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The Richmond Night Market is back! You may be confused why there are 2 night markets in Richmond, I am also confused but I heard there was a feud of some sort. After a four-year hiatus, Raymond Cheung, the founder of the original Richmond Night Market brings it back to a new location close to the Canada Line. There are 250 booths sellingitems such as Korean socks, colored contact lenses, stuffed animals, iPhone accessories, and other cool gadgets. There are also 80 vendors serving up the oh-so-delicious food that definitely attracts the whole city to come here.

Unfortunately, there is a fee of $1.50 to enter the night market, but the parking is complementary and very close! Imagine the admission is the cost of parking…much better than getting a parking ticket right?

By 7pm (the start of the night market), there were already lines into the parking lot of the night market. There is only one entrance and one exit out of this huge parking lot, so be expected to wait. You can also alternatively park at a different skytrain and just take transit down here.

Most people come here just for the food. There is always a crowd near the food area. It’s best to come early before huge lines begin to develop.

There are also a few table that you can sit down and eat your food. Don’t be afraid to eat with strangers if you desperately need to sit down to eat. Near this area are washrooms too.

Whatever you do…don’t buy the drinks from the Coca-Cola staff, they are severely over-priced! Might as well spend your money on something more delicious.


Daikichi Bakudanyak


Bakudanyaki was originally a food truck near the River Rock Casino a few years ago and they are back!! They were the originators of the huge takoyaki balls.

  • Cost: $5 per huge takoyaki balls
  • Flavours: Original, Chili, Wasabi, Curry, plus one special feature
  • Filling contains: Squid, cabbage, corn red ginger, shrimp, rice cake, quail egg and green onions
  • Website: http://www.bakudanyaki.com/

They cram an enormous amount of filling inside.

Wasabi Huge Takoyaki ($5) is the size of a baseball. All the huge takoyaki’s have the same fillings, the only thing that differs is the sauce they put on top. I chose wasabi since I wanted to be adventurous. The taste of wasabi is quite mild, so it won’t be super spicy. I really enjoyed it and the filling inside the takoyaki is very hearty. You must try this!

Tenku Bakudanyaki on Urbanspoon


Le Tigre – Modern Chinese Cuisine


Le Tigre is one of the new Food Trucks that will be hitting the streets of Vancouver this Summer. They have a stall at the Richmond Night Market, so we had to have a taste of their skewers. What we noticed was the skewers were cheaper than some other stalls, plus they had some very enticing skewers. You definitely need to check out this place!

These are way cooler than all the skewer stands at the Richmond Night Market. It’s not just a skewer of meat, they dress them up with sauces and other cool ingredients.

Wouldn’t you want men in hipster hello kitty glasses serve you? We thought it was quite cute.

FoodQueen ordered:

  • Kickass Rice -$3.50
  • Pork Belly Skewer – $2.50

FoodPunk ordered:

  • Mochi Skewer
  • Pork Belly Skewer
  • Beef Skewer
  • 3 skewers for $6.50

I ordered:

  • Beef Skewer
  • Chicken Skewer
  • Pork Belly Skewer
  • 3 for $6.50

BBQ Squid


If I could read Chinese, I would let you know what the sign says. Sadly, I dropped out of Chinese school very early so I am no help at all. I really wanted to find some BBQ squid since I kept seeing people’s tweets about them. I didn’t know which ones were good, so I just went to the stall with the longest line up.

You pay at the right and then you line up again and pick up at the left side.

They don’t give you a piece of paper or anything…so I think they trust their customers to be honest. When you get to the man grilling all the squid, he will ask you if you want it regular or spicy.

Spicy Grilled Squid ($6) was spicy. I thought I had a high tolerance for spicy food, but I guess I was wrong. The squid was a bit chewy, but the flavour was good. If you can’t handle your spice, just get the regular one.


Cherry Fruit Juice & Icy Bar


I’ve fallen in love with this stall many years ago. It’s my go-to place for anything mango related. I’ve also been to their location in Crystal Mall a few times for their shaved ice and it’s never disappointed. I would highly recommend this place too.

Mango Tapioca Icy ($5) was definitely needed after all the salty and spicy food. Plus it was a hot day too. It has layers of mango, icy, tapioca and milk. I loved it!

Red Bean Ice Cream Mochi Icy ($5.50) was what FoodPunk ordered. It was big, but she said it wasn’t as thirst quenching as the mango icy.


QQ Egg Puff


QQ Egg Pugg is a bubble waffle stand at the night market. They have some very unique flavours of bubble waffles. I think they use the Bubble Tea powder in the bubble waffle to give them the color and taste. There are a lot of bubble waffle stands in the Richmond Night Market, so you have tons of options. FoodQueen and FoodPunk chose this because their banner was very cute.

  • Original, Chocolate or Strawberry – $3.50
  • Coconut, taro, mango, red bean, cheese or matcha – $4

Coconut Bubble Waffle ($4) looks like the original bubble waffle, but don’t be fooled. It did have a very subtle taste of coconut. it tasted ok, but the waffles looked pretty squished and deformed.

Taro Bubble Waffle ($4) is bright and purple inside due to the taro powder. It was very sweet and tasted like artificial taro.


Rotato


Rotato serves up the hurricane potatoes. The line up was quite long and was about a 30 minute wait. It seems to be the only stall that served these. We didn’t line up, but they do have this really cool illustration about what you can do with your Rotato.


Care For Life Foundation – Wishing Tree


At the Richmond Night Market, the Care For Life Foundation set up a series of artificial trees for people to make a wish. We browsed around and looked at a few wishes. We found a lot of wishes about relationships and how people want their relationship to last till the end of time. Very cute!

Some on the other hand … were not as sweet. I don’t really know what to say about this one…

A good amount of wishes were very sexual in nature as well. On it was a 604 number, but I’m sure no one wants to contact this person.

Address:
8351 River Rd
Richmond, BC

Website:
richmondnightmarket.com

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Foodology Disclaimer: The Food Adventure was paid courtesy of the Salient Group. The reviews are unbiased as the restaurants were chosen by the winner and no restaurants had prior knowledge of our presence.


A few weeks ago, I held a contest to have a reader join me for an all-day food adventure with me. Through the powers of Excel, @depotato got drawn as the winner. Since it was also her sister’s (@seapotato)birthday, we took her along on our adventure in New Westminster. She selected a few places to go to – Ki Sushi, Tre Galli Gelato, Karmavore and the Boathouse.

Since they have never been to New Westminster, we walked around checking out a few really cool stores like the retro video game store and a board game store. Clearly, we 3 were very nerdy and loved video games. The day was very fun despite some restaurants being a hit and miss.


Ki Sushi


At 11am, we went to Ki Sushi. Since they just opened, it was quite busy, but by 12pm there were definitely more customers. They sell the usual type of Japanese dishes. I’ve been here about 5 years ago and they have undergone some renovations.

Salmon and Tuna Sashimi ($11.95) has about 5 pieces each and was a decent price. It tasted delicious and fresh. What I liked out the place is that they use Wild Sockeye salmon rather than the usual salmon.

Seafood Salad ($9.95) was very massive and had a good amount of seafood. It had ebi, hoki, tako, baby shrimp, avocado, shredded lettuce, and a citrus sauce. The salad was good, but we wished it was larger pieces of lettuce rather than the shredded lettuce. Also, there was way too much sauce.

Gyoza ($3.50) was very sloppy and poorly executed. When you pick up the gyoza, it would fall apart instantly. I assume when they were making them, they probably didn’t seal it well enough.

Prawn Tempura ($8.25) was a good size and was crunchy on the outside.

American Roll ($12.95) has half a soft-shelled crab and seaweed on top of 8 rolls. The inside of the roll has avocado and crab. It is wrapped with tuna. This was my favorite roll, but it was a bit expensive.

Vancouver Roll ($9.94) is topped with avocado and eel on top. It was also a favorite of the table.

Maple Roll ($6.96) has wild sockeye on top and the inside has tuna. If you love sashimi, you’ll definitely love this.

Overall, the food can be a hit and miss. The service was ok, but we did notice some of the dishes were quite dirty so we had to swap them. The food came out fairly quickly which wasn’t too bad.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Hit and Miss dishes
  • Good sushi
  • Decent prices

We Rate Ki Sushi:

Address:
31 8th St
New Westminster, BC
Website:
http://www.kisushi.ca/index.asp

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River Market


We stopped by after our lunch to check out The River Market near the waterfront. They have the worlds tallest toy soldier, a good amount of shops and restaurants. It was moderately busy on the weekends. The busiest areas were inside River Market since there are some amazing restaurants there – Wallys Burgers, Re-Up BBQ, and some other places.

I use to come to this area quite often as a kid and this area has definitely transformed a lot!

Right by the dock, there was also the Samson V Maritime Museum. It’s free to enter and you can look into their engine room, captains deck, and their living quarters.


Tre Galli Gelato


As we were walking around River Market, gelato caught the eyes of @seapotato and she just had an urge for gelato. Tre Galli Gelato Caffe has a large selection of gelato and they serve coffee.

Guava Gelato / Espresso Gelato ($3.75) was a strange combination by @seapotato but she enjoyed it.

Espresso Gelato / Hazelnut Gelato ($3.75) was chosen by @depotato and she liked both flavours. She also said the hazelnut gelato was more dominant compared to the espresso gelato.

Hazelnut Gelato ($3.75) was what I chose. The flavour was very nice and strong, so it was nice for a hot day outside.

Overall, the gelato was a good price and the flavours were very delicious. It’s a good item to snack on if you are at the River Market chilling with a few friends.

Words of Wisdom:

  • You can sample the flavours
  • A good selection of drinks
  • Decent prices
  • Close to New West Skytrain

We Rate Tre Galli Gelato:

Address:
810 Quayside Dr
New Westminster, BC

Tre Galli Gelato Caffe on Urbanspoon


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Karmavore – The Vegan Shop


Karmavore is a vegan shop in the heart of New Westminster. They have a eco-friendly retail shop on the main level and a grocery store/deli in the basement. They are 100% vegan. It’s the perfect spot if you are vegan.

They have a few tables downstairs, but the space isn’t too large. You can find some unique items here. We were drawn here by their root beer floats but it turns out they were not available. We were quite sad, but we decided to grab some other snack and drinks since we were there anyways.

We consumed the following:

  • English Breakfast Tea ($1.75)
  • Carob Peanut Butter Puck ($2.50)
  • Edible Flours Mini Red velvet Cupcake ($1.99)
  • Happy Planet Lost lagoon Mango Smoothie ($2.79)
  • King Island Coconut Water ($1.49)

Overall, we were a bit disappointed since they didn’t have the root beer float even though it was still written on their chalk board. As we ordered our pastries, they were quite hesitant to give us a plate since we wanted to eat it in the shop. It seems like it really was a “grab n go” deli. Nonetheless, it’s a good spot to go to if you work or live in the area to grab something.

We Rate Karmavore:

Address:
610 Columbia Street
New Westminster, BC

Website:
http://www.karmavore.ca/

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Downtown New Westminster


As we finished our snack, we walked around Columbia Street to see what was in the area. We stopped by the Trapp + Holbrook presentation center and had a tour of their apartments. It was very pretty and I was so amazed by their fridges since it was built into their cabinets.

We check out most of the stores on Columbia street and walked up a giant hill onto 6th st. We huffed and we puffed and then we went to Blenz to grab a drink before heading back down to the River Market for dinner. We also found some vegemite and marmite at Sherlock’s Cafe.


The Boathouse


For our dinner, we decided to get our fill of seafood by going to the Boathouse. It is located right by the River Market and is known for their steaks and seafood. As we arrived, we were really looking forward to oysters and lobsters. Unfortunately, they already sold out of lobster tails and Shrimp Kisses. We were very disappointed since it was very early in the evening, so there was no way they would have been sold out. It was a weekend, so it didn’t make sense they wouldn’t be prepared for the weekend rush of customers.

@depotato and @seapotato decided to get 3 course dinner set for $35 instead.

Complementary bread was very good. It was fluffy in the center and nice and nice and crisp on the outside. It also came with some herb butter to spread.

Boathouse original West-coast Chowder didn’t seem very hearty like how a chowder is supposed to be.

Crispy Calamari comes with Tzatziki. It was nice and tender. Very soft and chewy.

6 Kusshi Oysters + 6 Royal Miyagi Oysters ($17.99) tasted good and their tastes were a bit different, but Kusshi is definitely the better oyster. What I noticed when I reviewed by photos was how battered the oysters looked. Whoever shucked these were quite aggressive with them.

Thai Crab Cakes ($12.99) comes with 3 pieces and the taste was alright, but we did notice there was not a lot of crab meat compared to the amount of bread crumbs.

Mixed Seafood Grill has grilled sockeye, crab stuffed jumbo prawns, pan seared sea scallops and fire grilled prawns with tomato pesto orzo and vegetables.

7oz Sirloin Steak with stuffed prawns ($29.99) was asked to be cooked medium rare, but the cut of meat was very tough.It seemed to be cooked medium instead. I just left it since I didn’t want to be picky. They gave M a steak knife for his steak, but didn’t give me one for some reason. So, I just assumed I would use my regular knife. It was very hard to cut, I had to use a lot of strength to cut up my steak.

14oz Prime New York Steak ($39.99) was what M ordered and it was a huge steak. He ordered it rare and there are visible grill lines. On the menu it states “the top .2% of world class beef – the best quality available and exclusively cut for Boathouse”. M did not think the quality was there. He was quite disappointed as well.

Molten Chocolate Brownie ($8.99) is served warm with vanilla ice cream, whipped cream and strawberries on the side. M said the brownie was very warm and the ice cream definitely balanced it out.

Famous Mud pie is also known as the mocha ice cream pie. It comes with a chocolate ganache sauce and maple almonds. It did taste good.

Creme Brulee was ok according to @depotato. She did say the crust was very hard and it made it a bit bitter.

Overall, I was not satisfied with the service or food at this Boathouse location. I’ve been to other Boathouse locations and the quality was not here. I would not return to this location again. Even though we told the server that it was @seapotato’s birthday, they did not provide a sparkler on her cake compared to the other customers in the restaurant. Also, they charged us for the cake when it was supposed to be complimentary. You can pay the same price at Black & Blue Downtown to get better quality…and pay less.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Quality is not there
  • Overpriced
  • Inconsistent service amongst customers

We Rate Boathouse:
Address:
900 Quayside Dr
New Westminster, BC

Website:
http://www.boathouserestaurants.ca/

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Foodology Disclaimer: VANEATS.ca approached me to try out their “Kamei Kiss” dining package and write a review about it. I got a complementary dining package for myself and I brought along M to keep the review as unbiased as I could.


Kamei Royale Japanese Restaurant is located on Burrard near West Georgia, thus very close to the Burrard Skytrain. They are owned by the Kamei Group that also owns Ebisu and Daimasu. I’ve visited Ebisu and Daimasu before, but I have not been to Kamei Royal until this experience.

The guys at VANEATS.ca is offering a new dining package called Kamei Kiss for $19, where you get 4 courses consisting of:

  • Healthy Agedashi Tofu
  • Crab Salad
  • Oda Roll
  • Ice Cream Tempura

The interior is quite nice and the interior is large too. I would think this would be a good location for large parties. Some of the staff are even dressed up in kimonos.

Crab Salad has a crab mixed with avocado, mango, mayonnaise and tobiko. It is garnished with tomatoes, fried lotus roots, sprouts and greens. It is served in a martini glass and was a little bit difficult to figure out how to eat it since we were unsure if we should be eating the large leaf of lettuce or not. In the end, M and I just at the crab mixture and the garnishes and left the large leaf. M enjoyed the amount of crab and the accompany ingredients.

Healthy Agedashi Tofu is deep-fried and topped with kinpira, nameko mushrooms, edamame beans and lotus roots. It sits on top of a bed of ponzu sauce. The outer skin of the agedashi tofu was a little big soggy due to the ponzu sauce and the ingredients on top. It’s best to eat the item fairly quickly when it arrives at your table before the skin gets too soft. Nonetheless, the tofu does have a delicious flavour that balances with the sauce.

Oda Roll has mango, avocado, cucumber and salmon inside. It is topped with tempura eel and cream cheese. The server comes by and torches the top of the cream cheese with a blowtorch. It’s a fun little show, plus it looks amazing. I’ve never seen cream cheese being torched since it’s usually raw fish.

The creaminess from the cream cheese and the avocado made it a delight. The scorched cream cheese added a nice smokey taste that accompanied the tempura eel quite well.

Ice Cream Tempura has vanilla ice cream deep-fried in tempura batter, drizzled with chocolate and topped off with powdered sugar and a cherry. It’s about the size of a baseball. When we cut into the ice cream tempura, the inside was still cold, but it does start to melt quite quickly. M really enjoyed the dessert and was tempted to purchase another one just for himself.

Overall, if you look at Kamei Royale’s regular menu, you will see that the dining package is a steal! The Oda roll by itself is $15.50, the crab salad is $8.50, agedashi tofu is $5.95, and then tempura ice cream is $5.50. You save about $16.45 with getting the package. If you get the package and an additional noodle or rice dish, two people can get full.

The package is on sale now till it’s sold out, so you can grab this at VANEATS.ca for $19.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Beautiful decor and food presentation
  • Good for large groups
  • Tea costs $1.50 🙁
  • Overpriced for what you get, there are many cheaper options Downtown

We Rate Kamei Royale:

Address:
1030 W Georgia St
Vancouver, BC

Website:

http://www.kameiroyale.com/

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Green Bean Cafe is located at the Domestic terminal of Vancouver Airport after you check-in and get scanned by security. There’s not much around to eat at the terminal besides this place.

Since I had a hunch that no meals will be served on our WestJet flight, I decided to get something quick. Plus, early flights aren’t fun, so I needed a coffee. This was what I could find.

They have drinks, sandwiches, and other little pastries. The prices and service

Medium Coffee ($1.70) was alright, nothing too special about it. Everyone else in line was also ordering coffee.

Butter Croissant was bearable, but was not fresh at all. The cashier just popped it into the microwave to heat up.

Overall, pretty subpar offerings from this Cafe. Since it is “airport” food, I wasn’t too surprised. If I had known there was a Starbucks a bit further, I should have gone there instead.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Nothing Special
  • Convenient just before your flight

We Rate Green Bean Cafe:

Address:
3211 Grant McConachie Way
Richmond, BC

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Word on the Street is that Pig on The Street is finally open! Pig on the Street is one of the newest food trucks opening this Summer in Downtown Vancouver. They are located at the library new Mom’s Grilled Truck and Tacofino.

Instead of the usual truck-style, they have converted and old Volkswagon into a kitchen. It seems a bit crazy, but it seems to be working. Pig on the Street sells wraps with BACON..and pastries with BACON. I came here with StarbucksAddict for lunch to check out this food truck.

As you wait for your order, you are given a little wooden piggy with a pig-related pun. In this case, we got “Ham Solo” that references Han Solo from StarWars. Super creative and better than a boring number system.

Since it was a sunny bright day, we decided to eat our lunch outside on the steps of the Art Gallery. Everyone else was doing it, so it doesn’t seem too weird at all.

Cheddar and bacon twisty bread ($2) was pretty awesome. Theres a strip of bacon hidden inside. The ratio between the bread, cheddar and bacon was perfect! So addictive!

Southern Piggy ($8.95) has double smoked bacon, bourbon BBQ sauce, grilled peppers, corn, cheddar, chipotle mayo and greens.

Piggy Blues ($8.95) has double smoked bacon, grilled mushrooms, creamy blue cheese, caramelized onion mayo, greens.

The bacon was nice and thick and meshed really well with the mushrooms and blue cheese. I usually dislike blue cheese, but it wasn’t too pungent. If you are a bacon lover, you’ll definitely love these sandwiches.

Pig on the Street does face a bit of competition with other food trucks like Tacofino and Mom’s Grilled Cheese. Since there is such a large concentration of businesses around, I don’t think it would hurt their business at all. When I walked into the area, I just loved how there are so many options to choose from. You can come down with your coworkers and not be limited to just one truck.

Overall, I really enjoyed Pig on the Street! The food wasn’t too greasy and the ingredients really shine through. Plus, bacon is awesome. For the vegetarians, they do have meatless wraps too. Even though they have a small truck, they pack some serious flavour in the food! Don’t let their small size fool you!

Words of Wisdom:

  • Popular items can sell out super fast, so get here early
  • Under $10
  • Not too long of a wait
  • BACON!

We Rate Pig on the Street:

Location:
Howe and Robson (near Art Gallery)

Website:
http://www.pigonthestreet.com/

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Rogue Kitchen & Wet Bar is located inside the Waterfront Skytrain Station. They serve a lot of different types of craft beers and other drinks. It’s a beautiful place to dine with coworkers and have a few drinks. I came with a few people to have dinner and chill.

Chicken Cobb Salad ($14.99) has chicken, avocado, roma tomato, rough chopped bacon, soft yolk egg, blue cheese, and ranch
dressing. The soft egg yolk was pretty awesome and delicious, but I felt the salad was way too dressed with the ranch sauce. It made the leaves less crisp. The chicken was good and tender.

Overall, I still prefer the burgers or sandwiches to get the best deal and it tastes good. The decor is really nice, but the service was quite bad. Our server disappeared for long periods of time and it was really hard to get her attention.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Rogue burger and Fries x3 recommended
  • Pay parking in adjacent lot
  • Large selection of drinks
  • Some items can be expensive
  • Beautiful decor
  • Located in Waterfront Station

We Rate Rogue Kitchen & Wetbar:
Address:

601 West Cordova Street
Vancouver, BC

Website:
www.roguewetbar.com

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Mochikas Peruvian Cafe is hidden inside the Platinum Touch Autospa on Pine and West 5th. I drove by this place and I totally missed it because it really doesn’t stand out at all.

I came here with the Vancouver Gastronomical Brouhaha group to chow down on some Peruvian food. I’ve heard much about this place but never had the chance to come here till now.

The interior is quite small and so is their kitchen space. I find it amazing how they can do everything in such a small space. They can’t fit too many people in this space, but you will be ok with a group of 4 or 5 people.

Ceviche de Pescado ($13) has fish marinated in lime juice, rocoto sauce, garlic & Italian parsley served with sweet corn, toasted Peruvian corn, sweet potato & red onions.

Ceviche Mixto ($14) has fish, calamari, shrimp, octopus and mussels marinated in lime juice, rocoto sauce, garlic & Italian parsley served with sweet corn, toasted Peruvian corn, sweet potato & red onions. The sauce is very sour, which isn’t a bad thing since it’s what you need in a ceviche. I loved it.

Chupe de Mariscos (Small – $12) is a spicy, hearty seafood chowder with fish, clams, shrimp, calamari, mussels, cream, Aji Panca, smoke paprika, Peruvian oregano, rice & feta cheese. It looks spicy, but it wasn’t spicy at all. Highly recommended.

Yuca frita con chicharron is deep-fried pork belly and cassava root that’s like a potato. It’s a pretty delicious dish! The only issue was that the meat in the pork belly was a bit dry and tough.

Aji de Gallina ($12) has hand shredded chicken & potatoes in a creamy Peruvian yellow pepper & parmesan cheese sauce served with rice.

Overall, it can get quite pricey and the portions aren’t too large. The service did take a while between the dishes, so some people had to wait a while till their dish arrived. The food is definitely delicious regardless of the wait.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Pay parking on the street
  • Ceviche is awesome
  • Long waits for food
  • Small interior
  • Slightly pricey for the portions

We Rate Mochikas Peruvian Cafe:

Address:
1696 West 5th Avenue
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.mochikas.ca/cafe/
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Old Bavaria Haus is a German restaurant in New Westminster that specializes in Schnitzel. The restaurant is located in an old 2 storey house and has been in business for many many years. It is known to be a local favorite especially for traditional German dishes.

M has a goal of going to all the German restaurants in the Lower Mainland to find the best schnitzel, so M, Scarface and I decided to start at Old Bavaria Haus since it’s the closest.

The interior is quite ornate and you do get a unique dining experience as you are actually in a house.

Warsteiner Beer is a German beer. It’s light, but has a bitter taste. What I disliked about it is how there is so much foam on top. More foam means less beer for me.

Complementary Garlic Bread is a good change from the usual bread. It is crunchy on the outside and has enough garlic spread to make each piece aromatic.

Spatzle “Jaeger Art” ($6.95) is composed of homemade German pasta with blackforest mushroom sauce. It was delicious! The pasta was very soft and light similar to gnocchi, but in strands. The mushroom sauce was very savory like gravy. We all enjoyed the dish and it was easily sharable between others at the table.

Schnitzel and Bratwurst ($18.95) has schnitzel topped with bratwurst served with peppercorn sauce. It also has sides of vegetables, potatoes and onions. M and Scarface enjoyed the taste of the meaty bratwurst, but thought the schnitzel was very similar to Japanese pork cutlet. Nonetheless, they thought the food here was good.

Schnitzel Cordon Bleu ($16.95) has stuffed with blackforest ham and swiss cheese in the schnitzel. It also has sides of vegetables, potatoes, and pickled onions.

When you cut into it, the cheese oozes out and you can see the layer of the pork and the ham. I enjoyed the cool combination.

Overall, the food was good, but it is quite expensive. Given the atmosphere and the service… you are paying for the ambiance. They have a large variety of Schnitzel with different variations. I probably wouldn’t come again if I randomly felt like schnitzel since the price point is quite higher than other places. People usually come here for special occasions.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Reservations highly recommended
  • Accommodates large groups (up to 60 people)
  • Appeals to an older crowd
  • Schnitzel is a must
  • Friendly service
  • Dining in a house

We Rate Old Bavaria Haus:
Address:
233 6th St
New Westminster, BC

Website:
http://www.oldbavariahaus.com/

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Mink Chocolates has a chocolate cafe in Downtown Vancouver near the Convention Center. They have fondue, waffles, parfaits, drinks, and specialty chocolates.

Since it was my last day of work, I had to bring something awesome for my coworkers. Since I am usually strange, I thought I should bring some strange chocolate to the office.

It’s a great place to sit and chill as you have a coffee or desserts.

Open In Case of emergency ($6.25) has mint, bourbon with chocolate ganache inside a dark chocolate shell. I liked the texture and the rich chocolate taste, but I felt that it was quite hard tasting the mint and bourbon.

PB Wannabe ($6.25) has almond butter and grape jelly in milk chocolate. It really brings out the kid in you as it puts together the flavour combinations of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

No Grumpy ($6.25) has espresso in a dark chocolate bar. The chocolate does have a strong espresso taste and will definitely liven people up. If you love coffee, you’ll love this.

Overall, they are quite unique and I love their strange flavour combinations in their chocolates. It’s definitely a great place to bring friends or relative that are out of town! On the downside, it’s not cheap either. Each item is around $5, so it can add up.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Good Hot Chocolate
  • Lots of amazing chocolate bars
  • Makes good unique gifts
  • Is a bit expensive
  • Closest Skytrain: Burrard or Waterfront

We Rate Minks Chocolate:

Address:
863 W Hastings St
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.minkchocolates.com/

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Soup Plus is a little mom and pop restaurant in Coquitlam that sells sandwiches and soups. They attract mostly people in the area and aren’t well known outside of Coquitlam. I have passed by several times, but it is quite easy to miss.

One of my Twitter followers – Viola (@vyqchen) suggested I try out Soup Plus and recommended a few items to order. Since M wanted lunch, I thought we could try out Soup Plus and order the items Viola suggested.

Mushroom Soup (~$3) is very delicious and it is not even comparable to Campbells canned mushroom soups. It has tons of mushrooms and isn’t too creamy at all. I finished this bowl of soup pretty fast. I’m actually craving another bowl right now as I type this.

They have about 5 freshly made soups everyday, but I heard the mushroom soup is the most popular.

Louisiana Poor Boy Sandwich (~$5) has lettuce, tomatoes, pepper and meat covered in BBQ sauce between freshly made house bread. This was our favorite sandwich, the meat was tender and has a subtly spicy taste to it. In a way it reminded me of a sloppy joe.

Meatloaf sub (~$5) has tomatoes, cucumber, lettuce, pepper and slices of meatloaf in between house bread. The meatloaf is delicious on its own, but when you eat it with everything else in the sandwich, it takes away from it’s taste and texture.

Overall, we loved the mushroom soup and the Louisiana Poor Boy Sandwich! Definitely take a visit for lunch if you are in the area. It’s a nice little family owned restaurant that has something delicious to offer. The service was good, but for some reason they wouldn’t let us tip them. I still have no idea why!

Words of Wisdom:

  • Free parking in front
  • Under $10
  • Highly Recommended: Mushroom soup and Louisiana Poor Boy Sandwich

We Rate Soup Plus

Address:
1102 Austin Avenue
Coquitlam, BC

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Burger Heaven is located in New Westminster and of course they specialize in burgers. They are known for their crazy and creative sandwiches. The interior is quite ugly and super outdated, but their sandwiches is what their customers rave about.

M and I decided to come here for lunch since we don’t live too far away from New West.

Insanity Burger ($16.14) is a swiss & bacon burger between two grilled mozza & cheddar cheese sandwiches with lettuce, tomato, red onions and sauce. You get your choice of salad or potato wedges as your side.

This sandwich is quite massive. I am also sure the calorie count is through the roof. M liked their large juicy patties, but it didn’t mesh too well with the two grilled cheese. He said the grilled cheese was quite bland and the cheese isn’t sharp enough.

Either way, it’s still a super huge sandwich and it’s definitely a challenge to eat.

The potato wedges were very crispy and golden brown. I love them more than Mcdonald’s fries.

Breakfast Burger ($13.69) is the 9th most popular item that is ordered. It contains a beef patty, mozzarella, fried egg, bacon and vegetables. I got a salad on the side since I felt guilty.

You can’t go wrong with bacon, cheese and egg in a burger! Plus, the bacon looked very delicious. The whole burger isn’t exactly breakfast food, but these are the perfect ingredients in a burger!

Once you put the two halfs together, the burger is huge. The beef patty is phenomenal! One this that M and I could agree on was the beef patty is really really good. I loved my sandwich!

You also get some tabasco if you want to spice up your burger!

Overall, I thought the sandwiches were good, but it can get quite expensive if you get more of their specialty burgers. I went at lunch and it wasn’t too busy, but I hear it can get packed for dinner. The interior is basically a shack, so don’t be too turned off by the place until you have had a bite.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Burgers are around $15
  • Top item is the BBQ Cheddar and Bacon Burger
  • Pay parking in front

We Rate Burger Heaven:

Address:
77 10th St
New Westminster, BC
Website:
http://www.burgerheaven.ca/
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Between Two Buns is another sandwich shop that has opened up in Yaletown. All their sandwiches have very provocative names. Just think very pervertedly and you’ll know what I mean. The interior of the restaurant is very open, but doesn’t have too many seats, but it’s good if you do takeout.

LazySusan, KevKev,  LiLi and I went before a school event to check out the place and grab some lunch. It was around noon and most of the tables were taken up.

All their items are around the $10 range. Their menu is small but you should be able to find something that suits your taste buds.

Poutine Special ($9) has cajun fries topped with seared tuna, avocado sauce, whole runny egg, and green onions.

This is a pretty awesome poutine since it’s quite hearty and it adds a bit of kick due to the sauces and hot spices. It’s not too hot, but is bearable.

Half Maniac Sandwich with side of fries and gravy ($9 +$1)

The Maniac sandwich has double smoked bacon, baby arugula, spicy marinara, asiago cheese, roasted garlic parmesan aoli, and an oven roasted tomato. I thought the sandwich tasted ok, but I felt like flavours could have stood out a bit more.

The fries and gravy were ok as well. The gravy is made from scratch so it is not very salty, but it didn’t have very much flavour to it.

This is the maniac sandwich in it’s full size.

Overall, the sandwiches are ok, but definitely not the best.  As there are more and more sandwich shops opening up in Downtown, there is definitely some competition. I am sure they will perfect their menu and try new flavour combinations.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Delicious Poutine Specials
  • Around $10 for lunch
  • Close to Yaletown Skytrain on the Canada Line

We Rate Between Two Buns

Address:
1271 Homer St
Vancouver, BC
Website:
http://www.betweentwobuns.ca/

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Apres – Midi Teahouse is a hidden teahouse in Gastown. It can be quite difficult to find since it’s not near any main roads. They specialize in tea. They also serve desserts and coffee.

HipsterGirl and I needed to kill some time before an event, so I decided to take her to Apres-Midi Teahouse. I have passed by a few times, but finally decided to check it out since I am a lover of tea.

It’s quite relaxing inside with the rustic brick walls and natural lighting. They have their main level with lots of seats.

They also have an upper level too that is also relaxing. You can spend lots of hours just catching up with friends or even doing some work.

Gastown Fog was what HispterGirl ordered. It wasn’t exactly like a London Fog since the tea they used was slightly different that earl grey. She still enjoyed it.

Matcha latte is bright and vibrant green. I asked it to be half-sweet and you can special request stuff done to it too. It was delicious and creamy!

Chocolate Mousse Cake comprised of mostly mouse, which was awesome . it was light and airy but packed full of chocolaty goodness.

Overall, we had a great time just chilling here. The teas and desserts are good, but it is a bit expensive. Each items is around $5, but considering that it’s in the Gastown area, it is fairly priced.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Spacious Interior
  • Yummy tea lattes and cakes!
  • Has Wifi

We Rate Apres-Midi Teahouse: 
Address:

1 Gaoler’s Mews
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.apresmiditea.com/
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Kimbab Cheonguk is located near “Korea Town” on North Road. It’s a small restaurant known to the Korean community to have some amazing kim bab (Korean Sushi) and Al Bob (Fish stone rice). It is very affordable and has gained a lot of popularity over the years. Most of the customers are Korean, but the staff is always very nice.

I came with Mandu and KoreanGirl to just chow down and hang out.

It’s not very large, so you probably can’t come with too many people.

The menu has 20 items and isn’t too expensive. If you don’t know what is what…there are also images too.

Complementary side dishes arrive and you get pickled daikon and kimchi radish. It’s yummy, but the kimchi radish can be a bit spicy for some people.

Beef Broth comes complementary as well. Instead of hot tea, they give you this. It is a very delicious broth, but I have a feeling there may be a bit of MSG in it…but nonetheless I drank it anyways.

Tuna Kimbab ($3.50) is different that Japanese sushi since it does not have as much rice and has more filling. This roll has tuna, mayo, cucumbers, peppers and some other stuff. It’s one of our favorite rolls. The kimchi kimbab is good too.

Dduk Mandoo Gook ($7.99) is rice cake dumpling soup. It has a 3 dumplings, a good amount of rice cakes, egg, seaweed and green onions in a delicious broth. I quite enjoyed the dish and it was not spicy.

Dduk Ramen ($5.99) has rice cake, ramen noodles, fish cake, egg and vegetables in a spicy sauce. It’s quite spicy, so it’s not for everyone. It tastes good, but for myself, I had to keep on drinking water while eating it.

Al Bab ($7.99) is one of my favorite dishes here. There is seaweed, picked radish, tuna, fish roe, cabbage, carrots, and cheese in a hot stone bowl. They also give you 2 types to enhance the flavour too. Once this arrives at the table, you just mix everything together.

Overall, they have awesome Korean food. Not all the dishes are spicy, so it’s good for everyone. It’s cash and debit only, so no credit cards.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Highly Recommended: Al Bab, Fish Kimbab, Dduk Mandoo Gook
  • Under $10
  • Free parking and lots of space too
  • Good service even for non-Koreans

We Rate Kimbab Cheonguk:

Address:
3A-341 North Road
Coquitlam, BC

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JJ’s Restaurant is located in the Vancouver Community College’s Downtown Campus. They are open for both lunch and dinner. The restaurant gives their culinary students real experience with dealing with paying customers. The students do rotations so they get to experience how the back and the front of the house works.

On my very last day of work, I came here with a few coworkers to dine here. The menu is always great and affordable.

Complementary bread arrives at the table and you get a few varieties too.

Shrimp and Avocado Salad ($4) is always awesome to order if you love shrimps and avocados. Plus, it just looks so gorgeous. It’s highly recommended!

Charred Vancouver Island Octopus, chorizo and chick pea stew ($4) was quite enjoyable if you love an appetizer that is a bit hearty. It’s a good size for an appetizer too so you will still have room for your entrée.

Salmon, Prawn and Scallion cake ($4) comes with Thai lemongrass sauce.

Fragrant green Thai curry with chicken, basmati rice and mango chutney ($9) it also comes with a papadam cracker on the side too.

Lamb Cooked two ways ($10) has slow cooked leg of lamb and pan roasted loin with rosemary jus. It also has vegetables and a phyllo wrapped mashed potatoes. My coworker liked everything except for the orange looking thing.

Artichoke and Wild Mushroom Bolognaise ($8.50) has Tagliatelle Pasta that is a broader type of noodle. This is a vegetarian dish, but it’s so savory and delicious that you won’t realize it’s missing any meat.

Overall, this dining experience was good, I highly recommend it if you want something super delicious that won’t break your wallet. It’s a great place for office lunches.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Lunch is also super affordable!
  • Closest Skytrain – Stadium
  • Under $10
  • You’re missing out if you don’t visit this place!
  • Make reservations especially during the holidays!

We rate JJ’s Restaurant:

Address:
250 W Pender St
Vancouver, BC

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Alpha Sushi and Japanese Tapas is located in Yaletown and is quite popular even on weekday nights. It was empty at 5pm, but by 6pm it started to get quite packed. As you can gather by their name….they do have Japanese tapas and sushi.

CandiedZen and I decided to meet up after my last day of work to just catch up over food and drinks. My last visit was probably 5 years ago and I remember it being a delicious place.

South Pole ($5.75) has tequila, cassis, pineapple, and lychee.

Pint of Sapporo ($5) is something I must get when I have Japanese food. I find it the perfect pairing. It’s light and not too strong.

Tako Wasa ($4) is seasoned baby octopus with japanese horseradish. It is served with shrimp chips on the side. You would scoop the octopus onto the cracker and eat it. The shrimp cracker gives it a nice crunchy texture to go with the octopus. CandiedZen liked it with the shrimp cracker but I thought it was a bit strange since it’s usually paired with seaweed.

Mini Potato Croquette ($6) is a deep-fried potato with bits of beef. It has a side of fruity vegetable sauce. I liked the small size and its simple taste.

Tuna Garlic Pepper Sashimi ($9.50) is one of their popular items that they sell. It has black pepper and garlic flavoured seared fresh albacore tuna with ponzu sauce. It was good, but I felt there was a bit too much going on with the plate and drowns out the natural taste of the sashimi. If you love garlic, you’ll love this dish.

Dill Salmon Carpaccio ($8.75) has sliced dill salmon with capers, dressing and a side salad. There really wasn’t much dill to it except for the sprinkles of dry dill. It’s best enjoyed by taking a bit of everything and eating it.

Grilled Hokke-Mackerel ($8.75) is grilled salted hokke mackerel with ponzu sauce. They already remove the bones so it’s quite easy to eat. I enjoyed it with the ponzu sauce since the acidity from the sauce blended well.

Ebi Mayo Japon ($6.50) are deep-fried nobashi prawns in breaded panko crumb batter with tartar sauce. It was delicious!

Overall, it’s a great alternative to the other izakaya restaurants in town. Some items can be a hit or miss, but a majority of the items are pretty good. They have lots of specials and special drinks. To help make ordering a bit easier, they have a list of the most ordered items of the previous week. The service was quite attentive and the servers were helpful.

Words of Wisdom:

  • Most dishes under $10
  • Large variety in food and drink menu
  • Gets busy at peak hours even on weekdays
  • Ebi Mayo is highly recommended

We Rate Alpha Sushi & Japanese Tapas:

Address:
1099 Richards St
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.plusalfa.com/

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Flo Tea Room is located on Granville Street in the Marpole area. It’s been there for several year now and they would serve food similarly found at Hong Kong or Taiwanese Style Cafes.

FoodPunk, FoodQueen and I decided to grab some drinks and dessert here since we were in the area.

The interior is quite spacious with a few booth seats and standard tables.

Shakespeare’s Affair ($4.95)

Fire in Ice ($4.95)

Shrek ($4.95) has red bean on the bottom and matcha slush on top. It’s a very creative name since the drink is green and shrek is green. I did enjoy the drink, it wasn’t too sweet at all.

Honey Box Toast ($7.50) is a hallowed out chunk of bread and filled with toasted bread pieces topped with ice cream, fruit, Oreos and your choice of sauce. We got chocolate sauce on top.

I’ve seen so much hype over the Honey Box Toast and when I saw it on the menu, we just had to order it. It seemed quite popular at other restaurants too.

I wasn’t a big fan of this item since it was essentially toast but in a different form. I didn’t find the toppings to be very unique either. To make it a bit sweeter, I asked for a dish of condensed milk to add into it. Even though the honey box toast does look super cool, it’s not for everyone.

Overall, I may not have liked the box toast, but the service was pretty amazing. We probably spent 3 hours here and the servers were so nice and filled up our tea quite often. We never felt any pressure to leave. Great place to have some bubble tea and chat!

Words of Wisdom:

  • Parking in Rear
  • Large variety of drinks
  • Very attentive and friendly staff

We Rate Flo Tea Room: 

Address:
7994 Granville St
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.flotearoom.com/

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Wings Tap and Grill has a location in Newton Surrey and it was just packed on Sunday! Every Sunday they have wings and beer specials. It’s such a good deal that it’s hard to pass up! Wings are $0.47 each…. is use to be $0.39 but I guess they had to change their prices. Maybe it was a new thing a month ago because their Facebook page said it is $0.39. One thing that is mandatory is a drink purchase as well to get the cheaper wings.

The Social Media Network crew decided to hang out on Sundays for their wing special. We waited about an hour to get a table for 8.

Okanagan Spring Pale Ale is a good accompaniment with wings! It also has subtle hints of honey and citrus, so it’s not too bitter.

The Original Westcoaster has fresh lemon peels and cracked black pepper. I found the taste to be inconsistent with a few of my wings. Some had a nice subtle lemon taste, but then some other ones would be crazy sour and salty. It definitely confused me.

Chicago Salt & Pepper is just very simple, but you can’t go wrong with simple right? It’s always my favorite.

I chose all dry wings because I always hate getting sauce all over my hands when ordering other types of wings. I am able to eat the wings and still press the buttons on my cell phone. They also mixed both of the wings on a plate, so at times I would kinda forget what I would be eating until I bite into the wing.

Each person ordered about 20 wings each so we managed to fill up 2 of these metal bucket full of bones. Some people were better at cleaning the bones and some weren’t.

Overall, the wings were large than most of the other places in town. You will definitely get full from 20 wings and the beer is a good item to have and just chill with friends.

 Words of Wisdom:

  • Long waits on Sunday due to Wings special
  • Wings special has a mandatory drink purchase and 10 wing per flavour minimum
  • They split the bill very easily and can split shared food too
  • A large variety of flavours for wings

We Rate Wings Tap and Grill:

Address:
7124 King George Highway
Surrey, BC

Website:
http://www.greatwings.ca/

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