Ukranian Restaurants in Vancouver

I kept reading news on Russia attacking Ukraine and other than prayer, I wonder what else I can do to help. Since I have this blog, I thought of searching for Ukrainian Restaurants in Vancouver and I found two. If you know more Ukrainian restaurants and businesses in Metro Vancouver, please send me a message so we can add it to the list.

Ukrainian Village Restaurant

Address: 815 Denman Street, Vancouver BC V6G 2L7

Ukrainian Village Restaurant

Description from the website:

"Come to get real Ukrainian experience and atmosphere with trying our famous dishes, such as borscht, perogies cabbage rolls, and many more of them.

All our food us homemade from traditional Grandma's recipes.

The restaurant is located in the heart of Vancouver's Downtown at the corner of Robson and Denman street.

We are looking forward to see and serve you every day."

Kozak Homemade Ukrainian Food

Locations:

1. Gastown: 1 West Cordova Street, Vancouver BC V6C 3N8
2. East Van: 5077 Victoria Drive, Vancouver BC V5P 3T9
3. New West: 444 Sixth Street, New Westminster BC V3L 3B3

Available for UberEats delivery! Are you using UberEats for the first time? Get $10 off your first $20 order with my discount code: eats-ysickc.

Kozak Homemde Ukrainian Food at Victoria Drive, Vancouver BC

Their Story from the website:

"Irina and Sergiy moved to Beautiful British Columbia from Kyiv, Ukraine in 2012. Irina liked to bake and was armed with Masters in Restaurant Management. Sergiy liked to eat and brought MBA to the table. And in 2014 couple started Solodko Bakery (Now Kozak Food Group).

Started small. Renting out tables at the bakeries at night and selling at local farmers market next morning kind of small.

First farmers market was at Steveston and shortly couple (and couple part-timers) started working at most Farmers Markets from Whistler to Steveston to Langley.

In mid-2015 Irina and Sergiy opened first brick-and-mortar location, slowly adding different Ukrainian dishes to the pipeline. Couple combined homemade-style cooking with its focus on ingredients & affordability and professional cooking with its processes & techniques."

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Let's continue to pray for Ukraine and peace. May this not escalate to a world war. If you know more Ukrainian restaurants and businesses in Metro Vancouver, please send me a message so we can add it to the list.

Jollibee in Granville Street, Vancouver opens February 25, 2022

IT'S FINALLY HAPPENING! After two years of anxiously and patiently waiting, Jollibee in Granville Street is opening on February 25, 2022 (Friday).

Jollibee Canada officially announced the opening on their Instagram page (@JollibeeCanada)

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Jollibee Canada (@jollibeecanada)

When will Jollibee in Vancouver open?

Jollibee will open on February 25 (Friday) from 9:00 AM to 10:00 PM for to-go (take out) ONLY.

Where is the Jollibee in Vancouver located?

The location will be at 833 Granville Street, Vancouver, BC. It's easily accessible via transit.

What to get from Jollibee?

I would imagine the line would be long, but I doubt it would be as long as Winnipeg or Edmonton, where there's just more Filipino. You should get the Peach Mango Pie. My sister's Canadian boyfriend is obsessed with it as much as we are. I would also recommend the Jolly Spaghetti with little hotdogs and sweet sauce. There's a combo of Jolly Spaghetti and Chicken Joy - that'll be my order. If I feel greedy, I'll also order the Palabok (Filipino noodle dish).

If you like fried chicken or fried chicken sandwiches, Jollibee offers a delicious Spicy Fried Chicken Sandwich that can compete with Popeyes, Church's Chicken, and KFC.

Jollibee Peach Mango Pie

Palabok and Chicken Joy Meal

Why is Jollibee popular?

Or a better question might be why would Filipino line up for fast food like Jollibee? Read my post here.

Jollibee Vancouver Menu

My mom went to Jollibee yesterday and sent us a picture of the printed menu they were handing out. It doesn't have all the items we were expecting, but hopefully they add more in the coming months.

Jollibee Vancouver Menu as of March 2, 2022

Product availability and prices are subject to change without prior notice. All prices are in Canadian dollars and does not include taxes and tip.

Jolly Crispy Chicken Choice between Spicy or Original and comes with free gravy
2-piece Jolly Crispy Chicken with 1 Side and Soda $9.99 2-pieces Jolly Crispy Chicken with 2 Sides and Sode $11.99 3-piece Jolly Crispy Chicken with 1 Side and Soda $13.49	3-pieces Jolly Crispy Chicken with 2 Sides and Sode $15.49 6-piece Holly Crispy Chicken Bucket $15.99 10-piece Jolly Crispy Chicken Bucket $25.99
Jolly Spaghetti Bucket Treat $38.00 6-Piece Jolly Crispy Chicken Bucket 1 Jolly Spaghetti Family Pack 3 Peach Mango Pies	Palabok Fiesta Bucket Treat $44.00 6-Piece Jolly Crispy Chicken Bucket 1 Palabok Fiesta Family Pack 3 Peach Mango Pies
Chicken Sandwich Choice between Spicy or Original
Regular Chicken Sandwich $6.49 Regular Chicken Sandwich with Fries and Soda $9.99	Deluxe Chicken Sandwich $7.29 Deluxe Chicken Sandwich with Fries and Soda $10.79
Jolly Spaghetti Jolly Spaghetti with Soda $7.49 Jolly Spaghetti with 1-piece Jolly Crispy Chicken and Soda $9.99 Jolly Spaghetti Family Pack $15.99	Palabok Fiesta Palabok Fiesta with Soda $8.49 Palabok Fiesta with 1-piece Jolly Crispy Chicken and Soda $11.49 Palabok Fiesta Family Pack $20.99
Yumburger Cheesy Yumburger $4.99 Cheesy Yumburger with Fries and Soda $8.49	Burger Steak 2-piece Burger Steak with 1 Side and Soda $10.49 2-piece Burger Steak with 2 Sides and Soda $12.49
Sides Steamed Rice $2.99
Mashed Potatoes Regular $2.99 Large $3.99	French Fries Regular $2.99 Large $3.99
Dessert & Drinks Peach Mango Pie $2.99 Pineapple Quencher $3.49 Soda $2.49

Filipino Birthday Lunch Celebration | Family Day Weekend

We celebrated hubby's birthday today with the family on Family Day weekend.

My husband moved to Canada to be with me. He left his own family behind, and I always do my best to make sure he feels loved here in Canada.

I asked my mom to cook her Filipino-style spaghetti to celebrate his birthday. My mom (as always) went beyond and even purchased a cassava cake slice from Aling Mary's. Cassava cake is one of hubby's requests for his birthday.

Filipino Birthday Lunch

A Filipino birthday won't be complete without lumpiang shanghai (Filipino spring roll) and fried chicken, so we ordered from Little Ongpin and LA Chicken, respectively.

Best lumpiang shanghai in Vancouver from Little Ongpin

Best fried chicken in Richmond - LA Chicken

My mom also purchased Black Forest Cake from Saint Germain Bakery with hubby's name.

Black Forest Cake
Light chocolate sponge cake, Kirsch sauteed bing cherries, 36% real whipping cream, and 64% dark chocolate shaving.

After food coma lunch, I introduced my younger sister and our only brother to The Sound of your Heart and how hilarious it was. For dinner, I ordered more fried chicken from Hi-Five (I forgot to take a photo!), then we played Overcooked 2, which made me extremely happy, and we also played Smash Bros (I didn't fall and die! Haha!).

It's lovely to celebrate hubby's birthday and Family Day weekend with the family.

Dinner at Ramen Gojiro

It's the 6th ramen shop we have gone to in the last 5 weeks as we continue going through the list of the Best Ramen restaurants in Vancouver.

1. January 22 - Kokoro Tokyo Mazesoba
2. January 23 - Jinya Ramen Bar
3. January 29 - Kintaro Ramen
4. February 5 - Menya Raizo
5. February 12 - Kinton Ramen
6. February 19 (today) - Ramen Gojiro

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It's a busy and productive Saturday for us. We started the morning with breakfast I prepared at home. Then, we visited the BC Sports Hall of Fame and Museum. Afterwards, we watched the free intrasquad match of the Vancouver Whitecaps FC at BC Place.

We also realize that we can attend our first in-person Mass at the Holy Rosary Cathedral. Finally, to end the day, we had dinner at Ramen Gojiro.

This is actually one of my favourite ramen places because of those delicious broth-soaked chicken karaage.

Yokohama Iekei Ramen
"Homestyle" pork and chicken broth with shoyu flavour based from Yokohama. Thick noodles with very flavourful broth with depth and complexity

Light Spicy Ramen with Chashu
Our signature broth with a perfect balance of pork and chicken. Spicy sauce with a hint of sweetness

My absolute favourite is the Spicy Ramen, and I dipped our chicken karaage on the broth.

Karaage Original
House-made crispy deep, fried chicken

Mario's Gelati Ice Cream: Panda
The combination of rich black sesame gelato with a vanilla gelato centre. Topped off with roasted black sesame seeds.

For future me, here's the menu of Ramen Gojiro and what you have tried.

Ramen

☑️ Basic / Basic Bakamori

☑️ Spicy / Spicy Bakamori

☑️ Yokohama Iekei

⬜ Shoyu

☑️ Yuzu Shio

⬜ Vegetarian

Tsukemen

⬜ Tsukemen

⬜ Spicy Tsukemen

Sides

☑️ Gyoza

⬜ Spicy Gyoza

⬜ Matcha Vege Gyoza

☑️ Karaage

⬜ Fried Rice

⬜ Spicy Fried Rice

Donburi

☑️ Pork Katsu Curry Don

⬜ Sauce Pork Katsu Don

⬜ Chicken Karaage Don

Mini Don

⬜ Mini Mama's Chashu Don

⬜ Mini Teri Chashu Don

⬜ Mini Curry Don

Dessert

⬜ Home Made Match Pudding

⬜ Bacio Nero Ice Cream

☑️ Panda Ice Cream

⬜ Mango Ice Cream

Lunch at BC Place | Blue vs. White match Vancouver Whitecaps FC

Today, the Whitecaps FC hosted a fan and family-friendly Blue vs. White intrasquad match at BC Place. Entrance is free, but it's first-come, first-serve, and only sections 212 to 216 are open. Head coach Vanni Sartini and the first team take on a group comprised of players for the upcoming MLS NEXT Pro squad.

It's good to be back at BC Place!

It's great to be back in BC Place! Since it's first come, first serve, and the gate opens at 1:30 PM, we were already in line at 12:30 PM (because I like being first, haha).

First Fan in BC Place!

After grabbing our chosen seat, I ordered Classic Poutine and French Fries from the Poutinerie. Then, mini donuts just before the game started. I wanted another dozen mini donuts, but they're sold out.

Classic Poutine from The Poutinerie

Mini Donuts inside BC Place

Mini donuts are now my BC Place guilty pleasure. 

The game was alright. I am so excited and terrified for the upcoming season. I want the Whitecaps to do well, and I fear disappointment.

Blue vs. White match Vancouver Whitecaps FC at BC Place

First Filipino-inspired dish in our Fourth HelloFresh Box for 2022

Finally, I'll be able to try HelloFresh's rendition of a Filipino dish, and this week they are offering a Caldereta-Style Ground Beef. Let's see how it went!

Our HelloFresh box arrived Saturday morning delivered by FedEx. Unfortunately, we decided to go on a random date that day, so I couldn't cook any HelloFresh meals.

Superbowl Sunday Brunch and Wednesday Lunch: Cal Smart Turkey Chili

It's Superbowl day, and I know we're going to eat tons of game day finger food for lunner (lunch and dinner), so for brunch, I chose the lowest calorie meal from our HelloFresh box, which is the Cal Smart Turkey Chili with Lime Crema which we also had last year.

Cal Smart Turkey Chili with Lime Crema

HelloFresh Description: Jam-packed with nutrients to keep you strong but still delivering on flavour, this recipe proves you can satisfy that chilli craving.

#MeatlessMonday Valentine's Day Breakfast and Thursday Lunch: Zucchini and Lemon Linguine

We loved this dish last year, and it deserves to be our first meal on Valentine's day! Unfortunately, HelloFresh forgot to add the basil pesto to my box. It's honestly frustrating that I am paying so much money for a premium service that missed an ingredient in two of the four boxes we ordered so far.

Zucchini and Lemon Linguine with Basil Pesto and Goat Cheese

HelloFresh Description: We love zucchini all year long here at HelloFresh, and this dish combines some of our favourite flavours: sweet snap peas, zucchini, and basil pesto. A little squeeze of lemon at the end brings the whole dish together!

Valentine's Day Monday Lunch and Friday Breakfast: Caldereta-Style Ground Beef

The Caldereta dish I grew up with usually includes potatoes (and usually uses chicken). This is a fancy version of the Caldereta, but because of the soy sauce, it's like Pork Menudo without the diced potatoes.

Caldereta-Style Ground Beef with Peppers, Peas, and Rice

HelloFresh Description: We've quickened up this traditional Filipino tomato-based stew by using ground beef. This hearty stew is a perfect family dinner full of peppers, peas, garlic, and hint soy.

Tuesday Birthday Dinner: Bacon Alfredo Pasta

To celebrate hubby's birthday, I picked the meal with bacon to cook for our dinner.

Bacon Alfredo Pasta with Spring Salad

HelloFresh Description: The iconic Roman pasta dish, with a smoky, creamy sauce, peas and bacon, is sure to be a hit with the whole family. Everyone will be licking their plate clean.

Wednesday Dinner and Friday Lunch: Stovetop Pastitsio-Inspired Fusili

I used Almond milk for the milk requirement of this recipe, and I thought there was too much pumpkin spice in the recipe.

Stovetop Pastitsio-Inspired Fusili

HelloFresh Description: Inspired by the classic Greek layered pasta dish, pastitsio, this stovetop version takes a fraction of the time to put together! Then, the pumpkin pie spice blend adds layers of warm, aromatic flavour in just a minute!

Thursday and Friday Dinner: Veggie Chili

We enjoyed this healthy heart chilli last year and decided to order it again this week.

Veggie Chilli with Tortilla Chips and Sour Cream

HelloFresh Description: Simple to prepare, this delicious chilli will have everyone racing to the table with extraordinary flavours. Your bowls will be filled with beans, bell peppers, and tomatoes. We suggest using the tortilla chips to scoop up and enjoy every last bite.