We were in Squamish for the day and decided to stop by a few of the local hotspots, one such is the instagram famous Unique Slow Rise Bakery. This is located on the property of Klahanie RV Park.
A few years back it went viral after local superstar foodies posted about it online. I have attempted to visit since, to see if it was worth the hype, however have always stopped by too late and they were often sold out.
Today, earlier in the day, traffic was slow and we were able to order from the entirety of their menu. This included dim sum, rice bowls, and their baked buns. Apparently when they originally started and went viral they only had the latter, so I wanted to try it all today.
I was lured into the buzz and wanted to see if it measured up in my books. And maybe I went into this with too high expectations, but I didn’t see it. Especially as a Vancouverite with Richmond declared as one of the best places for Chinese food in all of North America. This is thanks to immigrants from China and Hong Kong coming to Canada, settling in Richmond and bringing their traditional cooking techniques and applying it to the local fresh produce and ingredients of BC and Canada. We are lucky to have such access to this in Metro Vancouver and we really need not drive all the way out to Squamish for it. Therefore in order to make them a destination I figured then must have something special about them.
In hindsight there no way a little shop in an RV park, in Squamish would be of a higher calibre than a traditional Chinese seafood restaurant. Nonetheless they do serve a niche, as the only Chinese cafe in the area; and as a novelty, to be able to get such cuisine out on camp grounds and as a pit stop with plenty of parking. Not so traditional but it feed majority of those passing through.
You order from their counter’s literal window. This and their kitchen operation has been repurposed from that of an old log cabin. You place your order and pay, and are given a buzzer in return. When it vibrates you can then pick up your tray with your selected items, bringing it to enjoy on any of their outdoor patio picnic tables, out front and to the side.
We ordered the Combo Mini Bowl for $23.90. We thought this was the best deal as it included a dim sum flight, a mini bowl of Chinese bbq over rice, plus a complimentary drink or baked bun side. With this we were able to sample majority of their offerings.
The combo was good for sharing as the dim sum flight included two each of shrimp, pork, and soup dumplings. I am not sure if they make the dumplings in house, but they felt reheated from frozen given the starchy shells, how dense the meat filling was, and the fact that it wasn’t the same consistent temperature through to the centre.
The skin of the shrimp dumpling was ashy and it easily broke apart. The pork dumplings were salty and the meat packed tightly in a compressed wad made it less enjoyable to chew through. I wasn’t mad at their XLB. These were full of promised soup that pours out into your mouth once you bite into it, and not while you are trying to pick it up. The soup was flavourful but at room temperature, the meat filling could have also used more seasoning.
Thankfully the dumplings do come with sauces. The staff offered all, and I took all. Soy sauce, vinegar, and chilli crunch. The vinegar and chilli added some flavoured acidity and also gave the rice bowl some needed pep.
We also tried their Truffle Dumplings, which is essentially a vegetarian mushroom dumping stuffed with cabbage, carrots, shiitake, mushrooms, soy sauce, truffle oil, and sesame oil. My guest stated that she could taste the truffle in the mix. I thought it hidden and lacking, especially as they are asking $10 for 4 flattened dumplings. Whereas at most dim
sum restaurants I have been to, you get an order of four meat and seafood dumplings for $9.50 and they come freshly steamed and stuffed full. My guest ordered this one, and had I known the price, I probably would’ve vetoed it, especially for an all vegetable dumpling.
As for their rice bowl we had a choice of having it with roasted porkbelly or bbq pork. I went with the former out of preference. The serving too felt reheated. The rice was dry and crumbly, the bok Choy was overcooked to the point that I lost its vibrant green coloured and was left with a pale hue. My guess was in shock over how they could not nail rice. Not surprisingly the meat was just as disappointing. It was more fat and gristle, the skin wasn’t crispy but caramelized, and we got little to no meat. They did do a good job hiding it all behind the fried onion topping. Once again, the sauces above helped to mask most of it.
However, we couldn’t hide with the filling within the pineapple bun. We got the pineapple baked barbeque pork bun is our bonus item for the combo above. The menu described this as a buttery crust from pineapple brioche bun stuffed with their classic barbeque pork filling. I figured getting this would be a good way to try both types of meat in the same combo.
Like everything else so far, this didn’t seem to be fresh as well. The brioche part was OK as it was still spongy and somewhat moist. The topping, however, was hard and dry like plaster. The flavour was there, but the texture made it less enjoyable. And that wasn’t even the worst part. After taking one bite, I immediately could tell that the meat was off. It had a sour taste to it like it was past it expiry. My guest tasted it and agreed too.
I was not only worried about my stomach and health, but those of their other guests as well. I brought it to the attention of the clerk behind the counter. Stating that the meat tasted off, and we believed that it had spoiled. There was no apology or no questions. They just told me to leave the bun on the counter and the manager will take care of it. After that, there was no follow up, there were no understanding questions asked, there was no wellness check, and there no one offered to replace or refund.
I don’t expect much from a small shop like this, but I think when it comes to potential food poisoning, it should be treated as an important case, and I did not get that impression here today.
My guest wanted to try one of their sourdough Portuguese egg tarts after, but I stopped her. Considering everything so far had disappointed, I didn’t want either of us putting more money into this, trying more, and hoping for the best.
Similarly, the summer series drink menu was also really tempting with his bright colours. This included 6 matcha options and even an ube one. The banana bread latte caught my attention, along with the nitro Hong Kong milk tea. However, not wanting to chance it and having had our caffeine and milk fill earlier, we passed on this.
Once again, the hype of the food left me with higher expectations not meant. Good enough for the immediate area, but not worth the stadium pricing you’re paying for outdoor eating, or the trip all the way out for it. We are so spoiled in Vancouver (Richmond), that we can’t help but to compare, and sadly this did not satisfy.
Unique Slow Rise Bakery – Klahanie
36583 Darrell Bay Rd, Squamish, BC V8B 0A6
(604) 314-1502
