Sonic

Viv and I decided to make an impromptu visit to Seattle for one night because we needed to do some shopping as well as picking up a bunch of things I had shipped to Goose's house.  That also meant we had to hightail it to the border after work on a Friday of a long weekend.  Thank goodness for Nexus!  Not having a whole lot of time to eat, we decided to stop by Sonic in Ferndale (as recommended by Yummy Mummy). For those who are not familiar, Sonic is a fast food drive-in with no indoor seating.  Ordering is done via a speaker and menu at your parking stall.  Even credit card processing can be done right in the comfort of your vehicle.

We squeezed into the stall which was a tight fit, even for my compact hatchback.  This would make Richmond parking spots look spacious!  After a quick look at the menu, I decided to get the 1/4 Pound Cheeseburger with a side of Onion Rings.  The burger was pretty basic with a soft bun giving way to a somewhat dry patty.  However, with all the mayo, ketchup and mustard along with lettuce, pickles and tomato, the whole thing was saucy and messy to eat.  Not bad, but I'd gladly take an In-N-Out burger over this one (if they had a closer location than Redding, CA!).  The onion rings were coated with a crunchy breading and could've benefited from some seasoning, but they were pretty good.  I added a Strawberry Shake as my beverage and it was quite thick and sweet.  I liked how they used a lot of ice cream in it.

Viv went for the Asiago Chicken Club with Fries and it was pretty average.  The bun was a little too soft while the rest of the sandwich was typical, yet curiously bland.  The chicken was not too dry though.  We liked the fries though as they were hot and crispy.  Overall, our visit to Sonic was a neat experience, but not exactly memorable.  A few things left me wondering: why are the stalls so narrow and since it is a drive-in, why aren't there tables you hook onto your doors?  The experience would've been less awkward in our opinion.

The Good:
- Neat drive-in experience
- Food is acceptable

The Bad:
- Narrow spots and no place to put your food
- Not expensive, but not cheap either

Triple Triple @ Triple O's

There are some things in my childhood that I love no matter what others think.  Hey food is subjective and really, you can't tell someone that they don't like something.  One of my favourite things to eat while growing up was the Double Double at White Spot.  Consisting of 2 patties, 2 slices of cheese, Triple O sauce and double pickles, it was really satisfying.  Imagine my reaction when I was informed that there was a Triple Triple on their secret menu at Triple O locations.  Secret menu?  Sounds like an In-N-Out kinda thing.  Well, the good folks at White Spot sent me voucher to try this monstrosity, so of course I went!  

I brought the family along too because hey, they love White Spot (and subsequently Triple O's) too!  But before we get to that, let's talk about what they got to eat.  They both went for the Dippin' Chicken with fries, drink, the classic chocolate doubloons and crayons. They gobbled up the 2 crispy chicken strips quickly.  Strangely, the fries were pretty dense and not really all that crispy.  Viv had the Chipotle BBQ Bacon Melt Burger.  It was pretty substantial with plenty of ingredients.  She did remark that the onions were the dominant flavour though.  For her side, she had Onion Rings (next picture down) and they were the breaded type, which meant they were crunchy.

I was actually the one who ordered the Sweet Potato Fries which were pretty crispy and light.  I liked how the side of Chipotle mayo was enough for all of the fries.  Now the main event - The Triple Triple!  Nothing complex here, just 3 patties, 3 slices of cheese and 3 pickle slices.  Yes, this was filling and I barely finished it.  Only eat this if you are really hungry.  Nothing particularly ground-breaking, but consider it a bigger Double Double.  And that's what Triple O's is all about - nothing fancy and certainly nothing mind-blowing.  Yet it delivers what is expected.

The Good:
- A little bit more interesting than some of the other fast food burgers
- White Spot burgers in a fast food setting

The Bad:
- Pricier than other fast food joints
- Not a whole lot of seating

Beaucoup Bakery Cafe

After sharing 3 lunch specials at Jitlada Thai, we were pretty much full.  However, Choobee wanted to go for some dessert.  I immediately suggested Beaucoup Bakery due to its close proximity.  Great.  Now Choobee was doing her best impression of Mijune.  Such a dangerous way to live...  Eat til you drop...  I immediately tackled the Double Baked Almond Croissant.  It was heavenly with a flaky crisp shell which gave way to a soft, buttery and sugary interior.  The best way to describe it is that it was a in-depth sweetness rather than just plain sweet.  

The Pain au Chocolate was equally flaky and buttery with a semi-sweet chocolate hit.  It got really messy as Choobee got it all over her face and hair...  Ahem...The classic Butter Croissant was of course, crisp and flaky on the outside.  However, it wasn't as buttery and soft as I would've liked on the inside (was it baked too long?).  It's not to say it wasn't a good croissant, because it was, but I would've liked it to be less dry (however, I've been told that their croissants are usually not dry in the middle - could it be an anomoly?).  

Although the Raspberry Pistachio Macaron was easily the most attractive of all the pastries, it was only okay.  The macaron itself was very nice with a crisp delicate exterior and a soft chewy interior.  The pistachio cream filling was not all that impactful although it had a creamy texture. The Lemon Tart was very well crafted with a firm buttery crust.  Although the lemon curd was a touch on the runnier side, it had a nice tartness to it which tempered the sugar content.  I liked how it was small since that was probably all I could eat in one sitting.  Savoury and cheesy, the Cheese Scone had a nice contrast of crunch and softness.  Love the savoury elements.  Overall, we were impressed with the stuff we tried at Beaucoup -  these were some finely crafted pastries.

The Good:
- Pastries made with care
- Textures were on point except for the regular croissant
- We liked the high ceilings and bright space

The Bad:
- Well, like any good patisserie, it's gonna cost you
- The regular croissant was dry for some reason

Jitlada Thai

Every now and then, Choobee pesters me to have lunch with her.  Hey, I'm not trying to avoid her (well, actually that's probably true...), but with our busy schedules, it's just hard to coordinate a time to meet up and eat.  Finally, the planets aligned and her persistent texts paid off. In fact, by sheer coincidence, we were roughly around the same area when she texted her usual lunch request.  Her suggestion was Jitlada Thai, which was formerly the location of CRU.

We started with a Spring Roll plated nicely as an appetizer.  I know it's a small detail, but we liked how it wasn't served on the same plate as our mains.  The spring roll itself was light where the filling of cabbage and cellophane noodles were not packed too tightly.  It was certainly crispy but slightly greasy.  The first dish to arrive was the Pad Thai and it had all the requisite ingredients such as pickled turnip, pressed tofu, sprouts, crushed peanuts and egg.  However, we found it a touch too sweet with a liberal use of palm sugar. It needed tartness in the form of more tamarind.  This was alleviated somewhat when we requested some lime wedges.

The Green Curry arrived sporting a stunningly vibrant colour as they must've used a good amount of fresh cilantro and basil in the paste.  Visuals aside, the curry itself was lacking some pop even though it had a good spice level.  It was missing that pungency from fish sauce and shrimp paste.  However, the flavours were quite bright, which went along with the colour.  Lastly, we had the Basil Pork Stir-fry.  I thought this was prepared very nicely as the pork was caramelized with plenty of sweetness from the palm sugar.  Naturally, there was also a nice hit from the ample amount of fresh basil.  "Not bad" was our opinion of the place.  Certainly deserves another look sometime, possibly for dinner.

The Good:
- Food appears to relatively authentic
- Nice digs
- Attentive service

The Bad:
- Some of the flavours could've been more powerful

Duotian Fish Noodle Soup Restaurant

Apprehensive as I was, returning for Sunday morning hockey.  It ended poorly for me last year as I was hit 3 consecutive weeks leading to my concussion.  Was I going to be back?  Was it worth the risk?  Was something going to change?  Oh who am I kidding...  Would I pass up Sunday eats???  Besides, the culprit, who gave me my concussion, didn't even sign up for this year.  After our game, the usual suspects, Milhouse and Kaiser Soze joined me at Duotian Fish Noodle Soup (think Deer Garden Signatures...).

Arriving in a huge bowl, the Fish Noodle Soup with rice noodles, brisket and fish was a substantial portion (not merely being a big bowl of soup and nothing else).  I found the soup flavourful in a MSG kinda way, but I did pick out some natural fish flavour.  The noodles were still chewy while there was a good amount of napa cabbage.  I found the fish to be moist and not overcooked, but the brisket was pretty chewy.  Not bad, however, Deer Garden is better (and with that being said, Deer Garden is only okay in my books).  I got the maximum 2 sides which were Fried Chicken Wings and Maggi Pork Chop.  The wings were fried golden brown and juicy on the inside.  It was brined just enough to remain tender and flavourful.  As for the pork chop, it was moist, yet a touch salty from all that Maggi.

Milhouse had the Satay Beef Rice Noodles and it was also a massive portion.  Lots of beef, peppers and pineapple atop soft, yet not mushy flat rice noodles.  The sauce itself was not all that spicy, rather it was mostly sweet.  The beef was fairly tender, but certain pieces were not tenderized enough.  Kaiser Soze opted for the Frog Legs Hot Pot Rice which was also a decent portion with plenty of toppings.  They didn't skimp on the frog legs which were moist and tender.  The abundance of Chinese sausage and pickled mustard greens added additional flavour and texture.  As for the rice, it was chewy and there was a nice crust on the bottom of the hot pot.  Overall, it was an acceptable meal at fairly okay prices.  Sure, there were some deficiencies, but we weren't sure why the place is rated so low on Urbanspoon.


The Good:
- Decent portions
- Acceptable eats


The Bad:
- Not bad, but not great either
- Parking lot sucks

Rakuraku

Recently, after Sunday hockey, Gordo and I went to Au Wing Kee for some late night eats.  It was an impromptu decision which meant I did not have my camera with me.  Well, no biggie, since there was no need to blog about the place again anyways.  But there was something empty about the whole thing.  There it was - food in front of me - and not picture-taking!  It was like going cold turkey!  Upon leaving, we noticed Rakuraku next door which sported signage stating they are open late until 2:00am on Fridays.  Great, we filed that into our book of possible late night eats in the future.  That future would be the following Friday night as our game was a late one.  Despite the claim of being open until 2:00am, they are actually open only until 1:00am.

Arriving in a hot stone bowl, the Albap was decent with not overly mushy rice and enough ingredients.  As hard as we tried, by pushing the rice to the edges, we weren't able to get a good crust going.  We felt there was an ample amount of ingredients, which may have contributed to the added moisture in the rice.  Although the Japchae tasted okay with chewy noodles, it was pretty greasy with a minimal amount of ingredients.  The portion size was disappointing as well.  For the life of me, I can never understand why Japchae is so expensive.  I've made it at home and the raw material cost is modest at best.  Oh well, I digress...

Our favouite dish was the Kimchi Fried Rice.  The rice itself had a pleasing chewiness while not being oily.  There was a good amount of kimchi flavour and spiciness. We liked how the fried egg on top was buttery soft with a runny yolk. The Seafood Pancake was a fail in our books.  Consisting barely of any seafood, it was more of a green onion pancake.  It was rather greasy as well.   Lastly, we had the Grilled Skewers and much of it was pretty dry. Nothing more to say than "meh".  In fact, other than the kimchi fried rice, the food was pretty forgettable.  Not inedible by any means, but there is certainly better.

The Good:
- Open late
- Okay pricing

The Bad:
- Food is pretty "meh"
- Service was okay, but they never refilled our water

Jagerhof Schnitzel House

Quick, when you hear "the HOF", what immediately comes to mind?  A young loner on a crusade, to champion the cause of the innocent, the helpless, the powerless - who drives a talking car?  No, that is David Hasselhof.  The place where all things hockey are displayed?  Nope, that's the Hockey Hall of Fame.  What I am referring to locally is Jagerhof Schnitzel House in North Van.  Recently I revisited Old Bavaria Haus and it inspired me to try the other schnitzel joint 
(there is the Alpen Club too).

After dropping off my car at the Automall for servicing, Rich Guy picked me up and we headed over to the "hof". He had the special of the day which included a bowl of Chicken Noodle Soup.  This was a pretty standard version with plenty of sodium and soft noodles.  I was indifferent with it.  The featured dish was the Schnitzel Alfredo which came with potatoes and red cabbage.  The pork schnitzel was lightly crisp while the meat was tender and as moist as it could be for white meat.  The Alfredo sauce was quite salty and cheesy (in a Parmesan way) which easily became the dominant flavour.  The pan-fried potatoes were soft with some crispy spots.

For myself, I had to get the biggest, baddest dish on the menu being the Jagerhof Platter consisting of a Pork Chop, Jagerhof Schnitzel (with mushroom sauce), sausage, sauerkraut, potatoes and red cabbage.  The schnitzel was lightly crisp like the one before topped by a rich mushroom sauce.  It was mild which let the schnitzel do its thing (strangely, the sauce reminded me of the one you'd find at a HK-style cafe).  The sausage was meaty and juicy while the pork chop was flavourful without being overly salty (think of it as a dry ham).  If I had to do a head-to-head comparison with Old Bavaria Haus, I'd give the slight edge to Jagerhof because the schnitzel is a bit lighter while the sides are more carefully prepared.

The Good:
- Lightly crisp schnitzel
- Well-made sides
- Friendly service

The Bad:
- A touch greasy, but it is what it is
- Not that it mattered to us, but the dining space is dated