Carioca Bowls

Initially, I was a bit apprehensive when we had Carioca Bowls on our schedule while visiting Portland.  Not that I want to eat burgers everyday, but healthy food and delicious aren't often mentioned in the same sentence.  However, I was about to find out that my fears were unwarranted as their bowls and smoothies were both appealing in appearance and delicious in taste.  How about that?  I could actually like some healthy bowls...

So before we got to those bowls, we tried all the available Superfood Smoothies including the Classic, Verde, Azul and Forza.  Despite 3 of them being a similar color, they were all unique in their own way.  I particularly enjoyed the verde due to the tropical fruitiness of mango and pineapple.  This was also true for the azul with blueberries and peaches, but it had another layer of sweetness from the dates.  With almond butter, this had a bit more body.  With the addition of peanut butter, both the classic and forza were thick and nutty while balanced off by the açai.

Off to the bowls, they all were comprised of one of the following bases: Rio (açai, strawberries, blueberries & banana), Ipa (açai, peanut butter,  blueberries, chia seeds & banana), Copa (açai, strawberries, blueberries, banana, lions mane & coconut milk) and Mar (açai & coconut sugar).  For their classic Carioca Bowl, it featured a Rio base with nut-free granola, sliced banana, strawberries & blueberies.  As you could expect, this was a fruity and refreshing concoction.  This ate fairly light and was blessed with natural sweetness from the fruit.  The Rio base was a carbon copy of the ingredients, hence, it matched really well.

With more body, due to the use of the Ipa base, the Ultra ate more heartily.  It was comprised of nut-free granola, sliced banana, strawberries, almond butter, dates and pumpkin seeds.  This was mainly a protein bowl and the heaviness of the base and ingredients made it filling.  Definitely not as light and fruity as the Carioca Bowl, but still had a bright component to balance off the richness of the peanut butter in the base and the almond butter.

Continuing on with more robust bowls, we had the Yogi consisting of both the Ipa and Copa bases, nut-free granola, sliced banana, strawberries, peanut butter, toasted coconut, cinnamon and coconut oil.   We already knew that the Ipa base was pretty robust, but with the addition of peanut butter, this was quite the meal, especially for breakfast.  However, if you wanted more than just fruit, this would be it.

Other than the original Carioca Bowl, my favourite of the bunch was the Pollinator with a Mar base, nut-free granola, sliced banana, kiwi, raspberries, bee pollen and honey.  This was definitely up my alley due to the fruity tang of the raspberries and kiwis.  The mar base provided some more bright fruitiness while the bee pollen added some floral sweetness.  Of course the crunch from the granola added some texture.

The Rose City Bowl was something a bit different as it featured a Rio base with hemp granola, sliced banana, strawberries, raspberries, Honey Mamas chocolate pieces, and Jem nut butter drizzle.  Yah, this was quite the creation with hits of fruit, sweetness from the chocolate crunch and richness of the nut butter.  This was yet another filling creation that would satisfy even the biggest appetites.

In addition to their smoothies and bowls, we also tried their Avocado Toast as well as the Brazilian Cheese Bread.  As you can see in the picture, this was a very different avocado toast.  It contained vegan sauce and hemp seeds.  Hence it had an earthy and nutty thing going on.  Possibly a bit of fermented taste to it too.  It was not lacking in flavor.  As for the cheese bread, the regular ones were just like how I like them - cheesy & chewy.  The vegan version was a bit more dense and had a slightly saltier taste.  Overall, I really did enjoy the bowls and smoothies, mostly due to the fresh fruit and the delicious bases.  This turned out to be the thing we needed to cleanse ourselves for the next batch of upcoming restaurants.

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

The Good:

- Fresh quality ingredients

- More healthy than most other meals

- It actually tastes good!

The Bad:

- Some of the more protein-focused items are rather heavy, but it is par for the course

Burger Crush

So I finally made it out to Burger Crush located in the spot that use to house Johnny Rockets (really too bad as I actually liked the place).  They are originally from Victoria and offer up a simplified burger experience.  No bells & whistles according to their website, only burgers, fries and milkshakes (also some tofu nuggets...).  This is not the first burger chain to make its way into the Lower Mainland from Victoria, Bin 4 was the first.  

So I wandered into Downtown since I was already getting my hair cut nearby.  My son was with me and he didn't object to some burger and fries.  Usually, I'm a "more meat" kinda guy, but I went for the Single Cheeseburger as a baseline.  Well, I have to say that it was substantial enough that I really didn't need to make it a double.  The beef patty was thick and juicy with a good char on the outside.  It tasted beefy and combined with the LTOP, cheese and burger sauce, it was messy, but good.  The brioche bun was on point being robust enough to keep things together without being dense.

For a growing boy, my son really didn't think twice and had the Double Cheeseburger with all of the same fixin's but of course with 2 patties. Okay, this was really substantial and although he dusted it off, he did admit it was filling and he didn't need a third patty.  One of the biggest differences between this and the single was the bun-to-meat ratio.  He noticed the bun less than I did and it didn't keep everything in as successfully.  Hey not a bad thing because burgers are supposed to be messy!

Onto the sides, he had the single order of French Fries.  This was quite a lot of thin crispy fries and it could easily be shared amongst 2 people with smaller appetites.  As mentioned, they were crispy with potato texture left inside.  They were properly salted where he didn't even need ketchup. I would say that they were solid, but personally I still love McD's the best.

For myself, I went for the Crush Fries with fried onions, cheese and Crush sauce.  Okay, if these remind you of In-N-Out Animal Style, you would be correct.  I felt they were very similar, even down to the type of fries (albeit these were crispier and better than regular In-N-Out fries).  There was a lot of onions, but that was a good thing as it added sweetness.  My son thought these were better than the plain fries.  We also tried their Vegan Nuggets made out of firm tofu.  Honestly, I did not like these.  They were rather dense and pretty bland, but crispy.  I felt that if they seasoned the tofu more, it would've been better.  We got all the dips including Hot Crush, Sweet Crush, Herb Crush and Original Crush.  I thought the hot one had the most impact, but still, that didn't save these nuggets.

For his beverage, my son had the Chocolate Milkshake (that could be made vegan too).  He thought that it was pretty sweet and actually quite runny.  It wasn't necessarily a bad thing as it was easy to slurp.  However, it wasn't as creamy as he wanted it to be.  Overall, we thought the burgers at Burger Crush were on point with well-prepared patties, fresh produce and an excellent bun.  Fries were okay while the vegan nuggets were not good.  We'd come back for the burgers.

The Good:
- Excellent burgers with thick moist patties
- Simple menu that makes it easy to order

The Bad:
- Not a fan of those nuggets

Bamboo World Kitchen (Granville Street)

It goes without saying that eating healthier is a good plan when one normally dines on an abnormal amount of rich foods.  So with that in mind, I did not hesitate to accept an invite to try the newly opened Bamboo World Kitchen in South Granville.  Not only do they want the customer to be served healthier options, they are committed to be as sustainable as possible with local organic ingredients and Oceanwise seafood.  Furthermore, their packaging is plant-based and even their countertops are made from recycled chopsticks.  Now that is commendable, but honestly, we need to see if the food can pass the taste test too right?

So getting right to it, we sampled their Dim Sum items first including Bamboo Gyoza, Prawn Dumpling and Bean Curd Rolls.  So I gotta tell you, these were pretty legit.  The gyoza was vegetarian with a combination of cabbage, carrots and shiitake which was tender and moist.  I found the wrapper to be thin and al dente in texture.  There was enough flavour on its own due to the white pepper, five spice and black truffle oil, however, the side of citrus soy helped brighten up the flavour profile.  So if you are wondering how the prawn dumplings turned out, I'm glad to report that they were really good.  The dumpling skin was medium thickness but tender with a slight chewiness.  Inside, the buttery shrimp did that sweet snap thing with the unmistakable hint of sesame oil and white pepper.  There was a chili lime sauce that predictably added tang and spice, but I much preferred dipping it into the Royal Bamboo Sauce that came with the bean curd rolls (think of it as a hot sauce with tang and sweetness).  About those bean curd rolls, they decided to make them semi-crispy rather than the traditional soft version we find at Chinese restaurants.  I thought it was a good decision as it was less messy to eat and it had an airy crispy texture encasing bamboo shoots, carrots, wood ear and mung bean vermicelli.

Off to their main part of the menu where any of their creations could be had in a wrap or a bowl.  We decided to give their Bangkok Bowl a try that consisted of organic tofu (+$2.00) marinated rice noodle, tomato, cucumber, pickled carrot, romaine lettuce, cilantro, scallions, coconut curry sauce and royal bamboo sauce.  I thought that the ingredients were fresh and appealing while the sauces combined to offer up all of the flavours including spice, tang, sweet, savoury and even a touch of bitterness.  The noodles were soft due to being marinated and I personally would've preferred a chewier version.  However, Jacqueline's parents tried the bowls too and they liked the texture of the noodles.  So each to their own.

To get a sense of what things would be like in a wrap, we had the Bombay in a flour tortilla (also can opt for a sundried tomato or spinach tortilla as well).  This wrap contained organic local chicken (+$4.00), bamboo brown rice, red onion, cucumber, marinated chickpea, mango chutney, grape tomato, spinach and cilantro with a curry yogurt sauce.  Of course this ate very differently than a bowl where I was able to get almost every ingredient in one bite.  Therefore, I got the meatiness of the tender chicken, crunch from the greens and firmness of the chickpeas.  In terms of flavour, the curry yogurt was tangy with unmistakable Indian spices.  This was tempered by the sweetness of the chutney.  In my opinion, the wrap would be my choice.

Too add even more greens to our order, we also had the Bamboo Forest (which is more of a salad) with Oceanwise shrimp (+3.00), mixed greens, marinated rice noodles, bean sprouts, bamboo shoots, edamame, mint, basil, cilantro, scallions, cashews, black sesame seeds, radish, sweet chili sauce and citrus soy vinagrette.  I really loved this bowl as the shrimp was perfectly prepared and once again, the ingredients were fresh and vibrant.  Lots of crunch from the veggies and a soft nuttiness from the cashews.  The combination of sauces added tang, saltiness and a minor touch of spice.

I feel that their Smoothies were their most stealthily awesome item on the menu.  We ended up trying the Raspberry (raspberries, banana, dates, vanilla extract and almond milk) and Blueberry Maple (blueberries, maple syrup, banana, dates, vanilla extract and almond milk).  These could also be had with soy milk if desired.  We finished these aggressively as they were smooth, fruity and smooth with just enough sweetness.  A really nice compliment to our mains and dim sum without feeling heavy or overfilling.

We saved a bit of room for dessert and had the Vegan Coconut Panna Cotta topped with cherry compote and toasted coconut.  Being a vegan version, there was no gelatin in this and hence it was more akin to yogurt in texture.  It tasted great with a mild sweetness complimented by the semi-sweet compote.  Texture and aroma was provided by the toasted coconut.  So you know what?  I guess it sounds clichéd to say this, but we really did feel good after eating this meal.  Nothing was heavy, yet still satisfying and full-of-flavour.  Bamboo World is a good option for those who need to grab lunch everyday but want to avoid the usual fast foods.  Looks like people agree with this sentiment as they are opening up their second location on Broadway close to VGH shortly.

*All food and beverages were complimentary*

The Good:
- Fresh local sustainable ingredients and plant-based packaging
- Flavours from around the world
- Reasonable pricing considering the quality of ingredients

The Bad:
- For me, the rice noodles could've been chewier, but then again, other people liked it  

Nightshade

Yes, I admit vegan cuisine isn't something that I normally crave nor care for.  However, after trying 2 vegan meal kits in the past little while, it has shown me that with a bit of creativity, the food can be tasty.  So once again, I went in with an open mind when I got an invite to try out the newly opened Nightshade in Yaletown.  Also, they aren't merely throwing together something like a salad and calling it vegan.  Executive Chef Chanthy Yen brings an elevated experience that borders on fine-dining.

Getting right to it, we started with the excellent Five Spiced Beets with salt roasted beets  five-spiced white balsamic vinaigrette garnished with puffed kasha, citrus, raita, and shiso.  This was bursting with acidity and sweetness.  Texturally, the beets were tender with a gentle bite.  The puffed kasha added the necessary crunch to give some contrast in texture.  Loved the thoughtfulness of the dish where the flavours were bright and balanced as well as the textures.

The Crispy Cassava was my favourite of the night.  It consisted of fried cassava served with lotus root chips, mint puree and spicy red curry aioli.  I thought the cassava couldn't have been prepared any more perfectly.  It was pillowy soft as described on the menu while crispy on the outside.  Flavours were impactful from the herbaceous mint and the promise of spice from the red curry.  I could've eaten several servings of this.

Continuing on with things fried, we tried the Taro Roll featuring rice paper stuffed with a peppery taro, tofu, carrot and vermicelli filling served with mint, basil, butter lettuce and palm sugar dipping sauce.  Looking at the picture, you'll notice much more in the way of carrot, vermicelli and tofu rather than taro.  No matter, these rolls were good with a crispy rice paper wrapper.  It could've been fried just a touch longer though.  Loved the sweet and tangy dip as well as the greens to wrap the rolls.  It added aromatics and some brightness.

We also tried their sushi in the Fire Roll with house-made organic kimchi, sweet shiitake mushrooms, avocado, sambal, tempura crunch and togarashi.  Other than the rice was probably laid on a bit too thick, the roll was quite good.  Rice texture was on point while the combination of ingredients offered up sweet, tang and spiciness.  There was good heat to live up to its namesake.  Adding the tempura crunch was key to providing textural contrast.

The one dish that needed some work was the House Roti scented with fenugreek and garam masala served with vegan garlic butter and raita chutney.  I thought the raita was refreshing with tang and sweetness.  Vegan garlic butter was aromatic.  The roti itself really came through with the Indian flavours but texturally it was far too dense.  I realize it is vegan, but I'm sure they will be able to rectify this in time.

Onto some mains, we tried the Truffle Tteokbokki Gnocchi.  Although I loved the individual components , it seemed like 2 completely different dishes combined into one.  I love rice cake and these were good.  I also loved the sauce as it was full of umaminess and savouriness.  I also enjoyed the wild mushrooms, they were sauteed perfectly and seasoned well.  However, this would've probably been better with vegan gnocchi as the components didn't go with each other. 

Something I was excited about trying was the Braised Burdock cooked in a green curry base and served with pickled snow fungus, sautéed wild rice, sunchoke puree, salisfy and charcoal infused garlic oil.  Texturally, I enjoyed the contrast between the tender burdock and the crisp salsify.  I didn't get a lot of green curry flavour, so the dish ate a bit plain.  However, the garlic oil did help add some aromatics.

My favourite entree was the Grilled Mushroom on Toast sporting local mushrooms cooked 3 ways served on house made focaccia layered with Maggi butter and mushroom pate then garnished with Miso pickled Daikon.  I thought the mushrooms were prepared perfectly with a smoky sear and not bleeding moisture.  The pate was full of umaminess.  Loved the addition of Maggi.  However, the toast itself was too thick and dense.  Split that in half and have 2 crunchier toasts would've been preferable.

Onto dessert, we had the Rosewater Apple Tart with Pink Lady apples garnished with hibiscus and spiced milk foam.   For a vegan tart shell, this was pretty good.  It was firm and was not dry breaking apart like a regular tart shell.  Loved how they layered the sliced apples, it was pretty.  Texturally, the apples were tender while still retaining a crunch.  The foam was light and airy with just enough hibiscus and sweetness.

We ended with the Creme Brulee with lavender vegan custard topped with raspberry hibiscus coulis and candied hazelnuts topped with micro mint and freeze-dried raspberry powder.   Although the custard was on the thinner side, it wasn't a deal-breaker.  It was creamy and purposefully sweet.  I liked how the use of lavender was restrained.  Hence the raspberry powder was able to come through as well as the hazelnuts.  Overall, we felt that the effort put into the food at Nightshade is commendable.  Trying to refine and provide a dining experience that is purely vegan can be challenging.  The small plates were quite impressive and so were the desserts.  We felt the entrees needed some work but definitely has potential.  I can positively say that I would be be open to returning to check out some other dishes and seeing what refinements are instituted with existing items.

*All food and beverages were complimentary*

The Good:

- Carefully prepared food

- Appies that will make you forget about meat

- Elevated vegan dining experience

The Bad:

- Some further refinement needed with the mains

Manna Sacred Meals

If you haven't noticed, I don't have much of a relationship with vegan eats.  In fact, vegetarian might even be a stretch for me.  However, when done right, I'm more than happy to go meatless.  Now it gets much more challenging when you take out all animal products hence I've tread very lightly when it comes to plant-based cuisine.  Recently, Manna Sacred Meals reached out to me and asked if I would try some of their meal kits.  They consists of all of the prepared ingredients sealed in bags that you either remove and bake or boil in the bag itself.

I was rather curious how one could make a "Smoked Salmon" Sushi Bake without fish.  Well, the "salmon" was actually smoked carrot slices that were indeed smoky and sweet just like salmon.  In the bake itself, there was tofu, veggies and greens. Now this ate quite well, despite not really resembling a sushi bake.  I would say it was more like a hearty vegetarian dip.  Lots of textures at play.

My favourite item was the Bulgogi Lettuce Wraps with kimchi fried rice and marinated soy curls & veggie stir fry. Loved the use of red romaine as it was more malleable so it didn't split.  The fried rice was nutty, a bit spicy and perfectly textured.  For me, I love soy curls, so the chewy texture was appealing.  There was plenty of seasoning and the unmistakable taste of shiitake.  I would've liked less bamboo shoot essence though.

I was initially worried that Truffle Wild Mushroom Pasta would be woefully overdone due to the reheating process.  To my pleasant surprise, the whole grain pasta was perfectly al dente.  There was a plethora of mixed mushroom, garlic, olive oil, herb and truffle.  In fact, we had some leftover!  Could use that with something else.  To complete the dish, there was a lemon roasted veggies and tempeh.  Compared to a regular mushroom cream pasta, this was heartier and with more body.  Just enough truffle to go with the natural woodsiness of the mushrooms.  Really tasty.

Last dish was the Portobello Mushroom Steaks stuffed with lentils and accompanied by fresh herb spaghetti squash, braised cabbage and MANNA drizzle.  I would like to use the word hearty again to describe this.  Despite the lack of meat, this was fulfilling and "meaty".  The mushroom was well-seasoned and the lentil stuffing had body yet wasn't too dense.  Absolutely loved the spaghetti squash.  Great texture and nicely seasoned while naturally sweet.  Overall, I really did enjoy the plant-based meals from Manna.  This was a convenient way to eat more healthy while being tasty at the same time.

*Food was complimentary*

The Good:

- Not lacking in flavour

- Hearty even without the meat

- Healthier

 The Bad:

 - Bamboo shoots in the lettuce wrap could be less pungent

Nourish Kitchen & Cafe

Although Nourish Kitchen & Cafe has built up quite the following in Victoria and beyond, I wasn't really familiar with the place.  By virtue of staying nearby (Inn at Laurel Point) and walking past it daily for the past 4 days, it was a given we were going to dine there eventually.  So we decided to hit it up for brunch on our last day staying in Downtown Victoria.  So what makes Nourish so special?  Well consider that it appeals to Vegan, Vegetarian, Gluten-free and Paleo-diets as well as everyone else.  Wait, is that even possible?  I guess we were about to find out.

To start things off, we had the Hummus with Roasted Veggies.  At first, I thought this would be a small appie, but since it was on the lunch menu, I guess it was enough for a meal.  Featuring perfectly roasted parsnips, peppers, broccoli and cauliflower, this would've been delicious (not to mention healthy) by themselves.  However, they rested on a bed of hummus that was probably intentionally chunky.  There was texture and smoothness combined to create a great dip for the sweet veggies.  I would've liked a bit more tang, but that didn't make or break the dish.  I also got a small cup of their All the Power Chicken Bone Broth with ginger and turmeric oil.  This was flavourful and full of umami complete with substantial natural chicken flavour.  Tasty, yes and also good for you!

Onto my main, I went for the Sleeping Beauty Pancakes with featuring cardamom oat pancakes, apple compote, organic pomegranate whipped cream, bee pollen sprinkles, maple syrup and smoked bacon (added for $5.00 more).  These were thick, but surprisingly light considering the use of oats.  Slightly fluffy with a firmer exterior, these were sweetened by the compote and syrup.  When eaten with the smoky lean bacon, the pancakes had a fruit sweet and smoky salty combo flavour.  Surprisingly good considering this was gluten-free.  My son was appalled that we brought him to a place like this and had his eyes only on the Normal Breakfast.  This consisted of 2 farm fresh eggs, salad, buckwheat seedy toast and smoked bacon (also added for $5.00).  As much as this was gluten-free, he loved the crunchy and nutty toast.  Eggs were perfect and the bacon was lean and meaty.

Viv ended up with the Bonita Bowl sporting 2 soft poached eggs, cilantro hollandaise, molasses and chili baked beans, roasted squash, avocado and apple salsa, salted cabbage, pickled jalapenos and crumbled chorizo (also $5.00 more).  This was gluten-free and could be had as dairy-free too.  This was pretty substantial with a wealth of meaty and mild chorizo and 2 perfectly poached eggs.  The hollandaise was tangy and light with a bit of herbaceousness.  Lots of things going on including flavours from all of the ingredients that included sweet, spicy, tangy and of course salty.  Miss Y, who joined us, and my daughter both had the Benny Gone Nuts with 2 poached farm eggs, blanched kale, mushrooms, baked sweet potatoes, turmeric cashew hollandaise and haus verde pork sausage ($5.00 more).  This was gluten-free and dairy-free, but was no worse for wear because of it.  Hollandaise was earthy and tangy, eggs were runny and the use of veggies rather than bread made a unique but ultimately tasty concoction.  Sausage was meaty and full of flavour.  Yep, we liked this place despite my initial reservations.  If you are nearby, give it a try.

The Good:
- Appeals to all forms of diets
- Food is actually tasty
- Quaint house

The Bad:
- It ain't cheap, but fair for Downtown Victoria

Virtuous Pie

The likelihood that I willingly and knowingly make a visit to a vegetarian and/or vegan restaurant is pretty slim.  Now add in the fact that I had to "fool" my son into eating anything remotely close to his non-preferred foods makes it even more remote.  I think if I had told him straight up that we were bound for Virtuous Pie would elicit nightmarish screams and protest.  However, we really went there and yes, I didn't say a word.  To be fair, from what I've heard, the place ain't bad especially when no meat or cheese is involved.

Well, it wasn't too much of a stretch (sorry for the pun) for him to try their version of the classic Margherita Pizza.  This featured San Marzano tomato sauce, cashew mozzarella and fresh basil on a 3-day hand-stretched crust.   Normally, most thin-crust pizzas are generally softer in the middle, but not this one.  It was firmly crunchy (and a bit dry) emulating a hard cracker-like texture.  I found the tomato sauce to be decently flavourful with a mild tang.  The cashew mozzarella did its job and fooled my son.  However, the "Italian Field Roast Sausage" on the Flower & Water didn't emulate meat enough for him to like it.  For me, I love gluten and the texture was spot on.  The pizza was a little spicy with a strong roasted fennel sweetness as well as the aromatics from the confit garlic.

We also got the Super Funghi with scalloped potatoes, truffle almond ricotta, wild mushrooms and rocket.  This was noticeably Earthy and aromatic with the robust texture of the potatoes.  It was drier than the other 2 pizzas though.  To change things up, we tried their Potato Salad sporting firm chunks of purple and regular nugget potatoes.  There was a considerable amount of dill and onion flavour.  I also enjoyed the large amount of plump mushrooms.  So, from reading my post, you can clearly see I wasn't turned off by the non-meat and cheese pizzas.  To be honest, I would prefer a typical Neapolitan pizza more, but this wasn't bad at all.

The Good:
- Fairly appealing for a vegan pizza
- Simple and minimalist, yet modern

The Bad:
- For meat-eaters, this may not replace the real thing.