Cineplex VIP Experience - Speciality Food Menu, In-Seat Drink Service, Adults Only

 How many of you know that Cineplex offers a VIP experience in select theatres? I didn't until a couple of months ago and I recently just gave it a try with Meta Knight at the Cineplex in Coquitlam.

The VIP Cinema Experience is for adults only (19+) because they offer alcoholic beverages in the lounge that you can hang out in before the movie, AND during when the movie's playing. The tickets are normally $19.50, so ~$7 more dollars than a regular movie ticket. If you're thrifty like me, just use 1000 Scene points and you can get the VIP ticket for free!

The entrance looks pretty dope and sophisticated, no? With the VIP Cinemas Experience, you get:

1. Licensed lounge 
2. Comfy reserved seating
3. Premium in-theatre service
4. Speciality food menu 
5. Age of majority admission (they check your ID before you can go in)

The Cineplex in Coquitlam also has this cool games department called "Xscape". I watched Undercover Boss one time where the CEO of Cineplex went undercover and he mentioned that this "Xscape" concept is super new and they are looking to integrate this into all the Cineplex theatres. It's super cool and it's a ticket/reward system (think Playdium *hope I didn't just age myself*).

 The lounge has a full bar, concession stand for your regular munchies like popcorn, drinks, nachos...etc. We came late so we didn't have time to chill in the lounge but next time I'll make sure to come an hour early to grab a drink and watch the hockey game..

Here are some of the frozen concoctions you can get at the lounge. Prices are reasonable.

 Yummy cocktails.

I was really intrigued by their "Speciality food menu" and by the looks of it, it is definitely a lot more innovative than popcorn and hot dogs. However, prices look a little steep for appys. Especially edamame for $8?!

We ordered all our food and drinks in the theatre so needless to say, it was incredibly dark (excuse the incredibly pixelated picture). Meta Knight ordered the Caesars ($7.50) and loved it. It was on par with the quality of drinks you'd normally find at Joeys or Earls..etc. His Angus Burger ($12) (not pictured) on the other hand was a little disappointing, albeit quite large in quantity.

I chose the Sweet Escape ($7.50) which was a cocktail with vodka, banana and strawberry flavoured liqueur, and strawberry puree. It was tasty and pretty strong. I also got a Pulled Pork Poutine ($8) and it was okay. Nothing amazing.

All in all, I would totally use my 1000 points for this VIP experience because you get your own special theatre with extra large comfy seats (when you pull the arm rests up, it turns into a loveseat where you and your loved one can cuddle), it's 19+ so no crying kids to ruin the movie, and the 'speciality food' here beats out popcorn and nachos any day.

Happy Eating!

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Eat St Filming This Week

Great news Vancouver, the show Eat St. of The Food Network (have you seen the show yet? If not, why haven't you?!) is filming this week in Vancouver and they want YOU to come and join in on the fun.

courtesy of streetfoodmontreal.com

They will be at different locations everyday, but with the schedule below, you can stalk them and hopefully get on camera while stuffing yourself with copious amounts of deliciously yummy food!

Below is the filming schedule:

Street Meet 
Date: Aug 16, 2013
Time: 12:00pm
Location: Burrard & Pender St
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/gRLJU  

Yolk's 
Date: Aug 17, 2013
Time: 9:00am
Location: Trout Lake Farmers Market (Lakewood Dr & E 13th Avenue)
Map:  http://goo.gl/maps/MYKKi 

Dougie Dog Diner Truck
Date: Aug 18, 2013
Time: 11:00am
Location: Food Cart Fest (215 West 1st Avenue)
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/OKU6Z 

Happy Eating!

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Top 8 Places To Eat in Richmond

For a lot of Vancouverites who rarely venture into Richmond, finding a place to eat can be overwhelming, especially if you know there are over 800 restaurants to choose from!

To make it a little easier on you, I've compiled a list of my Top 8 (for luck! Asians will know what I'm talkin' about) favorite places to eat in Richmond.

8) Deer Garden - Incredibly Flavourful Fish Broth


Richmond is home to two Deer Garden locations, one on Alexandra road, one on Cambie road. Their house made fish broth is to die for and is the perfect remedy for a chilly night, starving tummy, or quick bite with friends. Not recommended for chatting and catching up with old friends because Deer Garden is more of a 'eat and go' type of place.

7) Flying Beaver Bar & Grill - Perfect Spot to Chill, Watch the Game, and Eat a Burger


Located near the YVR airport, this seemingly casual neighborhood pub serves up amazing and meaty burgers. Try their Bison Burger w/ Guinness Cheese or the Kahuna Burger with Fresh Pinapple.

6) Bubble Queen - All Hail The Ferrero Rocher Cheesecake!

Bubble Queen is one of the most popular bubble tea houses in Richmond solely because of their incredibly fresh fruit slushes. Their most famous one? Fresh Mango Slush with Mango Cubes. MUST GET ITEM.

5) Chen's Shanghai House - Awesome Xiao Long Baos and Salty Soy Milk 


Some people might disagree with me on this one but my favourite 'bang-for-your-buck' Shanghainese restaurant is Chen's Shanghai House located on Park Road (across from Richmond Center). It has a sketchy looking exterior but they offer the best xiao long baos aka Shanghai soup buns I've ever had. Tip: its best to come with at least one Asian person because the waitress' English skills are limited.

4) Gokudo Shabu Shabu - This Shabu Shabu is Not Too Shabby


For hot pot, I've recently gravitated towards Gokudo Shabu Shabu located inside Continental Plaza on Cambie road because it is not All-You-Can-Eat and I enjoy their healthy combo sets. Seating is quite limited so its best to make reservations.

3) Sushi Hachi - Saba Battera is Amazing!


Sushi Hachi is a hidden gem in Richmond for authentic Japanese sushi. It is operated by a couple and they only open for three hours a day (Tues-Sat). Its a little on the pricey side but the quality of seafood you get is well worth it. Their Saba Battera and Amaebi nigiri are highly recommended.

2) Gyo-o - Fresh Seafood, Authentic Ramen, Mouth-watering Dons


I've written about Gyo-o at least three to four times now and it is one of my go-to Japanese restaurants whenever anyone asks me where to eat. I absolutely adore their Seafood Tonkotsu Ramen and Seafood Yukke Don (pictured above) and all of their items are extremely affordable. Great food, cute decor, welcoming ambiance, I just can't say enough good things about Gyo-o.

1) L'Opera Patisserie - J'adore Paris

I recently discovered L'Opera Patisserie located on Minoru Road and Westminister, and honestly, it has changed my life. I now no longer have to transit all the way to downtown just to get my hands on some macarons because these at L'Opera are even better. They offer high tea, pastries, desserts, and tea, so it is a great little spot for catching up with friends. I absolutely love love love this quaint little patisserie and I never want it to leave my life.

So there you go! These are my Top 8 recommendations for restaurants in Richmond. If you think another restaurant in Richmond was tragically snubbed by me, please let me know in the comments below. :D

Follow me on Instagram (eatingwithkirby) for daily foodporn and all things Kirby.

Happy Eating!

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Earnest Ice Cream - Seriously Good. Seriously Expensive.

I admit it. I got caught up in the fad and went out to purchase the local and much talked about, Earnest Ice Cream. NatureGirl and I went to Woodland Smokehouse on Commercial Drive just to get our hands on these babies and to be honest, if we had known the price beforehand, we probably wouldn't have gotten it.

Earnest Ice Cream is the dessert child of Ben Earnest and Erica Bernardi who decided one day to create an ice cream business that focuses on local ingredients and unique delectable flavours. Some flavours include Roasted Rhubarb Oat Crumble, Oatmeal Brown Sugar, Lavender, Cardamom, and White Peach Brown Butter.

The ice-cream comes in a cute little glass jar which is quite unusual for ice cream and if you return it, you can get $1 back. Though the concept is cool, I still find it overpriced even after returning the jar because it was $11.50 to begin with. For a jar of ice-cream the size of a Ben and Jerry's tub (~500ml), I thought it was WAY too expensive.

We were limited in our choices at Woodland Smokehouse but NatureGirl decided on the Lavender flavour and I stuck with the famous Salted Caramel. The lavendar was quite fragrant on the palate yet not overly 'flowery' in a sense where you feel like you're eating a handful of flowers. The salted caramel flavour was indeed a great balance of sweet and savoury though for me personally, it was on the brink of being too sweet.

To give you a sense of how small the jar is, it is literally as tall as my iPhone 4.

Overall, I think the reason why I am not impressed by this local gourmet ice-cream is because I had no inclination of how pricey it would be before I bought it, and the flavours that were available at Smokehouse were not strange or unique enough for me to feel like it's worth paying $11.50 for. As a self proclaimed adventurous eater, I think I would be far more likely to pay a little extra for a flavour I have never encountered before in an ice-cream like Blackberry Black Pepper or Blue Cheese & Fig. Maybe, just maybe, I will give them a second try when the actual location opens up on Fraser Street because they are bound to have more cool interesting flavours.

Service Rating: N/A
Food Rating: 3/5
Price: $$

Overall Rating: 3/5

Happy Eating!


 

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Berry Picking at Emma Lea Farms - Tis The Season!

I know you guys want to know, when is the best time to go berry picking?? Well fear not, fellow civilians, I will give you approximate good berry picking dates so you can accurately plan your bff/couple day trips to the farm (scroll to the bottom of the post if you don't want to read)

After a great recommendation from my Product Development Prof, I ventured to Ladner to find Emma Lea Farms with Rae for a berry picking session. I went just last week and it was the beginning and peak of raspberry and blueberry season.

Emma Lea Farms is located in Ladner (below Richmond- I know some of you guys didn't even know it could get farther than Richmond, am I right?:P) on a little island that you have to get to via a single traffic bridge. They are known to have a huge berry farm and are one of the more popular U-pick berry farms out there.

Rae and I started off with raspberries first. The U-pick raspberries were $1.75/lb at the time we went.

Many of the raspberries were a little pale so Rae and I dug long and hard to find the ripest, reddest, and most juiciest looking ones. Out of approximately 20 raspberries on a bush, maybe 3 or 4 made the grade. 

After a good 2 hours or so, we both came out with a 4L bucket of fresh, aromatic raspberries. No pain, no gain, am I correct?

Action shot!! Not really.. 

Next up were the blueberries. Because we went in the beginning of blueberry season, a lot of the blueberries were not as large and sweet as they could be. Still, we each managed to fill another 4L bucket full of those juicy babies. We only picked the large ones so most of them were sweet (booyah!).

After another two and a half hours, this was our reward. In case you were wondering... yes, we spent 4.5 hours picking berries that day. It was madness.

One cool thing about Emma Lea Farms is that they also have a side stand called "Emma's Ice-Cream" where you can get milkshakes (blended with their freshly picked fruit), smoothies, ice-creams, and sundaes. After a day of hard labour, this is the perfect thing to wind down.

Their simple and uncomplicated menu.

I ordered the Small Raspberry Milkshake ($3) and Rae ordered the 1 Scoop Twist Waffle Cone ($2.75). Mine tasted more like a smoothie because of the abundance of raspberries they added. Rae's was typical ice-cream cone. She mentioned it tasted like Safeway's ice-cream.

Here are some dates for optimal berry picking:

Strawberries June14 - July 10

Raspberries July 1 - July 25

Boysenberries July 15 - Aug 1

Tayberries July 5 - Aug 1 

Black Currants July 15 - Aug 1

Blueberries July 15 - Aug 20

This is for the year of 2013. Check Emma Lea Farm's site for the up to date picking dates.

Happy (Picking) and Eating!

courtesy of http://www.52kitchenadventures.com/2011/06/22/summer-activity-berry-picking/

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Easy Mini Corn Dog Muffin Recipe

I made this quite a while ago for 'Game Day' when the Canucks still had a shot of winning the Stanley Cup. Since our premature elimination from the game, I didn't think it was a good idea to post up game day recipes but now I say screw it! Why do we have to wait for the Super Bowl or Stanley Cup to make deliciously addicting snack foods? We should just make these for any day of the week! So here it is... I present the (Easy) Mini Corn Dog Muffin Recipe.

These 'corn dog' muffins are obviously not deep fried (health first!) and you can always substitute the all beef sausages for turkey if you want to cut the fat down even further.

One recipe will yield approximately 16-24 of these little babies. Put some ketchup or mustard on the side and let the games begin!

I used European Weiners from Costco because those were the only sausages I had on hand. For the Cornbread mix, you can either make it from scratch (recipe here) or be a lazy bum like me and get the pre-made one.

Mix 2 1/2 cups of the Cornbread Muffin Mix, 1 1/4 cups of water, 1/4 cup of oil, and 1egg in a large mixing bowl.

Once it is thoroughly mixed together, it will look a little something like this. Grainy is the texture we are going for.

Fill up each mini muffin tin to about two thirds (2/3) full and stick a 2 inch sausage in the center. Clearly, mine were over filled so my first batch rose way too high.

Make sure you grease the muffin tins like no tomorrow and bake at 400°F for 15 minutes.

Easy Mini Corn Dog Muffin 
(protein rich, whole grains, vitamins B-6)

Ingredients:
1 package of all beef (or turkey) sausages
1 egg
1/4 cup oil (extra for greasing the tins)
2-1/2 cups Red Mill Cornbread Muffin Mix
1- 1/4 cups Water

1. Preheat oven to 400°F
2. Cut up each sausage to about 2 inch in length
3. Mix all of the last four ingredients together
4. Pour cornbread batter into each muffin tin to cover 2/3
5. Insert a sausage in the middle of each muffin tin
6. Bake for 15 minutes

That's it! Easy as pie. :) Let me know what you think of the recipe in the comments section!

Happy Eating!

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