i love food Archives - Curiously Carmen

CRAFT Beer Market

January 16, 2015

Hi guys!

Wow, so I decided to read the reviews for CRAFT Beer Market before I wrote this post… All I can say is that I’m glad we came here spontaneously without checking the reviews (and if you’re a food blogger, that almost never happens!) or we would have missed out on a good time!

After visiting Bright Nights during the holidays, the boyfriend and I didn’t feel like going back home… so he sheepishly asked if I wanted some beer. Uhhhh… yes?! I asked him why he sounded hesitant to ask me. He said it was because we usually only grab beer or go to pubs with friends, and wasn’t sure if couples go get beer as a date. I’m not sure if couples normally get beer alone together, but I don’t really care because I’ll get beer any day! On a whim, we thought of CRAFT because we’ve always wanted to try it, but somehow always end up at Tap and Barrel across the street.

All this rambling and I haven’t even gotten to the food yet, wow. We arrived around 9pm on a busy Saturday night, and were quickly seated at a corner booth with really cozy, plush leather seats. We had a great view of the big and noisy restaurant, but were also seated in an area quiet and cozy enough to have conversation.

One thing I have to agree on with the other Urbanspoon reviews is that service here is slow, so don’t come here if you are in a rush. It took us 10 minutes before our server came. Throughout the night, I could tell that she was busy but she did make an effort to be friendly, ask how we were doing, etc.

CRAFT has an extensive and impressive amount of craft beer. The beer menu is almost endless and overwhelming! I wanted something citrus-y, and decided to try the Blanche de Chambly, a type of Belgian pale ale. It did not disappoint, and hit the spot perfectly. It was refreshing, citrusy, and light topped off with a great, velvety layer of foam. The boyfriend ordered a darker beer, the Ayinger Celebrator which was very malty and hoppy.

The boyfriend ordered the poutine, which was served hot on a pan (we were warned not to touch the pan or we would get burnt). I also read reviews that some guests received cold poutine, but ours was steaming hot and came with an abundance of melted cheese, gravy, and salt. I didn’t have many because I wasn’t feeling like fried food that night, but the boyfriend enjoyed the poutine a lot. The hotness of the fresh fries melted the cheese to a great consistency, topped off with peppers and herbs, making it a very satisfying munch.

Fun fact about me: I am not a veggie person, but the only exceptions are kale and arugula. I loooove arugula in my salads, pizzas, and flatbreads. I ordered the prosciutto argula flatbread with Grana Padano cheese. The flatbread was very doughy, and not too thin which I liked. It was topped off with a generous amount of fresh and crunchy arugula, as well as grated Grana Padano. I didn’t really taste much of the proscuitto due to the overwhelming flavours of the arugula and cheese, but I did see it there.

Overall, our visit to CRAFT was wonderful, even though service was slow. Our server was really friendly and was making an effort to check on us when she could, but it’s wasn’t really her fault. I loved the atmosphere, the long communal dining tables, the beautiful city view, and the empty keg display they had as well.

Are you a fan of craft beer, and which ones are your favourite? Have you been here before? Let me know in the comments!

On another note, I’m also currently giving away a free Cetaphil skincare set (suitable for both females and males!) until February 2nd! Read my post here to enter and full details =)

-Carmen

CRAFT Beer Market

January 2, 2015

Hi guys!

After visiting Bright Nights during the holidays, the boyfriend and I didn’t feel like going back home… so he sheepishly asked if I wanted some beer. Uhhhh… yes?! I asked him why he sounded hesitant to ask me. He said it was because we usually only grab beer or go to pubs with friends, and wasn’t sure if couples go get beer as a date. LOL, I’m not sure if couples normally get beer alone together, but I don’t really care because I’ll get beer any day! On a whim, we thought of CRAFT because we’ve always wanted to try it, but somehow always end up at Tap and Barrel across the street.

Are you a fan of craft beer, and which ones are your favourite? Have you been here before? Let me know in the comments!

On another note, I’m also currently giving away a free Cetaphil skincare set (suitable for both females and males!) until February 2nd! Read my post here to enter and full details =)

-Carmen

Taishoken Ramen 大勝軒

December 24, 2014

Taishoken Ramen has been on my must eats list for a good few months now. The sad thing is that I’ve tried to come here twice, which have both failed. Third time is the charm I guess, as the boyfriend and I finally found ourselves here one early evening.We had just finished walking around the Christmas market and Taishoken had just opened, which was perfect timing because I didn’t want to wait in line in the cold. He dropped me off first, and there were still a few minutes before the doors actually opened.

Around 4:58, there were three other parties starting to line up too. The size of Taishoken was pretty standard for a ramen shop, warm and cozy. I chose a table furthest from the door because I was quite cold that day, and didn’t want to feel the breeze of the door.
Of course, I ordered the shio tonkotsu ramen. Shio is my absolutely favourite ramen broth, anyone else? 🙂 Since I’ve been wanting to come here for so long, I had an idea of what it would taste like because I’ve read so many reviews. The shio tonkotsu ramen was very creamy, thick, and rich… perfect! The noodles were cooked al dente and had a nice bounce to it, I also loved how there were so much green onions! As for the pork shoulder, I found it slightly on the dry side, but that’d me trying to nitpick at something.

Can we also take a moment to appreciate the egg? It was cooked perfectly to my liking, with a bit of yolk oozing out. The egg was also marinated in some type of salty soya sauce broth, which made it taste even better.

I ordered a side of extra noodles, which was not a good idea because I was way too full afterwards! The bowl of extra noodles came in the side, which I divided up with the boyfriend. I knew there was no way that I would finish it myself.
The boyfriend ordered the shoyu tonkotsu ramen. Like myself, he found the broth to be very flavourful and rich and his noodles were bouncy as well. However, he was disappointed with the pork belly meat because it was very rubbery and chewy. For something so fatty like pork belly meat, you would expect a softer, melt in your mouth texture. I’ve read on previous reviews that people had the same opinion as him too.

For both our ramen and the side of extra noodles, our total came to $21 without tax and tip, which is reasonable for dinner. Since we came when it had just opened, there was only one server who was doing her best to attend to every table and was very friendly. But the shop filled up every fast, so service was a bit slow but that’s okay because she was trying to do everything herself. The chefs actually ended up bringing our food because the server was very busy.

Would I come back? Since it is in a somewhat convenient area and I won’t have to drive through the downtown core to get a good bowl of ramen, yes. I don’t see myself wanting to come back right away, but if I’m ever hungry at the office, Taishoken is a mere 7-10 minute walk away! I would also only come at obscure times because I don’t want to wait in line for this.

-Carmen

PS. Merry Christmas eve to those celebrating Christmas! 🙂

Ken’s Chinese Restaurant

August 6, 2014

After my cousin’s high school graduation, we were all hungry and looking for a late restaurant to feed our hungry tummies. We were going to go to Congee Noodle House, but knew it would be busy since all the Chinese families that attended the graduation would probably go there. We drove a bit further into Burnaby, and went to Ken’s Chinese Restaurant. Funny, we went here a few years back for my high school graduation. We also sat at the same table this time as well! Ken’s serves authentic Chinese dishes, and satisfied my craving for late night Chinese food.
(Picture taken from Urbanspoon). Ken’s Chinese Restaurant is located in a small strip mall on Kingsway. There is plenty of free parking in the strip mall.
To start off our da lan, we got the standard plain congee, which came in a huge pot. The congee itself was good and was great quality. It wasn’t too runny and watery, and had a bit of a sweet taste to it. Very warm, and comforting. If your purchase is over a certain amount (my uncle told me this, I didn’t read their menu), you can get unlimited congee refills. We had two refills after this, and the quality and taste of the congee remained delicious. Some restaurants (like my visit to AYCE sushi at Toyotomi) diminish the quality of the orders, but this was not the case.
Stir fried broccoli with garlic. Unfortunately, I forgot the prices of each dish this time so they won’t be included. The broccoli was very crunchy and tasted fresh. There was a definite garlic taste to it, and the tips of the broccoli were smothered in garlic sauce. However, the garlic taste wasn’t unbearably strong, and not enough to give you horrid garlic breath afterwards.
Another late night classic! Clams in black bean sauce. This dish was very tasty as well. The sauce was very flavourful, and came with fresh green onions on top. The clams were also really juicy and there was a generous amount. I’ve been to some Chinese restaurants where they serve a plate of clam shells, where you have to scavenge for what little actual clam meat they have. This tastes really good when you add the shell, which is full of sauce, into the plain congee.
Deep fried tofu with spicy garlic salt. Another classic. Ken’s made this dish perfectly. There was a generous amount of peppers, and the tofu tasted really good with the garlic. The tofu was piping hot and crispy on the outside, while soft inside. I am definitely coming here again when I crave deep fried tofu.
Braised string beans with minced meat. We felt pretty gross after eating the deep fried tofu and clams because they were both such heavy (albeit delicious!) dishes, so we decided to order some veggies. The string beans were very crunchy and flavourful as well. However, this was a bit heavy on the oil so I’m not sure if ordering this dish was the best to “clear” our tummies with. But, it was delicious!

Late night Chinese snack is absolutely delicious, and Ken’s did not disappoint! The servers were also very nice as well. I would definitely come here again when craving late night snacks, but hopefully, that is not for a long time since it’s so unhealthy (minus the plain congee)!

-Carmen