Pub Archives - Foodology

In Brunch

Hemingway’s Restaurant and Bar: Brunch in a Bar

May 17, 2014

Finding good brunch places on the Friday on the long weekend was tough. The places we wanted to go to were closed, so we had to wander near Yorkville for some food. It was really tough, so we settled for Hemingway’s Restaurant and Bar.

Hemingway’s has been around for over 30 years with a New Zealand inspired menu. Their 3rd floor patio is huge. Much better than sitting on the first or 2nd floor where it is much more dark .

Eggs Benedict ($9.99) has two soft poached eggs served on a toasted English muffin, layered with grilled peameal bacon
and topped with hollandaise sauce.

The egg was soft and yummy. The english muffins were quite thin and it worked well with the eggs benny since you can really taste the egg and bacon.

The only downside of this dish were the potatoes. Tasteless and bland.

The Down Under Burger ($13.99) has ground beef patty, fried egg, crispy bacon, cheddar cheese, tomato, relish and a slice of beetroot. Garnished with a slice of tomato, onion, pickle and lettuce, served on a lightly toasted Kaiser bun. We wanted to add a slice of pineapple for $0.50, but they didn’t have any available.

M substituted with yam fries and man, those are some awesome yam fries.

Classic Cumberland Burger ($9.99) has ground beef and garnished with a slice of tomato, onion, pickle and lettuce, served on a lightly toasted egg bun. Fabo also substituted her fries for yam fries.

The food was decent, but what was the best were those yam fries for some reason. It was crispy on the outside and so smooth on the inside.

We Rate Hemingway’s Restaurant and Bar:

Address:
142 Cumberland St
Toronto, ON

Website:
http://www.hemingways.to/

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 Downtown

Mahony & Sons (Burrard Landing): A Pub By The Water

April 28, 2012

Mahony & Sons is a pub outside the Vancouver Convention Center. They have a wide variety of beers and cocktails, plus they sell some pretty delicious lunch! The interior is very large and can host small to large groups. Since its right by the Burrard Inlet, you get a good view of the water and mountains. It’s a great spot to dine especially in the Summer.

JojoCake and I came here during FanExpo to grab some lunch. It was a really nice day, so we decided to sit outside in the patio. There were lots of people sitting outside basking in the sun.

Truffled Mushroom and Fontina Burger ($14.95) has butcher-style beef burger with truffled crimini, portobello mushrooms and fontina cheese. It comes with a choice of salad or fries on the side. The burger was quite large and Jojocake had a hard time eating it, so she had to resort to using a knife and fork.

Fresh Roasted Mahi Mahi Tacos ($15.95) has chipotle mayo, guacamle, pico de gallo salsa, and cilantro. I got the salad on the side. These are more like cones and they were quite massive. You’ll definitely get full from this item as well! The fish seemed like it was a bit over cooked, so it made the texture a bit tough.

Overall, the menu was good. I went here for a lunch before with a coworker and haven’t been disappointed yet… except for the tacos. At first the price can seem a bit expensive for lunch, but the portions are large enough to be stuffed.

Words of Wisdom:

Great view
Large selection of drinks
Large venue, good for group gatherings
Close to Waterfront Skytrain

We Rate Mahony & Sons:
Address:
1055 Canada Place, Unit #36
Vancouver, BC
Address:
http://www.mahonyandsons.com/

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In Downtown

Ensemble Tap: To Tap or Not To Tap

February 27, 2012

Ensemble Tap is opened by Top Chef Canada’s winner – Dale MacKay. They sell pub-style food with a large array of beer on tap, thus the name. It’s a spin off of his other restaurant – Ensemble, which is a higher end dining.

Since I helped Flo assemble some furniture, she treated me out for some food close to her place. Since Ensemble Tap was just downstairs, it seemed like a good place to go.

Steam Buns ($14) has seared albacore tuna, Mama Cho sauce, and fresh kimchi. The bun was cold and we felt it might have been better if it was warm like those Chinese-style steam buns. It was hard to taste the tuna since the kimchi and the Mama Cho sauce overpowered the tuna. It was a tad spicy and has a little sour taste to it. I really didn’t like the flavour combinations.

Thai Chicken Wings ($12 – 1 lb) The chicken was deep fried and came with the thai sauce on the side. I didn’t find it very amazing at all since it’s quite expensive for a pound of chicken wings.

Tap Burger + Bacon ($15) has mushrooms, caramelized onions, onion, lettuce, Swiss cheese, horse radish, and a side of fries. The beef patty was quite large and the added bacon was nice and crunchy. I really liked the burger since it was a good price and tasted delicious.

Key Lime Pie ($8.50) has whipped cream, toasted coconut, and lime zest. It was light and airy, so it was not a heavy dessert. It has a really nice lime flavour, but you know there was definitely some food coloring in this. I’ve never had a key lime pie, but this was good.

Overall, the appetizers are definitely expensive. The burgers are delicious and priced well. Service was ok.

Words of Wisdom:

Good burger
Around $15
Some appetizers not worth the price
Good array of beers
Closest Skytrain: Burrard

We Rate Ensemble Tap:

Address:
990 Smithe Street
Vancouver, BC
Website:
http://www.ensembletap.com/

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In Downtown

Shark Club Bar & Grill: All You Need Is Beer and Good Company

November 23, 2011

Shark Club Bar & Grill is a large venue which is great to watch the game. Too bad I’m not into sports or going out to bars to watch sports games. I only go to these places for beer and good company!

The Social Media Network from SFU and UBC were hosting a Tweetup here and I decided to join in on all the fun. Of course there had to be food too .

Molson Canadian ($4) actually tasted good. It was nice and light.

Chicken Pesto Quesadilla ($13) has grilled chicken breast, pesto sauce, peppers, onions and melted cheese, in a flour tortilla. It also has sour cream and salsa and fries. There was a lot of filling in the quesadilla so you do get full.

Roast Beef Dip ($13) it has roast beef topped on a toasted baguette with a side of au jus. Also a side of fries too.

I liked it since it had so much meat! The best park was just dunking it into the au jus and having the bread to soak it all up. The fries were decent.

Overall, foodwise it was alright. It was a bit expensive for what you get. I probably wouldn’t go here on a normal day. The service was pretty slow and they probably could have used more servers on a Friday night.

Words of Wisdom:

Very large venue, good for really large groups
Good for the game
pretty dead when there are no games on
Daily drink specials
Decent food and ok service
Slightly overpriced for what you get

We Rate Shark Club:

Address:
180 W Georgia St
Vancouver, BC V6B

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In Downtown

Smiley’s Public House: Nachos + Non Existent Service

November 22, 2011

It was a long day, so a bunch of us decided to head to Smiley’s Public House to unwind. It’s a pub that is owned and operated by the Donnelly Group.

We went inside and just seated ourselves. It took the waitress a while to give us menus and to serve us. It seemed like they were quite understaffed since it looked like one waitress serving the whole place. If you can bear with mediocre service, you should be fine….it is a pub so don’t expect too much.

Nachos ($16) tortilla chops, cheddar cheese, monetery jack cheese, olives, tomatoes, jalapenos with guacamole, sour cream and salsa. It was pretty good, but if you aren’t a fan of heat, you should pick the jalapenos off. The nachos were quite large and can feed about 3 – 4 people. It goes well with beer!

Overall, food is decent, but service is bad. I asked for the bill and they wouldn’t deliver it to the table for some strange reason. I tried paying at the counter but the waitress just walked away and didn’t take the money, so we just left it on the table. It made a simple process quite confusing and complicated.

Words of Wisdom:

Daily specials of food and drinks
Lots of TVs for the game
Lots of seats
Service sucks
Closest Skytrain: Burrard

We rate Smileys Public House:

Address:
911 West Pender Street
Vancouver, BC V6C
Website:
donnellygroup.ca/smileys

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In Gastown

Blarney Stone: Horrible Service but Decent Food

July 1, 2011

It was NotFauna’s welcome back/ Birthday celebration. She chose Blarney Stone for a good fun meal before heading out to Fortune Sound Club a few blocks away.

CanuckGirl and I arrived early since she wanted to see a few players being drafted into the Canucks…sadly none of the TVs were showing that and when we asked them to about changing the channel, but they couldn’t do it. As we waited for everyone to arrive, we watched a TV promoting the Blarney Stone.

The place was quite full around 6:30, so it was a good idea we got reservations for the large group. The service was pretty bad from the beginning; it was hard to find anyone to help us find NotFauna’s reserved section since there were several reservations for the night. They didn’t even reserve the right amount of seats that was requested. When CanuckGirl and I sat down, the waitress didn’t offer us a menu to start looking.

After more people arrived, the waitress finally gave us menus. The menu was not bad at all. Lots of choices between $8 – $15 ish dollars.

Before you get your food, you must pay for it ahead of time or keep a tab for the night. It was super super weird to all of us, but in a way it made sense since people can easily skip out on the bill.

CanuckGirl ordered the Blarney Burger ($9). It comes with a beef patty, lettuce, tomato, ketchup, mayo and pickles. You can also choose between fries or salad.

It seems like it was a well made burger and she seemed to enjoy it.

A few others had the Fried Mac and Cheese loaf ($10). It has three types of cheese with macaroni, breaded and fried. It comes with a side salad too. It was not bad but it will probably get you full since it’s so rich in cheese.

CandiedZen ordered the Sheppard’s Pie ($11). It comes with side salad and focaccia bread. She enjoyed it and the addition of the cheese on top was pretty good.

I ordered the chicken focaccia Sandwich ($10). It has roasted chicken, cheddar cheese, bacon, onion, tomatoes, lettuce, and mayo. I chose to have the side salad with balsamic and oil dressing.

It was a pretty good sandwich, but the chicken was a bit on the dry side. I loved the bacon! It was very nice and crisp!

Overall, the food was not too bad. It’s your regular pub style food; so don’t have super high expectations or anything. Service is really bad and they don’t usually refill your water either unless they flag you down.

Words of Wisdom:

Quite loud inside
Patio seating
Best to reserve for large groups
Decent food under $15
Pay before your meal arrives or start a tab
HORRIBLE service

We Rate Blarney Stone:

Address:

216 Carrall St
Vancouver, BC

Website:
www.blarneystone.ca

In Pub/Bar

The Diamond: Drinks and Appetizers

May 27, 2011

Flo has always wanted to try out The Diamond, but they were always too full. We were having a little SFU get together and when she asked if they had space. Flo jumped at the chance to go.

The Diamond is located on Powell on Carrall, but it’s on the 2^nd floor, so be sure to look out for the sign and the stairs to enter. They are more of a drinking lounge rather than straight up eating. It’s the place to go after work to kick back with a few drinks and a little bit of food.

For the FourSquare users, do check-in because you will find some tips so hilarious. The first tip that popped up was from someone I knew at SFU and he basically said to never go to this place…we were already here so, it’s wasn’t like we were gonna get up and leave. Good thing I am not a good listener because I did enjoy the Diamond.

Their food menu is not very extensive and really will not fill you up. I find this place best to have your pre-dinner meal and then head off somewhere else if you are hungry. For example, after this, we headed to the night market to eat again.

Since HikingMan doesn’t drink beer and Flo wanted a virgin cocktail, someone had to drink right? I got the Asahi Super Dry Lager ($6). What can I say? I really love Japanese Beer. Some say local beer is good, but I have a secret love affair with Japanese, German and Austrian Beer. Perhaps one day I will go in-depth about this.

Flo started off with the Tuna Tartare ($13). There is a block of tuna and avocado cream drizzled with ginger sake dressing and a side of tomato chili Jam. You also get 4 wonton crisps to eat the tartare with. This is one of their more expensive dishes, but it has a lot of great flavours combining together.

Flo then got the gyoza ($7) since FourSquare kept telling her it was one of their best dishes. Inside the gyozas are pork, mushrooms and cabbage. The sauce that the gyozas come in smells so good! It is a mixture of soy, mirin and sesame oil. Even thought this dish is under the “Bigger” category, it really was not that big.

I ordered the Rock Cod Sub ($12). Inside the sub is rock cod with Morrocon spice rub, greens, cucumbers, hint of lemon, tomatoes and a nice Japanese Mayo sauce. The sub was pressed in a Panini presser, but the sub was still nice and chewable. Yet again, it did have nice flavours, which I was surprised. The sub does drip a bit when you eat it, so make sure you don’t eat it too close to you or else you might stain your new clothes.

HikingMan ordered the BBQ Short Rib Sandwich ($12) and he really thought the tender beef was spot on. Basically if you order, the sub, you can’t go wrong.

Overall, great drinking place, go small eats, but this is not the place to have a full dinner.

Words of Wisdom: