Four Beakers Archives - Page 7 of 24

In Burmese

Wahh Tee Burmese Restaurant: Hidden Gem

December 6, 2014

Wahh Tee Burmese Restaurant is close to Joyce Station in Vancouver. My mom has been searching for a good authentic Burmese restaurant for a long time as she spent part of her childhood there.

Burmese cuisine is actually quite interesting as it takes influences from India, Thailand, China, and Laos. So, when you take a look at their menu, don’t be surprised to see samosas here.

The restaurant seats about 16 people and only has 4 tables. We came here at 2pm, so it was quite dead, but we did see a few people do take out.

Myanmar Tea Leaf Salad ($5) has fermented tea leaves mixed with assorted fried beans. This is one of my favourite dishes! The fried beans give an amazing texture to the salad. There’s not a lot of tea leaves, but man, those beans are crunchy.

Noodle Salad ($5) has white flour noodles mixed with shrimp powder, tamarind sauce, bean powder, shredded cabbage, onions, and cilantro. It comes with a bit of soup on the side. This was really good! The flavours are really amazing! My little sister wanted to eat this all to herself.

Spicy Fish Noodle Soup (Large – $7.50) has rice noodle with fish broth, banana tree root, lemongrass, and cilantro. It was really good! It isn’t very spicy either but the broth was quite nice. I love the crunch of the fried bean crisps.

Spicy Fish Noodle Soup (Medium – $5.50) just a tad smaller, but still delicious.

Fish Noodle Soup (Medium – $5.50) was good too but was a bit bland, but they did provide some spicy peppers to add in. Man, adding those peppers made it hotter than the Spicy Fish Noodle Soup. The spicier the better! Mmm Mmm MMMM!

Deep Fried Vegetable Samosa was 6 pieces for $5. It comes with some spicy sauce on the side. It came super hot but once it cooled down it very delicious.

Beef Fried Rice ($8) uses jasmine rice the dish was quite bland by itself, but with the addition of some curry, it tastes pretty good.

The fried rice came with a mini salad with spicy sauce.

Shrimp Curry ($8) we didn’t get the rice to do with this since we had the fried rice already, so we ate it together.

Overall, the dishes were very cheap and affordable. The noodle dishes and salads are pretty darn delicious! This passed my mothers taste test, so it must be good.

We Rate Wahh Tee Burmese Restaurant:

Address:
4942 Joyce St
Vancouver, BC

Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/WAHH-TEE-Burmese-Restaurant/1501041706779853

In Bubble Tea

Mango Yummy: From Night Market to Store Front

December 1, 2014

Mango Yummy finally has a store front in Richmond. They may sound very familiar because they have stalls at the Richmond Night Market and the International Summer Night Market. Their store opened in October 2014 and serve up yummy asian desserts.

Of course anything with mango is super delicious. I came here with Food Queen, Dee and Nat from Gastrofork to catch up over yummy drinks.

It is located across from Richmond Center and has their own parking lot with free parking.

Their interior isn’t too large, but they have about 25 seats. We came here around 5:30pm, so it wasn’t too busy.

Mango Drinks, Red Bean Drinks, Shaved Ice, Fresh Tofu Drinks, Milk Tea, and Green Teas.

Lemonade, smoothies, fresh fruit slush, tea, ice cream floats, toast, crepes, and desserts.

They also have a variety of hot sweet soups. There’s only a handful of places in Richmond where you can find a good selection of these sweet soups. Mmmmmm Mmmmmm….

Signature Mango Sago Grapefruit ($6) is their popular drink and it has everything you need to satisfy your mango cravings.

Tofu Mango Sago and Grapefruit ($7) I got this tofu dessert and it is quite similar to the signature drink above but with a lot of tofu. I love tofu and I could drink this all day. I totally could have ordered a few more.

Mixed Fruit Shaved Ice ($7) has a bit over everything like lychee, berries, watermelon, cantaloupe, pineapples, etc. It is even topped with vanilla ice cream.

Mango Slush ($5) can’t go wrong with this.

The winter is definitely getting colder, but your sweet tooth still needs to be satisfied with yummy mango desserts.

We Rate Mango Yummy:

Address:
6564 Number 3 Rd
Richmond, BC

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

In Brunch

Le Neuf Cafe: Brunch in Toronto

November 4, 2014

Le Neuf Cafe is located near Spadina and King by Clarence Square Dog Park. This cafe is cute because it’s located among a row of cozy town houses. The cafe is founded and staffed by lifelong Parisians, so you may get a bit of some attitude when ordering.

Flo took us here when we were in Toronto and it was a delight to try some authentic French brunch.

It was very busy when we came here at 10:30am, but barely managed to get a table for 5.

Cappuccino ($3.75) is large and topped with a good amount of foam.

Benedicto ($12.90) has prosciutto, basil, tomato, and hollandaise. You can choose it to be served on top of brioche or english muffin. There are sides of homefries and salad. The egg was poached perfectly and oozed all over the brioche bread.

Mediterranean Galettes ($13.95) is a savoury crepe with prosciutto, fresh tomato, basil and mozzarella. The galette was really good!

French Toast ($11.50) is served with fruit, cinnamon butter, housemade caramel and topped with powdered sugar.

Overall, the food is pretty decent and the cafe has a really nice charm. Service is ok, but if you ask for customizations, the staff might get feisty.

We Rate Le Neuf Cafe:

Address:
9 Clarence Sq
Toronto, ON

Website:
http://leneufcafe.com/

In Bakery

Purebread Bakery: Open in Vancouver

October 26, 2014

Purebread Bakery finally opened in Vancouver! They are a Whistler-based family bakery that makes some addictive treats. For the last little while, they have been at various Farmers Markets in Vancouver. I would plan to go to the Vancouver Farmers Market near Main Street Skytrain every other week to get a taste of their scones and brownies. They are crazy delicious.

When you walk inside, you will see the plethora of baked goods on the counters! There are so many things to look at. I was a bit over whelmed.

The staff all wear bandana’s on their heads just like the “We Can Do It” women.

They have their savoury scones. Pssttt….these are my favourite items from them especially the cheddar jalapeño scones.

They also have their sweet scones, cakes, brioche buns, etc.

They have a lot more sweet treats and they change them up daily. They also have loaves of bread and pies.

They also sell drinks too that go with the treats.

Beside the drink counter is a waiting room if you have ordered drinks.

I grabbed a Cappuccino to go.

Nutella Brioche ($3.50) the fluffy brioche was wrapped around crunchy roasted nuts smothered in lots of Nutella. The first few bites were good with the Nutella swirling around your mouth with the buttery brioche. After awhile, it did taste a tad dry if you aren’t drinking coffee or tea with this.

Caramelized Banana Brownie ($3.50) was as good as a regular brownie. I love bananas so I naturally loved this yummy treat. It is a big brownie, so I had to cut it up into 6 pieces and eat it slowly. The brownie is quite rich, so eating the whole thing

Cheddar Jalapeno Scone ($4) is huge and its packed full of cheese and jalapeño. It’s damn good and it’s my favourite item. For me it’s too big to eat in one sitting, but I slowly eat it throughout the day and share bits of it with other.

Pumpkin Pie for 2 ($7) was an item they were selling around Thanksgiving. They had larger versions, but a 2 person portion was perfect for M and I.

Overall, I love certain items at Purebreads. I usually stick with the scones and the brownies.

We Rate Purebread Bakery:

Address:
692 E Hastings St
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.purebread.ca/

In Bakery

Beta5: Chocolates, Ice Cream Sandwiches and Cream Puffs

October 13, 2014

Beta 5 Chocolates is a few blocks away from Main Street Station in a hidden industrial area. I am quite lucky to be working close by too, so lunch trips to Beta 5 are quite fun and mighty delicious. If you see sleeping food trucks and warehouses in the area, you are in the right spot.

They are one of Canada’s top Chocolatiers and have won multiple awards since they have opened. Once you get a taste of their chocolates, you will know what I’m talking about.

Their chocolates are works of art! They have 3 signature chocolates from the 2013 International Chocolate Awards.

The Whole Cherry – awarded SILVER in both the Canadian and International competitions for Dark Chocolate Ganaches
Bay Leaf – awarded GOLD in the Canadian competition for Milk Chocolate Ganaches
Fisherman’s Friend – awarded GOLD in both the Canadian and International competitions for Dark Chocolate Ganaches

You can grab a box of their Award-Winning Signature Chocolates ($30), which comes with 12 unique flavours. The flavours are:

Imperial Stout
Caramelized Banana
Coconut-Lime
Pear & Praline
Earl Grey
Jasmine Tea
Salted Chocolate Caramel
Crispy Praline
66% Mokaya
Bay Leaf
The Whole Cherry
Fisherman’s Friend

It’s a good option for gifts.

Their cream puffs are pretty amazing too. Sometimes when I come here in the afternoon, a bunch of flavours are already gone. Make sure you come early to make sure you get the flavours you want. All the cream puffs are made to order, so its always fresh.

You can always order ahead of time by calling them (minimum of 12) to make sure you get the flavours you want.

Some of the flavours are:

85% Dark Chocolate and Caramel Cream Puff
Banana Cream Puff
Black Forest Cream Puff
Blueberry Yuzu Cream Puff
Coconut and Passion Fruit Cream Puff
Milk Chocolate Praline Cream Puff
Milk Chocolate S’more Cream Puff
Salted Caramel Cream Puff
Vanilla Cream Puff
Vietnamese Coffee

I’ve ordered a bunch of their cream puffs over the last year and I definitely have a few of my favourites. There are no bad cream puff flavours at all. Plus, they all look amazing.

I always have to get the Banana Cream Puff and 85% Dark Chocolate and Caramel Cream Puff.

They also sell Ice Cream Sandwiches. It’s a newer item they introduced this year and it was quite popular in the summer.

Blueberry Cheesecake Ice Cream Sandwich was huge. The ice cream sandwich has a graham cracker crust with a lot of blueberry ice cream with embedded blueberries…lots of them.

If you are gaga over their various treats, they have a Chocolate Union membership where they ship you a box of their assorted goodies every month. I’ve been taking a look on Instagram to see what they make for each month and man, they really are works of art.

The membership is pretty expensive:

3 months – $180
6 months – $345
12 months – $660

It’s something I could never afford, but if you got the money, I am sure you will enjoy everything that comes as part of the membership.

If you buy too many things at Beta 5, your wallet will definitely hurt, but you tummy will thank you for it. Go for the chocolates, cream puffs or Ice Cream Sandwiches.

We Rate Beta 5 Chocolates:

Address:
413 Industrial Ave
Vancouver, BC

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

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In Four Beakers

Minami: Taste of Yaletown

October 11, 2014

Taste of Yaletown is back for its 10th year full of bites, treats, sips and sights of Yaletown. Every year, Taste of Yaletown brings together the talents of chefs with culinary treasures in the best dining district in Vancouver.

From October 16th-30th, Yaletown kitchens will offer featured menus, special tastings and innovative pairings to tempt the most adventurous foodie. With a fresh approach to fixed price menus of $25, $35 and $45 restaurants will offer combinations of food and drink or even special in-house events.

Minami is participating again this year with 3 different menu options. I was invited for a sneak peak of their dinner menu and I was excited because they are one of my favourite restaurants in Vancouver.

[tabs tab1=”DINNER MENU $45″ tab2=”VEGETARIAN DINNER MENU $35″ tab3=”ZEN LUNCH $25″]
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Optional sake pairing 15

FIRST – SUSHI
Sake pairing: Dassai 39

wild boar bacon salmon oshi bite, sunset roll, maguro and kani maki, tai and hotate temari

SECOND – MINAMI ZEN
Sake pairing: Yu Junmai

Stone fruit salad
endive, goat feta, dried olives, maple sherry thyme vinaigrette, fig balsamic reduction
Jidori chicken and foie gras gyoza
truffle dashi consommé
Saikyo miso baked sablefish
coconut creamed kale, wasabi shoga relish, yuzu miso sauce
Braised fraser valley pork cheek
roasted kabocha-onion puree, apple red cabbage kraut, sweet & sour soy ginger glaze

DESSERT
Sake pairing: Hakkaisan Sparkling Nigori

Matcha tiramisu
matcha-genmai ladyfingers, azuki paste, matcha-white chocolate ganache, sesame crumble

[/tab]
[tab id=2]

Optional sake pairing 15

FIRST – FALL GARDEN PLATE
Sake pairing: Dassai 39

fresh market vegetables, soy paper roll, moromi miso sauce, sesame pesto, olive tapenade

SECOND – MINAMI ZEN
Sake pairing: Yu Junmai

Stone fruit
endive, goat feta, dried olives, maple, sherry thyme vinaigrette, fig balsamic reduction
Kaiso salad
baby frisee, umami soy vinaigrette, lotus root chip
Crispy tempeh
spiced tomato chutney, sautéed kale
Shiitake mizuna ricotta ravioli
truffled saikyo miso sauce, organic maple ginger granola

DESSERT
Sake pairing: Hakkaisan Sparkling Nigori

Matcha tiramisu
matcha-genmai ladyfingers, azuki paste, matcha-white chocolate ganache, sesame crumble

[/tab]
[tab id=3]

FIRST – ABURI SUSHI
Sake pairing: Dassai 39

salmon oshi, ebi oshi, sunset roll, nigiri

SECOND – MINAMI ZEN
Sake pairing: Yu Junmai

Aburi bincho
wasabi masatake sauce
Miso marinated tofu salad
baby greens, avocado, crispy tempeh, pickled daikon & carrot, umami soy vinaigrette
Saikyo miso baked sablefish
coconut creamed kale, wasabi shoga relish, yuzu-miso sauce
Braised fraser valley pork cheek
apple red cabbage kraut, roasted kabocha onion puree, sweet & sour ginger soy glaze

DESSERT
Sake pairing: Hakkaisan Sparkling Nigori

Spiced pumpkin brownie ice cream
cinnamon-nutmeg spice blend, walnut brownie pieces

[/tab]

[/tabs]

The sushi assortment has 5 pieces of tai temari, hotate temari, sunset roll, wild boar bacon salmon oshi bite, and maguro + Kani Maki. You really need to savour these 5 pieces of sushi because they taste amazing. Every single bite is a work of art.

Tai Temari was beautiful like a little sushi ball.

Hotate Temari is scallop cut in half and draped over sushi rice.

Sunset Roll has spicy tuna, cucumber, smoked salmon, and tobiko.

Wild Boar Bacon Salmon Oshi Bite and Maguro + Kani Maki were my 2 favourite rolls because of that amazing Miku sauce. That sauce makes your mouth water.

Next is the second course consisting of Braised Fraser Valley Pork Cheek, Saikyo Miso Baked Sablefish, Jidori Chicken and Fois Gras Gyoza, and their Stone Fruit Salad.

Braised Fraser Valley Pork Cheek has a roasted kabocha-onion puree, apple red cabbage kraut, with a sweet and sour soy ginger glaze. The cheek was tender and full of flavour.

Saikyo miso baked sablefish also has a coconut creamed kale, wasabi shoga relish, and yuzu miso sauce. The skin was crisp and the delicate flavours of the sablefish went well with the sauce.

Jidori Chicken and Foie Gras Gyoza also comes with a truffle dashi consommé. The gyoza was good!

Stone Fruit Salad has endive, goat feta, dried olives, maple sherry thyme vinaigrette, and fig balsamic reduction. The fruit was really fresh and everything blended nicely together. It’s good to have one of the item a salad to break up the taste of meat.

Last but not least is their Matcha tiramisu for dessert. It has matcha-genmai ladyfingers, azuki paste, matcha-white chocolate ganache, with a sesame crumble. Oh man, this was good. No more need for regular Tiramisu because this is amazing.

Overall, it’s always a good time at Minami. The $45 dinner menu is reasonable and you get a taste of everything Minami has to offer. If you aren’t keen to spending that much, the $25 lunch is a good option too.

We Rate Minami:

Address:
1118 Mainland St
Vancouver BC

Website:
http://minamirestaurant.com/

In Cafe

Revolver: Lattes and Pecan Tarts

October 2, 2014

Revolver focuses on 2 key things – coffee and your experience. I come here once in a while to get a coffee and a morning treat. They have a rotating variety of beans for their espresso, so you might get something different each time. I can’t remember a time when someone asks what type of beans I want in my coffee. I always choose the one that has more of a chocolate taste to it. I always find the baristas are good at recommending which espresso fits my taste buds.

The space inside isn’t large, but most people take their coffee to go.

Latte and Pecan Tart are my usual items that I order. You can’t go wrong with their coffee and that pecan tart is so delicious! It must be all that brown sugar and butter. Mmm Mmmm Mmm.

We Rate Revolver:

Address:
325 Cambie Street Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://revolvercoffee.ca/

In Brunch

Crepe Montagne: Brunch in Whistler

September 30, 2014

Crepe Montagne is an authentic French Creperie located in Whistler Village. They have lots of breakfast and brunch items that are sweet and savoury. M and I came for a day trip to Whistler and he demanded we find some brunch. Doing a quick search on Urbanspoon, it lead me here.

There are seats inside and outside, but we sat inside since there was only one table available. It’s a cute place and I’m amazed the chef can cook in such a tight space.

Coffee is a must for every morning. We left Vancouver pretty early to get here by 9am.

Cappuccino was my drink of choice. This drink has alway stuck with me because I started drinking coffee in University when I was backpacking across Europe. I just loved the foam with the espresso. It’s exactly what I need to perk up in the morning.

Pesto Eggs Benedict ($14) has a fresh pesto sauce with a lot of mushrooms, topped with a medium egg and hollandaise sauce. On the side, there are hashbrowns and fresh fruit. I couldn’t stop eating this! It was so good! It was just what I needed.

2010 Breakfast Crepe ($14) has 3 eggs, Canadian back bacon, cheese and tomatoes. The eggs are inside the crepe, so it doesn’t seem like you are consuming 3 eggs. M really loved this crepe and would barely share with me. The crepe is made of buckwheat and white flour.

Overall, the meals probably had lots of butter, but it was really good. I love their savoury items.

Address:
116 4368 Main Street
Whistler BC

Website:
http://crepemontagne.com/

In Coquitlam

Stake: Flagship Restaurant at Hard Rock Casino in Coquitlam

September 28, 2014

Hard Rock Casino Vancouver has revamped their flagship restaurant – Stake with a new menu created by Executive Chef Matthew Richmond. They are committed to putting local produce in all their dishes where possible.

Even though I live in the subburbs, I’ve actually never come here until now.

Stake doesn’t only serve steak as their name suggests. There’s a good variety of WestCoast dishes that will appeal to your tastebuds. Executive Chef Matthew Richmond’s goal is to bring the flavours of what you would find in Downtown Vancouver, back to Port Coquitlam, where he grew up. He has worked in numerous restaurant from the bottom up and really has a passion for creating delicious dishes as well as being a mentor to the young chefs in the community.

Of course, Chef Matthew has an amazing team that works behind the kitchen that beautifully puts together all the dishes.

There is lots of seating inside and has a lot of cool portraits and things up on their walls.

Their knives are pretty awesome too.

We started off with complimentary bread and butter.

Beet Trio ($9) has a blueberry goat cheese mousse, pea greens, walnut wafer, with a golden beet dressing. The different beets have their own unique tastes, some have an earthier taste and other are more sweet. It’s just incredible tasting these fresh beets. It also goes really well with the blueberry goat cheese mousse.

Stake’s Signature Smoked Crispy Pork Belly ($12) has a green pea puree, butter braised white asparagus, tomato confit, and apple bourbon jus. The pork belly is yummy and has the crispy crackling on top. You can’t say no to pork belly…unless you’re a vegetarian.

Pacific Halibut ($24) has king oyster mushrooms braised in abalone sauce, preserved olive, green beans & eggplant with wilted pea greens. This dish has a very asian flavour profile. The vegetables were very good, but a tad salty if you eat it alone. It’s much better when you eat a bit of everything together.

Pan-seared Truffle Polenta ($16) has a leek fondue, ratatouille, thyme glazed portabella, garlic cream, and micro chard. This polenta was really good. It was crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. This is probably the best polenta I’ve had so far in Vancouver.

6oz Seared Beef Tenderloin ($28) comes with Golden Ears Emmental fondant potato, glazed beets, crisp leek, truffle foam, and jus. The tenderloin was a perfect medium rare. Very good, tender and full of flavour.

Chocolate Marquise ($8) has a Irish cream anglaise, chocolate pearls, and a raspberry coulis. The chocolate cake was dense and smooth like a ganache.

Overall, their revamp of the menu works really well for Stake and the quality is definitely there. Executive Chef Matthew Richmond really put his mark on this menu. I’ll definitely be back with my friends or family.

We Rate Stake:

Address:
2080 United Boulevard
Coquitlam, BC

Website:
http://www.hardrockcasinovancouver.com/venue/stake/

In American

Rouge Bistro: New Restaurant near Olympic Village

September 18, 2014

There’s a new cozy bistro called Rouge Bistro located on 2nd Ave and Manitoba. Just right outside the Olympic Village. It has only been open for the last month and a half. I’ve actually come here a few time during my lunch hour because they have very homey tasting sandwiches and soups.

I’ve never had anything I was disappointed with . The shop is a family owned business and they want to provide customers with yummy food that makes them smile. Plus, most items on their menu is under $10. Perfect for the lunch hour.

There aren’t a lot of seats, but I haven’t found it a problem yet. It’s not too busy, so you will still find a seat. As they are still new, I can see this place being quite busy in a few months.

Their menu is mostly comprised of salads, sandwiches, soups and daily specials. Nothing too out of the ordinary, but they have a good selection for lunch.

Wild Salmon Walnut Pesto Sandwich ($9) and it comes with a side of soup. The side of soup I chose was mushroom and it was good! Lots of mushrooms were in it and it was quite yummy.

There was a lot of the salmon in it and they do not skimp out at all! It tasted very good and healthy. Plus, I was super stuffed when I finished it all!

The Roast Beef Sandwich ($9) and a side of broccoli soup. This was a simple meal but it tasted so good. I don’t know what their secret is, but it was just really good.

The owner comes in here every morning to roast his beef and lamb before the lunch rush. Inside the sandwich is mushrooms, cheddar and the roasted beef. I think the reason why it tasted so good is because everything is fresh! The beef was still very moist and flavourful.

Chicken Soup, Quinoa Chickpea peanut sauce salad, Chicken Seaweed Salad was a nice trio for lunch if you wanted something a tad healthier.

Curried Quarter Chicken ($9) comes with your choice of breast or leg/thigh. I chose the leg/thigh because I love dark meat and its juicier. This also comes with a side of soup! The soup this day was french onion soup. This chicken was really good and it has a few chunk of potatoes on the bottom.

Overall, I love coming here to have lunch. Everything is fresh and delicious, with great prices. Having been here 3 times without any disappointment, I think this place is pretty solid. All my coworkers love Rouge Bistro too. It’s refreshing to have a good place to eat close to Science World without having to go to the usual places like Tap and Barrel or Craft.

We Rate Rouge Bistro:

Address:
91 West 2nd Avenue
Vancouver, BC

In Four Beakers

Pizzeria Farina: Amazing Pizza in Vancouver

September 14, 2014

Pizzeria Farina is located right by the entrance to Chinatown near the Viaducts. They open daily at 5pm and stays open until the dough runs out. This place is really close to my work and never open for lunch. Apparently they always run out of dough, around 8pm or 10pm depending on the day you’re here. They are also the same owners as Ask for Luigi and Pourhouse.

I came here with M, KoreanGirl and Scarface came here on a Friday after work to enjoy some great pizza. You can either eat in or take out.

The interior is quite small and cozy. You will find a communal dining table in the centre for 10 – 12 people.

The are also 2 tables of 2 and 4 seats by the window. So, that’s about 20 seats in total.

They have sparkling or still water on tap! Pretty awesome! I’ve slowly grown to like sparkling water, so it’s great you don’t have to pay for it.

They also have different sodas. We got Boylan Ginger Ale, Boylan Cane Cola and Brio Chinotto.

Margherita ($12) has tomato sauce, mozzarella, olive oil and basil. It was basic, but it was so good! The dough was thin and crispy with the perfect amount of toppings. I could eat this all day! Highly Recommended!

Funghi ($15) has Mushrooms, mozzarella, parmesan, red onions, garlic and arugula. The edges were a bit burnt, but this pizza was good too. It was crispy at first, but if you do wait too long, it will get soggy in the centre because of all the cheese.

Special ($15) has tomato sauce with prosciutto cotto, pancetta, parmesan, fior de latte & fresh basil. Mmm that pancetta was really good on the pizza.

They also have Chili Infused Olive Oil and Oregano Infused Olive Oil for the pizza. The chili one is quite hot, so don’t have too much. But, it is really good.

Overall, Pizzeria Farina has amazing pizza! I would definitely recommend it. Start with the Margherita Pizza as that is the best one! MMmmmm mmmmmm this place is really good! One of the best pizzeria’s in Vancouver.

We Rate Pizzeria Farina:

Address:
915 Main Street
Vancouver BC

Website:
http://www.pizzeriafarina.com/

In Four Beakers

Ask For Luigi: Addictive Pasta in Vancouver

September 12, 2014

There is one place I love to take guests to in Vancouver, that place is Ask For Luigi. They just have very good freshly made pasta every night. When M’s relatives were in town, I took them here since I knew it would be a hit with them. Plus, it’s really hard to get good pasta in Korea. I wanted to blow their taste buds away.

As usual, I made a reservation a week in advance for 5:30pm on Saturday. I always find they have quick and efficient service right at the beginning of dinner time.

Pappardelle and Duck Ragu ($19) is one of my favourites. Order this now!

Luigi’s meatballs ($14) is a great starter and you can add any amount of additional meatballs if you don’t have the exact amount for the table. We had to add one more onto this plate. It comes with some toasted bread on the side. Mmmm it’s one of my favourite meatballs I’ve ever had! It is very flavourful and has a nice texture with the added pinenuts.

Saffron Risotto and Clams ($18) is another wonderful dish! The clams were fresh and of course had a lot of flavour packed into them. When you eat it with the creamy risotto, it’s just heavenly.

Tagliatelle, Fennel Sausage & Rapini ($18) had bits of sausage dispersed throughout the dish. Yum.

Spaghetti Nero, Octopus and Jalapeno ($18) has an odd look to it, but trust me, it’s was another amazing dish. The octopus was tender and very enjoyable.

Overall, it was another great dinner at Ask for Luigi and I would highly recommend it…as long as you are willing to make reservations ahead of time or have to wait in line for a table.

We Rate Ask for Luigi:

Address:
305 Alexander Street
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.askforluigi.com/

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In American

Holy Chuck: Best Burger in Toronto

August 17, 2014

During my visit to Toronto, there was one place I was dying to try out – Holy Chuck Burgers. I tried going on my trip to Toronto earlier in the year but it was closed due to the long weekend.

This time, I made it a mission to come here and I am glad I did. They opened in 2011 and have been serving quality burgers ever since. They hand roll their patties every hour, which are made of aged high quality steak. Their most popular burger – Holy Chuck burger was named the best burger in Toronto by a few celebrity chefs. Plus, have been rated one of the Top 100 restaurants in Toronto for 2014.

Looking at the menu, there are a lot of choices and everything looks pretty good. You’ll be staring at this board for a while trying to figure out what to get.

Holy Chuck Burger ($9.99) is a double cheese burger with bacon and caramelized onions. Everyone at the table ordered this and you can get it cooked to any wellness level. Fabo got her burger patty done to Medium.

Everyone loved this burger and you can tell the patties were so juicy and full of flavour!

Mmmm everyone was so addicted to this burger. Yum! I would highly recommend this. It’s quite a simple burger with a few ingredients, but it all works together really well.

Grind n’ Shine Burger ($10.99) with hand cut crispy fries ($3.49).

The Grind n’ Shine Burger is a double cheeseburger with bacon, caramelized onions, topped with crispy potato chips and a fried egg. Oh boy, was this delicious!

The fries were ok, but it wasn’t all the crispy. Some were limp and some were crispy.

Just take a look, it look amazzzzing! The differing textures works well, especially the egg, potato ships and the onions.

Overall, this place does have delicious burgers and oh man, the patties are juicy and dripping with flavour! I’ll definitely be back for more.

We Rate Holy Chuck Burgers:

Address:
1450 Yonge St,
Toronto, ON

Website:
http://holychuckburgers.com/

In Canadian

Ulla Restaurant: Best Restaurant in Victoria

July 29, 2014

Ulla Restaurant in Victoria has some pretty amazing food. Mags and I came here after visiting the Victoria Chinatown Night Market. The market wasn’t impressive as it was their first week opening, but at the end of the night market, we decided to go to Ulla since it looked like a pretty good place and the menu sounded yummy.

They have won several awards – 2011 enroute Canada’s Best New Restaurants, Van Mags Best of Victoria 2013, and several more.

The interior is beautiful and has a night bright and simple decor.

Plus, the light fixtures are pretty cute.

They have fresh local ingredients, with delicious classic flavours and has great techniques in preparing their food. They have a strong commitment to use local organic products whenever possible and aim to serve only ethically raised proteins.

It’s even on the back of their menus. You can see where their produce comes from on their map.

Each dish is balanced, well thought out and will leave you feeling perfectly satisfied. The menu truly offers something for everyone; from lighter seafood dishes to hearty and flavourful meats to exciting vegetarian dishes. Everything is stunningly presented and offers great value.

Complimentary Bread arrives with some olive oil. The bread was fresh and was quite delicious.

They have a good selection of virgin drinks here along with alcoholic drinks.

Kombucha is a fermented drink of tea. Some people claim there are health benefits by drinking it, but who knows if it does. Kombucha tastes like vinegar basically.

Whipped tuna belly, sriracha, squid ink crisp, charred onion relish ($6) was an interesting dish and we didn’t really know how it would be presented on the dish. These bite size treats were very delicious!!!!

Qualicum scallop mousse sausage, carrots, confit potato, pumpkin seeds, nasturtium ($15) was pretty awesome. The scallops had a texture similar to tofu. The flavours were really great. Magz and I really enjoyed it.

The dish I don’t remember what it was called or what was in it. But it was a pork filled dish with crackling, puffed pork rind and a croquette-like item with pork belly inside.

Island Beef, potato roesti & puree, mushrooms, cipollini, creamed chard, cubeb pepper sauce ($27) was delicious as well! The beef was tender and cooked right till medium rare. So good!

Chocolate Cake, cherry, chocolate soil, aerated chocolate, vanilla ice cream ($9) was a nice end to the meal. It’s best to share this dessert as it is quite rich and sweet.

Overall, all the dishes were pretty good and we were quite happy and glad we dined here for our last dinner in Victoria. I would definitely come here again!

We Rate Ulla Restaurant:

Address:
509 Fisgard St
Victoria BC

Website:
http://ulla.ca/

In Four Beakers

Red Fish, Blue Fish: Amazing Fish and Chips

July 27, 2014

Red Fish, Blue Fish is an outdoor waterfront eatery in an up-cycled cargo container on a wooden pier in Victoria’s Inner Harbour. It’s a unique, fresh, and sustainable approach to a fish ‘n’ chip shop. It’s probably the most popular eatery in Victoria.

Before it opened on a Saturday, there was already about 20 people waiting in line. You definitely want to get here before 11:20am. We got here at 11:10am and we were the 5th people in line.

Once they opened at 11:30am, people were excited!

Once you put in your order, you can wait at the other window for the order to come out. They will call your name if you want to grab a seat first. It does take a bit of time for the order to come out.

San Pellegrino Aranciata was what we ordered to drink to go with our fish & chips and tacones.

1 piece salmon and 1 piece halibut fish and chips has a crispy tempura-batter and its served with tartar sauce, slaw and Kennebec chips. When it arrives, you know you are getting a quality product. All the fish is locally sourced and OceanWise certified.

When I cut through the fish and chips, there is a lot of meat in here. This is hands down my favourite fish and chips! Highly recommended. Halibut was M’s favourite.

Tacones are hand-rolled tacos. It has grilled flour tortilla with slaw, pea shoots, and lemon-pickled onions.

There are 7 flavours of tacones, but I just got 2 or else I would be crazy full.

Grill-Seared Albacore Tuna ($6) has a spicy Spot Prawn mayo with the grilled medium-rare tuna.

Grilled Fanny Bay Oyster ($6) has a Million Island Dressing.

I really loved the grilled fanny bay oysters, lots of great flavour from the oyster and the grill. The Grilled-Seared Tuna was ok, but the cooked parts were a bit dry.

Overall, we really enjoyed our meal, but the only downside is the price. You definitely get quality and their food does taste amazing. I would definitely come back again!

We Rate Red Fish, Blue Fish:

Address:
1006 Wharf St Victoria BC

Website:
http://www.redfish-bluefish.com/

In Brunch

Kessel&March: Brunch Time

July 10, 2014

Kessel&March is an awesome restaurant on Powell Street. They do have brunch! TaiwaneseGirl, CanuckGirl, and I headed off on a Saturday to have our usual brunch get-togethers. The menu looked great and you can get brunch between $9 and $13. Pretty decent price point and also the food is high quality.

Brunch is available Saturday and Sunday from 10am till 3pm.

Kessel&March isn’t a large restaurant, but it’s still pretty quiet during the weekend as it’s not very close to any skytrains.

The upstairs of the restaurant is pretty cool as you can see their huge shelves of food.

The upstairs is a nice cozy space. Great for large groups!

Fisherman’s Eggs ($12) has 2 poached eggs, tuna, cod, clams, bacon beer broth, fiddleheads & a side of toast. MMMmmmm Mmmmm good! If you love seafood, this is a dish you should get. I didn’t expect this combination to be good, but it tasted great. Very healthy! The toast was beautifully toasted and its the best toast I’ve ever had.

The poached eggs were beautiful too.

Chorizo Hash ($11) has 2 poached eggs, rainbow swiss chard, rapini, potatoes, romesco sauce & toast. You can also turn this into Smoked Tofu Hash for the same price if you are not a meat eater.

Meat Skillet ($13) has 2 baked eggs, ham, breakfast sausage, potatoes, baked beans, tomato, mushroom & toast. CanuckGirl was amazed at how healthy this dish felt because it was not greasy at all!

Overall, the brunch was pretty good and the quality is there. No matter what you get, it tastes great and that toast is addictive.

We Rate Kessel&March:

Address:
109-1701 Powell Street Vancouver BC

Website:
http://www.kesselandmarch.com/

In Downtown

Fat Duck: Sinfully Delicious

July 9, 2014

Food trucks are mighty delicious and one of my favourites are Fat Duck Mobile Eatery. They are now outside Waterfront station, but can move around during the week. If you do happen to pass by, make sure to stop and have a sandwich.

They serve up sandwiches and tacos.

Le Cochon ($10) has pork belly, braised pork, cabbage, scallions, spicy pickle slaw, swiss cheese and chili mayo. This sandwich was dripping in fat and flavour. Really good! It a bit messy to eat, so make sure to have lots of napkins.

With the sandwich, you get chips! The chips are thickly cut and very very crunchy! Yummmmmmy!

Duck Confit Philly Style sandwich has marinated mushrooms, pickled red onions, scallions, swiss cheese and truffle/parm mayo. My coworker loved it. It wasn’t great for her diet, but sometimes its nice to indulge.

Since last year, they have changed up their bread and menu items. One thing they still do well is making mouth-watering sandwiches with a punch of flavour. Follow them on Twitter or check them out on the Vancouver Street Food App to find out where they will be next.

We Rate Fat Duck:

Location:
Varies

Website:
http://fatduckmobileeatery.ca/

In Bakery

Purebread: Unbelievably Addictive

July 6, 2014

Purebread is one of my favourite bakeries. They don’t have a storefront in Vancouver, but they have one in Whistler and they also make appearances at a lot of the Farmers Markets in Vancouver. They are at the Main Train Station Farmers Market every other week on Wednesday and my coworkers all go crazy when they are there.One week, we rushed right when they opened to see what they had available.

Everything looked amazing and you can find pastries around $3 or $4. I really wanted to get everything, but I had to restrain myself. Plus, the staff are very friendly and helpful if you can’t decide what to get.

Outrageous Brownie ($3.50) was really rich and delicious! It was a really large portion too! You could easily cut this up into 4 pieces and share. Plus it goes great with a glass of milk.

Crack ($3.50) was delicious and reminded me of Momofuku’s Crack Pie. It probably has lots of brown sugar and butter. Nonetheless, it is mighty addictive.

Jalapeno Cheddar Scone was AMAZING! The flavours were spot on and I fell in love with scones. Mmmmmm just come here and get a scone, you will not regret it.

Overall, I loved everything I tried and I would definitely come here everyday if I could somehow find them. Highly recommend you find them in Whistler or at one of the local farmers market.

We Rate PureBread:

Location:
Varies

Website:
http://www.purebread.ca/