Chinese Archives - Page 9 of 14

In Chinese

No 1 Chinese Restaurant: Deep Fried Tofu is Addictive

February 10, 2013

Foodology Disclaimer: No 1 Chinese Restaurant invited me to try their dishes. I brought along 5 of my friends to keep the review as unbiased as I could. All dishes you see reflect what you would receive on a regular dining experience.

No 1 Chinese Restaurant is located on Hastings and Willingdon and they serve Chinese food. The Chef is John Mok and he has spent 30 years as a chef in Hong Kong, USA, China, and Vancouver. I’ve always passed by the restaurant on my way home from Downtown, but never really thought too much about it. It’s a family run restaurant and they put their heart and soul into their food.

When they approached me to try out their restaurant, I told me trusted buddies – M, Scarface, KoreanGirl, Cruzpresso, and RunningMan to join me.

The interior is a bit confusing as it still has the murals from the previous restaurant that occupied the space. Nonetheless, it’s really all about the food and they do have good food here.

Hot and Sour Soup (Small $5.50 | Large $9.95) was pretty good! It’s my favorite soup to order when I’m at a Chinese Restaurant. We gobbled it all up!

Deep Fried Tofu with Golden Garlic ($8.50) holy crap, the most amazing thing I’ve eaten in a long time! The outside is crunchy and the inside is soft tofu. It’s SO good. It looks very simple, but is so addictive. Go order this and you will know what I’m talking about. Everyone at the table thought this was the best item we ordered.

Sweet and Sour Boneless Pork ($10) was decent, still better than some other places in town. The batter wasn’t too thick, so you get a good amount of meat.

Beef Brisket with Curry Sauce ($11.95) had lots of tender beef, potatoes, onions and green peppers. This is one of their popular dishes. I would definitely order this again!

You can order rice to go with your curry. It comes in this cute little container. It reminded me of an elementary school lunch box.

House Special Chow Mein ($9.50) was loaded with a bit of everything. There was so much stuff packed on top, I lost count of what was on it.

BBQ Duck came with a good amount of pieces and was good as well.

Overall, some of the dishes were amazing. Definitely order the Beef Brisket Curry and the deep fried tofu. Since I grew up on Chinese food, generally not a lot of dishes stand out to me, but those 2 dishes are SO GOOD. They also have some pretty cheap lunch specials.

We Rate No 1 Chinese Restaurant:

Address:
02A-3701 Hastings
Burnaby, BC

Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/numberonechineserestaurant

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=3701+Hastings+Burnaby,+BC&hnear=3701+Hastings+St,+Burnaby,+Greater+Vancouver,+British+Columbia+V5C+2H6&gl=ca&t=m&z=16″]

In Chinese

Peaceful Restaurant: Hand Pulled Noodles

February 4, 2013

Peaceful Restaurant is located on Broadway near Broadway/City Centre Skytrain on the Canada Line. They are best known for their hand pulled noodles! It’s been there for a few years and I remember seeing it when I go to Sha Lin Noodles. I kinda always had a bias against this place because they have similar dishes and Sha Lin was there first. I decided I should really stop thinking that way and just keep on eating through all the restaurants in the city.

Even Guy Fieri from Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives on the Food Network was here filming a segment.

Here’s the video!

Peaceful Beef Roll ($7.95) has five spiced beef rolled in a green onion crispy green onion flat bread and sweet hoisin sauce. You can see him making it on the show and it is really good! Definitely one of the better ones in town. Everyone gets this when they visit, so do give it a try.

Xiao Long Bao Steamed Buns ($7.95) is filled with minced pork, ginger, and some sauce. It arrives on the table in a bamboo steamer with 8 pieces of buns.

Peaceful House Stir-Fried Noodles ($12.95) has seafood, pork, veggies, and a chili garlic sauce.

Cumin Lamb Stir-Fried Noodles ($12.95) has peppers, lamb and other spices. M liked it and enjoyed the flavours.

Sichuan beef noodle soup ($7.95) has stewed beef in a dark spicy broth in spinach and cilantro. It was really good! Lots of noodles and the beef was very tender. Highly recommended.

Overall, the food here is pretty solid. It is quite busy during peak hours, but turnover is quick. The service is ok but not great. There is very very limited parking in the rear. Just 1 spot…so its pretty hard to fight for that one spot. There is paid street parking around the block.

We rate Peaceful Restaurant:

Address:
532 W Broadway
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.peacefulrestaurant.com/

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=532+W+Broadway+Vancouver,+BC&hnear=532+W+Broadway,+Vancouver,+British+Columbia+V5Z+1E6&gl=ca&t=m&z=16″]

In BBQ

HK BBQ Master: All About the Meat and Skin

February 2, 2013

HK BBQ Master has been well-known to the community for having amazing BBQ meats. Far better than any other place in Vancouver. I had to take KoreaGirl and CanuckGirl here for lunch. The prices were good for under $10.

It’s located under the Superstore on #3 Road. There’s tons of parking, so no worries about fighting for spots.

When we arrived here, it was about 1pm and the place was packed with lots of people doing take-out. I hate my roast pork skin soggy, so eating it fresh was definitely on my mind. They have a few tables available. We were able to get a table right away! The service was very quick and rushed. They’re all about speed and efficiency.

BBQ Pork and Roast Pork ($7.50) is what KoreanGirl ordered. The roasted pork was amazing! Crispy skin and deliciously fatty. Each plate comes with a piece of broccoli and it really sucks.

Roasted Pork, BBQ Pork and Soya Chicken ($9.50) was a great way to try all their meats and I had to agree that the Roasted Pork was crazy good!

BBQ Duck and Soya Chicken ($7.50) is what CanuckGirl ordered. I stole some duck from her and it was really good!

Overall, we were impressed with their meats! If you want the best, you really have to come to HK BBQ Master. The crisp skin on the roast pork is addictive. MMmmmmmmmm! We left happy and will definitely return.

We Rate HK BBQ Master:

Address:
4651 #3 Rd
Richmond, BC

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=4651+%233+Rd+Richmond,+BC&hnear=4651+No+3+Rd,+Richmond,+British+Columbia+V6X+2C4&gl=ca&t=m&z=16 “]

In Bubble Tea

Cattle Cafe: All About the Laksa

January 28, 2013

Cattle Cafe has now opened 3 other locations in Richmond, Edmonds, and another on Kingsway. I usually just go to the original locations on Kingsway and Nelson. It’s open late and you get good value for what you pay.

The downside is the service. Its pretty meh, but you can probably get by. We’re experienced a whole range of attitudes from the servers in the past. We only really come here for a quick cheap meal.

Deep Fried Shrimp Skewers (6 for $3.99) looked pretty intriguing. A little bit cruel, but I love eating shrimp. The seasoning they used was good, but I think the shrimp themselves were not fresh, the meat was dry and may have been frozen at some point.

Iced Milk Tea is always a must at any HK style Cafe.

Malay Laksa Soup + fish tofu, beef brisket, and vermicelli noodles is a popular combination for their popular noodles. Mandu and KoreaGirl both ordered this and the loved it.

This was another noodle combination. I just pointed at a picture on the menu, but I didn’t have a clue what it is called. It’s quite big and there’s lots of noodles, but wasn’t as good as the laksa. Probably best to stick with laksa if you don’t want to be disappointed.

Overall, the food is ok for the price you pay. You can probably spend less than $10 and leave full. It’s a popular place to go to for late night meals and they even have a few other locations a few KMs away.

Words of Wisdom:

Parking Underground, street parking
Decently priced food
Noodles are their specialty and items on rice.
Limited seating, best to come in 2 or 4

We Rate Cattle Cafe:

Address:
4885 Kingsway
Burnaby, BC

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=4885+Kingsway+Burnaby,+BC&hnear=4885+Kingsway,+Burnaby,+British+Columbia+V5H+4T2&gl=ca&t=m&z=16 “]

In Cafe

Fung Sing Cafe: New Hong Kong Style Cafe

January 15, 2013

Fung Sing Cafe is a new Hong Kong style cafe. This cafe was previously Sun Yee Cafe Restaurant but has switched owners and a new menu to go along with it. The owner of Fung Sing Cafe was a chef at Curry King and opened Fung Sing Cafe to call his own.

The interior isn’t amazing but there are large tables if you want to come in big groups.

Depend on what set you order, it might come with soup. They have 3 types of soup – cream soup, Chinese soup, and Russian borscht. All of them tasted pretty good. Everyone at our table had their own favorite soup. I personally love cream soup.

Cold Milk Tea is always a must when going to a HK style cafe.

House Special Beef Short Ribs ($10.50) has lots of short ribs and was tender. Pretty solid dish.

Sweet and Sour Pork ($10.50) was really good. I usually hate sweet and sour pork but they make it really good here! The breading is thin, so you can taste the pork inside. Definitely recommended!!

2 item sizzling combination ($12.95) comes with your choice of any 2 meat choices, soup, drink, a sauce and a side. I chose the rib eye steak and the chicken steak. I also chose the side of vegetables and mushroom sauce.

Choice of 2 combinations ($9.95) thats what the menu said what this was. Essentially you choose 2 meats, a sauce, and a side. It also comes with a choice of sauce and drink. Kgirl chose her option with fries.

This is what it looks like if you chose rice as a side.

This one would be the one with the side of vegetables.

It’s a pretty good value for under $10 and you get full. This option is very popular.

4 of us ordered the same thing. It’s simple and good.

Baked Ying Yang Rice (King Size -$9.50) is a must order! It’s huge! It’s so large that I have no idea who would be able to finish it.

Trust me, it’s quite large even if the pictures don’t 100% justify the size. It tastes good and its worth your money!

You can get a choice of dessert if you order a set item. There are 3 options – Mango pudding, tapioca with coconut milk, and ice cream crepe.

The mango pudding is quite plain but still a nice ending to the meal.

The coconut milk with tapioca is typical of a Chinese restaurant, but still good.

The ice cream crepe was a surprise to see.

Once you cut into it, the ice cream just oozes out. Really cool and a fun desssert for kids.

Overall, Fung Sing Cafe is pretty solid and we had no complaints. The price is very reasonable, staff were nice, and food was decent. I’d definitely come back for some of their specials!

Words of Wisdom:

You gotta order Choice of 2 combinations and the Baked Ying Yang Rice
Free parking at rear

We Rate Fung Sing Cafe:

Address:
2128 East Hastings St
Vancouver, BC

Website: http://fungsingcafe.com/

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=2128+East+Hastings+St+Vancouver,+BC&hnear=2128+E+Hastings+St,+Vancouver,+Greater+Vancouver,+British+Columbia+V5L+1V2&gl=ca&t=m&z=16 “]

In Chinese

Cindy’s Palace: Signature Dishes

January 7, 2013

Foodology Disclaimer: I was invited by ChineseBites to try Cindy’s Palace’s signature dishes with a few other bloggers. The service is not representative of their usual service since they knew we were coming.

Cindy’s Palace is located on Nanaimo and 2nd and they invited a few bloggers to try their signature dishes. I’ve passed by several times when driving, but never thought too much about dining here. I actually don’t dine out at Chinese restaurants very often since I know I can get some at home. It was an adventure to see what else is out there.

The interior has many round tables and is busy on the weekend but week day is pretty empty.

Dim Sum Dishes:

Deep Fried Shrimp Cakes are filled with shrimp and breaded. It comes with 3 pieces and is one of their dim sum items. I don’t think it’s available during dinner time. It was packed full of shrimp and comes with 2 different sauces.

Pork Dumplings (Sui Mai) is very plump, so definitely filling and one of those items that are popular.

Shrimp Spring Roll with Wasabi comes with 6 pieces and loaded with shrimp inside. You couldn’t taste the wasabi, which was fine since it would have tasted weird. I really liked this item! Crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.

Crispy Tofu Stuffed with Vegetables in Thai Sauce was not one of my favorite items. The combination of the Thai sauce and the crispy tofu tasted a bit strange.

Dinner Dishes:

Stewed Spareribs in Whole Pumpkin you really need to scrape at the pumpkin to get some of its flesh. The spare ribs were nice but I don’t think the pumpkin added much flavour to the overall taste. Just a nicer presentation.

Pork Toro with Vegetables in housed in a fried wonton-like shell. Not a bad dish at all, you have the tender slices of pork with the vegetables, the sauce it a tad spicy, but isn’t too much to create a fire in your mouth.

Pan Fried Vermicelli with Beef in Black Pepper Sauce has the pieces of fried vermicelli on top and the beef, black pepper sauce, and softer noodles on the bottom. The black pepper is a bit overwhelming.

Lamb & Fish in Hot Pot was kinda like a hazard waiting to happen. There are lots of bones, so it’s really not good for little kids. I had to be like a detective to pick out the bones from my fish. Nonetheless, the soup was very flavourful.

Cindy’s Special Fried Rice was decent. It’s a good item to have at the table since it will fill you up and you can’t go wrong with it.

Braised Pork Hock with Special Preserved Plum Sauce had lots of bone and fat, which I guess is normal for the pork hock. It’s not my favorite dish.

Steamed Chinese Melon with Vegetables was a good veggie dish for a Chinese meal. You always need a veggie dish for sure. I like how it’s served in the melon bowl.

Steamed Chicken with Mushrooms on Rice in Lotus Leaf, I didn’t enjoy this dish. It was a bit dry and the flavours didn’t really pop out.

Stir Fried Prawns with Special Tea Leaves has a cool presentation, kinda like a cornucopia, but with prawns and tea leaves. I enjoyed this dish. But then again, I enjoy most prawn dishes anyways. The tea leaves added a subtle flavour to the prawns but not a large amount.

Deep Fried Squid with Salt & Pepper was sub par, it really needed more salt, garlic and spice to enhance the flavour.

Baked Pumpkin Pastries tasted really weird as a dessert but did look cute.

Glutinous Rice Balls with Sesame Paste was crispy on the outside and had the gooey sesame paste on the inside. I did enjoy this item.

The dishes at Cindy’s Palace can be a hit or miss, but pretty good offerings for dim sum or dinner. It’s in a strange place, but not bad.

We Rate Cindy’s Palace:

Address:
1796 Nanaimo St
Vancouver, BC

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=1796+Nanaimo+St+Vancouver,+BC&hnear=1796+Nanaimo+St,+Vancouver,+British+Columbia+V5N+5B9&gl=ca&t=m&z=16″]

In Chinese

Sha Lin Noodle House: New Location with Great Noodles

January 6, 2013

Sha Lin Noodle House has a new home a few blocks away from its original location. Their name is also Shao Lin Noodle House. They clearly have an identity crisis and have no consistency on their name. In my mind, it will always be Sha Lin Noodle House.

The guys and I were feeling hungry and wanted some cheap food. My mind automatically goes to Sha Lin Noodles since their noodles are about $7.

The interior is much larger and has more tables.

You can still watch their chefs cook and prepare their famous hand-made noodles.

Dragging noodles with chicken and vegetables ($6.95) I always order this, I don’t know why but I never have the temptation to try any other noodle dish. It’s a very simple dish with the noodles on the bottom, vegetables and chicken.

Dragging Noodles with Beef & Bean Sprouts in Soup ($6.95) the beef was delicious and so were the noodles. Just put a bit of chili oil and it’ll be deeeelicous.

Curried Dragging Noodles was delicious. M prefers the dry noodles since it’s easier for him to eat without the soup splashing about.

Pan Fried Dumplings was horrible this time around. The skin was so thick and the meat inside was smaller. It just felt like eating bread than dumplings. Everyone agreed that this dish was terrible.

Overall, the interior has definitely improved. The noodle dishes are still delicious, but those popular pan-fried dumplings are horribly executed. Even with the new restaurant, their prices have still remained the same.

Words of Wisdom:

Under $10 per dish
No MSG
Large Portions
House made noodles
Noodles are a must!!!

We rate Sha Lin Noodle House:

Address:
656 West Broadway
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.shalinnoodlehouse.com

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=548+West+Broadway+Vancouver,+BC&hnear=656+W+Broadway,+Vancouver,+British+Columbia+V5Z+1E9&gl=ca&t=m&z=16 “]

In Chinese

100% Healthy Dessert: Mixed Fruit of 13 Specialties

January 5, 2013

100% Healthy Dessert is a small dessert shop in Vancouver. I’m sure not all the dessert is healthy, but there are some pretty neat Chinese desserts. Is a nice little place to just catch up with friends.

The interior is quite small but isn’t too busy.

Mixed Fruit of 13 Specialties ($7.50) has the strangest name on the menu, so I ordered it. I was curious to see what 13 items were on this. We couldn’t figure it out, but it was good if you like shaved ice type of desserts.

Overall, the desserts were OK, but not crazy amazing. Most of the items on the menu are HK style desserts, so you will find some familiar favorites.

We Rate 100% Healthy Desserts:

Address:
8291 Westminster Hwy
Richmond, BC

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=8291+Westminster+Hwy+Richmond,+BC&hnear=8291+Westminster+Hwy,+Richmond,+Greater+Vancouver+Regional+District,+British+Columbia+V6X+1A7&gl=ca&t=m&z=16″]

In Chinese

Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant: Signature Dishes

December 29, 2012

Foodology Disclaimer: I was invited by ChineseBites to try Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant’s signature dishes with a few other bloggers. The service is not representative of their usual service since they knew we were coming.

Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant is located in Kerrisdale on West 41st street. They serve dim sum in the mornings and the usual dinner at night.

We were able to sample a few dishes from their dim sum menu and other dishes on their dinner menu. You usually won’t be able to have dim sum items at night, so keep that in mind when reading this review.

The interior has lots of seats and is typical of a Chinese restaurant.

Dim Sum Dishes:

Breaded Shrimp with Deep Fried Egg Plant comes with 3 pieces and has the eggplant on the bottom and shrimp paste on top. Its a staple dish of all that order dim sum. One of my favorites since I love all dishes with shrimp.

Breaded Shrimp with Deep Fried Tofu is another great item. The deep-fried tofu on the bottom was crunchy and paired well with the shrimp.

Steamed Shrimps & Fungus Dumpling is another must order item. I’m sure most people order this item when they go for dim sum.

Mini Egg Tarts was pretty average and nothing too special.

Egg Pastry with Dried Shredded Coconut was quite sweet and sticky, I didn’t really particularly like this item very much.

Deep Fried Green Tea Sticky Rice Ball with Sesame are vibrant green and didn’t taste very good.

On the inside, you can see the black sesame.

Dinner Dishes:

Honey Garlic Spareribs and Deep Fried Shrimp Balls was pretty good, the honey garlic spareribs were nicely flavoured and slightly sweet. The deep-fried shrimp balls was a strange combination, but they tasted good too.

Crab with Special House Sauce it also has noodles underneath that soak up the natural crab flavour. Delicious!

Deep Fried Duck Wrapped in Taro tasted alright and definitely had more taro than duck. it was crunchy on the outside and soft in the center.

Stir Fried Beef with Steamed Buns was delicious and the beef in the stir-fry was very tender. You grab the bun and put some of the beef inside.

Steamed Tofu & Egg White with Diced Seafood & Meat was really good! It was delicious and best eaten with rice.

Dried Garlic & Enoki Mushrooms with Pea Tips was something I looked forward to because it was vegetables. I do love meat, but I also like vegetables more. With all Chinese meals, a dish of vegetables is a must.

Deep Fried Sole Fillet was crunchy and tasted ok. I never really liked deep fried fish since it really takes away from its delicate texture and flavour.

Baked Tapioca Pudding was ok, but not super amazing. On the inside, there is red bean paste.

Tofu Pudding comes in a cute container. The texture was a bit dense, but I didn’t mind at all, it just means it stays together a bit more when you’re scooping it up. I may just slightly have an addiction for tofu desserts. The tofu itself isn’t sweet, so you need to add some ginger syrup to it.

Overall, the food alright but nothing crazy amazing. Some dishes were outstanding and some were not very good. Nonetheless, it has always been a neighbourhood favorite for dim sum.

We Rate Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant:

Address:
2046 W 41st Ave
Vancouver, BC

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=2046+W+41st+Ave+Vancouver,+BC&hnear=2046+W+41st+Ave,+Vancouver,+British+Columbia+V6M+1Y8&gl=ca&t=m&z=16 “]

In Chinese

Grand Dynasty Seafood Restaurant: Signature Dishes

December 22, 2012

Foodology Disclaimer: I was invited by ChineseBites to try Grand Dynasty’s signature dishes with a few other bloggers. The service is not representative of their usual service since they knew we were coming.

Grand Dynasty is located at the Grand Villa Casino in Burnaby. It is a popular location for Dim Sum, but a great place for dinners too. The prices are generally a tad higher than other Chinese restaurants in the area but pretty good place to dine.

The interior is clean and there are lots of round tables available.

Pan Fried Jumbo Prawn with Egg Yolk Sauce was my favorite since the sauce didn’t overpower the sweetness of the prawn.

Pan Fried Jumbo Prawn with a house Spicy Sauce was a good sauce, but not my favorite prawn sauce. It wasn’t very spicy either.

Boiled Live Lobster in Superior Broth comes with the lobster all cut up on a plate with bean sprout.

They take the meat and then prepare it at your table till it’s all cooked.

The broth was very had a great taste and a good addition to the meal.

Baked Chicken stuffed with Sea Cucumber looks like a regular chicken on the outside, but all the sea cucumber is hidden.

Once you cut through the skin, the sea cucumber is revealed. I’ve never had sea cucumber, so I was very intrigued to see how it would taste. The duck fat really marinated the sea cucumber to give it a great taste.

Live Jumbo Ling Cod Fish Hot Pot was a good dish, but I didn’t particularly love it since I don’t really like the flavour combination of sweet and salty together.

Sautéed Green Vegetable & Wild Mushroom with an arrangement of pumpkin and winter melon. I loved the mushrooms!

Deep Fried Crispy Chicken with Sticky Rice

It was a very interesting dish with layers of sticky rice and crispy chicken. I thought it was alright, but was a unique dish.

Live Lobster & Seafood with Crispy Rice in Soup was probably one of my favorite dishes.

The crispy rice that is added to the soup makes a *snap* *crackle* *pop* sound as it is added in. It had a great aroma of lobster!

Shredded Coconut Creamy Tart came at the end of the meal.

Black Sesame & Coconut Layer Cake came at the end too. I loved this jello.

Overall, I’ve had pretty good experiences in the past at Grand Dynasty. The service and food is still pretty good. Whether its dim sum or just a dinner, you can’t go wrong here.

Words of Wisdom:

Good food!
A bit on the pricy side, but still decent
Weekday afternoon you usually get good service since it’s not packed.
After food adventure to the ….CASINO
Free parking

We Rate Grand Dynasty:

Address:
4331 Dominion Street
Burnaby, BC

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=4331+Dominion+Street+Burnaby,+BC&hnear=4331+Dominion+St,+Burnaby,+British+Columbia+V5G+1B2&gl=ca&t=m&z=16 “]

In Chinese

Western Lake Chinese Seafood Restaurant: Signature Dishes

December 19, 2012

Foodology Disclaimer: I was invited by ChineseBites to try Western Lake’s signature dishes with a few other bloggers. The service is not representative of their usual service since the dishes are overly garnished compared to usual visits.

Western lake Chinese Seafood Restaurant is popular for Dim Sum on the Weekends and there are large waits during those peak hours. If you are planning to go here for dinner or Dim Sum, it’s best to make reservations!

The interior has lots of round tables, but not too much room in between tables.

Peanuts and pickled vegetables came at the beginning of the meal to snack on before the dishes arrived.

Wintermelon Soup came in a golden vessel that housed the soup. It looked very beautiful.

The soup was packed full of seafood and other ingredients. It’s probably one of my favorite soups and they make it really good at Western Lake. Yum!

Sauteed Prawns in Sweet Chili Sauce the shells are still intact, so you need to peel them or eat them with the shell on. The shells are edible, so it’s not bad to eat them with shells. Most people don’t since the shells can be hard and scrape your mouth.

Egg Whites and shrimp over pea shoots was a very interesting dish, the egg was nice and fluffy with sweet shrimp. I’m also not sure why there was so much garnish on this dish.

Sweet Walnuts with Prawns in mayo sauce was a weird dish, I didn’t like it since the sweet prawns and mayo didn’t work too well together. Some people do like this dish though.

Stir Fried Beef with Garlic chips surrounded by fried milk. The beef was very flavourful and tender. It accompanied the fried milk since it’s creamy sweet texture paired nicely.

Roasted chicken was good, juicy and the skin had a lovely flavour.

Braised Pork Belly with Steamed Buns is surrounded by steamed broccoli. The pork belly is deliciously fatty and very tender.

You eat the above dish with the steamed buns, you can cut it in half and eat it like a mini sandwich with the pork belly.

Fried Crab is piled with fried garlic, onions, peppers, and dried shrimp. Yummy stuff but your hand will definitely get messy.

Fried Rice was great!

Red Bean Jello and Chinese Water Chestnut Pudding was a good ending to the meal. I was so glad it wasn’t red bean soup hahaha.

Overall, the dinner was great and the food was well executed. Too bad a few of the dishes were overly garnished with fruits, so it was hard to give you a good idea of how the dishes would arrive at your table. The portions are still the same as you would get. Prices are very fair and one of the better Chinese restaurants to go to in town.

We Rate Western Lake Chinese Seafood Restaurant:

Address:
4989 Victoria Dr
Vancouver, BC

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=4989+Victoria+Dr+Vancouver,+BC&hnear=4989+Victoria+Dr,+Vancouver,+British+Columbia+V5P+3T6&gl=ca&t=m&z=16 “]

In Chinese

Sai Kung Cafe & Bakery: Cookies, Pineapple Buns, and Poo-shaped Cakes

November 30, 2012

Sai Kung Cafe and Bakery (西貢咖啡餅店) is known for their fresh egg tarts and pineapple buns. During the busy season, they can sell up to 1,000 egg tarts a day. There are lots of hungry people on the weekend that will line up to have those 2 items.

When we were just eating lunch in the Sai Kung area, my aunt just had to get a few pineapple buns…as the foodie that I am, I had to get a few random items from this bakery to try later.

They have some crazy cakes on display! There’s one shaped like poo and another one like a hedgehog. Cute and unique.

Loaf of Walnut Bread was a bit dry.

Pineapple bun (sorry its’ butchered) It was cut up before I could take a picture. It wasn’t as good as right out of the oven from the shop. If you want to taste this at it’s finest, eat it when you get it from the shop.

Horlick and Walnut Cookies were very cute. The taste was OK, but the texture of the cookie was really hard.

Chocolate and Walnut Cookie was hard as well but the flavour was ok.

Overall, the baked good are alright and nothing super amazing. The main stars of Sai Kung Cafe and Bakery is the egg tarts and pineapple buns. All the western items they make aren’t spectacular.

We Rate Sai Kung Cafe & Bakery:

Address:
6-7 Kam Po Court, 2 Hoi Pong Square,
Sai Kung

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=6-7+Kam+Po+Court,+2+Hoi+Pong+Square,+Sai+Kung&hl=en&hnear=Kam+Po+Court,+2+Sai+Kung+Hoi+Pong+Square,+Hong+Kong&t=m&z=16″]

In Bakery

Kee Tsui Cake Shop 奇趣餅家: Traditional Chinese Bakery

November 22, 2012

Kee Tsui Cake Shop is located on Fa Yuen Street. They are not any regular cake shop, they specialize in traditional Chinese pastries and cakes. It is family owned and has stayed that way that way.

They have gotten rave reviews from locals and tourists. Also, they won the Best Restaurant Awards in 2012 from Open Rice.

The shop is small and has tons of different baked goods.

A lot of the items created here give people a nostalgic feeling that brings them back to their childhood.

There aren’t too many traditional Chinese bakeries left since not that many people specialize in it anymore. By far, this is the best place to get these items.

We got a bunch of items to bring back home.

Called cows ears but I assure you the ingredients don’t include the ears of cows.

Egg Tarts

Little Chicken biscuits (Gai Jai Beng) that are savoury and chewy . It’s traditional and is often reminiscent of older style snacks that we don’t often see much of anymore.

Sweetheart Cakes (lo por beng)

Glutinous rice cakes with red bean filling (siu beng)

Guong Soo Beng is a traditional snack that goes back about 300 years. It’s like a dry biscuit. They have it in a smaller version, or the large version below.

Overall, this place is great if you grew up with these items as a kid. Probably would make gifts for the grandparents too. My grandpa said eating these items from Kee Tsui Cake Shop really reminded him of his childhood.

We even went in the typhoon to visit the shop.

We Rate Kee Tsui Cake Shop:

Address:
135 Fa Yuen Street, Mong Kok

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=135+Fa+Yuen+Street,+Mong+Kok&hnear=135+Fa+Yuen+St,+Hong+Kong&gl=ca&t=m&z=16″]

In Causeway Bay

Super Star Seafood Restaurant 鴻星海鮮酒家: Eating Air, Land and Sea Animals

November 12, 2012

Super Star Seafood Restaurant was founded in 1989 and have since expanded numerous locations in Hong Kong, Japan and China. We came here with my parents family friends.

It’s popular place to dine and serves up seafood Cantonese style.

It was really packed at night and reservations are definitely needed. The service was really poor for our table since we sat right under an air conditioner. We asked several times for the management to try to turn down the A/C or find an alternative table. After a few servers said they would check on it, no one did. Our food went cold fast and we got so cold too. It wasn’t until the end of our meal when the manager believed that there was something wrong.

Crispy Whitebait and Peanuts came complementary to the table. They are super crispy and its a great snack to munch on as the rest of the meal arrives.

Stir Fried Zucchini and Prawns

The soup that arrived was a clear broth made of chicken and other items.

The separate contents of the soup, so you can eat the other ingredients that make up the soup.

This platter contains cold jelly fish, tofu, crispy pork, BBQ pork and cold pork hock.

Vegetables and seafood in a savory egg sauce

Fried Rice

Steamed Fish

Braised duck stuffed with meat and soy beans

Braised mushrooms and bok choy

Deep Fried Seafood mayo cake

Longevity Buns is a Chinese steamed bun in the shape of a peach.

Red bean dessert

Overall, the food was OK, but the service was terrible. I prefer the original Nathan road location.

We Rate Super Star Seafood Restaurant:

Address:
10/F, Food Forum, Times Square
1 Matheson Street, Causeway Bay

Website:
http://www.superstargroup.com.hk/

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=Food+Forum,+Times+Square+1+Matheson+Street,+Causeway+Bay&hl=en&hq=Food+Forum,+Times+Square+1+Matheson+Street,+Causeway+Bay&radius=15000&t=m&z=16″]

In Chinese

Imperial City Restaurant: Inside of Dynasty Club

November 3, 2012

Inside the Dynasty Club is a restaurant called Imperial City Restaurant that servers Cantonese food. They have an array of roasted meats, dim sum, and sweets. Our relatives took us here to show us some amazing food.

The interior is very pretty and not too crowded. They also have private rooms for dining too.

Mmm…roasted meats!

BBQ Roasted Pork

Crispy Roasted Pork Belly was crazy addictive!!!

Deep Fried Sweet Potato

Marinated Chicken Feet

Steamed dumpling

Soup

Deep Fried Shrimp Paste on Toast

Mango Sago and Pomelo Dessert

Cold Steamed Milk Custard

Steam Cake

Steamed Date Cake

Fresh Fruit – Honey Dew, Watermelon, Cantaloupe, Dragon fruit.

All the items were really delicious and everyone enjoyed the items that arrived. The only downside about coming here is that you need to find someone with a membership to dine here.

We Rate Imperial City Restaurant:

Address:
South West Tower, Convention Plaza
1 Harbour Road, Wanchai
Hong Kong

Website:
http://www.dynastyclub.com.hk/wine_dine.php?q=imperial_city#4

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=1+Harbour+Road,+Wanchai+Hong+Kong&hnear=1+Harbour+Rd,+Hong+Kong&gl=ca&t=m&z=16 “]

In Cafe

Australia Dairy Company: Eggs, Milk Tea, and Milk Pudding

October 29, 2012

Australia Dairy Company was voted one of the best restaurants in Hong Kong for 2012 according to Openrice.com. They are best known for their toast, scrambled egg, and steamed milk. It’s a very popular place and it attracts a lot of locals and tourists.

Even at 3pm, there was a lineup outside. Don’t be intimidated by the line, even though it is long, the service is very fast and efficient that you won’t spend too much time inside.

Bottled Milk was something my little sister wanted. She did enjoy it with the meal.

Hot Milk Tea.

Hot Milk Tea (Included in meal) was good. It is a smaller size that comes with the preset meals.

Toast with egg and ham was very simple, but so full of flavour. I was surprised! The gooey egg was the best scrambled eggs we ever ate!

Macaroni and roasted pork in broth was OK. Nothing fancy. It came with the combo, so I’m not complaining.

Cold steamed milk pudding is what we ordered at the end. Delicious!

Afterwards, we took a stroll to Temple Street to do a little bit of shopping. It’s a good place to barter for bags and wallets.

Overall, the Australia Dairy Company is great for cheap food and the eggs are to die for. As for the long lineup to go inside, it doesn’t take too long to get inside if you have a group of 2 or 4. The service is so quick that it just comes out immediately after ordering. It definitely more popular amongst the tourist for sure.

We Rate Australia Dairy Company:

Address:
G/F, 47-49 Parkes Street, Jordan

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=G%2FF,+47-49+Parkes+Street,+Jordan&hl=en&hnear=49+Parkes+St,+Hong+Kong&t=m&z=16″]

In Bakery

Kam Wah Cafe 金華冰廳: Egg Tarts, Pineapple Buns, and Milk Tea

October 27, 2012

During this Summer, we were caught in a severe typhoon, but despite the warnings, we still headed out for some delicious lunch. Everyone had their umbrellas and if you had shoes on, they were guaranteed to be soaked. The typhoon actually increased in strength throughout the day reaching a No. 10 typhoon warning, which was the highest since 1999.

Kam Wah Cafe is located in the Prince Edward area very very close to Women’s Street. Their specialties are milk tea, egg tarts, pineapple bun with butter, and chicken wings. They have also won the Best Restaurant Awards in 2012 on Openrice.com.

The interior is typical of a Chinese Cafe. It’s normal to sit with strangers since there are limited tables to seat all the customers.

They have news articles along one of the walls of the shop, so you can read what others have said about them.

Hot Milk tea is delicious and needs to be mixed with sugar before drinking. You definitely want to order this if you are getting some of their buns or tarts.

Egg Tarts are very flakey on the outside and nice and firm in the egg mixture. It came very hot, so you know its fresh.

Pineapple bun with butter is their most famous item at the cafe.

The way I eat it is by mushing the bun with a fork until its flat. Then I use a knife and fork to eat it, so I don’t get crumbs all over my lap.

StirFried Beef Noodles was very very good here too. We were pleasantly surprised! It was a bit oily, but still has a great taste!

Overall, I thought this cafe was really good! Definitely take a trip here if you want some good pineapple buns, egg tarts, and milk tea!

We Rate Kam Wah Cafe:

Address:
47 Bute Street, Prince Edward

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=47+Bute+Street,+Prince+Edward&hnear=47+Bute+St,+Hong+Kong&gl=ca&t=m&z=16″]

In Cafe

Cat Store Cafe: Cat Friendly Dining in Hong Kong

October 7, 2012

Cat Store is a very unique cafe that caters to cat lovers. You can dine with your friends and play with their cats. This cafe is great for people who love cats, but can’t have a cat at home. Especially in Hong Kong since apartments can be a bit small to raise pets.

The Cat Store is located inside the Po Ming Building on the 3rd floor. It took me a long time to figure out how to get inside.

Once you are inside the building, head up the elevator to the 3rd floor.

Then, you will take a left and follow the signs

Once you find this door, you know you have arrived!

Don’t be scared by the “members only” sign. You can sign up for a card inside. It’s also best to call ahead for reservations because this place can get busy!

The inside is very cluttered with a lot of cat items.

Cats are seen everywhere! Even in shelves.

You can even sit with them at your table.

There are also catnip toys, so you can make the cats go crazy!

A few cats can be seen roaming around the floors….or sleeping on the floor, so watch out and don’t step on them.

Lychee Soda ($30 HKD) was good! I love lychee!

Snowy Peach Soda with Peach ($32 HKD) was good according to my sister.

Penne with Chicken in Tomato Sauce ($48 HKD) was very poor. The sauce was thin and lacked flavour.

Smoked Duck Breast Pizza ($54 HKD) was average too. My little sister loved it because of all the cheese.

Cat Cookies with Ice Cream ($42 HKD – 2pcs) was really cute and great for kids. It’s fun to eat! Unfortunately, the taste was just OK. Nothing too special.

Overall, the food and service was pretty poor. The only attraction is the cats. All the items are pretty expensive according to Hong Kong standards for this type of food. You can easily get a meal for $25 HKD elsewhere. The service was very disorganized and they forgot a few items in our order.

Words of Wisdom:

Slow Service
Expensive for the quality of food.
It’s a good place to go if you just want to have a drink and play with cats
Membership required
Make reservations

We Rate Cate Store Cafe:

Address:
Flat D-E, 3/F Po Ming Building, Fu Ming Street
Causeway Bay

Website:
http://www.ahmeow.com/mainpage.html

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=Cat+stor,+Causeway+Bay,+Hong+Kong&hl=en&sll=22.282743,114.188976&sspn=0.089428,0.15398&oq=cat+stor&hq=Cat+stor,&hnear=Causeway+Bay,+Hong+Kong&t=m&z=16″]