The boyfriend and I were leaving Richmond, and were in the mood for happy hour. The weather was warm, sun was shining, it was a weekend, and we had just finished our errands = all perfect reasons to have happy hour!
I remembered an app named Brewhound which shows you daily specials for restaurants in the Lower Mainland. I highly recommend you download the app, as it will come in handy if you’re not sure on where to eat. Btw, not sponsored… they don’t even know I exist haha.
One of the closest options was Romer’s and we wanted to check out the developing River District, so off we went! I remember seeing this place on Dine Out, but that was the furthest of my knowledge about this place.
This post is a combination of two visits!
Parking in River District was free, and was not a problem at all. Romer’s was easy to spot as everything else was just apartments and townhouses.
We wanted a patio seat but was told they were all reserved. It was a bit stuffy in the restaurant. Seeing how hot that day was, there could have been more AC.
I would describe the atmosphere in Romers as casual.
Truffle fries, $6.95: The scent of the truffle oil slowly wafting to our table was amazing. Mmmm… truffle oil…. The fries were delicious, crunchy and fresh. We would definitely order this again!
Cheesy spinach kale dip, $9.95: The boyfriend was in the mood for some spinach kale dip so this was the second dish. Probably the best way to eat vegetables.
I couldn’t eat it but the dip looked really good, and he really enjoyed it. It was full of blended spinach, kale, and was SUPER cheesy. The chips were also pretty good and tasted better than your average chips. They were thicker than usual, which might be why?
Our second visit was in mid-September! The weather happened to be warm enough for the patio still! We saw some cute dogs trotting along the trail, hehe 🙂
On this visit, the boyfriend ordered the same spinach dip so I won’t talk about it again.
Root beer: I thought this was worth mentioning as they only sell craft root beer here. It is lighter in colour, but I didn’t like the taste (I normally love fountain root beer).
It reminded me of cough syrup but perhaps it’s an acquired taste. The boyfriend on the other hand loved it.
Burger bowl: I felt like something lighter that day and decided to give this a try. For an extra $2, you can go bunless and turn your burger into a bowl that includes avocado, hard boiled egg, iceberg lettuce, and corn/bean salad.
I did not regret it because it was delicious and fresh! The avocado is hidden behind the patty. I would definitely consider getting the burger bowl again. The only con was that the patty was on the dry side, although the flavour was there.
Overall, our two visits to Romer’s were brief but pleasant. Romer’s is a good place to go if you want to escape the city, but still remain in the city if that makes any sense? The River District feels a lot different than most other neighbourhoods in Vancouver.
We would definitely come back a third time if we were in the area!
Yay!
One thing we found cool was that each table had a button where you could press to call your server. There were three buttons: call your server, get a bill, or another round of drinks. Our server then showed us the smart watch that they each wear, which alert them to the table.
Chicken strips w/ side Caesar salad: Y’all know me and my love for chicken strips, it was only right I tried them here as well! Right when they came to the table, I was so happy because I knew they would be perfect. Idk, I can tell if chicken strips will be good just by looking and I’ve never been wrong yet! These were tender, flavourful, and had a crispy exterior. So delicious!
Canadair donair: No, that is not a typo — it is called Canadair! The boyfriend really enjoyed the donair. Like my beef dip, it came with a generous portion of meat and lots of gooey, melty cheese.
Minoas Greek Tavern has been around for a long time now, since the 80s or early 90s I believe! It is slightly hidden behind some trees and the Skytrain covers it a bit. It is located just off Boundary Road, across from Central Park.
I love the decor of Greek restaurants! Minoas was no different. I really enjoyed looking around at the paintings, plants, and ornaments scattered throughout the restaurant.
Some more beautiful paintings in the restaurant! One thing to note, the restaurant is on the second floor of the old house. The first floor is used for events and also is where the kitchen is. I’m not too sure if there is an elevator, I don’t believe I saw one that day but I could be mistaken.
Pita bread, free: The complimentary pita bread was soft, thick and filling. It was lightly brushed in oil, I am assuming it was olive oil.
Greek salad, free: Both of our entrees came with Greek salad. This was the boyfriend’s salad as I asked for a dairy-free version (so basically without the feta cheese). I enjoyed the salad as it all the vegetables were fresh and crunchy but there were some small things that could have been improved.
Chicken souvlaki: My go-to for Greek food! The chicken souvlaki was cooked perfectly, very juicy and had a nice grilled flavour to it. For the seasoning, it was a bit bland so I added some salt which was a lot better.
Yemista, $15.95: The yemista was peppers stuffed with beef, tomato, and rice. The boyfriend really enjoyed his dish. There was a good amount of beef inside and all the flavours went together perfectly.
The entrance to the restaurant is inside the hotel. As well, there is free parking for customers – just make sure you park in stalls that say reserved for Tivoli’s customers.
Mixed salad: The mixed salad was very fresh! I appreciated the decent amount of berries in the salad.
Caesar salad: Again, the salad leaves were fresh and crunchy. Not much to complain about either.
Sweet & spicy beef bites: We really enjoyed these! It tasted like Chinese sweet and sour sauce. The fried Alberta AAA beef cubes were also seasoned with Mediterranean spices. Talk about mix of cultures!
Sauteed garlic prawns: The prawns were fresh and had that nice snap to it. They were also slathered in butter which made it even tastier.
NY Steak: For $5, we could upgrade our Groupon to a NY steak. One of my dad’s favourite things at Western establishments is steak, so naturally we had to get this. It came a perfect medium rare and was nice and juicy.
Veal shank: The veal shank was also cooked excellently. It was tender and full of flavour. It came with a saffron-mushroom risotto, which was creamy and delicious.
Chicken parmigiana: Considering how tasty everything else was, this was everyone’s least favourite. The breaded chicken reminded me of those microwave dinners. It was also quite bland. I guess they’re better at their beef.
Smoked salmon linguine: There was a very generous portion of smoked salmon in this plate! With every forkful, we were met with smoked salmon in our mouth. It was a bit bland but easily fixed with a dash of salt. The boyfriend packed this for lunch the next day, and apparently it was even better since the flavours had soaked in more!
Cheesecake trio: I don’t remember the exact flavours of the cheesecake, but everyone quite enjoyed it. Unfortunately, everyone was too full from the appies and entrees so we couldn’t finish this.
Ice cream parfait: Whoa!! Take a look at this monster! It came with layers of ice cream and fruit. It would have been easier to eat as a sundae since we were all sharing (well, I couldn’t have it so excluding me haha). Normally, this costs $10 without the Groupon so I think the Groupon was pretty worth it.
