Manolis

Okay, why does this always happen? Our annual softball tournament had to fall on the hottest day of the year so far. Not only that, the league decided to schedule 4 games in a row without breaks. Luckily I brought plenty of Gatorade and had picked up some Banh Mi earlier in the morning. The day started off quite well with a convincing win in our first game. Then we proceeded to lose our next 2. The third one was particularly troubling for 2 reasons. First, I was almost knocked into the next area code when I collided with an opposing player at first base. I got a bloody nose for my troubles. Then, on an obvious out at 3rd base, the ump inexplicably called the opposition safe. That cost us 2 runs and yup, the game as well. Seems like the ump should've eased up on the cocktails whilst umping. Luckily we were able to squeak out a win in our 4th game to finish 2-2. Thus, by virtue of run-differential by only one run, we made it the next round.

Joyous, yet very tired, we all headed back home to shower and re-energize. Don't worry, we were still gonna eat! Therefore, we had to find a place that was central to everyone. That ended to be Manolis. Much like last year at Stella's, Manolis does not have A/C. Being the hottest day of the year so far, we had to rely on ceiling fans. Too bad the fans and restaurant lighting kept going out throughout our meal. Looks like the circuit breaker couldn't take it anymore. Maybe it was suffering from heat exhaustion as well? At first glance, the prices here seem a bit high. However, they currently have a special for $10.99 which gives you a choice of roast lamb, souvlaki or moussaka. Judes got the Spanakopita as an appy and it was pretty average. Dry and bland. Ketchup and Ranger started with the Saganaki. She was a little disappointed with the it since it was a little on the dry side and not as flavourful as she would've liked.. With that said, how can one not like deep fried cheese? Ketchup went for the Chicken Souvlaki while Ranger had the Beef Souvlaki. Presented similarly on a bed of rice with lemon potato and Greek Salad, the portion size was indeed very modest. If we had to pay the regular prices, this would be a terrible value. Since Bear and I decided to share the Manolis Platter, I got to sample practically everything that was ordered at the table. Thus, I didn't need to scam samples from everyone. I found both of the souvlakis to be overcooked and dry. Despite this, there was good flavour with a proper amount of seasoning including lemon and garlic. The lemon potatoes had a nice softness to them without being mushy. I would've liked even more lemon though. I was really confused with the rice. Texturally, it was fine (slightly chewy); but it was spicy. Hey, I have nothing wrong with spicy, I like spicy. Yet, it was not what I expected. I liked the Greek Salad, it was fresh and only lightly dressed.

Boss Woman, Hot Chocolate and Milhouse all had the Roast Lamb and once again, the portion size was very modest. Although the lamb was not incredibly moist, it wasn't dry either. There was some really tender portions mixed in with slightly chewier pieces. That is usually the case with roast lamb anyways. There was a pronounced garlic flavour and for me, that was very good. Judes went for the Prawn & Scallop Souvlaki. The prawns were small and scrawny for her liking and the scallops were a tad overcooked being chewy and a bit hard. She was confused with the rice as well. Spicy rice? Maybe in a Spanish restaurant. She was not that impressed with her meal. As mentioned, Bear and I shared the Manolis Platter which consists of roast lamb, beef & chicken souvlaki, calamari, keftedes (substitution for dolamathes), lemon potatoes, veggies, rice, tzatziki and humus. For $50.00, there was a fair amount of food; however, the summer specials, being $11.00 each would be a better deal. I liked the Calamari. The squid was tender and well-seasoned. The batter could've been a bit more crisp though. I wasn't a huge fan of the Keftedes. They were dry and bland. It needed a lot of tzatziki to save it. As for the humus, it was quite oily and also lacking in seasoning, although it did have a good amount of garlic.

Lack of A/C withstanding, our experience at Manolis was quite underwhelming. If we had to pay the regular menu prices (which Bear & I did), the portion sizes are insufficient. In terms of the food itself, it was mostly below average with a few highlights. With so many other Greek restaurants around, Manolis would not be high on my list.

The Good:
- Summer special pricing
- Friendly staff (all one of them)

The Bad:
- So-so food
- Expensive regular pricing
- Small portions

Fujiya

Normally, for most people, fresh sushi is a must. Considering that it is raw fish and rice, you wouldn't want it pre-made or sitting around too long. Think of it, both the fish and rice start to degrade and take on textures that are undesirable. Furthermore, I'm also pretty sure most people prefer freshly made Japanese food as well, such as donburi, gyoza, croquette and teriyaki. So if this is the case, why is Fujiya so darn popular? Well, the really low prices don't hurt. If a donburi only costs $3.95, there is not much complaining to be heard. Also, there are times (as few as they are) that someone might want to grab a quick bite that doesn't involve lining up where "smiles are free". Yup, fast food that is generally healthier and different than the usual burger or taco. Of course boxed pre-made sushi is never a first choice. For me, the rice just get all hard and gummy.

With that being the case, it doesn't stop me from doing the occasional Fujiya run. Fujiya is actually a Japanese market the sells everything from dry goods to fresh fish. Yet, they are mostly known for their inexpensive sushi, bento boxes, donburi and other food items. The open display case is quite impressive and extensive. At this location, there is a small eating area at the front entrance complete with a microwave and TV. The microwave is essential for heating up the pre-packaged cold food. Too bad there is no way to revive the rice in their sushi... Oh well, the things you have to expect from premade sushi. So as expected, the Nigiri is only average due to the cold rice and equally stiff fish. However, the fish itself is pretty decent considering. As for the Scallop & Tobiko Roll (and frankly all of their rolls), there is a liberal use of sushi rice. Furthermore, they are not the prettiest to look at. Once again, with tempered expectations, the rolls are alright. I must admit the rice does have decent flavour. I won't judge the texture too much since it is refrigerated, although it is chewy and not mushy.

While I was perusing the sushi and other cooked food, I noticed that they had Japanese Curry. So I gave it a go. I'm not sure if it was due to being the bottom of the barrel (literally bottom of the pot); but the curry was very thick and lacking beef. I could count only 3 pieces. Flavourwise, Japanese curry is sweet rather than spicy. However, this one was very sweet. Again, not sure if it was because there was very little left. For $3.95, the Tonkatsu Don and Oyako Don are a good value. I know for that price, we should be a bit forgiving. In the case of tonkatsu, inevitably, it will be soggy if reheated. It was in this case and it will never be confused for the freshly made version. Once again, it's only $3.95 and for people who just want food to fill them up, it's a fabulous deal. Okay, probably one of the few things that could possibly pass off as fresh when reheated in the microwave are the Gyozas. Yah, the bottoms won't be crisp; however, it's close enough. These are pretty decent, with a relatively thin wrapper and light filling. And for the umpteenth time, for the price, there is not much to complain about. And honestly, that is the whole point of Fujiya. It is what it is. I'm personally not a huge fan of prepackaged Japanese food. In this case, it serves a purpose and is not really in competition with actual Japanese restaurants.

The Good:
- Inexpensive
- Pretty good selection
- It's Japanese-run, if that matters

The Bad:
- Refrigerated sushi is not really all that appealing
- Some fried items do not reheat nicely

Golden Day Cake House

After dropping off JuJu and RBC at Brit, fresh from our brunch at the Alibi Room, I proceeded to head home. Whilst driving along Hastings, I quickly pulled into the 7-11 parking lot. If you were thinking of Slurpee, think again. Rather, it was a pit stop for some Chinese buns. Okay, okay, I know, Hastings and Chinese buns... I know what you're thinking. No, I didn't go for those type of buns. I'm talking about Chinese pastries. Although chain bakeries such as Maxim's, Pine House and Anna's fit the bill, I find that their bakery items to be getting to be boring. They seem to be shrinking in size (esp. Maxim's) and going up in price. Thus, it has led me to find other places for my fix. There have been pleasant surprises such as Karmony and 1st Ave Bakery. So, I though that it was time to give Golden Day Cake House a go.

While I was getting my order, of all people, JuJu walks in. Apparently he had the Chinese bun urges as well (that just sounds awesome). The first thing that struck me were how big the buns were! I love big buns! And they were very inexpensive. Cheap big buns! You gotta love that. So for only a measly $9.00, I got 6 Egg Tarts, 4 BBQ Pork Buns and 4 Pineapple Buns. Once I got home, I needed to try some. I was pleasantly surprised that the Egg Tarts were still warm (very fresh outta the oven). I really wish that the tart shell would've been flakier; but the filling was pretty good. Only semi-sweet while exhibiting some residual egg flavour, this was a decent egg tart. Then I proceeded to slice the BBQ Pork Bun in half. As you can see, there is only a modest amount of pork in the bun. Mind you, that modest amount was very good. Not over-sauced or over-seasoned, the filling tasted like BBQ pork. I also really liked the airy, slightly chewy bun.

That would be the same for the Pineapple Bun as well. It was large with the same great texture and of course the classic sugar topping (that only looks like a pineapple, there is no pineapple in the bun). So another random bakery and another pleasant surprise. The stuff is pretty good and the prices are low. It's nice to get big fresh buns for cheap along Hastings...

The Good:
- Cheap
- Large buns
- Dough texture is not too dense

The Bad:
- Egg tarts were good, but I didn't like the tart shell
- It says it's a cake house, but the selection for that is limited

Central City Brewing

"Bacon Tasting Menu". That alone would stop many people in their tracks or some hearts as well... For me, when I heard that Central City Brewing was doing their take on bacon overload, that was essentially a calling. Problem being is that I rarely venture out to Whalley for dinner. No, it's not because of the area. It gets too much of a bad rap already. Rather, I'm not exactly close by during the evening. Thus, I would need to make a special trip out. No matter, have food, will travel. In fact, Kim and Elaine were intrigued enough with the bacon tasting to do the same trip out. I was a little late arriving and met up with Elaine at the front. When I inquired where Kim might be, she remarked he was getting a massage... Uh... a what? Okay, I'll leave it at that. I really don't want to know. Maybe the bacon tasting is his version of a happy ending? Whatever the case, we sat down first and waited for him to finish up with the massage. While waiting, I noticed some of my co-workers (who had planned to go as well) and chatted with them. Eventually, I would go to their table to take photos of their food. Yes, the shamelessness of it all. Hey, Kim took photos too!

Now, instead of ordering 3 bacon tasting meals, we decided to order one and get other dishes as well. Good thing too because the tasting meal had a beer pairing for each course. 3 beers! Not for me, I was driving! And not for Kim because he's a cheap drunk! On that note, we could see why the meal was $35.00... We started with the Bacon & Corn Cakes. Resembling doughy pancakes, there was a definite smoky, salty bacon taste to these. The sweetness of the corn was a nice balance to the bacon. I would've preferred the cakes to be slightly more crisp and less dense. However, they were good in their own way.

Second course consisted of a Bacon Terrine served with pickled veggies, salad and mustard. I wasn't exactly fond of the cold bacon fat on the exterior of the terrine. The texture is just all wrong in my mouth. For the terrine itself, it was rock hard and practically impossible to spread on the crostinis. Furthermore, there was a severe lack of bacon taste. In fact, I found it quite bland. The accompanying mustard was quite strong and completely overwhelmed the terrine. Was that the intention? If so, that worked in that respect. Before Kim arrived, Elaine had her eye on the mussels. No, not my muscles or lack-there-of... Unless a one-pack counts as a muscle! What we did end up with was the Bacon & Blue Cheese Mussels. As if we didn't have enough bacon already (never too much bacon!), this dish was quite good. I thought the blue cheese would be overwhelming; but there was just enough to declare their attendance without getting a detention for being too loud. That goes the same for the bacon. Definitely there; but just enough for flavour. The mussels themselves were plump, just cooked and all open except for one. A solid offering on all fronts.

A dish that piqued our interest was the Central City Fried Chicken. It consists of a de-boned half chicken stuffed with cream cheese, caramelized onions and herbs coated with a blend of 9 herbs and spices. Sounds good on paper eh? In reality, it looked quite unappetizing when it arrived. Sure, looks can be deceiving; but I really didn't like this one. For me, anything stuffed with cream cheese becomes a goopy mess. This was no exception. Sure, the sweetness of the onions was nice; yet I didn't get a whole lot of flavour from the chicken or coating. It was a little on the overcooked side as well. The horror show didn't end there. The coleslaw had enough dressing to make a whole batch. And, the baked mac 'n cheese tasted like Kraft Dinner. No offense to KD; but I don't want my restaurant-made mac 'n cheese to taste and look like KD.

As if we really needed that much food in the first place, we also got a Pizza Margarita. The ingredients were fresh and the crust was thin and crispy. However, the pizza lacked flavour. In fact, Kim brought up a good point. The fresh basil should not have been cooked with the pizza. Rather, it should've been placed on the pizza afterwards. Personally, I thought the top of the pizza was too wet. The last course of the bacon tasting was the Bacon Cheesecake. Essentially a cheesecake square with bacon bits and syrup on top and around, this was a winner. The cheesecake itself was really smooth and not as heavy as it looks. Not too sweet with good cream cheese flavour, the syrup did not overwhelm. The bacon was a nice contrast. A definite winner and am glad to hear it's on the regular menu.

This was a good end to a meal that started off strong and fizzled in the middle. I really give Central City Brewing kudos on attempting food that is beyond the regular fare we find at such establishments. Of course some items worked out better than others. We weren't looking for perfection and that should never be an expectation. Yet, as a whole, the meal was not bad. I personally liked the decor and the service was friendly (if not a tad slow and forgetful). With everything taken into account, CCB is a decent place to grab some drinks and food while watching the game.

The Good:
- Dares to be a bit different
- Nice decor
- Friendly service

The Bad:
- Not cheap
- With risks comes hit and miss
- Food and service was a bit slow

Fet's

For the love of... Finally, we won a game. Our hockey team has been on a 5-game losing streak that has seen us get crushed in most games. Being the goalie, it has not really helped my self-confidence. I'm ready to go to Goalies Anonymous. The only thing that has been keeping me going is the promise of eats afterwards. Continuing the trend of not going for wonton noodles, we headed over to the Drive, in particular Fet's. We attempted to eat here once; but arrived as they were closing. Thus, we ended up going for Pho. For once, this time around we had an earlier game and made it in time.

Emilicious had the Fish Tacos. She thought it was the perfect amount of food for a late-night snack. It was light and refreshing with seafood (fish & shrimp). The salsa was quite spicy but good for those who like it hot. All-in-all, $10 for three tacos is a good value. Silent Bob had the BBQ Chicken Pizza. He found the pizza to be really tasty. Every bite, he could taste something different - chicken, caramelized onions, BBQ sauce. There was a nice crispy thin crust. Something he'd definitely order again.

Milhouse and Gordo both had the Chicken Wrap. The wrap was quite good. The darn thing was big and tightly-packed. The second half of the wrap began to moisten due to the abundance of ingredients. The Fet's fries were a pleasant surprise. Freshly-cut, they were quite starchy and not greasy. They were not extremely crisp; yet they stay the same level of crispiness from start to finish. For myself, I contemplated on their popular burgers. Since I had a burger at White Spot earlier in the day, it didn't seem like the best decision to do it again. Thus, I opted for the Gnocchi & Capocollo. Being a bar-type establishment, I wasn't holding out much hope for my pasta. To my utter surprise, the darn thing was pretty good. The gnocchi itself wasn't going to set the culinary world on fire since it was on the denser side. With that being said, I still liked it. The real star of the show was the delicious sauce. With a nice kick from the capocollo and littered with big chunks of meat, there was no absence of flavour at work here. Overall the food was good for the price. Service was friendly for us. Only thing is we could've used A/C ...felt a little warm.

The Good:
- Well-priced
- Food is pretty solid
- Great place to hang out

The Bad:
- A bit warm w/o A/C (but since it was open in the front, can't see how there could be A/C either)
- Tight seating

Two Chefs & a Table

*Restaurant is now closed*

While driving down Alexander after brunch at the Alibi Room, RBC noticed a small quaint restaurant with a nice wall of wine bottles. Right then and there, we knew this was to be our next dining destination for the following Sunday. You see, there seems to be a trend towards brunch after Sunday morning hockey. Seems logical. However, for some reason or another, we are drawn to areas around the Downtown Eastside. First it was Acme, then Deacon's Corner followed by the Alibi Room. Now we have Two Chefs & a Table. Located in the unlikeliest of locations or should I say somewhat shadiest of locations, Two Chefs brings some class to an otherwise forgotten neighbourhood.

With the two chefs, Karl Gregg and Al Bosomworth, who have worked at Red Door and Feenie's respectively, bring finely crafted food at a reasonable price. On a beautiful Sunday afternoon, RBC and I made the short jaunt over from Brit for brunch. For some reason or another, we were denied a window seat. A subsequent party of 2 got the table we originally wanted... Anyways, looking over the small; yet focused menu, something caught our attention - a Bacon Bloody Mary! Hey, I'm not a big drinker; but I had to try this. Turns out I really shouldn't have. Chalk this up to personal taste. Salty, oily and short on punch, this bloody mary was not my cup of booze. On the other hand, my breakfast choice was absolutely fantastic! The Monsieur Andres Brunch is a take on the classic Croque Monsieur. In this version, there is a selection of chacuterie meats and cheese within grilled sour dough. On top is an over-easy egg and Parmesan Hollandaise. With all components cooked to perfection from the crisp sour dough to the runny egg yolk, every bite was delicious. Served on the side were cooked-from-raw breakfast potatoes. The result were starchy pieces of well-seasoned bites. Very good.

RBC opted for the Smoked Salmon Benedict once again (like the Alibi Room). Both poached eggs were perfectly executed. Fluffy whites and runny free-range yolk atop barely cooked spinach, house-cured smoked salmon, mustard cream cheese and house-made English muffins. I took a sample of the smoked salmon. I found the flavours intense and the texture soft. He was very happy with the Benedict and declared it to be much superior than the one from the Alibi Room. And it was less expensive too. Being that we just played hockey, we decided to share the Homemade Apple Pancakes to make sure we satisfied our appetites. Simply presented as a 3-stack, these pancakes were somewhat fluffly inside while crisp on the outside. A nice contrast of textures for sure. Caramelized apples bits were strewn throughout providing a sweet surprise. These were very good pancakes indeed. If brunch is any indication of the type of food served here, I am already planning my visit for dinner. It seems RBC had the same idea and wondered if we could make it a table for 4. Sounds good to me, maybe we can get a window seat next time.

The Good:
- Reasonably-priced
- Carefully crafted food
- Quaint little place

The Bad:
- Dodgy neighbourhood
- Place is extremely small, small parties only

B.C. Sushi

Okay, you should know my feelings about AYCE sushi by now. But believe it or not, there are times when I actually don't mind it. However, those "times" usually involve being really hungry and/or not giving much a damn about food quality. Tonight would be one of those "times". You see, earlier in our softball season, we were rained out a few games. Thus, it was inevitable we'd need to play some double-headers. This was our last night of the regular season and it also happened to be a double-header. Of course the weather was looking crappy, indicating we'd be all wet. Personally, I'm a fair weather person. Okay, let me rephrase that. I don't shop for sun dresses at Fairweather, I'm mostly into fair weather sporting activities. Although some of those dresses have really nice floral prints... er... So, when the wet stuff comes (I really should have not said it this way...), I'm not too happy about being outside. I don't golf in the rain, I don't play softball in the rain, I don't camp in the rain (wait, I don't camp at all!) and I don't even like driving in the rain. So, when I called up Boss Woman to check on the status of our games, we had to play 2 games rain or shine.

Imagine the joy when the weather turned for the better. I was as happy as a gamer in a EB Games lineup on boxing day. Well, maybe not that happy... So, I knew we'd be hungry after 2 games and since we were playing at Canarvon, it looked like a good opportunity to give B.C. Sushi a try. Taking advantage of our late ending time, I made a reservation for their late night AYCE sushi for 9:30pm. Of course, our games had to end early at 8:15pm... So we ended up "practicing" in near darkness waiting for our reservation time. Note to self: hurling a big round object at each other in darkness is tempting fate. Although they did start to resemble large Takoyaki after awhile. Hmm... a sign that we should go eat!

We arrived at B.C. Sushi a bit early, so a few of the ladies decided to wash up in the restroom. Okay, that was a disaster. 2 of 3 toilets were malfunctioning and there were no paper towels. I think they should check on their washrooms more often. Anyways, we got seated shortly after that. The late night menu is a good value in my opinion. There are 2 options: pick Menu A items only - $10.95, do both A+B, it's $14.95. We went for the $14.95 menu and it includes sashimi. If raw fish ain't your thing, the $10.95 menu has a large selection already. We started off with the Gomaae and it is your typical too-sweet, over-sauced spinach. The Agedashi Tofu was okay; but it looked pretty plain without the grated daikon and green onions. Ebi Sunomono was pretty decent, lots of flavour and great texture on the vermicelli. Miss Y ordered 2 BBQ Corn and they were good as well. I remarked that one of her corns were bigger than the other. She replied that it was normal to be that way... (take that however you want). Judes upped the discussion by saying that Miss Y was feeling "corny". Funny, the oyster motoyaki hadn't arrived yet...

Anyways, Judes really wanted to try the Baby Octopus. No good, it was chewy and bland. On the other hand, the Gyoza were quite good. The filling was not packed too tight and they were fried up with a good colour. The Ika Karaage was on the oilier side while still being crisp and easy to chew. The Fried "Scallops" were your typical imitation type offering. It's rare to have Sashimi in AYCE late-night, so it was a treat. The sashimi here was acceptable. Salmon was better than the tuna. When Boss Woman saw Chicken Knees on the menu, she was a happy camper. Not bad, probably too much batter though. The Tempura was okay, too much batter again. The Chicken Yakitori was alright as well, the meat was moist and there was not too much sauce. Boss Woman really wanted to try the Fried Cheese Sticks. She wished she hadn't. Ew.

Of course Bear wanted Short Ribs and lots of it. He was really happy with these ones since they were super tender, not overly fatty and not over-seasoned. I liked them too. The Tonkatsu was crispy while the meat was still moist. The same could be said about the Chicken Karaage. Strangely presented in reusable tart tins, the Oyster Motoyaki was good. Decent sized oyster, not too much sauce. Of course we got some Maki Sushi as well. The sushi rice was bland and on the drier side (to be expected). Yet, once again, it was more than edible. Same with the Nigiri Sushi, okay rice made for okay sushi. As for the Beef and Chicken Teriyaki, the beef was dry while the chicken was quite moist and tender. I got an order of the Unagi Don and it wasn't bad either. The rice was firm and not oversauced. Now onto another filler dish (I must've been nuts), I got the Chicken Curry. I expected Japanese curry. What I got was Chinese curry (of course, the place is Chinese-run). Didn't like it. No flavour and the chicken was not even cooked in the sauce.

I'm glad I wasn't the only one to get filler items as Miss Y and Milhouse went for the Beef and Chicken Udon respectively. Miss Y thought the broth was quite flavourful with chewy udon. Then we were presented with 3 bowls of Ramen. We didn't order any ramen. They just said to keep it and don't eat it if we didn't want to. I looked at it and tried it. Decent noodles, laughable broth. We got Mango Pudding to end off the meal and it was AYCE-style mango pudding. So if I sound a bit repetitive and unenthusiastic, it is because most of the food is typical AYCE fare. Now that is not necessarily a bad thing in this case. For the reasonable price we paid, it was well-worth it if that is what you are looking for. We didn't come for quality Japanese food, we came for quantity and value. This is exactly what we got.

The Good:
- Very reasonable late-night AYCE
- Large selection of items
- Fairly decent service

The Bad:
- Yucky washrooms
- Regular AYCE is pricey
- As with most AYCE, food quality is so-so