Applause

All throughout the softball season, Inspector Gadget had been pestering us to try Applause Japanese Restaurant in Marpole. For various reasons, we never made it out there as a team. He threw out the idea of meeting up for a weekend lunch or something. Yet again, it never happened. Was it never meant to be? Well, he made sure that I got to try his favourite local Japanese restaurant by suggesting we meet up during the Christmas holidays. We set a date and yes, we finally made it. So what's so special about Applause anyways you might be thinking. First of all, it is not exactly located in the hub of activity. Located in a small strip mall in the middle of residential Marpole, Applause advertises itself as an "Izakayaish" Japanese restaurant. Oh really? A restaurant with an identity problem. Great, we've all seen that before haven't we? Well, all the staff are Japanese except for the sushi chef/owner who is Taiwanese. Hey, I have an open mind. Let's allow the food to do the talking shall we?

We were a little late arriving due to Christmas traffic. Actually I think the sinkhole on Marine Drive helped make 49th resemble #3 Road in Richmond. Sorry, I had to sneak a Richmond reference in there! For a weekday, the restaurant was packed. Apparently this is the norm. When we finally got down to ordering, Inspector Gadget made sure we didn't order any duplicates and in fact, selected some items for variety purposes. Once again, I am so lucky that people go out of their way to help me out! Either that or I've got them well-trained. If I hear the word Izakaya, I must get Ebi Mayo. I just have to, it's my favourite. As with most versions of ebi mayo, there is usually an obscene amount of sweet mayo drizzled on top. Hence the name... However, by looking at the picture, you can see that there was not only an obscene amount... the whole darn thing looks "obscene". Make what you want of it... Anyways, the shrimp itself was only lightly battered and fried. Thus, it was not crispy per se. It was still perfectly cooked in terms of the shrimp itself exhibiting a nice snap. As mentioned the mayo was sweet and ahem... once again, I got it all over my face... (see Zakkushi).

One of their daily specials was the BBQ Black Cod Collar. Now if you are familiar with black cod, the flesh is quite oily and moist. However, for those who eat whole fish, the meat around the fins, collar and cheek is where its at. The meat tends to be slightly chewier with some bite. Of course, I had to order it. It was exactly how I like it. BBQ'd until it had a nice colour while not overcooked. Yummy. I love picking at bones, whether it be pork or fish. For his appetizer, Inspector Gadget had an order of the Amaebi. As you can see from the visuals, the shrimp was glistening with freshness. He remarked it was naturally sweet. The second part of this dish was the Fried Shrimp Heads. You gotta love a place that serves Japanese food the right way eh?
These were fried up perfectly. How so? When the heads are crunchy enough to eat whole without splitting your tongue or mouth open, that is perfect. The natural sweetness of all the great things you find in the shrimp head (minus the bitter sac) makes it a joy to eat. How I love head... uh! I mean fried shrimp heads!

For my main dish, I went for the Chicken Katsu Curry. For those unfamiliar with Japanese curry, it is very different than authentic Indian curry. Rather than being spicy or even complex in flavour, it is predominantly sweet. Depending on the version, you might not even know you are eating curry. The one I had at Fujiya was so sweet, it was more like liquid candy atop steamed rice! This one was sweet while not being overly so. It still had a bit of curry flavour and some spice. The chicken katsu was fried up nicely with a crispy coating yielding to tender chicken meat. Combined with the chewy rice, it was a satisfying and large dish. This reminded me of the one I had at Kimura except we had beef instead of chicken. Inspector Gadget surprised me by ordering the Miso Ramen. Based on my past experiences, regular Japanese restaurants not specializing in ramen produce a sub-par product. Imagine my surprise when I was proven wrong in this case. I got a good portion to try and the soup was pretty decent. There was actually some depth and it didn't merely taste like miso soup. Furthermore, the noodles were al dente and not too thick. Of course, I need to talk about the pork (or chashu) and it was not too bad either. It was a relatively large piece which has a nice pork taste with a bit of fat. Decent ramen for a non-ramen shop.

Guess what we ordered for the kiddies? Uni? Yah right, the chances of them eating uni are as good as my chances of returning to Kawawa. Naturally, we got the Tempura Udon for them. Served on the side, the assorted tempura had a disturbingly thick batter. Despite this, it was crunchy and didn't seem heavy. Even after sitting around for awhile, it still stayed crunchy. Definitely better than it looks. As for the udon, it was still chewy and the broth was quite light. Nothing amiss or amazing about it. Viv wanted a bit of variety and settled on Bento Box D which included Salmon, Tuna & Hokkigai Sashimi, Assorted Tempura, Salad, Chicken Teriyaki on rice, Salmon Maki, Miso Soup and Fruit. We enjoyed the large slices of sashimi, it was fresh looking and tasting. In fact, the wild sockeye salmon was very sweet while the tuna had pleasing texture. The hokkigai had its requisite chewiness and sweetness. As for the chicken teriyaki, it was okay, if not a bit dry. The modest amount of sauce was welcomed since too much results in everything tasting sweet. Much like the curry, the rice was slightly chewy and acted as a good base for the chicken teriyaki. In terms of the sushi rice, I tried a leftover piece of inari nigiri from Inspector Gadget's daughter. She ate the sweet fried tofu skin and I had the rice. Consequently, it was somewhat sweet from the remnants of the tofu skin. However, I still sensed rice vinegar and the texture of the rice has bite and chewiness. Pretty good sushi rice. In fact, the food here at Applause is very solid. For the variety we tried, the restaurant does succeed in being the jack-of-all-trades. From the Izakaya dishes, to regular Japanese fare and the decent ramen, nothing was amiss. Sure, there is better in all 3 categories within Vancouver, no doubt about it. But if it's a variety you want that also looks the part, Applause is more than acceptable.

The Good:
- Surprisingly, does everything quite well
- Food is fresh
- Attentive service

The Bad:
- Not expensive; but not cheap either
- Pretty small place, gets packed easily

Pho Saigon

Once again, my search for good Pho has brought me to an area that is not even remotely synonymous with Vietnamese food (which is Ladner). In fact, Pho Saigon is the only Vietnamese restaurant in Ladner. Other than North Delta, there is not a lot of diversity in Delta itself. But that doesn't mean you can't get good ethnic food out here. Case in point, Maguro is more than acceptable considering its location. I happened to be in Ladner because of a meeting. Naturally, with my luck, it had to be snowing. Long drive home considering I live in Burnaby. For a change, I could actually justify owing an SUV. With snow tires too! However, the actual amount of snow we usually receive in the GVRD is laughable to the rest of Canada. It's like our city is paralyzed at the first sight of snow! And yes, I was fully aware how close I was to Richmond. Close, but far enough away...

Unlike many other Vietnamese joints, Pho Saigon is clean and generally decorated in a relevant theme. Since it was cold and snowing outside, a steaming hot bowl of noodles was the perfect lunch. As always, I went for the Pho Dac Biet, which usually has everything. However, in this case, there was only 3 types of meat without the tripe or tendon... Is this the Ladner version? Tamer and less offal? Slightly lacking in noodles (al dente though); yet with a decent amount of tender rare steak, brisket and meatballs, the Pho was alright. The broth itself was a little weak exhibiting very little meat flavour with a touch of sweetness. If I had to compare it with another restaurant, I would say it isn't too far off from Pho Hoa. I know Pho Hoa is not the pinnacle of Vietnamese food; but you know what to expect there. As a side note, I would've preferred a lime instead of a lemon; yet it is winter, so I'll cut them some slack.

When the server was taking my order, he was a bit shocked I ordered the House Rice Special in addition to the Pho. He looked a me funny and warned me that I wouldn't finish it. I assured him that I was bringing some home. Consisting of 2 Spring Rolls, Lemongrass Chicken, Minced Pork and a Fried Egg on rice, this was a fairly large dish. I was pleasantly surprised with the spring rolls since they used rice wrappers; rather than the wheat ones. Moreover, the filling was plentiful and a good mix. The lemongrass chicken was quite flavourful; yet I found it to be a bit dry in some areas. The minced pork patty was sweet and chewy. Went well with the rice as well as the runny yolk of the fried egg.

Not bad. I was a bit apprehensive since Ladner Village is not the hotbed of Asian food. Yet, the food was ultimately authentic and did do the job. Sure, there is better Vietnamese food in the GVRD. However, there is no competition nearby and I must give them kudos for staying true to the food despite this. Combined with a clean environment and good service, I'd have no problem visiting them again if I were in the neighbourhood.

The Good:
- Decent food
- Clean
- Good service

The Bad:
- Pho could use more noodles
- Of course there is better; but not in Ladner

Charley's Grilled Subs

I'm sure everyone south of the border has heard of Charley's Grilled Subs. After all, they have 400 locations! However, we have only one lonely location up here in Vancouver. In fact, it is not even really located in Vancouver itself. Situated in the food court at Surrey Central, Charley's is known for its freshly made grilled sandwiches prepared right in front of the customer. Just think Quizno's with grilled meat. Now, whenever we have limited access to something that is widely available in the states, it seems to be quite popular. Why? For no other reason that it is "different" and "we can't get it here phenomenon".

So here I was at Surrey Central Mall running some errands and frankly getting a bit hungry. Ha! When am I not? So I decided to pay the food court a visit. *Yawn* The same ol' places like every other mall... Aha! Not Charley's. Sure it's common in the US; but not here... and since I had my camera with me, why not? Being the ambitious eater that I am, I ordered the 2 items starting with the Philly Cheesesteak with a side of fries. Prepared right in front of my eyes, the thinly sliced beef was cooked on a flattop with onions. Much like Subway and Quizno's, there is a choice of veggies and condiments. I'm not sure if cucumber and tomato go with a cheesesteak; but I wanted something to make it healthier. At first, I was concerned that the meat would be dry and chewy. Nope, it was actually decently moist and the rest of the items kept it from being too dry. The onions were nicely caramelized and it turned out to be a decent sandwich, although it would've been better with a bit of grease (if you can believe that...). As for Fries (healthy eating?), they served their purpose without being offensive. Slightly crispy while not being memorable.

Lastly, I also got the California Chicken and it was a little less successful than the cheesesteak. This time around, my fears of the thinly sliced chicken being dry came to fruition. It was quite dry and not all that flavourful either. The cheese and fresh condiments did their best to save the sandwich. To a degree it did; but it never fully hid the dry chicken meat. You know what? The sandwiches were nothing really all that special; yet it didn't offend me either. It's a good alternative to Subway or Quizno's if you wanted to try something new.

The Good:
- Everything is freshly made
- Reasonably-priced

The Bad:
- Grilling thin meat may lead to dryness
- It's okay, nothing amazing though

Connie's Cookhouse

Typically, finding good, cheap Chinese food on the Eastside of Vancouver is as easy as having your parking spot stolen in Richmond. Hence, good little dives don't drum up much excitement since there are so many. However, this is not the case on the Westside. Generally, we will find much more fancy establishments that are neither inexpensive nor guaranteed to be any good. At first, I figured that the popularity of Connie's Cookhouse could be attributed to the "novelty" factor. You know, much like the token Asian on a rec hockey team. Or in the case of Richmond, the token non-Asian on a rec hockey team. Yes, there are smaller Chinese restaurants on the Westside. There are just not that many of them. So I was thinking that Connie's fits the "token" Chinese restaurant among coffee shops, cafes and high end restaurants along West 4th. Of course it would be popular... since there is nothing much to compare it with, right? Well, Viv and I with the kids were about to find out.

Naturally, we weren't out in Kits for the sole purpose of trying out Connie's. I'm dedicated to eating; but not that much so. Rather, I had purchased a Groupon for the Candy Aisle and that is only a block away. Sure I saved $5.00 with the Groupon; yet I probably spent more in gas just driving there! Anyways, the great thing about Connie's is that they have an extensive lunch menu where eat dish includes soup and rice (unless it is a noodle dish). With 2 choices of soup, we one of each (well, 3 soups really; but 2 were the same). The Wonton Soup was a pretty typical non-wonton restaurant version. Consisting of all pork, it was alright. The meat didn't have much in the way of texture while the soup was pretty one-dimensional in flavour. As for the Hot & Sour Soup, it was tart with a surprising kick. However, it lacked depth. Once the initial flavour wore off, the soup was quite thin. Viv had the Black Bean Chicken on Rice and it was a decent portion for the price. Lots of barely cooked zucchini, onions and peppers with tender chicken in a flavourful black bean sauce. There was definitely good "wok hay" which means the wok was hot enough so that there is caramelization and ensuring nothing is soggy.

I ended up with the Szechuan Beef which curiously looked a lot like ginger beef with veggies. What I mean is that the beef was deep-fried; rather than wok-fried. The beef was in big pieces so it didn't end up being dry or anything like that. Although slightly spicy and sweet, it didn't resemble ginger beef in flavour. Thus, I suppose it could be called Szechuan... It wasn't bad. It went well with the rice. For the kiddies, we got them an order of the Stir-Fried Flat Rice Noodles with Beef. Or what we really mean as in, "the kids eat the noodles and we eat the beef and veggies". Too bad for them because the beef was both plentiful and tender (of course tenderized). The bean sprouts and onions were crisp while the noodles were soft; yet held together. The knock on this dish is the copious amount of oil used to prevent the noodles from sticking together and the wok. I'm glad to say this was not too oily and had a nice caramelized dark soy flavour. Hey, I wasn't exactly expecting too much from this place, especially since we were the only Asians eating there. However, the food is generally decent enough for the price. So in the end I actually didn't mind it. Yah, it's not exactly in the mold of what you'd find in East Van. But the food ain't bad and it's both plentiful and inexpensive.

The Good:
- Inexpensive
- Good portions
- It's not bad

The Bad:
- Some dishes suffer from slight "North Americanization" but they are only catering to their clientele
- Family-run, thus you need to be patient with the one server

Boomer's Drive-In

Once again, Viv and I attempted to do all of our Christmas shopping in the states. Hey, with the dollar almost at par, why not? With kiddies stashed at Grandparents and NEXUS ensuring our smooth entrance into Washington state, we did the leisurely drive to the border. Normally, we'd go all the way to the Premium Outlets in Tulalip and even as far at Seattle itself; but not today. We wanted to stay fairly close due to time constraints. Thus, our first stop was Burlington. After an uneventful time at The Outlets (kinda sad compared to the one in Tulalip...), we headed over to Ross. If I had known what we were in for, I would've stayed at The Outlet. With people pushing their carts like rush hour in Richmond and products strewn all over the aisles like an earthquake just hit, it was not for the feint of heart. Sure the prices rock; but to actually find something on the racks where they belong is an exercise in frustration. People! Put your crap back where you found it. Don't put a polka dot bikini in the men's active wear section! After lining up to pay which basically negated any gain from my NEXUS card, we were hungry. Viv thought we should eat right away; but really, in Burlington? I suggested we make the drive back up to Bellingham, more choices there. And the choice we made was Boomer's Drive-In.

Call it nostalgia, call it inexpensive, call it quick eats. Whatever the reason, it was not something I was expecting to regret. Regret? Let's just say that whenever I'm in the States, I'd prefer to try something other than Asian food. Thus, it is the good ol' burger and fries. At Boomer's, there is the option to do the drive-in or dine in the small restaurant. We chose the latter. Viv decided to try the BBQ Burger with a side of Onion Rings. For the price ($3.69), this was a fairly large burger with lots of fresh lettuce, tomato, smoky BBQ sauce and an obscene amount of mayo. That was probably a good thing because the burger patty was actually kinda dry. But it turned out to be a pretty solid burger with all the components together. We couldn't be as nice about the Onion Rings though. The breading was far too thick and dense. The end result was a non-crispy product that was a bit hard to eat.

For myself, I went for their Combo #1 which included a Cheeseburger, Waffle Fries and Hard Ice Cream Milkshake for $6.99. A pretty good deal in my books. Similar to Viv's burger, the Cheeseburger was not really all that moist; yet the condiments made up for it. It's not a small burger despite the reasonable price. Although the Waffle Fries looked like they were related to Rose McGowen, they were still crispy while potatoey inside. A nice departure from regular fries. We particularly liked the dusting of spiced seasoning salt. Due to the use of hard ice cream, the Vanilla Shake was impossible to drink through a straw, even after sitting for awhile. I was "cool" (forgive my sad attempt at humour) with that though since it meant there was a good amount of ice cream used. It was pretty smooth although it could've used more vanilla other than the ice cream itself. Sure, it wasn't perfect; but really what is? For the prices they charge, we were more than satisfied with our meal. While we were there, there was a steady stream of customers from all walks of life with and without kiddies. And this was in the middle of the afternoon too! So obviously, Boomer's is doing something right. That "something" is a blast from the past with reasonable pricing, solid eats in a familiar outfit complete with fireplace in the middle of the dining room.

The Good:
- Inexpensive
- Nostalgic
- Good portions for the money

The Bad:
- Food is alright; but won't blow you away
- If you do choose to eat in, the dining room is small

Old Spaghetti Factory (New West)

Seeing how our softball season ended in August, it was time for our year-ender... at the end of November. Yes, it was long overdue. However, I think Miss Y played a game in the snow, so I guess it isn't too much of a stretch. How can you see the softball in the snow anyways??? Well, I guess it's easier than golfing in the snow I suppose. So where to eat? Since we'd have a large group and with kiddies in tow, we needed something family-friendly, inexpensive and could accommodate us all. Normally, I wouldn't suggest The Old Spaghetti Factory; yet in this instance, it satisfied all of the aforementioned criteria. Why wouldn't I choose the TOSF as a primary choice? Well, the pasta is not exactly the type I prefer. Now, I won't be too hard on them since they do cater to families. I'm sure my kids won't care if it is gourmet pasta or not. In fact, they would be much more comfortable with spaghetti smothered in plain tomato sauce rather than some fancy garlic, white wine and olive oil linguine with pine nuts and portobello mushrooms. There would be too many "things" in it for my son. Thus, TOSF serves a purpose and it does it pretty well. Just not a personal favourite of mine, that's all. In fact, I haven't been there in 15 years! So after we settled on TOSF, it was a case of "which location"? Originally, I suggested the Richmond one at Riverport (yah, it was my idea... go figure!). However, Miss Y thought that the New West one would be more accessible for everyone. Hey, who am I to argue that? I'm closer to New West anyways.

Boss Woman made the reservation for 5:00pm; but for some reason, Bear thought it was 5:30pm and told Miss Y so. Uh... Like Miss Y needs anymore reasons for being late! She would be late anyways, this just exacerbates the problem. Fortunately, she lives close, so getting lost would not be an issue this time around. Let's just hope she doesn't order something strange like a clubhouse. She has a habit of ordering dishes that the restaurant is not known for, such as a quiche at the Red Onion. Good thing we had an early reservation because the place filled up pretty fast and in no time, it was absolutely full. Hence, no matter how many people bash the place (including myself), TOSF does what it does well and we can't dispute that. And what exactly does it do well? How about with every meal (including the kid's meals), soup or salad, beverage, bread and ice cream are included. Furthermore, most items are on average around $12.00 while the kid's meals are around $6.00. Despite my indifference to the food here, I must admit it is a pretty good value. I have to say I am not indifferent towards the Sourdough Loaf. For complimentary bread, it is pretty good. Nice crunchy exterior while soft and warm on the inside, the bread comes with whipped butter and garlic butter. As for the soup, there is a choice of Minestrone, Clam Chowder and Baked Onion with the latter 2 available for an extra $2.00. I had the Clam Chowder and it was more floury than creamy. However, it had a good clam flavour with bacon and those clams were tender. Viv had a salad; but ended up finishing the kid's Minestrone (since my son wouldn't eat it anyways). It's more like a vegetable soup than anything. Not bad, it does the job. Despite the inclusive meal, I decided to get an order of the Popcorn Shrimp to start. This was surprisingly good. Very crunchy and none too oily. We didn't really like the dip though, it was ranch and did not compliment the shrimp very much.

With that in mind, Viv got the Chorizo Penne. For me, the first thing that came to my mind was "Boston Pizza". Not necessarily a good thing either. However, there was okay flavour with some spiciness and tartness. The chorizo was alright as well; yet the whole darn thing was "meh". Pasta was overcooked and it is definitely something I could do better at home. I was having a hard time deciding, so I ended up with the Pot-Pourri Spaghetti which has a combination of 3 sauces - Meat, Mushroom and Clam. Once again, the pasta was far from al dente. On that note, I do understand that TOSF is a family restaurant; thus al dente pasta may not be very kid-friendly. With that being said, overdone pasta is not something I personally like. I've had this dish before and since the sauces are on top of one pile of spaghetti, it is impossible to eat them separately. What you ultimately end up with is a mixture of all three. It would help if each sauce rested on top of 3 separate spaghetti bundles. Nothing particularly exciting about the sauces. The tomato sauces are predictably tart and very little in the way of depth. The bechamel clam sauce is quite thick and not really my cup of tea; but it's edible.

We ended up getting 2 kid's meals with my daughter having the Chicken Dippers and Fries. Much like the popcorn chicken, the chicken was fried perfectly. Good colour and crunch with the chicken being juicy and tender. I guess they know how to fry things here. My son had the Spaghetti with tomato sauce. No picture necessary, it looked much like all the other plates of food with spaghetti. Believe it or not, he actually ate a good amount. See what I mean as in being a kid-friendly restaurant? Milhouse, who is not a kid (well, according to him only), was very indifferent about his Chicken Neptune. He thought the veal was overly salty and greasy. Also, the Hollandaise was not really a Hollandaise in his eyes. As you can see in the picture, it sure doesn't look like Hollandaise. He also didn't think much of the overcooked spaghetti and as I quote, "tomato sauce you can get out of a jar of Ragu". Ouch... But I can't argue with him there!

For some reason, Hot Chocolate decided to go for 2 appetizers instead of any pasta. Maybe she knows better? She had the Calamari first and it was merely passable. It was overly greasy and frankly had not much flavour. I gave it a try and yah, pretty average. Tzatziki sauce could've used more garlic. She went with the Garlic Cheese Bread as her second appy. She thought the cheese bread had some white cheese sauce underneath that was too much; but the edges were crispy. If you can get over the artery clogging part, it's great for sharing. Judes opted for the classic Chicken Parmigiana with spaghetti. Although the chicken was dry and the pasta was overcooked, she echoed the same sentiment - it was okay for the price. With that being said, the breading was still crispy and the inclusion of salad, bread, drink and dessert makes one forget about the negatives.

Sienna ordered something that I considered at first. Now don't laugh, it was the Thai Curry Linguine. Yah, the chances of this dish working out is as good as finding great pasta at a Hong Kong-style cafe. Seriously, I wanted to try it to see how bad it could be. On the contrary, Sienna actually liked it. No, she's not crazy nor unfamiliar with Asian food. Rather, she went in with reasonable expectations and the final product was not offensive. The pasta was al dente while the sauce was flavourful with a bit of spice. The shrimp was cooked nicely while by looking at it, there was probably too much sauce. With that being said, it was probably better than what I had. Boss Woman ended up with the Meat Lasagna. You might be wondering why the picture is of a vegetarian lasagna then. Well, the picture of the veggie one turned out better, otherwise, the 2 are practically the same except for the meat. Boss Woman didn't feel there was that much in the way of meat in her lasagna and remarked that it was passable. Lots of cheese and sauce though.

Mr. Blueberry decided to go for the classic which was the Spaghetti and Meatballs. Reminiscent of the one we had at Nick's, this was ol' skool pasta. Slightly overdone spaghetti with the same tart pasta sauce. He didn't mind the meatballs though. They were well-seasoned and relatively moist. He thought the portion could be bigger; but the portion did fit the price. At the end of the meal, like any meal at the Old Spaghetti Factory, we all got a scoop of Spumoni Ice Cream. Oh yeah, that brought back so many childhood memories. And that is probably what makes TOSF successful. It really hasn't changed much in terms of decor, food and even pricing (hasn't gone up very much). Where else can you get a complete meal for around $10.00? Yah, I know, the pasta here ain't exactly gourmet. In fact, it is probably as far from gourmet as you can get. However, let me do a comparison. The pasta is similar to Nick's (as much as some people might disagree with me); yet it costs half the price. It is most certainly less expensive than Boston Pizza and don't even get me started on their pasta! So really, as much as I want to hate TOSF for its overcooked pasta with canned-like sauce, I remain indifferent.

The Good:
- Kid-friendly
- Inexpensive
- Predictable

The Bad:
- Food is generally pretty weak
- Don't expect anything ground-breaking here