When I first heard about this spot on Robson, based on the name and the location I thought this place was going to suck like the Jimmy Fallon show but everyone I have talked to has said amazing things about this restaurant.
I finally made a trip to visit this spot and I have to admit that I was very impressed. The complementary salsa and chips plate were a great starter. The atmosphere was not how I would decorate a Mexican restaurant but it was pleasant. For my meal I ordered a taco ($2.50), an enchilada (I think $9.50) and a horchata while my friend ordered the beef fajita ($14). Being a big fan of Dona Cata I was a little biased about this Robson Street restaurant but my little taco which I ordered as a barometer was dam good. The enchilada were tasty but the real talk of the table was the fajita. It was freaking good. Their seasoning used on the meat was fantastic, I has to be one of the better fajitas that I have had.
Bottom line, Don Guacamole's offers great Mexican food, nice portions for a decent price, especially for a Robson restaurant. Much respect goes out to Don Guacamole's. Word up!!!! Now I don't need to drive so far for good Mexican.
Don Guacamole's Restaurant
1333 Robson Street
Vancouver, BC V6E 1C6
(604) 569-2295
The Jimmy Fallon show still sucks!!!
Matt
I just got back from Japan and I will write a long post about my eating experience later but I want to share this post. The one lesson that I learned about flying is that always keep your home keys in your carry on.
My departing flight from Narita was delayed, which caused me to miss my connecting flight in LA, which then caused my luggage to be lost and not arrive with me in Vancouver. After about 15 hours of traveling and waiting, I have never wanted my bed so much, however, I put my house keys in my checked in luggage and the person who has my spare keys was out of town.
I stayed at my friends for a bit but the baggage company called and said they will drop it off soon. So here I am sitting outside my door, connecting to my own WIFI signal but unable to get into my house until the baggage people drop off suitcase.
I just called the baggage company and they said they will drop off my suitcase somewhere between 1 to 4am. Wow, that specific eh. Until, then I ll just sleep in front of my door. This lap top battery will die shortly.
Come check the sickest yard sale this summer will see...
I (Matt) took a trip to Quisi with a friend and she wanted to write the blog entry, she even seemed open to the idea of joining VancouverSlop. I am crossing my fingers. Here is how she summed up our experience at Quisi. Ouisi Restaurant It’s rare for me to sum up dishes using just a few words. It only really happens when you are unsatisfied with your meal. As is, unfortunately, the case below… We went to Ouisi with hopes of leaving happy, full, and with stories of good food to tell. Self-described as “a bistro … creating Cajun and Creole cuisine from fresh British Columbia ingredients”, friends who had visited during Dine Out reported that it was tasty, and it’s been on South Granville for quite a while…all signs that would lead you to assume satisfaction, right? WRONG. When we arrived, it took us (okay, me) a while to decide on what to get. Hungry and looking forward to a good dinner, I deliberated between the $8½ Vert et Bleu Salad (calvados vinaigrette tossed spinach, with roasted pumpkin seeds & Danish Blue cheese) followed by a $10 ¼ 14th Street Eats Sandwich (Chicken breast with spinach almond pesto & asiago cheese on sourdough), or the more authentic Cornmeal Crusted Trout $18 (with a mango-chipotle beurre blanc, roasted new potatoes and sautéed vegetables). I decided to go with the trout. I don’t love Cajun or Creole cooking all that much (not a fan of spicy…runny noses and sweaty faces), but I thought, hey, when in Rome…and I do like trout. MISTAKE. My dining companions, Michelle and Matt, ordered the $2½ Basket of Housemade Cornbread to start, followed by the $15½ Jambalaya (a Louisiana classic, simmered with tomatoes, the trinity, smoked ham, andouille sausage, chorizo sausage & served with green rice), and the $9 Burger and Brew Special (with Swiss; for an additional $2 ¼, might I add, pricey cheese) with a $8 Seafood Chowder (a melange of seafood in a tomato broth with sweet potatoes & fresh vegetables). Sounds pretty Creole-licious, right? (well, minus the burger) WRONG. Cornbread; one word: DRY. It crumbled when you put butter on it. Housemade, when? Earlier in the week? Trout; one word: BLAAAAAAAAAAAAND. It was like eating water fish, yes, a make believe fish made up of solid water, zero flavour. So, you’d think the “mango-chipotle beurre blanc” would be the saving grace. Sounds lovely and authentic, but I wouldn’t even describe it that way, it was more just cut up mangos with mango sauce (mango, sugar, flour?) and some chilies; nothing amazing, and it definitely did not do anything for the dish. To round it off, the potatoes were weak and the sautéed vegetables were more like boiled and boring. Jambalaya; few words: SPICY COVERING BLAND. Yup, another round of bland, but this time it was spicy, a lazy way to cover up bland. I believe Michelle said that it was so spicy that the spiciness was coming out of her eyeballs. Yu-ummmm! Next: the burger, which Matt actually really enjoyed. Which, yaaaa…I guess is great, but not really what you’d go there for. Although, I guess you now know what to order if someone books resos there and you have no choice. And finally, the Chowder; few words: DIRTY FISHY WATER. I should mention that this came out almost 15-20 minutes after everything else. Weird that soup would take that long in the first place, even more weird is that they thought they could get away with calling it chowder (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/chowder - A thick soup containing fish or shellfish, especially clams, and vegetables, such as potatoes and onions, in a milk or tomato base). Thick? Nope! It was watery, with random little pieces of vegetable, and maybe random chunks of seafood, not that we say any. Okay, and the taste…seriously, fish water. We actually sent it back and told the waitress it wasn’t very good. Needless to say, other than the burger, our meals were not polished off. I can only assume that the Vert et Bleu Salad and 14th Street Eats Sandwich would have been better, but I’m not willing to go back there and try. Michelle mentioned their breakfast/brunch was good, but I pretty much would never recommend this place. BLAAAAAAAAAAAND. Ouisi Bistro 3014 Granville Street Vancouver, BC http://www.ouisibistro.com/ I will find the picture of the trout and get it up shortly. Sorry. Matt liked his burger but hoped that they could hook a guy up with some garnish, fries, or even a cut up tomato. Come on Quisi spend the 50 cents and make the plate at least look nice.
NAW JAPAN.
So I am in Tokyo right now and I have found a little bit of time to do some blogging.
Tokyo is rad, pretty much an epicureans dream. Tons of drinks available in vending machines, lots of restaurants ranging from street food to fine dining and if the food doesn't agree with your stomach, the toilets here are amazing. The bidet feature on these toilets are incredible. It is a pleasure to have to go number two.
I met my friend Go at the train station and he took us to Negi ramen and we went down some seedy lanes to find what was ranked as the third best ramen in Japan by a local food crew called "Ramen Walker". The ramen bar was a shoe box. We had to walk up a set of super steep stairs to get to ramen bar which was about 5 meters in length. We picked our ramen from a machine at the entrance of the bar and ordered an alcoholic beverage as well. We sat down and gave the cook our tickets. He spoke some english with us and served us some udon hi (sho chu with udon broth - served cold). The ramen broth was thick and tasty with a fish taste to it. You could see a bucket of what looked like sardines and some large slabs of pork that were used for the broth. The ramen came quick served with noodle sashimi, boiled egg and two chunks of pork. I was pretty happy with my meal but it didn't really agree with any of our stomachs.
When we left, half of the restaurant had to get up out of their seat in order for us to squeeze by and get out.
I am loving this place . I just had the best toro ever!!!!!!! More to come later. I will find some fugu (blowfish).
Matt
Hapa Izakaya
Hapa Izakaya is no secret to most people in Vancouver. With two locations, it has been the izakaya of choice for many Vancouverites.
My friend put it best, Hapa Izakaya is a place you can take a date to, and Guu is like the spot where go after the third date. He has a point, Hapa doesn't have people screaming in the restaurant when you order, the atmosphere is a little nicer, and very attractive staff work the tables. This makes Hapa the Cactus Club of Izakayas. The respective patrons are quite different as well, I couldn't count how many Ed Hardy shirts were in Hapa that nigh, I felt the need to go home and get my Bedazzler so I would fit in. I have always thought the food was a little better at Guu and Guu was a significantly cheaper.
This meal we had with friends was expensive but I blame the sake margaritas and beer. The new items on the menu really impressed me, the short ribs are amazing, and the spotted prawns were fantastic. I know the spot prawn season is coming to an end but try and get in there and order the deep fried prawns they are fantastic. Also, the edamame has to be the best in the city.
Hapa Izakaya
1516 Yew Street (Kits)
Vancouver, BC
They need more halfers working there. Someone get Kristen Kreuk there and I 'll be back every day.
Matt
I have only been to Browns Social House once but I thought this menu item was funny. Hair of the Dog - Granville Island Pale Ale and a side of bacon for 8 bucks. Does anyone ever order this?
The other thing that I have heard is that Browns was started by an ex senior executive from Cactus Club. When he opened the first Browns he took some of the best service staff with him. Eventually, the owner of Cactus was pissed and tried to hire them back at any cost, I heard girls were getting signing bonuses in the range of 2 -3 thousand to come back to Cactus Club. Pretty insane.
Browns Social House
3651 10th Ave
Vancouver BC
Sometimes I can be an asshole to eat with. I can be that guy at the dinner table who says the food sucks after someone boasted about the restaurant. Usually I keep my filter on but sometimes the Asahi takes my filter off.
This day a friend wanted to show me a cheap sushi spot on the drive and I was like come on its going to be fishy and wack. She was persistent and we took a trip to Sake Maki.
The interior was creative. It must have previously been a Greek restaurant because the walls had resemblance of the Parthenon on it. The Japanese owners were creative and added some cherry blossoms and a painting of Mt Fuji to disguise the previous Greek environment and make it more Japanese.
The food. I was surprised, the sashimi was really fresh, it wasn't fishy, and the rolls were tasty. I even did something unusual for me and ordered a plate of teriyaki at the end to fill me up. Such a rookie thing to do in a Japanese restaurant but seeing someone order that sizzling plate just made me want to have one. For all you Commercial Drive inhabitants you have something good here in Sake Maki.
A recommended cheap Japanese sushi spot.
Sake Maki
1414 Commercial Dr
Vancouver, BC
Matt
Here's a tip: Whenever one of your friends offer to take you somewhere for free...GO!!!
I was invited to go watch the Vancouver Whitecaps FC play the Toronto FC at Swangard stadium and was pleasantly surprised at the slop that was waiting for me.
Thanks to the Vancouver Board of Trade and the Bank Of Montreal, my amigos and me got to enjoy VIP seating right behind the net, $2.00 beers and a bbq that seemed to go on forever.
First course: Jumbo hotdogs...and a beer and a bag of chips.
Filipino bbq man after my own heart!
Second course: sirloin burgers with all the toppings, vegetable pasta sald, greek salad and a brocolli salad and of course, more beers.
VIP seating with close ups of all the players!! (oh yah and the game)
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