Canadian Archives - Page 4 of 6

In Brunch

Lola’s Kitchen: Brunch in Toronto

May 24, 2014

I came to Lola’s Kitchen about two years ago during my last visit to Toronto. I remember it being good and super busy during the weekends. Fabo, M and I came here on the Easter Long Weekend and they were closed on the Friday and Monday. But, it was good they were open on the Saturday and Sunday. I needed a brunch-fix.

Blackberry-Cherry Ginger Lime Soda (Small $3) they suggested we can top it off with some soda to make it a large. We didn’t mind and she highly recommended it.

Cranberry- Raspberry Limeade (Small $3) I did the same for this drink too. It didn’t dilute any of the drinks at all.

It was good and there are a few other daily juices on their special menu. The other one was orange juice.

Eggs Benny ($13) includes english muffin, grilled peameal bacon, two poached organic eggs, house made hollandaise and your choice of salad, frites or Lola’s home fries. Fabo chose the frites. She enjoyed this dish but she did enjoy the Mushroom benny more than the regular benny.

Brunch Burger ($16) has Ontario all beef burger, grilled peameal bacon, caramelized onions, Lola’s cheese blend, sweet pickles, housemade ketchup, garlic aioli, challah bun and a sunny organic egg with your choice of salad, frites or Lola’s home fries. M chose the homefries.

The burger looked so much better than the one I had last time. M really enjoyed the burger.

When you put the top of the bun on top, it looks huge! The patty is monstrous and all the extra meat was delicious.

Brunch Bowl ($13.50) is gluten-free. It has Lola’s home fries, baby spinach, caramelized onions, mushrooms, chorizo sausage, cheese curds and two organic eggs any style. I got my egg sunny side up.

It was good. A good size for brunch and I was very happy with it.

Overall, the brunch was pretty good and always get sunny side up eggs because the gooey yolk is so good! The downside of going to Lola’s is that the wait for your meal can be quite long. We waited for a long time before getting our food.
We Rate Lola’s Kitchen:

Address:
634 Church Street,
Toronto, ON

Website:
http://www.lolaskitchen.ca/

In Brunch

Roundel Cafe: Egg Benny Brunch

May 18, 2014

Roundel Cafe is located on Hastings in the East Village. The interior reminds me of a diner but with a splash of hipster. My friends and I came here for brunch as we heard they serve eggs benny.

The water came in a mason jar. Water is more fun to drink from a mason jar. It’s the trendy thing to do.

Classic Ham Benny comes with salad and roasted potatoes on the side. The poached eggs were hard and it ruined the experience because its all about the soft poached eggs and how they ooze. But, sadly, none of that here. Everything else on the plate was ok.

Avocado, Tomato and cream cheese benny had the same issues with the hard poached egg.

At the end of the meal, it was a nice surprise that we get fortune cookies.

Overall, my friends did not like their experience here. We put in our order with the server and it took about 35 minutes to get our eggs benny. Also, the server was a bit rude. I didn’t really notice, but the friends that came with me did not like their attitude. They couldn’t explain clearly what was hot sauce and what was ketchup. The look the same as they are homemade.

Food and service is pretty mediocre when we dined here, and our fortune may have been accurate – “Minimize expectations to avoid being disappointed”.

We Rate Roundel Cafe:

Address:
2465 E Hastings St
Vancouver, BC

In Canadian

Anny’s Dairy Bar: Maple Twist Ice Cream

April 20, 2014

The weather is getting better in Vancouver and what better way to celebrate than going to get some ice cream. We were in New Westminster and we came across Anny’s.

There were lots of people sitting inside and we saw a huge sign saying they were serving maple twist cones.

Of course we had to get some! I’ve never seen such a thing and M wanted some too.

Maple Twist Cone has the maple streak on the side. It wasn’t too sweet and deliciously creamy. M really liked it.

If you’re in the New Westminster area, definitely check this place out.

We Rate Anny’s Dairy Bar:

Address:
722 Sixth Street
New Westminster, BC

In American

Burgoo: Amazing Comfort Food

March 28, 2014

I’m so glad I work so close to Burgoo. Burgoo is the ultimate place for addictive comfort food. Sometimes, we have to put diets aside and just indulge in delicious food. Their location is on Main street and have others in Kitsilano, North Vancouver, and Point Grey areas.

They have Mac and Cheese, Grilled Cheese, fondue, soups, stews and a bunch of other satisfying items. They don’t take reservations on Fridays/Saturdays, but they only do reservations for large groups (8-12 ppl) on other days. The wait time can fluctuate. One time I had no wait and another time, it was an hour.

After School Special ($16.50) give you the choice of any sandwich and soup on the menu. To keep it classic, M chose Gooey Cheese Grillers which includes two grilled, angle cut, house baguette sandwiches with melted Mozzarella, Gruyere, Emmenthal and white Cheddar. For his soup, he chose Straight Up Tomato Soup with red wine simmered tomato and garlic, drizzled with extra virgin olive oil.

This is the ultimate comfort food! Best grilled cheese I’ve ever had. You can’t go wrong with this choice. They don’t skimp on the cheese.

Mussels Cocotte ($18) has fresh mussels cooked with white wine, cream, herbs and bacon, served with house bread. Its an appetizer that is supposed to be shared, but I had it all to myself. This is my version of comfort food. There was a lot of mussels and the size was definitely worth the price.

There was so much sauce too! Great for dipping the bread into. There was also large chunks of bacon. MMMMmmmmmm BACON.

Overall, M and I were impressed. The price is fair and if you make the right choices of your dish, you’ll be in heaven.

We Rate Burgoo:

Address:
3096 Main St
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://burgoo.ca/

In Canadian

Pie on Pi Day in Vancouver

March 19, 2014

It’s been a while since my last dose of pie. Since it was Pi Day (March 14), I just had to indulge in some pie. A few blocks away from my work is The Pie Shoppe. They are a cute little shop that bakes pies and serves coffee. The shop has no chairs or anything, so it is purely takeout.

We didn’t put in an order of what we wanted before hand, but they had enough pies to choose from. I did notice that they had a lot of orders for Pi Day. If you want to guarantee they have your favourite flavour, call in ahead of time.

Gluten Free Chocolate Pecan Pie ($8) was oh so sinfully delicious. I have a soft spot for butter tarts. The crust was perfectly crisp and the filling was oozing with delicious sweetness. I did enjoy the amount of sweetness balanced with the dollop of chocolate. Some people may find it sweet., but that can be counteracted with a cup of coffee or tea.

Classic Apple Pie ($20) was alright. I found that there was a lot of space between the crust and the filling, so cutting it perfectly was a challenge. The best part really was the crust.

Overall, the pies were enjoyable and were gobbled up quite quickly. When it’s Pi Day in Vancouver, pick up a pie at the Pie Shoppe.

We Rate the Pie Shoppe:

Address:
721 Gore Street
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.thepieshoppe.ca/

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://www.google.ca/maps?q=721+Gore+Ave,+Vancouver,+BC+V6A+2Z9&sll=49.891235,-97.15369000000001&sspn=45.72347923378347,88.1395350118194&t=m&dg=opt&hnear=721+Gore+Ave,+Vancouver,+British+Columbia+V6A+2Z9&z=16 “]

In Brunch

Joe Fortes: Weekend Brunch

March 17, 2014

Joe Fortes was the place where TaiwaneseGirl highly recommended we come here for eggs benny. There are open 11am till 11pm daily. We are continuing our hunt for delicious eggs benny in town. We came here a bit past 11am and this place was beginning to get busy.

By 12:30pm, this place was packed and there were waits. The restaurant is quite large, so it seats a lot of people.

We were given complimentary scones as we waited for our order. It was a nice touch. You get one scone per person.

Orange Juice ($6.95) is what we needed to start off the brunch.

Crispy Fried Local Oysters ($14.95) is served with Joe’s classic tartar sauce. There were only 4 pieces, so it was definitely very expensive. We thought there would be more. Nonetheless, it did taste good. The oysters used were Ocean Wise.

Eggs Benedict ($13.95) comes with Canadian bacon, poached eggs, and hollandaise. It also comes with hashbrowns, house-made english muffins, fruit and ketchup. We got the eggs to be soft poached so the yolk oozed out.

Smoked Salmon Benedict ($14.95) has poached eggs, chive hollandaise. It was good, the smoked salmon pieces were cut thick, but it could of had more smokey flavour.

I got the soft poached eggs and man, was it ooey gooey and oh so delicious.

Joe’s Signature Benedict ($15.95) has wild mushrooms, crisp proscuitto, and truffle sage hollandaise. Same items come on the plate as the other bennies.

Overall, the eggs bennies was good. There’s a lot of food on the plate, so you will definitely be full after eating. Certain items on the menu can be quite pricey like the seafood options.

We Rate Joe Fortes:

Address:
777 Thurlow St
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.joefortes.ca/

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://www.google.ca/maps?q=777+Thurlow+St&sll=49.2850465,-123.1244619&sspn=0.0053748,0.0109864&t=m&hnear=777+Thurlow+St,+Vancouver,+British+Columbia+V6E+3V5&z=16″]

In British Columbia

McDonalds Canada: Steak Steak Steak

March 13, 2014

Currently, McDonalds Canada is having their Steak on Demand promotion from February 18 – March 31, 2014. The Steak n’ Egg Bagel and their Steak n’ Caesar Signature Wraps are two items they are featuring throughout the campaign.

I came for breakfast with a coworker for a coffee, but I saw the steak promos and I caved and got the Steak n’ Egg Bagel.

Steak n’ Egg Bagel is made with seasoned steak, folded eggs, processed cheddar cheese, sautéed onions, HP steak sauce, on either regular or multigrain bagel.

Once you take the bagel apart, it really doesn’t look that impressive. The first few bites were really good, but as I kept eating it, it got saltier and saltier. The steak patty was packed with pepper and salt, so you really couldn’t taste the true steak flavour. It tasted like their regular beef patty but with more spices.

Overall, it’s an interesting concept to offer steak 24/7, but for a good steak, you won’t find it here.

Website: mcdonalds.ca

In Brunch

Market by Jean Georges: Breakfast with Eggs Benny

March 12, 2014

The Market by Jean Georges is open for breakfast daily from 6:30am to 11:00am. The girls and I decided to give it a try as we are eager to eat all the egg bennys in town.

We made reservations for breakfast on a Saturday and it was surprisingly quite empty. Only a few tables were occupied. Even by 11:30am, we did see a few people either. I came here a few years ago for their brunch prix fixe and it was pretty damn good.

The interior is quite nice and really sets the mood for a beautiful brunch.

Freshly squeezed orange juice ($6) it comes in a tall glass and was perfect for the early morning meal. They also have grapefruit, carrot, apple, tomato, and pineapple juice as other options.

Before our dishes arrived, we received some complimentary fruit in a bowl for each person. It was definitely a nice touch. The fruits were fresh and there was a nice variety of fruits.

Black Forest Ham Classic Eggs Benny ($18) comes in 3 flavours – black forest ham, smoked salmon, and Spinach & Mushroom. We thought the eggs benny here was just OK. Nothing really special or anything. We did find that the hard egg was a turn off. We weren’t given the option to have it soft and runny like other places.

Mushroom and Spinach Classic Eggs Benny ($18) had the same issue. Everything revolving around the egg was fine…but that hard egg ruined the experience.

Smoked Salmon Classic Eggs Benny ($18) had a good amount of salmon but yet again, the same issue with the egg.

You have a variety of jams and tiny tabasco sauce if you want to flavour your dish. TaiwaneseGirl really liked her spice, so she used a few bottles of tabasco.

Brown Butter Waffles ($18) has macerated berries, mint, maple syrup and powdered sugar. It was alright, but it is quite expensive for a single waffle.

The eggs benny price is the same as Hawksworth and I would rather go to Hawksworth for eggs benny. We weren’t impressed for breakfast. If you do come here for breaskfast to order the benny, make sure to request a soft egg. Our server neglected as ask us how we liked our eggs and it kinda ruined our experience.

We Rate Market by Jean Georges:

Address:
1115 Alberni St
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.marketbyjgvancouver.com/

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://www.google.ca/maps?q=1115+Alberni+St&sll=49.285407,-123.1238676&sspn=0.0053747,0.0109864&t=m&hnear=1115+Alberni+St,+Vancouver,+British+Columbia+V6E+4T9&z=16 “]

In Cafe

Chez Faye Cafe: Soup, Sandwiches and Korean Food

March 3, 2014

Chez Faye Cafe is located right beside the Yaletown Skytrain. KoreanGirl and I were hunting for some lunch and thought Chez Faye Cafe would be a great place for a soup and sandwich. She’s been here a few times, but I’ve never been. I pass by it a lot of times, but haven’t been here till now.

They serve sandwiches, soups and Korean food. Just simple food that is not complicated.

They are open on weekdays from the morning till late lunch, but aren’t open for dinner.

The interior is cozy and has about 15 tables or so. It’s quiet and peaceful during lunch, so you can relax before going back to the office. A lot of people did take out items to go.

I got the clubhouse sandwich with their daily soup feature – chicken soup with wild rice.

Clubhouse Sandwich has 3 layers of bread and between those layers are – tomatoes lettuce, mayo, bacon, and turkey. I chose my bread to be multigrain. The ingredients are pretty solid and I liked how the bacon was crispy and there were lots of tomatoes to keep the sandwich moist.

Chicken soup with wild rice paired nicely with the sandwich. It’s always nice to have soup on a cold rainy day.

Overall, the food isn’t special or anything, but it’s a good quick lunch that satisfies the hungry belly. I’d come here again for their sandwiches and soup!

We Rate Chez Faye Cafe:

Address:
1168 Hamilton St
Vancouver, BC

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://www.google.ca/maps?q=1168+Hamilton+St&sll=49.2751929,-123.122024&sspn=0.0053758,0.0109864&t=m&hnear=1168+Hamilton+St,+Vancouver,+British+Columbia+V6B+2S2&z=16″]

In Bakery

Rosemary Rocksalt: Open on Main Street

February 17, 2014

Rosemary Rocksalt is the sister restaurant of Seigel’s Bagels. They have one location in North Vancouver and recently opened a new location on Main Street in Vancouver.

They serve up Montreal-style bagels and boy are they delicious! You’ll never buy bagels from Safeway or Superstore again.

All their bagels are freshly made in the store and it’s all displayed in the counter as you walk into the store. There are 10 types to choose from.

The menu is slightly more expensive than Siegels. But if you take into account location and demographics, it makes sense.

Morning Bagel ($6.50) has Montreal Smoked meat, cheddar and egg. Magz chose to have it on a rosemary rocksalt bagel. She loved it! Breakfast for lunch is always the best.

Jalapeno melt ($8) has smoked meat, melted cheddar, jalapeno peppers, lettuce, tomato and mustard. I ordered it with the multigrain bagel. I’m really loving this type of bagel. It’s nice and crisp on the outside and chewy in the middle.

It was hard to hold together while eating it, but it tasted great. The best part is really the smoked meat.

We came here for lunch and we were not disappointed. It tasted great but it was a tad expensive.

We Rate Rosemary Rocksalt:

Address:
2515 Main St
Vancouver, BC

Website:
www.rosemaryrocksalt.com

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://www.google.ca/maps?q=2515+Main+St&sll=49.2625553,-123.1009902&sspn=0.0053772,0.0109864&t=m&hnear=2515+Main+St,+Vancouver,+Greater+Vancouver,+British+Columbia+V5T&z=16 “]

In 24 hours

Siegel’s Bagels: Montreal-style bagels in Vancouver

February 16, 2014

Siegel’s Bagels sells authentic Montreal-style bagels in Kitsilano. After coming back from a trip, we decided to stop here for a quick lunch. I’ve heard much about this place, but I’ve actually never been here. I wanted to see if it was true that it’s like a Montreal Bagel.

The Kitsilano location is open 24 hours and have lot of sandwiches to choose from. They even have Montreal smoked meat.

Lot of bagels to choose from. They make it all in-house and are fresh.

Club Bagel ($8.50) has Montreal smoked meat, golden turkey breast, tomato, lettuce, cheddar, mustard and mayo.

Their Montreal smoked meat is pretty awesome. It has a great combination of ingredients.

Lox and Cream ($8.95) has smoked sockeye salmon, cream cheese, onions, and capers. It’s quite pricey for what you get, but the combination of the cream cheese, salmon and capers is sure yummy. I got it on a multigrain bagel because I love the texture of the grains on the outside.

Overall, great bagels and its great they are made fresh. Don’t forget to buy a few for home! They also have their sister restaurant – Rosemary Rocksalt open in North Vancouver and Main Street.

We Rate Siegel’s Bagels:

Address:
1883 Cornwall Ave
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.siegelsbagels.com/

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://www.google.ca/maps?q=1883+Cornwall+Ave&sll=49.2724816,-123.1477055&sspn=0.0053761,0.0109864&t=m&hnear=1883+Cornwall+Ave,+Vancouver,+Greater+Vancouver,+British+Columbia+V6J&z=16 “]

In Canadian

Tap and Barrel Coal Harbour: Burger and Beer

January 30, 2014

Tap and Barrel has a new location in Coal Harbour. After an event, Foodobyte, Eating with Kirby, Gastrofork, FoodQueen and I headed over to grab some dinner. It was close by and there is always room food some beer and burgers.

They have lots of local craft beer on tap and comfort food.

It was a very busy night for them, so we got seated in their cafe rather than their main dining room. It’s not connected to the restaurant, so all the food is made in their other area and brought over. You even have to go outside to their main area to find the washroom.

Beer Sampler you can choose from any 3 beers from the menu. I asked the waitress for 3 of the lightest beers of the menu because I don’t trust myself in picking my own beer unless its asian beer.

PB&J Burger ($15) is their signature burger with chipotle peanut butter and bacon jam. It is topped with a deep fried pickle and side of fries.

Chicken Clubhouse ($15) has blackened breast of chicken, pulled pork belly, and fresh avocado. It has the fried pickle on top with the fries on the side.

Tap Greens with added albacore tuna ($9 + $6) is topped with hazelnuts, dried blueberries, crumbled goat cheese, and red wine maple vinaigrette. It was an ok salad. I added the tuna since I needed some more protein in the dish. It’s a good alternative to burgers on the menu.

The Original Cobb ($17) has blackened Fraser Valley chicken breast, bacon, fresh sliced avocado, tomato, egg, blue claire cheese, creamy draught craft beer dressing.

The food was decent and the price was fair for this area. It is still pricey but at least you have a great view of the Olympic Cauldron and the Burrard inlet. The downside is that when we were dining here, the service took a very long time. Even getting beer took a while. We were all hungry and antsy to eat, but it’s not quick here.

We Rate Tap and Barrel:

Address:
1055 Canada Place
Vancouver, BC

Website: http://www.tapandbarrel.com/

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://www.google.ca/maps?q=1055+Canada+Pl,+Vancouver,+BC&sll=49.290199,-123.1172135&sspn=0.0053742,0.0109864&t=m&hnear=1055+Canada+Pl,+Vancouver,+Greater+Vancouver,+British+Columbia&z=16″]

In Canadian

Dine Out Vancouver: Bistro 101

January 26, 2014

My second dine out of the year was at Bistro 101 at the Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts. I tried making reservations last year, but I lucked out as the reservations fill up very quickly! I woke up and put in my reservation on Open Table before going to work on the day they started accepting reservations . It’s one of the best $18 3 course menu option and you won’t be disappointed.

Their 3 course meals are usually $24, which is still a great deal. At $18 for Dine Out Vancouver, its pretty good.

Bistro 101 was created to provide a real-world training experience for the school’s professional Culinary and Baking & Pastry Arts students. I think it’s a great idea to give student a well-rounded experience with dealing with the back of the house and front of the house.

From inside the dining room, you can see them hard at work. It’s really cool to see all the work that goes into your meal.

Complimentary bread arrives at the table. It’s unlimited, so you can always ask for more. I find that they give you a lot initially, so you don’t really need a refill unless you really load up on the bread early. There’s a lot of varieties.

Peroni beer ($6) comes from Italy and is a popular beer there. I liked its light and sweet flavour profile.

An amuse bouche arrived before the appetizers. A nice little treat to start off the meal. I think it was cheese, bell peppers, pesto on little crispy bread.

White Onion Velouté topped with crisp cauliflower and lime yoghurt. It is a soup and M said it was really good. The crispy vegetables on the side added great texture.

Winter Squash Tortellini comes with 3 pieces in a smoked tomato broth. A different concept of a pasta dish.

Dungeness Crab Salad has shaved fennel & lemon foam. The lemon foam compliments the creamy crab.

Organic Ocean Wise Roasted Halibut sits on top of spinach risotto and lemongrass emulsion. The halibut was cooked perfectly. It was moist and really full of flavour.

Lamb Navarin has grilled polenta, braised Shallots and dates. There is also grilled peppers and asparagus.

Fraser Pork is like a pork sampler. It has roast loin, crisp belly, shoulder sausage and chive pomme puree. M really liked it and was music to his palate. Men love their meat.

Cheesecake Mousse has a raspberry sauce and pineapple sorbet. Cheesecake was simple and not overly complicated. Good as well.

Hazelnut Tart has blood orange, chocolate and sorbet on the plate. This was my favourite because I am very fond of hazelnuts.

Overall, I was very impressed by their menu and their affordable price. There is a trade off and the students are still learning how to serve, so the service may be less smooth than what you would normally receive. It was a fun experience for us and we will definitely be back. I love the concept of Bistro 101 and they did a great job when we dined here.

We Rate Bistro 101:

Address:
1505 W 2nd Ave
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.bistro101.com/

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://www.google.ca/maps?q=1505+W+2nd+Ave,+Vancouver,+BC+V6J+1H2&sll=49.2697268,-123.1384388&sspn=0.0053764,0.0109864&t=m&hnear=1505+W+2nd+Ave,+Vancouver,+Greater+Vancouver,+British+Columbia+V6J+1H2&z=16 “]

In American

The Rumpus Room: Monday $10 Burger + Beer Special

December 26, 2013

My coworkers wanted a place to grab a drink and enjoy some nibbles. We settled on the Rumpus Room as it was close by the office and seemed like a great after work place to chill. The space is a bit small, but it makes up for it if you were a 80s kid. The menu is in a duotang and theres some cool memorabilia on the walls. Plus, in the Summer their patio is open and there’s a bunch of plastic pink flamingos.

As it was a Monday, we were surprised to hear they had a special! I love specials! A burger and beer for $10. A pretty awesome deal considering the price of a burger is $7 to $15.

Red Racer IPA is a local beer brewed right in BC at Central CIty Brewing. It has a strong taste of hops that lingers till the after taste. It’s not my type of beer because I don’t really like the hops flavour.

Peanut Butter Burger is made with a hormone-free 6oz beef burger patty, bacon, cheddar, lettuce, apple cranberry chutney, tomato, and creamy peanut butter on a brioche bun. I found that the ingredients went well together, but the beef patty was a bit overcooked so it because quite dry.

You also get a side to choose from. The options are fries, yam fries, veggie chili, soup, coleslaw, salad, side wedge salad, mashed potatoes, a waffle or ants on a long. I went with the salad. It was pretty decent as it had beets and sunflower seeds.

Overall, the price of the food is great for large portions. The quality of the food is alright but not too impressive. The servers are nice, but with only 2 people serving, they can tend to forget things…like… our bill. We had to ask twice for our bill, but we weren’t in a rush so we didn’t really bug them.

We Rate Rumpus Room:

Address:
2689 Main Street
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.rumpusroom.ca/

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=2689+Main+Street+Vancouver,+BC&t=m&hnear=2689+Main+St,+Vancouver,+Greater+Vancouver,+British+Columbia+V5T+3E7&z=16 “]

In Canadian

BETA 5 Chocolates: Cream Puffs Galore

December 16, 2013

Beta 5 is one of North America’s Top 10 Chocolatiers. Their store is hidden in Strathcona near a bunch of warehouses, but you can find their chocolates at a bunch of retailers around town. Its best to take the skytrain to Main St/Science World and then walk a few minutes. When you get to this area, you’ll find a bunch of food trucks “sleeping”. A lot of the food trucks come to this area to prep.

Beta 5 has delectable chocolates, cream puff and some pastries. As it was my coworkers birthday, so I had to get something special for my the team. Cream puff were on my mind. I kept seeing it on their Facebook page and it has been on my mind for a long time.

Their hours are 10:30am – 5pm on Tuesday – Friday and 10am – 5pm on the weekends.

When you go into the shop, you can see their whole operation behind the glass. It’s fun to see them work.

Their shop isn’t very elaborate, but you will find a few products that catch your attention. Their Polygon Bars are pretty good! They put a lot of love and thought into all their chocolates.

Their specialty chocolates are really works of art! They are all beautifully put together. I spent more time starting at them than devouring them. A few of my favourites are salted caramel, imperial stout and fisherman friends. Very unique flavours that they develop here. The fisherman friends just blew my mind since I would have never thought the combination would be good.

85% Dark Chocolate and Caramel Cream Puff

Milk Chocolate Praline Cream Puff

Milk Chocolate S’More Cream Puff

Salted Caramel Cream Puff

All the cream puffs were pretty darn good. The flavours were great, not too sweet and it was a perfect dessert. They are $4.50 each, $16 (box of 4) or $35 (box of 9 pieces). Some of the flavours do get sold out, so its best to go earlier in the day.

I’m a big fan of all their treats, but it can get quite expensive. Definitely worth it.

We Rate Beta 5 Chocolates:

Address:
413 Industrial Ave
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.beta-5.com/

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=413+Industrial+Ave+Vancouver,+BC&t=m&hnear=413+Industrial+Ave,+Vancouver,+Greater+Vancouver,+British+Columbia+V6A&z=15 “]

In Cafe

Mancakes Bakery: Righting the Wrong That’s Been Done to Cupcakes

December 14, 2013

I was strolling around Downtown with MedicalGiraffe and stumbled upon this cute place. ManCakes Bakery Cafe opened up on Robson near Cambie. It’s the cutest cupcake shop that is catered towards men.

No worries, women buy cupcakes here too. Not just for men. The owners came up with ManCakes since they were sick of all the frilly over iced cupcakes. I’ve tried their ManCakes at an event a while ago before they had this location. They are definitely changing up the cupcake game with their unique concept.

You won’t find the regular flavours of cupcakes here. I was definitely drawn by the sign. Whiskey and lime?

Inside the store is a loungey area to enjoy some cupcakes and coffee.

The cupcakes look really cute and the flavours are like food and drinks that you can find at a pub.

There were 11 different types of cupcakes and it was very hard to figure out which one to get. The cupcakes don’t only sound good but they

Tool Box ($20) comes with a dozen mini cupcakes. It’s a great way to try all their cupcakes. It makes for great gifts for the office.

The tool box contains:

Apple Brie
Tequila Pineapple
Whiskey Lime
Buffalo Wing
King Kong
Bacon Chili Chocolate
Chocolate Red Wine
Pink Peppercorn Grapefruit
Rum & Coke
Breakfast
Chicago Popcorn

The flavours that stood out are chocolate red wine, Chicago popcorn, whiskey lime, king kong, rum and coke, and tequila pineapple. One flavour that we thought would be good but wasn’t was the Buffalo Wing. M and I didn’t like the sweet and savoury taste of it. Personal preferences.

You can eat the mini cupcakes in 2 bites.

Overall, the cupcakes were moist and had a great balance of flavour and quite innovative. A fun cupcake to give to any man or woman.

We Rate ManCakes:

Address:
288 Robson Street
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://mancakesbakery.com/

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=288+Robson+Street+Vancouver,+BC&t=m&hnear=288+Robson+St,+Vancouver,+British+Columbia+V6B+6A1&z=16 “]

In Canadian

Taco Time: Taco Tuesday for 99 cents

December 12, 2013

On Tuesdays, lines at the Taco Time in Pacific Centre gets quite long.

People want a quick and cheap lunch. I was doing some shopping at noon and needed a very very quick lunch before heading back to work. As I spent a large amount of money on clothes…I felt guilty, so a cheap lunch option was good to balance out my shopping.

Taco Tuesday! 99 cents for a soft or hard shelled taco. Tempting even though it’s not very good compared to all the other places Downtown.

I ordered 2 soft shell tacos and 2 hard shell tacos. It didn’t seem like a lot of food at the time, but after I ate all of this, I was crazy full.

Hard shell Taco has cheddar cheese, lettuce, and ground beef in the shell. I find they add a lot of salt and spices to the meat, so you will get thirsty.

Soft shell Taco has cheddar cheese, lettuce, and ground beef in the soft shell.

Both tacos are essentially the same, but I do prefer the hard taco for the added crunch.

Don’t forget the sauce! Mild sauce and then the spicy green one.

Don’t forget the Mexifries! Deep-fried tater tots! My childhood favourite.

Overall, nothing fancy and does the trick of filling up your empty stomach. For 99 cents, you can’t go wrong.

Website: http://www.tacotimecanada.com/

In Brunch

Yolk’s Restaurant and Commissary: Now Open

December 9, 2013

Yolk’s Restaurant and Commissary has finally opened up on Clark and Hastings. It occupies the old space of ‘Brave Bull House of Steaks’. The building has a fresh baby blue and yellow paint job reflecting the look of their Food Truck.

I’ve been to the food truck several times since its close to where I work. When I heard that they were opening up a restaurant, I was definitely excited to see what they would be cook up. They spent weeks teasing fans on Facebook and Twitter.

They opened just last week and was crazy busy during the weekend. A little past noon, there was a huge line up. We waited about 15 minutes for a seat for 2.

They have daily specials, but they do run out quick. We missed the crispy pork belly confit and I’ve had it at the food cart and it’s pretty darn good.

The space isn’t very large and they don’t take reservations.

The drink menu is great, but right now they don’t have any liquor just yet.

The food menu is an expansion of their food truck menu. A few new items and the usual items are still on the menu.

Freshly squeezed orange juice ( 12 oz – $5.75) is the perfect pairing for brunch. Nothing else can really compare to fresh OJ.

Matchstick Coffee (12 oz – $2.25) good coffee and what I need to wake up. Refills are $1 extra.

Hot Mulled Apple Cider (12 oz – $3.50) was ordered by M just out of curiosity. He didn’t like it. Its was lot hot apple juice with a bunch of different spices. It’s definitely an acquired taste and not for all.

Brioche French Toast ($7.75) is mothered in melted butter, syrup and powdered sugar. M really enjoyed it and said it was one of the best french toast he has ever had. The exterior is crunchy and the interior is moist.

Croque Madame (2 for $7.50) have brioche bread shells filled with ham, gruyere cheese, béchamel sauce, and a soft poached egg. It was sinfully delicious! Each little cup, you can eat in about 3 or 4 bites. Really delicious.

Braised Beef Short Rib ($11.75) has a soft poached free range egg, beer battered onion ring, and goat cheese on a toasted english muffin.

The best part is really the egg. When you pop it, it enrobes all the other ingredients.

Truffle Lemon Hashbrown Skewer ($3.50) is made of local organic potatoes, lemon, truffle oil, sea salt and chives. This time around, it wasn’t as good The potatoes weren’t crispy on the outside and needed a bit more truffle oil and salt.

Overall, M and I still enjoyed Yolk’s. The food is well executed, but a bit pricey for the portion that you get. If you are a big eater, you should get the 2 egg sandwiches and something on the side.

They are open for brunch and lunch at the following times:

Wed – Fri | 7 am – 3 pm
Sat – Sun | 9 am -4 pm

We rate Yolk’s Restaurant and Commissary:

Address:
1298 East Hastings Street
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://yolks.ca/restaurant/

[googlemap width=”620″ height=”480″ src=”https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=1298+East+Hastings+Street+Vancouver,+BC&t=m&hnear=1298+E+Hastings+St,+Vancouver,+Greater+Vancouver,+British+Columbia+V6A+1S6&z=16″]