bbq Archives - Foodology

In BBQ

Heritage Asian Eatery on Broadway Launches Chinese BBQ Menu

August 21, 2019

Heritage Asian Eatery is best known for their take on modern Asian comfort food and a signature menu of Far East-inspired fare such as baos, rice bowls, dumplings and noodles.

They are pivoting their menu to offer new Chinese BBQ items exclusively at their Broadway location including its own Heritage BBQ chicken recipe, soy chicken, BBQ duck, and BBQ Pork.

All they’re missing are roast pork and pork sausages. Either way, having 4 options is better than no options given the area. There really aren’t any Chinese BBQ options near Vancouver City Hall area.

The new menu is best eaten family-style, but if you want your own portion, they have the BBQ meats on rice.

We were invited to check out their new Chinese BBQ Menu.

Heritage Chicken

This is their signature item on the menu. I liked how the chicken was moist on the inside and the outer skin was thin and full of flavour. Very enjoyable. You can order this as a half or whole chicken, but unfortunately no individual portion on rice. Recommended.

Soy Chicken

The soy chicken was impressive as well with thin skin but the flavour penetrated into the chicken. Very moist as well. Highly recommended.

BBQ Duck

The BBQ duck has a nice flavour but I felt like the fat between the meat and skin could have been rendered better as a few pieces would have quite a bit of fat. This is served with plum sauce.

BBQ Pork

The BBQ pork is quite meaty, but I thought the the caramelization of the sauce surrounding the pork could have been better. It’s decent but not the best I’ve had.

Chili Wonton

The prawn wontons are served with chili and vinegar. This was really good and I like the amount of prawns in the wontons. That chili sauce is so good. We wanted them to jar it up and sell because we loved it so much. Highly recommended.

Crispy Wonton

These are golden prawn wontons and it is served with their house sauce. Great texture and it is very crispy on the outside and the soft bouncy prawns inside were yum. Highly Recommended.

Fried Edamame

I didn’t like the sweet and salty seasoning on the edamame and would have just preferred boil and salted. I totally understand their twist to fry it, but didn’t work out for me.

Wonton Soup

There is a few prawn wontons in the broth. It’s a good side dish if you want soup with your meal. It is large enough to share with a few people if you just want a taste.

Five Spice Chicken Wings

These are gluten-free chicken rubbed with their signature five spice dry rub. I wasn’t a fan of the coating around the wings and the red chili flakes were very potent for the pieces on top. It was a bit heavy handed.

Pork and Chive Dumpling

These are pan-fried pork and chive dumplings. These were ok, but I wished there was more filling.

Gai Lan

The gai lan is steamed and topped with crispy garlic and sauce. Sometimes you just need veggies as part of the meal and its a great portion.

Spicy Tofu

The tofu is crispy and served with their version of spicy gochujang sauce. That sauce is really nice and goes so well with the tofu. It is spicy, so I love the extra kick of heat to it. Highly recommended.

Milk Custard

They have seasonal toppings on their milk custard and it can be coffee, tapioca or a special. When we were here today, they had their brown sugar tapioca topping. It sounded very intriguing as you see the layer of milk custard on the bottom and the brown sugar tapioca on top. I wanted to like it but I felt the tapioca and brown sugar took away from the milk custard. It masked the taste of it so it had an overwhelming taste of the sugary syrup.

Final Thoughts

Overall, the addition of the Chinese BBQ meats is brilliant because this area needs something like this. Whether you are eating the items family-style or just getting your own portion on rice, it definitely fulfills those cravings. There is enough variety on the menu with the sides and share plates that you can craft an excellent meal.

They also do delivery and pick up, so if you’re looking for a quick lunch and don’t want to go outside, you can get it straight to your door.

Address:
382 W Broadway, Vancouver, BC

Website:
https://www.eatheritage.ca

In BBQ

Kuan Zhai Road: Chinese BBQ Skewers in Vancouver

July 2, 2019

Kuan Zhai Road is a new Chinese Restaurant on the Border of Vancouver and Burnaby. They specialize in Chinese BBQ, grilled fish and spicy food.

I saw a few friends loving this place, so I made them take me with them. I love Chinese BBQ skewers and spicy food, so this seemed like the place for me.

The parking lot is small, so it fills up really fast. Most people just park on the side roads as there are more spaces.

Interior

The space has small to large tables so you can come with a few people or lots of people. You can also call ahead to reserve.

The are booth-style seating and smaller rectangular tables too. The space is a bit dusty and cluttered with storage in the dining area.

BBQ Skewers

The menu has a variety of skewers cooked in an assortment of spices like cumin. Most of the skewers had the same spice. Our favourite varieties that we got were Taiwanese sausage, shrimp, chicken gizzards, and pork. There are more adventurous items like duck tongue and lamb testicles if you dare to try.

The skewers were ok, but one of my friends felt it was a bit bland and could have used a lot more seasoning. We did ask them for a container of spice to make it spicier.

Smashed Cucumbers

This was really good! A good balanced between the chili oil, and vinegar. It complimented the skewers very nicely.

Spicy Pot

On the menu, you can order their spicy pot, then go to the large fridge to select your skewers that will be boiled in the hot and spicy broth for $6.90.

Each skewer is $0.69 and doesn’t matter if it’s meat or veggies. We didn’t want veggies, so my friends and I went for all the meat.

Once you collect your tray of skewers, they clip on your table number so they know the skewers belong to your table. You would think this would be straight forward right? The first time the hot pot of skewers arrived, we looked at it and it had vegetables so we knew right away it wasn’t ours. They couldn’t find our pot, so they made us pick all our skewers again. This time, I made sure the table marker was the right one so it doesn’t go to someone else’s table.

It was definitely annoying but we decided to give it another shot. When the second hot pot of skewers arrived…there were vegetables again so that meant it wasn’t ours. As we told our server, I don’t think she believed us, so we showed our pictures of the skewers on our phones and how we do not get skewers with veggies because we are all about the meat life.

They took the pot away and gave it to the correct table and then tried looking for our hot pot. It was probably 15 minutes later until the finally found our pot.

We ordered medium spicy for our hot pot, but it wasn’t very spicy at all. I was surprised it wasn’t any hotter as some Chinese food can by really spicy.

Final Thoughts

This visit was definitely a miss for us. I’ve heard it’s really good. Either way, I did have patience so I wasn’t too bothered by the service as there was always some food at the table to nibble on. In the end, they did give us $30 worth of vouchers to use next time. They definitely have some kinks to work out.

Address:
3488 Kingsway, Vancouver, BC

In BBQ

MEAT: Classic BBQ Smokehouse in Edmonton

July 27, 2018

MEAT is a smokehouse in Edmonton and has been quite popular for their classic BBQ items, sides and drinks. They are located on Whyte Avenue and it’s a great happening neighbourhood with lots going on.

Interior

The interior is large and there are lots of communal tables for small to large groups. They don’t take reservations but they have seats on the patio and indoors.

House Salad

We ordered the house salad to start to balance the rest of the meaty meal. It has mixed greens, pecans, goat cheese, tomatoes, and a light dressing. A good item to lighten the meal.

The Spread

All the other items that we ordered came in a platter – garlic fries, fried chicken, half rack of ribs and a pound of beef brisket.

Don’t forget to use their sauces on the side to enhance the flavour.

Beef Brisket

This was beautiful and when it came out it was nice and tender. One of the better items we ordered.

Fried Chicken

The fried chicken was subpar. Our pieces were dry and quite salty. They definitely need to work on this.

Garlic Fries

The garlic fries had a good amount of garlic incorporated into it. It was crisp and had a crunch when you bite down.

BBQ Ribs

The ribs were meaty and delicious with a good amount of smoke and flavour.

Final Thoughts

Overall, the BBQ here was ok. After eating all the items, we could tell all the items were pretty salty and needed better balance of flavour. Of course salt is an essential ingredient of BBQ but there needs to be a good balance. The texture of the pork and beef were good, but the chicken really needs some work. With all the good reviews, the biggest issue for us was the salt levels.

Address:
8216 104 St NW, Edmonton, AB

Website:
http://www.meatfordinner.com

In BBQ

Helena’s Hawaiian Food: Must Visit in Hawaii

May 11, 2018

Helena’s Hawaiian Foods in Honolulu is a must for locals and visitors since 1946. In 2000, the James Beard Foundation awarded Helena’s Hawaiian Food the Regional Classic Award, which is awesome. Everyone told me to come here, so we made it a mission to visit when we were here. They aren’t open Saturday, Sunday, or Monday, so you have to be aware of that before visiting.

We visited on a Friday morning and there were no line ups. We were seated promptly and given menus and water. The atmosphere is very casual and has the Hawaiian hospitality.

Kalua Pig

The kalua pig was shredded and it was deliciously smoked and had a lot of moisture as it is served with the drippings.

Poi

Poi is the stem of taro and a Polynesian staple. It is crushed and then left to ferment. We heard that most people don’t like the taste, but we had to try it for ourselves. The initial taste was good and earthy but then the sour taste from the fermentation lingered for a little bit. It was like eating kombucha.

Short Ribs Pipikaula Style

At first we didn’t order, but they insisted we order it as its one of the most popular items on the menu and we were glad we did. it was deliciously marinated and tender. So much flavour.

Fried Butterfish Collar

This was another must! Moist in the centre and super crisp. So damn addictive. I would highly recommend this too.

Haupia

Haupia is a traditional coconut milk-based Hawaiian dessert made, essentially a coconut pudding. It came served with raw onions. I tried it together but was a weird combination for myself. If you stick with just the haupia, you’ll be ok.

Final Thoughts

I really enjoyed Helena’s as the prices are good, food is tasty, and I liked the casual friendly vibe. My favourite items were the fried butterfish collar, short ribs, and kalua pig. If you’re in Honolulu, you need to make a stop here. Just remember to bring cash as it’s cash only.

We Rate Helena’s Hawaiian Cuisine:

Address:
1240 N School St, Honolulu, HI

Website:
https://www.helenashawaiianfood.com/index.html

In BBQ

Happy Tree BBQ: Now Open in Burnaby

January 30, 2018

We were originally in Richmond wanting to go to Happy Tree BBQ there but the wait was an hour long, so we drove to their Burnaby location as the line as shorter. When we got there, we were seated right away as the space is larger. They specialize in skewered street food especially cumin lamb skewers. I’ve heard lots about this place and it’s always packed.

Make sure you bring cash if you are spending less than $50. I just came with one friend and we spent $49, but they were wanting us to pay in cash. Since there were no signs, they eventually eased up and let us pay by Credit Card.

Cucumber

For $4.95, this is a lot of cucumber in a spicy sauce. So delicious and it was a great item to pair with all the lamb skewers.

Lamb Kebob (Original)

Of all the skewers, this is the most popular and most delicious. Covered in delicious spices like cumin. There is a minimum order of 5 skewers, but for 2 people to devour it, it wasn’t a problem at all. You must order this.

Lamb Kebob (Special)

This lamb kebob is served on a metal skewer and also has a minimum 5 pieces per order. A good sprinkling of spices, but the original still wins out by a hair.

Angus beef Kabob

This also have a 5 piece minimum order with the angus beef. It has similar spices as the lamb but the texture of the beef was a bit tougher.

Chicken Wings

Unlike the other skewers, there is a minimum order of 2 skewers of the chicken wings. Delicious exterior and moist mean on the inside.

Steamed Buns

On each skewer, there are 2 pieces of the steamed buns which are them grilled. This could have used a bit longer on the grill as it cooked a bit unevenly. Not as delicious at the other meaty skewers, but it was go to try out.

Coconut Juice

Beer is a no-brainer with this type of food, but they have juices and non-alcoholic beverages on the menu. When I was looking at other people, I had to get it as its a good coconut drink.

Final Thought

Overall, the skewers were delicious and a great place to go to with a large group. The spices on the skewers were delightful. I would come back again.

We Rate Happy Tree BBQ:

Address:
3502 Kingsway St, Vancouver, BC

In BBQ

Chinatown BBQ in Vancouver: Review

January 1, 2018

Chinatown BBQ is a new restaurant on East Pender in Vancouver’s Chinatown. They put their own spin on classic Cantonese-style meat shops by making it new and fresh to attract customers of all types.

With more and more restaurants and shops opening up in Chinatown, it’s good to see more of these BBQ shops.

When you first walk in, you see all their delicious meats hanging from the display case.

Interior

There are a lot of seats but during lunch, it can get pretty busy. Turnover is pretty quick, so you’re never waiting too long. The interior evokes a bit of new and old in this space and I really liked that.

Tea

When they seat you, you are given some hot tea.

Chef’s Plate

The Chef’s Plate comes with BBQ Pork, Soy Sauce Chicken, Roasted Pork and half a salty egg over rice. For $14.50, it’s not exactly cheap. The quality of their meats were delicious, but it did bother me a bit that the cuts were a bit thin for what I’m used to. My favourite was the roasted pork since the skin is so crisp.

Beef Brisket Curry on Rice

The portion size was good. Lots of curry to rice ratio. The taste of this was decent, but not the best I’ve had.

Final Thoughts

Overall, the quality of food is good and I like how the space is new and clean. The prices are a bit higher than most places, but understandably due to rising costs.

We Rate Chinatown BBQ:

Address:
130 E Pender St, Vancouver

Website:
http://chinatownbbq.com/

In American

Yale Saloon: Family-style Backyard BBQ in Vancouver

December 13, 2017

Yale Saloon is a country bar and BBQ restaurant located right before the Granville Street bridge. I came with a few friends to check out their Family Style Backyard BBQ. Yale Saloon has been here for quite some time and transforms as the evening goes on.

Interior

There are long tables and lots of space for dancing. As we came around 6pm, it wasn’t busy just yet.

The space is good for large groups and parties. Very casual setting and good for those who are younger.

Drinks

Drinks are a must when here, I had the Southern Comfort Sweet Tea and my friend had the Pa’s Caesar. A good way to start off the night. Both drinks were delicious.

Deep Fried Pickles

How can you say no to deep-fried pickles? It has a good amount of crisp breading and was so delicious with the dip.

Backyard BBQ

Backyard BBQ is $35 per person and is served family style. You get a taste of everything – Brisket, Andouille Sausage, Turkey breast, Pork Ribs, Pulled Pork, and Rotisserie Chicken. It is also served with coleslaw, potato salad, baked beans, & Jalapeño cornbread.

The sides were ok, I really didn’t like the coleslaw as it has some odd aftertaste. None of the coleslaw, potato salad, or baked beans stood out. It might of needed a pinch of more salt ti give it more flavour.

The Jalapeño cornbread was better and paired with the BBQ a lot more. The Jalapeño was subtle, but added a good taste to the cornbread.

Of the bunch, the ribs and the brisket were solid, good smokey flavour and tender as well. If you’re new here, I liked trying all the meats as it’s a good way to get a feel of all the variety of BBQ they serve. The sausage and the rotisserie chicken had great flavours too.

Final Thoughts

If you’re looking for a feast, you will definitely get it here along with a great selection of drinks at Yale Saloon. Fun place to hang out with friends, have a drink and nosh on some BBQ. There is also a mechanical bull here too. It’s definitely a place to come here late into the evening.

We Rate Yale Saloon:

Address:
1300 Granville St, Vancouver

Website:
https://yalesaloon.com/

In BBQ

Whiskey Six BBQ: West Coast BBQ in Vancouver

July 2, 2017

Whiskey Six BBQ is an organic, local, sustainable barbecue joint nestled in the heart of East Vancouver. I came with a few foodies to eat mass amounts of meat to kick off the long weekend. A few of us have been eyeing this place to see how their BBQ would compare.

Interior

The space is small and they don’t take reservations. First come first serve. On a Thursday, it didn’t start getting busy until around 7pm.

Beer

I got the Strange Fellow’s Talisman West Coast Pale Ale as I thought it would be great to pair with BBQ.

Windsor Meats Sausage

We got 2 links, and chose braised greens and wings as our sides. It also comes with a slice of Fife Bakery bread, mustard and pickle. The sausage was good and it had a kick of heat to it. We added $2 extra for the wing option and it was worth it. As they are whole wings, so its meaty. The braised kale needed a bit more seasoning to it.

Johnston’s Back Ribs

We got the full rack of ribs and we got the fries and smokey beans. The ribs were more like smoked ribs so it’s not a wet rib.

Johnston’s Prohibition Pulled Pork

The pulled pork was really good and we got it with the coleslaw, and southern biscuits. The 2 biscuits that came with it tasted more like baking soda and was missing something. I liked the coleslaw as it had a delicious tang to it.

Free Range Farmcrest Smoked Chicken

The chicken was tender and had a good flavour, but it reminded us of rotisserie chicken. We got the coleslaw and potato salad.

Blue Goose Cattle Co. Organic Beef Brisket

Of all the BBQ meats that we had, the beef brisket was our favourite.

Final Thoughts

Overall, their BBQ is different that what we were used to. The flavours are more tame and it’s not saucy. They put their own twist on West Coast BBQ and to us it didn’t stand out.

We Rate Whiskey Six BBQ:

Address:
826 Renfrew Street, Vancouver

Website:
http://www.whiskeysixbbq.com/

In BBQ

Hanwoori: Korean BBQ in Burnaby

May 30, 2017

Hanwoori Korean Restaurant in Burnaby is popular for their Korean BBQ Set meals. We came here on Mother’s Day and they were all booked up with reservations, but they still told us to show up early at 5pm as there would be seats open.

Interior

There is some ventilation in the restaurant, but it isn’t very powerful. If you are dining here, don’t wear your best clothes as they will smell. All the tables here are booth seating.

Korean BBQ

We went with Combo B, which serves 4-5 people. This comes with:

prime beef ribs
sliced beef
sliced chicken
spicy pork marinated in house special BBQ sauce
deep-fried pork and vegetable dumpling
stir-fried vermicelli noodles with pork and assorted vegetables
beef bone broth
steamed rice
5 complimentary side dishes

The deep-fried pork and vegetable dumpling came out first and it comes with 6 pieces. Crisp on the outside and savoury on the inside.

The stir-fried vermicelli noodles with pork and assorted vegetables was delicious and it has dominant flavour of soy and sesame.

All the meat arrived in one huge plate.

They add butter to the BBQ grill plate and begin placing the prime beef ribs first.

As we waited for the meat to be cooked, we nibbled on all the side dishes.

The grill does burn after awhile, so make sure to ask the staff for a new grill. We changed ours about 4 times in total.

Seafood pancake

We ordered the seafood pancake to add some more to our meal. It was good and had lots of ingredients packed inside. The way that they cut it, there ends up to be 16 pieces.

Final Thoughts

Overall, it was a good meal, but we stunk like BBQ afterwards. Every single piece of clothing was smoky.

We Rate Hanwoori:

Address:
5740 Imperial Street, Burnaby

In BBQ

Arisu: Korean BBQ in Coquitlam

December 24, 2016

Arisu is a Korean BBQ place in Coquitlam. I came here with a few friends on the weekend to hang out and find a new place to try out.

As a Korean restaurant, they have a variety of items besides BBQ.

Interior

A majority of the seating is booth seating. Tables all have grills and ventilation over top.

Our booth had a TV playing music videos. There was also a button where you can call the servers without looking around to flag them down. It makes the service a lot better, so they don’ have to read your mind.

Drinks

A Korean restaurant isn’t complete without a good drink menu. They have beer, soju, sake and other alcohol. I went with a beer as usual.

Banchan

Banchan are complimentary side dishes that arrive with the meal. We had 4 in total.

One of them features zucchini with onion, and carrots. Served cold and tasted good.

The next one had seaweed and had a nice pickled taste to it.

Kimchi is a staple and a good way to see if the restaurant can make a good basic kimchi. It was ok, but I like mine a bite more crunchy and sour.

Last, we got some shredded cabbage with a light dressing. It balanced very well with the grilled meat that we ordered.

Jok Bal

Jok Bal is steamed soy marinated pork hocks. The serving size was very generous, but the quality was lacking. It was tough and didn’t seem very fresh.

The dish came with lettuce wraps and some sauces to eat with it.

Steamed Egg in a Hot Clay Pot

Steamed Egg in a Hot Clay Pot looked pretty awesome but was a bit bland. It definitely needed a bit more salt and pepper.

BBQ Meats

Boneless Kalbi Short Ribs are beautifully marbled, but the biggest fault to their BBQ meats is the grill and the overly attentive service.

What I enjoy most about having the BBQ grill at the table is that you cook it yourself. Since it was a quite night at the restaurant, the meat was flipped for us by multiple servers.

Also, the BBQ Grill is quite weak and due to the thin metal threads of the grill, it cooked very slowly and let the meat cook in a weird way.

Beef Tongue was thin and the slices looked very nice. Nice cut of meat, but we still had similar problems with the grill and the servers flipping it for us.

I totally understand why they would flip it for us to ensure that it’s cooked well, but the young server that we had didn’t seem to know what he was doing.

Overall, we found more misses with their food. Their cuts of meat are really nice but everything else wasn’t able to help cook the meat to its full potential. With other BBQ restaurants in the area, they have tough competition. Also, even though they have ventilation above the grills, you will leave the restaurant smelling like meat. It’s a common occurrence with other BBQ restaurants too, so don’t wear your favourite clothes here. I really wanted to like this place, but my friends and I were disappointed.

We rate Arisu Korean BBQ:

Address:
4501 North Rd #203, Burnaby, BC

In BBQ

Port Moody Rib Fest: BBQ Ribs and Craft Beer

July 24, 2016

The Port Moody Rib Fest is back this year at Rocky Point Park. For rib lovers, this event can’t be missed. It is a 3 day event with delicious BBQ, live music, craft breweries in the beer garden and fun family activities. Free admission too. It is put on every year by the Rotary Club of Port Moody.

This place was packed, so parking is a bit hard, so we parked a few blocks away so we didn’t have to fight over parking.

There are 5 ribbers as part of the Rib Fest:

Gator BBQ
Boss Hog’s
Smoke & Bones
Prairie Smoke & Spice
Misty Mountain BBQ

All 5 are award-winning BBQ masters that have won multiple awards.

You can eat sitting on the grass or there are a few tents with seats. It was pretty sunny on Saturday, so a lot of people were huddled underneath.

The line ups were a bit long at the stalls, so we decided to order our food and beer in the beer garden, so they would deliver it to us when it is done.

You line up in the beer garden, put in your order, and pay.

They will take your phone number and will text you when your order is ready. We waited about 20 minutes, but we were busy playing Pokemon Go to pass the time as there were 2 lures close by.

The 3 of us ordered $65 worth of BBQ and sides. We wanted to try a little bit of everything.

We got a variety of different items:

Boss Hogs 1/2 beef ribs
Boss Hogs Coleslaw
Gator BBQ 1/2 Chicken
Gator BBQ Tators
Smoke and Bones 1/2 Pork Ribs
Smoke and Bones Coleslaw
Smoke and Bones Baked Beans
Corn Bread

Boss Hogs

We got the 1/2 beef ribs with coleslaw from Boss Hogs. Very large ribs and super delicious.

Gator BBQ

The half chicken was ok. The skin was delicious because of all the spices and flavour are located there. Certain parts of the chicken were dry, but could have been better.

The cornbread wasn’t from Gators, but it was so good. You need to get the cornbread.

The Gator Tators is basically mashed potatoes. In my mind, I thought it would be tator tots. Still delicious nonetheless.

We also realized they threw in a half rack of pork ribs, they must of misread our order, but we dug in anyways. The pork ribs were really meaty and super enjoyable.

Smoke and Bones

1/2 Pork Ribs, Coleslaw, and Baked Beans from Smoke and Bones had very good flavours. Not has meaty as the Pork Ribs from Gators, but still had a good smokey flavour.

Ordering beer

You need to purchase tokens and the get your beer. Craft beer is $5.50 and wine is $7. All the beer available are from the Port Moody Breweries across the street – Moody Ales, Twin Sails, Yellow Dog and Parkside.

Seat in Beer Garden

There is tons of seating and definitely nothing to worry about in the beer garden.

Overall

The Port Moody Rib Fest is always a treat to go to, but it can be very busy. Some people had to wait over an hour to get their food. We came at 1pm and the lines were not as crazy yet. Like any festival, there are going to be waits, but you just need to be prepared. For us, Pokemon Go helped us pass the time. hahaha.

I really enjoyed hanging out with my foodie friends seating BBQ and drinking beer. I would go again.

Website:
http://www.portmoodyribfest.ca/

In BBQ

Hopewell Chinese Kitchen: BBQ Meats in Vancouver

March 3, 2016

Hopewell Chinese Kitchen is located on the top floor of the 1st Avenue Marketplace. They are known for their high quality BBQ meats that are made fresh daily. The owners have been perfecting their craft for over 15 years.

I was invited by ChineseBites to try a few of their BBQ meats. I actually never realized there was this place here until recently. It’s been over 10+ years since I’ve been to the top floor of the plaza. Last time, this used to be a grocery store.

The prices are a bit higher than other BBQ joints, but it is better quality. It is slightly cheaper than HK BBQ Master in Richmond.

Hanging meat at a BBQ shop is an awesome sight.

To others, it might be a gruesome sight to see, but you can’t deny the taste…unless you’re a vegetarian.

Seriously, all I need is Chinese BBQ meats and rice and I am good to go.

Mmm I was seriously drooling before the meat made it to my plate.

You also need a huge cleaver to be able to swiftly shop up the meats. Music to my ears.

We made sure to have a can of pop with the plates of meat to wash down all the grease. A beer would definitely work as well, but coke is a classic in any asian household.

Soy Chicken was ok, some pieces weren’t as succulent as others. The white meat is more meaty, but the dark meat was more flavourful.

BBQ Duck is so good. Perhaps I have a duck obsession, but You can’t go wrong with this. I especially like the darker burnt bits.

BBQ Pork was quite thick and not too fatty or sweet. Very good.

Roast Pork is essentially roasted pork belly. It has crisp crunchy skin and juicy tender meat. I love the seasoning by the bones.

You can also ask for fatty or lean cuts if they have it available. This was quite fatty, so it was hard to eat a lot of it.

Whole Roasted Suckling Pork is a reservation-only item that you must order one week in advance for $200. Most people order these for special occasions or large gatherings. It’s a piglet and once we dug in, the texture of the meat is quite different than the Roast Pork as its from an older pig. I preferred the meat from the suckling pig as it was a big more lean and flavourful.

Overall, a good alternative for Chinese BBQ. I am glad I finally came here because I would come back for more.

We Rate Hopewell Chinese Kitchen:

Address:
1st Avenue Marketplace, 213-2800 East 1st Avenue, Vancouver

Website:
http://www.hopewellchinesekitchen.ca

In American

Buckstop: Classic American BBQ Feast

January 26, 2016

Buckstop is a classic BBQ and small plates saloon on Denman Street. I bought a Social Shopper deal for their classic American barbecue feast for two people, including fried dill pickles, pulled pork sandwich, smoked chicken leg, St. Louis pork ribs,navy beans, Kennebec fries, hush puppies, cornbread and honey butter. Pretty good deal for only $28.

M and I came on the weekend to finally use it before it expires.

I love the dim atmosphere and the decor inside.

M ordered a coke, which came in a cute mason jar. You can’t have BBQ without coke.

Deep Fried Dill Pickles with a cajun aioli sauce. The staff warned us that its scalding hot, so we should wait a few minutes before digging in. I loved the thin crunchy exterior and the sour pickle that lies inside. So far the best deep fried dill pickles I’ve had so far.

Hush Puppies and Corn Bread is served with a honey butter. M hasn’t had hush puppies in a very long time since he lived in the states, so his eyes lit up when devouring these.

I’ve never had hush puppies before, so I thought they were a tad dry, but I have no idea if its supposed to be like that.

The pulled pork sandwich is served on a Portuguese bun lots of pulled pork and coleslaw inside. The pork was tender and the coleslaw balanced it out.

The smoked chicken leg and St. Louis pork ribs were piled on top of each other. Both of then were very tender and was falling off the bone. We slathered their BBQ sauce on it and devoured it super quickly.

The thin Kennebec fries were ok, but I wish they were more crispy.

The navy beans and coleslaw completed the rest of the platter. I didn’t care much for the navy beans but I ate all the coleslaw.

It was a good meal for M and I. It was pretty good deal with the SocialShopper deal and I would come back on a regular night. The atmosphere is great especially grabbing a few cocktails or beer to go with your meal.

We Rate Buckstop:

Address:
833 Denman Street, Vancouver

Website:
http://buckstop.ca/

In All You Can Eat

Gaucho Brazilian Barbecue: Dining in Canmore, AB

October 29, 2015

Gaucho Brazilian Barbecue is located in Downtown Canmore and they serve up an all you can eat Rodizio dinner for $42 per person. You get access to their sides and salad bar. The servers will come to your table with racks of meat and serve you at your table.

Rodizio & Plates service included the following types of meat:

Top Sirloin – Alcatra
Rump Steak – Picanha
Pork Loin – Lombinho
Sausage – Linguiça
Chicken Wings – Asa de Frango
Parmesan Beef – Beef Parmegiano
Beef Ribs – Costela de Boi
Chicken Wrapped with Bacon – Frango com Bacon
Chicken Hearts – Coração de Frango
Lamb – Carneiro

Since I’ve never experience a Brazilian meal before, I thought it would be good to try it especially in Alberta since they have amazing quality of beef.

The interior is warm and modern. You can sit inside the dining room or in their enclosed patio.

The patio is much brighter and it is heated, so you won’t get cold.

Tropical Mango Juice ($4) is what M started off with.

We went straight to their salad and side bar where they had a good amount of items to choose from. I tried a bit of everything and nothing disappointed.

All the ingredients tasted fresh and I enjoyed it all. A good start before all the meat started arriving at the table.

Beef Ribs were my favourite meat item of the night. Since they cut it right at your table. It stays hot, tender and juicy.

It looks so good too.

They also give you some hot sauce and a vinaigrette to put on the meats. I went without the sauces since I enjoyed the meat on its own.

Since the servers do come often with meat, you are given a card to show if you want more meat or not. Most of the time ours was ‘Sim Por Favor, since we wanted to try all their meats they had to offer.

It’s best to flip it to ‘Nao, Obrigado’, even if you want to take a break for all the meat. If you want a particular meat item, you can just ask them for it.

At first it was pretty awkward having someone serve you at the table

They keep all their meat warm in their contraption.

They place the meat on your side plate

For our first Brazilian restaurant experience, it was great. Trying all the different varieties was fun and perfect for our honeymoon vacation. The food is pricey, but for an experience its worth it. If I had to go again, I probably wouldn’t return since I already know the cuts of meat I really enjoyed. I would rather want a meal with just beef ribs, pork loin and rump steak.

We Rate Gaucho Brazilian Barbecue:

Address:
629 Main St, Canmore, AB

Website:
http://www.brazilianbbq.ca/

In American

Poomba’s Smokehouse: Pulled Pork Sliders

November 9, 2014

Poomba’s Smokehouse is a food truck in the Fraser Valley. This mobile eatery served up Carolina style smoked pulled pork to guests at the Fraser Valley Food Show. It was one of the more appealing items in the food section.

They show up at a lot of special events in the Fraser Valley, so you always have to keep an eye out on the Facebook page to see where they will be next.

Pulled Pork with Slaw for those that don’t want something gluten-free. It was good! Less the carbs and more protein. The pulled pork was good and it was slathered in yummy BBQ sauce.

Baby Poomba Pulled Pork Slider with Chips was simple and reminded me of a cute lunch. The side of chips reminded me of Lays potato chips. The pulled pork was juicy and tender.

Overall, it’s decent BBQ, but I’m still on the hunt for mouth-watering BBQ. The truck is always on the move, but if you are at any special events in town, they may be there.

We Rate Poomba’s Smokehouse:

Location:
Varies

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

In American

Memphis Blues Barbeque House: Meat Sweats with Elvis

December 27, 2013

Where do you go where you can eat enormous amount of meat like you just don’t care? Memphis Blues of course! After a heartbreaking meeting, the 11 of us decided to drown our sorrows in meat.

I went Memphis Blue’s other location on Commercial drive about 5 years ago and I remember it was pretty good. This time around, we went to their newest location on Robson Street.

The space isn’t that large, but can accommodate large groups if you make a reservation ahead of time. The staff was nice and was able to split the bills without hassle.

Anchor Steam Beer is light refreshing beer with a sweet finish. I’ve never ordered this before, but I liked it.

They also do a lot of different cocktails.

Elvis Platter was massive and around $70. It’s a good size for 5 – 7 people. I shared it with 5 women, and we devoured the ribs and rib ends, but we still had a lot of the other things left. We filled up 2 take out containers.

It comes with:

Smoked Chicken
Pulled Pork
Sliced Beef Brisket
Smoked Sausage
Rib Ends
Corn Bread
Potato salad
Coleslaw
Fries
BBQ Sauce
BBQ Pit Beans

The Elvis platter was fun to eat, but a lot of the meat was dry. We had to smother the meat with BBQ sauce and vinegar to give it more moisture. Memphis Blues is great for group meals since the platter is very convenient and comes with most of the stuff on the menu.

We Rate Memphis Blues:

Address:
430 Robson St.
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.memphisbluesbbq.com/

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=430+Robson+St.+Vancouver,+BC&t=m&hnear=430+Robson+St,+Vancouver,+British+Columbia+V6B+2B7&z=16 “]

In BBQ

Yeong Yang Center (영양센터): Chicken Time in Myongdong

December 4, 2013

Yeongyang Center is a restaurant in MyeongDong known for their crispy roast chicken and samgyetang (ginseng chicken soup). It opened in 1960 and it has been roasting chickens for over 50 years.

It is a very popular place for local and tourists for yummy chicken.

Kimchi radish and pickled radishes came to the table. A definite must when having chicken.

Tongdak Gui (Grilled chicken) is very crunchy on the outside and isn’t very oily at all. The meat is still very tender. So good!

Samgyetang (ginseng chicken soup) has a boiled chicken stuffed with rice and ginseng. This dish was boiling hot and very delicious. You can add a bit of salt to add more flavour. Yum!

The chicken was very tender! No complaints. The bones and meat just fall apart.

Overall, we had a great experience here. M and I shared the two dishes and we got incredibly full. So full that it was hard to walk after.

We Rate Yeong Yang Center:

Address:
52, Myeongdong 2-gil, Jung-gu, Seoul (Chungmuro 1-ga)
서울특별시 중구 명동2길 52 (충무로1가)

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=52,+Myeongdong+2-gil,+Jung-gu,+Seoul&t=m&hnear=52+Myeongdong+2-gil,+Jung-gu,+Seoul,+South+Korea+(25-32+Chungmuro+1(il)-ga)&z=14″]

In All You Can Eat

Montana’s Cookhouse: Wednesday All You Can Eat Ribs

November 29, 2013

It was M’s Birthday, so he chose to go to Montana’s Cookhouse. As it is a Wednesday, they have all you can eat ribs! I made sure to prepare and wore sweat pants to prepare for this occasion. Trying to figure out what camera to bring to a restaurant is always a pain. As I haven’t used my HTC One yet, I used it instead of my iPhone or my LX7. The last time I went to Montana’s we were able to eat a large amount of ribs. 3.5 racks to be exact, but back then they were much smaller. I was definitely up for the challenge!

If you come here during your birthday, they make you put on a moose hat, sing you happy birthday in front of the restaurant, and bring you a free piece of cake. M of course was too shy, so he didn’t tell anyone it has his birthday.

The interior is very country. It’s family friendly and has tons of seating. There’s some pretty cool things on the ceiling to look at. Like… cars, canoes, antlers, etc.

Water comes in mason jars and you get some crayons to draw all over the table. It’s fun to just doodle as you wait for the food.

For the ribs, you get a bucket for your bones, lots of napkins, cutlery, ketchup, wet naps, and straws for your drinks.

AYCE Back Ribs ($28.99) starts off with the first rack with the flavour sauce of your choice, 2 sides and cornbread. We were surprised to see the ribs were so large and meaty. Each rack has 12 ribs and the meat was moist, plus it had a nice smokey flavour.

As our order arrived, we immediately put in an extra order for half a rack since it took the quite a while to get our first order.

Of all the flavours, our favourite was the Texas Bold.

3 people’s worth of half a rack of ribs. We could only finish 2 more before we had to stop. We were very full after 14 ribs. We asked if we could take it home, but we weren’t able to. I guess that’s a good thing since some people might abuse the AYCE system. We felt bad for over-ordering since we didn’t want it all to go to the trash.

Overall, the ribs were pretty good with the Texas Bold sauce and I would come again for AYCE. It’s a bit expensive, so only go when you have a crazy appetite. Do be warned that the service is very slow. We waited about 40 minutes to get our first order, but we knew it wouldn’t be a quick dinner, so we had our phones with games to keep us company.

We Rate Montana’s:

Address:
1046 – 2929 Barnet Hwy
Coquitlam, BC

Website:
http://www.montanas.ca/

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=2929+Barnet+Hwy+Coquitlam,+BC&t=m&hnear=2929+Barnet+Hwy,+Coquitlam,+British+Columbia+V3B+5R5&z=16 “]