“As the forerunner of promoting Chinese cuisine in Canada, we have dedicated ourselves in staying up-to-date with the industry, both at home and abroad,” said Craig Stowe, Chinese Restaurant Awards’ Founding Director. “We’ve been persistent at bringing the public a well-rounded dinning guide that highlights the crème-de-la-crème in the past five years. The public’s phenomenal support has pushed us to raise our game.”
This year, the categories of Diners’ Choice Awards in Greater Vancouver have expanded from 18 to 20, including six new awards: Best Wonton Noodles, Best Honey Garlic Spareribs, Best Sichuan Boiled Beef, Best Bubble Tea, Best Egg Tart, and Best Service Restaurant. The public is invited to nominate their favourites from February 3 to 9 and vote for the best from February 10 to March 9 on www.ChineseRestaurantAwards.com The results will be announced on March 10.
Many diners had written to the Chinese Restaurant Awards requesting the return of Best Service Restaurant in 2014. Their candid experiences make them the most qualified critics for the category. They are also very enthusiastic about voting for each year’s new selected dishes based on regions, popularity, and ingredients. Wonton noodles, for example, have been a popular comfort food in Guangzhou since the late Qing Dynasty (1890s). It is one of the most recognizable Cantonese dishes outside China, yet only the most skilled chef can perfect the combination of soup, wonton, and noodles. Sichuan Boiled Beef, developedby the late master chef Fan Ji-an in the 1930s, is equally challenging to recreate: poaching thinly sliced beef to perfection in a spicy aromatic broth looks easier said than done. Honey Garlic Spareribs is a Canadian invention that one rarely finds on a menu in China. Bubble tea and egg tarts are popular delights that have been satisfying the sweet tooth of Vancouverites.
The Chinese Restaurant Awards also have taken a drastic step in reducing the twenty-five best signature dishes of Critics’ Choice Signature Dish Awards to ten. Vancouver-based food critics Stephen Wong, Lee Man, Brendon Mathews, and Foodie Yau have been the Awards’ leading judges for many years, and they have taken on the new mission to select the spectacular from the best. Handed with a set of new rules, the Vancouver judging panel has began a rigorous tasting journey since the summer of 2013.
Last year, the Critics’ Choice Signature Dish Awards were introduced in Greater Toronto, based on the growing demand of Chinese food in major Canadian cities. After receiving positive feedback from the public, the Chinese Restaurant Awards will once again team up with Toronto-based food critics Jen Chan, Jennifer Kwan, Renée S. Suen, and Charles Yu to search for the 10 best signature dishes. Winners of the Critics’ Choice Signature Dish Awards for both cities will be announced on April 23 in a glittering awards ceremony at Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver.
Critics’ Choice Signature Dish Awards (10 awards in Metro Vancouver and 10 awards in Greater Toronto)Diners’ Choice Awards – Greater Vancouver (20 awards in total) *new awards this year
1. Best Wonton Noodles*
2. Best Sichuan Boiled Beef*
3. Best Honey Garlic Spareribs*
4. Best Taiwanese Bubble Tea*
5. Best Egg Tart*
6. Best Service Restaurant*
7. Best Fine Dining Restaurant
8. Best Dim Sum Restaurant
9. Best Cantonese Restaurant
10. Best Northern Chinese Restaurant
11. Best Shanghainese Restaurant
12. Best Sichuan Restaurant
13. Best Hunan Restaurant
14. Best Taiwanese Restaurant/BBT Café
15. Best Hot Pot Restaurant
16. Best Congee and Noodle Restaurant
17. Best Vegetarian Restaurant
18. Best Hong Kong-Style Café
19. Best Bakery Shop
20. Best Food Court Stall
The Chinese Restaurant Awards wishes to thank the following sponsors: Alberta Livestock and Meat Agency, Alberta Beef Producers, Alberta Canola Producers Commission, FortisBC, Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver, Hennessy, Heineken, Amoy Food limited, Anchor Foods International Limited, Northern Divine Caviar, Premium Pork Akakuro-Buta, Target Marine Hatcheries, Underwater Harvesters’ Association, Fortune World, CityTV, OMNI Television, Richmond Review, Yelp Canada, Vancouver Boulevard, CNTVNA.com, City365.ca and Vandiary.com
To nominate your favorite restaurants and cast your vote: www.ChineseRestaurantAwards.com
Recommend dishes to the judging panel: critics@ChineseRestaurantAwards.com
