The Keg - Guildford (Surrey)

A couple of nights before Eric went back to the Philipines.....or was it before I went to Japan?  Anyway, not too long ago, we went with Jay to the Keg in Surrey.  I was on a diet (still am) so I told myself to stay away from the bread, the appies, skip the fried stuff and no deserts.  Of course, these two bastards would never let me have my way and the next thing I know, I'm saying to hell with the diet and started shovelling bread, crab cakes and deep fried calamari down my neck, polished off with a Keg Size Prime Rib and a Billy Miner's Pie for good measure. 

The two instigators.

The lovely sourdough bread I said I wasn't going to eat, but did (and nearly using up all the whipped butter in the process).

Eric doing.....God knows what, haha!

I had the crab cakes once before (at the Richmond Keg), and I found them overseasoned.  The server told me that it was because they use Dungeness crab meat which is cookedin salt water.  I think she didn't know what she was talking about, but didn't bother arguing the point.  These ones, on the other hand were perfectly seasoned, and I didn't find myself chasing them down with a gallon of water.  (I don't mean to trash The Keg in Richmond, I've always had good experiences there.  I think the Prime Ribs there, especially the Omega, are are suspiciously cut larger than spec).

What's the best way to lose weight?  Eat high-in-cholesterol deep fried squid of course.  These were a bit spicy, and the dipping sauce was a perfect compliment mixed with sweet and spicy.  We didn't leave even a single crumb.

Eric again....showing us his expertise at pleasing calamari, haha!

The pork back ribs were good, but not as good as mine, haha!

Of course this is something I could not replicate at home, The Keg Size Prime Rib.  Hand-crafted in heaven by *insert favouriet diety here*, this succulant peice of beef has almost no rival.  Anyway, if you've read my other posts about The Keg, then you're probably bored to death of my worshipping this fine peice of beef, but there really is no other comparison for the same price point.  The Keg in Guildford delivered it to me exactly as I asked, fat and bloody, and it tasted every bit as good as I expected. 

Remember that Drinking and Driving commerical way back when?

Eric at the end of his limit......just kidding, there's till pie.

Usually I can't eat anymore after the Prime Rib, but lately, I've developed a liking for this desert.  Billy Miner pie.  It's probably nothing you want to eat on your own, and it is big enough to share with several people because it's not overly sweet or rich, despite the appearance. 

Our experience at The Keg in Guildford was awesome as expected.  The staff were attentive, friendly, and there whenever we needed anyone, the food was oustanding as usual, and we would definitely go back.  I guess the only issue is, I'm not often in Surrey :)

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The Keg - Thurlow

My buddy Jeremy's been in Japan for the last three years, and where does one go when they are deprived of some Grade A Canadian beef for so long?  The Keg of course!  Unless your pocket-book allows you to pay a visit to Gotham's, Hy's or Joe Fortes, The Keg is your next best bet.  Not exactly a newcomer to The Keg, nor to the location on Thurlow, I was surprised it rated so high on Urban Spoon (91%) compared to Richmond (79%).  Personally, the Richmond location is my favourite because for all my visits, they have always had the biggest hunks of prime rib compared to any of the other Vancouver locations.  Honestly, Vancouver Keg Size Omega were about the size of a Keg Size at the Richmond location.  Anyway, despite this, we went to the Thurlow location because I'd been there, but just hadn't done a review yet =)

The place has a spacious lounge and bar area, and pretty much looks like all the other locations, except a slightly different configuration. 

My buddy Jeremy is eating "healthy" nowadays and even encorporated something called a salad in our feast tonite.

Of course, I tried to ruin his diet by tempting him with The Keg's whipped butter and sourdough bread.

He refused to eat the bread, but I think he snuck in a spoonful of butter when I wasn't looking, haha!

I of course got the Keg Size prime rib, and it was a decent size.  It was smaller than the Richmond location's usual, but it was still enough to get me full.  I did pound back more than half that loaf of bread though, haha!

It was neat the end of the night and I was concerned that they wouldn't have any bloody bits left, and I would end up with a grey prime rib, overcooked medium-well, but I was pleasantly surprised some drippy bits were still available.

Jeremy ended up getting some more of that vegetation with his rib.

The service at the Thurlow location is as expected of any Keg, and our server was very professional.  I actually opted out of the Scotch tonight and settled for a glass of lemon water, and our server made sure that cup was always full.  Would I go back?  When do I not go back to The Keg?  Despite Richmond being the best Keg around, I'll still pop into any of the Vancouver locations for a night of savagery.

The Keg - Yaletown (revisited)

I have finally taken my demons head on, looked my personal fear in the face, and laughed.  Even pointed and laughed as I strode away victorious.  Yes, The Keg Size Omega is no longer the bane of my existence.  The one steak that could mock me as I ran away in defeat, unable to eat more than 2/3 of that glorious hunk of dead cow.

I don't really know what happened this time, although I have a few theories.  When I first ordered the Omega, years back, the server didn't quite know about it, nor did she know the pricing.  I have a feeling that the chef may also have made a minor mistake and cut off more prime rib than he/she should have.  I'm convinced that the chunks we got were at least 32 ounces and that's one of my theories on why I couldn't finish the Omega my first go around.

Our server was vaguely familiar with the Omega, but didn't know there was a name attached to the legend.  This day, I was feeling confident for some reason and even had some of the bread before my meal.  I had my glass of Chivas Regal in my hand and I was ready to rock and roll.

When the Omega arrived, I thought there was some sort of mistake.  It looked a tad bigger than The Keg Size, and nowhere near what my memory told me.  The Omega was markedly smaller.  In fact, we were told it was a 24 ounce, double the size of a regular prime rib, not double the Keg Size prime rib.  I was mildly disappointed, but also realized that my first go-around may have been a mistake where we got more than we were supposed to.  But part of my disappointment lay in the fact that I could not boast about killing the 32 ounce (probably 32 ounce) monster that had once haunted me.

 No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't make the Omega look big in the pictures.  It was definitely smaller than the first Omega I had. 

 I didn't leave any evidence that there was once food on my plate.  I finished the prime rib, I finished the garlic mash, the deep fried onion bits, and even went back to finish off the complimentary bread.  At the end of it all, I was still comfortable, which is not what I was hoping for, haha!  Anyway, after my original encounter with the Omega, I heard stories of my own friends finishing the Omega without so much as breaking a sweat.  I felt inadequate.  This time, I had no such thoughts.  I even had room for desert!

One of these days, I will return to the Richmond Keg location, just to see if the Omega I had nightmares about was all just a big tease.  If it's anything like I had here on this night, it should be no problem.