canucklehead
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Posts posted by canucklehead
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The 2.5 hour plane ride is very much worth it for a eating weekend. I could list off a bunch of places to go to. I've always preferred the lunch experience to the dinner. The easy-going nature of the lunch seems to suit the food more. The salads, pizzas and pork dishes are alwasy very very good.
The food will catch you off guard with its simplicity - and you may think "what's the big deal". But the quality of ingredients and the confindence in the cooking (bringing out the inherent best in the food) is astounding. I did not think that it was possible that a simple salad could taste so fresh and alive. You will eat things that have have had before but they will taste better than you thought possible. It is like watching a movie in black and white - and then seeing it in full color.
Dinner is excellent - but the formality of the setting always, for me, knocked up against the simplicity of the food. Still this is a very minor quibble.
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I would approach Pho Hoang carefully if you are from LA. The vietnamese restaurants in California are much much better than they are here. I have yet to find something that will match up to what you may already have had in LA.
There are two cheap Chinese places that you may be interested in checking out. Mui Garden has a chinese take on Malaysian food - with excellent Curry Beef Brisket (you can have chicken (ask for boneless if that sort of thing bugs you) or vegetables). I also like Shanghai Yan Yun for excellent Xiao Lung Bao (Juicy Pork Dumplings)
If you want to do something super-canadian - I think that the Ukranian Church on 10th and Main is having their Perogy night this Friday (first Friday of each month). It is like a giant church dinner with homemade Perogies, Bortch, and Cabbage Rolls. It is very popular with the locals and tends to sell out by 7pm or so. There is no sermonising if you are worried about that sort of thing. So charming and quaint you could choke!
Hope this helps.
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Chocoholic
I live in Vancouver now - but just left the Bay Area after living there for a number of years. You can PM if want to speak directly. Generally - Taxi rides are very reasonable and everything is very close by.
Here are some of my suggestions for stuff you can't get in Vancouver:
Money no object - these places are a little stuffy and are very french:
Masa's
Relaxed
Delfina's - neighbourhood new style Italian. Great place but reservations are a MUST. Bonus is it is right beside Tartin which has some insanely good baking - Morning Buns, Sandwiches. All in the Mission and very close taxi ride.
Suppenkuche - German food - I know what you are thinking but the place is very relaxed and has got a great selection of beers. No reservations (I think) so get there early.
Ti Couz - Orginal breton style crepes - very relaxed and young crowd. Nice selection of ciders. In a great part of the Mission and lots to look at after dinner.
Emmy's Spaghetti Shack - very funky outer Mission Restaurant. Old school ceaser salads and spaghetti and meatballs are organic, delicous, and cheap served in a tiny little restaraunt. Other choices are generally very good also - pan fried fish on saffron rissotto was very good. DJ on weekends so plan accordingly.
B44 - Spanish Tapas (Belden) - supposed to have a very good paella.
I can't make any recommendations on Mexican as it does not agree with me - but Pancho Villa (cafeteria style) is very popular and the aqua fresca's are always good.
There are alot of place to check out. If you are willing to cross the bridge into Oakland - you can go to Chez Pannise (set course dinners) the creator of the whole California fresh thing. Everett and Jones BBQ is alot of fun and there are a number of locations but the best one is #2 on Telegraph (I only go to this location) It will look scary - but the BBQ is good - the hot sauce is HOT.
I am sure there will be lots of other suggestions. Hope you have a good time. I miss living there.
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Ling - you and I are completely on the same wavelength with Church's chicken. The skin is rocking and the flesh actually tastes like chicken (vs sawdust). I posted else where that my brother found the combination of curry mixed with Church's to be eye rollingly delicous. I made pork vindaloo last night with the express goal of provding sauce for the fried chicken.
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Have to say that I'm ecstatic to have a coffee shop like Prado in the 'hood! So are a lot of other people, apparently, as it was packed on Saturday morning.
Owned by an ex-JJBean staffer, Prado offers a different vibe that anything else I've found on The Drive. Hip and minimalist in its decor, to be certain, but that's part of the appeal for me. Friendly baristi with an average of 3 years' experience under their belts who pull a good shot and are very aware of the importance of consistency. The Intelligentisia beans they use definitely have a different flavour profile than the Stumptown that Alistair is currently using at The Elysian Room -- lighter and not as full bodied but still very tasty. No complaints from me whatsoever on the lattes and cappuccinos I've had there to date. Prado also sells lots of great freshly-baked goods for snacking... the peach crumble and cream cheese muffin I'm eating right now is fabulous as are their ginger cardamom cookies.
Vin, you were absolutely right when you said:
If you're ever on The Drive, be sure to check it out.the people that run this cafe on Commercial drive sure love coffee and it shows.
Mooshmouse,
I went to Prado a few weeks a ago and I agree that the room is beautiful and the vibe is hip, clean, and fun. I also agree with you that the lattes have a very different flavor profile - much much lighter than Artigiano. At the time I was wondering if this was a weakness or simply a different style of coffee. I have only known the really dark italian style roasts so I am not sure how to approach Prado's style.
My analogy on this is when people have 'real' Cantonese food for the first time - and it is much blander then they expect Chinese food to be. But Cantonese food should be all about freshness and finesse - so there is an education process.
I wonder if we have been indoctrinated into dark dark roasts and have lost our appreciation of lighter styles of coffee (aren't scandanavians big coffee drinkers who prefer a lighter roast)?
As I said posted earlier - all this was touched off by an article by Edward Behr's the Art of Eating. It is interesting to me that you enjoyed their coffee and that Prado is enjoying alot of business.
The important thing is that you enjoyed the coffee and another local enterprise has found support and, hopefully, success.
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We really enjoy the boule from...
Le Pic-Nic French Breads and Pastry
1443 Clyde Avenue, West Vancouver
604-925-2880
Limited supplies so phone ahead.
Crunchy crust, soft and tasty on the inside...total bliss
.No need for butter even....but it's better with!
We pick it up frozen (she undercooks it by ten minutes) and throw it into a 375 degree oven for 10-15 minutes.
Spray it with water prior to baking if you want an even crunchier crust.
Just wanted to thank Chef Matcalf for a good call - went and checked out Le Pic Nic and though my family has been in West Van for the last 11 years - we have never gone to Le Pic Nic. Very cool place - by the time I got there at noon most everything was sold out. Had one of the fruit pastries and it was delicous. Beautiful thin buttery crisp pastry, thinly sliced fruit - not too sweet.
I will get up earlier next week and check out the fresh bread. Got a frozen baguette but have not had a chance to try it yet. All indications are that this is a high quaility operation. Thanks for the heads up Chef!
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I have used the Costco evoo and was very happy with it. It is the only mass produced brand that has been properly dated and cheap to use for cooking and pleasant enough for using raw.
Costco buyers are picky. I know someone in the seafood distribution business and he said that most supermarkets are'nt too fussy about quality. But the Costco guys are tough on price and quality. So you generally get a decent product.
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I've lived in Vancouver, HK, SF, Shanghai and I have to say my favorite food city is.... NYC.
HK and NYC both have a food culture that is ingrained from the home kitchen upwards. In HK, your skill at ordering in a restaurant and ability to discern good food is a very important trait in determining your social standing. NYC has the same thing - it is not about the bullshit high end stuff (though of course is nice) but the grounds up, pulsing way that good food is incorporated the everyday aspects of people's lives. Freshness, quality of ingredients, lightness of hand, and cooking with attention and love. These are big big things in HK.
NYC gets the nod from me just because I like the whole jewish deli thing.
SF has a developing food culture - but I find that alot of it is driven by a food 'elite' and it has not developed into a 'muscle memory' yet. Much the food language is a transplanted Tuscan / Italian vocabulary that works well for the local climate (I do love Delfina's) But for some reason SF does NOT have good Asian food. Let me tell you that "hole in the wall" does not equal "authentic". The lines outside House of Nanking and the raves over Eliza's are really really baffling. Vancouver has a much better developed Asian food scene.
BTW - Izakaya (Japanese Bar Food) is huge in Vancouver right now - anywhere else?
Anyway - sorry about the rambling post. But HK and NYC are my two choices with a slight nod to NYC.
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HK Dave
The thread you sent was an argument about smoked meat on an escort service review forum. Only in Montreal! Very Hilarious. Now about your personal life....
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OH MY GOD! I just went to this site, it is a shrine of all things pork...(off topic, why is the pig laughing while sitting amongst its dead, cured relatives?
I thought he was screaming in pain after having lost a relative.
Hm....
I would'nt mind losing a cousin or two if they tasted like yukon bacon.
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My thought was that it was possible a loin cut bacon - but it was so round and fatty (oh.. my eyes are glazing over a little... sorry - focus focus!)
But of course there is only one way to tell - to purchase Irish and Kentucky style bacon and have a taste off.
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When ALL your bathroom reading material (and I keep a neat stack handy) is food related. It is kind of like thinking about your next trip now that the runway is cleared for take off.
*** I am very sorry if this is too graphic. I could not think of a better metaphor.
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No one else has said it - but I always really like the backroom at Irish Heather. You can get some nibbles and a coffee (or a Guinness) and just hang. It is a good thing.
Hey what is that car driving by my house? A young woman with an egullet cap? RAT TAT TAT TAT TAT TAT TAT!
Another casulty in the Vancouver 'troubles'....
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Ling - they also sell Montreal smoked meat at Siegel's on Granville Island (and at all their locations). They reheat it by steaming it (not microwaved). Now - I don't know about authenticity - but it is very good and they have it shipped in from Montreal.
Bonus points - it does'nt have that darkened doorway kind of after taste. Kidding!!
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Vancouver - yes yes yes yes yes!!!!
Did you take a picture when you where there? Don't you think that it was pretty awesome bacon.
Now - is available anywhere else? Perhaps it is a good thing that you can only get it at Tomahawk.
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Hey
I had my first Tomahawk breakfast and it came with the most incredible bacon - at it was some thing that I had not seen before. I was round and smokey - thin and crispy. I thought that it was a kind of Pancetta - but when I asked the waitress she said it was a type of back bacon that they get whole and sliced very thinly on site. "If you want more - you need to come back". It did not look like back bacon to me - it seemed too fatty to be back bacon. All I needed was some maple syrup to dip them in and you could have shot me dead right then and there.
Has anyone had their bacon and is it simply back bacon cut super thin? It is very very good.
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I love fried chicken - and in particular Church's frrrriieeed chicken - it has already been mentioned on this thread.
But this love has gotten me into trouble. Once - I must have been possessed - I had all this leftover KFC. I thought too myself - why not mix it into some marina sauce and make quick chicken caccitore. I was trying to be frugal. It was the singularly most disgusting thing I have ever ever made. It looked like vomit and tasted like .... well you get the idea.
But my brother went to a potluck where someone had made some homemade vindaloo and someone else brougt over Churches fried chicken. The two mixed on his plate and he said it was soo good that his eyes rolled to the back of his head. Crispy skin and succulent curry....hmmmmm. He is now trying to recreate this mutant dish on purpose.
Fried Chicken Skin - how I love thee.
Other big guilty pleasure - frozen pizza that has been baked until super super crispy. I tell myself that this makes it closer to thin crispy neopolitan style pizza - I am surprised that I have not been struck by lightning yet.
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A place that I really like - but never seem to remember to go to is Cafe Katzenjammer on west 10th - it is a new place with good schnitzel and spaetzle.
I know that Topanga Cafe food has very litte to do with 'authentic' cal mex - but I am very very fond of their food.
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I miss Puccini's - it always seemed so weird to me as a little kid that there was this Italian place in the middle of a really bustling Chinatown. It was there that I was first introduced to the pleasures of fettucini alfredo and lactose intolerance.
I think that there is that little italian store (? actually I don't know what it is) - Rossi & Co that is still on Main street. My friend went in recently and said the owner seemed a little stirry.
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Horsemeat Sashimi - its delicous!
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I think steak houses and hotels would probably bore them if they travel a lot. I'd recommend places that do well in representing Vancouver, such as:
- West
- Bishops
- Raincity
- C Restaurant
- Coast
If they're having more than one meal, I'd recommend a fun option such as:
- Feenie's
- Chambar
- Wild Rice
Good call on C. I love Chambar - but the noise level can get insane. What about Lift? - some friends from NY went for drinks and nibbles and really liked it. I have not been myself - but it looks like a great setting. Not sure what those walls of glass are like at night. I think that Andrew has been - no?
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I know that Tojo's is a big big favorite - but I have always liked Okada more for their sushi. Less showy and top notch ingredients. Neither Tojo's or Okada have particularly beautiful settings. (I really think that Tojo should spend some dough and renovate.
In terms of big gun's dining - what about Chartwell's. I have never been but have read good things - but it is not brought up in this forum too often.
Why not Cantonese? There some really top notch restaurants in Vancouver: The Kirin is always good and the service is excellent (and they are used to dealing with Japanese tourists), Sun Sui Wah, and the old East Ocean on West Broadway (below Tojo's). The Cantonese take on seafoods appeals to the Japanese palatte but may be challenging for an American.
Hope this helps.
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Sometimes the language barrier is on purpose. I went to a Japanese butcher and everything was in Japanese and English except for one items. The character looked like "horse" and the butcher was laughing before I could get the question out.
I am assuming that selling and eating horsemeat is legal in Vancouver. I remember seeing horse sashimi on the menu at Sakae not too too long ago.
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I think that's why certain dim sum places don't get mentioned here. I think that the Kirin's restaurants have the best dim sum - especially the Richmond location. (Sorry Sun Sui Wah and Pink Pearl - but it's true)
Unfortunately - the further away you get from downtown the less English they seem to know. Cambie and 12th is still workable but by the time I get to the Richmond branch - I am reduced to pointing to the menu and then pointing to my mouth and making grunting noises.
Any Restaurants Serving Whole Lobsters in Van?
in Western Canada: Dining
Posted
Okay - this is not lobster - but I just got back from Sun Sui Wah's live alaskan crab special @ $13.80/lb. A table of 5 of us polished off 10 lbs of crab, 4 lbs of flounder plus rice and noodles. The crab was very very good and we had it steamed with minced garlic and then had noodles tossed in the left over sauce. Dinner for 5 - $270 tip included. I think that's pretty reasonable. (burp!)