6501 Victoria Drive, Vancouver, BC
604-323-0002
Originally, since Buddha Boy was out golfing with the guys, I was going to have a lunch date with Octopus. Just when the ladies took our time and bummed around trying to figure out where to eat, I got a text from Buddha Boy asking us where we were...yup, the big boy needed more food!!! Apparently, the guys cut their lunch short because one was still hung-over from the night before and needed to go home, ASAP...hahahaha!
I suggested to try the $7.95 mix-&-match combo noodles at Nishiki Sushi 田七壽司 on Victoria Drive and East 49th Avenue in Vancouver, the same block where my Chinese herbal doctor is. The combo does not include a drink, instead, it includes a snack (choice of spring rolls or yam tempura).
My usual selections of Udon 烏冬 ($0.50 extra) in Parsley & Century Eggs 芫茜皮蛋湯底 (grrr...drives me nuts when restaurants call it "parsley" when it's really cilantro) with Chicken Ball 雞丸 and Pan Fried Chicken 日式煎雞扒. I opted for Spring Roll 春卷 as snack.
Let me tell you, the soup base was, if not at par, better than those popular places such as Deer Garden Signatures 鹿園魚湯米線 or Cattle Cafe 牛仔餐廳. Yes, pork broth was detected, however, the "fish" fragrance made its strong presence without being fishy. The bowl didn't have much cilantro but it had a good amount of century egg wedges. The meatballs were store-bought. The tender and moist chicken was served with salty teriyaki sauce. The vegetarian rolls were boring.
Octopus had Rice Noodles 粗米線 in Tomatoes & Pumpkins Soup Base 番茄南瓜湯底 with Sliced Chicken 滑雞片 and Fish Puffs 魚腐. They somehow gave her the right soup base and the right noodles, but the toppings were completely off. Octopus ended up getting the right ingredients on a side plate. Lucky Octopus, got extra toppings for free...hahahaha! The Yam Tempura 甜薯天婦羅 was pretty standard.
Buddha Boy suggested an order of Phoenix Roll (left) to share. This was simply a California roll topped with layers of smoked salmon and mango. The Spicy Chopped Scallop Hand Cone (right) had chunky scallops, but I was expecting the spicy sauce mixed in with the chopped meat, not drizzled.
Since my dear husband doesn't like soup noodles, he ordered a Teriyaki Chicken Combo. This came with a standard Miso Soup and a bowl of white rice with furikake. The order was served on a hot plate with the chicken sitting on top of a bed of vegetables (mostly cabbage). The chicken was moist, but the teriyaki sauce was, again, salty.
The restaurant is owned by Chinese, but from where I couldn't quite detect. On my first visit, a while ago, I heard them speaking China-Mandarin. Then on my second visit, I heard them speaking Cantonese with a Vietnamese accent. This time, the Cantonese sounded very "Hong-Kong"...
