Mirch Masala – The Most Kick Ass Indian Food in the Lower Mainland

When one goes to an ethnic restaurant, it’s often a good sign when the staff are of the same ethnic background. No, it does not count when Chinese People run a Fake Pho Restaurant and speak Mandarin or Cantonese in the background. Just because we all look alike doesn’t mean we are. Even the most angry Chinese Person isn’t as angry as a true Vietnamese like Mr. General Lan (or as happy as Pho Brian and his harem of beautiful girls). I guess the only exception would be when Rob Feenie covers his ass and makes a California roll and calls it “Fusion” instead of calling it Sushi. Although this is a good rule of thumb, it sometimes doesn’t tell the whole food quality story.

The other way of telling if an ethnic restaurant is good or not, is by observing the clientelle that it keeps. Last Saturday, Ed Lau, Leo Chaing, and I went down to All India Sweets Restaurant. Located in the heart of “Little India” in Vancouver, you would swear that it’d be a pretty authentic and good place to eat. Well apparently not, and we should’ve clued in when we noticed that the majority of people in there were Caucasian.

The place also has a bad reputation with the East Indian community as being somewhat unsanitary. Tej Singh of 1234pens felt so bad for me that he had to show me what a real East Indian Meal tasted like. He invited me out to Mirch Masala, located in Surrey, BC, for a taste of what the East Indian Community deem as the best food in all of the Lower Mainland.

You Mean It’s Not Supposed to be Oily and Overspiced?

Most of the places that I’ve been to in the past seemed OK. The stuff tasted fine to me, but that was because I’d never had the best. I left Tej to order up some of his favourite items and boy was I surprsied at what I saw…

We started off with two dishes: A tandori chicken and a tandori fish dish. Both dishes tasted clean and fresh and weren’t oily or overpowered by the spices as I’ve often tasted in the past at other eateries. The ingredients were simple and the smell of the smoke and sizzle from the cast iron plate was intoxicating. I stopped taking pictures and just went to town. Following this was probably the best Butter Chicken and Garlic Naan that I had ever tasted. The sauce of the butter chicken was full bodied and rich and you could literally taste the different spices and the texture of the ingredients. The Garlic Naan was absolutely to die for. You could see the pieces of minced garlic sticking out of this heavenly flat bread. I’ve got to get my own brick oven one day so I can make this at home.

The Aftermath…

Tej ordered so much food that it almost defeated me. This is coming from the guy that finished two Wally Burgers and a TOPS Super Sirloin Burger back to back, in the same day. He told me that he’s tried every place in the Lower Mainland and that this was the best place he’s been. Tej has a large family (500 strong) and because of that, he’s eaten at every place at least once so I don’t take his declaration lightly. He also told me that on certain days of the week, Mirch Masala has lineups out the door and around the building. Believe me, it’s that good and the next time you’re in Surrey, you have to try this place.

Oh…and One More Thing…

Before I could get away, Tej insisted that I have dessert. This is like an East Indian take on the TimBit drenched in a sugary syrup. It was really good. I never knew a TimBit could be turned into something so decadent.

Afterewards, Tej asked the staff to pack everything that was leftover and handed me the Doggie Bag. Twist my arm huh?

What? More Fee Stuff?

I was already floored that Tej took me out and showed me what real Indian Food was all about after our Indian Food Fail. Before this, we’ve really only met a couple times in person and communicated mainly over Facebook messages. We had a great time talking about all sorts of stuff and it’s pretty amazing how much the two of us have in common. He’s truly an all around great guy that is genuinely passionate about his business and about the people he works with.

Before we parted ways, Tej had one more thing to give to me… 

Tej prepared a huge box of DotComPho pens for the Dot Com Crew to give out at the next event. I’m thinking this weekend. Location anyone? Tej has personally tested most of the pens in this box so he’s pretty sure they are all good. He took our feedback to heart when the first batch he sent out had some issues.

These pens are all from his BicPromoPens division that turns out custom pens from the high quality Bic catalogue. If your business is looking to create a little buzz, the gift of a pen goes a long way. Afterall, everyone likes a free pen. There is a reason why people steal them all the time. Not to mention, Tej is a real straight up guy and will take good care of you and make sure you’re satisfied with your order. Speaking of pens, if you’re from out of town, and unable to attend a Dot Com Pho in the foreseeable future, please comment on this post and I’ll send you some. Tej’s generosity is truly contagious. Offer good while quantities last. I have to save the other half for Dot Com Pho LIVE edition. Kwanye is going to get a bunch too so he can randomly pass them out to strangers at Pho Restaurants and make friends.

Thanks again for the awesome pens Tej and don’t forget 1234PENS or BicPromoPens for all your custom pen needs.

Rain Drops Turn Streets Into Wet Weather Carnage

I wasn’t out in Richmond today so I can’t comment on how much worse the carnage was out there in Fake License Land. I don’t know if you guys heard, but over 200 licenses were faked between 2001 and 2008 by a driving school out in Richmond. This school passed mainly Chinese Women (through bribes to an ICBC Road Tester) who could not possibly pass the road test, but had the bucks to spend $6000 on a piece of plastic. These are only the ones that they know about. This would explain a lot about why my people are embarrassments to me out there on the road. I literally fear for my life when I go out there in any weather.

Closer to home, it started raining lightly this morning as I was on my way out to drop Scooter off at the clinic for his 1000 KM check up. Scooter was a little nervous today but I assure you that he’ll be fine after the scooter doctors are done giving him his physical. I should be able to pick him up in a day or so. While there, he’ll also be getting a variator weight transplant to give him some more zip and have his restriction removed so that he’ll get some more top end speed so that stupid drivers don’t keep trying to pass us on the right on a single lane road.

After dropping off Scooter, I headed out to Delta to meet up with Tejpal Singh of 1234Pens for a real Dot Com Tandori at one of the finest East Indian Restaurants in the lower mainland. Stay tuned for the post later today. Although my trip out was pretty uneventful, the trip back proved quite a bit more hazardous…

Somewhere in New Westminster…

Right at the corner of 10th and McBride, on my way back from Delta, I saw two cars turned around in the wrong direction…

I can’t really tell what happened, but at least four cars were involved. Funny enough, all of the cars were white. Even more funny was that none of my people were involved in this incident. I was only able to snap a shot of the Dodge Pickup and the Honda Civic. Perhaps they consumed products laced with Melamine and lost concentration?

Somewhere in Coquitlam…

Once I got out of that little mess, I ended up seeing another accident in the middle of North Road near the Korean Mall. Although it wasn’t actually my people, some would say close enough. There were four cars stuck in the middle of the intersection with a little damage on each one. This area is notorious for indecisive drivers that can’t make up their mind which direction they are going. Also possible that Melamine was at fault as there is a large Korean SuperMarket in that plaza.

Further up North Road near the end that turns into St. Johns, I spotted this…

It looks like the driver of the Blue Dodge Pickup (another Dodge Pickup?) tried to change lanes into the SUV that is now pinned underneath a tree. However, it is possible that the SUV (looks like a Toyota 4-Runner) was trying to pass on the right when the Dodge clipped it and sent it into the ditch and then up the embankent into the tree. The lady in the cab of the Dodge Pickup was still in the car and crying. It didn’t look like there was any way the driver of the 4-Runner could get out. Scary stuff for sure.

With the change in the weather, make sure you pretend everyone is a moron and drive accordingly. Use your turn singles, cruise in the right, pass on the left (and make sure you get back in the right after you’re done instead of milling around idiots) and quit using that brake pedal like the kick drum in RockBand, screwing everyone behind you up. Stupid people, do us all a favour and stay home or take the bus. Stay safe everyone.

Back To School Madness for Stephen Fung!

The thing that deteriorates the most as you age is your brain and it should be everyone’s goal to continue to learn throughout one’s life. As long as I have the opportunity, I will never stop learning. That’s why I love new gadgets and learning about new products. It’s what keeps me going and keeps me engaged because, as some of you know, I have a pretty short attention span. Here’s what I’ve gotten myself into this Fall…

More Mandarin For Me!

Last year I started taking Mandarin Lessons at Langara College on Saturdays. Although I still suck pretty bad, I know that you can’t learn a new language overnight, or once a week, intermittently, over the course of the year. Hopefully, I’ll fail less next year in Taiwan by continuing my commitment to learn this language. It sucks when you’re more understandable in English than you are in the local language. So far, after my first class back, I feel totally overwhelmed. I really hope I can get back into it quickly.

Speaking of FAIL, after my class on Saturday, I met up with Ed Lau and Leo Chiang for some impromptu “Dot Com Tandori Action” at All India Sweets and Restaurant. It wasn’t an official meet up per se, but I did send out a Tweet if anyone wanted to stop by. This week’s DOT COM FAIL is brought to you by Ed…

Ed likes to season his food. So much so that he decides that the lid of the pepper shaker must come off and he must get all the pepper that is available to him. It’s kind of like how our people like to steal napkins, load up on condiments, and take them home for later use. However, Ed’s interpretation is definitely FAIL. I’m not too surprised though. With a College blocks away, I’d check every shaker before shaking in this hood. PWNED!

School Wouldn’t Be School Without a Hook Up

Unfortunately, I won’t be hooking up at school. My life would be at risk. But it doesn’t mean I can’t live vicariously through someone else…

My little scooter friend decided that while I was back in the classroom, he would get busy with a sexy little number in the parking lot. Oh scooter! You’re such a player! Hopefully, I don’t see little mini-pocket bikes running around somewhere that I don’t know about. I’m sure he’s responsible enough to use plenty of lube and keep the rubber side down.

Taking Much Gooder Pictures

Last year, I took a course that really helped me open up the possibilities when it comes to my photography. Whether it’s just pictures for reviews or for fun, the ten week course put on my Vancouver Photo Workshops really gave me a better understanding on how to get consistently better pictures by avoiding the flash or using lots of flashes. I even got to shoot models. Most importantly, I got to try a bunch of different styles of photography that I would never venture into under normal circumstances. Heck, I even took some shots at a wedding.

This Fall, I’ll be filling in the gaps. I’ll be returning to Vancouver Photo Workshops to do an intensive weekend Photoshop Session for Photographers and a Product Photography Course. Although these are probably things I can read about and learn on my own, it’s no substitute for a hands on experience in an environment where you can ask questions and learn from others. The class starts in October so I’ll report back when things get rolling.

I Thought I’d Never Do It…

Although I had always sworn off getting myself on a motorcycle for fear that I would kill myself on one, I guess the scooter was only the first step. I’m hooked, and there’s nothing I can do about it now. On Monday, I got my motorcycle learners license, and then this morning, I took my very first motorcycle riding lesson.

My first ever motorcycle ride was on a Suzuki Marauder 250. My course will be lead by Dave Clayton at 2wheel 2ition Motorcyle School. I figured a good education on two wheels would be a good investment and would help ensure that I pick up the good habits I need to be safe on the road. Although I’ve had lots of saddle time on my scooter, as I found out today, a motorcycle is a whole different animal.

I guess my fear of learning to ride a motorcycle stems from the fact that I know myself too well. It’s not that I ever doubted my ability to be able to ride one, but what I was most concerned with was the mindset of a younger Stephen Fung. A younger version of me wouldn’t have even considered getting professional instruction or taking my time, stepping up from a scooter and learning proper road sense. Not to mention the impulsiveness and daredevil attitude as a young gun scared even myself at time. Now that I’m older and wiser, I think that I’m finally ready to do something that I’ve always wanted to do.

There’s definitely going to be a lot of learning in the next while and I’ll definitely pass on the good stuff. Stay tuned