Specialty Shop Archives - Page 2 of 4

In Dessert

BETA5 Chocolates’ Valentine’s Pop-Up

February 2, 2017

BETA5 Chocolates‘ has launched their Valentine’s Pop-Up on Cambie and 17th in Vancouver.

Starting Thursday, February 2 the pop-up will be open 7 days/week from 12 pm – 7 pm until Tuesday, February 14. I came here for a sneak peek of their new temporary space and the unique chocolates and treats they are launching for Valentines Day.

What is so awesome about the pop-up is that they work with local artists in their mural, decor and furniture. Love how they always strive for local collaborations.

Strawberry and Jasmine Tea Cream Puff

This beautiful cream puff is topped with a macaron and gold flakes. A fancy cream puff made right. The flavours go well together and isn’t too sweet. I ate the macaron first and then devoured the rest.

Valentines Day Chocolate Collection

The Valentines Day collection has 6 different flavours in each box:

Sparkling Raspberry
Chai
Turkish Coffee
Sriracha-Sesame
Red Velvet
Hibiscus-Pistachio

There are 2 sizes for this collection – $15 for 6 pieces or $30 for 12 pieces.

Sparkling Raspberry

One of the most unique experiences because once you pop this into your mouth, you can hear the ‘pop rocks’ in action.

Turkish Coffee

This snowy white chocolate with a golden heart has a rich chocolate coffee taste. I love coffee, so this chocolate really made my day.

Hibiscus – Pistachio

The combination of hibiscus and pistachio is so interesting. I wouldn’t have thought they would go together, but it works.

Sriracha – Sesame

The Sriracha and sesame is a very interesting combination I tasted the sesame dominating the flavour then the subtle spice from the sriracha started to kick in.

Red Velvet

This pink chocolate has 3 tiny hearts on top. The red velvet surprise hides underneath the chocolate coating.

Chai

Chai balances out this Valentines Chocolate box with this great combination.

Heart of Gold

The Heart of Gold is shaped in a sphere and it has raspberry jelly, dark chocolate and tonka bean ganache, and crunchy almond-hazelnut praline.

Queen of Hearts

Their Queen of Hearts chocolate bar has freeze-dried raspberries and candied earl grey tea in 35% white chocolate. The raspberries give this bar a beautiful pink colour. It tastes great too.

Ice Cream Social

To celebrate the launch of the pop up shop, they help a one-night only ice cream social. You can get their raspberry and earl grey sundae, which has earl grey ice cream, raspberry sorbet, raspberry compote, vanilla chantilly and macarons.

They have these socials one in a while, so keep an eye out on their social media to find out when they happen.

Other items

They also have a few other items to purchase at the pop-up shop. Lots of chocolate to choose from.

Address:
3345 Cambie St, Vancouver

Website:
beta5chocolates.com

In Chinese

Real Canadian Superstore: Finding Chinese New Year Foods and Decor

January 25, 2017

Gong Hey Fat Choy 恭禧发财. Chinese New Year is upon us and it’s the Year of the Rooster. Many celebrations take place during this time including parades, dragon dances, reunions and elaborate dinners.

As food is a big part of Chinese New Year, buying all the necessary ingredients for dinner is essential especially if you are hosting a dinner in your home. Real Canadian Superstore and No Frills carrying more ethnic foods, has a lot of sales going on right now and I love the lucky pricing. The number eight is considered to be a lucky number in Chinese culture because it sounds like a word meaning wealth or fortune.

Shopping

What I noticed in the past few years is they have upped their game in providing a lot of ethnic grocery options in the store. I’m able to purchase my favourite veggies like bok choy.

They also carry awesome fruits like dragon fruit and star fruit. Since the store is so large, being able to find most of the ingredients for your meal and getting anything else for your home like tooth paste or toilet paper is easy.

It’s a great time to come together with family and friends over Chinese New Year over delicious food.

Of course I like to be healthy, but I can’t say no to some delicious snacks or this huge box of Kellogg’s Corn Flakes with their limited edition Year of the Rooster box. I’m all about sharing, so I love to have snacks out on the table so friends and family can enjoy as they please.

I love spicy peanuts with szechuan peppercorn. It goes so well with beer and if you eat the chilli or peppercorn, it will give your mouth a numbing spicy sensation.

Peanuts are a symbol of longevity.

Candies are the best and I got some White Rabbit candy, Hi-Chew and soft Almond Nougat. I didn’t get the most traditional candy, but these are my favourite that I could find at Superstore. A Candy box aka “Box of Harmony” symbolizes money and sweetness of life. The container is also pretty cute.

I also love Bin Bin Rice Crackers don’t exactly have a symbolic meaning, but these crackers are awesome. I’ve eaten so many as a kid and they are so damn addictive.

Leen go or brown sugar rice cake is consumed during Chinese New Year. You can make it at home from scratch or purchase in store. This can be eaten as an afternoon snack to bring you luck and prosperity in the upcoming year.

Red Braised Pork Belly

A lot of food served for Chinese New Year is symbolic and pork symbolizes strength, wealth, and blessings. I cooked up a storm this week and I was amazed at how easy this recipe was.

[tabs tab1=”Red Braised Pork Belly Recipe” ]

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Serves: 6
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Ingredients:

900 g skin-on pork belly
2 tbsp (25 mL) Rooster Brand 100% Pure Canola Oil
3 tbsp (45 mL) crushed Chinese rock sugar or granulated sugar
¼ cup (50 mL) Chinese rice wine (Shao Hsing) or dry sherry
3 cups (750 mL) chicken broth
2 tbsp (25 mL) each Rooster Brand Superior Soy Sauce and Rooster Superior Dark Soy Sauce
1 star anise
1 cinnamon stick (2 inch/ 5 cm stick)
3 green onions
2-inch (5 cm) piece fresh ginger, peeled
Fresh cilantro, for garnish

Directions:

Bring large saucepan of water to a boil. Add pork; return to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-high; cook 5 minutes. Transfer with tongs to cutting board; let cool enough to handle. Cut into 1-inch (2.5 cm) chunks. Set aside.
Heat oil in wok or large (4 L) saucepan over low heat. Add sugar; cook, stirring, until melted and light brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from heat; carefully add rice wine.
Stir in pork, broth, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, star anise and cinnamon stick; bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
Slice 2 green onions into 2-inch (5 cm) lengths. Add ginger to cutting board; hit sliced green onions and ginger several times with back of knife to lightly bruise and crush. Stir into pork mixture. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and cook until pork is fork-tender, about 1 hour.
Uncover; skim fat from surface of cooking liquid and discard. Increase heat to medium; cook uncovered, stirring often, until sauce is thick and syrupy, 15 to 20 minutes. Discard star anise and cinnamon stick. Transfer pork mixture to serving bowls. Thinly slice remaining green onion; sprinkle over top of pork mixture. Garnish with cilantro.

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In Cafe

Shop the Neighbourhood: Lisa Lou’s Chocolate Bar

January 18, 2017

With the holidays behind us, shopping local should still be top of mind for Vancouverites. Local businesses keep dollars close to home. Dollars spent within our neighbourhoods directly benefit the local economy and are re-invested within the community in the form of local employment or the contracting of locally-based suppliers and services.

Shop The Neighbourhood, a local shopping initiative from Yellow Pages, celebrates small businesses all year round, and reminds Canadians how shopping locally makes a difference in our lives and directly impacts the local economy. Small businesses are our economic backbone – they create jobs, funnel funds back into the community, keep decision-making power localized, and generally contribute to building healthy, thriving neighbourhoods.

In partnership with Yellow Pages, I wanted to highlight another awesome shop that opened in 2016 near Chinatown – Lisa Lou’s Chocolate Bar.

Lisa Lou’s Chocolate Bar

The area in and around Chinatown on Main Street is definitely changing with new restaurants and shops popping up every month. Last year, Lisa Lou’s Chocolate Bar was born; a 12-seater chocolate, ice cream, and coffee shop. They join other restaurants like Campagnolo, Torafuku, Bodega and Kobob Korean Burgers just a few steps away. Given great foot traffic and a transit friendly area, this up and coming neighbourhood was a great fit for Lisa Lou’s.

Lisa Lou’s vision is to be fun and whimsical with their package design and characters, and to have a strong stance on natural and ethically sourced ingredients, supporting the local community, and offering outstanding service to their customers.

Lisa Gardin AKA “Lisa Lou”

Lisa Gardin has been in the chocolate industry for 15 years working at places like the Wedgewood Hotel, Thomas Haas, and Chocolate Arts. It has been a long time dream for Lisa to open her own boutique chocolate shop. She always wanted to put her own whimsical spin on chocolate, making products that are more accessible than some of the higher end chocolate shops around town.

Lisa Lou is a nickname inspired by her father. It embodies that fun nature of her shop, brought to life by the bold turquoise on their packaging and the shop’s interior décor.

Yummy treats

You can see the fun and whimsical side of Lisa Lou’s in their package design and characters. They currently have three lines of their chocolate bars. These are the shop’s signature items:

The Boys – Pete, Joe, Marc, and Frank
This line is fantastic. I particularly love the Joe, featuring coffee cardamom caramel, shortbread, and pistachios.

The Hipsters – Zoe, Lily, Oscar, and Kylo
They are wheat free and vegan and have crispy chocolate mixed with fruity caramel.

The Ladies – Joan, Ruth, Sue, and Helen.
The Ladies feature sweet, fruity jellies and crunchy, nutty, chocolatey pralines.

These lines are great for gifts or for your own personal snacking.

There are so many good products on the shelves of Lisa Lou’s and one of the items that just make my taste buds sing is their candied almonds.

In addition, Peanut Brittle was an especially hot item over the holidays.

When it was warmer in the summer, I remember coming here for ice cream with my coworkers all the time. They have some really unique flavours like Bourbon Caramel Ripple, Coffee Cardamom, and many other flavours on rotation. Two of my favourites were the Caramelized Banana and the Assam Tea. You can get these in 8oz or 16oz sizes. Also, you can turn them into ice cream sandwiches or ice cream floats.

What’s Next?

More collaborations are on the way for 2017. Look out for birthday parties, workshops, and community events hosted in this space. If you’re curious, give Lisa a visit to see what is possible.

In particular, Chocolate Hazelnut Hearts, along with a few other items, are on their way for Valentine’s Day.

Go for a Visit

Lisa Lou’s Chocolate Bar is one of many amazing local businesses near the Chinatown neighbourhood. Stop by and grab a coffee or tea along with some tasty chocolates to enjoy. You’ll definitely find something unique for yourself or for a friend!

Local businesses are neighbourhood-oriented. Business owners and staff share the community’s interests, and are personally invested in the welfare and future of the neighbourhood.

If you want to learn more about Shop The Neighbourhood, follow Yellow Pages on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

Address:
1007 Main St, Vancouver

Website:
http://lisalouschocolatebar.com/

In British Columbia

Turducken: From Your Butcher

December 30, 2016

For this Christmas, we wanted to try something different. We usually make a roast turkey, but we thought we would try to get a turducken.

A turducken is a turkey stuffed with a deboned duck and then a deboned chicken.

We talked to a few butchers in Metro Vancouver and Beefway Meats on Kingsway was able to put together a 16lb turducken for $8.99 per pound. We ordered ahead of time so they could prepare it for us.

We chose them as they acquire meats that are local and hormone-free.

The turducken came vacuumed sealed and wrapped in a mesh to keep it all together. Before preparing it, we made sure we took it out of the fridge to bring it up to room temperature.

When we asked them what was the best way to cook it, they told us to look it up on Google.

Preparation

We moved the turducken onto a roasting pan, smothered it in butter and herbs. You can go to your grocery store and purchase a poultry blend (Rosemary, Sage, Thyme) of fresh herbs. If they don’t have it, try to get the separately.

Finally, we cover it with bacon to add more flavour and to keep the turducken more moist. One pack of bacon should do the trick.

Cooking

Looking at so many different websites for cooking times, we just did ours at 250°F for about 5.5 hours until the internal temperature of 145°F.

After it was done, we let it rest so all the juices don’t flow out.

Final Thoughts

The thought of having a turducken seemed so glorious in my mind, but left us all a bit unsatisfied in the end. It was really hard to cut and fell apart easily. The layers were a bit dry and lacked the buttery goodness. Since each layer didn’t have extra butter or herbs, it couldn’t penetrate into the meat.

We are still glad we tried it out but I think in the future we will stick with a regular turkey.

In British Columbia

Culinary Capers: Behind the Scenes with Executive Chef Stewart Boyles

November 14, 2016

Culinary Capers is a Vancouver catering company specializing in social, corporate, special events and weddings. They have an amazing crew of event planners to turn your ideas into reality with their venue selection, menu design, event rentals and tenting, décor and floral, entertainment and service staff.

Their new Executive Chef – Stewart Boyles previously was the Chef de Cuisine for Hawksworth. At Culinary Capers, Stewart will be ambitiously striving to push the Vancouver catering scene to a new level.

We were invited to meet and dine with Chef Stewart and the team at Culinary Capers.

We were seated in their kitchen with a beautiful view of the prep area.

Canapes

Beetroot Tartare with celeriac crisp, horseradish and pea tips. This was really good, well balanced flavours and a delight to devour. The complimentary textures of the crisp and tartare.

Radish with smoked butter, sunflower toast and yuzu. This was a surprising canape and I liked the snap of the radish. Fresh and crisp.

Roasted New York Striploin with caramelized yogurt, crispy brioche, and watercress. One of my favourite canapes of the evening. The brioche was buttery and the striploin was delicious.

Chili Lime Coconut Lobster on top of puffed black rice. This was a joy to eat as the lobster was cooked very well and the tangy lime flavour.

Amuse

Albacore Tuna with chorizo vinaigrette, puffed quinoa, avocado, and cilantro. I really enjoyed the fresh taste of the tuna with the different flavours that compliment the dish.

This was paired with the Terravisa Fandango Albarino Verdejo from 2015.

First

Fraser Valley Savoury Pumpkin Tart with fresh cheese, roasted pumpkin, and a red onion reduction. This was a very unique way of presenting a pumpkin tart.

This was paired with the Coolshangh Chardonnay from 2014.

Second

Roasted Sablefish with pine mushroom, brussels sprouts, butternut squash, smoked celeriac broth and bark. The broth was poured into the dish and it was a fun way to interact with guests. I loved the presentation and the sablefish was moist.

This was paired with Moraine Pinot Noir 2014.

Third

Slow-braised Lamb Shoulder with roasted saddle, confit potato, crisp sunchoke, salsify, and parsnip purée. Beautiful plate and I love the presentation too. Who wouldn’t love a plate full of meat?

This was paired with the Château Saint-Martin de la Gerrigue.

Dessert

Deconstructed Apple Pie has brown butter bourbon ice cream, vanilla bean crémeux, salted caramel glaze, and shortbread soil. A fun way to eat this traditional dessert. My favourite part was the shortbread soil.

This was paired with the Sperling Vineyards Sper…itz 2014.

Final Thoughts

It was a great experience to see what Executive Chef Stewart Boyles could create for us to showcase their extensive catering menu. His philosophy is that food should be approachable, full of flavour, and the ingredients should always be treated with respect. Sourcing the very best local ingredients, he is constantly searching for innovative ways to elevate the culinary experiences of our clients and their guests. He definitely achieved it through this preview.

Website: http://www.culinarycapers.com/

In Cafe

Ghirardelli: Ice Cream & Chocolate Shop in San Francisco

November 4, 2016

Ghirardelli Ice Cream & Chocolate Shop is located near Fisherman’s Wharf. Ghirardelli is one of the oldest chocolate company in the US. They are also a division of Swiss confectioner Lindt & Sprüngli.

Since I was in town, I wanted to stop to try a few of their chocolates and grab a beverage.

Once you head inside, they give you a small piece of chocolate to sample. A nice little touch.

The shop isn’t very large, so you can buy a few gifts and get a snack or beverage here.

Sea Salt Caramel Hot Cocoa is topped with whipped cream and served with a a piece of milk chocolate. After taking the first few sips, it was delicious, It wasn’t overly sweet, but just the right amount. The texture was smooth and that sea seal caramel worked so well together.

Overall, it was fun to stop here for a drink before carrying on with out day. There’s not much to do there besides shop for chocolate and have a drink.

We Rate Ghirardelli:

Address:
900 North Point Street, San Francisco, CA

Website:
https://www.ghirardelli.com/

In British Columbia

Dinner Parties Made Easy with Loblaws City Market

November 2, 2016

Putting together a dinner party isn’t easy and one thing that always stresses me out is the amount of planning that goes into each dish and making sure that everything is hot and ready by dinner time. Every Thanksgiving, everyone always anticipates the moist turkey that I make. This year we decided to have a few more friends join us for dinner, so a few extra side dishes needed to be prepared to make sure everyone’s bellies were full and as well as making sure there was plenty of leftovers. We paired it with Mission Hill Wine from the Okanagan, which is mighty delicious.

Preparation

A trip to the grocery store is essential to make sure you have everything for your meal. I went to Loblaws City Market as they just introduced their ‘From Our Chefs’ line of dishes as a good accompaniment to the turkey and roast beef for our dinner.

Loblaw Executive Chef Mark Russell ha spent the last few years perfecting their dishes to make sure they are store ready and the taste exceeds customers expectations. To save some time, I grabbed a few items to add to the dinner like salads, pasta, and mac + cheese. I don’t mind taking a shortcut because I only have so many ovens and stove tops for cooking.

Cooking

My favourite turkey to get is the President’s Choice Fresh Turkey as it’s already injected with butter. This turkey was 10kg/22 lbs and it took about 4.5 hours to cook at 350F. I layer the pan with cut up veggies and stuff the inside with more of the veggies.

Then, I rub the turkey with a butter and poultry herb mixture above the skin and under the skin. More butter the better right? Don’t forget to throw a pack of bacon on top too.

My sister made a delicious roast and it accompanied the dinner very well. The Angus certified beef is pretty amazing and make sure you get it spot on at medium rare.

Get a meat thermometer as that will be your best friend for getting perfect cooked roasts and turkeys.

Cheese and Meat Board

Before everyone gets here, the table needs to be set. So, in between checking on the turkey, setting the table is an important aspect that some people may forget about. While grocery shopping, I grabbed a few items from the Home Collection at Real Canadian Superstore to make sure the table was well presented. You don’t need to go overboard with centerpieces since food will take up most of the table.

I picked up some festive potpourri, a woven basket, cloth napkins, and placements to really tie the table together with hints of warm fall colours.

The table wouldn’t be complete without a cheese and meat board for the table. It’s a nice item to have when guests start arriving. I make sure to grab a soft cheese, hard cheese and then a few semi-soft cheeses. For meat, I got prosciutto and capicollo. My all time favourite crisps to get are the PC Black Label Cranberry + Fennel Artisan Crisps. So good. Throw some jam and fruit, then you’re set. Having some mini cheese knives are super handy and it fits perfectly on the board and not having long cutlery knives. Clearly, I’m such a fan of Presidents Choice products.

Main Feast

By dinner time, we had more food than we could fit on the table. There definitely was an abundance of food on the table. A half days of work and it’s really rewarding seeing all the happy faces at the table.

The sides from the Loblaws City Market ‘From Our Chefs’ dishes were such a huge help in adding a healthier part to the dinner. Heated up and ready to serve. Everyone’s favourite seemed to be the baked mac and cheese. Super cheesy and creamy.

Of course the star of the show was the turkey. Perfectly cooked and super moist on the inside. We did have the roast that we put in the oven but it needed a bit of extra time, so we accidentally missed it in our photos.

Once everything got plated, we dug in and didn’t stop eating until our pants needed to be unbuttoned. The guests who wore leggings and sweatpants were smart.

That’s my Thanksgiving dinner demystified. This dinner was partly sponsored by Loblaws City Market, but I stand behind their products. I make plenty of trips to The Real Canadian Superstore and I’m a proud customer.

In Canadian

Wild Sweets: Chocolate in Richmond

July 27, 2016

Wild Sweets by Dominique and Cindy Duby are world-acclaimed and award-winning chocolate makers. They are located in a secluded area in South Richmond. It took a little while to find this place because it’s mostly just warehouses.

I was invited to try a few of their signature items and their new line of dessert – Pret-a-Manger. I’ve had their chocolates a few years ago as a gift and finally made the connection when I was here. I knew the name sounded familiar.

Retail Store

The retail store has all their signature chocolates for sale. From chocolate bars, cakes, to gift boxes and spreads.

20% Sugar Fruit Confit

20% Sugar Fruit Confit has some pretty cool flavours, but one of my favourites is Pear and Vanilla beans. They go well with yogurt, little cakes or with a charcuterie plate.

Fruit Macarons Chocolate

Fruit Macarons take the classic French cookie and have them stacked on top of chocolate squares. For a second I thought there were Chinese characters written on top, but its just scribbles.

Sweet Salty Snacking Chocolate

Dark Chocolate Bark has dark chocolate, dried apricots & cherries, banana chips, puffed rice, spicy puffed peas, hickory smoked almonds.

I love how it was packed full of all the different ingredients and worked well together.

Butter Caramel Popcorn is tossed in vanilla bean and salted butter caramel, then several layers of their high % milk cocoa.

Bean to Bar Chocolates

All their chocolates start from bean to bar. They pride themselves of being Canada’s only artisan science-based cocoa bean to bar chocolate makers.

Vanilla bean caramel, coffee and walnut was a good tasting bar. Stronger notes of the vanilla bean and coffee. The walnut was more subtle.

Maple caramel, pecans and smoked salt is a unique flavour and my coworkers gravitated towards this flavour.

Prêt-á-Manger Desserts

Their Prêt-á-Manger Desserts are exclusively sold in their stores, so you won’t find it anywhere else. They retail for $4.99 each.

Tarte Chocolate has sweet butter sablé cookie crust, fruit caramel dark chocolate ganache cream, and dark chocolate Chantilly mousse.

Tarte Citron has sweet butter sablé cookie crust, lemon custard cream, and white chocolate Chantilly mousse.

Tarte Banane has sweet butter sablé cookie crust, banana custard cream, banana-coconut ‘sand’, and white chocolate Chantilly mousse.

Tarte Framboise has sweet butter sablé cookie crust, raspberry fruit custard cream, and white chocolate Chantilly mousse.

Mousse Chocolat – Dark has dark chocolate sabayon mousse, dark chocolate Crème Brûlée cream and puffed cereal chocolate pearls.

This was my favourite since I love chocolate.

Mousse Chocolat – Milk has milk chocolate sabayon mousse, passion fruit Crème Brûlée cream and puffed cereal chocolate pearls.

Mousse Chocolat – White has fresh lemon zest white chocolate sabayon mousse, raspberry fruit Crème Brûlée cream and puffed cereal chocolate pearls.

Hazelnut Passion has layers of hazelnut butter sabayon parfait, apricot passion fruit sorbet, chocolate ice cream, apricot passion fruit confit, candied hazelnuts & sweet butter sablé cookie chunks.

Peanut banana has layers of peanut butter sabayon parfait, banana ice cream, chocolate ice cream, red fruit confit, candied peanuts & sweet butter sablé cookie chunks.

Pistachio Strawberry has layers of pistachio butter sabayon parfait, strawberry sorbet, vanilla bean ice cream, red fruit confit, candied pistachios & sweet butter sablé cookie chunks.

I enjoyed this one as all the ingredients seemed to mesh well together, plus I love pistachios.

Overall, its a unique shop that they have in Richmond and there’s nothing else like it in the area. Delicious tasting chocolate, but the location of their store is hard to get to without a car.

We Rate Wild Sweets:

Address:
2145 – 12191 Hammersmith Way, Richmond, BC

Website:
http://dcduby.com/

In Chinatown

Treasure Green Tea Company: Tea Shop in Chinatown

May 5, 2016

Treasure Green Tea Company is a hidden gem located right in Chinatown across the street from Phnom Penh. Olivia is a second generation tea master that now runs the shop. The shop was established in 1981 by Olivia’s father as the first authentic Chinese tea shop in Vancouver.

I stopped here with my coworkers to grab an iced oolong tea with orange peel. It was a hot day and we wanted something unique.

One sip and I was hooked. It was not too sweet and was just so well balanced. Originally, I was the only one that wanted one and suddenly everyone else had to order one too.

The iced tea flavours change often, but its really good.

They also sell a lot of loose leaf teas. From small 50g pouches to larger ones that will last you a while. They have a few cheap options, but then there are a good amount of premium teas that will cost you quite a bit. I love asian teas! A good way to taste test the teas and learn more is to book a tea tasting with Olivia.

Address:
227 East Georgia Street, Vancouver, BC

Website:
https://treasuregreen.com

In North Burnaby

Whole Foods Market Burnaby: Sneak Peek

January 27, 2016

Whole Foods Market will open their newest BC store in Burnaby on Thursday January 28th, 2016 at 8:30am with a bread-breaking ceremony with Mayor Derek Corrigan.

The new market is located in the Solo District right at Brentwood Town Centre. The new store serves as a gathering place for local residents and provide high-quality natural and organic goods, as well as locally-sourced products and dining options.

I’ve been waiting for a long time for Whole Foods to come to Burnaby for a very long time. I’ve always adored their spacious store with a large variety of foods. SO beautiful. When I was asked to come for a sneak peek of their store, how could I say no?

More than 230 new team members have been hired for this store, which many are residents of Burnaby.

Each Whole Foods Market is a reflection of the unique community it’s part of its history and heritage, its personal style, and the people who will shape and define its future. When you walk into the store you will see the core values spelled out on the wall as well as a beautiful metal crow art pieces created with a local elementary school.

If you live in Burnaby, you will always notice the huge murder of crows that pass by BCIT every night.

To help make your life easier while shopping, they have their concierge service to help you.

Vega Juice Bar

A juice bar is created in partnership with Burnaby-based Vega. If you need smoothies, juices or shots to perk up your day, it’ll be here.

They also have a pretty cool light fixture.

If you are an avid runner, you can plot your favourite route on the chalk board.

Bulk Section

Cheese

Their cheese department has a lot of different cheeses, plus if you ask their staff, you can try it all before you buy it.

It’s really great service if you have no idea what type of cheese you want to get for your meal.

Butcher Shop

Their full service meat department come from animals raised without antibiotics or added growth hormones. This location offers beef from BC ranchers and local chicken sourced from Thomas Reed and Maple Hill Farms. I love the extra mile they put into selecting their produce and it makes their employees proud of what they are selling to customers.

Seafood

The seafood department has awesome complimentary services like marinating your seafood, preparing your seafood, ice, and cooking advice.

All of the wild-caught seafood is certified sustainable by Marine Stewardship Council or by SeaChoice.

Prepared Meals

There will be a wide range of grab and go meals including pizza, sandwiches, burritos, salad, etc.

Theres also a sushi area to order sushi by the roll.

Black Bird Street Food

At the Black Bird Street Food area, it will be an Indian dosa bar where you will find a variety of curry, wrapped in a South Indian, sour lentil pancake.

Bakery

The delectable bakery department features a throwback menu of comfort classics like pudding by the gram, and icebox cheesecake.

They also have a warm dessert section station with piping hot cookies, cinnamon rolls and brownies. When was the last time you had fresh out of the oven treats?

Allegro Coffee Bar

Artisan Soap By Weight

They have this area where you can purchase artisan soap by weight. It actually spells pretty nice if you want something unique in your washroom.

Interior

Just looking around the store, I was super excited to see so many local producers of amazing products like Hagensborg Chocolates a few minutes away from the store. They have some pretty amazing chocolates.

That display is so beautiful!

When I came here, the staff were slowly putting together their produce displays up.

Overall

It’s a great alternative to have Whole Foods in Burnaby as there are no other large market that will be so transparent with what you’re buying, plus they have high standards of selecting what they carry.

Of course it is more expensive that your average grocery store, but the alternative is there. Especially with the weak Canadian dollar and skyrocketing produce prices, it will be interesting to see how the community responds.

Store details

Hours:
Open daily from 7am – 10pm

Address:
4420 Lougheed Highway, Burnaby BC

Telephone:
604 205 5032

Website:
https://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/

In British Columbia

Ayoub’s Dried Fruits and Nuts in Burnaby

January 4, 2016

Ayoub’s Dried Fruits and Nuts have been popping up around Metro Vancouver. They now have 5 locations.

The closest location to me in Burnaby always closes right when I get home from work, so I’ve had a lot of hit and misses with their hours. Walking into this shop, there’s definitely a lot of nuts, fruits and specialty items. Service is a little bit cold, but it was perhaps they thought we were here before.

Okra chips was very crunchy. Pretty good in my opinion. Minimal seasoning on it. The only other ingredients are non-hydrogenated canola oil, hint of sugar and sea salt.

Curry Mixed Nuts has a nice curry flavours, but it was a bit on the salty side. Also, the nuts were a bit on the softer side that what I would have liked. I like nuts that have more of a snap when you bite into them.

Cracked Black Pepper Mixed Nuts had a strong pepper taste which was nice, but was sour. I found that there was the same issue with the texture of the nut being a bit soft and perhaps stale.

I haven’t tried their raw nuts, but I’m curious to give that a try next time to see if the texture is different.

Veggie Chips are another popular item.Tasted good but it does have non-hydrogenated canola oil, and seasoned with a hint of sugar and sea salt. The sugar threw me off a little bit. They mix contains – beets, carrots, green beans, squash, sweet potatoes and taro.

Overall, the items were ok but I didn’t like texture and flavour of some of the items. If I were to come back next time, I would want to try their dried fruit items.

Address:
#134 – 6550 Hastings St., Burnaby, BC

Website:
www.ayoubs.ca

In Cafe

Catfe: Cat Cafe in Vancouver

December 15, 2015

Catfe is a Vancouver Cat Cafe, which just opened this week. It’s on the 2nd floor of Tinseltown just above Starbucks. The best way to get here is to take the skytrain to Stadium Station and walk a little bit.

As a cat lover, I was very excited because it really took the owners a long time to sort out the City bylaws in order to get the cafe open. Kudos for them on making it happen.

You can make reservations at Catfe on their website, but all December 2015 and some January 2016 spots are already gone. Don’t fret, they do have spots for people standing by because some people never make it to their reservations. I came on the first day at 5pm and they had 4 spots open for people who are standing by. Once you make your reservation, you can stay for increments of 1 hour. Most people I observed didn’t stay the full hour.

They only let 16 people in the cat lounge at one time, so it’s nice that its not too crowded.

Cat cafes are very popular in Asia because not everyone can have the space to own a pet. If you’re curious about other Cat Cafes around the world, check out the ones I went to in Asia:

There are 2 steps to enter.

Pay admission in the cafe and get your food to go.
$8 admission or $5 with food purchase.
Show your receipt at count counter to check in.
Review cat rules and wash hands.

The cafe and cat lounge are separated by a large glass wall. You must go to the cafe side first.

The cafe area is open to everyone.

They don’t have much to eat here besides a few snacks like cat cookies, pretzels and pastries. They also have coffee and tea. Lets be real, most people are here for the cats.

Once you pay your admission, you go to the cat lounge to check in, sign a waiver, go over rules and wash your hands.

There is a small sink to wash your hands before you enter.

Once you’re in, you can go straight to playing with the cats or just enjoying the lounge.

Any cat that moves, there are always cameras around. They only had 5 cats when I was here, so it was hard to find them since most of them were quite sleepy.

Some just don’t want to be bothered.

I tried bugging the cats and gave up, so I just sat and enjoyed my tea.

I also got 2 small cookies in the shape of cats. Nothing special about the cookies. They just look cute.

This cat played so hard that it fell asleep on the rug. So many toys to play with.

Some cats are hiding on the shelves sleeping to avoid the humans.

All the cats are available to be adopted through BC SPCA. It’s a great way to get cats socialized rather being cooped up in cages waiting to be adopted.

I adopted my cats from the Vancouver Orphan Kitten Rescue, which is another amazing alternative.

Since 4 of the cats were black and white, I really had no idea which cat was which. Either way, they looked cute.

They also sell a bunch of cat merchandise, which is a great place to stop for getting presents for those cat lovers.

I really like their logo. They have shirts and thermoses with their logo.

Overall, it’s great that they are open to provide this unique experience for their visitors. Great for those who want to destress by playing and petting cats.

With zero reservations left for the year, it’s pretty darn popular. Try to get on the standby list if you don’t want to wait till 2016 to come for a visit.

We Rate Catcafe:

Address:
2035 – 88 West Pender Street, Vancouver

Website:
http://www.catfe.ca/

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

In Kitsilano

Pirate Joes: Legally Smuggling Trader Joe’s into Canada

January 18, 2015

Pirate Joe’s is a local store reselling Trader Joe’s items from the States so Canadian’s can have a taste of their yummy groceries without making a trip to the states. I know I certainly hate taking the highway to Bellingham just for cookie butter. That’s where Pirate Joe’s comes in to help smuggle the goods into Canada. It’s pretty funny.

Pirate Joe’s has been in the media a lot in 2013 and 2014 because of the lawsuit from Trader Joes. But luckily, both lawsuits were dismissed. So, they can keep on operating with a few minor tweeks to keep it legal.

Walking through the small store, you will definitely notice a few of your favourite items. The prices are higher of course, but it still saves you the gas from going down south.

The shelves were pretty stocked, so they really do a good job hauling everything over to Vancouver.

M and I didn’t go too crazy buying items. We just chose a few of our favourite items. Seriously, I love those Cheddar Cheese Sticks!

If you don’t see something you want on the shelves, they will try their best to get it. One day, hopefully they open up a Trader Joe’s in Canada so we can have access to all the yummy treats they have to offer.

Website: http://www.piratejoes.ca/

In North Burnaby

Clancy’s Meat Co: Easy Dinner

June 14, 2014

Clancy’s Meat Co. is located in the Kensington Plaza in North Burnaby. M and I are always disappointed when going to Safeway a few doors down for meat. So, we decided to go see what Clancy’s Meat Co had to offer. Imagine it like M&M Meat Shop but different. They sell fresh and frozen meat products, and ready-to-eat meals in stores. Everything is organic and preservative-free.

There’s no butcher shop close to our place that opens after 6pm, so it’s hard to find good meat products after work.

The store has a simple layout with the fresh item in the counters and the frozen stuff in the fridges.

A lot of the steaks are pre-marinated, so you don’t have to do any of the thinking at home. They do have a few selections than are left unseasoned.

Same thing with the chicken breasts. You will find a lot of different flavours. My favourite is the Out of Control chicken breast, which is the yellow one in the photo.

One of our favourite items are the stuffed mushrooms. So good.

The rest of the food and a majority of the seafood products are frozen. I guess if you are looking for a quick dinner with little preparation, this might be for you.

They also sell sauce to go with the meal.

Two Can Dine ($19.99) comes with 2 sirloin steals, 2 shrimp skewers, 2 stuffed mushroom caps and 2 stuffed potatoes. Since it’s just M and I , we thought it would be good to give it a try.

All the items come with cooking instructions. You can find it online or get the staff to let you know the best way to prepare the items.

The stuffed potatoes are all frozen. There are many flavours to choose from but we got the Bacon Cheddar Stuffed Potato and the Parm, Herb and Garlic Stuffed Potatoes. We stuck them into the oven at 350’F for 50 minutes.

Voila, dinner is served. We made a simple salad just to add some more vegetables to the meal. The baked potatoes were surprisingly good, mushrooms were so good, steak was tender and full of flavour. The shrimp was ok, but not the best.

It was an easily meal to make since most of the items we just threw into the oven. It’s kinda like a full proof plan if you don’t know how to cook.

We do go to Clancy’s quite often because it’s convenient and still cheaper than eating out. On another night we got Greek marinated Chicken Breast ($3.98) and a bacon wrapped chicken breast with asparagus, ham and cheese.

‘Out of Control’ marinated Chicken Breast ($3.98) and a bacon wrapped chicken breast with asparagus ham and cheese.

Surprisingly, the marinade was not spicy at all.

3 Pepper New York Steak ($4.98) and a few of the stuffed mushrooms ($1.98 each).The best stuffed mushroom is the Thermador Stuffed mushroom has the white mushroom caps are stuffed with lobster, cream cheese and some spices.

Another time we got the stuffed Zuchinni, Out of Control Chicken Breast and the tilapia stuffed with lobster and cream cheese.

Overall, it’s a decent place to go if you want something easy to make for dinner. For M and I, this a quick meal to create after work. The shop is convenient and the prices are reasonable. I just wish there were more variety of fresh items.

We Rate Clancy’s Meat Co:

Address:
6556 Hastings St. Burnaby BC

Website:
http://www.clancysmeatco.com/

In Las Vegas

M&M’s World Las Vegas

May 2, 2014

M&M’s World in Las Vegas in another cool place on The Strip to do some quick shopping for souvenirs or browsing. It’s free to enter and there’s 4 floor of chocolatey goodness. It is located close to the Coca Cola store too.

The rainbow wall on the second floor features 22 different M&M’s! It’s cool to look at. There are also candy dispensers and shirts on this floor too.

The fourth and final floor, you get an up-close look at an M&M’s sponsored Toyota Camry race car and a bunch of NASCAR-themed M&M products like model cars.

Look at that car. Lot of people can be seen taking pictures of it.

We came out of here only getting a pack of multi-colored M&Ms. I wanted to get a candy dispenser but I didn’t like any of the ones they were selling.

Website: http://www.mmsworld.com/

Address:
3785 S Las Vegas Blvd
Las Vegas

In Cafe

How to kill time at Incheon Airport

January 18, 2014

When M and I arrived at Incheon Airport in South Korea to head back to Vancouver, we had a lot of time on our hands after we checked in and dropped out bags off. A few hours to be exact.

There’s lots to do actually…or to be more specific, lots to buy and eat. Duty free shops filled with gifts, souvenirs, alcohol and other junk. Then there are the cool little cafes inside. The two specific ones that intrigued us was the Charlie Brown Cafe and Hello Kitty Cafe.

We already went to the Hello Kitty Cafe in HongDae and Charlie Brown Cafe in Hong Kong, but it’s always nice to stroll through. All the other cafes were quite normal like Starbucks. Why not spend some time at a café you can’t find at hone.

The first Charlie Brown café that we found was on the 3rd floor near Gate 12. It is open from 7am till 9:15pm. They have beverages, cakes, sandwiches and some toys.

You will want to get their cakes or drinks because you can’t find it anywhere else that looks like this.

Website: http://www.charliebrowncafe.net/

Hello Kitty Cafe is a cute place for a snack or just go there to take pictures on their chairs. They are open from 6:30am till 9:30pm. It’s on the 3rd floor near gate 24.

Let again just like Charlie Brown Cafe, the drinks and cakes are good signature items to get.

Website: http://www.hellokittycafe.co.kr/

Their second location is 24 hours and is near Gate 113 and serves the same stuff as the other. This is on the other side of the airport after you take the little train to the other terminal.

With the left over time, you can just sit and wait for the boarding call. The airport is quite nice.

Once time is up, just hop on the flight back home. It’ll probably be a long flight, but as long as you have a book and headphones, you’re all set.

Website: http://www.airport.kr/

In Canadian

BETA 5 Chocolates: Cream Puffs Galore

December 16, 2013

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

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

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

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

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

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

85% Dark Chocolate and Caramel Cream Puff

Milk Chocolate Praline Cream Puff

Milk Chocolate S’More Cream Puff

Salted Caramel Cream Puff

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

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

We Rate Beta 5 Chocolates:

Address:
413 Industrial Ave
Vancouver, BC

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

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In Cafe

Le Marché St. George: Coffee Shop in the Neighbourhood

December 15, 2013

Le Marche St. George is a little neighbourhood grocery store and cafe in Vancouver right smack in a residential area. It’s really a hidden gem and tucked away from all major streets and businesses. MedicalGiraffe and I came for a drink and discovered this place is the community hub and hangout for people in the neighbourhood. People know each other and it has such a cool vibe.

Can you guess the street that it’s located on? St. George of course!

On a Saturday afternoon, this place was packed! All the seats were occupied and there were long lines. This isn’t a bad thing as it’s a compliment to their success.

Their grocery part of the store isn’t too large, but there’s a lot of things to look at.

If you take a look at their shelves, you’ll find some pretty cool products that you won’t find at usual grocery stores. Instead of asking your neighbour for some cream or sugar, you can just walk a short distance to Le Marche St. George to stock up on something you don’t have.

Milk, eggs, cheese, etc.

There’s even fruits and vegetables.

Their menu has a bunch of coffee, tea, pastry items, snacks, and ice cream.

London Fog (12oz – $3.90)

Latte (12 oz – $3.90) was really good. Nice and strong! Just what I need to keep me awake.

Overall, this place is very cute and is very different than any cafe or grocery store you’ve been to. Definitely a great hangout place on the weekend.

We Rate Le Marche St. George:

Address:
4393 St. George Street
Vancouver, BC

Website:
http://www.marchestgeorge.com/

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