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Thrifty Foods Woodstone Pizza Kitchen is good!

Jun 16

Posted by admin in Lunch, Pizza, Port Moody | No Comments

Location: 170 Brew St., Port Moody, BC V3H 5N1

Phone: (604) 949-4255 (Direct Hotline)

Hours: Store Hours

Web: http://www.thriftyfoods.com/EN/main/locations/port-moody.html

Hints:

Underground Parking
Order and shop / Phone and pickup
Woodstone Pizza
Calzone
Make your own toppings

Pizza

For those who are pizza fanatics, please be aware. I discovered this pizza kitchen inside Thrifty Foods one day while I was shopping at the Thrifty’s in Port Moody. It was different than my local Thrifty’s because it’s got this “Woodstone Kitchen”. So being a foodie, I took one of its menu home and studied it. But it wasn’t till today that I actually had the chance to try it. And I regretted not trying this sooner!

I ordered the pizza in advance from home and yes, the kitchen answered the phone directly. No transferring, no waiting (well, maybe for a couple seconds). But in general, no hassle. The kitchen said it would be 25 – 30 minutes before the pick up, which sounded good to me cause it would take time to drive there, then there’s parking and traffic (yes, TRAFFIC! on a Saturday afternoon).

Woodstone Pizza Kitchen

I arrived just at the perfect timing as the second pizza came right out of the oven. Most pizza joints use roller blades, but not here! One gigantic knife will do. Though, after getting home I realized some pieces weren’t cut all the way through. The drive home was almost irresistible, the pizza smelled so good inside the car and I was so hungry that I wanted to reach for a piece. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Calzones, Pizza, Port Moody, Review, Thrifty Foods, Woodstone Pizza

Dae Ji Pork Cutlet House @ Coquitlam Centre

Jun 14

Posted by admin in Coquitlam, Korean, Lunch | No Comments

Location: 128-1153 The High St, Coquitlam, BC V3B 0B7

Phone: (604) 474-4251

Hours: N/A

Web: http://www.daejifood.com/

Hints:

Underground Parking (entrance on Northern Ave.)
Paid street parking
Very small restaurant
Roughly $10 for a meal
Opens pretty late

For those who haven’t been to Dae Ji before, they are a Korean owned family-style restaurant. Known for their deep fried pork cutlet and hamburger steak. When I heard that they were going to open a new location right across from Coquitlam Centre, I was thrilled to try it out.

Dae Ji

Upon entering the restaurant, I was surprised to find the size of the restaurant to be small. Even more so than their North Road location. We were seated instantly with menus. My girlfriend and I waited for minutes to passed but our server did not make his way around to offer any drinks nor take our order. There was pretty much one server running the entire restaurant with a few people in the back running the kitchen. My girlfriend was getting impatient as we were both hungry after attending church. She went up to the front counter and made the order.

Dae Ji

However, the table next to us ordered at their table. The inconsistency of service really raises questions about the service you get here. One thing that is quite different from Korean versus Chinese service is that you get more polite service with Korean restaurants. (Most of them.) I think it’s got something to do with cultural differences. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Coquitlam Centre, Hamburger Steak, Pork Cutlet, Restaurant review

Kintaro Ramen

Jun 11

Posted by admin in Lunch, Noodles, Vancouver | No Comments

Location: 788 Denman St, Vancouver, BC (Denman/West End)

Phone: (604) 682-7568

Hours: N/A

Hints:

Street Parking
Homemade broth and ramen
Small restaurant

Kintaro Soup Bases

Kintaro is one of Vancouver’s longest standing ramen places of all time. I remember coming here a long time ago, before the food blogging days and Kintaro would have had long lineups out the door. Throughout the many years, there has been quite a bit of competition coming into the ramen business. However, Kintaro continues to be strive amongst competition based on its food quality and fair pricing.

The kitchen line here are all Japanese, so authenticity is not an issue you will run across here. My girlfriend and I visited the restaurant on a rainy Saturday afternoon. Actually, it was one of those days that the weather couldn’t make up its mind.

Shio Ramen

I can’t entirely recall but I believe this was the Shio ramen that my girlfriend ordered. Like most ramen places, you get to choose the broth and the fatness of the pork. Being health-conscious, my girlfriend chose the lean type. I believe at Kintaro you can also choose the richness of your broth. It’s pretty customizable. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Best Ramen, Denman, Ramen, Restaurant reviews

Looking back at Eat! Vancouver 2013

Jun 10

Posted by admin in Exhibition, Vancouver | No Comments

Eat! Vancouver

It was my third consecutive year attending Eat! Vancouver and things that immediately jumped at me were more booths, more people, organic, and gluten-free. Eat! Vancouver has become one of Vancouver’s annual major food festivals attracting foodies from all over. And thanks to Eat! Vancouver for sending us there. This year’s Eat! Vancouver, like last year, was held at the open-roof BC Place from May 23rd to 25th, 2013.

Celebrity Stage

We arrived on Saturday early evening, just in time for Rob Feenie’s performance. He was making a pea soup that evening.

Chuck Hughes

And look who just finished their show, it was Chuck Hughes hanging with the camera man.

Summer Fresh

Summer Fresh

One thing I noticed this year compared to previous years were a spike in dips and hummus exhibits. Among them all, my favourite remains to be Fontaine Santé’s Spinach Dip. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2013, BC Place, Eat Vancouver, Exhibition

New exciting openings in Coquitlam and Burnaby!

Jun 2

Posted by admin in Burnaby, Coquitlam | No Comments

So my girlfriend informed me that there were a few openings in the past weeks of restaurants in Coquitlam and Burnaby. So let’s start off with Coquitlam.

A new Dae Ji has opened up near Coquitlam Centre. For those who are unfamiliar with Dae Ji, they serve up Japanese style Pork Cutlet and you can read a review of my visit at their North Road location here.

The new location is on High Street, just a few stores away from NCIX Coquitlam and Papa John’s. If you’ve visited the new location already, let me know your thoughts below!

The next location is a franchise called “Boiling Point” 沸點臭臭鍋, where they serve up Taiwanese style “stinky tofu” in small pots of various styles. Boiling Point has opened yet another location on Kingsway near Royal Oak.

This place opened two weeks ago on a soft opening but they are doing their grand opening special until today. All their meals are BOGO till June 2nd, this goes the same for their drinks menu. We called in today for lunch and the wait was outrageous, so we didn’t end up going there for lunch.

Boiling Point BOGO Deal

If you want to get a glimpse of what Boiling Point offers, you could go read my previous review here. And my girlfriend spotted that they have a new dessert menu.

Tags: Boiling Point, Coquitlam Centre, Dae Ji, Kingsway, restaurants

Coco Hut Singapore Restaurant

May 27

Posted by admin in Lunch, Richmond, Singaporean | No Comments

Location: 8328 Capstan Way, Richmond, BC V6X 2H6 (Union Square Shopping Centre)

Phone: (604) 270-3368

Hours: N/A

Hints:

Cash Only
Famous dishes: Hainanese chicken, Laksa
Shared parking lot

Coco Hut

It was our first time at Coco Hut . I don’t recall how the girlfriend found this place but it was a sunny Saturday afternoon and we didn’t know what to have so we decided to try out Coco Hut. It was late afternoon, when we entered the restaurant, we were surprised to find no one in it. I always find it scary when there’s no one in a restaurant and usually it’s not a good sign.

Hainanese Chicken – $7.25

Oil Rice

Sweet and Spicy Sauce | Green Onion

Ginger Clear Chicken Soup

My girlfriend ordered the individual chicken which came with rice, soup and of course a plate of deboned Hainanese chicken. The chicken was very smooth and cool to taste. It’s perfect on a hot summer day. They didn’t have any white rice, so we had to have the oily rice. It’s interesting if you have never had it before. It’s usually a compliment for eating Hainanese chicken. The rice has a bit of flavour in it and have this glowing texture. The sauces were a bit disappointing, I would have thought the green onions at least would been mashed. I usually like the green more than the red.

Laksa – $7.25

The laksa was flavourful, a little hot to my liking. But still alright. It’s got eggs, bean sprouts, shrimp, chicken and fish ball strips. The presentation was a bit lacking, there was nothing green in the bowl. It was the presentation of something that I had made out of a pot at home. I’ve had better Laksa elsewhere.

Overall, the food here is not bad. Though there’s nothing special that would bring me back here. Their Hainanese chicken is very similar to the one at Prata-Man. Even their deals are more or less identical. I wonder if they are the same owner. The restaurant habe at least a dozen of small tables and decorated with modern decors.

Tags: Coco Hut, Hainanese Chicken, Laksa, Restaurant review, Singapore, Union Square Mall

Kulinarya (A Filipino Eatery)

May 24

Posted by admin in Coquitlam, Dinner, Filipino | No Comments

Location: 114 – 2922 Glen Drive, Coquitlam, BC V3B 7H8 (Coquitlam Centre)

Phone: (778) 285-6577

Hours:

Monday: Closed
Tuesday – Friday: 10:00 AM – 9:00 PM
Saturday: 9:00AM – 9:00 PM
Sunday: 9:00 AM – 8:00 PM

Website: http://www.kulinarya.ca/

Hints:

$5 menu from 10-12 and 3-5. Tuesday – Sunday.
Small restaurant
Shared parking lot

Kulinarya

Kulinarya has been in Coquitlam for a long time as far as I know. But for some reason, I’ve never set foot into this place till now. It’s a fairly small place with less than a dozen tables (closer to half a dozen). The restaurant appears to be family owned and operated. It was me and my girlfriend’s first time ever dining here. We were welcomely greeted on our way in and were seated immediately.

Corn nuts

We were served with the menu and a small dish of corn nuts. It was addicting! The taste was a garlic roasted flavour. I couldn’t get my hands off them that my girlfriend had to take them out of my reach.

INIHAW NA PUSIT (Grilled Squid)

I love squid, so we tried the grilled squid. It was served sizzling on a hot plate and I could smell it from a mile away. The squid was tender and just the right amount of chewiness. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Filipino, Kulinarya, Restaurant review

Rodney’s Oyster House

May 23

Posted by admin in Happy Hour, Seafood, Soups, Vancouver, Yaletown | No Comments

Location: 1228 Hamilton St, Vancouver, BC V6B 6L2 (Yaletown location)

Phone: 604-609-0080

Hours:

Mondays to Saturdays – 11:30am til 11pm
Sundays – 4:30pm til 10pm

Happy Hours: Everyday except Sunday 3pm – 6pm

Website: http://www.rohvan.com/

Hints:

Low tide edition (Happy Hour)
Street paid parking
Reservations accepted

Rodney’s Oyster House

My girlfriend and I celebrated our anniversary at Rodney’s Oyster House this year. The reason we picked Rodney’s is because they had a variety from their Happy Hour menu. Their raw oysters are $1.50 per shuck. More expensive than most places, but the sweetness and size of the oysters made up for it.

Raw Oysters

The oysters were sweet and fresh. Presented nicely on a sheet of ice. Aside from lemon wedges and horseradish, Rodney’s offers a variety of sauces from not spicy to flaming hot. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Best happy hour, Raw oysters, Restaurant reviews, Vancouver, Yaletown

The Boathouse (Birthday Edition)

May 16

Posted by admin in Brunch, Burger, Lunch, Port Moody, Seafood | No Comments

Location: 2770 Esplanade Ave. Port Moody, BC V3H 0C8 (Rocky Point)

Phone: (604) 931-5300

Hours:
Mon-Thurs 11AM-10PM,
Fri 11AM-11PM,
Sat 9AM-11PM,
Sun 9AM-10PM

Website: http://www.boathouserestaurants.ca/

The Boathouse @ Port Moody

The Boathouse has always been one of my favourite places for brunch. Not only do they have a spectacular view but also because I love their Caesar salad. I was joined by my long-time buddy (@anothersamchan) and my girlfriend. It was a Sunday afternoon, surprisingly not a lot of people. However, food service was rather slow. Plus, there wasn’t any baked goods. Unlike last time!

Westcoast Seafood Pasta

The Westcoast Seafood pasta was a little disappointing, as I had more seafood last time. And the sauce was a bit too watery. Presentation on the pasta was a bit disappointing, let’s just say I expected more for a $20 pasta. The salad was good, I would have changed it to a Caesar but forgot to. Greens were mixed with mixed cheese and dried cranberries. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Esplanade Avenue, Restaurant reviews, The Boathouse Port Moody