Chorney-Sales space: Creativity and Chinese language flavours shine at Clay Pot Asian Meals Kitchen

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Paul Yung’s title will not be well-known to most Calgarians. However in the event you’ve eaten a Chinese language meal downtown, notably at eating places below the Style of Asia Group umbrella, you’ve probably eaten meals both cooked or impressed by him.

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Yung has been working in Calgary for many years, lending his trendy Hong Kong fashion to eating places like T.Pot, Cafe 100%, and Calgary Courtroom eating places. The skilled chef is now the drive behind Clay Pot Asian Meals Kitchen, a brand new restaurant highlighting the journey he’s taken from Hong Kong to Calgary with an eclectic menu full of worldwide impressed meals.

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Clay Pot Asian Meals Kitchen, situated on Crowchild Path throughout from McMahon Stadium, is to not be confused with Clay Pot Rice, which opened just a few years in the past on Macleod Path. Each contain co-owner Alex Guo, however Yung is simply a associate within the new restaurant. The meals and atmospheres of the 2 locations are additionally fully totally different: Clay Pot Asian Meals Kitchen is a extra elegant and upscale affair, with comfy cubicles and moody animated artwork projected on the partitions. The setup offers Yung an opportunity to do what he does finest, which is pushing the boundaries of what Chinese language meals appears like in a Western Canadian setting.

Yung is aware of native substances and palates nicely after having labored in Calgary eating places for thus lengthy, however he has an additional layer of experience stretching again to his youth in Hong Kong. As a younger chef, he earned his stripes at a five-star luxurious lodge specializing in several cuisines from all over the world, constructing an appreciation for a variety of strategies and traditions.

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Whereas conventional Chinese language meals — and Hong Kong delicacies particularly — will at all times be near his coronary heart, Yung additionally has a particular skill to create new dishes which can be distinctive to his specific standpoint whereas nonetheless interesting to native palates. His method includes understanding substances from totally different locations and the way they’ll or, extra importantly, won’t, work collectively, which got here in useful whereas growing Clay Pot Asian Meals Kitchen’s menu.

“Our menu is completely totally different than different Chinese language eating places,” Yung says. “There are some Western concepts, mixed with Chinese language kinds. You may style Chinese language flavours, however you’re feeling like you might be in Calgary.”

Yung’s menu options round 30 objects — thought-about a bit mild for a Chinese language restaurant — however there’s greater than loads to select from and every thing is lovingly made out of scratch. European influences come by way of in dishes like his velvety shrimp bisque served with Parmesan toast ($15) and a luxurious grilled cod with miso mustard sauce ($23), with a worldwide sensibility shining robust in playful creations like nachos made with crunchy shrimp crackers instead of tortilla chips ($14) and flambéed rooster wings tossed in a ginger garlic sauce ($14).

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The namesake crispy clay pot rice bowls are on the menu, however Yung additionally takes an unconventional method there, topping them with beef brisket and mozzarella cheese ($25) or lobster tail, Sakura dried shrimp, and scrambled eggs ($29). The opposite home specialties embody spicy mala boon sizzling pots filled with seafood, beef, and veggies ($27) and a collection of handmade noodle dishes ($12 to $18). There’s additionally a sturdy collection of Asian desserts, cocktails, and an off-the-cuff pleased hour menu for a well-rounded restaurant expertise.

Clay Pot Asian Kitchen is situated at 2122 Crowchild Path N.W. and might be reached at 403-452-9855 or by way of claypotmcmahon.com. The restaurant is open every day from 12 p.m. to 11 p.m.

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In different meals information, Rodney’s Oyster Home’s Alberta Oyster Pageant occasion returns on June 25, working from 1 p.m. to five p.m. The pageant is a fundraiser for the Mustard Seed and can function enjoyable meals and drinks, a shucking competitors, a DJ, and a silent public sale. The winner of the shuck-off will advance to the finals of the Canadian Oyster Shucking Championship in P.E.I. Tickets can be found by way of Eventbrite for $35 per particular person and embody two drink tickets, a meals ticket and entry to leisure.

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Additionally, in the event you occur to be at Brookfield Place over the following few months, preserve your eyes peeled for a brand new kiosk from Oakberry, a well-liked Brazilian superfood model, specializing in açai bowls and smoothies. The kiosk marks an bold enlargement to Western Canada for the model, with extra shops to come back in each Calgary and Vancouver. The Brookfield location is a short lived pop-up to assist whet Calgary’s urge for food for açai however search for everlasting shops within the District at Beltline and on seventeenth Avenue to open quickly.

Lastly, congratulations to Calgary’s Lauren Millett, a contestant on the CTV program Cross Nation Cake Off. Earlier this month, she received the present’s prairie province division together with her attractive Monet-inspired, Chinese language five-spice-flavoured cake stuffed with brown buttercream and tangerine curd, advancing her to the finale of the present. Millett will face off towards bakers from across the nation on June 30, airing at 8 pm MT. Tune in to cheer on our hometown cake hero and see what deliciousness she bakes up subsequent.

Elizabeth Chorney-Sales space might be reached at [email protected]. Observe her on Instagram at @elizabooth.

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