This was my first time in a long time visiting Chinatown Plaza. Today I was here for Floata Restaurant, the location for this year’s 7th Annual Canada Day Drumming Event hosted by the Legacy 150 Celebration Society. I was invited to MC the event and was happy to hear the celebration included lunch.
I found it more respectful to recap and review the two separately, so for the rundown of all the performances and the Canada Day virtual simultaneous drumming event visit the link below.
This post is strictly a critique on the food served in masse for over 20 tables. A room full performers and esteemed guests. Not to mention we were but one banquet hall and the rest of the restaurant was open and serving regular customers on a normally busy Saturday brunching hour. This compounded with the fact it was the start to a sunny long weekend, and gave everyone additional drive celebrate and be outdoor.
Floata’s banquet hall tables were dressed in red, pairing with its gold to tan and brown coloured walls, carpet, and chairs motif. Each table arranged by sponsors and for the groups that would be performing today.
As guests settled after a heavy program with lots of furious drumming servers began bringing our shared plates. Easy to grab and share with the use of a lazy Susan.
First, a Chinese vegetable and chicken congee to start. Served in a large bowl, then doled out table side into individual servings. Well seasoned and flavourful without the need of additional pepper and vinegar. Nice and warming to jump start the appetite.
Next came a dish of crispy vegetable spring rollswith shredded cabbage, carrot, and vermicelli noodles. Served in conjunction with a sweet and sour dipping sauce. They were hearty and large, with a nice crispy skin that broke under the weight of a bite. One of the better Chinese style spring rolls I have had of recent.
Next we had some of the largest and meatiest siu mai, pork dumplings I have ever had. Each had a great flavour on its own, and I wasn’t missing truffle as most restaurants have started topping them with. Although they did taste even better with the addition of the share side of XO chilli oil. The fermented shrimp in particular really highlighted the juicy pork.
The Bbq pork buns were also steamed in large quantities. Each perfectly formed with soft and chewy dough. Inside a still warm filling or sweet and slightly sticky caramelized pork bits. I appreciated how much filling there was, and that it was a better ratio of meat to bun than most.
Next we had what I have been calling honeymoon fried rice all my life, I heard it once and it stuck. But this has also been called yin and yang fried rice which is basically two different rice dishes baked together as once. They are often two different flavours that can carry on their own, but come come together for a whole new complimentary dish. This was half creamy shrimp and sweet pea and half sweet and sour tomato and pork. More rice than topping there wasn’t enough creamy sauces to penetrate to the bottom of the casserole dish. I liked the idea, but found it bland overall. I could have used more salt at minimum. And because there wasn’t enough pork or shrimp and this was a table shared serving, what I got was bland. Texture-wise the sauces perfectly soften the mound of rice, the peas and tomato sweetened its own serving and offered a nice freshness together. The shrimp was nice, if you got any, and the pork less satisfying sliced in to long strips.
Similarly, the chow mein was basic soy sauce soaked noodles wok fried with green onion. Tasty enough with a half crispy and half chewy texture. But without any protein it felt incomplete, like a side but there was no meaty main dish to have with it. A sweet and sour pork or beef with vegetable would have done well. As is this was boring.
In closing this was a nice taste of Floata. I liked a few of the dishes and was impressed by how good they turned out for such a large en-masse eating and service. Seeing as their dim sum dishes were my favourite of the meal, I would like to return for the rest of their said menu. Especially now that I know they have complimentary underground parking.
Floata Seafood Restaurant
180 Keefer St, Vancouver, BC V6A 1X4
604-602-0368
floata.com
