2011-08-25 Dinner @ Richmond Public Market

Buddha Boy and I had to do some last minute grocery shopping for a BBQ on Saturday.  We thought the best place to go was RPM because we could eat then shop.  Well, things didn't quite go as planned...I never knew the grocery markets close so early?!?!?!?!?  Grrr...

XIN JIANG DELICIOUS FOOD 新疆美食

604-307-8692

We strolled around the food court trying to decide what to eat.  Originally, Buddha Boy wanted to try the skewers from the famous Fuzhou fishball stall...but it's closed...again.  Poor Buddha Boy...that's three out of three attempts just for their skewers...maybe it's a sign...hahahahaha!

As we walked by this stall, we saw the owner holding a number of skewers in his hands waiting for the right customer to pick them up.  This caught Buddha Boy's attention.  Unfortunately, Buddha Boy only wanted pork skewers but this place does not offer any pork items.

Buddha Boy ordered a Fried Capsicum Chicken Rice 辣子雞飯.  Small chunks of chicken with not so spicy chili.   Too much use of onions and bell peppers.  Overall...meh.

CHEF LIU KITCHEN 牛師父正宗台灣牛肉麵

778-883-8128

The boring me went for Taiwanese food again.  I try this place before and I was not too pleased.  I know, I know...I admit...I'm a sucker.  Hahahaha!

I ordered the Deep Fried Pork Chop 排骨飯套餐 from their "Light Meals Combo 美味套餐" menu.  The combo came with rice, vegetable and tea.  The coating on the chop was heavy and doughy.  The meat was not tenderized and the oil was bad.

I was given three choices of vegetables.  The Seaweed Ties 海帶結 still maintained the crunch and had a nice soy-marinate flavor.  The Eggplant 茄子 was overcooked and salty.  The Cabbage Stir-Fry 炒高麗菜 was quite bland.  Funny how they piled so much veggies on top of the rice...I kinda lost the main focus here...was it the pork chop???

For $3.99, I ordered the Marinated Intestine 滷大腸.  This was tasty.  Not overly salty and full of flavors.  The pork bung was braised to a soft but chewy texture.  Even Buddha Boy liked it.

LEE CHONG ASIAN FOODS 利昌東方美食

604-278-3648

Buddha Boy scouted around for more food while waiting for his rice dish.  Yup, just one item would not satisfy the big boy...hehehe!

So what did the big boy order?  Another rice dish!!!  Grrr...that's three rice dishes between the two of us...hahaha!  Ever since our bad experience at Mr. Ho's Wonton House, Buddha Boy would try Salty Fish & Chicken Fried Rice 鹹魚雞粒炒飯 almost anywhere and everywhere...hahahaha!

Good amount of chicken chunks in the rice and the overall order was a good portion too...but the salty fish was not the greatest quality.  The fish was stinky, but was not fragrant...for those who likes stinky fish 鹹魚 will know what I mean by that...hahahahaha!

NOODLES DAILY 天天見麵

604-821-1889

I couldn't help but noticed the number of people ordering XLB from this stall.  I know the owner from this place is Northern Chinese raised in Shanghai...but I was quite skeptical about the XLB before because he hired a HK cook in the kitchen.  This visit, I did not see the HK cook, instead, the owner managed the stall all by himself.

For $4.75, each order of Steamed Juicy Pork Buns 南翔小龍包 had six buns.  Each bun was similar to the size at Long's Noodle House 小龍記 on Main Street.  These were made to order.  I saw the owner wrapping them in the kitchen.

Quite a bit of soup in each bun.  The soup had a light hint of sweetness that lingered in my throat.  The soup was tasty, but it was a little bit on the bland side.

The skin was thin...Buddha Boy and I were quite surprised.  And unlike Long's where the meat was a bit loose, this meat was more firm, kinda like a meatball (but not as firm). The meat tasted a bit bland so black vinegar was needed.  This place did not provide any ginger...points deducted!!!

2011-02-19 Lunch @ Richmond Public Market

We visited RPM mainly for one reason...to pick up couple bags of Fuzhou Fish Balls (福州魚丸) from Fu Yuan Fast Food...but it's closed!!!  The sign said they will be closed until March 2nd or 3rd (can't recall exactly) for renovations.  Oh no!!!  Is it really for renovations or change of ownership?  Y'know...it's common for Chinese restaurants to say that they're closed for renovations, but really, at the same time, it's a change of ownership...like Red Star in Richmond (which we heard from a source).

NOODLES DAILY 天天見麵

604-821-1889

Anyhow, Buddha Boy and I thought since we're here, we might as well have lunch.  Originally I thought of having a Chinese Pita Bread in Mutton Soup (羊肉泡饃) from Xi'An Cuisine...a classic.  But quickly changed my mind when I saw the menu at Noodles Daily.

When I chatted with the owner, he had this interesting accent, like a mix of different dialects, but the food he offers is mainly Shanghai (not all, but most), so I asked about his origin.  He shared that he's born in north-eastern China but moved to Shanghai during his teen years.  This explained his accent and the mix of menu items.

What attracted me was the Ma-Lan-Tou Wontons (馬蘭頭餛飩).  Remember the cold-marinated tofu dish at Dinesty (see 2011-09-18 Birthday Dinner @ Dinesty and 2010-11-11 Dinner @ Dinesty), it's the same veggie used here, the leaves of Indian Aster.  The soup was typical Shanghai-style where they would just add a bit of salt, deep-fried shallots and chopped green onions in the water that they just boiled the wontons in and served it as the soup base...yup...so it was pretty boring and bland.  The wontons were wrapped tightly, however, they were overcooked so the skins were falling apart.  The inside meat was tasty, but I still prefer the veggie used in a cold dish...more refreshing.

 What also caught my eyes was the Soy-Marinated Pork Head Meat (滷豬頭肉).  Actually, I was debating between this or the Soy-Marinated Ham Hock (滷豬蹄膀), the head won, simply because we don't make it at home...hahahaha!  The meat had just the right crunch however, without the garlic sauce, it's a bit bland.  The garlic sauce was just a simple blend of soy sauce, sesame oil, vinegar, and of course, chopped garlic...oooh...I love garlic!!!

GUANG DONG FLAVOR FAST FOOD 粵之味美食莊

604-278-4078

While I was looking through the menu at Noodles Daily, Buddha Boy took a peek at the stall next to it, Guan Dong Flavor Fast Food.

The place looked quite "dark"...not very "attractive" for diners...but since it had a picture of a sand-pot rice (煲仔飯), it perked up Buddha Boy's attention.

Buddha Boy ordered a Salty Fish & Minced Pork Rice Pot (鹹魚肉餅煲仔飯)...this was disappointing.  The rice did not "crisp" up...so no crispy rice at the bottom.  The salty fish tasted horrible.  The pork was ok, but not much flavor to it.  The soy blend was nothing too spectacular, but it was better than James Snack.  Overall the rice was bad, bad and bad.

CHEF LIU KITCHEN 牛師父正宗台灣牛肉麵

778-883-8128

The one and only Taiwanese stall, again, perked up Buddha Boy's interests.

The location has changed ownerships so many times in the past few years, I think prior to this was another Taiwanese stall, and prior to that was another...but this one, so far, has better business than its predecessors.

Of course, Buddha Boy just had to try the Deep-Fried Chicken Nuggets (鹽酥雞).  The batter was too doughy, and it's over-seasoned so it was quite salty.

I decided to try the Double-Cooked Sliced Pork (回鍋肉)...well, it's got very limited slices of meat, lots of pressed tofu slices, and lots of Taiwanese cabbage.  Flavor wise...meh.  Not a place for us to return.