Richmond Night Market 2013: SaucyPops, Takoyaki, Chef James, and Mogu

The Richmond Night Market is back and is often confused with the Summer Night Market (the one by IKEA). This one is located right beside the River Rock Casino and Canada Line. There are tons of shops and food stands in the market.

There are also 1,500 parking spots in the lot and it’s free, but entrance into the market is $2 per person. Sucks, but I just tell myself that it’s worth the easy parking.

My friends and I came here to eat food at 7pm and it wasn’t too busy as we came on a long weekend. We aren’t too keen on shopping at the market but we just love the food stalls. Meat on sticks!

This year the theme is the Magical Duck Island, named after the stretch of land that the night market resides on. There’s a lot of hype around ducks this summer as Hong Kong has the duck art installation in Victoria Harbour. I’m not really sure if there is a correlation there or perhaps good timing.

There are rows upon rows of shops, but I can’t remember exactly how many stands there are. When I was younger, the usual items we would purchase would be stationary, Korean socks, and a stack of blank CDs.

The food section is much busier. It can get crowded at peak hours and you will probably fear the people walking and holding their skewers. Even though I wear glasses, I’m always afraid someone will poke my eyes out. It’s not likely to happen, but beware the crowds.

This year the sitting area is slightly larger. If you have 2 plates of food in your hands, you know you need a place to sit and actually enjoy your meal.

SaucyPops

SaucyPops sells homemade chicken wonton lollipops or as I call it jumbo fried wontons on a skewer. Their fried wontons are served with 4 signature sauces:

• Wasabi Aioli – Mild sweetness with a wasabi kick
• Korean Spicy Aioli – Spicy and salty 
• Honey Garlic Aioli – Sweet and savory
• Citrus Orange Marmalade Aioli – Sweet and spicy 
  

You can get all 4 for $4.75. It’s not a bad price and it’s a fun treat to share with others too.

I really liked the different sauces that went along with the wontons. When you bite into them, you get the crunchiness of the wonton wrapper and the great flavour from the sauces. My favorite was the Korean spicy aioli and the wasabi aioli. Clearly I like it spicy when it comes to fried food.

Takoyaki

It’s everyone’s favorite! Theres a few other stands in the night market but most of them are about the same.

For this particular stand, it’s 6 pieces for $5 and you can choose from octopus, shrimp, scallop or veggie for the center filling.

Chef James Xin Jiang Man BBQ

Chef James Xin Jiang Man BBQ is best known for his lamb skewers. There was a HUGE line for these bad boys and there were at least 10 – 15 people waiting to pay and another line waiting for the food. The lines move fast, so don’t be intimidated by the large amount of people. Just make sure you line up correctly cause it can be very confusing where the line begins.

• 3 skewers for $7.25
• 5 for $11.50
• Buy 6 and get a free pop ($13.75)

They cook a bunch and then have it kept under the warm lights, so that’s how they move quickly through the long line ups.

We got a bunch of different skewers, but you can’t go wrong with any of them. They all taste good. My personal favorites was the beef and lamb.

Mogu Japanese Street Eats

Food Trucks make me excited, but what makes me even more excited is when they are at the night market. Mogu was selling their signature item – the chicken karaage. They aren’t selling their sandwiches, but thats ok since the chicken karaage is pretty darn good.

• 3 pieces – $4.75
• 5 pieces – $7.50

I liked the chicken karaage and so did my friends. Some were a bit iffy about the sauce, but the way they batter and fry the chicken was spot on.

Rotato

Rotato serves up the hurricane potatoes. The line up is always long. It seems to be the only stall that served these. We didn’t line up, but they do have this really cool illustration about what you can do with your Rotato.

You can now learn how to propose with a rotato, make a baby stop cry with a rotato and even go fishing with a rotato.

I usually go to the night market a few times a year and it’s fun for the summer. Lots of things to see and buy, but its all about the delicious food.

Address:
8351 River Rd
Richmond, BC

Website:
richmondnightmarket.com