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In British Columbia

Science World: The Science Behind Pixar Review

Science World at TELUS World of Science always has awesome exhibits coming into town. From May 19, 2018 – January 6, 2019, you can take a peek into the magic of Pixar and explore the science behind some beloved animated films like Toy Story to The Incredibles.

This interactive exhibition showcases the science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) concepts used by the artists and computer scientists who help bring Pixar’s award-winning films to the big screen. It is an exhibit for those who are interested in seeing all the hard work that goes into each animated film.

Fun Facts About Pixar

As you walk to the exhibit on the 2nd floor, you will see these large pieces on the wall with some fun facts about each Pixar movie. It’s crazy that each film pushes the boundaries of animated films.

Intro Film

As you enter the big green entrance, you get to watch a 5 minute film taking you behind the Pixar HQ and see how different departments come together to create a film from beginning to end.

It in a standing room only with a few seats on the sides as you watch the short film. Didn’t feel like 5 minutes to me as it was very interesting. When the film ends, you get directed to the large doors to enter the exhibit.

Life-Size Recreations

As you swing the doors open, you know you have to pose with Buzz Lightyear and take lots of photos. There are 5 life-sized figures and you need to take pictures with them all – Buzz Lightyear, Mike and Skully, Wall-E, Edna Mode, and Dory. They are scattered through out the exhibit, so keep and eye open.

Large Concept Art

There are so many things to pose with in here. Around the walls are these huge pieces of concept art that are really beautiful. You can recognize each piece from their corresponding movie.

40 Interactive Elements

There are over 40 interactive elements in here and you get to experience all the different steps in filmmaking from beginning to end.  As someone who isn’t so keen on using complex forms of math for measurements, I should have paid more attention in school.

Admission Rates

If you are already a Science World Member, you can get Pixar Membership pass for $19 to get unlimited access to The Science Behind Pixar Exhibit.

For everyone else, it is an additional $8 to the admission rates.

Final Thoughts

Overall, its a good exhibit to add on to the overall Science World experience. Lots to see and do to tired out kids and adults. This exhibition was developed by the Museum of Science, Boston in collaboration with Pixar Animation Studios and they did a great job in breaking down all the steps that go into an animated film.

Address:
455 Quebec St, Vancouver, BC

Website: https://www.scienceworld.ca/pixar

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In Event

[Sneak Peek] 2018 BC Seafood Festival

The 2018 BC Seafood Festival is almost upon us. Just a few weeks left until it begins on June 8th – 17th in Comox Valley on Vancouver Island.

The festival is twice as large as the previous year and is perfect for foodies who love BC seafood. It’s a great chance to learn and explore the depths of the ocean and the varieties of seafood.

For 11 days, there are a series of events happening to give visitors a chance to taste, explore, and experience fresh and local BC seafood. BC produces over 100 sustainable seafood products exported domestically and internationally.

Signature Weekend

The Signature Weekend is on June 16 & 17 from 11 am – 5 pm at Filberg Heritage Lodge & Park, Comox. There is lots to do and you can purchase various passes to enjoy the plethora of activity and eats.

Highlights:

  • Learn to Cook BC Seafood at numerous Celebrity Chef Demos featuring National and International Chefs
  • Take in action-packed competitions including the Fanny Bay Oyster Shucking Competition and the Ocean Wise Chowder Challenge
  • Enjoy 10+ BC Seafood Roving Tasting Stations; meet the producers and incredible chefs
  • Pair seafood at any of the 15+ BC Craft Beer, Wine and Spirit Tastings Stations
  • While you slurp seafood, enjoy live musical performances
  • Explore the Kids Interactive Zone featuring numerous Touch Tanks & Interactive Displays, including the first visit to the Festival by the Vancouver Aquarium AquaVan

If you want to spend time at the BC Seafood Festival, this is the weekend to be there to enjoy as much as possible.

Ticketed Events

Outside the Signature Weekend, there are a lot of events happening from June 8th to 17th. A few of the events are sold out, but here are still a lot that are very affordable at $15 per person. Check their website as new events are added daily.

Dock Days (Free)

On June 9th and 15th at 10am and 2pm, join Rob Clarke, President of the Harbour Authority Association of BC and Wharfinger at the Comox Valley Harbour Authority  and enjoy a guided walk of the Fisherman’s Wharf learning about the commercial fishing industry, stopping at different fishing vessels along the way.

Exposed and Protected Beaches Tour (Free)

On June 17th 3-4pm, meet at the bottom of Goose Spit stairs (parking lot #1) for this free tour. You get to learn how waves and wind shape our beaches and coastlines. Goose Spit Park interpreters explain the forces at work along the Lazo Bluffs and the spit.

Sneak Peek: All Aboard the Pacific Yacht

We were given a little taste of what to expect at the BC Seafood Festival by showcasing some of BC finest seafood.

Chef Chris Andraza is the executive chef of Fanny Bay Oyster and he was chucking fresh oysters on the deck. You can find delicious Fanny Bay oysters at the Signature Weekend at the Oyster Shucking Competition on Saturday June 16th and also Shucked! Canada’s Largest Oyster Bar Happy Hour on Friday, June 15.

Freshly shucked oyster

Chef Mardy Ra from Pacific Yacht Charters crafted delicious canapés throughout the afternoon to showcase its versatility. This was the smoked salmon on rice cake with pepper cream.

Honey caramelized miso crab wonton

Charred octopus on suits vide tartar

Stuffed shiitake mushroom with cashew cream and candies cashew 

Demonstrations

We were treated to a seafood paella demonstration by Chef Caitlin Mark from H2 Rotisserie & Bar at The Westin Bayshore. The seafood paella consisted of squid, prawns, scallops, clams, chorizo, and white wine.

It’s always fun to see your food get made and understand all the steps that go into making a dish.

Spot Prawns

BC Seafood is really cherished and enjoyed in our beloved province. One of the hottest seafood choices right now are Spot Prawns. As a fresh shipment of spot prawns arrived at the dock, we got to taste some of it. We had ours steamed.

Renowned Chefs

International chefs from London, New York, Hawaii, Shanghai, and Hong Kong will join our amazing local chefs to entice the taste buds of all attendees of the 2018 BC Seafood Festival.

Final Thoughts

If you love seafood as much as we do, you’ll want to check out the BC Seafood Festival. Visit bcseafoodfestival.com for information about the whole festival and details on how to purchase tickets and register for events.

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In Cafe

[Sneak Peek] Nana’s Green Tea in Vancouver BC

Nana’s Green Tea is opening in Vancouver, BC on June 6th, 2018. Nana’s opened in Tokyo 10 years ago and is a Japanese cafe specializing in all things matcha. Matcha is powdered green tea popularly used in drinks and desserts. All the green tea leaves at nana’s are sourced from Kyoto, a production centre of high quality matcha. I personally love it and I first had Nana’s in Honolulu and damn, it was good.

There are 79 other locations around the world and they are aiming for 100 by 2019. Hopefully that means more locations in Vancouver and the rest of Canada.

Interior

The space is very narrow and deep. There is more seating in the back if you want to spend some time here enjoying your meal.

The design of the space is mostly wood and stainless steel with black and white walls. I like the art work on the walls as it reminds you of tea leaves with the variations of green colour.

Menu

Matcha Chocolate Latte

This is a smaller version of what would be served normally. You can get this iced or hot. It is made with the base of a matcha latte with whipped cream and chocolate.

Hoji-cha Shiratama Float

This was our favourite of the 3 we tried. The rice flour dumplings add a nice  chewy texture.The hoji-cha ice cream and latte have such good  deep tea flavours. Highly recommended.

Azuki Strawberry Latte

If you are a red bean fan, this might be for you. There is some strawberry syrup in the bottom with red beans. As the red beans are at the bottom, you suck them up in your straw like bubble tea. Unfortunately, this was my least favourite since I personally don’t like red bean.

Fresh Tuna with Curry Tartar Sauce Donburi

If you want something savoury, they have donburi bowls. This was amazing. The rice was very soft, the tuna was fresh and lightly marinated. There is also some veggies and then topped with curry tartar sauce. Man, if they put the curry tartar sauce between two pieces of bread, I would eat it all the time. It is also served with miso soup too. There is lots of seaweed in it too, which is nice.

Matcha Shiratama Parfait

One of the most popular and photogenic dessert is their matcha shiratama parfait. This is made of layers of matcha syrup, matcha pudding, vanilla soft serve, corn flakes, rice flour dumplings, azuki paste, matcha ice cream, whipped cream and more matcha syrup. This is the ultimate matcha dessert to share with friends.

Matcha Roll Cake

The matcha roll cake has a matcha sponge cake, then rolled in whipped cream and an intense centre of more matcha with a strong bitter taste. Watch out if you’re eating this as there is so much matcha that it may stain your lips.

Matcha Gateau Chocolat

This cake was surprisingly really good. It doesn’t look like much but it has a good balance of matcha and sweetness.

Final Thoughts

Nana’s Green Tea is a great addition to the Kerrisdale neighbourhood and I was pleasantly happy with the quality of their sweet and savoury dishes. They open on June 6th, 2018, so I can foresee line ups for the first week of opening.

Address: 2135 W 41st Ave, Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.nanasgreentea.com/en/

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In Cleaning

Easily Cleaning a Glass Stove Top with the Weiman Cook Top Kit

My glass stove top is a mess after a week of cooking. There are stains from pasta sauce and water that has boiled over. I have a love hate relationship with glass stove tops because they are a pain to clean up the burnt on gunk that just won’t go away from a good wipe. I feel pretty embarrassed when people look at my kitchen and see all the uncleanliness of the stove.

This post contains affiliate links, meaning, if you click through and make a purchase, I may earn a commission. This is at no additional cost to you.

I went to my local store and saw the Weiman Cook Top Kit for $9.99 to see if it would do the trick.

What’s in the Weiman Cook Top Kit?

In this small box, there is the cleaner and polish in a 2oz bottle, scrubbing pad, cleaning tool, and a razor scraper.

The cleanser and polish are really small, so don’t expect it to last long. I find this kit kinda like a tester to see if you like it or not.

Let’s Get Cleaning!

The instructions says to add a quarter sized amount of cleanser and polish on the cook top. Then you can start scrubbing away.

The scrubbing pad isn’t anything special, but the cleaning tool helps you apply even more force on the burnt stains. I added another quarter sized amount of cleanser since it didn’t feel like it was enough.

Afterwards when you’re happy that you’ve scrubbed hard enough or when your hands get tired, you can take a soft cloth or a paper towel to remove any residue.

Oh man, it sure did get A LOT of that residue off. Just look at all that grease and filth. I was really surprised it looked so brown.

For any spots that are still on there, you can use the scraper at a 45 degree angle to scrape it away. You need to flip the razor before using it to expose the sharp side. This device works pretty well as it lifts those stubborn spots.

The Results

I was surprised at the results. It took out about 95% if the grime. There were still a few tricky spots that I couldn’t remove but so far it’s been the best product I’ve used so far. When my husband walked home he instantly noticed how clean the stove is and didn’t notice the tiny spots.

A job well done and I would use the Weiman Cook Top Kit again. If I do run out of cleaner and polish, I’ll probably just buy a bigger bottle instead of getting the kit over and over again.

Where to buy

You can get it on Amazon for $9.99 and get it shipped to your home. Your local hardware or grocery stores may have it in the cleaning aisle.

 

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In Downtown

Kurumucho: Japanese Taco Shop in Vancouver

Kurumucho is a Japanese Taco Shop in Vancouver. M and I wanted to grab a bite before seeing a movie, so we decided to come here for some of their unique tacos. The menu looks very healthy, so it is one of the better options in the area.

Interior

The shop is small and very narrow. There are many seats but its suited for groups of 2 or 4.

Menu

Spider Sushi Taco

There is a whole soft shell crab in this tempura seaweed taco shell. There is also multigrain sushi rice, avocado, cucumber, alfalfa sprouts and their aurora sauce. It was pretty good with different textures and not heavy at all.

Soy Garlic Salmon Sushi Taco

In this tempura seaweed taco shell is wild sockeye salmon, multigrain sushi rice, avocado, cucumber, spring salad mix, soy garlic sauce, sesame seeds and nori on top. The quality of the salmon was really good and the taco overall had clean flavours. I enjoyed it.

Pork Brisket Kakuni Taco

This taco is a bit different as it’s on a tortilla wrap. There is pork brisket, spring lettuce mix, avocado, cayenne pepper, cilantro, Jalapeño, tomato, onion, pickled ginger, and a mustard garlic sauce. They highly recommended their taco and it was good.

Chicken Breast Karaage

We shared this dish and it was also delicious. It has the deep fried chicken breast with tonkatsu mayo. On the bottom of the bowl is spring lettuce mix. The chicken was surprisingly moist for chicken breast.

Beets Marble Ice Cream

This ice cream caught our eye and we had to get it. It has coconut milk, soy milk, cane sugar, beets, coconut oil, salt, guar gum, vanilla powder, vanilla extract and lemon juice. It is organic, vegan and gluten-free. We were pleasantly surprised.

Final Thoughts

Overall, the food at Kurumucho was delicious. I like how there are a lot of items on the menu that cater to those who are vegan, vegetarian or gluten-free. The sushi tacos are unique and they do a good job creating those tempura seaweed shells.

We Rate Kurumucho: 

Address:
985 Hornby St, Vancouver, BC

Website: https://www.kurumucho.com/

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In Dessert

2 Ingredient Matcha Affogato

This is a Japanese twist to a classic Italian Affogato, which is a scoop of ice cream with a shot of espresso. I thought to myself, what would happen if I substituted it with matcha instead of espresso? I got a delivery of Material Matcha Uji MU02, which is high quality smooth blend of Samidori and Okumidori matcha. To get your own, you can use promo code “DIANAFOODMMU10” for 10% off their site. It’s always handy to have some matcha around for making desserts, or making drinks. You’ll know it’s high quality matcha when it’s nice green and vibrant.

With the combination of the matcha and ice cream, it really make it taste like an ice matcha latte or matcha ice cream.

[tabs tab1=”Matcha Affogato” ]

[tab id=1]

Makes 1 serving

Ingredients:

  • 1-2 scoops Vanilla bean ice cream
  • 2 teaspoons Matcha powder
  • 60ml Warm water

Directions:

  1. In a small bowl, mix matcha and warm water with a chasen (wooden matcha whisk) and whisk in a zig zag motion to make it frothy. Once mixture is well combined, set aside.
  2. Scoop ice cream into a bowl and then pour the matcha mixture over top.
  3. Eat and enjoy.

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[/tabs]

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In Four Beakers

Original’s Café Mexicano: Authentic Mexican Cuisine in Port Moody

My friend Hilda told me about Original’s Café Mexicano on Clarke Street in Port Moody in this heritage house. I had no idea it was in such a cute place. We came here after work on a weekday and it was busy here later in the evening. They also take reservations, so if you have a large group to secure your table, definitely do that.

Interior

The space is literally in a house, so it has a very cozy friendly feel just like entering someone’s home.

Menu

Guacamole and Chips

We started the meal with guacamole and chips. The tortilla chips are made fresh and fried to a beautiful golden brown. The guacamole is is so damn good. There is a good amount of acidity and I like how it is topped with some diced tomatoes. Really good flavour.

Prawn Ceviche

This was their feature ceviche when we went. It changes, so ask them what kind it is as it may be different.  The prawns are cured in lime and served with guacamole, onions, cilantro, tomatoes, and avocado. It was really fresh.

Enchiladas de Mole

Their special mole has nuts, chocolate, a bunch of different dried peppers and spices. We chose to have chicken on the inside, but you can ask for different proteins or veggies too. The mole has depth of flavour and it was very tasty.

Los Tacos

They have tacos on the menu and we can’t say no to tacos. We ordered the:

  • Baja Style Taco: breaded white basa with chipotle mayo, lettuce and avocado.
  • Carnitas: slow cooked fried pork with hints of cinnamon and orange.
  • Chilorio: Slow cooked pulled porl in ancho and huajillo pepper.

On the table, there are also different kinds of hot sauce you can add.

Final Thoughts

Overall, it was a great find in Port Moody. The food is great and there is nice atmosphere in the heritage house, makes you feel right at home. As the weather is getting hotter, there is some outdoor patio seating too.

We Rate Original’s Café Mexicano: 

Website:
http://www.originalsmexicano.com/

Address:
1-2231 Clarke St, Port Moody, BC

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In Chinatown

Blazing Sushi: Food Court Aburi-style Sushi in Vancouver

Blazing Sushi recently opened up in the International Village Food Court by Stadium Skytrain in Vancouver. My friend told me about them serving up food court aburi-style sushi and that got me very curious how it can compare to the other places in town. Aburi-style is flame seared sushi, which was popularized by Miku and Minami.

Menu

They have other rolls and sushi burritos on the menu, but my eyes were fixated on their blow torched sushi combo with salad. The prices were good and under $10.

Making the Sushi

They lay out the sushi and add special mayo-based sauces on top in a zig-zag pattern until it is fully covered.

Then they take the blow-torch and make it sizzle and pop. Then they finish it off with some chili flakes.

Blow-torched Sushi and Salad

8 pieces of the torched sushi and salad for $8.80 is not bad at all. There is a lot of romaine salad with potato and crab salad with 2 pieces of egg.

On the left is the shrimp and on the right is the salmon. It is made up of a block of sushi rice and a layer of shrimp or salmon with torched sauce.

Shrimp

The shrimp version is interesting as it seems to remind me of a pizza with oregano or basil seasoning.

Salmon

The salmon was better and I liked the addition of the chilli flakes for added spice. I preferred the sauce on this one.

Final Thoughts

It’s interesting to see this style of sushi in a food court, but will do. It’s a stripped down version of what you’re used to.

We Rate Blazing Sushi: 

Address:
88 W Pender St, Vancouver

Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/blazingsushi.canada/

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In Cocktails

Dublin Calling Rooftop is Now Open on Granville Street

Dublin Calling is a Irish Pub and Kitchen on Granville Street. They recently launched their rooftop patio for the Summer for guests to gather over drinks, food and savour all the sunshine that will come our way. The the main floor, they have a lot of games like skee ball, darts, pool, ping pong and TV screens for the ultimate party setting. Check out our previous article about the space.

Rooftop

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Just head upstairs to the 3rd floor and you’ll find the rooftop. There are 2 bars  to get your drink on and also lots of high tops and booth seating for seat small to large groups.

They can seat up to 283 people in this space and is open until 2am.

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It’s one of Granville Streets only roof-top patios, so you’ll get lots of natural light if you want to kick back and relax after work.

Drinks

They have lots of drinks on tap, cocktails, caesars, and even margaritas in buckets.

This is such a cute idea since I don’t know who’s has ever drank an alcoholic drink out of a child’s pail. It definitely caught the attention of many people on the rooftop. Slowly everyone started getting this too.

Address:
900 Granville St, Vancouver, BC

Website:
https://dublincalling.com/vancouver/

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In Dessert

Mosquito: Dessert and Champagne Lounge in Vancouver

Mosquito is a dessert and champagne lounge in Vancouver located right in the heart of Gastown. There aren’t that many high-end dessert shops in the area, so we decided to come here after dinner for a drink and sweets. The lounge is very small, but is very relaxed for just hanging out with friends.

Menu

Pistachio Mille-feuilles

This layered dessert has pistachio crème légère, roasted strawberry, cocoa nibéstreusel,  strawberry jelly, and cocoa nib ice cream. We really enjoyed this dish due to its textures of the pistachio cream and streusel. It was devoured quickly and enjoyed by us all. The dessert is really a work of art since there are so many elements that make up the dish like those white chocolate feathers.

Thai Basil & Raspberry Chocolate Bar

This is constructed out of light chocolate mousse, Thai basil parfait, raspberry marmalade, blackout sponge, raspberry and chocolate ice cream. The ice cream was more like a sorbet due to the raspberry. This was a beautiful dessert but when it came to texture, it was all soft. It would have been nice to have a crunchy texture to the dish.

Earl Grey Tea

To go with dessert, I got their Earl Grey Tea in a small pot. We had some drinks before coming here, so we opted to caffeinate instead.

Final Thoughts

Overall, it’s one of the only sit down dessert restaurants in Gastown with a good vibe.  It’s definitely a place if you want to keep the conversation going after dinner with drinks.

We Rate Mosquito: 

Address:
32 Water St, Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://mosquitodessert.com/

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In Brunch

Earls Ambleside Beach: Brunch Happy Hour $8 Dishes

Earls has finally opened their Ambleside Beach location in West Vancouver. The new waterfront dining destination is in the Grosvenor Ambleside development a few feet from the water, which has a view of Lions Gate Bridge and Stanley Park. This is actually the first Earls to open in BC since 2010 and Earls Ambleside Beach was created specifically for this West Vancouver location and people in the area.

Interior

The interior is designed in a ‘West Coast meets California Beach’ style. They can seat up to 189 guests inside, while their patio will allow more than 80 guests to sit outside. You will also notice several commissioned artworks for their corporate art collection from Vancouver artists including Andy Dixon, Fiona Ackerman, Ben Skinner and all-female artist collective, Thrive Art Studio, for its art program. These custom works are featured prominently throughout the restaurant as part of the Earls commitment to supporting local artists.

Brunch Menu

There are 9 brunch items on the menu along with a few drinks. What I like about the menu is how there is brunch happy hour from opening till 11am where all the food is $8. What a steal.

Brunch Drinks

Alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks are on the menu. Very fancy to go well with brunch. I opted for my usual coffee in the morning, but if you’re in need of something a little bit more fancy, the option is there.

Smoothie Bowl

This hearty brunch bowl comes in 2 sizes and has fresh blueberries, strawberries, mint, toasted almonds, banana, flax seed granola, and spirulina. This dish is exclusive to this location.

Grilled Avocado Brunch Bowl

A very healthy option for breakfast as it has grilled zucchini, roasted sweet potato, tomato, avocado, romesco yogurt, and fried egg. That grilled avocado looks really good.

Avocado Brunch Toast

This has poached eggs, smashed avocado, furikake, chili and radish. They make the eggs perfectly soft and it’s another good option if you don’t want anything too meaty or rich.

Eggs Benedict

This classic breakfast has two poached eggs, classic hollandaise, virginia ham, toasted baguette, and it is served with crispy potatoes. I added a side of bacon onto it. The baguette was toasted so it was crisp on the outside and went with the bennies well.

Golden Waffles + Cream

A fun sweet item for those with a little sweet tooth in the morning. It has Chantily cream, maple syrup, and their seasonal compote over golden waffles.

Country Breakfast

There are 2 eggs sunny side up, bacon, sausage, grilled avocado, baked beans, crispy potatoes, and toast. A very big breakfast that is super filling.

Dim Sum Dumplings

There are 3 pieces of Shrimp Har Gau, 3 pieces of pork + shrimp Siu Mai, with tobiko, soy vinegar, and sriracha. Something a little bit different. They tasted ok, but not the best.

Final Thoughts

Overall, its great value for brunch happy hour for $8 per dish. The atmosphere is great and you can very close to the water. There is also lots of free parking spots too. If I’m in the area again, I’ll definitely be back.

Address:
1375 Bellevue Ave , West Vancouver BC

Website: https://earls.ca/locations/ambleside-beach

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In Cafe

Honolulu Coffee: Kona Coffee in Hawaii

Honolulu Coffee has been around since 1992 in downtown Honolulu. They have locations all around the world and there is one in Vancouver that I’ve been to before, but when in Honolulu, I had to come here to see how it really supposed to be like.

Kona Coffee

When we first walked in, there is tons of Kona coffee packed and ready to take home. Given this is in Waikiki and right beside a hotel, a lot of people like to buy them and get them as gifts.

Gibraltar

This fancy drink comprised of a smooth espresso shot with milk, served with a glass of sparkling water and 3 espresso beans. I enjoyed it as the espresso used in it was great. I liked the addition of the sparkling water and espresso beans.

Final Thoughts

It was a good stop in the morning for some coffee before we went to our next eating adventure on this Hawaiian vacation. I definitly liked this a lot more than the location in Vancouver. Coffee here is really good and won’t disappoint. I would come back again.

We Rate Honolulu Coffee: 

Address:
2365 Kalakaua Ave, Honolulu, HI

Website:
https://www.honolulucoffee.com

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In British Columbia

Cineplex Cinemas D-Box: Review

One of the newer features at Cineplex is their D-Box immersive experience where the seats rumble and move with the movie. We came here on a Tuesday, when the prices are cheaper than the rest of the week to watch Avengers: Infinity War. They are around $25 regularly and $14 on a Tuesday, definitely not cheap but at least the seats are reserved ahead of time, but that is slowly becoming the norm.

Theatre Entrance

The area where D-Box seats are at the Scotiabank Theatre in Downtown Vancouver is in their Ultra AVX area. You won’t find any fancy signs.

30 Seats Inside the Theatre

D-Box seats are in red and there are only 30 seats per theatre. 3 rows of 10 seats each. The rest of the seats in the Ultra AVX theatre is dark blue. With every scene, you can feel the motion and on-screen action in your own seat. The movie is coded, frame by frame, to create to matching motion effects that syncs with the movie and people either love it or hate it.

View from the seats

We chose the first row of D-Box smack in the middle and this is the view. Not bad at all.

Seat Controls

Each seat has a control where you can have 4 levels of intensity to how intense you want the rumble. My husband liked it at full blast, but I prefer to have it with very minimal movement as it felt more like someone was vigorously kicking my seat. You will feel every pan or zoom of the camera. Alternatively you can turn it off, but you are spending quite a bit on the tickets to experience this…unless you were the unwilling guest.

Final Thought

You are paying a premium to sit in these seats and I didn’t like the motion at all not matter which setting I used. Any movement of the chair, I felt like I was focusing less on the movie as I was fixated on deciding if I should turn the motion off or keep it on.

I definitely wouldn’t spend the extra money on D-Box, but that is my personal preference. Have you been? What was your experience?

Website: https://www.cineplex.com/Theatres/D-Box

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In British Columbia

Terra Vancouver: Unique Plant-based Pop Up Dinners

Terra Vancouver creates unique plant-based pop ups in Vancouver, British Columbia. Their goal is to bring together great culinary expertise and passion for innovative dining experiences for gluten-free and vegan lifestyles – perfect for Vancouverites.

These events are currently hosted once a month, each one at a different location, with a different theme, and menu. For the month of May, we were delighted to attend the inaugural pop up at Mission Kits with the meal created by Chef Max Straczek and David from Terra Vancouver.

Canapes

The meal began with beautifully presented canapes which included Beetroot cappuccino lemon verbena foam, vegetable “pirogies” – bean filling / turnip wrapper, carrot tartare, and a sesame spinach gomae. All the canapes are paired with Prosecco.

The perogies has a fresh crispness to the radish with  the bean filling. The beetroot cappuccino had a rich yet smooth sweet beet favour. You can see the deep beautiful colour.

The carrot tartare had a nice texture and a crunch in every bite. Also a perfect touch of sweetness too.

The spinach gomae has crispy textures and is complimented with an acidic tangy taste. All the flavours tied in very well together.

Course 1: Cauliflower soup

This dish is themed around the many uses of cauliflower. The flavours were very smooth and every spoonful had a different flavour but each were delicious. The taste of the creamy coconut cauliflower broth did shine through. You can see the crispy cauliflower, mint jelly, pickled grapes and fried capers on the side. This was able to add saltiness, sweetness and texture to the dish overall.

Course 2: Asparagus

This beautifully green inspired dish has asaparagus, charred jus of asapagus, marinated zucchini rolls filled with lemon confit, almond and garlic puree, peas, and quinoa. The dish was fresh yet warm and comforting., like a twist on a traditional risotto. Overall, it has a very mild green pea flavour. The Tannat grape wine from France that was paired with this dish goes well with asparagus.

Course 3

This dish had potato rosti, roasted and pickled turnips, roasted king oyster mushroom, roasted celery roo, vegan demi and truffle duxelle. The flavour were amazing, simply delicious.

Courses 4: “Cheese”

In this dish is nettle crusted grapefruit mostarda cheddar, sorrel, horseradish, and crispy broccoli tips. The cheese is made of cashew milk, which was a great substitute to the real thing as it tasted very real.

Pallet cleanser

The pallet cleaners is made of compressed cucumber with red wine vinegar and sugar. Very tangy but sweet at the same time

Course 5: Dessert

This vibrant dessert has cocoa crumb, coffee crumb, raspberry caviar, a raspberry gel, and vegan chocolate with a pop rock surprise.

Lastly an acorn and peanut butter square.

Everyone went home with a nicely packaged apple jam. A little reminder of this deliciously prepared meal. Hilda was impressed with all the dishes and this meal exceeded my expectations. The food was very fresh and creative. Everything was very well done and she would come back again.

Visit their website – terravancouver.ca for future pop up dinners around Vancouver. Their next dinner is set for June 25th 2018 to showcase the seasonality of ingredients through Spring to Summer.

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Ramen Koika: More Ramen on Robson Street

Ramen Koika has opened another location on Robson street to join all the other Ramen shops on the same street. It has taken over the previous location of Hapa Izakaya. We came to check out a bunch of their appetizers as well as a few of their ramen dishes.

Interior

The interior is large and there are lots of tables for small to large groups compared to their Davie street location.

Menu

Minions Dice

Minions Dice has 4 pieces of deep fried tofu with their special sauce and green onions. It came piping hot and it’s a good small bite to go with ramen.

Golden Scallop Fry

An order comes with 3 pieces of the deep fried scallops in a panko crust. It is then topped with teriyaki sauce.

Takoyaki Balls

The takoyaki pieces have octopus in the centre and then topped with mayo and takoyaki sauce.

Puri-Puri Ebi

You will get 4 pieces of the deep fried panko breaded jumbo shrimp with tartar sauce, sesame and parsley. Crisp when eaten right away or else it gets a bit soggy if you wait too long.

Coco Karaage

This has their house deep fried boneless chicken with a spicy sauce and sesame seeds. It was a bit spicy and a tad sweet.

Creamy Croquette

Inside the croquette is corn, onion, mashed potato, and mozzarella cheese. 3 pieces per order.

Pork gyoza

You get 5 pieces to the order. It has juicy pork on the inside and crisp on one side.

Pork Bao

The pork bao has shredded pork, marinated onion, green onion with their special sauce with mayo inside this bao. I didn’t particularly like this as it was too saucy.

Veggie Triple Black Garlic Ramen

In this ramen, you will find tofu, egg, bean sprouts, spinach, bamboo shoots, green onion, roasted seaweed, and the triple black garlic oil served with their thin noodle. A good option if you don’t want any  meat. The garlic is is very delicious.

Triple Black Garlic Ramen

This is their regular ramen with cha-shu, spinach, egg, bamboo shoots, roasted seaweed, green onion, garlic chips and the triple black garlic oil. The cha-chu was fatty and delicious. The amount of garlic was fragrant and I enjoyed it. I would have wished for a little bit more broth.

Chicken Tamago Ramen

If you love chicken, you will find 2 eggs, garlic chips, bamboo shoots, green onions and the chicken broth with thin noodles. The chicken broth was rich and delicious.

King’s Seafood Ramen

The King’s Seafood Ramen is a beauty and you can get this from mild to spicy. There is blue crab, clams, green mussels, cabbage, black tree fungus, onion, red pepper, green pepper, Thai chili, bean sprouts and sprinkled with more red pepper. If you love spice and seafood, this would be good for you.

Kimchi Ramen

This has the base of chicken broth and it also has shredded pork, kimchi, mushroom, spring onion, onion, cabbage and green onion. You can get this mild or spicy.

Queen’s Ramen

Queen’s ramen has carrot, cabbage, mushroom, green onions, spring onions, bean sprouts, and the chicken broth can be mild or spicy. We had it spicy and it was pretty darn spicy.

Sapporo Miso Ramen

Stir-fried ground pork, bean sprout, green onion, and corn in the noodles and pork broth.

Tonkotsu Shio Ramen

There is chashu, bamboo shoots, roasted seaweed, green onion, spinach, and bean sprouts with the thin noodles and the pork broth.

Final Thoughts

It’s good to have Ramen Koika join this street as they have a large variety of pork and chicken broth ramen with the ability to have spicy or mild broth. My favourite of all the ramen options us the triple black garlic since I love garlic.

Address:
1479 Robson St, Vancouver, BC

Website:
https://www.ramenkoika.com/

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In Bakery

Kamehameha Bakery: Poi Glazed Donuts in Hawaii

Kamehameha Bakery is best known for their poi glazed donuts located right in Honolulu since 1978. We were told by several people to come here to check it out if we were in the area.

The interior there isn’t anything special but they do have lots and lots of pastries for sale.

Poi Glazed Donut

We grabbed one and it was a dollar each.

It looks brown on the outside with glaze, but when you bite into it, it’s purple like poi, which is taro stem. It was delicious and definitely hard to find elsewhere around the world as its a local specialty.

The next day, we were on a tour around the island and tour included some poi glazed donuts from Kamehameha Bakery. Not a bad thing to have it twice on our trip to Hawaii.

If you’re close by, I would suggest it as it makes for a nice sweet treat in Hawaii.

We Rate Kamehameha Bakery: 

Address:
1284 Kalani St, Honolulu, HI

Address:
http://www.kamehamehabakeryhi.com/

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In BBQ

Helena’s Hawaiian Food: Must Visit in Hawaii

Helena’s Hawaiian Foods in Honolulu is a must for locals and visitors since 1946. In 2000, the James Beard Foundation awarded Helena’s Hawaiian Food the Regional Classic Award, which is awesome. Everyone told me to come here, so we made it a mission to visit when we were here. They aren’t open Saturday, Sunday, or Monday, so you have to be aware of that before visiting.

We visited on a Friday morning and there were no line ups. We were seated promptly and given menus and water. The atmosphere is very casual and has the Hawaiian hospitality.

Menu

Kalua Pig

The kalua pig was shredded and it was deliciously smoked and had a lot of moisture as it is served with the drippings.

Poi

Poi is the stem of taro and a Polynesian staple. It is crushed and then left to ferment. We heard that most people don’t like the taste, but we had to try it for ourselves. The initial taste was good and earthy but then the sour taste from the fermentation lingered for a little bit. It was like eating kombucha.

Short Ribs Pipikaula Style

At first we didn’t order, but they insisted we order it as its one of the most popular items on the menu and we were glad we did. it was deliciously marinated and tender. So much flavour.

Fried Butterfish Collar

This was another must! Moist in the centre and super crisp. So damn addictive. I would highly recommend this too.

Haupia

Haupia is a traditional coconut milk-based Hawaiian dessert made, essentially a coconut pudding. It came served with raw onions. I tried it together but was a weird combination for myself. If you stick with just the haupia, you’ll be ok.

Final Thoughts

I really enjoyed Helena’s as the prices are good, food is tasty, and I liked the casual friendly vibe. My favourite items were the fried butterfish collar, short ribs, and kalua pig. If you’re in Honolulu, you need to make a stop here. Just remember to bring cash as it’s cash only.

We Rate Helena’s Hawaiian Cuisine: 

Address:
1240 N School St, Honolulu, HI

Website:
https://www.helenashawaiianfood.com/index.html

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In Brunch

Rhino Coffee House: Coffee and Donuts in Tofino, BC

A trip to Tofino isn’t complete without a little bit of morning indulgence at Rhino Coffee House. Food Network Chef Lynn Crawford made a visit a few years ago for her show – The Great Canadian Cookbook and I always remembered that I needed to add this to my eating list when I came back to Tofino. We came here on a Friday morning at 8am and there was a steady stream of customers.

The best combination here is a donut and a coffee. If you want something more savoury, they have wraps and sandwiches on the menu too.

There is a window so you can look inside where everything is made. Nothing was happening when we were here, but its nice to know its all done here.

If you want to have coffee in-house, you get to use their fun mugs that remind you at home because of all the retro mismatching mugs.

Our donuts were ready right away and we waited patiently for our lattes and cappuccinos to be ready.

Latte

The latte was great and there was some latte art on top. A good ratio of espresso and steamed milk to create this.

The Corelle cup really brought me back to my childhood as we had the matching plates.

Cinnamon Sugar Donut

A good simple donut with a light dusting of sugar and cinnamon. The base donut was good too.

Sour cream beer glaze

My favourite donut! It has a nice crunch to the exterior of the donut and the glaze was delicious. You must get it!

Breakfast Wrap

In this wrap is two scrambled eggs, bacon, braised beans, salsa, avocado, aged cheddar, spinach, and chipotle mayo. It is very filling for breakfast, but

Bro-Nut

This is the donut-sandwich you’ve been looking for. It has a fried egg, choice of bacon, ham or sausage, tomato, aged cheddar, lettuce, on a homemade savoury donut. I got bacon and it was essentially an amazing BLT donut sandwich. The donut went so well with it and it wasn’t sweet. I would totally have this again.

Take a taste of Rhino Coffee house with you

You can also purchase beans in store or online if you want to continue having the Rhino Coffee House experience at home. A ceramic mug, espresso beans and their dark roast made its way into my luggage.

Final Thoughts

Overall, I loved having breakfast here early in the morning. A coffee and donut are a must. The bro-nut and sour cream beer glaze donuts I would get again with a cup of coffee. If you’re in the area and need a quick casual breakfast, make a stop here.

Address:
430 Campbell St, Tofino, BC

Website: 
https://www.rhinocoffeehouse.com

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