SECONDS, PLS?

Kishimoto Japanese Kitchen & Sushi Bar: I got Lucky

2016-10-26T00:42:00.000-07:00

I love sushi! I've heard so much about Kishimoto Japanese Restaurant on Commercial Drive, so I finally decided to go. Please note that they do not take reservations and you have to walk in and write your name down! On the brighter side, they can text/call you when they have seats so you can walk around! The place is fairly small and we were told that it'd be almost an hour wait for table for 2. After waiting 15 minutes, we were going to go elsewhere and hence, we walked back to the restaurant to let the hostess know to remove our name. She did not seem disappointed as this probably happens often at this restaurant! As I was walking out the door and outside, she called me back and said they have a table ready for us as somebody else left and cancelled their table! Joy!

Salmon Oshi (wild salmon/jalapeno/creamy sauce/cracked black pepper/torch seared)

Salmon Oshi must be one of their most popular dishes as this has popped up on my instagram numerous times! It is without a doubt that this dish is popular - it was amazingly delicious! Kishimoto is known for their reasonable prices and fantastic plating and without a doubt, I was indeed impress with their fancy plating!

Caterpillar Roll (unagi, cucumber, unagi sauce, wrapped in avocado, mayo and ikura on top

Again, the presentation was a full 10/10. Ingredients tasted very fresh, each piece was detail oriented, and I was only wanting seconds!

Toro

To me, the toro was good, but not great. To be fair, I'm not a huge fan of tuna sashimi to begin with. For freshness, it didn't taste 10/10, maybe a 9/10.

Unfortunately, I don't recall what this was called but it was one of their seasonal specials. This dish came on ice and while there are the sashimi pieces, the head is fried!

3 types of sauces!

Entrance

Another look at the details put in to the Salmon Oshi dish!

Overall, very yummy indeed. I would say Kishimoto is definitely one of my favourites in Vancouver. Not only do they have unique rolls, but also fresh and delicious. Also, for the average prices, you also get fantastic plating. Nevertheless, be prepared to wait! They are busy and popular and hence, no surprise you'll have to wait if you go during a popular time!

Sushi Aria: First restaurant meal of 2016!

2016-01-03T16:26:00.001-08:00

Happy New Year! Wishing you all a year filled with happiness, good health, and good food!

My first restaurant meal this year was at Sushi Aria, which opened a few months ago. This location was a travel agency, then a modern dessert place, and finally a sushi place now. Situated between Copa Cafe and Corner 23, and across from Landmark Hot Pot, I think it's perfect to have a sushi restaurant in this area. We came here on a Saturday evening without reservations, and we were seated quickly!

Sushi Aria

Agedashi tofu $4.75

The agedashi tofu was lightly fried and gave off a nice crispy outer layer even when dipped into the sauce.

Salmon teriyaki with rice $8.95

The salmon teriyaki was nicely cooked and still maintained a smooth texture. This plate had lots of bean sprouts (yay for veggies!), however, I think it had too much pepper. The pepper made this dish a little overly spicy.

Chopped scallop roll $3.95

The chopped scallop roll was satisfying as it was filled with lots of scallop! I also liked how there isn't too much rice on the roll.

Alaska combo $8.95

The Alaska combo came with 2 salmon nigiri, 1 tuna nigiri, 1 ebi nigiri, and a full order of Alaska roll. Alaska roll is usually my go-to sushi roll because I love California roll and I love salmon sashimi. So, Alaska roll is just the perfect combination for me. However, where's the imitation crab meat in this Alaska roll?! Even though it was filled with chunks of avocado, which made this roll creamy, it just didn't taste right without the imitation crab meat. As you can see, there's something on top of the Alaska rolls (and no, I'm not referring to the salmon), but the mushy, creamy-like orangey which I have yet to figure out what it is. My friend says it's crushed tempura.

Nabeyaki udon $6.95

I thought the Nabeyaki udon was one of the best nabeyaki udons I've had. The udon noodles were done just the way I liked them - a little bit chewy and the soup was rich. However, it was lacking a bit in terms of toppings as it basically only had chicken, mushrooms, and little veggies. I must comment on the way they thinly sliced the carrots because it complemented the noodles well. However, nabeyaki udon is not complete without fish cakes!

One thing I really liked about this restaurant is that it is very spacious! Most of their tables are booth seats and hence, a very private space. Finally, I must mention that the waitresses were constantly filling our cups with tea. We stayed there for quite some time and I was really surprised that I had never for once needed to ask them for to refill our tea. Thank you for keeping us hydrated and warm with the green tea!

DIY: Easy Flower Pots as Bridal Shower Party Favours

2015-11-10T22:05:00.001-08:00

As we, the bridesmaids, were planning the bridal shower for our special friend, we decided to make party favours for all the guests. We wanted something that was handcrafted and unique, yet fairly easy to make as we were tight for time. Also, we wanted the party favours to be practical so people wouldn't just throw them away in the end and of course, we also wanted to stay within our budget.

This was a really great idea that we came up with - cute flower pots!

Here's what you'll need:

Medium-sized flower pots
Soft, fluffy socks (preferably brown or green as they'll be like the "soil" and "grass")
Lollipops
(Pink) Ribbons
Construction paper
Cards/paper/scrapbook paper
Glue

Directions:

1. Take a pair of socks, roll it up vertically and place it into the flower pot. This will be your "soil" or "grass" in the pot.

2. Stick a lollipop (2 or 3) into the socks. These will act as "flowers".

3. (Optional) Using construction paper, you can create flower petals or leaves for your lollipop. Use your imagination!

4. Take a ribbon and wrap it around the flower pot and tie a beautiful bow in the front.

5. Using the cards/scrapbook paper, write a thank-you note for your guests! Include the event name and date! Using string, type it around one of the lollipops.
6. Use your imagination and add any other decorations as you wish!

Since we had a pair of red socks, we decided to make it look like a "cupcake" rather than a flowers and soil.

All done!

We had a lot of fun making these party favours! I love crafts!

1/2 Roll Japanese Grill & Sushi Bar: 2 disappointments, but will try again

2015-07-04T17:10:00.001-07:00

1/2 Roll opened not too long ago and is situated on Main street off King Edward St. We were actually planning on going to Hawker's Delight, but because that was quite packed and it didn't seem like it had air conditioning, my friend suggested we go across the street for some sushi.

1/2 Roll used to be Itadakimasu, which is where the sushi in cute little balls (that were surfacing on my Instagram) came from. Unfortunately, I never had a chance to try Itadakimasu and now it has probably changed owners and is now known as 1/2 Roll. As their name says it, this sushi restaurant allows you to order half rolls, which I think is quite nice. If you're just going with one other person (like I did), then that allows you to have more variety. However, it didn't seem like their menu was promoting the 1/2 roll concepts as when the menu came, I totally forgot that we could order half rolls.

We ended up getting takoyaki ($4.95) and a House Combo ($21.95). I don't know what happened to me, but lately I've been shy of taking food pictures. You'd think that the more you do something, the better you'd get. But this has been the other way for me. Anyways, back to the takoyaki... that was a disappointment for me. The order came with 5 takoyaki's and I thought they were too oily, the batter was too sticky, and they were quite small. I'd rather go to the night market and get some there.

On the other hand, the House Combo was quite impressive when it first came. Considering the price, I would say it's a cheap eat. From left to right in the picture: House roll, dynamite roll, spicy tuna roll, California roll, tuna roll, sockeye salmon roll, tuna and salmon sushi. This definitely was able to fill us both up. However, even though the salmon looks good, it had a slight fishy taste to it....which leads me to think that it isn't so fresh.

House Combo

One thing I have to get at a sushi restaurant is green tea. Not only do I love having sushi with green tea, but I think the green tea that they serve can say a lot about a sushi restaurant. (Though, I'm still trying to figure out what it is saying.) Usually, I'd prefer genmaicha (green tea with roasted rice) with my sushi. This restaurant served more of a matcha green tea, which was still very good and tasted authentic. In addition, I really liked their cute ceramic cups.

I really liked the wallpaper in this restaurant. It brought a nice sense of environment that made me feel like I wasn't in Vancouver. I did hear that these were from Itadakimasu, the previous restaurant. Is that true?

One thing I found that was a little unique/weird about this restaurant is this table. It's kind of smack right in the middle of the restaurant and it holds some toothpicks, a plant, candies, and their business card.

Even though the takoyaki and the salmon sashimi were a disappointment, I'd still come back to this restaurant to try other things offered on their menu. Plus, they have reasonable prices and provided a pleasant customer experience.

Rain or Shine Ice-Cream: Is Ice-cream even weather dependent?

2015-05-27T15:19:00.001-07:00

I first noticed Rain or Shine Ice-Cream on 4th street where they had a huge line up on a rainy day, all jokes aside. Then I noticed they had recently opened a second location in Cambie Village on Cambie and 18th.

Ice-cream has recently gain popularity in Vancouver with gelato slightly trailing behind. But really, who can resist ice-cream? Even I have to admit I'm suddenly more attracted to ice-cream too. In fact, I don't think ice-cream is even weather dependent.

Rain or Shine Ice-cream has really unique flavours including "the keepers" (London fog, honey lavender, salted caramel, etc.) and "the seasonals" (rosemary olive oil with candied pine nuts, powell street dive bomb porter, rhubarb ginger streusel, etc.) You'll probably have a hard time choosing which flavour to get, but thank goodness, you can ask them for a sample before ordering. One scoop is $4.50 and add 50 cents and you get another scoop of another flavour. We decided to get the Flight (4 flavours) for $9.

The Flight (4 flavours) $9

From left to right: Rhubarb ginger streusel, Salted Caramel, Blueberry Balsamic, Rosemary Olive oil with candied pine nuts.

Rhubarb ginger streusel: if you like ginger, go for it. It was not very flavourful, but you can definitely taste the ginger and there were also bits of ginger in there

Salted Caramel: It's what its name says. It was both sweet and salty at the same time, which definitely played with my tastebuds. It was a tad too sweet for my liking. We did notice that out of the 4, this one probably had the highest melting rate. Is it because there's salt in it so that lowers the melting point?

Blueberry balsamic: Very unique and my second favourite out of the 4. You can definitely taste both the blueberry flavour and balsamic vinegar. They go together quite well and the blueberry flavour did not taste powdery or fake, but like actual blueberries.

Rosemary olive oil with candied pine nuts: My favourite out of the 4. The rosemary flavour was very unique and the pine nuts in the ice-cream made it super tasty. I've never tasted ice-cream quite like this one!

Their ice-cream is made fresh with natural and whole ingredients right in house. Doesn't that sound healthy? With natural and whole ingredients and unique flavours, it is no question that this place will have customers coming back rain or shine!

The Urban Grind at Harbour Centre [events]

2015-03-10T10:20:00.000-07:00

I've always loved taking part in local community events and trying out new things. I realized I haven't participated in any local events for a long time and I have almost forgotten how much I enjoyed doing things like that.

If you like trying new things in Vancouver, enjoying gorgeous views, and could use some exercise, then this is perfect for you. The Urban Grind at Harbour Centre is a winter alternative to the Grouse Grind, though of course, it is shorter. 40 flights of stairs, 593 steps, up the 28-storey building to Vancouver Lookout. Ok, does that sound exciting? It did to me. It's not just about climbing staircases, but it's the atmosphere and the reward that you get when you reach the top.

Currently, they are doing a promotion for every Tuesdays in March. Simply pay $5 for entrance and you get $5 back in food voucher to use at the food court at Harbour Centre. You also get a free cup of beer at the top! It's a win-win situation.

coat check, food voucher, beer ticket

Here we go! Starting from the lobby and from staircase #1!

Don't expect any fancy staircases though. This is what they look like:

And more of this.

We've reached the top!

Skyscrapers of the world

Harbour Centre is relatively very, very short.

At the top, they have a live DJ.

And beer! This is what I'm talking about.

Though your ticket only gets you 1 cup, there's always that option of paying though.

There's also no need to carry water with you as each person gets a bottle of water at the top!

Beer & water

Views from the Vancouver Lookout:

It was a fairly gloomy day with fog, but I think that made it look nicer and calmer.

View with beer.

Shishinori: Hungry for More

2014-10-14T00:00:00.003-07:00

Recently, I've noticed that Shishinori has been hitting Urbanspoon's homepage top ten "Talk of the Town" list. After browsing through a couple of food pictures, I was sold. Shishinori is a small and cute restaurant located on Cambie near Save-On-Foods. This restaurant reminded me of Marulilu Cafe, a nearby cafe that's also fairly cute. Even both are Japanese, their menus are completely different.

It was the pictures of all the different and refreshing salads that attracted me to this place. As I'm trying to include lots more vegetables into my diet, I find it quite difficult to do that in typical restaurants. So, I decided to come here for dinner on a Sunday night. I got their wild salmon paradise bowl and I loved it, especially the appetizing dressing. This bowl contained brown rice, edamame beans, alfalfa sprouts, carrots, grape tomatoes, spinach, red radish, half an egg, and pieces of salmon sashimi.

wild salmon paradise bowl $10.50

wild salmon paradise bowl

I loved how they have brown rice instead of white rice in this dish! Even though I enjoyed this dish, I was definitely not full. I wish there was more rice in it to go with the dressing as there was like just a small scoop of rice. (or perhaps I'm just a big eater) Oh, and there could also be a bit more salmon too.

wild salmon paradise bowl

The second dish we got was the ahi tuna carpaccio bowl. With any order, you can simply add $2.50 make it into a meal, in which you'll get a drink and miso soup or dessert.

ahi tuna carpaccio bowl with enoki portobello mushroom miso soup and green tea $12 + $2.50

I found that the ahi tuna was a little bland. Again, this "meal" was fairly small, and it seemed more like an appetizer to me.

ahi tuna carpaccio

Besides the presentation of the food, another aspect I really liked of this place is the wooden utensils and cutleries that they used. On the wall, they also have a projector that plays anime. As winter is creeping around the corner, I'd advise you to wear more if you are planning to visit this place! They had their doors wide open to show that they are indeed, open. However, I got chilly sitting there so I asked if they could close the doors. They told me they'd turn on the heat higher because they wanted to keep the door opened, but I didn't feel a difference.

I'd definitely be come back to Shishinori to try other dishes or to even have the wild salmon paradise bowl again. Though portions are small and I wouldn't really say prices are cheap, but they are affordable and a much healthier choice.

Twisted Fork Bistro: I ate for free!

2014-09-21T16:11:00.000-07:00

I love weekend brunches, whether it's at home with my family or out with my friends. This weekend, we decided to go to Twisted Fork Bistro in Yaletown. It's a fairly small place and only have about 8 tables with an open bar. We were told that the wait was 45 minutes and we decided to wait as we had set our mind to it already. They have an electronic waiting list and you can even request a phone call or text message in which you'd be notified several minutes before your table is ready. What I don't understand is that another group came in after us, and they were offered the bar so they didn't have to wait. I would have totally be OK with sitting there.

Twisted Fork Bistro

Why is it called Twisted Fork? I have no idea, but I think it's very unique and they actually have twisted forks as decorations which I thought was pretty cool! (But no, the forks you're given to eat with aren't twisted.)

All their brunch items are now $14.00 each. (They were $13.50 before June 2014.) I had quite a hard time choosing as I wanted to try basically everything on their menu. Finally, I decided to go with the Gruyere Baked Eggs and my friend was set on the Eggs Benedicts, but guess what was brought to me?

Eggs Benny

Two plates of Egg Benedicts! Yup, they got my order wrong. They're so busy, they didn't seem like they wanted to make a new one for me because they said that "this is very popular and it'd be on the house, are you ok with that?" I said yes, even though I'm not a fan of bacon. I didn't mind trying their Eggs Benny, especially when they're $0 and I was starving from all the waiting. Also, I'd feel bad if they throw that plate away and have to hold up their waiting list.

Eggs Benny with bacon

Eggs Benny with bacon - toasted brioche, poached eggs, hollandaise sauce, sautéed spinach, rosti, and baked beans. Only one of my poached eggs was perfectly done; the other one was overcooked, perhaps it was sitting there a bit too long before being served and got cooked. The hollandaise sauce was perfect and I also loved the baked beans.

Eggs Benny with honey lager sausage

Eggs Benny with honey lager sausage - Basically the same as mine, but instead of bacon, my friend had chosen honey lager sausage. If I had chosen Egg Bennys, I would have gotten the honey lager sausages instead as I prefer sausages over bacon. Again, same problem with the poached eggs.

Remember to ask for their homemade ketchup! I just gotta eat rosti with ketchup (same as with fries, hash browns, etc.)

homemade ketchup

I've heard so many good things about their ("best ever") banana bread that I had to order some to go. $4 for 2 slices which came with homemade jam and whipped cream. They packaged it nicely in a box. Their banana bread was very moist and had walnuts in them - my favourite! They were indeed very good, especially with their homemade cranberry jam, but I wasn't blown away.

Overall, I think this is a fairly cute place for brunch, but be prepare to wait or go earlier to put your name down first. The food also took about 30 minutes to arrive so there was a lot of waiting to eat here. I was pleased with the food, but I don't think it justifies the wait time entirely.

Pâtisserie Für Elise: High Tea in a Super Cute House!

2014-09-07T18:03:00.001-07:00

Think pink. Think princesses. Think tea party. Pâtisserie Für Elise in Yaletown is all that, and more. This is absolutely the perfect place for a bridal shower - so it was exactly what we did. We held a bridal shower here for my friend and they had a special room for us for 2 hours, which was perfect.

Because Pâtisserie Für Elise is actually in a heritage home itself, there are 2 floors of this high tea location. The main floor is a bakery shop where people can just go in and buy their products while high tea is on the second floor.

Once I stepped inside the house, I felt like I was in a dreamland of a princess. Everything was so detailed, adorable, and looked delicate, including their waitresses, whom were all wearing a very cute dress. I wish I had taken some pictures of the decor, but I was just too focussed on surprising my friend and living in the moment! Pâtisserie Für Elise offers their afternoon tea set menu for $30 per person with your own choice of tea.

Their menu of teas has an elaborate description of the teas, so you can get a good idea of your tea. Their selection of tea included the classics: honey scented black tea (apparently exclusively imported by them), Jasmine green tea, Earl Grey, and the more unique: creme brûlée, blueberry yogurt, to name a few.

First, we were our choice of tea with our own tea pots. It also came with a sandglass timer which is exactly 2 minutes so we know when the tea is done seeping. On our tea cups, we got a little birdie strainer for catching the tea leaves. Look at how delicate the cups look!

Secondly, we were then served a very delicious blueberry panna cotta. Smooth and creamy, light and refreshing, and not too sweet - absolutely perfect.

blueberry panna cotta

Then came our 2-tier of goodies! The bottom tier consisted of the savouries and the top tier were all the sweets. There were 4 of everything as we sat 4 per table.

Afternoon Tea at Patisserie Fur Elise

Savouries (bottom):

Proscuitto, brie, and fresh basil in a croissant - very yummy and a great start to the platter

Cucumber dill finger sandwich - simple, yet refreshing

Asparagus and mushroom quiche - loved the flaky pastry

Almond strusel scone - especially good with their homemade jam

Cheddar and pancetta scone - really liked the tad bits of green onion and pancetta

savouries

Almond strusel scone and proscuitto, brie, fresh basil sandwich croissant

Ok, so after the platter of savouries, I already felt quite full. Probably from all the butter. But as the saying goes, we girls have a second stomach for dessert! The top platter consisted of:

Honey madeleine

Macaron

Maple pecan daisy tartlet

Tiramisu

Mini Für Elise

Sweets

From the sweet platter, I especially liked the maple pecan daisy tartlet and the mini Für Elise, similar to a strawberry mousse. It was smooth and had great strawberry flavour.

I was absolutely stuffed after all the savouries and sweets! Overall, I really liked this place because of the atmosphere and the fancy, princess feeling I got while having high tea here. It was absolutely perfect to hold my friend's bridal shower with all the girls. We also had privacy as we had the private room in which we could place gifts and party favours, which I shall show in another post. In fact, I also played a couple of videos I made from my laptop here. Here is a group picture!

Matcha Green Tea Waffles [Recipe]: Super easy!

2014-08-15T13:35:00.000-07:00

I finally tried making waffles! Waffles are one of my favourites - either for breakfast, afternoon snack, or dessert! Recipe below!

Ingredients

I used the Hamilton Beach Waffle Maker. It's very easy to use, and extremely easy to clean as well. Put in batter, flip, wait, flip, done!

Matcha Green Tea Waffles

Ingredients:

1 egg

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup milk (I used Flax Delight)

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp matcha powder
2 tbsp sugar
Topped with: Raspberries + Nestle Chocolate Syrup

Procedure:

1. In a bowl, mix together sifted flour, baking powder, matcha powder, and sugar thoroughly.

2. Make a hole in the middle and crack in the egg and pour in milk. Mix it until you get a smooth batter.

3. Depending on your waffle maker, you may want to butter the inside. Heat up the waffle maker and when ready, place 2 scoops of batter in the centre. Close the lid, wait for a minute, flip it over, and wait another 2 minutes. The waffle should be crispy on the outside, while soft in the inside.

4. Serve with chocolate syrup (or maple syrup) with fruits of your choice.

Kiss Me Organic Matcha Green Tea Powder [Product Review]

2014-07-29T12:39:00.000-07:00

Green tea is not only one of my favourite teas, but also one of my favourite flavours to go to when it comes to bubble tea, ice-cream, mochi, etc. Also, whenever there's the option of matcha, I'd always choose matcha because it has a much stronger and smoother green tea taste when compared to "green tea". This is because matcha is a finely grounded up powder of the leaf, so when you use matcha, you actually have the whole leaf, rather than just the brewed water. Believe it or not, there are many different grades of matcha, depending on the location of the leaves, the grounding technique, oxidation, etc. Today, I'm going to talk about a matcha green tea powder that I've tried - Kiss Me Organic Matcha Green Tea Powder.

Kiss Me Organic Matcha

Matcha green tea is said to

be high in antioxidants (specifically 137 times the antioxidants of brewed green tea for this one)
detoxifies the body
improve cholesterol (decreasing the "bad" LDL cholesterol)
be a metabolism boost - believe to contain a thermogenic component
increase energy and focus - yes, there is some caffeine in matcha, but apparently it also contains relaxing properties which counterbalances the caffeine effect (Buddhist monks drank it to remain focussed and calm during long hours of meditation!)

And specifically this one, it is

USDA certified organic - leaves are lab-tested to ensure the purest form and that they're free from pesticides, herbicides, harmful fertilizers

Kiss Me Organic Matcha Green Tea Powder comes in resealable bags of 113g of matcha powder. In addition, you also get a downloadable recipe book that includes a variety of recipes including cocktails, smoothies, muffins, truffles, cookies, dips, curry, soups, and the list goes on!

Now, I know some of you may be reading this and doubting all the benefits that I've listed. (I did too, because they sound too good to be true). However, do you really need all of them to be true or to have scientific evidence in order to love matcha? Personally, I think if just 1 of the above reasons is true, then that's already enough. With so many benefits, so many recipes, and the unique flavour, there is no reason to not love matcha.

Here's the matcha latte I made, super easy!

matcha green tea latte

1 tablespoon of matcha green tea powder

melt the powder with hot water (~4 tbsp)

steam 3/4 cups of milk (hot!)

pour into your cup along with foam

sprinkle with powder

drizzle with honey (optional)

Kiss Me Organic Matcha green tea powder brought a rich, authentic taste into my cup of latte. The aroma from the powder is strong, yet pleasing. There is also a slight bitterness that comes along with it, so do add some honey if you don't like that. Personally, I like that slight taste of bitterness. This was so easy and so deliciously good! You can also easily customize the amount of matcha green tea powder to your liking.

Since I couldn't do any fancy latte art......

I also made matcha green tea waffles from scratch!

Kiss Me Organic Matcha Green Tea Powder is exclusively available on Amazon.ca ($29 CAD) and Amazon.com ($25USD).

Disclaimer: I was provided with the product for the review purposes. The opinions and content of this post are entirely mine.

Sushi California (Broadway): Great rolls, but not great for long conversations

2014-07-21T23:15:00.002-07:00

Every time I pass by Sushi California, whether it's 12pm, 4pm or 7pm, it's always packed. Hence, I just had to see what it was all about as I knew the previous restaurant at this same location had very little business since that area has many restaurants already.

I went right when they opened and so we were seated quickly. Upon skimming through their menu, I already noticed why it may be so popular - their prices are very reasonable. I decided to get the Crunch House Roll and the Box Sushi.

Crunch House Roll consisted of crab meat, avocado, tuna, salmon, wrapped and deep fried $4.50

Box Sushi had smoked salmon, shrimp, scallop, avocado and sliced lemon $4.95

Crunch House Roll and Box Sushi

The Crunch House roll was definitely phenomenal. Everything tastes better when deep friend. Outside was nice and crunch, while inside was filled with soft yummy crab meat.

The Box Sushi may look nice with the slice of lemon, but I didn't want to eat the peel so I had to take that off one by one. There was also very barely noticeable scallop. This is the first ever box sushi I've had and while I do agree that the presentation looks very nice, the chunk of rice is proportionally too much, as shown below.

Crunch House Roll and Box Sushi

Yes, there's a small bit of avocado in the middle of the rice (it's not wasabi).

Box Sushi

Crunch house roll

Add caption

The Assorted Sashimi platter was beautifully presented.

Assorted Sashimi $14.95

Takoyaki is great for sharing as an appetizer, but I felt like these takoyaki here are small.

Takoyaki $3.95

By the time when we were done and on our way out, the restaurant was already full and had people waiting for seats!

For such unique and creative rolls at super reasonable prices, I'd definitely come back here. Not to mention that it's super convenient and transit-friendly! However, I do not recommend this place if you're looking for a long chat with a friend or date, because they'll have people waiting for your seats. Nevertheless, you could go across the street to Marulilu Cafe or across Cambie street to Moii Cafe to carry on the conversation!

Sushi Garden: Affordable, wide variety, but be prepared to wait!

2014-07-11T12:22:00.001-07:00

When I talk about sushi in Burnaby, I hear Sushi Garden a lot. Hence, I had to go see what it was all about. The pictures and this post will actually reflect my second visit there as I did not take any pictures on my first visit. Yes, I've already returned to Sushi Garden once. If you do plan to meet up with friends at Sushi Garden, be sure to clarify which location as there are 2: one is right across from Metrotown Shopping Centre (4635 Kingsway) and the other is on Lougheed Highway (4269 Lougheed Hwy). Both times, I visited the one on Kingsway as it at a more convenient location for me.

We got there on a Monday at around 6:30pm and it was packed! We waited for about 30 minutes before we got a seat for 2. As we got to look at the menu while we were waiting, we already knew what we wanted.

Recently, I've discovered spicy salmon sashimi and have been craving it since I last ate it. This is like a Korean x Japanese dish as the spiciness comes from the kimchi that the sashimi is mixed with. I loved it as it was very appetizing.

Spicy Sashimi $8.95

Their combos are super good deals as for less than $10, you get a roll and the common nigiri. In this dynamite combo, the nigiri included 2 salmon, 1 tuna, and 1 ebi (shrimp). As you can see, the piece of salmon sashimi is quite big, but as for quality and freshness, it was mediocre - like in typical average sushi restaurants reflecting the price.

Dynamite Combo: dynamite roll + nigiri $8.30

Now there is one more piece in that picture that is not included in the combo that I had ordered separately. Yup, that is the tobiko (fish roe) with quail egg.

Tobiko with quail egg $1.50

Even though I'm not a fan of fish roe, I wanted to try this combination with quail egg. Basically, you should eat this in one bite because you want to break open the yolk in your mouth and have the creamy yolk mix with the popping tobiko. I think this is a rather nice combination as they both complement each other to give a unique texture.

I can see why Sushi Garden is rather popular. At a rather central location, their prices are super affordable and they have a wide variety of sushi catering to everyone's favourite sushi and rolls.

Cafe de l'Orangerie: Japanese-style Spaghetti (Great First Date Location)

2014-06-15T13:36:00.000-07:00

A hidden gem as it is located on West 73rd Ave in the residential areas, so I had not even heard of this French x Japanese cafe when my friend suggested it. French x Japanese reminds me of Moii Cafe, but that one specializes in crepes while this one features Japanese-style spaghetti, which is spaghetti with a much lighter sauce as compared to Italian sauces.

Creamy Tomato Spaghetti may look a bit plain as you can't even really tell if there's sauce or not, but trust me, it tasted very creamy (though not overwhelming). If you're a fan of creamy spaghetti like me, you'll enjoy this dish!

Creamy Tomato Spaghetti $9.80

Ponzu is water-based citrus sauce, kind of like vinegar. I know that ponzu is often used in Japanese cuisine, so I wanted to try it with the pork on rice. The pork was tender and I really liked it. The sauce was very appetizing and I loved the citrusy tinge that it brought to every bite.

Onion ponzu pork: pork sauté on rice with onion ponzu sauce $9.95

A popular item on their menu is the masago de creamy spaghetti. Even though this one is a creamy pasta with the same spaghetti, it wasn't as creamy as their Creamy Tomato Spaghetti. It had bits of seafood and masago mixed within the noodles, which created a unique texture to it.

Masago de creamy Spaghetti $9.80

A common Japanese dish, but one that you won't get bored of as I would call it a classic - chicken teriyaki on rice. It came with some fries and greens.

Chicken teriyaki on rice $8.50

When I saw chocolate fondant on the menu, I really wanted it because of 3 main reasons: 1. I love cutting open a dessert and having chocolate flowing out, 2. it was really cold in the restaurant and I wanted something warm, and 3. I wanted to see if it'd actually take 15 minutes (as the menu stated).

All their desserts are made in the house, so I guess I can understand why it'd take 15 minutes to make this one. However, I was hoping it'd just come in a plate instead of a cup so that I could see the chocolate flowing out. It was nicely baked, but not the best I've had.

Chocolate Fondant $4.95

I love matcha and I just had to try the matcha green tea pudding parfait (what a mouthful!). It came with a big scoop of ice-cream, sweetened red beans, and also my favourite mochi. So, basically it consisted of many things that I liked.

Matcha green tea parfait pudding $6.95

Even though this picture doesn't look very appetizing, but it shows the green tea pudding, which was very tasty as there were two different layers! I thought all the elements (ice-cream, pudding, mochi, and red beans) all went very well together. I would definitely choose this dessert over the chocolate fondant.

As it isn't in a busy location, this place wasn't busy when we were there. We got to stay as long as we wanted and it's a really nice cafe to meet up with friends to chat. However, we couldn't stand the temperature in the cafe - it was really cold! I don't know why, but they really should have cranked up some heat. I think the room temperature is just as important to guests because we couldn't enjoy the food or ourselves fully as the coldness was constantly in our minds. Also, I can't think of why they're a French x Japanese cafe other than the French name. Nevertheless, I'd definitely like to come back to have some more Japanese-style spaghetti.

P.S. I think this is a great first date location! Nice, cute, quiet, and affordable yummy food! Did I mention the tempting dessert too? :)

Modern City Chinese Restaurant 新上海酒家: water, please!

2014-06-08T15:19:00.000-07:00

Near the corner of 41st and West Boulevard, this is a popular location. Though the restaurant has changed numerous times until finally it's a Shanghai restaurant now. Of course, the star of a Shanghai restaurant has got to be the xiao long bao (小笼包) - dumplings with soup inside. I'm always afraid of burning my tongue because the soup inside stays hot for quite a while!

xiao long bao 小笼包 ($5.50 for 6)

I really enjoyed the xiao long baos at this restaurant as the skin was thin and the soup was warm.

烧卖

Siu mai (烧卖) are one of my favourite Chinese dim sums. The presentation of this dish, in my opinion, was horrible. Why did they put it in such a big bamboo basket? The dumplings are already small, but that just makes them look smaller, unappetizing, and not worth my money.

Rice cakes with meat and vegetables in soy sauce 上海炒年糕 ($9.98)

Those who know me knows I love chewy rice cakes. I love Shanghai style fried rice cakes so I just had to order this dish. I loved how the vegetables were entangled with the rice cakes and the pork was perfect. However, one thing really wrong - way too salty. I really wonder if they've forgotten and put salt in it twice! Water, please!

Braised gluten with mushrooms $5.95

When I first saw "braised gluten" on the menu, I did not know what exactly gluten looks like as I thought it was just some kind of protein found in wheat. Well, that's what gluten looks like. As a food itself, it is better known as wheat gluten and you can get it by washing dough with water until all the starch is gone. Apparently, this is often used as a meat substitute due to its texture. It was somewhat chewy and juicy as it has absorbed the sauce. This dish is a popular in Shanghai restaurants and is served as a cold appetizer.

steamed dumplings

I haven't gotten around to updating this post so it was a while since I've taken these pictures. Unfortunately, I've forgotten the name and what exactly this last dish was. Some sort of steamed dumplings, and from the picture, I'm guessing one was shrimp and the other veggie.

Modern City Chinese Restaurant is a pencil menu, in which you just check off your orders from a piece of paper. Overall, they did not fail in the star of a Shanghai restaurant - the xiao long bao (pork dumplings with soup) were great. Other than that, their other dishes that we ordered weren't exactly impressive.

Instagram: @kahhhlee

2014-02-22T23:21:00.002-08:00

We're often waiting for the big moments to come - graduations, weddings, birthdays, etc. - but what about everything in between? Those special moments are often forgotten, but sometimes the journey is more important than the destination.

Don't count the days, make the days count.

Follow me on Instagram to see my littomoments and share yours with me!

Zakkushi Charcoal Grill (on Main): For those who are Adventurous or Drinkers

2013-12-27T22:44:00.000-08:00

Zakkushi is one of my favourite non-sushi Japanese restaurants. They are known as tapas - snacks, appetizers, finger foods usually to accompany drinks. At Zakkushi, they are known to use a special type of Japanese charcoal grill, Binchotan. This flameless type of grilling has a high component of carbon (~95%) so the food is able to retain its own flavour without impurities.

They currently have 2 locations in Vancouver: Denman street and Main street. We visited the one on Main street and it may be easily missed as it's kinda in the dark corner of a square. Even though we were only a party of 2, we had to wait over 30 minutes to be seated, so we actually went to have dessert at Sweet Revenge first.

I think the seats at this location is quite cute and cozy. Perfect for couples, not so much for groups. Here we have the zakkushi set for $9.20. I recommend getting this one for the first-time visitors as it's like sample taster as it includes 5 different skewers: mono, umeshiso yaki, me maki, p-toro, and oropon beef. My favourite is the p-toro (pork belly) as it tasted unique, tender, and fatty!

Zakkushi set - momo, umeshiso yaki, me maki, p-toro, oropon beef $9.20

As you probably already know, I love chewy things and I fall for anything mochi, hence, I had to get the mochi maki.

mochi maki (sticky rice wrapped with pork) $2

I love trying new things and this was definitely different and you probably won't find it at a typical restaurant. Mochi (sticky rice) wrapped with pork?! Tasty!

Now on to one of my Zakkushi favourites: yakitori don $7.50. I loved this Japanese-style soft boil egg with teriyaki chicken sprinkled with seaweed. Break the egg and mix it up! Another one of my favourite dons (rice bowls) with the soft boiled egg and eel is from Deer Garden Restaurant.

Yakitori don - teriyaki chicken, half boiled egg, mayo, green onion, seaweed on rice $7.50

To finish off, I got the salmon onigiri (rice ball). What's so special about onigiris? I'm not sure, but I wanted to try one. I didn't find anything special, it was just like eating rice mixed with bits of salmon but in the same of a triangle.

Salmon onigiri

This restaurant is quite for those who are adventurous as the menu has a variety of unique items that one can order a bit of this and that to try. It's also great for those who like a drink or two with some light snacks.

Soho Tea Room: Salmon Wellington & Fire on Ice

2013-11-27T23:30:00.000-08:00

A few years ago, I'd always go to Richmond for bubble tea and Chinese food, but it seems like there are more and more bubble tea cafes here in Vancouver now. Soho Tea Room opened not too long, and they're owned by the same owners as Flo Tea Room (which ironically closed their former Vancouver location on Granville).

Upon entering the restaurant, the environment and atmosphere seemed more modern than typical bubble tea cafes.

Salmon Wellington

Salmon wellington with prawns & spinach cream in puff pastry $19: I don't know about you, but when I first hear the word, wellington, I think of Gordon Ramsay. Then when I take a bit of this, I could hear Gordon Ramsay say "what a shame". Where's the layer of spinach and prawns? It looks completely different than their picture in the menu which had a thick reddish piece of salmon and then a layer of spinach and prawns. Some parts of the pastry was soggy and the salmon was a bit dried. I didn't expect much though, as this is like a western dish and most of the time western dishes aren't perfected in an Asian restaurant.

Thankfully, the set came with soup of the day and a choice of fries, salad, or spaghetti.

fries

Pan fried thick noodles with pork cheek

Braised pork cheek with black bean sauce pan fried thick noodles $9: I knew I wanted this the second I finished reading its name. Pork cheeks are my favourite parts because it's not fatty and is chewy, yet tender. Thick noodles are also my favourite type of noodles. This dish was not disappointing at all and exactly what I expected. I thought they would give a very small amount of pork cheeks, but I was wrong. I also thought the portion was large, so it's great for sharing.

Fire on Ice

The look of this drink corresponds with its name - fire on ice. On the menu, it says "approx. 30 minutes" and when we asked the waitress, she said this drink takes 30 minutes to serve if they're busy. Really? I don't know why a drink would take that long to make. I think it took just about 10 minutes this time even though the restaurant was neither full nor empty. I don't know why they would write that beside the drink, which will probably in turn make customers unwanting to order it. This slushy consisted of lychee, peach, mango and strawberry - fruity, sweet, with a twist of tanginess.

There are actually other quite a handful of other bubble tea cafes close by such as Corner 23, Copa Cafe, and Gloucester Cafe. I think their wide variety of drinks (and the names for them) and their extensive menu are things that make Soho Tea Room stand out.

Asma & Farrukh: My First Time Attending a Pakistini Wedding

2013-11-21T22:15:00.000-08:00

Congratulations Asma & Farrukh!

Five Things I Learned at a Pakistani Wedding

1. Do not arrive on time.

I'm a person who gets nervous and anxious when I'm running late, so I always try to arrive on time. Especially growing up in a family where being late is not only rude, but disrespectful, I always paid attention to the time when it came to big events. Though I didn't know what to expect, I was quite relieved to see a "programme" on the invitations as it had everything that was going to take place, nicely scheduled. It read, "7pm reception of the Barat, 8pm Nikkah, dinner 8:30pm." I arrived 10 to 7pm and noticed that the parking lot of the Royal Place Banquet Hall was basically empty. I triple-checked the address, doubled-checked the time, and looked around to see if cars were coming in. Nothing. I got out of the car, went into the building, and saw wedding decorations (phew), and no more than 5 people.

It turns out that even arriving an hour late, is considered early. The Barat reception is where the groom arrives, and he is expected to be late, and I mean 1 - 2 hours late, not 10 minutes. Apparently, it is the norm in their culture to arrive much later than the time stated.

2. Cover your skin. Wear bold colours.

Good thing I did a bit of research on this before deciding on what I was going to wear. Here are my suggestions and opinions from what I observed. Do not show your shoulders, bare back, or cleavage, so do not wear a dress that's strapless, backless, short, or low-cut. In other words, nothing revealing please, as it is a formal religious event. I'd suggest wearing a dress that goes below your knees, at least. I noticed that the dresses and gowns worn were all very long. Wear nice, bright, and bold colours. Sparkles, shimmers, and shiny accessories are great.

3. The appetizer dishes are endless! Remember to save space for the entree.

Oh my goodness. Expect a lot of food. In Chinese cultures, we usually have 1 or 2 dishes as the appetizer and the rest are part of the main course dishes. Here, there were like 5 dishes that were brought to the table for us and we could call for seconds, thirds..etc. (see pictures below). In this banquet, the main course consisted of getting up and filling your plates as it was buffet style. So, you definitely want to save space for that (and for dessert)!

kebabs

Fried fish

Chicken

4. Do not expect to see the bride come out... until nearly the end of the night.

Wow, this is very different from western weddings and Chinese weddings where the bride eats at the head table with everyone else and maybe even play some games. At this wedding, the bride had to sit in a room and she was not allowed to come out. Thankfully, guests (including males) were allowed to go visit her though. Asma, the bride, didn't even know when she'd be coming out. At first, she was told she could come out after the legal marriage papers were signed, but nope, she was still in the room when I was trying out desserts.

5. Expect to see the bride cry.

It is a very emotional time for the bride, when she does come out. I loved her grand entrance and how everyone had their attention on her as we had been waiting all night. The groom was on stage waiting for her as she walked towards him. This is the day where she official joins the groom's family and will be spending her first night living together, without her family. The entire time that she was entering, she had her head down. Even when she made it to the seat beside the groom and photographers were taking pictures, she still looked sad. Now, even if the bride is happy, it is still the norm to look sad and possibly even cry.

There are a few other notable events that night which I haven't mentioned. In western weddings, the bride and the groom would do the paper work together, but this was done separately as the bride was in the room. As religion plays a huge part in this ceremony, a pastor was invited to say prayers. This lasted for ~10 min. It's just so interesting learning about different cultures.

Dishes from the self-serve buffet:

Cold dishes

Salad

What are those peachy-looking fruits(?) with the black seeds? I had no idea, if you do, please let me know.

basmati rice

THREE different types of rice to try from! Wow!

One of the many types of curry

spinach and cheese

This picture does not do justice to how great it tastes. This made me get another spoonful of rice!

naan

And when I saw all these naan, I literally had to resist myself from jumping up and down. This.....was my plate of heaven.

My first plate

I was already quite full from the appetizer dishes. But seeing all the yummy food, I couldn't resist another two plates, especially when there was naan!

Desserts: By this time, I was stuffed with a very satisfied tummy. There were two types of desserts offered along with plates of fruits. The desserts looked so unique, apparently they're sweet flour balls in syrup (?) and the other one is in sweet milk.

I did try a bit of this and it was VERY sweet!

Desserts in this culture is definitely too sweet for me!

Not knowing anyone else there besides the bride and groom, I thought I would be such an outcast. After all, I was the only east Asian there (besides one of the photographers). But I felt so at ease because all of their family and friends were so nice and friendly to me. They had such patience describing the food and traditions to me and I learned quite a bit that night.

I met Asma back in 2009 at school. She gets my weirdest sense of humour, the ones even I get confused over. We share a unique friendship in that we're able to genuinely make fun of each other. She is easy to talk to because she speaks her mind which allows me to speak mine not only without hesitation, but knowing that she won't judge or be offended. The nickname she gave me is Muffin because everyday in class, I'd always have a muffin, and I call her Chilly. I don't remember why though.

In a very short amount of time, she planned this wonderful and memorable event. I like her confidence, "I don't need a year to plan a day" haha! I'm glad to be a small part of it - working out at Steve Nash together.

Add caption

My dear Asma, thank you for having me here on your special day. I wish you a happily ever after with Farrukh.

I leave you with a short conversation we had on MSN that still makes me smile.

Asma: can i ask u a question?

me: yes
*asma is typing*
me: type faster.... or are fingers are too fat to move any faster?
asma: ...........

Corner 23 萬巒豬腳: Pig Feet and Pork Hocks

2013-11-13T21:29:00.000-08:00

Corner 23 is located, as the name implies, right at the corner of 23rd Ave. and Cambie Street. It's a Taiwanese bubble tea place and can be super packed at night, as it is conveniently across from the King Edward Canada Line station. No worries if they're full, guess who's beside them? Hong Kong style cafe - Copa Cafe!

So what's the Chinese name for Corner 23? It actually has nothing to do with a corner or the number 23. The Chinese name directly translates to "Wan Luan pig feet" - Wan Luan is a rural place in Taiwan. Apparently, there are "Corner 23's" in Taiwan too, featuring their signature dish, Wan Luan pork hock. Though I've been to Corner 23 many times, but I've never gotten their signature dish as the thought of eating pork hock or pig feet did not seem very appealing to me. But after seeing people from other tables eating it, I decided to give it a try. You can order just pork hock, or with noodles/rice set.

Wan Luan Pork Hock rice set

The sauce is the magic in this dish. So, I'd recommend getting the rice set so you can thoroughly enjoy the sauce (since you can really mix sauce in noodle soup). I've never been a fan of eating skin - I don't eat fish skin, chicken skin, and definitely not a great fan of pig feet skin. However, the meat was tender, but tasteless without the sauce, so remember to dip it into the sauce.

On another visit, I got the seafood milk hot pot set. When I think of hot pot, I think about all the raw fatty beef that people gather around a pot to cook in a tasty soup base. However, this is not that at all. It's only for one person and everything in the pot is cooked, even though there is fire beneath keeping it warm. This was very tasty but the milk seemed water down and not the fresh smell of warm milk. Though still lots of yummy variety of seafood in the pot.

Seafood milk hotpot

My friend got the five-spice chicken set which came with a bowl of rice, and some veggies. The chicken definitely had a lot of flavour and was cooked nicely. However, I don't think everyone will like unique flavour that it creates with the 5 spices.

And of course, what is going to a bubble tea place without having some bubble tea? Their bubble tea is OK, neither the best nor the worst. Ok, their bubbles are good and have a consistent chewiness. However, it is their addition of powder flavour that I dislike. So, I'd suggest sticking with tea or milk tea and not to get any exotic fruit flavours - the mango one is an exception - very good.

Mango Milk Tea Bubble Tea - to go!

Ken's Chinese Restaurant 南軒中西美食: Chinese-Style Afternoon Tea

2013-10-28T23:30:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, I just want to go to a Hong Kong style cafe because they're fast, affordable, yummy, and satisfying. Well, not as fast as the ones in Hong Kong....except there might be a line up for seats in Hong Kong since there's always so many people, everywhere, all the time.

Here, afternoons are usually pretty quiet for restaurants. That's why Ken's Chinese Restaurant has a special offer of 10% off starting at 2:30pm to 5pm. I ordered from their Special Set menu which comes with soup of the day and a drink. I got one of my favourites of all time...

Baked seafood rice

Yes, that's right - baked seafood rice! Just looked at how nicely it's baked. Now let's dissect it a bit.

baked seafood rice

What's in it? Big shrimps (or are those prawns? I can't tell), slices of fish and squid, scallops, mushrooms - all covered in melted cheese and creamy sauce. Wow, I think I just made it sound better than it tasted. But you can never go wrong with the baked seafood rice, it's like the complete package for a seafood fan.

As a lover of thick noodles, I also chose the Shanghai Stir fried noodles. Now this was mostly noodles - it could have definitely use more meat/cabbage.

Shanghai stir-fried noodles 上海粗炒面

Getting a set meal makes me feel complete. For soup of the day, I got to choose vegetable or creamy soup and I chose the creamy soup. Now it does not look very good and it wasn't. It was kind of watered-down. Optimistically, at least it didn't fill me up before the main dishes came.

Soup of the day - creamy soup

As for drinks, you can choose from the typical list of drinks at a Hong Kong style cafe in cold/hot:

- Hong Kong style milk tea 港式奶茶

- Hong Kong style coffee

- Hong Kong style half coffee half tea 鴛鴦

- Hong Kong style lemon tea

- Lemon and honey

- Almond 杏仁霜

- Ovaltine 阿華田

- Horlicks 好立克

... and the list goes on....

Hong Kong style milk tea

Almond drink 杏仁霜

I believed the entire bill came to less than $20. I've also heard of their late night dinner with all you can eat congee. In Cantonese, that's probably called "siu yeh" Hahaha. They're opened until 1am - perfect for those night owls! I'd loved to come by here on a late night for "siu yeh" :)

U & I Thai: Modern & Fine Dining

2013-10-05T15:34:00.000-07:00

Looking for a place that's modern place with good service, yet reasonably priced? U&I Thai is a perfect place for an affordable meal with a unique ambience. It seems like a western fine dining restaurant, but it is actually a Thai restaurant. Located on Cambie Street, it used to be the location of another Thai restaurant (Sala Thai, I believe).

Upon entering the restaurant, I noticed the western modern style fused with Thai decorations. Simple, modern, yet nicely designed...giving off a "fine dining" vibe. There was only one other table and so we did not have to wait for seats. It was a pretty quiet day for them, so I wondered about their food.

I ordered from the lunch menu special, where most items were $10, and came with soup of the day.

Thai soup

I'm not sure what exactly was the soup, I think hot and sour soup, but perhaps tung yam kung? I have no idea but it was probably made from frozen veggies and lots of spices. Because it was a little sour, it was appetizing! But in my opinion, the spices were too strong and the soup was too oily for my liking. Still better than the "gym locker" tung yam kung I had at Tropika!

Pad Thai $10

Pad thai, one of the most popular Thai dishes consisting of stir-fried rice noodle. Very yummy! Though I have tried pad thai before, I find that it is slightly different at different locations. I think they did a great job here and I loved their style and sauce that complemented the rice noodles. It also came with a couple of fried wontons.

Green curry chicken

I also got the green curry chicken, which was also $10 for lunch. It came with a side of salad, fried wontons, and a choice of jasmine of coconut white rice. Quite a big meal for one person!

Fried wontons

Green curry chicken with bamboo shoots, etc.

This was a very yummy meal overall. However, I only have one complaint - the veggies in the salad could have been fresher. Seeing lettuce like that, I think they should have at least cut off the ends. Not a very nice presentation or was it appetizing after seeing that.

I loved the fried wontons and green curry chicken though! I'm glad they had more than chicken in there was it made the meal more interesting.

U&I Thai Lunch menu

All in all, I think this restaurant should be busier!

I'm a Compass Beta Tester!

2013-09-29T23:22:00.000-07:00

In July, when I heard Translink was looking for volunteers to test their new Compass Card, I registered. At that time, they were looking for 5,000 active translink users, but they were more popular than they thought because they ended up with 10,000 volunteers testing for them. Yes, volunteers. Because we get basically nothing in return. Not even a free trip! But yup, I signed up.

So if you haven't heard yet, the Compass card is going to replace all the paper tickets that Translink currently uses. In early September, I received a Compass card in the mail.

Compass card

What else did I get? 10 informational handouts and a Beta Tester Guide Book.

Beta Tester Guide Book & informational handouts

The testing officially started on September 9th. We were told to tap in and out when taking transit, but also paying for our fares or showing our pass like normal. Even though the cards came charged with a monthly pass or money, they were "fake" as it was just used to test the system.

Informational handouts are for those who are curious and want to learn more about the new Compass card. Here it is:

Some Compass Quick Facts:

- Compass will replace over 150 different tickets and passes used today.

- Compass will be easy to use. You'll simply tap in to enter and tap out to exit, and the system will automatically determine the correct amount to charge (at tap out).

- Card registration will offer features like AutoLoad and Balance Protection, which protects the value of a card in the event it's lost or stolen.

- As fare gates go up, fare evasion will go down - and transit riders will enjoy a safer, more secure transit experience.

On buses, you tap in near the bus driver and tap out right at the doors. I'm sure you've all seen this around:

And for sky train and Canada Line stations, there will be gates that open and close.

Q & A

Why did I sign up when there's no perks/free rides?

The big reason is that I am a curious individual, but wait, there is a perk - being the first to try out the new transit system in Vancouver! But I agree, TransLink should definitely involve some free rides or load up our cards for real for us volunteers. The small reason (as cheesy as it may sound) is that I do want to be helpful to TransLink as they have been really helpful to me for the past 10 years. Taking me to and from school, to and from some of the most special events in my life thus far, and providing me quite a comfortable place to nap...etc.

Why is it important to tap out?

So that we're charged for the appropriate zones we travel. I believe the default is 3 zones if we don't tap out - what a killer. So, remember to tap out! Also, this apparently gives them data to know where people are travelling in order to manage the schedules, etc.

Do I have any concerns? If only the 99 B-line back doors and the compass card readers could swap sensitivities...

My concerns are with the speed of the tapping system. I don't find them being very responsive as it doesn't detect my card right away. Apparently, people go in/out the same way - so I can't imagine rush hour and how chaotic it'll be. Having to tap out will also slow down traffic? Hopefully it's better than the picture in my head.

Generally, I'm supportive of the new system - way less waste and litter on the ground and much more environmentally-friendly. It's about time.

Compass cards are for a refundable deposit of $6. Then start loading up your card with money because it's cheaper than paying with cash!

More info on TransLink's website

Moii Cafe Cambie: An artsy Japanese x French cafe

2013-09-27T19:23:00.001-07:00

I re-docorated my home!

Just kidding! This is actually the interior of Moii Cafe, a spacious coffee/snack cafe located on Cambie & Broadway. At first, I thought it was weird that it's "Moii" with two i's and how it translates to "me cafe". It is actually quite interesting and here is their explanation: "Moii is a combination word from French "moi" (I) and Japanese "なつでもいい" (It is ok/whatever) forms an idea and spirit of "it's ok to be myself; this is who i am." How creative!

The entire place is very nicely decorated. Relatively, it is large and spacious, yet it gives a cozy and homey feeling once you step inside. Turns out that the owner is a graduate from Emily Carr University and wanted a place for artists to showcase their work for others to enjoy. What a great idea that I'd totally support. Already liking this place. Now on to the food.

This is the tuna and cheese crepe and a cup of green tea. Now I think I prefer sweet crepes over savoury crepes. Nonetheless, I always find myself ordering savoury ones - probably so that I don't feel like I'm having dessert. The crepe was pretty good but I cannot say it's the best I've had. Though I do love the fact that it's freshly made. So, once in a while, the shop would be overflowed with a very nice smell that'll suck you into ordering a crepe.

Tuna and cheese crepe

They also have a variety of drinks. I got the matcha green tea - I love matcha. This was very good - creamy and not too sweet. The only thing I'd change is to add less milk.

matcha green tea latte

School has been back for almost a month now and I'm sure coffee shops have gotten busier as well. When I was a student, I did not really like studying in coffee shops because I get distracted easily. However, I'd be up for catch up with a friend or for "people watching" anytime at a coffee shop! I think this is a perfect place for those who enjoy studying in cafes. Look at the space and they even have a study room for group meetings/projects.

Study room/ group meeting

Thirsty? They have complimentary lemon water! Have I mentioned that it's perfect for studying? Homey feel, crepes to order, study room, spacious... it's the whole package.

If I knew about this place earlier, I'd probably love studying here. I wouldn't be too surprised if this place gets busy during exam periods.

Moii Cafe Menu

Moii Cafe menu

Tropika at Robson 星馬印: "gym locker" soup

2013-08-26T14:44:00.000-07:00

Yes, I'm back! My hibernation is over and I'm back with a new post and new exciting things to come :)

My friends and I went to Tropika on Robson for something satisfying yummies and to fill up our tummies a bit. Tropika is a Malaysian and Thai restaurant with 2 locations in Vancouver (and the one at Aberdeen is closed). We decided to get a couple items from the appetizer and then a soup that my friend claims is "really, really good". Now, let me start with the appetizers.

Satays $1.30 each (beef and chicken)

Satays were nicely seasoned and grilled skewers from a choice of chicken, pork, beef, lamb with a peanut buttery satay sauce. Pictured above is beef and chicken.

I think I tend to like most breads that are rolled out and flat. (The first time I ate naan, I fell in love with it.) Now it is no surprise that I love roti. Though roti canai is actually part of Malaysian cuisine, it is actually derived from Indian flatbreads. We were served with fresh and warm roti which wasn't too thick or thin, but perfect. My friends loved the sauce that came along with it but I wasn't too much of a fan of it.

Roti canai (Malay bread) $2.95

Now, supposedly the star of the night: tung yam kung - a very popular spicy Thai soup. We could choose from seasonal lobster or king prawns and the price depended on the market price. We chose king prawns! My friend said she had this before here and claimed that it is heavenly good so I was excited to try it. Though I don't take spicy hot too well, we told them we want it mild. Before I had even taken a sip of it and the server was just serving it into our bowls, I noticed the an unpleasant smell.

king prawn tung yam kung

I thought maybe when I actually put it in my mouth, it'd be very good. No, it wasn't. Even my friend said the soup didn't taste right. We came to the conclusion that perhaps it's because there's not enough spiciness in it. So we asked the waiter if we could have it at original spiciness instead of mild. He obviously wasn't so happy and gave us a confused didn't-you-ask-for-mild look. Nevertheless, he took it back to the kitchen and we felt bad about it too.

When it came back out, wow, it was too spicy for me and the pungent smell was still there. My friends tasted it and agreed that it was not what she had before. We ended up ordering more satays and roti canai and leaving the soup barely touched :(

I'm sorry and no offence, but if I were to describe the smell of the soup, I have no better analogy than the smell of gym lockers. I've been to Tropika before and had their entrees and I do believe it's great for Malaysian and Thai food, but I'd avoid the tung yam kung soup. Either the chef messed up or this is how it is. I wouldn't be surprised if people liked the gym locker soup, because in Chinese cuisine, there's a hot and sour soup which tastes just like its name: hot and sour. Weird combination, but has a unique taste!