lunch Archives - Page 4 of 10

In Coquitlam

Kimbab Cheonguk: Casual Korean Restaurant in Korea Town

January 29, 2016

It’s been 3.5 years since my last review of Kimbab Cheonguk and I’ve missed their delicious and cheap Korean food. Oh where has the time gone?

The girls and I decided to come here for lunch on the weekend. It’s pretty busy when we went, but it was a short wait for a table since most people were finishing up.

Beef Broth comes complementary to the table. Instead of hot tea, they give you this. It is a very delicious broth and I always guzzle this down.

Sometimes they will just give you water, but definitely ask for it if they don’t give it to you. You won’t regret it.

They give complimentary pickled radish and kimchi radish. They were ok, but I wish these were colder.

Al Bab has seaweed, picked radish, tuna, fish roe, cabbage, carrots, and cheese in a hot stone bowl.

Mix it! Mix it! They provide you with 2 sauces on the side, but just mix a bit of that in and keep on mixing. This is one of our favourite dishes.

Dduk Ramen has rice cake, ramen noodles, fish cake, egg and vegetables in a spicy sauce. Surprisingly it wasn’t as spicy as before. Not sure if I built up a strong tolerance for spice, but either way, it was still delicious.

Kimchi Kimbap and Tuna Kimbap area must. Sometimes when I want a cheap dinner, I get a few of these for take out. You can’t go wrong with these.

Dduk Mandoo Gook has a rice cake dumpling soup. It has a few dumplings, a good amount of rice cakes, egg, seaweed and green onions in a delicious broth. I always try to finish all the broth.

Thats what the girls and I always order when we come here. Exact same dishes and we don’t really stray to other items as these are the best. Good price too so it doesn’t break your wallet. Very casual dining and all dishes are under $10.

We Rate Kimbab Cheonguk:

Address:
3A-341 North Road
Coquitlam, BC

In Chinatown

Ba Le Sandwich Shop: Quick Cheap Banh Mi

January 9, 2016

Ba Le Sandwich Shop in Chinatown is a tiny shop that sells incredibly cheap banh mi sandwiches. Any lunch thats under $5 has got my attention. It’s even cheaper than McDonalds. I’m trying not to spend much for lunch, so anything cheap and decent is good enough for me.

Even when I went to order, they just handed it to me right away. I supposed since it was the lunch rush, they have a few sandwiches premade.

Cold Cut Banh Mi ($3.50) is always one of my favourite kinds of banh mi sandwiches, so I gave it a try to see how it is. When I unwrapped it, it’s really does not look impressive at all. It’s kinda hidden inside.

Inside the crispy bun are the slices of cold cuts and veggies inside. I could always use more ingredients inside, but for $3.50, I won’t complain.

It filled me up for lunch and it wasn’t bad at all. I would come back again for a quick cheap lunch to bring back to the office. Most people come here to get take out.

We Rate Ba Le:

Address:
638 Main Street, Vancouver

In Cafe

Oka-San: Sushi + Kitchen + Cafe

January 5, 2016

Oka-san Kitchen is the latest restaurant to pop up on Fraser Street in Vancouver. Oka-san is the Japanese word for mom, thus the name of this restaurant. It’s a cute concept to be served a homemade Japanese meal, so my friends and I decided to come here for a quick lunch. It’s pretty awesome how the neighbourhood on Fraser Street is evolving and all these cool eateries are popping up.

The interior is very cute, not a large space, but there’s enough space for smaller groups.

Later in the afternoon, this place filled up quickly.

Tea arrived at the table in a cute teapot and cups.

Spam nigri was on special for the day. There is caramelized spam with tamago on top of rice. When I saw this on the menu, I couldn’t say no to ordering this. The spam has a delicious flavour to it, but the rice fell apart instantly so it was hard to eat.

We were all drawn to the Mom’s Plate, where you can create your own meal by choosing a main, a raw item and a side. It comes with fruit and miso soup. It seemed like a good item to order so you can get a taste of everything.

Miso soup came in this cute tall cups.

Oyako don + Ebi Mayo +Hawaiian Poke

Kakuni don + Tuna gomae + Veggie Croquette

Gyu don + Kimpira + Hawaiian Poke

Gyu don + Spicy Tuna + Spinach Gomae

The gyu don wasn’t very good as it was overcooked and bland. The oyako don and the kakuni don were decent. The flavours of the items we ordered were average but nothing really stood out in terms of flavours.

Overall, super cute concept of Japanese comfort food with a homestyle twist, but taste wasn’t memorable. I’ve heard from others that the pasta is good here. Perhaps next time, I’ll give that a try.

We Rate Oka-san:

Address:
3578 Fraser Street, Vancouver

Website:
http://www.okasankitchen.com/

In Cafe

Ha Cafe: Vietnamese Cuisine

January 2, 2016

Ha Cafe is a Vietnamese cafe located in the Old Orchard Centre near Metrotown. KoreanGirl and I wanted to grab some pho but find a place that we haven’t been before. Looking up online, Ha Cafe seemed like a promising restaurant, plus it wasn’t far from home.

The space isn’t too large but their mirrors in the back make it seem like a bigger space. The space is decently clean but there is a bit of a draft closer to the washroom.

Spring Rolls has 3 pieces per order and you can choose between meat or veggie. We got the meat spring rolls and it was very crunchy and was very tasty. I would highly recommend it.

Special Beef Noodle and Soup has beef brisket, rare beef, tripe, and beef balls, rice noodles, bean sprouts, onions and cilantro. I found the broth to be quite clean tasting. It’s not overly salted and it kinda has a corn taste. The bowls are big but the broth is definitely different from most places. Sweet, but it seems to lack depth.

Spicy Beef Noodle and Soup has beef flank, Vietnamese ham, rare beef in spicy beef soup, rice noodles, bean sprouts, onions and cilantro. It’s supposed to come with thick vermicelli noodles, but we asked for the rice noodles instead. It’s not too spicy but it has a bit of a kick. To have it more spicy, we just added chili oil to it.

Overall, not a bad alternative for Pho in the area. Looking at the menu and what other people were ordering, the rice/vermicelli bowls were popular and so was the banh mi sandwiches. Prices were good under $10. The pho is large but the broth is sweeter and lacks depth to it.

We Rate Ha Cafe:

Address:
Old Orchard Centre, 28-4429 Kingsway, Burnaby

In Delta

Tasty Indian Bistro: Lunch in Delta

December 10, 2015

It was Thanksgiving and we didn’t know where to head out for lunch, but my sister suggested Tasty Indian Bistro in Delta. Everyone describes it as the Cactus Club of Indian food. The interior is very sleek, dark and has some nice decorative pieces.

The restaurant is quite large, so there are different dining areas. Great space for large groups.

Our table near the front was made of beautiful stone with nice carvings.

Vegetable Pakora ($9) are mixed vegetable deep-fried fritters. It is served with two types of chutney for a dipping sauce. The pakora were good, but I wish they had more of a crunch on the outside.

Lamb Korma has lamb pieces cooked in a mild creamy gravy and spices. It was a tad spicy but not too intense. There was a good amount of lamb.

Palak Paneer is made of spinach and Indian cheese cooked with spices. You can’t go wrong with this dish. It’s pretty delicious and loaded with spinach. It’s one item I order in most Indian restaurants.

Butter Chicken has boneless tandoori chicken cooked with rich tomato cream gravy. Always a favourite amongst the table.

Channa Masala has chickpeas cooked in authentic spices in true Punjabi fashion.

Onion Kulcha is naan bread stuffed with spiced onions and spices and baked in a tandoor. Goes so well wit the different types of curries.

Garlic Naan is garnished naan with garlic and herbs. Very fragrant and delicious.

We got a few rice dishes on the side. Good amount of food for 6 people for lunch. We found that since the curries had a lot of flavour on their own, plain rice and regular naan are good options rather than the flavoured naans. Some people do like the added taste.

Overall, it was a great lunch with the family over Indian food. There is plenty of free parking outside and its easy to drive to.

We Rate Tasty Indian Bistro:

Address:
8295 120 Street, Delta

Website:
http://tastybistro.com/

In Bakery

Fondway Cafe: Milk Tea and Cake

December 8, 2015

Fondway Cafe is the latest cafe to open up in South Burnaby right by Metrotown. It is literally a few steps away from the skytrain. They specialize in coffee, tea and asian-inspired pastries.

The space is quite nice with a lot of natural light coming in. Very hip.

They have a Chinese and English menu available. At first I grabbed their Chinese menu and had no idea what I was reading. I’m such an asian disgrace.

They have a pretty large collection of tea along one of their walls.

During peak hours, it’s pretty hard to find a seat. It’s getting quite popular.

Once you order and pay, you get a giant clip with your order number.

Milk tea with grass jelly is served in a super cute cup. The drink wasn’t too sweet, which was great. It tasted pretty awesome and it definitely rivals some of the best milk teas in town.

Cheesecake with burnt sugar on top was a dense type of cheesecake. Not too sweet which caters to the asian tastebuds.

My friends got their Okinawa milk tea and they though it was pretty good.

What more could you want? Girl talk, milk tea and cake. Best combination ever.

If you are a coffee lover, you may want to try some of their specialty coffee drinks like their cold brew on tap and their soda coffee.

Overall, I love the space and its a great place to chill with friends. You definitely have to grab a slice of cake and milk tea when you’re here.

We Rate Fondway Cafe:

Address:
4462 Beresford Street, Burnaby

Website:
http://fondway.ca/

In Canadian

Burger 55: Custom Burgers in Penticton

November 24, 2015

Burger 55 in Downtown Penticton is best known for their customizable gourmet burgers. It’s also appeared on You Gotta Eat Here on Food Network. On the way back home to Vancouver, we made sure to stop here for lunch. Who can’t resist a burger? I know M and I can’t.

When you get to the front door, they outline the way you must order.

You must grab a clipboard with the order form and fill it out before giving it to the cashier. Even if you want a simple milkshake, you have to fill it out.

Filling it out was like doing a test. So many options putting together your lunch.

The interior is pretty cool and hip.

Chocolate Milkshake ($5.25) I haven’t had a milkshake in a long time, so I just had to indulge and order it. It totally hit the spot.

Custom built burger is what M wanted. He had a beef patty, cheddar cheese, back bacon, fried egg and other toppings. M loved his creation. He can’t eat a burger without back bacon and fried eggs.

The Signature Burger ($9.50) has AAA Angus Beef on a 55 bun with 55 signature spread, 55 buddha sauce, dijon mustard, vinaigrette, spinach, tomato, sprout, roast corn and parmesan. This are their built burgers so you don’t have to make a decision on what to add to your burger. Indecisive people should look at that part of the menu.

Maple Bacon baked Beans ($4) is topped with cheese bits. Surprisingly is tasted pretty good too. Not too sweet either.

Corn Dog ($4.75) looks pretty, but it was pretty damn delicious. The batter was thin and added a nice crunch to the exterior of the hot dog. I would order it again.

It was a good lunch and service was quick. I would come back again. The food is nothing fancy but sometimes you just need a good ol’ burger.

Address:
52 Front Street, Penticton, BC

Website:
http://www.burger55.com/

In Four Beakers

Sura: Korean Lunch Set Menu in Vancouver

November 16, 2015

Sura Korean Royal Cuisine on Robson Street draws a large crowd during lunch and dinner time. Their lunch specials are undeniably affordable for those who want to try an array of Korean cuisine. I came here with a few of my coworkers since I’ve never been here.

They have been around since 2008 serving traditional Korean cuisine. They have won multiple awards from Vancouver Magazine and WE Vancouver Best of the City Dining.

Set Course SU – $15 per person includes:

ong–chimi
Green Salad
Yam Mousse
Tang–pyungchae (Acorn Jelly Salad)
Bulgogi (Korean beef)
Potato Pancake
Tang–sooyuk (Sweet and Sour pork)
Grilled Atlantic Croaker
Bossam (Pork belly wraps)
Doenjang Jjigae (Korean Stew)
3 kinds of Side-dishes
Korean Rice Punch

The menu requires a minimum of 2 orders and the set is available to order until 3:00pm daily.

The items on it may change from day to day.

First, soup arrived for each person at the table. It reminded me of a egg drop soup but more gelatinous.

Green Salad has a mishmash of vegetables and fruit. I wasn’t a fan of the oranges and strawberries in it.

Tang–pyungchae (Acorn Jelly Salad) really is quite tasteless, but according for my Korean friend, it’s good for you. I really couldn’t tell you the science behind it.

House Special Spicy Seafood has stir–fried assorted seafood with spicy house special sauce.

Bossam (Pork Belly wraps) comes with the pink pickled radish as the wrap, kimchi, paste and the delicious pork belly. So good! My favourite dish.

Tang–sooyuk (Sweet and Sour pork) tasted ok. Not my favourite but its pretty average.

Rice comes in a little tin. Eat it with the other side dishes.

Marinated Seaweed and mashed pumpkin mousse are 2 of the 3 side dishes. I always can’t get enough of the seaweed.

Kimchi is the last side dish. Delicious and not too spicy.

Bulgogi comes in a large dish and went great with the rice.

Doenjang Jjigae (Korean Stew) has tofu, veggies, and kimchi. It’s not too spicy either. Very good.

Potato Pancake came with 4 pieces as there was 4 of us. It’s was surprisingly pretty good.

Grilled Atlantic Croaker was an interesting dish that arrived. It takes a bit of work to eat it as there are a lot of tiny bones.

Korean Rice Punch was a nice way to end the meal. It’s a sweet rice drink.

All this for for $15 per person is a great deal for lunch. So many dishes arrive and you get a taste of a lot of Korean dishes. At times, we would run out of room on the table to put the food. Some of the dishes are a hit and miss, but still a great price. I love this type of family style dining.

We Rate Sura:

Address:
1518 Robson Street, Vancouver

Website:
www.surakoreancuisine.com

In Kid Friendly

Harvest Community Foods: Ramen and Grocery Store

November 15, 2015

Established in 2012, Harvest Community Foods is a community-driven retail space. As voted on by Chinatown-Strathcona residents, the grocery provides local, seasonal food products. The business also offers Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) shares, further fostering accessibility to B.C. produce.

Chef and owner, Andrea Carlson has revamped prepared grocery eats with heartwarming and sophisticated ramen dishes. More than a market, the store serves as a community gathering place for good eats, conversation, and appreciation of local fare.

When you walk into the store, you will see a variety of products like:

To Die For Fine Foods
Namasthé Tea
Vancouver Island Salt
Bittered Slings
Vancouver Honey
Noble Handcrafted Maple
Sapadilla Soaps
Earnest Ice Cream
Solefood Greens
Sugo Sauce

Of course many more items. It’s not a large store, but you’ll find a bit of everything you need.

Freshly made jams are available too.

Harvest Community Foods draws large crowds during lunch for their Harvest noodles.

It’s made all in-house.

The most popular ramen on the menu is the #39 Ramen with pork shoulder, radish, egg, and candied bacon.

How can you not say no to this beautiful creation. It’s not authentic Japanese ramen, but they put their own twist on it. This is my favourite dish too. The bacon and egg are just amazing.

They also sell some cold sweet treats like Brown Paper Packages Ice Cream and Earnest Ice Cream.

Really, how can you say no to Ice Cream? I used to come here often for Earnest Ice Cream before they opened another location on Quebec and 2nd close to Science World.

They even have drinking vinegar from Pok Pok. No more trips to the states are needed to get these.

If you’re ever in the area, stop by for a bowl of ramen and check out some cool local products.

We Rate Harvest Community Foods:

Address:
243 Union Street, Vancouver

Website:
http://harvestunion.ca/

In Canadian

Truffle Pigs Bistro: Dining in Field, BC

October 28, 2015

Field, BC is a small town of about 169 people. M and I decided to stop in this town to go to Truffle Pig Bistro right after exploring Yoho National Park.

Truffle Pigs Bistro and Lodge uses fresh local and regional ingredients in all their dishes where possible. It was highly recommended by locals who frequent this area.

When you look at the interior, you will find a lot of pig decorations. We came right at the opening of lunch at 11am, so it was pretty empty for a weekday.

Meat-Head Truffle Pig Flat Bread ($18) has a 6oz Wagyu beef meat ball wrapped in a flat bread with tomato garlic sauce, parmesan and topped with a kale green salad. They use a lemon garlic vinaigrette on top.

I looked nice, but the wagyu beef meat ball was severely overcooked, so it was touch and dense. It was a pitty since it really ruined the beef.

Roasted, Toasted and Fried Salad ($13) has Jen’s organic toasted millet salad, tossed with roasted walnuts and pumpkin seeds, sun-dried tomatoes, kale and lemon garlic olive oil vinaigrette. This healthy blend is served on a bed of hydroponic butter leaf lettuce and topped with fried chick peas and goat cheese.

This was a very hearty salad! I really enjoyed the flavour combinations.

Overall, it was neat to see such a restaurant in this small town of field. We really loved the salad but the flat bread wasn’t executed well.

We Rate Truffle Pigs Bistro:

Address:
100 Center St, Field, BC V0A1G0

Website:
http://www.trufflepigs.com/

In Kid Friendly

Sekai Udon Bar: Udon at Metrotown

October 23, 2015

Sekai Udon Bar is located near The Bay at Metropolis at Metrotown. It opened last year, so it is still fairly new. Sui Sha Ya, an all you can eat Japanese restaurant used to be in this spot. It’s good that there is a new restaurants in its place serving freshly made udon.

The interior is quite large so it can fit up to 100 people here.

Looking through the menu, the best choice was their Eraberu lunch special that they have on the weekend from 11am – 3pm. All you need to do is choose your rice dish, udon dish, and if you want miso soup or salad.

M ordered the Yaki Udon, Curry Croquette Don, Salad, and their chef special side dishes were a slice of orange and potato salad.

Yaki Udon has nice fresh udon noodles but the taste was pretty average. Nothing special.

Curry Croquette Don was ok too. Maybe it needed a bit more sauce to go with the rice.

I got my lunch set with Tonkotsu Udon, Chashu Don, salad and chef special side dishes.

Tonkotsu Udon has the pork bone soup broth with veggies, bean sprouts and a slab of pork. It wasn’t bad at all. I love the big thick slice of pork. It was like a bowl of ramen but with udon noodles.

Chashu Don was decent too. Good amount of pork to rice ratio.

Onsen Tamago ($1.80) is a Japanese style slow-cooked egg. It looked great but it was cold. The temperature threw me off as I assumed it would be warm.

Overall, for $10.50 for the lunch sets, it’s decent. Good, quick and filling. None of the dishes blew our minds, but it was good enough.

We Rate Sekai Udon Bar:

Address:
Metropolis at Metrotown Food Court
236-4820 Kingsway, Burnaby

Website:
http://sekaiudonbar.com/

In Cafe

Shuswap Pie Company: Lunch in Salmon Arm, BC

October 10, 2015

Shuswap Pie Company was our next stop on our BC Roadtrip and we wanted to come here since we saw it on You Gotta Eat Here on the Food Network. M was craving pie, so we thought it would be a fitting place to stop by for lunch on the way to our next destination.

Everything they bake is made from scratch on-site with natural ingredients, free from preservatives, mixes, lard and edible oil products.They doing things the old fashioned way; in small batches, using local ingredients.

It was pretty busy during lunch time for a weekday. They definitely have their lunch rush, but it was still easy to get a seat since most people did take out.

Pie is definitely a must, but they also have sandwiches and other monthly features.

Once you order, they give you an animal instead of a table number. It’s quite cute and it works.

Chicken Pot Pie is a staple and had to get it as a baseline indication of how their pies are. We got a side of coleslaw and it was a good item to pair with it.

Inside you will find chicken, carrots, celery, potatoes mushrooms and peas in a savoury blend of fresh thyme, sage and rosemary. M enjoyed it.

Sausage, Apple and Sage Pie was ordered since I was it on You Gotta Eat Here. It sounded like a good mix of ingredients.

Inside you will find English Pork Bangers, fresh apples and sage with a hint of grainy mustard and sour cream. It was ok, but not my favourite. I think the apples threw me off.

Pecan pie was fantastic. No matter where I go, it’s always a must. The crunchy pecan nuts on top with the sweet sweet filling under it. So good.

Overall, the savoury pies were ok, but that pecan pie was delicious. I still prefer some other pie places in Vancouver.

We Rate Shuswap Pie Company:

Address:
331 Alexander Street,Salmon Arm, BC

Website:
http://shuswappiecompany.ca/

In Kelowna

Old Vines Restaurant: Dining at Quails’ Gate Winery

September 29, 2015

Quails’ Gate Winery is located in West Kelowna and is a beautiful vineyard right by Okanagan Lake. Their wine ship is the centrepiece at the estate, which houses their tasting bar and gift shop. Complimentary tastings are available daily, year round. They also do additional flight tastings and tours.

Old Vines Restaurant is just located on the left side of the Wine Shop. Their menu highlights the abundant resources of the Okanagan Valley.

M and I were quite hungry driving from Vancouver, so we made this our first meal on our Kelowna adventure.

We came at the end of September, so sitting outside was a tad chilly around noon. This didn’t stop other groups from soaking in the sun and the beautiful view.

Sitting inside is equally as beautiful. Just ask for a seat by the window.

Their wines are available on their menu. If you aren’t too familiar with them, maybe you should do the wine tasting in their wine shop prior before dining here.

2014 Dry Riesling (5oz -$8) has a crispy and zesty taste. You can notice the subtle notes of honeysuckle, lime cordial, and orchard fruits. I mainly got this since it pairs well with the crab cakes appetizer.

Sparkling Lemonade is non-alcoholic and made by Boylan Soda. M said it was good.

Dungeness Crab Cakes ($19) has shaved fennel & apple slaw and a buttermilk “rémoulade” dressing.

This crab cake is packed with crab and no filler. Very good! It is quite pricey for an appetizer, but when on vacation, you gotta indulge.

Farm Crest Chicken ($24) is served with pattypan squash, creamy polenta, and chicken jus. They suggest pairing it with the 2013 Stewart Family Reserve Chardonnay. The chicken was juicy and had a nice char on the outside.

Cache Creek Natural Dry Aged Beef Burger ($24) has a Tiger Blue dressing, Spanish onion, Brassica aioli, and bacon. It is served with fries. They suggest a pairing with their 2013 Merlot. The burger patty was cooked to a medium rare. Good tasting burger, but it was pricey for a burger.

Overall, the food was good, but pricey. It is expected since it is a restaurant on a vineyard. We wanted to dine here as a treat to ourselves. The view from the restaurant is beautiful.

We rate Old Vines Restaurant:

Address:
3303 Boucherie Rd,
Central Okanagan, BC

Website:
http://quailsgate.com/restaurant/

In American

reLiSH Gourmet Burgers on Commercial Drive

September 22, 2015

reLiSH Gourmet Burgers on Commercial Drive opened in the Summer serving the community with yummy burgers. The restaurant comes from the East Coast of Canada – New Brunswick. They also have another location on Davie street and will soon open another in North Vancouver.

M suggested we eat burgers for dinner since it was National Cheeseburger Day. Since I didn’t want to make dinner, I happily agreed.

The Great One ($8.96) has cheddar cheese, bacon, and roasted garlic mayonnaise in the sesame and poppyseed bun. I got it with the angus beef patty and it was pretty delicious. I love the char on the patty.

Beefeater Onion Rings ($4) didn’t come with very many on the side, but they were surprisingly delicious. It was the right amount of batter on the onion rings. Very crispy texture on the outside.

The Italian Stallion ($9.95) has tomato basil marinara sauce, Italian sausage, and mozzarella. M chose the angus beef patty to go with this. The Italian sausage was cut quite thinly, so it was really hard to get a balance of it with the patty. Still, nonetheless, M loved the burger. The burger was put together nicely and I was surprised it wasn’t too messy to eat.

reLiSH Green Peppercorn Poutine ($6.45) the poutine comes as a side and it was also a bit small for the price. The fries were nice and crisp, but it could have used more gravy and cheese.

Overall, the burgers were pretty tasty, but when you add the side to it, it can get pricey. The sides could be a little bit bigger too.

We Rate reLiSH Gourmet Burgers:

Address:
2290 Commerical Drive, Vancouver

Website:
http://www.relishlife.com/

In Cafe

Ridia Garden: Lunch at Bentall Centre

September 8, 2015

Scouring for a place to eat lunch is getting quite difficult since I’ve been to a majority of the restaurants in Downtown Vancouver. It was a rainy day, so we decided to go down under into the Bentall Towers but then we realized there’s a good amount of shops and restaurants down there.

One place that caught my eye was Ridia Garden, at first I thought it was a sushi restaurant because of the word ‘garden’. Taking a closer look at the menu, they have Korean dishes as well as a lot of Western food like salad, sandwiches, mac and cheese, and lasagna.

They have a lot of seating inside, so it is quite suitable for bringing a group of coworkers.

Kimchi Fried Rice with Daily Soup was a large portion for lunch. The kimchi fried rice was ok, but it fell a bit flat. It definitely needed a bit more love to it. Perhaps a bit of beef to go with it. Or a fried egg would be amazing.

Japchae is Korean dish made of sweet potato noodles with veggies and beef. It was a large size too, so Mags had to take half of it back to the office. The noodles and the beef seemed a bit disjointed and you know they were cooked separately.

Overall, the food is acceptable, but not the best. The price is great for the portion.

We Rate Ridia Garden:

Address:
Bentall 2
206-555 Burrard Street, Vancouver

Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ridia-Garden/256712691106578

In Four Beakers

reLiSH Gourmet Burgers: New on Davie Street

September 7, 2015

reLiSH Gourmet Burgers just opened up their newest location on Davie Street close to English Bay. The restaurant comes from the East Coast of Canada – New Brunswick. They also have another location on Commercial Drive and will soon open another in North Vancouver.

The space is a good size and lots of chairs. With the communal tables, you can fit large groups in here.

Jersey City Burger has fried field mushrooms , pickled peppers, pancetta bacon, provolone cheese and their ground turkey patty. The turkey patty went well with the burgers since it balances the pancetta quite nicely. The burger was not greasy at all. I felt pretty good and not too bloated afterwards.

L.A. is my Lady Burger has sliced avocado, roasted peppers, basil pesto, creamy goat’s cheese and their veggie patty. I loved the veggie patty since it has a very nice crunchy texture on the outside. The taste of the veggie patty reminded me of falafel.

The Odyssey is only served in this location to represent Davie Street and the community. Inside you will find pickled red cabbage, spicy miso Sriracha glaze with a pan-fried egg. M really enjoyed this burger. You can’t go wrong with a burger with a fried egg in it. Their egg is fried till the yolk is medium, so it still has a bit of moisture without it leaking all over your hands.

Their bun held all the ingredients together. They only use really produce in their burgers, so you won’t find any processed cheese in their burgers. You won’t find any cheese burgers here.

Overall, we did enjoy all the burgers that we tried. It wasn’t too greasy and each ingredient on the burger complimented each other. I would definitely come back.

We rate reLiSH Gourmet Burgers:

Address:
1708 Davie Street, Vancouver

Website:
http://www.relishlife.com/

In Cafe

Gain Wah: Hole in the Wall in Chinatown

August 29, 2015

Deep in the heart of Chinatown, there is a hole in the wall restaurant called Gain Wah. Once I stepped inside, it felt like I was transported back into the 90s, or perhaps even before then. At first I was a bit skeptical coming here since it was pretty empty. Mags brought me here for lunch since she saw some decent reviews online. Since I’m always up for an adventure, I had to come here.

Their menu is quite typical of a Chinese Cafe, but they also have roast BBQ here too if you just want a bunch of meat and rice.

Century Egg Congee with Pork ($4.25) was comforting. I really love congee, so it really hit the spot. For the price, it was really good. There was a good amount of ingredients in it too.

Duck Leg with Noodle in Soup ($4.25) this has a good amount of duck! Look at that leg!

Lunch for 2 for under $10 is pretty awesome. It is cash only, so make sure you get some before coming here. I was quite impressed, so I’ll be back again. Staff are friendly and service is pretty quick.

We Rate Gain Wah:

Address:
218 Keefer Street, Vancouver

In American

Freshii: Juice, Wraps, Salads, Bowls and Froyo

August 7, 2015

Freshii has opened their newest location at the Broadway Tech Centre near Renfrew Station. It’s a convenient spot for those who go to school at the Art Institue or work in the office building surrounding the area.

It’s a great spot for lunch as they have salads, wraps, burritos, soups, smoothies, juices and even frozen yogurt. They are open for breakfast and dinner times too. There are Freshii locations in over 60 cities and 12 countries worldwide.

They have lots of tables inside for larger groups or single diners.

Mighty Detox Juice ($5.99) has pineapple, ginger, apple, celery, and cucumber. I wanted a drink that was refreshing an not too sweet, so the mighty detox was a good option. The pineapple and apple help sweeten the juice so it’s not a chore drinking it.

Banana Nut Crunch Smoothie ($5.99) has banana, walnuts, almonds, and low-fat frozen yogurt. M quite liked this drink as it had a nice thick texture and it wasn’t too sweet. A great cool drink for the hot summer.

You can eat in or take the items to-go. It’s very convenient to bring back to work.

Kimchii Bowl is a special item only in the summer. It has brown rice, kimchi, edamame, carrots, purple cabbage, mushrooms, hard-boiled egg, sesame seeds, nori, teriyaki sauce, and sriracha. It was a big filling bowl. A good mix of protein and vegetables. The kimchi was surprisingly good, so they really know how to source their kimchi.

M had chicken with the bowl and thought it was a bit dry.

Ninja salad with tofu ($7.79 + $1.49)has spinach and romaine, cabbage, edamame, carrots, cucumbers, cilantro, crispy wontons, and asian sesame dressing. We added tofu to it for extra protein. I thought it was ok, quite healthy but I would have preferred dressing on the side, but thats just a personal preference.

Sushiito is their sushi burrito, but not to confuse you with Sushiritto because those are two different type of sushi wraps.

They have two kinds of Sushiito – Kimchi Tofu and Chicken Teriyaki. No very sushi-like flavours.

Kimchi Tofu Sushiito ($8.99) is wrapped in nori and stuffed with brown rice, kimchi, tofu, avocado, carrot, cucumber, purple cabbage, and lemongrass sauce.

Chicken Teriyaki Sushiito ($8.99) has the nori, brown rice, chicken, edamame, mushrooms, carrot, cucumber, purple cabbage, and teriyaki sauce.

I found that the Sushitto needed a bit of work as the nori became quite tough and limp that it would actually be very difficult to bite into. Also, its a bit more expensive than the other items on the menu. The salads, wraps and bowls are better deals.

Low Fat Froyo ($4.99) comes in a huge cup for one flat price. It has a low fat probiotic frozen yogurt with your choice of two toppings.

You can choose from almonds, blueberries, chocolate chips, cinnamon, dried cranberries, green apples, honey, mango, oreo, or strawberries.

M and I love fruit so we naturally loaded it up with whatever fruits we can get them to pile on top. He had the mango and strawberries. Of course I like to be somewhat different, I got blueberries and pineapple. The frozen yogurt is more creamy like ice cream.

Overall, it’s a good place for a good quick and cheap lunch. The prices are fair too. It’s a better alternative than some other fast food places close by.

We Rate Freshii:

Address:
2 – 2920 Virtual Way, Vancouver

Website:
https://www.freshii.com