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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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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Starbucks - La Boulange Flourless Chocolate Cookie

Ever since Starbucks introduced their new cafe and bakery line called La Boulange, I've been dying to try out their pastries. I wanted to know whether they were really better than their previous pastry offerings.

I tried their Chocolate Croissant and it was pretty much the same. It didn't blow me away but it was solid.

Their Gluten Free Flourless Chocolate Cookie is a completely new product exclusive to the La Boulange line. It's even wrapped and sealed to avoid wheat contamination inside the display cases.

Since I am wheat intolerant, I decided to give it a try. It's not cheap. One bag has two cookies and it was $3.95. The cookie is primarily made with egg whites so it tasted quite like a meringue.

Despite it being a tad crunchy on the sides, the center was quite moist and fudgy! I don't usually see a lot of gluten free cookie options around the mall (ex. Timmy Ho's, McDonald's, Cupcakes, Mrs.Fields ...etc) so I will definitely repurchase whenever I want a sweet treat.

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

Overall Rating: 3/5

Happy Eating!

     
when I see something I can't eat because it has wheat :(

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Beard Papa's (No.3 and Westminster) - Relax.. Enjoy... Cream Puffs...

Beard Papa's recently opened up their third location in Richmond! It's very different from the usual ones at either the food court or the mall. It's not a stall, it's an actual "Beard Papa's Cafe". 

Every time I pass by the cafe, I see a lot of people dining there but I couldn't wrap my head around how it could be a cafe. It seemed like such a grab-n-go place.

Meta Knight and I were guided to our seats and given a menu. It's different from the menu on the board which makes it a little confusing. Also they have a display case full of additional cakes and desserts you can choose from. But that is also not on the menu so you just have to go up to the case and look.

   

One thing that stood out to me were there "Floral Mochi Waffles". I've been seeing these on instagram for weeks now and really wanted to try it! Unfortunately we weren't hungry enough so we'll save it for next time. I'm assuming the waffles are made with some glutinous rice flour instead of wheat flour which makes them taste like mochi. :D 

Perfect afternoon snack for two. :)

The Cheesecake Stick (~$2.50) was really light and fluffy. Definitely a very authentic Japanese cheesecake which should not be mistaken for the heavier, dense, cream cheesey ones we're used to ex. the ones from Trees Organic.

We had absolutely no expectations for the Caramel Latte ($3.95) but it blew our mind! First off, how pretty are the three layers?? Everything tastes better when it's visually pleasing. 

It wasn't too sweet at all which was my biggest worry. I highly recommend this.

Of course, we couldn't leave without sharing a Cream Puff (~$2). We chose the Green Tea flavour and it didn't disappoint.

The matcha flavour was strong and as you can see, they stuffed that baby up to the brim.

We surprisingly had a really good time at Beard Papa's and will definitely be returning for their waffles. If I ever have to find a place to chill for a couple hours or have a light afternoon tea with a girlfriend, I'll choose this place.

Service Rating: 3/5
Food Rating: 4/5
Price: $

Overall Rating: 4/5

Happy Eating!


                   I love tea... and coffee..

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The Bubble Tea Shop - Another Bubble Tea Competitor in Richmond

So I recently found out about a new bubble tea shop on Instagram and even though I knew they were still working out some kinks and pricing issues, I still decided to give them a try 5 days after their opening.



The Bubble Tea Shop (yes, that's the name) is located right underneath Superstore on No.3 road. They replaced the big orthopedic clinic if you know where that is.

One of the reasons why I was so enticed by this bbt shop is because of their mouth watering bubble waffle pictures on instagram. They have turned it up a notch by making these traditional HK bubble waffles into beautiful works of art. For example, they have one dish where you get a scoop of matcha ice-cream, fresh strawberries, red bean, and whipped cream on top of a freshly made matcha and yogurt chip egg waffle.

Eventually I would like to try their Signature Frozen Hot Chocolate bubble tea in their 'Speciality Drink' menu. It sounds delish.

Their 'Milk Tea Series' also intrigued me. In particular the Lavender Milk Tea. Not sure if it'll be a winner (because it's usually a hit or miss) but I'm willing to give it a try.

Apparently if you can solve this rubics cube, you win a free bubble tea!

Kirbro ordered the Matcha Frappe ($5.25) and he absolutely loved it! I took a sip and I knew exactly what he was talking about. The intense matcha flavour could've only been made possible with lots of pure matcha powder so I definitely appreciate that. Unfortunately I couldn't say the same for the Black Sesame Milk Tea ($4.25). It tasted bland and just a poor mixture of crushed black sesame and milk.

Kirbro and I also shared a Matcha Bubble Waffle ($3.75) which was unfortunately disappointing. I don't think they have perfected the recipe yet because it lacked the buoyancy and springiness of the regular good bubble waffles.

All in all, I think The Bubble Tea Shop has a lot of promise. Their menu consists of interesting combinations that cater to the growing population of foodies, and I'm not ashamed to say, I'm one of them so I'm hooked. I'll just wait until they perfect their recipes and menus before I return.

Service Rating: 4/5

Food Rating: 3/5

Price: $

Overall Rating: 3/5

Happy Eating!

                battle of the bubble tea houses



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Cafe Joie - Waffles Waffles Waffles!

A block away from Metrotown is a quaint little Korean run cafe called Cafe Joie which, just by word of mouth, is spreading throughout Vancouver like wild fire. 

Every few weeks I see pictures of their amazing looking waffles, bear shaped macarons, and tasty looking latte art. It was hard not to check out this place to see what all the fuss is about.

Their display houses a beautiful collection of pastel coloured macarons.

When Meta Knight and I went, it was crowded and filled with students, Korean people, and girlfriends chatting over macarons.

I had to get a Bear Macaron ($2) just because it was too adorable to resist! It tasted alright and the shell was done well. However, the mango artificial flavours were just too fake for me.

We also shared their Strawberry Waffle (~$10) which comes with a fluffy waffle, cut up strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, whipped cream, strawberry ice-cream, and macaron.

We thoroughly enjoyed it and gobbled it up in seconds! The waffle could have been crisper on the outside, especially since it got soggy quite quickly with the ice-cream and whipped cream on top. But all in all, it was a good waffle for an afternoon snack.

If you are catching a movie at the Metropolis Silvercity Cinplex and need a quick snack, walk a block down and have some waffles! It's much better than any food court food you can get. :)

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

Overall Rating: 3.5/5

Happy Eating!


                    my happy waffle dance

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The Bookstore Bar & Cafe - Books..Whiskey Flights...Charcuterie.. What More Can I Ask For?

When my girlfriends and I were in Seattle, we desperately tried to find a pub or lounge near the downtown Seattle area for a quick drink before heading back to our hotel. After a lot of yelping and urbanspooning (yes, I turned it into a verb), we finally decided on The Bookstore Bar & Cafe.

We didn't know what to expect going into this bookstore/bar but whatever we saw was definitely not what we imagined. 

From the outside, it looks like half bookstore, half cafe. It has dark wooden accents and bold chestnut colours.

On the inside, you'll see walls and walls of books. A dream for those who like to read underneath the sheets every night. Apparently they are all for sale so if you find a great read while sipping on your whiskey, you're good to purchase it!

Also, you will see a wall of liquor. And I mean that literally. They have all kinds of hard liqueur ranging from the smoothest tequila you've ever tasted, to straight up whiskey in flights. They actually have one hundred and thirty plus varieties of scotch and whiskey.

Their small salad and small plates menu.

I don't remember the names of these drinks but they were delicious. The one on the left was made with sour cherries and orange juice. The one on the right was made with whiskey and boy was the kick strong. Definitely not for the faint of heart.

We needed our greens so we got the Panzanella Salad ($12) made with toasted bread, crispy house-made pancetta, roasted cherry tomatoes, and vincotta viniagrette. Oh who are we kidding, there were barely any vegetables in this supposed 'salad'. Nevertheless, this was amazing!! It was slightly acidic, sweet, and had great depth of flavour.

The Charcuterie Board ($14) came with a selection of local charcuterie, grain mustard, house-made pickles, and crostini.

Last but not least, we shared the Chicken and Fennel Ragu ($15). It was pretty good but wasn't outstanding.

Service Rating: 3/5
Food Rating: 4/5
Price: $$

Overall Rating:4/5

Happy Eating!

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