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Posts Tagged ‘Kingsway’

It started with an express of interest in visiting a recently opened dessert place, then led to a scheduled visit to that place, but we needed a dinner first, so the ChineseBites crew ended up having dinner at Golden Eats on Kingsway near Victoria. For some reason I thought the restaurant has been around for ages and I just never went; turns out it’s only been open for about two years.

Food

We ordered a total of 12 dishes, and here are some highlights:

Served in Hong Kong style, the Peking Duck (片皮鴨) is served over two courses. First, the roasted duck was skinned, and served with crepes and scallion and hoi sin sauce. The skin was crispy, flavourful, but the crepe was a bit too thick for my liking. The highlight of the plate was the bed of lobster crackers. Typically restaurants use shrimp crackers because they come in different colours and more common, but they don’t have much flavour and can get soggy after absorbing the grease from the roasted duck. The lobster crackers here seemed to hold up quite well. They were firmer and thicker, yet still crispy and crunchy, and had some “seafood” flavour.

Peking Duck 片皮鴨

Meat from the duck carcass was then used for the second course, Lettuce Wrap (生菜包). The meat filling had a decent amount of meat. By the time we could dig in, though, the crisp at the bottom had become a bit soggy, relying on the iceberg lettuce to offer the crunchy texture.

Lettuce Wrap with Duck Meat 生菜包

Dark Vinegar Spareribs 銀山鎮江骨 Pan Fried Black Cod with Soy Sauce 豉油皇煎黑魚
Dark Vinegar Spareribs
銀山鎮江骨
Pan Fried Black Cod with Soy Sauce
豉油皇煎黑魚

The Lobster with Sticky Rice in Lotus Leaf (荷香龍蝦飯) is one of their signature dishes. (more…)

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Dinner with friends brought us to Saffron on Kingsway near Metrotown. Many years ago I ate there once; the fact that it’s still standing to this day must be a good sign.

Food

After we placed our order, we received some complimentary Papadum with a mint and lime sauce. It’s like the comp bread basket at a western restaurant, but chickpea-based crackers. They were crispy, not salty, and the dipping sauce had prominent minty flavours and some acidity from the lime juice. That whetted our appetite.

Papadum

Because it was a Saturday, dinner buffet was not an option. A la carte style only. Remembering how much I liked the Lamb Saagwala at Palki, I ordered a Saag Gosht with Lamb and see how it fairs out. It wasn’t as creamy as Palki but it seemed to have richer flavours from the mix of spices. The meat was tender, not gamey though, and some even had a bit of fatty parts so it was even more enjoyable. The meat pieces could be bigger.

Saag Gosht

According to the menu, each entree comes with basmati rice, but you could actually substitute it with naan bread. (more…)

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So I’ve heard about this bustling French bistro in East Vancouver for awhile now, and it seems to be on everyone’s list of favourite French restaurants. Les Faux Bourgeois — A Fake Middle Class. What an interesting choice of name. After taking a look at the seemingly reasonable menu (all entrees are under $20), we decided to plan a double date and check this place out.

I was warned that you have to book weeks in advance. With only a few days notice, we only managed a 5:30pm booking; it certainly is a popular place. But hey, it’s still an opening. We’ll take it!

Les Faux Bourgeois

Les Faux Bourgeois

Food

Les Faux Bourgeois’ regular menu is fairly small, along with 4 featured items written on its blackboard. To start, each of the two couples decided to share a Soupe a L’oignon Gratinee. I remember having onion soups with greasy broth and fatty cheese, and I just felt kind of sick afterwards and it wasn’t a very pleasant feeling. Not here. The onion soup arrived piping hot, with gooey cheese all over. The broth was really light and flavourful, not rich and heavy as my past experience suggested. Our friends were comparing it to the one at Burgoo (currently still on my to-visit list) and they seem to prefer Burgoo’s.

Soupe a L'oignon Gratinee

Soupe a L'oignon Gratinee

For entrees, two of us ordered the featured items, two from the regular menu. First, on the fresh sheet was the Seared Scallops. We were surprised to see four jumbo size scallops. They were done perfectly: crispy on the outside and sweet and soft inside. The dish came with a bed of wild rice, and we all tried a bit of it. All I can say is, it’s too healthy for us youngsters. (more…)

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