El Barrio Restaurante Latino -- Hit and Miss Mexican

2270 East Hastings Street, Vancouver

Food: 3
Service: 4
Price: Moderate

I thought I'd tasted most of the notables on the Mexican scene in the 604 until I found out about El Barrio not too long ago. I admit, I'm a Tex-Mex girl at heart, so I've never been on the look-out for an authentic Mexican spot. What brought me here was a little invitation from my friend G to watch her husband's band play the night away on a Saturday night. Though I was a little sick that night, I couldn't resist a night out,

Simply Delicious (SD) Galleria and Sushi Lounge– Grungy with Cheap Deals



The night was young....Yes, it was bright.

4316 Main Street, Vancouver 


Food: Small meal, so individual items are rated below.

Service: 3

Price: Cheap



Sometimes you just don’t know what’s around the corner until you stumble upon it, and that’s definitely the case I had with SD Galleria. I’ve passed it time and time again while making my way down the Main Street strip on the weekends, but never had an inkling to walk my way up to this 2^nd floor sushi eatery.

It just so happened that my girlfriends wanted to watch playoff hockey, and we needed a place to

Video: BUFFET -- by Wong Fu Productions, featuring Harry Shum Jr.

Everybody has had their own unique experiences in restaurants. This video short is a good example of this :D Have a laugh!



XOXO -- Val

Les Faux Bourgeois - French Food That's Worth It

663 East 15th Avenue, Vancouver

Food: 5
Service: 4
Price: Moderate to High (Quite reasonable for this cuisine.)
Reservations Required: Yes

Les Faux Bourgeois, an unassuming hotspot serving French meals on the East side. When my friend L. told me over facebook that there was a popular French bistro deep on Fraser & Kingsway, I first responded, “No way! It’s Vietnamese ‘town’.” I’ve travelled in that area

Chicco Japanese Dessert Cafe – Overpriced Parfaits

1504 Robson Street, Vancouver

Food: 3
Service: 3.5
Price: Cheap (overall)

Ice cream and cake are what I refer to as a "happy combination" :) Can you think of another food pairing that has that special ability to rush all your fond childhood memories back? If you can, okay...but I can't! And even as an adult I can't say, "No," to an opportunity for some 'happiness'.
A real treat that's been brought to my attention in the last few years has been an ice cream and cake plus combination called 'parfait'. It's a delightful mix of ice cream, cornflakes, cake, and other treats, which in my experience range from jelly squares to little mochi. Although I loved my first experience of it at a dessert parlour in my neighbourhood, I heard through the grapevine that the parfait

Wings (on Granville) -- Big Disappointment

1162 Granville Street, Vancouver

Food: 2
Service: 2
Price: Moderate

Unless you had a reservation or snagged a table early, dining out on a Saturday night in downtown Vancouver was almost impossible a few years ago. These days it's the complete opposite. On a free Saturday during prime dining hours, you can likely point to any

Flo Tea Room -- Free Toast!

7994 Granville Street, Vancouver

Food: Small meal, so individual items are rated below.
Service: 3
Price: Moderate

With a black storefront and a dimly lit interior sits an unassuming restaurant in the heart of the Marpole strip of Vancouver's South Granville district. It's called Flo Tea Room, and yes, it serves a lot of tea--51 variations if I counted right. But don't let the name fool you, it's not just a tea joint. It's actually a popular Taiwanese cafe with an extensive menu that attracts the young, the old, and

Pho Thai Hoa -- Not Bad, but Inconsistent

1625 Kingsway, Vancouver

Food: 3.5
Service: 3.5
Price: Cheap

Some say chicken soup warms the soul, but for me it's a bowl of noodles, especially Vietnamese pho. Can I call this Asian soul food? They're large bowls of warm, steaming goodness that reach my heart (and stomach!) on the occasional weekend. Lately I've been frequenting the Kingsway and Knight area, where a good number of Vietnamese restaurants are situated up and down Kingsway. It's not hard to pick which restaurant to go into because some are busy, and some are definitely not. One that seems steadily busy is Pho Thai Hoa at the corner of Kingsway and Perry Street.

Guu Kitanoya (Gastown) -- Fabulous

#105 - 375
Water Street, Vancouver

Food: 4.5
Service: 4
Price: Moderate (cheaper per person with larger groups)

I can't say enough about izakayas! They are a combination of tasty eye-tantalizing Japanese food, a good time, friends, and a lot of laughs. When I found out my co-worker was organizing a staff dinner at Guu Kitanoya, I could not hold back my giddiness. I actually was here a few months ago for my birthday, and was really surprised how much I loved, loved, loved some of the dishes because I wasn't wowed by the dishes at a previous Guu (Thurlow) visit I made a few years ago. Eating some of my birthday favorites and trying some new ones too were definitely on my mind for the night.

The Secret Garden Tea Company -- Major Afternoon Tea!

5559 West Boulevard, Vancouver

Food: 5    

Service: 3    

Price: Moderate to High

*Presentation: 5

Reservations Required: No

For my dad’s recent birthday, my sister and I treated him and his lady-friend to an Afternoon Tea service ($26.95) at the Secret Garden. We’ve been here for their tea service 2 or 3 times before and really couldn’t resist to go back to an old dependable favourite!

What to Expect

·    one of the best, or maybe THE BEST Afternoon Tea service in Vancouver

·    fresh baked goods from their ovens, made with organic milk

·    each person can select his/her own tea during the tea service

Bottom Tier: Mini Sandwiches

Portobello Mushroom Scone Sandwich

·    portobello mushrooms, green pesto, red peppers, cheese, cheese scone

·    sourness of the pesto (or maybe lime juice?) helped the mushrooms stand out

·    red peppers and mushrooms were an amazing combination!

Corned Beef Croissant Sandwich

·    corned beef, cheese, homemade thousand island dressing, relish

·    couldn’t really taste the corned beef, but could pick-up on its saltiness, which countered the sweetness of the croissant

·    relish added sourness that combined well with the sweet and the saltiness

Egg Salad Pinwheels

·    tiny celery pieces were mixed in sparingly for some surprise crunch

Middle Tier: Scones and Cake

Apricot Scones

·    signature item for this restaurant; fresh from the oven, made from organic Avalon milk

·    served with raspberry jam and Devonshire cream

·    couldn’t taste the apricots

Zucchini Chocolate Cake

·    dry

·    giant chocolate chips!

Top Tier: Desserts

Lemon Tart

·    shortbread crust with lemon meringue in the middle

·    staple in their tea service

·    sweet with enough sourness; very delightful!

German Chocolate Cake

·    layers of chocolate cake, chocolate icing, and a shredded coconut mixture

·    topped with a sliver of dried coconut and chocolate icing

Apple Cheese Pastry

·    cinnamon puff pastry with an apple filling inside

·    topped with a pink icing sugar design for decoration

·    a lot of puff pastry and a small amount of filling L

·    apple cinnamon filling was super flavourful, but I wish there was more inside!

Plum and Cottage Pear Tea

Popular selection at the Secret Garden. My personal favourite!

Little gems of food they were, BUT we couldn't finish it all! We ended up taking a big box of the desserts and scones home. $26.95 is not a price you want to pay per person everyday, but this was so worth it in the overall quality, quantity, and presentation of food. The only thing is I wish the service could keep up with the food. At the beginning, our server was lovely and attentive. However, when she ended her shift, another server was not assigned to our table. I decided it would be faster to pay the bill at the cashier than flag someone over. I stood in line to pay the bill for 10 minutes, waiting for the cashier to finish wrapping up sale merchandise for just two ladies in front of me. As the cash wasn't being used, I wish there was some urgency for anyone to jump in and help me.   

Other Notable Facts About the Secret Garden

·    they refer to their tea service as High Tea, but I’ve referred to it as Afternoon Tea because that’s the proper term

·    Demi-tea ($12.95), Mini-tea ($11.95), and Sharing-tea ($11.95) are other options to sample the full tea service at lower price points

·    other enticing menu items that include breakfast, soups, sandwiches, and salads

·    they only take reservations for parties wishing to have the full High Tea service