Every Day Is a Food Day

• Mom’s Classic: Marbled Rye with Havarti and Double Smoked Bacon
• 2 Shots of Roasted Tomato Soup - topped with basil mascarpone
• Pineapple Pop Shoppe Pop

Sunny day in Vancouver the other day! Okay actually, weather has been acting weird here, with hail and snow in end of February… but this was before that crazy weekend happened…So it was actually a nice sunny day, but windy and cold! Decided to head downtown to try out Mom’s Grilled Cheese! I have heard such great things about them, and who can resist grilled cheese sandwiches… I can just never get them cooked perfectly at home! Did a little google mapping, and realized that it was so close to Pacific Center! I guess I just never walk on that side of the street normally! We approached the truck with a lot of people surrounding it waiting for their food. Apparently, they are only open on weekdays during lunch hours. Steph and I shared a Mom’s Classic, where we got to choose our choice of bread and cheese. We chose the Marbled Rye with Havarti, and added $1.50 for some Double Smoked Bacon! Mmmm, mouths were already watering with the aroma coming from the truck! While we were waiting in the freezing cold, we saw other customers buying shots of Roasted Tomato Soup, and thought it would be a great idea to warm up! Good choice because it was so delicious!!! I’m not sure if it’s just because I was freezing cold, but the basil mascarpone topped on the soup made everything so much better! We waited for probably 5 minutes or more til our food came since there were a lot of people ahead of us, but when it got to ours, they had forgot to put bacon in ours. They however, quickly apologized and redid our sandwich. Something about their friendliness didn’t make me mad about the wait though. It seemed like they had regular customers as they knew each others names, and everything seemed so personalized when they presented your food with your name. They seemed like such fun and friendly people to talk to, and they even joked with customers that they are always illegally parked here, and to look out for the cops… I don’t know if they were joking or what, but they gave me a good laugh. We went back to Pacific Center to eat since it was freezing cold, and yum! It was so good! They also came with two pickles, and potato chips at the bottom that had the Ms. Vickie’s texture, but I think they are homemade. Also tried the Pineapple Pop Shoppe, which was actually pretty good! Reminded me of Jones Soda, with the colour and cool, vintage looking bottle. Really fizzy though, and probably not the healthiest thing. I will definitely be back for some Mom’s Grilled Cheese! I just wish they opened during the weekends! 

Plain Cheesecake and Blueberry Cheesecake

I was craving for some cheesecake the other day on a random weekday afternoon, but everywhere was closed during that time! So I ended up going to the library to buy some cheesecake for Steph and myself so we wouldn’t starve ourselves during our meeting. And by library, I mean the Richmond Public Library, where there’s a little cafe you see everytime you walk by. It’s called Trees Organic, which is also the same one that is in downtown, Yaletown and Gastown! They say that they’re Vancouver’s Best Cheesecake, but I think that might be a little overrated. Definitely not the best I’ve had in Vancouver, but not bad! I’ve had the one in downtown before, and it was pretty good. I had the mango one back then, and at this location, they only had three flavours to choose from. There was the Plain Cheesecake, Mocha Cheesecake, or Blueberry Cheesecake. I always have trouble deciding what to get, so I just decided to go by how many pieces were left in the fridge. The less pieces left must mean that they’re the best sellers… well at least I like to think so! So I ended up with the Plain and Blueberry flavours, with whip cream on the side. The lady working was very nice, although service was a little slow since she was the only one on shift. After a long ride to UBC, I open the containers up to see my whip cream had totally smushed everywhere. Not so appealing, but it was still pretty good! I think I prefer the plain one to the blueberry one, but I think the mango one I had last time was better than these two… Not bad! At least it satisfied my cheesecake craving!

Boiled Seasonal Vegetable

Braised Beef Flank with Noodle In Soup (Small)

Braised Beef Flank And Tendon with Noodle In Spicy Soup (Large)

After a early shopping trip at Metrotown, my friend brought be to a Taiwanese Noodle House nearby that was claimed to be really good. Apparently, it’s supposed to be the best Taiwanese noodles in Vancouver! To be honest, I think it wasn’t THAT amazing, but I have to say, the noodles are really good. You can tell that they’re handmade, and not like the ones you get at bubble tea places. The vegetables were a dish that I actually hadn’t had before. I’m not sure if it’s some typical Taiwanese dish, but it tasted really good. They had like bits of onion and garlic chips as well as a special sauce in it. Quite different from the Cantonese style dishes I’m used to. The size of a small was already very big, and when my friend’s large came, I was in shock. It was huge! That would probably be enough for two. The soup base was very good, and they say that there isn’t any MSG, which I trust, as I wasn’t thirsty afterwards. They have a lot of seasoned radish type of things on top which gave it a nice crunch while eating the noodles. Overall, pretty good, but I don’t know if it’s the BEST.

Mmmm yummy milkshake on a gloomy day! Thanks to Steph for getting me this when I was too lazy to walk out of the building! Got to love that girl for always knowing what I crave! (If you’re reading this, I mentioned you again! :D) The Triple-O Vanilla Milkshake is probably one of my favourite milkshakes so far. So much better than the McDonald or Dairy Queen milkshakes! It’s thick and creamy, and you can taste the vanilla bean which doesn’t taste artificial. I believe it also comes in strawberry and chocolate flavour.

Iced Tea Infused with Rose Petals

Carpaccio de Chevreuil

Charred venison carpaccio, sesame soba noodle salad, pickled radishes, white soy & red wine reduction, garlic chips

L’omble de l’Artique nicois

Crispy Arctic char, sea asparagus, pea shoots, bacalao, lemon & grana padano concasse, tapanades

Moules Frites Vin Blanc

Mussels, white wine, butter, braised celery & leeks, coarse black pepper

Salted Chocolate Caramel Bar

Lemon Curd, Toasted Meringue, and Shortbread

Alright! Finally have my last post from Dine Out Vancouver 2012 in! I was so excited when I got reservations for Chambar since I’ve been hearing really good things about it! I guess it lived up to the reviews, but then again, I think I went in with too high of an expectation, so I only came out “satisfied”. But nonetheless, very good food! The Ice Tea was actually a special drink that wasn’t on the menu. I wanted an ice tea but they didn’t actually have it on the menu, so the bartender basically mixed up something for me and it was actually really good since it was rose infused! Something I hadn’t had before and pretty cool and of course good! Next, for appies, we got the carpaccio which was very fresh, and the soba noodle with the carpaccio was an interesting complement! It was of course presented very nicely too! The arctic char had a very nice texture and the fish was cooked very well. The sauces, like the olive sauce were kind of weird though. Wasn’t something I preferred. The mussels were pretty good, although they were overloaded with cilantro, and I have to say I dislike cilantro a lot, so it kind of ruined the dish for me. The mussels were really small, but extremely sweet, so that was good. Fries were just okay, nothing too special. Lastly, for desserts we had the caramel bar and lemon meringue. The caramel bar was kind of salty (well it was supposed to be), but I guess it’s just that I don’t extremely like salted chocolate. When you try to break it on the plate, it’s extremely hard and difficult to cut, but when you put it in your mouth, it just melts apart! And the good thing is it doesn’t stick to your teeth! The lemon meringue dessert was probably my favourite dish of the night. It almost tasted like a deconstructed lemon meringue pie. So delicious and you don’t see it on many menus around. Overall, I was quite satisfied with Chambar! For $38 for a 3 course meal, it was definitely worth it. It is quite pricey normally without dine out though, so perhaps I will only go back for a special occasion!

Sweet Potato Bread with Olive Oil & Vinegar, Kimchi, and Sea Salt

Scallop

Roasted Cream of Winter Cauliflower Soup

Butter poached king crab leg, trout caviar, truffle oil

Short Ribs

West Coast Seafood Cioppino

Yes, it’s my long overdue posts from Dine Out Vancouver 2012 that should’ve been uploaded long time ago! Well they are coming along! Here’s another dine out I went to. This one was a $38 set menu at the Kitsilano Daily Kitchen. This restaurant is so interesting because they change their menu everyday! I believe they post the menu up at a certain time, but if you don’t have a look beforehand, then you are going in for a surprise! Pretty cool twist, I personally think! Upon waiting for our food to arrive, we were given a jump fried squid as our amuse bouche. It was delicious as it was cooked in just the right amount of time, so it wasn’t hard to chew at all. We were also given complementary bread, which was a sweet potato bread with some complements to go with. We only used the olive oil though, as we thought kimchi and bread would taste funny..Maybe should’ve given it a try! The bread was alright, but it was a little on the mushy side. I’ll give props for it being different from bread that we are usually given though! Since the restaurant changes menus all the time, I couldn’t go online afterwards to look up the menu names, so I can’t quite remember the full names of the food. The scallops were cooked perfectly, and overall, I think they do a really good job with their seafood. The cioppino had very large pieces of fish in it, and they were very fresh. I found that the scallops in the cioppino weren’t cooked as well as the ones for the appetizer though. Perhaps it is because of the way it is cooked! The cioppino was cooked in a tomato base and had three types of sausages in it, which were all very spicy! For dessert, I did not get a picture of it, as we had it to go, but it was a chocolate tart, which we found to not be anything extraordinary. I know that most chocolates are paired with some sort of salt, like “salted chocolate”, but this was had a very strong salty taste to it, that became unpleasant. I have to say the dessert was my least favourite part of the meal, especially because it was nothing special. The place is kind of hidden as there are no large signages, so it was quite hard to find. You probably would’t notice the restaurant if you were walking by. However, the inside is very classy, like fine dining, but not as fancy as the downtown restaurants. Still has a very modern vibe to it though! Not bad and a great place to go if you want a surprise!

Love their little quote on the side of the box! “Life is Short, Eat Dessert First”

Milk Chocolate Hazelnut

Chocolate cake, chocolate hazelnut filling and Frangelico

I have to say, I have some of the best friends out there! So sweet of them to drop off some cake for me after a tiring day. I’ve always wanted to try True Confections, but never got the chance to! They got a me a slice of Milk Chocolate Hazelnut Cake that was huge! The slice seems thin, but it is actually so filling! It’s actually surprisingly not too sweet too! Now I really want to go there myself to try all those cakes out! Yummy!

Waffle Fries

Barbeque Wings

Went to the Pit Burger Bar to grab some snacks to share with my foodie bff, Steph again. This is like our go to place for snacks during our long breaks now. I kept hearing from other friends that the waffle fries are really good, so I had to try them. They reminded me of the curly fries back in high school. So oily and unhealthy, but yet so good! We also decided to try the wings, but we both thought they were just average. Nothing too special, and not the best we’ve had. Mmmm… more to come from the Pit Burger Bar! We’ll be trying more of their foods in the future for sure!

gloomy Steveston…

and then the sun came out :)

Certified Angus Beef Prime Rib Burger

Colossal 8oz prime rib beef patty, lettuce, Guinness cheddar cheese tomatoes, onions, mayo and yam fries

Moo Shu Crab Cakes

A duo of Fresh crab cakes with Shanghai noodles & Lychee Creme Fraiche

Mandalay Prawns

Mandalay garlic spiced pan-seared Black Tiger Prawns. Finished with a savoury Cafe de Paris butter

Pacific Seafood Chowder

A medley of seafood morsels topped with fresh crab, Torogashi spice

Went for a very nice lunch in Steveston with my bestie the other day except the weather was playing tricks on us! It was very sunny in the other parts of Richmond, but as we were heading towards the water, it got gloomier and foggier! Luckily, it brightened up a little later! We always have tough choices deciding where to eat, so I did a little urbanspooning, and found Mandalay Lounge and Steakhouse. There were a lot of likes, so it couldn’t be that bad! And it definitely wasn’t! It was right by the dock, so it had a lovely view. The restaurant was however completely empty when we arrived, but we were still greeted by our lovely waitress who was extremely friendly. I guess it was empty since it was an afternoon weekday - I mean most of the whole village was pretty quiet and empty. I decided to get the burger and my friend got a few appies that we also shared. Food took a little longer than I expected, but everything came all at once and was presented very nicely! I didn’t get a chance to try the chowder, but the crab cakes and prawns were quite good! The crab cakes were a little spicy, but I actually prefer the crab cakes from Water St. Cafe. I really liked the fillings they used. The burger was also really good! It was huge and was actually too big for me to even bite! Yam fries were also delicious with a very nice crisp on the outside and there were plenty to spare - too much that I couldn’t even finish even with my friend helping me out! Overall, I was extremely happy with the service and the food was quite good. The view and ambiance was above average and it would definitely be a great place for a very nice dinner!

Passion Fruit Mousse - biscuit roulade + passion fruit mousse

Tiramisu - mascarpone sabayon + coffee/kahlua soak

It’s no surprise that I love desserts, and I was really excited when I knew I was going to Thierry! Thierry is located on Alberni, where many of the Glowball restaurants like Coast and Italian Kitchen are. The entrance to Thierry was really nice! They had large wooden doors and something about the layout of the shop was extremely comforting. So many desserts to choose from! I kind of wanted to try the macarons, but I was more attracted to the cakes. The passion fruit mousse was my favourite. I loved the mini macarons around it, and the mousse was very smooth. It was a little sour, but it’s passion fruit, so it was acceptable. It actually had a very strong passion fruit flavour and even had little seeds at the top, although I would’ve rather it not. The tiramisu was also extremely delicious. It was presented very nicely, and the alcohol was not too strong. Delicious! And i like how Thierry is open til midnight, so you can always go there for some late night desserts!

Beautiful Gastown at night!

Complementary Bread

Caesar Salad - romaine lettuce, fresh grated parmesan, anchovies and garlic

Sunshine Coast Seafood and Corn Chowder

Fanny Bay Oysters - sautéed with smoked chipotle peppers, cream, sundried tomatoes and parmesan gratinée

Baked Portobello Mushroom - topped with grilled vegetables, cream cheese and parmesan gratinée

West Coast Crab Cakes - Dungeness and blue crab, Pacific shrimp with a roasted corn salsa and garlic aioli

Potato Gnocchi - hand rolled potato dumplings, prosciutto, fresh Pacific shrimp and a butternut squash with sage sauce

Duck Confit - with a balsamic and pineapple chutney glaze on garlic mashed potatoes

Tiramisu - classic Italian trifle

Flourless Double Chocolate Espresso Cake - Served with a black cherry compote

Gastown is so gorgeous at night! I love the historic brick buildings and flooring! Makes me feel as if I’m walking in Europe or something! During the weekend, I went to Water St. Cafe for Dine Out with my girlfriends for a girls night out dinner. We each chose a different appetizer and I  had the fanny bay oysters. I have to say they didn’t look too appetizing but it tasted really good! The sundried tomatoes were a great complement to it. I also took a  bite from my friend’s stuffed portabello mushroom and it was delicious too! Next, I had the duck confit for my entree. I kind of wanted to try the crab cakes too but I wanted to see what everything else looked like! The duck confit was quite tender, and the pineapple chuntney glaze gave it a nice flavour. I took some of my friend’s crab cake and it was delicious! I really liked the bread crumb coating and you could taste a lot of the crab and shrimp in it. The gnocchi was also quite good, with a very nice sauce and was the right chewiness. Last but not least, the desserts! The tiramisu was very good! One of my favourites. It was quite strong in alcohol, but something about the right amount of cream and all was perfect. The chocolate cake was also pretty good, but I found it a little too fudge-like. But I guess that’s why it’s flourless! Overall, this dine out was quite delicious! It was only $28 and it was actually very filling! Service was okay, but not superb or anything. The ambiance is quite nice though. It’s a very cozy place; a very nice place to talk and to enjoy some food. It’s also directly in front of the steam clock which is beautiful to look at at night while enjoying dinner.

ALBERTA AAA BEEF TATAKI
Garlic ponzu, green onion oil, spicy daikon

Ahi Tuna

SCALLOP
Scallops, cucumber, ume mayonnaise, egg crepe wrapping

DYNAMITE
Tempura shrimp, green beans, mayonnaise, teriyaki sauce

KAKUNI AND SCALLOP
Soy-braised pork belly, seared scallop

WARM CHOCOLATE CAKE
Banana tempura, ginger caramel, coconut ice cream

I saw that there was a Groupon for Hapa Umi for $30 for $60 worth of food and thought that was a pretty good deal and decided to get it. Even though I had my Groupon, I really don’t think the food was worth its price. Portions were quite small, and there weren’t many choices to choose from on the menu. The sashimi selection was very limited and they didn’t even serve tuna toro. It seemed like they were trying to westernize their menu, so it wasn’t a lot of authentic Japanese food. Food was however quite fresh, and the desserts were okay. The beef carpaciccio was not bad, but nothing spectacular about it. I guess nothing was bad, but just not good enough to make me want to keep coming back. Going in with the perception that Hapa Umi was a higher end izakaya, which the ambiance gives and their price points prove to be, I was left disappointed and felt the food really wasn’t worth the price. I think if you want to go to a good izakaya place, I would recommend to go to Guu instead!

Poached Egg with Potato Gnocchi
Leeks, mushrooms, pecorino sabayon

Country style pork pate
Toast, pickled vegetables, apricot sauce

Duck Breast and Leg Meat Sausage
Buttered green cabbage, pan fried German noodles

Homemade Pasta Stuffed with Braised Lamb Shoulder
Roast tenderloin, ricotta cheese, tomato and onion pan gravy

Chocolate Caramel Bar
Banana ice cream, chocolate yogurt

Earl Grey Pot de Crème
Lemon shortbread, whipped milk

Dine out is such a great event each year because it allows us to try a variety of restaurants that we otherwise might not. The prices are often a really good deal for a 3 course menu, so trying places a little more fancy won’t break your wallet. This year, I went to L’Abattoir in Gastown, where they offered a dine out menu for $38. I left the restaurant extremely satisfied as the food and service were both excellent! The poached egg appetizer was cooked perfectly. It was a little runny, but the egg complemented the food around it, like the gnocchi perfectly. The pork pate was also a nice appetizer, but I would probably choose something like foie gras over it. Then came the entrees. The duck breast was delicious! It was cooked perfectly so that it was extremely tender, and not tough at all. The lamb was also extremely tender and cooked just right.The past was filled with lamb, which I found quite special, as it wasn’t just the regular cheese filling. It was a nice twist to regular pasta. Last but not least, the desserts! My favourite part! The banana ice cream was my favourite. It actually had a very strong banana flavour and the dessert just melted in your mouth. Definitely a very special dessert! We also got the earl grey pot de creme, and it was perfect for people who didn’t want something too sweet. The alternating layers of cream and shortbread gave a very nice texture to the mouth. Food was excellent and the ambiance was also really neat. Apparently, the restaurant was built in the 19th century and was actually the first jail in Vancouver! Kind of creepy at the same time I guess…but the interior has been modernized a lot while keeping some of the classic French tile work. It’s even got a bar, so to be honest, it’s not a very fancy restaurant. It’s a really hip restaurant with laid back service, but excellent food!

Belgian Fries with Garlic Mayo

Mozza Sticks with Marinara Sauce

Decided to get some snacks at the Pit Burger Bar in the SUB at UBC the other day, and ended up trying their Belgian Fries and Mozza Sticks. I actually didn’t know what belgian fries were, but I decided to give them a try anyways. Both my friend and I  found that there was too much seasoning, and therefore was actually really salty! The garlic mayo was really good though. So perhaps, just fries without seasoning plus the mayo would have been perfect. The Mozza Sticks were not bad, but they were probably just frozen and heated up. Being curious what Belgian Fries really were, I actually quickly googled it and found that Belgian Fries are different from normal french fries, because they are freshly cut, cut thicker than usual, and are baked twice! Now I know!

RISOTTO DI MARE
Italian Rice with Prawns, Squid, Sea Scallops, white wine, fresh herbs

COZZE ALLA MARINARA
Fresh mussels, steamed with butter garlic and white wine, touch of tomato sauce

FUNGO PORTOBELLO GRATINATO  Portobello mushroom stuffed with bread crumbs, fresh herbs  Served with roasted red pepper sauce

 Amaretto Di Saronno crème brulee

Torta di Nocciola
Hazelnut chocolate Cheese cake

Portobello Ristorante is said to be hidden gem in the neighbourhood when you have a look at the reviews online! So of course, I decided to go try it out! I had imagined it to be a very fancy restaurant, but it was actually quite family-oriented. It is apparently an Italian family owned restaurant and therefore, the food is quite authentic. Both the risotto and mussels were very delicious! It had great flavour. The portobello mushroom stuffed with bread crumbs was my favourite. I’m guessing this is their signature dish since the restaurant has the word portobello in its name! It was extremely moist and juicy, and crispy at the top. The hazelnut chocolate cheesecake and creme brulee were also exceptional! Definitely need to check this restaurant out! It’s casual, but the ambiance is lovely!

Mmmm I love samosas, and it’s always a great snack at school. I usually get them at the Delly in the SUB, but it was so far, so I just grabbed it at the Sauder Exchange Cafe inside the Henry Angus building at UBC. This one is a Beef Samosa - I’m guessing they have chicken and vegetarian as well. The pastry is not as thin as the one at the Delly, but I prefer the fillings in this one compared to the Delly. Also quite large in size! It is however,  quite oily, but nonetheless delicious!

Prawn Cocktail

Black Cod with Pork Thai Broth - Bok Choy, Coriander, Chili Oil

Beef Tenderloin Carpaccio - Radish, Crisp Shallots, Rosemary Bannock

Beef Shin and Fritz - Carrot Purée, Watercress

Strawberry Soufflé

As a Top Chef fan, who got excited when we had Top Chef Canada, the discovery of ensemble Restaurant and Bar meant more excitement! Top Chef’s first Canadian winner Dale MacKay opened ensemble sometime last year in the spring, actually before Top Chef Canada was actually aired, and hearing pretty good reviews, I was excited to finally go try it out! Clearly, he did not disappoint! The Black Cod with Thai Broth had great flavour and the cod was cooked perfectly so that it was still moist. This was also top rated on his menu, and from what I remember, it was also featured on Top Chef. If you love carpaccio, the Beef Tenderloin Carpaccio is a must try! It was probably my favourite dish that night. It was extremely fresh and the seasonings were great! Lastly, for dessert, the Souffle of the Day was a Strawberry Souffle, which I enjoyed a lot. Not only did it look pretty, but it was fluffy and light and I liked the hint of strawberry twist to it. It’s interesting to also note that if you go to their website, they call themselves a French Restaurant, but I have to say that the food is more like contemporary WestCoast food.