Tempura Chicken & Pretzels at Metro Billiards

Pretzels and chicken tempura #yegfood

A photo posted by Paula E. Kirman (@livingsanctuary) on Jun 30, 2016 at 5:33pm PDT

I am one of the photographers for the gallery Latitude 53's Patio series this summer, and while on a break last week I went next door to Metro Billiards for a quick snack. During happy hour on weekdays, appetizers are on for two for $15, which is a pretty good deal. My tempura chicken was not what I expected - I thought it would be bite-sized pieces, but instead I had a helping of chicken tenders in a crispy batter, with sweet and sour sauce drizzled throughout. The fried wantons added extra crunch, while the diced cucumbers provided some freshness and a flavour profile to balance the spice from the sauce. My pretzels were hot, soft, and delicious, with a spicy mustard dip that had a hint of curry. I should have brought a friend - I could not finish all of this!

Bento Box at Kyoto

The thing I like most about bento boxes is having a variety of foods in small portions. So I was very happy with the one I had for lunch last week at Kyoto. The beef was tender and succulent, while the chicken was crunchy with a mild teriyaki sauce. The tempura had a nice variety of vegetables (I asked for no seafood), while the salad and rice rounded out the flavour profiles. Good portion, good price, nice place.

Bento Box - Chicken, Beef, Tempura

Bento Box - Chicken, Beef, Tempura, a photo by raise my voice on Flickr.

Bento boxes are perfect for someone like me, who likes to eat a lot of different things at the same meal.

I had a different lunch bento at Ichiban (87 Avenue and 149 Street) than I usually have. Instead of the vegetarian one I had one with crispy teriyaki chicken, moise ginger beef, and crunchy tempura (I asked for only vegetables).

The result was quite satisfying.

Vegetable Tempura at Tokyo Express

Vegetable Tempura, a photo by raise my voice on Flickr.

This was a case of my eyes being bigger than my stomach. Yes, i was very hungry, but was not prepared for how huge these pieces of battered, deep-fried vegetables were.

Tempura at Tokyo Express usually comes with prawns, but I asked for all vegetables, and they obliged. The batter was light and crispy (as it should be) and the vegetables were fresh.

Udon with Tempura - Ichiban

Udon with Tempura, a photo by raise my voice on Flickr.

I was really hungry, so I decided to order a second of Ichiban's lunch specials - the udon soup with tempura (I requested veggie tempura only - no seafood). Piping hot and full of chewy noodles, the udon really hit the spot. The tempura is not served on the soup, which is probably a good thing since it would get soggy.

Taste of Edmonton 2011 #1: Hurricane Potato

Taste of Edmonton 2011, a photo by raise my voice on Flickr.

Korean Village is known for bringing the vegetable tempura to many Edmonton festivals, but this year, at Taste of Edmonton, the restaurant also featured the Hurricane Potato. It is almost an entire potato cut into a spiral, fried in a light tempura batter, and served on a stick. I love vegetable tempura, so I really enjoyed this treat. I also notices Korean Village were selling quite a few of them at the Edmonton Folk Music Festival. Festivals are known for offering meat on a stick - why not potato on a stick too?