Truth be told: Where've you eaten lately? (Part 2)

[*Deborah*]

Friday: in an effort to economize, went with snacky_cat and Mooshmouse to Guu, the one in Gastown. In an effort to try as many fabulous wacky drinks as possible, the effort to economize was a little futile, although it was certainly more for less than we would have gotten elsewhere

We had many dishes to share, and I don't remember them all...standouts include the okonomakae (sp?), which hit the spot and was sweetly flavourful, although I couldn't tell you what was on it. We also had Salmon and His Seven Friends, although we would have been happy with less-popular salmon who didn't number natto and egg yolk amongst his friends; no matter, the other friends were tasty: daikon, pickled radish, scallions, a few other friends, served with nori. We had ebi with bacon and zucchini, which was quite tasty, and somehow also got enoki with zucchini, which we thought at first was the ebi, and disassembled in search of. There was a very tasty fried calamari and shrimp dish, and a tuna tataki of some sort. Dessert was a little more memorable: the tofu cheesecake in yuzu, red bean, and matcha flavours, very nice; served in small cubes with toothpicks. We also had banana tempura with chocolate sauce and coconut ice cream, very good indeed! and an order of Super Happy Pudding, which was a v creamy custardy pudding with a flan sauce on it. Snacky, in particular, was Super Happy with that

Last night, Stella's on the Drive (others seem to think of Marlon Brando when this restaurant is mentioned; I can only think of Paul Banks). Three of us started out with tap Sungod Wheat Ale, Strongbow, and Leffe, and shared 5? 6 plates: the Cheater Sushi, very good and priced right at $5 for 5 pieces; panko breaded calamari with chipotle aioli, a standout item, hot and light and tender, exactly how calamari should be; the Thai spiced sesame grilled jumbo shrimp, jumbo is the word, they were delicious, all charred shell on the outside and lovely flavourful shrimp on the inside, and another delicious aioli; the Tosino, noodles and this sweet, caramelized pork, thinly sliced, interesting flavours; the beef carpaccio with fleur de sel and capers and reggiano, beautiful beef, tasty and tender; and the Szechwan pepper-dusted scallops on the bed of spaghetti squash, which we enjoyed...we found the key to this dish was to have all of the flavours in your mouth at once: the scallop, the squash, and the green onion vinaigrette. Of course bacon confetti (extra-tasty bacon bits in another world) never goes amiss at my table .

For dessert, we shared (thank heaven! it was an enormous portion!) of warm chocolate cake with a Bellevue Kriek and sour cherry sauce. The cake was warm, the cherries, refreshingly, were chilled. The sauce was very tasty indeed, and kept the cake from too much sweetness. If I hadn't been driving, I would definitely have had a Kriek with that.

A really nice dinner, I'll be happy to go again...we didn't even mind the heat too much, with breezes flowing from the fans and some reggae music to make it all feel a propos.

[ja_rtw]

Hi everyone,

It’s my first post on eGullet ever A quick intro, then I’ll move onto the good stuff: 25 y/o, SAF living in vancouver all my life – food and travel are my passion, hobby, and past time all rolled into one Very much enjoy reading everyone else’s dining experiences, so thought it’d be time to add my own – hope u find em useful !

Monday: Went for a quick snack at Watermark, they provide blankets for their patio seats on a windy day. Tried their sauteed mussels – tamarind, ginger, coconut milk, tomato consomme & onions. Smallish sized mussels, but nothing to really complain about. The garlic sourdough bread dipped into the sauce was enjoyable. I think their desserts are their strong point, I liked the creamy cheesecake with a lemon curd centre.

Sunday: Went for brunch at Aurora Bistro, was a bit surprised that they didn’t take reservations for tables less than 6 so we had a 15 minute wait, no big deal. I fell in love with the vanilla whipped cream that accompanied the sourdough French toast, I think flavoured whipped cream is genius! The smoked salmon poached eggs with hollondaise and asparagus was delicious. Also enjoyed the black truffle scrambled eggs on a puff pastry, and the five spice doughnuts.

Saturday: Finally got a chance to check out Lift, and it pleasantly exceeded my expectations – the view is everything you could hope for from a waterfront location, and the interior design is gorgeous as well. Thoroughly enjoyed my mediium-rare venison with a cherry anise glace, but the molten chocolate cake was divine. Soft, warm, gooey chocolatey goodness! Served with caramelized bananas and an espresso anglais sauce, everything worked very well together. I’ll be back for their cocktails and whet plates.

Very enjoyable weekend overall, I’ve got a backlog of dining experiences to share – but here’s the most recent three for now !

Edited August 15, 2005 by ja_rtw (log)

[Daddy-A]

Very enjoyable weekend overall, I’ve got a backlog of dining experiences to share – but here’s the most recent three for now ! 

←

Welcome to eGullet! Sounds like Ling has a rival!

A.

[Vancouver]

Very enjoyable weekend overall, I’ve got a backlog of dining experiences to share – but here’s the most recent three for now ! 

←

Welcome to eGullet! Sounds like Ling has a rival!

A.

←

Are you sure? They weren't all for the same day's dinner, and there was no mention of passing out phone numbers!

Welcome aboard - good first post!

Cheers!

Edited August 16, 2005 by Vancouver (log)

[rm_blizzard]

I'm not much of a reviewer and haven't posted much here before, but I had some good experiences this eek I thought I'd share. Wednesday got a chance to check out Moderne Burger. That was Plan B, as by the time I found the location of Go Fish, my first choice, they were closed for the day. Got a lamb burger and fries for take out on the way back to Pemberton from a meeting in Victoria. For me it's been almost 30 years since I've had such a memorable burger (I have very fond memories of the original Hard Rock Cafe in London, circa 1976, before the franchising and onset on mediocrity-food wise).

Friday was back in Victoria for more meetings. Visited Zambri's for lunch and had a very simple and enjoyable linguini with clams and mussels in a white wine sauce. My lunch companion had a roast chicken leg with mustard and arugula on a bed of polenta which she also enjoyed very much.

Friday night back to Pemberton for dinner at the Wildwood Bistro. We started with shared mussels and clams in a garlicky white wine broth. Very nice plump mussels, better than Zambri's in my opinion - I wanted to compare. Also shared a nori wrapped tuna spring roll which was a little too light on the tuna but otherwise quite tasty. For the main I had potato crusted halibut with braised leeks in a green peppercorn sauce. My wife had a salmon fillet served with a herb pesto. The Wildwood is well established in Whistler has been a welcome addition to our little town since it opened last December. The menu and prices are much like Earl's with the overall food quality comparable if not a little better.

[BCinBC]

Friday Hudson’s Landing Pub

After work beers (GI Hefeweisen) and nachos. The beer was actually pretty refreshing, not heavily carbonated. The nachos were okay – pub nachos, you know the drill. At least the chips were quite crisp, and not in that stale-flimsy state that some nachos acquire.

Saturday our place

Okay so it wasn’t a restaurant meal however it is worth mentioning. In-laws came over for some pre-party sangaria and brought some very fresh oysters from Desolation Sound up the Sunshine Coast. MIL floured/egged/breaded some which I fried up and served with a squeeze of lemon. They crisped nicely outside, but remained soft and briney inside. Excellent.

They also brought some in the shell but sadly time didn’t permit. Even worse, I tried storing them in the fridge but by the next day, four out of five of them had opened and started releasing a funky odour, so I elected to not risk severe GI disorder and wished them a teary goodbye into the bin.

Saturday Fairmont Waterfront

Friends’ bon-voyage-pre-wedding-party, where we had drinks and hors d’oeuvres, then a sit-down meal, with buffet-style desserts, and many many drinks. I thought the Fairmont did very well.

Assorted passed HDs included micro-quiches, smoked salmon rolled in something like an egg tortilla if you can picture it, a couple canapés with artichoke and tomato/cheese, and a very fine prawn wrapped in spring roll and deep fried number that was my favourite. The bartender was mixing some killer rye and gingers, too.

Dinner started with a simple salad of baby greens in a cucumber ring with cherry tomatoes and chopped fruit (pear and dried cherrys IIRC). Actually this was the consensus course of the evening. The salad was so fresh, and the dressing was a very complementary but not overpowering vinaigrette. (Have I thanked God lately that the trend of raspberry vinaigrettes is over?) The fruit was a great touch, adding a lot to the salad.

My main was a beef tenderloin, seared nicely rare/MR, with something-mash (potatoes and something yellow) and yellow beans and asparagus. The something- in the mash may have been yellow beets, since there was a yellow beet (which some speculated was a turnip, but I don’t think so) on the plate as well. Accompanied by a red-wine pan sauce. The beef was very good, but the portion was a bit on the small side – maybe 4 oz or so. I know this is the gov’t recommended protein portion, but come on now. Penfolds Koonunga shiraz-cab to accompany.

N chose the salmon, which looked beautiful and made me wish I could re-choose.

Desserts were very chocolatey, for the most part not overly sugary (a good thing). The exception was the chocolate “fondue” which was to be ladeled onto pineapple chunks. Since the pineapple was already quite sweet, I thought that the chocolate could have been less so. There were assorted mousse cakes, but that's not my bag.

Jackson Triggs reserve cabernet stepped in for the duration of the evening. I requested and received Stairway to Heaven for the final song, but not many others seemed to appreciate it. Oh well, a fine meal, a fun time.

Sunday Risty’s

Next morning breakfast: coffee, Denver omlette, and a quarter of N’s clubhouse. Every time I make the mistake of not ordering the clubhouse, but I love breakfast and don’t want to sacrifice it for lunch. Waitress spilled a bit of coffee on my knee, too numb to feel anything except wet. More sleep required.

[chocomoo]

Thursday

Lunch @ Earl's Paramount with co-workers. I had the Santa Fe chicken salad, which was comprised of spicy cajun chicken, avocado, feta cheese, dates (praline-style), corn, & black beans, drizzled with a peanut lime vinaigrette. I expected the chicken to be more spicy, but it worked for me 'cause I'm a wimp when it comes to spicy things. It was tasty, but a bit overcooked - I would've liked it to be a bit more moist. I was surprised by the dates - I thought it would be like eating raisins in a salad (which I don't like), but I liked how the dates were caramelized. I couldn't really tell that the dressing had peanut & lime in it, but all in all, I really liked the salad. And it was HUGE!! I finished it all

Saturday

Dim sum at (I still haven't found out the English name) Yook Ting Heen in Richmond. We had prawn spring rolls with minced garlic (crisp prawns & the minced garlic was a nice touch), "gon so" (translation=dry flakey?) savoury pastries filled with pork & something (Chinese mushrooms?) topped with a sprinkling of sesame seeds, "cheung fun" (those flat steamed rice noodles) filled with abalone mushroom & cucumber (the oyster mushrooms were slightly sour, but my mom said they're "supposed" to be that way I don't like cooked cucumber - maybe it be better if they used "mo gua"?), fish maw with shrimp, steamed bbq pork buns, steamed sesame paste buns, & red bean "pancake".

Yesterday

Dinner at Octopus' Garden with a couple of highschool friends. Got caught up on the Magee gossip ("Did you know that so & so aren't friends anymore?") We shared 3 plates - Hot Hot Crab (deep fried soft shell crab), the Pavarotti (stir-fried udon with, in our case, a fried whole head of garlic), & the Skew (panko-coated beef tenderloin, deep-fried, surrounded by a slice of grilled eggplant & a few slices of grilled zucchini, served with a miso gravy. My favourite was the hot hot crab. It wasn't hot at all though, even though the menu said there were cajun (? I think, some kind of hot spice) spices in it. There was a deep-fried crisp garnishing it, which was good - light & not oily. The udon noodles were actually quite good as well - the noodles had a really nice chew to them. It was a bit awkward trying to smoosh the garlic out of the clove, which (of course) refused to break apart because of the skin/membrane holding it together. The Skew was ok - it arrived 20 minutes after our other 2 dishes though, & while the coating was light & non-greasy, the beef inside was overcooked & chewy (because of the deep-frying, I guess). The miso gravy was nice, although I thought it was going to be lighter (both in taste & colour). It was a bit richer & saltier than I would've liked.

All in all, I thought it was good, but overpriced. We each got about 1 small piece of whatever dish we ordered, save for the udon, which was also quite a small portion (at $15, I think it should've been double the size. I mean, how much can normal garlic cost?). I could've eaten way more, but couldn't really afford to. It was about $25 per person, including tax and tip. Dim sum the day before was about $8 per person, and I was really full - we even had leftover bbq pork buns & sesame paste buns. Yes I know it's not really fair to compare two entirely different cuisines & yes I know one was lunch & one was dinner, but whatever.

Anyway, afterwards we sauntered over to Deserts, where we all emjoyed some ice cream (2 of us had tiramisu My other friend had banana, which she thought was a bit too sweet).

edit: Ok, I'll compare Octopus' Garden to Hapa, Chopstick Cafe & Guu - I would've been way more full & happier at the izakayas for the same price...

seanw - Where's Samurai on Davie? Is it connected in any way to the Samurai on Cambie?

Edited August 22, 2005 by chocomoo (log)

[seanw]

chocomoo,

You should try Samurai sushi on Davie, its really cheap.

[kontemporary]

Err I'm not seanw but I can tell you that the Samurai on Davie and Cambie are completely different. The samurai on cambie is known for "big portions" and very poipular for takeout and platters, as I think most of their sushi has more fish than rice. The samurai next to Takis Taverna on Davie is not the same, but is a cheap place to get decent sushi. Packed with lineups most nights, so it will be a slight wait. Not as long as Stepho's though.

[ja_rtw]

Thnx for the supportive responses Gotta love how on the ball everyone here is with their assessments ! I do have an insatiable sweet tooth - and I will one day demonstrate that Asian desserts can and are great too !

Friday - house-warming BBQ, onto Cardero's for dinner - my first time there, we had a party of 10 and had to wait 30 minutes before we were seated, even with our reservations. Two appetizer margherita pizzas were presented when we sat down to appease our wait. Food wasn't particularly noteworthy but nothing to complain about - I had the wok calamari, slightly spicy and chewy. Friends reported very good things about the ribeye and the mussels - I did, however very much enjoy their bread ! And also their dark/white chocolate/almond mascarpone mousse torta was quite light and delicious.

Saturday - Bacchus Bistro - Domaine de Chaberton winery in Langley. What a great recommendation ! i definitely need to expand my eating radius to the suburbs, this made for a super fun day trip

- appetizer: Tarte Friande - onion, cream cheese, bacon on a light flaky pastry served with organic greens (excellent, sounds a lot heavier than it tasted - it wasn't greasy at all)

- entrees: duck with a red wine reduction and olive jus was superb - tender, tasty, juicy ( i usually prefer chinese style duck, but this great duck dish), veal medallions served with wild mushrooms in a white wine cream sauce was good, but i prefer my veal thickly cut and rare, this was too well-done for my taste, Salt Spring mussels Marniere style (tomato, herbs) finished with cream were very nicely done, plump fresh mussels in a light seafood/tomato broth

- desserts: NOW we're talkin ! when u first walk in, there's a table full of the desserts of the day, lol SOLD ! Tried the 'Floating Island" - a meringue with an almond maple syrup crystallized crust, served with a vanilla maple cream sauce was divine .. light fluffy meringue, in contrast to the crunchy sugar crust and the creamy sauce was a very satisfying end to a great meal !

Sunday - Shanghai River in Richmond, Westminster & No. 3 - Crab siu loong bao (juicy steamed dumplings), regular siu loong bao (pork filled), San cheen bao (juicy steamed pork filled buns), jellyfish, thick hand-made noodles with veggies & pork. The crab siu loong bao were good, you can definitely taste the crab, but at $2/dumpling it's pricey !! I think i enjoy the regular siu loong bao better, but the san cheen bao was above average standard. This place is super busy all the time - call ahead !

Edited August 23, 2005 by ja_rtw (log)

[PaoPao]

We decided to try having dinner at George on Hamilton. This place is beautiful. Great bar and the Yaletown Brick and Beam type modern decor. We chose to eat on their patio and enjoy the summer evening. We ordered 3 items, the Foie Gras which came with cherry compote and a banana / ginger bread type croutons. The second plate was the Wild Game plate that had a selection of three meats of which the only one I remember was the duck. The third plate we ordered a potato gratin. All 3 we're delicious, cooked just right. It was a really nice evening sharing drinks with my sweetie. I will be back but probably more for the drinks and atmosphere. The 3 tapas style dishes with two drinks came to a bit over $100. While delicious, I was still pretty hungry for what we paid.

The following night we had take-out from Capones located right next door to George. We have our favourites there which consist of mainly the large Spinach and Bacon salad, and their antipasto platter for two. Decent value and a very tasty light dinner for us.

Brunch Sunday before my wife dragged me with her to get pedicures (ok, I admit I liked it) was at PHAT on Mainland close to Nelson. I had the Phat Turkey Club on Challa Bread with Avocado and the Challa French Toast. My wife had a nice portion of Smoked Meat with two poached eggs and a chocolate croissant. This place is my hands down favourite brunch place. Great portions, really tasty, and a nice little sunny patio to enjoy it on. Washed down with a couple large fresh squeezed OJ's, it just can't be beat. Better than Provence and Glowbal any day IMO.

Last night was an impromptu get together with our neighbour friends. By 10 pm everyone was getting a bit hungry so a decision was made for Tsui Heng Village window takeout on Davie and Granville. You know, for $4.50 a dish its a pretty good deal. We ordered the Black Pepper Beef, Curry Beef, BBQ Pork, and the Teriyaki Chicken. Brought it back and fed about 8 people with leftovers. Definitely a good choice after we put a nice dent in a bunch of beer in my fridge. The treat of the evening was when a good friend brought over a bottle of 1973 Bertani Amarone Classico Superiore. Probably not the best pairing with Tsui Heng but it was absolutely amazing.

[Ling]

Saturday night

I'm dating someone new! He took me first to Bayside Lounge (we could only find parking on Denman and it was getting late). We ordered some wine and a few cocktails (Mai Tais, Amaretto Sour) and he also had a Ten Inch Johnson (to drink...heh heh.) I had the crab cakes. They were just OK. Came with salsa.

Then we went to True Confections because I mentioned that I was a dessert freak. I had the Diplomat (not very good--at $6.75 for a paper thin slice, you'd think they could do better than cake mix and shortening "buttercream".) He had the cheesecake with the strawberry topping, but he wasn't very hungry so I ate that too.

Monday

I took my friend from Cali to Granville Island but we couldn't decide on what to eat for lunch, so we got these creamy Frap-like drinks from JJ Bean, glazed sour cream donuts from Lee's and I chose a bunch of deli meats from Oyama. My favourite was the Serrano ham. And then we took our food out to one of the tables outside and had our own little picnic.

[transfattyacid]

Some recent savagery .

The keg prime rib Keg size , garlic mash, some addictive crisp onions, horseradish and a little pot of gravy.

The wife in her pregnant state was craving steak, honestly Mr Wyles i did recommend HSG but she didn`t fancy going over the bridge for her Vitamin B12 and iron fix.

Plus i aint never been to the Keg. So i was quick marched down the hill to granville island.

You know what, the keg aint that bad eh ?.

My rib roast was just what i fancied , cooked a perfect medium rare and right tender with it . lovely flavour. i ate the lot.

The missus had her Newyork steak well done, just incase you were worrying that i`m not looking after her properly, she normally has it medium but she enjoyed it, and was pleased to get all those steaky nutrients down her.

Any one else here like the keg ? or is it just me being a savage ?

Burrito Bros Chicken quasidilla . 1st @ Yew .

You lot gave this place a right slating when it opened. Getting all up in it`s face about not being authentic enough , and not having its tortillas rolled right before your eyes by some octogenarian, hispanic, bearded woman, or some such nonsense.

Come the revolution you all will be straped to the windmill.

Now i`m no expert on ' Mexicanisms ' but, i AM an expert on ' sitting down with my wife on a lovely south facing patio to eat some thing very tasty on a sunny afternoon while some one else does the cooking and charging us a reasonable rate for doing so '.

* takes a breath *

and this place is right up there with the best of them for this .

Vera Burger " frank " burger .

The ultimate in savagery.

Gerald your a genius mate.

My boss treated all us 'monkey`s' the other day with one of these each .

Thanks boss that was right nice of you .

[tarteausucre]

Ah ... it's been a week of dining highs and lows (I won't report the significant lows that involved noshing at restaurants that really cater to those seeking quantity over quality):

La famille et moi decided to go to Raincity Grill to celebrate my mother's birthday. A few of us had the early prix fixe menu. I had a shrimp, cucumber, peashoots gazpacho; the others the grilled caesar salad. My father had the seared albacore tuna to start. The gazpacho was a refreshing start to a very pleasant meal. For mains, we had the seared salmon with blackbeans and asparagus, the ciocchetti, and the bison. I think we were all fairly satisfied with our choices; I thought the salmon was slightly overcooked for my taste but this seems to be a common complaint for me at most restaurants. For dessert, we had the blueberry semi-freddo - very nice indeed!

This week, I also went to Relish for the first time. It was an early Sunday meal so the restaurant was fairly quiet. Impressive decor. I had the tempura salmon sandwich with mixed greens and my friend had the vegetable panini. The rest of the menu did look tempting though. I thought the food rose slightly above similar casual establlishments since the menu had slight creative leanings above the usual crowd pleasers.

Finally, checked out the new Lolita's on Davie. I was most impressed by this restaurant, especially given that it just opened. The place was packed and the vibe was palpably upbeat. Bodes well for their future success. I had the beef taquitos and my friend had the bbq pork with plaintains and black bean rice. The meal was scrumptious indeed! The food came with little delay and the service was pleasant. We then grabbed a chai and headed to the beach to enjoy the sunset. It was a perfect Vancouver summer's night.

[seanw]

TFC,

Genius?(no disrespect intended, just respect for the definition)

Enjoyed the weekend up in Pemberton @ Helmers farm, wonderful people, scenery & experience . All part of slowfood cycle sunday.

[Chocoholic]

Lots of eating, little time to write about it...

In fuzzy chronological order with more detail for the fresher ones.

Ouisi with the wife and child. An old neighborhood favorite. Quite some time ago, details are vague.

C with my regular dining buddy. We had never been before and felt like splurging so we went for the tasting menu and the wine pairing. We were seated on the patio next to a slightly drunk American couple who proceeded to share intimate details of their family life with us. The barrage of stories and offers to buy us bottles of wine (our table was generously covered in wine glasses already) was amusing but distracting, I remember little of the actual food. Our server was tactful enough to seat us separately once it was time to move inside after which we were able to concentrate on the rest of the food which was spectacular.

Vij's, I wrote about that in a separate Vij's thread.

Last week some time: Cactus Club in Yaletown with a friend who really likes to go there for some reason. It may have something to do with the models/waitresses. The food was pretty decent however, although it was more of a booze exercise than a dining experience. I remember having quite a few spiked frappucinos and various other alcoholic concoctions.

Last Friday night: Memphis Blues, Connie went out on a girl's night so I put the little one on my shoulders and walked over to MB. He loves that place and sits patiently in his booster chair while waiting for the food. I got a pulled pork/sausage combo, when I put it on the table Kai's eyes opened wide and he yelled 'SAUSAGE!', much to the amusement of our fellow carnivores. He then proceeded to dig into the food with the fervor of a starved linebacker, frequently offering bits of sausage to the people at the table next to us. He also discovered the dipping sauce which caused a frenzy of paper towel action from his dad. We walked home, tummies happy, stopping by Mac's across the street for some ice cream…

Saturday: we walked to MEC for some hiking gear purchases and on the way back popped into Banana Leaf. The Roti Canai are criminally addictive and dipping them into the various curry sauces is food perfection. I had the Beef Rendang, Connie had the black cod with sambal sauce. Jr. munched on pieces of fish, Rendang and enjoyed his banana leaf wrapped coconut rice. Much comfort was had by all.

Sunday: fish 'n chips at a little place on the White Rock boardwalk. Big chunks of cod in crispy batter with fries and tartar sauce. Calorie heaven! We all did lots of munching and finger-licking. We then spent the rest of the afternoon on the tidal flat watching Jr. doing large scale mud excavation.

Yesterday: Blue Water Café with a coworker from our UK studio. It was the first time there for me and I was very impressed. I had the duck prosciutto and beet salad followed by the ahi tuna. My friend had a half dozen oysters and the sablefish. We also had a bottle of Burrowing Owl chardonnay, light and crisp which worked well with the food. Our server was great, she was very knowledgeable both about the food as well as the wine and had a great sense of humor. It is funny how much a good server enhances your dining experience. I will definitely go back there.

[mkjr]

Lunch on Thrusday at Second Avenue Deli. Opted for the unhealthy but oh so tasty pastrami on rye - walked it off while at the Barney's warehouse sale. Dinner on Thursday at Babbo. Everything was fantastic, including the warm lamb's tongue vinaigrette with hedgehogs, and a 3-minute egg, the grilled octopus with "Borlotti Marinati" and spicy limoncello vinaigrette, and of course the beef cheek ravioli with crushed squab liver and black truffles....[salivating]...advice of others to order this item paid off. The portions were very large and the beef cheeks were split three ways with enough for each of us. Fantastic value!!!! A hot dog and papaya drink for lunch on Friday at Papaya King on East 86th and Lexington (the hot dog was great – staff was very interesting (read – do not slow me down by not reading the menu before ordering)) Dinner Friday night at Blue Water Grill in Union Square – lively room and good oysters from Vancouver (odd that one would need to go to NYC to order such an item). Lunch on Saturday at the Burger Joint in the Le Parker Meridien hotel http://www.parkermeridien.com/burger.htm. It is funny how many people ask for the milkshakes when they clearly do not serve them until after 1:30 p.m. (although the little menu in the link says 3 p.m. - which appears dated - although staff is very polite when they say "no you may not have a milkshake"). Great all around burger and fries. Walked down to the Shake Shack in Madison Square after lunch but decided not to get another burger to compare with the Burger Joint as we did not want to spoil dinner - decided to go for a custard shake only - boy was that a good idea. Dinner later on Saturday night at Per Se . I chose the nine course sampling menu (with two “extra” dishes not listed along with the chocolates, truffles and macaroons) and my wife chose the five course menu (she ended up getting three extras along with chocolates, truffles and macaroons) - we did this at the French Laundry a few years back and that way you end up tasting close to 20 different dishes (a very good idea if you are the sharing type) – and every single dish stood out from most things I have had over the past 2 years. Saw the cost on the Visa bill (glad that days of $1.00USD = $1.50CDN are past for now) and it was worth every penny - it was the most I have ever spent for dinner for two and I will likely never exceed this amount again - well never say never. What a great room for dinner!!! Dinner started at 9:00 p.m. and ended at 12:30 a.m. Ordered the Nicolas Joly Clos de Bergerie which almost went with every dish - was a steal at US$80. I think my blood congealed while I slept from the richness of the prior days eats. We moved very slowing the next morning. Sorry for listing more than the last three.... ...but there was too much not to include.

Edited August 24, 2005 by mkjr (log)

[kurtisk]

Went to Go Fish! today, and had a kick-ass Fish Taco. Pretty damn incredible.

Last night we went to Bin 942 (a Tuesday night tradition amongst us around here) and had mostly drinks, but we did have the Navajo Fry Bread with goat cheese & salsa. I always burn my fingers on the bread 'cause I just can't wait for it to cool down before I dig in.

We went to Hell's Kitchen on Monday for lunch, had a pizza with chicken, double-smoked bacon, roasted corn & tomatoes. We were rather impressed with the quality and execution, a bottle of Sol washed it down perfectly.

[nemissa]

I'm back home in Vancouver after a school term, and I miss the food in Vancouver! Every time I come home I try to visit all my favorite places, fit in some new ones, and still eat my mother's home cooking... Not an easy task

So far I've gone to Kintaro twice for ramen, which is the best ramen I've had in North America. I ordered miso ramen both times, with extra bean sprouts and wakame. I wasn't brave enough to try to cheese ramen...

Had a lunch of Hainanese chicken rice and rice noodles with fish balls a few days ago at the Mui Garden in Richmond. It seems like in the few years I was gone they became health-conscious and the rice that came with the Hainanese chicken no longer glistens with chicken fat Still good, though. They claim that they fly in the fish balls from Hong Kong, and while they have excellent texture they're pretty tasteless. Had dinner some other night at Norboo. The seafood hotpot is amazing, but the bibimbap is not so good.

Went to Vij's tonight after hearing about it for years including from a picky professor at the university. We ordered the quail cake, the mutton kebabs, the kale/chickpea curry, and the venison. The food is really delicious and if I ever live in Vancouver for a good length of time again I'll definitely make a repeat visit.

Delizioso on Granville and 65th is still my favorite gelato place. I love the Asian flavors like black sesame and durian (which is exactly like eating a piece of durian... mmm). This time I had lychee (really fragrant and tastes like lychees), durian, and whiskey gelato.

I've been on a caffeine binge---can't resist all the coffee shops in everywhere! Interestingly many of my Ontario friends know about two intersections in Vancouver even though they've never been: Hastings & Main, or the drug capital of Canada, and Robson & Thurlow, or "Starbucks & Starbucks" I've made it to Caffe Artigiano (Kerrisdale, across from Vancouver Art Gallery), the Elysian Room, and JJ Bean (Commercial Dr) so far. I was shocked to discover that there are now 5+ coffee shops on 41st Ave. in Kerrisdale (2 of which are Starbucks) and more on W. Blvd..

I'm going to gain at least 5lbs in Vancouver...

[Foodie in Vancouver]

We may have 5 coffee places in Kerrisdale but we have no where non-sushi to eat. Surely a community that can support 5 coffee shops and at least 6 sushi places deserves somewhere reasonable to eat?

[snacky_cat]

Just got back from another fine wine tasting at the HSG, this night being a special edition to raise $$$ for Cops for Cancer. Enjoyed the fine company of Mamacat, Mr Cat and Vancitygirl (great website, by the way, girl!), and the emceeing of Edible Vancouver Eric.

Had a Hawthorne Mountain Pinot Gris paired with a delicious fried oyster (in the yummy cornmeal batter that adorns the fish of the 'fish and chips' on the menu). Followed that with a Sumac Ridge Gewurtztraminer and a goat cheese soufflé with Raincoast Crisps, which turned out perfectly, to Chef Neil's delight. Even Mr Cat, an avowed goat cheese hater, scarfed down the whole thing with much aplomb. Finished up with a Jackons Triggs Private Reserve Merlot - a 2002, which was a yummy year indeed. Paired wth a beef tenderloin - for what would a visit to the Hammie be without some cow? - atop a polenta ckae and grilled zucchini, all topped with a veal reduction. And, of course, the evening ended with some GBP.

A couple of nights ago was Lolita's, which you can read about in the thread devoted to this delightful, if un peu cher, neighbourhood joint.

Some random breakfasts and lunches in there takes us back to last Friday, and a dinner at Guu in Gastown with Mr Cat. Enjoyed most of the same menu items as my visit with Mooshmouse and *Deborah* shortly before, with the addition of the BBQ Beef Kalbi - a big skewer of cow-y yum. Heavy on the beef, light on the veggies - as it should be. Unfortunately they were out of the Super Happy Pudding (which, I finally realized the other day, is basically Creme Catalan - official dessert of Barcelona), so we had the Matcha Ice Cream, with a dollop of red bean paste on top.

[mamacat]

Snacky-cat has been holding out on me! I discovered the Chili Pepper House at Rupert & Kingsway last week thanks to a surprise invite from papacat and what a discovery it was. Best described as Chinese/Indian fusion, it was fantastic. From the tasty combo pakora's through a wonderful ginger garlic chicken to the Haaji prawns, the entire meal was a delight.

From the sublime to the mundane - going away lunch for a co-worker yesterday at Red Robin (oh shame...I can't even bold it) where I had a veggie quesadilla that was mediocre to say the least.

Back to the sublime at the Hamilton Street Grill wine tasting last night. Snacky-cat has already described everything in detail so I will just add my congratulations to Chef Neil on another wonderful sampling. He gets more kudos for his efforts on behalf of Cops for Cancer...good on 'ya Neil!! It is so nice to see local entrepreneurs getting involved in such good causes.

By the way, I had a call from the NYC tourists that Snacky-cat and I recently hijacked from another restaurant and took to the Hammie for GBP. They loved it! We had recommended that they try the Parkside the next night which they did and enjoyed it tremendously. It would seem that Vancouver has two new foodie fans.

[Zucchini Mama]

UBC Farm Tasting Menu at Provence

Tonight my son and I headed for a special treat: the UBC farm menu at Provence. We took advantage of the lovely evening and had a seat on the patio. Surrounded by hanging baskets, we were somewhat sheltered from the street and had the patio to ourselves. I ordered the tasting menu with a UBC salad to start, and the Monashee Range Pork Rack Chop with a BC forest mushroom demi-glace.

I ordered pommes frites to appease U., who was happy to gorge himself on the lovely slices of warm baguette. I scarfed a couple of fries, and they were good-well-salted, golden brown, and the right amount of starch.

The salad was fine-a light vinaigrette on greens, tomatoes and cucumber slices, with a nice bit of arugula in the greens. I've had much better varieties of tomatoes though, especially from Nat Bailey at Klipper's this week.

The pork chop was huge, an inch thick with a lot of fat-"rustic". It was not very tender, but I don't mind chewiness when chewiness is due. The meat itself wasn't that flavorful, although better than the average pork chop. The demiglace was gorgeous, (a bit stingy on the morels, but oh well) with red wine, onions, and herbs de Provence. I would have loved mashed potatoes to go with this instead of the boiled ones, which couldn't soak up the sauce. The broccoli did soak it up and that was the best broccoli I have ever tasted. You could really taste the sweetness in the variety. Anyhow, there was also kale, which was a lovely emerald green but it was almost too chewy to eat.

I kept asking the waiter questions about the menu and he kept saying, "I think so... I'm not sure... Clearly he was not a food-obsessed human, such as the members of the eGullet tribe. Then he forgot to mention the Cotes de Provence Rosé was unavailable (Zut alors! Maybe due to the container strike) so I ordered the Gamay Noir from Burrowing Owl which tasted flat because it needed to be a bit cooler than it was. (I know, I'm very fussy about my wine temps.) I wish they had some local pinks like Gray Monk Rotberger which I love.

The dessert stole the show: Fennel Panna Cotta sweetened with blackberry flower honey with a bit of rhubarb compote, garnished with flower petals and the biggest, plumpest blackerries I've ever seen. Now we're talking! A summery creamy piece of HEAVEN on earth. I was happy to recommend that to the people who sat down beside our table as we were leaving.

So the waiter was saying you can somehow mix the fixed menu with the a la carte menu. He did not explain that to me when I ordered. He said people are ordering about %50 fixed and the other %50 a la carte. He said it's been a very successful promotion, and it is on until the end of August. In retrospect I was really wishing for a vegetarian option and would have loved something like gnocchi with the mushroom sauce instead of the pork chop. It would have been nice to have a flyer about the farm, so people could become aware of it and it's impending fate. (Due to be developed and turned into luxury condos in 2112.) I'm hoping there will still be a way to save the farm, and strengthening ties to local restaurants will certainly help. Sage Bistro on campus also serves UBC produce.

I remember reading an article once about a bistro in England that "commissions" produce from local farms-which I think is a great idea, and would be wonderful for UBC. This way the chef can be very creative and design the menu before the seeds are even in the ground. I've recently found a great web site called farmtotable.org which looks at the relationship between farmers and restaurants, and reprints some of the best articles on relevant subjects. I also stumbled upon chefscollaborative.org which is of the same ilk.

Ciao for Now,

Zuke

[Vancitygirl]

Just got back from another fine wine tasting at the HSG, this night being a special edition to raise $$$ for Cops for Cancer. Enjoyed the fine company of Mamacat, Mr Cat and Vancitygirl (great website, by the way, girl!), and the emceeing of Edible Vancouver Eric.

Had a Hawthorne Mountain Pinot Gris paired with a delicious fried oyster (in the yummy cornmeal batter that adorns the fish of the 'fish and chips' on the menu). Followed that with a Sumac Ridge Gewurtztraminer and a goat cheese soufflé with Raincoast Crisps, which turned out perfectly, to Chef Neil's delight. Even Mr Cat, an avowed goat cheese hater, scarfed down the whole thing with much aplomb. Finished up with a Jackons Triggs Private Reserve Merlot - a 2002, which was a yummy year indeed. Paired wth a beef tenderloin - for what would a visit to the Hammie be without some cow? - atop a polenta ckae and grilled zucchini, all topped with a veal reduction. And, of course, the evening ended with some GBP.

←

Snacky cat was dead on with the commentary on Hamilton Street Grill. Great to meet the cat family and share some wine and food talk. Eric from Edible Vancouver was a great additon with his wine commentary. He is certainly up to some cool stuff. Wish I was a whisky drinker! See his site for details - Edible Vancouver. Must go back to see Neil for the GBP and hanger steak some time soon. Had to leave early to hit Capones 12th year anniversary party. Good drink - passionfruity martini.

Other restaurants lately included the Grammercy Grill last night. I practically live there and ever since they welcomed young chef Nick to the kitchen I have been exptremely pleased with my meals. The spinach salad with pecan encrusted portobellos, thinly sliced proscetto and a warm tomato dressing is spectacular. They have great specials, so I always go for something different. Yesterday it was the duck breast with a salad of cherry tomato and sharp cheese. Very good. I drank the Gray Monk Pinot Gris - not a traditional pairing, but it had enough guts to get me throught the meal.

Last weekend we did Whistler. Had breakfast both days at the Marriott hotel (hey it was free) that was mostly bread and hard boiled eggs. They did have a cool make your own waffle thing, but they really weren't that great. Dinner first night at Caramba. Really good pan fried calamari, with a garlic mayonaise. I order a muscle and tomato pasta dish, and my companion the ahi tuna. Tuna was apparently tasty, but the past was so boring I tried to add some of the mayonaise from the appetizer to the dish to create something edible.

Next night fared much better at the Bearfoot Bistro. Markus from Cru restaurant - he won the server of the year from Vancouver magazine last year - is now a Whistler resident and, although I will miss him here, it was great to see a familar face and receive top quality service. Thanks for the BC Bubbly and making us feel like queens! Highlights were the Pinot Noir blue stripe label from Blue Mountain. I had a wonderful scallop and pork belly appetizer and the lobster trio for dinner. My companion did a salad and the beef tenderloin followed by some wonderful chocolate brownie and sorbet. Very pricey, but we had done the 5 peaks trail run (10 km with an elevation climb of 1600 meters) so we felt we deserved it.

Yesterday I had sushi at the place across from the Bread Garden on first. I keep going there because I work upstairs and everytime I swear it will be the last. This time, I think I mean it. Worth a drive down Broadway to Hoshis, which I will do next time for sure!

This week the Queen of Cuisine is back in town, so I look forward a repeat visit to Phnom Phen, checking out the Richmond Market, dinner at Nu and dim sum. Better stay home and save up my money for some decadence!

Edited August 27, 2005 by Vancitygirl (log)

[Ling]

Wednesday night

I can't believe I'm admitting this on Egullet, but I ate the $3.95 breakfast special at Bino's in Burnaby after much arm-twisting by my friend who's leaving for Regina soon. He's a big Bino's fan from waaaay back (to quote him: "Where else can you get a big plate of greasy diner food for 4 bucks AND get to dine next to hookers?!!!!") so another friend of ours got him a custom-printed t-shirt with the Bino's logo on it! And of course, he wore it proudly on Wednesday night, to the amusement of our server. There were seven of us and we all ordered the 4 dollar breakfast special (2 eggs, sausage or bacon, toast and hashbrowns or pancakes). The food was as tasty as it looked. Actually, I don't know which was more disgusting--the food, or the sight of my friend's bare ass when he mooned me on the drive home. (And did you know you can order wine for $3.50 a glass to complement your meal at Bino's? I did not take them up on that offer.)

Friday night

Rare steak and tripe pho at Pho Lan in Richmond with my best friend. We used to come here every week after class a few years ago. Ahhh memories. We ate a cheap dinner, so I didn't feel too bad when we went to Richmond Center afterwards and I blew $200 on a skirt.

Saturday night...well, Sunday morning

I had a pretty late date and the movie ended at 12:30a.m., and there wasn't much choice as to what was still open in Richmond. We checked both Cactus Club and Sammy J's (both closed) and so we went to Boston Pizza I had the shrimp and cheese stuffed mushroom caps and a glass of Chardonnay from Jackson-Triggs. He had some girly frou frou margarhita...I think it was mango. He told me how he just put an offer in for a new condo and said he would want me to help him choose his new kitchen appliances if he got the place! And we are cooking dinner together at his (current) condo later on in the week!

Edited August 28, 2005 by Ling (log)