The Muse bistro and winery

We arrived here today at 11:30 to be the first lunch guests. Located at Victoria, close to the ferry terminal(about a 10 min drive). Menu is simple and priced competitively.

We ordered both the sandwiches on the menus, chicken and vegetarian. each is served with the soup of the day potato peek with bacon.

The soup was creamy and flavorful. we love the vegetarian flathread as of was toasted to perfection and the combination of peppers and avacados was delish.

All in all food was good, and the best part was the scenery.

La Hacienda

We happen to be in Everett this day and was looking for a quick bite to eat. This place was located close to Trader Joes.

First impressions say everything. The decorations are dated. The atmosphere feels like they were trying too hard to be authentic.

Second impressions solidify our review. We ordered a pulled pork platter with refried beans and rice. This platter was brought to our table in less than 10 minutes. The pork looked like it had been reheated many times or sitting under a heatlamp. Atleast the flour tortillas were fresh. The rice was dry and the refried beans were fairly tasteless. The pork would have been better if it was not so dry from the reheating.

What we liked:

• fast service and VERY large portions
• kid friendly restaurant with lots of space.
  

What we did not like:

• mediocre food and reheated mains.
• food was plain and had no depth to the flavour

Would not recommend this place. Food is bland, salsa is not spicy at all. If you want a meal that will fill you up then this is the place, but don't expect to get an authentic meal.

Aqua Riva

Aqua River, 200 Granville st

Located beside Canada Place, this long time restaurant has been part of the waterfront mainstay for over 10 years. Despite some dated decor and seating, the restaurant was spacious and welcoming on a Friday afternoon.

The lunch menu offered a lot of variety:


Steamed clams and mussels with greens. I substituted the salad for fries. The clams and mussels is steamed in a mildly spicy chili lemongrass broth. The broth is flavorful as a soup by itself or with bread.


Seafood Paella with scallops, clams, prawns and wood grilled seafood sausage. The saffon rice was seasoned perfectly. In addition the plentiful seafood made this a very satisfying dish.

Wood Grilled Wild Salmon with fennel potato gnocchi and asparagus. The gnocchi was outstanding. Most gnocchi I have tasted is plain and flavored with sauce. This gnocchi had the fennel flavor combined in the flour and was slightly charred to bring out its flavor.

Strawberry shortcake with white chocolate ice cream and chocolate whip cream. The ice cream and the whip was delicious. the shortcake was a bit on the dry side.

What we liked:

• The large seating area and quite ambiance
• Attentive and fast service
• Large portion sizes and properly seasoned food at reasonable prices. Mains vary from $13 to $20
  
• Harbor view. On a sunny day this would be a beautiful spot to lounge around and catch up with friends
  

What we did not like:

• Dated decor. Definitely needs and update to compete with newer restaurants such as Market by Jean-Georges, which also caters to the same office crowd.
• Paper lined tables. This practice always annoys me and it make we feel like I am having picnic in the park, instead of dinner at a good restaurant. Please just wash your table cloths.
  

In general, this was a good experience and I wouldn't mind coming back here. The waitress did say they were going to close soon, so take advantage of the dine out this year as this restaurant will probably not be here in a few months.

Downtown street vendors : Fresh Local Wild

One of the newest additions to the downtown street vendor scene. Opened just this Thursday October 21st, they are located on the corner of Granville and Robson, across from future shop. It is open Tuesday to Saturdays.

The offerings:
Salmon Burger $8
Fried Oysters Po-boy $10
Venison burger $9
add fries for $2
add poutine for $3

We ordered the venison burger with poutine.




The burger is fresh grilled and served on a whole wheat bun. Perfectly seasoned and the patty is juicy when we bite into it. The burger holds together well and is served with some lettuce.

The poutine. Loved the chantrelles and fresh cheese curds. The gravy was thick but not overly salty.

What we like:

• fresh chantrelles on the poutine. This is a winner. The poutine by itself is a good bargain at $5. These will definitely sell given the cold weather.
  
• Burger bun is firm so that it does not fall apart when you eat it, venison is juicy, flavorful but not gamey.
• High quality ingredients is definitely worth trying once.
  

What we did not like:

• Spending $12 for a burger and fries. Given that we are standing on the corner of a street, paying close to $10 for the burger, not including fries, is just a bit steep.
  
• There are comparable food choices such as Japadog and Viet Sub just a block away that charges at least $2-$3 less and offers seating for patrons.

Downtown Street Vendors: The Re-Up BBQ

The Re-Up BBQ - Corner of Georgia and Hornby St.



This is one of the many street vendors that have been popping up in downtown Vancouver. A refreshing change from the regular hotdog stands. This stand serves pulled pork sandwich with coleslaw. Every day around noon time you will see a lineup of around 10 plus people. We decided one day to find out why this was so popular.


The pulled pork sandwich with coleslaw costs $6., with HST this comes to $6.75. Although not cheap by street vendor standards, they make up for it with a generous serving of pulled pork. The pork is chunky and infused with the spiciness of paprika.

Apparently the barbecue sauce and coleslaw is vegan, ironically this sandwich is nothing but meaty. We love the addition of the coleslaw for texture.

Our Verdict:

• Location: Prime location beside the art gallery
  
• Price: Slightly expensive. For the same price we could get 2 Vietnamese subs
  
• Flavor : Nice change from the regular hotdog stands, but lacks variety. They only have 1 style of the pulled pork sandwich. With more variety this will definitely become a downtown staple, especially for the meat lovers out there.
  

G-men

Gmen. 1101-3778 Sexsmith Rd, Richmond


This restaurant is the sister restaurant to Gyoza King downtown. We have always been fond of Gyoza king, so we were very excited to be able to try this place.

The counter area is made to resemble a Ramen stand. This small restaurant has enough room to sit only about 20 people at 1 seating. We were lucky that when we visited this place that it was not too busy.


ToriGara Shio Ramen. The black fungus adds a crunchy touch. The lighter chicken broth is a good choice for lunch. Uses the same ramen noodles as Kintaro. What we do like is the flavor of the soup. Portion sizes are larger than Benkei and Menya, and comparable to Motomichi.


ToriGara Shoyu Ramen: Extra large and with extra egg. This is the Japanese version of the extra large pho noodle. This was served in a bowl the size of a small wash basin! Served with 1.5 times the amount of noodle, this is a pretty impressive bowl to consume. We were the only table to order this. Needless to say we got a few stares when they were bring over the noodle. We loved the flavor of this soup. Deep flavor but not overly oily. Most importantly is that the MSG factor is low.



Takoyaki. This tastes good, but would have been better if it was made to order. Seems like this was made before hand and reheated. Slightly disappointing.

Our Verdict:

• Good location outside of downtown. This strip mall is busy during lunch hour with its highly concentrated number of restaurants. Be prepared to wait.
  
• Price: Very reasonable size and portions. Price point is cheaper that most of the restaurants located downtown. Restaurant is small and will not be able accommodate large groups.
  
• Service is fast. We were able to be in and out in an hour.
  
• Offers dry ramen that is more unusual. Would love to come back here again
  

Santoka Ramen

Santoka Ramen on 1690 Robson Street, Vancouver.

Serves Hokkaido style ramen. Opened recently in May, this restaurant is the current popular joint for the ramen loving crowd. The broth is richer and thicker than most of the other Ramen restaurants. They also offer Ramen plus rice bowl combos. The noodle here is thinner than the noodle used by the other restaurants such as Kintaro, Motomach Shokudo and Gmen


Small size Shoyu Ramen: 7.95. This smaller size noodle is still surprisingly filling and rich. The noodle has bite. Served with 2 pieces of char siu and some bamboo shoots and seaweed slice. The char siu is not as tender as the ones served at Benkei, but the broth is definitely more complex and milky.



Toroniku Shio Ramen: 12.95 . A deluxe ramen with a fatty pork jowl meat as the accompaniment. As delicious as the 50/50 fat to meat ratio is, this dish is not for a small eater. I found this very heavy and rich.


Gyoza. Nice grilled crust, not not quite as flavorful as some of the other locations we tried.

Our Verdict:

• Central location, upscale decor
• Price: Expensive. A good $1 to $2 above comparable restaurants
  
• Has rich and deep flavor. Large portions and we like that you can choose the sizes. We love the thin and chewy noodle, but find the soup base too heavy for our tastes.
  

Singapore Hawker Delights

A variety of foods that I had while visiting Singapore. There was so much food and so little time.


Roast Chicken Wings, Singapore style. Unlike regular chicken wings, this is flavored with the same spices as the dried pork jerky that is so popular in Singapore. First time I have tasted chicken wings that was so unique. Loved every bite.


Singapore style Ba Kut Teh. Pork ribs in herbal soup. Unlike the Malaysian variety, this is a clear broth, with a mild herbal taste.


Stir Fried Prawn Mee. Thick vermicelli with fresh shrimp cooked in shrimp paste. The Shrimp Paste infuses the whole dish. The banana leaf used to take out the noodles actually adds additional flavor too!


Curried Stingray with stir fried lady fingers (okra) and rice wrapped in banana leaf. This stingray was fantastic.


Chicken Ume R Burger with Lemongrass Ice Tea. A Japanese burger joint that opened in the heart of Singapore's shopping district. The bun is made with marine collagen. The bun is soft and moist. Shiso leaf layered with a slice of radish (daikon) and a chicken patty with plum sauce. This is a perfect Japanese burger, light and perfectly flavored. This was a fantastic find.

Malaysian Food Part 2

Curry Laksa. This is the authentic Laksa that is available at pretty much every marketplace. The thick broth is spicy more than creamy. Served with some fresh basil, the highlight is the clams and the fried bean curd. The bean curd absorbs the spicy soup and is delicious. The standard Laksa is made with a combination of two types of noodles, vermicelli and a yellow noodle. Other ingredients include curry chicken and bean sprouts.


Tom Yam Pan Mee : Flat noodles cooked in tom yam soup with imitation crab meat, fish balls and fish cakes. Tom yam is a more recent introduction into Malaysia. There is even tom yam ramen available in Japanese restaurants. Given that Malaysia is so close to Thailand, it is no wonder that it has become a more common staple. The flavor is spicy and sour, but the broth is light and not overpowering. The noodles are freshly made, and cooked just right, with a slight chewiness to the noodle.


Kam Heong Crab: Crab stir fried with salted egg yoke. Nothing taste better than fresh crab cooked with just ginger and spring onions... UNLESS it is made with salted egg yoke! I cringed at the first thought of this dish because salted egg yoke was NOT one of my favorites. However, this dish was absolutely fantastic. The salty egg yoke coats the crab in a light layer, and is a perfect complement to the natural sweetness of the crab.

Warning: you should NOT be worrying about you cholesterol while eating this dish.

Malaysian food galore

From a recent trip back to Asia I had just enough time to eat a little of everything. The select few that made this list are the ones that are impossible to find locally. I have yet to find an authentic Malaysian restaurant here. I would love to hear from anyone that knows of a place. Well until I do find one, I have only pictures to savor. Enjoy!


Mee Goreng Sotong:
Spicy stir fried noodles in soy sauce with cuttlefish and bean sprouts. A common local dish that can be made with any choice of meat. Mildly spicy.


Poori with curry chicken
Poori is another type of Indian flat bread. The curry is flavorful and full of spices. The curry has depth and a lot more spices than most curries you find locally. The spices, not the coconut milk, takes center stage. The 2 slices of poori are served with Dal, a lentil and curry sauce that is served with any Indian breads. The 2 slices of poori with Dal only cost about C$1, which is why I can never bring myself to order roti at the restaurants in Vancouver. Why do they charge me $2.50 for a tiny piece of roti?


Hainaneese Chicken Rice:
To those that know this, need I say more? The essence is in the the rice, made with chicken stock, ginger and other ingredients, this is a staple hawker store offering. There is steamed chicken as well as roasted chicken rice. Either way it is always good.


Claypot chicken rice
This is available at all food courts. The pot is heated on the fire with rice and any assortment of meat and soy sauce. Simple, and straightforward. The best part of this dish is the rice at the bottom of the pot. This soaks up all the sauces and tastes so good.

Ice Kacang
This dessert is straightforward. Shaved ice, mixed beans and jellies, drizzled with condensed milk and rose water. Every Asian country has its own version of shaved ice. I think the rose water is what makes it uniquely Malaysian.