DOV 2018: YEW, fantastic fish dishes!

Restaurant: YEW (visit their website here)

Location: 791 West Georgia Street, Vancouver
Cuisine: Seafood, Canadian
Dineout Price: $40

Date of visit: January 22, 2018
Atmosphere: 4/5
Staff/service: 5/5
Food variety: 4/5
Food quality: 4.5/5
Buck worthy? 4/5

For date night, we decided to revisit YEW since their Dine Out was so enjoyable last year. Sadly, we weren't able to try all three options available, though I saw other people order the scallop, beef, and cookies n' cream dessert-- all looked equally delicious.




We were started with some bread and a lobster spread (didn't get the name, only heard lobster and olive oil). It was delicious! Reminded me of a tuna paste but with some lobster and in the form of a mousse-like concoction.

Couldn't resist also ordering some oysters ($3.75 each), they had Paradise Cove rotating through this evening. These were medium sized, plump, and fresh. Briny and creamy with a sweet finish. Yum! It came with fresh horseradish, a red wine vinaigrette, and hot sauce.

Appetizers

Tiger Prawn Ceviche
peppers, red onions, lemon, coriander
The funny thing about this was that I actually got the vegan version first! I dug around trying to find my beautiful prawns...to no avail. Our server promptly brought me the right dish after this was flagged.

I enjoyed this bright dish, it was light and tangy with fresh veggies and large prawns. Some of the butter lettuce pieces were larger than bite-sized, but easily folded to fit a mouthful.

Salmon Gravlax
cucumber, avocado, toasted sesame, tamarind sauce
Adorables started on this dish first and he was quite impressed. The salmon was smoked and the flavors of the tamarind sauce enhanced the creamy avocado. Just the right amount to start our meal.

Entrees

Steelhead Salmon
brussels sprouts, pickled daikon, bonito consommé
This dish won my heart. The salmon was so perfectly cooked it melted in my mouth. Upon first entry, it has a crispy exterior and buttery salmon inside. Brussels sprouts and consomme felt a little detached to the dish, as if it could've been there or not. Tasty nonetheless.

Ling Cod
parsnip chiboust, winter vegetables, Jerusalem artichokes
Every year we seem to order both fish options for our mains, so here's the other. Still beautifully cooked, this ling cod was full of rich fish flavor of its own. It was falling apart a bit though. Exterior was golden and crispy.

Desserts

Pistachio Cherry Tart
brandy soaked cherries, crème Anglaise, sweet butter crust
As I've noticed, pistachio seems to be a common choice of ingredient this year for dineout. The plating of this dish was so elegant and beautiful. Aside from the brandy soaked cherries, which I don't like to begin with, this was a delicious dessert. Not too sweet, the pistachio concoction atop the sweet butter crust created a wonderful combination of textures and flavors.

Earl Grey Chocolate Mousse
38% milk chocolate, orange gelée
The star of the show goes to this dish. I mean, look at the sparkles on it! Although a small piece it was rich, creamy, and just the right amount. The earl grey was prominent in the mousse and not overpowered by chocolate. The base itself was dense but also had crispy bits in it! A wonderful surprise in textures. We both felt it was amazing because it wasn't overly sweet and strong in tea flavor.

And thus concludes another memorable Dine Out experience at YEW for us. They ended our meal with some complimentary financiers-- chewy on the outside and fluffy moist cake on the inside. I loved them, and even ate Adorables' share (only half,  I let him have a bite). 

Aside from the food, service is always attentive and friendly. A solid choice every year!

La Cigale: "The flavors of the animal are in the fat"

After my first experience here, I'm back with Adorables and a Groupon to try more! (killing the wallet less, but still a big blow) We were also a bit late, but the server was super friendly and led us promptly to our table.

Restaurant: La Cigale French Bistro (visit their website here)

Location: 1961 W. 4th Avenue, Vancouver
Cuisine: French
Price range: $40+ per person




Date of visit: March 26, 2015
Atmosphere: 4/5
Staff/service: 5/5
Food variety: 2/5
Food quality: 4.5/5
Buck worthy? 4/5

I stared at the menu for a good few minutes before deciding on their Millefeuille Betterave ($11.50), an item a friend tried last time. It looked so beautiful! Plating was nicely done, I was very impressed. 

Cutting into the beet, I could feel it was perfectly cooked and assembled well. I could easily cut it and it stayed together.

The flavor of the goat cheese was scrumptious, as it went well with the mild sweetness of the beet and was enhanced by the balsamic glaze.

Next, we ordered a French Onion Soup ($8.75) on top of our Groupon. It was the same delicious mess I had last time, but there was more cheese on top than the side. I enjoyed the crispy cheese on the side, and it was so full of soup that it overflowed when we poked it! Hot and fresh, quite the traditional french onion soup here =)

Then came our mains. Adorables got the 2 Legs Duck Confit ($32.00), where we had to pay a $5.00 difference for. It was well worth it. The duck was so tender and moist, but still retained some chewiness to its texture. There was a sweet glaze on the skin that mixed with the meat wonderfully. The potatoes were also to die for. They were, well, chewy as well. I love chewy potatoes, seriously =D This is where my comment of "the flavors of the animal are in the fat" because Adorables fed me a piece of duck fat, and I could definitely taste the duck flavors without the influence of seasoning. Yummy!

I ordered their Rabbit with Polenta ($27.00)-- I actually don't remember the actual name, but I'm pretty sure it's not their previous rabbit dish of lapin moutarde. The polenta had olives in it, the dish had olives in it, very olive-themed. It went well with the sauce which was a carrot-filled concoction. I found the sauce overwhelmingly salty, and the olive flavor was soaked into the rabbit meat. I couldn't really taste the rabbit, nor could I finish the dish because it was far too salty =( I let Adorables taste the rabbit fat, and on such lean meat, it was rare but not impossible-- he could taste the rabbit in the fat! =D

Finally, onto dessert! So many delicious-sounding desserts, but following our waiter's recommendation, we got their Citron Tart ($8.00). It was a layer of lemon, then lime, topped with orange on a shortbread crust. Strawberry puree was used to decorate the dish. I was impressed with the plating, elegant but so pleasing to the eye. I dug in and was amazed. This was so deliciously creamy, smooth, light, and tarty. I loved it!!

After the initial foodgasm, we picked apart the layers to taste everything. Lemon was the most tart with orange being sweet and lime somewhere in between, but flavors were distinct. The shortbread crust was also flakey and melted in my mouth. Really helped that it was tart and light, since both of us were pretty stuffed already!

Greatly enjoyed our dining experience, lovely service-- the waiters and their French accents are so adorable. Aside from the little blooper that was my main, I would say this was an excellent dinner. I ended up topping the Groupon with $25, which wasn't bad at all. Bon appétit!

Steveston Seafood House: Everyone's here with a coupon!

Had a coupon to this place and was super stoked to try with my partner in crime!

Restaurant: Steveston Seafood House (visit their website here)

Location: 3951 Moncton Street, Richmond
Cuisine: Seafood
Price range: $30+ per person




Date of visit: March 10, 2015
Atmosphere: 4/5
Staff/service: 4/5
Food variety: 3/5
Food quality: 4/5
Buck worthy? 3/5

We were seated in a little corner alcove, which I liked since we could see the rest of the restaurant and sit on a curved bench (as opposed to chairs). Stared at the menu for a while, then realized we were getting a prix fixe menu (LivingSocial coupon $69), so no need to think! We were started with Coconut Prawn and Scallops. There were four of them on spoons, quite a nice presentation. I couldn't physically see the scallops nor taste them, but they must be in there, right? The prawns were nicely cooked and the coconut sauce was fragrant and creamy. A little on the sweet side, but nice to start with.

The second starter was their Beef Carpaccio. A surprisingly large plate, the beef was thinly sliced and covered with balsamic reduction, some sort of hard cheese (aged cheddar?!), sweet onions, and capers. The beef fell apart and stuck to the plate, but after being scraped off and placed on the toasted bread-- delicious! Meaty flavors went well with the tart flavors of the balsamic and capers then the cheese made it creamy and a bit salty. Wonderful party in my mouth. The arugula salad was overwhelmingly saucy though =(

We were then both served a Salad of Mixed Greens. I love lemons, so when I saw lemon on the plate, I automatically squeezed all the juices onto the salad. Bad move. It became far too tart. Anyhow, there was sauce already mixed in, with a slice of tomato and some onions on top. Not a bad size to get some veggies into the meal! Some parts weren't that fresh (the tips were oxidized) but aside from my own mistake, the salad was decent.

Onto our mains, we both were served a Cedar Plank Salmon. The wood was warm and the plating was beautiful. Although all night it felt like every dish had balsamic reduction in it-- as if there is no other seasoning. Or maybe it's the theme of their courses? The salmon was perfectly cooked, juicy and melted in my mouth. I believe its sockeye salmon. Regretfully they over-seasoned the fish with too much salt on top, but after scraping it off, we continued enjoying the wonderful main. Veggies were a little overcooked, so they were too soft and the asparagus was not tender. The rice was scrumptious. It was creamy and al dente, reminded me of Hainan chicken rice-- yummy!

Finally we were served dessert :  Tiramisu. I saw another table be served dessert and was worried it would be disappointing, since theirs looked like a tiny triangle of tiramisu about to fall over. Luckily ours turned out to be quite nice. The cream part was rich and smooth-- I could taste the mascarpone distinctly. The cake however, was really moist and bland (as you can see from the water leaking out on the plate). Otherwise, a decent tiramisu =)

First time in my life seeing a tip of 100%, and first time for Adorables to tip that too! Their service was lovely and attentive, I enjoyed our meal. Almost everyone around us had a coupon for their meal too, wonder if they are able to profit at all?! (picture is of original price)

Kibo: I prefer my meals without mice around. Thanks.

Adorables got a Groupon ($11 for $30 of food) for this place, so we decided to hit it up before it expired! When I arrived it was empty, I had the restaurant to myself. Oh well, probably because it's a random Wednesday night.

Restaurant: Kibo Restaurant and Lounge (visit their website here)

Location: 1261 Hamilton Street, Vancouver
Cuisine: Japanese, Sushi
Price range: $15+ per person




Date of visit: February 25, 2015
Atmosphere: 0/5 (mice? No thanks)
Staff/service: 4/5
Food variety: 5/5
Food quality: 4/5
Buck worthy? 1/5

Server was very friendly and attentive, I was seated promptly and he brought me some water to start. I knew I wanted to try their Salmon Tartare ($8.00) because it sounded amazing online. Presentation was nice, with the tower of salmon tartare in the middle surrounded by four oba tempura pieces. It looked like a flower. 

The tartare was light, refreshing and a bit tart. I liked the cilantro and their use of sockeye salmon. Made it less fatty than others I've had. Oba was great as a chip to scoop the salmon tartare into our mouths. Fresh and crispy! Loved this dish!

As we sat waiting for our other dishes, little critters joined us at the restaurant (besides another couple who also walked in and were seated next to us). I mean mice. YEAH. MICE AT SUCH A NICE ESTABLISHMENT. I was scared for my life. Too bad they were camera-shy. I was tempted to ask if they were pets, but refrained. It was the first time seeing a live mouse for me though. Kinda lost my appetite at this point and was super worried I would die from the food. Our Kibo Roll ($13.00) showed up all pretty. I ate it anyways. It was an avocado and cucumber roll topped with seared tuna and salmon. The Kibo sauce consisted of ginger and radish, but it overwhelmed the whole roll. Far too tangy, gingery, and salty, taking it off, the roll was far more enjoyable. Adorables also mentioned it was too saucy (the bottom was all sauce), which I agreed with.

Finally, the Crazy Roll ($12 online but they charged us $13) arrived. Visually appealing, Adorables was not impressed by the texture of the roll. The deep fried garlic chips on top stuck to our teeth and disrupted the creaminess of the whole roll. The spicy negitoro and avocado went well together as the spiciness cut the sickening feeling of super creamy avocado. I took the roll to go though, the mice kept running around and I just couldn't focus on eating. Nor did I have much of an appetite.

Service was not bad, but sadly, I won't return because of their vermin problem. I hope they'll fix it, but I checked online for their food inspection and it wasn't listed. I guess its a new problem. I'm still breathing, so I guess the mice were just around the store front. First time in my life that there was no tip to the meal. Adorables mentioned that if it were busier we would have never known. Maybe ignorance is bliss sometimes...

Dark Table: Let me feed you *JAB*

Sadly, there aren't any pictures associated with this post regarding the food because well, it was pitch black in there. However, I'll describe my experience here =)

Restaurant: Dark Table (visit their website here)

Location: 2611 West 4th Avenue, Vancouver
Cuisine: European, Fusion
Price range: $40+ per person





Date of visit: June 1, 2014
Atmosphere: 4.5/5
Staff/service: 4/5
Food variety: 1.5/5
Food quality: 3.5/5
Buck worthy? 5/5

I got a SocialShopper coupon for a 3-course meal for 2 people ($56.00), which was a pretty good deal, considering their normal 3 choice is $39.00. Super excited, Adorables and I were seated outside in a waiting area for our waiter as we decided on which of the main courses we wanted. The starter and dessert were surprises =)

After making our choices, we were led into the restaurant by our waiter, Albert and he quickly talked us through what to expect and what we were going to do. He described what we would experience inside and how to get him if we needed anything. However, the calling out to the waiter really loudly trick didn't really work out in the end haha =P

Regardless, we were led inside and it was PITCH BLACK. My eyes hurt after a while of trying to seek out any light (which there wasn't any except for the one line of light from the door that Adorables saw occasionally). Seated, we were given some time to chat and adjust. Our drinks arrived first, Adorables ordered a Ginger Ale ($3.25) and I got a Grapefruit Juice ($3.25). I couldn't quite believe that water was for $3.00 on the menu! Anyways, my grapefruit juice was tart and too bitter for my liking =(

Albert brought us bread, and believe me, trying to butter your bread in the dark is DIFFICULT! I got an end piece and it was rather hard, but crispy. I ended up dipping my finger into the butter by accident haha

Then came the fun starter. It was a salad of some sort, it had quinoa and then other leafy veggies. The flavors were interesting, I had some salty bits then some tangy vinaigrette parts. I don't know what greens were in there but some were also bitter and tasted like... methane. Yes. Overall it was fun poking and trying to find if I was done my salad or not!

The mains came, Adorables ordered a Surprise Dish which consisted of Yam Fries, Chicken with Cranberry Sauce, and some veggies. The fries were nice and hot! Chicken was a bit dry (or so the bit I tried). Adorables said he had his face inches from his food all meal just to feel around-- use of fingers was definitely helpful.

I ordered the Garlic Prawns with Citrus Risotto and veggies. Basically what I did was spear at my dish with my fork until I snagged something. I had a bunch of misses where I just placed the fork to my mouth and it was empty. Man, I hope no one saw that! The risotto was delicious-- creamy and moist, the flavors just jumped out at me. I couldn't stop eating-- if only I found where my risotto was on the plate! I had a few mouthfuls of grainy salt on my veggies which were a turn-off though =( There were 6 prawns on my plate, and of course, I'd try to feed Adorables who was busy trying to figure out his dish-- so JAB. Fork+prawn, meet face. They were pretty big prawns but could use better seasoning. (I packed away what I couldn't finish because I wanted dessert)

Finally, dessert was a chocolate cake of some sort. This time, Adorables got me back-- I got cake on my face. Anyways, chocolate cake was moist and sweet, quite delicious but nothing special.

We were led to a small room to pay and got to ask what we ate =)

During our dinner we got spritzed by water on the side and felt around to see where our neighbors were (the tables were empty around us after a short while so we got the chance to freely feel around). I'd say this was a really amazing experience and definitely worth coming to! Besides supporting the blind, I had lots of fun, great laughter, and a very unique experience!

PiDGiN: Valentines Surprise =D

Truly a day for suckers, I was one of them who went out for dinner on this overly advertised and marketed day-- Valentines Day. As Adorables and I wandered around deciding for a place, we somehow ended up in front of PiDGiN. I had wanted to come here for dineout, but never had the chance to, so I was uber excited to be here-- a wonderful surprise since someone had booked a table for two under his name earlier <3

Restaurant: PiDGiN (visit their website here)

Location: 350 Carrall Street, Vancouver
Cuisine: Asian, European, Seafood
Price range: $50+ per person





Date of visit: February 14, 2014
Atmosphere: 5/5
Staff/service: 4/5
Food variety: 4/5
Food quality: 4/5
Buck worthy? 3/5

I took one look at the Valentines day "special menu" and thought, better to use that money elsewhere (it was a crazy $75 per person). Plus, neither of us were big eaters, so it'd be too much food anyways (or so naive me though at that time). However, not having been here, got suckered into the prix fixe option ($55). We were started off with an interesting Oyster Shot with green apple and horseradish mixed into an icy concoction. I found it difficult to eat because it was too thick and the horseradish was overwhelming. Oyster was really fresh though!

I felt a bit gypped with the Daily Pickles (yes it counted as a dish)-- they weren't to my liking. Pickling was way too sour-- I didn't know what was going on there.

Their Raw Scallops was one of my favorite items of the night. Just plain raw oysters topped with pomegranate red curry oil, raw daikon and green apple. There was also some kind of nut on top, but I can't recall what it was. I felt the daikon and green apple took away from the fresh taste of scallop, so I just ate them separately. Adorables found the scallops to be too limp and mushy though =P

It was starting to feel like a seafood meal when the Grilled Octopus showed up. It was garnished and surrounded by romesco and a fennel biscotti. The octopus was deliciously chewy and the romesco complemented the octopus well. I just nibbled on the biscotti because the texture didn't go well with the other stuff on the plate ^-^ This was a semi-warm dish btw, the first non-cold dish we were served ;)

Is it just me or does this look like a face? xD Either way, I feel this Mushroom Dish with sugar snap peas, egg, and soy yuzu brown butter was very Asian-inspired. A bit on the oily side but I loved the flavors and the sweet pea puree was a very novel idea, I enjoyed it. The egg was cooked perfectly although I worried about salmonella xD I almost burned my tongue on this dish because it was so hot!

Next was the amazing Half Duck made 3 ways (I believe it was leg, breast, and confit). It was accompanied by a carrot cake puree, carrots, some crunchy stuff (garlic?!), and a tangy sauce. The duck breast was amazing. Perfect tenderness so there was still a bit of chew to it-- tasted a bit like Chinese BBQ duck!! Well rounded dish, no wonder the server highly recommended it and kept going on and on about it =D

Final main was a Beef dish (don't recall which part). I can't really eat beef, but had a bit and it was pretty good! The burnt sides weren't something I enjoyed because it was a bit hard to swallow. It reminded me of a thick beef tataki =P It was plated with potatoes made three ways: baked, mashed, and chips. Flavors were great for this dish, sadly, Adorables and I were both fairly full by this time and couldn't stuff more in!

Onwards to dessert! I remember it was a matcha based cake topped with their house-made cherries (which were so high in alcohol content they HURT to eat). Too much alcohol for these two peeps ^-^" Either way, the cake itself was nice and light, minus the cream part (the lightest color area) where it was too hard and had an odd after-feel in the mouth. Of course the presentation was beautiful once again.





Overall I really enjoyed myself, especially with such amazing company ♡ May be back when I'm more financially able, since this meal cost us (well Adorables, since he was being such a gentleman and loving boyfriend and paid) around $130 ><" Being spoiled once in a while is such an exemplary feeling though!

Trattoria Italian Kitchen: Pasta craving satisfied-- deliciously!

Had a craving for pasta and Adorables suggested this! Bonus that it was their Tuesday pasta special, so all pastas were only $11! =D So. . . why not? ^-^

Restaurant: Trattoria Italian Kitchen (visit their website here)

Location: 1850 West 4th Avenue, Vancouver
Cuisine: Italian, Pasta
Price range: $15-25





Date of visit: October 15, 2013
Atmosphere: 4.5/5
Staff/service: 4.5/5
Food variety: 4/5
Food quality: 4.5/5
Buck worthy? 5/5

Luckily for us, there was a table quickly available, it was super busy for a Tuesday night! (as compared to many other restaurants). Ordered some drinks to start the evening. Adorables ordered a Citrus tea ($3.50) for me to try, and it was decent. Came in a nice package, the tea itself was fragrant and tart-- none of the bitter tea taste, not bad to accompany our meal.

He ordered a Trattoria Lemonade Passionfruit flavor ($3.50) and I tried some-- it was amazing! So many flavors exploded in my mouth. First it was just tart and bubbly, then came the sweet and fragrant tastes of fruit (passionfruit, pear, and I couldn't figure out what else-- those are guesses too haha).

I was rather torn between a few pasta options, but finally decided on the Tagliatelle Nero Vongole ($11.00-- regularly $17.95). Basically it was a squid ink pasta with clams and tomatoes. The pasta itself was al dente and flavorful. But the highlight of the dish was the clams. They were so fresh and full of clam flavor-- it was amazing. I couldn't stop myself from picking them out and munching on all of them first (I refrained after a while). A bit on the oily side, but the dish itself was overall very satisfying.

Adorables decided on the Truffled Spaghetti and Signature Meatballs ($11.00-- regularly $22.95). Simple as this dish may seem (spaghetti and meatballs, pretty much), I loved the creaminess of the sauce after the cream and tomato sauces were mixed. I thought it would be too saucy and thick, but it wasn't overwhelming at all. It came with three pretty giant meatballs, which were not bad, there was some texture to the meat and the flavors weren't too overwhelming-- matched well with the whole dish.

Finally, to finish our wonderful meal, a Tiramisu ($7.95) was ordered. I felt the chocolate on top did little to enhance the flavors, rather it was too grainy and affected the texture negatively. Otherwise the display and taste was well executed. The quality just didn't justify the price charged. However, the biscotti on the side was beautifully delicious.

Friendly service, delicious food, pasta specials, amazing company-- a very memorable and awesome evening indeed. I shall be back on another Tuesday to try their other delectable pastas! Adorables also ordered a lasagna (only available on Tuesdays) to go, which he said was average-- it came with a side salad though! ^w^