feature Archives - Foodology

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 Brewery

Whistler Village Beer Festival 2014: Recap

September 17, 2014

Whistler Village Beer Festival is a 4 day event of tastings, workshops, awards, and cask showdowns. The main tasting festival event was on Saturday and was open to the public with over 200 types of beer and 62 breweries. The event attracted over 3,500 people!

It was held in the Whistler Olympic Plaza surrounded by grass, trees, and mountains. What better place would you rather have a beer in hand? It’s really a beautiful location.

Early Bird tickets were $30, General admission was $35 and GateCrasher Tickets were $45. The only difference is that GateCrashers get early access to the festival grounds one hour before it officially opens.

Your ticket includes:

WVBF Novelty Mug (4oz)
5 beer tokens
$5 off-site food voucher

If you want additional beer tokens, you can purchase them during the event for $1.50 each.

There were long waits right when the event opened up, so it’s best to be a GateCrasher to get early entry if you hate waits.

The breweries that were in attendance were:

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Bowen Island Brewing
Stanley Park
BrewHouse – High Mountain Brewing Company
SteamWorks Brewing Co.
Red Racer
Whistler Brewing Co.
Dead Frog Brewery
Lighthouse Brewing Company
Deepcover Brewers and Distillers
Parallel 49
Driftwood Brewery
Old Yale Brewing Co
Granville Island Brewing
Canuck Empire
House Sound Brewing
Four Winds Brewing Co

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[tab id=2]

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[tab id=3]

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[tab id=4]

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At each booth, they have a selection of beer for you to taste. Just exchange one of the beer tokens for a sample. Having a taste of new beers really gives you a sense of what type of beers you enjoy the most.

I discovered I don’t like beers with a high IBU rating, like IPA. I do enjoy lighter beers or fruity beers. At the Samuel Adams booth, a beer that I enjoyed was the Summer Ale, which has a crisp taste with a hint of lemon flavour. I know, I’m such a girl when it comes to beer. I’m looking for good beers that will pair well with my weekly fried chicken trips.

Talking to the people at each booth was great to learn more about the beer as well.

There is also live music too. This little group of four dressed up in their lederhosen, played some fun music that went well with the festival.

Most of the music played was German Oompah-style music. What better songs to have at a beer fest right?

They also had a section with beer keg art from artists. Some of them looked pretty awesome!

Of course the crowd needed some snack to help them drink more beer! There were a few food trucks and vendors in the area served up pies, pizza, and pretzels. There are also tons of restaurants in the Village if you need a beer break.

They also have a few water stations if you need to rinse your mug or just keep hydrated.

Prost! The Whister Village Beer Festival is great for beer newbies and beer experts! Fun for all those who are over the age of 19. M and I definitely had fun.

What would you do for the love of beer? Travel a few hours to go to a Beer Fest, thats what we did! Plus, some booths had a cool swag like beer openers! Samuel Adams had a cool one with their slogan – For the love of beer.

The next Whistler Village Beer Festival is set for September 17 to 20, 2015. So, keep an eye open for tickets to go on sale next year.

In British Columbia

White Spot Canada: Pirate Pak Hack

August 15, 2014

The Pirate Pak is a legendary favourite that has been enjoyed by millions. It was first created by Nat Bailey in 1968 to provide an exclusive dining experience for kids under 10 years old. It includes a meal served in a pirate ship with a drink, entree, dessert, and even comes with a chocolate coin.

Unfortunately, it is only for kids under 10 years old or you will have to wait till Pirate Pak Day but that happens once a year. Sometimes we can’t wait for one day out of the year for a Pirate Pak. Plus, its a hassle with the long line ups. Magz told me the ultimate way to hack a pirate pak at White Spot.

DID YOU KNOW WHITE SPOT HAS ONLINE TAKE OUT ORDERING?!

It’s pretty awesome since you can order Pirate Paks online, then pick it up and pay in-store. The best thing is that they won’t question you if you are an adult ordering it because it could be for your child at home. They don’t know if its for your kid or not.

You can choose from 6 Pirate Pak versions for $5.99 each:

Pirate Pak Hamburger
Pirate Pak Pals (Chicken breast)
Pirate Pak Flatbread (Pizza)
Pirate Pak Grilled Cheese
Pirate Pak Macaroni and Cheese
Pirate Pak Spaghetti and Meatballs

All the Pirate Paks come with your choice of milk/pop, ice cream and fries/salad.

What gets even better is that you can further customize your order by choosing more sides, toppings, drinks and dessert. There’s good upgrades if you want a milk shake or alternative sides and drinks.

The options are:

Side options: Fries, rice, mashed potatoes and gravy, caesar salad, spot salad, grapes, veggies, broccoli, and sweet potato fries.

Extra toppings (with extra charge): crispy bacon, sautéed mushrooms, cheddar cheese, monterey jack cheese, or american cheese.

Extra toppings (free): sautéed onions, raw onions, lettuce, tomatoes, side of mayo, or side of Triple O Sauce.

Drinks: Pop, milk, iced tea, Vanilla Milk Shake (+$1.99), Chocolate Milk Shake, Strawberry milkshake, Blueberry Milkshake, or butterscotch milkshake.

Dessert: Vanilla Ice cream, chocolate ice cream, strawberry ice cream, or mixed fruit.

Now, you don’t need to be a kid to have a pirate pak any day of the year, plus it’s cheaper! Give this a try and it will work! The only thing you will be missing out on is the ambiance of the restaurant.

What do you think of the Pirate Pak Hack?

Website:
https://www.whitespot.ca/

In Chinese

Richmond Night Market: What to Eat?

August 7, 2014

The Richmond Night Market is a summer attraction in Vancouver. I’ve come here for many years and I always gravitate towards the food stalls. The smell of grilling skewers, the slurping sounds of people drinking Bubble Tea and the sight of all the people speeding past you. Entrance is now $2.75 per person. Alternatively, you can purchase a Zoom pass for $20 to get up to 15 visits. It is transferrable and you get to go in the VIP line up rather than the regular line up. It’s good if you are planning to make multiple visits to the night market, have lots of friends, or just hate waiting in line.

I only come to Richmond Night Market once a year, so I paid $2.75 and went in the regular line up. Even though the lineup does look SUPER LONG. It does go by quickly. Their staff is pretty efficient.

There are many options to get to the Richmond Night Market – Driving, Canada Line Skytrain, or you could walk if you really wanted to.

We opted to just drive since we live in Burnaby as they do not charge for parking. So, we thought we could beat the 7pm rush and get here at 6:40pm. To our surprise, there was still a line up for parking.

They made us park a fair distance away from the Night Market entrance. Turns out, their closer parking lot isn’t open until AFTER 7pm.

So, we began our walk to the entrance.

Then we kept walking…and walking until we got to the closer parking lot.

We did eventually get to the Night Market. We just didn’t like the fact that we got “punished” for arriving early and have to park so far.

We headed straight towards the food section! I always get overwhelmed by all the different vendors, so I walk around the booths to see if there are a few booths that make my mouth water. You will find a plethora of different items here like German Pork Hocks, Skewers, crepes, grilled squid, donuts, curry, dim sum, takoyaki, etc.

Shaka Shaka Squid is an awesome new booth this year that serves up Deep Fried Squid. I much prefer deep fried squid over the grilled ones.

There are 3 flavours to choose from:

Shaka (Original Salt and Pepper)
Sweet Seaweed
Spicy Shaka

Small sizes are $7 and Large sizes are $11.

Shaka Deep Fried Squid (Large – $11) is what M, CCK and myself started with. The batter is definitely super crunchy and full of flavour. The squid was not chewy at all and cooked perfectly. The mayo on top went well with it. The Shaka flavour was by far our favourite. I would highly recommend this place.

It was so good, we went back and bought 2 more to try the rest of the flavours

Spicy Shaka Deep Fried Squid (Large $11) is quite spicy after you eat a few of them. It’s good if you love spicy. The amount of batter and crispiness was consistent.

Sweet Seaweed Deep Fried Squid (Large $11) was still good, but it wasn’t our favourite. I think I just really love salt and pepper.

No matter what flavour you get, i’m sure you’ll like it. The batter is what makes it so addictive. M, CCK and I were so addicted to these.

Another new booth this year is Tenryu Hashimaki which sell Japanese savoury crepes on chopsticks.

They have 5 main flavours:

Curry
Cheese
Ramen
Crab
Shrimp

It’s $6 each or 2 for $10.

They even have a diagram to show people how to eat it.

Crab Hashimaki ($6) has the crepe wrapped around the chopstick and topped with the crab, seaweed, and a generous handful of dried bonito flakes. You definitely need two hands to eat this or else it will get messy with just one. I felt the crab didn’t add much flavour to the crepe.

Ramen Hashimaki ($6) was quite similar but it has the crispy ramen noodles, mayo, seaweed, and bonito on top. The ramen added nice texture to the hashimaki.

It definitely reminded me of an Okonomiyaki on a stick or a takoyaki in a different form.

A visit to the Richmond Night Market isn’t complete until I take a visit to Chef James to buy a few of his skewers.

You can choose from:

AAA Steak Beef
Chicken
Lamb
Honey Prawn Garlic
Crispy Green Onion Bun
Lamb Kidney

The skewers are 3 for $7.25 or 5 for $11.50.

We chose an assortment of skewers – Lamb, Chicken, and 3 beef skewers. Delicious as usual.

M started getting thirsty from all the salty food, so he made a visit to Sugar Cane Juice for some Young Thai Coconut.

Young Thai Coconut ($4) M really enjoyed it. Thirst quenching and delicious as always. We prefer these ones over the brown-looking coconuts. These are much sweeter and the coconut meat tastes good. Too bad we didn’t have a spoon to eat it.

For my beverage/dessert, I took a trip to my favourite booth – Icy Bar. I love these items and remind me of my childhood. Plus, I also love mangoes.

They also have a permanent location inside Crystal Mall in Burnaby.

Mango Tapioca Icy ($5) has fresh mango, small tapioca pearls, coconut milk, shaved ice, and condensed milk all layered in a large clear cup. Tastes delicious and looks delicious.

Overall, despite our failed attempt at arriving early to the Richmond Night Market to get a close parking spot and beating the crowds, the food is undeniably delicious and is quite a unique experience.

There’s definitely more food options than what I covered, but you will find something you will like.

On Friday and Saturday, they are open from 7pm till 12am. Sunday and statutory holidays, they are open 7pm till 11pm. It is open this season till October 13, 2014, so you have plenty of time left to visit.

Website: http://www.richmondnightmarket.com/

Address:
8351 River Rd
Richmond BC

In Gastown

Wildebeest: Eating Beef Tongue, Sweetbreads, Skin, and Foie Gras

November 14, 2012

Wildebeest opened up in Gastown earlier in the Summer and has a very darling menu with unusual ingredients. When coming here, you can’t be squeamish of the items you are eating! Have an open mind and enjoy the intricate flavours. Flo took me here for my birthday!

Their kitchen is very open, so you can watch their every move! It’s pretty cool.

We ordered non-alcoholic cocktails. They didn’t have this on their menu, so we asked the waitress to bring us something fruity and sweet. We still never figured out if this drink had a name, but it was pretty good.

Crispy pork skin with spiced salt ($4) was not exactly what we anticipated. It was crispy and puffy, we expected more of a pork crackling. It’s hard to chew and when you start chewing on it, it sticks all over your teeth.

Smoked Castelvetrano olives ($5) was good! The olives were green and had pits inside. Pretty good item to munch on while waiting for the main dishes. It is a bit pricey though.

Grilled beef tongue, wild mushroom consommé, toasted grains, mustard greens ($14) was so good! the beef was very tender and so flavourful! Everything just went so well together! I highly suggest you order this!

Mortadella, pistachio, mutsu apple, arugula salad ($9) was light and refreshing.

Roasted sweetbreads, caramelized buttermilk, wild mushrooms, porchini vinaigrette ($15). If you don’t know what sweetbreads are… you might not want to hear what it really is, but it’s the thymus of an animal. Surprise! The flavour was actually really delicious! Don’t let the unknown ingredients scare you.

Poutine, roasted duck liver ($16) came at the very end of the meal. It has pieces of fois gras, cheese curds, and gravy on fries. It was a very rich dish, so it was quite hard to eat.

Desserts are quite small, so you may want to hog it all to yourself instead of sharing. Their desserts are quite unique. Overall, Flo and I had a great time, but we did find the dishes to be pricey and on the small side. Nonetheless, it was cool trying items I’ve never had before…like sweetbreads. Reservations is a must since the place can get pretty packed during dinner and on weekends.

We Rate Wildebeest:

Address:
120 W Hastings Street
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.wildebeest.ca/

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