BCinBC

Construction workers, cops, owners of Krispy Kreme stock, genius at Wendy's who said one day, "Hey let's take a flier at Tim Hortons, that seems like a good buy." ETA: I'm reading your last sentence and it's not quite clicking. Could one say that head cheese sucks, but it isn't underrated?

My last employer was a huge company, a behemoth, and Christmas parties were scaled accordingly. They did a buffet dinner / dance at one of the nice hotels downtownm, one year featuring a beautifully done salmon wellington. The last year I was there, they did a much poorer rendition of the dinner as a whole. A few free drinks for you and your spouse, watch the bosses get drunk and dance, a mediochre time is had by all. Or at least me. Much more enjoyable was the "division" lunch, were on the last day prior to the Xmas break, our group of 15 or so (no spouses) would go out for a late lunch, drink ourselves silly with expensive wine (ie expense account wine), wind up getting denied entry into a variety of bars before getting lucky with one, and eventually cab home (I still think of a coworker who cabbed back to Abbotsford for $100!!). One year was at Joe Fortes, once Aqua Riva, one year an Italian place in Gastown (can't remember the name, but that one was particularly bad for the drunkenness (sp?), and to this day I offer apologies to the family sitting next to us). Good food and good wine in great volumes. My current employer is much much smaller, and dinner is scaled accordingly too. Last year, my first year, was at a local club where he's a member. We had a great meal (and cheap! when you don't consider the annual fees I guess) and very nice beers / wine. Not a debacle by any means, but you know what, turns out you don't need to be a drunken slobbering mess to have fun.

Matt, I meant that KK did not originate in Canada, it's just crept in here. I know many people swear by Krispy Kreme, but alas one man's crack is another man's bad brown acid. Or something like that. PS: If you're talking about the Johnny Zee's in Victoria at the Capitol 6, I used to haunt it as well, but would always reserve a little money for ice cream at that crap restaurant beside it afterwards. Or if very desparate, my last 2 quarters for an apple pie at McDonalds.

Last year I was coerced into making a "traditional" Thanksgiving dinner for 7 people, including 2 Japanese exchange students and 1 from Mexico. I skipped the whole bird, though, instead opting for a large breast (even this was 4 kg) stuffed with breadcrumbs, celery, onions, dried cranberries, etc. Accompanied by garlic mashed and veg (broccoli, carrots, green beans, probably cauliflower too), with pumpkin pie for dessert. But I forgot the cranberry sauce!! Oops. Come to think of it, I forgot brussel sprouts too (cooked with bacon as my Mom does, sooo good. Really). Well, now I've corrupted 3 innocent people on their idea of Thanksgiving. Anyway, I wanted to chime in that stuffing absolutely must be stuffed into the bird in order to be traditional - and great (IMO the unstuffed side stuffing can be good, but without the internal drippings soaked in, can only top out at good). Also, Canuckle and Ling, my Mom also does the sticky rice, but as a side and not as stuffing; and, only at Xmas. But that is a great idea, talk about fusion. With the lap cheung soaking into the turkey and vice versa... Oooooh baby.

I also vote for over-rated. Krispy Kreme especially, although that's not even a Canadian institution. We were driving back from a Seahawks game a couple years ago, and got sucked into the Krispy Kreme exit. Then we were further sucked into trying one fresh off the line. It was just a lump of warmed-over sugar and fat, but it was really good (after all those MGDs, go figure). And it made me buy another 6 to take home. With the help of my now-wife, over a good 2-3 days, we proceeded to eat 3 of those donuts. They were frikkin grody. Tossed the rest. I always remember that woman who walked out with literally a stack of boxes, 5 dozen donuts. ***WTF***!?! Got a bee colony, do you?! However, in my youth (and when Tim Hortons were made locally), I would most definitely be up for a couple choc glazed or a box of Timbits, plus over-sugared coffee. And nowadays I will every once in a while eat at Lee's.

You dirty bums, you wait until I'm out of town and then go get this?!? I demand a revisit!

My wife would argue that Red Rose is not "tea" at all.

Well what a better way to welcome myself back home then to plunge into the Foodie class. (For anyone interested, I was in France - more posts to follow as I get my photos painfully slowly uploaded.) Did a quick catch-up knife skills tutorial with Chef Tony prior to the start of class #3. It is weird, re-teaching yourself to cut with a knife. My right hand is basically fine, but my left (the product-holding hand) feels like some sort of claw, like the hand model who loved himself too much (or so I would imagine). I think my "natural" technique is fairly close to the "proper" way anyway, except for the spreading of the left fingers. Feels weird. Chef said I was not bad, so hey, compliment accepted. On the other hand, my baguette did not turn out to be the beautiful piece of bread I grew to know and love in France. Mine was dense and not well cooked in the middle, probably a result of my working it too much after the rise; however, I saved it this morning by throwing bits into the toaster and then slathering the crisped-up pieces with butter and jam. I think the best dish of the evening was the salad; the fried cheese puck (not how I would describe it on a menu, but quite visual nonetheless) with mint and pistachois was excellent, and the dressing (honey-mustard-vinaigrette) was a pleasant surprise as well. I mean, usually I associate honey mustard with chicken fingers, but hey it actually worked. Sum greater than the parts and all that, I guess. The real highlight for me though, other than learning all sorts of cool tips from Chef, was Learning To Sear. All this time I've been somewhat afraid of the heat, but man alive when I lit that 1 giga-BTU burner and threw the pan on with steely resolve, I ended up with what I would consider almost restaurant-quality seared halibut filets (pic to follow, as taken on Joie's camera). I was one proud fake-cook. Totally made up for my demoralized baguette and mushy / irregularly shaped gnocchi. Class is a blast, you know, like totally (how weird is it to be back at school, any school). It's been a really long time since I enjoyed being in a class. Oh yeah, I made a comment to Joie that I wish I took this class when I was 16, it would have totally improved my track record with the ladies during my youth. If only I had access to a Delorean and a flux capacitor... PS: that reminds me, my favourite thing about Chef Tony is how he relates everything to movies of the 70s-90s.

There you go - it's like putting out the Bat Signal. Cooking question? Ben and Dejah will come to the rescue, and right quick too. I guessed the W-sauce for a source of "umami" shall we say. But thanks for setting it straight, Ben. I'm feeling a little proud that I guessed the rest, although Chinese marinades only deviate so far...

Haam yee = salt fish, those little dried yellow/golden scraps of unidentifiable fish that smell gross and (IMO) taste pretty good. I'd guess no on the oyster sauce. Proportions - who knows, it's all eyeballing cooking anyway. I guess that's probably why your parents etc can't give you a recipe.

I assume you're talking about yook beng. No recipe, but when I was a kid I used to love haam yee yook beng - which did indeed have water chestnuts as well. Sometimes lap cheung made an appearance, or the preserved vegetable (but not often). Anyway, the stink of the haam yee would totally turn off my siblings, but for some reason I was into it. Still am. Off the top of my head I'd guess minced pork mixed with soy, Worchestchire (sp?) sauce, sesame oil, corn starch, plus your additional ingredients, steamed for maybe 15-20 minutes? Dejah, Ben or one of the others will probably know better.

^ And Iron Chef Sakai. If you ever see him peel an apple with that ninja sword, it's a sight to behold.

Well I'm pleased to report that last night a group of us went to Sea Harbour (previously refered to as the Super Happy Misleading Rising Sun restaurant) - and it was great. I'm sure Steve or Mooshmouse will post more incl pix, but my personal favourites were the blanched (or so Canucklehead says, I always thought they were steamed) spotted prawns with chili soy dip, the pork belly, and the crab with Japanese pumpkin. Steamed / blanched prawns are a perennial favourite of mine; some said the flavour was the most "bland" of the evening, but I don't agree - or at least that is not the description I would use. It is a very simple preparation for a very simple presentation of flavour: prawn. That's all you get. Until you dip it into the soy, that is. I love prawns, and I love this. I could easily eat at least 2 lbs at one go. Pork belly - another perennial favourite. Tender juicy braised pork belly, what's not to love? This version was actually different from what I've had in the past, but I think that I've previously had a more Northern preparation - a lot more soy involved in all the previous versions I've eaten, and no green veg. Or maybe they used to be green but have had all the colour / texture braised out of them? I really don't know which one is the "original" because we never ate this when I was a kid (strictly Cantonese food in youth). So probably the soy version. The crab was cooked to perfection. It was so soft / tender / flaky inside, just over the border of cooked but not yet into the "rubbery" or "clumpy" realm. Does that make sense? The pumpkin chunks I didn't care for much, but the sauce they melted into was a very nice - and different - accompaniment to the crab. Luxurious texture. The one "weird" thing of the night was the deboned goose feet. I tried a couple, not exactly my cup of tea as they say. Weird final flavour, kind of peppery? maybe, I found it undescribe-able. Jellyfish still rules IMO. For a table of 9, the total bill including tip was $40 per person. When you consider that we got somewhere around 10 courses of high-quality food, plus a round of beers, I say that is Super Happy Cheap. Anyway it was great to meet the Druckers (the comment on PaoPao's beloved Mother, "Of course, she's weird. She owns a health food store!" No disrespect to her, but that was gold.) And thanks Lee - you did a stellar job of being the table elder and ordering. Obviously I have to work on my table junior tea pouring role. Cheers! Oh and PS: They do have some English, not on the main storefront sign, but on the sign you can see while driving on No.3 Road. So there you go - everyone is welcome.

That’s flattering Sarah, but there’s no way I could match 1. the energy or 2. the educational content or 3. the eloquence that Moosh brings to the table. In fact I’m in disbelief that anyone can blog in any given week, but appreciative nonetheless that they do. Holy did I ever get sucked in – Space channel is rerunning the original series, I just saw the first episode again, where poor old Jane Seymour gets bombed to all heck. Ah, memories of a misspent yout’. Is the new series any good? Back to food: Thanks Moosh for the Filipino food intro, very educational (even if we didn’t try the menudo ). I think of Filipino food (and Caribean for that matter) as a melange of various cultures, whether neighboring or from previous occupation (not mutually exclusive). But they have taken all these influences and created something new. Perhaps this is true of most culinary cultures? Anyway, I really liked the bistek, a very simple preparation but very flavourful as well. In fact the flavours reminded me a lot of gnow nam (Chinese braised beef), perhaps there was some 5-spice or anise in there?? No photos yet of the desserts (purple stuff!), but my second favourite dish was the banana and jack fruit spring roll. Mmm, fried fruit... Great job so far!

I was in the same disgusted boat about the Elvis sandwich, until I tried one courtesy of Canucklehead last weekend. It was not bad - and it had bacon in it. I would not eat this on any sort of regular basis, but if I ever felt my cholesterol getting dangerously low, I would not turn one away. Seriously.

I was pointing to that exact cat on Saturday, saying, "Wow, that is one fat cat." "It's mostly fur," replied N. Cha, right. Anyway, Sylvester is not bad but when you look at the picture, he is clearly a "Surly".

Dang, I knew I should have googled before posting. Thanks for the correction, Treve.

Feedbag, in Vancouver you can almost always find a fresh copy at Barbara Jo's, Gourmet Warehouse, Capers, Cookworks... the usual suspects on this board. Maxmillan even got a previous ed at a liquor store. I don't think they have a website tho. Yet...

Mr Rodgers, Nondual1 lists it HERE as 8166 Main St. It is very easy to find, it is on the northeast corner of Main and SW Marine. Canucklehead also reports on a meal we had there HERE. Come check it out, it's a beautiful day in the neighborhood.

I love the rollerskater image, Andrew. However, when you choose sauv blanc and an ocean view over sandy-bottomed girls... My in-laws are going to Watermark with some friends of theirs. The friends, who I believe are usually sensible in the food dept (Salade-d-F patrons), actually chose Watermark over Cru. Hmm, is what I thought. I am still waiting to hear about it.

Thanks Merlin. It may have been Marnie; unfortunately I have never darkened the door of Brasserie L'Ecole in Vic (not for lack of desire), so I don't know what she looks like. However, our server had brown hair, touching shoulder length, she was friendly as hell and knew her stuff on wine. I guess hell isn't that friendly, but you get the picture. Someone mentioned in another thread how much more they enjoyed their meal with top-notch service. Was it Chocoholic? Anyway, I completely agree. I still smile over outstanding servers at Cru, Fiction, Lumiere (bar) and of course Vij's. Plus winning wine recommendations rule!

A special event of sorts, N and I went to Cru last night to celebrate our 2nd wedding anniversary. They weren’t busy so we were seated right away, and after a quick perusal of the menu we started thinking about wines. The eternal question: by the glass or a versatile bottle? Our server (whose name I didn’t get, which is a shame – it was not Mark) was very helpful with suggestions. Based on my preliminary beaujolais or pinot noir queries, she guided us through some other options including the Quail’s Gate limited release PN (which we tasted a few weeks ago at the winery), the La Crema PN, and the QG family reserve PN (which we didn't get to taste as it was already sold out at the winery). We couldn’t pass up the opportunity to try the last one, so we chose it – and with great success. It paired well with all 4 starters and mains. Also, it is at least 10 times better than the limited release, so if you can get your hands on a bottle, I say go for it. Food-wise, we went with the prix fixe, with a few slight changes. Starters Heirloom tomato salad with lemon cucumber This was actually a special last night, but they graciously subbed it into N’s meal. Purple and yellow heirlooms with the lemon cucumber, over basil “pesto” and feta. The purple tomato was the best, very smoky in flavour. Tomato gazpacho Soup of the day, laced with a bit of cayenne for kick, a balsamic reduction, and some basil chiffonade. It was very flavourful, I liked the cayenne, but it was also a bit like eating a bowl of salsa. I don’t know if there is a way around this with tomato gazpacho, except maybe blending smoother? I’m not knocking this particular bowl, just wondering in a general gazpacho sense. Great crusty bread accompanied. Mains Baked Gnocchi with fresh peas, tarragon, mornay sauce and ermite cheese Each gnocchi was like a fat fluffy pillow covered with rich cheesy goodness. I am not sure if this is the way gnocchi should be (light and fluffy, as opposed to the denser versions I’m more used to), but the one N spared me was certainly one of the best I’ve had. As mentioned, the sauce was rich and thick. Served with a pea shoot salad on top. Herb-crusted New Zealand Lamb Loin with a tomato-feta-basil tart and haricot vert I had the lamb, cooked MR, with a great complement of herbs (mint being prominent). Very light on the lamb taste, and tender – as you might expect with a tenderloin – but served atop a thick red wine pan jus to fill out the flavours. The tart was excellent as well, very rich with cheese but also cut nicely with cherry tomatoes. Desserts I asked Mark beforehand to ask the kitchen to do a “special” dessert, something with chocolate and berries, and we were pleasantly surprised with individual chocolate soufflés served with sour cherries and a cherry sauce. I was a chocolate soufflé virgin, and after the first bite I thought, “Definitely light and airy, perhaps too subtle in flavour?” However, after the last bite I was left wanting more. The sour cherry accompaniment was perfect. Just thinking about it now I’ve got a craving on. A small surcharge for the request was totally worth it. Cru seems to have no problem switching from casual to fine dining or anywhere in between, depending on each individual customer. The staff is excellent – friendly and helpful, and I am equally impressed with the kitchen. Thanks for an excellent evening.

When we were kids (in Victoria, BC; parents originally from Canton) we did eat a lot of rice, my sister especially. Even in restaurants we used to order a large bowl of white rice with dinner. However, nowadays I don't eat nearly as much rice - at home or especially in a restaurant. It's main use is as a sauce soaker, otherwise it's just taking up space in me belly. I totally agree with the oil comments though. Restaurants use a lot of oil, mainly (I think) because it makes the finished dish all shiny and photogenic. This is also the reason why I don't like Chinese take-out, because Chinese restaurant food is built to be consumed right away. After it starts cooling, the oil starts congealing. Chinese restaurant food the next day, as a general rule, is pretty Fing gross. (Though this is partially due to the useage and consumption of seafood the next day, too.) Which is funny, because I prefer pizza cold the next day - and think of all the oil that has congealed there. Hrm... twisted my own brain.

Actually I have been there, several years ago - it was recommended to me by a Russian co-worker (at the time), he said it was his favourite place. Since it was in the Entertainment Book, we decided to give it a try. We made reso's, but the place was slammed that night (most likely it was a Sat) so we had to wait. The hostess / waitress / owner? was quite surly, on the verge of being rude, which did not give off the best of initial impressions. I can't recall what N had, but I had beef tournedos for my main. Ordered MR, received bloody rare. Didn't want to refire them, in case they came back well done so I ate them anyway. They were fine. Insanely huge wine list as I recall. I know what you mean, there doesn't seem to be a lot of door-swinging going on, but it was chock full the night we were there. Perhaps there's a back entrance??

On the block of Yew between Cornwall and York, on the east side beside Urban Well, there used to be a deli called the Bungalow. Blue paint / beach casual / minimalist theme. It was quite clearly in the business of selling food, but other than my roommate and myself, I do not think the place every got any other patrons - yet there seemed to be trucks pulling in and out of the back alley all the time. I liked the sandwiches, and the guy behind the counter was cool. He watched a lot of soccer, and there was always this earthy-smelling smoke in the room . Anyway, we figured it to be some sort of money-laundering operation. It turned into a juice bar I think, then a few other things. Since moving away from the neighborhood I've lost track though.