Keith Talent

Yeah, I know the one, been there before, (and Oriental Delight is now gone). There was another one that we frequented next doorin the new building across the parking lot that was quite good on the second floor. And Kiyo has been added to next weeks agenda.

Where's a car wash on Alderbridge? And who knew Kiyo was so popular?

Right, I know the place, went there years ago. Must be good as it suffers from what is surely the WORST LOCATION FOR A RESTAURANT IN THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE. I know "veiw" places are overarted and out of fashion, but having a view of the grease traps and dumpsters of DQ is taking things a little too far in the opposite direction. I'll try it again.

I wouldn't personally eat Secretariat sashimi, being that the horse has been dead FOR FIFTEEN YEARS. Arnie, if you need us to call 911, mash something into the keyboard and hit submit. Your epitath is going to be "Helpjhsadf876iu87^$uhjdfv09", and sadly people are going to read it and not be able to diferentiate it from you regular postings.

If you can get the park board to sell us a goat for roasting, I'll supply '61 Petrus. I'm pretty confident that I'm not going to need to phone a NY auction house, bid a case and have it put on Jamie's account. If you are sucessful with the goat though, phone the aquarium and see if they've got any surplus dolphins swimming around.

Where is Kiyo? And last nights meal was bad, yes, but more importantly was the first time that both the spouse and myself realized that we keep eating these crap meals that neither of us enjoy out of habit. I have a life philosphy that empowers me never to eat anything that isn't delicious, which is an easy way to live in Richmond, and cheap too.

I knew I had a larger point to make than a desire to try dolphin. I've got to quit drinking at lunch. I see that the Vancouver Park Board is thinking of closing the petting zoo. Anyone know what thet plan on doing with all those delicious looking animals? I bet the goats go cheap. We should plan a get together. And we're going to need someone that grew up on a farm and is willing to do the deed. I nominate myself to hang around and bitch about how long the butchering process is taking while slagging BC wine. I'll also get the fire started.

I imagine dolphin would be superb.

The state of Japanese is getting very sad out here in the flatlands. There was a time, not that long ago when you couldn't go wrong stepping into any raw fish and noodle joint, which are more plentiful than late model Mercedes in the parking lot at Yaohan out here. Pre-babies we had a weekly Thursday night ritual of Japanese at whatever was our current favourite, then home for Seinfeld. (Off topic, the days pre-PVR seem odd, imagine having to be somewhere at a particular time to watch TV, seems weird.) The quality of wherever we'd go was superb, tempura udon was savory, fish was fresh, clean and cold. Kids came and we started getting takeaway Japanese from FuKaRoKu under Superstore (Motto; We're just like Walmart, but without guns!) Finally, the quality deteriorated to the point where we had to find somewhere else. You knew there was a problem when the speed of production increased. What used to take them a half hour slimmed down to the point where once you ran upstairs to get diapers (and in those days, we never passed an opportunity to buy diapers) your order would be cold by the time you got back. (Again off topic, they have a maki roll making machine there that while it turns out horrid product, it fascinating to watch operate. It'sd be cool to have one at home. Even better woiuld be to have a personal sushi butler at home though.) Assorted other places were added and subtracted from the rota, finally last night was the final straw, I'm done with Japanese for dinner in Richmond. The quality in every single establishment we frequent has fallen so far that it's now inedible, and I have a theory why. Originally the all you can eat sushi joint was a novelty, all you can eat menus became more popular outside of the traditional dining hours. Soon, they became more and more popular, to the point now where I can't think of too many places that don't offer them. The problem is when you order off the regular menu, you're getting food prepared for the all you can eat crowd, aka the gluttons, and corespondingly, the quality has fallen off the map, while the price has risen. It's a shame. I can think of a few very small little joints that haven't gone in for this craze, but please, enough already. The fish is old and nasty. The soups flavorless or worse muddy, tempura greasy and cold. There is some light however. Nan Chu, the Richmond branch of Gyoza King is superb, although some of the funky exotic charm of the Robson location has been swapped out for slick hipness a la Hapa. For fish at lunch I've taken to getting takeaway from Fujiya on Bridgeport, which is frightening that pre-made sushi outperforms most Richmond "fresh" made, and it has the added advantage of being dirt cheap, whereas most of its' competitors are just going for the "dirt" side of the equasion. All I want is a good simple place to get cheap well made soup and a sushi combo on week nights.

It's a sad state of affairs when you feel strongly about something, put your thoughts down in writing, read back and realize you've managed to construct a Conservative party platform only leaving out the parts about dinosaurs roaming the earth with Noah and suspicion of any person darker than your average Kelowna sun tan. As penance I'm going to down a full bottle of BC red, or if that bottle has already been sold, whatever my local VQA store is flogging as red this week. I'm then going to re-read my collection of old Rick Salutin columns to recentre my political compass. Perhaps a journalist should do an investigation into the fact that the Okanagan produces primarily white wines, and it's electing of Stockwell Day. Perhaps the electing of a blood red Liberal would improve the juice?

Why is March considered the best time for pruning?

Is this pruning technique an old world method, or is it some sort of modern California invention?

We're quickly spinning into territory where my lack of technical expertice renders everything I say mere speculation, but I've never let that stop me before. With regards to the milk/cheee thing, it's my understanding that you unequivicably cannot make stilton with milk from cows traditionally used to make brie, or what have you. The cows diet influences the final chesse to a great extent, from what I've read. And this is merely a guess, but perhaps most grapes taste reasonably similar, while wines differ greatly becuase grapes contain flavour compounds that are alcohol soluable and therefore are not tasted in the fruit and are not liberated until fermentation?

All jokes aside, I'd love to see a Canadian manufacture of cariboo jerky, or snowblowers phone up the Canadian mission in in London, and request the use of a board room in Canada House for a presentation. There is a curious double standard at work with regards to "glamour" exports vs. the things that us mere mortals are forced to flog to keep bannock on the table. I'd prefer if my government extended the same courtesies to all exporters, regardless of the sexiness of the export, and particularly concentrated on items that were unique to Canada and that we could be competitive with as opposed to ones that are not manufactured in volumes sufficient for export. Damn, I sound like a Steven Harper supporter. Time to watch Trudeau on the CBC again.

Contarary to all the negativity in this thread, they play a valuable role in the city, namely making you glad Starbucks exists. If you ever find yourself bemoaning your being forced to grab a crap coffee at a Starbucks drive through, you can console yourself by recognizing that at least you don't have to go to an Esquires. Or Blendz.

I know absolutely nothing about what constitutes Persian food, except for a fondness for sumac flavouring. Anyone want to educate an ignoramus? lots of lamb? Eggplant, tomatoes, youhgurt?

Appreciator, by co-op do you mean something like this, Community Supported Agriculture, because I too am interested in joining one, even if it means I have to have brief contact with hippies. I draw the line at interacting with vegans however. I see there's one serving Whistler/Pemberton, but none listed in the GVRD. Anyone know of something like this here?

Grapes are to wine as milk is to cheese, that help?

I've had a Vesper. It's good, but good in a way that seems extraneous in a world where ice cold gin and vermouth exist.

If the Canadian government spent as much time, effort and expense promoting things that we actually manufacture on a commercially viable basis, as opposed products crafted by hobbyists for a infinitessimally tiny following of cultists, we'd have an economy that'd be the envy of the world.

And I've said it before, but I'll say it again. Running the best pizza shop in Vancouver is akin to being the smartest e-gulleter, or maybe the tallest midget, or perhaps the leading scorer in the NHL. Not really something to brag about.

A) Without a wood burning oven, the new place doesn't warrant discussion. B) It's not like Marcello's doen't have significant room for improvement. C) Half the restaurants in the city are ex-employees striking out on their own. Off the top of my head, Star Anise was ex-Bishops staffers. That Indian place next to Cru was started by an former Vij's cook. I for one am eagerly awaiting the day Gord Martins cooks spin off new ventures, same with Hawksworth and Feenie.

Sorry if this has been asked before, but does anyone know if a chef has ever reproduced their Iron Chef menu in a restaurant as a special chefs tasting menu type thing? I can see it being a special for a couple months.

Thanks to google, I've found mention of The Organ Grinder. Seems it was a chain, and that if you were a professional pipe organist, it was the greatest thing to happen to your profession since, well ever. For a couple all too brief shining years, people wanted, no needed pipe organists, it was a sellers market. I'm assuming that the ITT Technical Insitute has since dropped its' curriculum in Pipe Organ Installation. Openned June 15, 1976. http://www.pstos.org/instruments/bc/vancouver/grinder.htm

I also recall the breadline in Gastown. Must have been good, becuase I liked it as a ten year old, and we all know ten years olds are the most discriminating critics. To move the conversation away from restaurants that enriched the Vancouver restaurant scenme, to one that actively tried to destroy it, anyone remember a pizza place on Howe or some street on the south side of downtown, probably west of Granville that featured a giant organ. Very "curtain pulled away from the Wizard" in appearance, pizza and soda on the menu. Probably called "The Organ Grinder", but that seems too obvious for the name?