Wo Fung Noodle Express

Let's take a stroll on memory lane folks. Before the grand Aberdeen Centre we have today in Richmond, we use to have a quaint little Aberdeen Centre back in the 90's.  Michael and I haven't had met then but we both grew up eating these special little chicken wings that were sold in the mini food court downstairs. Fast forward about 12 years or so and Michael and I still talk about this amazing fried chicken we ate when we were little.

Correct me if I'm wrong but I've heard from various friends that at the old Aberdeen a wife and husband owned the little chicken wings stand, they of course shut down when the Aberdeen went under for construction. After all these years their children finally opened the famous chicken place back up. The new Wu Fung, now Wo Fung, is located at 190- 8400 Alexandra Rd.

I was so excited to give the place a try it was like seeing an old friend again, my first time there was with my mom but she thought the dad had fried the chicken better. But I think she's just picky, I think they taste just as awesome as I remembered it to be. The six year old me was smiling inside and I absolutely couldn't wait to share it with my fellow six year old Michael.

The famous chicken wings

Wo Fung not only serves amazing fried chicken but also Hong Kong Street food, like curry fish balls, fried tofu and fried squid. They also serve different variations of noodles. Michael and I decided to have a short and simple lunch date. Of course we had the six pieces of chicken wings ($5.25). The chicken is so juicy, crunchy and meaty.  My stomach is just grumbling as I am writing. There is so much flavor from the exterior there is a light pepper taste. I don't know if it's just me but I feel there is a hint of a ginger taste somewhere in there. Michael thinks the chicken is as good as it ever was, and it was better because now they have their own restaurant and we didn't have to enjoy our wings in a food court.

Wo Fung's curry fish balls

We got the curry fish balls ($3.50) as well. Fish balls are on and off for me but Michael is from Hong Kong and his body is powered by curry fish balls.  The food tasted very soft and the curry was pretty spicy but it was nice that it didn't overpowered the fish taste. Since the curry was so hot I was glad I got my iced lemon water. Yum! what a delightful drink to cool off on a hot spring day. Michael actually thought the fish balls were a bit too spicy for his liking, a little less heat and the dish would have been perfect for him.

My lemon water and Michael's lemon ice tea

It's a small and simple restaurant, just order and pay up soon as you decide what you'd like. No hussle and bussle of servers which I love, they just get straight to the point.  I simply can't wait to come back to Wo Fung. Noodles! Chicken! Curry! If they've got it I'll eat it! I really liked going here with Michael, he is one of the few people Remembering this magical fried chicken and having a chance to share that  childhood memory is a wonderful feeling.


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ABC Cafe

ABC Cafe, not exactly an original name with pretty mediocre food. Michael decided to go to Aberdeen Center in Richmond today and he got hungry after going on a hunt for some shoes. There were a few restaurant decisions but we ended up choosing the cafe at the 4151 Hazelbridge Way mall, tucked away in the property's back halls. It's not a very visible location and seems like not a lot of people would venture down to its corner. Michael and I have been to the restaurants at this location before ABC came along, but all these restaurants all ended up disappearing sooner rather than later.

ABC Cafe is suppose to be a classic Hong Kong diner menu with set menu with soups and drink and various other a la carte meals such as baked spaghetti, rice and noodle dishes. But ABC added a fancy element to the restaurant and also serve king crab and lobsters, which we found a little odd because we rarely see fancy meals like this served at a Hong Kong diner. The restaurant was not busy at all, which is not surprising because of its location, although the unit is pretty big.

Penne with Italian sausage

Although I wasn't hungry I didn't want to order something big, but Michael  insisted that I order the set menu because it's cheaper and comes with a drink. So I did, lately I have been craving to eat pasta but never got around to fulfilling that crave. I got the spaghetti menu ($9.50), I love tomato sauce from Hong Kong diners because they tend to taste creamier than the tangy taste from western restaurants. I picked Penne with Italian sausage, although I thought it was going to be spicy like chorizo, I think it tasted like regular sausage.

Hong Kong borscht

Michael got the sizzling grill menu ($12.95), which is when the meal is served on a hot plate. He got to choose two dishes and a side dish. It also comes with a soup and drink. Michael chose the Hong Kong  borscht. Which is made from tomatoes rather then the traditional Russian borscht made from beats.

Steak and chicken with mushroom sauce, served with rice

The server said they don't have the hot plate today though, so Michael was disappointed and found it very odd. He chose the chicken and steak and rice with mushroom sauce and thought the chicken tasted very good, the skin was crunchy and it came in a big portion. But the steak on the other hand was not that great. It wasn't seasoned that well but the mushroom sauce did help it a little.

Hong Kong style sweetened ice lemon tea

Michael and I both agree that we can live without coming back here. The restaurant seem like they don't serve the greatest food and for Hong Kong diners, Michael and I think we have visited better ones.

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Deer Garden

Deer Garden is one of Richmond's beloved franchises. What makes them so special?  Not only do they offer a normal set menu for regular Hong Kong style food, Deer Garden is also known for their noodles in soup, their specialty. A partial noodle bar you could say. Deer Garden has two locations in Richmond but we chose to go to #1178-3779 Sexsmith Rd.  Michael and I found out about this place was from one of his friends. He usually knows the greatest places to eat in Richmond, but prepare yourself because there's always going to be a wait when you get there.

The food at Deer Garden is amazing, their noodles taste fantastic and since I am recovering from a minor dental surgery, my diet is limited to what I am able to eat. There is a separate menu for their noodles, where you can select what you want as a soup base, type of noodles, and what two choice of toppings you'd like to go with the noodles. I chose from their noodle menu of course, something soft and easy to chew for me. The menu allows you to add or take away whatever you like. I took away all the veggies such as cabbage, onions and parsley.

Rice noodles on fish soup with ham and pork sausage

I got rice noodles, classic plain fish soup, with ham and a pork sausage. Lemon water to drink. The noodles were soft and silky, the fish soup was so creamy and went so well with the noodles, fantastic. The aroma of the soup made me just even more hungry and just the thought of that bowl is making me hungry. The fish aroma doesn't overpower the taste of the noodles either, there is enough of that fishy taste in the soup that it blends well with the creaminess of the soup. The ham was just plain regular ham, since I didn't want anything fancy. As for the sausage, it was boiled to way I loved and tasted like Hong Kong.

Fried pork with maggie sauce

I also got a mini side dish - pork with Maggie sauce. For those who is not familiar with it,  you could say its the soy sauce's sultry cousin. You may think it tastes like regular soy sauce, but theres a sweet tangy taste that gets you. Lots of Chinese people like to eat in with eggs, dip with poultry or with veggies. You could even see it as the Western version of an HP sauce or ketchup.

Michael's dish

Michael also went with the noodle menu. Except his bowl looked a lot more full then mine. He had the works. Michael chose rice noodles with the classic plain fish soup as well, he got the all veggies piled up on top of his noodles. For his two choices of sides was beef brisket and enoki mushroom.  His favourite part was the soup. Michael always liked the beef briskets there, they give a good amount and its well cooked beef brisket, what more can a guy ask for?  His only problem was not that his iced lemon tea came in a bubble tea cup and wasn't properly sweetened.

Fried chicken with Teriyaki sauce

For Michael's side dish he got pan fried chicken with Teriyaki sauce. Its fried chicken, you can't go wrong with fried chicken.

Our drinks .. inside bubble tea cups

For the huge portion that we got for dinner the combo only costed $7.95 each with an additional $1.75 each for the mini side dishes and $2 for our drinks.  Michael and I could agree that the service could have been better, but since the restaurant was packed we don't blame them. All is forgiven.


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Copa Cafe

Happy Friday everyone. After a quick downtown Vancouver shopping day, Michael and myself went to a quaint little Hong Kong style diner for lunch. Celebrating Michael's roots, you could say.

Copa Cafe is located on 4030 Cambie Street in Vancouver, and Michael and I have always passed by this restaurant on our way to downtown without much thought until a classmate of mine told me about it as a highly regarded place to eat. Chinese diners typically feature Asian food mixed with a casual western flavour, and are one of the places that I love going with my parents, not to mention a lot of my high school memories were made sitting in Hong Kong diners with my friends.

Be prepared to have trouble deciding though, their menus are usually huge. We both ate from the Mini Set Menu, I chose the Baked Chicken Fillet with Garlic and Cheese on Linguine for $7.95. It didn't arrive with as much cheese as I'd hoped for but the chicken breast was nice and tender. The linguine, however, was a little bland for my liking.

Michael had something a little more complex. He chose the Stone Pot with Rice for $8.99, going for the deluxe version for an additional $2 for two different types of meat, roasted chicken steak and diced short ribs. For the sauce, he chose coconut satay. Michael thought the meat was nice and tender, easy to chew, but said there wasn't enough sauce to go with all the rice. He also thought it was pretty neat he got to choose more then one meat.

Our meals came with complimentary drinks, a trademark of most HK cafes. I ordered the traditional Hong Kong style lemon tea, whereas Michael took the fancy route, with additional $2.50 Michael got Taiwanese milk tea with grass jelly.

In total the bill came to an affordable $28 including tip. Copa Cafe also offers a variety of deals, a Copa Cafe Point Card, which promises a 5% per meal rebate for a fee of $10 a year. We also received two coupons for free bubble tea for our next visit. I really liked coming here with Michael. We don't come to places like this as often as we would like to.

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