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In product

Filet-O-Fish, Big Mac and McChicken Sauces Coming Soon to Canada

McDonald Sauces are coming to a grocery store near you. They are working with Heinz/Kraft to make this product available to all Canadians. Probably Americans too. I was at the Grocery & Specialty Food West Convention and stumbled upon this new product. I wasn’t able to try this product, but the rep did confirm that it tastes very identical to what they have in their sandwiches. I would have taken one, but it was locked inside a display case.

It sounded like these will be hitting shelves very soon and I am giddy with excitement. I can finally stop asking for an extra side of sauce to go with my fries. It will make all BBQs amazing this Summer.

There was a limited release of 10,000 bottles of Big Mac sauce that was given out in the United States, but perhaps that was a sneak peek at what would be coming soon. When these get released, I will be making sure I stock up on each flavour.

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In Kensington

The Eastwood: Pub on Fraser Street

The Eastwood is a new restaurant on Fraser Street. They serve brunch and lunch, but we decided to come for a visit for dinner. The place got busy later in the evening with people coming here to enjoy the game, have some bites and of course beer.

Interior

As the sun goes down, the TV screen light up the space. It is a bit dim, but a lot of people were enjoying the different games playing on the screens. There was cheering whenever a favoured team would score a point. For me, I was really here for the food.

Drinks

Beer is a must to go with the pub-style food here. I got the Kronenbourg Blanc and a radler. Fruity and refreshing.

Dirty Sanchez Burger

This burger has a 6oz beef patty, Monterey Jack, Guacamole, pickled onion, pickled jalapeno, lettuce, tomato, garlic aioli and a pretzel bun. It comes with a salad or fries. Since we had ordered other fries, we went with a caesar salad.

The burger had a nice kick from the jalapeno, but I felt the ration between the bun and patty were a bit off.

Fraser Fries

This is their house fries with bacon, sundried tomatoes, herbs and garlic. The fries were nicely fried and was crisp on the exterior. You can get ketchup or other aioli dips to go with it. We got ours with a garlic aioli.

Mussels Vino Blanco

It has a full pound of mussels, white wine, butter, shallots, garlic, parsley and served with grilled bread and fries. The mussels are Ocean Wise certified mussels. The broth was delicious and enjoyable to dunk the bread of fries into.

Tuna Poke

The tuna poke is made of mango salsa, avocado, ahi tuna, sesame seeds, herb chili oil and green onion on top of the tortilla chips. The delicate flavours of the poke didn’t go too well with the tortilla chips.

Final Thoughts

It’s great to finally have a pub in the area to watch the game and enjoy some beer and bites. Some items on the menu is a hit and miss, but there is a good selection of pub favourites that will appeal to customers.

We Rate The Eastwood: 

Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/pg/TheEastwoodVan

Address:
4245 Fraser Street, Vancouver, BC

The Eastwood Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

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In British Columbia

Starbucks Canada: Spring Cups are here

Starbucks Canada is celebrating the season with its first-ever spring hot beverage cup, available now at Starbucks stores across Canada for a limited time.

Each tall, grande and venti size gets its own cheerful colour and will have either a blank circle or something pre-drawn depending on what the store has in stock.

I drew a cat on my Venti cup and my friend grew a lady on her Tall cup for St. Patricks Day. We aren’t the best drawers, but we found it really fun customizing the outside of our cups. A few people were asking us where we went to get drinks, so its an awesome conversation starter.

My Earl Grey Tea Latte has never been so bright and purrr-fect.

The cups are available in participating stores for just a few days, so get one to welcome the season while you can.

Website: https://www.starbucks.ca/

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In Filipino

Siga-Siga’s Filipino Food in Vancouver

Siga-Siga’s Filipino Food is located near Broadway and Fraser. We were going to a nearby restaurant and saw a sign for their ‘To Die For’ Wings. How could we not? Might as well go on an impromptu eating adventure.

They are a small hole in the wall restaurant with one person working.

Interior

It is a very small shop and has no public washroom, which was odd.

Wings

10 wings for $5.99 and made to order were a bit on the smaller side, but went well with the sauce that was at the table. It had a nice acidity to it that it matched with the wings.

I wouldn’t die for these wings, but they were ok.

BBQ Chicken Leg

One item the owner suggested was the BBQ Chicken leg with garlic rice and a side of salad. The BBQ leg was delicious and flavourful. The garlic rice needed a bit more salt for the flavour to shine through. We added some of the vinegar sauce to it and it was so good.

Potato and Tomato Stuffed Squid

The tomato and potato stuffed squid had a nice char on the outside and was  packed full of veggies. The quid was a bit chewy.

Final Thoughts

Overall, the food was meh, but the prices were really good.

We Rate Siga-Siga’s: 

Address:
650 East Broadway, Vancouver


Siga-Siga's Filipino Food Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

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In Cafe

Mikan Cafe: Japanese Pasta and Poutine

Mikan Cafe is the sister restaurant of Cafe de L’Orangerie. They have poutine, Japanse spaghetti, sandwiches and other items on the menu. This cafe use to be called Jean Talon, but they changed up their menu and has a new name.

Interior

The interior is cozy and has a few tables inside. The days that I’ve been here, it’s been a bit quiet. I’ve never had to make reservations here. The staff are very nice and helpful.

Poutine with Mikan Style Beef Stew

The crispy fries is topped with beef stew and cheese curds. We got a smaller order and it was a good size for 3 people to share. The fries are really crispy and I like how it’s not soggy at all.

Masago Creamy Spaghetti

This popular spaghetti has squid, mushroom, asparagus, roe, and cream. It was very delicious and I love the use of the Japanese ingredients that meld with pasta.

Strawberry Cream Roll

A great way to end the meal is by getting some of the desserts. The strawberry cream roll is light and fluffy.

Final Thoughts:

I love the addition of Japanese pasta on the menu. If you love Cafe de L’Orangerie, you’ll love Mikan Cafe, plus it’s not very busy. I love this location as I don’t have to travel so far to get their delicious pasta.

We Rate Mikan Cafe:

Address:
670 East Broadway, Vancouver, BC

Website: http://mikancafe.cafedelorangerie.ca/

Mikan Cafe Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

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In Langley

Ban Chok Dee: Thai Food in Langley

Ban Chok Dee Thai Cuisine is a restaurant in Langley. I was shopping in the area and needed to find a place for dinner with the family.

I’ve heard lots about this place and I wanted to give it a try. It’s a bit far from where I live, so it was a perfect time to visit to see how it compares to places in Downtown Vancouver.

Interior

The interior was ok with a few Thai pictures around the restaurant. You can make reservations, but we just walked in without reservations and there was plenty of seats.

Stuffed Chicken Wings

The chicken wings are marinated with Thai spices and stuffed with sautéed shredded vegetables, vermicelli noodles, egg, ginger and garlic steamed and then fried to a golden crisp and served with sweet chili peanut sauce. There are 2 pieces to an order. The wings were really packed with the filling, so you can taste a lot of the egg and noodles.

Papaya Salad

This has shredded green papaya with lime juice, cherry tomato, green bean, roasted peanut and fresh chili served with sticky rice and two grilled prawns on a skewer. A great presentation in a clear glass cup but it made it a bit hard to scoop onto a plate to share. Other than that, the flavours were really good and had a good balance.

Chicken Satay

These are chicken skewers marinated in traditional Thai spices, broiled and served with peanut and cucumber plum sauce. It comes with 4 pieces per order. The chicken was surprisingly moist and the sauce was really good. I’d definitely order this again.

Pad Thai

Their Pad Thai has  pan-fried rice noodles in tamarind sauce, with chicken or prawns, egg, tofu, green onions, bean sprouts, topped with ground peanuts. We got it with prawns. It was good but I felt it was a touch sweet.

Red Curry


We got this with beef. The curry has red curry paste, coconut milk, bamboo shoots, red and green bell peppers, lime leaves and sweet basil leaves. Slightly watery, but the flavour was nice.
We rate Ban Chok Dee: 
Address:
20563 Douglas Crescent, Langley, BC
Website:
http://banchokdee.com/

Ban Chok Dee Thai Cuisine Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

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In Brunch

Eggslut: Breakfast Sandwiches in Vegas

While in Vegas, I always have to try to eat as much as I can. One go-to place for breakfast is Eggslut in the Cosmopolitan Hotel. Eggslut originated from Los Angeles and there are a few other location in the states.

On a Friday, I wandered down to Eggslut to get a taste of their breakfast sandwiches and there was already a line at 10am.

The line looked long, but I waited about 10 minutes before putting in my order. Waiting for the food wasn’t too bad.

There is minimal seating, so if you are in a large group, you’ll be out of luck getting a seat. If you are insistent about getting a seat, you’ll just have to wait. The turnaround time is quite quick.

Sausage, Egg and cheese sandwich

This was delicious and perfect for the morning. The sausage patty had lots of flavour and wasn’t too salty. A good balance of ingredients. The egg yolk was slightly runny, so when I bit into the sandwich, I got it all over my shirt. Napkins are definitely needed.

Fresh Pressed Orange Juice

What better way to balance out all the food I’ve been having in Vegas with some fresh orange juice. A good pairing with the sandwiches here, but I wish there was more pulp in their juice.

Final Thoughts

Overall, I really enjoyed it and I wish I had more than one sandwich. I’ll definitely be back next time. There’s a good amount of choices on their menu and it’s a quick meal.

We Rate Eggslut: 

Address:
The Cosmopolitan Of Las Vegas, Level 2

Website: https://www.cosmopolitanlasvegas.com/restaurants/eggslut

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

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In British Columbia

KFC Canada: Behind the Scenes

When I saw that KFC Canada was opening its doors and let customers behind the counter with the world’s first KFC Cooking School, I signed up right away and paid my “tuition fee” of $5. The downside was that it was all the way in Abbotsford, about a 1 hour drive from Vancouver. Either way, I am a huge fast food fan and I had to see how they create their chicken from start to finish.

Although KFC franchises around the world have allowed customers and fans behind the scenes in the past, letting the public cook their own meals is a KFC world-first. Everything was revealed except their 11 herbs and spices.

Not only is the chicken served at KFC restaurants 100% real, Canadian farm-raised chicken, but every single piece is hand-breaded and cooked with pride by real KFC cooks.

They even have a picture in their dining room with the spices and herbs, but its still a secret and locked up in a vault. Crazy, but it’s their signature flavour.

We started by suiting up in apron and hair nets. Not the most flattering, but food safety is #1 priority to keep customers and staff safe.

We were introduced to their packing area where the put all the meals together. It was cool to be up close to such industrial machines at a fast food restaurant.

In the past six months, every KFC cook went through recommitment training to ensure that they continue to take the care to hand-bread every piece of chicken, just the way KFC founder Colonel Sanders did in 1952.

They first take the pre-portioned chicken from the fridge and begin inspecting them before dunking it into the cold water.

It goes into the cold water to help coat each piece of chicken. They make sure there are no more air bubble in the batch.

Next, they dredge it in their flavour and 11 herb and spice blend, then then place it on the frying rack in a strategic way so each piece cooks perfectly.

The chicken goes into the pressure cooker, which is a fryer. All the computers are preprogrammed to make sure each batch is perfect and golden brown.

Once it is ready, it comes out nice and golden brown, just like what you’re use to.

They let is rest before putting into the another machine to keep until it’s ready to be served.

The holding machine makes sure the chicken is in the optimal environment before serving. They can let it sit for up to 90 minutes before discarding.

The fruits of our labour was a delicious box of KFC chicken, fries and gravy.

Look at that, from start to finish, they weren’t hiding anything in their original recipe chicken, just like how the Colonel would have liked it.

It was a fun hour going into the kitchen, looking around, and getting our hands dirty.

Website: http://www.kfc.ca/

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In Airplane Meals

Air Canada: YVR to LAS Review (AC 1832)

Heading to Las Vegas, I decided to take a direct flight out of Vancouver International Airport. Last time I flew out of Bellingham, but I didn’t want to do that again as driving across the border is troublesome.

Air Canada had a good price and convenient times to board the plan in the morning. It boarded at 8:40 and took off at 9:20am. I was booked on  Air Canada 1832 in Economy class on a Boeing 767. It was operated by Air Canada Rouge, so the plane is newer, but it is a bit smaller.

It was busy at check-in before the flight, so I made sure to get my electronic boarding pass loaded onto my phone to skip the line.

The best ways to avoid waits is to only do carry on baggage and have

In the seat, there is one outlet for a computer or small device. I didn’t use it as the flight was pretty short.

Being 5’3 I didn’t mind the size of the seats, as I don’t take up too much space. The person beside me was a bit taller and his knees were pretty close up the the seat in front of him.

The overhead bins were a bit smaller, so they made me check in my bad free of charge as the wheels on my small suitcase didn’t fit comfortably into the bins. If you want to avoid checking in, make sure you have a compact suitcase.

The weather above was gorgeous with the rocky mountains.

We do get one complimentary beverage and I usually choose the tomato juice and it is scientifically proven to taste better in flight.

Overall, it was a good flight at a good price. It got me from Vancouver to Las Vegas with no issues. Landing and take off were smooth.

Website: https://www.aircanada.com

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In Downtown

2017 Best of the City by Vancouver Magazine: Recap

Best of the City is a celebration to bring together the top winning restaurants from the Vancouver Magazine Restaurant Awards. The winning restaurants create a special dish to pair with one of the top category winners from their wine winners and craft beer winners.

It’s an amazing event as you get to taste the best foods, drinks and meet the amazingly talented chefs and producers behind each restaurant.

Similarly to last year, there were 10 booths that you can go to.

Of course I went to every single booth twice and maybe had too many drink with a few of my foodie friends.

Blue Water Café
Winner: Best Seafood

We were treated to Sturgeon Liver Mousse with Foie Gras and Green Apple. A delicious taster paired with Tasmania Premium Cuvée, which is a sparkling wine. Very refreshing and light choice for the start of the event.

Lufficio
Winner: Best Casual Italian/ West Side

Their Duck Ragu and Polenta paired with a rich red wine – Musella Valpolicella Superiorie Rispasso 2013. Duck and rich red wine is a perfect pairing. Very delicious.

Bufala
Winner: Best Pizzeria

We were treated to Pork Shoulder, beef brisket, bacon, ricotta and basil. The first beer pairing on the night with a North American IPA – Red Racer Super Stella IPA.

CinCin
Bronze: Best Upscale Italian

A sampling of their Spinach and Ricota Ravioli, poppy seed and lemon with brown butter and Soubise Sauce. A rich white wine – Monte del Fra Custoza Supiore DOC Ca’del Magro 2013.

Tableau Bar and Bistro
Silver: Best Casual French

On the plate was their Beef Tongue Rillete, horse radish, beetroot shaved and puree, salt caper and sauce vert. Haywire Gamay Noir Rosé 2015 was the pairing.

Bao Bei
Winner: Best Gastown/Chinatown

Deliciously cured Hiramasa, Kohlrabi, Pomelo, crushed panuts and fermented chili lemongrass dressing. This was paired with Laurenz V Singing Gruner Veltliner 2014, a medium white wine.

Prestons
Host Chef’s Selection

Oh hello. What is that? It’s a Dungeness crab, smoked shallot, gingered apple, house hot sauce, and lemon grass in a cheddar crispy shell. It paired with a Pilsner and German Style Lager – Le Trou du Diable La Pitoune.

Hawksworth
Best Upscale

Housed in a beautiful shell is their Scallop Poke, cucumber, jicama, meyer lemon, and pickled onion. A light white like Clos de Soleil Pinot Blanc 2015 was a good match. I am not a big fan of cucumber, so I felt like it over powered the natural sweetness of the scallops.

Maenam
Winner: Restaurant of the Year

One of my favourite items was the Palm sugar and spiced braised pork belly served with cilantro, fried shallots and fried garlic. Arrowleaf Pinot Noir, a light red wine was the pairing.

Cactus Club Café
Silver: Best Casual Chain

My favourite of the night was braised short rib and caramelized onion lasagna with tomato ragout, fontina cream, and cabernet reduction. Medium Red Wine – Montes Alpha Cabernet Sauvignon 2013 was the pairing. Cactus Club Café is a pretty great chain restaurant as it’s my go to place for their happy hour menu.

Russian Standard Vodka

There was another booth with Russian Standard Vodka and they were creating cocktails throughout the night.

Final Thoughts

Overall, good picks for this event and it was great to meet up with old friends, try delicious food and wine for the best places in the city. Keep an eye open for next year’s event, as it will be a hot ticket in town for foodies.

Website: http://vanmag.com/event-bestofthecity/

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In Coquitlam

Taco Bell Canada: Naked Chicken Chalupa

Taco Bell Canada just introduced the Naked Chicken Chalupa. It was available in the United States, but are slowly removing it from their stores.

Luckily, Canadians can still enjoy it for a limited time. The closest Taco Bell to Vancouver is one in Coquitlam, so it is a fair ways away from the city.

The Naked Chicken Chalupa has deep-fried chicken breaded and tossed with seasoning as the shell. Inside, there is shredded lettuce, tomatoes, shredded cheese and sauce. It has a nice spicy kick to it, which I enjoyed.

Every bite was very enjoyable. M couldn’t part with the naked chicken chalupa, so he decided to get another one. If you do pass by a Taco Bell, I would highly recommend the Naked Chicken Chalupa.

Website: https://www.tacobell.ca/en

Taco Bell Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

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In Mexican

Las Tortas: Mexican Sandwiches in Vancouver

Las Tortas is a restaurant on Cambie Street that serves up Mexican cuisine as is known for their tortas – Mexican sandwiches. M and I were in the area and needed some dinner, so I thought we should stop here to grab a quick bite since I haven’t been here before and we are both huge fans of Mexican food.

Interior

The interior is small and decorated with movie posters. You order up at the counter and find your seat. We came here right after work, so it wasn’t busy at all.

Horchata and Mexican Cola

We got a drink each. I went with the horchata and it was good but a little gritty on the bottom from the almonds. Finding Mexican Coca-Cola is a joy as it tastes better as its made with cane sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup.

Tortilla Soup

The tortilla soup comes in a large bowl, so M and I split this between us. The tortillas were hiding inside and got soggy by the time we dug in. I didn’t really like it.

Chorizo Con Huevo Torta

This torta has Mexican spicy sausage, egg, and veggies between the buns. It was a delicious blend of egg and sausage.

Carne Asada Torta

This was similar to the other torta, but it has grilled asada steak and Oaxaca cheese. This was our favourite of the 2 tortas. It is more meaty, but the jalapenos were a bit much for me.

Churro

Churros are made fresh and it is powdered with cinnamon and sugar on the outside. Too bad that it doesn’t come with dipping sauces.

Final Thoughts

Overall, it was a great place to stop by for a torta. I enjoyed the tortas, but the other items were a bit of a miss. They also have tacos, which I will have to come back for a revisit.

We Rate Las Tortas: 

Address:
3353 Cambie Street, Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://lastortas.ca/

Las Tortas Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

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In British Columbia

A&W Canada: All Day Breakfast

A&W Canada has just launched their All Day Breakfast across Canada. Most of their locations have started to transition towards All Day Breakfast, but not all of them have. They are expecting by mod-May that a majority of location will have All Day Breakfast. My friend and I were craving hashbrowns for lunch and decided to come here for some breakfast sandwiches.

Check out my review of A&Ws breakfast items from last year.

Their menu seems to be serving everything from their breakfast menu, not just a limited menu like another fast food competitor. Ah hem McDonalds.

I’m very impressed that they were able to make everything from their plated breakfast to their Mama Burger.

I got a sausage and egger in an english muffin. Also with a root beer and hashbrown on the side. My english muffin was a bit scorched, but it was still delicious and it wasn’t too greasy.

My cravings were satisfied and I’m glad I can get their hashbrowns any time.

If you’re ever looking for a quick all day breakfast, check out A&W.

Website: https://web.aw.ca/en/home

A&W Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

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In Bubble Tea

Chatime Kerrisdale: Now Open in Vancouver

Chatime locations are slowly popping up all over Vancouver and in the subburbs. Their newest location that just opened in Chatime in Kerrisdale.

They are having their soft opening right now, but on March 10th till the 12th, they will be having their grand opening, where they are having a buy 1 get 1 free promotion, where the free drink is either Pearl Milk Tea or Grass Jelly Roasted Milk Tea.

I go to Chatime quite often as it’s my go to bubble tea shop in Vancouver. I always go with my usual order – Roasted Milk Tea with Grass Jelly, half sweet and less ice. This time around, we tried 5 different drink combinations to explore more items on their menu.

Interior

On the right side is where you put in your order and then wait till its ready.

There are a few tables in the front, but there are more chairs and tables in the back to enjoy your bubble tea and spend time with friends.

Butterfly Pea with Grapefruit Juice

We got this drink regular sweetness and regular ice. Butterfly pea is been brewed in teas dating back centuries while providing numerous health benefits. These flowers are known to act as anti-oxidants, increase blood circulation, help you sleep and promote skin health. The natural blue colour of the drink will magically change colours as the acidity level changes.

 

The name was inspired due to the shape of the flower and its glamourous blue-violet colour, resembling a butterfly.

The tea itself isn’t very strong, but the grapefruit juice balances really well with this drink. I can see it being a great drink to get once the temperature starts rising in Vancouver.

Oolong Tea Mousse

Oolong tea mousse was made with half sugar and regular ice. I like the variety of tea with the delicious salty sweet mousse on top. Similar to another bubble tea chain in town.

Pretty good drink, but I would get it with less ice.

Hazelnut Milk Tea + Coffee Jelly

We got this with no sugar and less ice. I’ve never had hazelnut milk tea before and it was good with the coffee jelly. Surprising combination.

Kumquat Lemon Juice + Aiyu Jelly

It has regular sugar and regular ice. They use fresh kumquat when available, but due to it being a seasonal fruit, real fruit syrup may be substituted. It was refreshing and tangy.

Aiyu jelly is a jelly made from the seeds of various figs that is found in the mountains of Taiwan. Aiyu jelly is usually served with honey and lemon juice as well as fruit tea. A good combination.

Strawberry Au Lait + Pudding

This last drink has regular sugar. It is made with blended strawberry syrup, coconut jelly and milk, then topped with more coconut jelly. On the bottom, there is pudding added.

Final Thoughts

Overall, the bubble tea is pretty consistent with some of the other locations and bubble tea is just delicious. If it’s your first time here, I would suggest my favourite drink – Roasted Milk Tea with Grass Jelly, half sweet and less ice. I always love getting milk tea as it’s a great benchmark to see how their drinks compare to other companies.

We Rate Chatime Kerrisdale: 

Address:
6075 West Blvd, Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.chatimebc.com/

Chatime Kerrisdale Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

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In product

Jif Peanut Butter comes to Canada

Jif Peanut Butter launches in Canada on March 6th! Coincidentally, it is also National Peanut Butter Lovers Day too. Great timing.

Along with the peanut butter jars, they also are introducing on-the-go sized products. A great idea to make peanut butter and their chocolate flavoured spread portable. They sent me a few items to give it a try.

I made myself a peanut butter, chocolate and banana sandwich for a snack.

Peanut butter on one side and then chocolate on the other side. It’s actually been a while since I’ve had peanut butter, but it sure brought me back memories of being a kid.

It was surprisingly good. I should make these sandwiches more often as a snack. Peanut butter is a pretty versatile product especially in banking. Perhaps peanut butter cookies should be my next creation.

Website: http://www.jif.com/

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In Cafe

Black Milk Water: Coffee Shop in Coquitlam

Black Milk Water Coffee and Dessert is a new cafe that opened up on North Road between Burnaby and Coquitlam. This cafe is located on the bottom floor hidden in the left corner of the plaza.

Interior

The interior has an industrial look to it with the cement, steel and wood textures. Lots of seats and the space is quite open.

It wasn’t too busy here, so it was easy to find a seat in the middle of the day on a weekend.

Matcha Frapp

Matcha Frapps come in a plastic cup, but if you want it in a glass jar, you can ask them ahead of time.

The matcha frapp was good and a great treat. Very cold, but it is a bit icy once you drink most of the liquid.

Duo Cups

They have these duo cups where you can have 2 different iced coffees. I had a iced vanilla latte and mocha. When you need 2 boosts of caffeine, this is for you.

Cappuccino

The cappuccino hit the spot and it’s made with Timbertrain coffee beans. A taste of the downtown coffee shop in the subburbs.

Final Thoughts

It’s a pretty solid coffee shop, but their dessert selection could be a bit larger. With other desserts and coffee shops in the same plaza, there’s definitely some competition. I find that most coffee shops are super crowded on the weekends, so if you are looking for an alternative, this might be the place for you.

We Rate Black Milk Water: 

Address:
4501 N Road, Burnaby

Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/black_milk_water/

Black Milk Water Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

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In product

Orion Soy Chicken Sauce Chips: Review

I was at HanNam Supermarket on North Road and these Soy Chicken Sauce Chip from Orion caught my eye. Orion is one of the largest food producer in South Korea and their most popular snack is Choco Pie.

It is on a ruffled chip. When I started sniffing these chips, it made me salivate. It was a little salty and a little sweet. The favour was like a sweet soy sauce with a hint of smokey BBQ.

Once I started eating these chips, I couldn’t stop. It is so addictive. Even my friend that bought the same chips as me loved these as well.

I would definitely buy these again. If you see them in stores, pick these up.

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In Fairview

Benkei Ramen: Peko Ramen and Vegan Ramen in Vancouver

Benkei Ramen in Vancouver has always been innovating their ramen to cater to those who love authentic Japanese ramen as well as those with dietary restrictions. I was invited with a friend to try their new Peko Ramen as well as some other items off the menu. As my friend has a seafood allergy, they have a few vegan options.

Interior

The interior is nice with wooden walls and bamboo. The staff are nice and friendly.

Green Tea

Start off with a hot cup of green tea.

Housemade Gyoza

You can order it as a side portion with your ramen or a full order for the table. They only have a pork filled gyoza but are working on a veggie gyoza to add to their menu in the near future.

The pork gyoza was a good accompaniment with a hot bowl of ramen. Great to share with a friend too.

Peko Ramen

Their Peko Ramen is a silky milk broth made of tonkotsu broth, milk, shio-dare and brandy. The broth is very clean, rich and not oily at all. It wasn’t salty at all and with the amount of veggies in this bowl and the slices of lean chicken meat. I slurped up the bowl.

This is back for a limited time until March 31.

Black Vegan Ramen

For those with dietary restrictions, it’s hard to enjoy ramen. Benkei introduced their 2nd vegan ramen – Black Vegan Ramen along side their vegan miso ramen.

Vegan black is deliciously rich. The broth is made with rich vegetable stock, black sesame miso, and drizzle with coconut milk and roasted red pepper. The noodles are also eggless.

More Vegan Ramen

A sneak peek into another vegan ramen they are in the process of creating. They introduced this to me as their white vegan ramen, but they are still tweaking the recipe and name.

I really do appreciate how they are expanding their menu to those ramen eaters with dietary restrictions.

Sauce

Raw Garlic and chili sauce is available for free, all you have to do is ask for it. It’s helpful to enhance the broth if you are feeling its a bit bland.

Final Thoughts

Overall, Benkei Ramen has a lot more to offer than just their usual ramen. I’m impressed they are continually trying new ramen creations.

We Rate Benkei Ramen: 

Address:
545 W Broadway, Vancouver

Website:
benkeiramen.com

Benkei Ramen Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

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