Overall, I wouldn’t say any of the food was too memorable, but everything was decent. I still prefer Guu if I want izakaya food. Hapa is more bar like and somewhat more formal. It’s still a great place for happy hour or to grab drinks.
Pros:
– Reasonable prices
– Ambiance is pretty nice
Cons:
– Service was just average
– Food isn’t too memorable
Price Range: $20-30
1: Terrible 2: Poor 3: Average 4: Good 5: Excellent
Food: 3
Service: 3
Ambiance: 4
Parking: 3
Overall: 3
Whenever people ask me what my favourite restaurants are in Vancouver, I usually respond with Miku as one of them, but I think I might have to take this off my list now… I had a very disappointing meal in terms of service, and it might have just ruined it for me now. My parents hadn’t gone back to Miku since they moved locations, so we decided to go for their Dine Out Vancouver Festival menu for lunch. Their lunch menu is $28 and my visit last year during this festival didn’t disappoint. We could only get reservations at 2:00pm, but that didn’t matter. The restaurant was still busy with diners rolling in. We were seated and given menus, and then for a good 15 minutes or more, we had no service whatsoever. No one came by to ask if we were ready to order, and people who were seated after us had already gotten their orders in. It was to the point where my mother needed to wave someone down and that wasn’t even our server. I believe she was a hostess, but she took our order down. But throughout the whole dinner, we had no server. Quite disappointing since my past experiences have been very well with servers introducing themselves and such. Finally, by the time our dessert came along, some guy that looked like an actual server presented us with our desserts. But other than that, no server. Did our table not have a server assigned at all? A restaurant that markets themselves as one with exceptional service did not showcase that at all that day. However, let’s get on to the food, which didn’t disappoint as usual.
Enoki Mushroom Miso Soup
Lunch starts off with their Enoki Mushroom Miso Soup. The soup is not as salty as other restaurants and there are enoki mushrooms as well as tofu. A nice way to start your meal.
Zen
Your first course is the Zen box, which they describe as a “selection of Aburi specialty items served in our traditional Japanese hinoki wood box.” However, ours was served on a plate. I guess they ran out of the wooden boxes?
Ebi Fritter
The box included the Ebi Fritter, which featured a jumbo prawn battered and deep fried and topped with a sweet chili aioli. It came on top of a fresh green salad with a soy-balsamic reduction. The prawn was juicy and I liked how the batter was light.
Fresh Market Salad
Next was the Fresh Market Salad. The menu says it’s based on the chef’s daily selection, and today it was a King Crab Salad. Loads of shredded crab meat on top of a fresh green salad with a umami soy dressing. I can never get over how good their salads are! Their dressings always make it so delicious!
Aburi Albacore Tuna
Also in the box was the Aburi Albacore Tuna, which is lightly flame seared. It came with a masatake sauce, which is a mixture of onions, garlic, soy sauce, and sesame oil. Nothing too special, but I did enjoy the sauce more than your typical ponzu.
Braised Beef Shank
Lastly, there was the Braised Beef Shank, which was very tender. It came on top of a yukon potato puree, which was buttery and delicious, as well as a wasabi-veal jus, which gave it that horseradish flavouring.
Miku Signature Sushi
The entree is the Miku Signature Sushi, which features a selection of Aburi, Nigiri, and Oshi Sushi. Starting from the top left was the Albacore Tuna Nigiri Sushi, which is flame seared with a miso glaze and welsh onion. The tuna was fatty and melted in your mouth. Next to that was the Ebi Nigiri Sushi, which is also flamed seared with a creamy pesto. I love the use of pesto here. On the right was the Sunrise Roll, which has a wasabi marinated tuna tartare in the center, and is wrapped with red tuna. It’s then topped with wasabi aioli. We all agreed that this was just average and nothing too memorable. The two rectangular pieces were the Aburi Salmon Oshi Sushi, which is basically why I love Miku so much. It’s their signature pressed and flamed seared sushi with two layers of sockeye salmon, the irresistible Miku sauce, and topped with a slice of jalapeno and cracked black pepper. The salmon just melts in your mouth and the jalapeno gives it a slight kick. I could honestly just order plates of this and be satisfied.
Feature Mango Sorbet
To finish, the dessert was a choice of house made vanilla bean ice cream or the Mango Sorbet. Our whole table went for the mango sorbet, which came presented with candied sugar and a lemon coconut cookie and seasonal fruits. We found that the mango sorbet was slightly tart, but paired with the cookie, which was rather bland, it balanced it out.
Overall, the food didn’t disappoint once again, but service was a huge miss. One that sort of deters me from coming back. But then again, they have my favourite Aburi Salmon Oshi… and the ambiance is beautiful with the waterfront views.
Pros:
– Aburi Salmon Oshi is absolutely delicious
– Beautiful views by the waterfront
Cons:
– We had no service this time around
– Prices on their regular menu are quite expensive for the amount of food you get
Price Range: $30-40
1: Terrible 2: Poor 3: Average 4: Good 5: Excellent
Food: 4
Service: 1
Ambiance: 4
Parking: 3
Overall: 3
Not too long ago, I visited Flying Pig at their Gastown location for lunch. A few months later, here I am again checking out their brunch menu. Restaurant was busy, but we made reservations ahead of time, so we were seated right away.
Complimentary Banana Bread
Service begins with their complimentary Banana Bread. I love this since it’s very moist but a little sticky. It’s also not too heavy or dense.
Featured Corn Beef Hash
They offer some daily features and that day they had the Featured Corn Beef Hash, which SP got. It came with two poached eggs on top of corned beef and hash. It also came with Hollandaise sauce and a side of salad. I really liked the sauce it came with and the potatoes were crispy on the outside.
Smoked Salmon Benedict
For myself, I got the Smoked Salmon Benedict, which also came with a salad. The house smoked salmon came with dill cream cheese on top of a piece of toasted bread. The Hollandaise sauce topped the poached eggs which I asked to be done to medium. The yolks oozed out as you broke the egg, and was delicious when mixed with the cream cheese and smoked salmon. My only concern was I found the bread to be too toasted, hence it was difficult to cut into with a knife.
Country Style Breakfast
SK got the Country Style Breakfast, which came with 2 eggs, back bacon, baby greens, and some sourdough bread. She got the eggs sunny side up.
Brunch is pretty good here, but the prices are slightly higher for the food you get. Service was also very cold this time around. Our server took the wrong order for my friend and when the dish came and we said we hadn’t ordered that, she got very defensive and said we were wrong. Quite disappointed, since I had some pretty good service the previous time I visited.
Pros:
– Conveniently located in the heart of Gastown
– Great place for brunch type of food
Cons:
– Prices are slightly high for the portion size and what you get
– Service wasn’t so great this time
Price Range: $15-25
1: Terrible 2: Poor 3: Average 4: Good 5: Excellent
Food: 4
Service: 2
Ambiance: 4
Parking: 3
Overall: 3.5
K and I had signed up for Paint Nite, which is a two-hour painting experience where an experienced artist teaches you how to paint well-known paintings. The nice part of this is that they use different venues and you can drink and eat while you paint. For our event, the location was at Dunn’s Famous in Downtown.
The restaurant itself is sort of like a sports bar, but it’s definitely one of the nicer ones. Just around the corridor though, they set up the Paint Nite event so it was more like a private event.
At Paint Nite, everything is supplied to you and it normally costs around $45 per person. We got a Groupon, so it was only $25. Pretty good deal and they often have these deals if you look around. Food and beverages are not included.
Dunn’s Famous Mac & Cheese
Since I just got off work, I was starving. Dunn’s is famous for their smoked meat, but I didn’t think holding a smoked meat sandwich in one hand and painting with the other would work too well. I ended up getting the Dunn’s Famous Mac & Cheese, which had three cheese elbow macaroni baked and topped with a julienne of Montréal smoked meat. It was also served with a side of Caesar salad & garlic toast. I liked how the pasta was very cheesy in the middle, but the top was slightly crispy. I didn’t find the smoked meat anything too special though. I thought it almost tasted like bacon bits. The garlic bread was toasted nicely while still being soft and fluffy. As for the Caesar salad, it was slightly under dressed, but came with a good amount of Parmesan cheese and croutons. Pretty good for pub food.
Based on my experience at Dunn’s for Paint Nite, the service was quite attentive and very accommodating. Prices are reasonable considering it’s right in the heart of Downtown. I can’t comment too much about the food since I didn’t try what they were famous for, but the pasta was good regardless.
Pros:
– Casual, retro ambiance
– Decent eats based on what I had
Cons:
– Not exactly the greatest value considering it’s pub food
Price Range: $20-25
1: Terrible 2: Poor 3: Average 4: Good 5: Excellent
Food: 3
Service: 3
Ambiance: 3
Parking: 3
Overall: 3
Seared Albacore Tuna
For K’s birthday, we went to Alibi Room in Gastown. It’s located almost at the end, where it’s a lot more quiet, but Alibi Room is always still packed with people. A super chill environment, with dimly lit lights and communal tables, Alibi Room is a great place to hang out with friends and have some drinks. They are famous for their beers, but I opted for one of their ciders. We decided to share a few dishes and started with the Seared Albacore Tuna. The tuna was lightly seared on the sides and very fresh. It was topped with a green olive tapenade and a side of greens. The star of the dish was actually the red lentil puree though. I’m not even a fan of lentils, but the way they seasoned the puree was perfect. Very flavourful and we cleaned up this dish in no time.
Mezze plate
Next, we got the Mezze Plate, which came with housemade rosemary flatbread. These were sort of soft but slightly chewy. It came with a white bean and green olive dip, goat feta, caponata, cucumbers, and marinated olives. The dip actually tasted sort of like a guacamole. Pretty good, and I liked the caponata mixed with the dip to bring more flavour.
Mushroom & Hazelnut Pate
Lastly, we had the Mushroom & Hazelnut Pate, which was flavoured with truffle oil.The truffle flavour was actually very strong, or it could have been the mushroom flavour that I was tasting. It came with crostinis for dipping, but they were rather hard. On the side, there were garlic confit to accompany the dish. Not bad.
Overall, I thought the food was average. Nothing too special worth coming back, but I like the ambiance here for get togethers with friends for drinks and snacks. I thought that service was friendly, but rather slow. Our drinks came first, but our food took more than 30 minutes to arrive. We ended up finishing our drink before the food even arrived. Something they will need to work on.
Pros:
– Casual, hip ambiance
– Great place for drinks and late night snacks
Cons:
– A bit on the pricey side
– Long waits
Price Range: $20-30
1: Terrible 2: Poor 3: Average 4: Good 5: Excellent
Food: 4
Service: 3
Ambiance: 4
Parking: 4
Overall: 4
For S’s birthday, I took her to Provence Marinaside in Yaletown. It’s located right by the water, but unfortunately we were seated near the back of the restaurant away from the view. The interior isn’t too modern nor fancy, but it gives you a comfy French countryside feel. Lunch started off with complementary bread. There were two types. One was your typical baguette which was more tough, while the second was something similar to a focaccia bread.
Fresh Oyster
We started off with some Fresh Oysters. The server said there were two types. One was the Kusshi, but I didn’t catch on to what she said the second one was. It was served with a pear vinegar mignonette and fresh lemon. Very fresh, but I didn’t really like the sauce it came with. I liked the sauces at Rodney’s a lot more. They also don’t have any deals for oysters, so it comes to $2.50 per oyster, which is quite pricey.
Panisse & Vegetables
S got the Panisse & Vegetables, which came to be a very interesting dish. Panisse is a dish from Provence and is pictured above as those rectangular fries. These were made with chick peas and seasoned with basil. They had a crispy exterior, but a very soft interior. Sort of like crispy potatoes. The dish also came with zucchini spaghetti, which S loved. A great alternative to your pasta full of carbs. Wilted leafy greens, fennel, red pepper and tomato coulis finished off the dish.
Linguini Vongole
For myself, I got the Linguine Vongole, which is one of my all time favourite Italian pasta dishes. This featured clams, tomatoes, garlic, white wine, espelette pepper, parsley, and olive oil. They didn’t cheap out on the amount of clams in the dish and they were all sweet and fresh. The pasta was cooked to al dente and I loved the sauce. It was perfect for dipping your bread.
Overall, we were quite satisfied with the food. I also thought the prices were quite reasonable for their lunch menu considering that it’s located in Yaletown and is supposed to be a fine dining restaurant. Dinner however is supposed to be much pricier. Ambiance felt a little casual for a fine dining restaurant and service was just mediocre as well. As for parking, there is metered parking and parkades very close to the restaurant or the skytrain.
Pros:
– Food is above average
– Lunch menu prices are quite reasonable
Cons:
– Ambiance indoors is just average
– Dinner menu prices are not of as good value
Price Range: $20-25
1: Terrible 2: Poor 3: Average 4: Good 5: Excellent
Food: 4
Service: 3
Ambiance: 3
Parking: 3
Overall: 3.5
Yuzu Gin Tonic
I’ve always wanted to try Suika’s sister restaurant, Kingyo, so when K and U told me to decide, off we went to Kingyo. I made reservations beforehand and was told that there was only a seating at 6:00pm and that we would need to leave by 7:30pm. This place is packed! Anyways, we started off with their cocktails, since U said they are really good. I went for the Yuzu Gin Tonic, which was essentially a gin and tonic with yuzu juice. It was topped with some yuzu zest and a slice of lime. Loved how it was refreshing and not overly sweet.
Fresh Melon White Wine Sangria
K went for the Fresh Melon White Sangria, which consisted of fresh melon juice, calpico, melon liqueor, white wine, soda, and lime. His was slightly more sweet, but really good! As for U, she got the Kingyo, which had rum, shiso, lime, 7up, soda, tonic, goji berries and yuzu juice. Again, the drink wasn’t overly sweet.
My Ebi Mayo
To start, we had the My Ebi Mayo, which I loved! The ebi were huge black tiger prawns and were tempura battered, then deep fried. The prawns were so juicy and fresh. Dipped in the spicy chili mayo sauce and topped with paprika powder, it gave the dish just a bit of heat.
Rock’n Kobe
Next up was the Rock’n Kobe, which came with a large stone to self-grill. The kobe beef was already marinated, but it also came with 2 kinds of Kingyo’s original sauces. One was a spicy sauce and the other was more like a garlic sauce.
There aren’t too many slices of kobe beef for $22, but the meat was definitely a nice cut. Very tender and the marinade was flavourful. Just make sure you don’t overcook it!
Deep Fried Chicken Breast Tender
The Deep Fried Chicken Breast Tenders were marinated in plum and shiso. It was served with lemon, wasabi, and a side of chopped jelly fish marinated in plum sauce. I thought they were pretty much like chicken strips, but nevertheless, they were good.
Invincible & Undefeated Tantan Noodle
The server recommended the Invincible & Undefeated Tantan Noodles. These noodles were similar to instant ramen, but they were cooked in a pork bone and shrimp broth. It was seasoned with sesame oil and miso, then topped with cashew nuts, ground pork, chili marinated Chinese chives and black sesame. A mouthful of flavour! I wish it had more of a kick to it though, since it wasn’t spicy at all compared to your typical tantan noodles.
Cheese Tofu
Lastly, we added a dish off their December special menu, which was the Cheese Tofu. Sounded weird, so we gave it a try. It came with a few slices of toasted bread, and 4 slices of “cheese tofu.” It looked like tofu, but it tasted like cream cheese! It was definitely odd, but not bad at the same time. Not sure what I was eating really.
Overall, we were extremely pleased with Kingyo. Even though we felt a bit rushed at the end, the service was still there. Definitely make reservations ahead of time if you want to eat during the busy dinner times. Otherwise, a great place for food and drinks. Definitely coming back!
I was super excited to hear that the Aburi Restaurant group had opened another restaurant. Under the same company has Miku and Minami, Gyoza Bar Ramen is now their third restaurant, offering, as the name says, specialty in ramen and gyozas. However, shortly after their opening, I heard that the restaurant was just average and way overpriced. Urbanspoon had some of the lowest ratings as well. I decided it was time to give it a try anyways to see what this talk was about. The restaurant is modern yet rustic, and is very casual compared to their other restaurants.
Japanese Fruit Wine – Ichigo (Strawberry) and Yuzu (citrus) – doubles
We started off with Japanese Fruit Wine. On the left was strawberry flavoured, and on the right was the yuzu. These were already doubles, but they were quite small! Similar to plum wine, these were flavoured as described. I liked my yuzu wine as it was slightly sour, but not overbearing. Very refreshing.
Fraser Valley Pork Teppan Gyoza (7pc)
Next were their famous gyozas. The Fraser Valley Pork Teppan Gyoza is their signature dish, if I remember correctly. We chose the 7 piece dish and it came in a cast iron pan. The gyozas were good with a nice pan fried crisp, but it’s hard to say that they were extremely memorable.
Spicy Garlic Soy and Umami Soy Suace
The teppan gyozas come with two sauces. One is a spicy garlic soy and the second is the umami soy sauce. I preferred the spicy garlic soy sauce as it had more of a kick to it.
Miso Short Rib + Jalapeno-Soy Glaze
They also offer three other specialty gyozas. We tried the Miso Short Rib and Jalapeno-Soy Glaze Gyozas. The gyozas were deep fried and topped with feta cheese, peppers and mushrooms. They were slightly spicy, but I actually didn’t prefer them to be deep fried. These were quite average, but very pricey! Five gyozas for over $12!
Aburi Pork Char Siu
We ordered an appetizer of Aburi Pork Char Siu. Again, it came in a little pan. The pork was quite disappointing to be honest. Nothing special, and I felt that it was under seasoned. It came with a sous vide egg, radishes and a side of bread to complement. Very average and nothing special.
Tamari – Shoyu Tonkotsu Pork Ramen
Lastly, we tried their ramen. I believe their signature ramen is the tomato-saffron ramen, but it is priced at the high price of $17! Instead, we opted for the Tamari-Shoyu Tonkotsu Pork Ramen. The noodles were on the skinny side and cooked to al dente. It was topped with aburi pork char siu, soft boiled egg and kale. I found it odd that they used kale instead of the traditional seaweed. I didn’t find the broth to be very good as well. Something seemed to be missing.
Overall, I would agree with others that Gyoza Bar + Ramen is quite average. I wouldn’t say the food is terrible, but the price is not worth the quality of food. If the price is lowered, then I would be more likely to revisit. Great location in the heart of downtown, and service was decent.
Every Day is a Food Day 