Zakkushi Charcoal Grill

Do you think he likes his job? I'm just wondering. I would.

Today was me and Michael's usual Friday hang out night, we really struggled figuring out where we wanted to eat. Michael came up with the thought of revisiting a little Japanese restaurant Zakkushi Charcoal Grill on 823 Denman Street, that served Japanese bar food and tapas.

He first discovered this place from his friend, who usually knows where to get the greatest Asian food. Me and Michael sat front and center watching the chefs cook dishes from their charcoal stoves. The little restaurant is pretty packed so I would recommend calling ahead of time to make a reservation. Inside, the decor and layout really did remind me of being in Japan when I went for the first time with my parents. There's a long row of bench/stools lining a rectangular kitchen visible from the entire restaurant. A 'dining area' of sorts is placed single-row behind the bar. We can tell the chefs cooking on floor a front of us are so passionate for what they do and what they serve to the customers, it really shows authenticity of the restaurant. Oh and all the staff speak Japanese to each other. We ordered so many different little dishes tonight that I actually don't even know where to begin.

(Left to right) Oropon hamami (beef), memaki (garlic wrapped with pork), p-toro (pork), momo (chicken), shiso (herb wrapped chicken)

We started off with the appetizer sampler Kushi set for $8.50 that had beef, chicken, pork, and garlic tip skewers. The chicken and pork were very tasty and I could really taste the barbecuey goodness, plus the pork had a delicious crunch in every bite. Michael said the beef was juicy, but has less taste because there's less salt than some of the other dishes. I don't usually like eating asparagus but tonight, Zakkushi convinced me otherwise. The memaki and asparagus dishes were vegetables wrapped with pork, with a hint of garlic mixed in with the strong taste of charcoal from the barbecue, delicious.

Tofu Yakki

After the samplers, we kept ordering the chicken and pork, especially with the asparugus, because it was just that good. Then we had the Tofu Yakki for $2, it had the tasty terriyaki sauce and a hint of crunch to it, and made for a fun way of tasting of tofu. Then I had the sausage with ponzu sauce and grated radish, the radish was filled with flavours and went delightfully with the sausage with tangy ponzu sauce.

Deep fried octopus balls

Every summer our little fair city of Richmond has the annual  night market, and whenever I get a chance to visit, one of my favourite part of going to the night market is eating the Takoyaki $4.90, which are deepfried ocotopus balls. Tonight I think Zakkushi took it the next level. It arrived in a near magical bowl - the edible garnish flakes waved back and forth in the air, it was almost too beautiful to eat. Once I started, a bite could be summed up in one word, wow. The crunchiness of the seaweed and the teriyaki on top went well with the chewy octopus encased in gooey sauce inside fried batter. The fact that it was fried was not overwhelming at all, nor did it feel heavy in my stomach.

Onigiri

Lastly Michael's favourite of Zakkushi is Onigiri for $1.50 it is a ball of rice. A triangular 'ball' of rice sitting on the charcoal stove barbecued in with the flavour of soy and terriyaki sauce. This is his favourite because it not only fills him up, tastes good, and also is presented in a unique way.

In total we ordered about 14 skewers and three side dishes, which came to $39 before tip.


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Beachside Forno

This is our last place for Dine Out 2012. I still didn't find the "knock my socks off" feeling, but I think tonight's restaurant might have given a slight breeze to blow my socks in the right direction.

Beachisde Forno, 1362 Marine Drive, West Vancouver. Michael found out about this place browsing around Google and we decided to take a chance. The exterior of the restaurant was very West Coast, with its beach ambiance right by the water, attracting customers with warm yellow light blooming through its windows.

Onion soup

Inside, the restaurant looked very cozy and welcoming, and the small size of the restaurant emphasized that characteristic. Their dine out menu was $18 for a three-course meal and it was perfecto. I'd say it could easily pass for a $38 dine out menu.

For starters, Michael and I had the caramelized onion and chicken soup, with onion flan and crispy cheese. The soup itself was a little bit salty, which didn't really bother me. It tasted like the traditional French onion soup without the soggy croutons and mounds of cheese. I didn't realize there was crispy cheese after reading the menu, when I ate the crispy cheese it tasted like crispy air and I loved it. It was my favourite part of the soup.  Michael thought the soup could use some more cheese and the flan seemed a little undercooked.

Mussels & fries

For my entree I had the Salt Spring Island mussels and fries with house-made chorizo sausage, tomato puttanesca broth, and scallion. I thought it tasted lovely. The broth was tangy with a little kick that gets you in the back of your taste buds. The mussels were pretty fresh and very tasty. The fries they were nice, crispy and lightly seasoned with salt - a very nice combination with the mussels. 

Lamb orechiette

Michael had the braised Peace Country lamb orechiette, with lamb bacon lardons, roasted onions, "cafe au lait" sauce. Michael said that the lamb was very nicely cooked but he could have used more meat and pasta. The dish didn't use many ingredients and it was a little too simple. Just your average meat and pasta. Michael's situation reminded me of posh restaurants in New York's upper east side, where dinner is served on an enormous plate, with a baby portion of food.

Cheesecake parfait

 For dessert, Michael and I had the strawberry cheesecake parfait, with strawberry ice cream and graham cracker. For someone that doesn't like strawberries (me) I really liked this parfait. the ice cream was nice and light, while the mousse and strawberries didn't overpower any other flavours in the dish. The dish came with a cracker that tasted like mini ginger snap cookies, I loved the dessert, and it was served in a wine glass, how cute! Michael thought this was the best dessert he has had during this Dine Out experience.

Michael and I tried to look for more Dine Out deals this weekend, but sadly there were no suitable dinner times. We were originally planning to go to a bar lounge restaurant that a fabulous aunt of mine took me to during my late teen years, and I'd like to give a big shout out to her, hello! Overall I would give this restaurant a solid A, out of all the dine out places I have had with Michael this was by far the best place we had. I am pretty determined to come back to Beachside Forno but I am not sure if I am willing to sit in the car for that long period of time, it's pretty out of the way. With the end of Dine Out, we'll go back to reality and start eating from the regular menus.


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