Archive for July, 2009

Thomas Haas Patisserie Review – North Vancouver

July 21st, 2009

Thomas Haas Patisserie

Champagne Truffle Cake

Tucked away in a little corner atthe very end of a street in North Vancouver is Thomas Haas, one of the popular fine chocolatiers in Vancouver. His chocolates are sold at fine gourmet markets such as Urban Fare and Granville Island. His main store in North Vancouver is right across from Bodwell School Academy so you will often find the store filled with students in school uniforms. The interior design is pretty and the outdoor patio is extremely relaxing. The downside is that parking is limited as well as seating. The store gets full very fast. » More: Thomas Haas Patisserie Review – North Vancouver

Stepho’s Greek Taverna Review – Vancouver

July 20th, 2009

Stepho's Greek Taverna

In the heart of Davie Street, this has probably got to be one of the most popular Greek restaurants in Vancouver. Lineups start before the restaurant opens and last until it closes. They only take reservations if there’s a minimum of 6 people and everyone must show up within 15 mins of the reservation time. Because it is so insanely busy, service will definitely be slow and lacking at times. However, the food is damn delicious and the quantity is amazing. I ordered a chicken souvlaki which came with half a plate of rice pilaf, roasted potato, chicken skewer, greek salad, and pita bread. You’ll be guaranteed to leave full or overstuffed. It was only $7.95 too! Because it was super super dark in there, I wasn’t able to take any photos but it is definitely worth waiting in line for if you have to wait. I give this restaurant 8/10. Service was the only lacking factor. Otherwise, it’s excellent!!!

Kingspark Cafe Review – Vancouver, Richmond

July 20th, 2009

Richmond is home to many Hong Kong style cafes such as Kingspark. They are known for good cheap eats under $10. I frequent Kingspark since the menu selection, quality and value are excellent. Most menu items include a hot/cold drink as well at no extra charge! Most Hong Kong style cafes charge $1 extra for cold drinks. The parking may be a problem on the weekends but once you go in, it’s all good from there on. Most of the time you are seated and given hot tea right away. You will need a general idea of what you’d want to eat so that you can look for those options on the menu. Servers will then check back quickly to take your order so you can get your food quickly. Service can be prompt but also can be a little slow at times. I ordered preserved salted fish fried rice, my mom ordered thai style fried rice which is my top pick to share with my grandma, and my brother ordered a taiwanese style beef noodle. If you order baked stuff, be prepared to wait a little longer.

The fried rice is excellent value. It is enough to feed 2 people and it’s only $6.45! Don’t forget, that price includes a drink too! The fried rice was tasty and not greasy at all. My brother’s beef was tender and had good flavour. I would give this restaurant 8/10 stars. Quality and value is definitely there. As for service, like all HK style cafes, you’d have to demand it sometimes.

Excellent Tofu & Snacks Ltd. Review – Vancouver, Richmond

July 20th, 2009

Surprisingly Vancouver is extremely limited when it comes to going out for dessert. Something that I’m hoping will change quickly. Who can say no to desserts? I was given the difficult task of choosing a place for dessert. After some lengthy thinking, I was unsuccessful. I spent too much time pondering on cakes and ice cream. I totally forgot about chinese dessert! We went for one of my most favourite food items: TOFU!

Now if you haven’t tried it before, you may think it’s a pretty gross idea to have tofu for dessert but it’s completely not. We went to Excellent Tofu & Snacks Ltd. in Richmond. The moment you walk in, you will see that decor is not a priority but it’s not ugly enough to make you run. If you’ve been to Hong Kong, this place sort of has a Hong Kong feel. Their point is to not serve you decor but yummy treats.  They have many choices of toppings that you can have on the tofu plus you can choose to have it hot or cold. I prefer the plain one hot then load it with brown sugar and ginger syrup which is exactly what I ordered. When you think of tofu, you might think of eating a huge block of tofu but that’s not how it is. They have a huge pot of velvety soft smooth tofu and when you order, they use their specially designed scoop to “slice” thin layers of tofu into a bowl for you. On the days where you have a little extra room for dessert after dinner, definitely think of this as an option. Each generously sized bowl is only $2.75! That’s cheaper than going for cake or ice cream if you’re on a budget! I give this place 7/10 stars. Service is prompt but not over the top, and the quality and value is excellent.

Vegetarians, from the other point of view!

July 19th, 2009

I came across this on the internet today. Not saying that there is anything wrong with it, but here is a tongue in cheek short on vegetarianism, ;)

Trattoria Italian Kitchen Review – Vancouver

July 19th, 2009

Under the Glowbal Group, Trattoria and Italian Kitchen offer the same type of cuisine(Italian) in a hip and trendy setting but Trattoria is much more affordable. It has the open kitchen concept where we can see exactly what the chefs are doing and see our food as it is being prepared. We were greeted and seated promptly and within 10 minutes after ordering we got our food which was extremely fast for a restaurant like this. I was very hungry so I can’t complain I got my food too soon but it is a fine dining restaurant. I thought the food is supposed to come slowly so we have time to chat and enjoy the comfortable ambiance of the restaurant? I ordered a spaghetti with Kobe meatballs and my friend ordered a linguine with jumbo tiger prawns. The food was brought to our table by a very young individual. He forgot to offer us freshly grated Parmesan cheese. After we started enjoying our pasta, our server came over and asked if we wanted freshly grated Parmesan. A little too late, isn’t it? But at least he knew and he apologized for offering it a little late. » More: Trattoria Italian Kitchen Review – Vancouver

Lam Chu Kee Review – Vancouver, Richmond

July 19th, 2009

Lam Chu Kee is similar to the cuisine offered at Spicy Szechuan Restaurant which is family style Cantonese food. The decor isn’t the best but it’s not horrid either. I don’t have much memory of the first time I ate at this restaurant but I’m about to refresh my memory. We were running a little late so my brother and his wife took charge of ordering. We had sweet & sour pork, ginger & green onion chicken, fish & tofu claypot, mini plate of veggies(豆苗), mini plate of squid & veggie stir-fry, and dessert was on the house again. The sweet & sour pork tasted average to me. The chicken was tender but had a weird boiled aftertaste and they used too much starch for the sauce which coagulated quickly. I only ate two pieces of chicken due to the aftertaste. The fish & tofu claypot was good though. The fish was very smooth and tender. It had a good amount of fish, tofu, veggies, bbq pork. The squid was tender as well. I expected it to be rubbery. I think my favourite of the night was the mini plate of veggies. I didn’t really liked the dessert. It was some sort of chinese dessert soup which had tapioca and egg swirls in there. I love tapiocaand eggs but I didn’t enjoy the flavour of it too much. It was the yolk flavour to be exact. I may be wrong but most of the time when I have them, it’s just the egg white and not the yolk in there.

The bill came to approximately $70. The food was just okay, service was prompt and they even added more tea leaves to our teapot of weakened tea. Although we had 5 dishes, 2 of them were mini sized so I didn’t think $70 was a good value for the dinner. I would give this restaurant 5/10 stars.

Spicy Szechuan Restaurant 川味館 Review – Vancouver, Richmond

July 19th, 2009

This restaurant in Richmond is one of the usual dinner spots when my family visits. Although they say they specialize in Cantonese, Szechuan and Shanghai cuisine, by the menu offerings, it seems that it’s mainly Cantonese. They have a specials sheet which we usually order from then share the plates of food. We ordered one plate of stir-fried veggies, sweet & sour fish, deep-fried spiced chicken, shrimp & cashew stir-fry, and chinese meatballs in a claypot. Other than the plate of veggie, the portions seemed a little less than usual. The shrimp & cashew stir-fry was tasty and had a lot of crunchy texture. The crunchiness from the celery, cashews, baby corn, and shrimp created a well-rounded crunchy texture. The chicken looked dry but was actually tender and not dried out. I do not know the exact English name for the veggies but it is one of my most favourite kinds. Although the sweet & sour sauce for the fish was good, it wasn’t anything special. The fish was still smooth and perfectly deep-fried. At the end of the meal, we were served chinese dessert(red bean soup) which was on the house. It was bland, watered down, and thin in consistency. I finished it anyway. When I was eating, I noticed the food cooled down fairly fast shortly after it was brought to our table. It was not even really lukewarm. » More: Spicy Szechuan Restaurant 川味館 Review – Vancouver, Richmond

Dragon View Restaurant Review – Vancouver, Richmond

July 16th, 2009

Recently renovated and renamed, this restaurant is a popular dim sum destination in Richmond. On Saturdays and Sundays, if you don’t have a reservation, you will most likely not get a table unless you are willing to wait crazy lengths of time. This is one of my top picks for dim sum if that is what you are looking for. Although busy, the service is reasonably good, the dim sum selection is plenty, the quality of the food is excellent, and the prices are very affordable. On the weekdays, if you’re an early riser, there’s discount too! If you finish dining and leave before 12 noon, a 10% discount applies. How great is that? Two people average to about $18 with the discount already applied and you leave extremely full. With the quality, value and service this restaurant provides, it deserves a rating of 8/10 stars.

The Roost – Victoria, Sidney

July 16th, 2009

Choosing to eat locally grown or produced foods is always a great choice. Soon I hope to write more about the benefits of eating local (because there are many) so keep a look out for that post, but until then I just want to let you know about my new find.

The Roost is a farm right here in Victoria’s back-yard that is one of the only farms in Western Canada that grows and mills their own grain. They sell a wide variety of fresh baked products produced from their own grain, along with flour by the pound, and prepared food items too. I purchased a loaf of wholewheat bread there the other day which set me back $6 for a fairly good sized loaf of bread. It tasted pretty darn good and I’m just really happy to support local farmers when I can, so for me the $6 is worth the price. They have a pretty big selection of breads including low carb (vegan friendly!!), cheese and onion, and Focaccia. Often the loaves are sold out by later in the day, so if you have a favorite you can always place an order. The farm also serves breakfast and lunch such as soups and sandwiches (made on their own bread of course) neither of which I’ve tried yet, but I’ll get around to it for sure! » More: The Roost – Victoria, Sidney