Rekados

Our goal today was to have a quick lunch and while we were driving along Main Street, we stopped by Rekados, a Filipino restaurant. I have always wanted to give Filipino food a try and since we were all up to try something new, there is no better timing.

I am very satisfied with their service. The dining area was really clean and tables were spaced comfortably. Food presentation was much better than our initial expectation. We were notified that portions were quite big and with no other knowledge, we just randomly ordered off the menu.

We started off with some baked mussels "Baked Tahong" - as stated on the menu: "baked greenshell mussels with tomatoes, red onions, scallions, and garlic". The dish was not bad, just nothing special. It is a taste we can achieve at home. (Cost: $8.25)

Next, we orderd a "Bicol Express"- as stated on the menu: "for hot and spicy lovers, this is bicol region's main dish, three kinds of peppers sauteed with pork, shrimp, scallions then finished with coconut milk". We asked to have it extra spicy. This dish was spicy but we have had spicier dishes before, our disappointment is it was way too salty. Extreme sodium overdose. This will be a dish we will not order anymore. (Cost: $9.95)

Our final dish was "GBangus Belly" (name copied from the receipt) - it was some grilled milkfish. Every other table ordered some fish so we decided to do so too. Milkfish sounded interesting but the taste was lost through this method of cooking. We believe it is some frozen fish. We also think it would have made no difference if Salmon was used. (Cost: 12.95)

Rice is quite expensive here when compared to ordering from Chinese restaurants. It was $3.50 for 2 bowls, we had no problem finishing it because overall, the food is quite salty.

Lunch for three came to just over $40 with tips. We will come back again, but not for the same dishes we tried today.

4063 Main Street
Vancouver, BC
Tel: 604-873-3133

Hanwoori Korean Restaurant

Sunday night's dining adventure brought us to Hanwoori Korean Restaurant. To be exact, it wasn't totally an adventure because we have all been here before. This Korean BBQ restaurant is most likely the one that I frequent most often, I have been here for at least 6-7 times.

Why? The food is good, it's tasty. Meats are fresh, at least they look and taste like they are. The taste seems to be consistent, so there is no worry. It's 100% authentic, operated and served by Koreans. The servers there did not speak much English but we enjoyed the language barrier. Communicating is always a skill good to practice. Another big plus is the place does not smell, it's clean and seating is comfortable. We had no issues with the cleaniness of our cups and plates. Service has always been excellent, there was no need to wave down servers because there is a service bell on each table and servers respond quick!

We made a reservation for 7:30pm and our table for 5 was seated immediately. We ordered a combo for 2 (just under $50), plus an extra order of beef short ribs ($17.95).

A plate of Jap Chae and bubbling bowl of beef bone soup. We refilled our complimentary dishes, my personal favourite was the bean sprouts and sweetened potatoes.

Tonight I will be doing a blind taste test and reviewing some dark chocolate bought from a drugstore. Stay tuned!

Update: 5 chocolate lovers tested 3 different brands of dark chocolate, to be fair we decided to try a cacao content of 70% for each.Nestle NOIR Intense: This chocolate had a very strong flavour, it was more milky than the Lindt and had a sour taste to it. One tester said it was a bit stale and was not crispy. He said it had no aroma and disliked its aftertaste. Product of Switzerland, $3.49.

Cote d'Or: Our judges came to a consensus and this chocolate was rated last. We were able to quickly differentiate this from the other two. The chocolate was very crispy, and did not have much taste. We agreed that this tasted more like candy. One tester, however, liked this more than the previous (Nestle), and claimed that it seemed more fresh. This chocolate did not bring any sourness. It's like a typical chocolate bar. Product of Belgium, on sale for $1.49.

Lindt Excellence DARK: This chocolate ranked top for our biggest dark chocolate fan. It was crispy and not as candy compared to the Cote d'Or. Another tester preferred the Nestle over this one because the Lindt was too strong. Product of France, $2.69.

Our judges had a hard time differentiating between Nestle and Lindt. At the end, while trying both simultaneously, the majority of our judges preferred Lindt over Nestle. Lindt carried a stronger taste. Those who enjoy milkier chocolates should go for Nestle.

I am currently dining out at Octopus Garden down in Kitsilano! The tuna tataki is delicious.. the ambiance is romantic. There is a sweet couple sitting in the loveboat at the centre of the restaurant, I think they must be celebrating a special occasion! Back to eating.. I'm waiting for a piece of uni sushi. Enjoy!
Update: The piece of uni (sea urchin) sushi was extremely fresh, sweet and firm! It was simply the best uni you can possible find. The seaweed was crisp too! Price: $3.50. Excellent!

1995 Cornwall Avenue
Vancouver, BC V6J 1C9
(604) 734-8971

Just found this coupon in the mail! Church's hot wings are dipped in
batter that is actually hot and tasty! Not just coated with hot sauce
unlike some restaurants. Make sure you order them fresh! I will definitely use this coupon. FYI, coupon expires May 15th, 2009.

I would like to share my exotic dining experience at Kashcool, a Persian Restaurant located in West Vancouver. Don't let its exterior fool you. Prior to entering the restaurant, I was worried. Worried about how I would not like the smell, the food, etc. The restaurant looked run down in a shady neighbourhood with a bodyshop being its neighbor. To make matters worse, I looked up the reviews on dinehere.ca and Kashcool wasn't rated all that well.

Once I walked in, I was amazed. Kashcool presented what I believe was a truly authentic restaurant. (I am no Persian so I can only comment on my beliefs.) The atmosphere was great, the place did not smell. There was a fish pond located on the ground, close to the centre of the restaurant. The walls are beautiful and very unique. Best of all, we enjoyed the food.. most of it at least.
Our starters included an eggplant dip with some thin Persian bread. I cannot recall what it is called. Apparently, the bread is available in Persian bakeries.

The thin bread looked like a large piece of cracker except it is soft and foldable with holes in it. After spreading the dip on it, it did not look too appetizing especially after someone mentioned it looking more like... toilet paper?

Here is the main course, 3 a la carte orders, our meal focused on a lot of meat. From the very left, we had grilled minced beef in a kabob, followed by beef kabob, chicken, and lamb rack. The chicken was most memorable, it was full of flavor and extremely tender. We enjoyed it so much, we added another order of chicken.

Each order came with a grilled tomato and a plate of rice. I believed they used basmati rice (long grain white rice). The rice was gently flavored with butter, this is the type of rice where we can eat so much with realizing we've already doubled our regular portion.

Those who know me know that I am dessert fan but I did not enjoy the Persian dessert, we ordered ice cream and a dessert with some vermicelli. Both were too fragrant for my liking. I enjoy the smell of Crabtree and Evelyn's handcream, but not if it's for dessert!

Hope you enjoyed my little dining adventure, if you are interested in visting this restaurant, here is the address.

222 Pemberton Ave
North Vancouver, BC
Tel: 604-904-3904

Lunch menu today consists of a 12-grain bagel with plain cream cheese
from Tim Horton's plus some water bottled from home. No photos because
it is already eaten. Total cost: $1.89.

I chose plain cream cheese over garlic and herb because I need to
attend class and of course, engage in conversation. No one wants to talk to someone with bad breath right? And plain light is just not right, why waste calories on something that brings me no satisfaction? I learned to either go for the full deal or don't go for it at all. Alright, time to pay attention and learn some cognitive science.