Restaurants: The Brave Bull's House of Steak

Oh, the Brave Bull. Big M's choice for our next celebration dinner. That came on Sunday to celebrate his haul at the record sale. So off to Hastings and Clark we went. Brave Bull is a cash only kind of joint.

The Brave Bull has been there forever. I remember going there with Lori and Sarah when we first moved to town in 1994/95ish. And it was exactly the same in 2010. Rundown, kind of dirty, a strange decor mix of Chinese and Western and a waitress/hostess/bartender/busser who is older than my grandmother. She was the only person you saw working there. She may have cooked as well.



We sat in a table by the entrance. There was another section of the restaurant divided by a wall and then behind us were more tables on a platform that had white plastic tablecloths. Must be the "special occasion" section. Tempted to get married again to have the reception there.

Photocopies of the 3 reviews the restaurant had back in the 90s are posted EVERYWHERE. On every window and wall. The menu is Steakhouse/Chinese. Some steaks, some seafood and some Chinese combos. We were there for the steak. All dinners are under $15.00 and they come with soup or salad, main and bread. They have a small cocktail and beer list. I am on a Caesar kick so:



Not bad- hot enough but the celery was not crispy.

With my recent discovery that I like clams, I decided to order the clam chowder. I had never eaten clam chowder before.



The best I can say is that it seemed to be homemade because it wasn't as salty as soup out of a can. Thin broth, a few straggly potatoes and carrots and some minced up tiny pieces of clam. Not the most auspicious introduction to the chowder.

I decided to go for the rib steak:



Big M had the New York:



And garlic bread:


What to say? The mushrooms on the steaks were great! The steaks were large and cooked well. The vegetables were terrible. Soggy, over steamed and cold. I liked the size of the baked potatoes. They were not the really huge potatoes but a nicely portioned serving.

Should you go? If you are looking for somewhere funny to eat or a place to take your parents to freak them out, then the Brave Bull is for you. It is an experience that all Vancouverites should have at least once. I may go again- in another 15 years. I bet that waitress will still be there.