Ebisu in Richmond- Newly Renovated, Pretty Good Tapas

For Meta Knight’s birthday, a bunch of us went to Ebisu in Richmond for some good eats and cheap drinks. Because Meta Knight and I ate stuff just before dinner, we decided to order a bunch of tapas to share.

First off, I didn’t realise Ebisu renovated the interior until I arrived! It looks way more modern and chic now compared to the homestyle, comfy look from before. They also have a HD TV so this might be a good place to watch the game.

I enjoyed looking at their menu because it contains many pictures and it helps me make decisions on what I want to eat. :P

Yummm.... Tapas :)

First came the Goma-ae ($3.95). It was alright. I expected black sesame sauce because I thought that was the authentic way of making Gom-ae (anybody know?) but it was more of a peanut sauce than sesame sauce...

Random Thought- Homemade Laksa Anyone?

Rae came over one day for breakfast and because we didn't know what to make, we decided to use her Laksa premix to make some homemade Laksa! This was perfect for a cold and rainy day. 

The package is by Prima Taste, and this is the definition they have for Laksa: "a blend of fresh spice and herbs featuring rice noodles typically topped with seafood in an aromatic coconut-flavoured soup". I heard from Rae that Laksa comes in a million different varieties. Some contain coconut milk, some don't, some use red meat as toppings, some use seafood instead...etc, the list goes on. The version we made was called Singapore Laksa. I have never attempted to make Laksa at home before so I was super excited!

Because I didn't have any rice noodles on hand, we boiled some Shanghai noodles instead. They actually worked pretty well with the Laksa! As you can see, we chopped up some parsley and  green onion for garnish. We also had some fried onions (omg YUM!) so we also added that into our Laksa as well. :P

Our bowl looked like this before we scooped the Laksa broth into it. We included some balls (squid, beef, fish), and crab meat along with the garnishes I mentioned above.

Oven Baked Yam Fries Recipe- Who Says Fries Can't Be Healthy?

I’ve always loved substituting regular fries with yam fries when I eat out because I find them more flavourful and hearty. Did you know that it is incredibly easy to make these at home?! I didn’t until recently!

All you need are a few yams, 2 tablespoons of EVOO (extra virgin olive oil), sea salt and cracked black pepper. Easy eh?

You first cut the yams up into strips (I like to leave the skin on), rub them with olive oil, then sprinkle the salt and pepper and arrange them on a baking sheet.

Mom's Grilled Cheese Truck- Like Your Mom's Grilled Cheese...But Better

So I was in the downtown Vancouver area today when I came across a new food truck called “Mom’s Grilled Cheese Truck”. I found that everyone walking past this truck took a double take because the truck was pretty flashy with its sleek design and cool branding. They close at 3pm and I was lucky enough to be their last order of the day!

The truck was operated by three people, one of them being the owner, Cindy Hamilton. I recognized her from this post by Sean’s Adventures in Flavour Town. She was very chatty with all of the customers and her passion for what she does really showed through.

Such an interesting concept, no?

I ordered the Special Of The Day ($8.50) which included ham, cheese (forgot what kind!), and bacon on sourdough bread. It comes in a neat little cone (reminds me of Pajo’s Fish and Chips) and is accompanied by a pickle and a handful of chips.

Red Robin- Burgers. Burgers. And More Burgers.

This post on Red Robin consists of two different visits. I don’t know about you, but I’ve always liked Red Robin because of their giant burgers, casual atmosphere, and refillable freckled lemonade. It is a pretty cool place to hang and chill, except when there is a Canucks game on because we learned that they sometimes don’t play them on their screens!

As always, the bottomless Freckled Lemonade ($4.99) will be ordered and shared (shh!). Deliciously sour and sweet at the same time...you can’t go wrong with this choice!

Their Towering Onion Rings is another Red Robins signature item so our table ordered this to share.

I saw their promotion of the Oktoberfest Burger (~$10) and thought it looked absolutely mouth watering!! However, it only looks like that because of food stylists (not that it's a bad thing). I usually find burgers deceiving when it comes to advertising so read on...and you will see what I’m talkin’ about. :P

Bubble Waffle Cafe- ShakeShake Fries, Bubble Waffles, and Fish Soup Noodles

I heard from Trixie that “Yuemicka Noodle House” beside Alleluia Cafe recently closed down and changed into “Bubble Waffle Cafe”. She also said they have a grand opening promotion where they give you a free bubble waffle with every order above $15. It’s easily do-able if you come here with one or two people so check this place out because this offer expires on October 30^th. *update: offer has expired*

I was quite surprised at the number customers for such a new restaurant! The line up was at least 10-15 minutes for a table.

They serve a bunch of different things... one of them being Teppanyaki Rice.

Something on their menu really captured my attention. It’s called “ShakeShake Fries” and I remember having these at the Hong Kong McDonald’s and they were the bomb!! They’re essentially just fries but you get seasoning (my fav is seaweed). Then you place them in a bag and shake it crazy until the fries are all coated with the seasoning! $4.99 is quite expensive though so I don’t know if I will ever try it but have any of you guys heard of ShakeShake fries before??

Joey Burnaby- Ahi Tuna Club and Creamy Mushroom Soup

It was Meta Knight’s birthday and a bunch of us including Cupcake, Pudding, Meta Knight, and I, headed over to the newest location of the 'Joey Restaurant' chain in Burnaby. Based on reviews on urbanspoon, Joey Burnaby seems to be attracting quite a crowd with their sleek decor, great food, and um... attractive waitresses.

There was a huge line-up when we arrived but luckily we were seated within 15 minutes at a comfortable booth. The decor is very chic and this would be a perfect place to have drinks, appys/dessert, and long conversations.

Meta Knight started off with the Friday drink special, Super Stoked Vodka Cherry Coke ($6.99). The Vodka and Coke was very refreshing due to the slush in the drink.  It was also garnished with two maraschino cherries and Pudding was (almost!) successful in tying a knot with this tongue.

Sorry for the blurry pictures! Dim lighting at restaurants are always my biggest nightmare! LOL! Anyways, I ordered the Ahi Tuna Club and subbed the skinny fries for the Wild & Creamy Mushroom Soup ($14.99 + $1.49). The soup was delicious as always and I would recommend this to everyone! I’ve had them fail once or twice because it was over salted but this time it was great. Meta Knight ordered the same thing but with fries.

COAST Restaurant- Buck A Shuck!

So after Rae and I finished our Japadog, we thought it would be nice (and gluttonous) for us to continue eating.... at Coast for their buck a shuck! We met up with Dirtygirl as well.

We sat on the patio because it was such a nice day outside. Even though it was kind of cold and windy, the heated patio kept us super warm!

The fire was so warm, it actually kind of heated up one of my raw oysters! ><

The thing I always find irritating about Glowbal restaurants are their menu size! The menu is so big it takes up the whole table and makes maneuvering around it quite troublesome. 

Rae and I ordered twelve Chef's Selection oysters ($12.00) to share from their Buck A Shuck promotion (avaliable from 3-5pm). It came with cocktail sauce, horseradish, two lemon wedges, tabasco sauce, and some other vinegary sauce I'm not sure of.

Japadog (Burrard)- Vancouver's Most Famous Food Cart Never Disappoints

Rae and I headed to downtown Vancouver for some quick lunch yesterday and had initially planned on trying the Tacofino food truck. However we couldn’t find it so we assumed it sold out and packed up for the day already. :( I was so glad our alternative, Japadog, was still operating because we were starving!!! We went to the original Burrard location.

I believe everyone can almost memorize the menu already because if you’re like me, you've begun to familiarized yourself with what sort of offerings they have. :P Since I’ve never had the Oroshi ($5.25) before and Rae highly recommended it, I decided to get this. It contains Bratwurst sausage with grated radish and green onion on top.

Their “Many Celebrities in Japadog” sign was super interesting to read while waiting for our food.

The Oroshi looks like this. I really loved it because the shredded radish provided a fresh and light contrast to the meaty sausage. The bun was soft and nicely toasted which was nice. Be warned, it gets quite messy but whatever, it should never stop you from eating a Japadog! Muahaha

Spaghetti Alle Vongole- Spaghetti with Clams Recipe

I’ve recently been loving oil based pastas instead of the regular tomato and cream based ones so here is a recipe for Spaghetti Alle Vongole. I made this quite a few times during the past few weeks because it makes for such a light yet filling dinner.

I used a Spaghetti Alle Vongole recipe very similar to this one from grouprecipes.com but made a few adjustments. I will give you a step by step version of how to make it, and I will have the ingredient list below. First you add a few tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil into the pan along with two to three cloves of chopped garlic.

Sauté them until the garlic releases its fragrance.

Then add in the canned clams.

Burgoo (Main)- They Make Delicious Grilled Cheese

One day after working out with a few friends, we decided to go to Burgoo on Main for lunch. There was a bit of a wait but since the sun was out and shining, it wasn’t too bad waiting outside. If it weren’t so cold, we would have even considered sitting on the patio.

As we were waiting for a table, we scanned the menu and pretty much all of us knew what to order before we even sat down! Haha

The interior was quite cozy and the restaurant was a lot smaller than I had expected.

Burgoo’s tagline is “food for comfort” and my friend told me they specialize in comfort food from around the world. It sounds like a pretty interesting concept, no?

James Snacks- Who Here Likes Ostrich Meat?

Ever since I heard about the “Clay pot Ostrich Rice” at James Snacks from Chowtimes (their post here), I’ve always wanted to try it out. You may think that's disgusting, but I love to try weird and unusual food so this is right up my alley! Since James Snacks is located in such an unappealing food court in Empire Center, Richmond, I found myself never thinking about this place whenever I am deciding where to eat. Thus, this slipped under my radar for a while until Kirma brought this home one day as take out.

It’s called Ostrich with BBQ Sauce ($10.50) and it came with a clay pot that you need to pay $3 extra for (but refundable if you return it to them). I noticed that it used to be $9.00, so they raised the price. Boo.

The ostrich meat looked like beef, and actually kind of tasted like beef too. For some reason, I imagined ostrich to have a much peculiar taste that I could instantly detect to be different from our usual meats, but...I couldn’t. If it tasted like beef, I might as well get beef since it’s cheaper. LOL

Red House- Another Average HK Style Cafe

Red House is located on Hazelbridge road in Richmond, and is the replacement of the previous “Boston Steakhouse”. Their decor and menu seemed pretty much the same so I don’t know what was improved or different except their name.

 Kirbro had their Baked Spaghetti Bolognese ($7.95) and he said it wasn’t that good. His standards are pretty low already so if he said it’s not good, it probably is pretty bad.

 I had their Baked Portuguese Style Lamb with Rice ($7.95) and it was surprisingly very tasty! I particularly liked the tenderness of the lamb and the fact that it wasn’t gamey. The one thing I didn’t like, or wish they could improve on, were the raisins they sprinkled on top of the dish. They got burnt in the oven (since this dish is baked) so they taste like little blobs of charcoal. Other than that, I’d recommend this dish. :P

 This is the Baked Portuguese Style Chicken with Rice ($7.95). It’s essentially the same dish as one above except the meat is chicken. Again, you can see the little ‘blobs of charcoal’. LOL

Garden City Hot Pot- They Serve Dim Sum!

Before my friend Trixie informed me, I never knew that Garden City Hot Pot was opened for dim sum in the morning! Her family comes here often so this is their go-to dim sum place. On one particular day, I followed Trixie and her family to eat dim sum here (I know...I’m such an intruder LOL).

We first ordered the Japanese Style Spring Roll ($5.25) because Trixie said they make them really good here. I really enjoyed them as the shells were crispy, and the shrimp filling tasted fresh. I would recommend this dish.

Next is the ever popular “har gow” also known as Shrimp Dumpling ($5.25). These were delicious and plump, but pretty typical, as I normally don’t encounter any bad shrimp dumplings at other dim sum restaurants.

Society Dining Lounge- Cotton Candy Cocktail!

Last week, I went to Society Dining Lounge in Yaletown with a couple of my girl friends, Trixie, Rae, FW, Pooh, and Sis. This restaurant is operated by Glowbal Group, which has other restaurants under their name such as Italian Kitchen, Trattoria, Coast, Sanafir, and Glowbal Afterglow. In the past, I’ve really enjoyed dining at the other Glowbal Group restaurants so I was excited to try yet another one.

The decor was uber modern and quite girly if I say so myself. There was a lot of pink...even the chandeliers were pink! The atmosphere is perfect for a girl’s night out. ;)

The menu was uncomfortably huge and took up most of the table. Their prices seemed reasonable from a glance, and their spiked milkshakes menu was intriguing.

Rae, Pooh, and I ordered the Candy Collins drink to start. I forgot what was in it, but it sure looked and tasted good! When our server brought these out, our eyes lit up in amazement because who doesn’t love cotton candy?!