Pajo's - Fish & Chips

Pajo's - Wharf at Steveston Village, Richmond
Fish & Chips - "One of Each" - Cod, Salmon, Halibut w/Chips

Restaurant: Pajo's - Fish & Chips
Cuisine: Fish & Chips/Seafood/West Coast/British

Last visited: August 30, 09

Area: Multiple - Richmond, BC

154 East 8th Ave

Price Range: $10-20

1: Poor 2: OK 3: Good 4: Very Good 5: Excellent 6: Tres Excellent!!

Food: 2

Service: 2, well it's self-service

Ambiance: 5

Overall: 3

Additional comments:

• Since 1985
• Fish & Chips are inconsistent - depends which batch you get
• Small pieces of fish, soggy fries
• Heavy on batter, little on fish
• Don't go during peak hours, cause they make ahead and dish them out
  
• Eat outdoors on open patio right on the dock
  
• Hours depend on weather - call ahead
• Fun place to eat
• Pay at cashier/Self-service
• Pronounced "PaH-jo's" not "PaY-jo's"
• Line-ups/crowded during peak hours, weekend and esp. when there's hot weather
• Local fish
• Quite expensive for fish & chips, and especially for self-service
  
• Serves hamburgers, hot dogs, sides as well
• Store bought cole slaw, homemade chowder
  
• Tourist location - attracts families/still familiar to locals

**Recommendation: "One of Each" - Cod, Salmon, Halibut (I like salmon the best - skip the fries, they're soggy), Crab Cakes

I came here based on a recommendation and I would have never found it on my own, although it's a popular tourist location. It's right on the dock and you have to walk right to the end of Steveston Village where all the boats are docked and walk down a ramp in order to find it. It's not really hidden, it's just there's nothing else around it so you rarely wonder down that area.

It's famous for their fish and chips, but I don't think it's the best fish and chips I've had. If you're going to claim "famous for fish and chips" - I'm going to expect a lot. It's more "famous" because they've been there for so long, not because the fish and chips are better than everyone else. The pieces are kind of small and the chips are soggy; I think the outdoor self-service atmosphere is what makes this place great - not the food. Go for the atmosphere, not if you're expecting the best fish and chips of your life. It's really one of those "been there for 0ver 20 years and is part of Steveston history" places that you bring your kids and family to. Great for a visit on a hot summer day.

Note: The fish and chips are inconsistent. Ours were a soggy batch becuase we ent during busy hours and they have a batch of pre-made ones. It depends on your luck, the really sweet lady next to me let me try hers and hers was a a good batch - nice and crispy.

On the table:

• **"One of Each" - Cod, Salmon, Halibut
  
• (Just to try them all, but salmon was best) $13.09
  
• Kind of hard to judge because we got a premade batch, so the batter was soggy, but I did try a better batch so I'm able to gauge a general idea.
• Cod 2/6
  

  

• Cod 2/6 - picture below is from a better batch, still not enough fish...
• From a good batch it would have been 2.5/6, but mine was a pre-made batch so the batter was soggy. Even when I tried a piece from a better batch where the skin is crispy - there's still not enough fish. It's a wimpy small fillet of cod they use too, so there's too much batter not enough fish. The batter and fish aren't seasoned, at least they don't taste seasoned, so you really need the tartar sauce. It's local fish, but not necessarily the best quality so it wasn't one of those "doesn't require seasoning because it's so fresh" things either
• **Salmon 3.5/6
• The salmon was still good even from a pre- made batch. So it would be even better, if it was fresh. This was the most flavourful of the 3 - not fishy tasting, but just flavourful. It was moist, flaky, and cooked to perfection. It wouldn't have been much better if it was a fresh batch - just because the salmon part was fine, it's just the batter was soggy...so either way it would probably be a 3.5/6. Same problem as the cod though - too much batter, not enough fish.
• Halibut 3/6
• The halibut was quite good. Nice and meaty, pretty good quality to use for fish and chips. You got the most out of the halibut - in terms of batter to fish ratio. The halibut is the only one that was sturdy or thick enough to stand up to the excessive batter they use. The other ones had too much batter , not enough fish.
• Chips/Fries
  
• Soggy, you can pass...especially since it's served in a cone and then they put the fish on top...so all the heat gets trapped inside an d it just gets really soggy.

  

• Crab Cakes 3.5/6
  
• They call them "Famous" crab cakes, they should really call them fish cakes. It's made of almost all fish. If they had called them fish cakes then they'd be a 4/6.
  
• They're made with cod, salmon, halibut, artifical crab meat, green onions and pesto. The most worth it - 2 for $5.69.
• They're nice and flakey on the inside because of the fish, not because of the crab. They're pan-fried and could be sturdier - they get soggy really fast. For me, it was better than the fish and chips becuase they had flavour. They are good FISH cakes, but not good CRAB cakes. There's a big difference.
  
• Chowder 2/6
  
• It's actually 1.5/6, but I give it a 2/6 because it's homemade...which is unexpected for a place like this that's serving such a high volume. I appreciate the effort.
  
• It's really really thick and creamy - they went too heavy on the flour. It's not really the thickness that bothers me, but more because it lacks in flavour. There's are lot of thinkening agents in there, like potatoes, but it's just kind of bland. I wouldn't order it again.
• They call it "chowder" and not "clam chowder" for a reason I think - there' s not much clam
• Mushy Peas 1/6
  
• Typical of British cuisine, and common as a fish and chips side.
  
• Pass on this - it's only .99 cents for a small...which I wish I could get back. It's literally 5 spoonfuls straight from a can...ew, they were really gross. Why it comes in a large?? I don't know.
  
• I like mushy peas too, and I've had great ones, but these were pathetic. They weren't even mashed.
  
• They aren't even peas, they taste like a cheap brand of preserved beans...I can't even say preserved because it sounds too fancy of a word for these...they were canned...cheap canned beans.
  
• Cole Slaw
  
• I didn't order it cause it's store bought - so it should be standard or whatever is cheap, cause I don't imagine them investing much into their sides...besides their crab cakes.

Simba's Grill

Restaurant: Simba's Grill
Cuisine: African/Fusion/Barbeque

Last visited: September 3, 09

Area: Vancouver, BC / Burnaby, BC

825 Denman Street

Price Range: $10-20 (closer to $20)

1: Poor 2: OK 3: Good 4: Very Good 5: Excellent 6: Tres Excellent!!

Food: 4

Service: 2

Ambiance: 2

Overall: 3

Additional comments:

• African/African fusion food
• Popular and known for grilled meats
• Similar to Indian food, but lighter in spices and richness
• Curries are consistency of Persian stews (thinner)
• Good amount of meat in curries
  
• I'm not a professional in African cuisine -
• but Simba's is East African cusine qith some Central African influence
  
• A bit overpriced, but everything is shareable
• Big portions, meant for sharing
• Busy for dinner on weekends
• Photos of food available at restaurant
• Closed Monday
  

**Recommendation: Grilled entrees, Chicken Kebab, Ugali (not necessarily good, but should try it)

I've only been to the Simba's on Denman Street and this is where the owner (the African guy on the website) spends most his time. The servers are all international students from Asia that probably live around the ares. I'm not sure who cooks the food though because the kitchen is hidden. The owner manages the operations and keeps a close eye in the back unless it's so busy on the weekends that it requires him to be up front. I'm not sure how "authentic" the food is, but I've had African food before and personally I think it's mild Indian food. Relative to other African restaurants I've tried I find Simba's is a little more fusion-inspired.

Generally African food is not as heavy as Indian because they don't use much dairy (lack of dairy in Africa). The curries are not thick or creamy and they don't use as many spices giving dishes a lighter flare in terms of flavour and a little in appeal. The complimentary chutneys they serve are a combination of the Northern Indian chutneys (the reddish brown one served with pakora) as well as Southern Indian chutneys (the coconut one served with dosas). They also have really spicy ones that remind me of the Asian sambal chili sauce. Simba's serves good food, but in terms of serving authentic African cuisine I doubt it - I call it dumbed down African food (food for the masses)...it still tastes good, but just not authentic African.

On the table:

• **Chicken Kebab 5/6
• Marinated and grilled chicken skewers served with rice - $22
• Yes, this is more typical and doesn't sound as "authentic", but I had to try it once because Simba's has a reputation for serving exc ellent grilled meats. Tender, juicy and nicely marinated and grilled. Great use of spices. It's a big portion served on a large plate with a bed of rice. Eat these skewers with the chutneys, otherwise it feels like eating a kebab that could also be from a Persian place.
• **Ugali 3/6
  
• This is a staple starch common in East African cuisine.

• Made of corn flour and water - maybe cornmeal too? I recommend people to try this because it's authentic and typical of traditional East African cuisine. You may not necessarily like it, but it's worth a try. It looks li ke mashed potatoes, but it's plain and not supposed to be flavourful - kind of like how Chinese rice alone is not meant to be flavourful. It's the texture of thick and sturdy mashed potatoes mixed with cornmeal - gritty, but soft. You can stick a spoon in it and it will hold - see my picture.
• Eat it with the curries. You take a chunk, roll it into a ball and dip it in the sauces. I like to mash my curries into it and then roll it into a ball, and then dip it in the chutney - but that's not the traditional way of ea ting it.
• Muchuzi Mbuzi with Chicken 3/6
• A tomato based reddish brown curry mixed with spices.
  
• We had it with chicken breast, and you get quite a bit of chicken. I don't think there's dairy in this so it's a little soupy in texture. It's a bit spicy as well but I enjoyed this. There's no other veggies in it though, so you need to order it with other things or you'll get tired of eating a whole bowl of this.
• Jumbo Prawns with Spinach Curry 4/6
• I don't remember what it's called on the menu and it's not the website. It's a spinach based tomato-ish curry mixed with spices. We had it with jumbo prawns, and these prawns were actually quite large. It came with 5 jumbo prawns and they're cooked perfectly - nice and crunchy still (about $16). This is the thickest curry we had. It's not really saucy, but the thickness comes with the saute ed spinach. For me it was more of a sauteed spinach stew. This one isn't spicy.
  

  

• Green Coconut Curry with Chicken 1.5/6
• This wasn't very good. It was pretty watery and not flavourful at all. It was the thinnest curry out of the bunch and really lacked in flavour - couldn't pick out any spices. It wasn't really spicy, just really bland. Again you get a good amount of chicken, but it's all flavourless. There's no other veggies in it, so again you would get tired of eating this just for one.
• Naan
  
• Only one kind, regular in size and buttered...possibly bought. It was ok, Indian restaurants do a bett er job with the dough and the cooking.
  

  

• Complimentary Chutneys
  
• **Coconut Chutney - I have to give a shout out to this chutney. It's amazing! I used almost the whole thing for myself - there's flaked of shredded coconut in it - not really sweet, but gives the food a great texture and unique flavour.
  
• Reddish-brown chutney - a thin sweet and sour chutney similar to the chutney served at Indian restaurants used to eat pakoras.
  
• Yogurt Chutney - Really thick plain yogurt. Almost like sour cream, but it's yogurt.

Drinks

• Mango Lassi 3/6
  
• This was quite good, but not the best. It was really thick and heavier on the yogurt flavour than it was on mango flavour. Quite tangy.

Nice Cafe

Spinach & Feta Omelette with hash browns and toast


Restaurant: Nice Cafe
Cuisine: Breakfast/Brunch/Lunch/Diner

Last visited: August 30, 09

Area: Vancouver, BC

154 East 8th Ave

Price Range: $10 or less

1: Poor 2: OK 3: Good 4: Very Good 5: Excellent 6: Tres Excellent!!

Food: 2

Service: 2

Ambiance: 1

Overall: 2

Additional comments:

• Focus on breakfast/brunch items - lunch available
  
• Attracts locals/regulars/hipsters
• Whole menu under $10 - really cheap breakfast
• Go back because it's cheap, not because it's good
  
• Line-ups/crowded
• Very casual
• No fuss, simple breakfast
• Fresh hash browns grated in house, homemade jam
• Overcooked pancakes & eggs
• Most of it was overcooked
  
• Chocolate milk is powdered chocolate milk
  

**Recommendation: I guess the hash browns, because they're fresh not frozen. They also do a good job soft poaching eggs (upon request).

I would come back to Nice Cafe because it was cheap, but not really because the food was good. I wasn't expecting gourmet food, but I was expecting a bit more because it's always busy. It's a standard breakfast you would expect to get at any small diner breakfast joint. It's the non-chain version of any other breakfast chain...if that makes sense? It's crowded and busy and you can tell it's frequently visited by locals that live nearby. For a foodie - this place is a no-go, but if you're not picky about your breakfast and just want something cheap and filling then come here. I would rather pay a couple bucks more for something better...breakfast is relatively cheap anyways.

On the table:

• Traditional Sausage & Egg Breakfast 1.5/6
• 2 eggs, 2 sausages, hash browns, 2 slices of toast
• Eggs a bit overcooked for my liking, too rubbery
  
• Sausages - the breakfast sausages you buy in a package from Superstore
• Hash browns - the best part for me, fresh not frozen - shredded in house, and you can tell because sometimes you'll come across a chunk of potato (the chunk is actually the end piece of the potato that is too small to grate)
• Traditional Ham & Egg Breakfast 1.5/6
• 2 eggs, ham, hash browns, 2 slices of toast
• Again eggs are overcooked. You can tell by the picture they're overcooked.
  
• Ham is standard. Hash browns were the best part.
• Pancakes 1/6
  
• 3 pancakes for around $4.95
• They taste better at McDonald's. If you want rubber tires for breakfast you should order these. They were so tough and I had to saw through them with my knife. They're tasteless and really flat. Need to eat it with a lot of syrup and butter. Overcooked and not fluffy at all. Don't order these - so horrible. they should have been free.

  

• Alberni Benny 3/6
  
• Smoked salmon benny served with hash browns.
• For this type of restaurant, this was a good attempt - not that they really tried to make it extra good or anything. It was one of the better things we ordered. The hollandaise sauce is from a powder and it's really runny and watery in texture. What made up for it was the poached eggs. We requested them to be cooked soft and they did a great job in ensuring this. They were quite perfect, the knife sliced into them perfectly - probably the only thing they didn't overcook.
• Spinach & Feta Omelette 1.5/6
  
• The spinach they use isn't even baby spinach...AND they included the stems. You should always use baby spinach and never include the stems when you're using it in an omelette. I felt like I was eating a lot of plain spinach that was blanched in hot water with an egg wrapped around it. More spinach than it is an omelette.
• The Feta was a shredded Feta and it was the only thing giving this omelette flavour - hint of saltiness. They call all their omelettes "fluffy" omelettes, but they aren't as you can tell. You can tell by the picture that they overcooked our omelette, just like they did with our pancakes and scrambled eggs too. Even by overcooking our omelette they still didn't manage to melt the Feta cheese...I could have made a better one at home.

Katsu-Ya Sushi

Restaurant: Katsu-Ya Sushi
Cuisine: Japanese/Sushi

Last visited: August 29, 09

Area: Richmond, BC

#101 -7900 Westminster Highway

Price Range: $10 or less

1: Poor 2: OK 3: Good 4: Very Good 5: Excellent 6: Tres Excellent!!

Food: 1.5

Service: 2

Ambiance: 1

Overall: 1.5

Additional comments:

• Quick & cheap sushi
• All specialty rolls $4.25 - they all taste the same though, all just blahhh to not good
  
• They're "spicy sauce" that comes on all specialty rolls is sweet and sour sauce - not spicy at all
• Expensive for sashimi - $9.95 for 6 pieces of salmon
  
• Japanese owned and ran
• Made upon order, but ingredients are not fresh
• Frozen fish
• Chewy seaweed, and rice is bland and wet
  
• Poor quality explains cheap price
• Really weak and cheap wasabi
• Eat-in/Take-out
• Closed Sunday

**Recommendation: n/a

I went to this place purely out of convenience because I was craving sushi and really hungry and wanted to try a place I've never gone to - traffic was also bad and I didn't want to drive around. I was hoping it would be good, and when I discovered the place was ran by Japanese I got excited. I was SO disappointed.

Cheap rolls - yes. But that's all this place has to offer - is cheap rolls. A lot of their specialty rolls have no sashimi and that's why they're so cheap. The specialty rolls are almost all the same too - some type of tempura with avocado and masago with "spicy sauce" on top, which is sweet and sour sauce...? NOT spicy. It's a small place and an open kitchen so they don't have the facilities to make good sushi or carry fresh sashimi. They were using the microwave to defrost who knows what and I saw sashimi in the freezer - it was really awful. The rice was really poorly made sushi rice, not flavourful at all and wet, which made the seaweed a bit soggy and chewy. It attracts people working nearby that are looking for super cheap sushi within walkable distance for lunch. I guess you pay for what you get...and it's not much.

On the table:

• Gomaae 1/6
• It tastes better than it looks - it looks pretty bad, I know. I mean the presentation was really poor and you can tell they rushed it. They just clumped up spinach and poured a ready made sesame sauce on top. It's only $2.95 and I felt ripped off.
• Sunset Roll 2/6
  
• Deep fried prawn and yam, cream cheese, masago
  
• This is their most popular roll, but it's still not that good. I think it's only popular because the people that go are people that like cream cheese. I've had way better cream cheese rolls though. This is just the b est roll they serve - but not the best sushi roll by any means.
• it's the only roll that kind of tasted different fro m the other specialty rolls.
  

  

• Prawn Mango Roll 1.5/6
  
• Deep fried prawn and mango, masago, spicy sauce
• The mango isn't fresh or even canned! The mango is DRIED mango. I couldn't believe this - I saw them take it out of the Dole bag. Then they deep fry it so it gets a little "re-hydrated" - it doesn't even shine through in this prawn and MANGO roll.
• Y-Roll 1.5/6
• crab meat, salmon, avocado, masago and spicy sauce (sweet and sour sauce).
  
• *sigh* - tastes all the same. The masago isn't even good on these rolls - it's cause it's frozen and when they defrost it it just gets too wet, and it's hard to fix this. The owner is a nice Japanese lady and I feel bad for giving such a bad review, but I can't help it.
  

  

• Crazy Roll 1.5/6
• crabmeat, deep fried gourd aka squash, avocado, masago, hot and spicy sauce
• Tasted the same as everything else. Really...enough of the sweet and sour sauce - it isn't even good - it's just spring roll sweet and sour sauce - the kind you get at Save-On Foods not even the kind at T&T! Tastes and looks packaged.
• Spicy Tuna Roll 1/6
• Look at the picture. Have you ever seen it served this way? This is possible one of the worst spicy tuna rolls I've had. Worst spicy tuna sauce - it doesn't even look like a spicy tuna roll. The presentation was awful, putting spicy sauce on top of the roll? Major no no. This is such an old trick - it's to hide the tuna sashimi so they can use less...we barely had any.
  

Chen's Shanghai Kitchen

Restaurant: Chen's Shanghai Kitchen
Cuisine: Shanghainese/Chinese/Asian/Dim Sum

Last visited: August 28, 09

Area: Richmond, BC

8095 Park Road

Price Range: $10-20

1: Poor 2: OK 3: Good 4: Very Good 5: Excellent 6: Tres Excellent!!

Food: 5

Service: 2

Ambiance: 1

Overall: 4

Additional comments:

• Hole in the wall Shanghainese
• Shanghainese chefs/cooks/staff
• Familiar and popular with locals
• Menu in English and Chinese, but some hot items only in Chinese
  
• Line-ups/busy/crowded
• Feel a bit rushed cause of the line-up
• May have to share a big table with others during busy hours
  
• Open for lunch and dinner
• Quick service

**Recommendation: Baiyulan steamed mini pork dumplings "Xiao Long Bao", Shanghai pan-fried pork buns "Sheng Jian Bao", beef roll (sliced beef wrapped in Shanghainese style crepe) , sticky rice "chee fan"

This is a fantastic place if you're looking for some cheap, fast and good Shanghainese food. Super casual, fresh and hot food, nothing plated fancy - this is authentic Shanghainese home cooking with no fuss. This place gets busy by 6pm, so arrive early to avoid line-ups. We went at 7:30pm and there was still a line-up at 9pm. The line-up never goes away, but it moves super fast. The service is fast, and your food arrives quickly - it's all fresh and hot too so they must have a really good system working in the kitchen.

All of my recommendations are pretty much what every single table ordered as well, so they are obvious favourites. The staple Shanghainese item "xiao long bao" is the soupiest here. I've had several at different Shanghainese restaurants, but they are the soupiest here for sure. I couldn't bite into one without it squirting everywhere. The soup isn't necessarily the most flavourful of the bunch I've tried, but they definitely are the soupiest. They do sell out of some popular dishes, so place your order in early.

On the table:

• **Baiyulan steamed mini pork dumplings 6/6
• This is the staple menu item when dining Shanghainese. They should always be made fresh and upon order - everything should be done in house - from making the dumpling pastry to making the ground pork stuffing. There is usually one chef/cook responsible for just making these the whole night.

• It's a pork dumpling filled with hot soup broth. A good "xiao long bao" has a thin skin and A LOT of flavourful hot soup. The goal is to have the skin as thin as possible to still hold the most soup possible and not having it leak out at the same time. It takes a lot of experience to master this skill - it's not easy at all. The whole thing is super juicy and filled with hot soup - so be careful not to burn yourself when you bite into them. You dip it in the ginger vinegar they give you before you eat it.

• There is a skill when eating these. You can either wait until they cool down and pop them in your mouth whole - or you can bite the top off, suck the soup out, and then eat the dumpling. I like eating them whole, but be careful because they're really really hot!

• These were definitely the soupiest xiao long bao's I have had. The broth was not necessarily the most flavourful - although they were still very flavourful, but they are definitely the soupiest. There is a lot of soup in these, so try to eat them whole. The best xiao long bao's for me are still either from Shanghai Wonderful or Shanghai River, both in Richmond. But Chen's is still really really good! At this restaurant it's 6/6, but compared to others it's 5/6.
• $4.30 for 6 - super cheap, and they're not sacrificing on quality either.
• **Shanghai Pan-fried Pork Buns 6/6
• These are almost like xiao long bao's but instead it's a pan-fried bun. These are almost famous here. These again are the soupiest I've ever had them - they were a bit oily though. Usually the xiao long bao's have more soup than the buns (buns absorb more), but at Chen's they both equally have just as much soup - I don't know how they do it and that's why I give them 6/6. Again you dip them in vinegar before you eat them. These are harder to eat whole because they're bigger than the dumplings, so I had to bite half and the sou p just squirted everywhere...if you can eat t hem whole, eat them whole.
• $4.30 for 5 - deal.

  

• Malantou with Diced Bean Curd 5/6
• Minced Chinese leafy green (similar to spinach) mixed with minced dried bean curd. It's served cold.

• This is really good. They offer it at some other Shanghainese restaurants, but the method they make and serve it is different at each one. I've never seen it done this way (except in Shanghai) and I like it the best at Chen's so far. It's a very typical Shanghainese appetizer. A local and authentic dish. I would definitely order it again. The presentation isn't very nice, but it doesn't matter because it tastes better this way rather than all rolled up and all fancy.
• At Chen's everything in the dish is finely minced and you eat it just as it's served. It's very healthy too, and you eat spoonfuls of it. It's a savoury dish that has a hint of pickled flavour. It tastes and looks almost like a finely minced spinach omelette served cold. A little crunchy, but not crispy - the dried bean curd is obviously rehydrated - so it's a soft texture. The crunchiness and slightly pickled taste is from this pickled type of Asian radish that's also minced up in the dish. This Asian radish is similar to the Japanese yellow carrot you find in s ushi (oshinko) - both are delicious!
• Order it here cause I can't find it anywhere else. It's not like it's done particularly well here or anything, but it's still really good.

  

• **Beef Pancake Roll 6/6
  
• Slices of beef and green onion rolled up with a Shanghainese style crepe or pancake - freshly made in house.

• You know that Peking Duck crepe you get at Chinese restaurants served with the Hoisin sauce and green onions? This is the Shanghainese version of that. Every single table ordered this. It's delicious. The pancake is delicious and they make it in house upon order. The star of this is the pancake - not the beef, and that's ok because it should be. It takes great skill to make this pancake the perfect texture.
  
• 
• This is one of the favourites and you also can't find it at every Shanghainese restaurant. The crepe is soft and chewy - it looks crispy, but it's not really. It's more chewy. It's savoury and sweet at the same time with a nice onion flavour. The onions are cooked, so it's not a strong onion flavour. These are really delicious. I'm craving it.
• Shanghai Rice Roll Noodles with Pork Chops
  
• These noodles are found only in Shanghai cuisine. They're think and sturdy, but also soft and very chewy. The texture and consistency of mochi. It's made out of rice flour and they're really filling. It comes either in thick logs (like we had them here) or in oval slices almost the size of cucumber slices.
• This dish is served with 3 pretty big pieces of pork cutlets - they're more cutlets than pork chops. They're battered and deep fried - and they are quite heavy on the batter. This dish is covered in this savoury brown sauce that's quite thick and more like gravy than it is sauce.
• This is really delicious in general, not particularly here because you can find it better at other Shanghainese restaurants. I would have appreciated more veggies in it though. It came with 2 pieces of Chinese veg gies which was pathetic. It's really oily and greasy though (just look at the picture) - but this is VERY common in ALL Shanghainese cuisine, so don't be surprised.
  
• **Chee Fan (Sticky Rice)
• I didn't get a chance to order it, because they sold out by 7:30pm! I was so disappointed and we JUST missed the last one. This is another popular Shanghai dish. It's sticky rice (different from the sticky rice you get at Chinese dim sum), the Shanghainese kind is drier and much more chewy - almost bread like, and it has this pan-fried exterior. Slightly crispy on the outside and super chewy and soft on the inside.
  
• Chee Fan is stuffed with stuffing such as dried pork floss and that pickled radish - similar in taste and texture to the yellow Japanese carrot you find in sushi (oshinko). They make Chee Fan differently at every Shanghainese place - but I'm dying to try it here because they sold out before I could even order it.

Dessert

• Pan-fried Pumpkin Cake stuffed with Red Bean 2/6
  
• This shows up on a lot of Shanghai menus - and it's not good here. It's way better at Shanghai Wonderful. The pumpkin dough pastry (tastes like mochi) is made fresh and upon order at both, but they're just done really poorly at Chen's. They were way too oily too - even for Shanghai standards. Barely any red bean filling too - you can tell from looking at the picture.
• $3.95 for 3 (I know they're cheap, but still don't try them here, because they're better than this)
  

Mandalay Lounge & Steakhouse - Drink review

Apple Crunch
Pear Cobbler

Restaurant: Mandalay Lounge & Steakhouse - Drink Review

Cuisine: European/American/EuroAsian/Fusion/West coast

Last visited: August 28, 09

Area: Richmond, BC (Steveston Village)

140-3900 Bayview Street

Price Range: $20-30

1: Poor 2: OK 3: Good 4: Very Good 5: Excellent 6: Tres Excellent!!

Drinks: 6

Service: 4

Ambiance: 4

Overall: 5

Additional comments:

• Drinks are amazing - professional mixologist
• Very creative drinks, you can't find anywhere
• Very affordable, about $7 for a "gourmet" style cocktail
  
• Sister restaurant to higher end Correlis next door
• Attracts 30-40 crowd
• Outdoor patio dining - all white Las Vegas/Miami feel
• Upscale lounge feel
  
• Waterfront view
  
• Upstairs lounge and balcony
  
• Open for lunch and dinner at 11am - close
  
• Late night crowd
• Sports lounge

**Recommendation: Apple Crunch, Pear Cobbler, Asian Mary

I came here for drinks with some friends late Friday afternoon. Wow! I was so impressed with their drinks. I can't drink much myself, but the friends I was with can...and they sure made a dent in the menu. All the drinks are so creative it made you want to try them all. Everything sounded so good - and it was. The mixologist is a genius, I don't know how he does it but everything tasted like juice - and all cocktails were at least doubles; if you couldn't taste it, you could feel it ;) There's so many ingredients in each drink and he balances them out so well - perfect ratio. He uses real fresh fruit puree where possible and all the fruit is so ripe it adds a natural sweetness and texture to the drinks. I hope he gets paid really well, because I'm sure he'll be in high demand once people discover this new restaurant. It's around $7 for a cocktail - which is really cheap...and it tastes like something that should be $10-12 especially in a restaurant with this kind of upscale lounge decor. The patio is the best place to dine here - all white sofas and beautiful waterfront view. Outside more impressive than inside. It's a new restaurant and they're still playing around with their menu. I have no idea how they'll narrow down their drink menu because the selection is huge and we didn't have one bad drink. Try them all before they narrow it down.

On the table:

• Tropical Cyclone 5/6
• Absolute, hypnotiq, malibu, fresh pineapple juice and a swirl of blue caracao with a sweet slushy cloud (the slush kind of floats on top) - 6.95
  
• This drink is one of their popular signature drinks. This is yummy, it's more of girl drink (sweeter) and you get a really strong pineapple and coconut taste. Malibu stands out in this one. You feel like you're in Miami sipping on one of these - especially when you're sitting outside on their patio that is Miami inspired - all white lounge couches etc.
  
• The 22 5/6
• Raspberry absolut, malibu, banana liquer, fresh pineapple and cranberry juice, soda with a hint of champagne and a fresh raspberry slush - 6.95
• Another popular signature drink. De-licious. This one tastes like a raspberry slurpee. It's sweet and tangy at the same time. The raspberry stands out the most in this for sure. The fresh pineapple adds that special note that completes this fruity drink. More of a girl drink - sweeter again, and you can't taste the alcohol. I prefer this over the Tropical Cyclone.
  
• **Apple Crunch 6/6
• Apple liquor, butter ripple, with fresh pineapple and apple juices with a touch of real honey 6.95
  
• Holy crap...this is amazing. Want to know what apple pie tastes like as a drink? This is it! This is a dessert and drink all in one. If you like apple and apple pie you'll love this! It's like a blended McDonald's apple pie. The real honey shines through and there's even a hint of cinnamon I tasted. It comes with this fruit skewer of melon ball sized apples and it's coated in this brown sugar cinnamon syrup...the perfect garnish for this amazing drink. One of the best drinks and garnishes I've had...ever. One of their most popular signature drinks. A girl drink a guy would appreciate.
  
• **Pear Cobbler 6/6
  
• U'livka, pear liquer, triple sec, pear puree, topped with brown sugar. 7.75
• This is dangerous...you would never know there's alcohol. This was my favourite! This tastes like eating a frozen pear blended up - a real pear slushy! He uses fresh pear puree and you can totally taste it in the drink. It's all blended up and it adds this natural sweetness. Pears have a grainy texture so it gives this drink a really unique texture I've never experienced before. Truly incredible. If you love pears, don't leave without trying one. It comes with a fruit skewer made up of melon ball sized pear coated with the same brown sugar syrup the apple crunch skewer was in. This is a dessert/drink/treat...everything! It's their most popular and creative belnded cocktail on the menu.
  
• Fresh mojito 4/6
  
• We had the kiwi lime 7.50
  
• All the mojito's are twisted and built on a combination of 2 flavours eg: strawberry kiwi, vanilla pear etc.
  
• This was really fresh and really light tasting. You can actually see the fresh kiwi puree, but you couldn't taste the kiwi as much. The actual fruit isn't that flavourful and there's no "kiwi" flavoured alcohol so this drink tastes all natural. The lime really comes through. I prefer the blended mojito at Earl's - if it's done right, by an actual bartender.
  
• Smashed Pinata 5/6
  
• Jose Cuervo, Bacardi 151, fresh lime, pear liquer, pear puree 7.45
• A man's drink. You can taste the alcohol in this one and it's pretty strong. But again it's mixed well, so if you like the taste of these liquers you'll enjoy this drink. The pear again adds this natural sweetness. I based my rating on people that like these alcohols.
  
• Mandalay Fiesta 3/6
• Jose Cuervo, fresh lime, chili sauce, soda and raspberry puree 7.45
  
• I didn't get to try this one, but my friends said the other stuff I tried was better. They said it was good, but because everything else was AMAZING - this was just good.
  
• **Asian Mary 6/6
  
• A twist on a Bloody Mary/Caesar - sake, tomato, soy sauce, Tobasco, with freshly crushed dry wasabi rim 7.00
  
• Wow! This is genius. So creative. I prefer this to any ordinary Caesar/Bloody Mary anywhere. What a brilliant twist! It's the perfect amount of spiciness too. He really nailed this one. The wasabi rim is real wasabi, which don't even come across at a Japanese restaurant. The best Caesar I've had.
  
• Tequila Moon 3/6
  
• A twist on a Tequila Sunrise with Jose Cuervo, Absolute raspberry, sake, triple sec, watermelon puree, and orange juice 7.45
• I'm not a fan of Tequila or Tequila Sunrises - but if I had to have a Tequila Sunrise, I'll drink it this way. Again taking an ordinary cocktail to the next level. This was the most Tequila tasting drink that we tried from their Tequila cocktails section.
  
• The Wet Poncho 4/6
  
• Jose Cuervo, triple sec, blue curacao, orange juice, soda with a hint of vanilla 7.45
• In between a girl and guy drink. I thought the blue curacao stood out the most in this.
  
• Giddy Down 4/6
  
• Wild Turkey, absolut vanilla, shaken with fresh pear, fresh apple juice 7.00
• This was strong on the alcohol which was a bit surprising seeing the ingredients. It's the Wild Turkey - if you like whiskey then try this. The flavours complement the whiskey well.
  

Raffles Cafe

Restaurant: Raffles Cafe
Cuisine: American
Last visited: August 27, 09

Area: Las Vegas - Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino
3950 Las Vegas Blvd
Price Range: $10-20

1: Poor 2: OK 3: Good 4: Very good 5: Excellent 6: Tres Excellent!!

Additional comments:

• Open 24 hours
• Menu shows signature items
• Casual dining
• A nice 24 hour restaurant (not fast food 24 hours)
• Offers breakfast/brunch/lunch/dinner/late night
  
• Tropical (borderline tacky) decor
• Huge portions
  

**Recommendation: Banana and Pecan Stuffed French Toast, Raffles Signature Dessert Burger and Exotic Coconut Pancakes which I didn't order, but have heard rave reviews about.

I only tried 2 things on the menu so I don't think it's fair to give it a full review. Therefore I'm only going to focus on the things that I ordered - which were freakin delicious!! I need to give them their own review. I went at 4am and I didn't have my camera on me, which I totally regret because I can't seem to find a picture of these anywhere. The pictures would speak for themselves - you'd definitely want to book your tickets to Sin City if you saw the pics. I hope my description and review does these 2 items justice. For a 24 hour restaurant the chef is wide awake, because the food is fresh, unique, and there was even presentation - which I don't expect from a 24 hour diner.

On the table:

• **Banana and Pecan Stuffed French Toast 6/6
  
• This french toast was soooo soft and fluffy! It was almost like they used brioche bread. It was thick slices of brioche bread dipped in an egg batter and lightly fried. Then sandwiches between the slices of bread was the thick creamy custard! It was soo decadent and indulgent! Really rich and heavy so you can't eat it by yourself - such a treat! The bananas are cut up in slices, so not mashed and they're slightly cooked and warm and then placed on top of the french toast with toasted pecans. The whole thing is sprinkled with icing sugar.
  
• This is definitely a dessert! It's one of their signature items and it rightfully earns a spot because it's so amazing. We ordered it with chocolate and vanilla ice cream - it's good with or without ice cream - it's just amazing. The custard is thick enough to not ooze out on it's own, but it oozes out when you poke your fork into it. I'm drooling...
• **Raffles Signature Dessert Burger 6/6
  
• (I don't think it's the official name, but I can't find the full menu)
  
• This is another signature item! Thank god I remember the description because I can't find it anywhere. This was such a creative dessert and it really deserves attention. Great concept! Kudos to the chef for creating it. Very well executed.
• The dessert came in a mini burger - the size of a slider. It totally looked like a beef slider. The "bun" was made of a homemade sesame pound cake. The "cheese" was a thin slice of apple flavoured jello (at least that's what it tasted like). The "burger patty" was some sort of frozen chocolate mousse. I think there was also a hint of raspberry coulis for ketchup.
  
• Wow! This was really really good. It held together really well and didn't crumbly apart or anything. It was nice and sturdy like an actually burger. It wasn't even messy to eat. The apple cheese thing was soo unique - I've never had anything like this. Teh combination of flavours worked really well and the pound cake was delicious! I'm glad the portion was a bit smaller because it was just enough to satisfy. So impressed with this dessert coming from a 24 hour restaurant.
• It also came with "fries" - which were deep fried pastries that looked exactly like fries. They were dusted with icing sugar and it came with "ketchup" or raspberry coulis for dipping. These "fries" were not good though - they tasted like nothing. They help in the presentation and complete the concept and that's about it.
• Exotic Coconut Pancakes
• I didn't order these but I hear really good things about them. I'm ordering them for sure next time.
  

Firefly Tapas Kitchen & Bar

Restaurant: Firefly Tapas Kitchen & Bar

Cuisine: Mexican/Spanish/Tapas/Fusion

Last visited: August 26, 09

Area: Las Vegas

3900 Paradise Road

Price Range: $20-30 (average bill per person)

1: Poor 2: OK 3: Good 4: Very Good 5: Excellent 6: Tres Excellent!!

Food: 5

Service: 4

Ambiance: 2

Overall: 4

Additional comments:

• Casual atmosphere
• Busy, late night crowd
• Mexican servers/kitchen/staff
• Mexican and Spanish style
  
• Comfort food tapas
  
• Tapas style - so everything is meant to be shared
• Generous portions for tapas style
• Reasonably priced (around $7usd on average per tapa)
  
• Famous for stuffed dates and Sangria
• Very popular to locals - off the strip

**Recommendation: Stuffed Dates, Tuna Tartare, Stuffed Peppers, Veggie Empanada, Manchego Mac n' Cheese, Baby Back Ribs, Lamb Skewers, Sangria

My friend who lived in Vegas for 2 months brought us to this restaurant. Very familiar to locals, this place shouldn't be missed. It's casual, enjoyable, and full of energy. The decor is nothing special, and the food is nothing fancy, it's simple and down right tasty. Typical Mexican comfort food style tapas that are very reasonably priced. I went with 6 people so we made quite a dent in the menu. Everything was extra tasty becuase it's all bite sized finger food so it leaves you craving more. It's all too heavy to have a plate to yourself - so almost everything tastes good, and even if it doesn't you don't really notice because you only had a bite. This review will be done a bit differently because we tried so much stuff I won't go into too much detail. I also didn't get any pictures because it was too dark inside. You'll spend about $20-30USD per person including tax and tip.

On the table:

• Boquerones 2/6
• Spanish white anchovies on toasts with roasted red pepper, yellow pepper vin
• These were nice and salty - not fishy tasting and really typical ingredient from Spain. It kinda tastes like a quick appetizer you can throw together at home, but it's still good. One of those easy/simple/quick appetizers.
  
• **Tuna Tartare 5/6
• Layers of mango, marinated ahi tuna, avocado and taro chips.
• One of the favourites. I liked the taro chips - it was a nice twist, better than serving them with the usual tortilla chips. You get quite a bit of tartare too.
• Ceviche of Shrimp 4/5
  
• Tiger shrimp, avocado and crispy corn tortilla chips.
  
• I liked the tuna tartare better. A bit more expensive, $8.50 for a cup full, but they are relatively big pieces of shrimp so it's ok - it was quite heavy on the lime flavour. Very fresh tasting and tangy. Simple flavours that are easy to pick out.
  
• **Stuffed Dates 6/6
  
• By far THE favourite! This is what they're famous for! And they should be, and I know why. They're pretty delicious. It's a date stuffed with an almond and blue cheese, then wrapped with bacon and served with a red wine reduction sauce.
• These dates are nice and sticky and the combination of flavours merry together so well. I'm not even a fan of bacon or blue cheese and these were still amazing! No ingredient was more powerful than the other. They are bite size and just perfect. A little savoury (bacon), sweet (date), tangy (sauce), creamy (cheese), crunch (almond) and crispy (bacon) - it hits all my taste buds in the right way! You bite into a date and it oozes out warm and creamy blue cheese...then you get the crunch of the almond and the salty crispiness of the bacon and the sticky moist date - oh my god...it's amazing. Perfect in flavours and in textures - these are real treats.
• **Veggie Empanada 5/6
  
• Deep fried pastry pockets stuffed with spinach, mushroom, artichoke, and herb cream cheese and red pepper aioli.
• This is yummy! Really creamy and rich. Meant for sharing - one to yourself would be a bit much.
  
• Roasted eggplant cannelloni 3/6
  
• These "cannellonis" are rolled up roasted eggplant slices. They are stuffed with a lot of goat's cheese and marinara sauce. The goat's cheese overpowered the eggplant and it kind of felt like eating warm goat's cheese and that's it. It needed to be spread on a cracker or crostini or something.
• **Stuffed Peppers 6/6
  
• Spanish piquillo red peppers, mozzarella, garlic cream cheese and tomato sauce.
  
• These are really cheesy and really rich. But they're so small so 1-2 per person is perfect. These little red peppers are nicely marinated and really sweet so they go so well with the savoury cheeses and tangy tomato sauce.
• Mushroom Tart 4/6
  
• Puff pastry covered with mushrooms and a boursin cheesy cream sauce.
  
• This was delicious and it was a generous portion. It's actually quite big and it comes loaded with mushrooms and a bechemel type white cream sauce. I mean the puff pastry is your standard puff pastry and it tastes exactly like the description. Simple recipe and still good.
• **Manchego Mac n' Cheese 5/6
  
• This mac n' cheese was homemade and you could tell. Really cheesy, creamy just like grandma would make. Really hearty and rich yet thoroughly enjoyable.
  
• **Lamb skewers 5/6
  
• Marinated chunks of lamb with tomato and red wine sauce. It's served on a bed of lentils which I really liked. I'm not a fan of lamb, but my friends are and they all loved it so I put it as a recommendation.
  
• Crispy duck rolls 2/6
  
• It's served with a cherry hoisin sauce which is nice and creative. The duck was ground up duck though - so it tasted like sweet ground beef or something. It was crumbly and dry and bitty - I think they mixed the duck with some ground beef to save costs. I'd pass on these next time, but the sauce was nice.
• **Baby Back Ribs 6/6
• Steamed - falling off the bone ribs with a mango BBQ sauce.
  
• These taste like they're slow baked! The meat slips right off the bone and they're smothered in this sweet and tangy BBQ sauce. You get 4 big ribs for $9.50USD - A bit more expensive, but still worth it. They're really tender!
• Firefly Fish Sticks 2/6
  
• A fish stick is a fish stick. It has a panko batter though and a spicy tartar sauce.
  
• Steamed mussels 4/6
• A huge bowl of mussels served in a red curry, white wine and coconut cream sauce.
  
• This is a deal for $8USD - we got about 10 mussels. The sauce is amazing, our mussels were a bit undercooked though. 6/6 for the sauce though!
• Big Bowl Pasta 3/6
  
• I could have done without this. I would rather have tried other stuff on the menu - since marinara pasta is kind of blah. We had 6 people though so we wanted to order a filler. My favourite part of this was the big chunks of roasted and marinated artichoke hearts.
• Paella
  
• I did not order this and I probably won't because a restaurant with this type of volume won't be able to make a paella very well. I'm almost certain it will be a frozen paella. I wouldn't bother.

Dessert

• Lemon-berry Tarts 2/6
  
• Four bite sized lemon tarts with fresh berries and whipped cream.
  
• These are probably frozen too - don't taste homemade at all. But they were cheap and worth it if you need something sweet at the end of your meal...which I always do =)

LAVO Restaurant

Crispy Calamari

Kobe Stuffed Rice Balls

Lobster Scampi Style Brick Oven Pizza (Veal Milanese in the background)

Lobster and Asparagus Risotto

Restaurant: LAVO Restaurant
Cuisine: Italian/American
Last visited: August 25, 09

Area: Las Vegas
The Palazzo Hotel & Casino 3325 Las Vegas Blvd
Price Range: $30-50

1: Poor 2: OK 3: Good 4: Very good 5: Excellent 6: Tres Excellent!!

Food: 2
Service: 1
Ambiance: 6
Overall: 3
Additional comments:

• Fine dining
• Chef Ludo Lefebvre and Chef Ralph Scamardella
• Creators of TAO nightclub
• LAVO nightclub upstairs
• Beautiful set up/decor - food/service unfortunately did NOT match
• Food is overrated - Mediocre to not good - very salty/poor execution
• A bit dark - attracts ages 25-35
• Famous for meatballs
• Best thing was the complimentary garlic bread
• Pay for the atmosphere and incredible decor
• Dinner at 5pm / late night dinner

**Recommendation: If anything, the meatballs...and free garlic bread they serve you in the beginning is really good

I'm pretty disappointed by LAVO because of the poor service we received...and poor food. They claim to be "Italian" but it's really American Italian. Everything was on the whole quite salty rather than flavourful. It was fresh, but just very poorly executed. It was Italian food done really poorly. The ambiance is fine dining, but the food, menu, and plating is not. How "high end" or "fine dining" can you be when you have 2 feet long pizzas on the menu? When we told our waitress twice that our food was too salty she didn't even acknowledge it as a concern or do anything about it. Very disappointing. Her recommendations were also the most expensive things on the menu - which we ordered, and everything was still mediocre to not good. She was just really insincere about everything from the moment we sat down, to the moment we ordered and paid the bill. For the price we paid, we felt quite robbed...and some of us still hungry because we couldn't eat the food.

On the table:

• Crispy Fried Calamari 2/6
• Nothing special here. Quite standard from any restaurant. I think the Calamari at Milestones is actually better to be honest. YES the calamari is better at Milestone's! At least they put care into creating their dipping sauce. The calamari at LAVO wasn't overcooked or anything, but they were just standard. It comes with this spicy marinara sauce that comes with EVERYTHING else on the menu too. The sauce wasn't memorable either - quite runny. It tastes like it's from a jar and to make it "homemade" they squeezed some lemon and mixed in some fresh garlic and parsley.
• Overpriced at $16USD
• Kobe Stuffed Rice Balls 4/6
• This was actually not too bad, maybe the best thing we ordered. It was the size of an XXL grapefruit. It's massive! I think worth it for $16USD and it's definitely shareable. It was one of their famous Kobe beef meatballs stuffed with mozzarella cheese and green peas, insulated by a layer of rice and deep fried until golden brown. Then it's served with I think a ricotta cheese sauce and a huge pool of marinara sauce.
  
• It was pretty good, but at this point I was so tired with their marinara sauce they kept putting on everything...and it's not like it was that good! It came with the garlic bread, the calamari, and now this. The meatball was tender though and the outside is crispy because of the rice, so it really is not bad. But they could have gone easier on the marinara sauce. My rice ball was just sitting in a pool of it and it mad the crisp part of the ball soggy. The plating isn't very elegant either. It's just a giant deep fried ball on a plate - they should have served it in 6 smaller meatballs with a side of marinara for dipping and it would have been much more enjoyable. It would have avoided all the problems I had with it.
• Lobster Scampi Style Brick Oven Pizza 3/6
• Roasted lobster, fingerling potatoes, garlic oil, and fresh herbs

• The pizzas are shareable because they're 2 feet long and served on a wooden plank.
• The crust was actually done quite well and it was really enjoyable. As good as the crust is they should have took the toppings more to the edges though. We had like at least an inch of crust on each side...the width is about 6 inches.
• When you're using such gourmet ingredients you already expect the pizza to be pretty good though. The roasted lobster was quite nice and you can actually see the pieces which I appreciate. It's cubes of lobster spread over the pizza. Not overcooked or tough either. It was a tad salty rather than flavourful though and they went too heavy on the fresh herbs. The herbs overpowered the other ingredients. They kind of had big leaves on top and they didn't allow the herbs to wilt so I felt like I was eating raw herbs at times. I think they used basil and oregano, but they used to much.
• It was what it was, and it was good, but it could have been excellent - should put more time into the recipe. It was one of the better things we ordered. I would only order this if I was to share it though - otherwise $32USD for this pizza is pretty unreasonable.
• Lobster and Asparagus Risotto 1/6
• This came with pine nuts and preserved lemons. It was also highly recommended by our server. I have had way better risotto. This was the most disappointing dish. This was risotto done extremely poorly, it wasn't cooked right at well. The texture was not creamy and they definitely rushed it. It tasted like watery fried rice. I didn't feel like I was eating risotto at all. It was gummy and mushy and watery all at the same time...how does that even happen?
  
• The asparagus wasn't even cut, they just had 2 inch pieces of asparagus on top...you really shouldn't have asparagus whole in risotto. It didn't even look good. It looked like a mess. The lobster wasn't even good in it - much much better on the pizza, and if anything it should have been better in the risotto because you have more control of the cooking. I almost forgot to mention how salty it was too - we only finished half...for this type of restaurant the risotto was a major fail. Poor in presentation, flavour, texture - everything.
• Spaghetti with Kobe Meatballs 2/6
• The waitress highly recommended this dish and said it would be "the best spaghetti and meatballs we would ever have in our lives"...BOLD statement. AND she was WRONG.
  
• I gave it a 2/6 and this is basically only for the meatballs. The meatballs are pretty decent there, but it wasn't THE BEST EVER. They are tender and they're pretty big as well. The spaghetti part was really mediocre though and again too salty. The spaghetti was lightly coated in the marinara sauce which is how its served in Italy...but the marinara sauce is just so blah. I feel like the restaurant thinks it;s really good too otherwise they wouldn't pour it over everything. Just a heads up this is not your traditional spaghetti and meatballs, so don't expect "grandma's recipe" or anything...this is on the lighter side. The meatballs are the hearty part of it, but they are tasty.
• Veal Milanese 2/6
• This is a pretty big portion of veal. The veal itself isn't too bad, the quality is there and it wasn't gamey or anything. It's pounded pretty thin (maybe even too thin) and coated with a fresh breadcrumb coating. The coating was thicker than the veal though, which isn't good. They also deep fried it a bit too long - it was less golden brown and more just brown. It's served with tomatoes and arugula salad - which was very standard.
  
• For the price you pay, you can't get away with serving subpar food. The veal wasn't dry or anything, but it didn't have a sauce either - so eating a lot of it can start to taste dry. It was cooked ok, but just not very flavourful or anything. They could have done more with the flavours because it felt like I was eating it at someone's house who makes pretty good veal and not at a fine dining type of restaurant.
• Grilled Tuna Roasted Artichokes 2/6
• Seared Yellow Fin tuna, oven roasted tomatoes, lemon vinaigrette
• This was alright. For me, it was a bit of a rip off. The plating was really weak too especially for an entree. It looked quite small. The lemon vinaigrette didn't stand out to me and nothing about the dish is memorable...therefore it was only ok.
• Trimmings - Grilled Asparagus 2/6
• $10USD - and it was really small! This was the biggest rip off. It's just roasted asparagus. Way overpriced and such a small portion.