Hawksworth - Fancy Schmancy Brunch

If you are a regular follower of my blog, you know I'm pretty frugal when it comes to food. Quick, comfy, affordable restaurants are my go to's and expensive posh restos are usually reserved for my friend or family's birthdays. Nevertheless, I always dream of going to these restaurants and pretend I'm baller enough to make it rain. :P

On my birthday, my coworkers surprised me with a huge gift card for Hawksworth located inside the Rosewood Hotel Georgia. My team truly knows the key to my heart <3.

Meta Knight was the lucky chosen one to accompany me to this exciting award winning restaurant (2012 and 2013 Restaurant of the Year from Vancouver Magazine). Hawksworth emphasizes on contemporary Canadian cuisine with a focus on using local quality ingredients. With every bite of this Spaghetti De Nero ($26), I could taste the freshness of the sea, earthiness of the microgreens, and rawness of the house-made squid ink spaghetti.

Meta Knight opted for the Steak and Eggs ($27) which was accompanied by half an avocado, perfectly crispy rosti, beautiful mini salad, and jalapeno salsa verde.

Everything was on point and it was one of those meals where no one has to say a word but you both know you're experiencing something special. If I had to choose again I would get his steak and eggs over my spaghetti just because there was more variety on the plate and the portion was more substantial. Our lunch came up to $70 (cray!) for the both of us and luckily I still have quite a bit of money left over in the gift card to enjoy a nice dinner.

Hawksworth definitely lives up to it's name, location, and awards. Meta Knight and I were even smiling from ear to ear coming out of the restaurant, both lingering at the thoughts of our delicious food, while already planning our next trip back for dinner service!

Service Rating: 5/5
Food Rating: 5/5
Price: $$$$$+

Overall Rating: 5/5

Happy Eating!


                  the meal was... so good..

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Eggs 'n Things - Loco Moco and the Healthy Acai Bowl

As an avid egg lover, Meta Knight and I both knew we had to try the local Eggs 'n Things at least once while in Waikiki. This little local brunch spot is never seen without line ups which made us excited for what could be inside.

I did a little research prior to going and found out their specialties were in waffles, pancakes, and egg dishes (obvs). Their pancakes are elaborately decorated with a mountain of whipped cream, which looks really impressive, but will probably give you diabetes if you eat the whole thing.

Their menu is EXTENSIVE. Everything is in tourist pricing so while I wouldn't call it a 'tourist TRAP', expect to drop $10-15 USD per person.

At Eggs 'n Things you actually pay and order first before you sit down. Its different but I guess they have it this way to prevent dining and dashing?

Meta Knight and I shared the Hawaiian Loco Moco ($12.25) and Hawaiian Acai Bowl ($7.45).

The Acai Bowl was smaller than I thought but was quite packed with fresh pineapples, strawberries, blueberries, and bananas. With Hawaii being so hot (it was nearly 30 degrees when we were there), the bowl was really refreshing!

Hawaii is known for their 'loco moco' so we just had to try it when we saw it on the menu! The Hawaiian Loco Moco consisted of white rice, mushrooms, bacon, onions, gravy, and two sunny side up eggs. While we both thought it was only okay, this is like the best hangover food because it's got grease, eggs, and gravy. The rice soaked up the salty gravy real good and the egg yolk porn also rounded the dish out.

Service Rating: 3/5

Food Rating: 3/5

Price: $$

Overall Rating: 3/5

Happy Eating!

                                      Loco Moco!!

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Blue Bottle Coffee and Bowl'd Acai (San Francisco) - Ah-sigh-EE Bowls and New Orleans Iced Coffee

It's hard to get your veggies in while on vacation, which was why Rae and I were so happy to stumble upon a vegan, gluten free smoothie food truck while in SOMA.

 They serve acai (pronounced ah-sigh-ee) bowls, smoothies, juices, and power up 'shots'.

By the way, I absolutely love how they serve gluten free granola. As a person with a recent wheat allergy, it's good knowing there are still healthy eat out options for me even though I can't eat flour/wheat.

Rae and I split a These Nuts Acai Bowl (reg $9.60 US) composed of a smoothie on the bottom that is blended with acai, strawberry, banana, and almond milk. The toppings include one planet gluten free granola, banana, hemp seed, bee pollen, honey, sliced almond, and peanut butter.

Oh my god it was sooooo good! It was totally a refreshing and healthy way to start our day. It was so delicious, we tried experimenting with our own version of acai bowls at home after our vacay.

Next to the Bowl'd Acai food truck was a Blue Bottle Coffee stand. The area was quite industrial and just a little side street but there was already a lineup forming in front of the stand. Most people got the New Orleans Iced Coffee ($4 US) which was what we got too. The coffee was drip so it took a little while, but it was definitely worth the wait. It was so smooth, so creamy. I want one now just thinking about it.

Blue Bottle Coffee also serves freshly made waffles. Rae and I got one to share and thought it was only okay. The batter was too cake-like and dense for the morning. Also it was a little greasy so it didn't stay well in our stomachs.

Blue Bottle Coffee: 
Food Rating: 4/5
Price: $
Overall Rating: 4/5

Bowl'd Acai:
Food Rating: 4.5/5
Price: $-$$
Overall Rating: 4.5/5

Happy Eating!

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HRD Coffee Shop (San Francisco) - Kimchi Burritos and Katsu Po' Boys

When Rae and I were touring San Francisco, we made it a point to hit up the ever famous HRD Coffee Shop in the SOMA district. Luckily, it was only a few blocks from the Airbnb we were staying at so we didn't have to bus. This place is located in a pretty unassuming neighbourhood with absolutely no flashy signage. It's definitely a hole in the wall alright.

HRD Coffee Shop was featured on Diner's Drive-Ins and Dives a while ago and right after it aired, this little family owned restaurant exploded with lunch hour line-ups down the block. 

We came right when they opened (10am) to avoid the lineups. Their menu is eccentric and is a combination of Mexican, Korean, Japanese, and American cuisine. You can get anything from Breaded Oyster Burritos to Japanese Curry Hamburg on rice.

We got two things to share which was a bad mistake. We could have easily shared one meal and be completely satisfied. Nevertheless, the food coma route was what we chose so we stuck with it and left nothing behind. This is the Kimchi Burrito with Spicy Pork ($9.95) and it's stuffed with spicy rice, kimchi marinated pork, cucumbers, kiwi (it weirdly worked!!), and daikon. This was absolutely delicious and I would recommend it in a heartbeat.

This is the Crispy Chicken Curry Platter ($11.25) with brown rice, wasabi apple coleslaw, and kimchi croquette. I've never had so many interesting flavours and textures on one plate before. I was especially surprised by the wasabi apple coleslaw. That thing was friggin delicious! Also, any place that serves brown rice over white rice is great in my books. ;)

Service Rating: 4/5
Food Rating: 3.5/5
Price: $$

Overall Rating: 3.5/5

Happy Eating!


             My friend and I when we saw HRD

 

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Umami Burger (San Francisco) - Real Juicy Meat

During my trip to San Fran, Rae and I stopped by Umami Burger because it was close to our apartment. I always just knew of this restaurant as an LA hipster burger joint with a cool "U" stamp on their burger buns.

They seem to be quite popular with line ups spewing onto the streets on a random weekday afternoon.

It's quite casual inside with lots of booths and tables. It kind of reminds me of Romers Burger Bar from Vancouver.

Obviously, their most famous burger is called the Umami Burger but they surprisingly have quite a few options for those that don't feel like eating beef. They've covered all their bases with black bean patties, ahi tuna for fish lovers, and even some 'manlier' patties like the Manly Burger.

Rae and I both got some beer to wash down our burger with. I opted for the highly alcoholic Golden Monkey (9% alc.) and she got a brown pale ale of some kind that she really liked. They also gave us a plate with four different types of aiolis, sauces, and homemade ketchup. We didn't know what they were for, so we kind of just dipped our fries in it.

We both wanted to try the original so we got the classic Umami Burger ($11.50) which has parmesan frico, shiitake mushrooms, roasted tomato, caramelized onions, and Umami house ketchup.

Our server praised their chain for using only the most local, organic, and fresh ingredients which include the ground beef they use to make the patty with. That's why all patties are served medium rare unless specified. 

I got the burger as is so as you can see, it was quite rare. It's a little freaky to see your burger patty so pink because it looks you'll get salmonella. LOL. It was delicious though and the 'fresh' ingredients really did shine through. One thing Rae and I both noticed though, were the lack of toppings. We literally got two slivers of mushrooms on each burger and that's it.

Last but not least, I ordered a side of Truffle Fries ($5.50) to add some carbs to my diet. Also, if truffle fries are on the menu, I have to try it at least once. These ones were disappointing though. The truffle was only infused in the cheese and the cheese solidified quite quickly after it was brought out so the whole thing was one clumpy mess. Not recommended.

All in all, Umami Burger is solid if you want to just try their burgers and beers. Their burgers are unlike any burger I've tried before and is way beyond the quality of the ones at A&W or Earls. Skip the truffle fries though, they're just not worth it.

Service Rating: 4.5/5

Food Rating: 3.5/5

Price: $$-$$$

Overall Rating: 3.5/5

Happy Eating!

this has nothing to do with Umami but I wish I could do this with my brows :D

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Mosaic Grille & Bar - Beautiful and Delicious

For those of you who don't know, Mosaic (located inside the Hyatt Hotel on Burrard Street) occasionally offer seasonal menus to cater to the local produce and seasonal proteins. During spot prawn season, they have a spot prawn focused menu... during the fall, they have a hearty fall inspired menu... you get the drift. :) 

Curtis (Foodobyte) was kind enough to invite me along to this year's Mosaic's Spring Menu tasting. We got a taste of everything that is to come and trust me, some of them are amazeballs. 

Chef Jo didn't personally make the Robert Creek Dungeness Crab and Curtis and I could tell. It was missing one key element, salt, which was unfortunate because that was the only thing that was needed to meld all the flavours together. Nevertheless, it consisted of barnston island baby dandelion greens, avocado, okanagan apple, and fennel pollen which is a fantastic and refreshing combination for a starter.

Spot Prawn season isn't until summer but they already have a salad dedicated to it. It has foraged miners lettuce, wild watercress, mixed radish, and green garlic.

I am a lover of squid ink anything so I was ecstatic to try out their house made Squid Ink Bucatini Pasta. Their fresh squid ink pasta was done al dente and soaked up the spicy chorizo oil that it was tossed in. In addition to chorizo, it also had fiddlehead ferns, razor clams, peas, and charred octopus. Overall a stunning dish.

Prior to this dish, I never thought about putting preserved lemon and seared scallops together. Now that I've tried it, I'll be doing that every time I make it at home! The Haida Gwaii Weathervane Scallops were beautifully seared and was definitely a treat for someone like me who doesn't have the bountiful wallet to eat it all the time.

The Cache Creek Natural Beef Rib Eye... a rib eye that has been dry aged for 28 days, served with hen of the woods mushroom and new potatoes.

The Peace Country Lamb was truly somethin' else! From the stinging nettle gnocchi to the fava bean puree, it was to die for and I would gladly order it again.

For dessert, we enjoyed a Deconstructed Lemon Meringue Pie. In place of meringue, Chef Jo used torched homemade marshmallows. Mmm mmm mm. SO GOOD.  

The NY Cheesecake was very good but nothing to write home about. It was paired with strawberries and some gluten-free chocolate granola. Chef Jo is currently trying to make this dessert completely gluten-free to cater to those who have wheat allergies. As a person with a wheat allergy, I totally appreciate that!

Mosaic Grill and Bar is a fantastic spot to dine when you're wanting a menu that's a bit more elevated than the usual crowd. They use local products, quality ingredients, and I can tell you firsthand that the chefs really care about the dishes they produce for their customers.

They have a cool Vaneats package going on right now for $25 for those wanting to try out Mosaic without breaking the bank.

Service Rating: N/A
Food Rating: 4/5
Price: $$$$

Overall Rating: 4/5

Happy Eating!


                     some of the dishes got me like..

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