Category Archives: Dinner Club

Dinner Club

Dinner Club: Acme Cafe

Posted by on April 11, 2011 at 12:45 am.

This edition of Dinner Club was a particularly dangerous one where your faithful judges showed their undying commitment to finding the yummiest dishes in town regardless of the restaurant location, taking silly photos at the establishments that serve them, and satisfying any and all cravings at two in the morning even if it means they might end up in the hospital. Yes, that’s how dedicated we are.

Yummy Dishes

Kenny outside Acme Cafe

Kenny outside Acme Cafe with Ann’s take-out Chicken Pot Pie

Kenny began round two of our Dinner Club escapades and decided that Acme Cafe would be his saving grace in an attempt to wash out the stench of Memphis Blues. The usual suspects were present with the exception of Ann who was unable to make it to the restaurant but had take-out delivered to her (Chicken Pot Pie).

Acme Cafe sits on the fringe of sketch-ville Vancouver (aka East Van) and is just about the cutest little diner you ever did see. Fedoras and poodle skirts wouldn’t be out of place here. The menu is probably the only thing that doesn’t jive with the ’50’s vibe with its fancier items like their Local Cioppino and Wild Boar Sausage & Turkey Cassoule. They even have a “High-falutin’” take on the classic grilled cheese sandwich that uses cheddar, swiss, brie and cranberry-Grand Marnier relish on a grilled Ciabata panini. We were pleasantly surprised both by the decor and the food selection.

We normally order several items to share, but Acme Cafe is more of  a ‘to each his own’ type of establishment. Amongst our five present judges we ordered a High –falutin’ Grilled Cheese, Wild Boar Sausage & Turkey Cassoule, Chef’s Feature (goulash with a barley risotto), Local Cioppino and Meat Loaf for mains. The presentation for all of the dishes deserves mention because everything looked great. With the exception of Kenny’s barley risotto side dish, everything came out at once and at just the right temperature too. We were all so engrossed in taking photos of our dishes and sampling from each other’s plates that we didn’t even notice that the risotto was missing until our very attentive server stopped at our table and noticed something was missing on Kenny’s plate. Props for great service!

Local Cioppino

Local Cioppino

I was skeptical about how good Ang’s Local Cioppino (fresh BC seafood stew in a tomato fennel broth) was going to be since we were at a diner in East Van and there were no other seafood mains on the menu, but her dish was my favourite of the lot. The stew had a really nice flavour to it and having it served in a sourdough bread bowl was perfect.

Morten’s Wild Boar Sausage & Turkey Cassoule was similar to chili (which he loves) but a little bit lighter and also a touch classier with its ingredients. He was quite happy with his choice. Phil inhaled his High-falutin’ Grilled Cheese with its side of barley soup quite contentedly, but I’ll admit I wasn’t watching him the whole time since I was busy scarfing down my own Meat Loaf dish. The Meat Loaf was a little on the drier side, but the sauce, multi-coloured potatoes and side salad worked well together to balance out the moisture in each subsequent bite.

Meat Loaf

Meat Loaf

Kenny was also pleased with his goulash and piping hot barley risotto, and I received an update from Ann about her Chicken Pot Pie that reads “pleasantly surprised. Chicken was tender, flavour was yummy, and the sauce was very creamy. It was baked right in the foil take-out container.” All in all, the entire Dinner Club gang was pretty happy with the mains.

In addition to the mains, we also ordered two Vanilla Milkshakes with double-espresso shots, one Chocolate Milkshake and one Americano. We had never tried coffee-infused milkshakes before and I’m surprised that more establishments don’t offer them! The Vanilla Milkshakes with double-espresso shots were delicious! Ang thinks they should’ve been colder and I’m sure they would’ve been even better if they were, but I thought the actual taste was really very good. You know how a lot of milkshakes taste like they’re made with powdered flavouring and milk mixed into a thick slush? This wasn’t like that. It was more like real milk and espresso infused with vanilla and whipped up into a thicker milkshake consistency. I tried Morten’s Chocolate Milkshake too to make sure it wasn’t just the espresso covering up some not-so-great flavours but his non-espresso milkshake was also lip-smacking yumminess.

Peach Pie

Peach Pie — the only one that was good

Since we were on such a roll with the mains and the drinks (and also because I’m a sucker for pie), we ordered four desserts: Lemon Pie, Apple Pie, Peach Pie and Boston Cream Cake. And this is when things went downhill… There’s nobody I know who loves pie as much as I do (wait, maybe Phil — see 2 am Cravings below), but these pies were on the bleh end of the yumminess spectrum. The Lemon Pie was bitter from an excess of lemon zest the length of large porcupine hairs, the Apple Pie was drowned in cinnamon and covered with enough crumble to carpet the floor, and the Boston Cream Cake was no better than an afternoon donut (not quite as fresh as when they’re first made but not stale enough to chuck). The only decent dessert was the Peach Pie and even that had more crust than filling. We contemplated voting separately on the mains and the desserts (I suspect the desserts would’ve gotten a 1 / 5 at most), but decided it would be against Dinner Club rules.

Acme Cafe: 5 out of 5

Acme Cafe: 5 out of 5

Overall Food Group Rating: 5  out of 5

The Good: Great selection of mains from simple sandwiches to seafood bowls you could eat with one pinky up. Flavourful and original spins on traditionally simple dishes.

The Bad: The desserts. Get a milkshake instead.

The Ugly: The area isn’t exactly a family friendly district. If you’ve ever walked through Vancouver, you’d know exactly where East Van begins and ends. There is a very distinct border around the blocks where the majority of Vancouver’s homeless people live and Acme Cafe sits right on top of that line.

Silly Photos

Pain and a Consolation Cookie

Pain and a Consolation Cookie

In addition to a review this month, I’ve also got a rather embarrassing story and a few accompanying bruises to go along with it. You know how we’re a snap happy bunch at Dinner Club? Well, after we finished dinner and were chatting outside Ang told me to go inside and pose on one of the stools by the window so she could take a picture. I walked in, took a right turn towards the stools and immediately tripped over a step. I landed with a thunderous “kaboom” on the edge of the counter and floor. I fell so hard that the counter edge left a dent in my arm and I had to take a moment to let the pain in my hip subside before I could get up. I was SO embarrassed that I didn’t look up when our sever ran over to help, and walked straight back out with my head down. If I had a tail it would’ve been between my legs. SO EMBARRASSING (and painful)! When I made my exit, our server followed me out and gave me a little bag. Inside the bag was a consolation cookie and as he handed it to me he compared the act with giving a child a cookie when s/he hurt himself. SOOOOOO EMBARRASSING!!! I would totally go back to Acme Cafe for the food, but I don’t know if I can bring myself to show my face there anymore! *palm meets face*

2 am Cravings

While we were chatting away during dinner we discovered how desperate Phil can get at two in the morning when he has a craving for pie. We were talking about battle scars and food cravings when Kenny said we should ask Phil how he got the scar on his hand. Apparently one night at about two in the morning, Phil just had to have the pie that was sitting in his freezer but didn’t have the patience to let it thaw out in the oven. So, he began chipping away at it with a knife and put all his weight into one stab in an attempt to break it that his hand slipped down the blade and sliced right through to the bone! Ouch, right? Lesson: never leave a pie in the freezer. LOL

And that concludes this edition of Dinner Club!

Dinner Club

Dinner Club: J.R.‘s Taste of Ceylon

Posted by on March 16, 2011 at 12:19 am.

Aiya, this is a belated post. The whole Dinner Club gang met on Sunday to complete the cycle with Ang’s pick: J.R.‘s Taste of Ceylon. The main reason why this post is late is because my tummy was in an uproar about the vote and wanted to change my initial half vote to a full thumbs down. What a nice way to describe something unpleasant eh?

Biriyani at J.R.'s Taste of Ceylon

Biriyani at J.R.‘s Taste of Ceylon

J.R.‘s Taste of Ceylon serves up Sri Lankan dishes which are supposedly similar to East Indian cuisine with hints of Malay. I can’t comment on the Malay influences since I’ve never tried Malaysian food, but this was no butter chicken. We ordered Mutton Rolls, Sri Lankan style Devilled Beef Curry (that’s how its spelled on the menu, and yes the little red squiggly line that indicates incorrect spelling is killing me), Fish Curry, Hoppers (fyi, not beer), Rotti Chanai, Biriyani (a rice dish), Sri Lankan style Chicken Fried Rice, and Pittu. Oh, and we had a taste of Iddly.

When the Mutton Rolls arrived, they smelled really good. I was looking forward to the first bite. It was.. ordinary. Ang, Kenny and Ann were talking about the spiciness of the roll and I was all “What? What spice? I don’t have any spice.” I took another bite. I guess the end of the roll (my first bite) wasn’t indicative of the roll as a whole. There was definitely a hint of curry in the roll, but nothing crazy. It was a decent starter and reminded me of a cylindrical samosa stuffed with a mutton link.

Sidenote: Our server brought the Mutton Rolls with a bottle of ketchup. Is it just me, or is that really weird? It was so weird, that I think that’s why Kenny didn’t believe it was ketchup and even after eating his roll with it thought it might be some kind of sweet sauce. I dipped my fork in a blob of it and exclaimed “Kenny, that’s KETCHUP!” to which he replied “Well, it isn’t Heinz.” LOL Apparently Kenny has a very discerning palette when it comes to ketchup.

Pittu and curries

Pittu and curries

Then came the curries. We had a chicken curry and a fish curry, and both were very spicy (we had ordered mild / medium). Ann was practically in tears so our server not only came around with water refills but he also brought a bowl of Dal (mushy lentils) to calm the taste buds. Props to our server — he was great! The fish… not so much. The vote was unanimous: the fish was dry and pretty terrible. The chicken was just chicken. Nothing bad. Nothing special.

To accompany the curries we had Hoppers, Rotti, and Pittu. Hoppers are noodles that are semi-dry so you can spoon a mini saucer of them onto your plate with ease. Rotti is that yummy bread that you can dip into curries. And Pittu, well Pittu is just plain strange. It looks like a roll of fluffy spam, has the consistency of fake snow, and tastes like paper with decorative coconut shavings.

We also ordered two rice dishes: Sri Lankan style Chicken Fried Rice and Biriyani. It’s hard to go wrong with fried rice and this was no exception. It was good, and what you would expect of fried rice. The Biriyani was decent, but the side yogurt and sour runny yogurt-ish sauce that it came with made my face scrunch up like I just smelled something rancid. I’m pretty sure this was what made my tummy unhappy (I’m mildly lactose intolerant).

A taste of Iddly

We were about to end the meal when Phil brought up the Iddlys. Well with a name like that, we just had to try it! It took what felt like forever for them to arrive, but they arrived in style looking as cute as little squished man-tao buns. Iddlys are also side dishes that are meant to be eaten with curries. I thought they were right up there with the Pittu and ketchup on the ‘weird’ scale. I couldn’t figure out how to describe it and was going to go with “crumbled styrofoam”, but Phil hit the nail on the head with “grits!”. Yes, they have the consistency of grits and as much flavour as styrofoam. I wasn’t a fan, but I think Ann might’ve taken a liking to them.

In the end, we were asked if we’d like tea or coffee. The restaurant serves complimentary tea and coffee after your meal. Why after and not before? I have no clue. We could’ve used something while we were waiting for the Mutton Rolls. Perhaps it’s part of a Sri Lankan custom I don’t know about. Anyways, I had coffee and it was prepared with milk which probably didn’t help my tummy that was now filled with a bunch of weird things including the rancid yogurt and gritty styrofoam. I don’t think anyone else had an upset tummy, but I also don’t think any of us will be going back.

J.R.'s Taste of Ceylon: 3.5 / 6

J.R.‘s Taste of Ceylon: 3.5 / 6

Overall Group Food Rating: 3.5 / 6

The Good: The service at J. R.‘s Taste of Ceylon is great. Our server was attentive, able to give recommendations, and personable.

The Bad: The fish and the side yogurt served with the Biriyani were terrible. Other than that, the dishes weren’t “bad”. They were just ordinary and either overly spicy or super bland.

The Ugly: I made a face when I saw that the items on the outside restaurant photos were spelled differently than what appeared on the menu.




Dinner Club

Dinner Club: Lalibela

Posted by on February 6, 2011 at 11:50 pm.
Lalibela Platter

Lalibela Platter

Ann put a lot of thought into this month’s Dinner Club selection and with only three days to go, she announced tonight’s restaurant: Lalibela. While Phil is off riding his bike in Vietnam, Angela, Ann, Kenny, Morten, and myself drove to North Burnaby to see what Lalibela has to offer. Although most of us have tried Ethiopian dishes, we were all new to the restaurant (which in case you were wondering, is named after a holy city in Ethiopia known for its stone-embedded churches carved below ground level).

Most Vancouverites who have tried Ethiopian cuisine have paid a visit to Fassil on East Broadway. When it comes to customer attention, Fassil wins hands down over any of the African restaurants I’ve tried. I still remember our lunch there a few years back where the owner spent a ridiculous amount of time explaining everything you’d need or want to know about Ethiopian food, cooking, and coffee. Our server today was courteous, but trying to get him to recommend a dish was like trying to pull teeth from a pitbull. If we’re being completely honest though, service alone isn’t enough to generate repeat business. I haven’t gone back to Fassil since my first visit. And when it comes to food, Lalibela takes the prize.

We ordered Lalibela’s signature dish Qey Doro Wot (spicy beef stew), Dereq Tibs (lamb sautee), and a Lalibela Platter to share. The Platter included five vegetarian dishes, and four meats including a lamb wot, chicken tibs, and two beef tibs, served on a mild injera.

Word of warning, this post contains a lot of foreign terms. In case you’ve never been properly introduced to Ethiopian cuisine, here’s a quick brief: Ethiopian dishes are served on and with a spongy warm flatbread the size of a large pizza (injera). It’s soft, squishy, slightly sour, and can come in a light tan, brownish, or grey colour depending on the restaurant’s method of preparation. You eat the dishes much like you would eat Indian food, by tearing a piece of injera and using it to pick up some tibs (vegetarian or meat dish), wot (stew), or (if you really trust the restaurant) kitfo (raw marinated beef). There are no utensils and it’s more fun to go with friends, so make sure you have friends with good hygiene.

The vegetarian dishes in the Platter consisted of Misir Wot (lentil), Shiro (chickpeas), Kosta (spinach), Tikil Gomen (cabbage), and Fasolia (potato, green bean and carrot gumbo). Kenny and I found the Misir Wot to have a rough and less enjoyable texture than the Shiro, but Ann was in denial and favoured her seasoned lentil puree. The Kosta was a popular choice, but only two of us placed it in our top three picks. I found the sour Tikil Gomen and Fasolia to be boring at best, but Ann’s quote of the night “Cabbage — it’s like eating dessert!” was worth having them included in the Platter.

Qey Doro Wot

Qey Doro Wot

When it comes to the meat dishes that were included in the Platter, I’m afraid I simply don’t know for certain what we were eating! Our server pointed out which one was chicken (which was pretty evident from the drumstick sitting in the middle of it), lamb, and which two were beef. But, he probably thought it’d be a waste of time to describe each in detail and so he didn’t. Of these four dishes, the lamb was the most popular for its unique blend of spices. One of the beef dishes had chunks of notably overcooked meat that left a dry aftertaste, while the other was made of ground beef and had an interesting mildly spicy kick. The drumstick in the chicken dish proved to be a bit of a challenge to split without the use of utensils, and was less memorable than the other meat dishes.

Finally, the Qey Doro Wot (beef) and Dereq Tibs (lamb) were by far the most popular choices tonight. It’s no wonder the Qey Doro Wot is their signature dish. The wot is spicy with an almost liquid texture that seeps through the injera faster than you can pop it into your mouth which makes for a very messy meal especially since plates are not offered at Lalibela (definitely not a date-friendly venue). The Dereq Tibs didn’t make my top three list because the lamb was annoyingly chewy. Ang noted that the lamb was fatty in addition to being chewy, but still thought it was good enough to make the top three cut — as did Kenny and Morten. Go figure.

Lalibela: 5 / 5

Lalibela: 5 / 5

At just over $10 per person, our dinner was cheap compared to past Dinner Club meals and we all agreed that Lalibela was worth a repeat visit.

Overall Food Group Rating: 5 out of 5

The Good: Great flavour in the meat dishes, and I highly recommend the Qey Doro Wot and Kosta. The Qey Doro Wot is their signature dish for a reason, and you won’t find a better Kosta anywhere else. If you like lamb, you should also try the Dereq Tibs which was very popular tonight.

The Bad: No cutlery and no plates in combination with lots of runny sauces makes for a very messy meal. Don’t wear white.

The Ugly: My photos of the food. It looks terrible in pictures, but it’s yummy in your tummy!

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Dinner Club: Five Guys Burgers and Fries

Posted by on January 9, 2011 at 10:50 pm.

Before beginning this month’s Dinner Club review, I’d like to take a moment to dedicate all my deliciously fatty morsels of burgers, fries, cake, cookies, chocolate, and everything else that’s chubbifying to the douchy louche Kenneth Tong. This bite’s for you!

Big Bites at Five Guys

You can see our jaw muscles working as Morten and I try to take our first bites. These are single patties. There was one guy who ordered FOUR patties in his burger.

Phil chose our first Dinner Club destination this year and he set his stomach on Five Guys Burgers and Fries in Park Royal.

We drove around the mall for a bit trying to find this place (Google Maps is a bit off the mark for this one), and when we did I was surprised to see a red and white fast food joint. It looks like it ought to be a Checkers, but it’s not. Checkers has a much bigger menu selection. :P

The Five Guys menu consists of burgers and fries (can’t say they have a misleading name), hot dogs, and sandwiches. You don’t have the option of choosing chicken, or vegetarian for your burger patty, but you do get to choose what ingredients you want slapped on. We ordered five burgers with just about every topping, one sandwich, Five Guys Style and Cajun fries, and soft drinks.

Ann had ordered a “Little” burger, but I’m pretty sure she got a regular sized burger instead. Kenny ordered a bacon cheeseburger but he’s “pretty sure they forgot the bacon”. And Ang ordered a Veggie and Grilled Cheese sandwich, but was pretty sure they forgot what food is.

When it comes to the actual burgers, Ann, Kenny, Phil and Morten all thought they were “good” even though there was an “um..” followed by a long pause from Kenny before he decided he liked his meal. I thought the burger was alright, but there was nothing special about it and I got so bored half way through that I decided to stop eating. Though the burger patties were decent (not great, but not inedible), it bothered me that someone else’s bits of bacon had obviously burned on the grill before attaching to my bacon strips and bringing up thoughts of cancer as I took my bites. But, the thick cut pickle slices and grilled onions did make up for a bit of the bad burnt taste. Poor Ann was struggling with her waterfall of a burger that was literally pouring out of its wrapper and onto her lap. I still can’t figure out why hers was so soggy. Finally, I think everyone made a comment at some point along the lines of the burgers being “ugly as hell”, “disgusting to look at” etc.

Sad Veggie and Cheese Sandwich

Sad Veggie and Cheese Sandwich

Ang’s sandwich deserves a paragraph all on its own. That was one saaaaad something — I hesitate to even call it a sandwich. The “cheese” was that kind of liquid fake crap that you find in those little cheese and cracker dippers you get as a kid, but watered down. The vegetables were the same that we had in our burgers, but in a cold bun with fake liquid cheese, which leaves me wondering where the “Grilled” part of her “Veggie and Grilled Cheese Sandwich” was supposed to be. It’s pretty sad when the diner is happy to see peanuts (self-serve and free for patrons) after eating the worst meal in Dinner Club history.

I was satisfied at least with my Cajun fries until I tried Kenny’s Five Guys Style fries and immediately noticed that his were ten times fresher! I got stale fries. :( Then, I didn’t like them as much.

Not only was the service and food quality unreliable, but the place isn’t a cheap burger joint either — comparable to Red Robin at about $13 per meal. I won’t be going back.

Overall Group Food Rating: 4 out of 6

Dinner Club Vote (4/6): Five Guys Burgers and Fries

Five Guys Burgers and Fries: 4/6

The Good: Free peanuts and drink refills, generous scoops of fries, edible burger patties

The Bad: Unreliable service and food quality, and a lot of leftovers under the tables including a pickle that Ang kept stepping on.

The Ugly: The burgers. My goodness were they ever ugly. I’m sure a lot has to do with their tight wrapping of their mushy buns. Knowing that though still doesn’t make it look any better.

Sidenote: Phil wanted to give a little more than a half vote, but that’s not allowed according to Dinner Club rules. If it was, I would’ve given a little less than a half vote. So, we end up balancing out.

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Dinner Club: The Old Bavaria Haus

Posted by on December 12, 2010 at 11:09 pm.
The Old Bavaria Haus

The Old Bavaria Haus: 233 6th St, New Westminster BC

Morten had the honour of choosing this month’s Dinner Club destination and he wanted to go with something authentically Scandinavian for the Christmas holidays. But alas, there is no such establishment in the lower mainland. So, The Old Bavaria Haus it was! A cottage-like restaurant adorned with Christmas pine cones, trees and wreaths… the place was too cute for words! We had a full judging panel tonight including Ang, Morten, Phil, Kenny, Ann, and me.

I was horrifically late so everyone was starving by the time I arrived. Terrible, I know. But it did make for a great first bite! They brought out buttered toasted bread soon after we ordered (which Phil somehow completely missed), and I must mention how attentive the servers were. They didn’t nag or spend too much time at our table, but our glasses were also never empty and we didn’t have to wait very long for our dishes to arrive (contrary to some reviews circulating on the “internets”).

Unlike our previous Dinner Club choices, The Old Bavaria Haus is not a platter-sharing restaurant. It’s also a big pricier than the previous two places at approximately $30 per person (main and shared desserts). Our table ordered two Combination Dinners, one Bavarian Bratwurst Dinner, one Schnitzel Cordon Bleu Champignon, one Wiener Schnitzel, and one Special of the Day (a Schnitzel with an artichoke sun-dried tomato shrimp wine sauce) for our main courses.

Combination Dinner

Combination Dinner: schnitzel, beef rouladen, and bratwurst served with spatzle

Phil and I had both ordered the Combination Dinner. He inhaled the schnitzel, bratwurst, and beef rouladen but left nearly all of the spatzle (it looks like noodle but tastes like unsweetened pancake). Both Ang and I thought the bratwurst was by far the best thing in the Combination Dinner, but while I was eating it I remember thinking that it wasn’t profoundly different from any other bratwurst.

The beef rouladen wasn’t a hit with either of us, but I didn’t mind it as much as Ang did. She thought it was dry (which I’ll agree with), but I thought it was also very tender and appreciated the idea behind hiding a piece of vegetable in a slice of beef. Phil noted that the rouladen on his plate wasn’t dry at all.

The entire dish was really difficult to rate since it was technically what I thought German food would be, but I also didn’t enjoy it. When it came to the schnitzel, I had a hard time wrapping my head around the idea of choosing to eat less-than-flavourful pounded down meat served in a katsu-don style breadcrumb shell and drowned in uber-salty gravy. So, I guess on a rating based solely on expectation I’d give it a thumbs up. But based on the food itself and what I thought of it, I’d give it a thumbs down. Ann did enjoy her schnitzel though as did Kenny who thought it and the bratwurst were great but felt his side of potatoes “left something to be desired”. LOL In the end I decided to give it half a thumb. As you can see, I wasn’t the only one who couldn’t make a decision.

Dinner Club Rating - The Old Bavaria Haus

Overall Group Food Rating: 4.5 out of 6

Ang was also on the cusp with her order of the Special. A schnitzel with sun-dried tomatoes, artichoke hearts, and mini shrimp is definitely special… In Phil’s words “it’s like the California Roll of Schnitzel”. It just ain’t right. Her dish was sour, odd, and also very much a pounded-meat schnitzel like the one described in my last paragraph minus the gravy. She didn’t like the mini shrimp that scattered her schnitzel like maggots on a dead piece of meat (my description, not hers — she’s not that harsh), and I didn’t like the dish as a whole. If it wasn’t for dessert, The Old Bavaria Haus would only have gotten half a thumb from her.

But ah the dessert! In addition to our mains we also ordered Black Forest Cake, Amaretto Mousse, and a Creme Caramel. It was all good! The Black Forest Cake had a different texture that was neither wet nor dry, but somewhere in between — very tasty. The Amaretto Mousse had a very strong taste of liqueur but was light in texture and enjoyable.

Ann

Ann about to indulge in Black Forest Cake

And the Creme Caramel looked just like an Asian caramel flan, but was heavy and comforting without being too sweet.

In the end, I probably won’t go back to The Old Bavaria Haus in search of a meal. But, I might venture that way for a night cap and an order of dessert (some of which are made in house).

Overall Group Food Rating: 4.5 out of 6

The Good: Desserts — all of them were worth trying!

The Bad: The schnitzel — all of the variations we tried. Although, to be fair I must say that I might just not be a schnitzel fan.

The Ugly: I can’t use the word “ugly” to describe anything in a place that was just so darn cute. Yes, I realize I compared a dish to maggots, but that’s because it was a schnitzel dish. :P Although, it would help if they didn’t put pine cone decorations on the back of the bench seats — they prevented Morten from being able to sit back comfortably and kept catching on my hair. Ouch.

Sidenote: Ang would like you to know that if you’re interested in the schnitzel even after my horrendous description of the stuff, The Old Bavaria Haus has a schnitzel special on Wednesdays.

Dinner Club

Dinner Club: Green Lettuce Restaurant

Posted by on November 14, 2010 at 10:47 pm.
Green Lettuce Restaurant Papadums

Pakora

It was my turn to pick a restaurant for dinner club, so I went with one that I’ve probably passed a hundred times but never tried: Green Lettuce Restaurant near the corner of Kingsway Avenue and Victoria Drive. The judges this month: Ang, Morten, Phil, Kenny, Ann, and me.

Normally I’m not one to choose a Chinese restaurant, but I’d walked past it once when there was a long lineup and overheard someone say that it was really good. They’re supposedly the “First Indian Style Chinese Restaurant” (that’s what it says on the menu cover). But then again, the cover also says there’s “Ample Free Parking at Rear” when there’s only enough room for seven small cars. :P

Ang had read some reviews online that said the food is great, but the service is terrible. We lucked out with our server who was very friendly, but I understand where those reviews might’ve come from. We were asked by two waiters if we’d like to order, after we already ordered with our first server — they could do with a bit more organization. Plus, the other waitresses (though very polite) didn’t speak English.

Now onto the food! We asked our server to recommend some dishes, but to make sure there was a soup, a second appetizer, pakora, a rice dish, and a noodle dish.

We started with chicken lettuce wraps and a very spicy hot and sour soup. To quote Kenny, “these might be the best lettuce wraps I’ve ever had.” Coming from someone with a Chinese background where you’re bound to have had a million lettuce wraps by the time you reach 30, this is quite the compliment. They were pretty good. I’m not sure if I’d say they were the “best”, but I could say with confidence that they’re in the top percentile. The wraps had a kick and included a medley of finely chopped vegetables and those crispy rice noodle strands that are so simple, but give the wrap a nice semi-crunchy texture. The soup didn’t receive the same reaction as the wraps since it was way too spicy to be a starter, but there was a general consensus that it was good. I especially liked the water chesnut in the soup.

Then, out came what was probably my personal favourite dish of the entire meal: vegetable pakora! They taste like bite-sized samosas made with tiny veggie bits mixed into thick batter before hitting the fry, and are served with a sweet but slightly spicy sauce. Yum yum yum!!

Dinner Club - Green Lettuce Restaurant

All Thumbs Up!

Finally in a typical Mandarin style, the remaining dishes came all at once. A lazy susan would’ve come in handy. Fried rice (Ang says it was Masala chicken fried rice), chicken and shrimp chow mein, eggplant and green beans, and chili lamb. Mmm… Phil and Kenny thought the world of the fried rice with it’s hint of cumin, while Ang preferred the chow mein, and everyone liked the chili lamb (my favourite of this set). The general vote was that the eggplant and green beans were alright though nothing spectacular, but the chili lamb was especially tender and delicious. I could’ve done without either the fried rice or the noodles, but at least one was necessary to balance the spicy dishes. We ordered “mild to medium spice” for everything. I don’t think my taste buds would’ve been able to take a full on “spicy” dish.

Overall Group Food Rating: 6 out of 6!

The Good: Great food, friendly service, and great value (about $15 per person).

The Bad: They could use a bit more organization ’cause I can see them having problems on a busy night, but other than that I think they’re great.

The Ugly: Most of the fortunes in the fortune cookies weren’t actual fortunes? :P Yeah, that’s it really. I have no complaints.

Sidenote: Like most Chinese restaurants, it’s best to try this place with a large group of friends so you can have a bit of everything. Ordering just one item could end up being boring. Bring me! I’d go back.

Updated November 15, 2010

Dinner Club

Dinner Club: Memphis Blues

Posted by on October 18, 2010 at 11:28 pm.
Memphis Blues

About to dig in at Memphis Blues

If there’s one thing that Vancouver isn’t lacking, it’s foodies. Last night, Ang, Morten, Phil, Kenny, and I went to Memphis Blues for several celebratory reasons including the conclusion of another successful 12x12 Vancouver Photo Marathon Exhibit, Morten’s Birthday, and Kenny’s win for Best Series at the 12x12 Vancouver Photo Marathon. Amidst the celebrations, we decided to make this a regular thing (monthly) by declaring the night the first official Dinner Club meeting. Our review system is simple: thumbs up, thumbs down, or somewhere inbetween (counted as half a thumb).

Memphis Blues

Memphis Blues on Commercial Drive is well known for their BBQ ribs and large meaty portions. I went there once several years ago and didn’t think much of it. I still don’t. In the spirit of full disclosure I’ll tell you right off the bat that I’m not a fan of ribs, and I’m also not a fan of the town of Memphis. Even so though, I thought the food was at best, barely edible.

We ordered two Memphis Feast platters to share. Each platter comes with every type of meat they serve, “plus all the fixins’.” It’s huge and includes pulled pork, BBQ chicken, BBQ dry ribs, sausage, sliced beef brisket, coleslaw, BBQ sauce, potato salad, corn bread, and fries.

Apart from the beef brisket and sausage, the meat was overcooked, dry, and boring. The only taste you could get was from the mini tub of BBQ sauce that it comes with and I don’t really like BBQ sauce so that didn’t help much. The sausage was alright, but nothing special. The beef brisket was moist, but tasteless. The dry ribs though, were the absolute worst. There’s only one way to describe meat like that: PLASTIC. Ang usually likes ribs (and she makes fantastic ribs that just fall off the bone) but even she didn’t want a second piece.

Memphis Blues Rating

Overall Rating: 1.5 / 5

The best part of the platter was the fries but that really doesn’t say much for the dish either because they weren’t anything special. The corn bread was ordinary and served its purpose as a bland side dish, as did the coleslaw and potato salad.

Overall Group Food Rating: 1.5 out of 5

The Good: Large portions, good atmosphere, decent service, and the group gave it a higher rating for value (I still had my thumb down — if the food is bad, it’s not good value).

The Bad: Dry tasteless meat, and plastic ribs.

The Ugly: My gawd did that take-out bag STINK!!! We all agreed, the leftovers smell like the worst flatulence imaginable and when we opened Phil’s trunk to retrieve it after dessert at True Confections, we all had to take a step back. It was THAT BAD.

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