fud
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Sandy and I went last night and met Leonard (nice to put a face to the name now!)
We took pictures but havn't uploaded them yet so here's the review and I'll tack on pictures later!
Decor
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The restaurant was gorgeous, I liked the green motif which is a welcome change from the standard blue I keep seeing in trendy restaurants nowdays. The neon chandelier was awesome.
They also have this funky wine rack thing. I can only describe it as a caged lazy susan where the wine resides inside and can be rotated around like a carousel. Pretty neat and I assume the wine turnover is high so there's no need to have them stored horizonally.
Quick note on bathrooms since I actually do put weight on bathrooms in restaurants. Clean and they have hand lotion! Some might think "who cares", well for those who have dry skin it's really nice!
Patio
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Wow. Awesome not only because of the view but also the design! They have these monster glass windows that serve as the patio permiter as well as a wind shield. It wasn't exactly a warm evening last night but the wind shield windows and the well placed heatlamp made for a great evening on the deck. I can see myself on the patio in the middle of a sunny February eating mmmm...
Appy's
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We sat down, ordered a Gwertz from Joie and the chicken wings stuffed with goat cheese. My god. They drum the chicken wings and then stuff cheese into them. The finished product looks like a glazed popsicle. These were wonderful. I could have ordered 2 more plates probably. But alas I needed to try other things.
I'm a little bummed I forgot to try the oyster/beer thingie that I've been reading about. There really were simply too many appy's I wanted to try. I think I'm going back to try them all and skip the main course
After the wings, we shared the Guyere Onion Soup. Think French Onion but make it sweeter and richer and in all respects BETTER. Oh man. I was ready for another bowl after this. If Sandy wasn't my fiancee I would have wrestled her for the last drops in the bowl. Amazing stuff, the onions were so sweet and carmelized, the cheese was simply superb (even had a small chunk of cheese at the bottom of the bowl which was still crunchy mmm). The bread bits in the soup were very well done. You see, normally bread goes all soggy in a soup like this and ends up blending into the general texture of the soup. But these bread bits were of a heartier nature allowing the diner to enjoy the texture of the bread while it was soaking in the soup. A perfect textural experience. Thumbs way up.
Mains
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I ordered the Braised Pork Belly and Sandy ordered the Grilled Halibut.
The braised pork belly was very tender and tasty. Simple. Good. As intended by the theme of this restaurant (good food put simply). The pork belly was finished on top of some pears and walnuts (carmelized). I liked this dish, it was solid and the skin was very crispy whilst the meat underneath was juicy and soft. You could really taste the pork flavour - they didn't overdo it with gravy or sauces.
Sandy's halibut on the other hand I found to be a little bland. It was dished on top of Chard which I think is some kind of strong Bok choy type veggie with stems that look like Rhubarb. What I found was that the Chard has a pretty strong flavour, perhaps too strong for the subtle flavour of the Halibut therefore taking away from the Halibut flavour. Sandy believes perhaps the fish was overdone and thus lost some of it's inherent flavour.
Dessert
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Sandy had the Creme Brulee. It was really really good. The flavour was so spot on and the carmelization was just perfect on top. The desserts here are wonderful because they are small enough for you to enjoy after a good dinner and they are a great value (<$4!!). I really liked the creme brulee.
Alex mentioned he had the Lemon tart last time he was there and it was phenominal. Now I need to go back for it. I had the crepes - very solid! The orange sauce was really tastey! I loved how I wasn't so full I was about to burst after it either
Service
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First rate. Waiter was top notch and Leonard even came in to check on us a couple times which was a wonderful touch. We DID tell the waiter about the halibut and he was really good about it, he told us that the restaurant is very interested in feedback.
Leanord, it was super nice of you to throw in some desserts!! Sandy was kind of shocked since it wasn't like she didn't like the fish, just that it was a bit more bland than she liked. Very nice surprise indeed.
Total Package
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- Awesome view, the whole place is on stilts on the water, you can't get much better
- Patio to die for (well designed so you don't freeze on colder days)
- Appy's are simply amazing
- Price point is well inline with what you get
- Service is top notch
Will we go back? Damn right we will, I need to go back for more soup, wings and maybe try the Guyere sandwich they have!
So much food...so little stomach....Kudos to the Nu team!
Wes
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I had NO idea someone was takin pictures! I'll try to remember to bring mine next time
Get the action shots of us not know what we're doing hee hee.Nice job! Brings back memories of the celery I cut!
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Excellent I will do!
T minus 40 minutes
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Sorry about the interact! With the strike at Telus, we currently only have one telephone line. The one line is used for reservations. When Telus gets back to work we will be back to normal.
Thanks,
Leonard
NU GM
Hey Leonard,
So what's the scoop on the best dishes at Nu?
I'm coming tonight with my fiancee for dinner. I also assume interac is still down so I'll bring the other plastic. Mmmmm looking forward to it.
Wes
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I hate you all....I was at Capers and saw the Poplar Grove's Tiger Blue cheese and decided to try it.
So good...oh so good....evil...all of you....mmmmmmm.
OH WOE IS ME AND MY STUPID LOVE OF CHEESE!
Capers on Robson has a pretty good cheese selection...but WHOA the expense!
I would also like to recommend the Tre Stelle warehouse in South Burnaby, just off of Byrne road as a not bad place to get cheese...every so often they get a beautiful buffalo mozzarella which is TO DIE FOR.
Back to the Poplar Grove for me....mmmm cheese...
I'm surprised as to the selection at Capers, it's great! I had poplar grove tiger blue at the winery along with some crabapple wine from Elephant Island. O. My. God. SO GOOD!
I personally do all my cheesey commestible shopping at "Les Amis Du Fromage" Good selection and it smells very cheesey in there...almost too cheesey!
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Dave! We were talking about you in class. Glad to see you've popped in.
Yes, Chef Tony is very animated ... obviously loves what he does. And we did in fact make extra for the assistants ... hopefully up to an acceptable standard.
A.
I love animated instructors, they make the class go by so well! I recall our helper scoping out the different stations to see which people had the yummiest looking food. No doubt they are now well versed in finding the good eats
Boy talk about deluxe. When Sandy's cousin took the full chef course at dubrelle they had to do all their own dishes and certainly there wasn't any wine with dinner! We're spoiled! Even Dan said that he was surprised what we "got cellery" to work on for our knife skills.
Dan: "Wow! You get cellery already!!??"
Dan: "You know...we got flour for the first two days!"
I feel so privilidged now.
P.S. Welcome aboard Alex! (who sits one cubical over from me ;p)
P.P.S. Yes I'm working and I'll have that TPS report ready for you soon.
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In 2004 VanMag had a category titled, eloquently, "Best Meat". Memphis Blues won Gold, West (?) won Silver, and Gotham Bronze.
This year the category was split into two: Best Steakhouse/Chops and Best Barbeque. In first category, Gotham tied Morton's for Gold, Hy's won Silver and The Keg Bronze. In Best Barbeque, from the many fine Vancouver barbeque establishments we enjoy
, Memphis Blues won Gold, Dix won Silver and Slim'z Bronze.Wow Memphis made the list? I will admit that the shredded pork has got to be my favorite dish there. And they give you a fair portion of veggies on the platter (like chicken).
I'm a little split on Gothams and Morton's too. I really really liked the Filet Mignon at Gothams. It was my first "put the meat in your mouth and it melts on your tongue" experience. Mortons I liked for the flavour.
I havn't tried the hanger steak but apparently if I don't I'm going to be shunned on this forum. I HAVE had the gingerbread dessert and it was pretty good (but I wouldn't say it blew me away). It DID get rave reviews from my friends tho who were more than happy to take it away from me
Wes
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I really like Chef Tony, he's so animated and fun. I'm looking forward to next class. I think the first thing that came to mind when the class was rolling was:
'I have no idea what I'm doing'
That pretty much stayed true till we made the salmon and then I was able to add some jazz to the fish. Regardless the knife skills and simply how to cut veggies was really useful and I'm shocked that I'd been doing it 'all wrong' before.
And I honestly had no idea you don't add garlic to the pan first. I always do that because it smells so good
Daddy-A, we used all our celery
No Mire Poixe for the next class hee hee.(actually it really was too much celery, and im not a huge fan of celery
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I defy you to say, "Luk Fuk is ridiculously cheap!" three times quickly in a group of unsuspecting people and not have every one of them think you're a lunatic.
Szechuan Chongqing is in the neighbourhood but, oddly enough, I've never even remotely considered it for dim sum. Shall have to rectify that soon.
Don't tempt me, i may do it in class on monday.
Wes
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Of all the places I've tried so far I prefer the Dim Sum at Chong Qing on Commercial and 12th. The don't do carts, but their a la carte choices are always fresh and tasty. Theit Won Ton in spicy peanut sauce is devine.
They have really good chinese donut wrapped in rice flour (Ja Leung) AND they are really good value, but I wouldn't say they have the best dim sum (price no object).
I really like Kirin for high quality dim sum tho. You pay more but you get really good food.
For total budget madness, Luk Fuk in richmond off Leslie (#3 rd and Leslie) is ridiculously cheap and their Egg tarts (Dan tat) are freshly made when you order (takes 15 minutes or something but they com HOT and mouth watering good). I think last time I went with Sandy and 2 other friends our bill came to $17 (for four people!!)
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can i join this posse too?!!! i just have one rule....i don't share my ebi mayo!!!
Of course!
Actually has anyone tried making this at home? Mine was pretty much a complete failure. I think the sauce is important but the tempura breading is also key. Not sure what they are doing right (or I'm doing wrong).
Must...make....ebi....mayo....must...eat....
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To that end, here's Tim Pawsey's review of Toshi's in the Vancouver Courier.
It's settled. I'm going there after I go to Nu tomorrow.
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Anyone remember Benny's bagels from like say 15 years ago? I swore they had the BEST cheesecake but since then I havn't been able to find it
I worked at Benny's Broadway location back then - and I think that the cheesecakes were made on site. The owner was an uber-jerk and I quit after about 2 weeks.
Sigh. Good cheesecake/bastard owner? Such a sad state of affairs...
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Dessert wasn't one of the menu items we prepared at last night's first Serious Foodie cooking class, so Daddy_A and I trekked back over to Stella's on The Drive for something sweet. Quaffed a couple of cleansing pints (Hoegaarden for Arne, Strongbow for me) and shared a slice of their warm chocolate cake. Damn, did that hit the spot. A generously sized portion. Remarkably moist, almost pudding-like in consistency. Deep chocolate flavour nicely accented by the sour-cherry Bellevue Kriek sauce and a dollop of fresh whipped cream. Nary a crumb left on the plate... surprise, surprise.
A perfect autumn dessert. I'll definitely be back for more.
I'm taking that class with another friend too. I think I can guess who Daddy_A is ;p No dessert
That's what my fiancee said too! ("what? no dessert? - what a jip!") But I'm sure next week we might get into some of that.Personally I can keep myself amused just re-learning how to cut cellery ;p
Wes
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Dude - Congratulations!!
My cousin had his wedding banquet at the SSW in Richmond, where I expected the food to be better than the Main st location. It was a little disappointing - they were cheap on the seafood and the squab was terrible.
That being said though - I think the food at most Chinese banquets always taste the same to me. I prefer Kirin over SSW - but even there, I have watched them serve the large tour groups and the food doesn't seem interesting.
In SSW's favor - they were super organized, timed the courses well, and worked closely with the bride and groom on all the details.
Thanks!
And I'll keep this in mind. The only problem is that the 'space' for SSW is awesome compared to Kirin but the food to me is important. If I'm going to be paying for a fancy banquet I refuse to accept substandard food. We actually havn't decided if we are going 100% chinese banquet yet. We might actually go western if the Chinese options don't meet our likings.
You are not the first person to tell me the SSW food was a let-down. This just bolsters the fact that they seem to be fairly inconsistent
Wes
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OK, well despite everyone's kind suggestions here, we decided (well, *I* made the executive decision ;-) to go to Paprika Bistro last friday night. Why? Well, because we have lovely classic French here in Seattle in the form of Le Pichet, Brasserie Margaux, Cafe Campagne... so we opted for something different.
I can't believe I didn't order duck here. They had 3 duck offerings, one was a special. NEXT time! er, NO, next time I have the goulash!! er...
I hear the duck is divine and probably one of the best places for duck (prepared in this fashion) in th province. Mmmm I need to visit victoria shortly!
I wonder if they do weddings heheh
Wes
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I like Toshi. He makes good sushi. I think he had a restaurant in Whistler but re-located to the off-Main Street spot. It is very small, though, there are only about 10 tables which helps explain the lineups.
They have a sushi bar where you can sit and watch the sushi orders go out. I usually go for takeout - avoids the lineups completely. The house roll is good, they also have a little dish with lobster and mushrooms that is not too shabby at all.
Thanks for the feedback both of you! I think I will have to try it out myself then since there are mixed reviews
It's so close to my place so I can get takeout and have it home before it gets cold (assuming i dont get just sushi)
Wes
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Anyone tried this place out yet? I think it's pretty new
Vegetarian and probably very reasonably priced! It's right by Foundation I believe.
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I tried the gingerbread dessert at HSG and it was pretty good but....
1. The Godiva chocolate cake at Mortons - Molten chocolate in a beautiful not-too-sweet cake. Man alive - I dont usually like chocolate too much but damn...
2. I had this wonderful dessert involving a pear stuffed with blue cheese and then baked in phyllo pastry and drizzled with honey at La Gavroche. Manny, you're the man! Good stuff! How do you know I love cheese? (I actually rather the cheese/grape platters for dessert usually
The crepe suzette was divine too mmmAnyone remember Benny's bagels from like say 15 years ago? I swore they had the BEST cheesecake but since then I havn't been able to find it
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I know!!! we have to form an Ebi Mayo Posse!!!!
Oh, yes I shouldn't have forgotten Chef Jeff, who has only made me two fabulous meals so far, but more to come, I'm sure.
Yeah we should form a roaming posse off Ebi Mayo eaters. Go from place to place just destroying restaurant supplies of ebi mayo!
mmmm
Actually I will say that ebi mayo at Shiro can be better than Gyoza King but i find Gyoza so far is more consistently good/better....oh man i need some now.
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Hmm I havn't eaten out much this week...
1. Hachi Bei (sp?) - 16th between oak and cambie. Surprisingly Good!
2. Lombardo's on commercial - mmmm nice pizza with thin crust and great pizza bread
3. Tony's Kitchen (NCAV - Northwest Culinary Acedemy)
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Yesterday lunch (Saturday afternoon): a fudge brownie from Mackinnon Bakery (sp?) on W. 12th and Granville. I've read about these and they live up to the raves. I also had a large square of their carrot cake (got a craving after reading that carrot cake thread over on the Baking forum). A brownie and a piece of cake for lunch--I sure love my sugar.
Yesterday dinner (Saturday night): went to a wedding banquet with 400 other guests at the Sun Sui Wah on Main.
Today lunch: McChicken, no fries, no pop. (I ate cookies and moon cake when I got home--the burger was much smaller than I remember!)
Hey Ling,
How was the food at Sun Sui Wah on Main? My fiancee and I are looking at them for our wedding banquet!
Wes
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Ok I drove by yesterday having just moved to this neighbourhood (around south-main). I noticed a ridiculous line outside this little Japanese Restaurant called "Toshi's" (i think).
Anyone eaten here and any comments - is it worth the wait? And what's so good about it? Phenominal salmon/tuna? I can't figure out how this one place can be SO packed when there are simply so many other Japanese restaurants around.
I think I read somewhere about a squid dish...
Okay, now everyone knows who's going to FAIL this course.
tofino eats
in Western Canada: Dining
Posted
Wickininnish for lunch
The view is unbelievable. The food is good value for lunch. The dinner is a multi-course extraveganza but be ready to put out $100/pp without wine.