Kishimoto Japanese Kitchen 岸本

Kishimoto, one of the most talked about Japanese cuisine restaurants on Commercial Drive. Many people comment on Kishimoto's food presentation and the restaurant's banner even says, "eat with your eyes!". This makes me hesitant and gives the impression that Kishimoto may possibly be an average Japanese restaurant, focusing more on presentation than quality. On a weeknight, the restaurant had a short wait of ten minutes. A friendly customer was kind and told me to write my name on the wait list, rather than waiting for one of the waitresses to speak with me. The restaurant's interior is dimly lit and had African music playing in the background. I am not a fan of the dim lighting because I feel like a Japanese restaurant should always be well lit. Also, Kishimoto is a small restaurant with less than twelve tables, no wonder people always say there is a line up.

PRAWN TEMPURA, PASSION ROLL, OYSTER MOTOYAKI, NABEYAKI UDON, AMAEBI NIGIRI, SAKE, 5 KINDS SASHIMI, UNI, EBI, HAMACHI AND TORO NIGIRI, AND SALMON ISHINABE.

Fatty Cow Seafood Hot Pot 小肥牛火鍋專門店

REVISIT POST ON FATTY COW SEAFOOD [HERE]

So… imagine this, a hungry starving girl around Victoria Drive, Main Street and Fraser Street at 9:00pm with no delicious places to eat. Might as well mention I am a picky eater too. Of course Yu Xiang Yuan is obviously my first and only choice (well, Golden House Seafood is pretty good too!) but both restaurants were closed.

So, avoiding the usual circling around for thirty minutes to an hour (no exaggeration), we went straight to Fatty Cow. Have I ever mentioned how much I hate Fatty Cow? I rather eat McDonalds than come here or just have ice cream for dinner. I remember Fatty Cow when the restaurant first opened and the food sucked. Anyways… this visit was on a Sunday and the restaurant was 70% full when we walked in. The manager kind of neglected us, which I did not take personal because I expected my experience to "meh" or pretty crappy. After waiting ten minutes unspoken to, we were seated as he cleared a table for us.

ADULT $19.95 CHILDREN (5-10) $13.95 [+$1.00 on weekends/holidays]

DOUBLE SOUP $8.50 SINGLE $7.00, POP $1.50

New Szechuan Restaurant 新四川飯店

New Szechuan resembles what one would find at a small local town village in China, straight down from the decor to service. The cream coloured walls with four paintings on the wall, sanitary disposable tablecloths (which I prefer), and two staff members sitting at the counter staring at you without offering a table; only happens at the smallest village in China.

Koon Bo Restaurant 冠寶美食之家

The fourth attempt to visit Koon Bo was finally successful! On the first attempt, the cook left at 8:30pm, on the second, the restaurant was closed (Monday), and on the third, I think the restaurant was too busy. Koon Bo is nothing special to be honest and I do not think I enjoyed their food before. My family and family friends do not like the restaurant, and I am not sure if I know of anyone that does. The only reason for my desire to revisit is to try the peking duck.

Coming on a Sunday evening, the restaurant was packed. The only available table was near the entrance, where there was a constant cold draft whenever the door opened. Surprisingly right next to us (more like behind me, back to back and if we both turned around at the same time, we could smell each other's breath) there was a table of six people seated at a table suitable for only four. I found that odd considering there was a proper table size available for them. After ordering, the owner came out to let us know that we should change tables since we ordered too much food, moved the table of six to the proper sized table, and us to theirs. 

Toyotomi 豐臣家 (2nd visit)

FIRST POST ON TOYOTOMI [HERE]

A revisit to Toyotomi - an all you can eat sushi and hot pot restaurant, what is there not to like? The restaurant is located in Richmond on Anderson road and provides free underground parking, but we did not know and paid at the meter (12 minutes/$0.50). There are plenty of booth seating arrangements and the restaurant can accommodate larger parties, but the only issue that most people seem to mention is regarding the service.

On my first visit, service was not needed because we arrived ten minutes before closing and had to order everything at once. So when all the dishes arrived, the waitress asked if we had enough food on the table (although some items were missing) and the staff disappeared. We were able to stay until after closing and the owner's son never rushed us. On top of that, he was very friendly.

On the revisit however, the service was not so great since all the staff members were working and we came during the regular dinner hours. This means that dishes get slammed as well as tossed on the table and the staff rush off to talk amongst each other, which I do not mind because how much service does a table need at an AYCE? Not much, so it is not an issue. Expect the worst and there really is nothing to complain about, right? However, if the food sucks and the staff provides rude service… then there may be a problem.

DELUXE $21.59 || CHILD (5-12) $15.99

ADULT $15.39 || CHILD (5-12) $9.99

BROTH $8.88 || YIN YANG $9.88