Picture of the Day: Fan Power

Keung To fans spend money to broadcast his birthday

I'm walking around a shopping mall in downtown Vancouver called Pacific Centre and I see not one but two large screens showing a video compilation of Keung To, one of the more popular singers from the Hong Kong boy band Mirror!

It turns out it's his birthday on April 30, and his fans here have enough $$$ to rent space on a digital billboard in a major shopping mall to display their love for him!

Back in the 1980s fans of Cantopop stars like Leslie Cheung Kwok-wing, Anita Mui Yim-fong and Jacky Cheung Hok-yau would buy ginormous bouquets of flowers to give them personally at their concerts.

Now in 2022 and fans have gone all digital with massive billboards and way more money involved.

It's the same kind of fervent dedication, but with deeper pockets thanks to crowdfunding...

PS: Here is the link link to my new blog: https://goodbyehkhelloyvr.blogspot.com/

Foreign Ministry Overwhelmed by Flowers

Meng clutching a giant bouquet after landing in Shenzhen

 

With Huawei Technologies executive Meng Wanzhou given a hero's welcome back to China complete with red carpet, dozens of red roses, an army of drones creating messages in the sky, the highest skyscraper in Shenzhen illuminating messages too, and pretty much everyone excited that their "Huawei princess" was back home.

So the Chinese foreign ministry seemed surprised to be overwhelmed with dozens of bouquets for the businesswoman who was under house arrest for over 1,000 days in Vancouver. 

Foreign ministry says it is "a sea of flowers"

As the ministry thanked people for their flowers that were sent as expressions of national pride and gratitude to the government for securing her release, it asked that people stop sending anymore, as the ministry has become "a sea of flowers".

"We greatly appreciate your kindness. And we sincerely suggest that you stop sending flowers, although you are welcome to continue to leave messages," the ministry said.

Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said on Monday her colleagues were deeply touched by the gestures.

"These flowers represent the Chinese people's sincere support and affirmation of the [Communist] Party and the government's ability to resolutely safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese citizens and enterprises, and reflect the hearts of the Chinese people," she said.

"I'd like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to all my friends who care about and support Meng Wanzhou and China's diplomacy."

Hua Chunying asks people to stop sending flowers

Right. Diplomacy. More like hostage diplomacy.

But a good way to soften the image is the flood of flowers at the ministry. 

Glad the florists are doing a roaring business these days in China...

Two Michaels Return Home

Kovrig (left) and Spavor (second from right) arrive in Calgary

After over 1,000 days, the two Michaels are finally home in Canada.

It is a relief to have this saga that lasted over two years to be over.

The speed at which they were released demonstrates that, as former Canadian diplomat Colin Robertson says, it was one for the other.

Robertson says it was clearly a hostage-taking

"China... up until now, has said there's been no linkage between the two, but by putting them on the plane [Friday night], they've clearly acknowledged that this was a hostage-taking."

Lynette Ong, a China specialist at the Munk School of Global Affairs agrees.

"The timing, it's totally undeniable that the two Michaels were unjustly detained because of the arrest of Ms Meng in Vancouver."

It is believed that not only diplomats behind the scenes were working hard to secure their release, but that US President Joe Biden played a pivotal role in lobbying Chinese President Xi Jinping.

While the Canadian side is breathing a sigh of relief and grateful to Biden and its allies, China is playing up Meng's return with a hero's welcome in Shenzhen.

Meng receives hero's welcome

Wearing a red dress and no mask, she was received on the tarmac with a red carpet, and a bouquet of red roses.

"Chairman Xi cares about the safety of every Chinese citizen, and he also has my situation in his heart. I am deeply touched by this," Meng said upon her arrival.

During her flight she also released a statement thanking officials for her release and this interesting statement:

"For the past 1,028 days, I have been stumbling around, and it was difficult to choose between a thousand things; for the past 1,028 days, I have been wandering day and night, even if I had a thousand words to say; for the past 1,028 days, there have been endless mountains and rivers, and I did not know which way to return."

Let us be clear that Meng was released on bail and allowed to live in her luxurious home in Vancouver and come and go as she pleased as long as she abided by the bail conditions.

Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor were subjected to severe prison conditions, living over 1,000 days in tiny cells deprived of being able to speak freely to consular officials and lawyers, let alone access to sunlight and proper meals.

While this saga has finally ended happily for all involved, it does not mean it may not happen again.

Hong Kong's Eroding Freedoms

New Zealand, Switzerland and Hong Kong are the top three

 

The Fraser Institute describes itself as an independent, non-partisan research and educational organization with its headquarters in Vancouver, Canada.

Every year it releases its Human Freedom Index, and surprisingly for 2020 Hong Kong is third on the list -- for the third year in a row; in 2017 it was second after Switzerland.

The HFI measures personal freedom, which includes freedom of movement, speech, assembly and religion, as well as economic freedom, as in the ability of individuals to make their own economic decisions without government or crony interference.

76 indicators used to rank 162 countries, regions

It uses 76 indicators of personal and economic freedom including, rule of law, movement, religion, expression and information, legal system, access to sound money, and freedom to trade internationally.

While Hong Kong does tick these boxes (for now), it is interesting the 2020 report still lists the Chinese city in third place despite last year's protests.

However, in the executive summary it notes:

The HFI also finds a strong relationship between human freedom and democracy. Hong Kong is an outlier in this regard. Although Hong Kong's ratings and rankings have decreased since 2008, the impact of the Chinese Communist Party's unprecedented interventions in the territory in 2019 and 2020 are not reflected in this year's report (which, as noted, is based on 2018 data). Those recent events will likely decrease Hong Kong's noticeably in the future.

The top 10 countries are: New Zealand, Switzerland, Hong Kong, Denmark, Australia, Canada, Ireland, Estonia, Germany, and Sweden.

National security law has infringed HK rights

China was ranked 129th, behind Taiwan (19), Kazakhstan (75), Rwanda (78), India (111) and Vietnam (121).

And in July this year, the Fraser Institute along with think tanks from 35 countries and territories around the world signed an open letter to the people of Hong Kong.

The letter summarizes Hong Kong economic rise, due to a high level of personal freedom that has seen its per capita GDP rise from US$2,000 in 1950 to US$40,000 in 2018, four times the world average.

However the letter ends by saying:

Most recently, China has ordered large scale arrests of dissidents and, on May 28, China's National People's Congress imposed a national security law which attacks Hong Kong's freedoms and Hong Kong's Basic Law (effectively, a freedom-protecting constitution), by bypassing Hong Kong's Legislative Council. While the Communist Party of China has yet to release details, the law is intended to allow mainland authorities to crush freedom in Hong Kong and extend absolute CPC rule.

Moderates are being silenced by the government

Pro-democracy demonstrators, young and old, Chinese and the many other groups that populate Hong Kong, are demonstrating to protect their freedoms and hopes for the future of their children and grandchildren. We stand with the people of Hong Kong as they attempt to protect their freedoms and rights and believe a strong global response is critical.

So we shall wait with curious anticipation what the 2021 report will say, taking into account data from 2019 and 2020...

Hong Kong Sets Bizarre Toilet Paper Trend

A relief to know Pope Francis tested negative for the coronavirus

We are relieved to hear Pope Francis does not have the coronavirus, but a cold. Thank God for that but we hope he recovers soon and not kiss babies for a while.

But we are disturbed by how Hong Kong has started this awful trend of panic buying of things like toilet paper, hand sanitizers and cleaning products. It spread to Singapore, Japan, Australia, New York and now Vancouver.

A friend sent me a video yesterday that is 1:43 that shows an endless line of almost all Chinese people waiting to pay for stuff at Walmart in Richmond, BC.

It was just staggering to see how long that line was. It must have taken at least 2 hours to get to the cashier.

What is going on?

Is Kleenex too costly a toilet paper to panic buy in Australia?

This herd mentality only further stokes fear. Relax folks, there's enough toilet paper for everyone... eventually...

After about a month, some of my colleagues drifted into work today. They were surprised to see the office still relatively quiet, as others didn't seem to get the memo that they should report back.

Those who hadn't appeared much or at all actually enjoyed working from home, even if they had kids to look after. Some with young children had to get them disciplined into a new way of schooling at home, and eventually got the hang of logging into class on their laptops at certain times during the day.

Their dining table doubled as the office, so at lunchtime the table had to be cleared, gobbled down their meals and then turned it back into a work space.

Families are spending an inordinate amount of time together

A Wall Street Journal story talked about expat families who were crammed in their 1,100 square-foot apartment during their home quarantine. It was meant to sound like a hardship, but how do you compare that to a local teacher who has to teach lessons online from her bunk bed she shares with her sibling?

The things you are forced to do when a coronavirus hits your city...

Luggage Crisis Diverted

Boarding AC7 on a sunny day at Vancouver International Airport

Today, Saturday, was a busy traveling day for many passengers, getting home before starting work and school. The flights to Asia were very full, including those to Taiwan, with the elections on January 11. Anyone who was born there, even if they haven't lived there for a long time are eligible to vote.

In any event I had trouble checking in online with Air Canada the day before, so I decided to go to the airport a bit earlier. I tried again at the airport kiosk and it still didn't work so I had to wait in line for the counter. Luckily the line went relatively fast and I finally checked in. Or so I thought I did.

I was unable to check-in using the kiosks and had to line up

The ground staff had already put the luggage tag on my suitcase and sent it off when I walked away and looked at my boarding pass. It didn't have my name on it, but someone else's!

I ran back to her and showed her the boarding pass and my passport. She showed a colleague the error who didn't have any decent suggestions, so she contacted her supervisor who was all the way in the domestic departure area.

It turns out this is some technical glitch they have been having since installing new software three months ago.

They had to stop and locate my baggage -- which had a luggage tag going to Manila! They reassured me my suitcase was not going there, but to Hong Kong.

Then they had to issue me a new boarding pass and luggage tag. Once that was sorted I had to go down to the arrivals area and pick up my suitcase at the area where oversized luggage is usually sent. The metal shutters were down, but a few minutes later they came up and I saw a guy on a cart with my luggage!

Then I had to pick up my luggage at a place similar to this one

I grabbed it and went back up to where the supervisor was in the domestic departure area where she stuck on the new luggage tag and then I had to go back to the Air Canada international departures area to drop off my suitcase there! I spent pretty much an hour checking in after all that hassle, which made security look like a breeze.

Next time you travel, check to make sure your name is on the boarding pass! And yes I did get my luggage back in Hong Kong!

Starting the New Year in the Forest

A nice way to start 2020 with a walk through Pacific Spirit Regional Park

Last night New Year's Eve was a complete washout non-stop heavy rain forced several local mountains to cancel special events planned.
 However, by around 10pm the rain had stopped, though we were expecting more rain this morning for the start of 2020.

But the weather cooperated and we woke up to fantastic blue skies and warm weather -- up to 11 degrees, perfect for a walk outside.

In the late morning we headed out to Pacific Spirit Regional Park and enjoyed the fresh air, and immersed ourselves in the forest. The latest trend is "forest bathing", to be in nature and appreciate the beauty, inhale the clean oxygen and relax.

The new trend is to call this "forest bathing"

There were lots of puddles though from the heavy rain, which my younger nephew particularly enjoyed, walking through them in his yellow boots.  

We went walking for about an hour, encountering many others on their regular walks with their dogs and children, wishing each other a Happy New Year. What a nice way to start 2020 in Vancouver -- no rain!

Review: The Sound of Music

A multicultural-looking family singing Edelweiss in the Vancouver production

What's the Christmas holidays without The Sound of Music?

I grew up watching Julie Andrews as Maria who charmed the von Trapp children with her fun songs and eventually won the heart of Georg von Trapp played by Christopher Plummer. Every Christmas we watched the movie on television, always knowing what was coming next but were still transfixed.

Synthia Yusuf is Maria in The Sound of Music

This evening my parents gave us tickets to watch the musical by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II at the Stanley Industrial Alliance Stage in Vancouver. The production started in November and we were catching the tail end of it, as it finishes on January 5.

I've never seen it on stage before and this was a great production all round. And what's also interesting is that it's very multicultural, which is very Vancouver.

The lead role of Maria Rainer is played by Synthia Yusuf, and many of the children -- so good! -- are Philippine ethnicity, while some of the nuns are African-Canadian. Austria in 1937 didn't look like that!

The set quickly changes from abbey to the von Trapp home

Most of the story in the musical was similar to the movie, though a few things were different. I loved the scene in the film when they sing The Lonely Goatherd and have an elaborate puppet show put on for the Georg and Elsa Schraeder, but alas it was not here on stage; nevertheless the performance was still lots of fun.

The break up of Georg and Elsa was different in the film too, while in the musical it was sped up for time purposes. The climactic ending when the young boy Rolf Gruber finds the von Trapp family in the abby garden is not what was portrayed in the movie and quite surprising. Maybe again it was to hurry the story along to its conclusion, but it was still satisfying in the end.

The talented children are the best part of the show

The whole production was fantastic. The set design was very flexible -- one minute it was the abbey, another the home of the von Trapp family, and there were backdrops to show the alps in the background.

Direction was great too, using all aspects of the theatre, from the nuns filing in from where the audience sat, to the von Trapp family singing Climb Every Mountain and walking out of the theatre area.

Right from the beginning we were impressed by the excellent voices, not just Yusuf, but also The Mother Abbess played by Annie Ramos and Jonathan Winsby as Captain Georg von Trapp. But it was definitely the kids who really stole the show, very poised and played their parts well. You could tell they really enjoyed being on stage, in particular Jolene Bernardino as Liesl von Trapp.

At the end you really want to sing those songs too. When's the sing-along version coming out?

2 Million Hongkongers Hit the Streets in Black

Admiralty was completely clogged with protesters late last night

Hours before I boarded my plane to fly back to Vancouver, three of my friends asked me if I would be participating in the protest march on Sunday.

I was disappointed to again miss an historic march -- on June 9 when 1.03 million people came out onto the streets demanding the withdrawal of the extradition bill, and then this past Sunday, June 16, when an unprecedented 2 million marched from Causeway Bay to government headquarters in Tamar, Admiralty.

Although Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor had announced the day before that the extradition bill was suspended indefinitely, two in seven Hongkongers demanded that she step down. They were also protesting the excessive force by the police in handling protesters on June 12.

Practically everyone was dressed in black for the march

At the airport gate just before embarking on the plane, I was constantly checking social media and was stunned by the images of so many people wearing black T-shirts and clogging up MTR stations to get to the starting point.

It was only after I landed over 12 hours later did I find out 2 million people had participated in the march, and that entire streets were flooded with people protesting. Some even stayed behind to occupy the thoroughfare in Admiralty overnight, though the numbers were quite sparse. The die-hard protesters were disappointed more people didn't show up, and eventually they had to give up the roads to traffic.

What's next? The ball is firmly in the government's court, though the pro-Beijing side isn't united in what Lam should do. Some think she should scrap the bill completely, while others are suggesting she should continue to push it through, with more explanation to the public.

However, it's too late to try to explain what the bill really is about. Lam missed her opportunity, and should have been more transparent about the reasons why the bill had to be passed.

Some people in the pro-Beijing camp feel Lam has completely lost her credibility from this most recent march, and her apologies hardly sound empathetic.

So if nothing drastic is done before Sunday (in other words Lam stepping down), people will probably be out protesting again this coming weekend, and the next weekend, and the weekend after....

.

Vancouverites Protest Extradition

Hundreds of people on Granville Street in front of the Chinese consulate

Early this afternoon there was quite a sight along Granville Street in Vancouver between Angus Drive and Marpole Avenue -- several hundred people wearing black T-shirts and carrying yellow umbrellas stood in front (or as close as they could get) of the Chinese consulate.

Although earlier this morning Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor made an announcement saying the controversial extradition bill would be postponed until a later date, Vancouver media say some 1,500 people still came out to voice their protest.

They were also condemned the Hong Kong police's use of excessive force against the protesters on June 12 at Tamar in Admiralty.

As they gathered on the narrow sidewalk along the very busy thoroughfare, the protesters sang, "Do You Hear the People Sing?" from Les Miserables and some cars honked their horns in support as they drove by.

They protested the extradition bill and excessive police force

The protesters in Vancouver say the extradition bill should be withdrawn.

"Even though she came out to announce she will defer on this bill, we can see this evil bill will be sitting there and waiting for (an) opportunity to suppress Hong Kong, to threaten Hong Kong people," said Ken Tung, of the Civic Education Society in Vancouver who gave a speech to the crowd.

"Right now we have some people wounded by the excessive police force. These people were arrested in the hospital, totally against the freedom of speech and assembly in Hong Kong. We are here to protest."

Natalie Woo also expressed her concerns about how the Hong Kong police reacted to the protesters on June 12.

"Our police forces have been eroding for the past couple of years, in the sense that they have been acting very violently against protesters. We're not satisfied with Carrie Lam's answer to suspend the bill, because we don't trust the government enough to act in good faith."

Woo says rallying in Vancouver sends a message to the Chinese government and people of Hong Kong that there is a global solidarity for those who protest the bill and violence.

Pretty impressive turnout this afternoon and people will be out in force later today in Hong Kong for yet another march, this time calling for Lam to step down.

Protest Against Extradition Law Goes Global

A global protest will be held this Sunday

My friend YTSL has just sent me a poster letting the public know there will be protest marches against the extradition bill held in 17 cities around the world, including New York, London, Berlin, Vancouver, Toronto, Sydney, Melbourne and Tokyo.

Organizers of the Hong Kong march are hoping to get 500,000 people out like what happened on July 1, 2003 when half a million people came out to protest against the Hong Kong government's plans to pass Article 23, an anti-subversion law.

The massive protest led to then leader Tung Chee-hwa stepping down as well as Secretary for Security Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee. Article 23 was shelved and Beijing is still waiting for it to be passed.

But back to the upcoming protest this Sunday against the extradition law. If there are massive protests not only in Hong Kong but around the world, Beijing may think twice -- if it wants to have good standing on the global stage.

However, if Beijing believes the world is interfering in its internal affairs then the bill will be passed in the Legislative Council on Wednesday, after the government bypassed more stringent scrutiny by a committee following chaos in the legislature.

After that there won't be much we can do... now is the time to tell the government (and Beijing) how we feel about the extradition law this Sunday!

Picture of the Day: Appealing to Chinese Sweet Tooth

Fancy some Chinese New Year chocolate from a Vancouver chocolatier?

When I was in Vancouver, I was impressed to see one local chocolatier specifically jumping on the Chinese New Year bandwagon.

Purdy's is a Vancouver company that started in 1907 and now has 75 shops across Canada.

This year I saw a table in the store that not only had a "Happy Lunar New Year" sign with a pig as well, but also the design of the packaging featured cherry blossoms on a red and gold box, as well as red metal cylindrical tins with a golden dragon.

While Godiva and other big chocolate brands have long caught onto the importance of gift giving for the Chinese market during Chinese New Year, a local Canadian brand has too.

Picture of the Day: The Living City

Oakridge will become a futuristic mini city in Vancouver

When I went back home for the holidays, the shopping mall Oakridge was not the same as before.

Large stores like Gap was closing its doors and everyone had already picked through most of the remaining clothes -- even the mannequins, tables and display shelves were for sale too. Eddie Bauer also closed around Christmas time and others had shuttered long ago.

What was really sad was on the 41st Avenue entrance, several trees were chopped down instead of moved. They had been there for a very long time.

Are Hong Kong people buying Oakridge?

They were being cleared because the mall will be torn down and redeveloped into a giant residential complex built by developer Westbank.

It has several other projects in Vancouver, particularly downtown and Chinatown and now Oakridge on 41st Avenue and Cambie Street.

Westbank has an office in Hong Kong and is actively selling its projects here. And just in case you weren't aware of this latest one, it has taken out a big billboard advertising space right at the Peak Tram.

That's pretty impressive and we wonder how much that cost, but we also wonder if the tagline couldn't be a bit more snappier. "Oakridge: The Living City" makes you wonder if most cities are dead? Of course you'd want to have a living city!

Or is that something that not everyone would know...

Vancouver Eating Part 3

Fun dish of pork rinds from a maple syrup can!

One of the last restaurants I ate at in Vancouver was St Lawrence. I had wanted to visit this restaurant the year before, but heard it was impossible to get a table. It's not in the best location in the city, on the corner of Gore and Powell, but that means parking isn't too difficult to find.

The cozy interior of St Lawrence is like dining at home

This time my friends and I looked it up online and booked a table at the restaurant that serves Quebecois cuisine -- but that meant immediately putting down a credit card number. If one person was to drop out before 24 hours then there would be no penalty, but less than 24 hours then credit card would be charged CAD$25.

As a result it was a major commitment and we made sure we made it there on time -- 5.45pm.

The restaurant used to be a butcher shop, but walk inside and it feels like walking into an aunt's living room to have dinner. It's very cozy, with antique light fixtures that don't match, copper pans and plates hanging on the walls, mini curtains hanging from the open kitchen.

There's also a small bar area for customers to wait to be seated.

Paris-Brest using duck liver and foie gras in the filling

The menu is small, but a good selection. With four of us we ordered all six appetizers. The fried pork rinds with maple syrup and spice (CAD$12) are presented in an empty maple syrup can. The pork rinds were freshly deep fried and so good -- they would make excellent bar snacks.

Meanwhile the house-made terrine (CAD$18) combined with apricots was delicious and came with some mustards. Paris-Brest (CAD$22) is typically a dessert -- a round pastry with a praline mousse piped inside. But here it's a savoury dish, with the filling being duck liver and foie gras mousse. Very clever though hard to cut into four pieces. I don't usually like to eat foie gras, but this I had to try.

Refined cod cake quenelle with mussels

The escargots (CAD$18) were presented in small puff pastry cups with a generous serving of garlic sauce on top. Another highlight was the steak tartare (CAD$19) that had a lot of seasoning from the capers and onions, along with chevre noire cheese, and presented with waffle potato chips.

Finally the cod cake quenelle (CAD$22) was very smooth and came with mussels and Normandy sauce.

We also balanced our diet with two vegetable dishes. The ratatouille (CAD$17) was alright, but we preferred the Avonlea cheddar custard in the middle of the plate, while the baked potato (CAD$15) with Sauvagine cheese and poutine sauce was the disappointing dish that evening; it was recommended to us, but wasn't particularly interesting.

The very hearty pork chop with Robuchon potato puree

At this point we somehow managed to have room for a main course and we chose the pork chop (CAD$38) that came recommended to us. We were not disappointed. It was a giant pork chop on a bed of Robuchon potato puree (which means it had lots of butter in it), with Oka cheese.

The pork chop was amazing -- it must have been brined before because the meat was so tender and so juicy. I usually avoid ordering pork chops because they usually turn out dry, but here it was absolutely divine.

As if that wasn't enough food, we somehow talked ourselves into having three of the four desserts. One of them, sugar pie (CAD$11) is not regularly found on menus in Vancouver and it's a pretty dense pie that's filling and sweet.

Rice pudding with cinnamon buns, pecans and caramel sauce

We got a small portion of the rice pudding (CAD$20 for the whole table; so ours was less) and it's so cute: it comes with four mini cinnamon buns, caramel sauce, and toasted pecans. What a delicious combination and the rice pudding wasn't too sweet.

Many other tables ordered the lemon tart flambee (CAD$16) that the servers don't really like to send to the table because everyone wants to whip out their phones to video the tart being set on fire. So have your phone ready, because the server won't wait for you, and it doesn't set on fire for long, making it a bit disappointing visually.

However, the lemon tart is very good -- again not too sweet, and comes with an burnt soft meringue. Oh so good, tart custard, crunchy pastry shell and soft meringue. What a finish.

The lemon tart flambee was quick dramatic finish

St Lawrence
269 Powell Street
Vancouver, BC
(604) 620 3800

Vancouver Eating Part 2

The flavour of Joe Fortes in a bowl, a seafood bowl to be exact

My eating odyssey in Vancouver continued with a visit to Joe Fortes for lunch. I don't think I have ever eaten in this well known establishment and glad I finally made it.

It looks like a power lunch place with its downtown location and everyone seemed to be having meetings while they ate -- except us.

Clams with chorizo sausages in tomato broth were a hit

According to the menu, there really was a Joe Fortes -- Seraphin "Joe" Fortes, who was a sailor from Barbados who went to Liverpool then Vancouver. He came to the Canadian city in 1885 where he was a bartender at a hotel and then was a fixture at English Bay where he was the unofficial security guard and taught many children how to swim.

The city appointed him the first official lifeguard in the early 1900s. When Fortes died in 1922, the city held the longest-ever funeral procession, which was unusual for a black person.

Joe Fortes the restaurant was opened in 1985, exactly a century after he arrived in Vancouver.

Perhaps as a link to his being at English Bay, the Joe Fortes menu is best known for its seafood, freshly-shucked oysters and blue plate specials at CAD$12.95 that are a real deal -- if you can snag one.

A lot to munch on in the lobster and shrimp roll

On the day we went it was panko-crusted haddock, but by the time we ordered -- around 1pm -- they were already sold out. That was disappointing to say the least for my friend, who was very keen to try it.

Nonetheless we were very happy with the seafood bowl (CAD$25.95), a kind of bouillabaisse with salmon, mussels, clams, tomato broth, rice and garlic bread. Everything was cooked perfectly, the clams didn't have any sand in them and the mussels plump.

The roasted mushroom soup (CAD$9.95) is cooked with sherry, cream and sage, the steamed clams (CAD$25.95) were seasoned with chorizo sausage, tomato-wine broth and had garlic focaccia.

Starter of hamachi, coconut, fennel and mandarin

My other friend had the lobster and shrimp roll (CAD$25.95) and it was a mouthful! I had a small bite of the filling and it tasted very fresh, topped with a dill pickle and a generous salad on the side.

We were too full for dessert after.

Later that evening we paid a visit to Hawksworth for dinner. I haven't been there for a few years so I was keen to see how the restaurant has developed. In short the food was fantastic -- every dish was plated nicely, featuring choice ingredients.

Absolutely divine roast duck with lentils, squash and figs

To start I had the hamachi with coconut, fennel and mandarin wedges (CAD$25). It's more of a summer dish, but we liked it anyway, very delicate flavours on the plate with a hint of coconut sauce at the bottom.

My main was a delight -- Yarrow Meadows duck breast with squash, red cabbage, lentil and fig (CAD$43). The duck is very lean --- there isn't the fattiness you get from most other ducks, or perhaps it was slow roasted to remove the fat, but also retain the juiciness of the meat.

It was accompanied with very earthy flavours: squash puree, lentils, red cabbage, and sweet figs that all went well together, and keeping the duck as the star of the dish.

The ling cod with black rice and curried root vegetables

Another standout was the salmon with cucumber, potato, mussel and dill (CAD$42), as well as the ling cod (CAD$48) with black rice, curried root vegetable, and orange lassi. A decadent meal for two is the lamb shoulder (CAD$130 for two), that could even be for three, as the feast includes polenta, root vegetables, and a generous portion of lamb that falls off the bone.

Dark chocolate was the theme of the evening, as one of our party suggested eating it would stave off dementia. As a result a few of us ordered the dark chocolate chantilly, a decadent-looking treat complemented with raspberry sauce and almonds (CAD$14).

I had the Meyer lemon for dessert. It was a lemon custard topped with a mixture of mandarin oranges and shaved lemon on top and jasmine-flavoured meringue cubes. Again more a summer dish than winter, but we like tart finish.

Meyer lemon dessert with mandarin and jasmine meringue

The deconstructed apple tart (CAD$14) was delicious too, with milk chocolate, pecans and caramel.

While we enjoyed the food immensely, service was lacking in attentiveness that marred the overall experience. At first I thought it was because we had ordered several "Chinese martinis" -- hot water with lemon, but I later found out from a few friends that they had also been disappointed by the service when they went.

And as a friend pointed out, even if you drink tap water the whole evening, the service should still be good, and I agree.

A decadent dark chocolate chantilly dessert

Joe Fortes
777 Thurlow Street
Vancouver, BC
(604) 669 1940

Hawksworth
in the Rosewood Hotel
801 Georgia Street
Vancouver, BC
(6040 673 7000

Vancouver Eating Part 1

Fantastic prime rib dinner with Yorkshire pudding at Seasons in the Park

Many friends in Hong Kong asked me what I ate in Vancouver and some of it was Chinese cuisine, Japanese and Western.

Apart from having dim sum, we tried a northern Chinese restaurant that serves all kinds of lamb dishes. Called Hao's Lamb Restaurant in Richmond, it's relatively new and my relatives took us here for lunch.

Thinly sliced lamb in between a sesame seed bun

The owners are mainland Chinese and very friendly. The menu is quite extensive with such dishes as mutton tendon with cumin, mutton hotpot, and roasted lamb leg, there are some eyebrow-raising ones like "ovine [sheep] testicles with cumin", and "nourishing ovine testicles stew with ovine genital".

Hmmmm worth a try?

We had thinly sliced lamb that we put in a sesame seed bun with cucumbers that was delicious, boiled lamb dumplings, and a lamb-flavoured broth with hand-pulled noodles in it. We also had a napa cabbage that was chopped into four wedges and covered with tons of finely minced garlic and vermicelli and steamed.

So if you like lamb, this place is a must.

A favourite place we visit is Seasons in the Park that is at Queen Elizabeth Park and overlooks downtown Vancouver. We were lucky to get a window seat and marveled at all the twinkling lights.

Sunburnt Lemon tart at Seasons in the Park

On Sunday evenings the restaurant offers a three-course set roast beef dinner for CAD$42.50. Choose between a salad or a soup, the roast beef and then two desserts to decide from.

The slow roasted prime rib is excellent -- very tender and juicy medium rare, though the best bits are along the edge, along with Yorkshire pudding and vegetables. I barely finished mine, but somehow made room for the restaurant's signature sunburnt lemon pie.

I also tried a place I'd never heard of before, Chewie's Biscuit Co on 4th Avenue and McDonald. It's a small shop that, as its name suggests, makes biscuit sandwiches with interesting combinations. The friendly waitress takes your order and money, and then you sit down and wait for your food to arrive.

She gave a few suggestions as a first timer to the eatery and so I decided try "Stoner", which features fried chicken breast, stone ground mustard, honey and bread and butter pickles.

"Stoner" biscuit sandwich

It's a vertically tall sandwich so I took the top off to eat it with a knife and fork. The fried chicken is good, smothered in sauce and I'm thankful the pickles are there to cut some of the grease. The sandwich looks deceivingly small but it isn't, though maybe my stomach is full from eating a few onion rings.

After finishing the sandwich I try the half biscuit on its own and it's fantastic -- light, fluffy, with a buttermilk taste. It's so good that my dining companion orders take out -- including an unadulterated biscuit.

Hao's Lamb Restaurant
8788 McKim Way
Richmond, BC
(604) 270 6632

Seasons in the Park
Queen Elizabeth Park at West 33rd Avenue
Vancouver, BC
(604) 874 8008

Chewie's Biscuit Co
2282 West 4th Avenue
Vancouver, BC
(604) 336 9996