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Coquitlam

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Ddoo Gau Bee is a Korean Restaurant on North Road that serves up traditional Korean food. They also make sushi, but I actually have never ordered it here.

A long time ago, I use to come to Ddoo Gau Bee often, but after an incident where they rushed our table out due to another reservation and chased us down because we didn’t tip enough. It left a very sour taste in my friends mouth. M, Scarface, InsecureGirl and I were in the area and decided to give it another go. Years have passed and perhaps something has changed.

This time, we walked in the door at 3pm and the place was empty. The 4 of us stood in the middle of the restaurant, but there was no one in sight. It took the workers in the back to notice we were standing there looking super confused. Instead of a waitress or waiter telling us which seat to sit at, one of the kitchen staff showed us where to sit. I’m sure this doesn’t happen during the busier times in the day, but it’s lunch time at anytime for students.

We started off with complementary side dishes. It has spinach, potatoes, picked radish and kimchi. M really enjoyed the kimchi because it has a homemade taste. Since he is Korean, he seems to have a 6th sense about kimchi. He says you know by the fresh crisp bite of the cabbage.

Kan Poong Ki ($16.95) is fried crispy chicken in hot chili vegetable sauce. It’s pretty good and delicious! It’s a bit sweet and spicy at the same time. It’s a bit pricey, but it’s similarly priced to other restaurants in the area.  

Jajang with rice ($7.95) is is the black bean sauce served over rice with a side of egg. There usually isn’t the egg on the side, but for some reason there was. The best way to eat the dish is by mixing the rice and sauce thoroughly. 

Spicy Pork ($9.95) comes on a sizzling place and it is very spicy. As you can see by the red sauce, it will hurt you later in the evening ….if you know what I mean. This comes with a side of rice. 

Jam Ja Bok ($9.95) has Jajang Mein, jampong and fried rice. The jajang mein and jampong comes is a dish thats split in half. The jajang mein has noodles on the bottom, so you will need to mix it well.

The jampong is always very spicy to me. It is essentially a spicy seafood noodle soup. I found both of their tastes pretty average. You do get your moneys worth since you do get to have 3 different dishes in 1.

The fried rice that comes with the Jam Ja Bok combo is not bad. It has the scrambled egg on top covering the fried rice. I guess you can call this omurice (omelette + rice).

Overall, the food was alright, but I would not say it was exceptional. The service is also mediocre. This place is good for large groups if you want a venue for a large birthday party. In terms of just the food, I much prefer Hee Rae Deung Korean Chinese Restaurant a few blocks away.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Large varied menu
  • Traditional Korean Restaurant  that also serves sushi
  • Takes reservations…but no need on a usual day if its a small group
  • Large space for large groups/parties
  • Mediocre service

We Rate Ddoo Gau Bee: 
Address:

203-4501 North Road
Burnaby, BC V3N

Website:
www.ddoogaubee.com
Ddoo Gau Bee on Urbanspoon

Back to Kulinarya to have the last supper with Fabo before she heads off to Western to finish off her degree. We wanted something good in the Coquitlam area, so we decided to eat here.

It wasn’t very busy in the evening, so finding a table was no issue. Something about all the mirros and the old style wall paper just creeps me out. I think it’s because I watched too many horror films.

Dalandan Soda ($2) is a carbonated lime-like soda. It tasted pretty good, but I really didn’t like the look of the can. I am a bit of a design nazi.

Calamansi Juice ($2) is essentially lime juice made out of calamansi- the tiny tiny Filipino limes. It tastes very good and it’s something you should try.

Both of them taste somewhat similar, but the Dalandan Soda is carbonated and Calamansi is not carbonated.

Large Garlic Rice ($4.50) is very good and it has a good amount of garlic flavour. Very aromatic and tasty. If you are tired of just plain rice, this is a good change.

Pancit Malabon ($12) are thick rice noodles garnished with shrimps, hardboiled eggs, smoked fish flakes and pork cracklings. I thought this dish was alright, not that special.

Sizzling Sisig ($10) is crispy minced pork served on a sizzling plate. In the middle of the plate, there is a raw egg.  All you need to do is mix everything together and it’s just yummy. Don’t eat this dish on your own because it’s filled with a lot of calories! The taste is so good, but it’s best with a bit of rice as well because it’s quite oily.

I have this every time and it’s pretty delicious.

Lechon Kawali ($9) is deep fried pork belly. The skin is super crispy, but it was also very fatty at the same time. I didn’t like the end pieces because there isn’t too much meat. As you can tell there is a large glob of fat at the end. It’s a dish that is meant to be shared. It’s still pretty delicious but when you eat too much. you won’t feel to good.

Overall, pretty consistant and delicious between the 2 visits that I’ve been here. THe best dishes are the ones with meat!

Words of Wisdom:

  • Free Parking in the front
  • A bit expensive
  • Pretty good authentic Filipino food
  • Most dishes are meant for sharing
  • Busy during peak hours
  • Popular for take out

We Rate Kulinarya: 

Address:

114 – 2922 Glen Drive
Coquitlam, BC

Website:
www.kulinarya.ca

Kulinarya on Urbanspoon

After a long day, Monster, ConsultingGirl and I headed to Sushi California to grab some cheap sushi. I’ve been here before, but its still one of those go to places for decent cheap food.

The lines were starting to pile up and they wanted to seat the 3 of us at a 2 person table, but was very very cramped. They were quite hesitant to give us a table of 4 since they know they could seat more people soon. With a little bit of negotiating, the waitress let us sit at a table of 4 instead.

Here is a shot of their menu. They have the usual items and it’s not an overly complicated list.

The combos are pretty well priced too.

Seafood Salad ($5.95) looked very disappointing! it came with a bed of glass noodles, lettuce, cucumbers, and carrots. It is topped with octopus, 2 stick of imitation crab meat, slice of smoked salmon, piece of ebi and wasabi mayo.

This was really not what I was expecting. When did salad come with a bunch of noodles?

The salad also came with a huge side of salad dressing. With the noodles, the salad was a bit soggy to begin with, but the amount of salad dressing was way too much. We only added a little bit to it.

The salad didn’t taste good either. I would never order this again.

Salmon Sashimi (Half Order – $5.50) is a good item to order. It is sliced nice and thick so you get your moneys worth!

Chicken Karrage ($3.95) comes with 6 pieces and was very moist inside.

Spicy Salmon ($2.95) is not on the menu, but Monster didn’t like tuna, so she asked them to substitute and they were able to. It comes with 8 pieces and has enough spice to give your mouth a tingle.

California Roll ($2.95) has the usual imitation crab and avocados. It also comes with 8 pieces.

Chopped Scallop ($3.95) was pretty good and comes with 8 pieces. Similar to most sushi joints.

Spider Roll ($6.95) comes with 6 pieces and has cucumber, lettuce and fried soft shell crab inside.

Overall, this is not the best Japanese restaurant in Coquitlam. It just has cheap affordable sushi. You really get what you pay for. The service is not that great and this place is usually packed.

 Words of Wisdom:

  • Good Prices
  • Horrible service
  • Very busy during peak hours
  • Take Out option

We rate Sushi California: 

Address:

501A North Road in Coquitlam, BC

Sushi California on Urbanspoon

Since I live near the Lougheed area, I wanted to try something different with M, BusanGirl and PoliceMan. I was tired of the usual Korean and Japanese Restaurants in the area, so I did a bit of research to find Fuji Sushi. I’ve never heard of this place before and it seems like it’s a local favorite for the people in the Burquitlam area.

When we arrived, the place was packed and there were also a few people in line. They have 2 bigger areas in the back for larger groups and everything else seats 1, 2 or 4. If you do come here with a large group of 4+, it’s best to make a reservation just so you don’t have to wait in line, or have awkward seating.

When we arrived, it took us a while to get our seat. As we were waiting, we actually considered perhaps just going elsewhere, but as we began to walk away, our table became available.

   

The menu has the usual items you would find in a Japanese restaurant. The prices are decent, but they are slightly higher than other places.

Since I found out that I passed my Finance course at SFU, I really needed a drink to relieve all the stress.

I had to get a bottle of Sapporo to celebrate! I thought it was funny how they gave me a Kirin glass to go with it. It boggles your mind when you drink from it.

M got his usual warm house sake. I don’t think we ever know what brand or type of sake we get. He loves sake no matter what brand or type.

Katsudon ($8.50) has a fried pork cutlet with egg, onions, green onions and pickled diakon. M thought it was quite average, but it wasn’t bad or anything like that. 

Dinner Box – Sashimi Combo ($14.50) is comes with tuna and salmon sashimi, beef teriyaki, tempura, grilled salmon, fruit, garden salad, rice and miso soup. BusanGirl and PoliceMan shared this since they both weren’t too hungry. They enjoyed everything, but they did not take a liking towards the grilled salmon.

Miso soup that comes with the combo is just normal. Miso soup isn’t complicated since it’s just mixing water with miso paste. It’s just your standard miso soup with green onions.

Fried Oyster ($4) came with 3 pieces. They are medium sized oysters that are breaded and fried. The oysters were pretty good with a crunchy thin crust. It also tasted quite fresh as well.

 California Roll ($2.50) has tobiko, artificial crab meat and avocados. It was alright, but it’s not the best.

Spicy Tuna Roll ($3.75) has a large chunk of tuna sashimi with green onions and spicy sauce. I liked this because even though the spicy sauce isn’t mixed into the tuna, they add enough sauce around it that there is enough spiciness.

Overall, it’s a decent place to go to. It might just be equivalent to California Sushi.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Bento Boxes are good value
  • Good fresh quality sashimi
  • Line ups at peak hours, make reservations
  • Decent Service

We Rate Fuji Sushi: 

Address:

526 Clarke Rd
Coquitlam, BC V3J

Website:
www.fujisushi.com
Fuji Sushi on Urbanspoon

I came to Wings with a bunch of SFU-ers to chill, hangout and of course eat! What was very ironic is that we did not order any wings. For a place called wings, you would think we would order wings. Since it was not a Sunday and they did not have any wing specials, we all ordered entrees. Don’t get me wrong, the wings are good, but it’s best to come here on Sunday for the specials.

ShumBum ordered the Chicken and Cheese Quesadilla. It comes with a side of sour cream. The dish is nice and colorful using 2 types of tortilla wraps – tomato and herb. The inside of the quesadilla had a good amount of chicken and cheese.

KoreanGirl had the Fiji Blond Beer-Battered Fish and Chips. It comes with fries, tartar sauce and coleslaw. It has a generous amount of fish. There was so much that she did not end up finishing it. Nicely battered on the outside with delicate meat on the inside.

I ordered the Beef Dip. I chose the salad on the side instead of the fries since I know I didn’t need the excess calories from the fries. The beef dip is served on a garlic herb ciabatta with a large amount of beef and a side of au jus for dipping.

The au jus is what really makes the beef dip amazing. Once you dip the sandwich in there, it just soaks up all those nice fatty flavours from the sauce. I fell in love with the beef dip and its a worthwhile dish to order.

Overall, not bad choices from Wings. It’s great for accommodating large groups.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Decent priced items
  • Sunday wings special
  • Good Beef Dip
  • Great for large groups
  • Beer specials and they can create some nasty shots for the Bday boys/girls
We Rate Wings: 

Address:

345 North Road
Coquitlam, BC

Website:
www.greatwings.ca
Wings in Coquitlam on Urbanspoon

M was in the mood for something “different” and I kinda ran out of ideas…but since I have never had Filipino food, I thought we could go with Scarface to Kulinarya in Coquitlam.

This little restaurant in just north of Coquitlam Mall  and specializes in Filipino food. Since M and I had no idea what we were ordering, we just left it to ScarFace to order all the food.

The interior is very small, so it does get busy during peak times. Since we went at 2pm, it wasn’t busy at all.

The menu can be found on the walls or just on the paper menu that is given.

Drink Dessert Menu

You get a small dish of complementary corn nuts. These corn nuts were very good and lightly seasoned. Much better than the corn nuts you buy at the store. It is light and airy so biting into it is no problem at all.

Calamansi Juice ($2) is essentially lime juice made out of calamansi- the tiny tiny Filipino limes. It tastes very good and it’s something you should try.

The Sago Gulaman ($3.50) is a popular Filipino refreshment served in a tall glass. It is made of sugar water, shredded ice, jellies and tapioca balls.

The waiter said the drink is similar to Taiwanese Bubble Tea, but it’s only the “bubble-like” texture of the tapioca balls and jellies that is similar. The drink was alright, but I wouldn’t order it again.

We started off with the Ginataang Baka ($12). It is beef with various vegetables in coconut curry type of sauce. Their version has potatoes, carrots, celery, peas and onions.

The beef was very tender and it was basically like a curry. For $12, it didn’t seem worth it for the price since you can’t really eat it on it’s own.

We also ordered the large Garlic Rice ($4.50). We used this to accompany the Ginataang Baka. The addition of the garlic was just great! Very aromatic!

The second dish was ordered was the Pinakbet ($9). It has pork and vegetables in a shrimp paste sauce.  This was different than the usual Pinakbet as Scarface told us. It was missing quite a few ingredients than the traditional Pinakbet.

This one has okra, green beans, bitter melon, eggplant and green onions.  This tasted all right and the the ingredients tasted quite fresh. I loved the okra, I think I was the only one that ate them all. I really didn’t like the bitter melon in this dish, but I know some people do like it.

The most memorable dish of this meal was the Sizzling Sisig ($10). It is crispy minced pork served on a sizzling plate. On the middle of the plate is a raw egg. You must mix everything together and it’s just so delicious. Don’t eat this dish on your own because it’s filled with a lot of calories! The taste is so good, but it’s best with a bit of rice as well because it’s quite oily.

Overall, the food was not bad and it’s great to see what Filipino Cuisine tastes like. The only issue is that a lot of the menu items are hard to choose from because if you aren’t familiar with the items, you have no idea what you are ordering. Plus, a few of the dishes are quite expensive and can rack up your bill.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Free Parking in the front
  • A bit expensive
  • Pretty good authentic Filipino food
  • Sizzling Sisig is highly recommended
  • Busy during peak hours
  • Popular for take out

We Rate Kulinarya: 

Address:

114 – 2922 Glen Drive
Coquitlam, BC

Website:
www.kulinarya.ca

Kulinarya on Urbanspoon

At the beginning of the semester after a meeting, we all headed down to Dasarang, a new Korean chicken restaurant to eat and mingle with other members of the club.

Dasarang is your usual Korean restaurant that’s has chicken, Korean food and alcohol.

The place is quite large and a little bit dark. Great for group parties.

Their menu has a bit of variety, but most of it is chicken. All the plates are supposed to be shared with others, thus the higher price tag on the menu.

We started off with a pitcher of Granville Island Honey Lager ($15.95).

As we waited, we were given side dishes of pickled radish and cabbage salad. It tasted ok, I think its supposed to be eaten with the chicken to refresh your pallet.

We first ordered the Half & Half ( $18.95). Half of the fired chicken is doused in a spicy hot sauce and the other half is normal seasoned fried chicken. The hot fried chicken in VERY hot! Even the Koreans agreed it was on the spicier side. I really couldn’t candle it after a few pieces.

The texture of the chicken was quite nice, tender, and juicy.

The next order that we got was the soonsal chicken ($17.95). Similar to the fried chicken before but boneless. It was pretty good!

Overall, the chicken was not bad, but a bit pricey. Might as well buy a few chickens at the store for that price. Since I am not a chicken expert, I asked the Koreans what their input was and how did it compare to the authentic chicken in Korea. They said it was pretty close and it seemed to be one of the better chicken places they have been to in Burnaby or Vancouver.

I would say this is not the best place to take your family since it seems more like a Korean bar with chicken. With the steep price tag, it’s not worth it. This place is best for late nights drinking with a plate of chicken.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Expensive
  • dark atmosphere
  • service is mediocre
  • pretty good chicken
  • Lots of parking in the front but parking gets pretty full around peak hours

We Rate Dasarang Chicken:

Address:

4501 North Rd
Burnaby, BC
Dasarang Chicken on Urbanspoon

JoJoCake’s Birthday was here and she wanted suggestions to have a small get together. Fabo always keeps telling me to go to Jimoco Café & Pasta to try their pasta. Since it was close to where JojoCake wanted to eat, we just decided to go there.

There are best known for their pasta and their 2 for 1 deals. When we arrived, there was a huge grand opening sign for 2 for 1 pasta…according to Fabo, they have always had that deal since 1.5 years ago.

Jimoco is quite narrow inside, so there are not that man seats. It is highly recommended to call ahead for reservations.

Here are shots of their menu.

Garlic bread arrives and it was all right. It is lightly buttered on one side and not a lot of taste to it.

A few of us shared the Calamaretti Fritti ($6.50). It is just fried calamari. It tasted average, but the price was decent.

Fabo and KoreanGirl both ordered the Linguine al frutti di mare ($7). It has seafood in tomato, sauce.  It is Fabo’s favorite pasta here. It has 2 clams, 2 mussels, shrimp and scallops.

CanuckGirl got the cream version of this.

JojoCake had the Penne alla bombay ($7). It has chicken and tomatoes in a curry cream sauce.

I ordered the Risotto al frutti di mare ($7). It is risotto with seafood in a cream sauce. This dish was very very rich and got me full pretty fast. The first few bites were pretty good, but eventually it was a bit too creamy and fatty for my liking.

Overall, it was pretty average food. Nothing really outstanding. The only strength is just the cheap price. This place is quite popular with the Korean community in Coquitlam.

Words of Wisdom:

  • 2 for 1 pasta
  • Decent pasta
  • Free parking in the front and rear
  • Under $10
  • Should make reservations

We Rate Jimoco: 

Address:

1046 Austin Ave
Coquitlam, BC
Jimoco Cafe & Pasta on Urbanspoon

Bubble World is a great place to just chill with friends. TaxMan was back in town, so it just seemed right to catch up with him, M and Scarface.

We decided to go to the North Road Bubble Word location because it’s closer than all the other locations. They have lots of space to sit and talk. It’s best for groups of 4 -6 people. This location does not serve food nor does it serve the drinks in nice cups. It is mostly to go in the plastic cups.

I’ve never loved the bubble tea here for these reasons:

  • Most drinks made from powder
  • No healthy options like – real milk or fresh fruit

Granted that they do have a few fresh fruit options like Watermelon Slush but its doused in lots of sugary syrup. Bubble World is a chain, so I guess we can’t expect too much.

I usually stick with the hot Milk Tea or the Hot Milky Malt Tea. I find that they use less malt or whatever those crispy little bits in the drink. They use quite a bit of coffee mate in this drink.

M had the chocolate milky tea. He usually gets sick when he has the powdered coffee mate, so he had to talk to the owner for a bit to get real milk into his bubble tea.

The bubble tea here is decent, but it’s pretty standard. Very minimal service since you have to go up to the counter to order and pay.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Lots of seats, group of 4 – 6 is best
  • Most drinks made with powder
  • Can special request milk instead of powdered milk
  • under $10
  • Closest Skytrain: Lougheed Town Center

We Rate Bubble World:

Address:

555 North Road
Coquitlam, BC
Bubble World (Coquitlam) on Urbanspoon

I have a lot of Korean friends and they were raving about how Coldstone was finally in Vancouver. Apparently it’s really big in Korea. Fabo took CubedTee, M, ScarFace, TanGuy and myself to the Coquitlam location.

When we got there, I expected to see a store that was on its own, but it seems like Coldstone can only be found in selected Tim Hortons. I guess that’s how they are bringing Coldstone into the Canadian market. The Coldstone at Metropolis is also inside a Tim Hortons.

Coldstone is very similar to Marble Slab Creamery, but instead of a cold marble surface to mix you ice cream, they have a cold stone, thus the name.

They have interesting names for their 3 sizes of ice cream – Like It, Love It and Gotta Have It.

One their menu has some premade flavours and topping concoctions, while the other one had ‘do it yourself ‘options, shakes and smoothies.

I decided to go for the ‘Do it Yourself’ option because I didn’t like any of the combinations. I chose my size – Love It, and then I chose the Cotton Candy Ice Cream.

The third step was to “pick from an endless combinations of mix-ins”. I thought we could pick any amount of toppings we wanted… so I put 5 toppings into mine – Skor, KitKat, Reese’s, almonds and walnuts. After the 3rd topping, the person making my ice cream started giving me a funny look and I didn’t know why…until I went to the cashier…

Since I ordered so many toppings, can you imagine how hard it was to mix the toppings into the ice cream?

When I got to the cashier, I was charged for the base price ($3.69) + Waffle bowl ($0.85) + 5 toppings ($4.25). The toppings came out to be the same price as the bowl and ice cream……WOW. This small sundae became a $9 treat. Note to self, read signs carefully.

Since this was entrenched in so many nutty toppings, I could not taste any of the cotton candy ice cream! Every single bite was packed with nuts. Ya… I should never misread signs.

Everyone else got the Signature Creations so they didn’t have to end up like me.

M ordered the ‘Peanut Butter Cup Perfection’. It has Chocolate ice cream, peanut putter, Reese’s and fudge. This was very peanutty and sweet! If you are a chocolate and peanut fan, you should get this. If not, you may want to get something else.

Fabo had the ‘Coffee Lovers Only’. It has coffee Ice cream with Skor, almonds and caramel. This is her all time favorite.

TanGuy was feeling a bit girly today and got the ‘Our Strawberry Blonde’. It has strawberry ice cream, graham crackers, strawberries, caramel and whipped cream.

CubedTee has the ’Mint Mint Chocolate Chocolate Chip’. It has mint ice cream, chocolate chips, brownie and fudge.

There are lots of options and yes, the combinations are limitless…but with a price. For myself, I did not really take a liking to Coldstone. The concept is quite neat, but if I wanted some quality ice cream or gelato, I would go elsewhere.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Under $10
  • Busy at night
  • Signature Creations are the way to go

We Rate Cold Stone:

Address:

650- 3025 Lougheed Hwy
Coquitlam, BC
Tim Hortons - Coldstone on Urbanspoon

Meeting up with Cubedtee and Fabo for dessert but, M, ScarFace, TanGuy and I didn’t eat dinner. Clearly, we were not very smart that day since usually dinner comes before dessert.

Since we were starving, we went across the street to Pho Hoa. Cheap, Fast and easy! As long as the food is edible, we were happy.

I ordered the #22 – Julienne Pork & Grilled Pork Chop.

You are first given soup and the sweet sauce for your rice. The soup was very hot… VERY HOT temperature-wise. I think almost everyone had to wait for a while for the soup to cool.  The soup was pretty oily and just reminded me of the soup that goes into the pho. It was a bit salty as well.

When the dish came, we were presented with the pork chop, the julienne pork, rice, fried egg and vegetables. The pork chop was very oily and the meat was quite thin and had a few bones. The taste was average but the meat was tender. I did enjoy the julienne pork, but it never seems like pork since it’s all so thin.

Overall, the meal was pretty average. Nothing special, nothing too horrible. I found that Pho Hoa finally got a facelift. Their interior is newly painted and looks more modern. Even the website got a facelift.

Word of Wisdom:

  • Lots of parking in parking lot
  • Under $10

We Rate Pho Hoa:

Address:

750 – 3025 Lougheed Highway
Coquitlam, BC

Website:
www.phohoa.com
Pho Hoa (Lougheed) on Urbanspoon

Before a meeting, M decided to order a pizza. I let him have free reign to order whatever pizza that he wanted. I am not sure why he chose Panago, but perhaps he likes it.

When the pizza arrived, it was covered in lettuce. A man ordering a pizza with lots of vegetables? Preposterous!

He decided to order the Beef Taco Pizza (large – 16.50). It has salsa, ground beef, red onions, mozzarella, sour cream, lettuce, tomatoes and cheddar cheese. This is a taco but laid out as a pizza.

It did for sure taste like a taco but the hardest part was eating it. The lettuce really got in the way of enjoying the pizza. It would either fall off or get in the way when you are taking a bite. It’s like you are being punished by the lettuce, so they must hit you in the face. The tomatoes would also fall off the pizza too. Perhaps the vegetables were repelled by the unhealthy pizza. Now we know vegetables and pizza don’t mix.

You really might as well order a pizza with just ground beef, sour cream. and cheese if you really want the meaty experience from eating your taco pizza.

Overall, I would have to say, I hated the vegetables on the pizza. I know…I should be a girl and just like the vegetables. Normally I would, but on a pizza… no.

We rate Panago Pizza:

Address:

534 Clarke Rd
Coquitlam, BC

Website:
www.panago.com
Panago Pizza (Burquitlam) on Urbanspoon

It was another Korean Night with Fabo, TanGuy, M and InsecureGirl. We ventured off to try a new restaurant on North Road that specializes in Jajangmyun, which is Korean black bean noodles. M and Fabo both really wanted some good Korean black bean noodles!

Hee Rae Deung Korean Chinese Restaurant has Korean Style Chinese food, so you won’t find the traditional tasting chinese dishes.

Apparently, this new restaurant has gained quite a popularity in the Korean community and there are actually line ups for dinner time. All the seating is booth style, so it can accomodate large groups.

If you are Chinese and you walk in here thinking the menu will be easy to understand since you are an expert at Chinese food, think again…everything is in Koreanized english. You will need to know a few basic Korean food words to get by.

The menu is quite large but good thing it has pictures, so you can just point at it and order.

Tea and cold water arrives at your table when you are seated.

The side dishes that come a pickled Daikon, black bean paste and onions. You can eat the pickled daikon alone, but to eat the onion, eating it alone would be torture! What is so amazing is that if you dip the onion into the black bean sauce, it will cancel out the potent onion taste. It’s quite interesting!

You also get a small side of radish kimchi as well.

We all decided to share the Kan Poong Ki ($15.90). This is the Korean version of Kung Pow Chicken. It is evenly battered and covered with a sweet and spicy sauce. The chicken is very moist and is probably the best Kan Poong Ki we have ever had in the lower Mainland.

There are condiments on the side – soy sauce, vingar, and red pepper spice. You mix them together and use that as a dipping sauce for the Kan Poong Ki.

M and TanGuy both ordered the Gan Jajangmyun ($6.50). It has vegetables, pork and black bean sauce on noodles.

This is probably the most traditional Korean dish there is. You are presented with the noodles and black bean sauce mixture seperately. What you do is to mix them together in the larger bowl. The best way to enjoy this is to mix is very very well together. It does taste way better if you take the time and effort into mixing it throughly.

Their sauce is very amazing and is the best we have ever had. Dou Gau Bee has nothing on this restaurant.

Fabo and InsecureGirl both ordered the Jjam Ja Myun ($7.90). If you are a person who likes a bit of everything, this dish might be for you! You get half Jajang Myun (Black bean noodles) and  Spicy Seafood with noodle soup.

The black bean noodles are just perfect and the spicy noodle soup was also well done. If you are new to eating the spicy seafood noodle soup, it IS spicy! Most of the heat is located near the top, so do be sure to stir around the soup to disperse the heat.

If you cant handle your heat, it is best to not order the spicy seafood with noodle soup.

I wanted to see what Korean Style Chinese food is like, so i ordered the Stir Fried Rice ($9.50).

It has a bit of the black bean sauce, cabbage salad, and fried rice with egg on top. Ok, this was the best fried rice I have ever had. The fried rice was moist and rich in flavour! It has sizable seafood in the rice and just amazing flavour!

You also get some of the spicy seafood soup on the side as well. Yet again, it is quite spicy.

Overall, very good food and Korean style chinese food is really good!

Words of Wisdom:

  • Jajangmyun and Stir Fried Rice are highly recommended
  • Lots of Parking at the plaza
  • Under $10
  • There may be line ups during peak hours.

We Rate Hee Rae Deung Korean Chinese Restaurant:

Address:

#24 435 North Road
Coquitlam, BC
Hee Rae Deung Korean Chinese Restaurant on Urbanspoon

Every time I pass by North Road, I always see this Restaurant Called ‘Good Friends’ with a large green clover for their branding. It looked like it was for a younger hip crowd.

M, BusanGirl and I finished all our exams and was itching to get some food since 7-10pm exams are not very fun. Driving along North Road, there were not that many restaurant open late except for Korean Bars… M is not fond of Korean bars, so we headed to see if the Good Friends Restaurant was open.

Good Friends restaurant was deserted when we went. No staff were seen except when we looked into the kitchen. We rang a few bells at their front desk but no one seemed to hear, so M started calling out “juh gkee yoh” to get the waitresses attention. After calling for them about 3 times, she came out to seat us at the table.

We actually thought they were closed, but turns about they are open till midnight.  Soon after, more people showed up in the restaurants, so we were not the only ones.

Their menu is quite extensive, so it might take you a while to figure out what you want to order.

5 complementary side dishes arrived – bean sprouts, kimchi, zucchini, tofu, and radishes. Since they were closing soon, they also gave us complementary soup for everyone. It was spicy  fermented bean soup. (similar to Miso Soup, but with bean sprouts and other vegetables)

These are all bottomless, so it is refillable if you ask. They were all pretty average and nothing too spectacular.

We ordered the Nude Kimbap ($3.50). Its a normal Kimbap but just inside out so the rice is on the outside. There is also a bit of cabbage salad on the side.

We were actually surprised at how the roll was presented because we thought it would just presented poorly since the service was not that great. We enjoyed the roll, it held firmly and it was like any other kimbap roll.

Then we ordered Marinated Beef Kimbap ($3.99), this was exactly like the nude kimbap roll. There was nothing too special and it also tasted like a usual kimbap roll. Again it came with a side cabbage salad.

We also ordered the Hot Spicy Boneless Chicken with cheese ($13.99). This was fairly spicy! It was too much for me to handle, but for the Koreans, it was a piece of cake for them. This dish had rice cake, chicken, jalapenos, zucchini, and cheese.

This dish was good for the price, it was quite big. M was disappointed on the size of the chicken pieces. Since the main feature of this dish was chicken … there should have been more. The chicken was sparse, but there was a hearty amount of cheese.

Lastly, we ordered Fried Chicken (Half order $9.99). There was about 9 pieces and it was very interesting how it was SO HUGE for half an order. They come with dips – salt & pepper and a hot Korean standard for chicken BBQ sauce. You can choose to have your chicken in original or hot flavour. We just stuck with the original since I didn’t want my taste buds to suffer.

The outside was very nice and crispy, but the inside was not very juicy, which was a bit odd. For the price it was pretty good. M complained that there was no way to figure out which piece of the chicken one was eating. Even the drum stick was odd.

Overall, it was decent Korean food but not the best. If you are just wandering around late at night and looking for decent Korean food, this place is as good as any to go to.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Open till midnight
  • Large menu choices
  • Free parking
  • Average tasting Korean Food
  • Poor service

We Rate Good Friends Restaurant:

Address:

535 Clarke Road
Coquitlam, BC

Good Friends on Urbanspoon

It was another Wednesday night and a bunch of us have “Korean Night” where we eating through all the Korean Restaurants on North Road one week at a time. This makes my life easier going with Koreans because Fabo, BusanGirl and M do all the ordering for me. All I do is eat!

Wang Ga Ma is located right across from H Mart, the Korean grocery store on the East Side of North Road. ConsultingGirl got lost and ended up at the other Korean Grocery store – Han Nam. Before you venture out here, make sure you know where you are going.

On the inside there are large booths situated all over the restaurant. With the tall walls, you get a private feeling when you are eating. Sometimes this is an issue because the servers can’t see you.

You get utensils – chopsticks and spoons. What I love about Korean restaurants is how they have the paper covering on the spoons. It prevents contamination. You also get tea, but do be warned, the waitresses aren’t always the best at refilling your tea. You probably want to wave them down or ask for a pot instead.

The menu at Wang Ga Ma is quite simple – Noodles, Pancakes, soups, mains, Hot pots and a few special dishes. It is all on a letter sized piece of paper, so it’s quite simple. For me it was quite difficult because I really did not know what was good … or what they looked like, so the Koreans did all the deciding for me!

As you wait for your order,the usual complementary side dishes arrive – Kimchi, Kimchi Radish, and another version of kimchi with thinly sliced radishes. Lots of kimchi! If you are not keen on spicy things, try a little piece and then figure out for yourself if you can handle the heat. I usually find the larger radish Kimchi is not as hot.

You do get scissors to cut up the kimchi because as you can tell, it would be hard to eat the kimchi and radish whole.

Since we all craved Pork Belly (Bossom), we ordered their special dish – Steamed pork with kimchi ($15.95 Large size) This is another one of those put it together wraps. You are given steamed pork belly, lettuce, and thinly sliced radish kimchi.

You are also given this salty shrimp mixture to dip your pork belly to add more taste, as well as jalapeno and soybean paste.

You first take the letture leaf, then add the pork belly, and the other toppings! Voila! Fold it up and stick it in your mouth and munch!

I love being involved with my food! It’s exciting putting it all together and  the devouring it! Even though it was exciting, the quality of the meat was not very good. It was below average as the meat was a bit tasteless. Also, for the price you are paying, it is not worth it. It would be way cheaper making it at home.

BusanGirl ordered the BibimBap ($8.95). This is rice, mixed vegetables, egg and beef served in a hot stone bowl. To eat this, you mix up all the ingredients together. If you like a spicy taste, you can ask for some hot sauce to add to this.

M and I ordered the Beef Rib Soup ($8.95). You get a super hot pot of rice (VERY HOT!) and the beef rib soup. Inside the soup are beef ribs, green onions, radish, egg and a bit of noodles. Fabo suggested this dish for people who are new to all the different types of soups. Apparently it’s Wang Ga Ma’s specialty.

The broth was very nicely flavoured, but when you begin eating the beef, it was rather bland and tough.

TaxMan, Fabo and ConsultingGirl ordered the beef broth soup with beef ($8.95).

You have to add your own amount of salt into the dish, which makes this super confusing. If you are new to the dish, you really don’t know if you have added too little or too much salt. TaxMan and ConsultingGirl were very disappointed by what they got and did not finish their meals.Fabo finished all of hers with no problem.

M, BusanGirl, TaxMan and Fabo all agreed this is the type of place people in Korea would go to eat after drinking. You would think this is more of a dinner type of restaurant, but thats how it is in Korea.

Overall, we were not impressed with the quality of their food and will probably not be returning. With so many other Korean restaurants around serving similar items, there is bound to be better.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Tons of Parking
  • Under $10
  • Unlimited kimchi and kimchi radish
  • Poor service
  • Limited Menu
  • Bibimbap is good to order

We Rate Wang Ga Ma:

Address:

329 North Rd
Coquitlam, BC

Wang Ga Ma on Urbanspoon

M here, reviewing Don’sta, a Korean Donkatsu restaurant next to the Toad on North Road. Donkatsu is Korean word for deep fried pork cutlets. Design Girl, BusanGirl, and I went out to our unofficial Korean Night, where we take our Korean close friends to eat at Korean restaurants.

On this particular trip, I was pining one of my favourite food, donkatsu and  BusanGirl recommended Don’sta. Don’sta  went through a lot of owner changes. It used to be called Daeji, then 6, and finally Donsta. Apparently Donsta is currently going through renovations, so we will definitely go check it out when it’s done!

On the outside, you see remnants of the previous names, which makes for a pretty shabby exterior. The interior isn’t much better. Random assortments of chairs and tables that do not match are spread around the room. In retrospect, it is kind of charming and unique. Hopefully both the interior and exterior are being renovated and improved.

The menu is only half a page long. Half the page is in Korean, and the other in English. They really do specialize in pork cutlets, but they also serve pasta.

Once you order, cutlery and water is self service, as is in most Korean restaurants. However, neatest part was the all you can eat salad bar. The salad was fresh and tasty. The banana peppers are incredibly hot, so be careful!

We ordered the Sesame Donkatsu, the Hot Plate Donkatsu, and the Rice Cake Cheese Pasta. The Sesame Donkatsu ($7.59) was by far the most delicious donkatsu I had in Vancouver so far. The donkatsu itself was cooked correctly so that the meat is tender and the outside is crispy. The donkatsu sauce mixed with a lot of sesame seeds and powder is a great combination of sweet and saltiness.

The Spicy Rice Cake Cheese Pasta ($8.26), was very unique and delicious! The rice cakes were soft and the noodles were perfect. I highly recommend trying more of their pasta!

The only negative thing about the whole dinner was the Korean Style Spicy Donkatsu on Grill ($8.26). It was nothing special and rather dull looking when it came out. Usually, donkatsu places would have fish flakes wriggling up from the heat all over the hot plate dokatsu, but not this one. Definitely a disappointment.

Donsta is a great small place when you fell like eating Korean style pasta and donkatsu. Can’t wait to see their new renovations!

Words of Wisdom:

  • Under $10
  • Free parking
  • Authentic Korean Food

We Rate Don’sta: 

Address:

#205-4501 North Road

Phone:

604 566 9107
Don'sta on Urbanspoon

On North Road in Coquitlam, there is a little cafe called Borandsi, or quite commonly known as the board game cafe. People come to Borandsi to eat dessert and grab a drink. They also have a large amount of board games which you can use for a small fee. If you live in Vancouver, it really isn’t worth it to play games here since your bill can rack up to the cost of a brand new board game.

It’s perfect for international students or travellers who do not have games with them.

After eating Pho, Jojocake really craved waffles … so we headed to Borandsi for dessert!

The interior is quite nice. Large tables and couches. It is usually not that busy, so you can always find a seat for you and your friends. People either: a) sit and chat b) study or c) play board games.

At one time they had a spa and a cell phone shop in the back corner, but it has since been removed to make room for more tables.

The menu is all listed on a piece of paper double sided. They have drinks, desserts and some Korean dishes. Yes, it is Korean owned and operated.

KoreanGirl ordered the Brownie & Ice Cream ($5.95). The brownie is not freshly made. When you walk up to the counter and stare at their fridge, you can see all the brownies all chilled and wrapped in plastic wrap. They heat up the brownie, add vanilla ice cream and drizzle chocolate sauce on top.

This is not a gourmet brownie, just your regular brownie.

I ordered the Apple Pie & Ice Cream ($5.95). Similar with the brownie, it is also pre-made and stored in a fridge. I think they microwave it so the crust is no longer crispy. The apple pie still tasted good but I wish it was crispy on the outside. They also added vanilla ice cream and drizzled chocolate on top.

JojoCake was CRAVING waffles, so she ordered Waffles & Ice Cream ($7.95). Unlike the brownie and the apple pie, this was made fresh. How do I know this? I saw a waffle iron while peeping into their kitchen.

The waffle is topped with vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, bananas, kiwis and strawberries. One things Jojocake commented on the waffle was that it was a bit over done.

Overall, great place to chill and catch up for friends. Service is not very good, so you gotta do the usual staring and hand waving.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Under $10
  • Good for studying
  • Average tasting desserts

We Rate Borandsi: 

Address:

4035 North Rd
Burnaby, BC
Borandsi on Urbanspoon

Guess what happened? JojoCake’s parents left her all alone at home again… but this time she did have milk and bread at home. KoreanGirl and I were here to the rescue. Since last week, we wanted some Pho, so we went to Pho 99. Convenient and close to home.

The Pho 99 is located in Lougheed Plaza below Insadong. We were just looking for some pho to fill our cravings. Pho 99 usually is quite popular since a lot of people go there for dinner.

JojoCake did not understand why Pho 99 had the weirdest branding! What does Saturn have to do with Pho? KoreanGirl and I pondered this a well and we really couldn’t think of anything.

Jojocake remarked “This pho must be out of this world“. haha. Get it? Bad joke.

We got some fresh sprouts, basil and lemon. I am usually cautious when using these because there is a rumor where Pho restaurants like to reuse it from other customers who do not finish it.

Whats good about Pho 99 is that it at least looks decent and not wilted and about to decay. I can not confirm if they reuse garnishes.

JojoCake ordered the 74 – veggie marinated grilled lemon pork and spring rolls ($7.80). She had this at other Pho places before and at Pho 99, it was alright. No jaw dropping good or anything, jus decent.

KoreanGirl ordered the Large #7 – Noodle Soup with Round eye steak, well done flank and beef tripe ($7.15).

Delicious broth and decent quality of meat.

I ordered the Large #14 – Noodle Soup with Round eye steak, well done flank, fatty brisket, soft tendon and beef tripe ($7.15).

After digging around my bowl of pho, I couldn’t find the soft tendon. I thought they left it out, but it turns out they switched my order with KoreanGirls order. Both our pho’s have almost the same ingredients, so I guess it was easy to get our orders mixed up.

We didn’t complain because when KoreanGirl found the soft tendon, she just put it into my bowl. You know you’re good friends when you don’t fear their germs.

Overall, decent food, under par service, and decent price. Nothing extraordinary. Unlike their branding…we did not find them “out of this world”.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Free parking in lot, if full, park near Honey’s Bistro, they have additional parking for the plaza there
  • Service is not great, so you will need to stare at them or wave your arms
  • Under $10

We Rate Pho 99: 

Address:

#302 – 403 North Road
Coquitlam, BC

Website:
www.pho99vn.net
Pho 99 Vietnamese Noodle House (Lougheed Village) on Urbanspoon