Happy Sunday! This morning, as part of our breakfast routine, we indulged in a Camp Day Donut. While I'd like to think I'm being kind and altruistic by supporting the fundraiser, the truth is, I'll try any new donut from Tim Hortons.
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| Camp Day Donut from Tim Hortons |
Happy Thursday! For dinner, we stopped by Basil Pasta Bar. It's our first time eating in the restaurant since we always have their food delivered.
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Spaghetti & Meatballs from Basil Pasta Bar Spicy rose sauce with 6 meatballs, mushrooms, tomatoes, red onions & spinach. Garnished with mozzarella cheese. |
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Spaghetti & Meatballs from Basil Pasta Bar Spicy rose sauce with 6 meatballs, mushrooms, tomatoes, red onions & spinach. Garnished with mozzarella cheese. |
I went for the Spaghetti & Meatballs while hubby chose the Coconut Cream Ravioli.
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Coconut Cream Ravioli from Basil Pasta Bar Coconut cream sauce with chicken, mushrooms, asparagus, red onions & peas. Garnished with coconut flakes & fresh basil |
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Coconut Cream Ravioli from Basil Pasta Bar Coconut cream sauce with chicken, mushrooms, asparagus, red onions & peas. Garnished with coconut flakes & fresh basil |
Below is a list of House Special Pastas we have tried so far from Basil Pasta Bar:
Happy Thursday! Today's team lunch theme is Chinese food, and we decided to try out the nearby Dingding Restaurant. In an effort to make healthier choices, I opted for the lunch special: Crispy Tofu with Mixed Vegetables over rice.
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| Crispy Tofu with Mix Vegetables over rice from Dingding Restaurant |
Happy Sunday! Today, we continued our annual tradition of celebrating one of our many relationship milestones with a delicious brunch at Tap and Barrel Bridges.
As usual, we started our meal with an order of nachos to share.
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Nachos from Tap and Barrel Bridges Cumin-dusted tortilla chips, cheddar, feta, smoked mozzarella, pickled jalapeños, black olives, pico de gallo, green onion, cilantro, and sour cream |
My hubby indulged in the Double Bacon Benny, which was absolutely delicious. Even though I'm not usually a big fan of bacon, I have to admit that this dish was something I'd definitely order again.
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Double Bacon Benny from Tap and Barrel Bridges Bacon, Bacon jam, poached aggs, Cajun spice, hollandaise, English muffin, garlic mayo, and micro greens with crispy potatoes |
On the other hand, I opted for the healthier Smashed Avocado Benny, which is a great vegetarian option. However, I have to say that it wasn't quite as flavorful as the bacon Benny.
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Smashed Avocado Benny from Tap and Barrel Bridges Avocado, tomato, poached eggs, cajun spice, hollandaise, english muffin, garlic mayo, and micro greens with crispy potatoes |
For future reference, here's a list of all the dishes we've tried from Tap and Barrel Bridges so far:
Weekend and Holiday Brunch
Start and Share
Mains
Hand-Stretched Pizza
Dessert
Happy Thursday! Hubby and I had dinner at Happy Noodle House before crossing the Granville Bridge on our walk home.
I stuck with my usual Tan-Tan Noodles, and as expected, it was delicious. The perfectly cooked noodles were covered in a spicy, peanut sauce that I couldn't get enough of.
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| Tan-Tan Noodles from Happy Noodle House |
Hubby decided to try the Beijing Zha-Jiang Mian. We had no idea what it was, so he did some research before the food arrived. This savory noodle dish is covered in fried bean sauce and has iterations in other countries, including Korea's popular jajangmyeon.
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| Beijing Zha-Jiang Mian from Happy Noodle House |
For something healthier, we shared a plate of tofu with shitake mushroom and bok choy. It was stir-fried and seasoned lightly, with the bamboo shoots providing an extra layer of flavor.
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| Tofu with shiitake mushrooms and bok choy from Happy Noodle House |
For future me, below is a list of food items you have tried from Happy Noodle House so far.
Dim Sum
Sauce Noodles
Stir-Fried Noodles
Vegetables & Tofu
Good morning! To celebrate Canada Day, we enjoyed our usual Sunday breakfast with a donut from the iconic Tim Hortons.
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| Canada Celebration Donut from Tim Hortons |
The Canadian Celebration Donut was topped with festive pink and red sprinkles.
Happy Friday! After running errands today, my hubby and I grabbed a quick dinner at A&W. He went for the Mozza Burger with a side of onion rings.
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| Mozza Burger from A&W |
I opted for the Mama Burger and swapped the buns with a lettuce wrap. I paired it with my favourite sweet potato fries.
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| Mama Burger swapped buns with lettuce from A&W |
Below is a list of menu items we've tried from A&W for future reference:
Breakfast
Burgers
Sides
Chicken
Happy Thursday! Today's team lunch theme is Korean food. For the first time, we tried H-Kitchen, located inside the nearby H-Mart. I couldn't resist ordering one of my favorite Korean dishes: ramen. On a chilly day, there's nothing better than savoring the rich broth and slurping down the chewy noodles.
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Korean Ramen Combo comes with kimbap |
The meal also came with kimbap, which made it an even more fantastic deal at $14.99 (plus tax).
Happy Saturday! For late lunch / early dinner, we went to Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ to celebrate mom's birthday. We ordered their Yakiniku Party for four (even though there's five of us). It was a lot of fun grilling and enjoying delicious food.
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| Gyu-Kaku Japanese BBQ |
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| Some of the BBQ Items that's part of the Yakiniku Party |
The Yakiniku Party includes prime kalbi short rib, filet mignon, umakara ribeye, bistro hanger steak, new york steak, yaki-shabu beef, chicken, umakara pork, kalbi chuck rib, and shrimps.
It also came with the following starts (see photos!) and napa kimchi (which I forgot to take a picture).
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| Gyu-Kaku Salad |
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| Miso Soup |
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| Chicken Garlic Noodles |
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Gyu-Sushi With premium roast beef, Japanese shoyu BBQ sauce, and kuki-wasabi on the side |
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| Edamame |
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Japanese Chicken Karaage Juicy Japanese fried chicken served with chili mayo sauce |
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Spicy Tuna Volcano Spicy tuna on crispy fried rice, drizzled with Japanese shoyu BBQ sauce |
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S'mores Classic campfire s'mores. Roasted marshmallows over the grill |
Worth it!
Happy Wednesday! It's my mom's birthday, and I was lucky enough to have lunch with her since she's also in Downtown Vancouver. We decided to try out White Spot.
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BC Chicken Burger from White Spot Chargrilled fresh BC chicken breast, cheddar cheese, bacon, lettuce, tomato, red onion, and Triple "O" sauce |
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Brie & Mushroom Veggie Burger from White Spot Our crispy veggie patty with Brie, caramelized onions, roasted mushrooms, arugula, tomato and mayo |
My hubby went for the BC Chicken Burger. I, on the other hand, opted for the Brie & Mushroom Veggie Burger and swapped the buns for a lettuce wrap, which was surprisingly delicious. I loved the fresh, crunchy lettuce.
Here's a list of everything we've tried from White Spot so far:
It's a beautiful cloudy Saturday, and we made it to Swangard Stadium just in time for lunch. I haven't had Filipino food in what feels like forever, so I'm thrilled to be at Pinoy Festival for a delicious meal. We browsed the different food vendors and their menus before deciding on Cucina Balai.
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| Cucina Balai |
Their rice meal with pork barbecue and laing looked amazing, so we ordered that. Then, we added Bicol Express as a side. Everything we tried was absolutely delicious. If I wasn't trying to be health-conscious, I could easily finish the whole thing by myself!
Happy Saturday! This morning, I had my twice-yearly dentist appointment. Afterward, we decided to take a leisurely stroll to Kingsway to catch Bus 19 to Swangard Stadium. Before reaching Kingsway, we made a pit stop at Modus Coffee to refuel with a hearty breakfast.
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| Breakfast at modus coffee |
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Sausage Roll from modus coffee longanisa sausage, fennel, puff pastry, served with banana ketchup |
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Mushroom Bun from modus coffee herbs, bechamel, mushrooms, garlic confit on milk bread |
We indulged in two savory pastries: mushroom buns (I simply can't resist mushrooms!) and a sausage roll made with sweet and savory longanisa sausage. As for drinks, I stuck to my usual mocha, while my hubby opted for the Modus Americano.
I absolutely love slowing down at coffee shops and just watching the world go by. There's a certain level of peace and comfort in being able to do this.
TGIF! I finally got to take a well-deserved day off from work to just sleep in and relax. After a leisurely lunch at home, hubby and I strolled to our neighborhood Blenz Coffee so I could do some blogging.
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| Thai Iced Tea from Blenz Coffee |
Hubby ordered the limited edition Thai Iced Tea, which was surprisingly delicious.
Happy Thursday! For team lunch today, the chosen theme is Mexican, so we headed to our go-to spot, Patron Tacos & Cantina. When I was in Mexico City two weeks ago, I ordered Al Pastor Tacos from the five taquerias we visited. Now that I'm back in Vancouver, it's time to try and compare the Al Pastor.
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| Al Pastor Tacos from Patron Tacos & Cantina |
Unfortunately, Patron's version is not good enough. The meat was dry and not as flavorful, which I guess is to be expected since we're no longer in Mexico. The serving is huge and, of course, more expensive, which is also to be expected.
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| Jamaica from Patron Tacos & Cantina |
Overall, I'll try other taquerias in Vancouver to see if any of them can match up to the wonderful flavors I enjoyed in Mexico.
Happy Thursday! I'm back at work today, which means free lunch. The chosen theme for the week is Chinese cuisine, so we decided to give Yopo Sweet Mandarin a try. They don't have my usual food, so I went with the first item on the menu: Spice Box.
My Irish colleague told me that Spice Box is a lot of food and that it's big in Ireland.True enough, I received a big plate of rice, french fries, salt & pepper chicken nuggets, and my favorite part, curry sauce.
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| Spice Box from Yopo Sweet Mandarin |
I finished the chicken nuggets and most of the curry sauce but need to bring home the rice and fries. It's a satisfying and big meal, but not something I'll order again.
Buenos Dias from Mexico City, specifically the Benito Juárez International Airport! We arrived at the airport at 2:30 am for our 6:30 am flight.
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| Omelet de Jamon y Queso from El Fogoncito |
After checking in, we found a spot to crash and I slept like a baby. Then, at 5:00 am, we looked for a spot to have our last meal in Mexico City. We decided on El Fogoncito, but since it's early almost everything is unavailable. We finally decided on the Omelet de Jamon y Queso.
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| Omelet de Jamon y Queso from El Fogoncito |
It's a fluffy omelette filled with ham and cheese. Since I'm in Mexico, it's served with refried beans and corn tortillas. It's a fitting last meal. Food here is so delicious!
After a heavy breakfast at Sanborns Café, we strolled to the original branch of the popular Churrería El Moro. We ordered the best churros I've ever had. Unfortunately, the chocolate dip was unavailable, so we had to switch it to the only other thing with the word chocolate in it - hazelnut chocolate (it doesn't taste like Nutella). It was great!
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| Churros from Churrería El Moro |
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| Churros from Churrería El Moro |
I wish I could bring this to Vancouver, where there's a serious lack of top-notch churros (one of the better ones is from the Vancouver Christmas Market).
¡Feliz martes! For breakfast today, we visited Sanborns Café, a restaurant and junior department store chain recommended by my colleague.
Hubby ordered the huevos Sanborns because it has eggs and it includes the name of the restaurant. It's delicious, but we were uncertain about how to eat it. Should we dip the toast into the creamy bowl of egg or should we spread the refried beans on the toast and top it with egg and sauce? We tried both and the result is equally amazing. (Note to self: Ask colleague how to eat this dish the Mexican way.)
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Huevos Sanborns from Sanborns Café served with ranchera sauce, rajas poblanas, cream, gratin with cheese and refried beans |
I chose something not fit for breakfast - Tacos de Cochinita Pibil. Cochinita Pibil is on the book: Lonely Planet's Ultimate Eats: The World's Top 500 Food Experiences... Ranked. So when I saw it, I just had to try it. It was great. Although, super heavy and greasy for breakfast - the savoury and salty flavour is perfectly balanced by the earthy refried beans. The pork is tender and melt in your mouth.
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Tacos de cochinita pibil from Sanborns Café comes with pickled red onion, pibil sauce, refried beans, cheese and tortilla chips |
I absolutely enjoyed our breakfast in Sanborns Café!
After a long day at the Teotihuacan pyramids and lunch at Taqueria el Caifan, we went back to the hotel to rest. By the time we went out for dinner, it was raining heavily - torrential rain that I hadn't experienced in a long time! Our umbrellas could only do so much to keep us dry on our walk to Taqueria Arandas. In true foodie fashion, I ordered Tacos Al Pastor and Taco Suadero to compare them to the three taquerias we had tried earlier.
Taco Al Pastor was delicious but not as good as Taqueria Los Cocuyos, but it was close.
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| Tacos Al Pastor from Taqueria Arandas |
Meanwhile, the Taco Suadero was truly the best one we had tried. It was juicy, tender, and just flavorful overall. One blog post I read was correct - suadero (brisket) should be ordered in the evening after it has spent the whole day simmering and developing flavors.
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| Taco Suadero from Taqueria Arandas |
The heavy rain did not stop, and we were soaked on our walk back to the hotel.
After spending the whole morning walking around and climbing one of the pyramids in Teotihuacan, we exited the tour bus near Torre Caballito. We walked slowly to our hotel and on the way we spotted Taqueria el Caifan and decided to just stop by. It’s not on any of our lists, so we’re taking a big risk here.
As soon as we sat down, they offered a bowl of guacamole topped with tortilla chips. I cannot resist that because I love chips and it’s my first guacamole in Mexico City.
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| Guacamole from Taqueria el Caifan |
We ordered one Tacos Al Pastor and one Taco de Bistec. Both were quite plain. The bistec (beef steaks) is lightly seasoned (if any at all), which I understand because adding salsa to it makes sense.
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| Taco de Bistec from Taqueria el Caifan |
However, the Tacos Al Pastor is not as flavorful as the one we tried from Taqueria Los Cocuyos, and it did not offer any unique texture like the one from Taqueria El Patriarca.
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| Tacos Al Pastor from Taqueria el Caifan |
The only redeeming factor is that it’s our third taqueria, and we have a fair idea of what we like and how good Tacos Al Pastor can be.
