Cafe Regalade

                                       Voulez-vous manger une superbe brunch aujourd'hui?

                         (translation: Do you want to eat a superb brunch today? lol!

                                       Just wanted to throw some French in there!)

Food:

Pork Confit Sandwich:  This was one of the specials of the day.  While waiting, I saw that someone had ordered it and it looked too darn good to pass up.  Luckily, I had persuayed one of my d.c's to order it and boy, did it not disappoint! The sandwich was beautifully presented - thick slices of tender seasoned pork laid diagonally atop a bed of cooked sauteed creamed spinach (?)  and garnished with finely-chopped cilantro.  The baguette was perfectly toasted and very fresh.  It was also served with a side of nicely-dressed salad and house-made (?) potato chips.

Basque Breakfast: 2 sunnyside up eggs, piperade, chorizo, aioli sauce.  A rather heavy, but flavourful and decadent breakfast.  What I loved most was that 2 (of the 5) accompanying slices of baguette were spread generously with a (seemingly yolk-based) aioli sauce.  The sauce and bread went so well together and though it is not the healthiest thing one can eat, it paired superbly well with the eggs, choirzo and piperade.  This was also served with salad and wonderfully-seasoned potatoes on the side.

Lyon Breakfast: 2 poached eggs, mushrooms, bacon, pearl onions, spinach, potatoes, red wine sauce.  Another well-executed breakfast entree.  I had only sampled a bit of this but I loved dipping and soaking the baguette in the sauce.

Fresh Pancake with Blueberries:  First five words that were overheard after a bite was taken out of this pancake: "Omg, TRY THIS!"  At first, we were a bit puzzled by the seemingly lack of blueberries; but low and behold, they were all nestled in the middle of the pancake.  This was the most delicious pancake any of us had ever experienced.  First off, not only was the thing as ginormous as a pancake can be, but it was thick. And dense...and moist...and simply irresistable.

just a fraction of the (most delicious) pancake (ever)

Service:

We arrived to a full house on a Wednesday at about 1 pm only to be greeted with a rather rude welcome (and this was after us having to flag down a server/host).  After telling the server that we had been standing at the front entrance for quite a while (with no greeting or acknowledgement), the server replied with, "well, we're full" in quite an unpleasant, standoffish manner.  Well, one of my dining companions is certainly one to not take any of this rubbish, so to speak. She immediately turned around to inform me of the server's blunt dismeanor.  We later suspected that the server had overheard us, for her attitude and demeanor had changed 180 degrees!

All in all, we didnt' receive (or expect) the best service but it was satisfactory.

Value:

Unbelievably reasonable - $3.95 for the pancake, brunch entrees range from $10-14

Ambience:

Loved the colorful hog statues and masks dispersed throughout the cafe, limited seating

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Overall:  9/10

Yay: Where (I mean, WHERE?) else, in Vancouver, can you find a place that serves an excellently-executed (key words) French breakfast, brunch (...lunch and dinner?) Prices are also ridiculously reasonable

Nay:  Not the greatest service, and I can envision the place being super busy come prime brunch and dinner periods

**Interesting fact: Sibling bistro to the ever-so-loved La Regalade in West Van.  No words necessary. Both bistros are two peas in a (perfect gastronomical) pod. Yup, I said it!

Romer's Burger Bar (Kitsilano)

nuts, donuts and a hunk of beef in between...

Food:



a half-consumed Mango Mint Iced Tea, an 'old-fashioned' root beer
 with pickles and nuts to boot

We started our gluttony-filled meal with a side of their Spicy Kosher Dill Pickles as well as a side of their warm, lightly spiced assorted Nuts (cashews, hazelnuts).  At $2 a pot, the pickles and nuts served as great munchies as we patiently awaited the arrival of our burgers.

Onions Rings & Poutine

For my main, it was a bit of a toss-up between the Wicked Deadly Cheeseburger and the Rodeo Star.  In the end, I opted for the latter: compelled by the immediate conjured senses produced by the tastes and smell of horseradish jack cheese and the applewood bacon.  Served on a warm and soft Brioche bun, the burger did not disappoint (though extra bbq sauce on the side would've been 10x better).  The beef was cooked just right and the patty itself was quite a hunk of a serving.  All in all, definitely an enjoyable burger.  For my next visit, I'm already thinking of tackling the  $20 Ultimate Kobe Classic, hehehe...

my 'Rodeo Star'

The one prominent limitation of Romer's is probably the fact that sides are not included with the burger.  Thus, it can be quite costly.  Regardless, I was happy that I had two dining companions with me on this night.  We shared the Onion Rings Dusted with Reggiano and the Poutine.  The onion rings were pleasurable for its extra crispy and crunchy exterior, accompanied with a tzaziki-like sauce.  Although they were quite skimpy on the portion (7 onions rings for $7? Not cool!) The poutine was satisfying, though I don't think I would order it again.  There was definitely a lack of cheese curds, the gravy was forgiveable but the hand-cut fries were good.

Drunken donuts...*drool...

A meal at Romer's would definitely not be complete without an order of their popular Drunken Donuts! Donuts are probably one of my most favourite sweets/desserts/guilty indulgences (if you must...) and to have them served with a trio of dipping sauces? Score! I strongly enjoyed all 3 sauces: kahlua nutella, limoncello and the maple whiskey.  In comparison to the famous mini donuts from the PNE (although the ones at Roger's Arena are pretty good too), the donuts at Romer's were crunchier and similar to a cake donut texture, as opposed to the softer and flufflier texture of the ones sold at the PNE.  I love both.  Afterall, a donut is a donut...is a donut.  Any donut is a good donut in my opinion (hehe!)

Service:

Friendly and attentive

Value:

Not the greatest, but keep in mind that you are paying for quality ingredients (burger-wise), not sure about the other items offered.

Ambience:

Pretty darn busy on a Tuesday night with an occupancy of about 80%.  They've got multiple tvs and a bar situated in the mid-front of the restaurant.  We were seated in a nice, spacious booth.  They've also got a pretty fancy vault downstairs for big parties and such!

Overall: 7.2/10

Yay: Come here for all-natural range-fed meats and their drunken donuts! Burger "pimpin" optional.

Nay: A little costly. Skimpy 'sides' portions.

**Interesting fact: Executive chef, Jim Romer (and owner, I presume) was formerly the exec. chef at Milestones for 20 years!

Zest Japanese Cuisine

peace and serenity coupled with sushi and sake...ahhh true bliss

Food:

Dishes that were devoured:

Wakame Sunonomo: Seaweed and cucumber dressed in a light, tangy and uber refreshing vinegarette. The wakame was chopped up differently here and Scoe described it as tasting so fresh, it tasted as if it was just harvested from the ocean, right behind the restaurant, lol.

Spinach Gomae: Lightly dressed in an "original blend of saiyo miso and sesame paste", foodmatik appetizer staple

Tuna and Salmon Sashimi: Sockeye salmon and albacore salmon - freshness at its best

Tuna Takaki Salad: a generous amount of nicely-seared tuna sitting below a bed of fresh greens with a delicious miso-type dressing with a strong wasabi kick! Loved the dressing.

Tuna Amigos Roll: My favourite of the rolls - a Zest original spicy tuna roll with a homemade miso-based spicy sauce.  Coated in crispy flakes of tempura batter throughout - spicy, crunchy, soft flavours all in one roll!

Soba Crab Rolls:  Most unique rolls of the night. Buckwheat noodles and crabmeat wrapped in seaweed and deep-fried, served with a sauce similar tasting to tempura sauce.  Loved the uniqueness, crunchiness and distinct appearance to the roll, disliked the semi-tasteless aspect of it

Crunchy Ebi Avocado Roll? (cannot recall actual name): Listed on specials menu.  Nicely-battered and deep-fried ebi (prawn) roll and topped off with slices of avocado.  One can never go wrong with this combination!

Special Honey Pork Roll? (cannot recall actual name): Listed on specials menu. Honey-marinated pork roll with slices of mango (or egg) on top (can't believe I don't remember! :( ). The roll itself was ok - I like fusion but definitely think that pork and sushi should not be paired together, lol

Service:

Pleasantly warm and genuinely friendly service

Value:

Prices are on the higher end, but still more affordable than restaurants of similar calibre - e.g, Tojo's, Miku

Ambience:

Loved the serene and elegant ambience coupled with dim lighting and tables fancily clad in white table cloth, good thing we made reservations as we were seated in a very spacious corner window booth :)

Overall: 8/10

Yay:  Come here for fine, modern Japanese cuisine,  warm and genuine service, quiet neighbourhood, parking in back,

Nay:  Higher-end Japanese cuisine = $$

Rocky Mountain Flatbread Co.

After watching the pizza episode on the Food Network's The Best Thing I Ever Ate, my dining companion and I had the immediate urge to go and grab ourselves some delicious pies of our own!  Looking to fill this instant craving of ours (oh, the effects of TV!), we wound up at one of the better places in town for pizza - Rocky Mountain!

Food:

We ended ordering a reg. size of the 'Classic' and the 'BBQ Pulled Pork' pizza.  In reality, one pizza would've been sufficient because we weren't particularly hungry at the time.  Needless to say, I love variety and have really been loving bbq pulled pork lately :)

Rocky Mountain prides themselves on offering homemade, hand-crafted flatbread pizzas whilst using local and organic ingredients.  Both pies were very tasty with an ample amount of a nice, sweet organic tomato sauce.  Toppings were sufficient.  The pulled pork pie arrived adorned with sliced green peppers, red onions and asiago cheese.  I enjoyed the taste of it, with my only complaint being that the pulled pork wasn't spread out evenly across the pizza.  The 'classic' pizza was bang on - topped with marinated cherry tomatoes, mozarella, asiago, Capriny's goat cheese and parmesan. 

The flatbread crust is a combination of whole wheat and unbleached white flour.  A little bland tasting, but expected.  It's not too big of a deal, but I think I've had better tasting flatbread crusts.  I originally had asked for the pizzas to be on a thin crust they have, but the request was denied.  Not sure why this was an issue, but I'm curious as to how that would taste.  Overall, the pizzas were really good and the quality was consistent to what I experienced, on my previous visits.

** Bonus: Everybody knows we are sauce freaks.  Rocky Mountain offers lovely dipping sauces perfect for the crusts and if you are me, to dip every bite of your pizza in :)  On this night, my d.c opted for the Sundried Tomato Hummus while I had the Roasted Garlic & Onion.  Who doesn't love a bonus? :)

For dessert, we chose one of the daily specials, the 'Banana Caramel Creme Brulee'.  On any given day, I would've chosen anything chocolatey, especially their homemade Chocolate Brownie, which is to-die-for.  But on this night, upon hearing the words - 'banana' and 'creme brulee', I couldn't resist.

Though, it could've been warmer and more creamier in texture, there was an abundance of banana present and satisfied my sweet craving.  Though, I think the next time I come here, I would stick to my default 'chocolate' choice :)

Service:

"Eh" - I had a coupon for a free dessert and somehow had a gut feeling that our server would forget to take it off the bill.  Needless to say, this was indeed the case.  He wasn't particularly friendly nor super attentive, but it was passable.

Value:

The 'Classic' pizza was $13.95 while the 'Pulled Pork' one was $15.95 (for a regular (10"?) size, I believe. A little pricier than average

Ambience:

From what I can recall - hardwood floors, relatively spacious patio, open 'artisan' pizza oven situated in the dining area.  They have a nice play area for the kiddies by the washrooms, and offers 'pizza making' birthday parties!

Overall:  7.8/10

Yay: Come here if you're looking for a 'healthy' tasting artisan pizza made with fresh, organic ingredients.  They also offer 'pizza making' birthday parties and are openly accepting of kiddie diners :)


Nay: Pizzas are a lil' pricier than average...

La Buca

                                                    A fantabolous little Italian gem ...(is hard to find!)

Food:

Immaculate and very very well-executed in both presentation and taste.  I rarely order pasta when I'm out, but I do know when I come across a good (great) pasta dish! We ordered 3 appies to share between the 5 of us, and each had an entree.  All were so delicious and plentiful! There were no complaints of any sort!

We started off with their Carpaccio of scallops, grilled pork bacon, roasted tomato, garlic and parsley vinaigrette.  Scallop carpaccio is one of the best tasting things to have, carpaccio-styled, on this planet! Thinly sliced with the tasting texture as smooth as silk...combined with the bacon, tomato, garlic and a parsley vinaigrette - this appy was definitely a combination of a palate cleanser and appetite satisfier :)

We also had the Garlic Butter (Tiger) Prawns - which were wonderfully seared, topped with fresh arugula, atop a fine piece of crispy Italian bread.  The Cauliflower Soup with Truffle (one of the (daily?) specials) was equally as amazing - fresh, creamy with a hint of truffles and (be)dazzled with truffle oil and a hint of cilantro.

For my entree, I opted for the Tagliatelle Chicken Cacciatore.  The chicken was tender and well-seasoned, hidden under a wonderful bed of tomato stew, or sauce.  Other entrees sampled were the: Seared Perch, Risotto, and Crab Bisque, Ravioli filled with eggplant and taleggio, and the Osso Bucco with Mushroom Risotto.  The portion of every entree was generally given, all flavours were excellent with the Osso Bucco dish being the favourite of the night.

Service:

Our server was very knowledgeable, attentive and polite.  (I guess it's not so hard waving down your server when there are only 6-7 tables in the whole restaurant :) )

Value:

Very good, imho. 

Ambience:

Very small (only 32 seats), walk-through kitchen to the single dual-sex bathroom (which I wasn't a big fan of), very modern looking dining space with black & white tile floors

Overall: 8.5/10

Yay: Wonderfully-executed classic Italian fare, Lots of parking available

Nay: Super small dining room, Walk-through kitchen (to get to the washroom)

Mazuya Sushi

Maaad for Mazuya...

Location: Vancouver (Kitsilano)

Food:

This is one of our regular hole-in-the-wall sushi joints that offer, you guessed it, special rolls :)

We first started off with a Sashimi Salad.  This was perhaps the biggest let-down of the night as it came with only a handful of greens (you would expect at least 3 handfuls!) and a few pieces of sashimi.  At $7.95, we felt this wasn't worth it at all, and immediately made a mental note not to order it again.  We also had an order of Spicy Tuna and Spicy Sashimi to start.  Saucy, fresh and soothing to the palate, there were no complaints there.

The specialty rolls that we opted on this day were the: Mazuya Roll (unagi, avocado, cucumber, seaweed salad), Temptation Roll (mango, avocado, yam tempura, coconut shaving), Burrard Roll (prawn tempura, avocado, cucumber and spicy tuna) and Mango Roll (real crab meat, avocado, mango).  All were outstanding as usual, and filled with ample, fresh and tasty ingredients.

Service:

Friendly, although this seems to be a mom & pop operated joint.  Our food arrived in a timely manner, but, then again we were the only ones there at the time.  If you're expecting to come with a larger group, be prepared to wait a big longer for your food.

Value: 

At about $8-$10 (on average) for each special roll, I can't say it's too much of a steal, but it is on par with the price of other special rolls, that you would find elsewhere.

Ambience:

It's a little hole-in-the-wall, so don't expect much.  They do, however, offer cute, colourful pieces of paper as a means for customers to express their thoughts and opinions - you can list your favourite item, offer suggestions and even draw a cute picture of yourself! You can then clip them onto the string that's mounted to the mall.

Overall: 8/10

Yay: A wonderful little sushi joint that offers creative, innovative sushi rolls.  It doesn't seem to be too busy (during the times that we've gone), making it a great go-to spot if you're definitely wanting alone time and away from a noisy ambience.

Nay: You won't find "authentic" fare here and as stated above, it is probably not ideal for large groups.




Posted by: J