Restaurant Reviews – Page 13

Le Lapin Saute – Quebec City Series

September 6, 2013 Posted in Canadian, Food Reviews, French, Quebec City, Restaurant ReviewsLeave a comment

Le Lapin Saute is this little cafe/restaurant/brunch eatery on rue du Petit-Champlain just on the outskirts of the inner walls of Old Quebec City. They seem to specialise in Rabbit cuisine which I’ve never really tried previously so it made it all the more tempting to try. We ate here for breakfast/almost lunch and it’s a very cute homely shop on this small but bustling street.

I ordered a rabbit dish (of course) that comes with scrambled eggs, rabbit rillette, crisp potato slices, cheese, mushrooms, bread, homemade jam and fruit. This was a large dish, probably best shared between two.

The rabbit has a light texture, and similar to a pate, it’s wonderfully soft and shredded very thinly. A delight to eat, and probably not very good for you. The scrambled eggs were also light and just cooked to perfection, buttery and simply how it should be. The hard cheese melts ever so slightly against the just cooked eggs, but still retains its shape, and eating those crunchy chips as well. Wonderful. My first experience trying rabbit and rilletes and it leaves a positive impression.

The mushroom soup here is also packed full of flavour (I think this was the soup of the day), creamy and fantastic on a nice cold winters day. Not too creamy though as some soups can be. Really tasty.

This cheesy little thing is their Casserole au Gratin with scrambled eggs, rabbit, bacon, onions confit, potatoes, hollandaise sauce, and of course cheese. I loved this, just out of the oven nice and warm. Perfect for winter, and absolutely satisfying.

Impressions

Le Lapin Saute is simply a gem in Old Quebec. I’d put this as a must visit during your stay there. Rabbit as its specialty but everything else is just wonderfully delicious as well. I can’t recommend it enough for a Canadian-French meal.

Le Lapin Saute (Breakfast Menu)

52 rue du Petit-Champlain
Québec QC G1K4H5

Le Chic Shack – Quebec City Series

August 16, 2013 Posted in Canadian, Food Reviews, French, Quebec City, Restaurant ReviewsLeave a comment

Le Chic Shack in Old Quebec is one of those trendy Burger joints aka gourmet fast food. In the old part of Quebec City, I found it pretty difficult to find a reasonable priced meal for dinner. That and it was too bloody freezing to take more than half an hour to look around at whats good. We eventually stumbled upon le Chic Shack and after checking out the menu it seemed like a decent place to dine in. Like a Fast Food eatery, you order at the register. Menu is painted on the walls, along with menus at the tables and at the register. We weren’t particular hungry so opted for smaller, lighter options.

As you can see they add stickers to their dishes, this particular burger at le Chic Shack is called the La Chic Poulette, which includes Grilled chicken breast, cheddar, arugula, red onion, tomato, pickles, remoulade and brioche bun. The bun here is a tad well done, but crunchy it is. The chicken is well cooked, not tough like some grilled chicken can be and the dressing is much needed otherwise it’d be a big too dry for my liking. Overall, it’s a great little burger but definitely on the pricier side of things at $11.

Pardon my memory but I believe this was the Le Shack aka Beef, Gruyère cheese, Red-ale braised beef, tomato, pickles, red onion and horseradish aioli with their brioche bun. The cheesy goodness on the beef is mouth watering. I love it. A typical burger but made to near perfection. $11

You can order chips as a side, $4 for small or $6 for large with a choice of normal or sweet potatoes. I’m not a big fan of sweet potato fries because they are commonly too soft and not crunchy enough for me to consider them chips, so it’s more than likely I’ll order normal potato fries. The fries here are salted well, not too much. Some places will over season chips with their salt and it’s a majorly off putting. The chips here are nice and crunchy, and just the right size. I love crispy chips and here they are done reasonably well.

Being Quebec, I couldn’t not order their poutine. What they call La Fumee is basically their thick cut chips mashed slightly (crispy still) accompanied by smoked meat, chic sauce, cheese curds, swiss cheese, pickled onions and fresh herbs. Their sauce is this kinda sweet, mayonnaise like sauce. I loved their chunky bit crispy chips and eating them with the smokey tender meat and stringy cheese it just works well together. Looking at it, you may think for $11 + tax, it isn’t worth it but I can say it is very satisfying because of all that starch, carbs and protein. Adding just a little bit of tabasco, as you do, is all that is needed to liven up what is already a great meal.

Impressions

I liked Le Chic Shack for what it is, serving burgers with interesting ingredients and some sourced locally and of course, great tasting! I do recommend it, probably more so for lunch. I prefer their poutines to their burgers but that’s just a personal preference because I love me some chips (Potato head)

Le Chic Shack
15 Rue Du Fort
Quebec QC G1R3Z8

First Taste Box Hill

August 9, 2013 Posted in Box Hill, Chinese, Food Reviews, Restaurant Reviews, VietnameseLeave a comment

First Taste is one of my favourite restaurants in Springvale. I love the claypot rice, absolutely adore it. Being able to scrape the rice from the sides is just a treat. I never knew there was a First Taste in Box Hill, and now it’s even more convenient to dine and order my favourite Black Pepper Beef Claypot Rice.

What is noticed is slightly different from the Springvale eatery is that they use less or sometimes none at all of coriander and they don’t leave the claypot bowls to cook as long. What you have is less crispy rice but still ridiculously hot, and the lacking flavour from the coriander. However everything else is basically the same, the beef is nice and tender with a pleasant fragrance and taste of pepper on the tongue. First Taste also provides a generous serving of sauce on top.

I’m not a big fan of First Taste’s other claypot dishes though. The chicken, Chinese sausage and mushroom with soy sauce isn’t too my liking. It’s one of those slightly herbal tinged dishes, and I’m not fond of Chinese sausage with soy and of course the big mushrooms. That’s not to say it’s not cooked well, I definitely say for those that like these kind of dishes would find this perfectly satisfying. Again, they don’t leave the claypots to cook long enough so the sides and bottom of the claypot bowl aren’t as crispy.

Impressions

First Taste Box Hill is much like it’s brother (or sister) in Springvale. Slightly varied but familiarity is key here and you can’t find better Claypot rice anywhere else. Yes even Claypot King.

First Taste
604 Station Street
Box Hill VIC 03128

Malaysian Kitchen

August 2, 2013 Posted in Doncaster, Food Reviews, Malaysian, Restaurant ReviewsLeave a comment

Malaysian Kitchen on Doncaster Road, Doncaster is another Malaysian restaurant in Victoria. The place is quite spacious having two floors and seems to be quite popular among the locals. During lunch peak time, it filled up quickly. At Malaysian Kitchen, they serve the Malaysian favourites as well as a few obscure dishes.

Ever since having Pan Mee at the now closed Claypot King in Glen Waverley, I’ve always tried to find a place that can match or better it. Chef Lagenda‘s version is decent, but they don’t make their own noodles which Claypot King do. The other Claypot King locations don’t offer Pan Mee either so it is a real disappointment. Malaysian Kitchen’s Pan Mee with the addition of the crunchy anchovies and fried onion creates a wonderfully flavourful soup. The noodles appear to be made with a Pasta maker, the thin long noodles make it a challenge to eat. If it was cut up into smaller pieces, I think it would be much better. However, the noodles itself have just enough bite to them which is all you want. In addition, their Pan Mee includes mince meat, mushrooms and bok choy. Overall, it’s a decent Pan Mee packed full of noodles in a small bowl but I still prefer Chef Lagenda’s Pan Mee.

Their Char Kway Teoh is an interesting thing, as you can see they add strands of Hokkien Mee into this dish. I can’t say I enjoyed this, it really doesn’t taste much like Char Kway Teoh and doesn’t have that wok flavour. You’ll find a better (but not the best) Char Kway Teoh at Straits Cafe Doncaster. The use of fatter noodles adds a heaviness to the dish and really the sauce is too subtle to add anything. Not great.

Malaysian Kitchen’s Fish Head Curry is quite pleasant. The sour soup with the noodles and fish just works. The soup isn’t too sour but that slightly tangy taste that lingers on your tongue is beautiful. The deep fried fish either needs to be taken out quickly or eaten quickly because the crispy fish will get soft and less appetising. I’m not a fan of deep fried fish like this, and here, its no exception and with the plentiful bones to boot it isn’t an enjoyable eating experience to put it lightly. Apart from that, I think it’s a winner, the soup provides that feeling like you’re having a home cooked meal with your family. Familiar and cosy.

Impressions

Given the food we ate, I’m not quite sure why it’s so popular. Maybe it’s the food we chose but I couldn’t see anything all that special about the Malaysian food here. Maybe it’s because Doncaster or around these parts really doesn’t have great Malaysian food like South Eastern suburbs and even arguably the CBD has. I find it overall decent but I wouldn’t go out of my way to eat here again.

Malaysian Kitchen

910-912 Doncaster Road
Doncaster VIC 3109

Gyoza King – Vancouver Series

July 26, 2013 Posted in Food Reviews, Japanese, Restaurant Reviews, VancouverLeave a comment

Gyoza King on Robson Street, Vancouver is a fantastic Japanese restaurant that we stumbled upon on our way to Stanley Park. During lunchtime their menu is varied and appetising. Noodles, rice dishes and of course Gyoza make up its lunch menu. While their dinner menu leans towards the pricer end of things but so very satisfying and delicious.

Gyoza King’s Ramen is simply divine for a cold Vancouver day. The soup is flavourful, but it doesn’t leave you feeling thirsty like some other Japanese restaurants. The noodles were cooked well, not too soft and not too hard. All it needed was a bit of Togarashi and it was perfect. The stock they use was just so tasty. Really great Ramen here.

We also ordered the Beef Sukiyaki which was another great dish. Slightly sweet from the onions and the sauce, the beef cooked to perfection. I always hate that chewy, tough beef but here it just melts. The sesame seeds add a bit of crunch and texture and is something I’ve often not found in this dish. What it lacks though is enough sauce, because it was just so good. A bit sweet, salty but simply delicious.

Gyoza King’s Oyako Don is another treat. The onions, egg and chicken just complement each other extremely well. The seaweed on top isn’t just there for looks, it adds that slightly bitterness and roast to the rice. The chicken was marinated well. Sometimes you’ll find with Oyako Don, the chicken is very bland, lacking in anything good and most commonly overcooked and dry. Here it is still moist and that is definitely most welcome. Of course I had to add the Togarashi but it really could do without it too.

You can’t not go to Gyoza King and not try their Gyoza. While these Japanese dumplings are small, it does pack full of flavour it its filling. The pork and cabbage, with the ginger and chives are in a perfect proportion. Giving it a bit more life is the soya sauce that provides the saltiness. The Gyoza are crisp and not too oily. Absolutely satisfying.

The salad and miso soup comes complementary with some lunch dishes. The dressing they add on the salad is quite interesting. It’s not the usual sesame dressing I’ve had in other restaurants, but it still has a roasted flavour to it. It felt more rich, like mayonnaise.

The miso soup is quite standard though, I don’t think you can go wrong with miso soup anyway.

Because Gyoza King was so good, we also had to try going there for dinner. We ordered their grilled fish and it was absolutely stunning. My gosh, the fish was so fresh and also extremely moist. It just melts so effortlessly in your mouth. The grilled flavour just seems ever so gently through the flesh. Adding a sprinkling of lemon adds an acidity that complements the subtle saltiness of the charred skin. I really couldn’t have asked for a better grilled fish.

As we were having a lighter dinner, we shared another order of Gyoza. Again, these little bite sized dumplings are juicy and flavourful. Really great, I definitely recommend it.

Their crispy chicken is another delight. Crispy, with a very thin skin and moist on the inside. It needs the lemon and mayonnaise to balance the oiliness of fried chicken but nonetheless it’s quite good. You can’t have too much of it though.

What we have here is a almost raw fish. It is just charred ever so slightly with a Japanese sauce. The fish here is so good like this, it really doesn’t need much else other than the lemon and soya sauce. I’ve never quite had something like this before and I’m not quite certain of the name either! Just a big FYI, it is really pleasant.

Impressions

Gyoza King have knocked my socks off with the dishes they have delivered. Both their lunch and dinner selection are varied but have definitely made an impression with the dishes we ordered. I really do recommend giving it a try if you’re around the West End.

Gyoza King

1508 Robson St
Vancouver BC V6G1C3

Seoul Soul

July 19, 2013 Posted in Abbotsford, Food Reviews, Korean, Restaurant Reviews, RichmondLeave a comment

Seoul Soul, can easily be missed by passers-by. It is this extremely tiny restaurant, almost hidden on the always populated Victoria Street, Richmond, near The Hive Shopping Centre. In between The Hive SC entrance and a corner cafe, you’ll find this little gem. Only housing less than 20 people, it is always popular inside and waiting around lunchtime is common.

As you may have guessed from the name, Seoul Soul serve Korean cuisine from their most commonly known dishes such as Bulgogi, but also the more obscure and spicy dishes. Typically, they also do BBQ/grills so it really caters for most.

I’ve previously had the Spicy Tofu bulgogi and that was a delight to eat. It comes with stir fried tofu with a spicy sauce, salad and oddly enough a slice of orange. You’ll find this is common for most of the bulgogi’s served. The spiciness of the sauce is fantastic but isn’t too spicy, just enough to give the always bland tofu some flavour and kick.

The salad is very similar to the Japanese salad dressing you can buy in Asian supermarkets, it has that slightly sesame taste to it. I really do love this dressing so it’s always appetising.

You might be saying, Denny, what is that delicious dish you ordered that is pictured. Well, my friends, this is their Special Stone Pot Bibimbap. It comes super sizzling hot and crackles with delight as it’s served. It’s primarily a vegetarian dish with the bean sprouts, carrots, beans and capsicum. There are a couple of stone pot bibimbaps, prawn and beef. I’m uncertain if there was a stone pot vegie bibimbap but it doesn’t seem out of plausibility.

I ordered the beef, which comes with minced beef and cannot currently be seen as it sits underneath that sunny side up egg. The yolk that oozes out just binds everything together. It is simply a refreshing and satisfying meal.

Impressions

Seoul Soul is quite a treat if you can get a table. Well presented food but leaning on the pricier side of things but it’s okay here because the food here is tasty and doesn’t disappoint.

Seoul Soul
323 Victoria St
Abbotsford VIC 3067

Ying Thai

July 5, 2013 Posted in Abbotsford, Food Reviews, Restaurant Reviews, Richmond, ThaiLeave a comment

Ying Thai is the first location of this popular Thai restaurant. Ying Thai 2 is located in Carlton and is frequently visited by Melbourne Uni students and locals. The Richmond venue doesn’t appear to be as popular around lunch weekdays but it doesn’t indicate quality whatsoever.

The dish pictured above was the Chicken Flat Rice Noodle with Chilli and Basil, otherwise known as Pud Kee Mow. What I liked about this dish was that it was spicy, and a really decent hit of chilli at that. It might be too spicy for some, but it just hits the spot for me.

The Pud Kee Mow, you can choose your protein of choice from Chicken, Beef, Pork or Vegetable, like many of their dishes actually. I’ve never actually had this before but I really did like the flavour, the spiciness, a bit of soy that adds sweetness and a hint of salt and the basil. You can’t forget the fragrant basil.

They add carrots, capsicum, broccoli and cabbage if memory serves me correctly. I liked the abundance of vegetables no matter how oily this stir fried noodles dish may be. The chicken was on the tougher side, but I wouldn’t call it very overcooked. I think with stir fry it’s very difficult to cook well, so it was acceptable for me.

The Thai Fried Rice is also excellent, and very filling too. So tasty that I even forgot to take a picture. Next time.

Impressions

Ying Thai serves as tasty Thai food. I may not know what authentic Thai food is but I know what my tastebuds say, and they say it’s pretty darn good. If you’re ever near the corner of Hoddle Street and Victoria Street, give it a go. Just may need to be a bit patient, sometimes it takes 10 minutes or more for food to arrive.

Ying Thai (Menu)
235 Victoria St
Abbotsford VIC 3067

Steamrollers – Vancouver Series

June 28, 2013 Posted in Food Reviews, Mexican, Restaurant Reviews, VancouverLeave a comment

Across from our hotel on Robson Street, there is a pretty popular takeout/fast food place called Steamrollers that specialises in Mexican burritos. We wanted something quick and easy to take back to the hotel, and Mexican food being one of my favourite things currently I had to try it. In Australia, there is a fast food Mexican place called Mad Mex and I love their Naked Burritos, which is basically all the ingredients that you would normally put into a burrito and rice but without the bread in a bowl. Love it.

I believe Steamrollers has something similar called a Roller Bowl. However, I was actually drawn to their Wet Burritos, seing as I’ve never heard or tried it before. We ordered the Tommy Burrito which basically is a spinach tortilla with spanish rice, chicken and jack cheese topped with garlic yogurt sauce, their “famous” tomatillo sauce.

I found that the Wet Burritos are actually too wet for my liking, it gets really messy and hard to eat when the ingredients inside are also slightly moist. The rice and chicken lacked flavour, it could have used a bit more seasoning or maybe just tabasco sauce all the way through. The cheese on top gave it some flavour so it wasn’t all too bad. Decent, but nothing spectacular.

We ordered one of their standard Beef Burritos too, the addition of beans and rice really makes it much more interesting. It was nice and fresh which is great with the beef well cooked. Again, I think a bit of heat aka tabasco sauce to really bring it alive. All in all, a satisfying meal.

Impressions

Steamrollers may not appeal to everyone, but what it is, is fresh and somewhat healthier then most of burrito joints I’ve come across. It certainly shows with the flavour lacking just a bit, but it is that trade off I guess. It has to compete with plenty of eateries on Robson, but for a quick bite I think this will do you just fine.

Steamrollers
1195 Robson St
Vancouver BC V6E

iSpicy 2

June 21, 2013 Posted in Food Reviews, Restaurant Reviews, ThaiLeave a comment

iSpicy is a Thai restaurant located on Victoria Street, Richmond. This particular restaurant is called iSpicy 2 because there is another one located on Glenferrie Road, Hawthorn. As the name suggests, it specialises in spicier Thai dishes which I love. There are quite a few Thai restaurants around Richmond, and in particular, Victoria Street which is great because I really can’t get enough of Thai food.

I ordered the Spicy stir fry crispy chicken with sweet basil, fresh chili and green beans on rice which was marvellously spicy. It packs a lot of heat. It’s definitely not to everyone’s tastes but the crispy chicken was soft and light in texture but also crispy. Really nice.

It was complemented by the spicy beans and chilli. It’s hard to describe the taste, it is mostly spicy but has a bit of salt and sweetness to it so that the chilli isn’t too over powering.

Their other dishes look just as lovely and again lives up to its name of iSpicy. Compared with Ying Thai, I still prefer Ying Thai it has more subtle flavours but definitely more complex and appealing. You’ll find a decent meal here, but probably just not for everyone.

iSpicy 2 (Menu)

80 Victoria St
Richmond VIC 3121

Juliette et Chocolat – Montreal Series

June 14, 2013 Posted in Canadian, Desserts, Food Reviews, French, Restaurant ReviewsLeave a comment

On our last day to Montreal, we didn’t really know where to go so we just walked around. After a couple of hours exploring, we found Juliette & Chocolat. It wasn’t even near lunch time, but this place seemed so inviting for morning ~~tea~~ cocoa. Juliette et Chocolat specialises in all things chocolate, and they certainly do it well and with flair.

Being Montreal, we had to try some crepes, and with chocolate, bananas and peanut butter, this sounded like a dream come true.

The crepes were very thin and light, with the creaminess of the peanut butter and rich chocolate. It was simply fantastic. The slightly sweet bananas gave it a freshness and well it doesn’t cut through the richness, but it certainly doesn’t make you feel overwhelmed by the sweetness. I loved it.

I had to order the Passionfruit petit pot, I was thinking about the Hazelnut pot but I really do love the blend of passionfruit and chocolate. It’s simply amazing. As you can see it’s multi layered, with the passionfruit layer on top, then a layer of cocoa ganache, and at the bottom a dark chocolate and passionfruit mousse. It’s so light and just melts in your mouth. Fantastic mousse. The passionfruit coulis was sweet as expected but the flavour of it just works so well with the mousse and ganache. Ah, it was chocolate heaven.

As a drink, we ordered one of the warm hot chocolates with whipped cream. It was definitely creamy and rich but oh so chocolately. I think after this we had an overdose of chocolate but very satisfied in the end.

Impressions

Juliette et Chocolat was definitely a highlight for places to try in Montreal. It does chocolate very well, their crepes, desserts and drinks. It really is fantastic for chocolate lovers. I’d definitely make time to try other things on the menu if I ever go back to Montreal.

Juliette et Chocolat

3600 Boulevard Saint Laurent
Montreal QC H2X2V4

ohdenny

Category: Restaurant Reviews

Le Lapin Saute – Quebec City Series

Le Chic Shack – Quebec City Series

First Taste Box Hill

Malaysian Kitchen

Gyoza King – Vancouver Series

Seoul Soul

Ying Thai

Steamrollers – Vancouver Series

iSpicy 2

Juliette et Chocolat – Montreal Series