Sherman's Food Adventures: Their There

Their There

Coffee shops are a dime a dozen in Vancouver where each has its specific clientele.  That is probably why we keep seeing more and more of them with very few closing up shop.  We see the spectrum of choices from the very high end (like Small Victory) to the typical chain stores offering up predictable products.  However, to stand out in the market, the coffee better be freakin' fantastic or the store needs to offer up more than just the regular.  Take Parallel 49 for instance where they introduced Lucky's Donuts or Chez Christophe where the coffee is there to really go with the finely crafted pastries and desserts.  The newly opened Their There (by the same folks as AnnaLena) does offer coffee, but also a limited selection of pastries and sandwiches.

We stopped by on our way back from UBC and were able to score the last 4 seats in the house (not that there was much to begin with).  Okay, before the authenticity police draw their weapons, I realized that their version of a Cubano wasn't authentic (I've been to Miami 3x and I've had the real deal).  However, it was good for what it was featuring crunchy aggressively buttered bread.  Inside, the roast pork was tender and lightly flavourful.  There was ample cheese and grainy mustard while the briny pickles were what made the sandwich.  We weren't super fond of the Montreal Smoked Meat Breakfast Sandwich though as it was rather soggy and too veggie forward.  There was only a modest amount of smoked meat combined with a fried runny egg, alfalfa sprouts and cabbage.  It wasn't as if the sammie was bad, it just wasn't as good as the other 3.

Talking about good, the Buttermilk Fried Chicken Sandwich was our favourite.  It featured an ol' AnnaLenna favourite in the crispy fried chicken which was light and airy.  This made the sammie not particularly heavy to eat (which was a good thing).  The crunch was in every bite while the jalapeno aioli added moisture and a light tangy kick.  We also liked how the brioche bun was soft, yet still chewy and firm enough to hold everything in without disintegrating.  Coming in a close second was the Croque Monsieur (with the addition of a fried egg).  Pure genius of them employing a croissant bun where it was crunchy and buttery.  Inside, there was a thick slice of smoked ham that was moist and impactful.  Add in a runny fried egg and ample cheese and this was a messy, if not super tasty breakfast sandwich.

To go, I grabbed a Churro Cronut, Banana Cream Croissant and Custard Donut for good measure.  Crunchy and spiked with the unmistakable cinnamon sugar, the churro cronut was surprisingly filled with custard.  This made it more than a crunchy sweet round thing.  Rather, there was body and a nice contrast.  Also filled to the brim with semi-sweet custard, the donut was yeasty and chewy with a certain density.  The banana cream croissant was pretty tasty.  It featured a crunch that led to the defined layers shattering all over the place.  The cream was light and not too sweet.  I wasn't fond of the banana chips, but I could see why putting fresh banana slices would not be practical due to browning.  Overall, we thought there was some definite highlights with our visit to Their There.  Prices are on the higher side though, but it is Kits.

The Good:
- When there was a hit, it was really good (ie. Chicken Sandwich and Croque Monsieur)
- Pastries were good (the ones we tried)
- Chic minimalist hipster decor (if you like that)

The Bad:
- Pricey
- Would've preferred a different bread choice for the Cubano

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