562188 Fri Oct 03 17:15:23 -0700 2008 10 57 Western Canada Archive 0 4080426 So on Wednesday night I post a panicked request for somewhere good to eat near Ikea in Richmond (http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/561683), and as usual you Hounds came through. I compiled all the recs for the next time we're doing similar chores, but we decided to try Sea Harbour. Walked in at 7:45 on a Thursday night to a busy but not packed house. The room is spacious and inviting but has a bit of an 80s vibe per my SO. The chargers on the tables are particularly dated looking, though it's nice to have them. The room was also encrusted in so many different patterns I felt a bit vertiginous but that passed as soon as I opened up the menu. Then I felt intimidated! There's some serious seafood cooking going on here, people. Once we got past the enormous meals for multiples (the snack items are only available by the dozen, and things like soups are one large size only) and dug in a bit further, we found some great sounding offerings. Since it was a seafood resto, it seemed right to go for seafood hot and sour (SO was really craving soup). This megabowl would easily have fed 6-8 and came in at $16.80. Not a problem -- lunch for the next day. The soup was less-seafood-filled than many I've had, but the broth was lighter and subtler (in a good way) also. Tasted better with every slurp! We also settled on a black cod and tofu hotpot ($20.80), which had roasted garlic cloves, ginger, sui choy and big old black mushrooms too. I love black cod in any form so I was prepared to enjoy it, but the SO hasn't eaten it outside of Japanese preps and finds it a bit strong. This dish was not his favourite but I loved it and was pleased to take the leftovers for my lunch. For our third completely-unnecessary-but-ordered-in-the-name-of-research dish we had to go with the stewed pork belly in soy sauce ($14.80) on the seasonal menu. No idea why this would be considered seasonal except maybe that it is so comforting on a rainy fall night. It came with a helping of nicely steamed Shanghai bok choy, which was a good counterpoint to the unctuousness of the pork. This dish was a winner for both of us, but I'm guessing not for our arteries :-). We ate until we were far too full and the staff were happy to pack up the rest. Speaking of staff, they were all delightful, especially Lisa who was our main point of contact and the strongest communicator. They were all assiduous in their attempts to make us feel comfortable, as we were clearly in the minority both in terms of numbers at our table and non-Asianness. At the end of the meal, we were offered a dessert gratis. I had to try it though I could hardly eat another bite, and I'm glad I did. It was a cross between a dal, a congee and a chili, made with "green beans" which I think may have been mung, and of course it was sweet. It also had some elusive spices and flavourings that I couldn't put my finger on. Something very different for me that I would have again. Bottom line: Sea Harbour gets the thumbs up -- just try to go with more people so you can sample more dishes! Fri Oct 03 17:15:23 -0700 2008 169233 grayelf 1 4080480 "unctuousness" - way to go Word Bird! Thanks for your review! :-) Fri Oct 03 17:50:27 -0700 2008 4080426 156732 ck1234 2 4080901 Tee hee. But really is there any other word than "unctuous" to best describe a well-prepared piece of pork belly? Sat Oct 04 00:05:04 -0700 2008 4080480 169233 grayelf 1 4080710 Thanks for the report! They have a dish that you probably will never try (owing to your crab allergy) - their famous Kabocha and Crab Hotpot. Sea Harbour is an excellent and creative restaurant and it really shows when you have a larger group (say about 8). Fri Oct 03 20:34:06 -0700 2008 4080426 145820 fmed 2 4080899 I am thankfully not actually allergic to crab and lobster, they just make things shall we say very uncomfortable -- what I believe is known as a food sensitivity -- discovered the hard way with hidden crab in a quesadilla :-(. I was so wishing I could try that dish as I do love me some kabocha. I really hear what you're saying on the larger group thing here, it seems even more so than at other Chinese restos I've been to. Forgive my sad ignorance, but what style of cooking is the specialty here? Sat Oct 04 00:03:36 -0700 2008 4080710 169233 grayelf 3 4080984 >> Forgive my sad ignorance, but what style of cooking is the specialty here? Sea Harbour is modern Cantonese. I believe the proprietors are from HK. Sat Oct 04 04:09:25 -0700 2008 4080899 145820 fmed 4 4081238 That would have been my uninformed guess, fmed, but thanks for the confirmation. I am trying to learn! Sat Oct 04 07:43:25 -0700 2008 4080984 169233 grayelf 1 4081223 As always your reports are informative as well as educational, and enjoyable reading due to your choices of descriptors. This one sent me googling "table chargers". http://www.eyou8989.com/Charger-plates-make-a-comeback.html BTW, have a great time on your upcoming trip to N CA, looking forward to what you find around the Fruitvale area of Oakland and other environs that you visit. Cheers, Dave Sat Oct 04 07:30:47 -0700 2008 4080426 18150 PolarBear 2 4081246 Thanks for the props, D/PB. The charger link is great. As for our trip, I can't wait. We'll mostly be in SF proper but that alone is enough to keep anyone chowing to infinity and beyond :-). I really enjoy the San Francisco Bay Area board; it's the only other one besides this that I read all the time; it is a very busy and tight knit board from which I have gleaned nearly all my best recs for our jaunts to that area. Stay tuned for my next post there -- I have four more dining days to fill! Sat Oct 04 07:49:39 -0700 2008 4081223 169233 grayelf 3 4081386 The SF and bay area hounds are great, in fact a number of them are coming down to Fresno in a couple of weeks for a Sichuan chowdown. If you get a chance to hook up with any of them you won't regret it. Sat Oct 04 09:16:03 -0700 2008 4081246 18150 PolarBear 4 4081524 Yes, the menu you arrange sounds just wonderful. I am most sorry that I will be China on that date. I petty sure I will be eating well. Maybe you should post the menu here for grayelf. I still owe this board a report on my two formal dinners in BC from my last trip. But part of my computer hard drive memory has locked up and I can not access some documents so it may be a while. Sat Oct 04 10:31:13 -0700 2008 4081386 10686 yimster