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[Dine Out Vancouver 2020] Menus are out: What looks good? #DOVF

Posted in Burnaby, Chinatown, Coquitlam, Culinary Events, Dine Out Vancouver, Gastown, Joyce, Langley, New Westminster, News, North Vancouver, Port Moody, Richmond, Surrey, Vancouver, West Vancouver, Yaletown, tagged , , , , , , on January 10, 2020| 2 Comments »

Dine Out Vancouver is back! Running from January 17 to February 2, the prix fixe portion of this year’s program is the same as last year, with 4 price points at $15, $25, $35 and $45. There are also lunch options, usually at a cheaper price than dinner. Menu may not be the same as dinner, though, so the value for money is a bit debatable.

The menus are now live and reservations are open. As I was going through the menus, I noticed a lot of new restaurants, ones that I’ve never heard of before. There’s been a lot of openings and closures last year so it makes sense – but it’s also nice to know it’s not the same old list. Here are some suggestions, based on past experience (Dine Out or not) as well as menu attractiveness (e.g. value for the money, choice of ingredients, creativity in the menu, enough options for two people, etc.). Now keep in mind I curated the list based on my preference (as you know, I’m a meat lover and I’m biased against chicken and salmon), my way of thinking, so it may not all suit your taste. But hopefully this gives you a place to start.

I’ve included links to the menu to make it easier for you.

$15 Suggestions

Crispy Chicken Sandwich and Fries, Popina

$25 Suggestions

(more…)

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Cafe La Forêt – Squid Inky Brunch in Burnaby

Posted in Brunch, Burnaby, Cafe, Casual, Coffee, Egg, Hang-Out with Friends, Joyce, Restaurants, tagged , , , , , , , , on March 4, 2019| Leave a Comment »

It’s always been on my list to try La Foret but for whatever reason I never did. When I took Mama Lam out shopping at Metrotown one weekend, I decided to take her there first.

The entrance could be deceiving because it seems like a small space, but it’s narrow and long with lots of seating available. You will find numerous 2-tops that can be turned into 4-tops, but also a few long communal tables for big groups.

La Foret

Food

For Mama Lam, she ordered Chicken + Waffle, with buttermilk fried chicken and squid ink waffle. I’ve never squid ink waffles before. The texture of the waffle was quite interesting; it’s denser than typical Belgian waffle yet it’s spongy and lighter than expected. There’s a hint of fishiness from the squid ink. Chicken was boneless thigh meat; batter was thin, crispy, and meat was juicy. It’s a good portion size, quite filling for brunch.

Chicken + Waffle at La Foret

The Sausage Platter was marked as a new item on the menu. (more…)

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[Dine Out Vancouver 2019] Menus are out: What looks good? #DOVF

Posted in Burnaby, Chinatown, Coquitlam, Culinary Events, Dine Out Vancouver, Gastown, Joyce, Langley, New Westminster, News, North Vancouver, Port Moody, Richmond, Surrey, Vancouver, West Vancouver, Yaletown, tagged , , , , , , on January 10, 2019| 1 Comment »

Dine Out Vancouver is back! Did you know I’ve been doing Dine Out Vancouver since, like, forever? My first year was when Rob Feenie still had his restaurants and I was there for DOVF.

Running from January 18 to February 3, the prix fixe portion of this year’s program has changed to 4 price points – $15, $25, $35 and $45. There are also more lunch and brunch options, usually at a cheaper price than dinner. This would give an opportunity to try the pricier restaurants with less.

The menus are now live and reservations are open. Actually, Aeroplan members already had access since Monday, so I had the opportunity to go through all the menus. Here are some suggestions, based on past experience (Dine Out or not) as well as menu attractiveness (e.g. value for the money, choice of ingredients, creativity in the menu, enough options for two people, etc.). Now keep in mind I curated the list based on my preference (as you know, I’m a meat lover), my way of thinking, so it may not all suit your taste. But hopefully this gives you a place to start.

I’ve included links to the menu to make it easier for you.

$15 Suggestions

  • Brewhall
  • Chutney Villa (Last year was $20 so I’m guessing portion size would be smaller this year, or it’s super deal for $5 less!)
  • Popina
Chutney Villa Dine Out Vancouver 2018

Chutney Villa Dine Out Vancouver 2018

$25 Suggestions

(more…)

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Onezo Tapioca 丸作 – Brown Sugar Dirty Milk & Bubble Tea Near Metrotown

Posted in Beverage, Bubble Tea, Burnaby, Casual, Drinks, Hang-Out with Friends, Joyce, Restaurants, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on December 11, 2018| Leave a Comment »

While I’m on my quest to a tasty cup of brown sugar pearl latte, I’ve also noticed the increasing number of bubble tea franchises popping up in Vancouver. One of the latest addition is Onezo Tapioca in Burnaby, with its location only steps away from Metrotown.

Bubble Teas

Of course, I had to order its Dirty Tea Series to try its brown sugar pearls. For an apple-to-apple comparison, I chose the Brown Sugar Dirty Milk 脏脏茶. As usual, the brown sugar pearls are of limited availability. We caught it just in time, showing up at 3:45pm for the 3:30pm batch on a Saturday. Luckily, there was barely a line up, only a few people in front of us. The pearls were nice and warm when the drink first got into my hands. They had good, soft yet chewy texture. The flavour reminded me of creme caramel — the warm toffee, caramel flavour. Almost buttery.

(more…)

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Liuyishou Hotpot – A la carte menu with a huge sauce bar

Posted in Beer, Burnaby, Dinner, Group Dinner, Hotpot, Joyce, Lower Mainland, Meat, Noodles, Restaurants, Richmond, Soup, Vancouver, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on February 19, 2018| Leave a Comment »

Does the snowy weather just make you want to cuddle up and sit around the fireplace all day? Us Chinese have another way to fight the cold weather — hotpot.

While we usually have hotpot at home, we do go out for it sometimes. There are many hotpot places in Vancouver, with a mix of all-you-can-eat and a la carte options. Recently, I was invited to check out one of the a la carte hotpot places called Liuyishou Hotpot. It’s a worldwide chain, with a few locations in the Lower Mainland in Vancouver, Richmond and Burnaby.

At the Burnaby location, one thing that caught my eyes right away was the Sauce Bar. It’s probably the largest in BC, if not Canada. You can choose from minced garlic, cilantro and sesame oil, to mushroom paste, spiced vinegar and preserved bean curd. They have even posted some suggested “recipes” of sauces to pair with different soup bases they offer.

Sauce Bar

Sauce recipes

Making sauces

Of course, the more important part is the menu items. Do they offer a lot of options? Are the ingredients fresh? Any interesting items worthy of note? Let’s break it down.

First of all, the soup base. We had half and half Original Chongqing Spicy Soup and Special Pork Rib Soup. The spicy soup base was molded solid into a cattle shape, and it was melted down in front of our own eyes as the server poured hot broth into the pot. I was told that there’s no extra charge for the cattle shaped soup base, but there’s limited quantity everyday so it’s first come, first served.

Pouring broth to melt the cattle shaped soup base

At medium spicy level, I was still worried that the Original Chongqing Spicy Soup would be too spicy. (more…)

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[Dine Out Vancouver 2018] Menus are out: What caught our eyes #DOVF

Posted in Burnaby, Culinary Events, Dine Out Vancouver, Dinner, Gastown, Joyce, Lower Mainland, Lunch, New Westminster, News, North Vancouver, Port Moody, Richmond, Vancouver, West Vancouver, Yaletown, tagged , , , , on January 11, 2018| 2 Comments »

Dine Out Vancouver is back! Running from January 19 to February 4, more than 300 restaurants are offering prix fixe menus and more than 35 special events are planned over this 2-week period.

Ocean Wise Pop-up Cafe 2017 Dine Out

Vancouver Aquarium Pop-up Restaurant 2017 Dine Out

The 3-course dinner are priced at $20, $30 or $40. Some restaurants may charge extra for special menu items. Some restaurants are also offering a lunch menu, which could be at a cheaper price point. The menus are now live and reservations are open. Pretty excited about some of the participating restaurants this year. After perusing the menus, here are our suggestions, based on past experience (Dine Out or not) as well as menu attractiveness. I’ve included links to the menu to make it easier for you:

$20 Suggestions

$30 Suggestions

(more…)

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Mon Paris Patisserie + #vanfoodiesturn8 Giveaway

Posted in Afternoon tea, Baked Goods, Bakery, Burnaby, Cafe, Chocolate, Contests, Dessert, Joyce, Neighbourhood Gem, Restaurants, tagged , , , , , , on December 17, 2017| 6 Comments »

[Editor’s Note: The giveaway is now closed.]

I was quite excited when Mon Paris opened up in Burnaby. I was following them on Instagram and the cakes were just beautiful! I also love that it’s near the Metrotown Skytrain station, which means easy access from Coquitlam or downtown.

I took my mom there, who also loves some good pastries. We had the Passionata (left), Opera (right), and a Canele (back in the pic) over Espresso and Americano. I really liked the tartness of passion fruit and mango pieces in the Passionata; the Canele had a crispy, caramelized exterior and soft centre; and the Opera was rich and decadent. We were there for an afternoon pick-me-up and it just hit the spot!

Mon Paris Burnaby

Giveaway

Continuing with our #vanfoodiesturn8 celebration, now is your chance to try some goodies from Mon Paris. (more…)

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