Grand Lux Cafe

Restaurant: Grand Lux Cafe
Cuisine: American
Last visited: August 24, 09

Area: Las Vegas - Multiple
The Venetian Hotel & Casino 3355 Las Vegas Blvd
Price Range: $10-20

1: Poor 2: OK 3: Good 4: Very good 5: Excellent 6: Tres Excellent!!

Food: 3.5
Service: 5
Ambiance: 3
Overall: 3
Additional comments:

• Founder of The Cheesecake Factory
• I prefer The Cheesecake Factory
• Big portions, large menu selection
• Very reasonably priced, a bit more expensive than Cheesecake Factory
• European decor, with typical American food
• Nothing gourmet, but just good/big portions of food served in a comfortable & nice atmosphere
• Casual
• Open 24 hours
• Breakfast served all day in Vegas location
• Lunch specials until 5pm

**Recommendation: Short Rib Grilled Cheese, The Max Burger, Chicken Pot Pie

I got this recommendation from the person sitting next to me on my flight down. I was staying at The Venetian and got in quite late so I thought it would be convenient to check it out. I didn't know it was from the same founders of The Cheesecake Factory, but after I found out it was quite obvious. Large portions, all American food, and that luxurious European cafe feel - overall a casual restaurant where you get a bang for your buck. I like the menu and food better at The Cheesecake Factory and they're almost the same menu, but Cheesecake Factory has an even larger menu.

Note: I got some of my photos off the internet, but I only used them if they were close to identical to what I was served. So these are trustworthy photos.

On the table:

• Crabcakes 4/6
• These were really good. They are a bit on the expensive side for I think $13 for 2 relatively normal sized crab cakes. A bit larger and thicker than a hockey puck. You do get a lot of dungeness crab though (just look at the picture) - so it's reasonable for what they charge.
  
• 
• You can actually break away at the crab with your fork and you don't get those cheap additional fillers, so you're actually eating a crab cake and not a shrimp cake. This isn't a high end restaurant or anything so I was quite impressed with the quality of crab cake I got. It wasn't the best I've had or anything, but for this type of chain restaurant I think it was great. It's served very lightly battered and golden brown with a spicy mustard sauce - I would share this if I were to order it again - 2 crab cakes gets a little repetitive and sickening, but one is good.


• **The Max Burger 5/6
• One of their famous selections. Certified Angus beef with cheddar cheese, bacon, sauteed mushrooms, onions and roasted short ribs. Served with fries.

• If you're a fan of a great tasting burger, you have to give this a shot. For me, I would normally pass on a burger at a restaurant like this because there's so many more options I would want to try something different. But my friend ordered it, and I'm glad he did. It's really big though, you have ahard time eating it cause the toppings keep slipping out. The great thing about this burger isn't the size though, it's the quality of the beef patty they used. You can tell that the patty is an Angus beef patty and it's nice and juicy, not dry at all. This isn't a diner or fast food burger and it's not a gourmet burger either (it's still served on a regular burger bun)...but it's just a classic American burger done well.
• Chicken Meatball Sandwich 2/6
• House-made chicken meatballs with melted Fontina cheese and marinara sauce on a buttered roll. Served with fries.

• This was kind of disappointing. Its drenched in marinara sauce so it's kind of hard to eat too. Really messy and soggy. Yes the meatballs are house made and they're quite large, but I think beef/pork meatballs are generally better. They weren't dry, but they come off as a dry because the beef meatballs we're typically used to are just juicier. They kinds of have this aftertaste that wasn't ideal too. I'm not sure what the herb or spice was cause I couldn't really put my finger on it - but it wasn't something you really want to remember. It's edible and ok tasting, but not something I'd care to order again.
• **Short Rib Grilled Cheese Sandwich 5/6
• Slow roasted short ribs, caramelized onions and lots of melted cheese on grilled bread. Served with fries.

• This is a great tasting sandwich. I would actually prefer it to the Max Burger. It tastes as good as it sounds, again well done on the execution. It was a tad greasy, but that's expected when you order something like this. I like that the bread they used, which is a country bread because it gave it this rustic texture and taste to the sandwich. It has a crispy/buttery exterior and it's not too thick so you can bite into it easily without the sandwich being too messy. You get a great amount of short ribs that are really tender, and a good amount of cheese too. I think it's just a cheddar cheese they use, maybe mixed with some Mozzarella too.
• Grilled Ahi Tuna Burger 2/6
• The description on the menu tells you nothing, except that its served on a brioche bun. It's served with grilled onions, lettuce and tomatoes though. It doesn't look great, and it's pretty plain and bland, it kind of was.

• This was good becuase we were hungry. I've had better before for sure! (Still the best at Joey's). This was better tasting than the one from Le Grande Orange Cafe though. The quality of tuna was alright, but it's very basic and something you could put together at home. There's no specialty here, so don't expect to be blown away or anything. I feel like they added it on the menu, just to have it on, but they didn't really put care into making it good - probably cause the clientèle wouldn't really order it. They did a great job on the grilled onions though - and it's nice to a have a brioche bun with this type of sandwich.
• Salisbury Chopped Steak 4/6
• Chopped steak mixed with onions, mushrooms, and garlic. Served with mashed potatoes, pickled shredded red beets, and veggies.

• This thing is HUGE! It's a lot of meat served with mashed potatoes in a rolled layer on top. Its the combination of the steak and the creamy whipped potatoes that made this really good. It's quite saucy and tastes like a traditional Salisbury steak - all American flavours and tastes. The meat was really ground up and it was almost like a meatloaf, but a bit drier - not dry though. Just drier compared to a meatloaf. The veggies were all ground into this steak patty so you weren't biting into chunks of it or anything. This was quite tasty - but I guess you can't really go wrong with beef, gravy, and creamy mashed potatoes. The steak was flavourful and tender on it's own, but when it's covered by gravy and mashed potatoes you can't really tell...whatever it was still good for what it was though; I can't rate this like I would a fine dining place, cause it's not.
• 
  
• The red beets were good, but I wasn't a fan of them being pickled. Thy taste better with this meal not pickled. It was almost like eating red sauerkraut.
• **Chicken Pot Pie
• I did not order this - but I will next time. The man next to me ordered it and it was SO big. The biggest I've seen. It came in a large bowl with a huge crust baked on top...so the bowl holds the filling and not the crust. It looked really impressive and tasty - all of us wanted to try it. We were considering going back to order this. The crust is made in house, and it's really big so I think the ratio of crust to pie filling would be perfect. I don't know how it tastes, but I will try it for sure!
• It was so big, I had to take a picture of it from the guy who ordered it beside me. The picture I used for this blog isn't the picture I took though...but it's almost the same, I just think this one was a better angle. (I had to take mine from a distance - which is understandable because it wasn't even my order...how odd would that have been?)
  

Alpha Global Sushi & Bar

Restaurant: Alpha Global Sushi & Bar
Cuisine: Japanese/Izakaya/Tapas/Fusion
Last visited: August 22, 09

Area: Vancouver, BC
1099 Richards Street
Price Range: $20-30 (average bill per person)

1: Poor 2: OK 3: Good 4: Very good 5: Excellent 6: Tres Excellent!!

Food: 4.5
Service: 5
Ambiance: 2
Overall: 4.5
Additional comments:

• Izakaya dishes - small plates meant to be shared
• Japanese chefs/cooks
• Weak in decor for this type of restaurant
• Food is not bad, a bit expensive
  
• Not as good as Kingyo/Yuji's/Hapa Izakaya - almost the same price too
  
• Some creative dishes, some authentic Japanese, some Westernized Japanese
• Weekly specials
• Menu shows last week's most popular dishes
• Large selection of cocktails
• Not as busy as other Izakaya places downtown
• Dinner service only

**Recommendation: Tuna Garlic Pepper Sashimi, Mentaiko Udon (I'd come back just for these)

This restaurant has been here for four years now. I never see it really busy and after talking to the staff you know that business is slow. I'm a fan of Izakaya places so I decided to give this place a shot. The food is actually pretty good, it's not the best Izakaya place in Vancouver, but the chefs and staff are really trying. I think because it's located in Yaletown/downtown people expect a lot, but it falls short when compared to the other Izakaya places in downtown eg: Kingyo and Hapas Izakaya (especially when they're charging almost the same price). It's more refined tha Guu, but Guu on the whole tastes better and is cheaper in price.

For the price Alpha charges and the clientele they're hoping for, they should really invest in decor. It just feels kind of dead because it's a bit dark inside and it doesn't have that high energy or eclectic feel you expect from an Izakaya place. I would go again for the dishes I recommended or if someone wanted to try it, but it wouldn't be my first choice for Izakaya.

On the table:

• **Tuna Garlic Pepper Sashimi 6/6
• Black pepper and garlic flavoured seared albacore tuna with ponzu sauce

• Wow! This is really good! They recommend it and it's an Alpha original. The chef seared it perfectly. You can see and taste the freshness - a simple recipe and quality ingredients. This dish should not be missed. I could eat 2 plates to myself no problem. It comes with a bed of radish salad underneath which is also great.
• You don't need to use soy sauce, maybe just a little wasabi to bring out the freshness.
• Pumpkin Croquette 4/6
• Deep fried kobacha squash and mashed potato croquette with "fruity vegetable sauce" for dipping (I call it a Japanese BBQ sauce)

• This is nicely done, nice and crispy. Really strong squash flavour as well, they went heavier on the squash than mashed potato which I appreciate. The texture is really smooth and the "fruity vegetable sauce" is that BBQ/mustard tasting sauce (see description in my review for Ping's Cafe) http://tinyurl.com/nb8gvq
• The pumpkin croquette here is stronger in squash flavour than Ping's...Ping's is more homemade - feels like someone's mom made it.
• Vegetable 2/6
• Mango, beets, cucumber, leaf lettuce and avocado

• I was actually pretty disappointed by this. The beets enticed me because I've never heard of beets in a sushi roll. But when it came you could barely see the beets, they were there to add colour. They julienne them and you get very little, so you really couldn't taste them at all. Too much cucumber, not enough beets...they need to balance out the ingredients in this roll. The mango shined through, but that's about it. I would pass on this.
• Spicy Tuna & Avocado Roll 5/6
• This was the best roll we ordered out of the three. It's only available as a weekly special though. It's done with an Alpha twist so it's a bit unique. It comes with that Japanese bbq mustard sauce that comes with the pumpkin croquettes. I dipped it in this with a little wasabi and that was enough. The put these things on top that taste like rice krispies - it's some kind of deep fried flour/starch...I liked it though. I haven't really seen it done anywhere else. I mean they're kind of flavourless, but they add a texture that makes this roll different than the others.
• Mango Vancouver Roll - 4/6
• Mango, avocado, mayo, crab meant wrapped in wild smoked salmon and tobiko with plum wine mustard mayo sauce.

• Not bad, but sounds better than it was. Try it once with the original sauce it comes with and then try it with your soy and wasabi. I found that it needed a little soy and wasabi because the original sauce couldn't stand by itself. They could have added something crunchy because it's a little bit on the mushy side, but still tasty. At $9 it's overpriced for what it is becuase I feel like I could get something similar somewhere else.
• Miso Teriyaki Beef - 2/6
• These miso grilled short ribs are one of there specialties, but I don't know why. I couldn't taste the miso flavour and it actually kind of felt like the stuff you get at Korean BBQ. They should have used a better quality beef becuase it wasn't that tender or anything...it was a bit tough. I actually enjoy the Korean BBQ short ribs more.
• **Mentaiko Udon - 6/6
• Udon (Japanese thick noodle) with spicy cod roe and shredded seaweed on top.

• Oh my gosh...this was sooo good. One of the best udons I've had. This is an authentic Japanese dish too! I don't know why it's not an "Alpha original"...I would come back just for this dish. I can't even explain how delicious it is. Really soft noodles and the spicy cod roe gives it this unique texture. It is slimy and it's supposed to be, it doesn't matter to me becuase I expected it. This is really really good, and I haven't seen it available at other Japanese places.
• Alpha's Taco Rice - 5/6
• Taco spice seasoned pork served on Japanese rice, cheese and lettuce with their original spicy tomato sauce.

• This is a bang for your buck! You get a huge bowl for $7.75 and it's worth a try. I mean you could probably reinvent something similar at home - but it's still good. A unique idea that tastes great. It tastes just like the description. Mix it all before you eat it though because the ingredients are served in layers with the rice o the bottom and freshly shredded lettuce at the top. I could order this again.
• Unagi Rice Gratin Age 3/6
  
• Baked unagi (eel) with creamy white sauce, seasoned rice and cheese.

• This is rich!! Don't order it unless you feel like something really greasy and heavy - or unless you're with 4 or more people. It's an Alpha original and it seemed like it would be really good...cause it's so fatty. It was pretty good, but you can't eat a lot cause it's really rich and heavy on the cheese and sauce. For $12 its a bit expensive, but you get quite a bit of eel so I can understand. The eel is completely covered by the cream sauce and cheese though...there's A LOT of cheese! When you order a gratin you better expect it though. They could have added bread crumbs to the cheese to give it a crispiness...it was more casserole than gratin.
• The best part of this dish is the baked edges around the bowl...the rice is so crispy and extra chewy because it's Japanese rice. Best part!

Dessert

• Matcha Cake with Green Tea Ice Cream 3/6
  
• Made in house. I appreciated this becuase I could really taste the matcha....they didn't skimp on the powder. It was a strong matcha taste which is what I want if I'm ordering a "Matcha Cake". It come with red beans, which were way too sweet...I don't like red bean, but even the people I was with that do like it thought it was too sweet. It was almost syrupy.
  
• Tiramisu
• I didn't order this, but was tempted too. It's made in house, will try it if I go back.
  

Tenku Bakudanyaki

Tenku Bakudanyaki Trailer
Tenku Bakudanyaki Trailer

Restaurant: Tenku Bakudanyaki
Cuisine: Japanese
Last visited: August 22, 09

Area: Richmond, BC
711 Elmbridge Way (In a trailer)
Price Range: $10 or less

1: Poor 2: OK 3: Good 4: Very good 5: Excellent 6: Tres Excellent!!

Food: 4
Service: 3
Ambiance: 5...what can I say? It's a trailer...part of the novelty!
Overall: 4
Additional comments:

• Specializes in Bakudanyaki - a large Japanese fritter (grilled on iron griddle, not deep fried)
• Stuffed with: cabbage, mochi, hard boiled quail's egg, shrimp, squid
• 7 options available
• $5 each
  
• Served from a trailer - outdoor
  
• Made upon order
  
• Stand and eat - outdoor, tent and small counter available
  
• Open everyday

**Recommendation: I've only tried one, so I can't recommend yet.

The first trailer style eatery I've seen in Vancouver! This trailer idea is quickly becoming a trend - I noticed tons in Texas last year. You can't miss this Japanese trailer - it's a novelty. You order, you eat, and you leave. The bakudanyaki is about the size of a baseball, a bit smaller. It's like eating a giant octopus ball aka takoyaki. You probably don't want to eat more than one becuase they are quite rich, especially with the sauce and mayo they drizzle on top. The bakundanyaki is all the same, it just depends what sauce you want to eat it with. If you ask, you can add whatever sauce/mayo to your order and custom make your own...I just don't think you'd want to mix say curry mayo with pizza sauce...? Who knows...it could be good? Tourist or local, this trailer is something to check out!

On the table:

• Wasabi Mayo 4/6
  
• Stuffed with cabbage, mochi, hard-boiled quail's egg, shrimp and squid with wasabi mayo.
• This is yummy! Tastes like a giant octopus ball aka takoyaki you find at Richmond night market and some Japanese restaurant. The filling is different though, I really enjoyed having the hard boiled quail's egg in there. I kind of wished all the ingredients were a bit more chopped up though - like they are in takoyaki.
• Everything was whole, so it was hard to get some of everything in one bite - especially with chopsticks. I had to break the stuffing apart with my chopsticks to get good filling to skin ratio. It is a little bit mushy because it's not deep fried so the skin and everything tastes a little soggy near the end. It takes like 5 min. to eat though so you don't really notice it. I'm excited to try the other ones.

• Chili Mayo
  
• Haven't tried it, but everyone says it tastes like ebi mayo. So if you like ebi mayo you'll love this!
  

Martha Stewart's Tiramisu Cupcakes

Item: Martha Stewart's Tiramisu Cupcakes - review

1: Poor 2: OK 3: Good 4: Very good 5: Excellent 6: Tres Excellent!!

Find recipe here: Martha Stewart's Tiramisu Cupcakes

• Martha Stewart's Tiramisu Cupcakes 6/6
  

• My friend baked these for me, and I'm so glad she did! These cupcakes are amazing! So moist! It could be due to the fact that you brush coffee marsala syrup on the tops of these cupcakes...but whatever it is this recipe is tres excellent! What a great idea to use a marscapone frosting too. Nice and light and airy - not to sweet either....so you can eat a lot of them. I did. =)
• It tastes as good as it sounds or even better.
• Because it is a whipped marscapone frosting it will melt quite easily. You need to keep it in the fridge or I would serve them immediately - they're the best this way.
  

Ina Garten's Famous Coconut Cupcakes

Item: Ina Garten's Famous Coconut Cupcakes - review

1: Poor 2: OK 3: Good 4: Very good 5: Excellent 6: Tres Excellent!!

Find recipe here: Ina Garten's Famous Coconut Cupcakes

• Coconut Cupcakes 5/6
  

• These cupcakes are pretty good. Fluffy, light, white, moist and a nice almond flavour. I would have appreciated an even stronger coconut flavour though. This recipe is worth a try and it's easy to follow. I baked them with my friend and we over baked ours a bit. Do not over bake them. If you over bake them it'll taste dry especially since there's dried coconut flakes in the batter...the texture will just be extra dry and you really want these to be fluffy. They will look really white and you might think they aren't baked all the way through yet...but if the tooth pick comes out clean take them out. They're done! Our second batch was much better!
• Cream cheese frosting - great match! Actually a great recipe to keep.

Budgie's Burritos

10'' Burrito

Restaurant: Budgie's Burritos
Cuisine: Vegetarian/Vegan/ Mexican
Last visited: August 14, 09

Area: Vancouver, BC
44 Kingsway
Price Range: $10 or less

1: Poor 2: OK 3: Good 4: Very good 5: Excellent 6: Tres Excellent!!

Food: 2
Service: 3
Ambiance: 2
Overall: 2
Additional comments:

• Hole in the wall serving large vegetarian burritos at a cheap price
• Also on the menu: tacos, tortilla soup, quesadilla, nachos
• Store bought guacamole/sauces...apparently I am wrong, it IS all made in house! For me it wasn't as obvious, but I'm glad to hear all of it is made in house.
  
• Burritos are pretty bland and kind of mushy - needs hot sauce/Tobasco
  
• Open Mon-Sun 12pm-10pm
• $6.50 for 10'' and $ 7.50 for 12'' burrito
• Taco - $3
  
• Vegan options at no extra charge
• Eat in/Take-out
• Hipster staff and clientele
  

**Recommendation: Johnny - O Burrito (I didn't try it, but it's the most popular choice). Everyone orders burritos here. I wouldn't re-order the things I tried because they weren't that good.

For what it is - a hole in the wall eatery on Kingsway, Budgie's is not bad, but not great either. I think it's popular becuase it's cheap and filling, but the food is actually not great. Really casual, get your own water, order and pay at cashier, seat yourself kind of eatery.

I was expecting more because it's quite busy and I always hear people raving about how big the burritos are. Yes they do put quite a bit of stuffing, but it's definitely not something you can't replicate at home. Open a can of beans, over cook your rice a bit, grate some cheese, buy some store bought guacamole etc...and that's pretty much Budgie's, nothing special - just a fat vegetarian burrito. Everything was actually lacking in flavour and too mushy - my wrap broke because the sauces and everything made the burrito too wet. Just by looking at the pictures you can tell how mushy it was. I couldn't pick it up cause the sauces would leak out the bottom. Sometimes this can actually be good, but because the sauces are bland - it wasn't.

I may go again, but out of convenience...hands down The Foundation (also vegetarian) just down the street is better.

The staff was pretty cool though - instead of writing our names with our orders they were drawing pictures of us...just for that day though.

On the table:

• Blair Stanley Burrito 3/6
  
• Tofu in a roasted chipotle and red pepper sauce, rice, beans, cheese, salsa, lettuce
• This sounds like it would be really flavourful and spicy or smoky - but it wasn't any of the above. I needed to add Tobasco (available at the table) before every bite to give it flavour. It was good that way, I barely ever use Tobasco sauce unless something really needs flavour too. The tofu was the firm kind which gave the burrito texture and heartiness...otherwise I would have felt like I was eating a lot of mush.
• Henry Burrito 1/6
  
• Tofurkey sausage, rice, beans, cheese, sour cream, salsa, lettuce
• Don't get this. It really isn't good. The tofurkey tasted like cardboard and I almost took it out. It kind of looks like cardboard too (see picture) - it tastes pretty bad. I've had good tofu sausage before, but this was a really poor quality one...not sure what brand they're using, but they should really opt for something else. Has a weird after taste...needed lots of Tobasco...partly to add flavour and partly to mask the tofurkey taste.
  

Ping's Cafe

Restaurant: Ping's Cafe
Cuisine: Japanese/Izakaya/Tapas/Fusion
Last visited: August 20, 09

Area: Vancouver, BC
2702 Main Street
Price Range: $10-20

1: Poor 2: OK 3: Good 4: Very good 5: Excellent 6: Tres Excellent!!

Food: 4.5
Service: 3
Ambiance: 4
Overall: 4.5
Additional comments:

• Westernized Japanese dishes, pretty funky
• Izakaya dishes - small plates meant to be shared
  
• Offers selection of larger plates too - $14-18
• Japanese chefs/cooks
• Homestyle/Homemade Japanese comfort food w/a twist
  
• Dainty rather than hearty or greasy
• Creative dishes, few ingredients, done well
  
• Definition of "don't judge a book by its cover" - looks ghetto on the outside, inside is nice
• Small restaurant, not much seating so go early
• Hip and trendy, but laid back
• Art and interior done by local artists
• Dinner service only

**Recommendation: Bang Bang Chicken Salad, Pork Gyoza, Tonkatsu Kushi Age, Tori Karaage

I've waited a long time to try this restaurant an I'm glad I finally did it. I've driven by it and was always hesitant because from the outside it looks like an old Chinese diner that serves all day breakfast for $2.99. However, the inside is completely different. It's actually really contemporary and relaxed with donated art pieces. Quite hipster actually.

The chefs and cooks are actually Japanese. Each dish is prepared upon order rather than mass produced. It's one of those places that feels so home made that a dish may taste a little different the next time. It's homemade Japanese comfort food with a slight twist. For a place that self quotes "Canadian Japanese food" I expected the kitchen to be run by students of all nationalities; but it's actually older Japanese people, maybe even family run. Nothing gourmet here - just creative ideas, made with few ingredients, done well.

We ordered all izakaya dishes - but if you go for a large plate they recommend the Cod Miso-Teri or Sukiyaki Steak Frites. I hear about their "Ping Dog" and wanted to try it so I asked about it; but the server was really honest and said "it's a bratwurst"...so I passed.

On the table:

• **Bang Bang Chicken Salad 5/6
• Shredded chicken breast, daikon, carrot, cucumber and lettuce with spicy goma-miso dressing and crispy wonton skins.

• I really enjoyed this. It's one of their best sellers so it's a tad expensive at $8...but it was good. There was a nice mound of salad with a decent amount of chicken and everything is cut to a julienne so the composition is great. You taste some of everything in each bite because it's all cut to the same size. The ingredients literally fold around each other because they're cut so thin. The veggies are fresh and the dressing was a vinaigrette made the sesame gomaae (dressing you usually have with spinach gomaae) and Miso - it worked really well and was very flavourful.
• Goma-ae 2/6
• Cooked spinach with sesame sauce. Regular or spicy.

• This is a dish I almost always order at any Japanese restaurant so I have a selection to compare to. This one was recommeded, but it wasn't great. It lacked flavour and there was definitely not enough sesame sauce. It came on a plate not a bowl so there was nothing to hold the sauce and there wasn't even sauce drizzled on top. The spinach shouldn't be soggy or drenched in sesame sauce, but it should be nicely coated. Much of the time I felt like I was eating cooked spinach with a few sesame seeds sprinkled on it.
• Tuna Tataki 4/6
• Seared Albacore Tuna with greens, cucumber, daikon & shoyu vinaigrette

• We had it with half tuna belly and half the regular Albacore Tuna. I don't think they offer this option all the time though so you have to ask them. Pretty nice presentaion but it could have used one more ingrdient to give it that extra something. Whether it's garlic chips or freshly grated wasabi it needed an extra note. It came with no wasabi actually which is a no no because wasabi and seared tuna go hand in hand. This was still enjoyable, but it didn't make an impression because I've had better.
• **Pork Gyoza 5/6
• Panfried dumplings made of pork, cabbage, garlic and green onion.

• I would usually pass on the gyoza because it's so typical and usually tastes all the same. For me it's a 'try one try them all' thing...however this gyoza changed my mind. At a restaurant like this where there's so many different items I usually would have passed for sure. However our server said it was a favourite so I decided to give it a try...on the second round of ordering. I'm really glad I did too!
• The gyozas are homemade and you can tell. They're nice and plump with a generous amount of stuffing and the skin is not too thick and not paper thin either. You can see the green onion and cabbage and they're not used as a filler but more as a complement to the pork. They're better than the gyozas I've had at many other Japanese restaurants. At $1 they're totally worth it. These are gyozas done well...finally.
• **Tori Karaage - 5/6
• Shoyo, sake, garlic, ginger marinated chicked thigh deep fried and served on greens with ponzu and mayo.

• Another popular item. Chicken karaage like you've never had it - not the chicken karaage you get at Japanese all you can eat. This is the homemade kind! The marinade they use is great - it tenderizes the chicken so well. When you bite into it, you can taste the special marinade and the chicken is juicy. Yes, it's deep fried, but no it's not very greasy, just juicy. The batter is not thick so it's very crispy and you can tell it's made upon order. It almost tastes baked rather than deep fried.
• Ika Karaage - 4/6
• Lightly battered calamari with wasabi tzatziki.

• It wasn't the best thing I've had, but I would still order it again becuase it's a unique dish you can't find anywhere else.
• The calamari are the rings, not the little squid balls. You get and taste more squid than batter which is really nice. The squid was a bit chewy and tough (overcooked) rather than tender though. I think they need to experiment with the cooking temperature/method - if the squid was tender and they managed to keep the coating still crispy this would be recommended for sure.
• Wasabi tzatziki - what a brilliant idea! It tastes like yogurt mixed with wasabi, so an easy recipe, but it does the job just fine.
• Sake Drunken Chicken - 3/6
• Grilled chicken marinated in sake.
• This was worth it at around $2 a skewer. Sake really does the job in tenderizing meat. The sake wasn't over powering and you could still taste it lingering in the chicken. Nothing spectacular in terms of flavour - but just simply done well for what it is.
• Kabocha (Pumpkin) Korokee - 4/6
• Kabocha pumpkin, potato and sauteed onion croquette with yoshoku sauce.

• The presentation caught me off guard - it was quite cute and because of the atmosphere it was very suitable.
• The yoshoku sauce - tastes like a bold BBQ sauce - it has a kick to it, it's not really spicy though - it just has a kick...a cross of spicy and tangy - like mustard. I liked it though. The croquette is very nice, the filling was the texture of a mashed potato puree and it's homemade - you can really tell, you can see the minced onion. Part of me felt like I was eating gourmet McCain Smiley Fries - you know those fries stuffed with mashed potatoes with smiles on them? The ones that kids eat...yeah I felt like I was eating those, but upgraded and for adults. Maybe it was because it was served with a smiley face? Anyways the pumpkin tastes like squash so this croquette was on the sweeter side and it went well with the BBQ...or I mean yoshoku sauce.
• **Tonkatsu Kushi Age 5/6
  
• 4 skewered panko breaded pork cutlets with Japanese hot mustard Yoshoku sauce.

• This sauce was the same sauce that was on the Kabocha Korokee aka croquettes. AND so it IS a hot mustard! That explains the bold/tangy/spicy flavour I was trying to describe. All makes sense now...so the sauce tastes like a combo of BBQ sauce and hot mustard...
• This dish tastes way better than it looks, and it doesn't even look bad. The pork cutlets are lean and thin, and really tender. You can actually bite a piece of pork cutlet off without having to use your teeth to pull and tear a piece off. The pork manages to stay together with the panko batter skin which is great. I hate when it separates so that you're left with a peice of pork and then the battered skin. This dish is crispy and delicious, simple and perfect.
  

Eight 1/2 Restaurant & Lounge

Restaurant: Eight 1/2 Restaurant & Lounge
Cuisine: Contemporary/Pacific Rim/West coast/Pacific Northwest
Last visited: August 19, 09

Area: Vancouver, BC (East Vancouver)
151 East 8th Ave
Price Range: $20-30 (average bill per person)

1: Poor 2: OK 3: Good 4: Very good 5: Excellent 6: Tres Excellent!!

Food: 3
Service: 2
Ambiance: 2
Overall: 3
Additional comments:

• Focus on local produce
• Hidden location in a 100 year old house
• No deep fryer, no microwave
• Called Eight 1/2 because of location
• Attracts late night crowd, quiet for dinner
• Familiar to people in the area
• Pub-like feel rather than lounge-like feel after 8pm
• Great for tapas and drinks more so than dinner
• Most menu items sound better than they taste
• Service a bit slow - feels like there is only one person in the kitchen
• Some seasonal features
• Patio available
  

**Recommendation: Four Cheese Macaroni, Goat Cheese Plate

I just happened to discover this place while I was looking for parking around the area. I checked out their menu and it seemed like it as worth a shot. It looks a bit shady because it's quite hidden and you wouldn't really know about it unless you live around the area, frequent Main Street, or was given a recommendation. They call it a lounge, but it felt more like a pub because they had a sports game playing on the TV and it got really loud. The decor may be more lounge like, but the atmosphere is not.

I do appreciate the fact that they emphasize on local ingredients and traditional ways of cooking though - no deep dryer or microwave. However everything was very up and down; the food was either really good or not so good and the service was the same. The kitchen is pretty slow and I feel like they have one guy cooking everything. They don't have much dinner business and the staff seems like they're still getting familiar with the dishes...because a couple times our dish would be missing something and unless I pointed it out they didn't even notice. I feel like this restaurant is still experimenting...I wish them the best of luck doing it, because this location requires word of mouth.

On the table:

• **Four Cheese Macaroni 6/6
• Made with Marscapone, Brie, Parmesan, Brocconcini

• Every time I see mac n' cheese on the menu I will order it. I'm curious to see how they can change up an old classic...everyone has their own version of this all time favourite American comfort food.
• I've tried a bunch of mac n' cheeses (some gourmet, some traditional) in Vancouver and this is one of the best ones I've had. I thought it wouldn't be cheesy enough, because the choice of cheeses they used aren't too strong - but it was actually enough. The Marscapone gave it this creaminess, the Brie gave it the richness, the Parmesan made the salty crust, and the Brocconcini gave it that stringiness. Home cooked gourmet taste - you can taste the quality in ingredients and when you take the first bite you just know that time went into making it.
• The put a nice Parmesan crust on top and baked it so its nice and gooey. Very very nicely done.
• Baked Brie 3/6
• Filo wrapped brie, local buckwheat honey, sweet chili, candied apple slices

• This sounds better than it tastes - mind you they forgot our candied apple slices so we were missing a component. Actually come to think of it, it was served with champagne grapes...? These grapes were delicious and great with the brie, but it tasted a little off with the sweet chili...I would have preferred the apples.
  
• The brie was served in one big wedge wrapped in filo (which was floury instead of flaky) and some crostini. I didn't even notice the buckwheat honey, and for all I know they could have forgotten that too. It tasted like a block of brie wrapped in filo and drizzled with a little sweet chili sauce - you know the classic sweet chili sauce you find everywhere? That's what it tasted like. This is a dish you could easily prepare at home, so it sounds more gourmet than it was.
• **Goat Cheese Plate 5/6
  
• Pistachio encrusted goat cheese with lobster infused olive oil and roasted garlic

• What made this dish was the lobster infused olive oil. You can really taste the lobster in it, a little goes a long way - this shouldn't be missed. It's not made in house though, they buy it - I want to find the supplier and buy some. The olive oil deserved a 6/6.
• They could have been more generous with the goat's cheese though. The goat's cheese wasn't too pungent either, which is good becuase than you could really taste the lobster olive oil - which is the star. They gave us one ball of goat's cheese - I think they should have give us 3 smaller balls and that way the proportion of cheese to pistachio crust would have been better as well. The pistachio didn't add texture or flavour because the proportion was off.
• The roasted garlic was good though, they give you a whole bulb so you really taste the freshness and quality.
  
• How to eat: Take a crostini spread with goat's cheese, spread a piece of garlic on top, and drizzle with the lobster olive oil.
• Tofino Tuna Tataki - 2/6
• Seared Oceanwise Albacore tuna and avocado wedges with soy and wasabi aioli

• They shouldn't serve this. I just think if you can't make it well don't bother keeping it on the menu. It was Save-On making sushi - ok not that bad...but basically they had the right ingredients but didn't know how to use them. It lacked a lot in flavour. You get nice pieces of tuna and avocado, but the flavour just wasn't there. They don't give you enough wasabi aioli either or soy for that matter.
• Steak bites - 1/6
  
• Sweet chili rub roasted to medium rare steak bites with Parmesan dip

• They were NOT medium rare - almost well done. So they were dry and not very tender. The portion was small and presentation was weak. Bad pub food.
  
• I bet the Parmesan dip (which they forgot and I had to ask for) is from a bottle too.
• Cedar Plank Halibut - 3/6
  
• Line caught halibut topped with fresh mango salsa with a side of spinach risotto

• This was just good. A nice piece of halibut, that wasn't overcooked. However there was not enough mango salsa at all. Halibut is such a sturdy fish it needs stronger flavours to stand up to it - whether it's a bold dry rub, or flavourful sauce/dressing/salsa - it needs something to support it.
• The risotto was ok - lacked in flavour. They skimped out on the Parmesan cheese though so it was missing that salty bite. It's not bad for a place that doesn't specialize in Italian food - I'm glad it was a side because I wouldn't have enjoyed a full order.

Dessert

• Banana Bread Pudding 3/6
• Pretty big portion, but it took forever to come out
  
• It was pieces of banana rather than banana throughout the batter. It wasn't exceptionally moist, but it wasn't dry either. They should have put a tad more liquid in the recipe though so that your fork would sink into it a bit more.

Drinks

• Watermelon Mojito
• Very light and refreshing...barely taste the alcohol though. I think this is seasonal.