Kami Japanese Restaurant

When Gawa Sushi opened up in North Delta, I was wondering if we would finally have a decent Japanese restaurant that was an alternative to Minori (good, but small portions), Akari (okay, but pricey), Nordel Sushi (ew...), Tokyo Express (average) and Hatto (double ew...).  Nope, Gawa just provided the same mediocre stuff.  *sigh*  Wait, what's this?  Kami Japanese at Strawberry Hill?  With a snazzy dining space and fusion menu, I was a bit skeptical.  My first visit consisted of a Chirashi Don (yes again...) and it was pretty good.  It was a large portion of chewy flavourful sushi rice topped with lots of nicely textured sashimi. That inspired me to do several return visits just to make sure.

On my second visit, I had Combo C (bottom right clockwise, there was Ebiyonnaise, Reno Roll, Sashimi, Nigiri and Spicy Love Roll). The Ebiyonnaise featured a airy and crispy batter where the shrimp had a light snap.  The drizzle of lemony mayo was flavourful and garlicky.  Cut into big slices, the Sashimi was not overbearing to eat since each slice was not too thick.  There was nothing amiss with the raw fish as the textures were good and the flavours were clean.  With the Nigiri, there was a good fish-to-rice ratio.  Again, nothing wrong with the salmon, toro and ebi.  The rice itself was not bad having a mild sweetness and slight vinegar hit.  Texturally, it was chewy and only slightly gummy.  The Spicy Love Roll, lived up to its namesake as the buttery soft tuna on top had a kick while the tobiko provided a nice pop.  The inside was essentially a dynamite roll consisting of ebi tempura, imitation crab and avocado.  I liked how they used a minimal amount of rice as the roll was not very heavy.  Lastly, there was the Reno Roll which included cream cheese, avocado, imitation crab and salmon which was battered and deep fried.  The drizzle of house sauce was similar to teriyaki being sweet and savoury.  I'm not a huge fan of cream cheese in sushi, but this was just enough. I also got a Chicken Don and it was decent.  The rice was chewy while the veggies on top were not wet.  The chicken had a nice charred flavour and was sufficiently moist.  My only wish would be more sauce. 

On another visit, I tried the Assorted Tempura which was plated with effort and care.  In the end, it was a nicely executed dish where the tempura batter was uniform and light.  It was crunchy all the way through and not greasy at all.  Each piece was carefully cut and were cooked just right.  The ebi had a light snap and was naturally sweet.  Only complaint was the dipping sauce, it was a tad too sweet.  In addition, I tried their Katsu Don which had the same chewy rice as the chicken don.  There was enough sauce to flavour the entire bowl, yet didn't drown the rice either.  It was sweet with some savoury elements.  Unfortunately, the katsu was on the drier side and the exterior was not crisp in the least.  

Lastly, I had the Chicken Yakisoba and it was pretty saucy, but not excessively.  With the amount of sauce, the noodles were really sweet and slightly wet.  But I did appreciate the touch of tartness which cut through the sweetness.  There was lots of moist chicken throughout.  After 3 visits, I've developed an appreciation for Kami, not because it is outstanding, but because it is better than the rest in the area (combination of price, quality and decor).  And sometimes, that is all that counts.

The Good:
- Above-average eats
- Modern decor
- Friendly people

The Bad:
- They did say fusion, so don't expect super-authenticity
- A bit higher priced that other Japanese restaurants in the area (except for Akari)

26th Annual Canadian Festival of Chili & BBQ

There is no other way to say it, but I love Chili.  There is also no other way to say it, but it can be an airy and bloated experience as well.  But I braved that reality and accepted the responsibility of being one of the judges in the 26th Annual Canadian Festival of Chili & BBQ out in Langley at the Cascades Casino (parking lot).  With over 30 participants, I was going to need some Pepto or some alone time on the porcelain throne (TMI?).

We were there to judge CASI (Chili Appreciation Society International) Chili which can only be Texas-style chili.  They don't mess around here because this type of chili must adhere to strict guidelines (no beans or any other material other than ground or cubed meat).  So with scoring card ready, some palate cleansers (carrots and celery) and a whole lot of spoons, we set forth to try 16 different Texas-style chilis.  We were given specific criteria to look for in a good chili such as smell, consistency, texture, taste and finish.  Hey, they don't mess around!

Essentially, there were 2 versions of the Texas-style Chili - ground and cubed.  The ground meat type is the one most people associate with chili and as simple as it may seem, getting the texture right is important.  I found that most of them were quite moist with a good meat chew.  Some were spicier than others while some were more mild, yet still flavourful from the addition of more cumin.  As for the cubed type, depending on the size of the cut, it was almost like a stew.  Naturally, this version would offer up some more meat texture and more chew as well.

After 16 samples, most of us braved the Home-Style Chili cook off where there were no rules.  Hence, there were a host of ingredients including corn, chickpeas, mushroom and of course various beans.  Some were quite interesting and stretched the definition of chili.  I found the several versions of chili verde a nice departure from the usual.  I personally like spicy food and found that some were too mild for my tastes.  But then again, my stomach would probably disagree vehemently.  At the end, we had sampled 18 of these home-style chilis.

Don't worry if you missed the chili competition because on June 23rd, 2013 (that's today), the BC BBQ Championship runs from 11:00am to 2:00pm with pork butt, brisket, chicken and ribs competing in order on the hour.  So what are you waiting for?  Make your way down to Cascades Casino in Langley for some Sunday meat action!

Cassia Cupcakery

Despite its popularity, I've never jumped on the cupcake bandwagon.  Sure, I'm not a huge fan of sweets, but that doesn't mean I don't mind having my cake and eat it too.  Besides, my daughter loves cupcakes and that automatically makes me obliged to buy them. So I finally decided to check out Cassia Cupcakery after numerous inquisitive near visits.  Yah, I drive by it all the time and never felt the urge to stop and find parking.  I did this time...

Similarly displayed like Cupcakes and with familiar flavours, I was hoping that Cassia would woo me over to the cupcake world. I picked up some minis including (from top and clockwise) 2 Red Velvet, Lemon, Vanilla with Chocolate Frosting, Cookies and Cream and Pink Vanilla.  Okay, let me cut to the chase.  For the price I paid, I expected, at the very least, good cupcakes.  Sadly, these were far from moist and the flavours were quite weak.  I didn't enjoy the frosting as it was heavy and sweet.  On the positive side, they did look pretty.

I also got 2 full-sized cupcakes to make everything fair.  Both were chocolate with the one on the left being Peanut Butter and the one on the right being Strawberry White Chocolate (I think...  not sure because I couldn't even eat a bit of the frosting).  Being bigger cupcakes, they were not as dry, but they were hardly moist.  The frostings were just too cumbersome to eat.  And to think that I thought Cupcakes were hard to swallow.  I take that back.  Alas, not only did this visit to Cassia Cupcakery not woo me over, it turned me off.

The Good:
- They're pretty
- Vegan options

The Bad:
- Cake dry
- Frosting heavy and greasy

Man vs. Meat Father's Day Long Table Dinner @ Hop & Vine Taphouse

There are those restaurants that you know about because they are either highly visible from the street and/or highly hyped by advertisements and social media.  Hence, there are no surprises when someone mentions them by name during a conversation.  But there are some restaurants out there that barely anyone knows about unless you live nearby.  Embarrassingly enough, I've lived near The Hop & Vine Taphouse (have you heard about it???) for around 7 years and as much as I knew about it, I never dared to walk in.  Honestly, from the outside, it doesn't even look like a restaurant.  It took an actual invite to their Man vs. Meat Father's Day Long Table Dinner to get me into the place.

Much like the one I had at The Pumphouse, there would be 5 courses with accompanying craft beer pairings.  For $40.00 plus taxes and tip, you can't get much of a better deal than that.  We started with the Chopped Salad consisting of grilled sweet & spicy pork loin served on chopped salad, crispy wonton strips and ginger dressing.  The flavours were nice with a sweet gingery thing going on, yet it wasn't that spicy.  As for the pork, it was pretty dry.  This was paired with Two Beers Evolutionary IPA which I found to be quite smooth going down.  Next up was the Italian Involtini which was a free-run chicken breast stuffed with mozzarella & wrapped with prosciutto atop a Parmesan risotto.  I found the chicken to be really dry even with the cheese.  The prosciutto was good though with a nice chew and saltiness.  As for the risotto, it was overdone and quite salty.  However, the pop of the sweet peas was nice.  This was paired with an Odin Freya's Gold Kolsch Style Ale which had a lemony bite.

Onto the 3rd course, we had the Sticky Asian Baby Back Ribs glazed with an Asian BBQ sauce atop Asian slaw.  Unlike the previous 2 proteins, this one was done right with moist ribs which still had a wonderful chew.  The BBQ sauce was a bit sweet, spicy and just a touch of savouriness.  The slaw was crunchy with a noticeable sesame oil hit, but could've used more acidity.  This was paired with Two Beers Forester IPA which was my personal favourite as it just had "hit-me-in-the-face" initial taste.  Doing it's best Montreal smoked meat impersonation, the Braised Smoky Beef Brisket with cabbage, onions and mustard, was fantastic. It was buttery soft while maintaining a bouncy bite.  Eaten with the sweet cabbage, onions and a touch of mustard, it was a party in my mouth.  This was paired with an Odin's Gift Ruby Ale.  I found it to be full-bodied with some fruity notes.

Finally, for dessert, we had a Chocolate Cupcake with maple bacon frosting.  For a taphouse, I gotta give them props for making one moist cupcake.  It wasn't particularly chocolaty (despite the colour) while being only semi-sweet.  There was just enough bacony sweet frosting to add some punch to the cupcake.  This was paired with an Alameda Papa Noel Olde Ale which went well with the cupcake because of the chocolaty notes.  As much as the meal started off slowly, it picked up and ended off on a high note.  Sure, there were some issues with some dishes, but for $40.00 with 5 pints of beer, there was not much to complain about - other than staggering home afterwards...

The Good:
- C'mon, for $40.00, this was a steal
- You get to meet some new friends

The Bad:
- Some proteins were dry

Chengdu Szechuan Bistro

There we were, finishing up our meal.  Along with the bill, the dreaded (not-a-real-Chinese thing) fortune cookie awaited us.  One-by-one we opened our non-nonsensical fortunes, until it got to me.  One crack of the crunchy cookie and *GASP*, it was empty!  I had no fortune!  What did it mean???  FML!  Yes, that was at the end of our meal at Chengu Szechuan Bistro.  Fortunately (what an ironic word...), our meal turned better than my cookie.  We ended up here because our initial plans didn't work out as Guu Kobachi was more packed than a car returning from the outlet malls. They were nice enough to serve us even though we arrived at closing. 

What caught our attention at first was the Peking Duck plastered all over the front door.  Peking Duck?  At 10:30pm after hockey?  Sure, why not!  For $38.00, we got a whole duck with 2 courses.  The first course was the crispy skin with crepes.  This was surprisingly good with an attractive colour and crispy skin.  The layer of fat was not substantial while the meat was moist and soft.  The crepes were a touch on the chewier side, but okay nonetheless.  Now the order of Xiao Long Bao were not okay.  The dumpling skin was far too thick and doughy while the meat filling was mealy and bland.  We were willing to give them a pass on this one since they are not a Shanghainese restaurant. However, with Dinesty nearby, no XLB is safe.

Onto another good dish, we had the Szechuan Green Beans.  Normally, this dish is more often than not prepared mild.  Not here.  It was spicy and really had a pop in our mouths.  The beans still had a bite even though they were cooked through. There was evidence of good wok heat since the bottom of the plate was dry except for the bits of ground pork, chilis and onions.  Something surprising was the spice level of the Shanghai Fried Noodles.  Normally, this dish is very mild with little in the way of veggies except for cabbage.  The prawns were plump with a snap while the chicken was a bit dry.  The dish as a whole was in need of some salt and possibly could've done without all the vegetables as it made the noodles wet.

Lastly, the second course, being the Duck Lettuce Wrap, of the Peking Duck arrived.  The stir-fried filling was pretty legit with big chunks of duck, water chestnuts and onion.  The flavour was mild, yet effective while there was a good balance of crunch and meat.  However, we needed more than the 6 provided lettuce cups and each additional was 50 cents (pretty steep).  Despite our initial concerns about being a "fusion" restaurant, Chengdu surprised us with a well-made Peking Duck and Szechuan Beans.  Sure, the XLBs were not great, but they're not a Shanghainese restaurant.  There was enough here to warrant another look.

The Good:
- Surprisingly good Peking Duck
- Friendly attentive service
- Modern decor

The Bad:
- A tad pricey, but it's Downtown afterall
- It's nit-picking, but a leaf of lettuce for 50 cents?

Lucky Star

When dealing with different cuisines, we often take the tourist approach in experiencing it.  For example, it is so easy to say Sweet & Sour Pork is a Chinese dish.  Yes it is (even though some thing it is purely a North American belief), but it is from Cantonese cuisine. Even worse, places like PF Chang's is often grouped into the same category.  Sure, it'll make some people cringe, yet we can't assume everyone really wants "real" Chinese food anyways.  Take Szechuan cuisine for instance.  Many assume by adding some chilis into a dish makes it Szechuan.  How about throwing in lots of chili, a handful of Szechuan peppercorns and enough chili oil to make the Exxon Valdez spill look like a puddle. At first glance, Lucky Star (formerly Capitol Hill Szechuan) didn't look promising, but hey, we had to try it to see for ourselves!

Arriving in a familiar large pot, the Szechuan Seafood Hot Pot looked legit with the aforementioned chili oil slick and Szechuan peppercorns.  We asked for it to be less spicy and it was.  However, there was still a pleasant heat level which is a hallmark of authentic Szechuan cuisine.  The large pieces of fish were moist and flaky while the shrimp had a nice snap.  I found the squid to be somewhat chewy and well, the imitation crab was imitation crab (we could've done without that). The Cumin Lamb was mildly spicy with an obvious cumin hit.  The thin slices of lamb were somewhat dry, yet relatively tender.  In my opinion, there was far too much filler in the form of onions and peppers though.

Although the Stir-Fried Pea Tips were prepared properly with a good amount of garlic, the tips themselves were chewy.  It wasn't because they were old, rather, the stems were not cut in the right place.  The result was inedible stems, much like you'd find on improperly cut asparagus. The Fish and Tofu Hot Pot was pretty good with large pieces of nicely fried fish and soft tofu.  The flavours were mild. The hand-pulled Shanghainese Noodles were a highlight of the meal.  The noodles had a nice bite and chewiness while there was a balanced mix of napa cabbage, spinach and julienned pork.  The flavours were good too due to the caramelization from good wok heat.  However, they used far too much oil which made the dish greasy.  It's a catch-22 since fresh noodles stick easily without enough oil.  Although not particularly awesome, the food was pretty serviceable and at the very least, authentic.  Not sure how the "sweet & sour" crowd would like this type of food though...

The Good:
- Food is not North American Szechuan
- Friendly owner-lady
- Decent eats

The Bad:
- Decent, but not spectacular either
- Greasy (but we expected it to be)
- Decor is well past its prime

Sushi K Kamizato

We are fully aware that authentic Japanese-run restaurants are a rarity in the GVRD.  It gets even more scarce as we move further out into the 'burbs because there is a widely held belief that the clientele don't know any better.  Now hold on there.  Sure, there are still those who only do the California Roll thing, but just like with most things, people are figuring out there is more to Japanese food than a monster sushi roll with a thick layer of poorly-made sushi rice. That is why we find little gems such as Tokachi and Fuji Sushi. Now, add another one to this list in PoCo being Sushi K Kamizato (which is authentic with a modern twist).  Joining me for this meal were fine Coquitlam residents Rich Guy and Rich Gal.

We started with the Asian Nachos which was an interesting dish that seemed Izakaya-ish and indeed it was that.  Arriving with crisps that resembled shrimp chips, there was a bowl of cubed tuna, avocado, tomato marinaded in a sesame oil dressing with house-made salsa on the side.  We were only mildly enthusiastic about this dish because the tuna mix was far too watery.  When placed on the chip, the moisture degraded the experience.  Otherwise, the tuna was buttery soft and the salsa was bright with some spice.  Continuing on with my recent fascination with Chirashi Don, we shared an order.  This was well-prepared with aesthetically-pleasing sashimi which was equally good in texture and taste.  The sushi rice was very good having a chewy quality that was not gummy nor slimy.  It was also well-balanced in flavour too.

We got 2 rolls for our meal with the Spicy & Shout arriving first.  I think the chef happens to like the Beatles, hence the name (play on twist and shout).   It consisted of spicy diced seafood with minced crab and ebi on top and tuna inside finished with sweet chips.  Again, the good sushi rice was a good starting point for the roll.  Despite its name, the roll was actually quite mild with some sweetness and a touch of spice.  The least favourite item of our meal was the Chicken Yakisoba.  Not only was it a miniscule portion for $8.95, the individual components were not that great.  First, the chicken was very dry and stiff.  Second, the noodles were also equally dry.  Third, the whole dish was sorely lacking in flavour.

Lastly, our second roll arrived almost 20 minutes after our first roll.  I guess they were really backed up with the busy restaurant.  Interestingly named the Goodbye Yellow Brick Roll (and Elton John reference), it consisted of yam tempura with minced crab, ebi and mango salsa on top.  It was finished off with a mango and raspberry coulis of sorts.  We liked this roll the best as it had similar qualities as the first, but was accented nicely by the fruity coulis.  At the end of our meal, we were pretty satisfied, if not only mildly impressed. Most of the food, especially the sushi and sashimi were well-prepared.  I guess this is good and authentic for Port Coquitlam. 

The Good:
- Carefully prepared sushi and sashimi
- Super nice people
- It's Japanese-run (if you care)

The Bad:
- A bit pricey
- The one cooked item we had was not very good