Guu Garden

a Guuuuuu'd lunch (box)!

Food:

Kobe beef burger bento

As the latest newcomer added to the ever-so-loved Guu chain of restaurants in Metro Vancouver, Guu Garden certainly did not disappoint.  Recently, I have read that they now offer very reasonable priced lunch specials including rice burger bento boxes priced at $10 each!

On this day, I opted for the Kobe Beef Rice Burger Bento while my dining companion went for the equally-as-sound-appealing Tuna Cutlet Rice Burger Bento.  Each bento box consisted of the following:

- shrimp and avocado Salad (lightly dressed in a light creamy, tangy, vinagarette dressing with a mild wasabi kick, spring greens) * i enjoyed this 'side' the most

-tempura green beans (green beans in a lightly coated tempura batter and deep fried) *could've been crispier and better accompanied with a side of mayo (doesn't come with it, I asked for it)

-miso soup (with pieces of tofu puff and seaweed) *second favourite side

Tuna Cutlet with tartar sauce bento

-sweet radish (white radish marinated in a semi-sweet soy sauce) *it was ok, a good palate cleanser perhaps? lol

As for the main events...*drum roll please*...lol the rice burgers were superb! They were both excellent and very filling! The Kobe beef was perfectly seasoned and cooked, topped with fine, shredded pieces of cabbage and teriyaki sauce.  The tuna cutlet was nicely battered and crispy, though a littttle bit dry.  Both rice buns were nicely executed and pan fried (?)

We also ordered a half order of their Salmon Oshi Sushi - 3 pieces of 'box' pressed sushi (very similar to the sushi they serve at Miku - can anybody say 'yum'?). The pieces here were a tad bigger but were equally as delicious.  The salmon was immaculately seared and seasoned, topped with a fine load of ponzu-sauced strands of daikon and topped with a thin wedge of lime. 

Strawberry Season ($5.50) - consisted of Cassis and strawberry puree. The ratio of each constituent was perfect and it served as a real nice refresher for a mid-day beverage :)

Happiness in a glass...

Service:

Polite and friendly - though it may be hard to convey your food/drink requests as there is a language barrier with most of the staff here

Value:

$10 for lunch box bentos - 2 thumbs up!

Ambience:

This location is definitely a lot more spacious than the Thurlow and Robson locations.  And as we all know, 'lunch time Guu' is a lot more different than 'dinnertime Guu' on the noise spectrum. 

Overall: 8.1/10

Yay: Great lunch specials, bigger dining space, salmon oshi sushi

Nay: Downtown - parking

La Grotta del Formaggio

fresh, hearty, and easy on the pockets...what more can you ask for?

Food:

I call this "the J special"

La Grotta del Formaggio is definitely unique in the sense that not only do they offer ginormous sized made-to-order Italian type sandwiches but I particularly love the fact that you can pick your own bread, meats, cheese, veggies, and sauces, as well. My usual go-to sandwich is a concoction of half a Focaccia with edam cheese, hot salami, hot capicollo and loaded with all the veggies.  I generally like an easy amount of regular mayo and regular mustard (though I should switch up the sauces from time to time (basil pesto mayo, anybody?).  I also like how they add in balsamic vinegar and olive oil prior to loading up the veggie, meats, sauce, etc. for it gives your sandwich just that tangy taste that zings things up! Also love the assortment of veggies they offer (including roasted red peppers, marinated artichokes, green olives) Lastly, I prefer it untoasted (though I should really try having it pressed and grilled for once)

Service:

Speedy and friendly

Value:

$6.50 for half a focaccia; $11.50 for a whole - easily the best value of all sandwiches (next to the cost of a Vietnamese sub (banh mi), of course ;) )

Ambience:

A grab and go Italian deli sort of a place, not much ambience nor is it expected

Overall: 8.5/10

Yay:  Come here for cheap, fresh, hearty, made-to-order monstrous sized sandwiches as well as other Italian deli pick-me-ups and other goodies (raincoast crackers, anybody?) Also a great place for those who like to "choose your own adventure" (and by adventure, I mean the sandwich-ingredient-selection process analogous to the kind of adventure one was out to seek in the "Choose Your Own Adventure" books from way back. Anybody remember that? Lol!)

Nay: It can be a bit of a wait come peak lunch hour times. They also lack some sort of a structured ordering system (no number tabs or anything) though I have never had a problem with this for there are a quite a few number of ladies working the deli counter! :)

Pigging out in PORTLAND :8)

Hi all!

To sum it up, the gastronomical adventures that we embarked upon in Portland were beyond spectacular.  And by spectacular, I mean the fact that til this day, I still dream of those wings from Pok Pok's.  Unfortunately, time and stomach constraints prevented us from trying more but a trip back to Portland this summer is definitely in the works!  I feel an immediate need to sample more of the food carts, especially the more popular ones, since Portland is practically a food cart haven. As well, if some of the joints listed below seem somewhat familiar to you, that's because they are! This trip was particularly Food Network-driven (specificially, Triple D's aka Diners, Drive-ins and Dives driven).  To say that the overzealous disposition that Guy Fieri exhibits is an understatement.  The dude can make anything look and taste good, lol!

Please fasten up your seatbelts as I take you on a (though, short but) whirlwind tour of just a fraction of Portland's culinary gems!

These should seriously be renamed as "THE wings"

Pok Pok:

-Southeast Asian cuisine
-Arguably the #1 "must-eat" spot in Portland
-No resos accepted - sibling resto-lounge located across the street where you are welcomed to have a drink while waiting for a table at Pok Pok's
-Absolutely cannot miss: Ike's Vietnamese Fish Sauce Wings - named one of the Top 10 Restaurant Dishes in America by Food & Wine Magazine in 2007 as well as the excellently-crafted cocktails

Overall: 9/10

Pork Belly Cubano

Bunk Sandwiches:

-Gourmet sandwiches

-Favourites: Pork Belly Cubano, Roast Beef

-very limited seating

-very busy during lunch hours though the line moves pretty fast!

-Overall: 7.8/10

Masu Sushi:

-modern setting in a very spacious room equipped with a bar housed in the centre

-Japanese fusion incl. innovative sushi rolls

-$$

Favourites: Mount St. Helen's roll, Japanista roll

-Overall: 7.9/10

Mount St. Helen roll

Voodoo Doughnuts:

-almost-guaranteed line-ups (we waited approx. 20 mins)
-the doughnuts themselves aren't the best in taste per se, but seriously, where else can you find Captain Crunch, Fruit Loops, bacon, etc. on a donut with names like ODB and other provocatively similar monikers...
-yes, there is a lot of hype about this place, that's why you need to come and see if it is worth all the hype! lol
-Overall: 7.6/10

Blue Plate Lunch Counter:

-Favourites: Northwest Sliders (Triple D-approved), Grilled Cheese Sandwich, Tomato Soup, House Sodas!!!
-I would call this place a definite gastro-diner (not your typical run-down, average-tasting diner)
-Overall: 7.8/10

Devoured and demolished! lol

 

Food Carts:


Aybla Grill:
-Mediterranean & Greek fare
-had a chicken gyro (didnt remember many specifics of it but remembered it tasted really good!!!)
-Overall: 7.8/10

Enchilada with beans & rice

Tito's Burritos:

-Mexican

-Enchilada Combo Plate (with rice and beans): less than $6
-authentic & delicious!!!

-AWESOME value!!!!!

-Overall: 8/10

The Dump Truck:



Mr. Ma's Special: pork, ginger, scallions
8 for $6 (not bad! I think we ended up getting 9)



-Delicious, homemade, generously-filled dumplings (more like potstickers!)
-Limited selection of dumplings

-Innovative ingredients: Bacon double cheese (yes! you read it right!), Portabellos, rice noodles and ginger

-Nice selection of accompanying sauces (always a 'plus' in my books!)

-Overall: 8.5/10

 

Posted by: J





Aki Japanese Restaurant

triple S is the best (Sushi-Sake-Sablefish)

Food:

Zaru soba - cold buckwheat noodles served with a sweet soy sauce, a quail egg and green onion garnish.  Tasty, refreshing and healthy.  At first, I thought you were supposed to crack the quail egg on top of the noodles (I swear I saw that somewhere on a blog), but later the waitress explained that the quail egg was actually supposed to be cracked into the sauce, mixed with the green onions (and wasabi, if you wish) and then you dip the noodles in.

Chicken Tsukune - Two skewers of beautifully grilled, marinated mince chicken meat (meatball texture) but flattened (see photo).  These were delicious - served hot and the flavours were bang-on (with strong teriyaki flavours)

Spicy Tuna & Spicy Chopped Roll - Fresh fish, good proportion of rice to ingredients - typical and satisfying!

** Grilled Black Cod ** - This was basically the impetus of our visit to Aki: the grilled sablefish/black cod.  At $11 a piece, not only is it a steal but is probably the best valued sablefish in the city! Thanks to this wonderfuly recommendation by a fellow friend/d.c of mine, we ordered a sablefish each, lol!  It was delicate, flaky, flavourful, moist, perfectly grilled, and hot.  The portion size was also very reasonable.  It was served with a slice of lemon and grated radish.  My d.c had also requested for these sweet asian pickles that were great accompaniments to the cod!

Service:

Super friendly and genuinely warm


Value:

Standard prices at a Japanese restaurant though the $11 grilled black cod ups it up a few notches on the value factor!


Ambience:

Quite bustling on a Thursday night with predominant Japanese customers! It's also like sitting in a huge wooden house, with wooden booths, with an open sushi/robata bar...


Overall: 8/10

Yay: Authentic, Japanese owned and operated, warm service, popular for robata (charcoal grilled items), black cod...great lunch specials!

Nay: Downtown - parking, also a little hidden perhaps (on Thurlow right next to the McDonalds, located downstairs where Samba Brazillian Steakhouse is)

**Interesting fact:  They have been in operation for 47 years and counting...!

Wang's Beef Noodle House

To start off, I wouldn't say I am a die-hard fan of noodle soups per se (trust me, I know some people who just loooove noodles in soup!) but I do occasionally enjoy delving into a nice, steaming, heaping bowl of homemade Pho :), a spicy bowl of Bun Bo Hue...or a hot and savoury bowl of laksa (only from Bo's Laksa, of course)

Adding to that list of 'enjoyable savoury noodle soups' is of course the Taiwanese's very own version of beef noodle soup, also known as TBN (an acronym that I have acquired from some local food bloggers).  Their version generally consists of stewed beef, beef broth, noodles (either thick or thin), with various ingredients such as: star anise, white pepper, green onions, etc that is added to the flavouring of the soup.  Different variations of tbn also exist in the form of spicy, tomato, garlic and a herbal broth.

TBN

From Corner 23 to Bubble World to Tri-ty to The One,  I have frequented a fair share of bubble tea joints, (as well as Taiwanese eateries) and thus have sampled, tasted and devoured quite a number of tbns! Each bowl differed from the previous one in terms of the spiciness level, degree of stewed flavour, sweetness, amount of beef present, types of noodle(s) available, etc.  After recently reading about Wang's Beef Noodle House, a d.c of mine trekked out to the other side of town for our very own experience...

Food:

Marinated Pork Ears

My dining companion and I both decided on the usual picks: Marinated Pork Ear, Pork Potstickers, Beef Roll (Sliced Beef in Chinese Pancake) and we shared a large bowl of their Spicy Beef Noodle Soup.  The marinated pork ear (served cold) was a good starter - loved the crunchiness of the cartilage, chewy bits of the ear (I know, doesn't sound too appetizing but trust me, it`s good) and the sweet flavours of the accompanying sauce.  We also thoroughly enjoyed the homemade pork potstickers (prepared in a longer shape similar to the ones that Corner 23 serves) as well as the Beef Roll (though it was a little dry - but tasted really good when dipped into the same sweet soy sauce accompanying the potstickers).  As for the Spicy Beef Noodle Soup, we chose the thick (flat) noodles (as usual).  The heavily-stewed broth tasted and smelt divine, though I would've liked it a tad bit spicier.  The chunks of beef were huge and deliciously tender.  It was also topped off with specks of green onion and pickled vegetables, which I loved.

Beef Roll (Sliced Beef in Chinese Pancake)

Service:

Speedy and friendly, some English speaking servers

Value:

Fair

Ambience:

No real decor or ambience here - just a place to dine and go!

Overall: 8.10

Yay:  Come here for an authentic and delicious bowl of TBN, as well as crispy and tasty homemade pork potsickers

Nay:  Cash only





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 = $$

Whistler Eats!

This past weekend was spent up in the gloriously beautiful snowy slopes in Whistler in celebration of a dear friend's birthday.  It is one of the world's top ski resorts and a venue host to the 2010 Winter Olympic games (also, it was the destination where Seal proposed to Heidi Klum in a custom-fitted igloo).  Whistler is the perfect spot for your winter getaway, summer getaway (ziptrekking, anybody?) as well as home to fine culinary spots for tourists and non-tourists alike (hello, remember Hell's Kitchen being filmed at Araxi? Yeahh, thought so!)

best. brunch. ever.

Though no visits to fancy restaurants were planned or expected (Araxi will have to wait), a memorable brunch was had, indeed.  Conveniently located in the Summit Lodge and Spa, right in the Whistler village, Elements was nowhere near a disappoint.  It was here where I had the most perfect brunch ever- a Sauteed Spinach and Goat Cheese Eggs Benedict topped off with a sundried tomato hollandaise.  The eggs were perfectly poached and runny, there was a generous amount of spinach and goat cheese and I loved the sundried tomato touch to the perfectly-composed hollandaise sauce.  Throw in their signature potato tartlet with a dollop of their chive creme fraiche as well as a shooter-size sample of their breakfast smoothie - this meal had my tummy and appetite beaming for the rest of the trip! 

Elements' Classic Breakfast

My dining companion opted for the Classic Breakfast which was fully equipped with two free run (scrambled) eggs, duck sausage, honey ham, 2 slices of their artisan bread and paired with once again, their signature potato tartlet and a smoothie shooter - a standard but healtheir and fancier version of the classic breakfast!

Buttermilk Fried Chicken Wings
in a garlic butter hot sauce

In the evening, we visited the Whistler Brewhouse - a sibling restaurant to Yaletown Brewing Co. in Yaletown here in Vancouver.  It was exactly how I expected it to be - a loud, enormously spacious, dual (or multi) level restaurant fit for small and large parties, as well as the perfect venue to catch a hockey game.  As a starter, we shared the Crispy Buttermilk Fried Chicken Wings in a garlic butter hot sauce.  The batter was thick and crispy and served as a nice, flaming start to the meal.  For my entree, I went for the Bang-Bang Chicken Salad with romaine lettuce, oriental vegetables (loved the shitake mushrooms!), roasted cashews and dressed in a sesame-soy vinegarette.  I loved the crunchiness of the romaine lettuce and cashews paired with the sweet flavours of the sesame dressing. 

Bang Bang Chicken Salad

Though not very many culinary destinations were explored on this quick mini getaway.  The food aspect of it was definitely satisfying and is to be continued until my next Whistler adventure!