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December 2012

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A trip to Seattle isn’t complete without going to Wal-Mart to stock up on prepackaged foods not available in Canada. I probably spent more at Wal-Mart than I do at the Seattle Premium Outlet. Pretty sad, I know!

Most of these items that I found have a bit too much salt, but that’s normal for pre-packaged foods.

Chef Boyardee

We totally don’t have Chef Boyardee’s Macaroni products in Canada. When I saw these items, I knew I had to try it. I might be disappointed, but I wanted to try anyways.

The Mac & Cheese was horrible! It tasted so bland and boring. It was so hard trying to finish the entire can.

The Cheesy Burger Macaroni and the Chili Mac wasn’t too bad at all. If you add some hot sauce into it, it really makes it taste a lot better.

Campbells

Campbell’s Raviolios are similar to Chef Boyardee’s Beef Ravioli. The only major difference is the shape of the pasta. Raviolios are oval-shaped compared to the square shape of the usual beef ravioli. Tasted good and no complaints.

Spaghettio’s Meatballs is like regular spaghetti and meatballs but with circular pasta. Tasted alright as well.

Spaghettio’s Goldfish was fun to eat since everyone loves the snack the smiles back…goldfish!

Campbells

I also have these cool new line of soups called Campbells GO. It’s targeted towards the younger generations that are ethnically diverse and have sophisticated tastes. I grabbed 2 of the different flavours since I thought the packaging was cool and the flavours really sounded yummy.

Chicken and Quinoa with poblano chilis and the spicy chorizo and pulled chicken with black beans tasted pretty good. It was easy to prepare and ready within minutes.

I am always in a rush, so meals like this work for me. Thus I rarely cook at home…and eat out all the time.

Foodology Disclaimer: I was invited by ChineseBites to try Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant’s signature dishes with a few other bloggers. The service is not representative of their usual service since they knew we were coming.


Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant

Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant is located in Kerrisdale on West 41st street. They serve dim sum in the mornings and the usual dinner at night.

We were able to sample a few dishes from their dim sum menu and other dishes on their dinner menu. You usually won’t be able to have dim sum items at night, so keep that in mind when reading this review.

Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant

The interior has lots of seats and is typical of a Chinese restaurant.

Dim Sum Dishes:

Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant

Breaded Shrimp with Deep Fried Egg Plant comes with 3 pieces and has the eggplant on the bottom and shrimp paste on top. Its a staple dish of all that order dim sum. One of my favorites since I love all dishes with shrimp.

Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant

Breaded Shrimp with Deep Fried Tofu is another great item. The deep-fried tofu on the bottom was crunchy and paired well with the shrimp.

Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant

Steamed Shrimps & Fungus Dumpling is another must order item. I’m sure most people order this item when they go for dim sum.

Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant

Mini Egg Tarts was pretty average and nothing too special.

Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant

Egg Pastry with Dried Shredded Coconut was quite sweet and sticky, I didn’t really particularly like this item very much.

Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant

Deep Fried Green Tea Sticky Rice Ball with Sesame are vibrant green and didn’t taste very good.

Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant

On the inside, you can see the black sesame.

Dinner Dishes:

Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant

Honey Garlic Spareribs and Deep Fried Shrimp Balls was pretty good, the honey garlic spareribs were nicely flavoured and slightly sweet. The deep-fried shrimp balls was a strange combination, but they tasted good too.

Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant

Crab with Special House Sauce it also has noodles underneath that soak up the natural crab flavour. Delicious!

Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant

Deep Fried Duck Wrapped in Taro tasted alright and definitely had more taro than duck. it was crunchy on the outside and soft in the center.

Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant

Stir Fried Beef with Steamed Buns was delicious and the beef in the stir-fry was very tender. You grab the bun and put some of the beef inside.

Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant

Steamed Tofu & Egg White with Diced Seafood & Meat was really good! It was delicious and best eaten with rice.

Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant

Dried Garlic & Enoki Mushrooms with Pea Tips was something I looked forward to because it was vegetables. I do love meat, but I also like vegetables more. With all Chinese meals, a dish of vegetables is a must.

Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant

Deep Fried Sole Fillet was crunchy and tasted ok. I never really liked deep fried fish since it really takes away from its delicate texture and flavour.

Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant

Baked Tapioca Pudding was ok, but not super amazing. On the inside, there is red bean paste.

Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant

Tofu Pudding  comes in a cute container. The texture was a bit dense, but I didn’t mind at all, it just means it stays together a bit more when you’re scooping it up. I may just slightly have an addiction for tofu desserts. The tofu itself isn’t sweet, so you need to add some ginger syrup to it.

Overall, the food alright but nothing crazy amazing. Some dishes were outstanding and some were not very good. Nonetheless, it has always been a neighbourhood favorite for dim sum.

We Rate Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant

 Address:
2046 W 41st Ave
Vancouver, BC

Golden Ocean Seafood Restaurant 金海閣海鮮酒家 on Urbanspoon

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=2046+W+41st+Ave+Vancouver,+BC&hnear=2046+W+41st+Ave,+Vancouver,+British+Columbia+V6M+1Y8&gl=ca&t=m&z=16 “]

Jenny's Bakery Hong Kong

A visit to Hong Kong is incomplete without a visit to Jenny’s Bakery. It is very famous among locals and tourists. Their original location is in the Stanley Market, but have since open many more locations throughout Hong Kong. They have 5 other locations, so you don’t need to travel so far for their cookies.

They speak English, Cantonese, and Mandarin so you don’t need to fear if you don’t know how to order.

Jenny's Bakery Hong Kong

Getting to Jenny’s Bakery can be a bit of a challenge if you don’t know Hong Kong very well, you kinda need to follow some weird route to get there. Most of the locations are located inside a building, so it’s best to have clear directions to that place…or Google Street view it before hand.

Jenny's Bakery Hong Kong

8 Mix Box (Small – $95 HKD | Medium –  $150 HKD) contains:

  • Coffee Almond
  • Cashew Nut
  • Almond Poppyseed
  • Hazelnut Macadamia
  • Walnut
  • Pistachio
  • Mixed Nuts
  • Chocolate Chip/Cashew/Walnut

I love nuts, so I usually get this box. Once you take a bite out of these cookies, you know why people rave about them. the texture and the ingredients are so delicious.

Photo Credit: Jenny's Bakery
Photo Credit: Jenny’s Bakery

4 Mix Box (Small – $60 HKD | Medium  – $110) contains:

  • Shortbread
  • Butter
  • Coffee
  • Oatmeal Raisin

This version doesn’t contain nuts, but may contain traces of nuts…so if you have a friend allergic to nuts, you probably don’t want to get them this.

Jenny's Bakery Hong Kong

They make a great gift when bringing it back to Canada. I bought 10 boxes to bring home and it sure did consume my whole suitcase, but it was worth it.

We Rate Jenny’s Bakery

Address:
1/F, No.11 Stanley New St., Stanley Market
Stanley, Hong Kong
香港赤柱, 新街11號1樓, (屈臣氏樓上)
(tel) 2813-8568, open 10am – 6pm

Website:
http://jennybakery.smugmug.com/

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=Stanley+Market,+Stanley,+Hong+Kong&hl=en&sll=49.891235,-97.15369&sspn=28.983303,68.203125&oq=+Stanley+Market&hq=Stanley+Market,+Stanley,+Hong+Kong&t=m&z=14″]

The Last Crumb

The Last Crumb Bakery & Cafe recently opened on Main Street. My sister was trying to get me out of the house, so she suggested we have lunch here. Since I love trying new places, I couldn’t say no.

The Last Crumb

It is located on Main and 15th near Burgoo. You can find street parking easily, but during busy times, you might have to park a bit further.

The Last Crumb

The cafe is 2 floors and is quite stunning. The whole concept of this bakery is to feel cozy and comfortable. It’s a great place to relax and catch up with friends over same good pastries and hot chocolate.

The Last Crumb

There’s a huge window in the back, so you can see them baking away! And they have a cool quote on their window – “Life is Short, Eat Dessert First”.

The Last Crumb

They have a bunch of different items to choose from.

The Last Crumb

They even have a few Gluten-Free items like macaroons, scones, cupcakes, and cookies.

The Last Crumb

They have a lot of different baked goods, I swear, their kitchen keeps pumping out delicious creations.

The Last Crumb

They are even whole pies on display. They looked so good.

The Last Crumb

What caught my eye when we first arrived was the board of hot chocolates. So many different kinds!

The Last Crumb

Almond Hot Chocolate with Almond Milk (M- $3.95) Instead of regular milk, they suggested to make it with almond milk, they assured me it was delicious and it sure was! It was smooth and so yummy!

The Last Crumb

Homemade Marshmallow ($0.50) was unlike any store bought marshmallow. Its kinda messy when you eat it, but it really can’t compare to anything found in store. If you have hot chocolate, you must order this!

The Last Crumb

They have a lunch menu at the back of the restaurant with special creations.

The Last Crumb

Proscuitto and Brie Sandwich with house made onion marmalade, arugula, pear and walnuts. The bread was baked fresh and was still warm when it arrived. The creaminess of the brie and the salty proscuitto always match perfectly.

The Last Crumb

Chicken BLT Sandwich with bacon, tomato, arugula and Dijon mayo. This was my favorite since the bacon was really thick and full of flavour.

The Last Crumb

Wild Mushroom Soup tasted alright. It definitely needed a bit more salt to bring out the flavours of the mushroom.

The Last Crumb

The food here is good, but not jaw droppingly amazing. The items can get quite expensive if you get a drink, sandwiches, and soup. Nonetheless, it is a great addition to Main St! I love how everything is made fresh and they are dedicated in using preservative-free and artificial-flavouring free ingredients.

We Rate The Last Crumb

Address:
3080 Main St
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.lastcrumb.ca/

The Last Crumb Bakery & Cafe on Urbanspoon

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=3080+Main+St+Vancouver,+BC&hnear=3080+Main+St,+Vancouver,+British+Columbia+V5T+3G5&gl=ca&t=m&z=16″]

I Love Cake Store

In Hong Kong, there are a bunch of hidden specialty shops that cater to a particular niche. There are so many that are hard to find  since they aren’t that easy to search on Google. People mostly depend on ‘word of mouth’ and that’s how they get popular. People tell people and with so many people in Hong Kong, word does spread fast.

If people need a place to find cake moulds or ingredients to do their baking, most people know to head here for a particular ingredient.

I Love Cake Store

This shop is hidden on Shanghai street among other cooking related stores. There are even some other places selling huge crock pots for industrial use.

I Love Cake Store

This place is for people who bake at home. There are so many cookie cutters and other gadgets. if you want a Hello Kitty waffle iron…you will probably find it here.

I Love Cake Store

If you are looking into making cute cakes, chocolates or ice cubes, there are a ton of silicon moulds. I bought a few to bring home since the prices aren’t bad at all.

I Love Cake Store

They also have edible paints and different liquors to add to your cake.

I Love Cake Store

Of course your delectable treats need packaging, so they have pouches, bags, and different containers available too. If you are a tourist like me who likes baking, come here to stock up! It’s so much cheaper! I bought a lot of lollipop sticks and chocolate moulds.

I Love Cake Store

There are other cool shops along this street, so make sure you check them out! I Love Cake isn’t a super large store, but they have a lot of different products. I’d definitely come again and buy a few more items.

Address:
334 Shanghai Street
Yau Ma Tei Kowloon
Hong Kong

Website:
http://www.ilovecake.hk/

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=334+Shanghai+Street+Yau+Ma+Tei+Kowloon&hl=en&sll=22.311907,114.169621&sspn=0.010223,0.016651&gl=ca&hnear=334+Shanghai+St,+Hong+Kong&t=m&z=16″]

Siddhartha’s Indian Kitchen is a restaurant on commercial drive and specializes in healthy, sustainable, and delicious Indian food. I’ve been here a few times and I love the food. I came this time with KoreanGirl since she wanted to try something new. We haven’t had Indian food in a while, so I thought I would take her here.

They cater to people who are vegetarian, vegan and  gluten-free too. It’s nice since you know there will be a yummy dish awaiting you no matter what your diet restrictions are.

Siddhartha's Indian Kitchen

The interior is spacious and has lots of seats.

Siddhartha's Indian Kitchen

Aloo Tikki ($6.99) comes with 3 crispy potato cakes served with delhi sauces and pomegranates. It was so good! The blend of the spices are so yummy! All KoreanGirl and I could say during this was “It’s so good”. There is also a vegan option too.

Siddhartha's Indian Kitchen

Murg Makhani aka Butter Chicken ($10.99)  has a Shahi sauce infused with fenu-greek leaves, cream, tomato marinade and a hint of coconut . It is also tossed with boneless marinated chicken. This is one of their most popular items and it comes with rice.

Siddhartha's Indian Kitchen

Palak Paneer ($11.99) is made of a spinach blend with unfermented cottage cheese sticks and served with a salad and rice. There is plenty of paneer inside with creamy creamy spinach. Definitely delicious and ITS SO GOOD. One of my favorite items here.

Siddhartha's Indian Kitchen

Garlic Naan ($3) is made freshly in a tandoori oven with roasted garlic and butter. A must if you are here.

Siddhartha's Indian Kitchen

The meal was pretty awesome and the 3 items didn’t disappoint at all. KoreanGirl loved it too and we both agreed it was good stuff!

Words of Wisdom:

  • Aloo tikki, Veggie Pakora, Saag Paneer, and Lamb Shank is recommended!
  • Metered street parking
  • Close to Commercial Skytrain
  • Decent Prices

We Rate Siddartha’s Indian Kitchen

Address:
2066 Commercial Dr.
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.siddharthaskitchen.com/

Siddhartha's Indian Kitchen on Urbanspoon

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=2066+Commercial+Dr.+Vancouver,+BC&hnear=2066+Commercial+Dr,+Vancouver,+Greater+Vancouver+Regional+District,+British+Columbia+V5N+4A9&gl=ca&t=m&z=16″]

Warheads Sour Chewy Cubes

When I was a kid, I always adored Warheads for creating their sour warhead candy. It was a pleasure to see people putting the candy in their mouth and seeing them squirm from the sour taste. I was an evil kid, but it was something fun to do.

When I was at Wal-Mart, I saw this in one of the aisles and decided to give it a try. We were very excited because the only items we’ve only had were the sour warheads.

Warheads Sour Chewy Cubes

The cubes come in 6 flavours – Green Apple, Blue Raspberry, Strawberry, Watermelon, Orange and Black Cherry. The candies are not very sour at all. Not even comparable to the sour in Sour Warheads.

After trying all the flavours, all of them suck! The only flavours that were remotely decent was the orange and green apple. It had a very strong artificial taste to them and the watermelon flavour really seeped into the other flavours. I probably will never buy this product again.

Are you a Warheads fan? Have you tried this product yet?

Website: http://www.warheads.com/

Foodology Disclaimer: I was invited by ChineseBites to try Grand Dynasty’s signature dishes with a few other bloggers. The service is not representative of their usual service since they knew we were coming.


Grand Dynasty

Grand Dynasty is located at the Grand Villa Casino in Burnaby. It is a popular location for Dim Sum, but a great place for dinners too. The prices are generally a tad higher than other Chinese restaurants in the area but pretty good place to dine.

Grand Dynasty

The interior is clean and there are lots of round tables available.

Grand Dynasty

Pan Fried Jumbo Prawn with Egg Yolk Sauce was my favorite since the sauce didn’t overpower the sweetness of the prawn.

Grand Dynasty

Pan Fried Jumbo Prawn with a house Spicy Sauce was a good sauce, but not my favorite prawn sauce. It wasn’t very spicy either.

Grand Dynasty

Boiled Live Lobster in Superior Broth comes with the lobster all cut up on a plate with bean sprout.

Grand Dynasty

They take the meat and then prepare it at your table till it’s all cooked.

Grand Dynasty

The broth was very had a great taste and a good addition to the meal.

Grand Dynasty

Baked Chicken stuffed with Sea Cucumber looks like a regular chicken on the outside, but all the sea cucumber is hidden.

Grand Dynasty

Once you cut through the skin, the sea cucumber is revealed. I’ve never had sea cucumber, so I was very intrigued to see how it would taste. The duck fat really marinated the sea cucumber to give it a great taste.

Grand Dynasty

Live Jumbo Ling Cod Fish Hot Pot was a good dish, but I didn’t particularly love it since I don’t really like the flavour combination of sweet and salty together.

 Grand Dynasty

Sautéed Green Vegetable & Wild Mushroom with an arrangement of pumpkin and winter melon. I loved the mushrooms!

Grand Dynasty

Deep Fried Crispy Chicken with Sticky Rice

Grand Dynasty

It  was a very interesting dish with layers of sticky rice and crispy chicken. I thought it was alright, but was a unique dish.

Grand Dynasty

Live Lobster & Seafood with Crispy Rice in Soup was probably one of my favorite dishes.

Grand Dynasty

The crispy rice that is added to the soup makes a *snap* *crackle* *pop* sound as it is added in. It had a great aroma of lobster!

Grand Dynasty

Shredded Coconut Creamy Tart came at the end of the meal.

Grand Dynasty

Black Sesame & Coconut Layer Cake came at the end too. I loved this jello.

Overall, I’ve had pretty good experiences in the past at Grand Dynasty. The service and food is still pretty good.  Whether its dim sum or just a dinner, you can’t go wrong here.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Good food!
  • A bit on the pricy side, but still decent
  • Weekday afternoon you usually get good service since it’s not packed.
  • After food adventure to the ….CASINO
  • Free parking

We Rate Grand Dynasty: 

Address:
4331 Dominion Street
Burnaby, BC

Grand Dynasty Seafood Restaurant on Urbanspoon

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=4331+Dominion+Street+Burnaby,+BC&hnear=4331+Dominion+St,+Burnaby,+British+Columbia+V5G+1B2&gl=ca&t=m&z=16 “]

Broken Rice

One day I was passing by Hastings and I saw Broken Rice. It’s great that a good amount of new restaurants are popping up in the area, it makes me really excited because this area his my “hood”. Not in a gangster way or anything, but I love new restaurants when I see them.

Their dishes range from traditional items to more modern Vietnamese dishes featuring French influences.

Broken Rice

The interior gives a bit of a semi-fancy vibe, which is reflected in their menu as well. It’s not as cheap as your usual Pho restaurants. You probably don’t want to come here and order the usual Vietnamese items.

Broken Rice

Tea comes in a cool looking teapot and cups. I don’t know what tea it is, but it was good stuff!

Broken Rice

Fresh Coconut ($5) is what M ordered. He loves fresh coconut and no bottle coconut water can even compare. It’s a really refreshing drink and they give you a spoon so you can eat the coconut meat inside.

Broken Rice

Duck Sliders ($5) has duck confit, cilantro, onions, and pickled vegetables inside a steamed bun. The sliders were very average and the flavour of the duck didn’t stand out.

Broken Rice

Lemongrass Chicken has lemongrass grilled chicken breast served with a salad of fresh watercress tossed in a house vinaigrette. Also, there is broken rice on the side with fish sauce. M thought the dish was a bit expensive for what you get since you can get something equivalent at Bao Chao for way less. Nonetheless, M did like the taste of the lemongrass chicken.

Broken Rice

Vietnamese Crepe is a savory crepe with mushroom, jicama, sprouts, and tofu. It is also served with mixed herbs. The crepe was unlike the usual crepe texture, it was very crispy. There was so much herbs on the side, there was a lot! Every herb you can think of was probably on this dish. It was like eating a garden.

Broken Rice

The way I was instructed to eat this dish was take a large lettuce leaf and put some herbs and pieces of the crepe, wrap it up and dunk it into the fish sauce. I did enjoy the herbs since they tasted good!

Broken Rice

Vietnamese Coffee Ice Cream ($5) came with a pistachio macaron and then an edible flower. The ice cream is made in-house and tasted great.

Overall, the experience was good. We tried different traditional and modern Vietnamese dishes and it wasn’t like another Pho restaurant. It was a bit nicer, but then again, you are paying higher prices for your meal.

We Rate Broken Rice: 

Address:
4088 Hastings St.
Burnaby, BC

Broken Rice on Urbanspoon

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=4088++Hastings+St.+Burnaby,+BC&hl=en&ll=49.280922,-123.014753&spn=0.007209,0.016651&sll=49.28112,-123.023351&sspn=0.007209,0.016651&gl=ca&hnear=4088+Hastings+St,+Burnaby,+British+Columbia+V5C+2J3&t=m&z=16 “]

 

Foodology Disclaimer: I was invited by ChineseBites to try Western Lake’s signature dishes with a few other bloggers. The service is not representative of their usual service since the dishes are overly garnished compared to usual visits.


Western Lake Chinese Restaurant

Western lake Chinese Seafood Restaurant is popular for Dim Sum on the Weekends and there are large waits during those peak hours. If you are planning to go here for dinner or Dim Sum, it’s best to make reservations!

Western Lake Chinese Restaurant

The interior has lots of round tables, but not too much room in between tables.

Western Lake Chinese Restaurant

Peanuts and pickled vegetables came at the beginning of the meal to snack on before the dishes arrived.

Western Lake Chinese Restaurant

Wintermelon Soup came in a golden vessel that housed the soup. It looked very beautiful.

Western Lake Chinese Restaurant

The soup was packed full of seafood and other ingredients. It’s probably one of my favorite soups and they make it really good at Western Lake. Yum!

Western Lake Chinese Restaurant

Sauteed Prawns in Sweet Chili Sauce the shells are still intact, so you need to peel them or eat them with the shell on. The shells are edible, so it’s not bad to eat them with shells. Most people don’t since the shells can be hard and scrape your mouth.

Western Lake Chinese Restaurant

Egg Whites and shrimp over pea shoots was a very interesting dish, the egg was nice and fluffy with sweet shrimp. I’m also not sure why there was so much garnish on this dish.

Western Lake Chinese Restaurant

Sweet Walnuts with Prawns in mayo sauce was a weird dish, I didn’t like it since the sweet prawns and mayo didn’t work too well together. Some people do like this dish though.

Western Lake Chinese Restaurant

Stir Fried Beef with Garlic chips surrounded by fried milk. The beef was very flavourful and tender. It accompanied the fried milk since it’s creamy sweet texture paired nicely.

Western Lake Chinese Restaurant

Roasted chicken was good, juicy and the skin had a lovely flavour.

Western Lake Chinese Restaurant

Braised Pork Belly with Steamed Buns is surrounded by steamed broccoli. The pork belly is deliciously fatty and very tender.

Western Lake Chinese Restaurant

You eat the above dish with the steamed buns, you can cut it in half and eat it like a mini sandwich with the pork belly.

Western Lake Chinese Restaurant

Fried Crab is piled with fried garlic, onions, peppers, and dried shrimp. Yummy stuff but your hand will definitely get messy.

Western Lake Chinese Restaurant

Fried Rice was great!

Western Lake Chinese Restaurant

Red Bean Jello and Chinese Water Chestnut Pudding was a good ending to the meal. I was so glad it wasn’t red bean soup hahaha.

Overall, the dinner was great and the food was well executed. Too bad a few of the dishes were overly garnished with fruits, so it was hard to give you a good idea of how the dishes would arrive at your table. The portions are still the same as you would get. Prices are very fair and one of the better Chinese restaurants to go to in town.

We Rate Western Lake Chinese Seafood Restaurant

Address:
4989 Victoria Dr
Vancouver, BC

Western Lake Chinese Seafood 西湖海鮮酒家 on Urbanspoon

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=4989+Victoria+Dr+Vancouver,+BC&hnear=4989+Victoria+Dr,+Vancouver,+British+Columbia+V5P+3T6&gl=ca&t=m&z=16 “]

Maria's Taverna

I’ve always found Greek cuisine to be quite hard to please my appetite since it is always a bit expensive and not sure what to order except for the usual Chicken Souvlaki. We asked TractorDean to take us to his go-to Greek Restaurant. When in doubt, as a Greek person to take  you to a Greek Restaurant. They always know best!

Maria's Taverna

We all ordered a bunch of items to share and we were not disappointed.

Maria's Taverna

Complementary Pita bread and Tzatziki arrive at the table. You can ask for more pita bread at no extra cost.

Maria's Taverna

Saganaki ($7.95) is pan-fried goat cheese with lemon. It comes on a hot skillet and is SO delicious! The nuttiness of the cheese and the lemon is addicting.

 Maria's Taverna

Spanakopita ($7.50) is a spinach and feta pie wrapped in phyllo pastry. It comes with a side of tzatziki sauce. We thought this item was very delicate and crisp on the outside with the savory filling inside.

Maria's Taverna

Kalamari ($10.95) is deep-fried marinated squid with tzatziki sauce. The batter is light and crispy, but could have used a bit more salt to enhance the flavours.

Maria's Taverna

Kelftiko ($17.95) has a generous potion of lamb shoulder in their special rub. It comes with rice, greek salad and potatoes. It wa so delicious! The meat was very flavourful and tender. This is a must order item.

Overall, the experience was great and the food was very delicious. The interior space is very cramped and not a lot of room to move around. The service was decent and nothing much to really fuss about. It’s a good idea to stray away from the usual items and be a bit more adventurous. I know it’s kinda hard to do that at a Greek restaurant since some items are pretty pricey.

We Rate Maria’s Taverna

Address:
2324 W 4th Ave
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://mariastaverna.ca/

Maria's Taverna on Urbanspoon

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=2324+W+4th+Ave+Vancouver,+BC&hnear=2324+W+4th+Ave,+Vancouver,+Greater+Vancouver+Regional+District,+British+Columbia+V6K+1P2&gl=ca&t=m&z=16″]

La Casita Vancouver

La Casita is a Mexican Restaurant in Gastown. One day, M, cruzpresso and I were looking for a place to eat and stumbled upon La Casita and was curious how the food would be. If you come for the specials, you’re definitely getting a great deal!

Here are some of their weekday specials:

  • Monday: $3 Margaritas, $5 Burritos
  • Tuesday: $4.50 Beer, $2.50 Tacos
  • Complementary Chips+ Salsa, free refills and $8 – $10 lunch specials

Pretty good deals especially if you don’t want to spend too much on lunch. Sometimes eating in the Gastown area is expensive, but this is a good option for cheap yummy food. We usually come on Mondays since $5 burritos and $3 margaritas are a steal!

La Casita Vancouver

There is ample seating upstairs and a private space downstairs for events.

La Casita Vancouver

The bar has on display different kinda of liquor and there are cool masks at the top.

La Casita Vancouver

Mango Margarita ($3) they mix some mango purée and el Jimador tequila together with some ice. It’s strong, but a great deal for just $3.

La Casita Vancouver

Complementary Chips, green salsa and a medium salsa. It’s great to munch on while waiting for your meal.

La Casita Vancouver

Beef Burrito with melted cheese on top ($5 +$2.50) looks delectable and the addition of the cheese really makes a difference. The best flavour out of all the burrito options is definitely the beef!

La Casita Vancouver

Pepperoni + Egg Burrito ($5) looks so much smaller than the first burrito. Not sure what happened, but it seems like the baked cheese definitely make a big difference, or they have consistency issues.

La Casita Vancouver

Combo 5 ($17) comes with 1 Chorizo Quesadilla & 1 Beef Chimichanga with Rice, Beans, & Salad. M loved this! He would eat this type of food when he lived in Arizona, so it was like home to him. He enjoyed the variety of items in the combo. This combo is quite expensive for what you get.

La Casita Vancouver

1 quesadilla, 2 flautas, rice and salad ($15) this was one of their dinner specials on night. I liked this item because you can try a variety of items if you are new to Mexican cuisine.

La Casita Vancouver

Combo 2 ($11) comes with Tortilla Soup & 2 Flautas.

Flautas are crispy flute-shaped tacos, stuffed with potato and onion, topped with green salsa, cream & feta. They were surprisingly filling! I thought I would still be hungry after this, but I was so stuffed.

La Casita Vancouver

The tortilla soup is out of this world! It has chips, cheese, chile ancho, avocado, & lime. Such a great balance of flavour and the avocados were really fresh. I would definitely get this soup every time.

Overall, yummy food and the specials are definitely a great deal. Some items on the menu are quite expensive, but go on days where there are specials to save some money!

Words of Wisdom:

  • Free WiFi
  • Weekly Specials
  • Tortilla soup is a must!

We Rate La Casita:

Address:
101 West Cordova St.
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.lacasita.ca/

La Casita on Urbanspoon

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McDonalds USA

When CanuckGirl and I go to Seattle, we usually stop by a McDonalds. She loves her cheap McNuggets and I love reviewing items that are different the McDonalds Canada.

Since it is the holidays, McDonalds released a few holiday items like the Peppermint Mocha and the Peppermint McFlurry. Also the CBO Sandwich intrigued me.

McDonalds USA

Grilled Chicken CBO Sandwich is 480 calories and has slices of cheese, the grilled chicken, bacon, sauteed onions, and sauce.

McDonalds USA

The sandwich was really good and all the ingredients made it a very creamy experience. The sauteed onions really make this sandwich awesome. So yummy!

McDonalds USA

Peppermint Mocha is different from the ones offered in Canada. The US version just has chocolate drizzle as the Canadian one has peppermint pieces on top. It tasted OK, but nothing very amazing at all.

McDonalds USA

Holiday Mint Mcflurry has swirls of reduced fat soft serve vanilla ice cream blended with peppermint candy pieces. CanuckGirl thought it was OK. She was craving something cold and sweet.

Have you tried any of these unique items?

Hubbub Sandwiches is located close to the Vancouver Art Gallery and they serve up Sandwiches and salads. It’s quite popular during the lunch hour for people working in the area. I myself have gone a few times with friends and coworkers to grab a quick meal or get takeout.

Orange Sanpellegrino is M’s favorite drink. When he sees it at a store, he usually get it.

Turkey Sausage Sandwich with Clean Slaw.

The Clean Slaw is made of crisp cabbage with coconut, mint and cilantro in a light, zingy vinaigrette. I liked the slaw because it is unlike any other slaw. A good balance of textures and flavours.

The Turkey sausage sandwich has free-range, lightly spiced chorizo handmade by a local butcher with base of pickled jalapenos, creamy garlic sauce, romaine lettuce, cilantro, and crunchy caramelized onions atop a toasty baguette.

Pork Sandwich has marinated pork for 24 hours and has a spicy flavour profile. It is tender and very juicy. It’s one of the more popular sandwiches. It also contains the base of pickled jalapenos, creamy garlic sauce, romaine lettuce, cilantro, and crunchy caramelized onions atop a toasty baguette.

Pork Salad is similar to the Pork Sandwich, but it’s in a salad form. The sandwich comes with a lot of meat! It’s just piled on! The spiciness level isn’t for everyone as there are the additions of the pickled Jalapeño. I prefer eating it as a salad since you don’t have the messiness of a sandwich.

This is the size of the Clean Slaw for takeout.

Overall, it’s a pretty darn good option for lunch if you are wanting a quick tasty sandwich or salad.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Gluten Free option: Turn the sandwich into a salad
  • Take out option and order online
  • Most seating in 2′s and 4′s
  • Slightly pricey
  • Pork and the albacore tuna seemed good

We Rate Hubbub Sandwiches:

Address:

859 Hornby St
Vancouver, BC

Website:
hubbubsandwiches.com

Hubbub Sandwiches on Urbanspoon

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Lee's Donuts

KoreanGirl raved about how her parents love Lee’s Donuts on Granville Island. Lee’s Donuts is located inside the Granville Island Public Market and has stayed a family business for a very very long time.

The place is very busy during the weekends and donuts tend to sellout very fast! We came on a weekday night during closing time, so there were a few donuts left. Most of the flavours were sold out, but whats what happens when we come minutes before they close.

Lee's Donuts

There are donuts behind the counter and in the glas counter.

Lee's Donuts

Coconut Donut

Lee's Donuts

Chocolate Crunch

Lee's Donuts

German Chocolate

The donuts are pretty good and many people stand by their amazing texture and taste. I personally don’t like donuts, so I relied on my sister to give me her opinion. It’s unlike Krispy Kreme and Tim Hortons since it is slightly denser and more cake-like. It wasn’t too sweet and goes well with a cup of tea or coffee.

We Rate Lee’s Donuts: 

Address:
1689 Johnston St
Vancouver, BC

Lee's Donuts on Urbanspoon

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Chipotle Sign Vancouver

My last taste of Chipotle Mexican Grill was the past Summer in New York. I have been left Chipotle-less for 6 months and when I got word that Chipotle was coming to Vancouver, I jumped for joy and so did my friends. We are a bit nuts, so once, we actually drove to Seattle just for Chipotle. When Chipotle invited me for a preview of the restaurant the night before the December 13th, 2012 opening, I had to say yes!

Chipotle Vancouver is the 6th location in Canada. After a successful launch in Toronto with 5 restaurants, it was time for them to come to Vancouver. Even though this is the first location in Downtown Vancouver, there are plans to expand to bring in more locations. There is no word on when or where, but expect more Chipotle locations in the near future.

All their ingredients are local and organic, so it is not 100% the same as the other Chipotle locations around the world.

Chipotle Vancouver

The Vancouver location has huge windows so you can see everyone inside enjoying their meal.

Chipotle Vancouver

They have some funky seating in the front.

Chipotle Vancouver

The interior has lots of seating and each table is lit up with light overhead.

Chipotle Vancouver

The high tables have bag hooks! BAG HOOKS! As a woman with a purse, it’s very important to have those since it’s kinda gross putting your bag on the floor. Or if you have shopping bags, it works wonders too.

Chipotle Vancouver

You start by picking your type of item, then protein, and then all the filler to go inside. All basic items are $8.95. Guacamole is $2.21, which in my opinion is quite expansive…but it is real avocado.

Chipotle Vancouver

Line up on the right side of the restaurant and work your way down the line as you create your perfect meal. The staff is very friendly and can help if you have questions.

Chipotle Vancouver

Chipotle Vancouver

Depending on your item, you can choose white rice or brown rice, then pinto or black beans.

Chipotle Vancouver

The hard part is choosing the protein – chicken, steak, carnitas, or barbacoa.

Chipotle Vancouver

Then you can add a variety of salsa from mild, medium, and hot. Throw on some sour cream, cheese, and lettuce. Remember, the guacamole is extra.

Chipotle Vancouver

Depending on what you add-on after you build your burrito, it can cost you anywhere between $10 and $20. On the bright side they offer beer and margarita too. If you have kids, there is a kids menu too. I wish I was a kid sometimes.

Chipotle Vancouver

The drink fountain is on the side.

Chipotle Vancouver

If you are not in the mood for sugary pop, they have unsweetened tea. I keep thinking this is water, but it’s not.

Chipotle Vancouver

Don’t forget your napkins, it will come in handy! There are also variations of Tabasco sauce for you to add a kick to your meal.

Chipotle Vancouver

Chips ($1.20)

Chipotle Vancouver

You can also add guac or salsa dips for a small charge.

Chipotle Vancouver

Burrito ($8.95) cross-section looks like that. I couldn’t suggest you eat it like this unless you were sharing with a friend. It would definitely get messy.

Chipotle Vancouver

M made his burrito without any vegetables, just rice, pinto beans, hot salsa, and steak. Sometimes it good to forget about the vegetables and ask for more rice, beans and salsa. You really can make your burrito anyway you like!

Chipotle Vancouver

Soft Shell Tacos ($8.95) comes in 3 pieces. @Cruzpresso ordered his with all the same ingredients, but you can have different proteins in each taco if you preferred.

Chipotle Vancouver

Hard Shell Taco ($8.95) comes in 3 pieces too. It’s a bit hard to eat if you are a messy eater. Remember to grab some napkins.

Chipotle Vancouver

Salad ($8.95) has the lettuce underneath and all the toppings piled on top! The protein that came with this item was the steak. It’s chewy like a steak but it deliciously marinated.

Chipotle Vancouver

Bowl ($8.95) + Guacamole ($2.21) I added carnitas meat and everything except the cheese  into my bowl.

Chipotle vancouver

Thats what the inside of the bowl looks like. It was delicious and oh so filling.

Chipotle vancouver

Chicken Bowl ($8.95) minus the lettuce haha.

Chipotle vancouver

The chicken is hiding under all the ingredients. The chicken was quite tasty and flavourful.

Chipotle Vancouver

We ate everything except for the kid’s meal or the vegetarian options. Burritos and bowls are quite popular! You can’t go wrong with any of the meats either. My person favorite item is the bowl with the barbacoa. It’s a good place to go if you are particular about your food. It’s very customizable to how you want it made.

If you are used to the Chipotle in the US, just know…the portions look smaller and you are paying about $2 more.

It’s great to have Chipotle in Vancouver, BC but it is quite similar to Red Burrito. In the end, the whole table agreed that Chipotle did taste better and they are dedicated to bring in good ingredients that are local, fresh, organic, and have no synthetic hormones.

Chipotle Mexican Grill is ready to start serving customers December 13th, 2012 at 11am!

We Rate Chipotle Mexican Grill:

Address:
818 Howe Street
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.chipotle.com/

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The Japadog Restaurant on Robson and Seymour is always coming up with new flavours of Japadogs. Japadogs are Japanese-inspired Hot Dogs with unique toppings. Since it’s Winter now, I didn’t want to go to their carts to grab a quick lunch, so I went to the restaurant to be able to sit down inside to enjoy my meal.

Ume Japadog Combo ($9.63) with a Can of Coke and Shichimi & Garlic Fries.

The Shichimi & Garlic Fries tasted like a blend of salty and spicy. They taste really good when they are fresh, but when they start to cool down, it doesn’t have that delicious taste anymore.

Ume Japadog has pork bratwurst, onions, and a special plum jelly in a toasted bun. The pork bratwurst is bursting with flavour and is quite addictive. The pairing of the tangy plum jelly was unique and probably isn’t suited for everyone.

Overall, it’s a good option for lunch if you want something quick, easy, and under $10.

We Rate Japadog Restaurant:

Address:

530 Robson St
Vancouver, BC

Website:
www.japadog.com

Japadog (Robson Store) on Urbanspoon

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Pizza Hut Canada finally introduced the Hot Dog Stuffed Crust after a successful launch in the UK and US. When the Vancouver Social Media Awards committee got together for a whole day meeting, we decided to order some pizza. We were browsing a few sites and saw this new creation.

We are adventurous eaters, so we decided to order it. We were a bit skeptical at first about this, but we would soon realize how delicious it would really be.

A bunch of Angus beef hot dogs are placed inside Pizza Hut’s stuffed crust. In the past, the stuffed crusts would be filled with cheese. You can have the option of the pizza being stuffed in any medium or large-sized pizzas. Eating the stuffed crust was similar eating the ‘pig in a blanket’.

It comes with a few packs of ketchup so you can dip the crusts into.

There are Honey Mustard Dips too for the crusts.

Chicken Lover Pizza (Large) has grilled chicken breast, peppers, onions, mushroom, and mozzarella.

Meat Lover Pizza (Large) contains pepperoni, italian sausage, mild sausage, beef, ham, bacon, and mozzarella.

No matter which pizza you order with the hot dog crust, it shouldn’t matter too much since the toppings isn’t directly in the proximity of the crust.

Have you tried this yet?

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