Breakfast at Denny's

Happy Saturday! After 14 days, we're seeing my parents again. Then, hubby and I need to do our twice-a-year Costco grocery run. Before heading to Costco, we had breakfast at Denny's.

Classic Benny
Poached eggs and stacked shaven ham on a toasted English muffin topped with Hollandaise sauce. Served with seasoned red-skinned potatoes.

The Classic Benny is as classic as you're going to get. However, the Prime Rib Benny was better. I can't wait to try the other benny on their menu.

Ultimate Omelette
Crumbled sausage, bacon, fire-roasted bell peppers & onions, sauteed mushrooms, tomatoes and Cheddar cheese, served with hash browns and multi-grain toast.

Hubby ordered the Ultimate Omelette, and it's another classic. The only thing I didn't enjoy was the hash brown.

I am glad that we're able to enjoy the food from Denny's after two years.

Lunch from Chef Hung Taiwanese Beef Noodle

Happy Sunday! It's the last day of the long weekend, and I am back at work tomorrow (still working from home).

We watched The Fiery Priest, which made me crave rice, so we ordered Chef Hung Taiwanese Beef Noodles, our usual favourite Taiwanese dishes.

Taiwanese-Style Deep Fried Chicken Cutlet on Rice

The chicken was juicy inside, and the batter was crunchy, but it was a bit salty for my liking.

Deep-Fried Chicken Nuggets

Same with chicken cutlet, it's good and juicy but a bit salty.

Green Tea Shaved Ice

The Green Tea Shaved Ice arrived in one piece and surprisingly still solid. I guess it did help that the temperature outside is close to 0 degrees Celsius.

Deep-Fried Taiwanese Sausage on Rice

Hubby chose the Taiwanese Sausage, and it's the best thing we ordered today. The sweetness from the Sausage works well with the white rice drizzled with a soy sauce-based sauce.

After trying Chef Hung, my favourite restaurant for Taiwanese dishes is still Redbeef Noodle Kitchen. Do you have a favourite Taiwanese restaurant in Vancouver? Comment below, and I can't wait to try them.

Lunch from Pizza Garden

Our first delivery of the year is from Pizza Garden. 🍕

Do you want a slice?

I ordered two Half and Half Pizza which means we could enjoy four different Neapolitan pizzas. I just picked the first four flavours on the list alphabetically in the option. Apparently, I chose four veggie pizzas and one meat pizza.

Top: Calabria (Tomato sauce, mozzarella, fior di latte, granada padno, capicolla, fennel sausage, hot soppressata)
Bottom: Bianco (Extra virgin olive oil, mozzarella, fior di latte, grana Padano, fresh basil, ricotta cheese, roasted garlic, grape tomatoes (no base sauce))

I enjoyed the Soppressata in the Calabria pizza. However, Bianco was kind of bland. I wish there were more fresh basil.

Top: Amante Spinaci (Tomato sauce, mozzarella, fior di latte, grana padano, spinach, kalamata olives, ricotta cheese, and pesto drizzle)
Bottom: Aglio Arrostito (Pesto sauce, mozzarella, fior di latte, grana padano, roasted garlic, and grape tomatoes)

My favourite is the Amante Spinaci. I realized I absolutely love olives in pizza. However, I am biased for pesto sauce, a winner in the Aglio Arrostito pizza.

As expected, we didn't finish the pizza and have leftovers for the coming days. 

Thank you, Lord, for all the blessings.

New Year's Eve Dinner at Home

Growing up, one of the practices or superstitions we always hear is having round fruits at the table to welcome the New Year. I remember we will always have grapes, oranges, apples, among others, at our table alongside the usual Media Noche (New Year's Eve Dinner).

Hubby said we should continue the tradition by having round or circular things at our table. It doesn't have to be fruits that we might not eat and might just throw by the end of the week.

Christmas Eve dinner is my family's "big" celebration, so I always struggle to prepare to welcome the New Year. Below is a quick summary of what we did since getting married:

• To greet 2018, we just ordered Domino's Pizza and Timbits
• To ring in 2019, we stayed in Pan Pacific Hotel in Downtown Vancouver and watched the fireworks.
• To start 2020, we did nothing.
• To welcome 2021, we ordered savoury pies, donuts, and Filipino round snacks.

Hubby and I searched for circular or round food the last couple of days and decided to do "breakfast for dinner." So we went to the grocery yesterday and got pancake mix, frozen waffles, bagels, bananas, among other round things that we can find, including chicken balls.

Our menu for tonight includes:

• Blueberry Bagel
• Chicken balls and Waffles
• Pancake with sliced bananas and Nutella

Breakfast for New Year's Eve Dinner

I love the Chicken Balls. Good job, President's Choice.

Happy New Year! May 2022 be a kinder and more blessed year for all of us. Cheers to more food adventures and hopefully travel. Stay kind, healthy, and safe.

Where to get the Best Filipino Food in Metro Vancouver?

I am a Filipina based in Vancouver and I love to eat. In this year-end blog post, I will make a list of famous Filipino dishes and food and where I recommend you get it.

Send me a message in Facebook or Instagram if you have a recommended restaurant that I should try or a specific dish you're looking for.

Best Pandesal: Aling Mary's

📍Aling Mary's Filipino Store & Bakery at 2656 Main St, Vancouver, BC V5T 3E7

Half-dozen Pandesal from Aling Mary's

Best Taho: O! Taho

📍O! Taho at 4223 Fraser St, Vancouver, BC V5V 4G2

Taho from O! Taho

Best Siopao: Bao Bakery

📍Bao Bakery at 5115 Joyce St, Vancouver, BC V5R 4G8

Half dozen of Chicken Deluxe (Bola-Bola) Steamed Buns

Best Filipino-style Spaghetti: Shameless Buns

📍 Shameless Buns at 5772 Fraser St, Vancouver, BC V5W 2Z5

Filipino Spaghetti from Shameless Buns

Best Ensaimada: Ensaimada Moments

📱 Ensaimada Moments on Instagram

Two Boxes of Assorted Ensaimada from Ensaimada Moment

Best Mamon: KayeBakes.ca

📱 KayeBakes on Facebook and Instagram

Assorted Mamon Box from KayeBakes.ca

Best Ginataang Bilo-Bilo: Ilocos Fride

📱Ilocos Fride on Facebook and Instagram

Ginataang Bilo-Bilo
Ilocos Fride Description: A dessert or snack made with glutinous rice balls, plantain bananas, sweet potatoes, and tapioca pearls cooked in coconut milk.

Best Lumpiang Shanghai: Little Ongpin

📍 Little Ongpin Restaurant at 4093 No 5 Rd, Richmond, BC V6X 2T9

Lumpiang Shanghai

Best Filipino-style Pork BBQ: Klasik Inasal and Noodle Express

📍 Klasik Inasal and Noodle Express at 650 E Broadway, Vancouver, BC V5T 1X6

Pork BBQ

Send me a message in Facebook or Instagram if you have a recommended restaurant that I should try or a specific dish you're looking for.

Lunch from Lin Chinese Cuisine

We were deciding where to order food for today. We need meals that can last us until the end of the week. I thought of having pizza, but I am just not feeling it. So we end up ordering Chinese food from our favourite Chinese restaurant: Lin Chinese Cuisine.

Lunch from Lin Chinese Cuisine

Pan-Fried Pork Buns

Xiao Long Bao (Shanghai Juicy Pork Dumplings)

Hunan-Style Braised Pork

The Hunan-Style Braised Pork reminds me of the Filipino dish Humba because of the fattiness and general consistency of the sauce. It was unexpectedly delicious and I usually stay away from anything fatty.

Spicy Ma-Po Tofu

I wish the Spicy Ma-Po Tofu has more flavour.

The end of 2021 is almost here, and the whole year felt like a blur.