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? 

capstone tea and fondue: not quite high tea - mid height?

another social shopper deal led me to capstone tea and fondue in richmond for their high tea set which included savoury and sweet treats with 2 drinks as well.

matcha latte: not the prettiest latte art but was tasty and smooth 

3.5/5

matcha smoothie (half sweet): a bit too icy for my liking and the matcha flavour was lacking

2.5/5

the entire tea set; details below except for macarons and ice cream: store bought, nothing special

2/5 

mini sandwiches: filled with greens and ham were nothing special..just bread with some boring/cheap and generic fillings

1.5/5

creme filled bun, chocolate chip macadamia nut cookie: all extremely sweet and store bought

1.5/5

mini strudels: tasted like they came straight from a box and even a bit stale

1.5/5

overall: for only $20 this was a nice relaxing afternoon and was fun for the dainty ness that is high tea but i would never pay the full price ($40) for the quality and amount of food we got. it all came from a box and could easily be replicated elsewhere. i would only return if another group buy enticed me to. 

qoola/qoola plus: three part groupon story

frozen yogurt...my absolute favourite sweet treat not only because it makes me feel less guilty (not true from the sugar content by the way) but because i can experience brownies, cheesecake and oreos all at once. groupons get me every single time with their frozen yogurt deals and here at qoola plus in richmond center, was my first visit of 3. 

for frozen yogurt, qoola is actually my least favourite because it melts the quickest and their toppings are the least diverse BUT it is the most convenient being in 3 nearby shopping malls.

i came here with my mom and each groupon is worth 10 dollars of fro yo while i only paid 5 bucks. such a good deal...could not pass it up! 

visit 1

our two frozen yogurts! (guess which one is mine...)

ps. waffle bowls are NOT extra charged, just weighed

some fruity fro yo flavours - mango tango? 

toppings: popping boba, pineapples and waffle bowl

i stole some waffle and sprinkled it on mine :P

but flavours were probably: cheesecake, greek original and chocolate.

toppings: mochi, oreo crumbs, cheesecake bites, brownie bits 

visit 2

came with the brother AND mom this time where my mom and i shared a bowl at qoola in oakridge. 

flavours: peanut butter, chocolate and vanilla

toppings: brownie bites, chocolate rocks, chocolate shavings, cookie dough bits

flavours: cheesecake, greek original, pomegranate berry? 

toppings: mochi, pineapples, oreos, popping boba, mangoes, chocolate shavings

visit 3

back at richmond centre 

not gonna type the toppings/ flavours...its about the same! 

3.5/5 for all (generalized score?) 

price: $0.55/oz

overall: the richmond center location is my favourite because its new and pretty but also cause i feel they have the most toppings and the people working there are really nice! the problem for both locations is the flavours hardly change BUT for fro-yo i really dont care cause it hits the spot! 

peanuts bubble tea: custard-y wheels!

 looking for dessert after lunch with my mom, we hit up richmond public market and seeing that peanuts bubble tea is raved about, i wanted to try their bubble tea. 

along with that, we got 4 different custard wheels which are basically little buns filled with a custard cream flavour of your choice. 

they had many choices including chocolate, vanilla, red bean and peanut

my mom's red bean wheel: she really enjoyed it, still warm from the display. light and fluffy batter with a center that is not too sweet! 

my nutella (or chocolate...) i dont remember which it was but it was quite good! i loved the actual wheel as it was light and fluffy but had crisp edges. the filling was not as smooth as i had hoped but was just the right amount of sweetness.

4/5 

at a price of 4 for $2.25, these little wheels are a delicious treat especially when eaten warm!

on the other hand, i was not very pleased with the bubble tea. 

matcha...something (~$3-4): i ordered something that was written on a chalkboard and labelled as matcha. i asked for half sweet and it was basically flavourless. it tasted like matcha powder mixed not even with milk...but with water. it was tasteless and i DO NOT recommend this.

1/5

overall: maybe i made a bad choice but peanut's bubble tea was a let down. the wheels were delicious though and i would definitely return for them. 

crepe escape: lonsdale quay adventures

never would have tried crepe escape if it wasnt for the entertainment book coupon and even with that we only saved $5...

expensive and nothing special, we visited out of convenience and probably would not return without another coupon..and maybe not even then...

three toppings savoury crepe ($8.95) - cheese, proscuitto and ham: crepe was a bit chewy, at least it was made fresh but 9 dollars is a lot

2.5/5

dark chocolate, banana and whipped cream with added ice cream (~$9.95): again, crepe was fresh but ice cream was very supermarket and whipped cream was the nasty stuff ontop of dairy queen cakes. i like chocolate and bananas though!

3/5

overall: its not HORRIBLE but for the price, you can get MUCH BETTER CREPES elsewhere

gelateria dolce amore: meal sized gelato

before the entertainment book expires, my family always attempts to use up as many as we can. lucky for us, that means family trips to eateries that we would not try otherwise and one sunny day, we visited gelateria dolce amore.

 

wanting to get the bang for out buck, we ordered a 500ml take home size which was $10.00 but we got 50% off so it came to $5.00 + tax

mango sorbet and hazelnut gelato 500ml (regular $10.00)  - the gelato and sorbet were both DELICIOUS. since it was a tinier shop that is not too popular, we weren't expecting much but the flavours were bold and the texture was smooth and creamy. 

the hazelnut was my favourite because it tasted exactly like ferrero rocher. deliciously nutty but with hints of sweetness.

4.5/5

the mango was great too being light and fruity to compliment the richer hazelnut flavour

3.95/5

overall, the ice cream scooper was also very kind about sampling and was extremely helpful in the coupon usage. i definitely recommend this gelato shop anytime you're on the drive and much cheaper than the big names but just as delicious.

bubble waffle cafe: no such thing as too many

these group buy deals are killing me! there was one recently for bubble waffle cafe (public market location) with 5 bubble waffles for only 5 dollars. considering that a regular priced bubble waffle ANYWHERE is around 4 dollars, this was a great deal. unfortunately, i redeemed it a bit late and again consumed 5 bubble waffles in two weeks. luckily these ones are DELICIOUS. 

original bubble waffle (regular $3.75) - these were DELICIOUS x10. they reminded me of some of the best i tried in hong kong. they make it fresh in front of you in the tiniest shop imaginable but when you pop them into your mouth, there's a perfect crisp from the shell but the middle is a nice soft fluffy cloud of food heaven. this shop was manned by a couple young guys but they know how to make good bubble waffle. 

(ps. we bought so many that we would retoast them at home and they were still delicious!)

4.75/5

(oops, fail camera focus)

HIGHLY RECOMMEND! 

cinnezo: childhood cream cheese frosting

when i was a kid, cinnezo cinnamon bun samples were my favourite about going to metrotown. they were the perfect bite size to really enjoy the sweet and delicious cream cheese frosting and thick cinnamon filling. fast forward to today and they no longer do that but the entertainment book does offer a buy one get one free deal! 

original cinnamon bun (regular ~$5 each): cinnezo is like the cinnabon of canada and they are just as delicious! these are actually best eaten right when you buy them but the instructions on the side help you with reheating. 

4.25/5

they do not skimp on the filling or cream cheese and they are quite heavy but super ooey and gooey in the middle chock full of cinnamon and sugar. super indulgent dessert but a tiny piece (like the one i had below) was just the right amount. 

marble slab: birthday freebies!

marble slab ice cream is delicious BUT a bit overpriced so the only times i go is for birthday freebies

the first picture is from my dad's birthday and the second one from mine. SO IF YOU ARENT SUBSCRIBED TO THEIR NEWSLETTER YET, GO DO IT AND YOU CAN GET FREE ICE CREAM! 

black cherry flavour with pineapple mixing: my parents said it was delicious. creamy but not too sweet! 

cheesecake flavour with brownie mixing: THIS WAS DELICIOUS x100000 their brownies are good and the ice cream was so creamy.

4.5/5

tealips: waffles and drinks (or water)!

during the summertime, i went out to eat a bunch and one place i visited with friends was tealips bubble tea and coffee. we came here after having a huge sushi meal looking for dessert. there was also a menchies downstairs which i opted for instead of the waffles but here are pictures of what my friends ate. they said it was pretty good and not too expensive but they would rather pay more for the quality at neros. really nice ambiance there with lots of people studying and its just like a peaceful aura throughout the store. 

leige waffle with ice cream and caramel sauce add ons ($~5) 

matcha red bean brussels waffle (~$6-7)