Smooch Food: Love Letters to Every Bite

After our first taco for lunch today, I was craving more Al Pastor for dinner, so I checked the list my colleague gave me and we walked to Taqueria El Patriarca. We spent the afternoon doing a free walking tour around the historic center of CDMX when it started raining heavily in the middle. After resting and drying off a bit in our hotel, we walked to Taqueria El Patriarca for dinner. We ordered Tacos Al Pastor and Quesadilla de Pastor, and paired it with horchata and jamaica. The Tacos Al Pastor wasn't as flavorful as the one earlier, but it had crispy edges that gave it a bacon-like texture. Unfortunately, this also made it dryer. Tacos Al Pastor  from Taqueria El Patriarca Meanwhile, the quesadilla (our first in Mexico!) was piping hot and covered in melted cheese, but it was a tad too greasy and heavy. Quesa...

After a hearty breakfast at Café de Tacuba  and three hours in Templo Mayor, we strolled through the bustling streets of Ciudad de México (CDMX), taking in the sights and sounds of the city. Our destination: Taqueria Los Cocuyos, where we were about to embark on our first taco in Mexico. Naturally, we had to try the Al Pastor Taco, a local specialty. Pastor Taco  from Taqueria Los Cocuyos Marinated Pork But we also decided to give the Suadero Taco a try, as it's mentioned in the MICHELIN Guide . Suadero Taco  from Taqueria Los Cocuyos Brisket To cool down from the temperature and humidity, we also ordered some horchata and tamarindo. Personally, I preferred the tamarindo, as it had a nice tartness to it. Horchata  and Tamari...

Buenos Días from Mexico City! It's a beautiful sunny Saturday morning and our first stop is Café de Tacuba for breakfast. Hubby got to order café de olla while I enjoyed the smooth Chocolate Tacuba . It reminded me of tablea hot chocolate when I was in Cebu, Philippines. Chocolate Tacuba from Café de Tacuba For food, we shared dos tamales de pollo con salsa verde and rancheros con frijoles refritos o divorciados . Both items were recommended from my go-to travel book: Lonely Planet's Ultimate Eats: The World's Top 500 Food Experiences... Ranked. 403. Savour tamales in a Mexican restaurant MEXICO // There's nothing better to unwrap than freshly cooked tamales, a dish that embraced the slow cooking movement before the phrase was coined. Prior to assembling the package, the outer wrapping of corn husk must be soaked overnight to make it pliable. In...

¡Hola! I'm writing to you from Mexico City. Our flight from Vancouver was delayed for an hour, so we didn't get to our hotel until after 1:00 a.m. Air Canada gave us pretzels and liquids (juice), but we hadn't had dinner yet. We were starving! Luckily, our fantastic hotel (Historico Central Hotel) has a 24-hour café that offers complimentary food to guests. They only had a few food items available, so we decided on molettes and torta. CAFE Central Molettes is a beloved Mexican open-faced sandwich with toasted bolillo (a crusty white bread roll) as its base generously covered in refried beans, melted cheese, and ham. Molettes  from Café Central Toasted bread, fried beans spread, melted cheese, bacon, and ham Meanwhile, torta is a classic Mexican sandwich. Between the same bolillo bread are creamy cheese, turkey h...

Since our flight is delayed, we grabbed a couple pastries from Illy Coffee. I went for blueberry muffins while hubby chose the raspberry danish. It's not something we always get but he said that it's in honour of the Whitecaps FC manager (he's Danish). 😂 Blueberry Muffins  from Illy Coffee Raspberry Danish  from Illy Coffee in YVR Both pastries were warmed up which made them even better.

Happy Friday! I'm writing this in Vancouver International Airport (YVR) while waiting for our delayed flight to Mexico City. For lunch, we stopped by Hanami for noodles. We chose the Minced Pork Dry Noodle which looked amazing but is absolutely bland which is unfortunate. 3-Item Noodle Soup from Hanami inside YVR Minced Pork Dry Noodle  from Hanami inside YVR Thankfully, the 3-Item Noodle Soup has a wonderful beefy broth. The beef was so tender while the BBQ pork slices were good too. The wonton dumplings is the worst of the three items part acceptable too.  If you need a warm dish for any tummy ache before catching your connecting flight, this is the spot.

Happy Friday! We're flying out of Vancouver International Airport (YVR) today to visit vibrant and exciting Mexico City. I'm sharing this blog post as a checklist of available food options after security in the International Terminal of YVR for my own reference. The following food options are available: ☑️ A&W ☑️ Church's Texas Chicken ☑️ Hanami Express ⬜ illycaffe and Relay ⬜ Lift Bar and Grill ☑️ 🌟 Salmon n' Bannock On The Fly 🌟 ☑️ Starbucks ☑️ Subway ⬜ Sweet Maple Lounge The chains marked with a check are ones I've tried here or at other locations.

Happy Thursday! For our company-paid team lunch today, we strolled over to Burger Crush to indulge in some classic burger goodness. I opted for the "Veggie Style" Cheeseburger, and it was absolutely delicious. "Veggie Style" Cheeseburger  from Burger Crush Hand-made vegan patty served with regular cheese on a brioche bun The burger arrived perfectly assembled, featuring a juicy vegan patty nestled in a creamy cheese blanket, all nestled in a slightly toasted brioche bun.

We're celebrating my youngest sister's birthday today, and she wanted the family to enjoy a meal at her favorite spot: Yuu Japanese Tapas. AAA Beef Volcano Ramen  from Yuu Japanese Tapas AAA Beef Slices, enoki mushroom, bean sprouts and onion My husband ordered the AAA Beef Volcano Ramen, which is as interactive and fun as it is delicious. It was served in a hot stone bowl, and a server poured broth inside the bowl and covered it, causing steam to cook the AAA Beef Volcano. AAA Beef Volcano Ramen  from Yuu Japanese Tapas The tonkatsu broth was perfect, and the noodles were perfectly al dente. Curry brisket on rice  from Yuu Japanese Tapas Crispy deep fried pano bread crumb pork...

Happy Saturday! We're celebrating my sister's birthday, but we arrived at the strip mall about half an hour early. To pass the time, we decided to grab a quick snack at Pearl Castle Cafe. Fried Chicken Nuggets  from Pearl Castle Cafe We ordered our usual Taiwanese favorites - the crispy fried chicken nuggets and the sweet savory Taiwanese sausage. Taiwanese Sausage  from Pearl Castle Cafe Just as we finished our food, I got a message from my siblings saying they were at the other restaurant.

Happy Saturday! We're picking up a package near Cambie and West 39th Avenue, so we decided to walk there from our apartment. Halfway through our walk, we stopped by Pallet Coffee Roasters along Oak Street for breakfast. Hubby went for a latte and double-baked almond croissants. Double baked almond croissant  from Pallet Coffee Roasters Latte from Pallet Coffee Roasters While I got a butter croissant and a mocha. Butter Croissant from Pallet Coffee Roasters Mocha  from Pallet Coffee Roasters We enjoyed our pastries and drinks while continuing our walk under the beautiful Vancouver spring sunshine. Thank God for moments like this.

Happy Thursday! For team lunch today, we headed to bb.q Chicken & Pub because theme of the week is Korean. I ordered the mala hot fried chicken over rice and it makes me happy. I love it! Fried Chicken Over Rice  from bb.q Chicken & Pub Fried chicken, scrambled egg and onion with mala hot sauce and mayo on steamed rice

Happy Thursday! I had a breakfast meeting today at Lovelarte. In between talking, I took bites of a warm and comforting Turkey Bacon and Egg breakfast sandwich and a sip of sweet mocha. Turkey Bacon and Egg Breakfast Sandwich  from lovelarte Mocha  from lovelarte

Happy Sunday! We walked to Best Buy today because my Chromebook had stopped working. After buying a new one, we had lunch at nearby Westcoast Poké. Hubby went for Pacific Poké because he likes pineapple. Pacific Poké  from Westcoast Poké Albacore tuna, cilantro, pickled red onion, cucumber, pineapple, crab salad, mango, and green coconut curry sauce I went for Coast Poké because I like salmon. Coast Poké  from Westcoast Poké Atlantic salmon, burnt miso chili paste, kimchi cucumber, crab salad, mango, avocado, maple soy sauce, and gochu garlic aioli It was delicious, but Pokérrito is my favorite poké source so far.

Happy Saturday! We enjoyed a slice of dulce de leche cheesecake from Trees today. Dulce de Leche Cheesecake  from Trees Organic Coffee & Cheesecake

Happy Thursday! For the company-paid team lunch today, the chosen theme is bahn mi. It's drizzling outside, so we walked to nearby Viet Sub Vietnamese Cuisine. I wasn't sure what to get, so I went for the Special Sub and a small wonton soup because I'm feeling under the weather. Special Sub  from Viet Sub Vietnamese Cuisine Ham, cold cuts, pork, and meatball The Special Sub with ham, cold cuts, pork, and meatball with fresh vegetables in between crispy baguette is the perfect food coma lunch on a rainy day.

Happy Sunday! After Mass, we walked to Spanish Banks beach for some fresh air. Afterwards, we grabbed a quick lunch at Masa Japanese Restaurant before walking home. We ordered the Grouse Mountain Special Roll for sharing. I love the shape of this special roll! Grouse Mountain   from Masa Japanese Restaurant Deep fried seaweed sandwich with spicy tuna & rice, alfalfa, tobiko on with spicy mayo and Unagi sauce Since we both have the sniffles, we also ordered ramen. Kara Miso Ramen from Masa Japanese Restaurant Spicy miso flavoured soup base with chashu and egg Tonkatsu Ramen  from Masa Japanese Restaurant Pork bone base with chashu, egg, bean sprouts, bamboo shoot, and green onion

Tim Hortons released a new Chocolate Marshmallow Filled Ring Dream Donut. As the name suggests, the donut is topped with chocolate icing and crushed graham crackers while the inside is filled with marshmallows. Chocolate Marshmallow Filled Ring Dream Donut from Tim Hortons Chocolate Marshmallow Filled Ring Dream Donut from Tim Hortons It is one of the many Dream Donuts we have tried over the years, with a complete list below. Apple Pie Dream Donut Birthday Cake Confetti Dream Donut Baileys Flavoured Boston Cream Dream Donut Black Forest Filled Ring Dream Donut Cadbury Mini Eggs Dream Donut   Caramel Brownie Filled Ring Caramilk Filled Ring Chocolate Fudge Pretzel Dream Donut Chocolate Hazelnut Eclair Dream Creamy Maple Pecan Dream Donut Chocolate Marshmallow Filled Rin...

Our usual Mother's Day tradition is visiting Dai Jang Kum in Richmond, BC because it's my mom's favourite. This weekend, Mom wants the beef rolls from Peaceful Restaurant, and since it's her special day, she gets what she requested. Feast from Peaceful Restaurant We ordered a feast from Peaceful that includes the following: Beef & Broccoli Deep-Fried Sesame Ball Minced Chicken with Corn Soup Peaceful Beef Rolls Salt and Pepper Chicken Wing Salted and Pepper Squid Seasonal Vegetables and Crispy Tofu Yang-Zhou Stir-Fried Rice

Happy Thursday! I won this week's team competition at work, which means I get to pick the lunch theme, and I went for Middle Eastern. Our team in Vancouver recently visited the relatively new Jerusalem Shawarma. Vegetarian Plate from Jerusalem Shawarma 4 pieces of Falafel, 4 vine leaves, salad, garlic potato, rice, hummus, and tahini sauce I ordered their Vegetarian Plate, which includes all my favorite things: dolma (vine leaves) and falafel. It was so delicious, and the service was superb; we can't wait to go back!

Happy Thursday! For our team lunch today, the theme is dumplings, so we walked to Grand Chinese Restaurant in Yaletown. I ordered their Dan Dan Noodles.  Dan Dan Noodles  from Grand Chinese Restaurant Below is a list of items we ordered for delivery from Grand Chinese years ago. Beef Rolls Dan Dan Noodles Pan-Fried Pork Buns Shanghai-Style Chow Mein Xiao Long Bao