MunChi Foods

MunChi is a German food concept in a Port Moody Chinatown commissary kitchen that’s best known for its pretzels.

2024-06-22

• “Neues Bayern Haus” (ie. “<New Bavaria Haus>”) is what I refer to Old Bavaria Haus’s current state in front of Amelie, Mira, and Zerogouki, as we’re quite familiar with the building owners’ background.
• I picked up everything from Amelie’s residence in Coquitlam, rather than her commissary kitchen.
• I am heading to Germany between late September and early-mid October.
• The “bulk order” were two large bags’ worth of pretzels for Jesse and Christine’s wedding.

One-liner: Not your school cafeteria or mall’s topped pretzels, plus a side of what Amelie’s up to next after the Old Bavaria Haus agreement collapsed last March.

As it was getting on the longer side, I’ve split last week’s food adventure into two parts. Part 1 covered Greens and Beans along with BAK’D (happy grand opening!), but this part (Part 2) covers what happened after that Sapperton swing-by: heading to Coquitlam to pick up that MunChi order!

I did get my usual although regular-sized plain pretzels ($12 for 3) and Hilda/Linzer cookies ($5 for either 4 small cookies or 1 large cookie), where I’ll let my previous write-up do the talking for how they are. The real highlight, however, are the topped pretzels where I picked up the pepperoni, ham and cheese, and mushroom swiss flavours (all of which are $6.50).

Food

$partner (a heavy meat eater) took the unpictured pepperoni pretzel and said that it was good!

For what’s left, I reheated the ham and cheese and the mushroom swiss pretzels the next day. Both pretzels retained the slightly crisp exterior and soft interior I’d expect from a plain pretzel.

The topping amount is also appropriate for both pretzels. Amelie didn’t go overboard with the toppings enough that they detract from the pretzel’s taste, but they’re enough to flavour the pretzel!

Between the ham and cheese and mushroom swiss, I like the ham and cheese more. It has more texture from using ham chunks rather than slices, with the ham having a slight hint of sweetness. And like my grilled cheese, the cheddar has a well-aged flavour.

The downside was how both pretzels were a bit cold in the middle, despite following Amelie’s reheating instructions. But that’s what I get from refrigerating the pretzels for a day, rather than eating them ASAP after receiving them.

Service

Despite Amelie and I switching to Instagram for communication after writing about her food here, I still get the same “replies within minutes” as if I still emailed her (be it for placing my order, letting her know that I’d be a bit late, or asking for reheating instructions post-pickup).

Pickup was also speedy as her replies. Seconds after ringing her house’s doorbell, Amelie opened the door with both my bag and toddler beside her. While chatting with her in the context of our upcoming Germany trips, I also received some useful advice about going to Europa-Park (Germany’s answer to Disneyland). That park is on my itinerary and Amelie went there over 50 times in her life!

Conclusion

It’s very likely that this will be the second-to-last time I’ll cover MunChi here (TMI: still have the outstanding strudel post), and it’s a good thing!

Amelie finally found a new MunChi home in Chinatown after withdrawing from the Old Bavaria Haus (listed as “Neues Bayern Haus” in Part 1) agreement last March. It won’t only be her production kitchen, but also where she’ll actually create a little corner of Germany through a daily deli/bakery and pop-up kitchen.

I’m doing a bulk order with her next week where she asked me to show up to the new location instead for pickup, so I’ll get to preview what her new space looks like. And yes, I will have pictures 😉

2024-03-02

• Amelie was supposed to take over Old Bavaria Haus management, but she pulled out of the agreement on March 18 2024. Again, she did the right thing knowing the building owners’ iffy behaviour.

The promised Greens and Beans write-up sequel for MunChi…

One-liner: Amazing pretzels, schnitzel sandwiches, and service that’s worth the Port Moody trip until Amelie moves into Old Bavaria Haus (”OBH”) this May.

It’s no secret that Amelie will take over OBH starting this May (with a preview brunch later this month). She’s currently Port Moody based, but it’s worth writing about her fare here as we’ll see them in her in-restaurant deli upon opening!

On Feb 26, Amelie released her Schnitzel Sammy Saturday menu on Instagram. After seeing it in my stories, I immediately pre-ordered the food that I’d pick up on an early Saturday afternoon.

Food

My partner ($partner) and I ordered the following:

1. XL Pretzels ($21 for 3)
2. Schnitzel strips w/ potato salad ($10)
3. Schnitzel sandwich ($12)
4. Hilda cookie ($5; added to our order in-person)

As we ate our food at Yellow Dog (brewery also offering MunChi pretzels on weekends), I also ordered an herb-and-garlic pretzel for $4.50 - it’s not on the Schnitzel Sammy Saturday menu!

The XL Pretzel

I can understand how/why this is one of Amelie’s signature items. The outside is crisp, yet the inside is pillowy soft like an Asian milk bread. It’s good at room temp, but amazing when microwaved for 20 seconds.

Schnitzel strips w/ potato salad

The schnitzel used for those strips seems to be a bit bigger than my phone (iPhone 14) yet half the thickness of it. But those strips have a satisfying chew in the pork that’s surrounded by seasoned yet crispy breading, and aren’t too greasy. $partner said that it’s the type of thing they’d have while outside as it seems to travel well.

I did not enjoy the potato salad, because I am not into heavily-vinegared foods. $partner thinks it’s OK.

Schnitzel sandwich

The iPhone 14 sized sandwich schnitzel meat seem to be thicker than the strips. The breading kept its crispiness, the pretzel isn’t soggy on the inside, the veggies are still fresh, and it isn’t over-mayoed that it’ll start dripping on the table (or even worse, my shirt). ($partner loves it!)

Herb & garlic pretzel

Same crisp exterior and pillowy soft interior. The herbs mesh well with the salt and pretzel; I could taste some rosemary and oregano on it.

Hilda cookie

It’s a cute cookie. I ate it the next day and it still tastes fresh. The lemon compliments the raspberry jam, while both the cookie and icing overall are Not Too Sweet™.

Service

Amelie’s prompt in her responses; she’d reply to my emails within 30 minutes (be it my initial order, clarifying pickup time, or tacking on some schnitzel strips). She’s also friendly in her replies (but not too friendly that it crosses into overbearing), which carries over offline during pickup and payment. Think among the lines of how she replied to the “Amelie takes over OBH” post commentators.

I also mentioned her OBH plans, as it was how it put MunChi on my radar. She’s excited about her restaurant plans while hoping that it’ll work out. (I hope it does!)

(While I forgot to take a picture of it, her commissary kitchen lobby booth is super cute!)

Conclusion

I haven’t been to Germany (yet), so I can’t say whether Amelie’s flavours do take me to the country. I can say that Amelie’s:

1. Fare is reasonably priced, is delicious, and would have me returning back.
2. Operations are a genuine labour of love that spreads joy to everyone regardless of German heritage.

Unfortunately, May resos aren’t available yet. I also can’t do a weekday pickup (TMI: salarywoman job), while it’s unclear if she’ll do another weekend popup in the next two months.

But in the meantime, I’ll keep wishing Amelie more than the best in her quest to do justice to OBH again!

Amelie’s response

Oh my goodness I just can’t thank you enough for this amazing and super honest review of my food ❤️ I am aware that some German flavours don’t hit everyone’s pallets like the potato salad but it is just important to me to stay true to my roots and being authentic 🥰 I’m very very happy to hear that you liked everything else and I can’t wait to host you some time soon again!

For any updates please follow @munchifood on Instagram, again from the bottom of my heart… THANK YOU! especially for being to the point and honest 🖤❤️💛

(Amelie also messaged me on Instagram, but I will keep it off the record.)

My response:

Appreciate the swing-by and you’re welcome, Amelie Janzen. I’m glad you made my Port Moody trip worth it!

Your comment about the German flavours is spot-on. I appreciate that you’re committed to selling us authentic foods (rather than watering it down in the name of more $$$), although I’m still glad I tried your potato salad to see how it’s different from American (…or Japanese) potato salad!

I’m out of town this Easter so I will have to miss your preview brunch. However, I hope it goes well, and I look forward to both your restaurant’s opening and any weekend pop-ups you opt to do before then ❤

(I also received your follow-up IG DM from your MunChi account; also replying you from there.)