French Dish in Chinatown

Lunch today in Chinatown -- beef brisket in tomato sauce

Today's lunch at The Boss Bakery and Restaurant in Chinatown -- "French style" beef brisket with rice.

It's a misnomer, as there's nothing French about it.

The dish arrived with a literal mountain of rice, pieces of very tender beef brisket with slices of tomatoes, red and green capsicums and onion, generously coated in a tangy tomato sauce.

Nevertheless, it was delicious, and as usual took more than half of it home as leftovers!

Tai Po Fire Inquiry Reveals Safety Issues

The inquiry into the Tai Po fire has uncovered many issues

Reading reports related to the inquiry into the horrific Tai Po fire in Hong Kong last November are absolutely tragic.

One hundred and sixty-eight people died and 79 were injured when a fire started on November 26 in one of the apartment buildings at Wang Fuk Court, and the wind carried the fire onto the other buildings that were covered in combustible mesh. 

The fire burned over 43 hours, leaving some victims unidentifiable because the temperature was so hot.

The fire left 168 people dead, 79 injured

Some residents testified they did not hear the fire alarms because they had been purposely shut off for workers to easily go in and out of the buildings. 

Others felt guilty for not checking on their neighbours, many of them elderly people, and instead fled from the inferno on their own. It is shocking and sad how they had complete disregard for others, but also they had no idea their home was on fire until loved ones called to tell them because their windows were covered over with polyfoam boards to prevent damaging windows.

Then there is the shady aspect of companies that specifically bid for these exterior renovation jobs, and it seems that there is a cartel, charging excessive amounts of money -- in this case HK$336 million (US$43 million), and allegations of rigging, though the government denies collusion.

There is also the issue of these renovation companies flouting safety regulations.

Several residents at Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po had complained several times to the authorities about the renovation workers smoking and littering cigarette butts, but not much was done to punish them or their employer. 

There was also lax inspection of the scaffolding mesh -- the company was tipped off before inspectors came, and they replaced ones near the bottom with non-combustible mesh, while the rest were the cheaper, combustible ones. 

Combustible mesh caused the fire to spread

The Fire Services Department, Labour Department, and the Housing Bureau's Independent Checking Unit have insisted they were not responsible for checking the fireproof quality of the mesh that covered the exterior of the buildings to minimise dust and objects falling on people. 

Why are these departments not taking the responsibility to inspect renovations in progress and take the residents' concerns seriously before the fire? 

Too many things went wrong that day, and it didn't help that it was quite windy. But it is not just Wang Fuk Court -- there are many other older buildings in Hong Kong being renovated with similar lax procedures. 

Hopefully the inquiry will put forward some good recommendations so this tragedy will not be repeated, with an emphasis on safety for all. This fire could have been prevented, or minimised had regulations been followed and inspections been more stringent.

 

Reliving the 90s Thanks to Love Story

The series has increased interest in the real life couple

There's a lot of discussion about Love Story, the dramatised series on FX on the romance and then tragic end of John F Kennedy Jr and his wife Carolyn Bessette.

It has drawn a lot of criticism from the Kennedy family, in particular Jack Schlossberg, who said the family was not consulted, while Daryl Hannah, who was John F Kennedy's on-and-off girlfriend before Bessette, claimed the show was not even remotely close to her real life or relationship with him.

Kelly and Pidgeon star as Kennedy and Bessette

Nevertheless for Millennials and Gen Z, the story of Kennedy and Bessette's relationship is new to them, and along with it a fascination for the 1990s, from the fashion to the music, New York at the time, and celebrity culture.

For those of us who watched the couple from afar and then mourned their deaths in a plane crash on July 16, 1999, it's a weird feeling dredging up the ill-fated event, as well as the intense scrutiny of their relationship, and paparazzi constantly following them everywhere, that has echoes of Princess Diana.

On social media, influencers point out how Bessette had a small but classic wardrobe of designer clothes that she wore repeatedly, mostly black, but the key word was "effortless". As someone who worked for Calvin Klein, she herself emulated the style of minimalism, monotone colours and understated coolness.

The couple was highly scrutinised in the 1990s

And yes, John F Kennedy Jr really was that good looking at the time! He seemed to roll with the reality that photographers were going to stalk him everywhere and seemed good natured about it for the most part; however, it was something Bessette had to get used to very quickly.

Now with Love Story, there are a lot of comparisons between reality and the fictional couple played by Sarah Pidgeon and Paul Anthony Kelly. Apparently in the beginning there was a lot of uproar of the clothes Pidgeon wore in the test shots because they did not look like items Bessette, or CBK would wear.

So there was more effort put into finding the same clothes or something close enough, and the sartorial fans approved. 

And then tangentially there has been interest in Calvin Klein, his then wife Kelly Klein, how all the staff looked like models and the office had to look perfect everyday.

There is criticism of fact and fiction in the show

I also remember Kennedy launching George magazine and wow it was a blast of fresh air. Having Cindy Crawford dressed as George Washington on the cover, Kennedy made politics cool and more importantly accessible to young people.

It was hilarious seeing him make a cameo on Murphy Brown, my favourite show at the time. He sits at her secretary's desk and she's shocked to see him. He gives her a gift, but it turns out to be a mock-up of Murphy on the cover of George magazine. She is not amused.

Kennedy and Bessette were America's royal couple, and Love Story has rekindled interest in the 1990s. Thanks for the memories, but maybe it's a love story we shouldn't have brought up decades later.

Review: Vegan Omakase at Cofu Chinatown

Chef Akiko (left) getting ready to serve omakase at Cofu

Earlier this week I was invited to experience vegan omakase at Cofu Chinatown, opened by chef Akiko Gulkison in Vancouver. 

It's unlike Shoku Vegan Sushi in Kerrisdale, where food is made to look and somewhat taste like fish and meat.

Silky chawanmushi without eggs

Instead Cofu reimagines an omakase meal using mostly vegetables and some fruits. It takes a lot of skill and knowledge to know how to create flavourful vegan and vegetarian food. 

For the most part chef Akiko does a great job. In an 18-course dinner she showcased the sweetness of carrot, how chawanmushi can be just as silky smooth without using eggs, and miso-marinated eggplant paired with snow fungus on rice wrapped in nori can make a delicious pairing.

There are some interesting items like a skewer of zucchini covered in tofu that is marinated and then grilled, or a nigiri with potato mixed with various vegetables, and combining sake-steamed shiitake with zuke peach.

I wasn't quite sure about the radicchio wrapped in kombu and then made into nigiri -- the seaweed was unable to tame the leafy chicory's infamous bitterness. 

Miso-marinated eggplant with snow fungus

Meanwhile chef Akiko's version of ochazuke, where a tea broth is poured over rice was quite bland. The same could be said of the shojin dashi, which was made with vegetable trimmings, but perhaps not simmered long enough to extract more flavour.

Nevertheless, the meal ends with a dessert of matcha  sponge cake and red bean paste, followed by a lovely palate cleanser of a scoop of beet sorbet. The dinner could have ended there, but we are served ceremonial-grade matcha tea with homemade sweets.

Cofu is a warm and inviting space, and a rarity to see two female Japanese chefs serving eight people at the bar. 

On the weekends, the restaurant is a coffee joint, and will soon serve breakfast paninis using vegan cheese...

Refreshing beet sorbet for dessert

Cofu Chinatown, 488 Gore Avenue, Vancouver, BC. Tel: 604 336 1166

Fire Destroys Restaurateurs' Dreams

A fire above Osteria Otto has displaced six residents

Last night a fire broke out in Vancouver, near Broadway and Main, which destroyed a restaurant that had just opened in December.

Osteria Otto was full when the fire happened in a bedroom unit above the restaurant, and luckily the patrons managed to evacuate from the premises, but now the owners, Ignacio Arrieta and Joe Fazio, who spent more than a year planning and renovating, now have a gutted space, and their staff have lost their jobs.

"For three wonderful months, we had the privilege of serving this community and seeing our vision come to life, but this chapter as we knew it has come to a sudden and heavy end," says a message on Osteria Otto's Instagram post.

The restaurant was destroyed

"While everyone is safe, the water damage from the firefighting efforts has left the restaurant completely destroyed, and it is clear that our future is uncertain as we work with the city and insurance."

The owners have set up a GoFundMe page for the staff, and to help with navigating the restaurant's next steps. 

So far just over $15,000 has been raised, with a goal of $80,000. The provincial Minister of Housing and Municipal Affairs Christine Boyle donated $100, as well as Kavita chef Tushar Tondvalkar, and pastry chef Daria Andriienko. 

Meanwhile six residents have been displaced, and fire investigators are looking into an electric blanket that may have caused the fire.

Restaurants in Vancouver are already having a tough time, with fewer people having extra money to spend eating out. Just opening a restaurant is a massive capital expenditure, and then having a fire snuff it out after three months is absolutely devastating.

While the hospitality industry rallies around Osteria Otto, it will take more money just to get back to square one again.

Picture of the Day: Magnolias

Magnolias in various stages of blooming

Magnolias are blooming now, and like cherry blossoms, are only around for a short time.

But did you know you could eat them?

They apparently taste like ginger and cloves, and not only can they be consumed fresh in salads or steeped in tea, but also pickled in vinegar, steeped in sugar to make syrups for drinks, and dried and blitzed into powder for seasoning.

Ideally pick them when they are still buds, otherwise the ones that have bloomed taste more bitter.

To prepare the magnolias, remove the centre of the flower called the carpel, as it is quite bitter. Wash the petals thoroughly in cold water and remove any brown, papery bracts around the buds, and any bruised petals. 

Have you eaten magnolias before? Let us know!

A Bowl of Taiwanese Flavours

Taiwan style noodle soup at BBT Cafe

Today I met up with some friends for lunch in Vancouver's Kerrisdale and we decided to go to BBT Cafe, a Taiwanese restaurant.

I'd eaten there a few years ago and hadn't been back since.

I ordered the Taiwan style noodle soup ($15.95), which includes a soy-infused egg, bits of braised pork, shrimp, and bean sprouts with wheat noodles.

This dish is called Taiwanese danzai noodle soup, which translates as "wooden stick noodle soup", or "slack season noodle soup", which was made by fishermen in southern Taiwan. 

During the off-season, or "slack season", they would peddle the noodles by carrying them in pots suspended from wooden sticks to make some money until the season came to catch seafood.

Enjoyed this bowl of noodles, a relatively light lunch and liked the chewy texture of the wheat noodles!

BBT Cafe, 5979 West Boulevard, Vancouver, BC. Tel: 604 266 2195

Review: Bun Cha Ca Hoang Yen

Large portions are served at Bun Cha Ca Hoang Yen

When my friend AY calls and says we should meet up for lunch, it means a culinary adventure for me.

He's a walking guide book to food in Vancouver, but not the Michelin Guide restaurants. AY is a bona fide lover of street eats and will go to great distances to find where good food is and then share his discoveries with other foodies... like myself.

The restaurant is know for its Bun Rieu

Today we met up for lunch at Bun Cha Ca Hoang Yen on Victoria Drive near East 33rd Avenue. I managed to find parking on a side street and AY was already in line. The place was absolutely packed for a Sunday.

Diners slowly trickled out and finally we got a table right by the window.

Bun Cha Ca Hoang Yen used to be located a few blocks further south, but moved here almost four years ago. It is known for its crab vermicelli as well as homemade fish balls, so we ordered both with rice noodles and a dish of salt and pepper chicken wings.

Not long after two giant bowls arrived, along with a plate heaped with raw bean sprouts, lime wedges and fresh basil leaves.

Fish cakes and vermicelli in a clear broth with dill

Bun Rieu ($19.95) is described on the menu as "special crab soup with vermicelli". It has a tinge of red, but it's not spice at all; the colouring is from the crab paste mixed with egg, creating fluffy mounds floating on the surface, and underneath are some shrimp, slices of pork, deep-fried tofu puffs, slices of Vietnamese pork sausage, and tomato wedges along with lots of rice noodles and coriander and spring onions.

Meanwhile Bun Cha Ca Dac Biet ($18.95) is fish cakes with rice noodles in soup, featuring a clear broth, with not only fish balls, but also sliced fish cakes, Chinese celery, tomato wedges, lots of dill, and spring onions. The fish balls are not a round ball per se, but somewhat springy in texture.

This dish is the lighter of the two, but both are substantial in terms of portion.

The chicken wings, or Canh Ga Rang Muoi ($17.95), need to be dipped in the lemony pepper sauce to give them flavour, otherwise on their own they were bland, as the batter didn't have much taste.

Chicken wings dipped in a lemony pepper sauce

Somehow over the course of two hours we managed to finish practically all the food!

Needless to say I soon suffered a food coma after I got home...

Bun Cha Ca Hoang Yen, 5155 Victoria Drive, Vancouver, BC. Tel: 604 321 2711 

Saturday Morning Cartoons in the Movie Theatre

I had to check this out!

This morning I went to Vancouver's Park Theatre, an independent movie theatre on Cambie Street to watch -- Saturday morning cartoons with cereal!

Really! It reminds me of when I was a kid, waking up early and rushing downstairs to turn on the television to watch cartoons with a bowl of cereal. Apparently many others in my generation did too.

Today the theatre held its first "Saturday Morning All-You-Can-Eat Cartoon Party!" and I just had to check it out.

There were many cereals to choose

For this event tickets were a bit more expensive at $23 for adults, $15 for children, but it included as much cereal as you could eat with either milk or plant-based milk. We were encouraged to bring our own non-breakable bowl, otherwise they had compostable bowls and wooden spoons.

And there was an extensive selection of cereals: all the sugary ones were near the front of the table, like Lucky Charms, Fruit Loops, Oreo Puffs, Golden Grahams, Captain Crunch, Strawberry Toast Crunch, and Rice Krispies, while towards the end were the relatively healthier options like Kellogg's Corn Flakes, Honey Nut Cheerios, and Chex.

Like most people, I poured a combination of these cereals into my bowl, added milk and sat down in the theatre and ate.

The programmer for the theatre introduced herself and explained this Saturday morning cartoon show was previously shown at the sister Rio Theatre several times, but this is the first time at the Park since being under new management (same as the Rio Theatre).

She explained that this was a "low stakes event" in that the lights would not be dimmed further so that people could see what they were eating, easily get up and get more cereal, take a break, and so on. She stressed it was a marathon, not a sprint.

The cartoons themselves are compiled by David Bertrand in Toronto, including the retro TV commercials, and then are distributed across the country to independent theatres. 

My combination of cereals with milk

We watched cartoons from Inspector Gadget, Charlie Brown, ThunderCats, Daffy Duck, Smurfs, Green Street Frogs, and a stop-motion animation about the California Raisins.

The storylines of some of these cartoons were so funny because bad guys would be caught so quickly and easily, or the bad guy would reveal their motivations as soon as they were arrested. 

Meanwhile the TV commercials were hilarious to watch so many decades later; it made you realise how naive or gullible they thought audiences were at the time. There was one ad about Crest toothpaste where a mother says she can't protect her child all the time because she has to go to work, but Crest can be with her daughter all day!

I didn't think I would sit through all three hours, but I pretty much sat through 2.5 hours easily! Some of the cartoons were almost 30 minutes long. I had forgotten how some could be long, like Inspector Gadget and Charlie Brown, while others, like Daffy Duck were short, and clips of Felix the Cat were only seconds long.

The theatre was barely one-quarter full, many aduilts and some families, but we were quite an enthusiastic crowd. Hopefully word of mouth will get more people to come next time. And yes I did get a sugar high from the cereal!

Picture of the Day: Spring is Here

Pastel pink cherry blossoms are out

Spring allergies didn't really hit me until today. After days of rain in Vancouver, which is now called "an atmospheric river", we were surprised to see the sun and blue skies!

When that happens you have to go out for a walk, and today was particularly significant as it's the first day of Spring.

Magnolias have begun to bloom

I saw magnolias blooming as well as cherry blossoms.

But after my walk I started having sneezing fits and my eyes watered.

Ten hours later my eyes are still itchy, my nose can't stop dripping.

When I was in Hong Kong I never had this problem!

Nevertheless, still thrilled to see that winter is behind us, even though we had no recorded snow this year. The last time that happened was 43 years ago! 

Sake to the Hollywood Stars and Beyond

Dassai Junmai Dai Ginjo 23, 39, 45 and Nigori 45

In the late 1980s sushi and sashimi came to Vancouver, and along with it, sake.

At the time Japanese restaurants served sake warm, presenting them in silver buckets meant for ice, but instead filled with warm water.

Bluefin tuna crudo with blood orange

For a long time that's how many of us thought that was how sake was supposed to be imbibed.

However it turns out warm sake is typically lower-grade sake to mask the harsh flavours, while premium ones are served chilled, much like white wine.

Last night I got a chance to try some sake by the brand Dassai, which I have tried a few times with Japanese food.

At the Governors Ball following the Oscars last Sunday, Hollywood elite were treated to Dassai sake to have with food prepared by celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck, along with sushi prepared by sushi chefs. And for those curious, it was Dassai 23.

But the exercise last evening was to sample the sake with Western-style food to show non-Japanese that sake can be paired with anything from cheese to pizza and steak.

Rice polished at different percentages

The Sake Samurai for Canada is Patrick Ellis and he loves talking about sake. He became a Sake Samurai in 2018, where he was inducted in an hours' long ceremony where he had to give a speech in Japanese about what sake means to him.

He explained that sake has umami, the fifth sense, described as savouriness which can be found in food like tomatoes, mushrooms, soy sauce, anchovies, cheese and dashi.

The numbers on the bottles indicate how much the brown rice has been polished. In the case of Dassai 23, that means 77 percent of the rice has been polished, and for Dassai 45, 55 percent of the rice was polished. The more the rice is polished, the cleaner the flavour and brighter the aroma.

We started off with a sparkling sake which was milky in appearance, followed by Junmai Dai Ginjo Dassai 23 Centrifuge paired with bluefin tuna crudo with blood orange segments. The centrifuge helps filter the sake from the lees for a cleaner taste, or so they say. This pairing extended the sweet taste of toro and chutoro.

Foie gras torchon with brioche and apricot

The tasting continued with Junmai Dai Ginjo Dassai 39, which tasted cleaner, and a bolder taste, paired with foie gras torchon on toasted brioche with apricot gelee.

The main course of USDA prime Omaha striploin was rolled with proscuitto and served with stewed San Marzano tomatoes, black truffle and whipped potatoes, and was paired with Junmai Dai Ginjo Dassai 45. This was similar to Dassai 39 with a clean taste that had no trouble holding up to the strong flavours of the beef.

For dessert, Madagascar vanilla panna cotta with poached pear sauce together with Nigori Dassai 45.

After dinner, Ellis also told us that Dassai sake ingredients were sent to the International Space Station last fall to try sake fermentation in space! It returned to Earth recently and will be made into sake soon. He was hinting that if we end up living in space, the easiest alcoholic drink to make there will be sake, not wine.

Striploin rolled with proscuitto in tomato sauce

Representing Dassai were two executives who specifically flown in to Vancouver just for this event and left today: Shohei Yamane, director at Dassai, and Takenari Yamamori, manager of international business.

I asked Yamane about how Dassai managed to get served at the Governors Ball and he explained that one of the Dassai partners is in the movie business. What a great marketing strategy! Apparently director Steven Spielberg pronounced their sake as "exceptional".

When I asked Yamane about the biggest sake market outside of Japan, he said it was China. Before it was Hong Kong, but like seafood and steaks, some of it goes across the mainland and it's hard to know exactly how much.

We also talked about Hong Kong, and he knew of a sake bar called Sake Bar Ginn that he had visited, and I had been too! Too bad it closed during Covid.

Yamane talking to the sake crowd

Dassai is hoping to grow sake consumption in Canada, and it starts with dinners like these to educate diners what sake is and how it complements pretty much everything you eat.

 

Chinese Restaurants Riffing Off Each Other

Lobster meat stir-fried with egg white at Lanxuan Restaurant

You know the saying, one is random, two is a coincidence, and three is a trend?

Within five days I have tried two similar dishes in two different Chinese restaurants that may result in the latest trend to eat in Vancouver.

On Friday evening we went to Lanxuan Restaurant in Richmond, where we had some fantastic dishes, such as butterfly deep-fried chicken with glutinous rice underneath, a giant pot of a fish with pumpkin, and a flavourful soup with ingredients such as dates, longan and pork.

The highlight was lobster meat extracted from the shell and stir-fried with egg white. The presentation was even more bougie with tiny bits of gold leaf and shrimp roe on top.

Crab meat stir-fried with egg white at Dynasty

It was fantastic with a splash of Chinese vinegar to enhance the flavour.

Then last night we went to the always high quality Dynasty Seafood Restaurant, where our host managed to get some special dishes like a whole roast duck with tea-smoked quail eggs, deep-fried white bait typhoon shelter style, and freshly made sesame balls with black sesame filling for dessert.

The standout by far was crab meat stir-fried with egg white. It was presented on a massive platter that we couldn't finish. The crab meat was so dense, one can only wonder how many crabs were used in the dish. This was also served with dark vinegar seasoned with ginger.

I can surmise that Lanxuan has had this lobster dish before as it was recommended to us by a regular patron, while Dynasty staff told us the crab dish was new; they probably thought of riffing off of what the former restaurant had done.

A large fish in a hot pot with braised pumpkin

What's next? A combination of crab and lobster? Or with scallops? Geoduck?

Picture of the Day: Plum Blossom

Some plum blossoms in their pink glory

Vancouver is in the middle of a deluge of rain this week, and today miraculously there was a bit of respite, so I went out for a walk.

The plum blossoms are out and I took a picture of some for all to enjoy.

That is all.

Chinatown Eats: Bitter Melon and Spare Ribs

A large portion of bitter melon and spare ribs with lots of rice!

Went to Chinatown today and headed to The Boss Bakery and Restaurant for lunch.

One of the lunch specials was a classic Cantonese dish -- bitter melon with spare ribs.

Here the bitter melon is thinly sliced and sauteed with onion, and pickled vegetables that add a slightly sour taste to counterbalance the sweetness of the small pieces of pork ribs. 

The saucy dish is great with white rice, and at The Boss, it's always a giant mound that could feed a family of four.

Mini pineapple buns and flaky egg tarts

Just as we were finishing our lunch more food was ferried to our table -- freshly baked mini pineapple buns and flaky Portuguese-style flaky egg tarts. 

The buns were warm, light and fluffy with a slight crunch from the cookie top. So good!

The Boss Bakery and Restaurant, 532 Main Street, Vancouver, BC. Tel: 604 683 3860.

Some Well Deserved Oscar Wins

Borenstein (white suit) and Talankin with their Oscars

Happy with the results of the Academy Awards?

I did not watch the whole thing, but thrilled, ecstatic, excited that the films I did watch, won Oscars:

Jessie Buckley for Best Actress in Hamnet.

Buckley was the favourite to win

Her guttural scream in a pivotal point in the film was so primal and intense, viewers could not help but feel her immense pain of losing her child.

Buckley said in a podcast that after making the film, she was desperate to get pregnant! Now she has an eight-month old baby girl and in her acceptance speech said she loved being her mother.

"It's Mother's Day in the UK today, so I would like to dedicate this to the beautiful chaos of a mother's heart. We all come from a lineage of women who continue to create against all odds," she said.

All The Empty Rooms for Best Documentary Short

It's a haunting documentary, seeing the empty bedrooms of children who were killed in school shootings. Not only is it commendable for journalist Steve Hartman and photographer Lou Bopp to visit these grieving families, but also record these children's rooms to prove they existed, they were loved, they had lives with hopes and dreams.

Cazares was so brave to speak out on stage

When the filmmakers went up to accept the Oscar, one of the mothers, Gloria Cazares spoke on stage. Her daughter died in the Uvalde shooting in May 2022.

"My daughter, Jackie, was nine years old when she was killed in Uvalde. Since that day, her bedroom has been frozen in time," Cazares said.

"Jackie is more than just a headline. She is our light and our life. Gun violence is now the number one cause of death in kids and teens. We believe that if the world could see their empty bedrooms, it would be a different America."

Mr Nobody Against Putin for Best Documentary Feature

In accepting the golden statuette, co-director David Borenstein warned the audience what authoritarianism is.

"Mr Nobody Against Putin is about how you lose your country," he said. "And what we saw when working with this footage is that you lose it through countless, small, little acts of complicity.

Talankin (on floor) urged for wars to stop now

"When a government murders people on the streets of our major cities, when we don't say anything, when oligarchs take over the media and control how we could produce it and consume it -- we all face a moral choice. But luckily, even a nobody is more powerful than you think."

He then introduced the star of the documentary, Pavel Talankin to speak through a Russian translator.

"For four years, we looked at the sky, for a shooting star to make an important wish. But there are countries where instead of stars they have shooting bombs and shooting drones. In the name of the future, in the name of all of our children, stop all of these wars now," said Talankin, who is now in exile in Europe.

Afterwards when Borenstein spoke to the media, he made another warning:

"One interesting thing about working with a team of Russians throughout this process has been my desire as an American to constantly compare the situation in America to Russia," he said.

"But a lot of my Russian colleagues and friends always said, 'No, no, it's not the same situation. It's actually happening quicker in America than it's been happening in Russia,' Trump is moving a lot quicker than Putin in his early years."

The Girl Who Cried Pearls for Best Animation Short

Well deserved award for Szcerbowski and Lavis

This 17-minute film was absolutely stunning in terms of its fantastic story and execution. The story isn't so simple and makes viewers think about it afterwards.

Co-directors Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski make their acceptance speech short and sweet.

"We just really want to thank our amazing neighbourhood and the amazingly talented community of artists that we've had the superb luck to work with," Szczerbowski said. "Thank you to the fantastic city of Montreal. Thank you, Canada."

"Canada!" Lavis chimed in, as they raised their Oscars.

They gave a shoutout to composer Patrick Watson and actor Colm Feore who narrated the film.

Big congratulations to all the winners and nominees! 

What the Stars will be Eating and Drinking

O'Brien will be hosting the 98th Academy Awards

The 98th Academy Awards is tomorrow and everyone is gearing up for the big event. Pundits are guessing who will win the coveted golden statuettes, will winners make political statements that will rile up the American president, and who will wear which designer outfit. The best dressed list will be compiled, and definitely who wore it the worst with endless memes to come.

After the awards show hosted by Conan O'Brien, the celebrities will head to the Governors Ball, where newly minted Academy Award winners get their names engraved on their Oscars, while everyone else can finally cheat on their months-long diets and workouts and gorge on real food.

Puck (left) with Miyazaki beef

Celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck (who I had the opportunity to interview back in 2019) has been busy getting the food ready for the ball. He has a lot of experience catering for this event -- his 32nd consecutive year, which is no easy feat.

"We make 25,000 small plates," he said, adding the celebs can have Japanese food, Austrian food and the best steak -- Miyazaki beef "with Ozempic instead of spinach" if they prefer.

He will make 1,200 of his traditional chicken pot pies that require 22kg of black truffle, and there will also be 32kg of caviar, 1,000 plates of macaroni and cheese, and more than 91kg of tomahawk steak.

If guests still prefer to eat more healthy, they can have sushi rolls and nigiri.

When it comes to alcoholic drinks, Piper-Heidsieck is the champagne of choice, or Dassai sake, and wines from Domaine Clarence Dillon.

Hong Kong's Antinori will make cocktails

For stars looking for cocktails, they will be in good hands with movie-themed drinks created by Hong Kong-based bartender Lorenzo Antinori of Bar Leone, which was crowned the No. 1 bar by World's 50 Best. 

Antinori has been non-stop since opening Bar Leone in 2023, with a second one in Shanghai, and together with Simone Caporale (who I interviewed in 2018) have a Cuban-themed bar called Montana.

Last year Antinori flew into Vancouver for like two days to make drinks for North America's World's 50 Best Bars awards.

Now he's in Los Angeles making Don Julio tequila cocktails for the stars. What a ride.

Andiamo!

Keeping Safe on Public Transit

Are the transit police around enough to make people feel safe?

Whenever I need to go downtown I like to take the bus. It's relatively on time, I can spend the time reading, and it takes away the hassle of driving and paying for parking.

Taking the bus back home though is another issue; usually there are drug-addicted homeless people who just get on without paying. Some keep to themselves, but others make you feel unsafe. 

Like yesterday.

I got on the bus around 3.30pm and immediately could feel something was wrong. At the back of the bus all by himself was a guy struggling to get a yellow hoodie on, but because he was not sober, he didn't realise he had put his head in the hood. 

Buses are great for getting downtown

After I sat down, he shouted several times that it was cold and someone needed to close the window.

Except nobody answered him.

Luckily at the next stop three transit police got onboard and in a friendly tone tried to persuade the guy to get off the bus. He still struggled with his hoodie for a few more minutes and then one of the transit police decided time was up, as the rest of us were waiting, and he had to be removed.

The rest of us stood or sat there in silence, staring at the situation unfolding. The guy was completely dishevelled, he had blood on his forehead and face, was bare chested and his pants hanging loosely over his hips. 

We were relieved when they escorted him off the bus and he sat in the bus shelter. 

But then the transit police noted there was blood stains on the floor. The bus driver announced to passengers the bus would cross the Granville Street Bridge and then let everyone off because the vehicle would be out of commission (to be cleaned up).

The transit police only work at the Granville and Georgia stop. Sometimes they come on board to make sure everyone has paid the fare, or in this case, remove someone who is causing a disturbance.

While I appreciate the transit police being there, could they not be stationed in the Downtown Eastside and Chinatown to deter these people from getting on the bus in the first place? It would make things safer for everyone, the drivers and passengers.

I have sent the suggestion to Translink and am waiting to hear back...

Public transit should not be an uncomfortable ride for anyone.

Review: Why does iDen & Quanjude Have a Michelin Star?

Lukewarm slices of Peking duck at Quanjude in Vancouver

Have you eaten at iDen & Quanjude Beijing Duck House in Vancouver?

I am still trying to comprehend why this place is the only Chinese restaurant in the city that has a Michelin star -- for the past three years.

Duck soup with seaweed and tofu cubes

This location, across the street from City Hall, is affiliated with the original one in the Chinese capital. That one is considered a "time-honoured brand", with pictures of famous people from Premier Zhou Enlai serving the signature roast duck to American Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, and toasting President Richard Nixon. There's also a picture of superstar pianist Lang Lang in a group photo with staff.

The hospitality here has well-dressed staff in uniforms, wearing headsets and being very polite to customers transports them back to China, where diners are king. The first time I visited over two years ago, the manager was in a tuxedo brandishing a tablet to take orders.

Originally when the restaurant opened, the price of the menu was so outrageous that many stayed away; there is so much competition in the city for Chinese food, there is no reason why one must eat at Quanjude.

Beef ribs with mushrooms

So the restaurant changed tact and started offering memberships, where members can dine on a set menu for a relatively reasonable price. That time I went when the manager was in a tux, the food, and in particular ingredients were hardly impressive, like jellyfish head with cucumber, and tofu chopped into perfect cubes in a duck soup. You can also finish your meal with a cappucino. Whatever happened to serving premium tea?

While the duck was sliced in front of us table side, it was bizarre that the set menu is portioned for two diners, a very Western concept for a Chinese restaurant, where it is typically family style with a lazy Susan on a round table. Quanjude doesn't have many round tables, they are all rectangular, another strange way of eating Chinese food.

Today I was invited to Quanjude for lunch (by a member), and we managed to be seated at a round table! What was also interesting was seeing the place was pretty full despite the pouring rain. Perhaps the members liked the underground parking and snagged all the free "iDen" parking spots.

 

The highly prized skin eaten with sugar

This time the food quality improved. There was braised beef ribs (Korean galbi cuts) with mushrooms, and stir-fried Romaine lettuce which were pretty good, as well as kaufu or gluten cubes with mushrooms as an appetiser.

We were also treated to an extra dish of prawns covered in a lime green sauce that turned out to be watered down wasabi.

The main event, Peking duck, was not served table side; instead it was already sliced in the kitchen probably much earlier in advance because it was lukewarm at best. Even the slice of prized skin that we dipped in brown sugar was not warm either.

To make up for it, the steamed thin wrappers were hot, but the portion of duck slices was overwhelming based on a portion for two people. Why not just give the table half a duck to share? We had lots of leftovers. Same with the beef.

Prawns covered in a wasabi sauce

Strangely our plates were not replaced when our dessert of cubed jelly with water chestnut and osmanthus arrived; we had no choice but to eat it on a plate covered in savoury sauces.

Again I wonder, why this place is awarded a Michelin star every year. How does it deserve this prestigious accolade? The portions are Western style but the quality is hardly worth raving about. There are many other places in Vancouver like Dynasty and Chang'An that serve roast duck. The presentation at Quanjude might be more refined, but it's been sitting in the kitchen drying out before it is served to diners.

Giving the Michelin star to Quanjude reflects on the judgment of the inspectors who don't seem to understand and appreciate what good Chinese cooking is, especially in Vancouver. Surely after having evaluated Chinese restaurants in Hong Kong for years they would be just as discerning here?

Dessert of jelly with water chesnut, osmanthus

iDen & Quanjude Beijing Duck House, 2808 Cambie Street, Vancouver, BC. Tel: (236) 477 7777