Monday, October 31, 2011

Milestones Grill and Bar

Out of all of the chain restaurants at this level (Earls, Cactus Club, Moxies, etc.) Milestones is probably my favourite.  Their burgers are exceptional and far better than the competition, and they actually serve a really decent prime rib.  In this case, Flowerbunny and I went to the Yaletown location for dinner after work on a Friday night.  She started with a belini.  Milestones makes great belinis, they're super fruity and delicious.

Saturday, October 29, 2011

Peckinpah

I've been introducing friends to Peckinpah for the last year, ever since it was first introduced to me, so I figured we should finally get a review of the place up here.  Peckinpah is a small restaurant in Gastown that serves Carolina style BBQ.  They have a huge selection of bourbons, along with a good selection of beers and other adult beverages.  But for me, the main reason to come is the food.  I've been here so many times for lunch, that I've tried pretty much everything on their menu.  Their sandwiches, which range from $8.50 to $11.50 come with one side and are a pretty good value, as it's a ton of food. 

Friday, October 28, 2011

The Mac Shack

When we saw the signs saying that a mac and cheese restaurant was opening, we were instantly excited, as mac and cheese is one of our favourite comfort foods.  Last Saturday, we decided to check out the newly opened Mac Shack with a few of our friends.  Their menu sounded decent, as they have lots of different toppings to choose from, whether you decide to build your own mac and cheese, or get one of their creations.  The space is small, but we were able to snag a table, which had a good view of the TV with the Canucks game on, so that was good.

Thursday, October 27, 2011

Mui Garden

We've been wanting to check out Mui Garden for a little while now as it's pretty close to where we live, so when we found ourselves with nothing to eat for dinner last week, we finally made the trek over to see what they had to offer.  The decor is very reminiscent of, for lack of a better term, an American-style country restaurant.  Which is kind of odd for a Chinese restaurant.  While it felt old, it was pretty clean, which is not always a guarantee at this type of establishment, so that was good.

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

La Régalade

Anytime a friend has a birthday, it seems like we all go out for dinner.  Which is fine by me!  This time we all went to a french restaurant in West Vancouver called La Régalade.  The interior is dark and everything is cozy with the wood surfaces giving it a rustic feel, a very casual French bistro kind of vibe.  Along with their regular menu, they have these giant chalk boards with their specials written on them that they bring over to your table.
 

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Pajo's

Having never tried Pajo's, but wanting to compare it to the always excellent Go Fish, Flowerbunny and I headed down to the Steveston Wharf with a couple of friends to check it out.  When we got there, they had a huge lineup that ran along the entire restaurant and almost to the gang plank that lead down to it.  It took awhile to get to the front of the line, but once we ordered, we had our food fairly quickly.

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Tokyo Joe Ramen Okawari

While looking for lunch in Richmond, we noticed that a new ramen restaurant had opened where a sushi restaurant used to be.  We love ramen, but as everyone in the lower mainland knows, all of the best ramen places are at Denman and Robson, quite a trek from Richmond.  We decided to try this new one to see if it measures up.
 



Monday, October 17, 2011

ABC Country Restaurant

While we were in North Burnaby, we found ourselves needing something to eat for lunch.  As we had just eaten some cheesecake at Pappagallo's , we decided to go somewhere close for something quick.  That place ended up being ABC Country Restaurant.

I had their Bacon Cheddar Burger with a caesar salad instead of fries.  The burger was pretty much tasteless, but the caesar salad tasted like I remembered it.

Flowerbunny had the B.L.T. with wedge fries.  She didn't really like it either, but the fries weren't bad.  In addition to the food not being very good, the service was slow and the wait staff was dressed rather sloppily. 
Overall Impressions: Unless you're going for dessert, this isn't really the place to go for good food.  I'm honestly not sure how it's still in business, other than the fact that there are no restaurants serving similar cuisine in the immediate area.

ABC Country Restaurant
6500 Hastings St.
Burnaby, BC
ABC Country Restaurant (Burnaby North) on Urbanspoon

Il Pappagallo Caffe

We don't find ourselves out in North Burnaby very often, but we were out with an old friend touring the neighborhood where she and I grew up, and decided to grab some cheesecake at our old favourite place.  Pappagallo's is now located on the corner of Sperling and Hastings.  They've changed owners since I'd been their last, but apparently they'd kept the cheesecake recipe which is all that we were there for anyway.

Flowerbunny and I split the peanut butter chocolate cheesecake.  Pappagallo's does a mousse-y style cheesecake, like Cheesecake Etc.  This one is a bit thicker, probably because of the peanut butter, but has a nice chocolate-y peanut-y flavour.  All their cheesecakes have a graham cracker crust which I absolutely love.  For me, this is what puts it over the top of cheesecake etc. as being my favourite in town.  It's actually quite a thick crust, and Flowerbunny thought it was too much, but having grown up with it, I absolutely love it.
Our friend got their Strawberry Cheesecake which we both tried as well.  This one is lighter and smooth, and the strawberry topping is delicious.  Again, the graham cracker crust brings it all together. 
Overall Impressions: I can't speak to their other menu items, but their cheesecake is probably my favourite in the lower mainland.  If you're in the area, definitely give it a shot.

Il Pappagallo Caffe
6696 Hastings St.
Burnaby, BC
604.294.2766
Il Pappagallo Caffe on Urbanspoon

Kaboom Box

Vancouver's burgeoning food truck scene has given us some fresh, interesting lunch options.  Flowerbunny had yet to try Kaboom Box (formerly Fresh, Local, Wild), and as it was close to where we work, we decided to go.  I have been here a few times, and when it changed from Fresh, Local, Wild to Kaboom box, I didn't really notice a drop off in quality which is good.  Their poutine isn't quite as tasty as before, but the sandwiches are still spot on.

COAST Restaurant

A friend had a gift card for COAST and wanted to use it up on her birthday, and we were happy to join them, as we've been to COAST several times and it's always been good.  COAST is part of the Glowbal group, and like all their restaurants, the interiors are superbly designed.  We had reservations, and were seated close to the open kitchen with a good view of the high ceilings and raw bar.

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Ensemble

I've always wanted to try Ensemble when I heard that Chef Dale Mackay, Top Chef winner and Lumiere chef, will be opening up this restaurant after Lumiere closed. I had a week where I didn't have to work overtime so I Love Hotdogs surprised me one night and took me there for dinner. Ensemble is a contemporary French restaurant that serves mostly tapas. Most of the dishes are smaller and meant for sharing. They recommend 3 - 4 dishes per person. We ordered 6 appetizer/main dishes and 2 desserts between the two of us.

Menu

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Feastro The Rolling Bistro

After seeing an episode on Eat St. about Feastro the Rolling Bistro (and finding out that their new location is here in Vancouver ^__^), I wanted to try it! The truck is located on Thurlow and West Cordova and is quite easy to spot the big purple truck. They have a wide range of items on their menu that you can choose from: crab cakes, a variety of tacos, ceviche, prawns, oysters, anything seafood, they probably have. And everything they use are fresh and local ingredients.On Eat St., they featured the crab and shrimp cake and it was one of the items I really wanted to try.

Feastro the Rolling Bistro Truck

Monday, October 3, 2011

Gotham Steakhouse

Flowerbunny also took me out to Gotham Steakhouse for dinner my birthday!  Joe Fortes and Gotham in one day?  I am pretty lucky :)  

We were greeted and seated immediately.  The decor felt classic but not out-dated, with high ceilings adding to the overall opulence.  While Gotham has been a Vancouver mainstay for many years, this was my first time going, and I was very excited to try the food.