Mega Sushi: Second dinner did not disappoint!

Still had some room in our tummies, and wanting to make the most of this trip to Steveston, we went to the other end of Steveston and got more food!

Restaurant: Mega Sushi (visit their website here)

Location: 100-3131 Chatham Street, Richmond
Cuisine: Japanese, Sushi, Seafood
Price range: $15-$20





Date of visit: June 14, 2014
Atmosphere: 4.5/5
Staff/service: 5/5
Food variety: 5/5
Food quality: 4.5/5
Buck worthy? 4/5

Ordered a Salmon Sashimi ($7.95) which was wild salmon. Quite happy with the quantity and quality. Salmon was fresh (I think I need a synonym, fresh is getting . . . old xD).

I liked the sprig of celery on top hehe

One order of the Prawn Tempura ($7.95) was rather satisfying. It came in a cute dim sum container, which kept the tempura crispy. They were nicely sized and the batter was light and crunchy.

Chicken Teriyaki ($10.50) came on an iron plate, but I don't recall it being too sizzly. Kinda disappointing. Otherwise, chicken portion was good with lots of bean sprouts under it and rice.

Got a couple nigiris: Salmon ($2.25 each), Tobiko ($2.25 each), Chopped Scallop ($2.25 each) and Tuna ($1.75 each). All were well-proportioned and fresh. I felt that there was too much mayo for the chopped scallop but the tobiko instead of masago was a nice touch ;)

Mango Roll ($8.95) had sweet mango on it with crispy prawn tempura. They added some mango sauce to it to make it more mango-y I guess ^^" Plating was pretty and the flavors went well together as the sweet/tart of the mango cut the oily feeling of tempura.

I ordered a Rainbow Roll ($11.95) before and it was just as pleasing this time. They top it with 5 kinds of fish I believe and didn't fall apart. Very happy. Fish was fresh and delicious.

Salmon Combo ($12.95) was a lot of salmon. I'd have to say there's nothing super special about this because it was just salmon sashimi, salmon sushi, and salmon maki. That's it. Simply for a salmon-lover.

We got a Beef Udon ($9.25) to finish off our meal. The udon was chewy and plentiful. Soup was rich and the beef was tender.

They even gave us little "tubs" to share with ^-^

Everyone was uber satisfied with our second dinner, and with our bellies full, we left Steveston with happy memories.

Fishermen Sushi: I'm back already!

Brought our Hong Kong visitors to Steveston for a feel of how fishermens' harbors were like and ended up for more food after our quick tour!

Restaurant: Fishermen Sushi (visit their website here)

Location: 130-12251 No. 1 Road, Richmond
Cuisine: Japanese, Sushi, Seafood
Price range: $10-15





Date of visit: June 14, 2014
Atmosphere: 4/5
Staff/service: 4.5/5
Food variety: 5/5
Food quality: 4.5/5
Buck worthy? 5/5

I lured them here with cheap, fresh Oysters aka kaki pon ($0.75 each). Ordered a first conservative round of two dozen and they were slurped up quickly. Fresh and flavorful, they smoothly made their way into my digestive tract.

Felt weird not ordering anything else, and my daddy dearest doesn't eat raw much, so we got an Agedashi Tofu ($4.75). It was very fresh and crispy.

As well, we got Takoyaki ($4.95). These were creamy on the inside and crispy on the outside. Lovely.

Got another round of oysters . . .

 . . . And quickly gobbled them up too!

The waiters were super efficient and nice even though we only ordered their special oysters mainly-- which was great. I hate places that treat you poorly because you're not "ordering enough". Props to them! =)

Neptune Seafood: Lobster for lunch? SURE

Bringing some relatives around to visit Richmond, they wanted to try some "Vancouver dim sum". Haven't been here before, but dinner was pretty good when I came here once, so why not?

Restaurant: Neptune Seafood Restaurant (visit their website here)

Location: 8171 Ackroyd Road, Richmond
Cuisine: Chinese, Dim Sum, Seafood
Price range: $15+



Date of visit: June 14, 2014
Atmosphere: 4/5
Staff/service: 4/5
Food variety: 5/5
Food quality: 4.5/5
Buck worthy? 4/5

So as I walked in I smelled delicious durian and wanted to order the item containing it-- sadly... I saw them plate out a few but none ever reached our table until they told us when I asked again, "They're sold out." WHAT. WHY YOU NO TELL ME EARLIER. I'M SURE I ORDERED IT FIRST. Anyways. aside from that, first was a nicely sized Pork Shao Mai ($5.68). The pork was chopped and not pureed, which everyone enjoyed. Tasted legit and fresh.

Next Pig Liver Rice Rolls ($5.68) were very mediocre. Sure the liver was a nice crunchy consistency and flavored well, but the rice roll around it was a bit hard, rough, and not chewy enough.

Steamed Beef Tripe ($4.68) was nicely portioned and flavored well. The tripe was crunchy and good. Meets the standards.

Then the Shrimp Dumplings ($5.68) were disappointing. The filling was crunchy, springy, and fresh but the wrapping fell apart and was too soft.

I was surprised at how many BBQ Pork Buns ($4.68) were in one order! For the price, there were four big buns which were decent! Soft bread and the pork inside had a good consistency. Flavors were up to par.

I find their Lotus Leaf Sticky Rice ($5.68) quite ingenious because they wrap it on the outside with an extra layer of paper, keeping in all the lotus flavors-- creating rice that was infused with lotus. Delicious. The ingredients inside were not bad either, pork, egg, and a piece of Chinese sausage. Quite traditional.

I didn't try their Stuffed Eggplant ($5.68) as I'm allergic, but they looked big and fresh. Everyone seemed to enjoy them.

The Deep Fried Stuffed Dumplings ($5.68) had barely any filling. Freshly made but nothing special.

Now comes the lobster. I find it quite a good deal for a lobster with noodles at lunch. Their Fried Lobster Rice Noodles ($19.98) had a full lobster on top of a bed of clear rice noodles. Flavors were soy sauce based with some ginger and green onion. Lobster was fresh. Highlight of the meal for sure. Definitely impressed our visitors from Hong Kong ^u^

Onto dessert, we had Deep Fried Glutinous Balls ($4.68).

The filling is a sweet custard that everyone enjoyed because it flowed nicely out and was freshly made.

I think it was in season or something, and I was against it in the beginning, but we ordered a Red Bean Rice Cake ($4.68) aka red bean sticky rice. It was TINY. Texture was ok, it was chewy and not too soft nor was it hard. I found it mediocre compared to the ones we used to get from this nice old lady xD Anyhow, not worth ordering again. (didn't get a pic cuz it was THAT disappointing)

As you might notice, tea ($1.20/person) was rather expensive =( It was like having one and a half dim sum dishes :c Oh well. Service was not bad, very variable.

41 West: Perfectly mouthwatering!

Having been here with MH for lunch and loving it (also doing that late post here haha), Adorables surprised me with dinner here for our one year anniversary <3

Restaurant: 41 West (visit their website here)

Location: 2279 West 41st Avenue, Vancouver
Cuisine: French, Seafood
Price range: $20-35ish per person





Date of visit: August 15, 2014 and Oct 1, 2014
Atmosphere: 4.5/5
Staff/service: 4.5/5
Food variety: 3/5
Food quality: 4.5/5
Buck worthy? 4.5/5

Let's go by chronological order here and do the lunch experience first~

With the brunch/lunch Social Shopper Coupon, it was $19 for brunch/lunch for two which included two drinks, two mains, and a dessert to share. Not a bad deal if you ask me. There was a choice of coffee or juice, of which I chose the orange juice and MH got coffee (which had free refills btw). I spotted it to be SunnyD. Dunno what to say about that.

Anyhow, we chose from their lunch menu (cuz its a far better deal that way hehe). I got their Chef's Daily Seafood Creation, which was sockeye salmon (and seems to be the same every day). It was beautifully plated with salmon layered on top of a bed of potatoes and veggies, topped with a mango avocado salad. It was ringed with a balsamic glaze which enhanced the flavors of the salmon. The salmon was fresh and perfect. Moist and smooth, this was cooked wonderfully-- it just melted in my mouth. The mango avocado on top was great too, added to the creaminess of the salmon while presenting a bit of sweet and tart to cut the fat. Potatoes and veggies (asparagus and carrots) cooked to perfection. Just cooked enough to have some bite but not over/undercooked, Kudos to the chef!

MH ordered their Pan-Roasted Ruby Trout with balsamic glaze, green olive and artichoke tapenade, potatoes and daily veggies. I tried a bit of the trout and it too, was amazing. The fish was fresh and the skin was crispy. I had just learned that trout wasn't supposed to be pink, so I took this lighter color to mean less food coloring was added to the fish food. MH enjoyed it a lot too =)

Now dessert, I wasn't sure what to get, so we tried their Crème Caramel. It was truly a smooth and creamy custard as advertised on the menu, but I didn't find anything super "wow" about it. Sadface =( This was quite average.

Waitress was super friendly and helpful, I felt really welcomed and not-neglected at all here!















On our anniversary night (Oct 1) . . .

Turns out the menu for dinner is very similar to lunch-- with prices being the main difference. I believe it was $39 for a three course dinner for two. It included an appie to share, two mains, and a dessert to share.

We were debating between the escargot and mussels, Adorables gave in to the mussels as I love mussles. =) We'll try those snails next time ;). The Mussels Marinière were great, a tad undercooked but this made the mussels softer and richer in taste. The white wine and cream sauce paired nicely with the seafood and the mussels were very fresh.

I had a hard time deciding between the delicious salmon I had last time or trying scallops (I was worried I'd only get 3 and be hungry haha), but I succumbed to my loves-- Pan Seared Sea Scallops with vermouth cream sauce. These little guys (5 of them hehe) were decent in size, cooked nicely, and the sauce complimented it well. They were tender and soft on the inside (a bit undercooked for my style, but then again, I eat scallops raw anyways), and crispy on the outside. Every bite was fresh and full of scallop taste. On the other hand, the quinoa and veggies were a bit overcooked and too soft. Flavors were great though!

Adorables ordered their special steak for the night, I forgot what cut it was but when it showed up, reminded me of something you'd get from a Hong-Kong style cafe. However, what we put in our mouths was absolutely different. This was a tender piece of meat with some bite. It was crispy on the outside and then just melted in my mouth. Not the kind of meat that's been over-tenderized with tenderizer at all. Just. AWESOME. He got potatoes under his steak and veggies. Again, the chef has totally mastered making potatoes because these were chewy and perfect.

Finally dessert. Our waiter recommended us their cheesecake of the night, which was a Japanese cheesecake with blueberry compote and berries. It was light and had the consistency of chiffon cake with a bit of cheesy taste. Overall well-rounded, it paired nicely with the sweet blueberry compote.

I feel so blessed to be with such a wonderfully thoughtful man! Also feeling spoiled with the pampering and food <3 Our evening was heightened by our witty waiter who was attentive and brought us laughter. Such yummy, much love, so spoiled, wow ;)

Penang Delight: Mouth on fire

Having fond memories of the food here, and had a craving of laksa, I wandered here with Adorables, hoping to find that delicious laksa I had once upon a time...

Restaurant: Penang Delight Cafe 來檳城美食,  (visit their website here)

Location: 1316 West 73rd Avenue, Vancouver
Cuisine: Malaysian, Singaporean
Price range: $15-30 per person





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

Ordered a Seafood Laksa ($13.95) because I remember how authentic it was the last time I had it. This time looked the same authenticity, but added extra spice. Far spicier than last time for sure =( Anyhow, besides my mouth being on fire, loved the taste of it. They have two kinds of noodles included: vermicelli and egg noodle. I like the mix of noodles with the creamy curry soup base. On top there were some fishcakes, tofu puffs, egg, squid, shrimp, and fish. Not a bad mix but kinda pricey.

Also got an order of Roti Canai ($5.95). These were delicious. Flakey and chewy, the curry dip paired nicely. However, compared to other places, this was quite the expensive dish =(

Staff were quite friendly albeit slow and the food was a bit pricey for my wallet. I kinda knew before, but with the spiciness in the laksa, I found it less worthy of my dollars ^^"