New Menu Tasting at Pearl Castle Cafe

Finally, after a long hiatus, ChineseBites is back! This time, we were invited to revisit to Pearl Castle Cafe to try out some of their new menu items. We were treated to their new bubbleteas as well as some of their new rice and hot pot dishes. The owners provided the food and drinks for our group.
The three drinks in the back are the new ones, all topped with a fluffy ball of cotton candy, only available at their main location (Continental Centre) as of Mid-June. The first one is Sunset Love, a fruity concoction of orange, pineapple and peach juice, topped with the cotton candy. The Blue Sky is next, topped with matching blue cotton candy with a base of blue tangerine, calpis (an un-carbonated soda with yogurt-like flavours from Japan) and pop. The last of the new ones is the Young Girl's Dream with a billowy pink cotton candy. It also has calpis and pop, but is mixed with a bit of grenadine. The cotton candy does deflate over time, so be sure to start with that! 
Of the ones in the bottom row, I had the first one on the left, the Pudding Milk Tea. I found it a bit sweet, but I still liked it. I would have added some pearls though. The next one is Coconut Red Bean. Two green teas follow, one is a Peach Lemon version, and the next is with Red Bean. The next two are new offerings as well, both featuring jelly noodles. The first is a Black Tea sweetened with brown sugar followed by the Wintermelon Juice.  There is a Green Lattea (pun intended!), as well as a Taro Green Milk Tea, also new this season. The Roasted Rice Lattea completes the lineup.
And last but not least, the one on the far right is the Ferrero Rocher chocolate milkshake...complete with the chocolate as well as Nutella. Amazing...and uber sweet. And if you look at the bottom of the Wintermelon Juice, you'll see the Jelly Noodles.
Now...onto the food! The little Taiwanese Sausages are less fatty than the North American ones. Made with pork, and simply seared, this was a good start to the meal. I can see this going really well with a beer.
Another favourite appetizer of mine is the Wonton with Chili Sauce. The wontons were a touch dry and the skins seemed a little thick, or perhaps a bit underdone? I love my food extra spicy, so this didn't have enough heat for me, but might be hot enough for some. 
Next up is a trio of fried appetizers. This is the Fried Tofu, simply battered and deep fried. These are pretty standard but the side of kimchi was refreshing.
I've never actually tried Abalone Mushroom, but I'm willing to try it, now that it's deep-fried! The breading is light, and the mushroom inside was really juicy. I really liked this, and would like to try making this at home, probably not deep-fried, but maybe braised with other mushrooms?
And last of the deep-fried goodness is the Fried Fish Cake. It's dense, chewy and a great blend of sweet and salty. The texture was super bouncy and really didn't need any accompaniments. Oh, and I liked that none of their fried dishes were overly oily. 
This is their Milk Seafood & Pork Hot Pot. A mixture of seafood, prawns, squid and fish are slow cooked together with some pork in a creamy milk-based soup. The whole pot is then kept heated at your table. Add the soup to your rice and this pot is comforting, soothing and very substantial for one person. I'd get an extra bowl of rice and just share this between two people! 
This is a real old-school way of braising chicken, the Three-Cup Chicken, so named not because each of the ingredients are measured in cups, rather, it is so named to indicate that the three sauce ingredients (sesame oil, Chinese rice wine, and soy sauce) are used in equal amounts. Basil is also an essential part of this dish and it's definitely present here as well. These little nuggets of chicken are soft and tender. I liked that some pieces were bone-in, giving the dish a rustic feel. 
This is another dish featuring the Abalone Mushroom Braised with Three Spices. This was really juicy, and after trying the mushroom done in this manner, I'll definitely be giving it a try at home, a great idea for Meatless Mondays!
Looking to ward off vampires and the common cold? Give this Garlic Sauce Chicken a try...just at a glance, there are over a dozen whole garlic cloves and loads of finely chopped garlic. And you can be sure there are more than what the eye can see. It's very similar to the Three-Cup Chicken, with the added extra of the garlic and green onions.
Kimchi rears its head again in this Kimchi Seafood Fried Udon. With all the dishes so far being served with rice, this noodle dish was a welcomed change. Not too spicy and loaded with seafood, this was more sour and spicy, but the texture of the noodles were bang on. 
Yay, another noodle dish! This time is the Taiwanese Beef Noodle Soup. I know everyone is still raving over ramen, but for me, these noodles are where it's at. The soup has hints of cilantro and star anise, a very pleasant blend of flavours. If you haven't tried this before, you'll be in for a surprise. 
Now onto the NEW items! First up is their Spicy Incense Pot. Loaded with seafood and various veggies, this potful really packs a punch...those chilies, man, they'll get you every time. If you are sensitive to heat, I highly recommend staying away from the actual chilies themselves. They render much of their heat into the heated pot. And I suggest you leave this towards the end of the meal, because the flavours of this will likely overwhelm more delicate dishes. 
Another new dish is the Pineapple Shrimp Fried Rice. This was tasty, but I've never been a fan of fruit in savory dishes. As a matter of fact, I enjoyed the dish with the pineapple chunks. After adding a few sprinkles of hot sauce, this dish takes on a whole new flavour. 
An offshoot of their fan favourite, the Milk Seafood & Pork Hot Pot is their Curry Coconut Seafood & Pork Hot Pot. It's essentially the same dish with the addition of curry flavours and coconut milk. The flavours are really mild, so if you think you are not a fan of curries, give it a try. You'll be pleasantly surprised by the sweetness underlying the whole dish.
This is one of two new rice dishes, the Marinated Chicken with Rice, served with a side of tofu and some veggies, this is easily a one-pot wonder. I didn't really care for the warmed salad, but other than that, the dish had enough interesting textures and flavours to be worth a try. I would have like a bit more sauce and for the chicken to be a touch crispier, but other than that, no complaints.
Whew! And for the final dish, we have the Marinated Pork with Rice. Essentially the same flavours and accompaniments as the chicken dish, it is similarly satisfying. 
Many patrons of Pearl Castle Cafe have a short list of their favourites but with the addition of these new dishes, give them a revisit and you might find a new favourite! 

Address: Continental Centre, 1128-3779 Sexsmith Road, Richmond
Phone Number: (604) 270-3939
Website: on Facebook

Strike - Noodles, Wontons and so much more!

Yes, it's Back! Chinese Bites dinners! Having been on hiatus for the past couple months, I was delighted that these dinners are back again! With a large group of us gathering at a Taiwanese eatery nearby UBC, we were treated to 15 different items! It was a great way to try lots of items and we always love eating family style.
First up, a plate of Yam Fries - 甘梅甜薯薯條, sigh, where was my mom? I've never been a fan of these, but decided to give it a try, because I was absolutely starving. On a few people's recommendation, I avoided the dipping sauce, which was supposedly cloyingly sweet. The fries themselves already had a bit of sweetness and the dip seemed like overkill. 
The next item was an appetizer as well, Wontons with Chili Oil Sauce - 紅油炒手. I know the chili oil looks potent, but it really wasn't. In fact, it seemed like there was more sesame oil than chili oil. The skins of the wontons were really thin, which I really liked. The pork filling was plentiful but had a drier than expected texture.
If you like Pork Floss, you will love this Taiwanese Braised Minced Pork Rice. And yes, adding an egg is quite common in Taiwanese cooking. The preserved veggies also gave this dish a unique flavour. 
Now this dish isn't for everyone, because it is served cold. Taiwanese Cold Noodle -台式涼麵 is great in the summer when you want the comfort of noodles without sweating buckets over a bowl of hot pho or ramen. The flavours are very light and the veggies help to give the bowl texture as well. It helps to think of it as almost like a salad, with its soy based peanut sauce as dressing.  
The next dish was the Special BBQ Chicken - 破店燒雞腿, essentially a whole chicken thigh and drumstick. I found this a little burnt for my liking but it did have a great grilled flavour. And despite the appearance, the meat inside was quite juicy.
This Five Spice Beef Wrap - 大餅夾牛肉 was a bit of a confusing dish. The wrap was far thicker than what I'm used to, but I did like the presence of green onion built into the wrap itself. The meat was well-seasoned but was overwhelmed by the doughy wrap. Eaten separately, this would work, as a wrap, not so much.
I absolutely loved this Stewed Tofu with Garlic Sauce - 油豆腐, something so simple but huge flavours here. I liked the tender inside of the tofu as well as the slightly fried exterior. The sauce was excellent, a good blend of sweet and savoury, this is something commonly seen in Taiwanese cuisine. 
This Deep Fried Pork Chop - 炸排骨 was pretty tasty, and I liked that they cut it up for us, making it easy to share. I also liked the fact the there were some bony pieces, those are my favourite! There isn't much sauciness here though, with the flavour coming mostly coating on the pork. 
More deep fried goodness, these are Deep Fried Chicken Nuggets - 鹽酥雞 and boy, these were a hit! The chicken is breaded and then deep fried. Lots of garlicky flavours and a nice punch of saltiness too. And these are super crispy and you will never want to eat McDonald's Chicken Nuggets again.
As with so many of our Chinese Bites dinners, this is the Slow Braised Pork Belly - 東坡肉. The skin and fat had a really nice chew to it, and the meat itself was richly flavoured. The sauce was really good and I appreciated the veggies as we were eating lots of meat already! This isn't on the menu currently but it is something they plan to add.
This was another winner, the Thai Style Chicken - 椒麻雞. Too much raw onions for my liking, but the chicken itself is solid, juicy and tender. The Thai flavour comes through with just a bit of sour and a touch of sweet.
The next two dishes are very similar, both arrive on a sizzling hot plate and are served with noodles, veggies such as baby corn, carrots and broccoli. If you look closely, you'll also see the fried egg. This is the Taiwanese Steak with Black Pepper Sauce - 黑胡椒鐵板牛排. Because the sauce is on the steak and not mixed with the noodles, you sort of have to do this yourself. Move the steak off to the side and toss the noodles with the sauce and veggies.  
This is the same as above but with chicken, the Taiwanese Chicken Steak -黑胡椒鐵板雞排. The egg is hidden underneath some of the veggies, but it's there. Add the yolk to the sauce for extra creaminess. I found both these dishes to be a bit dry, could definitely use more sauce. 
More noodles! This is the House Special Beef Noodle Soup - 牛肉麵. Although this arrived early on in the meal, I didn't actually get to try it. So we asked the owner if we could have another one to try and he graciously agreed. I think round two of these noodles were better, I found the broth to be quite good, although a bit mild, but I really loved the tender pieces of the beef. It came piping hot and it was one of the highlights for me. Those how ate the first bowl didn't have the same experience, so consistency may be an issue. 
 This dish was the last one to arrive and it took about 30 minutes to come out. It's Stir Fried Chicken with Shaoxing Wine - 一品花雕雞. It's not currently available on the menu yet, but the chef wanted us to try it. This had a lot of flavour, as you can see by the large pieces of ginger, garlic and dried chilies  The chicken were bone-in pieces and was excellent as well. Since most people were full already, there were lots of leftovers of this dish, which I was lucky enough to take it home!

**Strike hosted Chinese Bites for this tasting but my opinions are my own.**


More reviews available here for Signature Dishes Tour Dinners.