Neighbourhood Archives | Foodgressing

Spiritea launches Brown Sugar Peach Jelly

February 16, 2019 by foodgressing Leave a Comment

The newly opened modern tea house, Spiritea, at Aberdeen Centre in Richmond has just launched a healthier version of the popular Brown Sugar Pearl Milk drink.

Spiritea Aberdeen Centre Richmond launches Brown Sugar Peach Jelly

Disclosure: I was invited for a media tasting where my drinks were complimentary.

Meet the Brown Sugar Peach Jelly ($6.50) featuring jelly made from peach resin. Peach resin (also known as peach gum) is a natural sap that forms on peach trees, has a jelly-like texture and contains many health benefits. ⁣⁣ It has been reported in classical Chinese medical literature that peach gum has curative qualities include treating relieving stress, quenching thirst and a secret for beautiful skin.

As Spiritea uses higher quality ingredients, you’ll be happy to know that the drink uses Avalon Dairy organic milk and organic cane sugar.

I thought the Brown Sugar Peach Jelly was nicely refreshing and satisfying. I enjoyed the milk tea flavour and the smooth and lightly sweeten peach jelly. The drink is definitely less intense and rich than a classic Brown Sugar Pearl Milk. Overall, it seems like a good, healthier but also delicious alternative.

Spiritea
Aberdeen Centre 4151 Hazelbridge Way, #1968 Richmond, BC
spiriteadrinks.com

Related posts:

Newly Open: Spiritea at Aberdeen Centre

Where to Get Brown Sugar Pearl Milk in Metro Vancouver | 溫哥華黑糖珍珠鮮奶

Newly Opened: Ancora Ambleside in West Vancouver

February 3, 2019 by foodgressing Leave a Comment

Newly opened in West Vancouver’s Ambleside neighbourhood is Ancora Waterfront Dining and Patio second location at 1351 Bellevue Avenue. Known for their Peruvian-Japanese cuisine with Pacific Northwest elements, Ancora’s False Creek location has received numerous accolades, including being named one of Canada’s 100 Best Restaurants in 2016 and 2017.

Nikkei-Style Cuisine

Leading the kitchen is longtime Executive Chef Ricardo Valverde and Chef de Cuisine Jorge Kim, with Brent Kim presiding over the raw bar. Ancora Ambleside showcases the same Nikkei-style cuisine as the False Creek location with a focus on fine wine and cocktails.

The crudo bar offers freshly made Ceviches, Causas and Sushi while the main menu features Peruvian-meets-Japanese signature dishes such as Pan-Seared Pacific Lingcod, Arroz Con Pato, Beef a la Parrilla, Aji Panca Glazed Sablefish and Hokkaido scallops & Pork belly.

Cocktail and Wine Offerings

At the bar, Ancora Ambleside offers seasonally inspired renditions of classic cocktails such as the Pisco Quebranta, Wasabi Margarita, Caraway Caesar and Ancora’s signature Chicha Libre. The wine features a diverse range of regions and styles from around the world and complements the menu’s bold flavours and seafood-focused dishes with fresh, high-acid whites and light-bodied reds available by the glass and bottle.

Interior

The interior of Ancora Ambleside embraces a neutral palette with touches of light wood. The restaurant also features a theatre-like open kitchen and bar along with via high ceilings and windows. The dining room seats 104 seats and another 38 on a heated patio that features scenic views of the Lions Gate Bridge, Stanley Park and Vancouver’s West Side.

What I Tried

I recently attended a media event at Ancora Ambleside to try a few of their offerings. Here’s a look at what you can expect when you dine there.

Dungeness Crab Causa

This amuse bouche also had huancaina and botjia olive soil.

Albacore Tuna Ceviche

Prepared with ginger, wakame, and nikkei leche de tigre.

Aji Panca Glazed Sablefish

Our third course was one of Ancora’s signature dishes. I enjoyed the rich, satiny sweet, buttery taste of the sablefish accompanied by smoked potato, quinoa and nori.

Arroz con Pato

This rice and duck dish was a favourite among the guests I talked to. It came with pickled shallots and seco jus.

Prime Ribeye Anticucho

The steak was accompanied by seasonal vegetables, aji verde, yucas bravas and black garlic jus.

Chicha Morada Sorbet

We were then presented with a refreshing sorbet made with Chicha Morada, a popular Peruvian purple corn drink. It was wonderfully fruity and tangy.

Spiced Picarones

For dessert, we enjoyed these light and crispy doughnut-like fried treats paired with the sweet and carmelly flavours of lucuma (a type of fruit native to Peru) ice cream.

My favourites of the evening were the Aji Panca Glazed Sablefish, Arroz con Pato and Spiced Picarones.

Ancora Ambleside — 1351 Bellevue Avenue, West Vancouver BC
Hours: Dinner 5 p.m. to close daily

Ancora False Creek — 1600 Howe Street, Vancouver, BC
Hours: Lunch noon to 2:30 p.m. Monday to Friday | Cocktail Hour 4 to 5 p.m. Monday to Friday | Dinner 5 p.m. to close daily | Brunch 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Sunday

Blue Water Cafe Unsung Heroes Festival 2019

February 2, 2019 by foodgressing Leave a Comment

Blue Water Cafe’s Unsung Heroes Festival, one of the most anticipated events on Vancouver’s culinary calendar, is back for the 15th year. Offered from February 1 – 28, this special menu creatively forged by Executive Chef Frank Pabst aims to raise awareness on local and unique seafoods and to avoid species that are over-fished or harvested in ways that can damage ocean beds.

Blue Water Cafe Unsung Heroes Festival 2019 Yaletown

The Unsung Heroes festival celebrates lesser known and often overlooked fin and seafood to educate diners about alternative sustainable Ocean Wise choices through fresh experiences and new flavours.

As a founding member of the Ocean Wise program, Blue Water Cafe continues their longstanding support by serving sustainable seafood to guests. With every sale of an Unsung Heroes dish, Blue Water Cafe will contribute partial proceeds to benefit the Oceanwise program – for generations to come.

This past week, I attended a media preview of the 2019 Unsung Heroes Menu. Priced at $15 each, these dishes are meant to sides to complement the regular menu at Blue Water Cafe. Wine Director William Mulholland has wine, sake and beer suggestions to accompany each dish. Here’a look at what you can expect.

Sturgeon Liver “Pate”

We enjoyed the sturgeon liver “Pate” as a great starter dish to share with pickled vegetables, marinated mushrooms, mustard seeds, and grilled bread. Paired with Bernard-Massard Cuvee De L’Ecusson, Brut.

Carp Roe “Bombolini’

These savoury doughnuts were lightly crispy on the outside and had a delicious, creamy carp roe cream. The pairing is Contratto For England, Pas Dose 2008 (Blanc de Noirs).

Red Sea Cucumber “Carbonara”

For a pasta option, the very al dente squid ink fettucini with red sea cucumber and guanciale was very satisfying. Paired with Le Vieux Pin Ava, Okanagan Valley 2017.

Octopus “Croquetas”

These tasty, deep-fried bites were a delight and filled with octopus, chorizo, green garbanzo jalapeno hummus, and lemon aioli. This was paired with Maculan Vespaiolo, Breganze 2017.

Grey Mullet Bottarga “Negitoro Pizza”

One of the more innovative creative dishes of the evening featured cured and dried mullet roe grated over chopped albacore and fried crispy sushi rice. The pairing was Azakura Super Umami Junmai Sake.

Jellyfish “Waffle”

We were surprised by the creative and delicious pairing between the Korean pajeon waffle with green onion (inspired by a Korean green onion pancake) and jellyfish (like the one you would find as a Chinese appetizer). This dish had a beer pairing of 33 Acres of Life California common lager.

Sea Urchin ‘Quiche’

Another creative dish was the sea urchin custard prepared as a quiche with leeks, fennel, wakame and seaweed. This was paired with Tinhork Creek Chardonnay, Okanagan Valley 2017.

Mackerel “Avocado Toast”

Media also very much enjoyed the grilled mackerel steak lightly smoked over apple wood with bergamot dashi. Paired with Louis Jadot, Chablis 2017.

My top 3 of the evening were the Carp Roe “Bombolini,” Octopus “Croquetas” and the Sea Urchin “Quiche.”

For further information or reservations, please contact Blue Water Cafe by telephone at 604 688 8078 or online at www.bluewatercafe.net.

Valentine’s Day Ideas in the Fraser Valley 2019

January 19, 2019 by foodgressing Leave a Comment

Valentine’s Day falls on a weeknight this year, and here are some easy, delicious and fun ideas on how to celebrate with your sweetheart in the Fraser Valley.

1. Gourmet to Go Dinner for Two

Valentine's Day Ideas Fraser Valley 2019

$80 plus tax per order

If you are planning to stay in, you can impress your special someone with a special meal. Offered by Well Seasoned in Langley, all you have to do is heat and serve this three-course dinner plus dessert.

Pre-orders are required with 48 hrs notice minimum and can be picked up anytime between February 8 to 17 (giving you a chance to celebrate even after the official date).

1st Course: A delectable platter featuring local cheese & artisan charcuterie, olives, nuts and dried fruit with crackers.
2nd Course: Fresh tomato salad with shallot vinaigrette, pesto, croutons, pine nuts & “True Grit” micro greens.
3rd Course: Entree (choose 1 only): Chicken breast stuffed with local goat cheese, prosciutto, & sun sried tomatoes served with candied carrots and rice pilaf OR Rosemary braised beef with potato parsnip puree, roasted Brussel sprouts.
Dessert: Dark chocolate mousse with a crispy base and fresh raspberry coulis.

2. Special Event: Valentine’s Food & Wine Pairing with Chef Carl

14 February, 6:30 PM – 9:00 PM $225 per couple (Spots are limited to 10 couples only.)

Well-Seasoned is hosting a Valentine’s Day food and wine pairing and all-inclusive event with the store’s own Chef Carl and KIS Consulting, Langley’s Boutique Wine Merchants.

Chef Carl will demonstrate and serve the meal while the KIS team offers wine to be paired with each dish. Relax as you learn new preparations, then take the recipes home.

For bookings, call the store at 604.530.1518.

3. Cooking Class: An Early Valentine in a French Bistro

13 February 6:30 PM – 9:00 PM $85/per person

Learn at Well Seasoned with a demo and then re-create this meal at home the next day; or, just enjoy this demonstration class as a lovely night out.
This class will be a fun alternative to the dining experience you would have in a restaurant, and you can expect a satisfying meal.

How to Book

Call to book: 604-530-1518. (All students receive 10% off their in-store purchases on class night.)

Newly Opened: Ugly Dumpling on Commercial Drive

January 4, 2019 by foodgressing Leave a Comment

Newly opened on Commercial Drive is Ugly Dumpling, a restaurant specializing in pan-Asian comfort food with a farm-to-table approach. Ugly Dumpling takes over the space formerly occupied by the Merchant’s Workshop at 1590 Commercial Drive.

Ugly Dumpling Commercial Drive Vancouver

The restaurant is co-owned by Chef Darren Gee (formerly The Farmer’s Apprentice, Kinome and Le Crocodile) and Van Doren Chan (formerly Le Crocodile, Hawksworth and Ugly Dumpling’s sommelier).

Ugly Dumpling Menu

The menu changes seasonally as the ingredients are sourced from organic and local farms. Chalkboard specials featuring drinks, the daily dumpling and staff meal are posted on the restaurant’s Instagram account.

The name of the restaurant is a bit of a misnomer as the restaurant isn’t a dumpling house. There is just one daily dumpling and these are sometimes handmade by Van Doren Chan’s mother.

The rotating beverage program features sake, sherry, wine, and local craft beer. Also available is house made kombucha and soda.

The beverage menu is whimsically presented as a coloring book. Crayons are presented on the table so that you can color at your leisure.

Interior

The decor seemed pretty minimal with dining tables of 2 – 4 and an L-shaped bar.

10-Course Family-Style Omakase

I visited Ugly Dumpling with my fellow foodie friends David (pickydiner.com), Hanson (noshandnibble.blog) and Kristina (drunkenoms.com). We went with the 10-course family-style omakase priced at $60 per person.

Note: None of the food nor drinks in this post were complimentary. This review is done anonymously.

The simple dishes that we had throughout the evening certainly exemplified the theme of food tasting better than it looked. In a previous article, Van Doren Chan had noted, “food doesn’t always need to look good to taste good.”

What We Tried

Homemade Pickles

To start homemade pickles featuring shoyu fennel, onions and oshinko (Japanese pickled radish).

Marina’s Gold Oysters, pickled grape, fresh horseradish

These wonderfully plump oysters have a salty and sweet flavour profile with a green melon finish.

Winter Greens Salad, Asian Pear, Pickled Radish, Bonito

Spicy Marinated Burdock Salad

I’m not sure that I have had a burdock salad before so this was interesting.
The burdock had a crunchy texture and had a sweet, spicy and mild flavour. The salad also had celery and carrots.

Pork, duck and mushroom pate with persimmon relish

The pate was mild in flavour and was delicate in texture., The persimmon relish was unique and added some sweetness to the pate.

Steamed tofu and shirako with XO sauce and ginger

The most unique aspect of this dish was shirako otherwise known as salmon sperm sac. The sac was creamy and custard-like in texture, and had a slightly sweet and subtle savoury flavour.

Daily Dumpling: Pork, Spicy Cod Roe, and Cheese

Too bad we only had one dish of dumplings because they were really good! The dumplings had a crispy, golden exterior (although some were a bit burnt) and a very interesting savoury filling of pork, spicy cod roe and cheese. The filling tasted more meaty than fish and cheese.

Steamed Radish Cake with Soy Bacon and Sour Cabbage

Tamarind Glazed Whole Lemon Sole, Komatsuna

I enjoyed the sweet and sour glaze with the tender meat of the sole. This dish was cooked with Japanese mustard spinach.

3-Week Aged Whole Quail, Turnip, Ginger, Scallion

Our group enjoyed the quail with the gently crispy skin and flavourful, tender meat.

Housemade Noodles: TanTan Ramen

The ramen was not as good as we expected as the sauce was overpowering the noodles; there was just too much of it. I think that there should be just enough sauce to coat the noodles. The noodles weren’t very al dente.

Steamed Black Sesame Cake, Quince, Matcha Milk

The steamed black sesame cake was very light and fluffy but the black sesame and matcha flavours were too subtle for me.

Red Bean & Yuzu Marble Cheesecake

Similarly, the marble cheesecake didn’t have very pronounced red bean and yuzu flavours.

Ugly Dumpling vs Mak and Ming

The last time I tried a similar Japanese-influenced set menu (which is not sushi) was at Mak and Ming (see post here). I would say that Ugly Dumpling is more on the casual side with homestyle eats whereas Mak and Ming is modern fine dining. I thought that the dishes at Mak and Ming were somewhat more memorable than Ugly Dumpling.

Overall Impression of Ugly Dumpling

I thought that our omakase exerience at Ugly Dumpling was only OK because it was largely unmemorable despite having tried many of their dishes. I appreciated the simplicity, finesse and uniqueness of some of the farm-to-table ingredients but as a whole I couldn’t find too much that really stood out to me.

If I had to pick out some notable moments, that would have to be the daily dumpling, the persimmon relish on the pate, the shirako (salmon sperm sac) with the steamed tofu and the 3-week aged whole quail.

All the dishes we had for the omakase are available a la carte. I would recommend trying the Daily Dumpling, the Tamarind Glazed Whole Lemon Sole and the 3-Week Aged Whole Quail.

Rating: 3.5/5

Ugly Dumpling
1590 Commercial Dr, Vancouver, BC
uglydumpling.ca

Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver: Chinese Wedding Banquet

January 4, 2019 by foodgressing Leave a Comment

A few months ago, I attended a wedding held at the Four Seasons Hotel in Vancouver. The dinner reception featured a 10-course Chinese banquet. While a wedding at the Four Seasons is certainly grandiose, I thought the dinner was quite lackluster and fel short of my expectations.

Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver: Chinese Wedding Banquet

According to this article from 2012, the Four Seasons Vancouver has a dedicated Chinese kitchen. The food is prepared in partnership with Grand Dynasty restaurant in Burnaby.

To start, the dishes tasted really bland and needed salt and seasoning. I don’t know if this was requested by the hosting families as low salt is favoured for the health of elders.

The presentation of the dishes certainly lacked oohs and ahhs. The dishes came in individual portions and were served in more of a Western-style. In a traditional Chinese banquet, the dishes as a whole are presented to the table first and then subsequently divided. Perhaps this is not as logistically feasible in a hotel setting.

I also thought the compartmentalized dinner plates looked a bit odd. It made some of the dishes looked rather sad especially the rice and noodles. They sort of looked like food served for toddlers on a kid’s plate.

One of the dishes that was simple yet poorly executed was actually the fried rice! It had a burnt taste to it. I had others taste it and they also concurred. However, it just seemed that my dish was one of the isolated cases.

Service was terrific as the pace of the dinner was good and servers were friendly. It was unfortunate that the food was only about average considering the price tag.

My sense is that the Western-style plated dinners or buffet might fare better than the Chinese banquet. It was a good effort but the food and its presentation could be improved in my opinion.

Here are the dishes we had for the 10-course dinner:

Four Seasons Signature Platter

The platter featured roasted pork, cold jelly fish with sesame oil, mixed diced seafood in bean curd, and pastry with whole abalone.

Sauteed Chicken & Squid with Baby Bok Choy

Conpoy, Dried Seafood & Bamboo Piths in Soup

Lobster Cooked in Superior Broth

Sauteed Three Kind of Fresh Mushrooms & Season Vegetables

Roasted Crispy Chicken

Braised E-Fu Noodle with Abalone Sauce & Assorted Fresh Seafood Fried Rice

Baked Lotus Paste Pastry & Deep Fried White Sesame Pastry

For a wonderfully delicious and well-executed Chinese banquet dinner, see my post Peninsula Restaurant:

Peninsula Seafood Restaurant Dinner Reception

Happy Hour at Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ Downtown

January 3, 2019 by foodgressing Leave a Comment

Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ has been my go-to place for a Japanese Yakiniku dining experience where you grill bite-size meat and vegetables over a flaming charcoal grill. In Vancouver, they have three locations (Downtown, West Brodaway and Richmond) but they actually have over 700 world wide including Japan, US, Hong Kong, Indonesia etc.

Happy Hour at Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ Downtown Vancouver

I had some friends in town from Europe this holiday season and we decided to go to Gyu-Kaku on Boxing Day. While the restaurant does take reservations over OpenTable, all the spots were taken and we decided to just do a walk-in and wait in line.

The location in Downtown Vancouver is nicely spacious but the lighting is generally quite dim. I like the West Broadway location which has more natural lighting.

We waited for 40 minutes and it was Happy Hour by the time we got a booth. All combos are 20% off during Happy Hour and we went with the Samurai combo for 4 people.

Happy Hour Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ Downtown Vancouver

Starters

The starters included Gyu-Kaku Salad, Edamame, Miso Soup, White Rice, Spicy Cold Tofu, Fried Chicken Karaage, and Beef Garlic Noodles.

One favourite was the Spicy Cold Tofu featuring soft tofu topped with kimchi and spicy, crunchy garlic sauce. The flavour was very good and had a nice spicy kick. The garlic chips added texture to the dish.

The Fried Chicken Karaage was also very good being crispy on the outside and tender on the inside.

All the other starters were reasonable.

BBQ Items

BBQ items included Premium Ribeye Steak, Harami Skirt Steak (Miso), Gyu-Kaku Kalbi Short Rib (Sweet Soy), Filet Mignon (Salt & Pepper), Toro Beef (Sweet Soy), Pork Belly (Shio White Soy), Shrimp (Garlic), Chicken Thigh (Basil), Zucchini, Eggplant and Broccoli.

The portions, quality and seasoning of the BBQ items were good.

Dessert

For dessert, there were S’mores and choice of ice cream. We went with Green Tea and Lychee.

Service

The service was pretty good considering how busy it was. All the dishes were brought to us in a timely manner.

GET REWARDS

Gyu-Kaku also has an app where you can earn points towards rewards after each meal. For rewards, you can get free dishes (like Shrimp Garlic, Filet Mignon and so forth) and even $25 off your next visit.

Overall Impression of Gyu-Kaku

I continue to be a fan of Gyu-Kaku and would love to return again in the future. It was definitely a better deal to come during Happy Hour and get 20% off the combo. Rating: 4/5

Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ
888 Nelson St g3, Vancouver, BC
www.gyu-kaku.com

Italian Food Kitsilano: Fiore Famiglia – Pizza & Pasta

January 3, 2019 by foodgressing Leave a Comment

Last month, I visited Fiore Famiglia in Kitsilano for dinner with some family and friends. Their focus is on simple, Italian dishes including pizzas and house-made pastas along with an Italian wine list. I had been to their South Granville location before and had a decent experience. Unfortunately, this was not the same case when I dined at Fiore Famiglia Kitsilano.

Italian Food Kitsilano: Fiore Famiglia - Pizza & Pasta

Note: None of the food and drinks in this post were complimentary. This is not a sponsored post. This review is done anonymously.

Interior

The interior of Fiore Famiglia was simple, modern yet warm and inviting. There is a mix of dining tables for 2 -4 people as well as an L-shaped bar.

What We Tried

Our party of 5 ordered several dishes. First was the pappardelle bolognese ($24). This is a dish I tried at their South Granville location and I found it to be equally delicious. The pappardelle was wonderfully al dente and went nicely with the rich, meaty bolognese sauce.

My friend had the risotto al funghi ($19) featuring mushroom duxelle, seared crimini, parmesan, basil, and balsamic. He thought it was reasonable.

Unfortunately, the pizzas were really horrendous and mediocre. There was too much sauce which made the pizzas soggy. The crust was bland and too thick. The toppings were not particularly flavourful. I took at look some Yelp reviews and some reviewers were also disappointed in the pizzas they tried.

The three pizzas that we ordered were the prosciutto e pera ($21) (bianco sauce, pear, taleggio, leeks, parsley, prosciutto), piccante ($18) (tomato sauce, chorizo, tomatoes, roasted peppers, chili, parmesan) and the formaggi ($17) (olive oil, mozzarella, smoked cheddar, provolone).

Service

The service was standard. Nothing really was bad but nothing stood out either.

Overall Impression of Fiore Famiglia

The pasta fared much better than the pizzas we tried at Fiore Famiglia. Unfortunately, the poorly executed pizzas made for a disappointing dinner experience at the restaurant. I would not be interested in returning. Rating: 2/5

Fiore Famiglia
2603 W 16th Ave, Vancouver, BC
fiorerestaurants.ca/famiglia/

Related post:

Dinner at Fiore South Granville

Newly Open: Spiritea at Aberdeen Centre

January 2, 2019 by foodgressing Leave a Comment

Newly open at Aberdeen Centre in Richmond is Spiritea, a modern tea house serving fruit and milk teas made with all-natural fruit, pastries and features an Instagram-worthy interior. Although this location is just freshly opened, plans for locations in New York and Irvine, CA are already in the works. I was invited a media tasting recently. Here’s a look at my experience.

Spiritea Aberdeen Centre Richmond Tea House

Disclosure: I was invited for a media tasting where all food and drinks were complimentary.

Modern & Elegant Interior

Spiritea’s modern and elegant interior features plush velvet chairs, floor-to-ceiling windows, and a tall ceiling with overhanging lights. It seems like a very inviting and warm space for people to gather over drinks and desserts.

Teapresso Machine

What sets Spiritea apart from other tea shops is that they brew all of their teas on the spot in a special Teapresso machine. They use premium tea leaves, fresh fruit, Avalon Dairy organic milk and pure cane sugar made in France. Their focus is to provide the freshest and highest quality ingredients without the use of artificial fruit syrups or powders.

Spiritea Menu

Spritea’s drink menu is focused on fruit and milk teas made with all-natural fruit and not bubble teas. These include Cloudteas (which are salted cheese cap drinks), Lattea, Fruitea, Puritea and Glacier Cold Brew.

Their Glacial Cold Brewed Tea involves soaking tea lives in low-temperature glacial water which will release tea tannins and caffeine. The result is a smooth taste and highly aromatic.

Their drinks are priced higher at $7 – $10 due to the use of premium ingredients (ie, real fruit, organic milk and pure cane sugar).

Spiritea’s Desserts

Spiritea also offers a small selection of desserts which are made by an external supplier. These include the Snowflake Cheesecake ($9), Chocolate Mousse ($9), Very Berry ($10) and Xmas Tree ($9). They also sell macarons in Salted Caramel, Earl Grey, Matcha and Lychee flavours ($2.75).

Chocolate Mousse
Xmas Tree
Snowflake Cheesecake
Very Berry

What I Tried

Hanson (noshandnibble.blog) and I tried a variety of drinks and pastries at the tasting.

We started off which a selection of Fruit Cloudteas including the Pineapple ($9), Strawberry ($9) and Very Berry ($10). The drinks feature real fruit mixed with tea and a salted cheese cap to intensify the flavours of the tea as it passed through the cheese cap layer. I found the Pineapple Cloudtea to be particularly refreshing with its tropical flavours.

We also tried the TanCho Black Tea ($7) which had a great milk and black tea flavour. Next was the Superfruit Combo Fruitea ($9) which had real grapefruit, orange and lime. This was also very refreshing and it felt like a healthy drink since it had a few different fruits.

We tried all their desserts: Very Berry ($10), Snowflake Cheesecake ($9), Chocolate Mousse ($9) and Xmas Tree ($9). I liked their presentation and they tasted fine for externally supplied pastries. However, they did seem a bit on the expensive side given the size.

The Snowflake Cheesecake was more or less a standard cheesecake but I thought it could have used a graham crust. The Xmas Tree was a composite of Very Berry, Matcha and Passionfruit.

Overall Impression of Spiritea

I like Spiritea’s commitment to using quality ingredients (real tea leaves, real milk and pure can sugar). Their setting makes for a lovely way to pass an afternoon with others over drinks and desserts. Their drinks were refreshing and I hope to see perhaps more desserts in the future.

Spiritea
Aberdeen Centre 4151 Hazelbridge Way, #1968 Richmond, BC
spiriteadrinks.com

Hon’s Wonton House Olympic Village Vancouver

January 2, 2019 by foodgressing Leave a Comment

In the past, I have declared that I’m a fan of Hon’s Wonton House. Growing up in Richmond in the 90s, Cantonese-style fast food was the type of Chinese of food that was dominant in town and Hon’s was my family’s go-to Chinese food restaurant.

Hon’s has deep roots in Vancouver’s Chinatown having opened in 1972 and being known then as the city’s only place to get wonton noodles and potstickers. Now as a West End resident, I still head to the Hon’s on Robson regularly for my Cantonese-style fast-food fix.

Hon's Wonton House Olympic Village Vancouver

New Olympic Village Location

With the Richmond and Vancouver Chinatown locations now closed, I was surprised to hear that Hon’s had opened a new modern, location in Olympic Village.

The current owner of Hon’s partnered with restaurant-chain company, Box Concepts Food Group, to relaunch Hon’s restaurants with new branding and a new menu.

Hon’s Olympic Village Menu

The menu at Hon’s Olympic Village is much more focused compared to other locations. You’ll find noodle soups (like Wonton Noodle Soup), lo mein (like Beef Brisket Lo Mein), beef or veggie rice dishes (like BBQ Pork on Rice), and popular combos (like BBQ Pork Noodle soup combo) and so forth.

What I Tried

I decided to order takeout via foodora and went with Curry Beef Brisket on Rice ($12.50) and Curry Fish Balls ($8). The packaging seemed a bit more up-to-date as well compared to traditional styrofoam containers.

Note: The food in this review was not complimentary. This review is done anonymously.

The Curry Beef Brisket on Rice is a customer favourite and staple from 192 and features Hong Kong-style slow-cooked curry beef brisket and potatoes with rice. The savoury curry was pretty creamy and aromatic with hints of coconut milk while the beef brisket and potatoes were nicely tender.

The fish balls used were nicely bouncy in the tasty curry sauce.

Interior

I was only at the location to pick up my takeout but I noticed the nice, modern interior that made for an inviting yet casual environment for dining.

Overall Impression

There are plans for more Hon’s rebranded locations to open in the coming year. While I thought the food they serve at Hon’s Olympic Village was good, they don’t serve my go-to and favourite fried rice and noodle dishes. Because of that, I’d probably be visiting the older Hon’s locations rather than the newer ones. Rating: 3.5/5

Hon’s Wonton House Olympic Village
25 E 2nd Ave, Vancouver, BC
www.honswontonhouse.com

Nikkei-Style Cuisine

Cocktail and Wine Offerings

Interior

What I Tried

Dungeness Crab Causa

Albacore Tuna Ceviche

Aji Panca Glazed Sablefish

Arroz con Pato

Prime Ribeye Anticucho

Chicha Morada Sorbet

Spiced Picarones

Sturgeon Liver “Pate”

Carp Roe “Bombolini’

Red Sea Cucumber “Carbonara”

Octopus “Croquetas”

Grey Mullet Bottarga “Negitoro Pizza”

Jellyfish “Waffle”

Sea Urchin ‘Quiche’

Mackerel “Avocado Toast”

1. Gourmet to Go Dinner for Two

Menu

2. Special Event: Valentine’s Food & Wine Pairing with Chef Carl

3. Cooking Class: An Early Valentine in a French Bistro

Menu

How to Book

Ugly Dumpling Menu

Interior

10-Course Family-Style Omakase

What We Tried

Homemade Pickles

Marina’s Gold Oysters, pickled grape, fresh horseradish

Winter Greens Salad, Asian Pear, Pickled Radish, Bonito

Spicy Marinated Burdock Salad

Pork, duck and mushroom pate with persimmon relish

Steamed tofu and shirako with XO sauce and ginger

Daily Dumpling: Pork, Spicy Cod Roe, and Cheese

Steamed Radish Cake with Soy Bacon and Sour Cabbage

Tamarind Glazed Whole Lemon Sole, Komatsuna

3-Week Aged Whole Quail, Turnip, Ginger, Scallion

Housemade Noodles: TanTan Ramen

Steamed Black Sesame Cake, Quince, Matcha Milk

Red Bean & Yuzu Marble Cheesecake

Ugly Dumpling vs Mak and Ming

Overall Impression of Ugly Dumpling

Four Seasons Signature Platter

Sauteed Chicken & Squid with Baby Bok Choy

Conpoy, Dried Seafood & Bamboo Piths in Soup

Lobster Cooked in Superior Broth

Sauteed Three Kind of Fresh Mushrooms & Season Vegetables

Roasted Crispy Chicken

Braised E-Fu Noodle with Abalone Sauce & Assorted Fresh Seafood Fried Rice

Baked Lotus Paste Pastry & Deep Fried White Sesame Pastry

Starters

BBQ Items

Dessert

Service

GET REWARDS

Overall Impression of Gyu-Kaku

Interior

What We Tried

Service

Overall Impression of Fiore Famiglia

Modern & Elegant Interior

Teapresso Machine

Spiritea Menu

Spiritea’s Desserts

What I Tried

Overall Impression of Spiritea

New Olympic Village Location

Hon’s Olympic Village Menu

What I Tried

Interior

Overall Impression

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