It’s because @chandavkl says that “Chinese food in Los Angeles has gotten so much better in the last decade.”
5 Likes
Shared the same sentiment during my visit a couple years ago; the gap has closed considerably over the years…
“…But in the past five years things began to change. Fewer Angelinos made the trip to Vancouver, and those who did go came back not quite as impressed. Yes, there were restaurants in Richmond B.C. which exceeded anything we had in Los Angeles, but a lot of others were now only “just as good”, or “not any better”…”
Thanks for the read. I visited Vancouver for the first time a couple years ago and was excited to sample the Chinese food that I heard so much about. I was disappointed. Some of the food was better, but overall the difference was not as great as advertised. The dimsum was quite a bit more expensive, and it was marginally better than Elite or Seafood Harbor, depending on the restaurant. I was wondering if it was just me, or if indeed the gap had been closing.
Heading back to Vancouver for Chinese New Year break, and I plan on visiting exactly “0” Chinese restaurants in YVR, again. I mean, really? Vancouver Chinese food? Cuz they have fancier dimsum? pffffffft. The town’s been irrelevant since '14 cuz:
Canada killed its last cash for citizenship program in (Jan?) of '14, and relaunched new investor/greencard program has been a complete dud. 65K (mostly Chinese) applicants were kicked back in '14.
Meanwhile, the new Monterey Park Double Tree has hung a banner actively calling for EB5 money. How can a country banning Chinese money/people have better Chinese food than LA? Not possible.
NB: Bao Bei is probably the worst Chinese restaurant in North America. Rephrase: Bao Bei is probably the Chinese restaurant in North America with the worst clientele. It’s the… Pok Pok of Chinese food, but even the cocktails are shitty. Bao Bei is in Vancouver.
i haven’t been to vancouver in over 10 years. and back then it was more like a second HK - whatever that means.
would this also apply to the scene in toronto (which i understand has also always been considered a mecca for chinese food on this continent)? haven’t been there in decades.
You can have my seat at the oyster bar at Blue Water Cafe in Yaletown.
1 Like
Not food-related, but I visited for the first time this summer and thought the place was just swell. I could totally see myself living there, actually. But then I also hear about the city being a wannabe and having an inferiority complex from its own residents… So I’m not sure what that says about me. ::sigh::
1 Like
The BC Japadogs still taste pretty good to me (but we in L.A. also can get them now, on the Santa Monica Pier)…
I spent 8 days there this past fall, not too soon after your trip. I used your post at CH as one of my research tools. I enjoyed my time and the food there. A kind local took me around for a couple of days and also arranged a couple of meet up dinners.
I remember that! Right b/f everything changed at CH…
DId you ever post a trip report? The search engine functinon CH doesn’t make it easy to look up. 
clarification: I meant: “the town’s Chinese food has been irrelevant since '14”.
As big of an a*hole as I may be, I’m not one to judge and write off and ENTIRE FRIGGIN CITY. That’s a New York trope. Every city can be shitty AFAIC.
2 Likes
I did not. I usually do. But it was kind of a weird food trip for me. The first two days, the local hound just took me all over the place in and out off food courts and small places. I hardly took any notes. Then I hit a bunch of places by myself before spending some time with long lost relatives who took me to a couple of places. Bottom line, I did a piss poor job in recording my experiences therefore had little notes for any kind of a trip report.
BC has really good coddled eggs. Nothing better than waking up and having a buttery coddled egg and toast with my coffee.