Cooking with Rodrigo at the Startlight Casino + Contest for Dinner for 2

Cooking with Rodrigo is one of the Starlight Casino’s monthly shows that occurs on the last Tuesday of every month with limited seating for up to 60 people. Chef Rodrigo Fereira has been the executive chef at Redbar Lounge restaurant at the Casino for the last two years and has worked in the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Bahamas, United States. You may have seen him on Celebrity Cruises as well. I had the opportunity to get a taste of the show last month on April 26, 2011, thanks to the Starlight Casino.

The dinner and show is approximately 1.5 to 2 hours in length and combines cooking demonstration and food plating while you enjoy a 5 course meal with BC wine pairings. Parts of the meal can also be prepared easily at home, which is demonstrated by Chef Rodrigo, who is comical and entertaining, but also personal as he walks around and speaks with guests between dishes. He also explained that they cannot predict anything that goes wrong once the show starts, because the cooking and the plating are all performed in front of the audience – one of the portable burners did not work right off the bat.

 

  

Menu

Starters

Cream of Tomato Soup with Roasted Mozzarella Croutons

White Asparagus and Truffles

Entrees

Lobster Thermidor

Kids Style Rocca Priora (Italian Rack of Lamb)

Dessert

Mini Mousse Cake & Peach Mascarpone Tart

The food, including wine pairings and entertainment is well worth the $50 ticket price for this event. The White Asparagus with Truffles was not a favourite and the dessert was premade or mass produced. However, the two entrees were delicious. The Lobster Thermidor was a lobster tail tossed in a bechamel sauce and served with spinach and tomatoes, that were sauteed on stage. The lobster was cooked perfectly and the portion was a good size. The rack of lamb was also cooked to perfection. Chef Rodrigo taught the audience how to sear the lamb and cook creamy polenta, while the dish was plated. The menu changes on a monthly basis, so please check with event website for more information.

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Enter to win 2 tickets to Cooking with Rodrigo (May 31, 2011)!

How to Enter: Tweet or Retweet on Twitter

 “I’ve entered to win Dinner for 2 at Cooking with Rodrigo @StarlightCasino via @VancouverSavvy http://bit.ly/mGYAxR #StarlightCasino”

Contest Closes: Monday May 23, 2011 (11:59 PST)

Winner must be 19 years of age or older and tickets have no cash value.

Location: 350 Gifford Street, New Westminster, BC V3M 7A3 (map)

More Info? http://www.starlightcasino.ca

Delizia Fusion Cuisine in Richmond

Delizia Fusion Cuisine Confusion

By: D. Ma

The second stop on our Hidden Gems of Richmond Tour was Delizia Fusion Cuisine Restaurant.  Situated on the infamous Alexandra Road, it’s the true test for this recently opened restaurant as only the most appetizing and delicious restaurants survive.  Delizia’s décor is modern with an Asian inspired colour scheme which embodies and complements their “fusion” themed restaurant. It is also home to award winning chef Eddie Li and was recognized in the 7^th annual Top 100 Chinese Restaurants in North American in the category of “Top 100 Overall Excellence.” We’re not positive how much weight this has as from my memory, most of the best Chinese restaurants I have been to growing up had mediocre to terrible service and look more like a dive then fine dining…Just kidding…..

Their menu is HUGE, typical of most Chinese restaurants. Their website even advertises there are more items available at the restaurant. They have lunch and dinner value sets that make the food more appealing than they may be and create your own pasta dish menu as well.  Although their food is a fusion of Asian and European flavours, we found the combinations a bit perplexing.

The first dish we tried was the Oceanwise Wok Fire Stir Fry. It contained a variety of thinly cut veggies, scallops, shrimp, and abalone with a light sauce over it.  Although it looked pretty, there was nothing out of the ordinary nor distinct about the flavour.  It tasted like almost any other veggie/seafood stir fry you could get at a Chinese restaurant (where’s the fusion?).  The dish won a healthy menu award and in many respects it does look low-carb. Save your money and buy an apple if you want low-carb.

The second dish definitely had the fusion component of East meets West but unfortunately failed in flavour and texture.  Their Lobster Udon Alfredo sounds intriguing (Japanese and Italian are two of my favourite cuisines) but falls flat on flavour.  The texture and taste of udon noodles does not compliment the alfredo sauce well.  As udon noodles have a chewy rice flavour and texture, the sauce just sort of sits there – the sauce was also a bit bland for our liking.

 

The final dish probably had the best plating – Braised Duck in Red Curry Lychee Sauce. However, like the saying goes, looks can be deceiving. Presented in paper hot pot over a lit candle, the heat from the candle helps to bring out the aromas of the red Thai curry, lemongrass, coconut and lychee.  It also tasted like the salt was replaced with shrimp paste, which is similar in flavour to fish sauce and popular in Thai and Vietnamese cuisine.  We were a bit disappointed to find out the duck wasn’t really braised but barbequed. It tasted like your typical Chinese barbequed duck that you can get at Hon’s.  The flavour was still decent (and mainly because I love BBQ duck) but it did no justice to the visual aspect and description of the dish.  It was served with jasmine rice (which you’ll need if you don’t want to waste the curry), but maybe if it was paired with roti or naan it could have been better.

Overall, the experience was more confusion then fusion.  The dishes weren’t terrible but weren’t outstanding or complex either.  They do have decently priced items (which we did not try) but the prices of their more “unique” dishes will leave your taste buds unsatisfied and wishing you spent the money on McDonalds instead.

Location: #2150-8391 Alexandra Rd, Richmond, BC (map)

SkyTrain Stop: Lansdowne Station

Price:  $10-$20

More Info? www.deliziafusion.com

2010 Summer Night Market in Richmond

This year’s summer night market is bigger than ever. The grounds are packed full of food and retail vendors, the biggest the night market has ever been. New additions to the food vendors include:

• Rice burgers
• Fried Cheesecake
• Fried Chocolate bars
• Pizza
• Rollies
• More variety in Korean & Vietnamese food

PICTURES OF THE 2010 SUMMER NIGHT MARKET

Event Dates: May 21st to September 26, 2010; hours

Location: 12631 Vulcan Way, Richmond, BC (map)

Getting There: From Vancouver, highway 99 to Bridgeport Road or South on Knight Street. Parking is $5 around the event area. 

SkyTrain Stop: Bridgeport Station, Bus #407

Price: FREE admission; Food $1.00-$10.00

More Info? http://www.summernightmarket.com

Buck a Shuck Oysters in Vancouver

Calling all oyster lovers! Here’s a list of buck a shuck oyster joints in Vancouver.
Let me know if you have any to add to the list.

Boathouse (Various Locations) – Daily from 3-6pm, appetizers from $2.79 and drinks specials from $4.99 

Cardero’s (1483 Coal Harbour Quay, Vancouver) – During BC Lions, Whitecaps FC, and Vancouver Canucks games. Minimum 1/2 dozen order. 

Coast (1054 Alberni Street, Vancouver) – Daily from 3-5pm, also a dozen peel and eat shrimp for $12

Goldfish Seafood & Chophouse (1118 Mainland Street, Vancouver – In the lounge from 4-7pm daily

Ebisu (827 Bute Street) – Daily from 4:30-6:30pm, with lots of happy hour specials

La Brasserie (1091 Davie Street, Vancouver) – After 9pm and during Sunday brunch

Oyster Seafood & Raw Bar (502-475 Howe Street, Vancouver) – Daily from 3-7pm

Relish Gastro Pub (888 Nelson Street, Vancouver) – Daily from 3-6pm

Rodney’s Oyster House (1228 Hamilton Street, Vancouver) – Monday to Saturday from 3-6pm

 

Updated: October 9, 2011

Steveston Village: buy your seafood fresh off the boat

It’s funny how some people I’ve met, who are from Vancouver, have never been to this part of the city. I think this a fabulous place to bring guests from out of town, rain or shine. Steveston Village is a beautiful little community in Richmond – about a 25 minute drive from Vancouver. The area is primarily residential, but Steveston Landing is where all the action is. On the weekends, you can find seafood for sale right off the boats! There’s always fresh fish and shrimp, and more recently we saw sea urchin for sale. Most items are either fresh or flash frozen at sea. Even if we do not plan to buy any seafood, it’s always fun to look at what the boats are selling.

There are also many shops and restaurants in the area that are worth visiting. Romania Country Bread is one stop you must make. The bread is baked daily in the large wood oven, which occupies half of the store. Try the free samples and you will definitely be convinced to purchase a loaf to bring home.

If you’d like to do some whale watching or you would like to go on a fishing charter, Seabreeze Adventures offers these tours. Personally, I have never taken one of these tours but I think they would be great for a summer trip.

One of the famous fish & chips stands at Steveston is Pajo’s. In the summer, you will find extremely long lines here. Your meal is made fresh and it is served in a cone. The portions are large and they make eating fish & chips fun.

Location: Bayview Street & 2nd Avenue, Richmond, BC (Map)

SkyTrain Stop: Aberdeen Station, then bus #410

More Info? http://www.steveston.bc.ca/