2011-08-26 Taiwan Beer @ Uwajimaya Asian Food & Gift Market

600 5th Avenue S., Seattle, WA

206-624-6248

Ever since MukMuk-D showed me a picture of Taiwan Beer in some Japanese supermarket in Seattle...I knew I had to go there.  I even did my homework "just in case" we didn't have time to visit this specific market...hehehehe!

Fortunately, after Marination, we had time to drop by Uwajimaya in Chinatown, or properly speaking, "Chinatown / International District".  If we didn't have time for this, I was willing to give up our next food stop just so I could find the beer!!!

My favorite brew of Taiwan Beer 台灣啤酒 is the "Gold Medal 金牌"...but I guess I shouldn't be too picky since they don't even carry this Original brew in Vancouver!!!  Taiwan beer is produced with ponlai rice 蓬萊米 and it's quite light with a distinct fragrance.  I know, many of you don't care much for this...but I just love this thing!  Even Buddha Boy, who's not too big in any alcohol, enjoys this.  I must admit...I turn into an alcoholic whenever I visit Taiwan.  I go nuts with "Gold Medal" Tawan Beer 金牌台灣啤酒 and I can have it anytime, anywhere!  Yes, I'm crazy.

2011-08-26 Snacks @ Marination Mobile

Safeco Field, Seattle, WA

www.marinationmobile.com

Just five minutes away from the pig, we drove over to Marination.  While Maximus Minimus was located downtown with a long lineup, Marination was alone beside Safeco Field.  My understanding is that in Seattle, food trucks are not allowed to remain in the same place during the week on a day by day basis.  Hence, you'll have to check their websites to find out their daily locations.
 
We ordered one of every taco listed on the menu (known as "around the world"), a pork, a chicken, a beef and a vegetarian.  We also ordered a couple of sliders.  For everything we ordered, it only came to approximately $13.

The Kalbi was soy-based Korean style marinated beef taco.  This was pretty good, but I was not "wowed" by it.

The Spicy Pork (left) was good, nicely marinated without being oily or greasy.  The Miso Chicken (center) "wowed" us.  Rarely do we get a good miso marinated chicken but this was done perfectly.  And surprisingly enough, the vegetarian taco, Sexy Tofu (right), also "wowed" us with tasty flavors that I can't really describe.  We enjoyed all the tacos.

The Spam Slider wasn't bad, but both Buddha Girl and I preferred the ones I made at home (see post 2011-08-21 Slidders, Fish Tacos, Fish & Chips @ Chez Buddha).  We couldn't really taste any sauce or flavor other than the spam and the coleslaw.  The Kalua Pork Slider was tasty but was nothing spectacular.  The pork was tender, moist and had a nice saltiness to it.  Marination uses tray buns for their sliders, I thought the texture was a bit dense and dry.

I wanted a quick break from all the eating, but I really couldn't leave Buddha Dog in the car alone.  Oh...and there's Buddha Girl too.  :p

2011-08-26 Pig-Mobile @ Maximus Minimus

2nd Avenue & Pike Street, Seattle, WA

www.maximus-minimus.com

We found the pig in Seattle at approximately 12:30pm, we already had it planned out what we wanted to try.  I wanted the minimus pork and Buddha Girl wanted the maximus chicken.

What???  Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!  The group ahead of us ordered the last of the chicken...boo!!!  We ended up just ordering a minimus, a maximus pork and a hibiscus nectar.  All in, it was only $16, good pricing.

The Hibiscus Nectar 洛神花蜜茶 had a nice deep rich colour.  This was refreshing and not overly sweet.

Buddha Dog was trying to peek at what we got.  The Minimus Pork (left) was sweet and tangy whereas the Maximus Pork (right) was a bit spicy and hot.  You could ask for additional "hot" by asking for some "hurt".  The meat was shredded and was perfectly moist with just the right amount of sauce.  Cilantro was also added to give a freshness feel.  The downside was the sandwiches were quite messy to eat. 

We enjoyed both sandwiches.  I leaned more towards the minimus while Buddha Girl liked the maximus.  Their menu states the maximus has a mixture of peppers, onions and fruit juices where the minimus has tamarind, honey and molasses.  Buddha Girl thought she detected a hint of hoisin...must be the Chinese in her.  We'd definitely return.

2011-08-26 Quick Visit @ Rocket Donuts

306 W. Holly Street Bellingham, WA

360-671-6111

Another food trip down south!!!  The day started super early for us.  Our first food stop was breakfast at FP...at 6:30am in the morning!!!  Next, we dropped off MomJ at the airport for her Florida trip.  We then crossed the border and made our second food stop at Rocket Donuts in Bellingham.  Yup, we're one crazy couple...LOL!!!

We got to the donut shop at about 9am and it was pretty busy.  When it's our turn to be served...what?  No more bacon donuts???  Apparently they made a batch in the morning and it was gone in a flash!!!  Fortunately, the nice cashier was able to convince the kitchen to make another batch.  In the fifteen minutes we waited, at least three customers asked for the bacon donuts but left because of the wait.

Voila!!!  These Maple Bacon Bars were what we came here for...muhahahahaha!!!  The "maple" part was a tad sweet for us.  The dough was a bit dense.  The hickory smoked bacon slices were a good contrast to the sweet maple glaze.  Overall, we enjoyed these...well, of course, it's bacon!!!
 
Did we enjoy it?  Yes we did.  Will we return?  Yes, if we have a craving for it.  Will we recommend it?  Well, it's always good to try anything once.

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!!!