Safari Snack House

While we were in the Deer Lake Park area, we came across a small complex of restaurants and little grocery stores right on Canada Way near the entrance to Deer Lake. One of the restaurants was a place called Safari Snack House which advertised the "Best Samosas in Town". This piqued our curiosity, so we went in.

The place itself is not just a restaurant, but a mixture of retail, take out and catering space, with a few small tables for eating in. The atmosphere is lively and friendly, with locals stopping in, and large, colourful murals of zebras, giraffes and lions.

The menu items were pretty interesting, with many East African dishes with a touch on Indian influence. Almost all of the menu items were under $10.

We ordered the Kabab ($5.25 for 4), which were different from anything we've ever had. These were really tender balls of gound meat which were deep fried to a deep brown crispness. The meat was delicious and nicely spiced, and the chutney that came with it was a tangy and wonderful complement.

Next we had the vegetable samosas ($5.25 for 3). These didn't look too impressive when it arrived, but these were great. The pastry was particularly good and crispy, and the filling was corn, potato, and peas.

We also ordered Mogo ($5.95), which was a huge plate of spiced, thick cut cassava fries. We'd never had cassava fries before, and it was different from regular fries. The texture and taste vaguely resemble potatoes, but the cassava is much denser and has a sweeter undertone (though it's not sweet). We enjoyed this a lot, but it was a bit too much for just the two of us.

For dessert we had a deep fried rice and coconut cake. The fried dough on the outside was crispy and chewy, and the inside was soft and pillowy, but the whole this was really oily. It was astounding the amount of oil that came out of the cake.

We really enjoyed Safari Snack House. It is different from anything we've tried, and we will definitely come back. However, our meal was a bit much because everything was deep fried. We felt a little unhealthy after this visit.

Anton's Pasta Bar

Last week we decided to go to the Hastings area, because it was an area we haven't explored that much. Originally, we had wanted to have lunch at Bombay Bhel, but it happened to be closed for lunch that day. So we headed next door to Anton's. We'd never been to Anton's before, but have heard lots about it--namely their extremely large portions and longer line ups.

The place was full, but we didn't have to line up at all. The atmosphere is minimal, but friendly. There were lots of families and young couples. Even though the place was pretty full, the service was quick and warm.

I ordered the Linguine Alla Siciliana ($10.99), which was linguine and anchovies, red peppers, capers and olives in a tomato sauce (similar to a puttanesca sauce, I think). This was great--I love the saltiness and briny quality of the sauce, and the noodles were fresh and slightly chewy. I wasn't expecting to find homemade pasta here, so this was quite a surprise. There wasn't too much sauce, but there was enough to coat each noodle. I liked it a lot.

Shane had the Linguine alla Cabonara ($10.99), with pancetta, egg and cream sauce. It's actually one of my favorite dishes, but I couldn't stomach ordering a whole bowl of it myself. I did have an extensive tasting of Shane's dish though. Obviously, it's very rich, and good. My only criticism is that it could have used a tad more salt, but Shane was okay with it.

Even though we got only the lunch portion (the dinner portion is $14.99), both of us managed to eat only half of the bowl. It's very filling.

I was surprised at how much we liked Aton's. I was expecting some cheap, out of the box pasta, but the dishes were surprisingly well done. We would definitely come back here, especially to try out the dinner portions.

House of Tofu Soup

House of Tofu Soup is a restaurant that I'd heard about here and there from various friends. It's right in our neighborhood on North Road, and we often pass by it when we go out for walks.

The restaurant is surprisingly very large, with rows and rows of high booths and wooden tables, which lent a privacy to the dining space. The atmosphere is definitely one of a family restaurant, and while we were there, there were groups of young people, and families with young kids.

The service was a little bit weird. We were led to a booth and must have waited 15 minutes for tea and a menu, even though at the time, we were one of only a few parties dining. It was strange, because we'd thought they'd forgotten about us or something.

As is the custom of most Korean restaurants, first came the banchan-- kimchi, picked turnip, seaweed, and mashed potato. These weren't bad, though we weren't really fond of the mashed potato, which was too sweet.

For appetizer, we had fried dumplings. These were crispy, and filled with pork. They were quite tasty, though I didn't care for the dipping sauce, which I felt was too sweet.

Shane ordered the stone bimimbob ($10.99), with is rice served in a sizzling hot stone bowl and topped with egg, beef, carrot, radish, and raw egg (which cooked in the hot bowl). All this was served a giant stone bowl in a wooden pedestal, and it also came with a side of tofu soup. Stirred up with the red pepper sauce, this dish was really good and filling.

I decided to order the famous tofu soup (in mild, medium, or hot), and opted for the hot seafood version ($9.99). This arrived in sizzling stone bowl, and came with a side of rice (and peas) that was also served in a stone bowl (the 'burnt', crispy rice that's stuck on the bowl's side is quite tasty). The soup itself was rich, tasty, and spicy, and the tofu was deliciously silky and soft. I enjoyed adding the raw egg and observe it cook in the soup. However, the dish was a disappointment. When I think about a 'seafood' soup, I expect squid, shrimp, octopus, clams maybe, but the 'seafood' in this case consisted of tiny shrimp (inch-size and smaller), with their heads and shells on, long antennae, and feet. I had no idea what to do. Was I supposed to eat the creatures whole? Or was I supposed to peel these tiny things? I really didn't enjoy this dish. There were a whole lot of these creatures, and I was reminded at how bug-like shrimp are.

The experience was a disappointment to me, especially compared to what Shane got--his side of soup was the same size as my main dish (not that I would want a huge bowl of that soup, mind you), but it's the principle, you know?

In the end, I'm happy to have tried this restaurant. We might come back again, but heck, I would never order the same dish again...

Qoola Frozen Yogurt Bar

After the movie we decided to try the brand new Qoola in Metrotown, which just opened in January 2010. Having never gone to any other Qoola locations, we weren't sure what to expect. But it's basically a self serve frozen yogurt bar, where you get your own paper cup, swirl your own frozen yogurt into the container, and put any toppings you want.


The first thing we noticed is that the cup they provide is HUGE. This is the tricky bit, because you pay by the weight, and you naturally want to fill that big cup, right? Beware. But what's great is that they have a lot of choice as far as frozen yogurt go: chocolate, vanilla, green tea, mango, lychee, and original.

I opted for the original and mango flavours, with a little strawberry and pineapple on top. The original is great, with a real yogurt flavour and a nice tang. The mango was really good too, with true mango flavour. The fruit was refreshing.

Shane got the green tea, and lychee flavours, with mango on top. Both were tasty, with the green tea being very mild having a subtle tea aftertaste. The lychee tasted very much like lychee, with slightly smoky undercurrent, if that makes sense.

We enjoyed the Qoola experience quite a lot. Both of our favourites was the original. However, it is a tad pricey. Each half-filled container was around $3.50, so a full container would be a whopping seven bucks. Still, we'd return for a once in a while treat.

Abdul's Barbeque

A couple of weeks ago we went to Metrotown to see "Up in the Air" (pretty good, but a little forgettable). We decided to go over to Crystal Mall before the movie to check out this Middle Eastern place that I'd first heard about through a Chow Times review. It was a little hard to find, because the storefront actually faces the street.

This place is a real hole in the wall-- 3 or 4 metal tables, and barely enough room to walk around. The feeling is more of an eat and run or take out place. There were pictures of the menu items on the wall, and an electronic bell which rings as you come in. Mr. Abdul himself was there, and he was very friendly.

We decided to go for a couple of shawarmas--I got the beef and Shane got the mixed meat (chicken, lamb and beef, all Halal). They were around $7 bucks each, and were an amazing deal, considering how large they were. They were the biggest shawarmas I've ever gotten and filled with a generous quantity of meat and vegetables. The meat was pretty fantastic, with lots of crisp brown bits. But a bit of warning: the hot sauce is incredibly hot. These Syrian shawarmas are a lot different than the regular kind you'd get anywhere else. The meat and sauce are strongly spiced, which I imagine can turn off milder palates. But we loved it.

We were very full after that huge wrap, but like an idiot I wanted to try Abdul's falafels. Mr. Abdul said it would be a wait of about 15 minutes because he fries them fresh, unlike other places which fry them before hand and nuke them in the microwave. Upon hearing this, we were sold. We got a side of 4 (around $4), and they were worth the wait. These pucks were quite large; they were crisp on the outside, but incredibly soft in the middle. The seasoning was spot on, and the sauce that was put on these babies was lemony and really, really good. These falafels made me happy.

We will definitely come back for more--especially for the falafels. There is nothing that makes a place more perfect than a wonderful, friendly owner who obviously takes pride in his food.

Lao Shan Dong

Recently, we went out with Ana and Kay again for lunch, and we chose Lao Shan Dong noodle house because neither of them had been there before. Shane and I had eaten here many times because it's usually our pre-movie meal anytime we go to Metrotown to catch a movie. Lots of people have written reviews about this place (as you can see here), but I first learned about it from I'm Only Here for the Food blog.

The restaurant is on the corner of Nelson and Kingsway, right across the street from the Metrotown mall parking lot. There is not much to be said of the ambiance, except to say that the focus is really on the food.

First, we shared the homemade dumplings (15 for $7.95). These arrived steaming hot; the dumplings tasted fresh and the dough was nice and springy. We were given a small dish with a bit of sesame oil, as well as vinegar and soy to make a dipping sauce. We enjoyed this very much.

Kay ordered the dry Beijing style noodles, and he seemed to like this a lot.

The rest of us ordered variations of the noodle soup; both Ana and Shane had the small #1 Beef Brisket noodles ($7.95), and I opted for the pork and beef ball version. You have a choice of spicy or non-spicy. We usually go for the 'spicy', because it's not spicy at all. The soup was delicious, and had a deep, dark brown beefy flavour. There is a slight sweetness to the broth, and the addition of sour pickled mustard gave the soup a necessary tang. The meat was tender and generously portioned; the meat balls also were great, with that slight rubbery texture that I actually love. But the best part was definitely the handmade noodles, which were slightly chewy and which had absorbed the flavour of the soup.

We love coming here. The dishes are consistently good, and we have never left disappointed (or hungry!).

Cactus Club Cafe - Lougheed

We wanted a quick meal before catching a movie at the nearbly theatre, so we opted for the Cactus Club, since Shane had never been, and I'd only been once before years and years ago. What I remember from my visit last time wasn't the food, but their roomy and high tech bathrooms (rotating plastic toilet seat covers, step flusher, and roomy stalls = awesome). Anyway, I'm not so fond of chain restaurants where their hiring policy seems to include dress size and cuteness, you know?

Check out the exterior. It's kind of Gothic, and rather kitchy. The interior is kind of similar, with art and chandeliers mixed with wide screen TVs--very anachronistic. Cheesy post-modern?

The restaurant was crowded when we arrived, and we had to wait for about 10 minutes for a table. We were seated at a huge booth that could've fit about eight people, even though we were just two. That was pretty neat. One thing though--the place is loud. Music, people talking--it's like eating at a night club or something.

For food, we opted to share a couple of the 'Rob Feenie' dishes. The first one was the short rib sandwich ($15.25), and I substituted their yam fries. The short rib sandwhich came with caramelized onions, and also came with chipotle aioli and beef jus. Ok, to be honest, when this arrived, I was a little disappointed at the size. The sandwich seemed really small. In terms of taste, the short rib was pretty darn tasty--the meat was tender and braised really well. The caramelized onion was a great addition. The only thing I didn't like about this was the type of bread used--it seemed way to thin and puny to hold up to such a big taste (especially to be eaten dipped in the jus). The yam fries were okay; for some reason it didn't taste 'yam-y' enough.

We also shared "The Burger" ($14.50), which came with cheddar, bacon, mushroom, and red pepper relish. The burger was good, though it was quite messy. Nothing really stood out to elevate it to next level of burgers, but it was an enjoyable meal. I can definitely say that relish made the burger stand out a little from the crowd, but it felt a little too much--perhaps there were too many components? Having tasted Rob Feenie's original burger at his "Feenie's" next to Lumiere a while back, this burger is not in the same range in quality. Perhaps it's not fair to compare, since they are/were not the same type of restaurant, but he has his name on it, right? So I would say "the Burger" is a good burger...for a chain restaurant.

I don't think I'd come here again, even though the food was tasty enough. For some reason, I'm not sure I enjoyed the whole Cactus Club experience. A lot of people do, so good for them. Sail on....

Nando's Chicken - Metrotown

Metrotown is not my favorite place. It's really crowded, the lights are too bright, the music is too loud, and it's way too big. Sometimes though, you gotta go. A couple of weekends ago we ended up there to see Fantastic Mr. Fox, but, as we eventually learned, it wasn't even open yet. So we spent hours looking for work clothes for Shane instead.

Anyway, we had an entertainment book coupon for Nando's, so that's where we went for lunch. Of course, this wasn't at a sit-down restaurant, but at a food court. We both had the chicken breast with one side. I choose fries, while Shane had the chicken with coleslaw. It was a good deal with the coupon, but I did notice the prices being a little high for a food court. This was our first time at Nando's and we were impressed at the grilling that was going on.

The food was pretty good, especially comparing with the other fatty options available. The chicken was great, with a real grilled flavour and charcoal-y bits; the flesh was juicy as well. This was nice, because we don't have a grill at home and can't really replicate this. It could have had more sauce though, since I could hardly taste it. I like the lemon they included as well. This gave the chicken a brightness.

Coleslaw. I hate it. I have never met one I didn't like. It's so heavy, so mayonaise-y. Yuk. But Shane thought it was okay.

Which brings me to the fries...I ordered 'piri' fries, and I couldn't tell the difference, because it looked like regular fries. But holy cow, those fries were salty. It was as if they were drenched in salt or something, because it was so, so salty.

So all in all, it was a mixed experience. the chicken was good, but other stuff, not so much. I'd be curious to visit one of their sit-down restuarants though.

Red Robin - Lougheed

Last week it was rainy (like it is now) and Shane felt like eating a burger. So we opted for a place from the past, the Red Robin near Lougheed Mall. It’s really from Shane’s past ‘cause he actually used to work at a Red Robin when he was a teenager (which is funny because he can’t really cook meat – everything is well done with him). I used to go there a lot back in the day, but both of us haven’t been for a couple of years (mainly because the couple of times we tried, we were waiting to be seated and absolutely no one came to greet us, so we left after about 5 minutes).

Anyway, as soon as we stepped in, it was like traveling back in time; all the fixtures were brassy, there was the same old Red everything, the wildly colourful carpet and the crazy patterned fabric in the booths. We arrived around lunchtime, and surprisingly, the place was hopping—lots of kid’s birthday parties, teenagers, and families.

To drink, Shane opted for the strawberry ‘freckled’ lemonade, which, like all their pop at Red Robin, was bottomless. I find this awesome, even though of course I can usually only manage a couple of rounds. The beverage itself was a little too sweet, but as the ice melted and diluted the drink, it became pretty nice and refreshing. The strawberries were not fresh, but rather soggy and macerated; however it did give a subtle strawberry flavour to the lemonade.

I chose the Red Robin Bacon Cheeseburger (with pickles! This was 10-11 bucks). The burger arrived with “bottomless” steak fries, and it was big. The tomato and lettuce were fresh, and the patty was relatively juicy, though the meat needed more seasoning. The bacon slices were so pitifully thin that I could hardly taste the bacon, and they were so generous with the mayo that it was all I could taste. The mayo made the burger a big, soggy mess. I like messy burger, but it's not so nice when large squirts of mayo drip from it as you bite the burger.

The fries were quite good: crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. Now, on to one of the best things about Red Robin: their Buzz sauce (hot sauce) that they put on their wings. It’s vinegary, salt, hot, and different from the usual Louisiana style hot sauce. Really good with the fries.

Shane ordered the Guacamole Bacon Burger, and he had the same issues as I did – the lack of meat seasoning, the thin slices of bacon, the way too much mayo. Of course, his burger was extra soggy because of the guacamole, but that’s Shane’s own fault really.

Alas, we were too stuffed to even order a second helping of fries, or even get dessert. I remember Red Robin used to have the greatest banana splits, with pineapple, strawberry and chocolate sauces and an entire banana in a huge oblong metal bowl. I’m sorry to say that particular item has been off the menu for years now....

Red Robin’s burgers are generally pretty good based on our previous dining experiences, so I’m guessing maybe they had an off day. Those burgers are not the same calibre as Vera’s or any of the gourmet burger places of course, but there is something cool about Red Robin’s history and their huge portions (and ‘bottomlessness’ !).

We’ll probably won’t be back for a long while, but we’ll be back...eventually.

Lhy Thai

Inspired by a pretty good Thai dining experience at Maenam, I wanted to try some other Thai places that I'd heard about. One of these places was Lhy Thai, which is on Edmonds street in Burnaby, so when our friend Linda called us out for dinner, this was the place we chose. I was curious about the restaurant from Sherman's review of it, and from one of Shane's co-workers, who used to go there regularly when he worked close by.

We arrived on a dark and rainy weeknight, so there were plenty of seats. However, the restuarant did get a lot busier later in the night. The restaurant on the inside feels a little cramped, because there are a lot of tables crammed into the space, and the room was filled with a lot of Thai kitch, pictures and plants all over the place. However, there is nothing pretentious about this place, and the restaurant was definitely very comfortable.

Shane and Linda had a beer, but I opted for Thai iced tea, which was on the menu. It arrived in a small glass, but the taste of the tea was pretty similar to what you'd get in Thailand (it just needed to have a bit more punch). However, for $3.99, it was pricy for its size.

One of our appetizers we got was the spring roll ($5.95). These were large and crispy, with a tasty vegetarian filling. It came with a side of Chinese style sweet and sour sauce, which I didn't care for. I would have preferred that the spring rolls came with the traditional Thai nam jiim (fish sauce, lime, garlic, fresh chilies, cilantro).

Next, we ordered the pork satay ($5.95), which came with a side of pickled cucumbers and a peanut sauce. The satays were pretty good, though not exceptional. The pork had a nice grilled flavour and the peanut sauce was finger licking and very tasty. The cucumbers were refreshing, and cut the richness of the sauce nicely.

I wanted to get the chicken larb ($8.25) as a kind of test, since it's definitely not a common thing for people to order in Thai restaurants, and because when it's good, it's really, really good. One of the best memories from a trip to Thailand was ordering this dish in Northeast Issan province from a street vendor and eating it with sticky rice. When it's good, the larb is pungent with garlic and lime, fresh with herbs, tongue-numbingly spicy, and instantly addictive. So how did this larb from Lhy Thai hold up? It was surprisingly good. Of course it didn't have that level of spice and the sourness of the dish was tampered a bit by the addition of sugar, but overall, it compared relatively well. The best thing I can say about it is that I would order it again. It was great with rice.

Next came the green curry with chicken ($8.50). The curry was a little watery, but had excellent flavour (it's not too good when the curry is too thick with coconut milk either); there was a nice complexity to the curry, which was really good. The contents of the curry, bamboo, peppers, chicken, were pretty standard. This went really great with rice.

We also tried the pad thai with shrimp ($8.50). If you've ever eaten pad thai in Thailand (off the main 'tourist' drag, of course), you'll know that what passes for pad thai in Canada is not really authentic. It shouldn't be red and sweet, for instance, and should always be served with a wedge of lime and a handful of chives. So this pad thai was just ok. It was red and sweet, but not overly so. It also had way too much ground peanut (peanuts should just give a small textural contrast and a bit of flavour and shouldn't dominate). Hey, it tasted good, you know? But pad thai-wise, it was a bit of a disappointment.

We were really full, but how could we say no to dessert? So we ordered each dessert they offered: Mango with sticky rice, coconut ice cream with coconut meat, and deep fried bananas with mango ice cream. Yum, yum, yum. Linda loved the banana dessert and declared the mango ice cream a really good match to the deep fried banana. How can you go wrong with deep fried banana?

The mango with sticky rice was good, though with a few small flaws: the mango was the Mexican variety and was not too ripe, so it didn't have that ripe mango aroma and sweetness which is so essential to the dessert. However, the sticky rice with coconut milk was good, although the coconut was missing the pinch of salt that gives the dessert such a strange and amazing out of this world quality.

The best dessert of the night, surprisingly, was the coconut ice cream with coconut meat. The ice cream was delicious, and the coconut meat was an unusual addition (though it makes sense, of course!). It was simple and delicious.

We love Lhy Thai. It's not the most authentic Thai place, but it's authentic enough to bring really good memories of Thailand. The Thai couple who run it are really kind (they even gave us calendars at the end of the meal!). The prices are also a bit of a throwback (the dishes are mostly around $8, surprisingly enough). I'd be happy to return to try other dishes, for sure.