Wednesday, July 22, 2020

Birthday lunch delivery from Mui Garden Restaurant

It's my dad's birthday! He requested for Chinese cuisine and my siblings obliged. The images below are taken by my brother.

Shrimp and BBQ Pork Fried Rice from Mui Garden Restaurant
Shrimp and BBQ Pork Fried Rice

Chinese Broccoli with Salted Fish from Mui Garden Restaurant
Chinese Broccoli with Salted Fish

Honey Garlic Spareribs from Mui Garden Restaurant
Honey Garlic Spareribs

Sweet and Sour Fish from Mui Garden Restaurant
Sweet and Sour Fish

Yay for food!


Tuesday, July 21, 2020

Yummy, Fluffy Ensaymada from Kaye Bakes

Last month, I ordered Ube Cake from Kaye Bakes. It was so delicious! I was telling my dad about it, who arrived nearly a month ago from the Philippines (yes, he completed his 14-day quarantine period, and he's healthy as can be which makes all of us happy).

He said, "Baka si Kaye from Winnipeg ang binilhan mo." (Maybe you purchased from Kaye who we knew from Winnipeg). Apparently, they have a Couple's for Christ mentee in their two years in Winnipeg, who also moved to BC after 4 years.

Ensaymada
Ensaymada

I contacted Kaye Bakes to ask if they have Cassava Cake because my mom is requesting for it. I also awkwardly ask if they lived in Winnipeg because my parents new a Kaye that loves to bake from there who moved to BC. She said, yes we lived in Winnipeg. I told her my parents' name, and yes, she's the friend my dad is referring to—such a small world.

Ensaymada
Ensaymada from Kaye Bakes

I didn't know they knew each other when I ordered Ube Cake last month! I was just looking to support Filipino entrepreneurs and enjoy Ube cake.

My dad is celebrating his birthday tomorrow, so Kaye decided to surprise him with Ensaymada. It's too bad that I can't visit them right now to enjoy the fluffy pastry.

My mom called me, telling me how delicious the Ensaymada is. Thank God for using me to help reconnect my parents with their friends.

Where to get Ensaymada in Metro Vancouver?

Be sure to send Kaye Bakes a message to inquire about their Filipino pastries. I'm still looking forward to my birthday, so I can have a mocha cake.

Kaye Bakes contact details
Call Kaye Bakes: 778-697-8143
Email Kaye Bakes: kayebakes.ca@gmail.com

Sunday, July 19, 2020

Lunch from Vera's Burger Shack

After picking a spot and settling down at Kits Beach, my youngest sister, hubby, and I walked to look for a food source. We walked along Cornwall Avenue to see what's open. We decided to buy lunch from Vera's Burger Shack.

What to get from Vera' Burger Shack?

I got Vera's Burger. I didn't understand what the cashier was saying so I just asked him to put Vera's sauce in it, instead of everything (tomato, lettuce, etc.). #facepalm
Feast from Vera's Burger Shack
Burgers, Sweet Potato Fries, Onion Rings, French Fries, and Chicken Strips

I love Romer's Burger, but the meat in Vera's Burger is so much better.

Hubby got the grilled chicken. I made a terrible choice of not putting anything in it. It's probably good for our "diet", but of course, without any sauce, it's dry. The chicken and bun are still delicious, but it could have been better if only I asked them to put everything in it.

Vera Burger

Vera Burger

My youngest sister picked chicken strips. It was surprisingly good. It's well-seasoned with great flavour.

We enjoyed our lunch near Kits Beach under a tree on a blanket. It was great!

Breakfast from COBS Bread Bakery

Sunday! I woke up to my mom's message that they'll pick us up so we can go to Kitsilano Beach. An hour later, we're heading to McDonald's along 4th Avenue (at Balsam Street). We really don't want to buy from McD's, instead, we saw the COBS Bread Bakery across the street and decided to quickly buy croissants from there.

"Who knew happiness can fit in a paper bag" is printed on a paper bag with COBS Bread logo
I love this paper bag!

I got a couple Plain Croissants for my youngest sister, a Ham & Cheese Croissant and a Spinach & Feta Croissant for hubby and myself.

Ham and Cheese Croissant inside a paper bag from COBS Bread Bakery
Ham and Cheese Croissant

Happy Sunday!


Saturday, July 18, 2020

Dinner from Express Pho

Update: Express Pho and all the restaurants between West Broadway and Hemlock (west bound) are closed permanently, because that area will be the future location of the Granville Station.

Takeout Day is all about supporting restaurants as they try to survive and cope with the challenges of a pandemic.

I have ordered from most of my favourite neighbourhood joints, and Express Pho is the last one. I felt sad seeing how they're down to two people in the restaurant (I could be wrong, but they look like a mom and son duo).

If you have the means and if you live near West Broadway and Granville, please order from Express Pho. They're right across Jordan, the furniture store.

Support and Order from Express Pho

We ordered new dishes this time (this blog is useful in recalling what we had the last time we were here).

Vietnamese Feast from Express Pho
Dinner Tonight

Vietnamese Spring Roll (2 rolls) from Express Pho
Vietnamese Spring Roll (2 Rolls)

40. Curry Beef with Steamed Rice from Express Pho
Curry Beef with Steamed Rice

I love the way Vietnamese cuisine cook their beef. They're always so tender.

Beef Balls, Chicken Balls Rice Noodle in Soup Pho from Express Pho
Beef Balls, Chicken Balls in Soup (Rice Noodle is in a separate container)

Rice Noodles and Bean Sprouts from Express Pho
Bean Sprouts and Rice Noodles

I hope this post gets more people ordering from Express Pho and that they don't close (like the Greek restaurant beside them, Bawan Greek). We took a peek in their window, and it's empty. Hopefully, it's just a temporary closure, but it doesn't look like it.


Sunday, July 12, 2020

Guest Post: Brunch at The Breakfast Table

This food experience is shared by my only brother. Yay! :) I love The Breakfast Table, too, and I'm glad to see him enjoy their food as well.

It was my first time going out since the COVID-19 pandemic has begun. I met up with a friend for brunch at the Breakfast Table.

I decided to get the Beef Bulgogi Hash with poached eggs.

(two poached eggs, kimchi, sauteed mushroom, spinach, green onion, sweet chilli sauce)

While my friend wanted to have the Coffee Crusted Pork Belly Benedict, but it was not available at the time, and so he decided to have the Hipster Benedict instead.

(two poached eggs, housemade peppered bacon, tomato, avocado, English muffin, bearnaise)

Saturday, July 11, 2020

Lunch Delivery from Ramen Gojiro

We haven't had ramen in such a long time, and one of our favourite spots to get the delicious Japanese cuisine favourite is Ramen Gojiro. We love their spicy soup and crispy chicken karaage. I think they have one of the best (if not the best) chicken karaage in Vancouver (if you know of a better place, please let me know so we could try it).

Best Chicken Karaage in Vancouver

I ordered Original Chicken Karaage and Spicy Ramen with Chicken Karaage as the topping. I couldn't get enough of the crunchy and juicy boneless fried chicken.

House-made crispy deep fried chicken from Ramen Gojiro
Original Karaage (house-made crispy deep-fried chicken)

Spicy Ramen

Below is my spicy, creamy, ramen (without the soup yet) topped with karaage. I added extra Ajitama (medium-boiled marinated egg).
Bowl of Ramen without the soup from Ramen Gojiro
Spicy, rich, spicy ramen (without the soup) topped with karaage.
This is the photo with the spicy, rich broth added in.

Spicy Ramen from Ramen Gojiro
Spicy Ramen topped with karaage, spicy, and with rich broth.
Ramen Gojiro's signature broth with the perfect balance of pork and chicken. The spicy sauce with a hint of sweetness.

I enjoyed the ramen very much. The heat was perfect, while the noodles were chewy. The perfect crunch was provided by the fried chicken.

Eating ramen
Enjoying my Spicy Ramen

Delicious Gatsuri-Style Ramen

Hubby ordered the Yokohama Iekei Ramen. The broth was delicious, but since I like my ramen with a bit of heat, I prefer my Spicy Ramen. I tried a portion of the pork from his ramen, and it was tender.

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


Gyoza on the Side

My ramen lunch won't be complete without our favourite side gyoza. It's not the best gyoza, but really, I order and eat at Ramen Gojiro for the fried chicken.

3 pieces of gyoza from Ramen Gojiro
Gyoza

It's a happy Saturday!

Friday, July 10, 2020

Lunch from Newly Renovated Beautiful PICA Blue Hat Bakery-Cafe

We had to run an errand around the area and thought it would be a great idea to visit the newly renovated and stunningly beautiful PICA Blue Hat Bakery-Cafe.

Blue Hat Bakery

Once I feel comfortable eating in a restaurant again, I want this spot right here! Look at the view from the window, it looks like a beautiful picture.

Beautiful spot with a magnificent view
View from PICA Blue Hat Bakery-Cafe

Beautiful new counters from PICA Blue Hat Bakery-Cafe
Beautiful new counters from PICA Blue Hat Bakery-Cafe

Tune Mediterranean Sandwich from PICA Blue Hat Bakery-Cafe
Tuna Mediterranean Sandwich from PICA Blue Hat Bakery-Cafe

The food is still delicious. It's nice to see the faces of Christine and Lily and I'm glad they're back at work. Be sure to visit PICA and grab things to go or if you're feeling brave enjoy it either inside the cafe or outside in their elevated patio.

Saturday, July 4, 2020

Dinner at Bridges Restaurant

We're celebrating our first Catholic wedding anniversary on Monday. Today, we decided to attend Mass then we made a reservation for dinner at Bridges Restaurant.

Beautiful Weather for Patio by the Water

I prayed last night to have a beautiful, sunny weather today which would make seating outside the Bridges by the water more enjoyable. I'm so glad God answered my prayer.

View of False Creek from Bridges Restaurant. Water, boats, and the Burrard Bridge can be seen.
Our view during dinner

What to get from the Bridges Restaurant?

Being near the water, we decided to order seafood items from the menu.

For the appetizer, we had calamari. For our main course, I had the seafood penne while hubby had the grilled salmon. To end the lovely meal, we had chocolate cake.

We stayed there for 1.5 hours.

A plate of calamari
Calamari (lemon pepper, fresh dill, tzatziki)

A plate of penne with prawns, salmon, halibut, and lemon basil cream sauce
Seafood Penne with prawns, salmon, and halibut in lemon basil cream sauce

A plate of grilled wild sockeye salmon, saffron cream, citrus-tahini charred broccolini, and mashed potatoes
Grilled Wild Sockeye Salmon with saffron cream, citrus-tahini charred broccolini, and mashed potatoes

Chocolate cake with whipped cream
Chocolate Cake

What I like about the Bridges Restaurant?

I like love the view. It's really the best reason to come and eat here. Enjoy the view, breathe the fresh air, and melt all your worries away (at least for 2 hours). I like the service. The waitress and hostess are super friendly and they don't hurry you into leaving which gives you enough time to enjoy your meal and relax. The food is good, not the best in Granville Island by any means, but it's the best one by the water.


Wednesday, July 1, 2020

Canada Day lunch from Salmon n' Bannock

Happy Canada Day! How we usually celebrate Canada Day?
  • 2016: Steveston Richmond, BC Salmon Festival and Canada Day Parade with sisters
  • 2017: Steveston Richmond, BC Salmon Festival and Canada Day Parade with parents, sister, and brother
  • 2018: Steveston Richmond, BC Salmon Festival and Canada Day Parade with hubby
  • 2019: We were not in the country to celebrate. :(
  • 2020: There's a pandemic.
Since there's still a pandemic, we decided to order lunch from Salmon n' Bannock. They are the only year-round Indigenous restaurant in Vancouver. They serve wild fish, free-range, grass-fed organic meat, Bannock made fresh daily and other culinary delights inspired by a variety of First Nations traditions. It seems fitting to support a First Nations business today.

How to order?

They are not open for dine-in service, but they're on Uber Eats, and I originally planned to order that way. However, I called yesterday to check if they are open today, and they said yes with a caveat that they're serving a July 1 BBQ special, and that's the only thing on the menu. I ordered two for pick-up at 1 PM, which is the time they open.

July 1 BBQ from Salmon n' Bannock

We walked there in the rain and picked up our food. It costs $21.00 each. What's included in the meal? Wild sockeye salmon, maple coleslaw, vegetables, signature bannock, and a baked potato.

Container full of vegetables (brocolli and sweet potato), coleslaw, baked potato, butter, sour cream, salmon, and Bannock
Wild sockeye salmon, maple coleslaw, vegetables (steamed broccoli and buttered sweet potato), baked potato, and signature Bannock. Butter and sour cream on the side
Container full of vegetables (brocolli and sweet potato), coleslaw, baked potato, butter, sour cream, salmon, and Bannock
Wild sockeye salmon, maple coleslaw, vegetables (steamed broccoli and buttered sweet potato), baked potato, and signature Bannock. Butter and sour cream on the side

My hubby and I are stuffed! Everything was so delicious. I love salmon, and it's cooked perfectly. The Bannock is good with the butter they provided. I can't wait to go back, hopefully, when they're ready for dine-in service.

Where is Salmon n' Bannock located? It's the same block as Toys R Us along West Broadway.


My only request, please serve salmon chowder. It's something I fell in love with last year when we had lunch at Thunderbird Cafe in Squamish Lil'wat Cultural Centre in Whistler.


Tuesday, June 30, 2020

Dinner at Suika (dine in during COVID-19)

Phase 2 in BC has started mid-May, and since then, restaurants have slowly been opening up for dining service with limited seating. We decided to wait until today before risking going out to enjoy a delicious meal at Suika.

Read my post on things I'd do first when things get better in BC. Check out what's second on the list.

First Time to Dine In

How's the experience? I want to say the same, but not really. Suika is a popular Japanese restaurant along West Broadway near Fir Street. They're usually jam-packed with people for both their lunch and dinner service.

Today, only a maximum of 40 people is allowed in the restaurant. The layout can be divided into three sections, and based on my observation, only 2-3 tables per section has a customer. Specifically, in the location we're in where there are four tables, only two are being used. 

There's sanitizer by the entrance which we used, and we maintained a reasonable distance to the host who walked us to our table. He gave us the menu that is printed on paper, which he didn't take back after we placed our order.

The only time someone came in less than 6 feet is when a server wearing a mask would place our food in the table.

The Food

Suika has the best katsu curry in Metro Vancouver. If you love Japanese curry, please give the one at Suika a try.

A bowl of Japanese-style curry, fried pork (tonkotsu)
Signature Beef Curry (Suika's original stewed beef tendon curry) topped with Tonkatsu (pork loin cutlet)

The food is still fantastic. I thought it's even better than I remember, but it could just be the anticipation and excitement of eating here again after a long time. We had it delivered in April, but it's just not the same as eating here fresh from the kitchen.

Hubby had his usual double tonkatsu. We also had an appetizer for sharing and desserts.

Yuzu Tuna Tataki
Yuzu Tuna Tataki (lightly seared albacore tuna seasoned with Yuzu, topped with ponzu jelly and crispy garlic chips)

I think this is the first dish from Suika that I didn't enjoy. 
Double Tonkatsu Set
Double Tonkatsu Set (2 pieces of fried pork loin cutlet using special fresh panko served with two kinds of dipping sauce, rice, and miso soup)

Frozen Matcha Brulee
Frozen Matcha Brulee (Frozen matcha creme brulee served with whipped cream and red bean sauce)

Is it worth it?

Yes. Everyone is observing physical distancing, which helped put my mind at ease. More importantly, I get to eat the great food Suika serves again and then can continue to provide employment.


Saturday, June 27, 2020

Dinner from Royal Seoul House

I love slow Saturdays like today. We went to Staples to send off a package to Nova Scotia. Then, we decided to order take out dinner from our favourite Korean restaurant, Royal Seoul House.

We're still not brave enough to eat in a restaurant. I'm willing to go in, pick up food, then go out, but outside our house and my parent's place, we haven't spent more than 30 minutes in other establishments. Oh, that's not entirely true, we attended Mass twice now.

Anyway, before heading to the restaurant, I called in with my selection. We walked around the neighbourhood and went in 20 minutes later. My order is ready, and I can't wait.

Royal Seoul House was empty. Although, patrons may be eating in the private space for physical distancing.

Favourite Korean Dishes

Unlike in the Philippines, Korean dishes are not as popular here in Canada. They're also not that many Korean restaurants, unlike Japanese cuisine, which is nearly everywhere. I ordered our favourite Korean dishes.

Banchan
Banchan
I didn't expect our take out to come with banchan.

Goon Mandu

Mandu is a Korean dumpling. I love dumplings from all countries, and Mandu is definitely second on the list (right after Xiao Long Bao).

A row of fried Korean dumplings called Mandu
Goon Mandu (deep-fried beef dumplings)

Japchae

This is my mom's favourite, and we have learned to love.

Japchae
Japchae (stir-fried potato noodle with assorted vegetables and beef)

Seafood Pancake

This is a recent (when we moved to Canada) discovery for me. Growing up in the Philippines means an abundance of seafood, and this dish perfectly encapsulated all the fantastic seafood.

Seafood Pancake
Haemul Pajeon (Seafood Pancake) (Flour pancake with green onion and assorted seafood)

I'm happy to buy from the Royal Seoul House and support local businesses in our neighbourhood. I can't wait to have the courage to dine in again and enjoy their BBQ.


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