December 2015

In Canadian

Village Bistro: Canadian Comfort Food

December 14, 2015

Village Bistro, formerly known as Lips Resto, has been reimagined by the original owners to serve as a casual West End staple in the community. They serve up bistro-style comfort food with Canadian flavours, and a menu entirely made-from-scratch. I was invited to come here for dinner to experience their new brand and menu.

I was a fan of Lips Resto, so I wanted to see how their menu has evolved too.

The interior is quite beautiful and can seat up to 100 people. I love the old-world bistro charm with modern industrial accents.

Their custom-made caramel leather chairs, rich wall coverings, and warm lighting installations really give it a nice atmosphere.

Closer to the bar, there are a few TVs so you can watch the game and have a drink.

Layer Cake Pinot Noir ($10) is from Central Coast, California. M has fallen in love with Pinot Noir during our trip to the Okanagan. This particular pinot noir has aromas of savory herbs, licorice, mint, plums and black cherries. Definitely has a different taste than the ones from the Okanagan.

Peroni ($6) is one of my favourite beers. It’s light, refreshing and not bitter at all. A good easy beer to drink.

Salt Spring Island Mussel ($12) has a smoked tomato broth, roasted garlic, basil, and a ton of mussels. There is also 2 pieces of focaccia. Very good mussels and plump in size.

Alberta Bison Carpaccio ($10) as pickled mushroom, egg duo, grana Padano, and fennel aioli. That carpaccio was addictive! I would highly recommend it.

The egg that sits on top is beautiful. So good!

Boneless Alberta Beef Short Rib ($19) has roasted cauliflower, broccoli, crushed potatoes, blue cheese, and natural jus. This is one of their most popular dishes.

Herb Roasted Fraser Valley Chicken ($18) has bacon wild rice pilaf, seasonal vegetables, arugula salad, and blueberry jus.

The chicken was juicy and had great flavours on its skin. The salad helped balance out the heaviness of the sauce.

Cheesecake is served up in a cute mason jar. The crumble on top added a nice texture to it.

Peach Cobbler with homemade vanilla bean ice cream was crisp on the outside. I don’t eat a lot of cobbler, but it was good.

Overall, the prices of each dish were very reasonable and tasted awesome. They really don’t cut corners preparing these dishes. I would come back again.

We Rate Village Bistro:

Address:
1143 Davie Street, Vancouver

Website:
http://www.villagebistrobc.com/

In Summerland

Okanagan Crush Pad: Haywire Wine, Narrative Wines, and More

December 13, 2015

Located in Summerland, Okanagan Crush Pad‘s winery facility is the home of Haywire and Narrative wines, and others. M and I were driving by Summerland on the way back to Vancouver and made a stop here. I enjoy Haywire Wines, so it made sense to stop and see where its all made.

We parked right outside and it faces all their crops.

I thought it was pretty cool to see a winery so cooperative to work with independent small-lot winemakers. They create some pretty good wines that are out on the market today.

Haywire wines are made at Okanagan Crush Pad winery and their signature wines include a Traditional Method sparkling wine, Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, Rosé, Pinot Noir and Gamay Noir.

Narrative Wines is a new line of wines under the Okanagan Crush Pad label that tells the story of what the Okanagan is best at – cool climate, aromatic, crisp, lively wines.

Okanagan Wine Campus is a mentorship program that provides the person named Vancouver’s Sommelier of the Year a chance to make a small lot wine using the grape variety and style of their choice. The proceeds go to the BC Hospitality Foundation to fund a wine scholarship to support students pursuing their higher level wine education certification.

For myself, I enjoyed the Haywire Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir the most. I enjoyed the tasting since it wasn’t too crowded and also the person working there was so nice and knowledgable on all the different wines.

Address:
16576 Fosbery Rd, Summerland, BC

Website:
https://okanagancrushpad.com/

In British Columbia

A&W Canada: Mushroom Mozza Burger

December 12, 2015

Sometimes a good burger is all I need after a night of drinking. M grabbed me A&W‘s new Mushroom Mozza Burger with onion rings and a root beer.

I’ve always been a fan of A&W and I love it when the come up with limited time only items on their menu.

The Mushroom Mozza Burger is made of a pure beef patty, A&W seasoning, sesame seed bun, mozarella cheese, mushrooms, grilled onions, and dijon aioli sauce.

The onion rings are always awesome. It’s made with real thick pieces of onion with a delicious crunchy batter. One of my favourite onion rings.

A good quick take out meal and definitely one of the better fast food restaurants out there.

Website: https://www.aw.ca/

In Hotel Review

Spirit Ridge Vineyard Resort: Accommodations in Osoyoos

December 11, 2015

Spirit Ridge Vineyard Resort is located in an area known as the Napa of the North in the fertile South Okanagan wine country of British Columbia, overlooking Osoyoos Lake. The resort is conveniently located just five minutes from the Canada/US border. You are surrounded by the rolling vineyards and sun-drenched landscapes of wine country.

The parking is up at the top of the hill by Nk’Mip Cellars. Just check in at the building on the right. There’s a lot of free parking.

We stayed in the One Bedroom Villa, which faces East to see the beautiful vineyards and Okanagan Lake. Its base occupancy is 2 people but can have a maximum of 6 people inside.

It was a pretty nice day when we were staying here, so it was nice to be so close to the vineyards.

I found it interesting how the blocks of the villas were named after the types of wines.

There was even a fountain outside our door.

Once you walk inside, you will get a homey vibe from the decor. It felt like a home away from home.

There’s a dining table, couch with sofa bed, TV, fireplace and desk.

The space is great for families or people who are staying for a few days. Since it was just M and I, we didn’t really need the extra space.

In the kitchen, there are the usual appliances like fridge, sink, stove, oven, microwave, dishwasher and a coffee maker. There’s also a washer and dryer in the villa.

The first bathroom was a sink, shower, and toilet.

The bedroom has its own tv, king size bed, and separate bathroom.

The bedroom has a tub and toilet in a separate room, but the sink it outside in the bedroom. I thought it was a little bit odd.

Outside on the patio is a soaker tub and some furniture so you can sit and enjoy the view. There’s also a BBQ Grill you can use too.

You can walk around the vineyards through a open gate by this huge map.

It’s a pretty nice stroll and you get to see their different types of grapes growing on the vines.

Try to get a room that faces the lake instead of the mountains.

They have many amenities that guest can enjoy, but a visit to their outdoor pools, hot tubs, and fitness centres seem to be popular. There are dining options at the resort too such as Talon’s Restaurant and Sonora Dune’s Grill.

Overall, it was a nice stay, but because it’s situated in a dessert, we did find many little critters hanging around in our villa. I ended up killing a few spiders in the bedroom and bathroom. Other than that, no other issues that we noticed.

Address:
1200 Rancher Creek Rd, Osoyoos, BC

Website:
http://www.spiritridge.ca/

In Delta

Tasty Indian Bistro: Lunch in Delta

December 10, 2015

It was Thanksgiving and we didn’t know where to head out for lunch, but my sister suggested Tasty Indian Bistro in Delta. Everyone describes it as the Cactus Club of Indian food. The interior is very sleek, dark and has some nice decorative pieces.

The restaurant is quite large, so there are different dining areas. Great space for large groups.

Our table near the front was made of beautiful stone with nice carvings.

Vegetable Pakora ($9) are mixed vegetable deep-fried fritters. It is served with two types of chutney for a dipping sauce. The pakora were good, but I wish they had more of a crunch on the outside.

Lamb Korma has lamb pieces cooked in a mild creamy gravy and spices. It was a tad spicy but not too intense. There was a good amount of lamb.

Palak Paneer is made of spinach and Indian cheese cooked with spices. You can’t go wrong with this dish. It’s pretty delicious and loaded with spinach. It’s one item I order in most Indian restaurants.

Butter Chicken has boneless tandoori chicken cooked with rich tomato cream gravy. Always a favourite amongst the table.

Channa Masala has chickpeas cooked in authentic spices in true Punjabi fashion.

Onion Kulcha is naan bread stuffed with spiced onions and spices and baked in a tandoor. Goes so well wit the different types of curries.

Garlic Naan is garnished naan with garlic and herbs. Very fragrant and delicious.

We got a few rice dishes on the side. Good amount of food for 6 people for lunch. We found that since the curries had a lot of flavour on their own, plain rice and regular naan are good options rather than the flavoured naans. Some people do like the added taste.

Overall, it was a great lunch with the family over Indian food. There is plenty of free parking outside and its easy to drive to.

We Rate Tasty Indian Bistro:

Address:
8295 120 Street, Delta

Website:
http://tastybistro.com/

In Bakery

Oso Negro: Cafe in Nelson, BC

December 9, 2015

Oso Negro Cafe is the cafe to go in Nelson, BC. I went on a Saturday morning and I swear, the whole town was here looking to get their morning coffee. There was a line up out the door.

Their interior showcases the artwork of talented local artists and artisans or outdoors in their splendid perennial garden. The space is pretty awesome.

Oso Negro was born in Nelson, BC in 1993 in a tiny space, with a tiny 1 kg Petroncini roaster. We focused on simplicity, freshly roasting our beans in small batches and selling the results as single varietals. The roasting space doubled as a cafe, and it was our pleasure to visit with customers and serve coffee to our neighbours.

They have over 20 blends of coffee beans in the cafe.

Latte is what I ordered. It was pretty strong and had more of a strong burnt taste to it.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie was the quick bite I needed in the morning before going back to the Okanagan. We had a long drive ahead of us, so we got sugar and caffeine.

Overall, Oso Negro was a good stop, but their coffee is a bit strong and has a slightly burnt taste to it.

We Rate Oso Negro:

Address:
604 Ward St, Nelson, BC

Website:
http://osonegrocoffee.com/cafe/

In Bakery

Fondway Cafe: Milk Tea and Cake

December 8, 2015

Fondway Cafe is the latest cafe to open up in South Burnaby right by Metrotown. It is literally a few steps away from the skytrain. They specialize in coffee, tea and asian-inspired pastries.

The space is quite nice with a lot of natural light coming in. Very hip.

They have a Chinese and English menu available. At first I grabbed their Chinese menu and had no idea what I was reading. I’m such an asian disgrace.

They have a pretty large collection of tea along one of their walls.

During peak hours, it’s pretty hard to find a seat. It’s getting quite popular.

Once you order and pay, you get a giant clip with your order number.

Milk tea with grass jelly is served in a super cute cup. The drink wasn’t too sweet, which was great. It tasted pretty awesome and it definitely rivals some of the best milk teas in town.

Cheesecake with burnt sugar on top was a dense type of cheesecake. Not too sweet which caters to the asian tastebuds.

My friends got their Okinawa milk tea and they though it was pretty good.

What more could you want? Girl talk, milk tea and cake. Best combination ever.

If you are a coffee lover, you may want to try some of their specialty coffee drinks like their cold brew on tap and their soda coffee.

Overall, I love the space and its a great place to chill with friends. You definitely have to grab a slice of cake and milk tea when you’re here.

We Rate Fondway Cafe:

Address:
4462 Beresford Street, Burnaby

Website:
http://fondway.ca/

In Oliver

Jackson-Triggs Vineyard: Wine Shop and Tasting

December 7, 2015

Jackson-Triggs Okanagan Estate Winery is open year round. Jackson-Triggs is a blend of our founders’ names,
Allan Jackson and Don Triggs, who established the winery in 1993. They also have another vineyard in Niagara.

They are Canada’s most awarded winery. Pretty awesome to see all their hard work pay off.

Driving through the estate was awesome too since there were winding roads of grapes.

Their wine tastings consisted of both Jackson-Triggs and Inniskillin wines.

There is a long bar and of course since it’s a popular winery, there were a lot of people. We had to wait a little bit to get to the bar.

The tasting room was nice and there are 2 areas.

We tried their complimentary wines which consisted of a red and their ice wine.

We took a liking to their 2014 Jackson-Triggs Reserve Riesling Ice Wine. Usually we don’t like ice wine but this one was really good.

Honey golden in colour with intensely sweet densely layered flavours of tropical fruit, apricot and honey backed by crisp acidity, a thick mouth feel with an extended elegant finish. This Icewine pairs beautifully with rich seafood, sushi, and a variety of ripe cheeses.

It was one of the memorable wines from our roadtrip, so a few weeks later we bought a bottle of the ice wine for a friend.

You can purchase both Jackson-Triggs and Inniskillin wines here.

Address:
7857 Tucelnuit Drive, Oliver BC

Website:
http://www.jacksontriggswinery.com/

In Bubble Tea

Chatime Burnaby: Long Lines, Incorrect Drinks

December 6, 2015

Chatime Burnaby finally opens up in the suburbs right on Kingsway and Royal Oak just steps away from Boiling Point. I’m a big fan of Chatime when they first opened a few locations around Metro Vancouver since their Roasted Milk Tea with Grass Jelly is freaking amazing.

KoreanGirl and I came here after dinner to get our Chatime fix and the line was half way out the door. We didn’t mind since there was nothing else to do for the day.

The interior is spacious with a good amount of seats, but most people were getting their drink to go. We waited in line for 20 minutes and it was quite strange how slow it moved. Soon, the line built up so it was almost out the door. Some customers walked in and immediately walked out cause it looked like chaos.

Getting closer to the counter, you could see the bottleneck was near the cashier area with their under trained staff. The cashier was confused by most orders and there always seemed like there were 3 people around the ordering counter trying to figure out the next drink to make. Clearly large communication issues really held up the line.

Once we put in our order, it was another 10 minutes for our drinks. They almost gave us someone else’s order but we made sure it was ours before we grabbed it.

My half sweet roasted milk tea with less ice was the most disgusting bubble tea I’ve had in a long time. The staff really rushed through the orders and didn’t take much care in making them.

My drink tasted overly sweet with lots of ice. I’ve had this drink over 10 times at various Chatime locations in Richmond and Vancouver and this was the first time it tasted terrible.

I had high hopes for this location, but there seems to be more kinks they need to work out with training staff to be more efficient and improve accuracy of orders. I came a week after opening, so I thought any little kinks would be sorted. Clearly not. I would avoid this location for the next little while. I left pretty angry and it ruined my entire night. I’m usually pretty chill about everything but when the service and product both suck…theres nothing you can be happy about.

We Rate Chatime Burnaby:

Address:
5216 Kingsway, Burnaby

Website:
http://www.ichatime.com/

In Brunch

Tableau Bar and Bistro: Weekend Brunch

December 5, 2015

Tableau Bar and Bistro is located close to Coal Harbour under the Loden Hotel and is known for their traditional French bistro fare. The meals are prepared by Executive Chef Marc-André Choquette.

We came here for Dee‘s Birthday Brunch to celebrate being a year wiser.

Their interior combines old world classic bistro elements with modern touches and a French-inspired menu that blends classic culinary flavours of Paris with the use of fresh west coast ingredients.

All brunches start with coffee, at least for me it does. I can’t function without it these days. I think I ended up getting 3 refills.

For others, it’s all about the cocktails to accompany brunch.

Bacon Caesar consists of bacon infused vodka, clamato, and a nice slice of crisp bacon on top.

1181 has gin, elderflower, lemonade, sparkling wine

Patisserie Basket ($12) was what we started off with. It consists of daily baked pastries croissant, pain au chocolat, muffins, and maple pecan danish. Sometimes the items in the basket may change. For us, they didn’t have any more maple pecan danishes, so chocolate banana bread was substituted. It was a good items to order for the large group of us. Everyone would try a piece.

Croque Monsieur and Frites has toasted, honey ham, gruyère cheese, with the added free range egg on top. They ran out of frites when we were here, so the alternative was potatoes.

Florentine Eggs Benedict had perfectly poached eggs on top. The spinach was delicious.

Shaved Brisket Eggs Benedict had a good portion of brisket.

Mushrooms on Toast is one of the featured items. I am a sucker for mushrooms, so I just gravitated towards this dish. It has a fried egg on top with creamy mushrooms, and toasted brioche on the bottom. The mushrooms were beaming with flavour from that sauce.

Overall, it was a good brunch with great friends to celebrate another milestone.

We rate Tableau Bar and Bistro:

Address:
Loden Hotel, 1181 Melville Street, Vancouver

Website:
http://tableaubarbistro.com/

In Penticton

Painted Rock Estate Winery: Tastings in Penticton

December 4, 2015

Painted Rock sits on a spectacular bench overlooking the eastern shore of Skaha Lake in Penticton, B.C.

This 60-acre property has a unique microclimate that is particularly suited to the production of premium wines. This winery embraces the traditions of the old world and the imagination of the new world.

The tasting room is absolutely beautiful and very modern. There’s no other winery that has a look like Painted Rock.

Tastings are $10.00 per person and are redeemable upon wine purchase.

I’m mostly a white wine drinker so I took a liking to their Chardonnay. Other than that, the red wines ones were a bit too much for my taste.

Outside, the view is spectacular and there are more tables outside to sit and enjoy the sun.

It’s a very popular spot to have a Summer or Fall wedding. I just love the look of this place. I stood here for a while just basking at the beautiful view.

Address:
400 Smythe Drive, Penticton, BC

Website:
http://www.paintedrock.ca/

In Cafe

Mui Garden: Curry Beef Brisket and Fried Rice

December 3, 2015

Mui Garden is a Hong Kong style Cafe and they have been around for so long that it just makes me feel nostalgic every time I dine here. The hand written posters on the walls in all Chinese characters, the big booth seating and so many variety of dishes on the menu.

It was a super cold day in Vancouver, so M and I didn’t want to travel to far for a quick dinner.

M and I came here at 5:45pm just in time for their Tea Time Menu, which have lunch sets for a cheaper price before the dinner time rush.

Curry Beef Brisket set comes with rice and soup on the side.

Winter melon soup with pork was the soup of the day.

The curry has big tender chunks of beef brisket and some potatoes. The portion was good for one.

Shrimp and BBQ Pork Fried Rice was what M got. He used to order this all the time when he was in university. M thought it was pretty mediocre in taste.

Overall, the food is pretty average and nothing too special about it, but most people come here for a quick cheap meal.

We Rate Mui Garden:

Address:
4265 Main Street, Vancouver

Website:
http://www.muigarden.com/

In Oliver

Silver Sage Winery: Sweet Wines in Oliver, BC

December 2, 2015

Driving in Oliver, BC, you really get to explore wine country. There’s so many wineries in this town. M and I spent the day driving around and found some pretty unique wineries.

Silver Sage winery is a small organic winery. No chemicals or sugars are added throughout the entire process and the wine contains no tannins. The first thing that drew me in was their beautiful cellar doors.

When we were here, they had a large amount of their wines available for tasting. All free of charge.

White

2014 Gewurztraminer
2014 Pinot Blanc
2014 Sage Grand Reserve

Red

2013 Merlot
2012 Pinot Noir
2014 Sunset
2012 Midnight Tango

The wines all are naturally sweeter, which I quite enjoyed. We tried all the wines and none of them really disappointed.

Dessert Wines:

2012 Merlot
2014 The Pearls
2014 Blueberry
2014 Pinot Blanc
2014 The Flame
2012 Raspberry

Overall, great tasting experience. A few favourites were the Gewurztraminer, Pinot Noir, Merlot, Flame, and Sage Grand Reserve. If you like your wines a little bit sweeter, you’ll enjoy their wines.

Address:
32032 87th St, Oliver, BC

Website:
http://silversagewinery.com/

In Farm to Table

Rocky Mountain Flatbread Co: Flatbread Pizza on Main Street

December 1, 2015

Rocky Mountain Flatbread Co has 3 locations in Vancouver. One on Main St, Park Royal and another in Kitsilano. They are best known for their pizza making parties as its fun for families or a large group of friends.

They currently are featuring a 3 course meal for $19. I was invite to check it out.

You can choose your starter which you can pick their traditional salads or feature soup of the day.

The mains are their small traditional flatbread pizzas.

Then you can end your meal from choosing either their double chocolate brownie, baked cheesecake, seasonal sorbet or vanilla ice cream.

Their dishes feature local and organic produce, free range organic meats & OceanWise seafood. Each dish is handcrafted daily in house.

All of their flatbread pizzas, pastas, salads, daily soups and desserts are available gluten free. Great for people with allergies.

M and I got a coke each in addition to the meal. Coke and pizza go hand in hand like peanut butter and jelly.

Field Mushroom soup served with a slice of flat bread. Good flavours with a slight hint of spice. You can’t go wrong with it.

Fig and Goat Cheese Salad is one of their most popular salads. It has assorted greens, cucumbers, tomatoes, red onions, goat cheese, black mission fig dressing and Vancouver grown sunflower sprouts. It is also served with flatbread on the side. Nice fresh salad with just the right amount of dressing.

Naturally Meaty Traditional Flatbread Pizza has organic tomato sauce, mozzarella, spicy certified organic ground beef, kale, Italian sausage, shaved red onions, roma tomatoes, herbs and asiago cheese.

It has a nice thin crust and crisp on the outer edges, but the centre of it seemed a bit droopy. There wasn’t a lot of beef or sausage on top which I was a tad disappointed in. Despite that, they did balance the amount of toppings on the pizza so its not overly loaded.

Italian Fennel Sausage Artisan Flatbread Pizza is 10 inches and is bigger than their traditional flatbread pizzas.

It has organic tomato sauce, roasted local red bell peppers, Italian sausage, roasted garlic cloves, semi-dried roma tomatoes, caramelized red onions, Mozzafina Di Latte and Goat Cheese.

When we picked up a slice, all the toppings just slid off. The flatbread didn’t told all the toppings in place. The peppers seemed to weigh it down.

The pizzas were a hit and a miss. I love that they use local and organic ingredients, which made the meal a lot healthier that a regular pizza. I just felt the flat bread wasn’t crisp enough in the centre.