Tasting Journey #32 - Nikkyu Japanese Restaurant

Nikkyu Japanese Restaurant (二休)

3302 Main Street

Vancouver, BC V5V 3M7, Canada 
604.873.2220

nikkyujapanesevancouver.com‎

Agnes and I were actually planning to try out Toshi, but as usual, we arrived at the wrong hour and the line up outside was crazy. With only 1.5 hour to spare and a craving for Japanese food, we stumbled upon this place.  A total mistake.

I recalled that we had ordered at least five dishes. We thought we had ordered too much, but we were wrong. We ate everything, and we weren't satisfied. I've only taken photos of the three dishes that was nicely displayed.  Taste on the other hand, was disappointing.

Of all the dishes we ordered, the only one that I recommend trying out is the sushi roll that is wrapped in thinly sliced cucumber.  It was light and refreshing.

Oyster motoyaki looked appealing from its well saturated colour. However, the taste was again, a disappointment.  Oyster was tiny, and the mayo batter was just not right.  It tasted too rich and felt like I was drinking lard.

Menu selection was extensive, but the quality was plain.  We ordered a bunch of dishes that looked interesting.  It was nicely displayed, but it wasn't appealing to the taste bud.



Price: ~$25/person
Satisfaction level - low
Not recommended

Tasting Journey #31 - Shanghai House Restaurant

Shanghai House Restaurant (上海人家)
6340 #3 Rd
Richmond, BC604.278.0709

steamed dumplings and wonton soup

I've been to Shanghai House Restaurant several times already.  They went through some renovations a while ago. Since then, their menu has changed, not to mention the price also went up.  Food quality is still awesome.

appetizer cold dish

Shanghai cuisine is known for their pastries (麵食), ie noodles, dumplings, pan cakes...etc. They make all their dumplings fresh upon order. Appetizers are good, and price is decent. Not sure why, but their stir-fry pea tip with garlic (炒豆苗) was a dish I really enjoy and seemed to stick in my mind.



Price: ~$20/person
Completely in sync with the food quality.

Epilogue (10 months later)

It's been 10 months since my last post. It doesn't mean that I haven't been trying out new restaurants, but rather, I have just been lazy in logging them.  Partly because I feel quite "fobbish" to be taking photos every time a dish arrives at the table; partly because I oftentimes get too anxious/hungry and forget to take photos; but mostly because I've reached my 25 restaurant goal, and just don't feel like maintaining it.  It is a never-ending task.

I don't think blogging should feel like a chore. It should be something that I enjoy (I am still trying to figure that out)...and to dread having to document it is just not the right mentality.  On one end, I feel like I need to push myself a bit, though this thought disappears rather quickly.  However, at the same time, I am constantly reminded of again by my coworkers who are always on some sort of "30 day challenge".  Maybe blogging is something that I can be persistent on (since I've failed my life long goal to lose weight aka not persistent), or maybe I should just let it be. Maybe. 

So I have all these food photos in my phone, I download them onto my computer into a folder. Then what?  I decided to log into my blog tonight. I looked at the 30 posts I've written last year, and a smile naturally appears on my face.  It is a good feeling. It is a happy feeling. It is an accomplishment.

I think what I really dread is not so much logging the restaurants, but rather, the thought of having to write and comment on it. I've always disliked writing essays,  or even paragraphs.  If you know me personally, you'll know that I'm a very fact-based person.  Maybe it's from having spent most of my highschool/university life documenting test results, and writing lab reports - short, precise, and to the point.

So after many moments of indecisiveness, I've decided.
I want to document the restaurants I've visited. So to make this happen, I am committed to (lulu/landmark lingo) keeping the blog alive.  And to achieve this, I am declaring (another lulu/landmark lingo) that I will upload photos with minimal text.  This will reduce the stress of having to write.  Picture in itself is worth a thousand words.  Good luck, Ganbare, 加油.

Tasting Journey #30 - Felicos

Felicos
8140 Leslie Road
Richmond, BC
604.276.8282
www.felicos.com


I have driven by this restaurant countless times, but never really even thought about ever trying out.  The restaurant is located in Richmond, a city full of authentic Asian cuisine.  Why would anyone thought of trying Greek food?

Hummous + Pita bread

This opportunity came when I was searching for a place to meet up with Judy.  Given that she has a 1.5yr old child with her, I thought it would only be convenient for her if we were to meet in Richmond. With her visiting from Taiwan, Asian cuisines was pretty much out of the equation.  It was either Greek, western or Korean, AND had to be child-friendly.

I googled. Felico came up with great reviews.  This is the place then.

Greek Salad

Judy had Luca with us.  He was a handful.  Actually, twenty handful was more like it, haha.  She was busy keeping him busy, so for ease' sake, we went with the Platter for 2 where we were able to try out almost everything Greek.

There's the very basic hummous + pita bread.   Then there's the Greek salad.  Then came a shared platter of things which I don't know what they are.  But here's some of what was on the plate:

Satziki // Kalamaria - Deep fried squid // Chicken Souvlaki  // Lamb Souvlakia  // Dolmades - Ground sirloin and rice wrapped in grape vine leaves with avgolemono sauce  // Spanakopita - Spinach, feta cheese, onions, baked in filo pastry  // Keftedes - Ground sirloin meatballs, onion

Then, for some tummy fillers to ensure we will be full, if not already, there's our individual plate of: Rice  // Roast Potatoes  // Seasonal Vegetables

 

The Platter

Individual Plate

Portions were huge. I could not finish it. Judy could not finish it.  One observation that both Judy and I had was that Greek food is not aesthetically appealing. They all had a very dark, tonal colour to it. The entire platter was either brown or black. This is not to say that the food wasn't tasty.  Just that you're always surprised by the aromatic taste despite the "low key"presentation.

Felicos serve decent food, but I really have to say that the service was extremely good.  The ambient was very welcoming, and warm.  I could enjoyed myself just as much if I were to just sit on their open patio on a warm sunny afternoon, with a pint of beer in my hand.  I would go back.

Tasting Journey #29 - Section 3

Section 3
1039 Mainland Street
Vancouver, BC
604.684.2777
http://www.sectionthree.com/


Located in Yaletown, this is where we had our team outing dinner.  The resturant is very contemporary and sheek. Service was friendly, but the food was just OK.

As this is a team-outing event consisting of 30+ people, we did not order from their regular menu.  Rather, everyone had to order one out of the 3 available set menu.  

 

Amuse Bouche: fried tofu

Starter: Cocktail shrimp

Appetizer was creatively set on a skewer.  Fried tofu on lettuce with balsamic vinegar. This was then followed by a bowl of cocktail shrimp.  The cocktail sauce had a zest of wasabi that really complimented the seafood.  Entree for me was the roasted chicken breast with cherry tomotao and fettucini.  The chicken was extremely salty, yet the fettucini was surprisingly blend.  I had to carefully proportion my chicken so that I would have one bite of chicken with one bite of noodle to neutralize the taste.

Entree: Chicken Breast + Fettucini

Dessert: Vanilla ice-cream on brownie

Food could be better, but the atmosphere was welcoming.  Would I come again? Sure, why not.

Tasting Journey #28 - Lam Hoa Quan

Lam Hoa Quan
5703 Victoria Drive
604.326.5880
website


I've always been a fan of PHO. I can eat pho everyday, every meal. I enjoy it alot because it is light (perfect for people who are on diet), and healthy (a well-balanced portion with carbs, meat and vegetable).

Whenever I try ethnic food, my conclusion have always been that Vancouver's is still the best.  I think this is a biased opinion because I am, at the end of the day, a Vancouverite, and no doubtedly have grown used to the Vancouverized flavouring, and hence, a preference for ethnic food in Vancouver. This is true for Japanese, for Dim Sum, for Korean...etc.  Pho, is an exception. Regardless of how wonderfully tasting the Pho is in Vancouver, I have to say, the best pho I've ever tried is indeed in Vietnam, recommended by a friend who was, at that time, an expat there.  The funny thing is, Pho is very regional; there's pho from Northern Vietnam, that is made of something sour or tomato-based (I forgot), and then there's the very common pho that I believe is from the southern region of Vietnam.  I prefer the version from the south because it is the most similar to what is offered here in Vancouver.

Lam Hoa Quan is a pho place highly recommended by my co-worker.  According to her, this place is where the real Vietnamese go (OK, so I guess it's like the Richmond of Vietnam where "real Asians" go).  Like all other pho places located on Kingsway, this place looks like any other pho place: minimal decoration, white wall, white floor, square table, tv in the corner, and an old 70's style cashier counter.  Like all other pho menu, there's the special pho, rare beef, cooked beef...etc. I don't see what's so special.

In terms of crowds, I do have to say that it does seem to be busy. Not packed, but there was a constant stream of customers, with a consistent fill rate of 65%, which I would consider good on a Wed night, in the midst of all these other pho restaurants.

I ordered the #1 (special pho).  The food arrived quickly.  Service was friendly. I took a sip at the soup. Nothing mind blowing. The portion was huge, and I was stuffed (if I were to compare this to ramen, this would be the Kintaro size).  They also had lots of other interesting toppings (not sure what they are..probably some sort of tripe, or tendon or what have you's...).  Aside from the quantitative side of the dish, I would say that typically, the deciding factor for a good pho is probably the broth.  Lam Hoa Quan adds ginger to the soup base.  OK I guess, if you're a fan of ginger (unfortunately I wasn't).  The broth is also not as "sweet tasting" as the broth, however, I believe that it is because no MSG was used in the creation of the broth.  Though less "sweet", I would say that the broth is made of true ingredients.  For something that is made fresh, it is probably quite good in quality.

Huge, and satisfying dish for $8? Totally worth it.

Tasting Journey #27 - Paul's Omelettery

Paul's Omlettery
2211 Granville Street,
Vancouver, BC
604.737.2857


It's been a while since I've posted anything. It's interesting and shows much about a person's character I think. Here I am, 3 months after having reached my 25 restaurant goals, and finally deciding to add a post to my blog.  I love to procrastinate.  I keep thinking about it, but I lack the incentive to action it.

Anyways, so this is a good start I guess? I haven't fully abandoned the idea of keeping up this blog, though the thought of it does sound like a lot of work.  Thoughts tend to run through my mind at night, as I lie in my bed, usually within that 5 minute period before I fall asleep.  I thought I had already thought through how I would complete the blog, and the skeleton of this post. I seem to have lost my thought. I guess it's justifiable that nothing really needs to stick nor make sense in the last 5 min before you fall asleep, let alone remembering it. Though I have to say, many of my great accomplishments (like how to intricately respond to an email to piss off a coworker, or how to politically respond to an email related to quality blah blah, yes, it's all about work, and I should be paid over time for thinking about it even to the last minute before my brain turns its light off) came to fruit within that short time span. It's all about "80-20" right?

So, focusing back on my blog.  This restaurant is located near Granville Island.  Well known for it omlettes, the restaurant is packed as a bee (?).  This is Catherine's first weekend after she quit her job from lululemon.  Catherine wanted to meet up with Asmin for brunch, and to thank her for the wonderful advice on leaving the company.  I guess I was the "accompaniment". I don't mind. :)

The service was extremely friendly despite the busy traffic.  Aside from the typical "how are the food?", they did not even "try" or "attempt" to make us leave even after we had finished all our food, and there was a lineup at the door waiting for tables.

We ordered a jar of grapefruit juice to share, and ordered our own omlette dish.  Frankly speaking, I'm not sure what's so good about omlettes, nor am I really fond of them.  All I can say is that it is well made (compared to the ones I've had in the past) in the sense that the egg skin was so thinly crafted and nicely wrapped around the filling that it, aesthetically, looked more like a burrito.  Portion isn't as huge as most of the other popular brunch places, but it is definitely enough. 2 full slices of toast plus an omlette is definitely enough for an early meal.

Lastly, as always, would I recommend this place? Yes.