LIFE’S A BANQUET

by Rabarbra Pewik A Culinary Escapade in Three Acts

Act I~

Fridays are of great cosmic importance when it comes to -
nosh: it is vital to conclude the hectic week with a satisfying meal. -
Which is why | was most disappointed when-our gang of five ended.
up at Kitto on Granville at Robson on a recent.Friday evening. Recta

Post opening at the Anodyne Contemporary on Friday
October 15th (work by Jason McLean, love Jason’ McLean, love his
work, love that everyone loves. him), we trickled downstairs for big
bottle of Sapporo and some edible tidbits that were barely such. |
fondly remember back in the day when the first Kitto opened on ae
Robson and we were all introduced to big bowls of ramen and teensy *
plates of robata done up like tiny celebrations for our mouths. Now”)
the service is terrible, the portions shrunken, and the dirt intrusive.

| can't seem to drink Japanese beer without the nutty = rf
unshelled soybeans known as edamame, but here they were both =~
expensive ($5 for a bowl), and so overdone the shells splintered in©
our mouths as we sucked the wee beans. out of them. Not feeling
particularly noodley, | went with robata, the grilled tapas Kitto Serves: y=
after 5pm. The asparagus wrapped in bacon was tasty - bacon being
an easy hit for a carnivore like me. The Japanese mushrooms (enoki)
weren't nearly as good as they are when | cook them, and the rice :
cake, while delicious, didn't appear until the rest ‘of our meal had.
been cleared away. pete See

_ We all had picky bits and pieces (miso soup, dynamite roll,

stuffed eggplant and rice), which is the secret to a cheap eat, and all
locked in between $6 and $10 each - depending on our Asahi or
Sapporo intake. The secret to Kitto is going for what they do best:
big bowls of nabeyaki udon or donburi (avoid the chicken). Maybe
the real secret is now there's about a jillion other places to go for this
kind of eating; only fools suffer gladly.

Act :

For years now | have been part of an occasionally erratic
Sunday morning dim sum ritual. And we keep coming back to
Szechuan Chongqing at 12th and Commercial. We have meat eaters,
chicken-only eaters, vegetarians, and vegetarians so allergic to fish
they puff up and die when exposed to a tiny dried shrimp, and we all
love this dumpling Mecca (maybe partly because after Saturday night
and coupled with an orange pop, it is the ultimate hang-over cure).

Two to twelve of us are guaranteed to show, and always
handled with simultaneous grinning and eye rolling. Always the first
to arrive at our table is the discouragingly named cannelloni: rice
noodles rolled with dried shrimp and green onions then pan-fried.
Steaming hot and dipped in peanut sauce, these are the perfect

(Some poor fools are starving to death...)

@-8
LIFE’S A BANQUET

by Rabarbra Pewik A Culinary Escapade in Three Acts

Act I

Fridays are of great cosmic importance when it comes to
Nosh: it is vital to conclude the hectic week with a satisfying meal.
Which is why | was most disappointed when our gang of five ended
up at Kitto on Granville at Robson on a recent Friday evening.

Post opening at the Anodyne Contemporary on Friday
October 15th (work by Jason McLean, love Jason McLean, love his
work, love that everyone loves him), we trickled downstairs for big
bottle of Sapporo and some edible tidbits that were barely such. 1
fondly remember back in the day when the first Kitto opened on =
Robson and we were all introduced to big bowls of ramen and teensy *
plates of robata done up like tiny celebrations for our mouths, Now.
the service is terrible, the portions shrunken, and the dirt intrusive,

| can't seem to drink Japanese beer without the nutty
unshelled soybeans known as edamame, but here they were both
expensive ($5 for a bowl), and so overdone the shells splintered in
our mouths as we sucked the wee beans out of them. Not feeling
Particularly noodley, | went with robata, the grilled tapas Kitto serves
after 5pm. The asparagus wrapped in bacon was tasty - bacon being
an easy hit for a carnivore like me, The Japanese mushrooms (enoki)
weren't nearly as good as they are when | cook them, and the rice
cake, while delicious, didn’t appear until the rest of our meal had
been cleared away.

We all had picky bits and pieces (miso soup, dynamite roll,
stuffed eggplant and rice), which is the secret to a cheap eat, and all
locked in between $6 and $10 each - depending on our Asahi or
Sapporo intake. The secret to Kitto is going for what they do best:
big bowls of nabeyaki udon or donburi (avoid the chicken). Maybe
the real secret is now there's about a jillion other places to go for this
kind of eating; only fools suffer gladly.

Act It

For years now | have been part of an occasionally erratic
Sunday morning dim sum ritual. And we keep coming back to
Szechuan Chongqing at 12th and Commercial. We have meat eaters,
chicken-only eaters, vegetarians, and vegetarians so allergic to fish
they puff up and die when exposed to a tiny dried shrimp, and we all
love this dumpling Mecca (maybe partly because after Saturday night
and coupled with an orange pop, it is the ultimate hang-over cure),

‘Two to twelve of us are guaranteed to show, and always
handled with simultaneous grinning and eye rolling. Always the first
to arrive at our table is the discouragingly named cannelloni: rice
noodles rolled with dried shrimp and green onions then pan-fried.
Steaming hot and dipped in peanut sauce, these are the perfect.

(some poor fools are starving to death...)

@8