Ice Cream from COWS | Weekend in Squamish

It's our dad's 60th birthday, and to celebrate, we're spending the weekend at Squamish, BC.

From our Airbnb in Squamish, we decided to take a drive to Whistler. We walked around the village and enjoyed a quiet few minutes near Peace Park. It was sunny and hot, so ice cream from COWS seemed the perfect way to cool down.

A cow in front of COWS,

Left: Caramel Moocchiato (Caramel coffee ice cream, English toffee, and chocolate marble swirl)
Right: Brownie Explosion (Vanilla ice cream, chocolate marble, and brownie pieces)

Yay for creamy and delicious ice cream. Afterwards, we drove to Alice Lake and spent the rest of our afternoon enjoying the view and cool breeze under the shade of beautiful trees.

Breakfast at Crabapple Cafe | Weekend in Squamish

It's our dad's 60th birthday, and to celebrate, we're spending the weekend at Squamish, BC.

Happy Saturday morning! From our AirBnB in Squamish, we drove to Whistler for a quick side trip, but before the 45-minute drive, we grabbed breakfast from The Crabapple Café.

I had my usual eggs benedict while hubby ordered their chorizo sausage hash.

Chorizo Sausage Hash
Chorizo sausage, sauteed peppers and onions on a bed of hash browns. Served with two poached eggs, cheddar cheese, smashed avocado, and roasted red pepper and tomato relish.

I enjoyed both food items. The Chorizo Sausage Hash is a bit spicy, but I love the peppers and onions. The dimension in flavour is unexpected from an unassuming cafe.

Smoked Salmon & Crispy Capers Eggs Benedict
Cold smoked sockeye and steelhead salmon with crispy fried capers on a toasted English muffin under two poached eggs and hollandaise. Served with hash browns

Lunch at Sky Pilot Eatery BBQ | Weekend in Squamish

It's our dad's 60th birthday, and to celebrate, we're spending the weekend at Squamish, BC.

After breakfast, we drove to Shannon Falls and enjoyed the view before the bus of tourists arrived. Then, we went to the Sea to Sky Gondola, which offered a fantastic view of Howe Sound.

At the top, we ate lunch on the Octagon Deck and ordered from their barbecue menu. We enjoyed the hummus served with flatbread and crackers and smokies.

Roasted Garlic Hummus, Olives, Grilled Flatbread and Parmesan Pepper Crackers

Smokies

Jalapeno Cheddar Smokies

Northshore Smokies

After spending 3-4 hours on top, we drove to Downtown Squamish for groceries. For dinner, my dad cooked Filipino-style grilled pork. It was nostalgic.

Breakfast at Tim Hortons | Weekend in Squamish

It's our dad's 60th birthday, and to celebrate, we're spending the weekend at Squamish, BC.

Happy Friday! Hubby and I took a vacation day for today. We're headed to Squamish, BC, to celebrate my dad's birthday. As with any Canadian trip, we started with our usual breakfast from Tim Hortons.

Sausage Breakfast Sandwich

Bacon Breakfast Sandwich

After breakfast, we walked home to change for the day. My mom called to inform us that they were on the way to pick us up.

Thank Granville It's Food Trucks (TGIF) is back in South Granville, Vancouver

All summer long last year, hubby and I kept an eye out for new food trucks that's participating in Thank Granville It's Food Trucks (TGIF). I am so happy to learn that they're coming back this year.

Screenshot from Instagram

Where is TGIF?

Fir Street corner West 10th Avenue (near the Vancouver School Board)

When is TGIF 2022?

Time: Between 12 NN to 7 PM
Days: Every Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays
Date: From June 3 to August 28, 2022

What to expect during TGIF?

• Rotating lineup of food trucks
• On some days: outdoor artisan craft markets and a Plaza Party

Which food trucks will be at TGIF?

I will update this post as soon as I see the food trucks list on Instagram, but on the announcement they names Super Thai, The Brownie Bakers, Boca'O, and KYU Grill.

List of Food Trucks participating at TGIF in South Granville

📍 means I went to TGIF and ate at this food truck.
✓ means I ordered from this food truck in the past.

]

June 3 (Friday)	June 4 (Saturday)	June 5 (Sunday)
Marhaba Food	📍 Overland Sandwich ✓	Ay! Mamacita
NaMi Vietnamese		Crema Ice Cream & Desserts ✓
		📍 Munchu Picchu ✓
June 10 (Friday)	June 11 (Saturday)	June 12 (Sunday)
The Jerkshack	📍 Boca'O ✓	Mahshiko Food
Old Country Pierogi	Camion Cafe	Munchu Picchu ✓
	Munchu Picchu ✓
June 17 (Friday)	June 18 (Saturday)	June 19 (Sunday)
Ay! Mamacita	La Callejera Mexican Street Food	Boca'O ✓
The Brownie Bakers ✓	NaMi Vietnamese	Food Daddy ✓
The JerkShack		Munchu Picchu ✓
Munchu Picchu ✓ (2 PM - 7 PM)		📍 Tokyo Katsu-Sand ✓
		Salty's Lobster Shack ✓
June 24 (Friday)	June 25 (Saturday)	June 26 (Sunday)
La Callejera Mexican Street Food	📍 La Callejera Mexican Street Food ✓	La Callejera Mexican Street Food ✓
Super Thai ✓	📍 Overland Sandwich ✓	Munchu Picchu ✓
		Tokyo Katsu-Sand ✓
July 1 (Friday)	July 2 (Saturday)	July 3 (Sunday)
Happy Canada Day! TGIF is closed.	📍 Jerkshack ✓	Crack On ✓ (10:30 AM - 4 PM)
	La Callejera Mexican Street Food ✓	La Callejera Mexican Street Food ✓
	Mahshiko	📍 Mahshiko ✓
	Munchu Picchu ✓	Munchu Picchu ✓
		📍 Takenaka ✓
		Tokyo Katsu-Sand ✓ (11:30 AM - 4:30 PM)
July 8 (Friday)	July 9 (Saturday)	July 10 (Sunday)
Baba's House	📍 Hugs Mini Donuts	La Callejera Mexican Street Food ✓
Cultivate Food Truck	La Callejera Mexican Street Food ✓	Tokyo Katsu-Sand ✓
The Brownie Bakers ✓
La Callejera Mexican Street Food ✓
Marhaba Lebanese
Overland Sandwich ✓
July 15 (Friday)	July 16 (Saturday)	July 17 (Sunday)
Camion Cafe	Hugs Mini Donuts ✓	No food trucks today.
The Jerk Shack ✓ (until 3:30 PM)	La Callejera Mexican Street Food ✓
La Callejera Mexican Street Food ✓
Marhaba Lebanese (from 1:00 PM)
July 22 (Friday)	July 23 (Saturday)	July 24 (Sunday)
Camion Cafe	La Callejera Mexican Street Food ✓	La Callejera Mexican Street Food ✓ (until 3:00 PM)
KYU Grill ✓	Mahshiko ✓	Tokyo Katsu-Sand ✓
La Callejera Mexican Street Food ✓	Super Thai ✓
Marhaba Lebanese
Munchu Picchu ✓
The schedule below is from the South Granville BIA website and is subject to change without prior notice.
July 29 (Friday)	July 30 (Saturday)	July 31 (Sunday)
The Jerk Shack	Ay! Mamacita	Hugs Mini Donuts
La Callejera Mexican Street Food	La Callejera Mexican Street Food	Old Country Pierogi
The Mahshiko		Tokyo Katsu-Sand
Munchu Picchu
August 5 (Friday)	August 6 (Saturday)	August 7 (Sunday)
Marhaba Lebanese	No food trucks today.	Ay! Mamacita
Munchu Picchu		La Callejera Mexican Street Food
Old Country Pierogi		Tokyo Katsu Sand

The table below is my personal checklist of food trucks that will be part of TGIF 2022 and whether I have tried their food or not. You can view a similar table from 2021 here.

List of Food Trucks in Vancouver
🔲 Ay! Mamacita	🔲 Baba's House	🔲 Bistro Van	☑️ Boca'O
☑️ The Brownie Bakers	🔲 Camion Cafe	☑️ Crack On	☑️ Crema Ice Cream & Desserts
☑️ Food Daddy	🔲 Hugs Mini Donuts	☑️ The Jerk Shack	☑️ KYU Grill
☑️ La Callejera Mexican Street Food	🔲 Marhaba Lebanese Food	☑️ Mahshiko	☑️ Munchu Picchu
🔲 NaMi Vietnamese	🔲 Old Country Pierogy	☑️ Overland Sandwich	🔲 Rolled West Coast
☑️ Salty's Lobster Shack	🔲 Sirius Cravings	☑️ Super Thai	☑️ Takenaka
☑️ Tokyo Katsu-Sand

Pinoy Fiesta Vancouver 2022: Unang Hirit sa Tag-Init

In 2019, we joined the "Pinoy Fiesta Vancouver: Unang Hirit sa Tag-Init." Unfortunately, it was cancelled in 2020 because of the pandemic. There is still no news if the event with proceeding this 2022.

I'll update this post once I hear any news.

Halo-Halo Festival 2022 in Vancouver

Summer in Vancouver is hot. If you want to beat the heat, check what desserts tropical countries like the Philippines have to offer.

What is Halo-Halo?

The literal translation is mix-mix. It is a dessert from the Philippines consisting of shaved ice, condensed milk, and sugar. Then, you add mixed fruit, boiled sweetened beans, and gelatin that you mix together. It's usually topped with purple yam (ube), leche flan, and ice cream.

Halo-Halo with Ice Cream

Halo-Halo Festival in Vancouver

Eight restaurants are participating in the event to promote halo-halo and provide relief from the heat.

When is the event?

July 15 to August 16, 2022

What to expect from the restaurants?

Halo-Halo and other desserts are inspired by flavours from the Philippines.

List of participating Filipino restaurants

• Grandt Kitchen
• KaonTa
• Kabayan Fiesta
• Mabuhay Foods
• Mr. Siopao de Langley
• Pampanga's Cuisine
• Plato Filipino
• Sago To Go
• Win Win Chick-N