i grubbed so hard while on vacation it wouldn't be considered okay to a normal person. whenever i travel i try to do a little bit of research to make sure that i only eat things worth my time and money. i can't stand eating unsatisfactory things when i'm away. i want to maximize the food potential so i find all of these places with the best this or that. while researching i typically bookmark more eats than i have actual time or meals for and once i set foot on foreign ground i become a greedy monster going from place to place to devour my list away. here is a majority of my Vancouver and Seattle vacation eats.
light and fluffy chocolate croissant. the chocolate wasn't in stick form. it was soft and melty. i also got a basque chili liquid chocolate which wasn't too thick nor too watery. it had a noticeable kick once you swallowed it down.
--Edible Canada, found on Granville Island across the street from the public market
tempura battered fish n' chips. the batter wasn't too heavy and the fish was fresh. i also enjoyed the duck fat fries, though the dish itself could've used a little bit more seasoning.
smoked meat sandwich on rye. almost like a reuben. tender, juicy, flavorful meat with sauerkraut. and you can never have enough duck fat fries.
--Phnom Penh, vietnamese/cambodian located in Chinatown
--Phnom Penh, vietnamese/cambodian located in Chinatown
fried chicken wings. so much flavor, crisp, and paired with a lemon pepper juice to dip into, which is what really rounds out the dish. yumm!
"butter beef" which is your traditional raw beef dish with fried garlic, tons of cilatro (which i pushed to the side. do. not. like. cilantro), and a house sauce. i've had many variations of this and this one was certainly one of the better ones.
#6. can't remember exactly what it was called but it involved egg noodles, rice noodles, shrimp, pork, certain innards (i recall liver, yuck!), fried garlic and a mushroom sauce.
--the rotato stand at the Richmond Night Market
spiral cut potato deep fried and dusted with whatever powdered goodness you want. a cross between a chip and a french fry. i didn't think it was going to be anything great but i was sorely mistaken. this was awesome!
traditional poutine add smoked meat. heavy with gravy and cheese, smokey meat and some green onion to make you feel like you're not completely clogging your arteries. good stuff!
--Beavertails found up on Grouse Mountain
--Beavertails found up on Grouse Mountain
surprisingly light, crisp and chewy. almost like funnel cake. perfect with nutella and bananas!
--Meat & Bread great, simple sandwich spot. they only offer three different sandwiches, one soup and one salad per day.
porchetta. flavorful, tender, great bread.
meatball sandwich. i don't even like meatball sandwiches but this was SO good. it was even better than the porchetta sandwich. the meatball had enough substance to it (not a lot of bread/filler) and was packed with so much flavor it was almost intense. looooooved this!
-some little window on Robson St.
matcha froyo with red bean and whipped cream. not bad.
--Guu with Garlic, izakaya
pork cheek/jowl. tender and fatty with ponzu. love this shit!
grilled squid
house chicken wings. slightly sweet, slightly spicy, lots of soy.
salmon belly. some parts were fattier (read: better) than others. nonetheless this was cooked perfectly and the skin on the bottom was crisp.
beef tongue. tender and really great with the fried garlic and ponzu.
fricasse. two fried eggs, braised short rib, caramelized onions, watercress, green apple, applewood cheddar. a bit rich for a morning meal but quite good. i think i would've preferred this more as a dinnertime meal.
belgian waffle with salted caramel dipping sauce. quite small and quite light.
new england clam chowder. quite creamy and not too thick. loads of clam. can't complain.
--Ma'ono, their tagline is "fried chicken and whiskey"
some damn good fried chicken. super crispy and super flavorful. it's more like korean fried chicken, served with rice and kimchee. we also got the bacon curry fried rice, clams with thai curry and rice noodles, and the schezuan string beans. a solid meal!
not bad biscuits and gravy. the bacon was thick and exceptional.
this french toast! holy cow! my friend boasted about good the french toast was but i didn't believe him, thus the biscuits and gravy. but after one bite of the french toast i'd fallen in love! light and crisp, not eggy, and just short of bringing complete euphoria. ugh, i wish i'd gotten a whole order for myself!
--Salumi Artisan Cured Meats, this is Mario Batali's dad's deli. they spread this garlic breadcrumb concoction on every sandwich which makes them juuuuust a bit better than whoever their competition might be.
"muffo," much like a muffaletta. salami, cheese, olive tapenade. SO good!
oxtail sandwich! they slit the bread in the middle forming two pockets from the halves. they then poured what looked to be an oxtail stew into them which was perplexing. i wondered how in the flying eff someone was supposed to eat that like a sandwich without it getting all over their hands/pants/face/hair. surprisingly, after having driven to Kerry Park to indulge, the bread soaked up all of the juicy parts and left you with a pretty stellar tasting sandwich. by way of some sort of magic the ciabatta maintained it's sturdiness and crispness (except for right down the middle where it was a bit soggy but i'm not complaining).
Salumi salami, with fresh mozzarella. you can see the garlic breadcrumb mixture. i'm definitely coming back every time i'm in Seattle!
can't remember the name of this pastry. it was light and flaky, filled with a salted caramel custard and topped with salted caramel. a tad too sweet for me, but overall really good!
--Canlis i came here for the tasting menu, which i'll do a full recap on in another blog entry.
chocolate hazelnut croissant. super light and flaky. not too sweet and made with great chocolate.
excellent xiao long bao! the wrapper was super thin and had a good chew yet maintained form when lifting up, keeping the juicy soup inside the dumpling. one of the best xiao long baos i've ever had.
--Peaceful Restaurant, where Guy Fieri went on an episode of Diners, Drive-ins and Dives.
dan dan mein. holy damn this was the best meal i'd had during my whole trip! the hand pulled noodles were perfect in texture, the sauce was plentiful and extra flavorful. the peanuts gave it some added texture. i was completely full prior to coming to this restaurant yet managed to eat more than half of this super hearty dish because it was that good.
a croissant-like pastry with hazelnut spread and toasted hazelnuts. quite light and not overly sweet. this was really good paired with a cappuccino.
blueberry balsamic with an ever so light and crisp waffle cone (one of the best cones i've had next to Ici's in Berkeley). great ice cream and they've got awesome unique flavors.
--Minami
premium aburi style nigiri. i think this "aburi" thing is a vancouver specific thing. it pretty much means lightly seared and with sauces to match. personally, i think that unless the sauces enhance the fish, it should be left alone. some of these sauces overpowered the fish so i can't say i loved this as much as i wanted to.
jidori chicken and foie gras gyoza in a truffle dashi. yep, you know i had to have foie gras considering it's attainable outside california. you could definitely taste the foie in this dish and the truffle dashi was spectacular. i would've preferred dipping the nigiri in this sauce rather than the ones they provided.
happy eating, everybody!
happy eating, everybody!
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