Mui Garden (Victoria Drive) – Braised Pork Belly with Preserved Veggies

How do you describe a HK Style Cafe to someone that’s never been to one before? “Fusion” seems to be a little too haughty as this term seems to have been co-opted by some restaurants that aim to take advantage of the naivety of hipster patrons. No, the eclectic nature of the dishes offered often seems more random than anything else.

Mui Garden is a fairly typical HK Style Cafe that’s been around since 1992 and currently has 3 locations around Vancouver (see our post on the Main Street location here).

You can expect to find drinks like the cold lemon tea pictured to the left that you mix up with the spoon they give you.  Otherwise, you could also pick up the mysteriously popular Ovaltine or Horlicks malted milk beverage (served hot or cold).

The menus always seems a bit daunting to me as they have many options to choose from.  The specials come with either Chinese soup with lotus root or with a cream soup with toast.  The cream soup tasted kind of like condensed milk soup with bits of meat in the soup.

The Sizzling Plate Set Specials shown below are the Pork on Spaghetti and Chicken on Spaghetti with black pepper sauce.  To be honest, the spaghetti really wasn’t that great.

When I saw the Braised Pork Belly with Preserved Vegetables on Rice  on the menu ($9.50), I knew what I wanted to order.  Also known as Mui Choy Kau Yuk, it’s not an item that you find on a lot of menus because it usually takes time to prepare.  This version was pretty good and quite saucy which pairs well with rice.  The fatty parts melted on my tongue while the meaty parts were tender.  I’m guessing that they must have had this cooking for a while because other restaurants that I’ve ordered this at aren’t this tender.

5797 Victoria Dr
Vancouver,BC

www.muigarden.com