delicious cuisine: a disappointing miss

delicious cuisine is not very delicious and heres why...

wontons in chili sauce ($4.95): not exactly expensive but small portion, tiny wontons with mostly skin. not memorable but satisfied the craving

2.5/5

five spice beef roll ($4.95): again an okay price and tasted generic but not something i would come here for. at least they had a decent sized meat chunk in there.

2.75/5

spicy beef noodle soup ($8.25): my favourite of the meal. beef was really soft and tender. noodles were not handmade (i don't think…) but were al dente and soup was not oily either

3/5

assorted seafood and tofu hotpot ($17.95): TINY TINY TINY portion for such a high price…and the seafood is like the frozen bagged ones from t and t…i do NOT RECOMMEND YOU GETTING THIS…

0/5

house special smoked duck ($19.95): this was not horrible but the price was super high and I've had better…skin was soggy and a bit salty overall

2.5/5

overall: i'm really disappointed with the food here… seems that nothing is made in house but the prices are so high! and with all the great taiwanese joints in richmond, i will not be coming back here.

zipang provisions: looks like a bar, tastes like sushi

for my mom's birthday dinner this year, we wanted something japanese but not just sushi and not just izakaya. its getting harder and harder to find new restaurants to try! so we went to visit what i call hipster sushi at zipang provisions. the outside looks NOTHING like japanese food and will easily be passed if you're unprepared. 

asari butter clams: didn't try this but my parents thought it was good? 

nanban chicken: this was one of our favourite dishes. the deep fried chicken was covered in a tangy sauce then topped with tartar/mayo. fried up crispy, although a bit heavy, scraping off some of the white sauce made this one of the best chicken's I've had! 

4.5/5

black cactus roll ($7.80): raw tuna, tempura bits, mayo, masago and spicy sauce rolled in black sesame seeds: not bad but nothing special and a bit pricy for what we got. a thicker layer of rice than expected but i liked the crunch of the sesame seeds and freshness of the fish. 

3.25/5 

salmon oshizushi ($11.80): salmon pressed sushi with jalapeño and creamy sauce: compared to minami or kishimoto, this fell quite short. the sear didn't do much to enhance the flavour and the whole piece tasted like a salmon maki but with a bit of sauce. 

3.25/5

east meets west roll ($8.80): avocado, unagi and black pepper wrapped with proscuitto: my favourite roll of the night! the salty from the pork and the fatty sweetness of the unagi and it's sauce blended together really well! 

4.75/5

okonomiyaki ($8.80): japanese pancake with seafood bits inside. this was a bit doughy and salty but i love okonomiyaki and wasn't bad for the price! 

3.75/5 

overall: the food at zipang is a tad pricey and a hit or miss kind of place but i enjoyed my meal! what was good was REALLY GOOD. nothing was bad but it wasn't special for the price we paid. i would return to try more special rolls and their lunch sets! 

green lemongrass: a clean place for vietnamese eats

along kingsway are rows and rows of vietnamese eats but green lemongrass has a modern interior and exterior with a more diverse menu that drew my mom and I in one sunday evening. 

beef stew (with garlic bread) ($9): this vietnamese classic was delicious here! the bread was light and dipped perfectly into the thin broth. flavourful and with chunks of beef and a slightly spicy tang. 

4/5

hu tieu kho (small - $7): seafood, pork and rice noodles tossed in a garlic soy sauce again was delicious! not too small either, the rice noodles were not clumpy and the bowl was filled with the ingredients. not a fan of pork innards but the rest is great! 

4/5

overall: although prices a bit higher, the food is quite delicious and there is plenty on the menu to choose from.

score: 4/5

favourite dish: hu tieu kho

would i return: yes!! 

ikura japanese restaurant: lunch boxes for seven bucks!

so much good food in marpole area…and my family (of three…look at the amount of food…) decided on ikura japanese restaurant. they have really good lunch box deals and special rolls all at a good price! food is not exactly authentic (chinese run) but it is definitely enough to satisfy sushi cravings. 

lunch box d (beef short ribs, sashimi, assorted tempura, salad, miso soup) $9.95: the tempura batter was a little thick and theres a huge hole for the wasabi making the box look incomplete but the sashimi was thick and tasted fine! beef short ribs were a tad chewy

3/5

 hamachi tataki ($7.95): i actually really enjoyed this. nice thick slices of hamachi in a ponzu type sauce not too salty! 

3.75/5

lunch box b (chicken teriyaki, assorted tempura, miso soup, california roll, tuna roll and small salad) $6.95: same hole in the middle but for 7 bucks..this was an amazing deal. same comments as above but i actually liked the chicken more, it was not dry! 

3.5/5

crazy girl roll (spicy tuna and avocado topped with ebi and avocado in a spicy mayo) $6.95: probably my favourite thing from here. all my favourites together in a roll that was a good price too! only complain is that the rice was a bit thicker than i like.

3.75/5

papaya roll (salmon, papaya topped with tuna, bonito and a sweet sauce) $9.25: least favourite thing here…found it really expensive for what was give…the tiny piece of papaya is not worth 10 bucks and there was DEFINITELY a wasabi component that i did not like. 

1.5/5

soft shell crab kaarage ($6.50): didn't try it but seemed a bit thick on the batter?

overall: the food was good for the price that we paid. this amount of food was enough for a huge lunch box of leftovers!

rain or shine ice cream: coconut vegan goodness

kitsilano is gorgeous during the summer/spring months and after shopping for a few hours, a friend and i had lunch at las margaritas and needed some dessert to go along with it. so to rain or shine ice cream it was! (good thing it was a sunny day!) 

the whole store has an earnest like feel but not as crowded and a cone is not included in the price but the ice cream flavours are just as unique and locally sourced. 

single scoop vegan coconut chocolate chunk:($4.50): i LOVED this. the flavours of coconut and chocolate shavings go extremely perfectly in this combo. you can taste the burst of coconut without the shreds and its not too sweet either! my friend and i both really loved this flavour. the consistency is less creamy than earnest and a bit icier making it feel lighter which i actually prefer. it is less impactful in terms of flavour though. 

4.75/5

overall: expensive, but hipster ice cream usually is. a bit farther than earnest but was still very good! i really want to come back and try their taco tuesday! only 6 bucks for 2 scoops in a waffle taco with toppings!

49th parallel cafe and lucky's donuts (main st.): classic french crullers

mom and i love dessert and have heard good things about lucky's donuts so popped into this shop for a taste of the ONLY donut she enjoys, the french cruller. 

french cruller ($3.50): this was quite different from your tim hortons cruller as it didn't feel like it was dripping with oil! the outside was a bit crustier but the inside was still soft and fluffy. icing onto was just drizzled (not the whole thing dipped) and was a good sweetness ratio. not the best donut ever but not bad either

3.75/5

overall: i would love to come back and try their other flavours (matcha bismark!) but i don't think i would pay almost 4 dollars for a plain tasting donut. bad choice on our part? 

man ri sung: hand pulled noodles before and after the move to aberdeen...

its ironic how i'm writing about man ri sung at the old location RIGHT after eating at the new location, but at least i'm finally writing about it (and combining two visits!) i will now try harder to catch up on my 100s of posts still needed to be written. anyways, the food! the noodles were unexpectedly the star of the lunch. knife shaved and toothsome, they were al dente and not all equal sizes but absolutely delicious. 

visit 1: 

 spicy pork with rice - lunch special ($8.99): pretty self explanatory with the delicious banchan as well. good price for the amount of meat give (price is now $9.99 at aberdeen). quite oily 

3.75/5 

spicy seafood noodle soup (~$10): this was so good…the soup was not too spicy and was delicious with lots of al dente noodles sitting on the bottom. the seafood wasn't TOO plentiful but it didn't matter, the noodles were THAT GOOD

5/5

visit 2:

going through my pictures i ordered almost the exact same thing…oops (sorry not sorry) but my pictures are so much better ;D 

the location is A LOT nicer inside aberdeen mall but the service was not good at all..we saw the server once and that was it. still they have a sign that says no refills on side dishes but thats okay...

seafood chow main ($10.99): i had to get their knife shaved noodles again and of course i got seafood…but this was just as good as before. the noodles were addicting and flavourful but this was a little lacking in seafood and the squid was a bit chewy. still gets a 5 in my books because it ate so much...

5/5

spicy pork with rice lunch special ($9.99): so this went up in price a little bit but the portion was still quite large. again quite oily but the slices of pork were very meaty and not too fat. 

4/5

overall: the price has gone up but the noodles remain delicious. the banchan no longer has the garlic sprouts but their kimchi was so good. not too sour or spicy i loved it! 

moii cafe cambie: pre class crepes and bubble tea!

the only perk about late classes last year was that i could eat something with my mom before she had work once in a while. we had a social shopper for moii cafe on cambia which included any 2 crepes and any two drinks for $14!  the food and drinks were a GREAT DEAL AND DELICIOUS! 

match smoothie ($5.25): this was delicious and HUGE! it lasted me almost the entire day but was a bit creamier than i liked masking the matcha flavour a bit. 

4/5 

berry tea ($3?): my mom got a nice berry type tea and i believe it was mighty leaf. overall it tasted really great with the crepes! 

4/5

the great canadian - smoked salmon, spinach, mozzarella and cheddar cheese ($9.50): this was really really good! they make the crepes fresh when you order them and it looks really small and like its not enough but they pack it with fillings! 

4.5/5

terimayo crepe: bbq chicken, cheese, bonito flakes, cheddar and mozzarella cheese, okonomi sauce and wasabi ($9.50): this was the best crepe i think id ever had… it was filled with chicken and cheese and the sauce ontop wasn't overwhelming but enough to imagine eating a japanese pancake instead of a crepe! 

5/5 

overall: the prices here are a bit high if paying regular price but the coupon was a GREAT DEAL and the food was great!
favourite dish: terimayo crepe
overall score: 4.5/5
would i return?: definitely with a coupon! 

sushi s: perfect rice to fish ratios!

sushi s has great reviews on urban spoon and my mom asked me to choose a restaurant for a lunch of 8 people. i wasn't expecting too much but was IN LOVE when the first rolls came out and i saw the amount of rice. it was PERFECTION. i am one of those annoying people that pick off chunks of rice from sushi pieces because its just too much and at sushi s, i did that NOT ONE TIME. although the prices are a bit high, i think the quality is worth it. 

spicy salmon roll ($4): really nice big chunks of salmon and again, it was made so carefully but be warned it is actually REALLY SPICY

4.5/5

chopped scallop roll ($4): so beautifully constructed and tasted delicious

4.5/5

S roll ($10) crabmeat, prawn tempura, yam tempura, cucumber, avocado: very good combination of deep fried and sauce flavours. 

4/5 

red dragon ($12) prawn tempura, avocado, cucumber with salmon on top: beautifully constructed again, presentation was really amazing for the rolls! the flavours worked well together and it wasn't too spicy. 

4/5 

black dragon ($10) prawn tempura, avocado, cucumber with bbq eel on top: flavours the same as the top, i actually preferred this one because i now love unagi :D 

4/5 

alaska roll ($5): same concept as the sushi garden rolls but this had a way bigger piece of salmon and instead of being stuffed with avocado, it had a california roll filling. sauce onto wasn't too citrusy making the roll delicious. 

4.5/5 

not pictured: 

smoked salmon cream cheese roll (red pepper and mango) ($6): this was actually very delicious, it had the perfect balance between the different flavours and was constructed very neatly! a bit pricey though

4/5  

seafood yakisoba ($12): small portion but lots of stuff other than just the noodles! a little bit oily. 

3.75/5

bbq beef short ribs ($13.50): honestly don't remember details but they were good. 

3.5/5

spicy combo (spicy tuna, spicy salmon, spicy chopped scallop) ($11): same spicy sauce as mentioned above but used for all the rolls making it a little bit one dimensional as we couldn't even differentiate between the 3 sometimes

3/5 

overall: sushi s has really good rolls because of not only presentation but the care they put into constructing each one. none of the flavours were too overpowering except the spicy but hey, i love spicy. definitely recommend for sushi (cooked food was mediocre) that is quite a few notches up from the sushi garden variety but yes, good food comes at a higher price.