Cookshop

October 11, 2011May 4, 2013Leave a comment

Given some complementary white wine!

Margarita Pizza with Fresh Tomatoes, young Bocconcini & Fresh Basil

Beef Tartar with Capers & Shallots served on Toast Points with a Quail Egg
Potato Ravioli filled with Chicken & Sage
Crispy Calamari with Tomato Caper Sauce
Local BC. Halibut Cakes Served with Spicy Aioli

Chocolate Panna Cotta

My birthday was a while ago, and one of my gifts was a cooking class at Cookshop! Located at West 12th, it’s a cookstore with a large variety of cooking and baking ware, but also a cookschool at the back where you can learn a variety of different cuisines. My friend knew I was interested in Indian food, and had originally paid for the Indian Favourites lesson, but with conflicting times, we ended up switching to the Summer Tapas workshop. It was however quite different from what I had imagined. I imagined the workshop to be like high school foods class, where we each had a unit with our individual ovens and such, but we were only given a few tables with cutting boards in front of us. A large demo table was in the front with a mirror above so we could see. The chef had prepared most of the items and we were divided into 3 groups to work on different parts of recipes. So some people minced meat, others kneaded dough, and also battered dough. But I guess it makes sense that we weren’t given a whole lot, since the whole workshop was only 3 hours. Quite impossible to make 6 different dishes! Classes are around $79 if you choose ones where you can participate. They are slightly cheaper if they are classes where you just watch the chef cook and enjoy the meal afterwards. There is also a decent amount of food you get at the end, so it’s quite filling. Looked around for a lot of different cooking lessons, but Cookshop is probably one of the few around Vancouver, where you aren’t attending “culinary school”.

Check out their cooking classes at: www.cookshop.ca/

JapaDog (Robson Store)

October 10, 2011May 4, 2013Leave a comment

I Love Meat & Terimayo

Shake Fries

Another trip downtown means getting some Japadogs! This time, I tried the I Love Meat, and it was real cheesy. I still prefer the Terimayo though. Most original! And also grabbed some shake fries. I forgot what the name of these were though, but much better than the butter-shoyu I had last time. I found that one too salty and soggy. This one was dry with some sort of flavouring powder. Delicious!

Italian Kitchen

October 2, 2011May 5, 2013Leave a comment

Cocktails

Risotto Sample

Linguine Carbonara – pancetta, scallions, free range egg, parmesan

Penne Arrabbiata – crispy pancetta, peperoncino, basil, tomatoes

Went to Italian Kitchen in Downtown Vancouver for a girl’s night out dinner. Somehow, we ended up there really late, almost at 9, but the place was still packed and luckily, they were still serving dinner. Atmosphere is very nice and modern and a perfect place to get a little dressy. We were also given a sample of risotto for free and it was very creamy and delicious! Lots of pastas to choose from, and I had the linguini carbonara and it was very good. Service was also wonderful. Great place for a night out!

Cheesecake Etc.

September 27, 2011May 4, 2013Leave a comment

Cheesecake with Strawberries

Everyone has always been raving about Cheesecake Etc, but I had never been there despite me being a dessert junkie! So I finally got to on a Friday night, and the place was packed! The place was pretty big though, so we were able to grab a seat after waiting for about 5 minutes. To my surprise though, they barely had any varieties to choose from. It was either, Original Cheesecake, Chocolate Cheesecake, Cheesecake with Strawberries, Chocolate Cheesecake with Strawberries or Gourmet Special. So I decided to try the Cheesecake with Strawberries. It’s pretty good, but I didn’t think it was the best thing ever. I probably would prefer going to the Cheesecake Factory in the states and ordering a variety of different cheesecakes instead. Maybe I just like to try more unique desserts, but if you’re someone who likes the original cheesecake, then this is the place to go, at least in Vancouver!

Falafel and Friends

September 26, 2011May 4, 2013Leave a comment

Chicken Shawarama

This is kind of a late post, but during August, I went to English Bay to have a beach day with friends. Walking towards the beach, I was attracted by many different restaurants and snack shops along the way. And since I’m always hungry for food, I was craving some wraps and ended up in Falafel and Friends. The owner, I’m guessing, was really friendly and a little weird I would have to say, but he was pretty funny in a way. I got the Chicken Shawarama, and requested to have no tomatoes and parsley, and he started making fun of me. Weird. When my friend was paying for her wrap, she was digging for some change, and he said it was fine. Kind of weird in my opinion, but the food was quite good. Large portions as well!

Trees Organic

August 27, 2011May 4, 2013Leave a comment

Mango Cheesecake

Trees Organic is an European style cafe with many locations. This one is take-out from the downtown location. They serve 100% Organic & Fair Trade Coffee, decadent cheesecakes, fresh pastries, sandwiches, vegan treats and more. I tried the featured special – Mango Cheesecake! It actually had bits of mangoes in it which was a surprise. Quite delicious! I would love to try their blueberry cheesecake next!

Urban Tea Merchant

August 18, 2011May 4, 2013Leave a comment

Mango Sorbet with Strawberries

Petite Afternoon Tea – macaroon, chocolate dipped strawberry, cinnamon chocolate tart, scone, curry sandwich, cucumber sandwich, tuna in crepe.

Creme Brulee Green Tea – subtle bouquets of red fruits and strawberries

Urban Tea Merchant was offering a great deal for a petite afternoon tea so my friends and I decided to go. At a regular price of $25, the afternoon tea was offered for $19 for a specific time from 12-2pm. This set also included $5 that went towards your choice of tea. We were quickly greeted and seated by our server and he had a great knowledge of the teas, helping us figure out what we would like based on our personal tastes. My favourite was the mango sorbet as the strawberries and hint of mint complimented it very well. It was refreshing on a hot, sunny day and was great to start the meal off with. And although the high tea set looked very small, it was plentiful and filled me up by the end. The creme brulee tea was also nice as it had a hint of fruits. Ambiance was wonderful with the sound of water and soothing music in the atmosphere. They are also offering chilled teas for the summer which sound delicious! A great place to have some tea as they have such a large variety to choose from!

Aki Japanese Restaurant

August 18, 2011May 4, 2013Leave a comment

Taro with Tuna

Assorted Sushi

Grilled Squid

Tuna and Salmon Sashimi

Spider Roll

House Roll

Aki Restaurant is located in downtown Vancouver and is often known as the local gem for Japanese food. It offers traditional Japanese dishes at a reasonable price. Service and ambiance is also pleasant and the chefs and servers are all Japanese. A great place for some authentic Japanese food!