Arleta Bakery & Cafe?" Snake was curious since I had mentioned to him I was heading down to Portland. Funny that he mentioned it because it was one of the places I had planned to hit up while I was there. In fact, it was featured on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives. However, that was not the reason I wanted to try the place out. In fact, I never even watched that particular episode. Seeing how there were favourable reviews on Yelp and Urbanspoon, it seemed like a good bet. Yet, the main reason it made my list of restaurants for our trip was the availability of grilled cheese. Grilled cheese? Huh? Yes, the humble grilled cheese is one of my son's "approved" foods. Thus, this destination was highly dependent on my son's preference. So, after a hectic morning at Oaks Amusement Park and their kiddie ride special on Tuesday, we headed over to Arleta. The place is quite small and non-descipt. So much so, I drove right past it. Once inside, the prime window seat was occupied. I was reserved to sitting at another table where the lighting was crappy at best. When all of a sudden, the people got up and prepared to pay. I swooped in and took the table, even though it had not been cleaned. Anything for better lighting!

Viv was originally eying the special (which was featured in Triple D's); but they were sold out. She finally settled on The Florentine which consists of a three-egg scramble with spicy greens, basil, ricotta, Parmesan, and breadcrumbs with Library Fries and toast. She didn't really care for it. It was bland. Really needed more seasoning. For myself, I had the other lunch special which was the Blue Cheese Burger. The homemade, unseasoned beef patty was very meaty in texture and flavour. It wasn't really all that juicy; but it wasn't dry either. Although I could've asked for it be done more rare, I settled on medium since there was a full day left (didn't want to make any unnecessary pitstops...). There was plenty of blue cheese which resulted in a pungent flavour (I love it, Viv hates it). Combined with the hugest slice of tomato I've ever seen, the burger was good. In theory, the Library Fries should be good. Much like roasted potatoes, they are fried up golden with spices. They tasted great; but the exterior was chewy rather than crisp. Made it hard to chew through.

Now for the main event, the one thing that brought us here in the first place. The kid's Grilled Cheese. As advertised, it was gooey with crunchy bread. It came with a bag of Kettle Chips and mixed fruit. He ignored the fruit and headed straight for the chips. My daughter had the Turkey & Cheddar sandwich. I liked how they used real roast turkey with real cheddar cheese. In fact, we could really tell that the raw materials used for the food here is of good quality. There was nothing that made me want to yell out, "That's Money!"; but solid eats nonetheless.

The Good:
- Friendly staff
- Quality ingredients
- Cozy place

The Bad:
- I know we didn't have the signature items, but the things we tried didn't blow us away
- Quite stuffy on a warm day

Coast

Another Glowbal Group restaurant? That is 2 times in less than a week! First it was Trattoria Italian Kitchen on Monday, now Coast on Sunday. Somewhere, Kim is rolling in his bed (he's not dead, so can't say grave...). You see, Kim is not a big fan of the Glowbal Group. For me, I'm a bit indifferent. Italian Kitchen was decent for me, Society was not and Trattoria was pretty good. Now it's time for the next one which is Coast. Sanafir and Glowbal are on deck (since visited as well as Black + Blue)! The real reason we ended up at Coast was due to the dietary restrictions of Big German Guy and Miss G. You see, they wanted to eat healthier, in particular seafood. I do realize there are a number of other seafood restaurants in town such as Joe Fortes, Cork & Fin and Blue Water; however, I wanted to try something new. Plus, I wanted to use my Let's go for Dinner card as well.

With a bit of gentle persuasion, Viv, Miss G and Big German Guy shared the Signature Seafood Platter. It's not cheap at $29.00 per person; yet considering most other a la carte items cost just as much, it doesn't seem so bad. Included in the platter are Qualicum scallops, sockeye salmon, B.C. cod, wild sea tiger prawns, asparagus and potato gnocchi. I was able to sample the Sockeye Salmon and it was really moist. There wasn't a whole lot of seasoning to it; but then again, it is naturally flavourful enough. The Qualicum Scallops were huge, sweet and nicely grilled. However, I found them to be marginally overcooked. Underneath, the Parmesan? brussel sprouts were actually quite good and flavourful. As for the B.C. Cod, Viv found it to be dense and bland. On the other hand, the Tiger Prawns were grilled to perfection. In the end, Viv remarked that the platter could've used more seasoning in the form of a side sauces or just lemon wedges. Right in the middle of the patter was a large bowl of creamy Gnocchi with wild mushrooms and grape tomatoes. Much like the gnocchi at Society, I found these to be too big and dense. I did like the sauce, it was rich with a nice earthiness from the mushrooms.

While they were sharing the platter, I went ahead and ordered the Halibut & Chips. As it was a Sunday, all of their fish & chips were on for $14.00. The halibut was fried perfectly, being flaky and moist. Despite the somewhat thick tempura like batter, it was still crisp and actually light. It was tad on the oilier side though. The fries were mostly crispy and I did enjoy them, especially dipped into the tartar sauce (which was nicely balanced). I didn't care much for the Napa cabbage slaw. It was bland albeit creamy. Of course I wouldn't be satisfied with only an order of fish & chips... I tacked on an order of the Lobster Mashed Potatoes. It arrived in a decent-sized portion and there was no absence of lobster. I could definitely see and taste it. The mash potatoes were smooth and creamy. Yet, if I needed to make a comparison, the dungeness crab mash potatoes at Cork & Fin were much fluffier and butterier (not a word is it?).

Now, a real nice person wouldn't order a large dessert and eat it in front of 2 friends who were watching their diet right? Well, I ordered the Dessert Sampler and ate it in front of them. Yah, real nice friend I am! It consisted of 4 different desserts including a chocolate brownie, lemon tart, carrot cake and honey comb nibs. I personally thought that the lemon tart was the best item on the plate. Not too tart, not too sweet, it was pleasant to eat. The tart shell could've been a little less crumbly though. Second best was the brownie. It was served warm and had a nice textural contrast between the slightly crisp exterior and the chewy semi-sweet interior. The honey comb nibs were reminiscent of a Crunch bar; but much sweeter. The addition of salt was a nice touch though. We really didn't like the carrot cake though. It was dense and lacking flavour. Furthermore, the large quenelle of nutmeg cream cheese totally overwhelmed the small piece of cake. Hey, I loved the cream cheese. There was just too much of it. In the end, it was a decent value for $14.00.

I realize that the Glowbal Group is not the gastronomical pinnacle of Vancouver. However, in the end, the food was decent. Sure, there were some hits and misses, as with any other restaurant. Consider the fact the pricing is on the high side, one would expect a bit more. Now, that can be tempered by the use of the Let's go for Dinner card or gift certificates purchased at Costco. For me, it is all about the LGFD card. It brought the price down enough to align properly with the level of the food; thus, it was a pleasant experience from that standpoint.

The Good:
- Great service
- Prime downtown location
- Menu has lots of choice

The Bad:
- Regular prices are a tad high (I guess they have to pay for the all the high operating costs)
- Food can be hit and miss

Saburo's

Today was the day we did the Oregon Zoo. I'm not trying to sound unenthusiastic; however, it seems to be quite repetitious with any other zoo we've been too. You got your theme zones with specific types of animals. I really love the exhibits where there is a big sign indicating that some exotic animal can be found. Looking around, there is no animal. Like "Where is Waldo?", I simply cannot spot the Red-billed Hornbills. There is the occasional laughable display that tries to be representative of the originating land. Some drums in a hut does not constitute African living. Although that AfriCafe sure serves up some truly authentic burgers, hot dogs and burritos... er... What makes it the more fun is the parking lot. There just doesn't seem to be enough parking spots for all the people who want to visit the zoo and the adjacent Children's Museum. I just loved the lady in the gold Camry that decided to ignore the fact I existed and blocked my exit route. I'm sorry; but you have to be pretty out-of-it to not notice a big, black SUV bearing down on you. Don't you love people who don't look over at you in hopes of that act alone will possibly make you magically disappear?

Anyways, after 4.5 hours of wandering around, fighting the crowds and lining up for things, we headed off to dinner. What better way to wind down than to wait almost an hour for dinner? That's right, just like the night before at the Screen Door, we did it all again at Saburo's. We are indeed gluttons for punishment. 2 tired and cranky kids, one huge-ass lineup and a warm day = recipe for some pretty painful results. Good thing we had some things going for us. Our daughter was so pooped that she just slept and the DS/iPhone combination helped keep our son occupied. Furthermore, we met a really nice couple who kept us entertained. Why the lineup in the first place? Generally it is usually based on one of 2 things (or both), either the food is really good or really big. At the very least, we knew of the big portions, now we just needed to see if it was any good...

Once we were seated, a few menus and a dry erase pen awaited us. You see, the way to order here is to mark off what you want directly on the menu. We started off with a Wakame Salad. Slightly on the drier side, it was still good. Nice crunchy texture with a nice mild taste. We got an order of the Salmon Sashimi and it arrived looking like someone merely hacked it up. In what was essentially 4 large pieces of salmon, it was further cut into 3 more pieces each. Not pretty and not really all that right either. It was curiously plated on a bed of cucumber (not daikon). However, the salmon wasn't all that bad, so I'll leave it at that. As for our 2 specialty rolls, I chose one and our new friends recommended the Sabu Roll. Consisting of cucumber, tobiko and avocado on the inside and red tuna, albacore tuna and salmon on the outside, this was a decent roll. I found the rice to be on the mushier side and quite sweet. I did like how the tobiko was laced with sesame oil. I know this is not that common; but the taste worked in this roll. As for the Shogun Roll (that I picked out), it was not as successful. With cucumber, avocado and tomago on the inside with seared eel on the outside, I thought this roll was a bit boring. Unlike BBQ unagi, I found the eel in this roll to be dry and lifeless. Furthermore, there weren't any ingredients to compensate of the lack of flavours.

With a recommendation that we try the Unagi Nigiri, we got an order (which consists of 2 pcs for $4.50). My word. I've never seen such large slices of unagi in my life atop rice. Not only large lengthwise, they were quite thick as well. Viv remarked that the unagi had one too many bones. For me, it didn't really make much of a difference. To complete our sushi order, I got 2 pcs of the Scallop & Tobiko Nigiri as well. With the same sesame oil-laced tobiko, I found that it actually helped accent the large full pieces of sweet scallop. It didn't overpower the scallops one bit. Once again, these were huge.

For the kiddies, we got the Tempura Udon. There are 2 ways to plate this and we got the tempura right in the broth itself. The result were really soggy ebi and onion tempura. I really prefer it on the side. As for the udon, it was still chewy (which is good). The broth was really flavourful from the copious amount of sweet onion. For the price we paid, we got lots of bang for the buck. I wouldn't say that the food was necessarily good or bad, it was somewhere in the middle. Trying not to compare with Japanese restaurants in Vancouver, B.C., I would say Saburo's is decent for Portland and a great value.

The Good:
- Massive portions
- Reasonable prices
- Decent given its location

The Bad:
- Food is pretty average and not made with care
- Long waits
- Not the most comfortable place to dine