foodmatik

Holiday Gluttony

2012-01-09T23:10:00.000-08:00

This holiday, I sure jingled my appetite bells and had myself a very merry pig-fest for it was the most wonderful time of the year! I mean, "everybody knows a turkey (and some mistletoeeee) helps to make a season bright." But what I really wanted, most of all, was to roast some of my own chestnuts on an open fire (although I eventually had to settle for someone else roasting them for me, instead). Do you hear what I hear?

:: dinner at Les Faux Bourgeouis Bistro ::

lamb tenderloin brochette with goat cheese salad


beef tenderloin in a peppercorn cream sauce


my candy cane cocktails ;)

:: brunch at Hawksworth ::


brioche french toast with caramelized banana, lavender honey, cream

halibut cake benny

:: lunch at Au Petit Chauvignol ::


cup of tomato soup

reuben sandwich served with pomme frites

:: lunch at Meat & Bread ::


what do you get when the chicken meets the duck meets the turkey?

:: snackin' on euro treats at the Christmas Market ::

my blurry bratwurst

waffles on a stick

:: dinner at my most beloved Chambar ::

Qualicum bay scallops, smoked kurobata pork cheek, pickled green beans


Smoked foie gras terrine with truffled brioche french toast...amaaaazing


moules frites congolaise...absolute necessity

poutine a la belge...avec le fromage bleu. Formidable!

:: dinner at Pivo Public House ::


Cajun Chicken Cobb Salad

:: NYE dinner at Tableau ::
(last meal of the year, hence the splurge ;) )

6 oz. beef tenderloin topped with foie gras & black truffles

G is for Gingerbread!

2011-12-31T14:49:00.000-08:00

Run, run, as fast as you can.

You can't catch me, I'm the gingerbread man!

**note: the title for this post should actually be titled: "G is for Gingerbread" but for some reason, the "G is" doesn't show up...oh, technology, why must you play me so...

'Tis the season for all things peppermint, cranberry, eggnog and other fantastic festive flavourings. For me, personally, it's gingerbread that gets my Yuletide taste buds rolling. And what happens when I suddenly become obsessed with trying all things gingerbread? Why, I go on a gingerbread hunt of course!

The first ever gingerbread hunt proved to be a bit of a...disappointment. The prevalence of gingerbread-y goodies out there, in the edible market, just wasn't very...prevalent. Needless to say, it didn't go very well. But ah well, you win some, you lose some. Moving on to my next ingredient obsession!

Gingerbread Macaron, Thierry

Gingerbread Timbit, Tim Hortons

Gingerbread chocolate covered s'mores, Hagensborg Chocolates

Gingerbread frozen yogurt, Yogen Fruz

Iced Gingerbread Latte, Starbucks

and last but not least, my first ever Gingerbread Barn!

A Sweet Sisterly Seattle Weekend

2011-11-27T11:27:00.000-08:00

Seven, nine, two hundred and twenty-six point five. These were respectively, the number of gastro-locales visited, hours spent in the wonderful Emerald City, as well as the accumulated number of kilometers traveled. We strolled (the wonderful streets of downtown Seattle), we ate (more accurately, gorged) and we conquered (the surprisingly short border waits).

top row (from left to right):

1 - Our wonderful Trader Joe's haul
2 - Coconut Cream Pie Bites, Dahlia Bakery
3- Beef and Onion Piroshky, Piroshky Piroshky
4 - Top Pot doughnuts
5 - The ever lovable Pike Place Market

bottom row (from left to right):

6 - Combo vermicelli with grilled pork, chicken, shrimp, spring rolls, Green Leaf
7 - Macarons, Le Panier Very French Bakery
8 - 'World's Best Mac n Cheese', Beecher's Handmade Cheese
9 - Flagship, basil and tomato grilled cheese, Beecher's Handmade Cheese
10 - Pizza with sweet fennel sausage, roasted peppers, provolone, Serious Pie

** I apologize for the inconveniently small photos as the layout of my template would not allow for bigger photos! Sorry!

Ensemble

2011-11-14T14:20:00.000-08:00

Oh, that ginger cocktail...

Living in a city with such an enriched and vibrant culinary scene, the buzz surrounding restaurant openings, closings and visits from renowned food personalities (hello, Guy Fieri!) travel faster than you can say, "..what already?" It's most definitely an increasingly competitive industry out there - kudos to those who have been able to sustain and succumb to Vancouver culinary standards while my most sincerest condolences are sent to those who weren't so lucky, so to speak...!

On this Friday night, I, along with a few other dining companions, ventured to one of the newest and hottest dining spots in town - Ensemble. The mastermind behind this relatively newly-opened restaurant is none other than Dale MacKay, Canada's first Top Chef Canada winner. He has quite the impressive culinary background having previously worked as the Executive Chef of the late Lumiere and db bistro moderne, as well as working alongside celebrity chef and renown television personality Chef Gordon Ramsay. Perhaps a product of his winnings, here, Dale aims to showcase his ability to utilize classic French techniques of cooking to Pacific Northwest ingredients.

Food:

Cornmeal Crusted Scallops

- accompanied with a tamarind date puree and topped with cauliflower
- I thoroughly enjoyed the delicate and unique pairings of this dish - although I wish the scallops were a bit bigger but they were, nonetheless, very fresh and juicy

Pulled Pork Sandwich (Top Chef winner)
- for the $10 price tag, and given the size of the other plates - this burger had great value!
- it was generously filled with tender, saucy, pulled pork (how a pulled pork sandwich ought to be) with quite a pronounced smokey flavour and aroma
-sided with a deep fried pickle and a piece of very sweet watermelon - this was quite satisfying!

I was also able to sample some of my dining companion's (who likes to go by the initials of J.B) Sweet and Sour Eggplant,Vancouver Island Mussels, as well as the Potato Gnocchi. The Eggplant was quite the aesthetic pleaser and fared quite well on the taste buds, too. The baba ghanoush, yogurt and tomato complemented the sweet Asian flavours of the eggplant, which was also cooked perfectly. The Mussels were the least favourite and devoid of any praise. There was barely any broth and I expected a more prominent curry flavour. Although the portion was generous, the mussels were teeny tiny. The fries were good, but the Mussels were definitely an overall letdown. Of the three things sampled from what J.B had ordered, the Potato Gnocchi was most satisfying. Paired with a tomato butter sauce and olives, the Gnocchi was perfectly seared, chewy and executed very well.

I also strongly enjoyed their Ginger Gimlet (so much that I had 2, for the night). It's a cocktail composed of tanqueray gin, house ginger lime cordial, and topped with a kaffir lime leaf. It was wonderfully refreshing with just the right proportions of ingredients and bursting with a soothing gingery taste.

the amazing Ginger Gimlet

Service:

Prompt and informative

Value:

Fair

Ambience:

The decor is modern and contemporary, the room was actually quite dark while the noise level was louder than expected, especially given that every table was occupied.

Overall: 7.7/10

Yay: Come here for a little taste of Dale MacKay's inventive winning creations...and that ginger cocktail! Mmm! The portion sizes are perfect for sampling a variety of dishes.

Nay: The place didn't "wow" me as much as I thought it would but for some reason, it was what I had expected. There is definitely room for improvement.

Return of the Pumpkin Hunt!

2011-10-13T22:51:00.000-07:00

'Tis the season to bid farewell to the long, warm days of summer while welcoming the crisp and cool arrival of autumn. I feel extremely blessed to be able to live in one of the most greatest cities in the world - where seasonal change is so beautifully apparent in many parts of Vancouver. To the foodie, specifically, the arrival of fall conjures up images and wonderful tastes of freshly pressed apple cider, warm pumpkin pie, and a bowl of hearty, homemade butternut squash soup...to tickle your Autumn taste buds :)

As you may recall, my first pumpkin hunt was quite successful where all sorts of pumpkin-based gems were tried, tested and true (oy, effective marketing car slogans does wonders). From gelato to lattes to creampuffs - this seasonal squash did not disappoint at all! I enjoyed it so much that I decided to venture out again, with my pumpkin spectacles and all, in hopes of finding what other pumpkin goodies may await me...alas, here were some of my findings.

Pumpkin Spice Cheesecake, Trees Organic Coffee:
-light and pillowy soft interior of the cheesecake
-nice thin graham-cracker crust
-top cinnamon layer

Pumpkin Spice Cheesecake (left)

Pumpkin Cheesecake, Max's Deli Bakery:
-a little dense but still quite good
-not overly sweet

Pumpkin Creme Brulee, Suika
-mini size ($3), seasonal feature
-perfect amount of sweetness
-less custard-y in texture, more pumpkin puree based, but still very smooth

Pumpkin Maple Cheesecake, Sweet Obsessions
-best of the pumpkin cheesecakes tried so far
-the girl at the store described it along the lines of a "pumpkie pie coated in cheesecake"
-smooth and not too dense with a perfect balance of spices
-absolutely loved the nutty exterior coating!

added a touch of whipped cream for pleasure purposes :)

Pumpkin Spice Loaf, East Village Bakery
-incredibly moist
-topped with icing sugar drizzles & walnuts

Pumpkin Spice Donut, Tim Horton's
-seasonal item
-a little too doughy, would've preferred a more cake donut texture

Pumpkin Braided Bread, Hyggelig
-topped with a brown sugar glazed
-tasted really fresh and soft but we all agreed that it was lacking the pumpkin flavour

Pumpkin Sticky Toffee Pudding, Cactus Club
-topped with a generous dollop of whipped cream (cheese?) and drizzled with sticky toffee sauce
-served incredibly warm and infused with nutmeg, cinnamon and pumpkin
-it was to die for and an excellent conclusion to the dinner

Pumpkin Macaron, French Made Baking
-named "Le Cendrillon" (Cinderella in French)
-filling: made with a white chocolate ganache mixed with an organic pumpkin puree made from scratch
-size was more bite size and smaller to the macarons from Thierry
-crunchy and delicate on the outside (though I found it a taaad too sweet) but a perfectly smooth tasting interior


the pumpkin ones were the only 2 that cracked, out of the 6 :(

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffin and Pumpkin Spice Latte, Starbucks
-thoughts on the Pumpkin Spice Latte can be found on my first Pumpkin Hunt post
-the muffin was good enough albeit a little plastic-y tasting, lol
-I didn't expect the muffin to be very fresh tasting, though boasting with pumpkin flavour
- the cream cheese was rather boring, could've been enhanced but not quite sure how...lol

Pumpkin bread, nine bunnies baking company
-incredibly moist and not too sweet
-served with mascarpone cream and blueberries

Pumpkin Pie Gelato, Bella Gelateria
-pumpkin pie was peeled, cooked, spice - all made from scratch and turned into gelato by the owner and gelato-enthusiast himself, James (he even holds a Masters in gelato making and attended Gelato university - take that!)
-amazingly refreshing gelato with perfect texture and taste

Pumpkin Ale Sorbetto, Bella Gelateria
-made from Granville Island Brewing Co.'s Pumpkin Ale (see below)
-unbelievable flavour - tasted just like it!

Kobacha (Japanese pumpkin) Waffle Sando, Miura
-kobacha custard cream with cranberry compote (seasonal Thanksgiving feature)
-the custard cream was good though I thought it could've been a little more sweet and thick
-I get the wanting-to-mix-two-seasonal ingredients here (pumpkin + cranberry) but together, it doesn't complement each other as much
-still tasty regardless - the kobacha custard cream would've paired well with something less tangy (though I don't know what? Any suggestions?)

Roasted Pumpkin Benny, Aphrodite's Organic Cafe
-with Goat Chevre & Goat Feta, served with home fries and garden greens
-eggs were nicely poached though the benny itself tasted a little bland
-skimpy potato portion, def. could've used a little more taters

Pumpkin and Pulled Pork taco, Off the Taco Wagon (food truck)
-seasonal feature
-pulled pork was nice and tender, adequately sauced and I thought it paired well with the roasted chunks of pumpkin

Phoenix roll, Kadoya
-pumpkin tempura, salmon, imitation shark fin
-though the combination of these ingredients may sound seemingly bizarre, it wasn't so bad!
- i enjoyed the sweetness of the pumpkin (it was most likely the Japanese kobacha pumpkin that was used) topped with the raw salmon and sweet and silky strands of the imitation shark fin

Smoothie, Aphrodite's Organic Cafe
-made with frozen berries, ginger, mint, OJ, pumpkin seed protein powder
-perfect consistency and thickness of how a smoothie should be
-perfect proportions of ingredients and a great start to the morning!

Pumpkin Ale, Granville Island Brewing Company
-brewed with real pumpkin puree and a blend of various spices
-light aroma and taste
-some say it tastes just like pumpkin pie but I actually think the pumpkin taste is very minimal

Welps! That wraps up "Pumpkin Hunt pt. II"! All in all, a successful `Pumpkin Hunt`, I must say! I think I`m all pumpkin-ed out now and rightfully so! Lol...would`ve liked to try the Pumpkin Donut from Lee`s donuts (at Granville Island), as suggested by the food blogger: Greedy Guts. Also was meaning to try the Pumpkin Spice Donuts, from Joeys, with the Dulce Leche Caramel Sauce pairing but one can only consume so many pumpkin things...until next Fall, it is!

Thinking of going on a 'Gingerbread' or 'Peppermint Hunt' for the upcoming holiday season...what do you all think? Any other festive ingredients that I should consider?

Suika

2011-10-01T21:52:00.000-07:00

suh-weeeet ka - my new fave izakaya...right behind Guu :)

Food:

Tuna takaki - Gently and perfectly seared. I quite enjoyed the accompaniment of the homemade chili oil as it definitely boosted the dish's pizzazz factor!

Sashimi 'Shake' salad - This was initially brought to the table in a glass canister, then shaken vigorously for a few seconds by the server, and served on a plate. I like the unique 'shake' aspect of the salad for it really ensures that it has been thoroughly dressed. Served with the fresh sashimi of the day, this is a guaranteed starter to any Suika meal!

Negitoro Battera - I love press (box) sushi. Love the regular circular pieces of sushi too but there's just something about the rectangular shape of sushi that makes is just a little more visually..and well, in taste as well (of course). The tuna belly was melt-in-your-mouth delicious.

Kakuni Bibimbap - Stewed pork belly, sweet dried shrimp, scallions on rice served in a hot hot hot (!) stone bowl and mixed well upon arrival by server. Most def. one of the favourites of the night. Really enjoyed the tender adequate pieces of pork belly and the fiery smokiness from the concoction altogether. Yum!

Tako Karaage - the last dish that was ordered and also meant to be a 'filler' item. The meaning of 'tako' totally bypassed me as I had pictured, and expected, ika (squid) karaage. Tako (octopus) is a lot more chewier in texture and imo, less favourable. Still, the batter was enjoyable but we could've done without it.

(Mini) Pumpkin Creme Brulee - A seasonal feature (and one of the reasons for my return visit here! Stay tuned for an upcoming Return of the Pumpkin Hunt post!). Most creme brulees are usually custard-y in texture. This was a little less so, perhaps due to the the freshness of the pumpkin? Still all-around solid. It wasn't too sweet and a great ending to our fabulous meal!

Drinks:

Another reason why I praise Suika so much is for their wonderful alcoholic (and non-alcoholic creations). Their Fresh Ginger Ale is exxxcellent! So thirst quenching with just the perfect proportions of club soda and fresh ginger and what other ingredients it may be comprised of. Their Suika Soda (vodka, fresh watermelon puree, calpico, soda, lime) was also very satisfying. Reason number 2 for my visit here was to try their Neo Caesar - a twist on the original Caesar cocktail but with kimchi! Definitely a hit. Hope to see it on their permanent menu!

Service:

Nice, genuine service but service was a little hard to flag down as it was super busy

Value:

Our bill was a little over $70 for the 2 of us which actually isn't too bad for an izakaya! Prices are a little more affordable than their sibling restaurant, Kingyo, which I liked.

Ambience:

Quite the 'happenin' place-to-be (think typical izakaya ambience) with wooden chairs, tables, pillars all around, an open kitchen, a spacious bar, a party room in the back (I heard it's quite the show when a birthday takes place here). They've got quite a nicely-equipped washroom too with mouthwash, tooth picks, and other handy washroom necessities!

Overall: 8.5/10

Yay: Come here for great Japanese 'bar style' (izakaya) offerings - food and drinks - and a definite grand ol' time!

Nay: Be sure to make resos, especially towards the end of the week - highly recommended!

**Interesting fact: 'Suika' means 'watermelon' in Japanese. Also, Suika is a sibling restaurant to the popular Kingyo, located in Downtown Vancouver (although I prefer Suika more)

Nu Greek

2011-09-21T14:00:00.000-07:00

Nu's gone Greek..and a good Greek, too!

Food:

Chicken Souvlaki Pita - It was definitely a really really good pita sandwich, so to speak. It was served warm, perfectly grilled and what really got me sold was the incredibly soft texture of the pita. In addition, the chicken was perfectly seasoned, tender and juicy. Toss in a nice amount of local diced tomatoes and onions, and top it with a very generous amount of nice, garlicky tzaziki sauce - I can strongly state that I would prefer this over any donair any day...

Service:

friendly, quick

Value:

$6.50 for the Chicken Souvlaki Pita - It might not look that big in the picture, but it is quite the hefty portion!

Ambience:

Order, grab and go kind of place although there are a few stools and tables available

Overall: 8/10

Yay: Love the pita, love the chicken, love the tzaziki sauce. A definite 'bang for your buck' pita!

Nay: Downtown - parking. Limited menu options but perhaps there will be more in the future?

Calabash Bistro

2011-09-19T13:16:00.000-07:00

Calabash, jamaican me bananas...

Food:

Delicious, authentic, hearty and affordable. So glad a 'Reef' contender has finally popped up into Vancouver's mainstream restaurant scene. My dining companions and I were thoroughly impressed with the wonderful food and ambience experienced on our first visit - so much that we decided to embark on another Calabash adventure a few weeks later.

We arrived to a full house on a Friday night, sans reservation. Somehow the thought of calling to see if they took reservations had somehow bypassed me (for some reason, I thought they didn't take resos). We were told it would be a 45 minute to an hour wait and thus, trekked a few blocks north to Vera's for some drinks to pass time. An hour later, I still had not received a call from Calabash and so we decided to walk back to check up on our pending table. After another half hour wait, we were finally seated. Though tummies were grumbling and moods were mostly dissatisfied, we were happy to hear that old school music (my fave) would be playing later on that night.

On our first visit here, we had the Mango and Goat Cheese Salad, Fried Coconut Dumplings, Roti and dip, Ginger Plantain Gratin, and the Goat Curry. I won't delve into the specifics of each but will say they were all delicious with the Ginger Plantain Gratin being the standout and most favourite of the night.

On this night, I had my eyes set on one thing and one thing only: the Chicken and Ribs. It was a special for the week and a special it was! I thoroughly savored the nicely charred and wonderful aromatic flavours of the jerk chicken and especially the guava, coco nib and Appleton rum glazed ribs. The ribs were fall-off-the-bone tasty. The chicken was soft and tender. Accompanied with jerk fries and a mixed green salad, I had no complaints there!

Chicken and Ribs

Aside from the wonderful appetizers and entrees we had experienced on our first visit, the dessert was what really had us longing for more. Conveniently titled the "Banoffee cake" (banana + toffee), I felt like I had gone to heaven and back after experiencing this indulgence the first time. Fast forward a few weeks later and I find myself back here longing for that cake once again. To our disappointment, it was served not as a slice, but rather in a ramekin (what creme brulees are usually served in). The portion had certainly gotten smaller. Not only that, but the crust was a lot more crunchier than we had remembered. So crunchy and hard that we could hardly break it into pieces! I had expressed my disappointment with the server when asked how it was and thankfully, was compensated for the dessert. Still, I'm hoping that the next time I come here, the dessert will be just as memorable as the first time.

the 'Banoffee' cake...*drools...

Service:

Pleasant and responsive

Value:

Good

Ambience

Very 'happenin' towards the end of the week. Lounge downstairs. Live performances weekly

Overall: 8/10

Yay: Come here for great authentic Carribean food and drinks. Relaxed and unpretentious environment. Large rum selection.

Nay: Long waits come Fridays and Saturdays.

Hubbub Sandwiches

2011-07-22T23:47:00.000-07:00

Sandwiches that make you go hubba bubba, indeed...

Food:

Meat and Bread. The Dirty Apron. Hubbub. Big Lou's. And the list continues. For the fellow lover of food and all things related, you would have to have been living under a rock if you had not realized that yes, there has indeed been a recent sandwich craze in Vancouver. Sure, anybody can slap on two slices of bread, fill with desired ingredients, engulf and engorge. But who would want to go to such great lengths (with the preparation, purchasing process, and all) especially when you're only looking to satisfy that, hopefully, one-time pulled pork sandwich craving?

Everybody loves a sandwich, although everybody loves a gourmet sandwich even more. On this fine Monday afternoon, my dining companion and I decided to continue our gourmet sandwich quest with a visit to Hubbub (thank you Groupon, once again!)

My beloved Pulled Pork sandwich, Ginger Beer and Coleslaw

** I apologize for the absence of shots of the sandwich interior. My hands were really full and the sandwich was really oily. Plus, it didn't look that great on the inside, lol.

At first, we were both quite sound in our selection. Hands down, we both wanted the Pork. After a bit of contemplation and what not, we decided on the Pork and the Veggie. We each also added a "sidekick". I opted for the Clean Slaw, while she chose the Quinoa Salad. Our orders were ready in a jiffy! As for the inital thought upon receiving the sandwiches: "Wow, these babies are heavy!"

Veggie sandwich with Quinoa Salad

Sure, the sandwiches were messy but that doesn't stop me from enjoying every litle (big) bite. What I loved most were the base ingredients added to every 'wich: pickled jalapenos, creamy garlic sauce, romaine lettuce, cilantro, and caramelized onions.

Though the baguette lacked a soft interior, it still was very fresh, chewy on the exterior and was served warm and toasty. The 24 hr-marinated and slow roasted pork was spicy and tender. I really liked the spices inherent in the pulled pork - it really gave the sandwich that zing! The Veggie sandwich comprised of diced red peppers, eggplant and squash in a chili-lime marinade. It was good, though not outstanding.

The side salads were a real standout, especially the Clean Slaw. It was extremely refreshing with the finely chopped cabbage. Really enjoyed the coconutty-minty-cilantroey vinaigrette dressing as well. The Quinoa Salad came with black beans, corn and peppers - tasty and definitely a high protein "superfood"!

Service:

Speedy!

Value:

Prices may seem a bit steep at first but fear not, once you have the actual sandwich in your hand and allow gravity to take hold, one will mostly think: "Hey, 10 bucks for this sandwich isn't so bad after all..."

Ambience:

It sure can get very busy during peak lunch periods. It was also quite bumpppin' with louder-than-usual music (for a sandwich joint!)

Overall: 8/10

Yay: Definitely a 'sandwich bliss' haven. Good value. Nice "sidekicks". Nice slaw. They also serve beer here :) Had myself a nice ginger beer.

Nay: Downtown - parking. May be a bit too 'heavy' for some. You will also need to have several napkins handy - it can get realllly messy with those hubba bubbas!

Burgoo

2011-07-16T21:58:00.000-07:00

Burgoo is burrrrgggGREAT! (in the voice of 'Tony the tiger')

Food:

As famous as Vancouver is for its beautiful scenery, people and attractions, our lovely city is also known for its incessant amount of...yes, you guessed it, rain. Rain is definitely one of my personal dreads. I am usually not in the mood for anything and typically just wanna stay at home and do nothing (cue: Bruno Mars - The Lazy Song). By "nothing", of course I mean, do nothing but snuggle on the couch in my comfiest pair of sweatpants and oversized tee-shirt, while savouring a nice bowl of tomato soup (can of Wolfgang Puck's, preferably) with a side of a homemade grilled cheese sandwich...

Burgoo - the answer to your rainy day woes

Of course if you can bring yourself to put on a (decent) pair of sweatpants and shirt, one should definitely venture out to one of the 3 (soon, 4!) Burgoo locations. Burgoo (or should I say, Burgreat!) offers some of the best 'comfort' classics including mac'n'cheese, soups, stews...and yes, even a Kentucky burgoo!

On this gloomy July afternoon, my d.c and I decided to make use of another very value-worthy voucher that we had purchased (thanks, Groupon!). I definitely knew I wanted the Dos Diablos (a killer grilled cheese sammy BUT with a 'spicy' flair) and decided upon a bowl of their Manhattan Clam Chowder. My d.c was unsure of what she wanted. After seeing the arrival of the Jambalaya to our neighbouring table, we both agreed upon that!

My Dos Diablos - described as 'two grilled angle cut filone sandwiches with melted spicy cheddar, chunks of chorizo sausage and roasted red pepper' - was deeeelicious! Though a tad greasy (but who doesn't love a bit of grease? :)), it was buttery, crispy (love the burnt pieces dangling off the crust) and definitely satisfying to the tastebuds. I heart a good grilled cheese sandwich, but when it's kicked up a notch with the pairing of melted spicy cheese, sausage and red peppers...it really makes you wonder...how life can be so grand :)

The 'Dos Diablos' - up close and personal :)

The Manhattan Clam Chowder arrived steaming hot, hot, hot! I generally don't really care for things to arrive super hot (of course, I wouldn't like my dishes arriving warm either). But when it comes to soup, a hot soup is a must. This concoction was pretty bang-on with a fine amount of vegetables and clams. I believe this was my first time having a Manhattan Clam Chowder and quite enjoyed it for its striking similarity to a tomato soup.

The Jambalaya certainly did not disappoint, as well. It bore quite a resemblance to the one that is offered at Cactus Club - taste and appearance-wise. It, too, arrived steaming hot and with a generous amount of chorizo sausage to boot. Great choices all around!

Service:

Friendly

Value:

Soup & sandwich combo: $15. Jambalaya: $17. A tad overpriced but with several groupons, it's not so bad :)

Ambience:

Cozy and comfy with wooden chairs, high tables, stools...and a fireplace in the midst of it all. The bar by the front entrance adds to the 'coziness' factor ;)

Overall: 7.8/10

Yay: Perfect lunch spot on a rainy day. Fantastic grilled cheese sandwiches, soups, and stews

Nay: Prices are a littttle high and unreasonable for certain dishes ($17 for a bowl of laksa? No thanks!)

Cafe Regalade

2011-07-01T18:20:00.000-07:00

Voulez-vous manger une superbe brunch aujourd'hui?

(translation: Do you want to eat a superb brunch today? lol!

Just wanted to throw some French in there!)

Food:

Pork Confit Sandwich: This was one of the specials of the day. While waiting, I saw that someone had ordered it and it looked too darn good to pass up. Luckily, I had persuayed one of my d.c's to order it and boy, did it not disappoint! The sandwich was beautifully presented - thick slices of tender seasoned pork laid diagonally atop a bed of cooked sauteed creamed spinach (?) and garnished with finely-chopped cilantro. The baguette was perfectly toasted and very fresh. It was also served with a side of nicely-dressed salad and house-made (?) potato chips.

Basque Breakfast: 2 sunnyside up eggs, piperade, chorizo, aioli sauce. A rather heavy, but flavourful and decadent breakfast. What I loved most was that 2 (of the 5) accompanying slices of baguette were spread generously with a (seemingly yolk-based) aioli sauce. The sauce and bread went so well together and though it is not the healthiest thing one can eat, it paired superbly well with the eggs, choirzo and piperade. This was also served with salad and wonderfully-seasoned potatoes on the side.

Lyon Breakfast: 2 poached eggs, mushrooms, bacon, pearl onions, spinach, potatoes, red wine sauce. Another well-executed breakfast entree. I had only sampled a bit of this but I loved dipping and soaking the baguette in the sauce.

Fresh Pancake with Blueberries: First five words that were overheard after a bite was taken out of this pancake: "Omg, TRY THIS!" At first, we were a bit puzzled by the seemingly lack of blueberries; but low and behold, they were all nestled in the middle of the pancake. This was the most delicious pancake any of us had ever experienced. First off, not only was the thing as ginormous as a pancake can be, but it was thick. And dense...and moist...and simply irresistable.

just a fraction of the (most delicious) pancake (ever)

Service:

We arrived to a full house on a Wednesday at about 1 pm only to be greeted with a rather rude welcome (and this was after us having to flag down a server/host). After telling the server that we had been standing at the front entrance for quite a while (with no greeting or acknowledgement), the server replied with, "well, we're full" in quite an unpleasant, standoffish manner. Well, one of my dining companions is certainly one to not take any of this rubbish, so to speak. She immediately turned around to inform me of the server's blunt dismeanor. We later suspected that the server had overheard us, for her attitude and demeanor had changed 180 degrees!

All in all, we didnt' receive (or expect) the best service but it was satisfactory.

Value:

Unbelievably reasonable - $3.95 for the pancake, brunch entrees range from $10-14

Ambience:

Loved the colorful hog statues and masks dispersed throughout the cafe, limited seating

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Overall: 9/10

Yay: Where (I mean, WHERE?) else, in Vancouver, can you find a place that serves an excellently-executed (key words) French breakfast, brunch (...lunch and dinner?) Prices are also ridiculously reasonable

Nay: Not the greatest service, and I can envision the place being super busy come prime brunch and dinner periods

**Interesting fact: Sibling bistro to the ever-so-loved La Regalade in West Van. No words necessary. Both bistros are two peas in a (perfect gastronomical) pod. Yup, I said it!

Romer's Burger Bar

2011-06-30T11:22:00.000-07:00

nuts, donuts and a hunk of beef in between...

Food:

a half-consumed Mango Mint Iced Tea, an 'old-fashioned' root beer
with pickles and nuts to boot

We started our gluttony-filled meal with a side of their Spicy Kosher Dill Pickles as well as a side of their warm, lightly spiced assorted Nuts (cashews, hazelnuts). At $2 a pot, the pickles and nuts served as great munchies as we patiently awaited the arrival of our burgers.

Onions Rings & Poutine

For my main, it was a bit of a toss-up between the Wicked Deadly Cheeseburger and the Rodeo Star. In the end, I opted for the latter: compelled by the immediate conjured senses produced by the tastes and smell of horseradish jack cheese and the applewood bacon. Served on a warm and soft Brioche bun, the burger did not disappoint (though extra bbq sauce on the side would've been 10x better). The beef was cooked just right and the patty itself was quite a hunk of a serving. All in all, definitely an enjoyable burger. For my next visit, I'm already thinking of tackling the $20 Ultimate Kobe Classic, hehehe...

my 'Rodeo Star'

The one prominent limitation of Romer's is probably the fact that sides are not included with the burger. Thus, it can be quite costly. Regardless, I was happy that I had two dining companions with me on this night. We shared the Onion Rings Dusted with Reggiano and the Poutine. The onion rings were pleasurable for its extra crispy and crunchy exterior, accompanied with a tzaziki-like sauce. Although they were quite skimpy on the portion (7 onions rings for $7? Not cool!) The poutine was satisfying, though I don't think I would order it again. There was definitely a lack of cheese curds, the gravy was forgiveable but the hand-cut fries were good.

Drunken donuts...*drool...

A meal at Romer's would definitely not be complete without an order of their popular Drunken Donuts! Donuts are probably one of my most favourite sweets/desserts/guilty indulgences (if you must...) and to have them served with a trio of dipping sauces? Score! I strongly enjoyed all 3 sauces: kahlua nutella, limoncello and the maple whiskey. In comparison to the famous mini donuts from the PNE (although the ones at Roger's Arena are pretty good too), the donuts at Romer's were crunchier and similar to a cake donut texture, as opposed to the softer and flufflier texture of the ones sold at the PNE. I love both. Afterall, a donut is a donut...is a donut. Any donut is a good donut in my opinion (hehe!)

Service:

Friendly and attentive

Value:

Not the greatest, but keep in mind that you are paying for quality ingredients (burger-wise), not sure about the other items offered.

Ambience:

Pretty darn busy on a Tuesday night with an occupancy of about 80%. They've got multiple tvs and a bar situated in the mid-front of the restaurant. We were seated in a nice, spacious booth. They've also got a pretty fancy vault downstairs for big parties and such!

Overall: 7.2/10

Yay: Come here for all-natural range-fed meats and their drunken donuts! Burger "pimpin" optional.

Nay: A little costly. Skimpy 'sides' portions.

**Interesting fact: Executive chef, Jim Romer (and owner, I presume) was formerly the exec. chef at Milestones for 20 years!

Posted by: J

Guu Garden

2011-04-18T19:36:00.000-07:00

a Guuuuuu'd lunch (box)!

Food:

Kobe beef burger bento

As the latest newcomer added to the ever-so-loved Guu chain of restaurants in Metro Vancouver, Guu Garden certainly did not disappoint. Recently, I have read that they now offer very reasonable priced lunch specials including rice burger bento boxes priced at $10 each!

On this day, I opted for the Kobe Beef Rice Burger Bento while my dining companion went for the equally-as-sound-appealing Tuna Cutlet Rice Burger Bento. Each bento box consisted of the following:

- shrimp and avocado Salad (lightly dressed in a light creamy, tangy, vinagarette dressing with a mild wasabi kick, spring greens) * i enjoyed this 'side' the most

-tempura green beans (green beans in a lightly coated tempura batter and deep fried) *could've been crispier and better accompanied with a side of mayo (doesn't come with it, I asked for it)

-miso soup (with pieces of tofu puff and seaweed) *second favourite side

Tuna Cutlet with tartar sauce bento

-sweet radish (white radish marinated in a semi-sweet soy sauce) *it was ok, a good palate cleanser perhaps? lol

As for the main events...*drum roll please*...lol the rice burgers were superb! They were both excellent and very filling! The Kobe beef was perfectly seasoned and cooked, topped with fine, shredded pieces of cabbage and teriyaki sauce. The tuna cutlet was nicely battered and crispy, though a littttle bit dry. Both rice buns were nicely executed and pan fried (?)

We also ordered a half order of their Salmon Oshi Sushi - 3 pieces of 'box' pressed sushi (very similar to the sushi they serve at Miku - can anybody say 'yum'?). The pieces here were a tad bigger but were equally as delicious. The salmon was immaculately seared and seasoned, topped with a fine load of ponzu-sauced strands of daikon and topped with a thin wedge of lime.

Strawberry Season ($5.50) - consisted of Cassis and strawberry puree. The ratio of each constituent was perfect and it served as a real nice refresher for a mid-day beverage :)

Happiness in a glass...

Service:

Polite and friendly - though it may be hard to convey your food/drink requests as there is a language barrier with most of the staff here

Value:

$10 for lunch box bentos - 2 thumbs up!

Ambience:

This location is definitely a lot more spacious than the Thurlow and Robson locations. And as we all know, 'lunch time Guu' is a lot more different than 'dinnertime Guu' on the noise spectrum.

Overall: 8.1/10

Yay: Great lunch specials, bigger dining space, salmon oshi sushi

Nay: Downtown - parking

Posted by: J

La Grotta del Formaggio

2011-04-12T13:16:00.000-07:00

fresh, hearty, and easy on the pockets...what more can you ask for?

Food:

I call this "the J special"

La Grotta del Formaggio is definitely unique in the sense that not only do they offer ginormous sized made-to-order Italian type sandwiches but I particularly love the fact that you can pick your own bread, meats, cheese, veggies, and sauces, as well. My usual go-to sandwich is a concoction of half a Focaccia with edam cheese, hot salami, hot capicollo and loaded with all the veggies. I generally like an easy amount of regular mayo and regular mustard (though I should switch up the sauces from time to time (basil pesto mayo, anybody?). I also like how they add in balsamic vinegar and olive oil prior to loading up the veggie, meats, sauce, etc. for it gives your sandwich just that tangy taste that zings things up! Also love the assortment of veggies they offer (including roasted red peppers, marinated artichokes, green olives) Lastly, I prefer it untoasted (though I should really try having it pressed and grilled for once)

Service:

Speedy and friendly

Value:

$6.50 for half a focaccia; $11.50 for a whole - easily the best value of all sandwiches (next to the cost of a Vietnamese sub (banh mi), of course ;) )

Ambience:

A grab and go Italian deli sort of a place, not much ambience nor is it expected

Overall: 8.5/10

Yay: Come here for cheap, fresh, hearty, made-to-order monstrous sized sandwiches as well as other Italian deli pick-me-ups and other goodies (raincoast crackers, anybody?) Also a great place for those who like to "choose your own adventure" (and by adventure, I mean the sandwich-ingredient-selection process analogous to the kind of adventure one was out to seek in the "Choose Your Own Adventure" books from way back. Anybody remember that? Lol!)

Nay: It can be a bit of a wait come peak lunch hour times. They also lack some sort of a structured ordering system (no number tabs or anything) though I have never had a problem with this for there are a quite a few number of ladies working the deli counter! :)

Posted by: J

Pigging out in PORTLAND :8)

2011-04-08T00:29:00.000-07:00

Hi all!

To sum it up, the gastronomical adventures that we embarked upon in Portland were beyond spectacular. And by spectacular, I mean the fact that til this day, I still dream of those wings from Pok Pok's. Unfortunately, time and stomach constraints prevented us from trying more but a trip back to Portland this summer is definitely in the works! I feel an immediate need to sample more of the food carts, especially the more popular ones, since Portland is practically a food cart haven. As well, if some of the joints listed below seem somewhat familiar to you, that's because they are! This trip was particularly Food Network-driven (specificially, Triple D's aka Diners, Drive-ins and Dives driven). To say that the overzealous disposition that Guy Fieri exhibits is an understatement. The dude can make anything look and taste good, lol!

Please fasten up your seatbelts as I take you on a (though, short but) whirlwind tour of just a fraction of Portland's culinary gems!

These should seriously be renamed as "THE wings"

Pok Pok:

-Southeast Asian cuisine
-Arguably the #1 "must-eat" spot in Portland
-No resos accepted - sibling resto-lounge located across the street where you are welcomed to have a drink while waiting for a table at Pok Pok's
-Absolutely cannot miss: Ike's Vietnamese Fish Sauce Wings - named one of the Top 10 Restaurant Dishes in America by Food & Wine Magazine in 2007 as well as the excellently-crafted cocktails

Overall: 9/10

Pork Belly Cubano

Bunk Sandwiches:

-Gourmet sandwiches

-Favourites: Pork Belly Cubano, Roast Beef

-very limited seating

-very busy during lunch hours though the line moves pretty fast!

-Overall: 7.8/10

Masu Sushi:

-modern setting in a very spacious room equipped with a bar housed in the centre

-Japanese fusion incl. innovative sushi rolls

-$$

Favourites: Mount St. Helen's roll, Japanista roll

-Overall: 7.9/10

Mount St. Helen roll

Voodoo Doughnuts:

-almost-guaranteed line-ups (we waited approx. 20 mins)
-the doughnuts themselves aren't the best in taste per se, but seriously, where else can you find Captain Crunch, Fruit Loops, bacon, etc. on a donut with names like ODB and other provocatively similar monikers...
-yes, there is a lot of hype about this place, that's why you need to come and see if it is worth all the hype! lol
-Overall: 7.6/10

Blue Plate Lunch Counter:

-Favourites: Northwest Sliders (Triple D-approved), Grilled Cheese Sandwich, Tomato Soup, House Sodas!!!
-I would call this place a definite gastro-diner (not your typical run-down, average-tasting diner)
-Overall: 7.8/10

Devoured and demolished! lol

Food Carts:

Aybla Grill:
-Mediterranean & Greek fare
-had a chicken gyro (didnt remember many specifics of it but remembered it tasted really good!!!)
-Overall: 7.8/10

Enchilada with beans & rice

Tito's Burritos:

-Mexican

-Enchilada Combo Plate (with rice and beans): less than $6
-authentic & delicious!!!

-AWESOME value!!!!!

-Overall: 8/10

The Dump Truck:

Mr. Ma's Special: pork, ginger, scallions
8 for $6 (not bad! I think we ended up getting 9)

-Delicious, homemade, generously-filled dumplings (more like potstickers!)
-Limited selection of dumplings

-Innovative ingredients: Bacon double cheese (yes! you read it right!), Portabellos, rice noodles and ginger

-Nice selection of accompanying sauces (always a 'plus' in my books!)

-Overall: 8.5/10

Posted by: J

Aki Japanese Restaurant

2011-03-13T19:32:00.000-07:00

triple S is the best (Sushi-Sake-Sablefish)

Food:

Zaru soba - cold buckwheat noodles served with a sweet soy sauce, a quail egg and green onion garnish. Tasty, refreshing and healthy. At first, I thought you were supposed to crack the quail egg on top of the noodles (I swear I saw that somewhere on a blog), but later the waitress explained that the quail egg was actually supposed to be cracked into the sauce, mixed with the green onions (and wasabi, if you wish) and then you dip the noodles in.

Chicken Tsukune - Two skewers of beautifully grilled, marinated mince chicken meat (meatball texture) but flattened (see photo). These were delicious - served hot and the flavours were bang-on (with strong teriyaki flavours)

Spicy Tuna & Spicy Chopped Roll - Fresh fish, good proportion of rice to ingredients - typical and satisfying!

** Grilled Black Cod ** - This was basically the impetus of our visit to Aki: the grilled sablefish/black cod. At $11 a piece, not only is it a steal but is probably the best valued sablefish in the city! Thanks to this wonderfuly recommendation by a fellow friend/d.c of mine, we ordered a sablefish each, lol! It was delicate, flaky, flavourful, moist, perfectly grilled, and hot. The portion size was also very reasonable. It was served with a slice of lemon and grated radish. My d.c had also requested for these sweet asian pickles that were great accompaniments to the cod!

Service:

Super friendly and genuinely warm

Value:

Standard prices at a Japanese restaurant though the $11 grilled black cod ups it up a few notches on the value factor!

Ambience:

Quite bustling on a Thursday night with predominant Japanese customers! It's also like sitting in a huge wooden house, with wooden booths, with an open sushi/robata bar...

Overall: 8/10

Yay: Authentic, Japanese owned and operated, warm service, popular for robata (charcoal grilled items), black cod...great lunch specials!

Nay: Downtown - parking, also a little hidden perhaps (on Thurlow right next to the McDonalds, located downstairs where Samba Brazillian Steakhouse is)

**Interesting fact: They have been in operation for 47 years and counting...!

Posted by: J

Wang's Beef Noodle House

2011-02-24T15:30:00.000-08:00

To start off, I wouldn't say I am a die-hard fan of noodle soups per se (trust me, I know some people who just loooove noodles in soup!) but I do occasionally enjoy delving into a nice, steaming, heaping bowl of homemade Pho :), a spicy bowl of Bun Bo Hue...or a hot and savoury bowl of laksa (only from Bo's Laksa, of course)

Adding to that list of 'enjoyable savoury noodle soups' is of course the Taiwanese's very own version of beef noodle soup, also known as TBN (an acronym that I have acquired from some local food bloggers). Their version generally consists of stewed beef, beef broth, noodles (either thick or thin), with various ingredients such as: star anise, white pepper, green onions, etc that is added to the flavouring of the soup. Different variations of tbn also exist in the form of spicy, tomato, garlic and a herbal broth.

TBN

From Corner 23 to Bubble World to Tri-ty to The One, I have frequented a fair share of bubble tea joints, (as well as Taiwanese eateries) and thus have sampled, tasted and devoured quite a number of tbns! Each bowl differed from the previous one in terms of the spiciness level, degree of stewed flavour, sweetness, amount of beef present, types of noodle(s) available, etc. After recently reading about Wang's Beef Noodle House, a d.c of mine trekked out to the other side of town for our very own experience...

Food:

Marinated Pork Ears

My dining companion and I both decided on the usual picks: Marinated Pork Ear, Pork Potstickers, Beef Roll (Sliced Beef in Chinese Pancake) and we shared a large bowl of their Spicy Beef Noodle Soup. The marinated pork ear (served cold) was a good starter - loved the crunchiness of the cartilage, chewy bits of the ear (I know, doesn't sound too appetizing but trust me, it`s good) and the sweet flavours of the accompanying sauce. We also thoroughly enjoyed the homemade pork potstickers (prepared in a longer shape similar to the ones that Corner 23 serves) as well as the Beef Roll (though it was a little dry - but tasted really good when dipped into the same sweet soy sauce accompanying the potstickers). As for the Spicy Beef Noodle Soup, we chose the thick (flat) noodles (as usual). The heavily-stewed broth tasted and smelt divine, though I would've liked it a tad bit spicier. The chunks of beef were huge and deliciously tender. It was also topped off with specks of green onion and pickled vegetables, which I loved.

Beef Roll (Sliced Beef in Chinese Pancake)

Service:

Speedy and friendly, some English speaking servers

Value:

Fair

Ambience:

No real decor or ambience here - just a place to dine and go!

Overall: 8.10

Yay: Come here for an authentic and delicious bowl of TBN, as well as crispy and tasty homemade pork potsickers

Nay: Cash only

Posted by: J

Zest Japanese Cuisine

2011-02-21T15:29:00.000-08:00

peace and serenity coupled with sushi and sake...ahhh true bliss

Food:

As a ♥ Valentine's ♥ celebration (and to soothe and satisfy our weekly sushi craving), Scoe and I arrived to Zest on a weeknight in hopes of confirming the reputable culinary status that Zest holds :)

Dishes that were devoured:

Wakame Sunonomo: Seaweed and cucumber dressed in a light, tangy and uber refreshing vinegarette. The wakame was chopped up differently here and Scoe described it as tasting so fresh, it tasted as if it was just harvested from the ocean, right behind the restaurant, lol.

Spinach Gomae: Lightly dressed in an "original blend of saiyo miso and sesame paste", foodmatik appetizer staple

Tuna and Salmon Sashimi: Sockeye salmon and albacore salmon - freshness at its best

Tuna Takaki Salad: a generous amount of nicely-seared tuna sitting below a bed of fresh greens with a delicious miso-type dressing with a strong wasabi kick! Loved the dressing.

Tuna Amigos Roll: My favourite of the rolls - a Zest original spicy tuna roll with a homemade miso-based spicy sauce. Coated in crispy flakes of tempura batter throughout - spicy, crunchy, soft flavours all in one roll!

Soba Crab Rolls: Most unique rolls of the night. Buckwheat noodles and crabmeat wrapped in seaweed and deep-fried, served with a sauce similar tasting to tempura sauce. Loved the uniqueness, crunchiness and distinct appearance to the roll, disliked the semi-tasteless aspect of it

Crunchy Ebi Avocado Roll? (cannot recall actual name): Listed on specials menu. Nicely-battered and deep-fried ebi (prawn) roll and topped off with slices of avocado. One can never go wrong with this combination!

Special Honey Pork Roll? (cannot recall actual name): Listed on specials menu. Honey-marinated pork roll with slices of mango (or egg) on top (can't believe I don't remember! :( ). The roll itself was ok - I like fusion but definitely think that pork and sushi should not be paired together, lol

Service:

Pleasantly warm and genuinely friendly service

Value:

Prices are on the higher end, but still more affordable than restaurants of similar calibre - e.g, Tojo's, Miku

Ambience:

Loved the serene and elegant ambience coupled with dim lighting and tables fancily clad in white table cloth, good thing we made reservations as we were seated in a very spacious corner window booth :)

Overall: 8/10

Yay: Come here for fine, modern Japanese cuisine, warm and genuine service, quiet neighbourhood, parking in back,

Nay: Higher-end Japanese cuisine = $$

Posted by: J

Whistler Eats!

2011-02-16T14:16:00.000-08:00

This past weekend was spent up in the gloriously beautiful snowy slopes in Whistler in celebration of a dear friend's birthday. It is one of the world's top ski resorts and a venue host to the 2010 Winter Olympic games (also, it was the destination where Seal proposed to Heidi Klum in a custom-fitted igloo). Whistler is the perfect spot for your winter getaway, summer getaway (ziptrekking, anybody?) as well as home to fine culinary spots for tourists and non-tourists alike (hello, remember Hell's Kitchen being filmed at Araxi? Yeahh, thought so!)

best. brunch. ever.

Though no visits to fancy restaurants were planned or expected (Araxi will have to wait), a memorable brunch was had, indeed. Conveniently located in the Summit Lodge and Spa, right in the Whistler village, Elements was nowhere near a disappoint. It was here where I had the most perfect brunch ever- a Sauteed Spinach and Goat Cheese Eggs Benedict topped off with a sundried tomato hollandaise. The eggs were perfectly poached and runny, there was a generous amount of spinach and goat cheese and I loved the sundried tomato touch to the perfectly-composed hollandaise sauce. Throw in their signature potato tartlet with a dollop of their chive creme fraiche as well as a shooter-size sample of their breakfast smoothie - this meal had my tummy and appetite beaming for the rest of the trip!

Elements' Classic Breakfast

Scoe opted for the Classic Breakfast which was fully equipped with two free run (scrambled) eggs, duck sausage, honey ham, 2 slices of their artisan bread and paired with once again, their signature potato tartlet and a smoothie shooter - a standard but healtheir and fancier version of the classic breakfast!

Buttermilk Fried Chicken Wings
in a garlic butter hot sauce

In the evening, we visited the Whistler Brewhouse - a sibling restaurant to Yaletown Brewing Co. in Yaletown here in Vancouver. It was exactly how I expected it to be - a loud, enormously spacious, dual (or multi) level restaurant fit for small and large parties, as well as the perfect venue to catch a hockey game. As a starter, we shared the Crispy Buttermilk Fried Chicken Wings in a garlic butter hot sauce. The batter was thick and crispy and served as a nice, flaming start to the meal. For my entree, I went for the Bang-Bang Chicken Salad with romaine lettuce, oriental vegetables (loved the shitake mushrooms!), roasted cashews and dressed in a sesame-soy vinegarette. I loved the crunchiness of the romaine lettuce and cashews paired with the sweet flavours of the sesame dressing.

Bang Bang Chicken Salad

Though not very many culinary destinations were explored on this quick mini getaway. The food aspect of it was definitely satisfying and is to be continued until my next Whistler adventure!

Posted by: J

Meat and Bread

2011-01-20T10:27:00.000-08:00

meat and bread - it's all you'll ever need...

Food:

As the current spot on Urban Spoon's "Talk of the Town" list, combined with an incessant number of reviews from various media outlets and food bloggers, Meat and Bread has sure garnered a lot of attention given its relatively new birth! Alas, I was finally able to pay it a visit to see what the hype was all about!

The "bread and butter" sandwich of Meat and Bread (haha) is undoubtedly the Porchetta sandwich (which is btw, pronounced as "Porketta" for I was corrected :S). From the information that I have gathered, it is pork loin that is slow-roasted (daily), rubbed with garlic and various fresh herbs and wrapped in pork belly (kinda like the Chinese roasted pork minus all the herbs and seasonings) My dining companion opted for that while I went for the daily special: Braised Beef, Hoisin Glaze, Sesame Sui Choy salad.

Porchetta sandwich

My porchetta was carved and diced upon order. I loved the see-through open display for it allows you to immediately visualize the sensations that would ensue (lol!). The meat was tender, juicy, moist and delicious with the absolute best part being the uber crispy pork cracklings (rind) that were placed atop the meat. Add a splatter of their salsa verde (which though, was quite mild in taste, it complemented well), and you've got yourself a heck of a good sandwich!

The braised beef was deliciously tender, juicy and oozing of the sweet hoisin sauce flavour. We were also served two, rather cute, dollops of a house-made mustard sauce and hot sauce. Who doesn't love extra sauce? I also had a side of their potato side with huge chunks of white potato, dressed in an adequate amount of mayonnaise, and seasoned and flavoured with pepper, onions and celery. It was good.

Braised Beef sandwich with a side of potato salad

They also serve a Maple Bacon Ice Cream Bar which unfortunately I was too full to have. Have heard great things about it and will definitely be sampling it on my next visit!

Service:

Though one might be intimidated when you first walk into the doors only to catch a sea of people in the lineup and what not, their assembly-line format of first requesting your sandwich to paying the cashier is actually quite efficient, I must say!

Value:

Ok - $8 for sandwich, $4 for salad or soup

Ambience:

Limited decor (though not much is needed), long wooden communal tables for seating, animal heads mounted on walls (is there a special name for this? lol)

Overall: 8/10

Yay: Porchetta sandwich!

Nay: Looooong lineups during lunch rush, communal tables (perhaps a nay?), limited menu for those wanting more variety, not the ideal grub spot for the vegetarian.....

Posted by: J

Urban Tea Merchant

2010-12-31T13:48:00.000-08:00

oOoh those macarons...I just can't get enough...

On this lovely, chilly yet beautiful sunny afternoon, my three dining companions and I decided to embark on a little ...high-tea-kinda-outing. I mean, who doesn't love a nice, aromatic cup of tea paired with miniature gastronomic delights? I have frequented the usual high tea suspects and have had incredible experiences (namely, Secret Garden), an 'ok' experience (Adonia) and a not-so-ok experience (Provence Marinaside). Needless to say, I was excited to try Urban Tea Merchant especially since they were having their Holiday Afternoon Tea Special :)

My Cinderella coach look-a-like teapot :)
Earl Grey Blanc tea

Food:

To start off, we each chose a (different) kind of tea off their extensive tea list. I didn't feel too daring today and thus, opted for the Earl Grey blanc tea. Though not a regular tea drinker, I thought that my tea was a little on the flavourless, watery side (or maybe that's how it is supposed to be given that it is named a 'blanc' or 'white' tea). My d.c's enjoyed their tea though with a few semi-minor complaints (tea wasn't hot, no cream available)

bottom tier: assorted tea sandwiches

As for the edible eats...overall, they were quite delicious, especially the savoury and delicately-prepared desserts. On the bottom tier of the tower of goodness laid assorted sandwiches consisting of egg salad, cucumber and cream cheese a roast turkey breast sandwich with cranberry mayonnaise. They were all prepared on white bread and though not extraordinarily tasty, they were good.

On the middle tier sat lovely, freshly-baked, warm and perfect-tasting savoury scones accompanied with tea-infused devonshire cream and jelly. I really enjoyed these scones for it tasted really fresh and perfectly-baked (crunchy on top). Coupled with devonshire cream and jelly, these were my favourites of the day.

delicious savoury scones with tea-infused
devonshire cream and jelly

Last but not least, the top tier (my most favourite) was comprised of macarons flown in from Paris, sweet confections from Thomas Haas, tea-infused shortbread cookies and chocolate-dipped strawberries. They were all to-die-for - I seriously loved everything on this plate, especially the immaculate-tasting, chewy yet crunchy and perfectly-sweet Parisian macarons (best I've ever had).

confections of perfection

Service:

The teas took quite a long time to arrive although the service itself was very pleasant, genuine, prim and proper :) The tea server individually served and poured us the tea...pouring in a very unique, swirling motion and was able to pleasantly answer any questions that we had.

Value:

$19 (regular $25) for Holiday Afternoon Tea Special - pretty good!

Ambience:

This tea room - though quite small (40-50 seater) - was comfy, warm and welcoming with see-through windows facing Alberni Street

Overall: 8/10

Yay: Come here for an extensive tea list and tea pairing delicacies - if Parisian macarons don't tempt you, I don't know what will...

Nay: Be sure to make reservations as wait times can be long, service can take even longer...

Posted by: J

Cioppino's

2010-12-23T16:49:00.000-08:00

thee perfect spot to wine and dine...

Food:

a taste of heaven:
Pan Seared Foie Gras with a decadent, fruit jelly

Christmas dinner #2's locale was a solid pick from the very start. As Vancouver Magazine's 2009 'restaurant of the year', and after seeing and hearing about the divine eats that popular local chef, Pino Posteraro delivers, I feel like I've oughed to try this place eons ago!

Beef Carpaccio

We started off with a wonderful Pan Seared Foie Gras appetizer (on special) as well as the Beef Carpaccio. I must applaud myself for these two picks as they were both phenomenally appetizing. I simply could not have passed up the foie gras, as it was pan seared (and only the best way of preparing foie gras). It was perfectly seared, melt-in-your-mouth delicious, light, buttery tasting and simply delectable. (I wasn't able to take a picture of the Foie Gras appetizer as a whole because the server had separated a portion for us individually). Paired with a piece of nicely, toasted, buttery-soaked french bread and topped with some kind of decadent jelly - what I would give to just have a taste of this again! Definitely one of the highlights of the night. The Beef Carpaccio was to-die-for. Thinly sliced, beautifully-presented with a nice, light mustard dressing and topped with parmigiano-reggiano and arugula. I couldn't ask for a better start.

Pappardelle
with 4-hour braised veal cheeks and porcini mushrooms

For my main, I had the Pappardelle with the 4-hour braised veal cheeks and porcini mushrooms. The flavour was bang-on, and the veal cheeks were super tender and flavourful. The one complaint I had was that the pasta was a little undercooked (not al dente) and tasted quite hard, I must say! The other entrees I sampled were the Garganelli "alla Norcina" with boar sausage and preserved Winter truffles (best entree of the night), the Veal Medallions (yum) and the Potato Gnocchi "alla Napoletana" in tomato sauce and mozarella di bufala (mmm...)

Garganelli "alla Norcina"
(topped with a copious amount of Parmigiano-Regiano goodness)

To end our lovely meal, we decided on the Warm "soft heart" Chocolate Cake with vanilla custard and ice cream, as well as Pino's version of the Mascarpone made with tiramisu, coffee macaroon and a really dark, rich chocolate sorbet. The desserts were nicely-presented, very light and satisfying.

A lovely end to a lovely meal

Service:

Fine service - Pino also wanders throughout the dining room ensuring patrons are enjoying themselves - seems like a nice man!

Value:

Definitely a place for celebrations and what not - although I thought the pricing of the pasta was fair

Ambience:

Nice, elegant looking dining room with red-bricked walls, oiled paintings and an open kitchen, noise level was a big louder than what I expected, which I preferred :)

Overall: 8.3/10

Yay: Fine, wonderfully-executed Italian (and Mediterranean) cuisine, come here for the delicious pasta, their wine encyclopedia (!) and the romantic ambience

Nay: Yaletown - parking, $$$

***Interesting fact: Cioppino's has attracted some big celebrity names, like Jennifer Aniston, Bill Clinton...

Posted by: J

La Regalade

2010-12-19T14:53:00.000-08:00

La Re...diculously great!!!

Food:

'Tis the season to be jolly, fa la la la la la la, la...LA! With the holiday season come holiday dinners, holiday cheer, and of course, lovely holiday eats (not to mention holiday weight gain)! First dining destination of the holiday season? Le Regalade, an authentic, cozy little French bistro situated in the semi-boones of West Vancouver (though, it's not as far as it seems! :))

We were served a basket of French bread to start. As for an appetizer, I started off by sharing the Foie Gras Duo with Black Pepper and Fig. Yum! It was served alongside a huge piece of toasted, wheat French bread (?) and a bit of greens. The foie gras was soft, creamy and melt-in-your-mouth delicious. I enjoyed the Foie Gras with the Fig more (vs. the one with black pepper) for its soft, creamy and sweet combination, paired wit a nice, toasty piece of crostini. A delightful start, indeed!

1/2 Roasted Duck with Sauteed Apples

For my main, I originally was quite ecstatic (and quite anticipating) to try the Veal Liver (that was listed on their online menu), but only came to a disappointment when I noticed that it wasn't listed on the actual menu. Instead, the server had recommended the 1/2 Roasted Duck with Sauteed Apples. Being quite a lover of the French's preparation of how they like to cook their duck, I opted for that instead.

Our mains arrived in huuuge cast iron pots/skillets, piping hot, and bursting with scents of aromatic deliciousness. My entree was nicely presented in a wide skillet, surrounded by diced apples, and topped with tiny pieces of chopped onions. It was perfectly roasted, the skin was crispy and I really enjoyed the (unsually) sweet flavours the apples brought to the dish. The apples were plentiful, sitting in a bed of sweet, tangy apple jus.

Beef Shortribs in Peppercorn Cream Sauce

As for the other mains, my fellow d.c's decided on the (braised) Beef Shortribs in Peppercorn Cream Sauce (soooo good, best of the night, imo). The sauce was so creamy, so rich and so flavouful. The shortribs were as tender as you can get, while accompanied by carrots, onions and other delicious veggies. I also sampled the Beef Cheeks - rich, tender morsels of deliciousness. The scalloped potatoes and the mac'n'cheese was good (though, not great), but served as good carb fillers to the entrees! (I believe all entrees came with a side)

Complimentary assorted Macarons

Though we chose not to have dessert (remember the 1/2 roasted duck!?), we were given complimentary Macarons to end our savoury meal. There were 3 flavours: Strawberry, Caramel, and Chocolate. They were to-die-for, especially the Caramel one - sticky, chewy, sweet and light-tasting all in one circular, edible wheel! Mmmm...

Service:

Our server wasn't necessarily rude, nor did he exhibit a poor attitude in any respect...BUT he was quite unaware, unknowledgeable, unattentive, uninformative (and ultimately, unhelpful). By "quite", I meant that he had no knowledge of what types of wine paired well with certain foods (didn't even know what kind of wine the restaurant had), gave a d.c Sprite (when she clearly asked for lemonade), and totally misinformed another dining companion when she asked what "coquillettes" was in English. He said it was scalloped potatoes, but clearly it arrived to be mac'n'cheese!

Value:

Very reasonable and fair - huuuuge entree portion sizes!

Ambience:

Totally bussstlin' in the bistro! We arrived to a mad fullhouse, a semi-loud atmosphere with servers running to and fro, an open prep area/kitchen right when you walk in. Seating wasn't very comfy (as we had a table situated right in the corner, near the cash machine and bar)

Overall: 8.3/10

Yay: Come here for some nice, scrumptious, hearty authentic French cooking! Generous portions.

Nay: Not the ideal scene for a nice, romantic, candle-light, dim, sobre night out.

***Interesting fact: Their only other location is a recently opened location in Manila, Philipines! Lucky Manilians!

Posted by: J

Cafe Nuba

2010-12-17T15:58:00.000-08:00

Aruba aNUBA....oOooh I wanna eat ya!

(think: Beach Boys, lol!)

For the past year (?) or so, Nuba has been quite the talk of the town - boasting authentic Lebanese cuisine in Vancouver (a first?) and quite recently, it has opened up its 4th (!) location at the Waldorf Hotel. For one, I can't think of anywhere else in Vancouver specializing in Lebanese cuisine and second, not only is their food scrumptious, but they use local, fresh and organic ingredients in their cooking - a win-win situation, n'est ce pas?

Food:

Najib's special - Crispy Cauliflower

Najib's Special - crispy cauliflower with lemon & sea salt, served with tahini
- great starter, Nuba's speciality (claim to fame?), this must be deep-fried or something to achieve that crispy texture and taste but it sure doesn't taste like it's been (deep-fried!)

Le Petit Feast

Le Petit Feast - hummous, taboulleh, baba ganooj, and homemade pickle
- YUM!! Great start, beautifully-presented, everything was so fresh-tasting, hummous and baba ganooj were perfect, not too thick - just the right smoothness consistency, loaded with lots of lemon juice and garlic flavour, pita bread was good too (though it was packaged from an exterior source)

Chicken Tawook (grilled Mount Lehman chicken breast marinated in paprika, thyme, lemon and garlic confit)
- a little dry (although I know how hard it is to make a nice, juicy, moist chicken!)

Beef Sirloin kebab - beef was cooked 'medium' (your choice) and it was tender, wonderfully-seasoned, juicy and succulent!

Lamb kibbeh

Lamb kibbeh - grilled grain-fed halal lamb patty with aromatic spices
- mmm though it was a bit gamey, it was a very well-seasoned sort-of lamb meatball! It was served atop a generous amount of nice, creamy tzatziki sauce..yum!

Service:

Very friendly and super casual - I liked :)

Value:

Fair and reasonable

Ambience:

Semi-funky yet cool interior - geometric wallpapers and retro-looking decor, casual atmosphere

Overall: 8/10

Yay: If you're feelin' for some nice Middle Eastern, local, fresh and organic fare - think no further than Nuba! 4 great locations to serve you (all in Vancouver, so far)

Nay: Minimal seating - not ideal for large groups

Posted by: J

Acme Cafe

2010-12-14T20:33:00.000-08:00

An ace for Acme!

Food:

Acme Cafe has been on my list of "restaurants to try" for gosh-knows-how-long, and would've continued to stand as a pending restaurant-to-try had it not been for a d.c of mine who recently raved about it. Without a hesitation, I immediately up-ed Acme on my priority list and was finally able to pay it a visit today :)

Grilled Turkey Panini, Broccoli Slaw, Potato Chips

I arrived to Acme with high hopes of gorgin' on deliciously-crafted panini sandwiches, savoury 'comfort foods', as well as flaky, fresh house-made pies. Of course, a foodmatik visit to Acme (or any restaurant, for that matter) would not have been complete (or even initiated) without any background information on what to order, what the specialties are, etc. After much indecisiveness (and quite some spontaneity must I add), I went for their Turkey Sandwich, which was comprised of brie (yum), a cranberry-Grand Marnier sauce (delish), grainy dijon mayo and arugula (fabulous) sandwiched between 2 slices of fresh and nicely-grilled Ciabatta bread. It was deliciously-timely (hello, 11 days til Christmas!) and tasty. It was also served with the right amount of plain rippled potato chips (one of my favourites), a very appetizing, unique and nicely-dressed broccoli almond slaw and a pickle. The chips also tasted like they were made in-house, with a quasi-oilier exterior.

Veggie Sandwich...mmm goat cheese

My d.c immediately gravitated towards the Veggie Sandwich which was comprised of goat cheese, portobello mushroom, peppers, zucchini, sun-dried tomato basil mayo on a grilled Ciabatta panini. It too, was delicious - with the goat cheese reigning as the stand-out ingredient. We also ordered a side of Mac and Cheese (my new fave 'comfort food') and boy, did it not disappoint. There was just the right amount of cream, cheese and perfection, topped with tiny sprinkles of breadcrumbs and a thin layer of cheddar cheese, I immediately felt like I was in a comfort food utopia.

Happiness in a bowl (Mac and Cheese)

Service:

Casual and cool (although the server forgot to ring in my Mac and Cheese order >:( )

Value

Fair and reasonable - $4.25 for the side of Mac and Cheese, sandwiches range from $8-12

Ambience:

Nice, modern-looking diner with very wide and comfortable seating, open-kitchen/prep area

Overall: 8/10

Yay: Drop in for a nice lunch, brunch or even dinner! Great selection of paninis, classic diner foods, milkshakes, pies....and even peanut butter sandwich cookies!

Nay: Located in an area where Gastown meets Sketch Town, Parking

Posted by: J

Chungdam Ahn

2010-12-04T17:19:00.000-08:00

The Korean equivalent of Hapa...

Spicy Rice Cakes...mmm

Food:

Started off with the Creamy Garlic Prawns which were quite tasty and more plentiful then expected. There were about 8-10 plump, nicely-battered, crispy prawns drizzled with a mild mayo-type-based cream and sprinkled with pieces of crispy, roasted garlic. I like how it wasn't overly dressed like the typical ebi mayo dishes you would normally expect. This was a nice starter to our meal :)

Bulgogi Beef

Being immense lovers of carbs (and with my dining companion being a lover of all-things-glutinous especially), we opted for the Spicy Rice Cakes. It arrived in a huge plate, piping hot, with an assortment of varied ingredients such as mussels, fish cakes and prawns. It was essentially a pool of seafood, onions, scallions and chewy cylindrical rice cakes swimming in a generous amount of a semi-sweet, semi-thick, spicy, kimchi-based (?) sauce. It was delicious and overly-filling - so much that we had to pack a third of it home. We also ordered the Bulgogi beef which was very tasty. The beef (though more shredded than usual - perhaps a good thing?) was deliciously-seasoned and well-marinated. It also came alongside a shredded cabbage salad, which was appetizing.

Service:

Friendly

Value:

A little pricier than average if you paid regular price. Luckily, I had bought a couple of online coupons (2 x $20 value vouchers which I paid $10 each) :)

Ambience:

We arrived on a rainy, slow Thursday night to a restaurant that was near a quarter full. Usually, I have heard that this restaurant is hip hop happening with the ambience and noise level similar to what you would expect at Hapa izakaya. (One sure sign of this is the multiple notices/reminders that were posted throughout the restaurant to remind customers of the constant noise complaints they've been getting from the nearby residents!)

Overall: 7.4/10

Yay: Come here for a fun night out with your friends accompanied with drinks (Soju, anyone?) and lovely Korean-fusion fare :)

Nay: Prices are a little steeper than average, no banchan offered here (complimentary Korean side dishes), parking

Posted by: J

Hub Restaurant and Lounge

2010-11-28T13:18:00.000-08:00

a 'hub' of a good deal...

Food:

Arrived here on a Saturday afternoon hungry for some nice, runny, savoury egg benedicts! (Okay fine, probably wasn't expecting them to be 'savoury', but rather, 'decent'). Without much hesitation, I opted for the Shrimp and Crab Benny, while my dining companion ordered a (rather naked) Eggs Benny with the Hollandaise sauce on the side.

Shrimp and Crab Benny

When our plates arrived, the first thought that came to my mind was: "Wow! They were quite skimpy on the amount of roasted potatoes!" My d.c had the same initial reaction. The eggs themselves were well poached, with the yolk being of a darker yellow hue. (Okay, I just googled why this is so - found out that the colour of the yolk is dependent upon a chicken's diet! The more yellow the yolk = the healther the chicken's diet :)). The amount of the shrimp and crab was sufficient and tasty. The best part of the eggs benedict served here at Hub is that they are served on a (rather atypical) toasted crumpet as opposed to the generic English muffin. The crumpet was chewy and very reminiscent of a pancake, which I enjoyed. I also tasted a bit of pesto in my eggs benny, which was nothing but a bonus! I should also add that in addition to the roasted potatoes there were served alongside the benny, there was also an accompaniment of a small greens salad. Both sides were good.

(A rather naked) Eggs Benny...
with hollandaise sauce on the side

Service:

Ok - nothing to boast nor complain about

Value:

Being an avid follower of many of the popular local restaurants in Vancouver, I was able to snatch up and catch a recent tweet by Hub promoting a coupon for $10 off your order (thank you, Twitter! :)). The promotion was in celebration of their "birthday week" and so, the value I received today was more than pleasant.

The value of the food itself (sans coupon) was decent ($13 for a Benny).

Ambience:

Very reminiscent of your typical Cactus Club type of restaurant. It was super dark in there and even seemingly moreso because we arrived on a Saturday morning at about 1 pm (felt a little weird, too). The booths are comfy and spacious with black leathery seating. It was very quiet for a Sat morning (about 20% full at most).

Overall: 7.1/10

Yay: Come here for a relaxed and "casual sophisticated" experience - a good alternative to your typical Cactus Club, Joeys, Earls abode. Also, they offer $6 appies offered daily from 4-6 pm!

Nay: Yaletown (parking)

Posted by: J

McLean's

2010-11-09T22:00:00.000-08:00

McLean's Spinach & Ricotta Ravioli....that's allll you'll ever need to know

Food:

Grilled Humboldt Squid with Chorizo
in a Lime & Sansho Pepper Aioli

On this night, we started off with the Albacore Tuna Tartar as well as the Grilled Humboldt Squid. Both were excellent choices and very good starters. The Tuna Tartar was served with avocado, ponzu, cilantro and sesame seeds. The tartar mix was one of the best i've ever had - the flavour was bang on and the tuna tasted very fresh. I also liked how it was served with nori chips, which were basically scoop-shaped (think Tostito tortilla scoop chips) dried seaweed chips (though they're not crunchy, but rather chewy). The Grilled Humboldt Squid was very appetizing - it tasted similar to cuttlefish and was very tender. We also liked the fact that it was grilled, as opposed to being prepared deep-fried calamari-style.

Beef Tenderloin with Tiger Prawns

All our mains were equally as delicious. The best one was, in my opinion, the Spinach & Ricotta Ravioli. It was nicely prepared in a white wine cream sauce with sundried tomatoes and Italian parsley. It was topped with a very generous amount of freshly-shaved pecorino pepato (no idea what kinda of cheese this really is but very similar tasting to parmesiano reggiano (or however you spell it)) This was one of the best ravioli dishes I tasted. The ravioli itself was cooked to perfection and paired perfectly with the white cream sauce! I love love love stuffed ravioli and order it whenever I get the chance to. We also had the Duck & Wild Mushroom Risotto (huge portion) and the Beef Tenderloin with Tiger Prawns. Both of these entrees were marvelously prepared as well - great tastes, good portions, and they were served hot!

Spinach & Ricotta Ravioli - sooo darn delicious

Service:

Above par, our server was quite professional - I don't know how many times she responded with "you're very welcome" when we said thanks, lol

** not sure why they made us wait a good 15 mins. prior to seating us (there were several unoccoupied tables) and we even made a reservation!

Value:

Ok - quite fair and reasonable :)

Ambience:

McLean's got a more upscale feel to it than I expected - classier, elegant looking decor, and quite intimate making it a good locale for dinner parties of small groups or a romantic date

Overall: 8/10

Yay: 2-level restaurant (top being the dining room/lounge and bottom being a more casual bar!), deeelicious ravioli and generally well-executed West Coast fare!

Nay: Parking (Gastown...)

***Interesting fact: If you hadn't already guessed, this restaurant is actually named and owned by former Canuck goalie, Kirk McLean! No, we did not get to see him on our visit here as he is actually, currently, the goalie coach of the Colorado Avalanche!

Posted by: J

Red Wagon

2010-11-08T12:10:00.000-08:00

comfort food at a reasonable price...

Food:

Three words: Pulled Pork Sandwich. Deeeelicious! Think: an oozing and generous amount of saucy, tangy, spicy, stringy and tender pieces of pulled pork with a creamy and crunchy coleslaw sandwiched between two halves of a fresh Portugese bun. It is very messy to eat, so be prepared to have piles of napkins ready (in addition to making sure that what you're wearing is pulled-pork-proof! lol!) This p.p sandwich stood out from many others that I've tried because of many reasons, one being the the fact that it was served on a nice, toasty, portugese bun and two, I loved that the sauce was a bit spicy. The sandwich also came with an order of fries which I liked. They were crispy, tasted like pomme frites (my favourite), and very similar to the fries from NY Fries!

Since my d.c and I had dinner plans later in the evening, we made a very wise and conscious decision to share the p.p sandwich with an order of Perogies, made in-house. They were good, though nothing extremely out of the ordinary. Nicely panfried, generous amount (about 6-8 pieces), stuffed to the pocket with pototoes, served with bacon, caramelized onions and sour cream - the perogies were very satisfying.

p.s check out the plating (above) used for the Perogies - certainly a 'wtf' moment which my d.c could not get over! lol!

Service:

Friendly

Value:

Very good - both the p.p sandwich & the perogies were under $10, making the total bill a little under $20.

Ambience:

It is a diner, afterall so don't expect a pretty sight here. The floors could use a mop. A renovation could definitely be in order, but I don't think people come here for the ambience!

Overall: 7.8/10

Yay: Great value, excellent pulled pork sandwiches, weekend brunch available

Nay: Minimal to no decor and ambience

Posted by: J

Pink Peppercorn Seafood House

2010-11-05T17:14:00.000-07:00

The Cannery version 2.0....resurrected, bigger and better!

Food:

When the local legendary 'The Cannery' restaurant closed down less than a year ago, I, like many others, immediately thought of things-to-do-before-the-Cannery-closes. I, personally, am not that big of a fan of the place - though they do indeed have a wonderful scenic view and a pleasant ambience, I thought the food was just mediocre-tasting and a little pricey. Needless to say, I did end up purchasing a gift certificate for some friends who love the Cannery and had one of my amigas purchase me a bottle of their ever-so-popular Lobster Oil.

Fast forward a few months later, I find that, to my surprise, the Cannery has not completely died afterall! In fact, one of the chefs from the Cannery decided to make a very wise move and opened up a restaurant of his own where he also brought along some of the Cannery's specialities (I swear, he brought the decor along with him as well!) After reading several (quite good) reviews of the Pink Peppercorn, I was excited and eager to try it.

To start the night, I ordered their Prawn Caesar to slowly sip and enjoy. I was expecting a cocktail prawn/shrimp but to my surprise, it was served with 2 very plump and delicious garlic-buttered sauteed prawns - neatly placed on the rim! It was darn amazing. The Caesar was prepared well, too. As an appetizer to start, my d.c and I both agreed on ordering the Salmon and Crab Cake. When it arrived, we were surprised and quite elated to find that there were two crab cakes! Score! The salmon and crab cakes were nicely-battered (though I wish it was a bit crispier), quite plump and generously filled with salmon and crab. There was also some sort of sweet, tangy, hoisin sauce (?) drizzled atop, and paired with some spring greens. We were also served warm and toasty french bread with their (once again) famous lobster oil and balsamic vinegar :)

Complimentary French bread served with
Lobster Oil & Balsamic Vinegar

For my main, I opted for their Halibut Special which was a Herb-Crusted Pan-fried Halibut with mashed potatoes, grilled veggies and mushrooms in a creamy terragon sauce. It was delicious! The halibut was soft, flaky and cooked to perfection. The portion size was very generous as well. The mashed potatoes were good as were the grilled veggies (red pepper, broccoli, asparagus). The creamy tarragon sauce was rich and savoury. My plate was also nicely dusted and capped off with a touch of pink peppercorn :)

My d.c opted for the Seared Scallops and Tiger Prawns in a Garlic Butter Sauce, served with rice and grilled veggies as well. It too, was amazing - rich garlic butter sauce, accompanied by perfectly cooked scallops and tiger prawns, generous portions...everything was quite near perfection. We both left feeling very satisfied and was so close to ordering dessert until we realized that we seriously could not fit anything else into our system!

Service:

Very warm, friendly, polite and attentive

Value:

Very good and extremely reasonable

Ambience:

Dimly-light, romantic and quiet

Overall: 8/10

Yay: Excellent value, great service, ideal for a romantic night out

Nay: This place is very quiet - definitely not ideal for parties or large group gatherings

Posted by: J

La Brasserie

2010-10-29T11:46:00.000-07:00

a little bit of French...a little bit of German...

and a whole lot of value!

Food:

La Brasserie has been on my list of restaurants-to-try for quite some time now. One, being that it is a "Franco-German" restaurant (you don't have very many of these in Vancouver) and two, I have come across an abundant number of food bloggers who have visited this restaurant and have got nothing but good things to say. Thirdly, I've also read that they have a Truffle Poutine on their menu and with a sudden poutine craze -reading, seeing and craving nothing but poutines - it was very fitting to finally pay this little "gem" a visit...

Truffle Poutine...*drool..

On this night, my dining companion and I started off this lovely evening with a nice glass of Villa Wolf Riesling ($8) each. For our appetizer, I suggested the Mussels and Frites in a Lemon Parsley Cream but asked to substitute the frites for a Truffle Poutine (of course) and pay a little more ($4). While reading and 'prepping' (lol!) for this visit, I was also aware that they served Lamb Cheeks here. Yes, the idea of eating cheeks from any type of animal may be a little daunting, to say the least, but knowing me - I love the tripe, tongue, liver, stomach, tendon, ear, feet etc. etc. (obviously, I have a limit so don't even think of going on a hypothetical question rampage - e.g, Would you ever eat a ______ of a ______?) Point being is, my friend once had Veal Cheeks from Le Faux Bourgeois Bistro once and said that they were amazing. Thus, this evening allowed for a great opportunity to pop my cheek-eating cherry (boy, does that ever sound wrong!)

Mussels in a Lemon Parsley Cream

To start, we were served two types of bread: french bread and othe ther being some sort of rye bread with butter and a Pork and Chicken Rillette (similar to pate). The pork and chicken rillette was more like a pork and chicken spread/salad, with shredded pork and chicken, mayonnaise, seasoning, etc. I thought it was ok and a nice start to the meal. The mussels were very plump (always a good thing) and I enjoyed the lemon, parsley cream broth (though no broth can ever compare to Chambar's). The Truffle Poutine was ah-may-zing - with a plentiful amount of huge mozarella cheese curds and teeny tiney pieces of truffles throughout. The frites themselves were crispy - no complaints there!

Braised Lamb Cheeks with a Carrot Puree

My entree arrived as Braised Lamb Cheeks in a Carrot Puree with an assorted array of beautifully-presented vegetables: baby carrots, cauliflower, parsnips, brussel sprouts and long green beans. I don't think I have ever had an entree accompanied in the presence of the recommended amount or an exceeded amount of vegetables! The lamb cheeks were moist and very tender, though a little salty but they were delicious, overall. The vegetables were all very fresh and cooked and boiled to perfection. The portion size was quite generous as well. My d.c opted for one of the specials: Roasted Quail with Spaetzle (?). Not sure what her entree was exactly as the server spoke way too fast. I had a sampling of her quail; it too, was quite tasty, cooked to perfection and I loved the crispy roasty-ness aroma to it.

Service:

Ok - not super friendly nor over-the-top and worthy of praise

Value:

Quite relatively reasonable - $20 and $22 for our entrees

Ambience:

Nice, romantic, dim-lighted ambience - perfect for a romantic date or a small group dinner outing

Overall: 7.9/10

Yay: Come here for the truffle poutine! Generously-size portions of generally well-executed Franco-German fare, perfect dining destination for a romantic date

Nay: Not the right place for huge group outings, no reservations taken - first come first served!

Posted by: J

Tropika Malaysian/Thai Cuisine

2010-10-18T23:25:00.000-07:00

r-r-r-radish cakes, come to momma!

Food:

On this night, I luckily had 3 dining companions, which enabled for a multi-appetizer, multi-entree meal (of course this could not have been accomplished had we not had the 2 entertainment book coupons)! Food was good, as usual, with the appetizers ousting the entrees on a quality scale. In chronological order, we savoured and feasted on the following:

Stir-Fried Radish Cake (2 orders!) - Best dish of the night, hands down. Tropika's version of the radish cake is definitely like no other. It is ridiculously tasty, perfect in texture, more darker in appearance (lots of soy sauce is used), and very flavourful. I like that is is comprised of little chunks of radish cake, molded into a semi-circle and stir-fried (as opposed to pan-fried or steamed). Two thumbs waaay up!

Roti Canai (2 orders!) - The roti here is one of the best, imho. It's not as flaky as one would like, but I like that (very minimal) sweet taste to it, and I love that accompanying sauce!

Chicken Satays - Little morsels of nicely-marinated chicken thighs...already quite good and with the peanut sauce? Ten times more delicious!

Pad Thai - I don't particularly love the Pad Thai here but always end up ordering it. The portion is actually quite generous, though I'm not quite feeling the ketchup-y sauce. The noodles are kinda dry, but I do like the tofu, chicken and shrimp that it comes with.

Green Curry Chicken with Coconut Rice (on the side) - The curry here is actually just ok too. One can tell that it is prepared to cater to the Western palate with a substantially bigger ratio of coconut milk. I actually prefer my curries to be more spicier, but this one was ok. The rice was not as coconut-infused as I would've liked but it paired well with the curry!

Sweet & Sour Fish - Perhaps we had ordered the wrong dish, but this dish was the biggest disappointment of the night. Not sure what kind of fish it was, but it was quite dinky and hardly meaty. There was, however, a generous amount of veggies - diced peppers, tomatoes, onions...and pineapple. The server also deboned the fish for us, which was a plus.

Sambal Beans-This was a great choice! Once again, good portion of nicely fried (and then stir-fried) long beans tossed in minced pork, xo sauce, chilies and shrimp paste. Love, love, love the flavourfulness of it all!

Service:

Ok - not praise-worthy nor something to complain about. Though I wonder where the female servers are? :S

Value:

Reasonably priced (and even better with an entertainment book coupon! :) )

Ambience:

Arrived here on a Monday night and the restaurant was still about 3/4 full! This decor is quite minimal, no music, but it's fine. A little loud

Overall: 7.6/10

Yay: Tropika has multiple locations, accepts varied coupons (try looking in the Georgia Straight if you don't own a Ent. book), great for family dinners and serves wonderful food all around. Come for the radish cakes alone...mmmm

Nay: Their entrees are good, but not spectacular. Their drinks, though extensive, are not very good....and where are the female servers when you need one? lol

Posted by: J

Dot. Desserts (CLOSED)

2010-09-22T22:31:00.000-07:00

Du wop da Dot!

Food:

This place is one of my relatively newly-found (and quite low-key) favourite dessert place! Been here a few times and have quite enjoyed it, really. Dots is unique in the sense that it offers Japanese style parfaits, (savoury & sweet) crepes, and bubble tea.

On this night, we ordered the amazingly-divine Black Sesame Parfait and the equally as amazingly-divine Caramel Apple Crepe. For $2.00 more, I had the 'crepe combo' where I added a Honey Green Tea drink with half coconut jelly and half pearls. Unfortunately, they were out of pearls that night, and so I opted for the mango stars replacement. It was a great substitute; the mango stars were basically mango-flavoured coconut jelly! They were cute, chewy and lovely.

This night turned out to be a win-win situation for my dining companion and I as the server working there (owner?) had mistakenly made a Caramel Apple Parfait instead of the Caramel Apple Crepe that we had ordered. She gave it to us at no charge and we were also given our Caramel Apple Crepe too (which arrived very shortly after).

Caramel Apple Parfait

For those of you who haven't had a Japanese style parfait before, it is essentially a multi-layer parfait filled mainly with ice cream, fruits and whatever 'special ingredient' you desire - served in a tall glass. The Black Sesame Parfait was comprised of black sesame and vanilla ice cream, sponge cake, mochi, and corn flakes - topped with whipped cream and shaved chocolate flakes with a cute little blackberry on top. The amalgamation of sweet, crunchy and chewy flavours inherent in this concoction was absolutely orgasmic!

The Caramel Apple Parfait was darn heavenly as well. Think soft and delicious vanilla ice cream, sliced sweet and tangy cinnaomon-coated caramelized apples, topped with corn flakes, whipped cream and more caramel. Mmmmm....the Caramel Apple Crepe was very similar but was served cold (which I liked). It too comprised of caramelized apples and whipped cream, with a side of vanilla ice cream. The crepe itself was a bit more doughy and hence, chewier than the crepes that I was used to, but I still very thoroughly enjoyed it!

Service:

Attentive and friendly

Value:

Reasonable

Ambience:

This little parfait/dessert bar can only seat about 15 people or so, and the times that I've been here, there have only been about 2 tables occupied. The white modern decor with the white stools and the high table are reminscent of a bar setting, but with dim lighting, a quite ambience and soothing music - this place is the ideal dessert place to take a date!

Overall: 8/10

Yay: Late store hours (open til 12 am everyday) to satisfy those with late-night sweet tooths :), come here for meticulously-made Japanese style-parfaits, sweet and savoury crepes, and bubble tea...all admist a nice, cozy sombre yet romantic ambience!

Nay: This place is quite small (5-6 tables of 2-3 chairs each) and definitely not ideal for large group gatherings!

Posted by: J

Miura Waffle Milk Bar

2010-09-15T19:41:00.000-07:00

felt like I just died and went to waffle heaven...

Bulgogi Waffle Sando

Food:

I fell in love with Miura's waffle 'sandos' (which means 'sandwiches' in Japanese) the first time I laid my taste buds on them. Not only do they offer both 'savoury' and 'sweet' waffle sandwiches, but were also created with a Japanese (and Korean) influence. On my first visit here (on Canada Day), my dining companion had their Bulgogi waffle sando and their special of the day which was a Maple Marshmallow S'more Waffle sando filled with marshmallows, chocolate, and maple syrup (maple syrup as a tribute to Canada :)). Both waffles were devoured in seconds; they were very fresh-tasting, delightfully delicious and epitomized the quintessential gourmet waffle sandwiches.

Maple Marshmallow S'more Waffle Sando

On my second visit here, my dining companion wanted to try the very same Bulgogi Waffle sando. It was just as appetizing and appealing as when I had it the first time. It was filled with marinated barbeque beef (Korean 'bulgogi'), small chopped up pieces of boiled egg that were reminiscent of an egg salad, and kimchi. Sandwiches between 2 crispy halves to complete a waffle sando, it sure did not disappoint. To satisfy our sweet craving, we opted for special of the day which was their Banana Caramel Waffle sando. This waffle sando was not crispy, but was rather more fluffier. This was fine and very suitable to the overall ingredients that it contained. The ratio of banana to caramel was good. I should also mention that it does contain whipped cream, but I had asked for a lesser amount (of whipped cream). This sweet sando was overally very satisfying and would pair even better with a latte.

Banana Caramel Waffle Sando

Being branded also as a 'milk' bar, I felt the need to have to try one of their yogurt milk concoctions. We oped for the Blueberry Yogurt Milk. It tasted literally like yogurt liquid with freshly blended (?) blueberries. Though I wish it was more of a smoothie texture, it tasted fine.

Service:

Friendly and polite

Value:

Waffle prices range from $4.00-$6.99 ~ price is a little steep for the more 'gourmet' sandos but they're worth a try!

Ambience:

Been here twice and I feel like they need a bit of soothing music or something to accomodate the cafe-like ambience, love the smell of waffles wafting in the air

Overall: 8/10

Yay: Yummy, yummy made-to order savoury and sweet waffles. Love the creation of the waffle 'sandos' they have come up with - where else can you have bulgogi in a waffle and have it taste like you just died and went to waffle heaven? They've also got free Wifi!

Nay: Parking may be an issue

** Interesting fact: Recently, there have been an influx of online coupon sites where you can purchase discount vouchers redeemable at a variety of local restaurants, food stores, speciality shops, tourist attractions, etc. Some discount vouchers are valid only on the day (of) when you purchase the voucher, while others have a reasonable validity period. Luckily, I was able to get my hands (mouse, haha!) on them and was able to snatch up a couple of discount vouchers for Miura when they were featured on the Social Shopper website. I purchased 2 vouchers at $5 each but were worth double the amount! Who can ever resist such a win-win situation? :)

Posted by: J

Rodney's Oyster House

2010-09-13T12:29:00.000-07:00

a 'shuck' of a good time...

Food:

On this highly-anticipated night, after more than an hour and a half wait, we were finally seated at the oyster bar - extremely excited at the thought of devouring and gorging on oysters, oysters...and more oysters.

We were so hungry (and impatient) by the time we arrived that we hardly thought about what to order (I usually like to take my time, carefully weighing my options). We just knew we wanted oysters. And lots of them. Luckily, the lone-oyster-dude-shucker sensed our anticipation and asked if we wanted a dozen fresh oysters. We immediately gave him the thumbs up.

Prior to the arrival of the oyster mania. We each had a Caesar - which was very appetizing. I liked how they used crushed ice, as opposed to cubed ice. It was also wonderfully garnished with a nice piece of prawn, and sprinkled with freshly-grated horseradish. Bread was also given, though it was fresh, but nothing to praise about.

Now onto the oyster mania. We were presented with a dozen of freshly-shucked oysters (there were 3 kinds: Kumamoto, Kuushi, and some other one I don't recall) which were the 3 personal favourites of the oyster shucker's. I'm glad we allowed him to choose the oysters because we slurped them down in seconds. They were amaaaazingly fresh tasting. The bonus were once again, topping the oysters with the freshly-grated horseradish and the accompanying house-made sauces!

We also had the Pan Fried Oysters which were so succulent tasting with a crispy battered coating. They were probably my favourite of the night. The Oysters Rockefellah were darn delicious as well - soaked and baked in butter, spinach, garlic and whatever wonderful ingredients it may have contained. We also had the Seared Scallops, which although weren't huge and plump, there was a good 6-7 scallops, accompanied with a wonderful salad (everything was devoured so quickly, I don't even remember what I ate! lol)

Pan Fried Oysters ...
(note: on the left was the Fried Halibut that was mistakenly given to us)

Service:

We didn't really have our own personal server per se; our order was taken by the shucker dude (who was situated in front of us all night long) at the oyster bar. There was also an order mix-up between the people sitting next to us and ours (hey, more food for us!) We didn't realize it until it was too late. Otherwise, the service was good - friendly and chattable.

Value:

A little steep - $2.50 - 3.50 per fresh oyster

Ambience:

This place is extremely LOUD, and can therefore either make or break your experience. It's essentially a large wooden cabin, filled with loud campers (dining patrons) with the cabin 'leaders' being the huge, muscular oyster stuckers (haha).

Overall: 8/10

Yay: Come here for freshly-shucked oysters, pan-fried oysters, oyster rockefellar, and however you like your cooked cooked (or prepared) :)

Nay: Make reservations - I say at least 3-4 days in advance. I called the day before to book a reso for 2 and they were all full with the reason being that they only reserve the upstairs (approx. 6-7 tables). As a result, upon arrival, we were told that it would be a 1 hr and 20 min. wait before a table was available for us. We then ventured to Cactus Club for a drink, came back 1 hr and 20 mins later and waited for another 15 mins. before being seated.

The noise level can be extremely overwhelming especially if you're on a date or what not. Also, I don't think this is the most kid-friendly place. Prices are steep as well.

*** Interesting fact: They have a location in Toronto too and from what I've read, it's equally as bustling and busy!

Posted by: J

Locus

2010-09-08T00:35:00.000-07:00

great brunch joint on Main...with a ~spooky~ feel

Food:

Excellenttt brunch. Both my dining companions (and I) enjoyed our dishes very much. On this morning, I opted for the Venison Benny (with mushrooms and homemade-herb ricotta cheese). The hollandaise sauce was very good - not too yolk-y or runny. The venison flank was grilled to perfection and was of marvelous texture. I loved the accompanying fingerling potatoes (felt so much healthier as opposed to the usual deep fried hashbrowns/potatoes) and the paired fruit was good too (a slice watermelon, honey dew, pineapple and orange).

We also were served delicious bread (focaccia and a raisin bread) with even more appealing types of butter: spicy and a raisin rum butter (which was sweet). The butter was light and fluffy (which I loved) and it paired extremely well with the bread. Oddly, the bread was served the same time as when our food arrived.

My smoothie wasn't too thick and was a great boost for the morning. Weird thing was that it was served a huge wine (?) glass and the other downside was the price: $6.95! It wasn't worth it but I really didn't feel like having tea or anything else, lol.

Service:

Great. Our server was nice and chattable. The owner (pretty sure) kept on checking up on us from time to time and was quite pleasant.

Value:

Strawberry, organge and banana smoothie - $6.95 (:S)

Ambience:

Very Main Street-esque. The whole restaurant is clad in dark wooden tables and chairs, with imitation wooden trees throughout and canvas art for sale. It's totally got a grungey feel to it and I felt like I was walking through a haunted house on my way to the washroom. (edited: 'Eclectic' is the word that totally sums up this place!) Pretty cool.

Overall: 8/10

Yay: Yummy-in-my-tummy brunch. Come here if your like the modern-grungey type of ambience :)

Nay: Looks kinda sketchy from the outside...but hey, hasn't your mom ever taught you to not 'judge a book by its cover'?

Posted by: J

Go Fish

2010-09-08T00:31:00.000-07:00

Go(oooood) Fish is more like it!

Food:

Everything we ordered was so fresh and delicious! On this beautiful Saturday, my dining companion and I shared: 2 pieces of Halibut and chips, a Qualicum Bay Seared Scallop Sandwich and one Salmon Tacone. The fish was nicely battered, meaty, huge and crispy while the 'chips' were actually pomme frites (delicious and so fresh-tasting). It also came with a side of coleslaw, which I liked for its non-drenchiness. It was coated in a Asian sesame-like dressing, as opposed to the usual creamy dressing.

The Scallop Sandwich arrived on a fresh Portugese-style bun, loaded with plump nicely-seared scallops (4, to be exact), caramelized onions, iceberg lettuce, mayo and sweet chili sauce. The salmon tacone was generally filled with grilled salmon, cilantro-infused salsa, coleslaw and a chipotle sauce. I only had a bite of this but it was enough to make my tastebuds tingle! ~

Service:

Ok, not the friendliest and not the speediest either

Value:

Pricey

Ambience:

It's located steps away from Granville Island...come here for the grub and scenery! Especially on a hot summer's day? Perfection.

Overall: 8/10

Yay: Come for the food and scenery - no questions asked

Nay: Lineups, lineups, lineups! We came here on a Saturday afternoon at about noon-ish only to be presented with a huge line-up filled with fellow fish'n'chip grabbers alike. We waited in line for about 25 mins, ordered our food and had to wait for another 15 mins.

The service we witnessed wasn't the greatest either (somebody had take another person's order and the woman (manager? owner?) working there was quite rude).

It is pretty darn pricey here, too. 2 pieces of halibut & chips totalled $14.50, while the scallop sandwich was $12 :/

Posted by: J

Spice Islands Indonesian Restaurant

2010-09-07T13:07:00.000-07:00

Just a taaad overrated, if you ask me...

Food:

Roti Prata - Arrived in 8 (med. sized pieces) with a green curry sauce. Not as flaky as I expected (and would've liked). It leaned towards the crispier side, but flavours were good.

Chicken & Beef Satays - Skewers were a little on the small side, beef was a bit too done while the chicken was a bit fattier than preferred. The satay sauce wasn't thick, but was quite peanut-y :)

Mango Salad with Calamari - This was one of their specials, but it wasn't as appetizing as I expected. It had romaine lettuce, shredded carrots, small pieces of mango in a ginger-y vinegarette dressing. It came with 2 (quite small) skewers of grilled calamari (which was healthier tasting as opposed to it being fried, which I liked).

Java Curry Chicken - Great flavours, thickness of sauce was good (not overly thick or watery). Ample portion.

Mussels in Curry Sauce - Not sure if it's mussel season right now, but they were very tiny. Plentiful portion though, and the curry sauce was good.

Coconut Rice (side)- Very nicely presented (in a pyramid shape). The coconut flavour was very minimal, so I was a bit disappointed. The rice wasn't very thoroughly cooked either!

Service:

Our server was very nice, polite, courteous and knowledgeable. I think he was predominantly the main server for the entire restaurant, so it took him a while to come and place our order.

Value:

A taddd overpriced - but it is located in a more affluent neighbourhood

Ambience:

We chose to sit outside on this nice summer evening, so we couldn't really experience the ambience inside the restaurant, per se. It was quiet and dim inside the restaurant as I took a quick stroll through the restaurant to get to the washroom (which is, by the way, single-stall washrooms separated by sex). We arrived at 8 pm on a Thursday evening, and there were about 3-4 tables occupied. Mind you, it is a fairly small restaurant (8-10 tables, max).

Outside, we sat on green plastic chairs (accompanied with green plastic tables). It wasn't the best of the dining furniture, but it was alright. I also noticed the (long overdue or just super early) Christmas lights hung around the railings of the restaurant, lol.

Overall: 7.3/10

Yay: There aren't very many Southeast Asian restaurants in the area, so if you do happen to be in the area and am craving Malaysian/Indonesian food, this spot will be able to satisfy your cravings.

Nay: Over-rated -just a bit above average at best (Tropika and Banana Leaf are better!). Not ideal for big groups.

**Interesting fact: This place was the Gold Winner of Vancouver Magazine's Restaurant Awards for 'Best Other Asian' - a little over-rated, in my opinion!

Posted by: J

Cactus Club

2010-08-28T23:10:00.000-07:00

Arguably, the chain of all chains...of 'casual fine dining' restos

Cactus. Joeys. Milestones. Earls. Milestones. Earls. Joeys. Cactus. It's the battle of the 'casual fine dining' chain restaurants. They all have quite the number of similarities, more or less. Good looking servers (more or less), check. Exquisite decor and elaborate looking washrooms? Check (or maybe I'm just thinking Cactus Club). Long and extensive menus? Check.

Ok, so maybe I wasn't serious about Cactus Club being the 'chain of all chains'. I do quite enjoy the Spicy Thai Drummettes from Milestones and their darn Chicken and Corn Hash on their brunch menu. Ok, really, it's a toss-up between Joeys and Cactus, hence the 'arguably'. I love Joeys for their Ahi Tuna Tacos, Lobster Ravioli, and their desserts!!!

As for Cactus - I love love love love loveeeeee their bellinis, Bandara Salad, and the relatively recent addition of Rob Feenie's signatures has made it even better. Their Jambalaya is also quite drool-inducing.

Food:

On this night, I along with 2 other dining companions, shared 4 of their appetizers. We had the Crispy Yam Fries, the Bandura Salad, the Mini Burgers, as well as the Goat Cheese and Feta Flatbread (one of the reasons why we came here). The Yam Fries were nicely battered, plentiful and arrived with a garlic aioli dip. The Bandura Salad was hugggeee and very refreshing. It consists of cajun chicken, corn, feta, dates (!), crispy chow mein and topped with a honey-lime vinegarette. The Mini Burgers (one of Rob Feenie`s signatures) arrived as three mini cheddar bacon burgers with a red pepper relish. The meat was well-seasoned and flavoured - all ingredients tasted very fresh. The flatbread was pretty good too. I loved the combination of goat and feta cheese, caramelized onions, and cherry tomatoes. They were the prefect ingredients. The flatbread was a bit more doughy than expected (I`ve had more crispier, flat breads), but it still tasted very good.

Drinks:

They have the BEST bellinis here. Hands down. They put just the right amount of alcohol, and their ratio of syrup to water to ice (and whatever else is put into a bellini) is just perfect. They also have a new `Summer Sangria` ($9), it`s huge and so worth it. The sangria itself is great, and they add in a dollop of their bellini...it`s a splash of heaven, I tell ya.

Service:

Attentive and friendly

Value:

Prices are a little higher here (approx. $17 incl. tax per person for the appies)

Ambience:

Pretty much packed most of the time. Loud (music & people). Beauuutiful washrooms (in fact, they are voted as having one of the best washrooms in Canada or something like that). I saw Jojo (teenage singer) and Robin Williams at the Robson location once (they were in town filming the movie, RV)

Overall: 8.0/10

Yay: Good food and even better drinks. Come here if you miss `Feenie`s`. Nice, trendy place.

Nay: Usually busy at all locations that I`ve been to. They don`t accept resos.

Benkei Ramen

2010-08-27T23:40:00.000-07:00

slurrrrrrp slurrrrp...gulp!

Food:

Onigiri

Everything we ordered here was beyond satisfying. As a first timer here at this location (Main St./E. 5th Ave), the standards were up to par, if not better. Between my dining companion and I, we shared an order of their Onigiri - a sticky-rice ball sort of thing with bits of 'chasu' (pork) molded into a triangular shape with a piece of seaweed as the base. We also shared an order of their Pork Gyoza, which was very fresh-tasting - I especially liked the thin gyoza skin.

Chilled Ramen

For my lunch entree, I had the Akaoni Ramen - a spicy miso-based pork bone broth. It was quite rich in taste, wasn't too spicy, had a light miso taste with a hint of garlic flavour. The ramen was cooked just right with alongside it plenty of bamboo shoots, green onions and minced pork. I really enjoyed it and have only ever tried the Akaoni. I give the Akaoni three thumbs up!

Akaoni (Spicy Miso) Ramen

Luckily for me, my dining companion decided to order their Chilled Ramen (regular). As usual, I was having extreme difficulty deciding whether to try the Chilled Ramen or, have my usual Akaoni Ramen. All went well. Of course, I was able to (more than) sample my d.c's Chilled Ramen and quite thoroughly enjoyed it. It was basically a soup-less bowl of ramen, topped with an abundance of ingredients including: julienned cucumbers, boiled prawn, sliced mushrooms, red ginger, julienned strips of imitation crab meat, shredded pieces of fried egg and boiled pieces of pork. Of course, there had to be some sort of liquid flavouring: sweet soy sauce. It was very refreshing, and I thought that all the ingredients meshed well with one another. Downside is that it's only available in the summer :(

Service:

Friendly, polite and prompt!

Value:

$7.80 for the Akaoni Ramen. $2.50 for the Onigiri. Reasonable pricing, I believe.

Ambience:

Don't expect the Guu-type izakaya experience here - this is your typical sit-down, eat and leave ramen joint (albeit they do have a tv installed here).

Overall: 8.2/10

Yay: They've got 3 locations, with one more coming soon. Imho, this location is more favourable to the one on Robson for the quality of their food and location-wise (parking). Benkei is also my number 1 go-to ramen joint out of the ones I've been to - Kintaro, Motomachi Shokudo, and Menya (worst one). Prices are reasonable and you even get a stamp card for every bowl of ramen purchase! :)

Nay: Limited seating. Seats aren't the most comfortable either (wooden squared stools). Not ideal for big groups.

Posted by: J

Dream Sushi

2010-08-27T12:29:00.000-07:00

where sushi fantasies come true...

Food:

Top: Dream Roll
Bottom: Ocean Dragon Roll

Similar to Kadoya on Denman and Sake Maki on Commercial Dr., the menu and pictures look awfully familiar (with a few name changes here and there). I enjoy both Kadoya and Sake Maki for their innovative fusion rolls (though I enjoy Kadoya less so because they tend to use more rice in their rolls). Regardless, we found ourselves at another fusion-roll sushi joint and was uber excited to see what was in store for us!

Crunch Roll

After perusing the menu for an unusually longer period of time, we finally decided on the Ocean Dragon Roll and the Peking Duck Roll (which were both listed on the white board as 'specials'), the Dream Roll, and the Crunch Roll. All rolls were equally exceptional (seriously). The ratio of the rice was perfect. The coconut sprinkles on top of the Crunch Roll was a nice topper. All the ingredients in the Ocean Dragon roll blended so well together. The Peking Duck Roll was nicely executed - with a fine amount of duck, topped with a nice crispy duck skin (although ideally, I would've liked the fat underneath the skin removed). The hoisin sauce and onions added nice touches to the overall taste.

Peking Duck Roll

For appies, we opted for the usual Spinach Gomae (which Scoe thought was only ok - spinach was a lil too overcooked), while the Wakame was more drenched (as we would like it to be). The Spicy Tuna Sashimi was ok - Kadoya & Sake Maki's versions are more saucier, but same ingredients. We also tried out the Hamachi Sashimi (which was supposedly "fresh from Japan"). It indeed, tasted very fresh. I would order it again.

Service:

Ok - we had to ask a couple of times for more tea, extra sauce, etc. But they were pretty friendly.

Value:

$8.95 per Chef's speciality roll, $12.95 for the hamachi sashimi (9 pieces or so)

Ambience:

Similar to Kadoya, here you'll find rectangular sheets of coloured paper with all sorts of comments and suggestions left by customers taped to the walls. The blue walls created a sort-of kindergarten classroom environment; I felt comfortable here, lol. The restaurant isn't very big - with approx. 10 tables.

Overall: 7.9/10

Yay: Yummy, creative, nicely-fused fusion rolls - where else could you find a Peking Duck Roll? They've also got great lunch specials

Nay: $8.95 may be a bit hefty of a price for some, limited seating, not authentically Japanese (nor do they claim to be) - not a nay for us per se, but it might be for others

Posted by: J

Vivaaaaaaaaa Miami!

2010-08-24T13:24:00.000-07:00

In the land of the superficial, the glitz, the glamour, the oozing night club scene, the South Beach diet, the vibrantly-coloured Art-deco style architecture and everything in between...comes fine, delectable gastronomic finds. From Haitian to Japananese Pan-Latin cuisine - everything we tried was devoured (and demolished)! A sad regret was not being able to try out the Cuban cuisine in Miami (and thus had to resort to buying a Cuban sandwich of mediocore quality, as our last hope, before departure). All in all, the food in Miami did not disappoint (after endless amounts of research, of course). :)

Here is a summary (in pictures) of our yummy, unforgettable Miami eats:

Miami Vices: Pina Colada & Strawbery Margarita
with a (not-so-pleasant) shot of rum in the middle

1st stop: Hard Rock Cafe for some good ol' American grub :)

Tuna Ceviche swimming in a chilled coconut-infused broth ...yum

Fried Gator Tails at Everglades' Gator Park

.... tastes juuust like chicken!

BEST gyozas i've had ..to date: Duck Confit Gyozas with spicy ponzu sauce

BBQ Pulled Pork at Sun Life Stadium!

Arepas!
Cornmeal pancakes sandwiched with mozarella cheese! SO GOOD

Chocolate Peanut Butter Candy Bar with buttered popcorn ice cream

Spicy Crab Mix & Chorizo-Stuffed Calamari

Kobe Beef Tartare...cost an arm & a leg, but soo worth it!

a 'foodmatik' vacay trip is not complete without trying
the local fusion rolls!!!

Rocky Mountain Flatbread Co.

2010-08-16T20:32:00.000-07:00

After watching the pizza episode on the Food Network's The Best Thing I Ever Ate, Scoe & I had the immediate urge to go and grab ourselves some delicious pies of our own! Looking to fill this instant craving of ours (oh, the effects of TV!), we wound up at one of the better places in town for pizza - Rocky Mountain!

Food:

We ended ordering a reg. size of the 'Classic' and the 'BBQ Pulled Pork' pizza. In reality, one pizza would've been sufficient because we weren't particularly hungry at the time. Needless to say, I love variety and have really been loving bbq pulled pork lately :)

Rocky Mountain prides themselves on offering homemade, hand-crafted flatbread pizzas whilst using local and organic ingredients. Both pies were very tasty with an ample amount of a nice, sweet organic tomato sauce. Toppings were sufficient. The pulled pork pie arrived adorned with sliced green peppers, red onions and asiago cheese. I enjoyed the taste of it, with my only complaint being that the pulled pork wasn't spread out evenly across the pizza. The 'classic' pizza was bang on - topped with marinated cherry tomatoes, mozarella, asiago, Capriny's goat cheese and parmesan.

The flatbread crust is a combination of whole wheat and unbleached white flour. A little bland tasting, but expected. It's not too big of a deal, but I think I've had better tasting flatbread crusts. I originally had asked for the pizzas to be on a thin crust they have, but the request was denied. Not sure why this was an issue, but I'm curious as to how that would taste. Overall, the pizzas were really good and the quality was consistent to what I experienced, on my previous visits.

** Bonus: Everybody knows we are sauce freaks. Rocky Mountain offers lovely dipping sauces perfect for the crusts and if you are me, to dip every bite of your pizza in :) On this night, Scoe opted for the Sundried Tomato Hummus while I had the Roasted Garlic & Onion. Who doesn't love a bonus? :)

For dessert, we chose one of the daily specials, the 'Banana Caramel Creme Brulee'. On any given day, I would've chosen anything chocolatey, especially their homemade Chocolate Brownie, which is to-die-for. But on this night, upon hearing the words - 'banana' and 'creme brulee', I couldn't resist.

Though, it could've been warmer and more creamier in texture, there was an abundance of banana present and satisfied my sweet craving. Though, I think the next time I come here, I would stick to my default 'chocolate' choice :)

Service:

"Eh" - I had a coupon for a free dessert and somehow had a gut feeling that our server would forget to take it off the bill. Needless to say, this was indeed the case. He wasn't particularly friendly nor super attentive, but it was passable.

Value:

The 'Classic' pizza was $13.95 while the 'Pulled Pork' one was $15.95 (for a regular (10"?) size, I believe. A little pricier than average

Ambience:

From what I can recall - hardwood floors, relatively spacious patio, open 'artisan' pizza oven situated in the dining area. They have a nice play area for the kiddies by the washrooms, and offers 'pizza making' birthday parties!

Overall: 7.8/10

Yay: Come here if you're looking for a 'healthy' tasting artisan pizza made with fresh, organic ingredients. They also offer 'pizza making' birthday parties and are openly accepting of kiddie diners :)

Nay: Pizzas are a lil' pricier than average...

La Buca

2010-08-11T15:59:00.000-07:00

A fantabolous little Italian gem ...(is hard to find!)

Food:

Immaculate and very very well-executed in both presentation and taste. I rarely order pasta when I'm out, but I do know when I come across a good (great) pasta dish! We ordered 3 appies to share between the 5 of us, and each had an entree. All were so delicious and plentiful! There were no complaints of any sort!

We started off with their Carpaccio of scallops, grilled pork bacon, roasted tomato, garlic and parsley vinaigrette. Scallop carpaccio is one of the best tasting things to have, carpaccio-styled, on this planet! Thinly sliced with the tasting texture as smooth as silk...combined with the bacon, tomato, garlic and a parsley vinaigrette - this appy was definitely a combination of a palate cleanser and appetite satisfier :)

We also had the Garlic Butter (Tiger) Prawns - which were wonderfully seared, topped with fresh arugula, atop a fine piece of crispy Italian bread. The Cauliflower Soup with Truffle (one of the (daily?) specials) was equally as amazing - fresh, creamy with a hint of truffles and (be)dazzled with truffle oil and a hint of cilantro.

For my entree, I opted for the Tagliatelle Chicken Cacciatore. The chicken was tender and well-seasoned, hidden under a wonderful bed of tomato stew, or sauce. Other entrees sampled were the: Seared Perch, Risotto, and Crab Bisque, Ravioli filled with eggplant and taleggio, and the Osso Bucco with Mushroom Risotto. The portion of every entree was generally given, all flavours were excellent with the Osso Bucco dish being the favourite of the night.

Service:

Our server was very knowledgeable, attentive and polite. (I guess it's not so hard waving down your server when there are only 6-7 tables in the whole restaurant :) )

Value:

Very good, imho.

Ambience:

Very small (only 32 seats), walk-through kitchen to the single dual-sex bathroom (which I wasn't a big fan of), very modern looking dining space with black & white tile floors

Overall: 8.5/10

Yay: Wonderfully-executed classic Italian fare, Lots of parking available

Nay: Super small dining room, Walk-through kitchen (to get to the washroom)

Phnom Penh

2010-07-08T23:14:00.000-07:00

As Cookie Monster would say: "Om nom nom nom" ....Phnom Penh!

Food:

Aside from our usual sushi joints, this joint right here is our go-to spot for excellent Cambodian/Vietnamese fare! It is definitely a gem and very well known in Vancouver.

The following dishes are the most popular (but the last one not so much, I don't think). These dishes are, probably, what defines Phnom Penh. They all go hand in hand!

Deep Fried Chicken Wings - Probably the best chicken wings you'll ever have. The batter is unbelievably crispy and what's even better is the accompanying lemony-peppery sauce that it comes with! Throw in teeny bits and pieces of the garlicky batter and you'll be crawling back for more in no time!

Marinated Butter Beef - This is one of my favourite appetizers ever. I have no idea why they call it 'butter beef' but there has to be some sort of butter component in them...or something! This dish is essentially medium-rare-ish thin slices of beef laid and spread out to the rim of the plate with a generous amount of a one-of-a-kind vinegary sauce, and adorned with copious amounts of crispy garlic flakes and cilantro! Refreshing and delicious!!!

Beef Filet (with Egg!) on Rice (Luc Luc) - Such a seemingly simple sounding dish but it is so well executed that I doubt this dish could be replicated, in the same manner, anywhere else! The beef is so tender and plentiful, spread out atop an equally plentiful portion of white rice, with the perfect sunny side up fried egg on top and voila! You'll never underestimate the taste of beef again.

Pan-Fried Rice Cakes (Bot Chien) -Think cubed pieces of rice cakes, pan fried, topped with bean sprouts, pieces of fried egg, cilantro and onions and you're looking at one of the greatest rice cake dishes of mankind! Of course, the ultimate topper to this dish is the fact that it comes with a lovely one-of-kind chili vinegary sauce. Scrumptious!

As for beverages - have no fear- Phnom Penh is here! They feature speciality 'moo moo shakes' in assorted flavours (jack fruit being the best one), as well as other wonderful concoctions, such as my favourite - the (literally) 3-Colour Red Bean Icy Drink. It is the ultimate refreshing with an abundance of red bean on the bottom, mung beans and tasty jellies! Topped with ice and condensed milk, I give this beverage an all-around 2 thumbs waaaaay up!

Service:

There could be a bit of a language barrier with some of the servers, but communication could be ok. You might need to wave them down a few times for extra napkins, tea and what not. Not super friendly but it's passable.

Value:

Prices aren't too steep and pretty reasonable, in my opinion. Two can probably dine for under $30!

Ambience:

It's often pretty loud, as it is pretty much packed most of the time. You won't hear any music here. Nor is there any real nice decor. Very typical of Chinese restaurants. A lot of dishes and chopsticks clanging to & fro!

Overall: 9/10

Yay: Parking is usually plentiful, though you may have to pay (as there are mostly meters nearby). Fine Cambodian/Vietnamese grub - come for their speciality dishes! Resos are accepted for parties of 6 or more!

Nay: Located in Chinatown which isn't the nicest area in Vancouver. There may be long wait times come peak dining periods.

** Interesting fact: Phnom Penh has been around for a loooong time. It is family-owned and has even garnered the likes of the popular culinary chefs/tv personalities/authors: Anthony Bourdain and Julia Child!

Posted by: J

Sushi Town

2010-06-23T17:38:00.000-07:00

My kinda town...(with "VALUE" written allllll over it!)

I frequent Sushi Town at least once every 2-3 weeks just to get my bi/tri-weekly Alaska/Awesome roll/Spicy Tuna Sashimi fix. Their sashimi and sushi is amazingly fresh and so worth the value. On this night, we visited the newest location in North Vancouver. I like this location more for its spaciousness, less crowded/busy-ness and it also has more comfortable seating.

Food:

Alaska Roll - Best Alaska Roll you'll ever have. No need to look further. Avocadoes is the predominant ingredient in this roll, slab on a piece of salmon sashimi, with a miso sauce drizzled all over it and you got yourself the best tasting $3.95 roll you'll find anywhere. Trust me. I haven't met a single soul who does not like it!

Awesome Roll - The name says it all. This roll is truly awesome. Here you'll have a California roll with cooked salmon on top, adorned with bonito flakes and drizzled with a seemingly spicy-mayo sauce

Spicy Tuna Sashimi - Picture a heaping portion of nicely-cubed pieces of tuna sashimi, marinated in a korean spicy sauce, Sriracha, and sesame oil sauce mixture, and topped with finely cut fresh cucumbers and onions...and you got yourself the best spicy sashimi ever. This is the most refreshing bang-for-your-buck sashimi dish ever!

Chicken Katsu - Generous amount of nicely-breaded chicken breast with a side of perfectly cooked rice, and a green salad with the accompaniment of a miso dressing...fantastic!

Service:

S...l...o...w. Not the friendliest either. Expect to have to wave the server down 3-4 times to ask for extra napkins/remind them about your order/etc...

Value:

Hands down, best value in Greater Vancouver when it comes to good, quality, FRESH sushi at a price that will definitely not break the bank. $4.95 for a (heaping!) half-order of spicy tuna sashimi that is big enough to feed 3 people. $7.95 for a massive chicken katsu entree. $1.60 for a huge piece of unagi negiri....seriously, you cannot complain :)

Ambience:

No chefs/servers yelling to'and'fro. No music playing. No loud "Bonzai!" toasts here, either. Just a room full of hungry, sushi-go'ers looking to get the best valued sushi & sashimi in town!

Overall: 9/10

Yay: Come for the fresh and cheap sushi and sashimi! That's all you'll ever need in life :)

Nay: Don't expect good, hospitable service here.

El Caracol Mexican Cafe

2010-06-17T00:20:00.000-07:00

Hasta La Pupusa, Baby! (think Terminator, lol...)

FYI: Pupusa = Traditional El Savadoan dish made of hand-made corn tortilla stuffed with meats, cheese or beans

Food:

To drink, I started off with their "Tamarindo" or tamarind juice, i believe. It is a drink that strikingly resembles that of a Chinese prune drink that is sometimes served at hot pot places. It was a generous amount (served in a tall, wide glass) and refreshing.
As for the grub, we ordered and split the Enchilada, Chicken Fajitas, and their Seafood Soup. Everything was so fresh (and took a darn long time to arrive). All portions were overly sufficient and generous. All arrived with this special kind of rice that was so fragrant and tasty, it was soo good. It really reminded me of the rice that comes with Hainanese chicken. I just couldn't get enough of it. The Enchilada was oozing with beef, beans and flavour. The chicken for the fajitas were perfectly seasoned. Would've loved fresh guacamole though (as opposed to the couple of avocado slices). The Seafood Soup was amazing!! This was the second time having it and it was just as marvelous as the first. The soup arrived sizzling hot, steamy and full of seafood (mussels, fish, prawns, crab). The flavour was excellent and I loved how that it was comprised of coconut milk, too. The broth was just perfect.

Service:

S...l...o...w! Can't really complain much since they only have 1 server working and another in the kitchen. Not that friendly nor cold, either. She also didn't know what a drink menu item was, when I inquired about it. It was ok service. Entrees did not come out at once - we waited 20 mins. for the first one and 40 mins for the last one.

Value:

Excellent value - most items were under $10 and huge generous portions! :D

Ambience:

Little hole-in-the-wall joint with semi-cool lookin' decor - yellow walls, random Mexican gadgets mounted on the walls, washroom walkway that goes through the kitchen, random dvd collection...

Overall: 8/10

Yay: Super tasty authentic Mexican-Honduran, Salvadoran food. They even have poutine ( I know, weird) but heard it's good, too!

Nay: Do NOT come here if you are pressed for time. Or, if you are, call them ahead! They are a 2-woman band (1 in kitchen, 1 serving). Be prepared to wait for your food! Poor, poor ventilation. Both times here, we've had to ask to open the door for more air!

The Reef

2010-06-14T00:28:00.000-07:00

Dey got good 'tings' to eat, ya know?

Food:

Started off with a nice pitcher of Sangria. Would've liked the fruits a lil'more mashed, but it did its job :)

As for eats, we started off with the complimentary Johnny Cakes. I personally, ain't too big of a fan of them. Probably because of its overly-doughy texture. I prefer it to be more fluffy. Though, I've heard that they do serve Banana-stuffed Johnny Cakes on weekends, and would love to try those!

For appies, we started off with the Yardie Yam Fries, Coco Prawns and the Jamaican (Beef) Patty. I like the yam fries here as they are hand-cut, fresh and lightly fried/baked and not too oily-tasty like what you get at some places. They were great in those aspects, but were definitely wayyy too salty! Loved the accompanying jerk mayo though.

The Coco Prawns were up next. Battered with toasted coconut and served with a minted avocado yogurt, these babies were plump and tasty. The sauce was very tangy and sweet (which I really liked), though I couldn't really taste the avocado in them. The Jamaican Patty arrived smokin' hot and stuffed with nicely-seasoned house-made beef. It was delicious and even more so with the mango chutney that was served.

At this point, we were stuffed from all those (salty!) yam fries. The Spinach Salad and the Jamaican Jerk Chicken entree took longer to arrive, and by then, we were only able to finish a third of each dish. The Salad portion was generous consisting of chevre (goat cheese), red onions, crispy tortilla and a jicama (Mexican potato/turnip) apple slaw with a roasted red pepper vinaigrette. We added a side of jerk chicken as well. I loved how it was a white meat chicken breast. It was very tender and it's too bad that we (surprisingly) weren't able to finish it!

* Also wanted to note that the Miss Kitty's hot sauce (see first pic above) is a must-try here. It was so good that Scoe even purchased a bottle for himself!

Value:

Yam fries for $6, Patty for $4, Jerk Chicken Entree for $14. Decent!

Service:

Had to wave down our server a couple of times, though she was a friendly one. Would've preferred better attentive service though!

Ambience:

Cool soothin' Jamaican tunes with a live DJ on-set on a Saturday night. Carribean vibes whizzed throughout. Great ambience.

Overall: 7.8/10

Yay: Yummy Caribean food in a seemingly Carribean-like setting! Come here for the jams & the eats!

Nay: Could be a bit of a wait if you're with a group of 3/4+....they take resos, though! Service isn't the best, but it's passable.

Posted by: J

Guu Sushi

2010-06-13T12:24:00.000-07:00

Guu Sushi still guu'd....(and a lot more tame!)

Food:

If you weren't aware, all Guu locations offered varied menus. This location is unique in the sense that it serves sushi (hence, the name). Though, the menu isn't as extensive as the others, it was good enough. Overall, the quality of the food was pretty consistent with the other locations.

We started off with Guu staple - the Pumpkin Croquette. This is essentially a huge ball of pumpkin, filled with a boiled egg, coated with bread crumbs, deep fried and garnished with seemingly crispy squash peels, and finally topped with some special sauce that tastes a lot like a thousand island dressing! Mushy, sweet and oh-so-delicious - we devoured the thing with no regrets.

Next, we had the Assorted Oden - a Japanese 'hot pot' dish with various ingredients. Ours consisted of fish cakes, a deep fried tofu ball, squid cakes and a stuffed rice cake. All tasted good, except for the stuffed rice cake which was very gooey (and not chewy as expected). For our 'filler' item, we opted for a carb-y dish (of course) and had the Yaki Udon. My dining companion thought the portion size was a little small, but I thought it was just right. The flavours were just right, especially with the bonito and nori flakes piled atop. From the 'specials' menu, we picked out the Grilled Whole Squid with Chili Mayo. It was grilled to perfection and not overcooked (which was the most important part). The mayo accompaniment only served as a bonus :)

Well, a visit to Guu Sushi would not be complete without trying out their sushi. The most appetizing-sounding roll was the 'Aberdeen Roll' (named after their location in Aberdeen Centre) and indeed, it was. It was a tuna and avocado roll, topped with unagi with a sweet mango sauce drizzled on top. I also liked the fact that it was bite-size, not too big and not too small.

Finally, the meal came to an end but not without indulging ourselves in a Guu'd Sundae. We got to choose 2 of the 3 ice cream flavours - mango, green tea, and black sesame. We opted for the latter 2. The ice cream came atop corn flakes and 3 sticks of Pocky. Oh, and of course a nice whirl of whip cream! It was delicious but would've been even better with red bean ice cream and mochi (which I seriously should've suggested).

Service:

Friendly, polite and prompt. Wouldn't have expected anything less!

Value:

Bill totaled $55 including tax & tip.

Ambience:

This Guu location is a lot more tame (in terms of the noise level) than the Downtown locations, which could perhaps be a good thing. The servers/chefs are still shouting to each other to and fro, but not to the extent as the other Guus. A lot more spacious too. For the claustrophobics, this location is the ideal Guu for you!

Overall: 8.0/10

Yay: Yummy tapas and sushi, a lot more roomier than the other locations and it is located in a mall so you can walk off the calories later!

Nay: Smaller menu - more focus on sushi. Even the sashimi selection isn't very big, and for those wanting the loud, rowdy atmosphere typical of the other Guu locations - this location is not for you!

Voya Restaurant and Lounge (CLOSED)

2010-06-12T11:58:00.000-07:00

Va-Va-Va Voya!

Food:

Absolutely divine. Started off with the Beef Carpaccio and the Steamed Local Mussels. The carpaccio was melt-in-your-mouth scrumptious while the mussels were doused in a very nice aromatic, fiery tomato-chili broth. Also loved the fact that it was accompanied by a large piece of grilled focaccia bread - just the perfect type of bread for soaking up the remnants of the broth.

For my entree, it was no suprise that my indecisiveness overpowered me. I couldn't pick between the Ricotta, Lemon & Herb Ravioli or the Grilled 8 oz. sirloin steak with pomme frites and onion gratin. On my first visit to Voya, I had a Chicken & Pappardelle dish here and it was amazing. Needless to say, my wanting-to-eat-healthy instinct prevailed and so, I opted for the steak. Nicely sliced, seared and cooked to perfection as requested, the steak was tender and juicy as can be. Win win all around!

Service:

Fine, but not spectacular (although with a place that looks like this, you would expect better service)

Value:

Wonderful value for food. Drinks, not so much. Cocktails were very good, though not sure if it was worth the price ($12).

For 1 cocktail, 1 entree and 1 appy - my tab came to be $65 including tax and tip, which overall, isn't too bad!

Ambience:

Beautiful decor with a very posh-looking dining area, bar and lounge area, and a private room for big parties. We came here on a Friday night and we're only one of the few tables occupied. I also like that it's not too pretentious here.

Overall: 8.3/10

Yay: Trendy, gorgeous and well-executed food and drinks - what more can you ask for? Parking is not an issue either as it is located in the more less-bustlin' area of downtown - Coal Harbour. Also attached to the Loden Hotel. Perfect for a night out with the girls, or a romantic dinner with the beau. I also love the fact that the menu undergoes seasonal changes from time to time!

Nay: The drinks (though, wonderfully-concocted) could seriously add up to quite the costly tab. The price of a cocktail ranges from $10-$16.

Posted by: J

Stella's Bierstro

2010-06-08T10:01:00.000-07:00

Belgian beer & mussels? I'll take it!

Food:

Scoe and I started the night off with a nice cold Belgian Cherry Kriek beer. I am usually not a beer drinker, but if I really had to choose, this would be my choice of beer. I would hardly consider it 'beer' though - I just love the fact that it doesn't have that gross beer-y taste, but rather, it's dominated by huge flavours of cherry fizz! I love it.

Foodmatik's choice of dishes, on this night, were as follows: Korean Barbeque Ribs, Jumbo Shrimp, New Orleans Mussels (plus Frites), Roasted Beet Salad, and Chicken Wings.

Many of the dishes were average and satisfying - with the Jumbo Shrimp being the most enjoyable. They were doused in a Thai spicy sauce, accompanied with a citrus aioli -although it came at a very hefy price ($13 for 3)!! They were good, but don't know if it's worth the value.

The Mussels came out sizzling hot, but definitely not comparable to the ones at Chambar (size and taste-wise). The broth was tasty and flavourful, though. The combination of Cajun cream, Andouille sausage, roasted corn and mixed peppers were well-executed.

Service:

Value:

Decent

Ambience:

Came on a Sat night - no wait was needed (approx. 8 pm), bar & dining area - happenin'!

Overall: 7.2/10

Yay: A good alternative for Belgian beer, frites & mussels. Nice place to chill and eat if you're in the Cambie area.

Nay: Probably not the best venue for big group gatherings?

Toratatsu Japanese Tapas Bistro (CLOSED)

2010-05-03T22:30:00.000-07:00

Tora-tora-Toratatsu!

Toratatsu is one of many izakaya joints in Vancouver specializing in 'tapas' dishes, all the while serving up tasty cocktails and sake admist a vibrant and hip atmosphere. It has been in operation for a few years now and is a sibling restaurant to the old Shiru-Bay Chopstick Cafe (Yaletown), which closed down a few years ago. It's a nice deviant from the usual Guus, Hapas, etc. with a more spacious environment (than Guu) and a better value (than Hapa).

Food:

On this night, I arrived with a party of 4. We ordered quite a variety and abundance of food. Thought it'd best to summarize in note form:

Ebi Chili Mayo - their most popular dish, huge plump tiger prawns wrapped in excellent batter coating

Cheese Tofu - a super unique tofu made of creamy mascarpone cheese...it tastes pretty much guilt-free since it's tofu-based but contradicting at the same time given its similarity to the taste of devonshire cream! my favourite of the night

Ishiyaki Risotto - served in a hot stone bowl, another one of their specialities - risotto with seared scallops, mushrooms and Iwanori seaweed - a little salty but definitely tasty

Cold Ramen Salad - generous portion and very refreshing, a little too drenched though

Sashimi Platter - oysters, albacore tuna and sockeye sashimi (choice of any 3), it was ok - sashimi wasn't extremely fresh though

Power Roll - bbq eel & cream cheese filled... and seared on top - lovely!

Creamy Crab Croquette - nicely battered and tasty filling! one of their daily specials

Value:

Typical izakaya prices

Service:

Attentive and polite, although language could be a bit of a barrier with some of the servers

Ambience:

We visited on a rainy Monday night, so restaurant was about 30% full - but otherwise on weekends, it's pretty bustlin'!

Overall: 7.8/10

Yay: Nice alternative to the Guus & Hapas, etc!

Nay: Sashimi isn't tooo fresh, parking, not ideal for groups of 15+