Lido Restaurant, Richmond, B.C.

Lido Restaurant is one of those places you’ll find only if someone takes you there. Like most of Richmond’s gems, it’s nestled in a strip mall with a plain sign. What gives it away are the Chinese people crammed into the tiny glass entryway, waiting for a table.

Next to the lineup is a rack of fresh, hot pineapple buns. A strange place to store them maybe but they don’t sit for long. The buns, named after the sweet crust textured like a pineapple, are one of Lido’s specialties. So in demand that when people register for the waiting list, they also reserve how many pineapple buns they want at the same time.

Li Do Restaurant, Richmond

This is Hong Kong café fare at its best. Chinese breakfast is a whirlwind of combos. The waitresses think you’re crazy if you only order satay beef noodles on its own when you can get a bonus plate of ham and eggs AND some turnip cake for just a buck fifty more.

Li Do Restaurant, RichmondTurnip cake is ubiquitous around Chinese New Year. It’s a mash of Chinese turnip and rice flour steamed with bits of Chinese sausage and dried shrimp. To serve, you slice off pieces and fry them for breakfast. You can eat it with soy sauce or hot sauce.

The only problem here is all the breakfast specials are written in Chinese. Lucky for me, my mom is around to read them off to us. On another visit though, the lunch menus have both English and Chinese. Go figure.

Li Do Restaurant, Richmond

My favourite here so far is the dry scallop Shanghai noodles, minced pork with Chinese dry scallops in a savoury and slightly hot sauce.

Li Do Restaurant, RichmondIt’s nice to come here with my family now that I’m grown up and order the volcano rice that used to delight us as kids. It’s actually minced beef with egg on rice, but my dad sold it to us as volcano rice because he builds it up to a pyramid and then makes the raw egg “erupt” onto the rest of the plate. Eating is fun time!

Oh yes, a warning if you are not familiar with Hong Kong-style cafés. They are ridiculously fast and efficient. Prices stay low because they deal in volume and fast turnover. Most of the time, your entire order will be on the table under 10 minutes. The waitresses always get my respect with a capital R. They never stop moving and they never mess up orders. These people know what they’re doing.

Lido Restaurant, 4231 Hazelbridge Way, Richmond, B.C. (604) 231-0055.