Bar — Blog — Jenn Chan Photography

Mott32 Dining + Champagne Lounge at Trump Vancouver / June 9, 2017 by Jenn Chan

As you walk into Mott 32 the first thing you will notice is... well there's a lot. Like a lot, a lot. But one thing that will certainly strike you is that each table has unique, custom-made seating and each area has a subtly different theme. The outlying tables, some close to their lovely new patio and some near to the lavish, intimate bar, each have a particular, distinctive style. As you get to the centre of the restaurant you see the space is dominated by Mott 32's signature steel octagon. During the day natural light streams through the octagon ceiling's frosted glass panelling, but at night the soft lighting and dark walls beckon with a sultry, sophisticated ambience.

Our culinary adventure started with an amuse bouche; fried tofu with candied ginger in a sweet and sour sauce. My usual gripe with tofu is the slimy squishiness, but Mott fries these until they're crisp. The sauce complimented them perfectly and signalled we were in for a real treat during our first visit! They were followed closely by our chosen appetizers: the Maine Lobster Har Gow and Shredded Peking Duck Spring Roll. The har gow was packed with lobster flavour and dripping with saucy goodness. A solid 8/10 on the deliciousness metre! The spring rolls are a revelation! We watched as whole duck, which must be ordered 24 hours in advance, after whole duck rolled by our table to be cut up table side for our lucky fellow diners. Our spring rolls helped to dry our tears from not having ordered the delicious, succulent duck and the crispness of the roll made the flavour of the duck pop. No soggy, previously frozen spring rolls at Mott! I hate to give perfect 10/10's because chefs need a goal in the distance to strive for so I'll label these a 9.7/10... They're amazing! Top five spring rolls of my life!

Starting to feel the groove we welcomed our entrées: Alaskan King Crab Vermicelli, Australian Wagyu M9 Sirloin and 24 Hour Slow Cooked New Zealand Lamb Shank. The vermicelli boasted more roe in a pasta dish than I have ever seen. Large pieces of crab, fresh, thin noodles and every bite covered in flying fish roe! The roe provides a nice crunch to the dish which compliments the tender pasta and supple crab perfectly; delicious! Wagyu beef, as I have often ranted, makes other beef, AAA, sirloin, New York, whatever, taste like Big Mac mystery meat. The innovative 'log house-style' plating, homemade black bean paste and tasty button mushrooms almost made me forget that the bottom layer of the log house was one of my arch nemeses; the leek. Out of deference for the talented Mott 32 chefs I ventured a bite of onion's ugly cousin, but, sadly, as predicted, I didn't enjoy it. Jenn loved it so I am willing to go with her assessment: "fresh, perfectly cooked and tangy." Now onto the winner of tonight's "what did you enjoy the most" prize; the lamb shank! Jenn and I have recently started slow cooking. Everything! Put a rack of ribs in the slow cooker and add... things... I'm not actually sure what she's putting in there, but I do know you can cut the meat with a cross look or a stern glance. You could eat Mott's lamb shank if you didn't have any teeth, it would be easily gummed down! The 'northern spices', about which I could not get many hints for our very talented server, is very tasty. The hulking, very photogenic, lamb shank is worth a trip to Mott all in its own and I implore you to try it!

Alaskan King Crab Vermicelli, Flying Fish Roe

Australian Wagyu M9 Sirloin, Grilled Leeks, Homemade Black Bean Paste, Garlic Chips

24 hour Slow Cooked New Zealand Lamb Shank, Northern Spices

Almost ready to roll home like the obnoxious, blueberry girl who couldn't leave Willy Wonka's gum alone in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, we opted against dessert. Seeing as how we live less than 200 steps away, we counted, we assured ourselves we would be back to partake and we never let ourselves down when gluttony is involved! Got to Mott 32, treat yourself, you'll be glad you did. Mention us at Jenn Chan Media and I'd wager dollars to donuts there will be a surprise in store you you!

Words: Scott Allan
Photos: Jenn Chan

Top Patios in Vancouver Series: The Keefer Bar / June 27, 2016 by Jenn Chan

Slowly but surely Chinatown is becoming a hotspot in the Vancouver gastronomic scene. Leading that charge is the Keefer Bar with its self-styled 'apothecary cocktails' and Asian fusion small plates.

Our journey started, as all journeys at the Keefer do, with cocktails. We sampled the Dragonfly and the Keefer 75 first. The Dragonfly consists of dragonfruit gin, sake, lemon, ginger syrup and magnolia bark tincture, whatever the hell that is! The menu indicated it would be tart yet my beautiful Asian companion for the night, owing, I would surmise, to her deep-rooted love of ginger, found it refreshing and well balanced. I found it very tasty, tart as per the menu, but definitely one I'd order again. The Keefer 75 is the Keefer Bar take on the classic French 75. They use their dragonfruit gin, some lemon, a dash of lavender and top it off with some sparkling wine. Very fizzy and delicious, I could have had 20!

As our Peking Duck tacos, absolutely amazing, came out so too did our Wenxu and Moscow Mule. The Wenxu is made with vodka, grapefruit, lemon, the omnipresent ginger and a red ginseng tincture. Now from my limited knowledge of ginseng I know that it is supposed to relieve stress and aid in erectile distinction in men. It seemed to do both, but it may have been from the alcohol and company. I guess we'll never know! Every bar in the world, perhaps a slight hyperbole, makes a Moscow Mule. I have not, full disclosure, had one in every bar in the world, but I have had many and the Keefer Bar makes my favourite mule. Worth a visit on its own. They use Finlandia vodka, good start, make their lime juice fresh, second box ticked, and use a very high quality ginger. A near perfect 10/10!

The duck tacos were the best that I had ever had and it is not only because they were my first duck tacos of life, you don't find that on many menus, but also because the duck was lean, the tortillas mouth-watering my fresh and the vegetables were very fresh. A tear rolled down my cheek when we finished them, but happiness returned when I realized we could just order more. Moral of that story is throw money at your problems people, just throw money!

Dim sum at a bar is a gamble going in and I think most people would agree with that. I have had some surprisingly good experiences and I have had entire nights ruined. Dim sum means 'touch the heart', but it can sometimes mean 'crippling stomach pain'. The Keefer makes a mean dumpling. Their basket includes pork, shrimp and vegetable dumplings and I rank them as follows: pork, shrimp and vegetable which is really what I prefer my food to eat rather than me. I'm hoping to grow out of it one day, but for now vegetables are good for nourishing the animals which ultimately become my main source of nutrition. I will just apologize to all the onions of the world now because I hear they can be crybabies.

Dim Sum - Pork, Shrimp & Vegetable Dumplings

Afterwards we decided to grab a couple more Dragonflys and ordered the Peking Duck Sliders and the famous Keefer Shrimp Spring Rolls. Best sliders of my life. Duck is such an underrated poultry in Canada. We gotta stop people! The spring rolls didn't disappoint. Deep fried to a glorious golden brown and filled with amazingly fresh shrimp. Some of the better spring rolls I've had and I have in the past given some pretty tepid reviews of spring rolls.

The boys at Keefer are keeping the cocktails innovative, the food a very elevated Asian fusion and the ambience is still dark and sexy! Head on down to the Keefer today. Their happy hour is amongst the best in the city and runs 5-7 everyday, but Saturday. Could be a good way to dip your toe in with 2 for 1 tapas and and awesome cocktail specials!

Words: Scott Allan
Photos: Jenn Chan