My dad requested a mocha cake from my sister, and because they lived close to Sweet Obsession, and got a Mocha Torte.
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| Mocha Torte from Sweet |
I love mocha cake, and this one hits the spot. 🤤 I worry about where to get delicious mocha cake, and now I know.
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Mocha Torte from Sweet Obsession Six thin layers of vanilla sponge and mocha buttercream coated in chocolate ganache |
It was soft and not overly sweet. My dad loves it too.
We celebrate our dad's birthday with a family dinner at Continental Seafood Restaurant in Cambie Road, Richmond, BC.
We arrived at the restaurant at 5:00 PM for an early dinner. I love the service - they're so attentive to us since there are only two other occupied tables.
We got the following items:
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Everything was delicious and unique. That's all you need to know. Kidding; skip the Half & Crispy Chicken.
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| Half Crispy Chicken from Continental Seafood Restaurant |
The Baked BBQ Pork Bun reminded me of asado bola-bola siopao. The Pork & Shrimp Dumpling (siu mai) is better than the Shrimp Scallop Dumpling.
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| Baked BBQ Pork Bun from Continental Seafood Restaurant |
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| Deep Fried Taro Samosa, Pork & Shrimp Dumping, and Shrimp Scallop Dumpling from Continental Seafood Restaurant |
Both spring rolls are crunchy on the outside and delicious on the inside. It's just a matter of preference if you like pork or shrimp. If spring rolls are not your thing, you can skip it. But it's better than other Chinese restaurants around.
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| Shrimp Spring Roll and Pork Spring Roll from Continental Seafood Restaurant |
I have a secret love for deep-fried taro, so I always get it in the rare times I see it. Meanwhile, my younger sister has always been fond of deep-fried squid with salt & pepper, so we always order it.
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| Deep Fried Squid with Spicy Salt and Pepper from Continental Seafood Restaurant |
I wanted to compare the Roasted Pork and BBQ Pork with HK BBQ Master. The roasted pork was not as crispy, while the BBQ pork was not as sweet but still tender.
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| Any 2 BBQs (Roasted Pork and BBQ Pork) from Continental Seafood Restaurant |
The best part of the meal is Yangzhou fried rice. It's the best in Metro Vancouver that I've tried so far.
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| Yangzhou Fried Rice from Continental Seafood Restaurant |
After dinner, we drove back to my parents' place to eat cake while watching Mission Impossible (1996).
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| Soya Sauce Chow Mein from Continental Seafood Restaurant |
For team lunch this week, a colleague from Cork chose Japanese cuisine (specifically sushi). Since we're having it delivered and it's 30°C outside, I am worried that raw fish delivered might not be a good idea; that's why I went for the Beef Teriyaki Box.
It was a lot of food, and I finished it all! I have tried a better Japanese bento box, but judging it since it was delivered seems unfair. Everything was packed well (no spills), and it was edible.
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Beef Teriyaki Box delivered from SUSHI UOmo Restaurant Appetizer tempura, beef teriyaki with rice, California roll, salad, and house appetizer |
My teriyaki box came with appetizer tempura (2 pieces prawns and 3 pieces vegetables), beef teriyaki with rice, California roll, salad, 2 pieces gyoza, and miso soup. I was happy and surprisingly didn't feel a food coma after.
For my amusement, below is a list of our team lunch so far:
At the Chinatown Festival, we spotted Kanadell Japanese Bakery, selling all sorts of delicious pastries. We picked three.
Japanese melon pan is a sweet and popular baked treat. It's a sweet, soft bread that reminds me of Filipino ensaimada without cheese topping.
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| Melon Pan from Kanadell Japanese Bakery |
It is called a melon pan due to its characteristic melon-like shape and crisscross pattern on the surface. The flavour is rich, buttery, and slightly sweet bread.
I love it! We got the original flavour, but there are so many other options. I need to find a closer Japanese bakery.
My favourite food is Japanese curry; when I see a Japanese bakery selling anything with curry, I buy it. We had the curry pan for dinner. It's delicious beef curry with diced potatoes, carrots, and peas. It's a satisfying dinner.
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| Curry Pan from Kanadell Japanese Bakery |
The breaded crust provided a crunch, while the inside of the dough was soft and absorbed the curry sauce pretty well.
I love soft, chewy, and slightly sticky mochi, and this little pack has six assorted flavours.
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| Assorted Mini Mochi Bites from Kanadell Japanese Bakery |
After walking around the Chinatown Festival, we decided to stop by The Kouign Café to try White Rabbit Cookie.
I have a confession: this is only my second time in Chinatown since coming to Vancouver in 2015. And I was researching places and food to try last night around Chinatown, and the only café on the list is The Kouign and their White Rabbit Cookie.
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White Rabbit Cookie (Mochiko and wheat flour blend cookie, lightly studded with dark chocolate chips, and baked with White Rabbit Candy and Maldon sea salt), The Speculoos Sky (Cold brew iced Vietnamese coffee with condensed milk, Speculoos chantilly cream, and caramel drizzle), and The Golden Fog (Mango and passionfruit earl grey tea with condensed milk) |
My childhood memory of the White Rabbit is not good. I remember it giving me terrible headaches when I was a child. 🥹 I avoided it. I was hesitant to try the White Rabbit cookie because of it, but when I touched it and noticed how buttery it was, I knew it'll be a moist yet crispy edges cookie. The White Rabbit is a bonus texture, but the cookie is already impressive. All I can think of is my sister, who will absolutely love it.
When you have a big sign in your booth declaring that you're the best bannock on the West Coast, you increase people's expectations.
My only bannock experience is with Salmon n' Bannock, and their bannock is baked. Since West Coast Bannock fry theirs, it's lighter and oily. Most things are better fried, and this one is too. It's airy and fluffy.
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| OG Bannock from West Coast Bannock
Fresh fried Bannock with butter. |
It reminds me of Schiarc' or Pizzette Fritte (Fried Bread) from Italian Day on The Drive and even Beavertails.
I don't have much experience with Hong Kong-style pork barbecue except for trying some from HK BBQ Master in Richmond. Today, we went to Chinatown Festival and saw Ember Hong Kong BBQ. We ordered their Signature Hong Kong Barbecue Pork, the last one. They're sold out since we went there on the festival's second day.
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| Signature Hong Kong Barbecue Pork from Ember Hong Kong BBQ |
It was served without rice which is a bummer since sweet and savoury barbecue needs rice to help tone it down. It has a caramelized outer layer, while the meat is juicy and tender. However, it's not as soft as HK BBQ Master. Overall, a delicious bite of pork, but the Filipina in me needs rice.
After Sunday Mass, we took a bus going to Chinatown today. In the last 8 years (since moving to Canada), this is my second time in this area.
Our first bite of food at the Chinatown Festival is Green Tea Dorayaki. It's too sweet. I wished the green tea provided bitterness, but it's also sweet.
Maybe I'm not a fan of Dorayaki in general.
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| Green Tea Dorayaki grabbed at Chinatown Festival. |
What is dorayaki? It is a traditional Japanese dessert consisting of two small pancake-like discs that sandwich a a sweet filling.
