Kiriri

Tomorrow, I am leaving for a three week trip in Asia. I’ll be in Beijing, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok so get excited for the food blogging thats about to come your way! So today, my friends and I went to lunch since it would be what is my last meal in Vancouver for three weeks. This later turned out to be untrue, as my mom and I went to Takeya for dinner. Anyway, my friends let me choose where I’d like to have lunch so we settled with Kiriri. Kiriri is a more authentic Japanese restaurant in my neighbourhood. It’s Japanese-operated so that must account for something! If it were cheaper, I’d head here every day for lunch since it is within walking distance from my house.

Kiriri is in a strip mall across from Garden City Plaza at the corner of Blundell and Garden City. It’s tucked away at the end, among a random variety of businesses. Beware that they are closed on Mondays.

My favourite part of Kiriri is the decor. The tables are a gorgeous earthy finish and each is set with care. The chopsticks are provided on special Kiriri business card holders. It gives a very nice ambiance.

The restaurant itself is decorated okay. It’s definitely very clean and that is always welcome. This photo was taken around 1pm on a Tuesday afternoon. The restaurant was literally completely empty except for us. However, as we progressed through our meal, more patrons trickled in and it was actually almost a full house by the time we left.

I also love all their tableware. It’s clear that they are all imported from Japan because I have only seen dishware of this quality in Japan. We were also served real green tea. More Japanese restaurants should do this! The only thing missing is complimentary edamame and I’d be set.

Since I knew I’d be away from Vancouver for three weeks, I knew I had to get one last sashimi fix in. I ordered Chirashi ($13.00), Served with kobachi, miso soup and pickles. The miso soup was very, very good. It was so good that it stood out! It was noticeably better than the instant stuff and the tofu itself was exceptionally good. I’ve never had tofu with such flavour. None of us knew what “kobachi” was when we ordered and it seemed to come with all of our meals. According to the internet, it just means small bowl. The kobachi we received today, I guess it was the kobachi of the day, was a cold dish with cooked white radish in a clear meat broth. It was interesting; not particularly good but not bad.

On my chirashi, I had (clockwise): hamachi, salmon, tuna, two pieces of tamago, octopus, mackerel, squid and an unidentified fish which I suspect to be red snapper? The rice was very good. I thought it was the perfect sushi rice. The sashimi was also very good. It was fresh and delicious. Eating chirashi though, was not good. It’s always so awkward to eat a chirashi don. I just don’t know the correct method. With a spoon? With chopsticks? Do you dip the sashimi into the soy sauce? Or do you poor the soy sauce onto the sashimi? The saba was good but it was definitely not the best I’ve ever had. There were two pieces of tamago and they were the best two pieces of tamago I’ve ever had in my life. Seriously, I cannot emphasize this enough. It was better than the tamago I tried in Tokyo last year. It was amazing. I’d seriously come back just for that. The salmon did not look wild- it just didn’t look lean enough to be wild. It was okay and so was the tuna and hamachi. The rest I personally do not like as much as I will not comment.

Fiona and Nicole both chose Combination B ($12.50), Chicken teriyaki, udon, agedashi tofu, green salad, sushi. Includes miso soup & kobachi. First of all, what a good darn deal! $12.50 for all of that? I’m so into it.

The chicken was a smaller serving but it was tender. It was good, like a 7.5, they said. The udon was plain udon so it was average. Again, like me, both Nicole and Fiona enjoyed the miso soup.

The agedashi tofu was the best out of the entire combo. It was better than regular tofu and the seasoning was great on it. The very thinly sliced nori and bonito flakes make it a gorgeous dish. The salad was average but it was nice to have.

They didn’t comment on the futomako and inari sushi as it was their first time having it. They said it was good but they have no relative perspectives. It was well worth the $12.50, they both said, because you get a variety of everything and it’s always nice to try a little bit of each thing.

Dom ordered the Pork Katsu Donburi ($10.00), Served with kobachi, miso soup and pickles. He said it was really flavourful but not too sweet. The pork chops were nice and tender. He also really enjoyed the miso soup, like the rest of us. That was some special miso soup!

He thought his katsu don was a good serving size and was quite full by the bottom of the bowl. The egg was fluffy and divine. His words, not mine. I’d love this try both this and the combo B next time because they both look so good!

All in all, I really enjoyed my lunch here. Kiriri is slightly pricier than some Japanese restaurants in Richmond but hey, if you want quality food, you have to be willing to pay the premium. I probably can only afford to come here at lunch but there are tons of lunch boxes to try so I will be back! I’ve previously tried the saba lunch box (so inexpensive at $10 but Seto has the same for better) and the Kaiseiki lunch set, which is the popular $23 set that everyone comes to try. Kiriri is a great little gem in my neighbourhood.

Thanks for eating with me!

White Spot: Richmond Centre

Ah, White Spot- a long time classic favourite of mine. This location in particular, I have been frequenting since I was as young as an eighth grader. My friends then and I used to come to this location and order one burger among the three of us. We really knew how to take advantage of their Bottomless Fries back then. If it were up to me, I’d own a White Spot franchise when I “grew up”. I absolutely adore White Spot. It’s my favourite chain restaurant for sure. Anyway, Dom and I came here for a late night dinner after watching Olympus has Fallen, which by the way, they need to stop playing. It was two hours of action-filled anti-North Korea propaganda.

The restaurant is located within Richmond Centre mall, near the main entrance facing the Canada Line. At 10pm, the restaurant was pretty empty. There was a quiet murmur in the otherwise silent restaurant, save for the steady bustling from the kitchen. We ordered two entrees to share. Dom wanted to get a mushroom burger but I am emotionally allergic to mushrooms.

 

White Spot is currently hosting their Viva Italia limited edition menu.

 

The restaurant still looks the same as it did when I was in the eighth grade. Some renovations probably should be in order but I do love that old home-style feel.

I chose The Spot’s Fish & Chips Combo ($12.49), Our famous recipe. Two pieces of our crispy tempura battered cod. Served with coleslaw, fries & a soft drink. You also have the option of adding a piece of fish for an extra $2.99. I really enjoyed their fish burger from their limited edition burger menu and I was disappointed to find that they aren’t offering it anymore. Instead, I went with fish and chips. I felt like having a major cheat day, I guess. They were really generous with the serving of both fish and fries.

Unfortunately, the fish pieces were over-battered. The batter was too heavy and definitely took away from what the fish could have been. It’s definitely not as good as Pajo’s, but that’s because fish and chips is Pajo’s specialty. I’m just mentioning Pajo’s as a benchmark (gosh, way too much managerial accounting in me). In retrospect, I’m sure if I asked for the fish burger, they would have made it custom for me.

As for the other entree, Dom selected The Original “Beef Dipper” Combo ($11.49), Roast beef piled high with garlic panini bread. Served with au jus, creamy coleslaw, signature fries & a soft drink. We made it a “Spot Size” for only a dollar more since we were sharing. Look at that roast beef! Mmm. So good! I love the beef dip here because White Spot has everything down right. From the panini bread to the roast beef to the au jus. My favourite part is how soft the panini is! It’s so easy to press down with your hands and it tastes like pillows on your tongue. It’s also spread with garlic butter, giving it a delicious garlicy kick. The serving is also huge! 

Look at how high the roast beef is piled! That’s enough roast beef to make my lunch for a week. I definitely had trouble fitting it all in my mouth. The beef was tender but not very flavourful. But the jus was on point and together, it was delicious. Definitely one of my favourite meals here. The fries for both entrees were the same as always. Good but not the best. The coleslaw for both entrees were also the same as always. I always finish my coleslaw here because it’s actually tasty! Good job White Spot, making me actually like coleslaw since whenever you were established.

We were so stuffed by the end of our meal. It was absolutely awesome. My mouth is watering right now.

Thanks for eating with me!

Recipe: Fried Chicken

It’s hard to find time to cook when the hockey game is on because when do you do it? Ideally, it’s before the game so you can eat during the game but when the game is on at 5pm, as it was tonight, I’m not going to cook dinner at 3 in the afternoon! This is when it gets silly. When there’s a game on and I’m in the kitchen, I’m literally running back and forth from my kitchen to the living room, usually leaving a lovely liquid trail. Unfortunately, the Canucks fell to the Blues 4-3 in SO but at least my chicken was good.

Here’s my other cat, Amber. He’s really got his eyes set on that chicken. This fried chicken recipe is actually from my very traditional and very conservative Chinese mother! Funny right? She’s becoming more and more westernized every day, especially since we’ve lived in Canada for over 15 years now. Playing Candy Crush, cooking fried chicken- you never know what “American” thing she’s going to do next.

She came up with the recipe herself but I’m sure this is very similar to how everyone else makes fried chicken. You don’t need very many things for her seasoning at all: chicken bouillon powder, salt and pepper. Once the chicken pieces are well rubbed with the seasoning, let it sit for 20 or so minutes for it set in.

When it’s ready, beat one egg and soak the chicken in the egg mixture.

Then coat the egg-soaked chicken piece in any tempura powder of your choice. We have this Vietnamese brand fried shrimp flour at home so we chose to use this. Panko or bread crumbs are also fine.

Get the tempura powder all over that beautiful piece of chicken. Remember: the more powder, the more crispy. You like crispy chicken right? Better get going on that powder!

In a deep pan, heat two tablespoons of oil or until the entire bottom of the pan is thinly covered. Or completely fill the pan and deep fry the heck out of it! I went for thinly covered. I also used rice bran oil but I think any oil will work great! Pan fry the chicken for a few minutes on each side, until both sides are golden.

You’re looking for this golden brown colour. Flip ‘em over and do it for the other side. When it’s ready, take them away from the heat and preheat the oven for 350 degrees F.

Place a few slices of ginger on the baking sheet to prevent sticking and to infuse a flavourful ginger taste in your chicken. Pop ‘em in the oven at 350 degrees F for about 30 minutes.

The result? Moist and juicy chicken meat on the inside and deliciously flavourful chicken skin with a huge crunch on the outside. So good! This can’t be good for me.

My favourite part is how juicy the meat inside is. I don’t know how, but the chicken remains so tender! It’s the perfect mix paired with the crunchy, crispy exterior. Hope you guys like it. Super simple if you don’t have very many seasonings like us at home.

Ingredients:
4 chicken thighs
Chicken bouillon powder
Salt and pepper
Any tempura powder, Panko or bread crumbs
1 egg
2 tablespoons oil
1/2 small ginger, sliced

Directions:
Begin by rubbing the seasoning mix of chicken bouillon powder, salt and pepper into the chicken thighs. Let it sit for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, beat 1 egg in a small bowl. When the chicken is ready, soak the thighs in the egg and then coat evenly in tempura powder. Preheat oven 350 degrees F. In a deep pan, heat 2 tablespoons of oil or until the entire bottom of the pan is thinly covered. Pan fry the thighs for a few minutes on each side, or until both sides are golden brown. Remove from oil. Place sliced ginger on a baking tray. Pop ‘em in the oven at 350 degrees F for about 30 minutes. Serve immediately! They taste best fresh out of the oven. Enjoy!

While they’re in the oven, they excrete loads of natural juices and oils. I think it’s ideal if you actually remove the oil from the tray halfway through 30 minutes. At this point, also flip the chicken so both sides can be baked extra crispy. This is a great and easy recipe- probably way better than take out from Church’s. Still unhealthy though, and we should all actively and consciously limit our intake of fried foods!

Thanks for cooking with me!

Recipe: Shrimp Scampi Linguine

I’ve only recently started to learn how to cook. I’m two decades old, a fifth of a century, this year and I still can’t cook! I guess that’s what I get for living at home during college. I know this blog is predominantly a food blog featuring restaurant reviews but I thought I’d add in a few of my favourite recipes here and there. Hey, it’s still all food right? Here this an extremely simple yet delicious recipe I nailed on my first try and if I can do it, then so can you!

I found this extremely quick and easy recipe on a lovely food blog called For the Love of Cooking. You can view the recipe page here. It turned out so successful that I made it two nights in a row! In the photo above, you can see my cat, JD, acting cheeky. He loves shrimp so much that whenever there is shrimp thawing in the kitchen sink, you can be sure that a few will get snatched away. My mom and I have learned that we have to thaw extra to leave some aside for JD.

The best thing about this recipe is that all the ingredients are so basic! You don’t even have to prepare ahead since you’re likely to have all the needed ingredients already stocked in your pantry! And I mean really basic things- like pasta, butter, lemon, parsley, garlic, shrimp, chicken broth, olive oil and good old salt and pepper! Easy peasy. You don’t even have to go grocery shopping!

First, you want to start by cooking the pasta per instructions on the box. You can use any pasta of your choice. We happened to have linguine at home so I made linguine.

As you wait for the pasta to cook, heat a sauté pan on high and add the olive oil and butter. When the butter has completely melted, it will foam up. When it’s foaming, add the garlic. Sauté until the edges of the garlic begin to brown. At this point, you’ll be able to smell the fragrance of the sautéd garlic. So savoury! At this point, dump the shrimp in.

Then add the chicken broth. You can substitute chicken broth for white wine if you’d like as well. Stir well to coat the shrimp with the garlicy oil, butter and broth mix. Increase the heat and let the liquid mix boil for a couple of minutes. It should only take about 3-4 minutes in total for the shrimp to cook.

Remove from heat and toss in some parsley.

Now, the lemon juice is key. Once you add in the lemon juice, you get this beautiful, almost creamy concoction. The lemon pan juice is going to coat your pasta to create the delicious buttery garlic taste.

Add the pasta to the skillet and season before tossing to coat evenly. Of course, you want to serve this immediately.

Tada! A great, quick and convenient dinner in less than 20 minutes. It’s so refreshing too. The lemon juice really brightens up the whole dish for a savoury yet light meal. So good!

Ingredients:
2 servings of linguine, cooked per instructions
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoon butter
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 pound of shrimp, shelled and deveined
1/4 cup of chicken broth or white wine
1 lemon’s juice
1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped

Directions:
Cook the linguine per instructions. While the pasta is cooking, heat olive oil and butter in a skillet over medium heat. When the butter has completely melted and begun to foam, add the minced garlic. Sauté for 1-2 minutes or until garlic has browned, stirring often. Add the shrimp with the chicken broth or wine and sauté for about 3-4 minutes or until cooked. Simmer the liquid until reduced by half. Now with parsley added, squeeze in the juice of 1 lemon and mix. Add the pasta to the skillet, season with sea salt, to taste then toss to coat evenly. Serve immediately. Enjoy!

Next time, I think I will remove the shrimp from the heat after the initial 3-4 minutes, without adding in the chicken broth. I will let the chicken broth boil, simmer and reduce separately without the shrimp to avoid overcooking it. I’ll add the shrimp back in once it’s finished, as well as the pasta. But overall, this is a great recipe that I can see myself using over and over again for the years to come. I can’t wait to make this again.

Thanks for cooking with me!

Matsuyama 松山

We went for late night at Matsuyama for Ge’s birthday dinner. Matsuyama used to be an old time favourite of my friends’. Since it’s open late and relatively close to Richmond Centre, we often come here after late movies. Their late night menu is really affordable so there’s always that, too.

Good luck getting a parking spot though. Matsuyama is located in one of the many restaurants-only strip malls of the infamous Alexandra Rd of Richmond. Since I am a horrible driver, I often park at Lansdowne and just walk over to Alexandra. Not only is it hard to find parking here, it’s also extremely difficult to park in these tiny, smaller-than-usual spots. People joke that Richmond drivers suck at driving but lets see you try the God mode difficulty level of Alexandra Rd parking!

Matsuyama is a fairly large restaurant. There are both booths and larger tables available. The decorations are a weak attempt at achieving an authentic Japanese-style decor. The restaurant is clean though and that’s what matters.

I ordered Chicken Udon ($4.95). For five bucks, this bowl is a pretty good size in terms of value. The soup had a strange sweetly sour aftertaste though and I did not like that at all. This is my usual go-to order here and for some reason, it disappointed me tonight. The chicken pieces are quite good. Overall, it’s still a great value, especially now with the removal of HST, this is a very solid meal under six bucks which is still cheaper than a McDonald’s meal.

Fiona had the BC Roll ($3.25). She complained about an unknown liquid that was coming out of her rolls. She thought that it may be the oil from the salmon skin. She let me have one and I actually really liked it. The rice was strangely cold and it reminded me of food court sushi that had been sitting out in the fridge for a while. But I thought it was still tasty. The oil dripping out did concern me a little though.

Dom had the Chicken Teri-Don ($4.95), the same price as my udon. He said the sauce was too sweet, rice was overly sticky and the chicken mediocre. Wow, harsh review! I personally enjoy both the chicken teriyaki don and the chicken udon here. Again, I think they’re both great deals for meals under six bucks. Quality-wise, I’m not so sure but you really can’t be expecting organic free range chicken at a restaurant like this!

This is Salmon Sashimi ($4.95). Chris ordered this and he said it was very good. There is nothing else to say. He also said he finished it in three seconds. These look like generous cuts of sashimi. You can tell from the colouration of the meat that its farmed. But hey, you’re not going to get wild sashimi for five dollars.

This was Lianne’s meal. She ordered six Salmon Nigiri ($0.99). Lianne said she finished her’s faster than Chris finished his. It was also very good. She said she gets this every time.

Lastly, the birthday girl ordered Spicy Salmon Roll ($3.25) and Spicy Scallop Roll ($3.25). She said both rolls had the right amount of spiciness. She claims that some restaurants’ spicy rolls are not actually spicy and she hates that. You can tell from the photo that these rolls are actually quite well made. Not bad for three bucks.

Happy birthday Ge! This ice cream cake is from Marble Slab, if anyone is wondering. It was delicious!

We had quite a fun birthday dinner for Ge at Matsuyama. These are my high school friends and whenever the guys all get back together, it feels like we’re in high school all over again. I guess they don’t get to see each other as often as they used to so they get so loud and rowdy whenever they do all get together. It feels like stepping back into a time machine. I wonder if it’ll still be like this when we’re in our 30′s. Overall, Matsuyama is a great place for a quick and cheap late night dinner. There were fruit flies near our table and that’s not a good sign. Other than that, the food was okay for the prices. Nothing stood out but for meals around five bucks, they don’t need to. I know few of few sushi restaurants that are open late at night so if you’re craving sushi, this is a great place for it in the middle of the night.

Thanks for eating with me!

Takeya Sushi

I was so excited to finally have the chance to eat here! Takeya is brought to you by the same owners of Steveston restaurant, Ichiro. It’s mainly for “to go” but there are about ten or so tables available for “for here”. I’ve actually never been to Ichiro. At the end of our meal, my mom (capable of striking a conversation with any stranger on the streets, how she birthed an introvert like me is beyond me) asked the server where their fish is from. She replied that most are local but some are flown in from Japan. She also let us know that most of their chefs are Japanese. Of course, Toshi Sushi‘s fish are all imported so my mom took this as an opportunity to sing Toshi’s praises. My mom’s cute.

Takeya is located on No. 1 at Francis, directly across Hugh Boyd high school, in the Seafair Shopping Centre in west Richmond. It’s a little bit out of the way for us in central Richmond but it’s not too bad of a drive. One day it’ll be known as “Downtown Richmond”. Can’t wait for the Asian Invasion to fully saturate the city. Just kidding. Sort of.

Based on the location and the ambiance of the restaurant, I’m guessing it’s probably cheaper than Ichiro. The menu is extremely extensive and bounded in a lovely faux-leather cover. It’s complete with photographs for each item and that made my mom really happy. No matter how many times we go out for Japanese, she still can’t seem to remember the difference between certain rolls. Takeya serves a great variety of Japanese items, ranging from cooked items to sashimi and sushi. By the way, did you notice my mom on her iPad again? She’s still hooked on Candy Crush and she finally beat level 29.

The restaurant is very small but I think its business operations target take out customers. There were at least a dozen in the time that we spent here. There’s not much to see here, in terms of decorations.

I had read a couple of food blogs that recommended this combo so I knew I had to try it. This is the Takeya Nigiri ($11.95), Lightly grilled salmon toro, tuna toro, saba. Amaebi, unagi and salmon roll 3 pcs, tuna roll 3 pcs. This is a fairly good deal because you’re getting one maki roll which otherwise would cost you at least two dollars and five nigiri sushis, at about less than two dollars each! I would say it’s pretty good value for your money, although I’m sure there must be places where you can get even more bang for your buck.

The Unagi Nigiri was not my favourite because I personally don’t like unagi. However, I did try a little piece and it was actually really good! I’m not sure if I’d be able to stomach to whole piece but I loved the sauce and the unagi itself was very tender and buttery.

The Amaebi Nigiri was my first time having amaebi! It must be an acquired taste because I didn’t really like it. It was slimy and had a strangely sweet aftertaste that I didn’t care too much for. My mom really liked it though!

The Saba Nigiri was the best on the entire plate! It was absolutely amazing. It may have been the best saba I’ve ever had. Saba, too, is an acquired taste, but it’s one I really enjoy. It’s very fishy yet the texture is soft and creamy. The Tuna Toro Nigiri was lightly grilled and it was so fatty and smooth. The creamy taste was shadowed by the grilled taste though. However, I still found it really good. The Salmon Toro Nigiri was also good but only average in comparison to the saba or even the tuna toro. I didn’t like the heavy charring taste the grilling brought it.

The Tuna Roll and Salmon Roll were both good. There was one piece on the left that was overfilled with rice but other than that, these rolls were delicately made. It was also obvious that the salmon they use is wild, as it was evident in the firmness and leanness of the meat.

We also ordered a more carb-heavy combo, Ebi Kakiage Udon ($9.25), Deep fried chopped vegetable and shrimp with noodle soup. 

The udon is meatless but came with a very generous helping of seaweed and green onions. It was good. There was nothing wrong with it.

The deep fried chopped vegetable and shrimp was a pancake shape and it was very tasty. I didn’t expect it to be a pancake! It was also served in a very cute bamboo basket. I thought it gave the dish character. My only complaint is that the carrot was not thoroughly cooked so there was a stark contrast between it and the rest of the tempura vegetables.

And just in case that all wasn’t enough food, we ordered Saba Shio Yaki ($3.75), Grilled mackerel. I love saba, can you tell? Either raw or cooked, I find it absolutely delicious. Takeya’s saba shio yaki was a good sized piece but it wasn’t the best I’ve ever had. The best I’ve tried was at Seto Sushi. Their lunch set is only $10- you should check ‘em out. However, this piece didn’t have the tender, moist, juicy melt-in-your-mouth taste that saba can have when done right. It was also slightly more charred than I would have liked, as you can see from the photo.

Overall, we enjoyed our dinner here very much. It’s a great and convenient place for good Japanese food, whether you’re in the mood for cooked items or sushi and sashimi. There is no ramen or izakya though. Another complaint I have is that they close so damn early! They close at 8 every night, except Friday, when they close at 8:30. Oh boy, there are some days of the week when it’s 8 and I haven’t even thought about dinner yet! Nonetheless, early dinners are good for your health and clearly, these Japanese folk know it! Takeya has become one of our favourites in just one visit. My mom and I can’t wait to return!

Thanks for eating with me!

Crepe De Licious

Richmond Centre unveiled its $30 million, 44,000 square foot 18 restaurant food court renovation last fall. One of the new vendors introduced was Crepe De Licious, a small free-standing dessert shop located in the middle of the Dining Terrace, directly parallel to Pinkberry. It sells both crepes and gelato. Mmm, what a delicious combination.

It’s a food court food retailer with an open kitchen beside the cashier, allowing you to view your crepe’s production! All of their products are made to order and all are done in less than five minutes! Because the food court has only been opened for a couple of months, everything still looks relatively new.

They offer both sweet and savoury crepes but Dom went with a sweet one. He ordered Black & White ($6.25), Nutella & freshly sliced banana. It’s true! I watched the whole banana sliced before my eyes. The crepe was very good. It was filled with quite a generous spread of Nutella which completely covered the whole crepe.

The freshly cooked crepe melted the Nutella with the banana, creating a warm gooey filling of deliciousness. The banana’s creamy texture worked really well with the Nutella spread. The crepe itself could have been thinner though. It was finished with a Nutella drizzle with some icing sugar splashed over it. I personally found it too sweet for my preference but Dom liked it. He thought it was a good size and had quality ingredients. I’m going to try to make this at home because I don’t think it’s worth six dollars. It took the guy less than five minutes to make for crying out loud!

Thanks for eating with me!