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November Dessert is a Chinese dessert shop located on Grimer Street in Burnaby. This street has a lot of dessert shops and cafes opening up in the last few months and locals are noticing. I’ve heard of November Desserts but haven’t made a visit until they asked me to come for a visit to try some of their different dishes. If you’ve heard of Scorpio M in Richmond, they moved their operations here, changed the name and the menu is very similar to what they had before.

Interior

The interior is large and can fit small to large groups. They have utilized the beautiful grey brick walls and incorporated some beautiful Chinese decor that gives it a unique look.

Menu

Their regular menu has different soupy desserts, pancakes, and limited drinks. They also have a beautiful afternoon tea set, but you need to order 24 hours in advance. You wouldn’t know they had it unless you look at their social media accounts. I missed out on the tea set since I didn’t reserve ahead of time, so we stuck to the regular menu.

It was hard to figure out how each item on the menu differentiated itself from another, so I had to get my mom to translate some parts of the menu since I can’t read Chinese.

Drinks

I started with the milk tea, they use oolong tea as their base, but when they mix it together with the milk it’s eerily frothy, perhaps they use powdered milk, which I really do not like.

Mango and Durian Pancakes

The pancakes are wrapped like little packages. The skin is thin and is filled with whipped cream and the chosen fruit inside.

Durian

The durian pancake has a good chunk of fruit inside and all the durian lovers will enjoy it. It’s an acquired taste, so you will either love or hate it. I’m more on the neutral level since it taste like onions to me, but everyone’s experience if different.

Mango

Mango is a classic and a hit with everyone unless you are allergic to mangos. One of my favourite items to get here.

Snow Ice with Chopped Strawberry

We also added taro mochi, grass jelly, and papaya. I love this bowl since it has the cute little polar bear in the centre. I really enjoyed the toppings and the snowy ice flavoured with a bit of condensed milk.

It’s a good item to share with friends and you chat away and pick at this.

Mango and Black Sticky Rice with Homemade shaved ice

The shaved ice was milky, which was enjoyable. It is  topped off with 2 large scoops of black sticky rice and chopped mangos. This was ok, but not that special.

Mango, kiwi, homemade riceball with homemade shaved ice

 

Final Thoughts

They have improved their desserts since they were Scorpio M, but with the tough competition of dessert cafes in the area, it’s hard to stand out since there is another cafe doing similar desserts. The space here is quiet, so we did notice some people studying here.

We Rate November Dessert

Address:
5358 Grimmer St, Burnaby

Website:
http://mdessert.ca/en/

Hi Five Baked and Fried Chicken is a 24 hour shop offering locals fried chicken, sandwiches and nuggets anytime of the day. We came here after a long day and wanted to check this place out after hearing about it. With Duffin’s and Church’s Chicken also open 24 hours, we wanted to see how they ranked.

Interior

When you get inside, you order at the counter and then there are a few tables to eat. It kinda reminds me of Church’s chicken since you can see right into the kitchen where they make the chicken.

Fried Chicken

I went for a 3 piece combo with a pop and potato wedges. It came with 2 thighs and a leg. I got 2 original flavours and 1 spicy just to see how it is.

I got 2 thighs and the size of the two I got were inconsistent. One was a good size and the other was pretty small.

I find that the chicken tasted pretty oily and left a heavy taste in our mouths. It was decent, but it didn’t hit the mark when we compared it with the other choices out there.

The potato wedges were ok. Crisp and fresh out of the frier and lots of spices encrusted around it. They gave you a good amount in the box, but I didn’t really care much for it.

Overall, it was a bit below average and with the other 24 hour fried chicken places around, it doesn’t stand out too much.

We Rate Hi Five Chicken

Address:
203 SE Marine Dr, Vancouver

Website:
http://hifive24.com/

Hi Five 24 – Baked and Fried Chicken Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

The Tea of Brightness or TTOB is a Bubble Tea Cafe from Taiwan. There’s really not much I could really find online, but their cute menu items drew me in. I was with a few friends in the area and we made it a mission to give this place a try.

Menu

You will mostly find bubble tea drinks and bubble waffles on the menu.

Princess Milk Tea

The Princess Milk Tea was really the main reason why I wanted to come here. I thought it was initially latte art, but it turns out it’s a marshmallow. SUPER CUTE. MEOW. The milk tea wasn’t very good, but them again, I’ve had a lot of milk teas in my life time, so I’ve become a milk tea snob. I could taste the powdered milk and I really don’t like that taste.

Three Flavoured Bubble Waffle

The 3 flavours are original, chocolate and matcha. We didn’t take a liking to the matcha flavour as it seemed super artificial. The original and chocolate are very good. Where else are you going to find a 3 flavoured bubble waffle? It’s pretty unique but it’s too bad the matcha didn’t stand out.

Final Thoughts

The basic milk tea was definitely lacking, but since I didn’t try any other drinks, I can’t comment on the other drinks. At any new bubble tea shop, I always get the basic milk tea as it’s a basic sign if the shop is good or not. The aesthetic of the princess milk tea was great but the flavour and taste was lacking.

We Rate TTOB

Address:
3318 Cambie Street, Vancouver

Website:
http://www.ttob.com.tw/

The Tea of Brightness TTOB Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Rocko’s Diner is a 24 hours diner and is best know for bring in the pilot episode of Riverdale. Since we were passing by Mission, BC, we decided to make a stop for breakfast before heading to Castle Fun Park. They are one of the last free standing diners in BC. Still, they are family owned and operated and take a great sense of pride in being a successful independent restaurant.

Interior

Once you take a glance here, you know it looks like Pop’s Chock’lit Shoppe with all the booth seating on both sides. The red neon sign up above at night makes this place look perfect. During the day, the sign doesn’t have a large effect.

Archie/Riverdale Inspired Menu Items

On the menu, you’ll find a few items that are inspired by the show/comic book series. You can go for their milkshakes or the J Jones Burger. Very fitting for the characters. We didn’t end up getting these items as we were all craving their breakfast items.

Coffee

Coffee is an excellent way to start the day. We always get coffee at a diner, plus refills are great.

Disco Fries

The Disco Fries has onion rings and fries covered with mozzarella and cheddar smothered in gravy. A great item to share among the table. Plus, onion rings and gravy work well together.

Eggs Bennie

This classic dish has poached eggs, smoked ham, Hollandaise served on a grilled English muffin and a side of hash browns.

Black Rock Bennie

This has Grilled English muffin topped with crispy bacon, grilled tomatoes and hollandaise sauce. It is served with hash browns on the side. This was ok, but not that great. A bit expensive for what you get.

Rockos Skillet

You have your choice of Rocko’s Corn Beef, kubasa, bacon, ham, or sausage. Everyone got it with their corn beef. It is served with sautéed mushrooms, onions, melted cheese, green onions, hash browns and topped with 2 eggs. There is also toast on the side too.

Garden Omelette

This omelette has mushrooms, tomatoes, green onions, white onions and cheese. It is served with toast and hashbrowns.

Final Thoughts

Cool diner to go to but the food is sub par and is a bit pricey for what you get. It was nice to come here for the nostalgia and being where the Riverdale cast shot on episode, but the food isn’t that great.

We Rate Rocko’s Diner

Address:
32786 Lougheed Hwy, Mission

Website:
http://www.rockosdiner.com/

Rocko's Family Diner Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Rhinofish is a Taiwanese Beef Noodle shop in Chinatown. It recently opened and I was excited because it’s hard to find good Taiwanese Beef Noodle in the area. Before they opened, they gave a few of us a sneak peek to see what to expect.

Niu Rou Mian

Taiwanese beef noodle with braised soup, tomato, baby bok choy, carrot, potato and asian sauerkraut. I had high hopes for this dish as it’s their specialty, but it fell short of expectations. The beef was very dry and did not melt in my mouth. The broth was deep in flavour but tasted more like Chinese medicine. The noodles themselves were good.

Hua Diao Ji Mian

Hua diao rice wine chicken broth, sous vide chicken breast, baby bok choy, cherry tomatoes, and tea infused egg. I preferred this a little bit more, but the broth flavour is very very subtle. It was a clean homey flavour to it. Some others commented saying it was bland. I added some mustard greens and some chili oil to transform the flavour.

Guo Bao

Taiwanese steamed bun with pork belly was ok but it needed something a bit more to bind the two things together. Maybe more sauce to moisten the bun slightly.

Xiao Huang Gua

Pickled Japanese cucumber with garlic and chili is a nice item to start with, but for $5, it’s a bit much for what you end up getting.

Mu Er

Wood ear mushroom with sesame soy dressing and plum salt in this dish. Another starter dish to share.

Yansuji with Nanjing sauce

A classic Taiwanese dish of crispy chicken nuggets topped with fried basil. the nanjing sauce is on the side. The chicken is good on it’s own, so the added sauce doesn’t add much difference. The chicken was moist on the inside and the outer fried are was crisp.

Yansuji with Parmesan and truffle oil

Very similar to the dish above with the different toppings and a bit of lemon.

Final Thoughts

Overall, the food was ok but the menu prices are a bit high for what you get. We ended up giving the chef some feedback about the dishes but we’re not sure if he ever made changes before they opened. They tried to be innovative with their dishes but in the end it fell flat as they tried to reinvent the wheel as basic Taiwanese beef noodle is a classic dish. No one was impressed.

We Rate Rhinofish

Address:
550 Main St, Vancouver

Website:
http://www.rhinofishnoodlebar.com/

Rhinofish Noodle Bar Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Roost Cafe and Bistro has been around for about a year in the Chinatown/Strathcona neighbourhood. I came here for lunch with a friend since we wanted to try something new close by our office. I ended up finding this place through Google Maps. We saw they had some avocado toast, so we wanted to give it a try.

Interior

The interior is very cute and hip. They’ve really transformed the space to suit the people moving into this neighbourhood. They have bar seats, patio seats and a few tables inside.

Soup of the Day

We originally wanted some avocado toast, but they ran out of avocados before noon, so C went with the soup of the day which was a tomato soup. It is served with buttered sourdough toast. It was not very impressive.

Sandwich of the Day

I originally wanted another sandwich, but since there were no avocados in sight, I went with the sandwich of the day, which had pesto, ham, cheese and tomato between 2 slices of sourdough bread. It is served with a side salad with vinaigrette dressing. It was ok, but a bit pricey for $12.

Overall, we were not very impressed by this lunch experience. For the neighbourhood, the food is a bit pricey. It was too bad they didn’t have avocados stocked on a Tuesday since that option would have been better.

We Rate Roost Cafe and Bistro

Address:
789 Gore Avenue, Vancouver, BC

Website:
https://www.roost.cafe/

The Roost Cafe Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

It was a long weekend and a group of my friends headed up to Squamish to enjoy the awesome craft brewery scene and also indulge in some food that we can’t get in Vancouver. Squamish is about an hour away from Downtown Vancouver and they have a thriving community. We asked a few locals where to eat and they suggested Copper Coil for some cajun cuisine. Since long weekends are busy, we waited a bit before getting a seat outside on their patio. It’s a great patio as it faces The Chief.

We tried ordering their signature Cajun items on the menu, but they were all sold out and it was only 4:30pm. We all started with beers except for me since I needed to drive. The drinks came out promptly, but the food that we ordered would take a very very long time to come out. It turns out the kitchen was severely backed up with orders and couldn’t get them out in a timely manner. Majority of the items left to order were deep-fried so maybe they didn’t have enough room or man power to fry them all. It was close to the one hour mark when some of the items started coming out.

Smoked Brisket

We got Smoked sliced brisket, kale slaw, and chipotle mayo on two buttermilk biscuits. It also comes with a side of curly fries. This was the first item that arrived and we were a bit underwhelmed. $17 and it wasn’t that impressive when you get it on 2 buttermilk biscuits. The slices of brisket was a bit dry.

Platter O Plenty

This platter has a little bit of everything – Smoked Wings, Cajun Pickles, Popcorn Shrimp, and supposedly poutine. Our order came out at different times and they ran out of poutine too. So, no poutine for us. They substituted it with another bucket of popcorn shrimp.

All the items were pretty standard and deep-fried. Nothing very special about it. We originally wanted to order it to munch on as we ordered beer, but since it took so long this had to save some of us from our hangry selves.

Final Thoughts

Overall, we heard such great things about Copper Coil but our experience was far from that.I really wish I had more positive things to say. The servers were very apologetic and were able to cover all our drinks and give us 50% off the food we ordered. It’s too bad we weren’t able to have a great experience, but so many things went wrong in the kitchen.

We Rate Copper Coil

Address:
37996 Cleveland Ave, Squamish, BC

Website:
http://thecoppercoil.com/

The Copper Coil Still & Grill Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Flying Rose is an Asian dessert cafe on Robson Street. I was passing by and noticed it since they serve things like mango desserts. I came with a few friends to give it a try since all other cafes were super busy.

Interior

The interior is bright, colourful and has large tables for big groups. We came around 8pm, so it was still early in the evening. You order and pay up at the counter instead of at the table.

Sago, coconut milk, mango puree, fresh mango and pomelo

We were looking forward to this, but it was pricey for what we got. There was barely any mango and pomelo in this and it was super gritty tasting from the coconut milk. Very disappointing.

Fresh Mango Crepe

Each order has one piece and for some reason came out separately even when we ordered 2. It took a long time for them to put this together. There was about a ten minute gap between each crepe arriving at the table.

Once we got both, it was delicious. The crepe was thin and had the right texture. The fresh mango and the whipped cream were great, but still pricey.

Final Thoughts

Overall, the experience was pretty meh as the service and execution was pretty poor. Desserts from the kitchen came out really slowly and I’m sure one of our desserts were made incorrectly. They definitely have some kinks to work out.

We Rate Flying Rose

Address:
1517 Robson Street, Vancouver

Website:
http://www.flyingrose.ca/

The Flying Rose Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Moment Dessert House is a another cafe in South Burnaby for coffee, tea and cakes. It is a bit hidden as it is just off Kingsway. I came on a weekend when all the other cafes in the area were super busy. We came here as it was a place we haven’t been to before and it wasn’t as busy.

Interior

There were white walls and then accents of wood all over the cafe. There are lots of tables to sit and chat with friends or study.

Apparently it’s exam time, so there were a few people studying here. Even though it was busy, there were always still tables available for smaller groups.

One odd thing we did notice is that we order up at the counter and we can pay later. I’m use to paying up front as its easy to forget to pay.

Coffee

Some coffee is a requirement when hanging with my friends. They had a coffee and an americano.

I got a cappuccino and it had lots of foam on top. I felt it was a bit on the weaker side with a bit too much milk under it.

Cake

Strawberry Chiffon Cake is what we had to share It wasn’t sweet, which makes it a great asian cake. It looks pretty but it was mostly whipped cream, cake and some strawberries. It was decent, but it was pricey for what it you get.

They also have other types of cakes written on the walls too if you want to know what they are. This place looks cute, but the coffee and cakes weren’t as memorable.

We Rate Moment Dessert House: 

Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/momentdesserthouse/

Address:
7-4300 Kingsway, Burnaby

Moment Dessert House Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Cacao 70 is a new restaurant in the West End in Downtown Vancouver serving up decadent chocolate treats for brunch or even late into the evening. They have other locations across Canada in Ontario, Montreal and Quebec.

We were invited to come try their brunch items as well as other things on their menu.

Interior

There are a lot of tables that can accommodate small to large groups.

Beverages

Moka has espresso with semi-sweet Cacao 70 classic hot chocolate. You can also get it with milk or dark chocolate.

American-style Hot Chocolate is Cacao 70’s classic hot chocolate served with marshmallows and drizzled with melting chocolate You can have it drizzled with milk, semi-sweet or dark chocolate.

A great item to get for hot chocolate lovers or kids.

Drinking Chocolate

You can get varying degrees of drinking chocolate on their menu. The chocolate is pretty rich and you can add an alcohol shot for a few dollars extra.

Europa Pressed Crepe Sandwiches

Europa Pressed Crepe Sandwiches has ham, swiss cheese, and a Parisienne sauce. It is served with a green salad on the side. One of the better items on the savoury brunch menu.

Meat Lover Omelet

Meat Lover Omelet has 3 eggs cooked with bacon, ham, Italian sausage, folded over a layer of melted cheddar cheese. You get a side of potatoes, whole-wheat toast, and fresh fruits and melted chocolates. It was big and full of food, but it didn’t taste amazing.

Crepe Morning Crepe Special – Spinach and Egg

Spinach and Egg Crepe Morning Crepe Special comes with 2 fried eggs with a buckwheat base French style crêpe stuffed with baby spinach and feta cheese. It is also served with fruit and melted chocolate. The crêpe was very bland and needed more feta and some salt.

Illegal Chocolate Waffle

Illegal Chocolate Waffle has a classic waffle topped with pure melted milk Belgian chocolate, milk chocolate shavings, caramelized bananas, crunchy chocolate wafer balls, melted chocolate and whipped cream on the side.

Marshmallow Chocolate Pizza

Chocolate Marshmallow Pizza has a warm pizza crust topped with melted chocolate chunks and roasted marshmallows. It is then served with strawberries, bananas and melted chocolate on the side.

It is a fun item to share with friends and super decadent, but you can really only eat so much of this. The first few bites were good but then once I finished a slice, I didn’t want anymore.

Grilled Marshmallows

Grilled Marshmallows comes with graham crackers, bananas, peanut butter sauce, whipped cream and 5 marshmallows for roasting.

What a fun item to eat with friends. It’s easy to burn the marshmallows, so hold it further away from the flame as it’s pretty powerful. S’mores is super delicious and fun to make.

Final Thoughts

Overall, there are a few misses in their savoury brunch menu, but a lot of people come here for the chocolate. Where else can you indulge yourself in everything sweet and chocolaty.

We Rate Cacao 70

Address:
1047 Denman Street, Vancouver

Website:
https://cacao70.ca/en/

Cacao 70 Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

The Vancouver Fish Company is participating in Dine Out Vancouver from January 20 to February 5, 2017. They are offering guests with their 3 course meal on Granville Island for West Coast Cuisine for $40 or $29 for lunch. Reservations should be made in advance.

Dine Out 2017 Menu at The Vancouver Fish Company

Appetizers

  • VFC seafood chowder
  • Lentil soup
  • Humboldt squid salad
  • Maple walnut prawns

Entree

  • Lobster mac’n’cheese
  • Thai chicken curry
  • Crab-stuffed sole wellington
  • Steak oscar

Dessert

  • Apple bread pudding
  • Mango sorbet

As I came during a preview night, the items pictured might not be 100% how it looks when it arrives at your table.

Appetizers

Lentil soup has organic red lentils, and garam masala cream sauce. It is Vegetarian and gluten-free friendly.

Maple walnut prawns has lightly fried prawns, seaweed salad, maple, spiced walnuts, and sesame. It comes with 3 pieces to an order.

VFC seafood chowder has fresh seafood, fresh clams, thyme cream, and bacon.

Entree

Lobster mac’n’cheese has baked lobster casserole, creamy cheddar, and bread crumbs.

Thai chicken curry has braised chicken, scented basmati rice, coconut curry sauce, julienne vegetables, roasted peanuts, and cilantro. It has a nice kick of spice to this dish.

Crab-stuffed sole wellington with fresh sole, crab meat, cream cheese, puff pastry, braised kale, and lobster bisque. I found with this dish, the cream cheese and puff pastry masked the sole and the crab meat.

Steak oscar has seared skirt steak, crab meat, baby shrimp, hannah brook farm vegetables, garlic confit mashed potatoes, bernaise, and peppercorn jus.

Dessert

Mango sorbet has mango, coconut cream, and lime dust. I enjoyed this one as it felt like a palate cleanser.

Apple bread pudding has warm bread pudding, caramel sauce, and spiced walnuts. I felt it was a bit on the sweet side.

Overall, I felt the menu had a good amount of choices but the tastes were just ok. I felt the menu was lacking dishes that highlighted fresh piece of fish. For a $40 dinner option, it is a bit pricey for what you get.

We Rate The Vancouver Fish Company

Address:
1517 Anderson Street, Vancouver

Website:
http://www.vanfish.com/

Vancouver Fish Company Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Honolulu Coffee opened their first shop in Canada on Nelson Street in Downtown Vancouver. They have plans to open more locations in the near future. They bring to the Vancouver scene a twist on the regular coffee shop by having a taste of Hawaii. They are located beside Gyu Kaku, and Guu Garden.

Interior

The interior is a good size and beautiful. There are lots of seats but limited spots with outlets. Time spent at a cafe should we talking to others and enjoying their company, but sometimes you can’t help but crack open your laptop to check on something.

Coffee

One of their signature items – Hawaiian Latte has coconut, macadamia, espresso, and milk. I found it was a bit sweet even at half sweetness. You get a subtle taste of the coconut and macadamia in the latte.

I got my latte with banana bread. It came prepackaged, but it would have been better if they offered to heat it up.

I also tried the Chocolate Macadamia nut cookie and it was ok. It was packed full of chocolate chip and nuts, the cookie was dry and hard. The Cheese Scone was also mediocre.

Overall, I didn’t really like Honolulu Coffee, but it was mostly because of my personal preferences. I tried things I normally wouldn’t order because it was their signature items. Next time, I’ll stick with a cappuccino and cake.

We Rate Honolulu Coffee

Address:
888 Nelson Street, Vancouver

Website:
http://www.honolulucoffee.com/

Honolulu Coffee Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

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Chocolate Chair at the Japan Centre draws huge line ups for their Dragon’s Breath, a cereal-like fruity pebbles soaked in liquid nitrogen. Once you comp down on the cereal, a bunch of smoke comes out of your nose and mouth.

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It’s been catching wildfire on social media and I wasn’t intending on coming here, but since we saw the huge line up, we decided to give it a try too.

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They make it to order and its run to watch them put it together as ton and tons of smoke come out of their mixers.

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The cup with the Dragons Breath is super cold and becomes frosted over. The smoke it coming out of the cup.

Grab a few and pop it into your mouth to see the steam coming out of your mouth or nose. It just tasted like dry stale cereal. Most like fruity pebbles. It was a fun experience to try it but it doesn’t warrant a revisit anytime soon.

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We Rate Chocolate Chair

Address:
Japan Center, Level 2
1737 Post Street, San Francisco

Website:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Chocolate-Chair/845948145417911

Chocolate Chair Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Arisu is a Korean BBQ place in Coquitlam. I came here with a few friends on the weekend to hang out and find a new place to try out.

As a Korean restaurant, they have a variety of items besides BBQ.

Interior

A majority of the seating is booth seating. Tables all have grills and ventilation over top.

Our booth had a TV playing music videos. There was also a button where you can call the servers without looking around to flag them down. It makes the service a lot better, so they don’ have to read your mind.

Drinks

A Korean restaurant isn’t complete without a good drink menu. They have beer, soju, sake and other alcohol. I went with a beer as usual.

Banchan

Banchan are complimentary side dishes that arrive with the meal. We had 4 in total.

One of them features zucchini with onion, and carrots. Served cold and tasted good.

The next one had seaweed and had a nice pickled taste to it.

Kimchi is a staple and a good way to see if the restaurant can make a good basic kimchi. It was ok, but I like mine a bite more crunchy and sour.

Last, we got some shredded cabbage with a light dressing. It balanced very well with the grilled meat that we ordered.

Jok Bal

Jok Bal is steamed soy marinated pork hocks. The serving size was very generous, but the quality was lacking. It was tough and didn’t seem very fresh.

The dish came with lettuce wraps and some sauces to eat with it.

Steamed Egg in a Hot Clay Pot

Steamed Egg in a Hot Clay Pot looked pretty awesome but was a bit bland. It definitely needed a bit more salt and pepper.

BBQ Meats

Boneless Kalbi Short Ribs are beautifully marbled, but the biggest fault to their BBQ meats is the grill and the overly attentive service.

What I enjoy most about having the BBQ grill at the table is that you cook it yourself. Since it was a quite night at the restaurant, the meat was flipped for us by multiple servers.

Also, the BBQ Grill is quite weak and due to the thin metal threads of the grill, it cooked very slowly and let the meat cook in a weird way.

Beef Tongue was thin and the slices looked very nice. Nice cut of meat, but we still had similar problems with the grill and the servers flipping it for us.

I totally understand why they would flip it for us to ensure that it’s cooked well, but the young server that we had didn’t seem to know what he was doing.

Overall, we found more misses with their food. Their cuts of meat are really nice but everything else wasn’t able to help cook the meat to its full potential. With other BBQ restaurants in the area, they have tough competition. Also, even though they have ventilation above the grills, you will leave the restaurant smelling like meat. It’s a common occurrence with other BBQ restaurants too, so don’t wear your favourite clothes here. I really wanted to like this place, but my friends and I were disappointed.

We rate Arisu Korean BBQ

Address:
4501 North Rd #203, Burnaby, BC

Arisu Korean BBQ Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

arguello-1

Arguello is located in the historic Presidio Officers’ Club. They serve up Mexican cuisine capturing the cultural heritage of the Presidio and a contemporary bar with craft cocktails. Chef Traci Des Jardins put together their menu for Arguello.

I was invited by the Presidio Trust to check out their lunch menu.

Interior

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The interior is dim with lower ceilings. It makes the atmosphere cozy. There are a few booth seats but majority are tables of 4.

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Sides

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Chips, Salsas and Guacamole was aa good way to start the meal. The chips were crisp and was good to snack on them while waiting for the meals to arrive. The guacamole was my favourite item to dip the chips into. I have an obsession with avocados.

Tacos

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Grilled shrimp, cabbage slaw, and citrus-habanero salsa had a few pieces of the plump shrimp. This was one of the popular tacos on the menu. Seasoned well, but I wish they did something more to the tortilla like grill or warm it up.

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Marinated Asada, cascabel-ginger and salsa was the second taco I got. It was very meaty and tender but the sauce that went with it wasn’t what I was expecting.

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Cemita is a sandwich with beans, avocado, lettuce, tomato, and oaxaca cheese. My friend seemed to like this for lunch.

Dessert

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Churros were a nice treat at the end of the meal. There are 2 pieces of churros that come with each order. Horchata ice cream was my favourite ice cream that was served with it.

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Overall, all the items we tried were pretty average. Nothing was wrong with the food, but with Mexican food, I felt the like bright vibrant flavours were lacking in the dishes.

We Rate Arguello25rating

Address:
50 Moraga Ave, San Francisco

Website:
http://www.arguellosf.com/

Arguello Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

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Bao Down has a Hawaiian Brunch every weekend at their Olympic Village location. Since Hawaiian cuisine is all the rage this year, I thought it would be great to check it out with a few friends.

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One thing I’ve always adored was their amazing painting on the wall. So bright and vibrant with the rustic decor.

Drinks

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Coffee is a must at brunch since we are all still waking up. They have drip coffee with milk and sugar.

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They even have espresso-based coffees too if you want something a bit more fancy.

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Thai Iced Tea was a cool item on the menu so my friend ordered it. When it came to the table, the drink was super sweet, so she asked if they could do it half sweet, but unfortunately it’s pre-mixed, so they can’t adjust the sweetness. They were nice enough to take this off the bill.

Island Brunch

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The Swartz has crispy corned beef and potato hash with 2 eggs, garlic fried rice with tomato and onions.

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Under Pressure has panko fried spam, 2 eggs, garlic rice, hash browns, sweet shoyu, tomato and onions.

I found this dish to be quite heavy for brunch. It was pretty hard starting the day off with fried foods and rice. I thought there would be a few lighter items on the menu, but most of them were meaty and heavy.

Overall, I didn’t really take a liking the brunch items we ordered. I prefer their lunch menu with poke as it is more light and fresh.

We rate Bao Down25rating

Address:
115 West 2nd Ave. Vancouver

Website:
http://baodown.net/

Bao Down Gastropub & Raw Bar Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

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Liu Yi Shou Hot Pot Restaurant is a new hot pot restaurant in South Burnaby on Kingsway. They are a chain restaurant from China quickly expanding in Vancouver.

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They have over 600 restaurants in China. They have 2 more locations on Robson Street and in Richmond. What is unique about their menu compared to their other locations is their pan fried hot pots.

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I was invited by the Chopstick Fest, a Chinese Cuisine Festival happening in October later this year to try out a few of their signature dishes.

Interior

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The interior is nice and has lot of seating. Depending on your group size, the seating can be quite squishy. For us, we had a group of 7 and it was very tight. We also found that for a hot pot place, there wasn’t very good ventilation.

All of us smelled quite intensely of hot pot afterwards.

Pan Fried Hot Pots

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We started with the Pan Fried Crab with ginger onion and short rib soup in the centre. Apparently, you eat the items in the outer rings and then drink the soup in the centre.

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The crab was hard to pick at since there were no metal seafood crackers. The taste of the soup was very nice.

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The second pot we got was Pan fried fish and sauteed beef  in a hot and spicy soup.

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This pot had a lot more flavour. The sauteed beef went really well with the hot and spicy soup and spices.

Hot Pot

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More spicy soup base is added to the pot. I thought this was pretty strange since the broth would be super oily from the pan fried ingredients originally in the pot. This was definitely a unique experience. We assumed we would get a new pot to switch over but it seemed like it wasn’t the case.

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The spicy soup base has quite a kick to it. I always find that spicy is good for cooking meat. It’s a great match to have beef and a good amount of heat.

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More of the short rib broth was added to our non spicy hot to cook some meat, veggies, seafood and other items.

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To accompany both hot pots, all the extra items are a la carte. So, it’s not all you can eat.

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Some of my favourite items were the frozen tofu, quail eggs, and veggies.

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Some items were felt were not very fresh like the shrimp. Also the diced beef had bits of shell inside it.

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Other menu items

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Deep fried buns with condensed milk comes with 6 pieces of buns. Crisp on the outside and I like how there were 2 slits on the top so you can get some condensed milk in the cracks.

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Green onion pancake was not good at all. It was only and didn’t have a lot of green onion taste to it. Mostly dough.

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Yang chow fried rice was good and an easy item to share with the group.

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Fresh young coconut was great for the meal as it quelled the heat from the spicy hot pot.

Overall, we felt like the items were a hit and miss. We also didn’t like how they added the broth into the pan fried hot pot as it made it super oily when we were doing the regular hot pot.

We rate Liu Yi Shou Hot Pot Restaurant25rating

Address:
5507 Kingsway, Burnaby BC

Liu Yi Shou HotPot Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

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Koyuki Sapporo Ramen is the newest ramen joint to appear near Robson Street. With so many other ramen shops in the area, I was curious how it would compare.

I came here with Dee from Gastrofork to see if it would tickle our tastebuds.

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We came during dinner time and they provided us with their lunch time menu. Apparently, the only difference is that the portion is larger. They didn’t have a dinner menu printed out, which I thought was strange.

Interior

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The interior hasn’t changed too much as it still had the same structure of the previous restaurant that was here. There are lots of seats but it was very dead when we were here.

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Ramen

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Tonkotsu Ramen has a rich and creamy broth made from pork bones. it is topped with bean sprouts, cha-shu, green onion, seaweed, black garlic, and an aitsuke egg.

The egg was over cooked and didn’t have that gooey consistency like the other places in town. There was a lot of noodles, but it was chewy and bland. The cha-shu was really good.

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Miso Ramen is their Sapporo style with miso flavour, bamboo shoots, green onions, bean sprouts, seaweed and cha-shu.

Gyoza

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Gyozas come in 5 pieces and were pretty bad too. Even though it was pan fried, it was limp.

Overall, there wasn’t anything about this place that stood out except their cha-shu, but then again you can’t really go wrong with cha-shu. I didn’t like the texture of the noodles as it was chewy and soggy. The egg wasn’t done right. The service was also pretty awful too.

I’ve never been to Sapporo to have authentic Sapporo style ramen, but all I know is that Koyuki’s ramen was pretty meh.

They have a lot to improve on.

We Rate Koyuki Ramen25rating

Address: 
795 Jervis Street, Vancouver

Koyuki Sapporo Ramen Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato