Planning a visit to Vancouver and looking forward to sampling some of the city’s finest – but not looking forward to playing hit and miss? Well, relax and allow me to guide you through some of the city’s tastiest treats.
Here are the Top 11 Things I’ve Been Eating in Vancouver:
PEACEFUL BEEF ROLL AT PEACEFUL RESTAURANT
Featured on Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives, its five-spice, hoisin-laced beef rolled in crispy onion flatbread. The restaurant focuses on northern Chinese dishes, more robust and intensely flavored than their southern counterparts. Lots to like on the menu but the peaceful beef roll leads the list.
CACHETA AND LENGUA TACOS AT La Taqueria
Vancouver’s best taco place (Sorry. Nowhere else comes even close.) offers up a varied and delicious selection. My favorites are the tender and tasty cacheta (braised beef cheeks) and lengua (braised beef tongue). If you’re feeling less adventurous, go with pollo con mole or pescado (grilled fish), then wash it down with a horchata or Mexican coke.
SALTED CARAMEL CREAM PUFF AT Beta 5
This place specializes in chocolate, but they do so many other things well – like their irresistible salted caramel cream puff, a perfect marriage of sweet and salty, crisp and creamy.
ABURI SALMON OSHI SUSHI AT Downtown Vancouver Japanese Restaurant – Miku Restaurant
Local salmon pressed and dressed with Miku special sauce, topped with jalapeno then grilled topside using a blowtorch and charcoal. Whenever I go with first-timers, I always order two rolls (at least) because I know that one won’t be enough.
SOFT SERVE ICE CREAM AT FAT DRAGON BAR-B-Q
The greatest soft serve I’ve ever had available in a variety of inspired daily flavors. My favorite (surprise surprise) = the delightfully refreshing cucumber!
CHOCOLATE PUDDING AT Fable Restaurant | From Farm to Table
Former Top Chef Canada contestant Curtis Luk makes some amazing desserts (including kick-ass macarons), but his chocolate pudding is my go-to after-dinner treat. A brilliant balance of tastes and textures.
CHOCOLATE ZEPPOLE AT Giovane cafe + bakery + deli: a stunning cafe & retail emporium …
A chocoholic’s dream bomb: cream on the inside, ganache on the outside. Bring back-up!
PORCHETTA AT Meat & Bread
Juicy slow-roasted pork, crunchy crackling, and salsa verde served on a ciabatta roll. We’ve gone so many times of late that Akemi has declared a temporary moratorium on near future visits. I’ve already got a plan to work around the embargo.
BANANA CHOCOLATES AT Beta 5
The impressively-thin shell possesses a great chocolaty snap, giving way to fantastic banana interior. I’m a huge fan of this particular flavor combination and have tried many variations. My all-time favorites are those offered at Le Chocolat de H in Tokyo (ル ショコラ ドゥ アッシュ_) and Beta 5’s version.
SPAGHETTI AT CAMPAGNOLO ROMA
Having grown up in an Italian household, I’m incredibly picky when it comes to pasta, especially spaghetti, so the fact that Campagnolo Roma’s version is on this list says a lot about the dish. Perfectly cooked to a toothsome al dente and served with luscious tomato sauce and a touch of fresh basil.
CARROT CAKE AT cadeaux bakery
I’m a sucker for carrot cake and, after an in-depth (and thoroughly delicious) search, I’ve found my favorite. But Cadeaux Bakery in Gastown offers more than just carrot cake – which is why, every time I go, we end up sitting down to a good half-dozen heavenly creations.
That chocolate pudding looks…well it looks better than anything I’ve seen or done for ages. Damn…I wish I could lift it off the page.
I’m in Vancouver at leat once a month, so will have to try 1(or 4) on my visits.
Can’t wait !
This post will be bookmarked for my Summer Canadian file! Bon voyage /¡buen viaje! Am giving thought to goofy vs. kooky while packing for my own trip, DisneyWorld with family & friends. Disney at Halloween: There WILL be photos!
OMG!! I will have to bookmark this page just for the pictures!
~~Have a safe travel day!!
G’day Joe
Safe travels.
Food looks yummo, especially the salted caramel cream puff.
The cachete (not cacheta, Joe :)) without the lengua tacos would be fabulous. Don’t like lengua’s taste or texture. Follow that with the chocolate pudding and finish with the Porchetta, yeah, I’d be happy, And huge. 🙂
Meanwhile, went to order a cake for my daughter’s baby shower. HOLY CRAP. One 8 inch chocolate cake with dulce de leche filling and some fondant sailboats (not even 3D), $220! It was $320 for two TINY tiers, so it’s flan, tres leches and whatever else I can think up for more desserts. I checked the other specialty bakeries and the prices were the same or higher (and crappy attitudes on top of it)! I don’t mind spending on this party, but paying that much for flour, sugar, milk and eggs? This thing went from 20-25 people to about 45-50 now, and I’m doing most of the cooking. I’m nuts. 🙂 Mr. Deni decided that the deck was looking crappy (it is, but right now, I don’t care, neither do the dogs…), so rather than work on the nursery on Monday, he will be taking out the deck we have and replacing it. On a brighter note, 52 days and I’ll be a grandma!
Hungry now. Is it wrong to be craving chocolate at 11pm? I have no idea what a Chocolate Zeppole is or where I can get one all I know is that I WANT ONE NOW!!!!!
I think I’ll just print this out and keep a copy in my wallet for my next Vancouver trip.
The food looks great! I think I’ll be having carrot cake for dessert tonight – not of Cadeaux caliber but it will have to to.
Safe travels, Joe and Akemi!
Ohhh, that looks good. One of these days I will have to make a trip just to try some of that food. If I survive long enough. After all, while I travel there, I will have to sample places along the way, inspired by your own devotion to culinary exploration….thanks for sharing. And Baterista9, enjoy while the rest of use are hunkered down for the storm! And take an extra shower for us…
I can testify that the Peaceful Rolls are, indeed, amazing. I found that all the food there was great, though. Even the tendon! I was hoping to go to La Taqueria on the Sunday after going to Peaceful, but turns out it’s closed Sundays. So, next time, I guess!
All of your food pictured looks and sounds excellent. I also meant to get to Beta5, but I actually kind of forgot about it while I was there. Not enough time, I suppose.
Have a great travel day, and I hope the time change doesn’t hit you guys too hard.
They all look very tasty. 🙂
Any recommended food trucks/carts (other than the legendary JapaDog)?
Oh, and I should have said earlier: Safe travels!
Mouthwatering food. 🙂
On your goofy/kooky– you failed lol. Thank goodness, since most of us disagree with you.
Akemi–
goofy, wearing 2 different colors of socks.
kooky, wearing a flipflop and high heel.
Johanna got it hysterically right… keep that photo handy. Kooky to me is also “might be seriously mentally ill, not just eccentric.”
http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2012/10/27/quake-with-a-magnitude-of-7-7-strikes-off-canada-coast/?hpt=hp_t3
You all ok? 😮
Pets in Halloween costumes:
http://www.hlntv.com/slideshow/2012/10/24/animal-pet-cute-costume-halloween?hpt=hp_c2
Enjoy the trip joe hope you have a blast.
Have a good flight Joe and Akemi 🙂
Flight left on time and actually got in early. We breezed through customs, got our luggage – only to discover we would have to wait 40 minutes for the shuttle. 🙁 Thank goodness for free airport wifi.
Also, earthquake near Vancouver! How’s that for irony?
How about a warning for this blog entry – If one reads, might make one hungry.
And, the earthquake resulted in a Tsunami warning for Hawaii.
They are still waiting for “results” with the idea to be safe and not sorry.
I’ll drink to that!
Glad to hear you guys are there safely and now we wait for your reports on your adventures.
Bon Voyage….and please do keep us informed.
No one injured in the Earthquake, Joe. It was a shallow one and not on a major fault…which means there is still time for a huge earthquake to come later..
Are you able to sleep on the plane when you travel? I almost always arrive exhausted. But then, living in the outback of Alberta I have a four hour drive from my home to the airport, and then usually at least one transfer between planes since Edmonton is not a major hub. Any flight is an all day journey for me.
Also, I was expecting one of your choice deserts to be a chocolate hazelnut. That is also a particular favorite of mine, so I’m always looking for the perfect desert.
@ Johanna Sanders:
I don’t know when Joe might get to this (due to travel), but I can recommend two:
Vij’s Railway Express ( http://www.facebook.com/VijsRailway )
Pig on the Street ( http://www.pigonthestreet.com/ )
Both were delicious!
@Deni: I’d rather eat flan than cake any day!
@Joe and Akemi: I’m glad you had a good flight and arrived safely! Have fun!
@Sparrow-hawk: Me too! The cake is mostly for show anyway (soooo cute). Homemade flan is the best!
Glad to hear you arrived safely, Joe and Akemi!
Have a great time! Stay safe 🙂 .
Thanks for the list. Something I was looking for.
You, Akemi and the dogs okay? Heard Vancouver had a bad quake. Oh wait…you’re not home? Check with your dogsitter…
Woah, amazing looking selections, especially the spaghetti and the beef rolls.