Tuc Craft Kitchen

March 22, 2015March 22, 2015Leave a comment

I’ve heard really good things about Tuc Craft Kitchen, so K and I found some time to check it out on a Saturday afternoon. On the weekends, they offer their brunch menu and the spot is very busy.

The restaurant is located in Gastown and has two levels. The interior has a European feel to it.

Vegetable Frittata

K got the Vegetable Frittata, which featured three free run eggs, Swiss cheese, wilted kale, buttered leeks, sweet bell peppers, salsa verde, and toast. The portion was huge! Very flavourful and cheesy.

Irish Stew Skillet

For myself, I had the Irish Stew Skillet, which had two free run poached eggs, grass fed beef, yakima valley lamb, roasted button mushrooms, and BC new potatoes. At first, I thought the portion would be too little, but there’s actually tons of meat and potatoes, so it fills you up just right. The beef and lamb were very flavourful, with the potatoes being crispy on the outside. The poached eggs had a runny yolk and mixed well with the rest of the dish. Really enjoyed this!

Based on the dishes we tried, I really enjoyed Tuc Craft Kitchen. I’m looking forward to coming back to try their famous fried chicken and waffles. Prices are quite reasonable for a Gastown location and service was pretty good. Will definitely return!

Pros:
– The dishes we tried were tasted great
– Friendly service

Cons:
– Usually need reservations

Price Range: $15-20

1: Terrible 2: Poor 3: Average 4: Good 5: Excellent

Food: 4
Service: 4
Ambiance: 3
Parking: 3
Overall: 4

Ask For Luigi

March 16, 2015March 16, 20151 Comment

I’ve been wanting to dine at Ask for Luigi some time now, since it’s the latest hype in Vancouver and everyone has said it’s a must try. However, every time I go at dinner time, the place is packed and there’s always at least an hour wait. This time, I went during lunch time, and was gladly surprised that there was no wait at all! It’s located on Alexander Street, far away from most of the other restaurants in a little white house. You wouldn’t expect a restaurant here, but people still manage to find their way here.

The restaurant is very small and seats probably 20 diners or so. It’s a bit cramped, but I didn’t find it too bothersome. I hear that they don’t have air conditioning, so it’s quite hot to dine here in the summer. Might’ve changed by now though.

The interior is quite hipster, with water in glass bottles and a tap that’s built into the wall.

Pappardelle alla Bolognese & Fried Egg

On the weekends, they offer brunch, but they still have two pasta dishes. Since they’re famous for their handmade pasta, we had to get both of these. K got the Pappardelle alla Bolognese & Fried Egg, which was my favourite. the pasta was cooked to al dente and you could tell they were freshly made. The yolk of the fried egg was still runny and oozed out and tasted great mixed with the pasta. The bolognese sauce was slightly spicy, but not overwhelming. Very flavourful and I would definitely recommend this.

Tagliatelle alla Carbonara & Poached Egg

For myself, I got the Tagliatelle alla Carbonara & Poached Egg. Again, the pasta was very fresh and cooked to al dente. There were some bacon bits in it to bring more flavour. I liked how it wasn’t as heavy as most carbonaras.

The poached eggs were cooked perfectly so they were runny in the inside.

Overall, we were extremely pleased with Ask For Luigi. I would say that they are one of the best spots for pastas I’ve been to. Service is attentive and friendly and prices are quite reasonable. They aren’t the largest portions, like what you would get at chain restaurants, but it’s more than enough to fill you up. Parking isn’t too bad as well, as there are lots of street parking along the area.

Pros:
– Handmade pasta is delicious!
– Reasonable prices for quality eats

Cons:
– There are usually long waits during dinner time
– No reservations – must place name and number on the list on the day and they will call you

Price Range: $15-25

1: Terrible 2: Poor 3: Average 4: Good 5: Excellent

Food: 4
Service: 4
Ambiance: 3
Parking: 3.5
Overall: 4

Miku – DOVF 2015

February 2, 2015February 2, 2015Leave a comment

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

The Sandbar – DOVF 2015

February 1, 2015February 1, 2015Leave a comment

Wok Charred Albacore Tuna

For our work’s squad lunch, we went to The Sandbar restaurant in Granville Island. It’s part of the Sequoia group of restaurants, like Seasons in the Park and they offered the $28 lunch menu during the Dine Out Vancouver Festival. Most of us started off with the Wok Charred Albacore Tuna for our appetizer. The tuna was crusted with sesame and lightly seared so the middle was still raw. Very fresh and combined with the pickled ginger, it was very refreshing. It also came with a wasabi aioli, but it lacked any wasabi flavour. The dish also came with some crispy wontons to eat with the tuna, which gave the whole dish a very Asian flare.

Seafood Hot Pot

For the entree, I chose the Seafood Hot Pot, which came with loads of seafood! It include bok choy, salmon, snapper, clams, mussels, prawns, and even a scallop. All the seafood was really fresh and it came in a red coconut curry broth. The broth was a very thin consistency soup and was very aromatic in coconut flavour. There was barely any spice, but it was perfect for dipping the complimentary bread into.

Wood Grilled Steelhead Salmon

A got the Wood Grilled Steelhead Salmon, which had a very nice char to it. It came on top of some bok choy and coconut jasmine rice, which sat above the tomato fennel broth. A said it was very delicious.

Chocolate Oatmeal Brownie

For dessert, some of them got the Chocolate Oatmeal Brownie, which came with a creme anglaise. They said this was a bit sweet though.

Lemon Cheesecake

For myself, I chose the Lemon Cheesecake, which came with a raspberry coulis and strawberry. The cheesecake was light and not too sweet. Not bad!

Overall, we were all very pleased with our lunch. I find that their Dine Out menu doesn’t showcase a lot of their best dishes, but it’s a good price at $28 to check it out. I found it interesting that most of their menu threw in some Asian ingredients as well. Service was friendly and efficient. Our food came out quickly, but at a good pace, which was perfect since we wanted a quick lunch. Ambiance is also great, especially when you get seated outside. There’s heating lamps and you get a beautiful view of Vancouver.

Pros:
– Reasonable prices for seafood dishes
– Beautiful views of Vancouver

Cons:
– Parking at Granville Island can be difficult during busy hours
– The Dine Out menu doesn’t showcase their best food

Price Range: $25-35

1: Terrible 2: Poor 3: Average 4: Good 5: Excellent

Food: 4
Service: 4
Ambiance: 4
Parking: 3
Overall: 4

Merchant’s Oyster Bar – DOVF 2015

January 31, 2015February 1, 20152 Comments

It’s Dine Out Vancouver Festival time again, and this year, I suggested we try Merchant’s Oyster Bar. Located on Commercial, it’s where the rest of the hipster food spots have opened up. The restaurant is pretty dimly lit, so I’ve never even noticed it. The restaurant has a bar table, but also dining seating. It’s rather dim, but very casual at the same time.

Online, we found the Dine Out menu to be $28, with three savoury dishes. Sort of the reason why I chose this, and also because they had oysters! However, upon arriving, their menu also featured a 4 course menu for $31, which included desserts. The desserts didn’t like anything too special, so we all opted out. They also have wine and non-alcoholic pairings.

MW went for the Scandal Lager, which came in a really cute bottle. So hipster.

Tuna Ceviche (+$2)

The first dishes are “snacks.” MH went for the Tuna Ceviche, which came on top of an endive This gave it a good crunch, but we could barely taste any tuna. The ceviche was seasoned with lime, Jalapeno, cilantro, and shallots, but we all agreed that it tasted too much like the herbs. Quite disappointed with this one.

Baked Oysters (+$3)

IC went for the Baked Oysters, which again came in a set of three. They were seasoned with lemongrass coconut crema, kimchi, and topped with tempura crumbs. I didn’t try this, but she said it was very good.

Oysters

MW and I went for the Oysters. Each diner gets three oysters each, and they brought us two types. One was the kusshi, and I could nto remember the second. It came with mignonette, lemon and horseradish for seasoning. There was also Tabasco sauce to give it some spice. The oysters were tiny, but extremely sweet and fresh. Definitely satisfied my oyster craving.

Beef Tartare

For my first course, I chose the Beef Tartare. The raw beef was chopped up and seasoned with a fermented hot sauce and pickled shallots. Accompanying it were caramelized onion crackers. I was disappointed with this as the beef was rather flavourless. I could barely taste the hot sauce. Without the cracker, the beef would have been very bland. Raw beef needs lots of seasoning or else it doesn’t taste good. It also came with a side of salad with a basic vinaigrette and olive oil dressing.

Sunchoke Soup

IC got the Sunchoke Soup, which had a very thick consistency, which we all enjoyed. You could also taste a hint of truffle oil and the soup came with some Sunchoke chips.

Albacore Tuna

MH got the Albacore Tuna, which came with a daikon pear slaw, ginger ponzu and pickled red onions. I thought that the tuna would be more like a tuna tataki, where it was lightly seared but raw inside, but it was actually fully cooked. I found it to be overcooked, but the daikon pear slaw made the dish really good since it was sweet and crunchy.

Slow Braised Short Ribs (+$2)

IC got the Slow Braised Short Ribs, which came in an interesting presentation. I found the veggies to be plated quite oddly. The short ribs were very flavourful and the meat was extremely tender. It came with some parsnip puree, honey roasted carrots, and braising liquids.

Confit Pork Belly (+$1)

MH got the Confit Pork Belly, which was rather a small piece. A good proportion of fat to meat and you really didn’t need to chew much since it was so soft. It came with a side of celery root puree, clams, celery, and a walnut vinaigrette.

Pan Seared Ling Cod

For myself, I got the Pan Seared Ling Cod, which was moist in the inside and was seared until there was a crispy skin. It came with some sauteed purple potatoes, apple chorizo emulsion, and kale puree. My favourite was the apple chorizo emulsion, which are pictured as those yellow drops. The sauce was so intense with the smokey chorizo flavour and paired great with the fish.

Pros:
– Reasonable prices for the type of food you get
– Ambiance is chill and great to hang out

Cons:
– Food is good, but not nothing too memorable
– Service is average

Price Range: $30-40

1: Terrible 2: Poor 3: Average 4: Good 5: Excellent

Food: 3
Service: 2
Ambiance: 3
Parking: 3
Overall: 3

Flying Pig (Gastown) – revisit

January 26, 2015January 26, 2015Leave a comment

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

Trafalgar’s Bistro

January 22, 2015Leave a comment

Trafalgar’s Bistro. Located on West 16th, just West of Granville, this rustic, inviting restaurant sits next to the popular Sweet Obsessions.

The restaurant is small, with an interior that is both intimate and warm. On a Friday night, it was surprisingly quite empty. We also found that we were probably the youngest diners all night.

On top of their regular menu, they have a fresh sheet that changes daily depending on the seasonality and what’s available locally.

Complimentary Bread

Dinner starts with complimentary bread and butter. The bread was crispy on the outside and soft inside. It ended up being great for dipping in my entree’s broth.

Parsley Crusted Haida Gwaii Halibut

S got the Parsley Crusted Haida Gwaii Halibut, which came with roasted lobster mushrooms and spinach puree. S commented that the dish was visually unique, to which I concurred. Furthermore, the fish offered a supreme moistness complemented by the crispiness of the parsley crust.

Salt Spring Moules with Bistro Fries

For myself, I got the Salt Spring Moules. This mussel dish is on their appetizer dish, but you can upgrade it to an entree portion size. The mussels were tender and fresh and the cream broth was flavoured with leeks, shallots, white wine and garlic. I also upgraded the fries to Bistro Fries, which are double fried and tossed with truffle oil, Parmesan and fresh herbs. It also came with a house made garlic aioli for dipping, but I didn’t find the need for it as the fries were already very flavourful and well seasoned.

In conclusion, Trafalgar’s Bistro was a pleasant dining experience.

Side note: street parking is amply available.

Pros:
– Fresh sheet changes daily based on what’s in season locally
– Quality eats and presented nicely

Cons:
– Portions are on the smaller side
– Service was there, but didn’t feel friendly

Price Range: $25-35

1: Terrible 2: Poor 3: Average 4: Good 5: Excellent

Food: 4
Service: 3
Ambiance: 4
Parking: 4
Overall: 4

Alibi Room

January 14, 2015January 14, 2015Leave a comment

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

Every Day is a Food Day

Category: $$$

Tuc Craft Kitchen

Ask For Luigi

Miku – DOVF 2015

The Sandbar – DOVF 2015

Merchant’s Oyster Bar – DOVF 2015

Flying Pig (Gastown) – revisit

Trafalgar’s Bistro

Alibi Room