Welcome fellow foodies, I'm Mijune - dedicated foodie from Vancouver. I write restaurant reviews in Vancouver and the lower mainland as well as when I’m traveling. I'm searching for the best ____, popular hole-in-the-wall restaurant & local gem. I cook & bake so I’ll also post recipes. I invite all foodies to follow me on this tasty experience!
WARNING: My food pics may stimulate hunger, so explore my blog with munchies within a reachable distance. For the love of food...
Restaurant: Falafel Maison Cuisine: Middle Eastern/Fast Food Last visited: February 28, 2010 Area: Vancouver, BC (Downtown/Robson) 516 Robson Street Price Range: $10 or less
1: Poor 2: OK 3: Good 4: Very good 5: Excellent 6: Tres Excellent!!
**Recommendation: Shawarma, Hummus, Shawarma Plate (I haven’t tried the Falafels, but they should be good)
I decided to hit up Falafel Maison for a late night bite after winning the Olympic 2010 GOLD for Canada Men’s Hockey!!I had originally been craving donairs but settled for a shawarma.
Donair and shawarma are different, but it’s debatable what the exact differences are. For me, donairs are made up of ground meat and shawarma is pieces of whole meat. The shawarma is more of a Middle Eastern/Turkish item and the Donair I find is more Greek. Vancouver is full of donair and shawarma places in the downtown core and Falafel Maison is one of the popular ones…I’m not sure if it’s the best though because I surprisingly haven’t tried many in Vancouver.
I must give a shout out to the owners who are super nice, friendly young guys that treat everyone like family.
On the table:
**Shawarma 4/6
Chicken, lettuce, tabouleh, hummus & yogurt sauce wrapped in pita. Optional hot sauce. I think it’s about $5.50
Hot, fresh, made upon order.
They spread a layer of hummus onto the pita first. It’s good creamy hummus but I could have used more. It was very subtle and had a garlic flavour.
They load it with iceberg lettuce and tabouleh, but the tabouleh wasn’t very good here. It’s a traditional Middle Easter salad that’s mixed with vegetables, olive oil or spices. It was pretty much plain parsley here. I didn’t expect gourmet, but I expected a little more than this.
They give you a little bit of tomato, but not enough.
There’s a large amount of shaved chicken which is tender, juicy, moist and actually quite spicy. It's very well marinade with lots of spices. They do a great job with the rotisserie style roasting too.
Last is the yogurt sauce. It’s not like tzatziki, but it’s more garlicky and also a bit spicy.
There’s an optional hot sauce you can get which I think is used in the chicken marinade as well.
Overall the shawarma was very good, but it was a bit dry for me. The pita was dry and although the meat was quite juicy it got lost with all the veggies. There's lots of ingredients, but when it's all rolled up I tasted a lot of pita and parsley.
I definitely wanted more hummus and next time I’ll ask for extra yogurt sauce.
Last visited: February 16, 2010 Area:Vancouver, BC (Joyce-Collingwood)
4910 Joyce St
Range: $10 or less
1: Poor 2: OK 3: Good 4: Very good 5: Excellent 6: Tres Excellent!!
Food: 4.5
Service: 4.5
Ambiance: 1.5
Overall: 4.5
Additional comments:
Major hole-in the wall
Located inside Malaysian grocery store
Specializes in Malaysian/Burmese food
Famous for laksa and wraps
Husband and wife operation
Good for quick lunches – Malaysian wraps
Fresh, homemade, made upon order
Half menu made on site, half from main off site kitchen
Popular to neighborhood/locals in area
Seats 2-4
Cheap eatery – not dirt cheap, but reasonable
Lunch and dinner service
Full dinner menu only available online from 6pm - pick-up/delivery only
Dinner - Pick-up before 8pm
Delivery charges apply
Open late
Catering available
**Recommendation:Roti Canai, Laksa, Malaysian style wraps (but I haven’t tried)…also haven’t tried but the Lahpet Thoke (Fermented tea leaf salad) is authentic Burmese food not available anywhere else.
I would have never heard of Bo Laksa king and would have never discovered it on my own. Thanks to Kim (I’m Only Here for the Food) I was able to try this major hole in the wall located in a Malaysian/Asian grocery store. I’m also never in that area so I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to wander around. It’s a total word-of-mouth place and their business depends on this type of advertising.
It’s a husband and wife operation and they’re really nice people. She’s Chinese and he’s Burmese. The recipes are actually very authentic but they also offer a mixture of South East Asian cuisine from Malaysian, Singaporean, Thai and the rare…Burmese! They even have a couple Chinese dishes in there. It’s popular for quick lunches and their full dinner menu is only available online for delivery or pick-up before 8pm. They operate out of the small kitchen in the back of the grocery store and also a main kitchen that is a few blocks away on Victoria. Keep this in mind because the menu is limited if you’re going for dinner and eating in.
Okay so being a major hole in the wall, I have to lower my expectations a bit, however not by much because the food was really good. It’s a hole in the wall with fresh, authentic, homemade, made upon order meals for a good price…what more can you ask for? Overall I was pleasantly surprised. I would go back because I think there’s better then what I had, and I want to try a wrap.
On the table:
Burmese Tea 4/6
$1.50
It’s similar to Thai tea but not as strong or sweet. It’s frothy, milky, creamy and a smooth tea.
It’s still quite sweet though because it’s mixed and shaken with condensed milk.
The tea is authentic Burmese tea that is steeped and it’s stronger than Chinese tea, but milder than Thai tea.
It’s made upon order and a pretty large cup for only $1.50
**Roti Canai 5.5/6
The small is served with beef curry $3.99 Large is served with chicken curry $5.99
The roti is very hot, fresh and made upon order on a griddle. It’s super fluffy, flakey, soft, stretchy and chewy…but it was a tad oily. We devoured it in seconds though so it didn’t matter. You can watch her toss it and cook it on the spot – it’s almost like watching a pizza dough show.
The curry is their beef curry sauce. It’s very flavourful and slightly spicy. There are little bits of beef brisket throughout and the sauce has a very strong beef broth flavour. They use lots of spices and herbs in there so it’s very flavourful.
It’s quite oily too though so you really have to scoop up the sauce or you’re just dipping into oil. It’s good though!
Satay Skewers 3.5/6
Choice from marinated chicken, beef, or lamb served with sticky rice, cucumber & spicy peanut sauce. (3 skewers) $3.50
The satay skewers are made on a griddle rather than a grill…which I’ll let go because they’re working with limited resources being in a grocery store.
You wouldn't miss out by not ordering it, but it’s a pretty decent sized appetizer for a $3.50 bargain!
This chicken is marinated in a curry spice, but I couldn’t really taste it. It was tender and the pieces are big, it wasn’t necessarily anything to rave about.
The sticky rice is almost like a dessert. The rice is a bit sweet and almost like a giant mochi ball sprinkled with dried coconut flakes.
The peanut sauce is that authentic creamy Thai peanut butter sauce rather than the chunky Malaysian sauce. I prefer the Malaysian version. Bo Laksa King’s is okay but the fish sauce mixed into the peanut sauce was a bit too tangy for me and I didn’t really like the brand they were using – a bit too rancid in taste.
**Laksa 6/6
Prawn, chicken, fish ball, tofu puff, egg, sweet bell peppers and bean sprouts. Choose from vermicelli or yellow wheat noodle $7.50
The authentic way is to have it with vermicelli – so that’s what we ordered it with.
We got it to go, so the fancy bowl is not how it’s served.
It’s loaded with tons on topping and that surprised me.
There are lots of fresh herbs and spices in the broth and it’s really obvious. It had that slow cooked, on the stove all day homecooked flavour. It tasted very authentic with exotic herbs and spices that I’ve never really experienced in laksa before.
It wasn’t very spicy for me, but just very aromatic! It’s very rich and creamy with the sweetened taste of coconut milk.
The noodles are al dente! They’re harder then expected, which I like! They were blanched in the soup and packaged in a separate container to ensure they’re not overcooked.
Pad Thai 3/6
Thai rice noodle, eggs, shrimps, extra firm tofu, Chinese chives, dried chili peppers, banana flower, bean sprouts, preserved turnip, stir fry in house made traditional tamarind sauce $8.75
This is a traditional version of Pad Thai and not the Western version where they make it with Ketchup. This one is made with Tamarind – just like the one at Tangthai Cuisine of Thailand Restaurant.
It’s one of their popular items, but I wasn’t crazy about it.
Overall it was still good with lots of shrimp (6 of them); however I really didn’t like the whole peanuts. I usually love peanuts too, but I want them ground up when I’m having it with Pad Thai.
It was served with a house made fish sauce…which I didn’t like. By home made I mean adding chilies, jalapeños and some additional spices to a bought fish sauce. It was too tangy and rancid…which is expected…but it was almost overly rancid and off. I love fish sauce too! Maybe it was just the fish sauce brand they’re using?
It was a tangy and spicy Pad Thai with jalapeño peppers. I thought it need more flavour though…I was relying on the lime and the fish sauce (which wasn’t that good)…and also the peanuts (which weren’t ground up)….so everything was there…but also not there for me…
I prefer the ground peanuts and fish sauce at Thai Basil.
Last visited: February 27, 2010 Area:Richmond, BC (MinoruPark)
7191 Granville Avenue Range: $10 or less
1: Poor 2: OK 3: Good 4: Very good 5: Excellent 6: Tres Excellent!!
I really wish I could have put this post up earlier, but I didn’t make my visit to the Holland House until the last Saturday of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics! GO CANADA GO!
I heard lots about the Holland House and the exclusiveness of it. Every time The Netherlands won a gold medal they would only let in people with Dutch passports. Throughout the day anyone with a Dutch passport could get in automatically with no line-up, but for everyone else it was 30min on a good day and sometimes up to a 3 hour wait! The exclusiveness made it extra alluring and I also heard they were serving traditional Dutch food so I was determined to check it out. Authentic Dutch foods…actually Dutch food in general…and even Dutch people are hard to find!
So what’s up with my Dutch obsession? Well I was lucky to live in The Netherlands for a while so it has a place close to my heart…and stomach for that matter. So what was my game plan to get in? Well I grabbed my Utrecht Universiteit hoodie and my expired Dutch student ID that clearly states: 2007-2008. And with that I was able to get in! WOOT WOOT! The loser is the one who doesn’t try right?! Seriously…lucky me!
Needless to say I am familiar with traditional Dutch food – well as familiar as I could get. Living there I would ask people all the time what traditional Dutch food was? And more often then not my Dutch friends were lost for words. However after a while I was able to get an idea of Dutch food and the menu offered at Holland House was in pretty close to the real deal! It definitely brought back memories!
Added note: Almost all Dutch food tastes better than it sounds and looks. The stuff at the Holland House was no exception…it was cafeteria style Dutch food, but it was good! It's partly rated so high just becuase I miss it. :(
On the table:
Stamppot Boerenkool met Worse en Spek
Potato-kale hotchpotch with sausage $7.50
The one served at the Holland House is pretty much the “fast food version”…which is interesting because the original is already quite “fast food-like” as is.
Now I didn’t order this one because I tried a home made version in the The Netherlands already. Also the guy working there said his favourite was the Hutspot met Worst en Spek (the one I actually ordered).
Below is the Stamppot Boerenkool I made with my Dutch friend in The Netherlands. It’s traditionally served with pickled pearl onions and pickles.
Stamppot Boerekool is the most traditional and popular ‘stamppot’ or hotchpotch. It’s not necessarily the favourite, but there’s many ways to make it and many combinations, however this potato-kale one is most common.
Stamppot is a traditional dish that people make at home, but it’s not really served at restaurants. It’s pretty much traditional Dutch comfort food that mom’s make.
Hutspot met Worst en Spek 4.5/6
Potato carrot hotchpotch with sausage $7.50
Okay so this isn’t how it’s supposed to be served, but under the circumstances of a standing room only/drinking tent atmosphere it was the most practical method serving it in a cone.
It’s basically mashed potatoes with milk and butter, mixed with coarsely mashed up carrots and onions and topped with a sausage and bacon bits.
The sausage was a crappy sausage – it was those cheap hot dog wieners…usually it’s a thicker sausage, like those ‘U’ shaped ones (like the image in my home made verison)
Other than that the mashed potato carrot part was delicious even though it was sitting under heat lamps for the whole day. It was really creamy and really soft and fluffy. I loved it!
The bacon was new. I’ve never seen it served with bacon, but I liked it. It was almost like a baked potato and I think that’s what they’re going for. They were pretty fresh bacon bits too – not those hard crunchy dried ones.
Broodje Kipkerriesalade 4/6
Sandwich chicken curry salad $5.00
I was pleasantly surprised to see this on the menu. It flew under my radar and I almost forgot how popular of a sandwich it is there.
There’s a heavy Indonesian influence in The Netherlands so it’s very common to see “satay” or “curry” on their menus.
This sandwich is very close to what they would serve at quick eateries or small cafes in The Netherlands.
It’s pretty much diced chicken mixed with a curried mayo. They also include some diced apple and maybe some diced onions in it.
The bread was crappy and tough and it was overpriced, but whatever…that was expected.
The chicken curry salad was really good though. It’s creamy and sweet from the apples. Usually they would serve it with some lettuce and maybe some tomatoes. At really good places I could get them with bean sprouts! I love it with bean sprouts.
The curry is not spicy at all, but just really creamy and rich.
Last visited: February 22, 2010 Area:Vancouver, BC
2292 East Hastings (Commercial Drive/Grandview) Range: $10 or less
1: Poor 2: OK 3: Good 4: Very good 5: Excellent 6: Tres Excellent!!
Food: 5
Service: 3.5
Ambiance: 1.5
Overall: 4.5
Additional comments:
Popular for pho – famous for soup base
Popular for spring rolls, chicken and beef pho
Fresh, made upon order
Family owned/operated
Vietnamese owners
Hole in the wall
Seats about 30
Authentic
Fast/Cheap/Good
Not much MSG
Some pictures on menu
Cash only
Closed Wednesday
Open daily 10am – 9pm (except Wed.)
**Recommendation: Spring Rolls, Chicken Pho, Beef Pho, Bún Bò Hue, Chicken Banh Mi (Vietnamese Sandwich)
This all started with Twitter. People were asking me about the best places for pho in Vancouver and to be honest I was a little stuck. I’ve had home made pho before from an excellent Vietnamese mom who worked in a kitchen for years…ever since then I can’t go back to anything else. Home made pho is NOTHING like what they serve you at restaurants.
Anyways people recommended Le Do Vietnamese Restaurant so I decided to give it a try. My expectations were set high because I’ve heard good things about it, and I did my research ahead of time and so far everything was positive. Overall the food is good, but I didn’t think it was amazing. One clear fact I noticed was that they didn’t use that much MSG! Surprising! It was still flavourful too and the noodles are noticeable fresh and the soup is super hot in terms of temperature.
On the table:
**Deep Fried Spring Roll 5/6
As a side order $1.75 each or 3 for $5.25 – which is the same
These are actually really good. The only thing is that they’re a bit small. It’s about 3 inches so they’re a bit pricey, yet I would still order them again because they were good.
They’re hot, fresh, crispy and well stuffed with vermicelli noodles, carrots, jacama root, mushroom, ground pork and cabbage. They don’t use the vermicelli as filler either, there’s actually not much noodle in them.
It was salty and slightly tangy I really liked them.
**Variety of Beef Noodle in Soup (Pho Duc Biet #1) 5/6
Rare beef flank, tripe, tendon, beef balls and noodles in soup M - $5.95 L - $6.50
It came with 3 slices of beef flank that were really tender, but they cook super fast because the soup is served super hot.
There’s also 2 pieces of tripe, 2 pieces of tendon and one beef ball cut in half – and this is for the medium size. They serve with with black pepper on top and I really liked that.
They give you lots of green onion, cilantro and onions which I really like.
The broth was good, but still a bit watered down compared to the real deal. It was savoury and not too sweet and it actually pretty clear tasted. It’s definitely made in house but the beef flavour wasn’t as strong as I would have liked.
I don’t think they use much MSG, maybe a bit because they don’t advertise “no MSG”, but it’s definitely not overwhelming of the most obvious ingredient.
The best part for me was the hot soup and the noodles. The noodles are noticeably fresh and really soft and chewy.
**Spicy Beef Noodle Soup (Bún Bò Hue #26) 5.5/6
Special spicy beef rice noodle soup M - $6.75 L - $7.25
It came with 3 thin slices of Vietnamese ham and a couple pieces of beef shank with cartilage. It's supposed to come with pig's feet (pork hock), but I don't recall any being in there.
This is one of their specialty dishes and it’s not available at every Vietnamese restaurant although it is a common Vietnamese dish.
It’s not as spicy as it looks. It actually wasn’t that spicy at all. It was quite mild with a strong lemongrass flavour which made it a bit sweeter. The spiciness was more aromatic than it was spicy. I actually liked this broth better than the standard beef broth although the broth is the same base. This one also has some shrimp paste in it so it's very aromatic and tasty. This broth was just more flavourful overall especially with the chili oil.
The noodles for Bún Bò Hueare not the standard vermicelli noodles. The noodles are those thin round rice noodles. They're good, but it reminds me of eating Chinese soup noodles.
**Chicken Bahn Mi 4.5/6
Chicken (Vietnamese) sandwich $3.00
This is the sandwich the waitress/owner suggested. That was after she said “everything is good”…so I took it that this was actually a really good item considering when I asked about the sandwiches there was little hesitation to suggest the chicken.
This was really good, except I wish they gave more chicken. There wasn’t much in there but they gave lots of vegetables like cucumber, carrots, radish, and cilantro.
The chicken bahn mi is different here because the chicken is almost like a chicken stew. They cook and serve the chicken in this tomato stew that’s sweet and sour like – it’s savoury, slightly tangy and sweet. It was very light and it had a ketchup flavour but it was really good and made the sandwich so juicy and flavourful.
The sandwich is really buttery though, but that’s part of what makes is so good. It’s actually lard and not butter so it makes it extra good, but extra bad for you too.
The chicken is pieces of skinless dark meat instead of the usual shredded chicken they use in bahn mi.
I could have used a stronger marinade for the vegetables though. It was a bit pickled tasting but I could have used more flavour like fish sauce and sugar.
I doubt the bread is made in house, but it was better than in looks. It was served warm and it was really crusty and really soft in the middle. With the chicken stew I was surprised the bread didn’t get soggy too.
Vietnamese Egg Soda (Soda sữa hột gà) 3/6
Club Soda, egg, and condensed milk $3.50
It’s almost like an ice cream float, but richer in flavour, but not in texture and not as sweet.
I know it sounds a bit different, but it’s actually pretty good.
It tastes like a carbonated custard drink. The flavour is definitely custardy.
It’s not really creamy, and it’s not too sweet although you expect it to be.
The whipped egg just makes it frothier and adds a creamier texture to it although it’s not really creamy. An ice cream float or milkshake is much creamier.
Restaurant: Falafel Maison
**Shawarma 4/6
