So Crab So Good Restaurant & Bar 蝦拼蟹嗆海鮮餐廳

So Crab So Good has been on BFs list for a while ever since the restaurant opened a couple of years ago. We have actually been to the restaurant when they first opened but left because it did not seem "ready" yet and looked like a casual hang out place for the owners. So sometime between then and now, we have tried Crab King at Steveston which was very disappointing (pre-cooked and cold food) which made me put off So Crab So Good for even longer! Although the restaurants are not related, I just rather visit Crab Pot in Seattle because the restaurant is a childhood memory of mine.

But lucky for BF… I decided to visit So Crab So Good because the restaurant was offering a Social Shopper voucher for $29.00 which included one side dish, dungeness crab, shrimp, clams, mussels, squid and sausage. For $29.00 you cannot go wrong! The restaurant is located in North Burnaby on the second floor of a building and resembles an apartment of sorts. If entering from the street side, there is a set of carpet stairs that have a muggy green leafy pattern.

When we arrived, a large party of eight was waiting in the front and there was literally no place to stand. On top of that, the waiting area is crowded as well as tight and there was a lack of air circulation in the restaurant making it noticeably easier to breathe in the hallways. The restaurant was not understaffed and there were plenty of available tables, but the waitresses were not efficient in clearing them which lead to a longer line up in the narrow waiting area.

After settling down at our window seat, I could not help but notice the ten to twelve dead flies at the window sill. It was actually quite disgusting and so far the restaurant did not make a good first impression, from the narrow waiting area to the inefficient staff and now the dead bugs. In addition, there were bits of leftover seafood around the floor. As for the table setting, each person receives a wooden board, fork, seafood pick, seafood cracker, napkins and gloves. A wooden mallet is available if requested (I think).

FRIED KING OYSTER MUSHROOM ($6.99).

The side took twenty minutes to arrive but arrived fresh and hot. The bite sizes of juicy mushrooms have a perfectly light and crispy batter. As for the seasoning, it is noticeably more saltier than peppery which I felt was fine because I rarely have salty food. However to most, the seasoning may be considered overly salty. The very generous seasoning of pepper also provides a nice buzz in the mouth and a hint of spiciness.

SO CRAB SO GOOD COMBO B, "Shrimp, clam, mussel, corn, red skin potato, sausage, dungeness crab" ($25.99/person).

The seafood boil is carefully poured on the table by the staff and all the ingredients are fresh, hot and well cooked. Every one of them!

Beginning with the corn, the pieces taste fresh, buttery and sweet which makes it a favourite of mine. Following, both the clams and mussels are just cooked and taste juicy despite the small sizes. Further on, the slices of sausage have a nice bouncy texture and are not limp or mushy one bit. The sausage also soaks up the mild to a weak medium level of spiciness and buttery Cajun sauce. Continuing along, the prawns are just cooked and taste bouncy. Personally I would have preferred butterflied prawns to make it easier to eat and for that meaty texture… but I am just a lazy eater and am not a fan of this type of prawn.

Up next, the penne is al dente, a great filler and soaks up the tasty sauce (although if we paid the full price I would have liked a bit more pasta). Moving on, neither of us are fans of squid but it was well executed. The squid tastes tender and not rubbery one bit! As for the highlight, the crab has only one claw and is fairly small. The crab tastes buttery and is prepared for the customers so minimal effort is required to get to the meat. Ironically the crab was the least favourite of ours and we liked the other ingredients more. As for the sauce, the Holy Smoke has layers of flavour and is not one dimensional at all. There is a rich butteriness and a mild spiciness along with a Cajun seasoning (we requested for a medium spiciness).

WATERMELON AND GRAPE POPSICLES.

During the middle of dinner we were presented with these popsicles and I debated about finishing the seafood before the popsicles melt, or finishing the seafood before the food gets colder. It was a struggle but I decided to finish the seafood and risk the popsicles melting which happened in the end :(. The popsicles are a childhood memory of mine and my parents used to get them from T&T all the time! My sister and I would fight for the better flavours or argue about who gets the upper portion cause apparently there is "more". To eat these, you snap the popsicles in half and they have a slushy like texture.

Voucher Price: $34.15 + Extras $5.15 + Tip $9.85 = $49.15.

Regular price: $61.50.

As much as I dislike how the window sill had dead flies, the cramped waiting area and hallway to the inefficient staff, the food at So Crab So Good is well executed. So Crab So Good is one of the only two restaurants in Vancouver that serves seafood boils and this is the better restaurant. Furthermore, the voucher was an amazing value and there were no restrictions. On top of that, the amount of food we received was literally perfect and enough for the two of us (you know how much we eat too!). However, for $70.00+ I am not sure if I would revisit unless someone wanted to come here for the novelty which may be a biased thought because I rather have a larger live crab at a Chinese restaurant.

POSITIVES

- Fresh seafood

- Food is made to order and served hot

NEGATIVES

- Food took a while (but was fresh!)

- Staff is inefficient

- Cramped waiting area and hallways

- Restaurant could be more clean

Food: 3/5

Service: 2.5/5