Seafood Archives - Page 10 of 14

In Downtown

The Kaboom Box: Kaboom in a Box Dining Package Review

May 3, 2012

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

The Kaboom Box is a food cart near Granville and Robson street that sells amazing items with Oceanwise certified seafood. They try to be very sustainable and only use biodegradable and compostable packaging. I eat here once in a while and I always get the Oyster Po Boy. It steals my heart every single time.

The guys at VANEATS.ca is selling a dining package called ‘Kaboom in a Box’ where you get a sandwich, poutine and a drink for $8.50. You can choose one of two sandwiches – The World Famous Hot Smoked Salmon ‘Salmwich’ or The Gulf Island Fried Oyster Po’Boy.

Lines can be seen at lunch time, but food does come out quickly.

Since the cart is quite small, you can see everything they are doing. It’s kinda cool seeing them in action!

The Gulf Island Fried Oyster Po’Boy has fried panko breaded oysters with tartar sauce and coleslaw in a toasted bun. The oyster are delicious for all those seafood lovers out there. I find that with this sandwich, it can get quite messy as the coleslaw tends to fall out. Nonetheless, its fun to eat and the flavours of the oysters really shine through.

The World Famous Hot Smoked Salmon ‘Salmwich’ has locally sourced Oceanwise salmon that is smoked . It also has spicy mayo and a maple mustard slaw in a toasted whole wheat bun. My coworker ordered this and she said it was a bit dry on the edges, but it was moist and tender on the inside. She also said the toasted bun was a bit tough and dense. It definitely can make you full fast.

BC Poutine has crispy fries topped with a mushroom gravy and cheese curds. This was so delicious because I just love anything with mushrooms. It had a great savory taste and was a good addition to the meal.

For $8.50, the portions are quite good. you will definitely be full. It’s cheaper than some of the other options for lunch Downtown. You will definitely get full! If you haven’t tried Kaboom Box, I think it’s time you tried it. Grab your dining passes at VANEATS.ca before they run out.

Words of Wisdom:

BC Poutine is super good!
Sandwiches can be a bit messy to eat, so grab napkins
Great Lunch option to avoid sitting at restaurants
Close to Granville Skytrain Station

We Rate the Kaboom Box:

Located on:
Granville and Robson

Website:
http://www.thekaboombox.com/

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In Seafood

Rodney’s Oyster House: Low Tide Oyster Specials

April 14, 2012

Rodney’s Oyster House is always a hit with locals for delicious seafood. Monday to Saturday from 3pm to 6pm, they have their low tide specials, which is equivalent to happy hour. They have oysters specials at $1.50 per piece and some other seafood items as well. Such as their mussels, clams, prawns, etc.

I had an extra hour of parking, so FoodPunk, KoreanGirl and Mandu headed to Rodneys to catch their low tide menu. It is always busy around the low tide specials, so it’s good to make reservations or go early.

The restaurant has 2 levels, so if you are at the top, you can watch everyone below. The best experience is at the bar where you can watch the oysters shuckers at work, it’s fun to watch, plus sometimes they give you some free oysters to sample.

Unfortunately, this time we were seated upstairs, so the experience was a lot different that being on the first floor.

Bread (complementary) is quite huge. If you do order the garlic prawns or mussels, save this bread to dip into the sauce.

Fanny Bay Oysters ($1.50) were the special for that day. The other oysters like kushi oysters aren’t part of the low tide price, so you do need to pay more for the other oysters. The oysters varied in size, some were quite large, some were a bit smaller. The shuckers shucking ability is really good since there was no sand or shell debris in the oyster!

The oysters some with a bunch of sauce that vary from sour to spicy. My personal favorite sauce to use is the Shallot Vinaigrette and tabasco sauce.

Overall, Rodney’s is great for seafood during their low tide special. Service is a bit slow, but if you have the patience, you will be alright.

Words of Wisdom:

Meter Parking on Street
Low Tide Oysters between 3pm and 6pm
Pan fried oysters + mussels are popular
Always check your bill because waiters may make mistakes
Go early and sit at the counter

We rate Rodney’s Oyster House:

Visit their website: http://www.rodneysoysterhouse.com/

Address:

1228 Hamilton St
Vancouver, BC

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In Downtown

Miyako Sushi: Soft Shell Crab of Disappointment

April 1, 2012

Miyako Sushi is located Downtown on Pender and brings in a large crowd during lunch time. They are proudly Japanese owned and you will see that in the front of the restaurant.

This place was very busy and the servers seems a bit “cold” and rude when we got a table.

Low Carb Box ($11.95) it come with sunomono, miso soup, dynamite roll, salmon & tuna sashimi, chicken teriyaki salad and fruit.

The sunomono was ok, but could be better as the noodle seemed like they were sitting there for a while. The sashimi tasted alright too, but MeatLover found a bone in her salmon. Thats a bit scary. The chicken teriyaki had so much oil that the whole salad was just very warm and slimy. The dynamite roll was good! The fruit…was super disappointing since it was just a piece of orange when the menu had grapes and apples.

The bento box will get you full, but the execution of the items could be better.

The miso soup was ok and nothing special.

Deep Fried Soft Shell Crab ($7.95) was so disappointing. This crab was very very tiny and not worth the money at all! It wasn’t very crunchy and the inside was very juicy, so when you bite into it, a lot of juice would come out. Avoid this at all costs!

Overall, the sushi is good but everything else is disappointing. Sure, they do use wild salmon rather than farmed salmon, but it wasn’t enough to love this restaurant. The items can be a hit and miss, but if you stick with a bento for lunch, you’ll be alright.

Words of Wisdom:

Misleading menu pictures
Good rolls
Can be a bit pricey compared to other restaurants in the area.
Some items poorly executed
poor service

We Rate Miyako Sushi:

Address:
829 West Pender St.
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://miyakosushi.ca/

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In Japanese

Matsuyama: Late Night Specials After 9

March 25, 2012

Matsuyama in Richmond has some great late night specials after 9pm. After hearing so much about this place from Wongers, I had to join her, Mini604, GoMunch and Lensflaaare for some late night nom noms.

The place was packed at night, but I guess everyone was there for the late night menu. Also note that parking here is so bad too. You gotta stalk for a parking space.

Miso Soup ($0.89) was the usual miso soup and nothing too special about it.

Salmon Sashimi ($4.25) was a good size and decent quality. They also have toro and tuna on their late night menu for the same price. Unfortunately, when we got there, there was no more toro.

Chicken Karrage (3.95) was nicely deep-fried but still a bit average. It was a good amount of karrage for the price.

Beer Sashimi ($4.95) is thinly sliced with a bed of lettuce, daikon, and sweet sauce. Yum.

Green Tea Ice Cream was something we all craved at the table. They had other flavours too like mango and coconut. I’m sure they didn’t make it themselves and came in a tub. Still it tasted alright.

Overall, the food is quite average, but the draw to Matsuyama are the late night specials.

Words of Wisdom:

Items from $0.89 to $7.95
Free parking, but lot is usually full
Decent food, some items are hit or miss

We Rate Matsuyama:

Address:
8500 Alexandra Rd
Richmond, BC

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In Japanese

Sushiyama: Caterpillar Roll, Sushi Pizza, and Huge Sashimi

March 19, 2012

Sushiyama is a popular Japanese Restaurant near Kingsway and Broadway. They serve up affordable Japanese dishes. Since we knew they were busy, we decided to make reservations so MedicalGiraffe and I didn’t have to wait in the long line ups. Apparently they can do reservations for very large groups too.

Kamikaze Roll has spicy tuna, cucumbers, avocados, tobiki, and crab meat. The roll was alright, but not too amazing.

Caterpillar Roll ($6.95) contains cucumber, avocado, mayo, crab meat, eel and BBQ sauce. It is probably the best thing to get! It is covered in a lot of thin slices of avocado. Highly recommended! It’s something I get every time I come here.

Grilled Black Cod is also something to get here. It is delicate and the pieces of meat just slide off.

Sushi Pizza has a base layer of deep-fried rice with mayo, crab meat, avocado, tuna, salmon, masago, and BBQ sauce.

MedicalGiraffe and I were quite disappointed by the dish. The rice could have been more crunchy to make this dish more enjoyable. It just seemed like a deconstructed sushi roll.

Salmon Sashimi have very thick slices and will make you smile. Good quality too.

Overall, some of the items are a hit and a miss. If you stick with a few key dishes, you won’t be disappointed. The service is quite fast and some of the dishes literally come out in seconds. I don’t really know how this is possible, but it was really really fast. Since they are also quite busy, sometimes the servers seem like they want to rush you out of the restaurant.

Words of Wisdom:

Very cheap and affordable
Mediocre service
Long Lines
Best to go in 2′s if you hate to wait. the larger the group, the long it will take ..during peak hours
Or make reservations
Caterpillar roll and sashimi!!!!
Bento boxes are of great value if you want to try a bit of everything

We Rate Sushiyama:

Address:
371 E Broadway
Vancouver, BC

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In Lynnwood

Red Lobster: 4 course meal for $15

February 15, 2012

It has taken me two trips to Lynnwood to figure out where Red Lobster is located. The first time, my GPS led me to a residential area and I gave up. I didn’t want to use data on my phone cause…you know…I’m asian and I hate being charged for unnecessary things I don’t need.

Red Lobster is a chain seafood restaurant in the United States. They specialize in seafood and usually draw in large crowds on the weekends. We saw that they were having a $15 4-course meal, so TaiwaneseGirl, CanuckGirl and I decided to try it out. It’s a good price and it didn’t seem like it could go wrong. In the 4-course meal it gave you a few choices below.

Soup

New England Clam Chowder
Creamy Potato Bacon Soup

Salad

Fresh Garden Salad
Fresh Caesar Salad.

Entree

Grilled Honey-BBQ Shrimp Skewers
Garlic Alfredo Shrimp-and-Scallop Pasta
Garlic-Herb Shrimp and Chicken
Cajun Chicken Linguini Alfredo
Wood-Grilled Fresh Tilapia
Parrot Isle Jumbo Coconut Shrimp
Hand-Breaded Shrimp

Dessert

Triple-Chocolate Brownie á la Mode
Apple Crostada with Caramel Drizzle

When we arrived, there was already a line forming. We had to wait about 30 minutes to be seated. For others, they would have to wait over 1 hr to be seated. It’s always good to make reservations to avoid these long waits on weekends.

The whole interior looked like a boat!

Look Lobsters!

They even give your these taser-like devices that signal you when your table is called.

The dining area was very wooden as well. I guess that works with the theme of the restaurant.

New England Clam Chowder was alright. It had minimal clams and wasn’t very amazing.

Cheddar Biscuits are unlimited!! It was very fluffy on the inside and you can tell there was lots of butter to make these. Despite that, it was hands down very good biscuits!

Fresh Caesar Salad was alright as well.

Fresh Garden Salad had the addition of tomatoes, cucumbers and onions. I had a balsamic vinegar dressing on top.

Garlic Alfredo Shrimp-and-Scallop Pasta is probably the best entree out of the seven choices. TaiwaneseGirl and CanuckGirl did enjoy it, but it wasn’t the most amazing pasta they have had. It had a good amount of sauce, scallops and shrimp.

Parrot Isle Jumbo Coconut Shrimp is just gross! Stay away from this at all times. I really don’t know how this is even considered an entree. It was overly sweet and it really ruined the taste of the shrimp. How is this even somewhat healthy?

Apple Crostada with Caramel Drizzle was alright as well said CanuckGirl. It really could have used a side of vanilla ice cream.

Triple-Chocolate Brownie á la Mode was good! The brownie was warm and super moist with the side of vanilla ice cream. It’s not too sweet and it was a good end to the meal.

The dishes were ok, but nothing amazing. I am glad I didn’t have to pay more than $15 for this meal because most of it kinda sucked. We probably should have gotten lobsters, but the special was just at such a good price.

Words of Wisdom:

Very busy on weekends
Lots of rear parking
Make reservations
Avoid anything with coconuts and shrimp

We Rate Red Lobster:

Address:
4231 196th St SW
Lynnwood, WA 98036
Website:
http://www.redlobster.com

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In Seafood

Pearl Urban Bistro: A Restaurant By The Sea

February 7, 2012

Foodology Disclaimer: I was invited by the owners to try out their restaurant. I brought along 3 friends to really keep this review as unbiased as possible! This review does not guarantee 100% similar service you might normally get from this restaurant.

Pearl Urban Bistro is a restaurant located in White Rock. They specialize in seafood dishes and are located right by the ocean. It probably has a good view during sunset. Their dishes are around $20 and its a good place to check out if you are a seafood fan.

RomanJ, Abbytizer, M and I headed down here and had a double date kind of thing. I’ve never dined in White Rock before, so it was good to see what was down there. There’s so many restaurants!!

The dining area is very hip and trendy. It’s quite comfortable and cozy.

They have a bar with a good selection of wine!

Long Island Green Iced Tea ($6.95) has mint infused rum, green tea infused gin, fresh lime juice, and cola. Abbytizer thought the drink was sweet and pretty refreshing, but the cola flavor slightly overpowered the mint and green tea flavors.

Orange Drop ($6.95) has Smirnoff Orange, Triple Sec, orange juice, and orange simple syrup with the rim of sugar. RomanJ thought the drink was sweet and refreshing. He mentions this drink is more suitable for a hot a summer day on a patio.

Signature Pearl Punch ($6.95) has Captain Morgan’s spiced rum and pink lemonade. Abbytizer thought that this drink was a little tart, but would suggest it to anyone who enjoys sour flavors in their cocktail.

Signature Onyx 30 Minute Caesar ($6.95) has Smirnoff vodka, fresh horseradish, Worcestershire, lime juice, and Clamato. This was the first time I had a Caesar and it was pretty good. The waitress explained that they make their caesars a bit more mild compared to other restaurants, so its great for first time drinkers of caesars. It has a lot of different flavours going on and you probably have to choose wisely what you eat with this.

Amuse Bouche of Roasted Carrot & Brie Soup has Agassiz Farmhouse brie and herb oil. The soup came in a very very cute little cup and a tiny spoon. It tasted really good. They also have a larger version for a starter dish.

Fresh Shucked Oysters ($2.95 each) comes with lemon jelly, red wine mignonette, and horseradish as toppings. The type we had are medium-sized, but that was the selection they had for this day. It can always change depending on what comes in. Best to ask the server what type they are.

The toppings were good, but my personal favorite topping is just tabasco sauce! You can probably ask them for some.

Baked Brie ($13.45) is wrapped in a pastry with spicy apple & pear compote on top. It is also served with other berries and cranberry toasted bread. When you cut into the baked brie, the ooey gooey cheese just melts out and its so yummy on the toasted bread. If you are a brie and fruit fan, you should get this.

1LB Steamed Mussel Pot ($14.95) has West Coast mussels with lamb chorizo and a fresh herb shallot butter sauce. The chorizo looked more like grounded meat, so there was no sausage looking pieces in the pot. Still, the mussels tasted delicious with the subtle taste of the lamb and butter sauce. The best part about it is dunking the pieces of bread into the liquid and it just soaks up all the delicious flavours.

Canadian Rock Crab Cakes ($24.90) comes with Yukon Gold potato nest, celeriac purée, and spinach cream. It was a pretty good crab cake with lots of crab meat inside. It is mixed with a bit of celery on the inside, so it added a nice additional texture inside. This whole plate probably won’t fill you up, so it’s always good to order additional items with it. I found some of the fries in the potato nest were not of the same consistency, some were crispy and some were very limp. This is a bit odd since the fries are so thin.

Seafood Pappardelle Pasta ($17.95) has Pacific Coast mussels, prawns, and spinach garlic cream sauce. Abbytizer found this pasta dish very disappointing. The pasta sauce was lacking in flavor and a pinch or two of salt would have helped it out. Also, four mussels and two prawns placed on the plate does not make it a “seafood” pasta. For the price and quality, Abbytizer would not order this dish again.

Pemberton Striploin with Mushroom Risotto was the feature of the day. M thought the risotto was very delicious and creamy. He was a bit disappointed by the steak since I think he expected a whole steak. He said it still tasted good, but he just was feeling like a meat kinda of day.

Seared Sablefish ($27.40) comes from the BC Coast with pork belly, arancini, and squash puree. RomanJ thought this dish was delicious even the though the portion of Sablefish was small. Regardless, the fish was juicy and well seasoned. The pork belly was crunchy and savory, which was perfectly complimented with the smoothness of the squash puree.

Chocolate Pate ($9) has Creme fraiche ‘pearl’, macerated cherries, and hazelnut praline. We all agreed this was the best, yet the smallest dessert. Don’t let these little cubes fool you! Since the cubes are like a ganache, it is very rich. It comes with 4 pieces, so its good for sharing.

Marble Chocolate Cheesecake comes with berry compote. It quite large, so definitely sharable! I personally enjoyed this dish.

Warm Apple Galette ($9) comes with vanilla bean ice cream and maple candied bacon. Abbytizer enjoyed this dessert a lot. It offered different textures, from crisp and crunchy to soft and smooth. The caramel sauce was delicious as well.

Vanilla Creme Brulee ($9) was good. It was nice and creamy on the bottom with the hard shell of sugar on top. Our favorite part was just cracking the sugar layer with our spoons.

For the desserts, we were all quit torn on which one was our favorite since each person had a different answer. It comes down to a matter of personal preference.

Overall, the dishes are good and they have a decent selection of food. One thing we thought that could have been improved was the speed of service and a bit of tweaking on a few dishes. We thought the appetizers and entrees took a while to arrive at the table. Maybe it was just a busy night.

Words of Wisdom:

Delicious desserts and drinks!
Free parking after 8pm
Can be seen as a tad expensive
A few minutes from the border
Good for dates

We Rate Pearl Urban Bistro:

Address:
14955 Marine Dr
White Rock, BC V4B

Website:
http://www.pearlurbanbistro.ca/

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In Coquitlam

I Love Sushi: No Love Was Found Here

February 1, 2012

I Love Sushi is located on Schoolhouse near the Coquitlam Silvercity Theatre. This restaurant has a really cute name and thats why I initially wanted to go here. The first time we went, we arrived 30 minutes before they closed, but they would not serve us since they were only doing take-out orders. Understandable, but we were still not happy. M and I came back weeks later since I’m running out of places to try in Coquitlam.

I Love Sushi sells the usual items you would find in a Japanese restaurant.

The menu is here!

Edamame Beans (Complementary) everyone gets these at their table. They were alright, but its on the small side.

Philadelphia Roll B ($7.88) has fresh salmon, cream cheese, avocado, and cucumber. It was pretty good. I always love the creamy texture with the avocado and salmon. Yum.

Caterpillar Roll ($7.88) has unagi, cucumber, and topped with whole avocado. The avocado seemed a bit unripe and stiff, so it would fall off the roll when you pick it up. It still tasted alright, but it was missing something.

Soft Shell Crab Karaage ($6.95) is deep fried soft shell crab. It also tasted a bit average since the fried batter was not as crisp as it could be. It also tasted a bit bland, but thats why the sauce works well with this dish.

Overall, the sushi rolls were alright, but nothing amazing. M was quite disappointed as well by the price and quality of the food. I probably would not return since there are a few other sushi places that opened up in the area. Nonetheless, it is still a neighbourhood favorite for people who live in the area. You may have had a different experience than me.

Words of Wisdom:

A tad expensive for what you get
Not a lot of variety in their combos
Mediocre Service
Good before or after the movies
Free parking in front

We Rate I Love Sushi:

Address:
#3, 228 Schoolhouse Street
Coquitlam, BC
Website:
http://www.ilovesushi2009.com/

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In Dineout

C Restaurant: Dine Out Vancouver

January 25, 2012

Foodology Disclaimer: I was invited by a PR firm to try out C Restaurant’s Dine Out menu. This review does not guarantee 100% similar service you might normally get from this restaurant.

I’ve been to C Restaurant about a year ago with my parents and I thought the meal was really well executed and service was great. I actually never got around to writing about it, so I’ll use some of that past experience as a reference point.

For Dine Out Vancouver, they are offering up a 4-course meal for $38 with options to upgrade if you want. Considering their regular entrees can be around $30, you are getting your moneys worth. It’s a great way to try their different dishes without breaking your wallet too much.

Since I came with a few others (Alvin Lee , Stephanie Yuen, Shermans Food Adventures, Van Foodies, and GourmetFury), do check out their amazing blogs and perhaps they will have some different perspectives about the Dine Out menu.

There are seats upstairs and downstairs. The view of the main dining room gives you a good look at Granville Island and False Creek. Its gorgeous during the Summer time and a bit romantic at night.

This is the type of view that you will see, but depending at where you sit, you’ll probably see fewer boats.

Amuse Bouche is some finger food that comes before the appetizer. Depending on how many people you have at the table, this will probably vary. On the table we had seared tuna, prawns, quail egg, beets and a smoked salmon cannelloni.

My favorite was actually the smoked salmon cannelloni since the flavours went so well together. Kinda like a Philadelphia roll, but with the salmon and cream cheese.

Here’s a closer shot of them! Who could resist taking a bite out of these little cute things?

There is also some bread and butter.

VQA Wine Parings (+$26) If you are a wine lover, you might want to indulge in this. If you’re not, you probably wouldn’t want this addition. You get 4 pairing to go with the 4 courses.

North Arm Farms Beet Panzanella Salad also has harissa dressing and shaved ricotta salata. I never eat beets, but it tasted good. I wasn’t a big fan of the 2 croutons on the plate since it tasted a bit stale to me.

Sauteed Spot Prawns (+$9) if you don’t feel like having the beet salad, you can get this option for $9 more. The prawns were delicious, but I felt that the romesco sauce and the kale were quite salty.

Seared Albacore Tuna with winter minestrone, parmesan and topped with a crisp basil.

I really loved the tuna since it was beautifully seared on the outside and really delicate on the inside. It was a tad small, but with C Restaurant, you do get 4 courses, so you will be full at the end.

Seared Lake Babine Salmon comes with a squash puree on the bottom with brussel sprouts and on top there is an almond tapenade. The salmon was jaw droppingly good! I usually hate cooked salmon, but since it was just seared, you do get the amazing natural flavours of the salmon. The squash puree has cinnamon spices in it, so at first it did taste a bit odd. Later on it kept bringing me memories of eating cinnamon pancakes.

Roasted Beef Tenderloin (+$12) has walnut polenta, tarragon butter, portobello mushrooms and the beef drippings. The beef was really tender and was a very good meat dish. You do have to add extra money, but if you do have more money to spend, you can go for this option.

Spiced Chocolate Pudding has vanilla chantilly (like whipped cream) with crisp caramel puffed rice. The chocolate pudding has such a variety of spices that blended nicely together. I really enjoyed it.

Petit Fours is a sweet little bite sized treat at the end of the meal. You get a Lemon poppy-seed Biscotti.

Overall, it was a pretty solid Dine Out menu with good execution. You definitely get your moneys worth. If you dine here on a usual night, you’ll end up spending way more. If you are looking for seafood-type dishes, its good here.

Words of Wisdom:

Dine Out worth the $38 especially when the menu is quite flexible to add additional dishes or upgrade
If you aren’t doing Dine Out, these items are also on their regular dinner menu
Sustainable and local ingredients
Well executed fish dishes
Good Service

We Rate C Restaurant:

Address:

2-1600 Howe Street
Vancouver, BC V6Z

Website:
http://www.crestaurant.com/

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In Coquitlam

Narita Sushi: The Usual Suspects

January 25, 2012

Coming down from SFU, a few of us wanted to get some sushi, but the place we wanted to go to wouldn’t let us order even though they were open. So, we drove to Narita Sushi as an alternative.

They are located close to the SilverCity Theatres in Coquitlam. They have all the usual sushi and typical items.

Tea!

Edamame (Complementary). It tasted quite normal, which is good! No complaints here

Negitoro Roll and Alaska Roll

Negitoro Roll has pieces of tuna with green onions. Its a bit different than other places where they just mash them all together.

Alaska roll has crab, avocado, cream cheese, cucumber, and topped with smoked salmon.

Ebi Sunomono ($3.75) has tons of little shrimp! Look at all of that!

Takoyaki

Sushi Box Combo ($13.50) has ebi nigiri, tuna nigiri, salmon nigiri, dynamite roll, tempura, green salad, gyoza, ebi sunomono, and miso soup.

The box was huge! I barely finished it since the dynamite roll was quite large. The tempura was really good, but I found the other items decent. I wasn’t a fan of the sauce on the dynamite roll since I like the rolls to be dipped in soy sauce instead.

Miso Soup that comes with the combo is the usual stuff.

Sunomono (the one the comes with combo) is a tad bit smaller with a bit less ebi, but it still tasted good. It was nice and refreshing.

Here are size comparisons between the sizes of the sunomono dishes. The larger one is the ala carte version and the one on the right, its the one that comes with the combo.

Rolls with spicy salmon, crab meat and avocado (Complementary). We aren’t too sure why this came to our table, but the chef just gave this to us. It tasted alright.

Overall, the food was pretty average. Nothing really “wow-ed” me, but its a good place in the neighbourhood to get some rolls and bento boxes that will fill you up!

Words of Wisdom:

Very large bento boxes
Tons of Parking
Good Service
Bring movie ticket from Silvercity for 5% off (Dine-in with minimum order of $25)

We Rate Narita Sushi:

Address:

#408-100 Schoolhouse Street
Coquitlam, BC V3K

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In Four Beakers

Sushiyama: Amazing Japanese Food!

January 6, 2012

Sushiyama is a very popular Japanese restaurant in Vancouver. It’s good for their cheap eats and quality food. No wonder during peak hours, there can be a lot of people lining up.

Luckily, it was after the lunch hour rush when I took MedicalGiraffe and BaguetteGirl here. They wanted something different and super delicious. They’ve passed by a dozen times, and thought this place was a bit sketchy, to their surprise, it would be some of the best Japanese food they would have.

They have a few killer items on their menu. If you come here, sushi is a must….or at least a few key rolls.

Negitoro Roll ($2.75) has chopped tuna belly and green onions. It comes with 6 pieces. Very good price, plus it tasted really really good.

Caterpillar Roll ($6.95) contains cucumber, avocado, mayo, crab meat, eel and BBQ sauce. It is probably the best thing to get! It is covered in a lot of thin slices of avocado. I can’t remember what was inside but it tasted really good! Highly recommended!

Crunch Roll ($4.25) has yam, sweet potatoes, shrimp tempura, and avocados. This was pretty horrible. After we ordered, it came like a minute after We were really confused why it came so fast and why it didn’t look as cool as the caterpillar roll.

Salmon Sashimi ($7.25) has come amazing thick pieces of salmon. Really delicious too!

Seaweed Salad was alright. If you love seaweed, you’d probably like it.

Grilled Black Cod was really good! One of my favorite items. Yummm.

Overall, really good food here for good prices. I would come her again and again!

Words of Wisdom:

Very cheap and affordable
Mediocre service
Long Lines
Best to go in 2′s if you hate to wait. the larger the group, the long it will take ..during peak hours
Caterpillar roll and sashimi!!!!
Bento boxes are of great value if you want to try a bit of everything

We Rate Sushiyama:

Address:
371 E Broadway
Vancouver, BC

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In Coquitlam

Sushi Elephant: Hot Night Roll, Dancing Lady Roll, & Las Vegas Roll

December 18, 2011

Last time I went to Sushi Elephant, M and I did takeout and didn’t get the full experience of dining in the restaurant. Since a bunch of us were bored, we decided to try out more of the different items. They offer daily specials too.

The inside of the restaurant is quite large and can accomodate large groups!

The Tea was really good. I don’t know what type it was, but we all agreed it was some pretty good tea!

Tuna & Salmon Don ($10) comes with 4 slices of salmon and 4 slices of tuna.

Toro Sashimi ($14) was nice and fatty, but it can be quite expensive.

Katsu Curry ($11) was large! You get a big piece of pork cutlet with a mild curry with a mixture of meat and vegetables. It also comes with a bowl of rice. M though this curry was a bit dull and the sauce was thin. The price was good, but the quality could be a bit better.

Hot Night Roll ($10) has prawn tempura, crab meat and topped with spicy tuna.

The Hot Night roll was pretty good! Unique name for the roll too.

Dancing Lady Roll ($8) was something I’ve never seen before. The sushi roll was cut very thinly and plated like a dancing lady.

Las Vegas Roll ($8) has a little bit of everything – salmon, avocado, cream cheese, crab meat and some other stuff.

The roll was quite large and sizeable.

What I love about some rolls is how the outside of the rice is a bit toasted, so it gives it a nice texture.

Chocolate Covered Almonds and Frozen Grapes were a good touch to the end of the meal. I’m not a fan of chocolate at the end of the meal, but frozen grapes are awesome!

Overall, we were both amazed by the quality and taste of the rolls, but certain items can get be expensive. Since this restaurant is Korean owned, it does have a bit of a Korean twist to certain rolls.

Words of Wisdom:

Very good rolls
Daily Specials
Accommodates large groups
Lots of parking
Slightly expensive
Closest Skytrain: Lougheed Town Centre

We Rate Sushi Elephant:

Address:
403 North Rd
Coquitlam, BC

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In Downtown

Shizen Ya: All Organic, Uses Brown Rice and Delicious!

November 27, 2011

Shizen Ya is Japanese restaurant they specialize in organic and fresh Japanese food. They only use brown rice in their sushi with no extra charge. They pride themselves of not using additives or MSG. When you eat here, you know you are getting quality without any hidden ingredients.

The interior is quite narrow and small, so if you go with groups of 4 or more, it is best to make reservations.

Hot Green tea comes complementary and it’s pretty good tea.

Salmon and Avocado Roll ($2.95) is made of organic avocados, fresh salmon, wrapped in brown rice and seaweed. MeatGirl and I really loved this roll since it was so fresh! You don’t need soy sauce with this roll since the flavours of the ingredients is all you need to taste. No need to mask that taste with soy sauce.

The Lunch Combos all come with brown rice, spinach gomaae, and organic salad. All lunch combos are under $10, which is a great deal.

Organic Salad was lightly dressed and was really fresh.

Spinach Gomaae comes on the side of your main dish of your lunch combo. It has a sesame sauce made out of real sesame.

It is also available ala carte for $2.95.

Beef Teri Combo ($8.95) has juicy and tender Tokyo cut beef with vegetables and teriyaki sauce with the side of brown rice.

Kheema Curry Combo ($7.95) has shredded chicken breast, five kind of bean curry with the side of brown rice. AvocadoGirl said the curry was a bit spicy. If you like a little bit of spice to your curry, then this is a good choice. It tastes super healthy too.

Chicken Breast Combo ($9.95) has braised chicken breast with an organic miso teriyaki sauce and brown rice. The chicken was a bit on the dry side, but not too dry. The sauce helped the texture.

Overall, for the lunch combos are pretty good quality and you’ll get full. On the bright side, it’s healthy too! Portions are pretty good.

Words of Wisdom:

Great lunch and dinner combos
All brown rice and no white rice
Vegetarian and vegan options
Limited desserts

We Rate Shizen Ya:

Twitter:

Website:

In Izakaya

Kingyo Japanese Izakaya: Kingyo Craze Dining Package

November 25, 2011

Foodology Disclaimer: VANEATS.ca approached me to try out their “Kingyo Craze” dining package and write a review about it. I got a complementary dining package for myself and bought an additional one for a friend to keep the review as unbiased as I could. This review does not guarantee 100% similar service you might normally get from this restaurant.

Kingyo Japanese Izakaya is one of the better Izakaya restaurants in Downtown (according to this article from Vancouver Sun). I’ve been here in the Summer with CandiedZen and we had a great time…except it kinda broke our wallets since we are both students.

This time around, I came with CandiedZen again to try the Kingyo Craze Dining from VANEATS.ca . Seemed like a good deal since the dining package for one person is $19 for 5 courses.

The interior is quite nice. It’s not a super large place, so it’s always good to make reservations.

Fresh Housemade Ginger Ale, which I have forgotten the price was quite refreshing! It’s a good drink if you feel like not drinking anything alcoholic.

Fresh Melon White Wine Sangria ($7.50) has fresh melon, calpico, white wine, melon liqueur, soda and lime.

Sashimi Salad – three kinds of sashimi (changes daily) on a bed of organic springs dressed with soy based vinaigrette and garlic oil

On the day we arrived, we had salmon, scallop and tuna I think. They had the right amount of dressing over it and the yuzu jelly on top and the crispy lotus room complemented nicely.

Chicken Breast Tender & Cod Roe Spring Roll served with a side of mayo & special soy sauce

This was probably my favorite dish out of the entire meal. The chicken was super tender and it complimented the code roe and the filling nicely. Having that in the crispy spring roll shell …then dunking it into the mayo +soy sauce = nom nom nom nom.

One of the dishes came a bit later than the first one and the consistency was a bit off. The color of the spring rolls as you can tell are much different too.

Despite this little issue, it still tasted super good! Something about the savory filling with the crispy shell dipped into the mayo and soy sauce just lit up our palettes. If you don’t end up getting the dining package, just order it off their menu because this dish is AMAZING!

Deep fried tofu and mushrooms served in a sizzling stone bowl

The waiter comes to the table with a two bowls – one with the hot stone bowl with the tofu and another bowl with the mushroom and sauce. It’s a good dish for the winter time. Even though it’s all vegetables, it will fill you up.

No, its not spicy and those green things aren’t jalapenos, but it’s Okra. Okra is delicious FYI.

CandiedZen really loved the stickiness of the tofu skin, but she felt the sauce reminded her of Chinese food rather than Japanese.

I thought the taste was very familiar but I really couldn’t put my finger on it. I loved the tofu and the mushrooms, but I found the sauce a bit salty for my taste.

Seared Negitoro Sushi – chopped tuna & green onions with seaweed paste and Kingyo’s original sauce

This totally reminded me of the Negitoro Battera from Suika, but except they have the seared top. This item is not on the original menu, but CandizedZen and I tried to push them to add it onto the main menu. (Lets hope they do because it was good).

We liked this because they held together firmly and was quite light. The 2 sauces on top complimented the negitoro nicely. Hidden inside the rice is a small piece of avocado. It was quite interesting to discover.

Petit Almond Tofu – Kingyo’s famous super smooth and refreshing almond tofu with persimmon sauce

I don’t think we had the persimmon sauce on top. Not sure why it wasn’t there. Regardless, we enjoyed the plain almond tofu. It comes is a really cute small dish with a wooden spoon. I love almond pudding, so this is good! It’s a good ending to this meal since it’s not too heavy.

Frozen Grapes finish off the meal! This is always my favorite part of the meal, I know it’s silly but I always anticipate the grapes.

Overall, CandiedZen and I thought this package was worth the price of $19. On a regular day, you could probably spend $30ish per person… I think once we spent almost $100 here. Good amount of food and you can really see the variety in their menu.

If you haven’t been here before, it would be a good way to see what Kingyo can offer. You can grab this package from VANEATS.ca

Words of Wisdom:

Make reservations on the busy nights
Have lunch and dinner
Good variety of items on the menu
Good place to bring a date

We Rate Kingyo Japanese Izakaya:
Address:
871 Denman St
Vancouver, BC V6G
Website:
http://www.kingyo-izakaya.ca

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In Downtown

Zero One Sushi : Rainy Day Meal

November 21, 2011

I was at Harbour Center and didn’t want to walk too far since it was raining. M, Scarface and I went to Sushi Zero One for some cheap fast sushi.

They have fairly cheap and affordable sushi. It’s not the best sushi, but it’s decent.

It is very small and has limited seating, most people take out instead of sitting there. It’s pretty empty near dinner time, so there are seats available to sit down. It’s not a good place for big groups…probably parties of 3 are the largest.

They have complementary tea and water on the side if you didn’t want to buy a drink.

Tea, I love good ol simple tea.

Gyu Don (Large – $6.30) has beef, onions and egg on top of rice. It was alright, but you probably need some soy sauce to go along with this.

Gyu Don (Mega – $7) has an even larger size – mega. It’s actually quite hard to tell what the difference is. It’s the same sized bowl, but it doesn’t seem like there is a substancial difference in the amount of meat.

Either way it was still decent, but you should still add a bit of soy sauce.

Deluxe Chirashi Don ($9.50) has albacore tuna, sockeye salmon ,ebi ,hotate ,ikura and egg on top of rice. Pretty good for the price, but some of the cuts of the sashimi were a little bit big and was quite a mouthful. I needed to add a bit of soy sauce to the rice to really bring all the ingredients together.

Miso soup comes along with the Deluxe Chirashi Don. It’s normal and nothing special about it.

Their items are alright. They have a large menu with good prices.

Words of Wisdom:

Online ordering form
Limited seating
Free delivery
Large menu
Cheap and fresh

We Rate Sushi Zero One:

Address:

559 W Pender St
Vancouver, BC

Website:
www.sushizeroone.com

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In Four Beakers

Aki Japanese: Lunch Combos Are The Way To Go

November 13, 2011

After going to Aki Japanese twice for lunch and once for dinner…I have to say I really enjoy their lunches much more than their dinners. Even though they have been around for a long time, I find their lunch is the best. With so many other Japanese restaurants surrounding the area, their dinners are not as good as others.

I came to lunch with my coworker that had a so-so experience here for dinner. Sometimes places require a second chance to discover how amazing they can be.

Lunch Box A ($10.75). This combo has miso soup, sunomono, short ribs, tuna and salmon sashimi, chicken karrage, pickled vegetables and rice.

She liked it since it has a little bit of everything. By the end of the meal, she was full!

Sushi Combo (~$11) has 4 pieces of nigiri, tuna and salmon sashimi, california roll and a few maki rolls. I was feeling like sushi, so this combo filled up my cravings. The quality of the fish is really good. The rolls were well built too.

Overall, we really enjoyed our lunch here! If you want a good experience and not kill your wallet, best to come here for lunch.

Words of Wisdom:

Closest Skytrain: Burrard
Decent pricing
Good quality
Lunch Boxes best for lunch

We Rate Aki Japanese Restaurant:

Address:

745 Thurlow St
Vancouver, BC

In Japanese

Suika: Suika Me Silly Dining Package

September 29, 2011

Foodology Disclaimer: VANEATS.ca approached me to try out their “Suika Me Silly” dining package and write a review about it. I got a complementary dining package for myself and bought an additional one for a friend to keep the review as unbiased as I could. This review does not guarantee 100% similar service you might normally get from this restaurant.

I’ve been to Suika before and its always seems so busy, even for a weekday! Suika is a Japanese Snack Bar on Broadway. They are similar to the other Izakaya restaurants in Vancouver. VANEATS.ca is offering a “Suika Me Silly” Dining Package in October, which has 6 different items for $16. I came with InsecureGirl to see if the dining package lives up to expectations.

The first thing I noticed was that almost all the tables had reservations! I felt bad since I didn’t make a reservation beforehand, but they were nice enough to find a table for us. (If I accidentally took your table, I am very very sorry!!!!)

I love their lights! It’s made from old Japanese glass bottles. Seems pretty cool and makes good photos.

Before InsecureGirl and I dug into the dining package, we needed our fix of Japanese beer! The dining package does not come with drinks, so you have to order it on top of the dining package.

Asahi Black ($6.40) is InsecureGirls pick of beer. Asahi Black is a dark lager made with barley, maize and rice. Even though it is called “black”, it is in no way like Guiness! It’s not very heavy or bitter. Just like the normal Asahi, it is still crisp and light, but with a strong nutty taste.

Sapporo Pint ($5.80) is my favorite beer of all time. The taste is light and crisp, but not as heavy as the Asahi Black. Its great with raw food and doesn’t leave a strange taste lingering in my mouth.

“Beef Tataki”, smoked AAA beef filet tataki.

This is the first dish that will arrive at your table. It is thinly sliced beef filet with the accompaniment of crisp garnishes. InsecureGirl and I both liked it, but I found the slices to be a little bit too thick for my liking. InsecureGirl didn’t think it was too thick, but it is a bit thicker than the beef tataki at Guu. It’s just personal preferences. If you just focus on the quality, it’s pretty good. The beef is nicely marbled with fat, so it is tender.

“Ma-Po Rice Cake” and “Corn Kakiage”

This will be the second plate that will arrive at your table. It has 2 different items.

“Corn Kakiage”, organic corn niblets fried with cilantro batter, soy sauce and butter

We really really loved this dish. Its something different that most restaurant. Plus, corn is just delicious! The cilantro batter holds all the niblets together and doesn’t fall apart too easily. The addition of the butter complements the corn nicely…thus thats why butter and corn is so popular.

“Ma-Po Rice Cake”, deep fried rice cake w/spicy ground pork sauce dusted w/Japanese pepper

InsecureGirl and I did not really like this dish. The sauce tasted nice, but we didn’t think it matched well with the rice cake. If they had fried tofu instead, it would have been good. It was just so hard to eat the rice cake since it’s so sticky and had to chew.

I personally find that rice cakes are a korean thing and the ma-po sauce is a Chinese or Taiwanese thing. It was just weird mixing the two. Some people may disagree.

“Negitoro Battera”, pressed sushi with tuna belly, scallions, avocado & sesame topped with home made soy dressing & seaweed sauce

InsecureGirl was not really impressed by this dish since she’s had it during a previous dinner here. She finds that there is too much rice and the flavour of the negitoro does not shine through.

I found that this pressed sushi falls apart quite easily, but the seaweed sauce was a good accompaniment to the negitoro. I also agreed that it can be hard to taste the flavour of the negitoro with all the rice.

Not that many restaurants offer the “pressed-sushi”, so it is something new to try.

“Aburi Shime-Saba Sushi”, seared cured mackerel pressed sushi served with mustard soy dressing

Yet again we both found that is also fell apart easily and had a lot of rice. The mackerel on top tasted very nice. It does have a fishier taste than salmon, but some people like that.

“Matcha Brulee”, frozen matcha creme brulee with fresh whipped cream & red bean sauce

This was really good. I have never had frozen matcha creme brulee before. It was like eating ice cream.

Overall, we felt that the ‘Silly Me Suika’ provides a good value for $16. To a newcomer to Suika, it’s a good way to get a sense of their menu offerings. Usual dishes are priced at $7ish, so you do save money.

You can purchase the Silly Me Suika Dining Package at VANEATS.ca for $16, there’s only 50 available, so get it fast! Starts October 1st and is redeemable till the end of the month!

Words of Wisdom:

Pay parking on Street
Reservations highly recommended!

We Rate Suika:

Address:

1626 W Broadway
Vancouver, BC

In Four Beakers

Sushiyama: Cheap + Amazing Bento Boxes

September 17, 2011

InsecureGirl and I were itching to eat before we had to go to a friends party Downtown, so we decided to check out Sushiyama, I’ve heard their ebi sunomono was huge and people keep telling me to go.

The owners of Sushiyama are Korean, so don’t expect this to be super authentic. It seems like its a trend for Koreans to open up Japanese Restaurants for some reason.

Deluxe Yama Box ($12.95) comes with miso soup, assorted sashimi, ebi sunomono, gyoza, tempura and spicy tuna roll. For the price that you pay, its a really good deal

The miso soup is similar to most restaurants with the addition of the green onion.

The ebi sunomo is probably the best I have had in a while. This is because of their larger pieces of ebi. They are still not the best ebi, but it makes the sunomono much appealing to devour.

The assorted tempura is lightly battered and had the yummy “crunch” when you bite into it. I think if they added a little bit more salt, the flavours of the ebi and vegetables would pop out more.

The Gyoza is deep fried and comes with 2 pieces for this combo.

The assorted sashimi comes with 2 of each type – tuna, salmon, red snapper and toro. Good sized pieces and they were really good!

The spicy tuna roll was cut up Korean style…like how they cut the Kimbap. It had a good amount of spicy sauce added to the tuna , it is them complemented by the cucumbers and avocado to tone down the heat. Very enjoyable!

In addition to the Combo, we ordered Grilled Black Cod. I forgot what the price was, but it was definitely under $10. InsecureGirl wanted this because it just melts in your mouth! I had it a few time before at other restaurants and it still pretty good here! The meat is very tender and a bit oily.

Overall, the food was decent and it was cheap! The downside is that this place is PACKED and service is quite mediocre. If you can handle that, then you should be alright.

Words of Wisdom:

Very cheap and affordable
Mediocre service
Long Lines
Best to go in 2’s if you hate to wait. the larger the group, the long it will take
Bento boxes are of great value if you want to try a bit of everything

We Rate Sushiyama:

Address:
371 E Broadway
Vancouver, BC