tokyo joe's sushi factory: da bomb rolls

every saturday, i go to richmond with my mom for grocery shopping and we usually eat lunch as well! we have just started going to try different places but our sushi staple for awhile was tokyo joe's sushi! the food here is yummy and quick which was required when i had work at 1 but they also fill the roll with the good stuff making them huge and not just because of the rice. their fish may not be the A+++ grade but is still a huge portion and does not turn me off in ANY WAY. did i mention theres free miso soup too?? i always scoop right to the bottom and grab a bowl of tofu! :D here are some pictures of 2 visits (even though there were a lot more): 

visit 1:

spicy salmon roll and crazy roll! 

crazy roll ($5.95): filled with crab meat, spicy tuna and prawn tempura then with spicy sauce drizzled on top. 

4.25/5

spicy salmon roll ($3.95): my staple roll for any sushi visit. lots of salmon and a delicious sauce on top (:

4/5

visit 2:

sashimi salad ($9.95): filled with huge pieces of salmon, tuna and prawn but the salad itself is quite plain. light and refreshing though. 

3.75/5

spicy salmon roll again and bulls roll ($6.95): probably one of my favourite rolls here which is beef teriyaki, prawn tempura and crab meat. all my favourite things jammed into a sushi roll! 

4.5/5

blissberri: true frozen yogurt bliss

my love for frozen yogurt extends beyond just vancouver as i try to get it everytime i go to the states as well. this picture is from the lovely blissberri located inside bellevue square. just like most frozen yogurt places, it is self serve and then paid for depending on the weight of your yogurt. unfortunately at this point, it just looks like a mass but underneath that pile of goodness is nutella, chocolate and cookies and cream frozen yogurt. they have a good 10+ choices at blissberri and you can ask the person at the front for sample cups! i topped it with mocha, oreo bits and my favourite: GRAHAM CRACKER CRUMBS! YUM! 

(sorry dont remember the price, but its on par with most places)

4/5

cattle cafe: pick and choose your noodle

i absolutely LOVE noodles. from pho to udon to basically anything that isnt rice, i love and cattle cafe satisfies my craving perfectly. everybody probably knows already but they're popular for their noodle combo where you choose a soup base, a noodle, 2 toppings and add $2 for up to 2 side dishes. it also comes with a drink which you can upgrade to bubble tea! they also have amazing egg waffles and french toast that are worth trying!  my favourite location is the richmond one, just tastes better to me, but it's pretty consistent across the locations but here is my usual order minus the additional sides. 

mango slush with mango stars 

noodle combo ($8.50): tomato pumpkin fish soup (so good!) rice noodles with beef brisket and something fish for my mom (: it also comes with mushroom and napa cabbage which makes me very happy since i LOVE my veggies! 

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)

bella gelataria: worth the 1 hour wait?

after having dinner a guu one summer evening, i headed down to bella gelataria in search for some dessert. being a summer day, i assumed there might be a line but it turned out to be over AN HOUR WAIT. the shop closes at 10? i believe but they were kind enough to continue serving everybody in the line even past closing time. 

when you get there, you are allowed to try up to 3 flavours. honestly, i dont remember what i tried but i remember them all being amazing making the choice even harder. this ice cream isnt cheap at around $5 per scoop but it is very good quality gelato as it comes from metal buckets instead of on display like many other places and it just pleases every single tastebud in your mouth.

fortunately (or not) i am not a very picky eater and find most ice cream to be equally good so even though this one was amazing, i did not think it was worth the 1+ hour we waited in line. DEFINITELY worth trying but maybe in the winter? 

single scoop hazelnut gelato ($5) 

4.5/5 (-.5 for the ridiculous waiting)