*All food and beverages were complimentary for this blog post*
The Good:
- Excellent wok hei (high wok heat)
- One of the best, if not the best Pad Siew in town
- That crispy pork belly!
The Bad:
- Roti could be a bit less dense
- Not unique to Sen Pad Thai, but the market food court is crazy busy at peak times, finding a table is almost impossible
The last dish was the Steak Frites featuring a 7oz Certified Angus Beef sirloin, peppercorn sauce, fries and truffle arugula. This was asked to be prepared rare and it came out as such. Due to this, the steak ate a bit chewier, but it was still fine. The peppercorn sauce was creamy and lightly peppery. In the end, we thought the food is pretty good, but really, the draw here is the killer location and view. In terms of food execution and quality, I've had better at other Tap & Barrel locations.
The Good:
- Awesome view and location
- Good service
The Bad:
- Food was fairly good, but I've had better at other T&B locations
We were started off with 2 tostadas including the Smoked Salmon Tostada on a crispy corn tortilla topped with locally smoked chum salmon, cucumber-cream, pickle red onions and capers. Loved the combination of Westcoast ingredients in a Mexican dish. The salmon was buttery with a balanced smoke complimented by the classic accompaniments. Flavours were familiar, yet presented differently on a beautifully crisp tortilla.
From these, we moved onto the made-to-order Guacamole. Once again, there was a Westcoast twist where it was topped with feta, pumpkin seeds & pea shoots. So the creamy guac ate well with the side of fresh crunchy corn tortilla chip. With a squeeze of the lime wedge, the whole thing was pretty bright. Once again, the creaminess of the feta added more luxuriousness to the already creamy guac. I found the pumpkin seeds to be an interesting texture that contrasted the avocado.
One of the favourite items was the Albacore Tuna Ceviche with sashimi grade albacore, lime, tomato, cilantro, onion and cucumber. Not overly complex but well-executed, the fish was delicate and sweet. There was enough acidity to "cook" the fish while not being too overwhelming. The whole thing was fresh, bright and appetizing. I also thought the restraint with the cilantro ensured that the whole thing wasn't dominated by one flavour.
Now my actual favourite dish of the night was the Duck Flautas filled with braised duck and roasted squash topped with pickled red onion, cabbage and recado negro. Beyond the firmly crunchy fried tortillas, the shredded duck was super moist and full-flavoured from the spices. I've had duck flautas before and these were by far the best. To bring down the heaviness, there was a refreshing slaw and pickled onions. It also added crunch and tanginess.
One of the most striking dishes was the Halloumi and Grilled Cactus. With its attractive sear, the cheese was aromatic, nutty and squishy. Underneath, the grilled cactus was beautifully prepared where it was not slimy at all. In fact, it still had a bite which was appealing. All of this sat in a charred tomatillo salsa verde with pickled red onion. Bright with a touch of smokiness, the salsa verde provided good balance to the hearty halloumi.
Another solid offering was the Birria Tacos with slow cooked beef braised in dried chilies with onions, cilantro & limes. Loved the tortillas as they were thin and lightly crispy. They were nutty and aromatic. Inside, the braised beef was tender with plenty of punch. As promised in the description, there was some spice, sweetness and overall depth. We could customize it to our personal tastes not only with the side of accompaniments, but also the hot sauces provided as well.
*All food and beverages were complimentary*
The Good:
What do you get when you combine 4 of the most talented chefs in Vancouver with some shipping containers? No, this is not a trick question nor does it imply anything illegal. Rather, Popina has "popped up" in the former parking lot adjacent to the Granville Island Market serving up quality eats crafted by the chefs Hamid Salimian, Angus An, Joel Watanabe and Robert Belcham. The shipping containers refer to the actual structure which it is built from. After a few weeks of their soft launch, I decided to drop by to try a few of their wares.
We ended up sharing the Chicken Fried Humboldt Squid to start. Mixed with onion and jalapenos, there was only a modest amount of squid. The batter was perfect though being crunchy, well-seasoned and not oily. I found the pieces to be cut up a bit too small for my liking though. Okay, the East Coast Lobster Roll has been a rather polarizing item on the menu considering its $26.00 price tag. Some would like to argue that it is overpriced. For me, I would say maybe it should be a few dollars less, but it is still worth the money due to large amount of buttery lobster. There was barely any filler other than a few bits of celery and the lobster pieces were of quality. Buttery and soft, the roll was texturally on point and held everything together. I've had lobster rolls in Boston, Maine, Nova Scotia and PEI and they aren't as cheap as one would think. The only one that blew me away was the one at Neptune Oyster Co. and that is currently $31.00USD (it is bigger though). Luke's Lobster charges $17.00USD and it is half the size of the one at Popina. So my point is, don't be surprised at the pricing because it is that way everywhere or more.
To counteract the fried food, we got the Salade Niçoise with tomatoes, mixed lettuce, potato, green beans, olives, egg, pickled onion and olive oil poached tuna with a Japanese curry dressing. Beyond the traditional ingredients found in this salad, the dressing changed everything. I thought it went really well with mild hits of curry, tanginess and sweetness. Back to the ingredients, the tuna was perfectly rare with only the slightest of cook on the outside. It was buttery soft and sweet. Egg was not overdone while the green beans were still crunchy. On that note, the same olive oil poached tuna was employed on the Tuna Toast sporting other ingredients including pickled onions, olives, capers, dill, tarragon, parsley and yogurt. There was a lot going on here compared to the description on the menu. We would've preferred a little less herbs, but there was no denying that they went with the concoction. The toast was crunchy and did not wilt under the wet ingredients while the tuna was buttery soft . Despite the plethora of ingredients, the flavours were still subtle. 
My son didn't deviate from his eating habits and went for the Grassfed BC Cheeseburger with lettuce and tomato. On the surface, it didn't really look like much and didn't photograph sexy. However, it ate well with a thick, well-charred patty. It was naturally-flavoured and still moist despite being cooked all-the-way-through. There was plenty of wet ingredients to keep things messy (the patty kept sliding out). The bun somewhere between soft and chewy, so it held everything together without falling apart. That was good, but the Crispy Free-Run Chicken Sandwich was better. This thing was texturally on point. The chicken was aggressively battered, but wasn't heavy nor dense. In fact, the crispy, well-rendered skin was light and almost airy. Juicy and moist, the chicken meat was also seasoned properly. It wasn't actually spicy per se (nothing is as spicy as DL Chicken), but it was flavourful. Again, the nicely toasted bun held everything together without being dry.
Of course we had to get a side of their Crinkle Cut Fries to go with the burger and sandwich as well. Despite the visuals, the fries weren't spicy. Rather it was a mild-tasting seasoning salt that wasn't actually very salty. The fries themselves were hot and crunchy while not greasy. Nothing particularly exciting about these fries, but they were prepared properly at least. For dessert, we tried their Puff Cream which was soft-serve within choux pastry (replaced the cream or custard with soft-serve in a cream puff). Some have said that the choux is too dry, but for me it was fine and in fact, considering the amount of melting ice cream, it softened up quick. The soft-serve was creamy, yet melted quickly as mentioned. We got caramel sauce on top and it wasn't too sweet. Overall, I thought the lobster roll and chicken sandwich were the highlights while the rest held their own. Prices are definitely not cheap, but the ingredients were high quality and prepared properly. Remains to be seen how budget-conscious customers will take to the concept.
While we were enjoying some soup from the Stock Market, my son really didn't want anything to do with it. However, the mere mention of a chocolate donut from Lee's reinvigorated his appetite. For those who are not familiar with Lee's Donuts, it's been a staple at Granville Island for as long as I can remember. They still make donuts the traditional way, where they have substance to them (unlike Krispy Kreme). The only other donut that I personally think resembles Lee's are Top Pot out of Seattle. It's another one of those things I had as a kid and now my own kids are enjoying it as well. I 
really wonder if they will ever enjoy Beef Tongue like I do? Maybe if I hide it in a jelly donut?
donuts are not extremely sweet such as the ones from Krispy Kreme. However, I like Krispy Kreme donuts in their own right. They are much lighter and I could probably eat 3 just like that. In fact, Miss Y once ate 4 Krispy Kremes in one sitting; to my utter disgust and shock. It's a bit difficult to eat 4 Lee's donuts in one sitting (unless you're Miss Y); but it's a real treat to have one nonetheless.
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