Coming off the viral success for there all you can eat lobster and crab special late last year, Grand Neptune seafood is back in a big way. Back with another epic all you can eat offer, and this time it is the very seasonal and very limited king crab.
This is North America’s very first all you can eat king crab offer. Starting from February 26th and running to March 1st, 2024; or until quantities run out. This promotion will be running daily from 3pm until closing, giving guests 1 hour and 30 minutes to eat all they can, but with a few restrictions.
Reservations are mandatory as seats and crabs are limited. There is minimum requirement of 4 people to your party and it is $198 per person, where all guests at the table must participate in the all you can eat king crab menu. Kids ages 4 to 10 dining in are $80 each, and kids under 3 eat for free.
But the offer is not just for king crab, the all you can eat menu includes all you can salmon and tuna sashimi, plus 19 different Chinese style dishes and sides to pick from.
For the king crab, the table has to finish the whole crab before ordering another one, to avoid food waste, for such a luxurious product that can retail up to $500. Each crab is split into 3 orders between legs, body, and the head. Within each category you can choose how you would like each section prepared.
There are four different flavours to choose from for the legs: Garlic steamed king crab leg with vermicelli, Salt and pepper crab leg with fries, Steamed king crab leg with butter dip, and Stir fried king crab leg with rice cake and soy sauce.
This would be my first time trying king crab, I am typically not a fan of getting my hands dirty when I eat out, and having crab at a restaurant is a daunting and time consuming task, that I mostly avoid. However, I was told the one to try is king crab, because when it comes to the legs, the shell is sliced in to two, and you only need to pry the meat out with the two pronged miniature fork and it comes out in one piece.
Sadly, this would not be the case for my first taste. We started with the Steamed king crab legs with butter dip, which was not short on either butter and garlic. The segments were practically drowning in the generosity of it. Although with hard rod-like tendons the meat did not attach as easily as promised, but came out in pulled strands that I had to scrape clean from the shell instead.
My dinner mates, reassured me that this was not how the meat was suppose to be, and suggested that this serving may have been over cooked. I was disappointed in my first experience, but seeing as my hands were already covered in butter, I might as well have a few more. For each I would further rip apart the two halves of the cut through spiny shell to create enough room to get my finger in to retrieve the sweet crab meat through a series of pinches. I almost made the mistake thinking that this was like a regular crab and attempted to use my teeth to bite down on and further crack the shell. The table shouted at me to stop and I told that this is how I break my teeth.
The Stir fried king crab leg with rice cake and soy sauce was a better experience. The pieces of crab meat did come out in whole section for a meaty and easy mouthful. And I did prefer the flavour of this more, the light soy glaze volleyed off of the natural flavour of the crab well, where as the heavy handed garlic above did come off as being a touch acrid. Not to mentioned the rice cakes on the side offered a nice chew and a change of pace.
As for the crab body, or rather the knuckles, there are six flavours to choose from. This includes the four above with butter and garlic, soy and rice cake, garlic and vermicelli, and salt & pepper with fries. Also with the addition of a spicy offering with vermicelli and the familiar crab in cream sauce, which they call “supreme sauce”.
For the body we tried it slightly spicy with vermicelli. These were little nuggets that were also pre-cut and fairly easy it get into, less gratifying to eat, but just as tasty, especially with the noodles picking up extra flavour as its side.
We also tried the salt and pepper version with crispy fries on the side. A very east meets west offering with the preparation. They even took the time to stack the fries like jenga blocks for a one whimsical display. Much like the offering above, well seasoned, bites of meat you gouge from shell then lick your fingers clean of.
As for the head, there were 4 different ways to have this prepared, each a base of either rice or noodle, as there isn’t any meat in the head per se, and what you are having is its guts mingled into the sauce of either fried rice, Portuguese sauce baked rice, flour noodles, or E-fu noodles (a type of flat Cantonese egg noodles).
The carb head was placed on the plate for show, the same size as either the serving of rice or noodle. Considering there was no meat left under the shell, it would have been nice to have used this as the bowl for the rice below.
The baked fried rice was my favourite out of all the king crab dishes, there was so much flavour from the mild zesty curry to sweet sharp peppers, and of course the nuance of the crab innards.
The noodles by comparison was a little flatter with its thin white sauce. Both of which a great base to have with any of the crab legs and crab body options above. So I wished that they all came out at the same time to enjoy together.
For those not up to the challenge of eating all that you can, a king crab with all three applications: legs, body, and head à la carte is only $26.99/lb. Apparently this is one of the least expensive options whereas other restaurants go for $30/lb plus and Asian grocery stores are asking for over $29/lb and you have to find a pot large enough to cook it yourself.
As for the rest of the all you can eat menu, here is what you can expect as possible sides to your king crab feast.
Warm your stomach up with some sweet and creamy corn soup with bits of ground chicken. A silky soup with the excess swirls of egg to add to mouth-feel.
Out of the two I preferred the Hot and sour soup, but it was not as tasty as I remembered it to be from my last visit. I found it had more ingredients including the addition of scallop, but overall tasted flatter and was in need of more vinegar.
Having all you can eat sashimi is an interesting option, especially for a Chinese restaurant specializing in hot wok prepared dishes. Although this does serve as a nice appetizer and something lighter to tide you over as you wait for your mains. Pretty basically raw tuna and salmon, nothing had this standing out. Probably would be better spicy, with a sauce to add some kick.
More Japanese menu options include Agadashi tofu which was as expected, blocks of mildly crispy tofu on the blander side.
There was also Tako wasabi and Seaweed salad that we didn’t get a chance to try.
I liked the Marinated cucumber with garlic more as a nice refreshing start.
And the Pickled radish offered bold tang to change the taste in between bites.
The Deep fried vegetable spring roll was pretty commonplace. Double wrapped for more crispy shell than stewed vegetable filling. I would have like a sauce other than soy to better pair with the flavour of the fried roll. Perhaps a sweet and sour chilli, which seems just as typical.
The Stir fried garlic cauliflower was popular amongst the table, crisp vegetable as a solid neutral side.
The Stir fried eggplant, green bean, and pumpkin was another popular one at the table. Crispy beans, soft eggplant, and pumpkin that melts in your mouth; all coated in a flavourful brown sauce.
The Pinapple sweet and sour pork was a classic and delivered on expectations. A sweet and sticky coating covering a tough barrier of breading over bite-sized nuggets of pork. Would have liked this with rice, as per my childhood.
The Sweet and sour pork chop was the same as above, but in chewier and meatier chunks with the need to watch out for bones. I preferred this version for the fattier pieces of meat.
There was also a Deep fried pork chop, the same tender meat that is easy to rip and bite off as above, but seasoned in fragrant salt and pepper instead.
Other than that the only other dish that was left to try, but we didn’t get a chance to, was the Stir fried salted egg with fish skin. Such a shame, as I have had it before and it is one of my favourite dishes of theirs.
And ofcourse for desserts, if you have any space left you can either choose from their tried and true mango gelatin or mango pomelo sago.
Or better yet, ask for the secret menu jiggly coconut or strawberry pudding cat. We have been calling this a rabbit for months now, but the staff and management have confirmed that this is indeed a cat.
In closing, Grand Neptune has done it again, another show stopping all you can eat deal, worth making reservations for. No one else has thought to do a king crab all you can eat and here they are as the first.
Grand Neptune Seafood Restaurant
4331 Dominion St, Burnaby, BC V5G 1C7
604-620-8803
grandneptune.ca
