Dine Out Vancouver 2008: Rex Rotisserie & Grill reviewed
3 Comments
Karen Hamilton
January 30, 2009
This is an atypical Dine Out experience from my pre-Tiny Bites days, republished for your convenience here. Since Rex is participating with a $28 menu in 2009, you may still find these photos and comments helpful while sorting out your reservations for the last weekend of Dine Out Vancouver 2009.
One more thing – my wish to dine at Rex for lunch still hasn’t been fulfilled. Let me know if you’re in.
The SFU MIS Association decided to fuse this year’s InfoTech Night with the $15 Dine Out Vancouver experience at Rex Rotisserie & Grill. As a MISA alumnus and foodie, how could I refuse? Donned some business attire, slung my camera over the shoulder, and met with fellow alumni Bruce and Honto for the short trek over to Rex.
First Impressions
Rex was difficult to locate despite having Google Maps on hand. It’s in that S-shaped curve of Dunsmuir with the Canada Trust and BMO towers looming overhead. The three of us stood directly across from the restaurant in puzzlement until we spotted its neon lights, which were partially obscured by the bus stop in front. I imagine this doesn’t make for great walk-in traffic. Its placement in the financial district, which is dead in the evenings and weekends, could also explain why we hadn’t heard of this restaurant before.
The restaurant was closed for this private function, and as befits young downtown professionals, we arrived so fashionably late that we missed the appetizers and the first couple of keynote speakers. Oops. The restaurant staff were on their A-game tonight: they took our orders and whipped up an extra booth table on the mezzanine so that we could sit together. We assured them that it was alright to seat us anywhere in the main area even if that would split us up. They found us 3 free spots at the same long table by the wine cellar before we could say another word. Service: one check.
The Food
Dinner came not long after, with surreptitious pours of free-flowing red and white wine throughout. I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the house red–an easy sipping wine that stood its own against the dishes. Typical house selections are not that far off from vinegar. Rex got another checkmark under the Wine column from me.
Honto and I had the prime rib while Bruce tried the lamb shank. Both dishes met with much approval and were rated as re-orderable. The prime rib was cut a half-inch thinner than I am used to, but they did warn us on the description that it would be an “English Cut”. It did not detract, however. The beef was perfectly pink, evenly marbled, mouthwateringly juicy, and oh so tender going down. It satisfied my prime rib craving quite well. Despite the alfredo-sauce consistency of the horseradish, it was sufficiently piquant and I only wish that there was more of it on my plate.
The ones who had the lamb exclaimed at how tender it was. It was literally falling off the bone. The couscous it came with was rated as excellent by several people at our table. Bruce tells me today that he can still clearly recall his enjoyment of the dish, and it’s been over 2 weeks.
So it looks like this segment gets another check. In fact, for a networking event, there was more a lot more chewing than talking during the main course. A good thing for the restaurant, but probably not for the event!
The third keynote speaker heralded the arrival of dessert. My reflex at any restaurant is to order the crème brulée, but since Honto already got that covered, I opted for the apple tart tatin. You should know that I have never been a fan of puff pastry. Also not big on tarts. But the apple tatin won me over…it was probably the flood of creme fraiche and the gooseberry that did it. Bruce found it overly sweet and docked points for that, but to be fair, he’d just as equally find black coffee to be too sweet. I thought it was just right. Big chunks of apple, a good ratio of fruit : pastry : sauces, and enough of it to satisfy my sweet tooth. To this day, I have been craving apple pie, and I suspect it is because of how much I appreciated this dessert.
Honto and fellow table member Rosy enjoyed the creme brulée, but neither seemed significantly impressed by it. Rosy reported that it was not as warm as she would have liked it to be, but chalked it up to the large crowd that the staff had to cater to.
The Bar
Rex stayed open past the main InfoTech speaker series, so many guests stayed to network and imbibe further at the bar on the mezzanine. My friends stuck with hard liquor but being the snobby gal I am, I asked the bartender for their wine list. He did that and much much more. He guided me through his top picks and gave me four 2-oz samples of each. Once I chose the wine I wanted (a lovely 2004 Kenwood Cabernet Sauvignon), he poured an enormous helping of it. It was probably 2 glasses’ worth. Since the bottle was nearly empty, he gave the rest of it to Bruce, on the house. I was so impressed by this impromptu seminar and the quality of the wine we had that I gave him a large tip for his generosity.
Thus for wine and service: many more checkmarks for each.
The Stats (if you just have to have ratings)
In General
- Location / Ambiance: 7/10 (elegant interior and spacious, but hard to find)
- Service: 9.5/10
- Value: 10/10 (I still can’t believe this evening was only $15!)
At the Table
- 6 oz. English Cut “AAA” Alberta rotisserie prime rib with horseradish & jus: 8/10
- Honey roasted lamb shank with Israeli couscous & spice jus: 8.5/10
- Vanilla bean scented crème brulée with housemade biscotti: 7/10
- Apple tart tatin with drizzled crème fraiche: 7.25/10 (the average my 8 and Bruce’s 6.5)
- Sandhill Vineyards Syrah & Red Rooster Riesling: 7/10, considering they’re the house wines
The Verdict
Overall, Rex was a great find. A wonderful place to hold InfoTech Night. Above-average food, good wine selection, and amazing general service and responsiveness from the staff. It’s just too bad that it’s in the financial district, where most people don’t think of going for dinner. When we spoke with the restaurant manager near the end of the night, he explained that they are mostly known for private functions in the evening and public lunch service.
If you are looking for a place downtown for a private booking, please consider Rex. On my part, I can’t wait to round up some downtown colleagues for a lunch there very soon.
Rex Rotisserie & Grill
1055 Dunsmuir Street | Downtown
(604) 683-7390
rexgrill.com
Categories: Food, Restaurants
Football-friendly recipes for Super Bowl XLIII
3 Comments Karen HamiltonJanuary 28, 2009
Update — Buzz Bishop and I discussed Super Bowl food options on Virgin Radio 95.3 this evening. Below is a clip of our chat, where Buzz suggests selecting beer according to team colours. Great idea!
Tiny Bites talks about Super Bowl XLIII eats on Virgin Radio (95.3 FM)
Do you go gaga over the NFL? If so, you’re either hosting a Super Bowl party this Sunday or going to one. This year, we’re finally doing the former (even though Kurt’s Broncos and my beloved Patriots are not in the running…boo hoo).
You shouldn’t be surprised that we won’t be ordering pizza. Instead, we’ve scrounged the interweb for munchies that will represent the cuisine of Pittsburgh and Arizona without getting too gourmet on our football-crazy friends.
Below is our shortlist of dishes from which we’ll choose from.
Go Steelers! Pro-Pittsburgh eats
- BBQ Chipped Chop Ham Sandwiches (Accidental Hedonist)
- The Ben Roethlis-Burger, with bacon weave upgrade (BBQ Addicts)
Go Cardinals! Pro- Arizona eats
- Sliders with Chipotle Mayonnaise (Food Network – Bobby Flay)
- Soft Pretzels with Queso Poblano Sauce or Mustard Sauce (Food Network – Bobby Flay)
[What can I say? We like us some Bobby Flay.]
Other football-friendly eats
- Memphis Blues Super Bowl Party Pak - Don’t have a grill or the time? Feed 8 people with a slew of barbecued meats, chili and wings from our favourite BBQ house. Order ahead for this $89.95 take-out special.
- Our rendition of Spicy Oven-Baked Chicken Wings (adapted from Fearless in the Kitchen: Innovative Recipes for the Uninhibited Cook by Christine Cushing)
Partisan beer choices
If you’re a guest to our or others’ Super Bowl parties this year, consider bringing beer representative of the team you’re cheering for. Iron City seems to be the popular choice for Pittsburgh brew while Arizona-founded Chili Beer looks mighty intriguing. See if you can find them in Vancouver – I’ve been having a tough time with this search myself.
- Beers of Pittsburgh (Beer Expedition)
- Pennsylvania breweries (Wikipedia)
- Arizona breweries by city – check out Glendale or Phoenix first (Beer Expedition)
- A guide to Arizona breweries (United Nations of Beer)
Brew connoisseur Rick Green of BC Brews chimed in with a pseudo-Arizona pick from Victoria-based Phillips Brewing Company. Look for their Phoenix Gold Lager at a BC Liquor Store near you.
Enjoy the game around town
If the bar scene is more your style, check out what some of Vancouver’s pubs and restaurants are offering for sustenance on February 1, 2009. Know of others showing the game in the city? Drop me a comment here.
- Library Square Public House – my husband’s fave after-work hangout. Stadium-style menu, $16.10 buckets of Budweiser, $3.90 sleeves of Granville Island brew, and a roast pig! Come in after 3pm.
- Kingston Taphouse – 11am marks the start of Kingston’s Super Bowl specials . Drop in to enjoy the game, door prizes, and even a comedy act, or buy a $20 ticket to assure you a seat, a Prime Rib Burger and some Granville Island Beer.
- Memphis Blues’ Super Bowl All-You-Can-Eat Party – The fun gets going at noon. $10 pitchers. Another $20 gets you unlimited pulled pork, chicken, catfish, rib ends, coleslaw, potato salad, BBQ pit beans, and Memphis Blues’ signature BBQ sauce. (Commercial and North Van locations only)
Other Super Bowl XLIII resources
These additional sites may help you with the planning of this year’s Super Bowl shenanigans:
- Planning a Steelers Super Bowl Party (About.com Pittsburgh)
- Pittsburgh vs. Arizona Super Bowl Food-Off (Endless Simmer)
- Super Bowl Challenge: My Local Beer Quest (the Epi-Log on Epicurious.com)
What will you eat and drink on Super Bowl Sunday? Send me your tips and/or your favourite Super Bowl recipes.
Categories: Broadway, Dinner, Downtown, Events, Food, Recipes, Restaurants
Celebrating Chinese New Year around the Pacific Rim
5 Comments Tiny Bites ConsultingJanuary 26, 2009
We timed our getaway to Asia with the crazy Christmas and New Year festivities in the Philippines and received an unanticipated bonus: witnessing the lead-up to the Year of the Ox. Macau and Hong Kong went buck wild with red and gold, so we joined in on the ride, completing the celebratory circuit last night at Richmond’s Aberdeen Centre. Here’s the tour.
We left the eternal Christmas of the Philippines for the glitz of Macau in mid-January, expecting relief from the crowds that large holidays beget. Not so. The cultural duality of Macau meant that large Chinese New Year floats were already set up in San Malo Plaza. Portuguese edifices were laden with red lanterns and strings of lights. Media and tourist alike vied for the best ops in front of each New Year’s structure.
Coincidentally, we had chosen Long Kei, one of the few Cantonese restaurants in the city, for our lunch spot. From our table on the ground floor, we chewed on some of the most light-handed Cantonese cooking we had ever ingested while watching group after group tromp to the upper floor for what I guess to be dim sum (quite comical really; it was like a circus clown car in restaurant form).
Fish maw and egg drop soup
Braised seasonal vegetables in oyster sauce
Steamed pork spare ribs in apricot sauce
Typical multi-lingual format of restaurant menus in Macau
4 subsequent days in Hong Kong meant more Chinese New Year sights, sounds, and culinary delights. Disneyland Hong Kong happened to launch its New Year’s makeover on the day we decided to visit. It was a treat to see childhood Disney favourites wrapped in Asian apparel and to pick up Disney souvenirs that were decidedly one of a kind.
Mickey mouse fruit
Love against the castle
Happiness display
No trip to Hong Kong is complete without a banquet, so we corralled as many friends as we could muster on short notice to join us for an extravagant set dinner at Peking Garden Restaurant. We savoured Peking Duck (my favourite and the specialty of the house), an assortment of delicate meats, vegetables, and seafood, and a cool demo of handmade noodle-making in a spacious, sumptuous dining room.
Sliced whitefish with olives, vegetables, and scallion oil
Peking duck!
Noodle-making demo
Since we had so much fun enjoying the imminence of Chinese New Year in Asia, it seemed only fair to join in on local festivities upon our return. New Year’s Eve was spent in Aberdeen Centre in an atmosphere that reminded us all too fondly of Langham Place in Mong Kok.
The meal that we had at Northern Delicacy did not remotely compare to the food we enjoyed in Macau and Hong Kong. The handmade noodles were bland; the honeymoon fried rice compensated for its lack of complexity with a coronary’s worth of grease. Our favourite dish, the spicy wontons, was glaringly absent.
The one point of redemption was the steamed pork dumplings (known to me better as “soup dumplings”). Lesson learned: we’ll revert to our routine of having dim sum at Northern Delicacy and finding someplace else to satisfy our dinner cravings.
Northern Delicacy
4151 Hazelbridge Way | Aberdeen Centre, Richmond
(604) 233-7050
In our attempt to last till the clock struck midnight, we wandered the halls of Aberdeen Centre amongst a most jovial crowd. Perhaps we were too jetlagged or lazy or old, but we faded well before 11pm, with just enough energy to buy a coconut bun from Saint Germain Bakery and take in a Cantonese skit at the mainstage.
Nevertheless, we arrived home full and happy, our sadness at having left Hong Kong momentarily abated, with high hopes for what fortune the Year of the Ox will bring.
Categories: Asia, Beyond Vancouver, Food, Hong Kong, Macau, Restaurants, Richmond, Travel
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