restaurant review Archives - Page 7 of 9

El Furniture Warehouse (Whistler)

July 23, 2014

My apologies for not posting as regularly! I have been preoccupied with a few personal things, and I was in Whistler for two days last week. My friends and I spent a bit over a day soaking up the sunshine in the village, lounging by the pool, and basically just relaxing the past day in the 37 degree weather. It was a much needed mini break from the usual swing of things. During the past day and a bit that we were there, we ate out every meal, so keep posted on some Whistler dining adventures!

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We decided to come to the Warehouse for brunch the second day we were here. After doing some quick research on Google, I’m not sure if they are sister restaurants or not. The logo isn’t the same as the one in Vancouver, and they do not list each others addresses on their websites.

But nonetheless, El Furniture Warehouse in Whistler has the same idea – all food items are $4.95. I’ve never successfully ate at any Warehouse location before (Went to the one on Granville in Vancouver two years ago, sat down for 20 minutes and no one came so we left) so I was quite excited to try this place out!
Walking down the village stroll the evening before, the Warehouse was packed and full of noise at night. Coming back the next day, it was a bit strange to see the patio completely empty and quiet!

We were one of the only tables seated around 11:30 am, and decided to sit inside since it was ridiculously hot outside, and there wasn’t much shade for the tables (don’t let the umbrellas fool you). Unfortunately, there was no a/c inside the restaurant but we sat at the booth right before the patio, so we got plenty of fresh air where we sat.
Opening the menu, I was in shock at how everything was actually only $5. I wasn’t sure if I was dreaming or not, this place was definitely the cheapest restaurant I’ve been to. If I have never heard of the Warehouse, I would never have expected that everything on the menu was $5.
Nachos | The “Works” burger & fries | Roasted turkey sandwich & fries | Chiang mai bowl w added chicken for $2.25

There was five of us and we each got an entree, and shared nachos and mini donuts. Starting off with the nachos, they were a bit disappointing because we got the bottom of the bag, so all we got under those seemingly large pieces of chips were crumbs. The chips themselves were crunchy, cheesy, and came with the sauce on the side.

Moving on to the the Works burger, I didn’t try this but the boyfriend enjoyed it. It was very juicy, and came with bacon, cheddar, and onions- for $5, it was seriously a good deal and he was stuffed. For myself, I ordered the roasted turkey sandwich. I absolutely loved the cranberry sourdough. Without the cranberry sourdough bread, it would have been very plain. The second side of my sandwich only came with a really tiny piece of turkey breast, the rest was just lettuce and cheese. I think when the chefs cut the sandwich, all the turkey breast moved to one side of the sandwich. I wasn’t upset though, because the first side of my sandwich came with a lot of grilled turkey breast 🙂

Cheese ordered a noodle bowl with a side of chicken for $2.25. The noodles were very chewy and this was the perfect dish for a hot afternoon like today. It also came with half an avocado and fresh veggies. Again, a very good deal!
Macaroni ordered the deep fried apple pie with ice cream for dessert. I was too stuffed by the end of my turkey sandwich (I didn’t even finish my fries!) that I had to unfortunately pass down the opportunity for what looked like amazing dessert. Alas, Macaroni ended up sharing it and everyone that tried it loved the pie.

We also ordered mini donuts to share. They were a bit too oily for my liking and I didn’t find them soft and chewy, they were abnormally crunchy. It was also covered with an extremely generous amount of sugar and came with chocolate dipping sauce. I probably wouldn’t order this again because of how oily and strangely crunchy they were.

We were so stuffed by the end of this meal that we didn’t up going for Cows ice cream afterwards, which is usually a Whistler tradition for me! People say that the Warehouse is a hit and miss, and you gotta know what to order. I probably wouldn’t order the nachos or mini donuts again, but everything else was delicious and worth $5. Our sever was nice and attentive as well, she kept our water pitcher full at all times and was quick to come to our aid. I would definitely come here again when I’m back in Whistler, and will probably be trying the Vancouver locations in the future as well 🙂

-Carmen

Cactus Club Cafe (Coal Harbour)

July 8, 2014

I had a catch up day with one of my friends a few weekends ago, and decided to meet at Cactus Club Coal Harbour for a late lunch. Unfortunately, it was pouring buckets that day, which was a teeny bit disappointing because I really wanted to enjoy lunch with a beautiful view of Stanley Park and the seawall!

There was also some kind of fundraising, “Amazing Race” style race going on in downtown that day so we saw quite a few sprinting, panting, and exhausted runners outside. Felt bad for them since it was raining so hard. It ended up clearing up once we were finished eating though. Despite the gloomy weather, we had a good lunch and our server was extremely friendly!
We were both super hungry by the time we met up, and decided to order a starter dish to share. We ordered the goat cheese flatbread ($12.75) which came with caramelized onions, grape tomatoes, basil pesto spread, wild argula, and balsamic glaze.

The argula and grape tomatoes tasted extremely fresh, and went well with the basil pesto spread and balsamic glaze. The flatbread itself was warm and soft. I have been really loving my flatbreads lately! The one I had at Milestones was delicious as well.
My friend ordered the pesto chicken quesadilla ($11.50) with a side of yam fries for an extra $4.25. I didn’t try it, but my friend enjoyed it very much and had no complaints!
Since I already ordered a burger a few days ago at Milestones, I felt bad indulging in one again. So I decided to get the grilled tuna club because it seemed like a healthier choice. I was pleasantly surprised at the size of my rare-seared tuna, as I was imagining a thin slice. It was a bit messy to eat since it was pretty big, and I was trying not to spill the tuna juice everywhere. Since it was seared, it had a nice smoky taste to it but the tuna was also very thick and juicy. The greens that came with the burger were also very fresh.

Overall, I had a great experience at Cactus Club. I loved their menu items and the food was delicious as well. Restaurants like these really focus on customer satisfaction and service, which I really appreciate!

-Carmen

Milestones (Yaletown)

July 6, 2014

A birthday celebration was in order two weeks ago, and Milestones was the location of our dinner. We have been to this Yaletown location before, it is tradition for Smores to hold his birthday dinner here every year before going dancing 🙂

However, we had slight management issues which I will explain down below. This location offers a semi-private room that seats 30 guests. It is in the back of the restaurant, right before the kitchen and washrooms and is closed off on all three walls, except for one wall which is completely glass where you enter from the sides. Even though it is covered off, you do not feel completely isolated but it’s nice when there is a large party, and you guys want some privacy. There were many plates of food, beer, and wine that were ordered, but I decided to only focus on the food that I actually tried that night!
For starters, my two friends got the baked goat cheese and slow roasted garlic flat bread. It came with cranberry relish and fig jam as well.

All of the flavours of this dish complemented each other tremendously well. The bread was extremely soft and warm as well. Definitely a great starter dish!
For myself, I ordered the California burger which came with avocado, salsa, and bacon. I fell in love with this burger the last time I got it, and this time was no different either. I loved the inclusion of the avocado, and felt that all the flavours worked really well together much like the flat bread dish. The fries were pretty standard and came with freshly ground pepper as well.
The boyfriend ordered the stacked burger. Prime rib, Montreal smoked meat, bacon strips, cheddar cheese, plus more goodies. This is the epitome of an indulgent and guilty meal, but it was delicious.

The Montreal smoked meat was very tender and juicy, along with the mushrooms. Burgers like these are to die for, but important to have them in extreme moderation because they are definitely not calorie or fat friendly!
For drinks, I ordered the Sombersby cider which I got the day before at Elephant and Castle. I just took this picture from that previous post as I forgot to take a picture of it at Milestones.

My friends decided to share a pitcher of sangria. It was made with Sombersby white wine (same company as my cider), and was absolutely delicious as well! There were many fruits in it, making it super refreshing.

Now for the management issue: We had buy one get one half price entree coupons, which I think the management was upset at, so they told us that we needed a minimum charge for the semi-private room. We suspect that they had just added that policy that night due to the coupons. My friend has had his birthday here for the past six years and they have never mentioned that “policy” before.

We thought it was a bit rude and unprofessional for the restaurant manager to suddenly barge in during our dinner, and ask to talk to the birthday boy. Other measures could have been taken that were less invasive and awkward. There was no fine print on the coupons nor restrictions, so we weren’t breaking rules nor was it our fault; they should have specified the limit of one per table or something like that if they were going to be upset about it. We also ordered alcohol and appetizers, so it wasn’t like we were there just to solely use the coupons. Apart from the management, our servers were very friendly and attentive.

-Carmen

Elephant and Castle Pub

June 28, 2014

It was another beautiful sunny Vancouver afternoon, and luckily, I had the day off to spend it in downtown with friends. This time, we decided to try Elephant and Castle because it was close to Stanley Park, and I have heard good things about this place.

There was a strong British influence on this pub, and it was located inside the beautiful, heritage Marine building. It was definitely a pretty place to stop and fill our stomaches before exploring our beautiful city and the seawall.
For drinks, I decided to get my favourite beer of all time. Kronenbourg Blanc! This beer is very refreshing, and has a strong citrusy flavour to it. If you’re a big fan of citrus and in the mood for a light beer, this is the way to go.

I liked how they included an orange with it too because other places that I’ve ordered this did not include one. Also, please excuse the 24 in the corner, I took this picture off my Snapchat because I realized I forgot to take an actual picture. =.=”
I haven’t had chicken tenders for a long time, so I decided to try theirs that day which came with honey mustard dipping sauce. Was I ever glad I did! The chicken came piping hot, and was super tender, but crispy on the outside. It was also very juicy, seasoned well, and tasted really fresh.

My favourite place to get chicken tenders is Red Robins, but since they’ve closed a couple of the locations I normally go to, I haven’t really found a place that matched their deliciousness. Oh wait, IHOP at Brentwood had amazing chicken tenders but that shut down too.

Anyways, the chicken tenders here are probably my new favourite, since they both shut down. I love my chicken tenders so if you know a great place for them, please let me know in the comments!
The Somersby apple cider was one of the seasonal drink specials that day. Both my friends ordered it, and they fell in love with how crisp and refreshing it tasted. I had a sip and I loved it too! I actually ended up ordering this the next night at Milestones (Might do a post on that as well, we shall see!)
This was my friend’s mini stuffed yorkie pie ($8), with a side of fries. Two of my friends ordered this, and they both thought it tasted pretty good. However, they were disappointed with the size of the pies. Yes, they’re mini pies but my friend said that after two bites, it was finished and not worth the $8 she paid for! It’s a good thing she had the side of fries to fill her up.
Up next were the deep fried pickles with roasted red pepper aioli. I thought that these were fried perfectly, and the pickles were crunchy and delicious too. The aioli dipping sauce was very delicious and had a hint of garlic and spice.

Behind it was “the works” poutine that came with sour cream, bacon, tomato, and green onions. It was also pretty good and had a generous serving of fries and toppings. My other friends also ordered three plates of poutine which I forgot to take a picture of ~~(probably because I was too busy reuniting with my delicious chicken tenders).~~

Anyways, to conclude, we had a great first experience here and definitely wouldn’t mind coming back. Service was friendly and attentive as well.

-Carmen

Fiesta Fridays- Nesters Market Deli Review

June 11, 2014

Hello Fiesta Friday-ers! I forgot to mention that EatMunchLove invited me to the first party, so thank you for introducing me! After my pleasant visit to Urban Fare, I was craving deli eats again. This time, my mind wandered to Nesters because I was at school, and there was a location on the mountain. I also didn’t want to deal with a rush of students in the main cafeteria, so decided that the walk there would be worth it. Fortunately, my friend agreed so we went in between our classes.
Nesters deli was pretty standard. There were many delicious looking items to choose from that day. I wasn’t super hungry, and felt a slight tickle in my throat so settled on getting a small soup and slice of pizza ($4.50). There were 3 types of soup that day, I got the chicken potato soup with chorizo sausage. It was very flavourful and had a generous amount of veggies. There wasn’t much chicken in it and the chorizo was very soggy, I don’t think I want chorizo sausage in my soup again. Usually, after having Western style soup, I am left parched but I did not find myself needing a massive amount of water, which is good.
The pizza was warmed in the oven. A there was only one type to pick from. The dough was very thick, soft, and chewy- I loved it! There was also a lot of deli meat topping and veggies on it. My friend got the soup and sandwich combo and a samosa, which I forgot to take a picture of. He said the samosa was a bit dry but enjoyed his ham sandwich. If I had time to spare on campus and wanted a quiet spot to eat, I would come here again.

I hope you enjoyed the post! Happy Fiesta Friday, I look forward to reading everyone’s posts! 🙂

-Carmen