Comments on: Zen Chinese Cuisine in Richmond

By: Chow Times » Zen Fine Chinese Cuisine Opened — Want To Join Suanne and I for Dinner?

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 07:28:19 +0000

[...] we wrote about the publicity Zen had from Jennifer8 Lee’s review and our tasting at Zen shortly after. Recently, we wrote to Hakkasan about Zen and we had a very in-depth response from Hakkasan which [...]

By: Chow Times » The Return of the “Best Chinese Food Outside of China” — Zen Fine Chinese Cuisine

Sun, 20 Dec 2009 07:49:12 +0000

[...] Immediately after the news broke, Sam’s restaurant had a second wind. From being on the verge of closing down, suddenly Zen Fine Chinese Cuisine was the rave in Chinese dining with long bookings. Suanne and I dined there and blogged about our meal there in this post. [...]

By: Chow Times » 3rd Spanish Meal: Having The Best Sandwich in the World on Montjuic

Chow Times » 3rd Spanish Meal: Having The Best Sandwich in the World on Montjuic — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 01:51:46 +0000

[...] is also the ”best Chinese restaurant outside of China”. We went to that restaurant (blog here) before it closed a few months later! So, there you [...]

By: Chow Times » Zen Fine Chinese Cuisine - Best Chinese Food Outside China

Chow Times » Zen Fine Chinese Cuisine - Best Chinese Food Outside China — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 15:13:05 +0000

[...] Suanne and Ben Here is the full review of our visit to Zen: http://chowtimes.com/2008/03/23/zen-chinese-cuisine-in-richmond/ [...]

By: Quite possibly the best Chinese food in Metro Vancouver | Vancouver Metblogs

Sun, 11 May 2008 07:32:42 +0000

[...] reviews have been fast and furious since then, and so has the business. Along with some friends, we went there to try things [...]

By: Chow Times » Michigan Noodle Shop in Richmond

Chow Times » Michigan Noodle Shop in Richmond — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 05:03:01 +0000

[...] Shop is located at the eastern end of Alexandra Road. It is actually on the same strip mall as Zen Chinese Cuisine and across the road from Coco Chili. You won’t miss, not with that bright yellow signboard [...]

By: JuJu

JuJu — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 04:38:39 +0000

I have eaten there before the mad rush. His cooking is very tasty. I agreed with Ben that it is one of the better Chinese meals. Just remember that it is like eating at a French restaurant and not a traditional Chinese restaurant with large portions. If you are going to measure value with the igrediants, you’re not going to get it here or many other places either.

By: weew

weew — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 23:01:28 +0000

Ben>>Thanks for the review with the pictures!

LotusRapper>>LOL, I was reading that during my lunch. Interesting read and a little bit surprised that Bluewater guy won.

Lola>>You are spot on. I’m not impressed. My thought while reading Ben’s review was “gee, it looks like stuff I eat at home, but on a small plate” However, before we bash Zen we do have remember that the “chef” was not classicly trained. He just worked in restaurants before and decided to open a restaurant. It shows in the fod.

By: Erick

Erick — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 17:05:21 +0000

Lola, couldn’t agree with you more! To name a place that’s almost going out of business as the Top Chinese Restaurant outside of China is ludicrous! In Vancouver, where there are many great choices to eat Chinese, the people vote with their wallets and patronage. If the Zen people really want to stand out, they should be trying to reconstruct the Chinese basic food like one chap is doing in Hong Kong. I saw him on the Anthony Bourdain’s show, “No Reservations”. This one chef (self-trained) has a take on beef sukiyaki, using rare Kobe beef in small, one-serving sukiyaki dishes and letting the warm sauce cook this meat. He also had an interpretation on the traditional Har Gow, emphasizing more of the shrimp than the wrapper that was nothing short of impressive. That kind of refinement is what separates one from another small plate restaurant.

While I’ll agree that the Vancouver area is the best outside of China/HK for Chinese food, I’m a bit leery of this critic.

By: LotusRapper

LotusRapper — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 16:18:42 +0000

I think I would tend to agree with Lola. I don’t think I’ll be spending my $36 at Zen.

Lola, if you haven’t already, I recommend the latest issue of Georgia Straight (Golden Plates Award ‘08). One of the main feature articles talks about how in Vancouver, the whole concept of fine-dining restaurant presentation and marketing packaging is still lacking, and we are definitely behind other major cities:

http://www.straight.com/article-137314/ingredients-success