Restaurant Serving Traditional Cantonese Tim Sum Cuisines

My Favorite Tim Sum Cuisine - Braised Chicken Feet

I was in Calgary with the family and we were treated to tim sum by a friend. Another Malaysian friend that we have befriended from one of my son's reacquaintance with his former high school classmate that is going to school in Canada. We were invited to Tea Pot China Bristo on Harvest Hills Boulevard located on the North East side of Calgary. This tim sum place seems to be popular with the people in Calgary, especially those living within the area.

Shrimp Stuffed Chee Cheong Fun

I was amazed with the crowd even at eleven o'clock in the morning. The diner were already full inside and more people were still trying to come in to the restaurant. Apparently, this tim sum place is famous for their late opening hours and longer opening times. They serve tim sum until three in the afternoon. There were just a consistent flow of people coming in and leaving the diner. This was just the opposite of what recession looks like.

Steamed Glutinous Rice

At least from my personal observation and how I have imagined it to be. I am amazed, most restaurants are still doing well in spite of the economic down turn in Alberta. The prices of essential goods and food in Alberta is higher than British Columbia in general. And business such as restaurants are doing well. For some even better than before the economic downturn. I actually asked one of the restaurant managers about this positive trend and was told that the restaurant has been doing good as if the slower economy has not affected the business at all.

Marinated Pork Ribs

The manager also told me that Tea Pot China Bristo belongs to and is managed by a company operating a group of restaurants with different brand names catering to different demographics and all their restaurants were doing as well. Diners today are looking for uniqueness. They are not so particular with taste and flavours. So long as the food taste decent enough and has appealing presentation, the main priority would be a place to hang out with people of the same age group and of similar interest.

Tea Pot's Signature Barbecue Pork Buns

In general the tim sum that I have eaten at Tea Pot China Bristo was authentic and tasty. The dining experience was just like walking into a tim sum restaurant in one of those luxury tim sum restaurants in Hong Kong. I fairly enjoyed the atmosphere in the diner. The crowd and the noises really adds to the ambiance of a tim sum restaurant. The tim sum cuisines that were served in the diner wasn't exactly different from any others but the crowd makes it seem liked how a tim sum place should be.

Bean Curd Sheets with Enoki Mushroom in Abalone Sauce

I have been to many tim sum restaurants, be it in Vancouver or any other parts of the world. This one is just vibrant and the ambiance was just right. But having said that, the important element for a successful tim sum place lies in the crowd. Therefore, location is the main key. The people that still visits this traditionally old breakfast hang out are ethnic Chinese. A tim sum place will only be successful if there were enough older Chinese leaving in the area. Because the right ambiance to hang out with friends and sharing a pot of Chinese tea is the reason to do tim sum.

Fried Shrimp Wuntun

Rice Porridge

Siew Mai

Curry Squid

The Only Chinese Restaurant in town

Honey Garlic Spare Ribs

We were in Swift Current, Saskatchewan visiting a friend and noticed that the town has only one Chinese restaurant. The Chinese restaurant, Wong's Kitchen, is located on the west end of the town as we were entering Swift Current from the border between Saskatchewan and Alberta. We assumed that being the only Chinese restaurant, the restaurant must be a popular diner with the folks around the area. Especially with the folks that like Chinese cuisines.

Chicken Meat Ball with Sweet and Sour Sauce

So, before we continued on with our journey to our friend's place, we decided to have lunch at Wong's Kitchen. When we entered the diner, it was dark and we thought the diner was closed for the hour. But upon checking the time, we realized that it was already three thirty in the afternoon. We were invited to come in anyway, although the buffet has closed. We were shown to a table and served with cold water. I think the waitress understood that we were travellers and just wanted to have a quick lunch.

Mushroom and Chicken with Low Mein

We ordered three dishes and a plate of fried rice. The orders were served really quickly. I am thinking that they must be the leftovers from the buffet, put together into separate dishes and served with different sauces. I could be wrong but it definitely seem so. Anyway, the cuisines were supposedly be Cantonese style. None of them taste or flavour close to any Cantonese cuisines we have previously eaten before. The cuisines was not really bad. They were tasty and has some flavour but definitely not authentic. Not even close. Again, this is a small town, things are different here and expectations are simply lower of Chinese cuisines.

Fast Food on The Go

Sausage MacMuffin with Cheese

The best, easiest and most convinient way to travel is to pack up on MacDonald's sandwiches. One, they are located nearly everywhere and they are consistently the same in every aspect, from prices to taste and to services. Other than using their washrooms, which is usually cleaner than most washrooms in the rest areas along the major highways, they are a good place to catch up on social media and internet chats while taking a quick bite.

Egg BLT Bagel

Most of the services in washrooms on the major highways are provided without water and they can be really sticky with the hot summer weather conditions. Unless it was really necessary, I will rather stop at a MacDonald's than the rest area on the highway. While stopping, we would usually pick up something to eat and drink. Depending on the time of day we stop at these MacDonald's, I like their simple breakfast menu. I would order the Sausage MacMuffins with cheese but without the eggs which is usually not presented on their breakfast menu because this is the item that is worth the value for me.

Tortilla Warp

If you would like to pamper yourself over breakfast than do the Egg BLT Bagel deal without the set. Next item from the menu that is worth the value for me is the wrap which is the tortilla wrapped with hash-brown, egg, sausage and some vegetables. They also serve good coffee and priced it at a dollar. Where can one get a breakfast for under five dollars these days? Besides that the kids loved MacDonald's, they get all excited when there is a chance for a quick MacDonald's stop. I am a fan of MacDonald's anytime when it is about saving time on the journey.

Really Delicious Japanese Ramen Noodles

Pan Fried Yukiudon

I was with my family passing through Kelowna and had to stop by this Japanese restaurant on Pandosy Street called Wasabi Izakaya Japanese Restaurant. We had initially asked a friend who lives in Kelowna about a good place to dine and he recommended this Japanese restaurant. According to him this is the best Japanese restaurant for Ramen Noodle. I have not heard of a Japanese restaurant that specializes in Ramen Noodle. So, we decided to stop and have a quick bite.

Soul Food of Japan - Curry Ramen with Chicken

When we stepped into the diner, it was full and only one table was available. We were just on time. We only have to wait for about five minutes and decided on our orders. Since this place was famous for its Ramen Noodles, although they have four sets of menu serving different Japanese cuisines, we chose to focus on the Ramen Noodle. My two kids had the AB Ramen Noodle with Pork and Pan Fried Yakiudon. While I ordered their signature Ramen Noodle, Soul Food of Japan with the house special Japanese Curry flavour and Chicken meat.

AB Ramen Noodle with Prok

My wife on the other hand, ordered the Tako Wasabi which is the octopus salad marinated with wasabi, crispy potato and sweet onions. I actually tried a spoonful of each of the cuisines we ordered and I like them. The Ramen Noodles were really authentic and flavourful. In fact these were the best Japanese Ramen Noodles I have eaten. We enjoyed the Ramen Noodles so much so that we actually finished drinking the soup as well. I will recommend this place to anyone passing through Kelowna. Good place to dine with delicious authentic Japanese cuisines.

The Green Bamboo Vietnamese Noodle Shop

Rice with Pork Chicken Chop

I was introduced to this Vietnamese Noodle shop by a friend and after that first visit, I have returned with my family and other friends more than a few times already. The noodle shop is actually own by a Taiwanese couple and have been operating the business for many years. Just like many Vietnamese noodle shop, the Green Bamboo serves a variety of soup based noodle cuisines and rice & meat combinations. They also have a range of side orders such as spring rolls, fried chicken wings and pot stickers.

Rice with Pork Chop

The diner is rather small. So, I think it can only cater for about twenty people the most at any one time. The plus point for such a joint is the waiting time. Orders are served within ten minutes and the serving portions are generously large. My wife and I usually share one large order of their delicious noodle cuisine. We like the tomato paste cuisine and the house special. The house special comes with generous portions of slice beef, beef balls, and plenty of white noodles. My kids like their rice combinations which is also plentiful.

House Special

I have to say my favorite is still their house special. The soup for this particular order is clear but don't let that full you, it can be really hot and spicy. Sometimes the green chillies that was garnished on the soup can be really hot. My wife likes their seafood version of the same soup base. And that too is not bad. Although they are called the Vietnamese Noodle House, their soup base and rice cuisines have evolved into something other than Vietnamese cuisines. And the people around the area likes it. I guess, the cuisines are more Taiwanese than Vietnamese.

Still A Favorite Among Malaysians

Authentic Penang Lobak

The Penang Lobak in still a favorite cuisine among Malaysians in gatherings, potlucks and cookouts. I fried some Penang Lobak for a potluck during the weekend and they were gone within minutes when served. Other than that the cuisine was a conversational piece too. People were asking, who brought the Penang Lobak cuisine. And comments like, I have not eaten these in years, keep coming up. Many people, even Malaysians who are not familiar with Penang special cuisines don't really know about Penang Lobak.

 Penang Signature Cuisine

But one thing in common is that, the Penang Lobak taste really good and flavourful too. There are a couple of different recipes found on the internet for making the Penang Lobak but I still like my grandmothers recipe. Using traditional ingredients such as five spices (main ingredient), corn starch, taro mixed with pork then wrapped in soybean curd sheets. Fry each roll in hot cooking oil until the soybean curd sheets becomes crispy. Once the lobak rolls are fried, allow them to set for several minutes before serving because if not the meat inside might burn the tongue.

Everybody's Favorite

The Penang Lobak is also served with two types of dips or sauces. One is the chilli sauce which taste and looks like the Thai chilli sauce and the other the corn starch with chicken broth, which is not spicy. A good piece of lobak has adequate taste and flavour that does not need to be dip in any sauce to be delicious. So, I usually only provide the chilli sauce for the lobak, which is available in many Asian grocery stores. Fried pressed tofus can be served alongside this Penang signature cuisine as both can be dipped in the same chilli sauce and corn starch sauce for additional flavours.

Potluck with Another Group of Malaysian Friends

An Authentic Malaysian Feast

I was invited to potluck with a new group of Malaysian friends through one of my closes friends in the Jalan Jalan Cari Makan group of friends. This Malaysian group is not new in Vancouver but my wife and I are among their latest members. This group of Malaysians have been living in Vancouver for more then twenty years on the average. The longest would be forty something years and the earliest was about five years. But the one thing that stood out in the group was definite my wife and I, we were not only the latest recruit but also the youngest couple. In fact among the elderly gentlemen, I seem to be the youngest man.

Sweet Glutinous Rice Cake

Age was never the topic discussed in the potluck but the food was really diverse, even for a Malaysian potluck. There were so much food of various Chinese ethnicity on the buffet table. These were the same authentic Malaysian cuisines found in many of the coffee shops, food stalls, food courts, restaurants and market place in Malaysia. It was a feast of Malaysian delights. Everything displayed on the table were authentically Chinese Malaysian. And in events like these, the Malaysian favorite, Nasi Lemak will surely be one of the main attraction. Also, there were sambal anchovies, curry chicken and beef rendang served alongside the fragrant coconut milk rice.

Tapioca Cake

My wife's contribution to the potluck was the Penang Lobak. Surprisingly, everyone likes them. And it took less than ten minutes, the whole tray of twenty rolls of Penang Lobak in the tray were gone. Many of the friends have not had the Penang Lobak for years. That must have been a special treat to them. Other than the heavy stuff, the desserts were also plenty full. I counted at least five different Malaysian desserts excluding cut fruits. The group members must be really great home cooks. The desserts tasted just like the ones we find in Malaysia. I was really happy to have been invited to the potluck.

Fried Popiah

Fried Glass Noodle

Taro Cake

Coffee Flavoured Jelly