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Curiously Carmen

Sushi Ville – Commercial Drive Location

March 27, 2017

Sushi Ville has been on my must try list for maybe a year now! I heard about this place from Cocoa, who has been a few times now. We found ourselves in The Drive one afternoon, where I finally had the chance to try this place!

Parking on The Drive is kind of hard, and it is mostly pay parking. We were very lucky that afternoon to find free street parking, even though it was raining cats and dogs!

Walking in, the restaurant was very comfortable and had high ceilings. It wasn’t too busy and Cocoa said she never had to wait in line with her previous visits. There was a huge sign on the wall, as you can see in the pic, that warned customers of possible long waits because “you can’t rush perfection”. Indeed, many of the negative reviews I read about this place was that food came slowly… which was also the case for us =( So, don’t come here if you’re in a rush!

Sushi Ville has the largest selection of crazy fusion rolls I’ve seen! We read the menu for about 10-15 minutes, just trying to process all the crazy combinations they came up with! Below is one page of their special roll menu, but there were a couple other pages similar to this as well!

Many of their rolls came with sauce, so I had to double check with the kitchen to make sure they were dairy-free. Luckily, most of the sauces were mayo-based, which I could eat. People are always surprised when they find out mayo doesn’t contain dairy! It usually doesn’t, unless the restaurant decides to mix some cream or butter in there for extra flavour.

They really pay attention to the minor details here, which adds to the longer wait! When my plate arrived, it came with a shot glass of dry ice that looked awesome!

Hawaiian roll: Since Sushi Ville had so many crazy special rolls, it would be a waste not to try at least one of them! I ordered the Hawaiian roll, which came with deep fried banana, mango, avocado, and imitation crab. I actually really enjoyed this. I love bananas, and the one inside the roll was perfectly ripe. It went really well with the sweet mango slice on top, although the mango slices were very  thin. The peanut and almond topping complemented the flavours well and overall, this is a great roll if you like banana!

Dynamite roll: Nothing too special about this roll, pretty average but I still enjoyed it.

Sushi Ville is known to slather a tremendous amount of sauce on their rolls, as evident in their pictures. Knowing that, I decided to order my sauce on the side and I was so glad I did. The boyfriend didn’t, and he ended up regretting it after because the sauce was too overpowering and felt heavy after awhile.

BC Roll: The boyfriend loves his BC Roll. To this day, Uomo has the best BC Rolls and this was still the case after coming to Sushi Ville.

Negitoro roll: This roll was pretty disappointing. Normally, negitoro roll is supposed to come with smushy, soft pieces of toro and then mixed with green onion. Instead, the toro was simply cut in chunks, with some green onion added here and there.

Spicy tuna tataki roll: The boyfriend loves his tuna tataki, so he chose this for his special roll. There was a good amount of spice, topped with a healthy dose of fresh onions. However, after a few pieces, he found the sauce to be a bit too much.

Spider roll: Unlike our special rolls, Cocoa’s special roll did not come with as much sauce. It was topped with tempura flakes instead. I don’t remember what it came with apart from some tempura, but Cocoa did not have any complaints about it. I also liked how there were specks of pink in the roll, although I can’t remember what it was!

She also ordered a salmon maki and and california roll, which were both average. The picture I took ended up being blurry so I just deleted it. Definitely come here for the special rolls, and not the normal maki rolls.

All in all, I enjoyed my visit to Sushi Ville and glad that I finally tried it! Although I wouldn’t come regularly because their normal rolls are under average, it is a nice place to go when you want some crazy special rolls at a decent price point. It would be good to take out-of-towners here as they get to enjoy the fusion rolls that Vancouver is known for. Service was also attentive and friendly, even though the food was really slow (which was warned by that giant poster above their sushi bar).

Yay!

Sushi Ville Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato


Filed Under: food & drink, japanese

Tacofino (Gastown location)

March 24, 2017

It was Fairy Bread’s birthday last month, and a taco celebration was in store! Seeing as her and my other friends always rave about Tacofino, I was quite excited to finally try it and came with super high expectations! As well, Tacofino is just super popular in Vancouver and I’ve heard nothing but amazing things about it.
The boyfriend, myself and Jerky have never been here before… so after parking, we got a bit lost and almost wandered into a questionable alley. We saw a taco sign and actually ended up stumbling in through the back. Actually we weren’t even sure that we were at the right place, because we didn’t see any signage and the menus said “Tacobar” LOL.
Sadly, many of the items had dairy in it so I couldn’t enjoy the flavours to its full potential. That was probably one of the reasons I thought it was just okay.

Even though we had a party of 8, I only took photos of what I ate because I didn’t want to reach around everyone’s food to take a photo. That, and this post would be wayyy too long!
Steak taco, $7: The steak taco came with grilled Wagyu steak, pickled chayote, pineapple, and some sort of mayo sauce. The boyfriend was a bit reluctant to order this because Wagyu beef is normally $150+ per piece, so he wasn’t sure how good the quality of their Wagyu steak was. I should have listened to him because the steak was pretty dry and bland. The only thing that saved this dish was the sweet pineapple and mayo concoction.
Pork al pastor, $6: This taco came with spit roasted pork, pineapple, pickled onion, and cilantro. Unlike the steak taco, the pork was juicy and full of seasoned flavour! The pineapple added a nice touch of sweetness. I enjoyed this taco a lot more than the steak.
Wings, $10: The boyfriend and I decided to share some wings as well. The wings came marinated in chili salt and was served with lime and valentina. The batter was a bit alarming because it was so dark, meaning that the oil probably wasn’t that fresh or new. But, it tasted delicious! They were piping hot, juicy crispy, and crunchy.

I’m a bit sad that I couldn’t try the fish taco, I was told that the fish came breaded in a dairy batter. As well, I’ve heard really great things about the albacore tuna taco, so my friend was quite disappointed that the Gastown location didn’t have it!

Although I finally tried Tacofino, I don’t feel like I really tried it without trying those two signature and raved about items. I would love to go to the Hastings & Nanaimo location to try the albacore tuna taco. If I end up going there, I will be sure to update this blog post!

Perhaps it was too overhyped with everyone talking about it and not ordering the right items, but I found it to be just okay and would only go back if I found myself in Gastown and hungry. But everyone else in the world seems to love this place, so take my review with a grain of salt.

Meh…

Tacofino Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato


Filed Under: food & drink, mexican

Lafe’s Natural Deodorant Stick

March 21, 2017

Deodorant is something that I’ve used for many years now, and something that just feels natural to me. Recently, I went deodorant-less for almost a week. That was because I ran out of my regular Dove deodorant, and I wanted to try being deodorant free to see if my body could uh, handle it I guess? LOL.

Lafes deodorant does not contain aluminum, prophlene, and glycol. I’m not sure why the latter two are considered “bad” for you, but there were claims that aluminum causes breast cancer and Alzhemier’s.

For the record, this has not been proven and many scientific experts say it is a myth. But that is not here or there so today we will just be focusing on the review, and not if deodorant/antiperspirant is bad for you.
My regular deodorant is more white, while the Lafes stick is more clear. It has a nice scent to it, and I would describe it as pretty feminine and fresh!

Application: The application is the only thing I don’t like. When you first apply it, it feels wet.

I find that if this deodorant touches bare skin to skin, aka wearing a tank top or naked, it will feel sticky. But if you are wearing a long sleeve like a sweater, cardigan, you won’t feel the stickness since the fabric is under your armpit.

Wear: Perhaps the most important part right, does it keep you from smelling good and odourless? Yes, yes it does! If I put this on in the morning, it does last me the whole day and night. But I guess it depends on the amount you sweat and if you have strong body odour.

Thankfully, I don’t have much body odour and I could get away from wearing any type of deodorant, as long as I shower every day (Which I do!).

  • Aluminum free and organic, for those who are “health conscious” or don’t like chemicals in their products
  • Cruelty free =^__^=
  • Smells good and fresh
  • Lasts whole day & night (haven’t tested this during a work out though)

  • Has a slightly ticky & tacky residue when skin to skin, unless you wear a sweater/cardigan/etc so that there is fabric separating your armpit (if that makes any sense?) so perhaps wouldn’t be good as a summertime/hot weather deodorant

Yay!

Press product provided. Opinions are own.


Filed Under: Beauty, body

Shang Pin Beef Noodle House

March 18, 2017

Instead of our usual dinner spots, the boyfriend and I decided to find a new place to go to! After some Yelping, we found Shang Pin Beef Noodle House as one of their ‘hot and new’ places.

Shang Pin Beef Noodle House is in the Mount Pleasant neighbourhood, which always has a special place in my heart and many great childhood memories. It was a bit hard to find parking on Saturday night, but we finally found an empty meter… With 53 minutes left!!! How lucky!

Octopus party to protect people’s privacy LOL!

The restaurant before used to be a Japanese restaurant called 1/2 roll… Where their speciality was making half order of rolls. Yeah, I can see why Shang Pin replaced it…

Anyway, walking into the restaurant, it was very clean. We were surprised that it was 95% full at 6 pm already, so clearly it’s gotten some much deserved attention.

We found the waiting area a bit strange because it was so big! Couldn’t they have fit a couple more tables instead of making such a big waiting area? But who am I to judge, I’ve never owned a restaurant before.

Perhaps their kitchen isn’t big enough to handle additional tables? As the night continued, that was probably the case because our food was very slow……..
Pickled cucumbers, free: For their grand opening, we received a complimentary plate of pickled cucumbers to snack on. Later on, these became imperative because our food was taking so long, and we were haaaannnngry!

The pickled cucumbers were crunchy and also had a nice garlicky taste to it. They were very refreshing and make a good appetizer to clear your palette.
Milk tea, $4.00: The boyfriend is a huge fan of milk tea, so he wanted to see how this place was. The milk tea took quite awhile to come. After asking, we were told it was on the way and that there were many drinks ahead.

He said the milk tea was good, although he was used to the Hong Kong style milk tea more. It also came in a to-go cup so he brought it with him afterwards.
Braised beef shank in noodle soup, $8.95: I chose the thick noodles, which were delicious and so comforting!

They had a nice chew to it, and the soup fit in the grooves of the thick noodles – exactly what I’m looking for in a bowl of beef noodles.

The beef shank was tender and flavourful, but found that there wasn’t that many pieces of it.

Oh yeah, I found the broth to be a tad too salty so I put some of my hot water to dilute it.
Deep fried Taiwanese nuggets in beef soup, $8.75: The boyfriend ordered thin noodles, which he enjoyed.

As with my beef shank, he found that there wasn’t that much chicken nuggets. Although it looks like a lot in the picture, the bowl was small. Nonetheless, with what there was, the chicken nuggets were delicious and crispy.

From when we first sat down to when our food arrived at the table, took 45 minutes! We were getting impatient, but understood that it’s a new restaurant so perhaps they still had some issues to work out.

When the food finally arrived, it was very satisfying and delicious. Despite the smaller amounts of meat, we would come back here if we’re craving Taiwanese noodles!

Yay!

Shang Pin Beef Noodles House Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato


Filed Under: food & drink, taiwanese

Maybelline Lash Sensation

March 15, 2017

Wow… so the last time I sat down and wrote an actual mascara review was three years ago. THREE YEARS AGO!

I can’t say I’m TOO surprised though… because mascara and I have never gotten along. I’ve tried many different mascaras over the years, but mascaras just don’t seem to work well with my lashes. They either clump, don’t lengthen well, or the curl doesn’t hold. In addition, I wear glasses everyday so it’s even harder to see mascara. At this point, I’ve just given up unless I’m wearing eyeshadow because the shadow falls onto my lashes and makes them look short.

Luckily, my lashes are decent without mascara (but definitely wouldn’t consider them super nice either) and I have nice bottom lashes already so that’s something right?

It takes a lot for a mascara to wow me, and after three years, I’m back with another mascara review!
My mom had actually bought this mascara and I was just using it once in awhile, because it was conveniently there. It is housed in a pink tube, which makes it easy to stand out.

What it says (Taken from Ulta):

Lash Sensational Mascara from Maybelline is the first patented fanning brush with 10 layers of bristles to reveal a full flourish of lashes. Liquid Ink formula coats from all sides for a sensational full fan effect.

Again, I’ve seen sooo many ads for mascaras with “revolutionary” brushes that claim to do this and that, but never end up working with my lashes. So, I’ve turned a blind eye to whenever I hear or see those claims on TV because it never works for me… and plus, they’re wearing false lashes so you can’t even see the full effect of the mascara?!
Application: I’m not sure if this brush is actually “revolutionary” but DAMN, does it work well with my lashes. And that is RARE! This mascara goes on evenly, and does not clump my eyelashes at all. It separates and lengthens each lash in a very natural way.

Wear: Here is where I was very impressed, and knew that this mascara deserved a recommendation. After a long night of working at my company’s gala event, I came home tired, and ready to remove my makeup. I had just put this on quickly after curling my lashes because I wore eyeshadow that night. I had to do a double-take when I saw the mascara in place as if I just applied it. My lashes were still nice and curled, and there was no clumping to be seen! This RARELY happens!

Here is a picture of before and after the mascara! My lashes definitely look longer, but still very natural and darker.

  • One of the very few mascaras that do not clump and actually hold up the whole day on me
  • Affordable drugstore prices
  • Simply AMAZING!!!! I LOVE IT.

  • Nothing!

A million times YAY!


Filed Under: Beauty, eyes

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Hello!

Hi and welcome to Curiously Carmen! I am Carmen, the girl behind the blog. You can read more about me here!

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