Brathaus

We sure have a lot of places to grab a burger in town.  From fast food joints to classy fine dining establishments, the choices seem endless.  However, when we talk about hot dogs, it is a totally different story.  No, we are not talking about Costco and Ikea here (although they are great values).  I'm talking about spots that specialize in hot dogs and preferably, the gourmet variety.  Can you think of any?  You see, it isn't very prevalent.  Well, there is one located on Abbott in Downtown Vancouver called Brathaus.  Jackie and I checked it out recently after already having dinner...  Second dinner!

We went straight for their featured monthly dog in the Speedy with green chorizo, pico de gallo, guac, pickled jalapenos, sour cream and chipotle aioli.  Yah, one look at these and no, they were not a "regular" hot dog.  The sausage in this was texturally appealing with a meatiness that was complimented by notable spiciness.  There was so much going on with this hot dog from the tangy jalapeños and onions that was tempered by the cool sour cream and gauc.

As for the Pete, it sported a Guinness beef sausage with guac, bacon, pickled onions, red jalapeno and lime aioli.  The sausage itself was the star of this hot dog as it had the unmistakable hit of Guinness.  Now if you have had this beer before you would know there are some rich chocolate notes, so that was completely evident here.  The acidity of the onions and aioli helped keep things light despite the meatiness of the sausage.

If you love cheese, then the Bosko would fit the bill.  This had a Texas bison sausage with gouda, mozzarella & cheddar cheese crust, onions and bell peppers.  There was so much cheese, you could barely see the sausage.  Hence, you'd better like cheese!  That I do and the texture of the cheese was different as there was some crispy portions to go with the melty gooey parts.  The bison sausage was a bit leaner as expected, but was not dry. 

Ultimately, my favourite hot dog was the basic Felix with beer bratwurst, sauerkraut, pickles, chives and horseradish mustard.  The brat in this was so juicy while the outer casing had a firm snap.  The tangy crunch from the sauerkraut gave this hot dog classic vibes and something I am very familiar with.  I found the horseradish mustard to add enough zip and tang to keep things from being one note.

They also have Pork Carnitas Tacos on the menu as well.  A bit random, but an option for those not wanting a hot dog.  These came with green sauce, pico de gallo and jalapenos. I thought they were pretty legit with tender pork that was meaty and natural-tasting.  The addition of the fresh and bright pico de gallo kept things light despite the amount of pork in each taco.  We added some of the available sauces including jalapeno mayo.  This was pretty mild, but added some creamy moisture.

They also have a selection of Monster Shakes and we had probably the most whimsical in the Om Nom Nom featuring a "Cookie Monster" theme with Cookie dough ice cream, milk, blue food colouring, Biscoff spread, crushed Chips Ahoy and chocolate chip cookie ice cream with blue sugar crystals and edible googly eyes.  This was topped with
chocolate syrup, whipped cream, sprinkles and cherry.  So yah, this was pretty sweet, but at the same time, fit with the theme of the milkshake.  Lots of nuttiness and cookie flavour that was everywhere including on the outside of the cup.  The kiddies would love this.  For me, it was all about the dawgs and they were indeed good with complimentary condiments.  Brats were high quality too.

*All food and beverages were complimentary for this blog post*

The Good:
- Love the brats/sausages, nice snap casing and juicy filling
- Complimentary condiments
- Tacos are good too

The Bad:
- Milkshakes were whimsical and pretty good, but too sweet for me

Superflux Beer Company

For those craft beer connoisseurs out there, I'm sure you've heard of Superflux before.  Emerging out of the shadows of Callister and Strathcona Brewing since its inception in 2015, Superflux opened its B&M store back in August 2020 with takeaway sales and limited takeout.  As of last week, they are going full-tilt with a dine-in lounge with their full array of beers on tap.  Furthermore, Chef Justin Lee (formerly of the Crowbar), is at the helm of the kitchen with a simple menu of 3 gourmet hot dogs and 3 salads to start.  Jacqueline and I dropped by for a preview before they went live.

Let's get right to the point of this blog post - the beer!  They didn't have actual flights per se, but to get a sample of what they had offer, we got 6 x 6oz tasters.  From top left and clockwise, we had the Green Hill Cider, Colour & Shape, Fresh Foam, Happyness, Coconuts and Velvetone.  My favourite of the bunch was the happyness, an IPA dry-hopped with mosaic.  This was aromatic and light with a pleasant sour finish.  As much as the velvetone is a double-IPA hopped with galaxy, citra, mosaic and nelson, it wasn't that intense.  In fact, it was balanced with a nice crisp finish.  The most surprising was the coconuts as I was expecting something too sweet, but in the end, it was aromatic with a pleasant bite.

Off to the eats, we tried the salads including (from left-to-right) the Purple Queen Turnip "Not" Caesar (with cannellini, parmigiano vinagrette and crispy butter), Castelfranco Radicchio Nahm Jim (with radicchio, green bean, fermented tomato nahm jim, fried shallots and peanuts, Endive Bolzanese (with Belgian endive, Italian egg salad dressing, pickled onion and crispy potato.  Don't let the fact these were salads fool you.  They were excellent.  The turnip in the "Caesar" was crunchy and bright while the butter soaked croutons (aka crispy butter) were sinfully addictive.  Absolutely enjoyed the South Asian flavours in the castelfranco that featured tang, aromatics and slight spice.  Creamy and eggy, the crunchy endive was also the beneficiary of the added texture of the crunchy and nutty potato bits.

From the 3 salads, we went to the 3 hot dogs including The Mortadella (with a Black Forest Premium Bavarian dog, corn ragout, mortadella, lemon mayo, pistachio, grana padano and olive oil), Beet Ranch (with the same dog, beet and white onion salad, baby cucumber, house ranch, dill, potato crum and olive oil), and The Oscar (with Two Rivers all-natural dry-aged beef dog, oven-dried tomatoes, dressed rock crab, bearnaise sauce, smoked paprika, chives and olive oil).  Our favourite was the beet ranch with its combination of textures, dill and sharp onion.  In the oscar, the tangy impactful tomatoes really brought the hot dog alive as well as providing a jolt of acidity to the creamy bearnaise.  As you can see, the food is limited at the moment, but they really do go with the beer (even the salads!).  Nice spot to grab some superflux bevvies to go with your food.

*All food and beverages were complimentary*

The Good:

- Well, the beer!

- Surprisingly good salads

- Solid hot dogs

The Bad:

- Dining space limited due to Covid

Dogs N Roses Food Truck

Before the expansion of street food (ie. food trucks and food carts) in the Lower Mainland, all we were allowed to experience was the good ol' hot dog.  Yep, my memories of Mr. Tube Steak are still fresh in my mind (albeit not overly excited about it).  That is also why we got Japadog since the owner wanted to do something different and all they were allowed at the time was a hot dog cart.  From there, we now have everything from Neapolitan Pizza to Spanish Tapas.  However, sometimes things come full circle as we can see with one of the newer trucks in Dog N Roses.  Yes, they do serve up hot dogs, but they feature house made sausages and truly interesting ingredients.  I was recently invited to try their wares while they were parked in front of Moody Ales in Port Moody.

We ended up trying all of their dogs including the Pork Smokie with kimchi mayo, green onions, black sesame spread, furikake sprinkles, fried onions and green apple pearls on an organic brioche bun.  I actually got to sample the smokie separate from the hot dog and it was meaty, juicy and not overly fatty.  There was a nice snap to the casing while the meat was well-seasoned.  When combined with the rest of the ingredients, there was naturally an Asian flavour to it with the slight spice from the kimchi mayo and nuttiness from the black sesame.  The pops of sweet tang from the pearls was actually a nice compliment.  Next, the Pork Kebab "burger" was served with artichoke sumac cheese, green onions, asian sesame coleslaw and yogurt pearls.  This being more of a meat patty rather than a sausage meant that the texture was more robust and less moist.  It wasn't dry though and I enjoyed the spices mixed in with the meat.  Lots of crunch and freshness from the coleslaw and once again, the "je ne sais quoi" from the yogurt pearls was welcomed.

My favourite was the Spicy Bolgogi Chorizo with sesame coleslaw, green onions, gochujang mayo, pineapple pearls and cilantro.  Once again, I got to try the sausage on its own and wow was it ever fantastic!  Beyond the firm snap of the casing, I got large chunks of tender and meat that was definitely spicy, but balanced.  There was enough fat for the sausage to be moist and juicy without being greasy.  The coleslaw brought the heat down with a tangy crunch as well as the sweet pearls.  Moving onto the Beef Weiner, we found it nestled in the same organic brioche bun with organic sauerkraut, dijon mustard and fried onions.  As simple as this one appeared, I thought the tender savoury beef weiner was accented nicely by the tangy sauerkraut.  Of course the mustard added another layer of tang and a bit of bite.  I wasn't sure if there was actually a whole lot of fried onions as most of it was raw on top which was good, but a bit overpowering.

Lastly, we sampled the Poutine with 5-spice gravy, cheese curds, fresh house made kimchi, furikake sprinkles, greens, friend onions and cilantro.  Once again, the Asian influence was front and centre here as the gravy had that unmistakable essence of 5 spice, in particular from the star anise.  There was a lot going on here and in some sense, a little less moisture would've been ideal.  However, the flavours were strong and the fries were crispy.  Well, for a "hot dog" food truck, there was more to it than a tube steak.  Rather, we found delicious house made sausages combined with interesting ingredients.  Good accompaniment with your beer.

*All food and beverages were complimentary*

The Good:
- Well made and textured house made sausages
- Not your typical toppings
- Focused menu

The Bad:
- A little on the pricier side (but sausages are house-made)

Food at McArthurGlen

So what is the first thing that comes to mind when we think of McArthurGlen?  Okay, let's see...  Airport, Richmond, Designer, Luxurious, High-End, Airplanes...  How about food?  Ever since it opened, there have been gradual additions in terms of restaurants and food choices including Caffe Artigiano, Neptune Wonton, The BiBo, Japadog, Hugo's Churros and Ryuu Japanese Kitchen (with 2 more in the works, Qoola being one of them).  When phase 2 is completed, there are even more on the horizon.

For now, we were invited to try 4 of them as a means to exhibit the other side of the outlet mall.  We started off at a familiar name in Japadog.  Here we were presented with a tray consisting of 3 classics and 3 newer items.  These included their most popular items being the Terimayo, Oroshi and Okonomi.  There were also 3 I've never tried before in the Ebi Tempura, Love Meat and Avocado.  For me, the Terimayo still rocked with the tasty combination of mayo, teriyaki sauce, onions and nori.  We were also served their Shaked Fries in 4 flavours - Aonori, Butter & Shoyu, Ume, Katsuo and Shichimi & Garlic.  I've had these before and they are relatively crispy considering that they are tossed in wet ingredients.  I personally love the shichimi and garlic due to the spiciness and also the butter & shoyu.  

From there, we walked next door to Ryuu Japanese Kitchen where we were served Takoyaki, Philly Roll and Dragon Roll.  Surprisingly, my favourite item was the Takoyaki as it was warm and appealingly soft with a tender pieces of octopus.  It was dressed just enough for flavour without being too saucy.  I found the sushi rice for the rolls on the softer side, but it was hardly mushy.  The rolls were carefully constructed where they appeared clean and stayed in one piece when picked up.  I preferred the dragon roll since I've never been a fan of cream cheese in my sushi.  

If we weren't a satisfied with some of the bites we'd had so far, our appetites were easily quenched at The BiBo.  In addition to both Meat & Cheese Boards, we were served 2 different pastas including Gnocchi with a creamy sauce & Italian mushrooms as well as Ravioli stuffed with ricotta and spinach served with Italian datterini tomato sauce.  I found both pastas to be on point where the gnocchi was tender with only a mild density.  The ravioli was al dente and not over-stuffed where it maintained its texture with every bite.  I preferred the tomato sauce more though as it was bright and flavourful.  

Moving onto the Neapolitan-style pizzas, we were served 4 of them including the Margherita, Diavola, Montanara and Crudo.  For me, the classic and simple Margherita did the trick for me.  Its simplicity meant the crust stayed more dry where it was thin and chewy with a semi-charred exterior.  I also enjoyed the Montanara with only a touch of truffle which was enhanced by the porcini cream.  The Diavola was a bit salty due to the pepperoni, but the pizza stayed dry which meant the crust was not soggy. 

Our last stop was at Hugo's Churros where we sampled the soon-to-be-released Hot Chocolate dip with churros.  This was addictively tasty with a thick and rich chocolate dip that was purposefully sweet.  It featured marshmallow fluff on top which made the mixture sweeter (otherwise, the chocolate alone had a nice bitterness).  The crunchy churros went well with the silky hot chocolate.  We also had the Gelato with churros and this was a pretty sweet concoction.  I found the gelato to be richly creamy though.  

The Ice Cream Sandwich with pistachio gelato was certainly an interesting dessert.  Crunchy while holding up to the ice cream, the churro sandwich was pretty sweet.  For me, I much prefer the classic churro all by itself.  Hugo's certainly makes a really good one and it's too bad that I live far away from them (or is it a good thing?).  These 3 treats were a fine way to end an introduction to what one can dine on while at McArthurGlen.  As we were leaving, we could see more to come.  Maybe I'll just have to come back for those and some churros...

*All food and beverages were complimentary*

Poutinerie Jean-Talon

After trying out various versions of ice-fried yogurt at On Yogurt, Diana and I were thinking something savoury was in order.  Interestingly, we had to find a place that both of us have never been to.  That was a tall order as us 2 combined have covered many of the "usual" places in the GVRD.  Alas, Diana did some research and we settled on Poutinerie Jean-Talon next to Pizza Babarella.  Despite its name, the place actually serves up Japanese-influenced items including their poutine.

We began with a Small Poutine dressed with beef stew sauce and topped with mozzarella cheese (our choice for this as cheese curds were available as well as many other toppings).  The first thing that we noticed were the crunchy fries that were closer to crisps than anything resembling a potato.  These were fried so aggressively, even the gravy couldn't soften them up.  As for the gravy, it was somewhat meaty with a mild sweetness complimented by onions and mushrooms.

For our second course, we had the Katsu Sandwich with a side of Poutine with classic gravy and cheese curds.  I thought the pork cutlet was a bit firm, yet it was naturally meaty.  It was a touch dry, but by no means was it dried out.  The panko breading was somewhat crispy while conservatively sauced.  I would've preferred more tonkatsu sauce myself.  The side of poutine was somewhat similar to the beef stew version without the meat.  There was a dominant sweet onion flavour to the gravy.  For the unmelted cheese curds, they were indeed squeaky.

Lastly, we shared the Japanese Curry with hamburger.  The curry was mild and not overly sweet.  It was certainly chunky from all the veggies, yet it wasn't watered down either.  I though the hamburger patty was moist and tender, yet I would've liked to see less onion in it as the meat texture was hidden. Although I wasn't personally bowled-over by the food at Jean Talon, I do admit it was different and unique.  There are elements of Yoshuku cuisine here which is a rarity in the GVRD these days.  Hence, if you are indeed looking for something that isn't just the regular, Jean Talon is worth checking out.

The Good:
- Something different
- Really enthusiastic service
- Reasonably-priced

The Bad:- Still not sure about the crisps (trying to be frites)
- Flavours are very onion dominated  

What's Up? Hot Dog

As much as the gourmet hot dog craze has pretty much leveled out, there are surprisingly not an over-abundance of places one can get one.  Sure, there is Japadog, Dougie Dog and Eli's Serious Sausage, but other than some other hot dog carts, there are very few places dedicated to the sausage in a bun.  Enter the newly opened What's Up? Hot Dog located in the former Master Chef in East Village.  Seeing how my son wouldn't pass up a hot dog and waffle fries, we headed over there confident that he would approve.

Since their dogs are larger than most, we got the Matt & She's Dog for the kiddies to share.  Consisting of a natural Two Rivers beef dog, house made mac & cheese, bacon bits, green onion and black pepper, this combined 3 of my son's favourites.  Naturally, we omitted the green onion since it would put the poor kid in shock due to the addition of something green.  Beautifully juicy with a firm snap, the wiener was lightly smoky and only purposefully salty. Despite the rich orange hue, the mac & cheese could've benefited from more sharpness and salt.  The generous sprinkle of black pepper was pretty impactful with each bite.  For myself, I had the A-Rueben Bahama, Come on Pretty Mama with corned beef, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, hot mustard and Russian dressing.  This was essentially a large hot dog posing as a rueben sandwich.  This partially offset the price since it was a lot of food which was enough for me.  I enjoyed the ample amount of tangy sauerkraut and impactful hot mustard.

Viv opted for the Hog & his Pogs with pulled pork, house made BBQ sauce, apple slaw and pepperoncinis.  Again, this was an ample amount of food as there was enough topping to make its own sandwich.  The moist and well-sauced pork was slightly sweet and tangy.  Upping the tang was the slaw and pepperoncinis, which added a brightness to an otherwise heavy concoction.  With all the dogs, the soft bun generally held together and was somewhat airy.  We also got a couple orders of the Waffle Fries which were super light and crispy.  Despite its ample appearance, these fries went real fast since they were so easy to eat.  In the end, we enjoyed the specialty dogs at What's Up? Hot Dog.  At first, the prices concerned us ($8.99 - $10.99), yet if we take into account the quality of the actual wiener and the amount of toppings (which would fill another sandwich), then it becomes much more palatable.

The Good:
- Good quality Two Rivers wiener
- Ample toppings
- Nice people

The Bad:
- I didn't mind the prices, but for some, a $10.99 hot dog might not work for them
- Limited space

Pink's at Universal

Remember how I had to relegate our eating adventures to mediocre, overpriced food of Downtown Disney?  Well, it took another dive as we were stuck at Universal Studios for lunch.  You see, we only had one day at Universal and it didn't make sense to leave for food.  Besides, we wanted to take advantage of our "Front-of-the-Line" pass (so worth it IMO if you got impatient kids or more realistically, impatient dads...).  Trying to be a bit more original, Costanza suggested we try out Pink's (serving up hot dogs since 1939).

Viv and I ended up sharing the Chili Dog which was bordering on disgusting.  The bun was overly soggy from all the moisture, but worst of all, the chili was not very good.  It had a mealy mushy texture rather than meaty (the crunch from the onions did help the cause though).  It did taste relatively okay with a noticeable chili powder aftertaste.  The snap casing on the wiener was a positive though.  Costanza and Elaine tried the Mulholland which featured a spicy liquid nacho cheese sauce.  There was too much of it and it wasn't all that appetizing as it reminded us of 7-11.  Again, what saved the whole thing was the snap casing on the meaty wiener (and the crispy bacon).

For the kiddies, we got them a simple Bacon Dog and it was probably the best of the bunch.  Due to its simplicity, it was not wet nor was it overly salty from radioactive cheese sauce.  The wiener on its own was able to do its thing while the meaty bacon didn't hurt things. The sides of Fries were your standard starch-coated variety that ensured its crispiness and plenty of flavour due to the seasoning.  However, they ate like crisps more than fries as any starchiness as obliterated by the deep-fry. Okay, I sound pretty harsh in my opinions about a hot dog joint in a theme park.  But really, they weren't very good and cost us a pretty penny.  If I were you, I'd steer clear of this location.

The Good:
- Convenient
- Kids will eat it

The Bad:
- Expensive
- Food sucks

{FRITES} - Fries with Benefits

I'm sure you're familiar with the phrase, "Friends with Benefits".  If not, go watch the movie by the same name staring Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis.  Wait, on second thought, just Google it...  Well, interestingly, there is a new poutine joint in town name Frites - Fries with Benefits.  Um...  Does that mean we can snack on these suckers and have no remorse of guilt?  Wham, bam, thank you yam?  No, they don't use yams, but that was the only thing that rhymed...  Anyways, I rounded up the kids (they love poutine) and headed down to Frites in the former location of Dougie Dog.

A word of warning for those wanting to dine-in, with only 4 bar seats, it was just enough for us (barely).  We started off with the basic being the large Authentic Belgian Frites with 2 dips (roast garlic and lemon dill).  These fairly large fries were potatoey and only lightly crisp.  They weren't greasy while being adequately salted.  The roast garlic dip was sufficiently flavourful, yet could've been even more garlicky.  On the other hand, the lemon dill was full of impact especially from the dill.  We also got one Frites Dog with Korean hot pepper sauce.  This combination of hot sauce and mayo was moderately spicy and plenty creamy.  The beef hot dog was large and meaty where the casing exhibited an appealing snap.  The bun was a bit cold and plain, maybe some toasting or steaming would've helped.

As a baseline, we had the Traditional Poutine which featured a dual layer of gravy and cheese curds.  Since the frites were the thicker variety, the poutine was starchy and heavy.  Combined with the good amount of gravy (most of it was in the middle and bottom), all of the frites became even heavier.  With the cheese curds being nestled in the hot fries and gravy, they were melted and I could not see if they had any squeak or not.  Furthermore, the gravy was on the saltier side albeit of a silky rich consistency.  Now as for the Bacon Mushroom Poutine, it was more interesting as they piled on the toppings.  There was almost as much mushroom, bacon, cheese and gravy as the frites.  As such, there was plenty of various flavours such as salty, woodsy, smoky and cheesy.  My daughter couldn't stop eating it. Overall, we thought that Frites was okay, but not nearly as good as La Belle Patate and The Spud Shack.

The Good:
- Not shy with the ingredients
- The frites themselves are decent (if you like them starchier)
- Friendly enough service

The Bad:
- With all that gravy and stuff, the thicker fries get really heavy
- Purely takeout, only 4 seats, but that is the same as some other joints