At the THOROUGHBRED – A Day at the Races

2011 Follow Me Foodie Favourites & Yearblog

Happy New Year! Welcome to my Follow Me Foodie Favourites & Best of 2011! This is a recap and yearbook/yearblog of the BEST Follow Me Foodie (FMF) Food and FMF Foodie Moments in 2011.

I wrote a Follow Me Foodie Favourites & Best of 2010, so I decided to do another one this year. I don’t even know where to start. It’s been a crazy year, and I’m so grateful for everything that has happened with this blog. I’ve loved every minute of it (even the parts where it hurt to laugh because I was so full) and I’m so happy to have shared these delicious moments with you. Thank you for following me foodie and cheers to another year of gastronomic indulgence!

NOTE: IT’S NOT NECESSARILY “THE BEST“, BECAUSE FOOD IS PERSONAL AND I CAN ONLY DISCOVER SO MUCH IN A YEAR. THESE ARE JUST SOME WORTH MENTIONING IN MY BOOKS… OR BLOG? BLOG. IT’S MORE OF A 2011 RECAP/SUMMARY. ALL EXPERIENCES ARE FROM 2011 ONLY.

Top 15 Most Memorable/BEST Restaurant DESSERTS in Vancouver:

Miku Restaurant – Blueberry-Lavender Coconut Cream Tart

Of course I had to have a dessert category! I probably eat as many desserts as I do savoury courses. I had better luck finding great desserts in the city this year than last. Sweeten up your day with these!
Listed in no particular order. Based on the menu item, not the restaurant.

1. Giovane Cafe + Bar – Sugar Bun, Peanut Butter Hedgehog

2. Miku Restaurant – Blueberry-Lavender Coconut Cream Tart

3. Fratelli Bakery- Saint Honoré Cake

4. Kitchening with Carly – Almond Macaron with Rosemary Salted Caramel and Vanilla Cream

5. Chef Kev Cookies & Chocolate – Gluten Free Marzipan Ginger Cookies

6. TacoFino Cantina – Chocolate Diablo Cookie

7. Savary Island Pie Company – Lemon Buttermilk Pie

8. Be ‘wiched Cafe – Triple Cream Cheese Citrus Bar

9. Faubourg – Lemon Tart

10. Café Régalade – Monaco Torte

11. Cioppino’s Mediterranean Grill – Olive Oil

12. ManCakes Bakery – Breakfast ManCake, Buffalo Wing ManCake

13. Gorilla Food – Avocado Pie

14. Seasonal 56 – Squash Ice Cream and Ginger Cookie Sandwich

15. Thomas Haas – Stollen

See “Follow Me Foodie Best of 2010 Desserts” here.

See the full “Follow Me Foodie Best of 2011″ here.

Miku Restaurant – Aburi Salmon Oshi Sushi

2011 Follow Me Foodie Favourites & Yearblog

Happy New Year! Welcome to my Follow Me Foodie Favourites & Best of 2011! This is a recap and yearbook/yearblog of the BEST Follow Me Foodie (FMF) Food and FMF Foodie Moments in 2011.

I wrote a Follow Me Foodie Favourites & Best of 2010, so I decided to do another one this year. I don’t even know where to start. It’s been a crazy year, and I’m so grateful for everything that has happened with this blog. I’ve loved every minute of it (even the parts where it hurt to laugh because I was so full) and I’m so happy to have shared these delicious moments with you. Thank you for following me foodie and cheers to another year of gastronomic indulgence!

NOTE: IT’S NOT NECESSARILY “THE BEST“, BECAUSE FOOD IS PERSONAL AND I CAN ONLY DISCOVER SO MUCH IN A YEAR. THESE ARE JUST SOME WORTH MENTIONING IN MY BOOKS… OR BLOG? BLOG. IT’S MORE OF A 2011 RECAP/SUMMARY. ALL EXPERIENCES ARE FROM 2011 ONLY.

Top 20 BEST ASIAN/FUSION Restaurant Dishes & Food in Vancouver:

Suika – Beef Short Rib

Being in Vancouver, we’re spoiled by great Asian/Asian Fusion cuisine, so I decided to make it a separate category. Vancouver dominates and excels when it comes to Asian/Asian fusion cuisine.

Listed in no particular order. Based on the menu item, not the restaurant.

1. Suika – Beef Short Rib

2. Aki Japanese Restaurant – Black Cod (Sable Fish)

3. Pho Tam – House Special Pho

4. Wing Kee – Fresh Steamed Scallops with Vermicelli and Garlic

5. Dan Japanese – Tuna Chili Sashimi

6. Wang’s Beef Noodle House – Beef Brisket Noodle

7. Kirin Seafood Restaurant – Black Cod Braised with Squash and Roasted Pork Belly

8. Jade Seafood Restaurant – Steamed Mushroom Dumpling

9. Rainflower Restaurant – Pan Fried Tiger Prawns with Basil

10. Tokyo Joe’s Sushi Factory – Volcano Roll

11. Empire Chinese Cuisine – Alaskan King Crab Dinner – 4 ways

12. Red Star Seafood – Dungeness Crab with Wild Rice

13. Motomachi Shokudo – Bamboo-Charcoal Dark Miso Ramen

14. Tokachi Japanese – Tuna Gomaae

15. Empire Chinese Cuisine – Deep Fried Alaskan King Crab Knuckles

16. Ichiro Japanese – Dragon Roll

17. Delicious Cuisine – Deep Fried Shrimp with Salted Egg Yolk

18. Hapa Izakaya (Kistilano) – Salmon Shooter

19. Suhang Restaurant – Steamed Soup Buns with Pork Filling (XLB)

20. Jade Seafood Restaurant – Jade Smoked Grandpa Chicken

Honorary Mentions from 2010 list: Miku Restaurant – Aburi Salmon Oshi Sushi, Top Gun J & C Restaurant – Baked BBQ Pork Bun, Hakkaido Ramen Santouka – Toroniku Shio Ramen

See “Follow Me Foodie Best of 2010 Asian/Fusion Dishes” here.

See the full “Follow Me Foodie Best of 2011″ here.

Estrella’s Montreal Smoked Meat – Montreal Smoked Meat Sandwich

2011 Follow Me Foodie Favourites & Yearblog

Happy New Year! Welcome to my Follow Me Foodie Favourites & Best of 2011! This is a recap and yearbook/yearblog of the BEST Follow Me Foodie (FMF) Food and FMF Foodie Moments in 2011.

I wrote a Follow Me Foodie Favourites & Best of 2010, so I decided to do another one this year. I don’t even know where to start. It’s been a crazy year, and I’m so grateful for everything that has happened with this blog. I’ve loved every minute of it (even the parts where it hurt to laugh because I was so full) and I’m so happy to have shared these delicious moments with you. Thank you for following me foodie and cheers to another year of gastronomic indulgence!

NOTE: IT’S NOT NECESSARILY “THE BEST“, BECAUSE FOOD IS PERSONAL AND I CAN ONLY DISCOVER SO MUCH IN A YEAR. THESE ARE JUST SOME WORTH MENTIONING IN MY BOOKS… OR BLOG? BLOG. IT’S MORE OF A 2011 RECAP/SUMMARY. ALL EXPERIENCES ARE FROM 2011 ONLY.

Top 10 BEST Sandwiches/Burgers in Vancouver!

Finch’s Tea & Coffee House – Pear, Blue Brie, Prosciutto Baguette

Sandwiches, burgers, pizzas and food carts dominated the Vancouver food scene last year and this. The following sandwiches and burgers are limited to the ones I tried this year, so they’re not necessarily “the best”, but definitely worth mentioning and trying!

Listed in no particular order. Based on the menu item, not the restaurant.

1. Savary Island Pie Company – Grilled Chicken and Fresh Basil Sandwich

2. Belle’s on Thirty Two Restaurant – Lambwich

3. La Brasserie – Brass Chicken Sandwich

4. Hubbub Sandwiches – Pork Sandwich

5. Finch’s Tea & Coffee House – Pear, Blue Brie, Prosciutto Baguette

6. Coma Food Truck – Kalbi Burger

7. TacoFino Cantina – Pork Gringa

8. Meat & Bread – Porchetta Sandwich

9. Estrella’s Montreal Smoked Meat – Montreal Smoked Meat Sandwich

10. The Oakwood Canadian Bistro – Burger

See the full “Follow Me Foodie Best of 2011″ here.

At the Canadian Red Cross “Red Carpet Soiree” at Blue Water Cafe + Raw Bar

2011 Follow Me Foodie Favourites & Yearblog

Happy New Year! Welcome to my Follow Me Foodie Favourites & Best of 2011! This is a recap and yearbook/yearblog of the BEST Follow Me Foodie (FMF) Food and FMF Foodie Moments in 2011.

I wrote a Follow Me Foodie Favourites & Best of 2010, so I decided to do another one this year. I don’t even know where to start. It’s been a crazy year, and I’m so grateful for everything that has happened with this blog. I’ve loved every minute of it (even the parts where it hurt to laugh because I was so full) and I’m so happy to have shared these delicious moments with you. Thank you for following me foodie and cheers to another year of gastronomic indulgence!

NOTE: IT’S NOT NECESSARILY “THE BEST“, BECAUSE FOOD IS PERSONAL AND I CAN ONLY DISCOVER SO MUCH IN A YEAR. THESE ARE JUST SOME WORTH MENTIONING IN MY BOOKS… OR BLOG? BLOG. IT’S MORE OF A 2011 RECAP/SUMMARY. ALL EXPERIENCES ARE FROM 2011 ONLY.

Top 20 Most Memorable/BEST Restaurant SAVOURY Dishes & Food in Vancouver!

Cobre Nuevo Latino – Maple Chipotle Tamarind Glazed Wild Boar Belly

The list is limited to what I tried this year. Again, not necessarily “the best”, but very memorable.
Listed in no particular order. Based on the menu item, not the restaurant.

1. Be ‘Wiched Cafe – Chain Gang Chili, Apple Pie Stuffed French Toast

2. La Belle Auberge – Seared Foie Gras with Apple Tart Tatin, Pork Belly Spring Roll

3. Café Régalade – Braised Short Ribs in Pepper Sauce

4. Pair Bistro – PAIR Signature Oysters

5. El Barrio Restaurante – Tostada Carnitas

6. Mis Trucos – Sezmu Beef Flatiron Steak

7. C Restaurant – Parsley Veloute, Northern Divine Caviar

8. Cioppino’s Mediterranean Grill – Pappardelle

9. L’Abattoir – Poached Egg

10. Cobre Nuevo Latino – Maple Chipotle Tamarind Glazed Wild Boar Belly

11. La Quercia – Stinging Nettle Risotto for 2, Gnocchi

12. Hog Shack Cook House – Burnt Ends

13. Hawksworth Restaurant – Confit Pork Shoulder, Yellowfin Tuna Carpaccio

14. Anatolia’s Gate – Iskender Kabob

15. Market by Jean-Georges – French Toast, Sweet Pea Soup

16. The Well – Pulled Pork Eggs Benedict

17. The Apron – Side Stripe Prawn (Change of chefs)

18. EBO Restaurant – Albacore Tuna

19. Mochikas Peruvian Cafe - Chupe de Mariscos

20. Nicli Anitca Pizzeria – Margherita Pizza

Follow Me Foodie to the Stollen Smackdown!

Eating my way through 18 stollen to find THE BEST in town!

Be stollen my heart! 18 stollens traveled near and far for a spot in the “Stollen Off” or “Stollen Smackdown”! From Vancouver to Victoria, Quebec and Ontario, and of course even Germany, it was a search for the best stollen in town… or just out of whatever we could get our antsy hands on!

I’ve done some pretty crazy foodie things in the past and this was one of them! Let us loose and we’ll just embrace the fat kid inside. From epic summer BBQ’s, to pie parties, and now stollen smackdowns, we’re a rowdy bunch of food obsessed geeks and the only shame we have is on the person who brought the worst thing. Or what’s worse? The person who brought the generic mass produced “grocery store” brand. Yes, put us all together and you might not even want to be invited, although I promise the only thing being judged is your food. We save the juicy talk for after you leave

Anyways, this year, or holiday season, I became obsessed with stollen. It’s happened before when I get on these mini food obsessions and go on mini hunts to find “the best” of whatever I’m craving for at that moment, and this was one of those times. I’ve done it with pizza, tacos, XLB, tamago, duck confit, runny egg yolks, short ribs, poutine, Japanese sablefish, wontons, egg tarts, BBQ pork buns, ramen, macarons, almond croissants and small things like that, but not to this degree. This was legendary.

Boy I must have been super good this year to be invited to this magical holiday moment. Of course being the Gemini I am being super good also meant being able to be super bad. So bring on the stollen (pronounced schtollen) and let’s get this party schtarted. It came down to 18 stollens (some doubles), 8 stomachs, 2 jugs of Avalon eggnog, one winner, and no Pepto Bismol.

Okay for those of you who don’t know what stollen is and think we stole 18 loaves of bread, no, that’s not the case.

What is Stollen?

Stollen is traditionally a German cake, or sweet and rich German bread eaten during Christmas. It is traditionally hand formed in a loaf shape and made with milk, butter, sugar, eggs, yeast, rum soaked raisins, dried or candied fruits (usually orange and lemon), almonds and Stollen spices which may include cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, mace etc. There are different types and styles of stollen, but my favourite has a stick of marzipan (ground almond paste) baked into the centre which is called Marzipan Stollen. All stollens are covered with sugar, icing sugar or powdered sugar after it bakes. It is best eaten a few days to a week and a half after it’s baked so the flavours have time to set and the texture is right.

I have to say that this is not a typical “Christmas Cake”. I guess it is a “German Christmas Cake”, but it’s definitely not one of those gross Christmas Cakes most of us feared as kids and thought only moms and grandmas ate. This is Christmas Cake 2.0 even though it’s existed for centuries.

The first stollens were actually made without milk and butter due to advent and respect to religion, and it wasn’t until later when people protested for the ban to be lifted. Those are my kind of people! And then to celebrate they threw stollen into the water… just kidding, it’s not the Boston Tea Party!

This may be the only occasion when I discriminate against shape and size. Authentically, the shape of the loaf has a bump in the middle to resemble the camel’s hump. The stollen is symbolic for the camel and the gifts it brings to Christ Child on its First Christmas. The “gifts” and “treasures” are supposed to be the candied fruits. Others say the stolen is supposed to resemble Christ Child in a blanket, which sounds super creepy to me, but in the end it just better taste really good!

What I look for in a Marzipan Stollen:

1) Freshness (best eaten 5-10 days after and not fresh or stale)
2) Size/Shape/Density
It should have a hump in the middle, and if it has marzipan it should be 5% of the Stollens’ total weight. It should be dense, but not hard.
3) Aroma
There is an aroma when you take it out. It smells like rich bread, warm spices, almonds, or fresh citrus fruit.
4) Sugar coated exterior
There’s a thin dusting of sugar, powdered sugar or icing sugar.
5) Moist and rich buttery flavour in the bread
6) A lemon or orange scent and flavour which can be mild
7) Texture is consistent and not crumbly, too bready, or chewy
8 ) Sweetness of bread and marzipan
The bread shouldn’t be that sweet since it has the fruit, and the marzipan should have the flavour and texture of ground almonds, but still be creamy.
9) Ratio of marzipan to bread (A good amount of marzipan)
10) Quality of ingredients (butter or margarine, natural or extracts)
11) Type/Amount of raisins and candied fruits
No fake candied fruit. Slivered or whole almonds as opposed to sliced, moist rum soaked raisins as opposed to dry, and a good amount of fruit without being a fruit cake.
12) Stollen spices (not overwhelming, but noticeable)

Of course what is traditional is arguable and what is “authentic” might not be what tasted best, so in the end it’s always what you enjoyed most and personal tastes. The perfect stollen can be forever debated and I’m not a professional pastry chef, but there was a professional German baker testing these stollens out with us and guiding us along the way. Generally all stollens are sweet cakes that are always pretty good, but when you have them back to back like this, you can really separate the “bad” from the good.

Note: The “ratings” are just my personal tastes and only for the stollen and not for the bakery.

On the table:

**Thomas Haas Stollen - 6/6

• Small about 350g $17 Large about 800g $27
• Available at Thomas Haas stores and Whole Foods Market.
• I know it seems like the most obvious and the “I could have guessed it” choice, but you try all 18 and you tell me this wasn’t the best. I bet it’ll be in your top 3 at least.
• We knew it was known as “the best in town”, but the thought of it getting better at some less known bakery was something worth researching.
• This was the first stollen I’ve ever tried, and that’s pretty much getting Dom Pérignon as your first sip of champagne.
• I love Thomas Haas, but even in a blind tasting I still picked this and the Four Seasons Stollen as my tops.
• It had a classic granulated sugar and dusting of powdered sugar on the exterior, but it was thin so it wasn’t too sweet.
• It was one of the richest and butteriest in flavour without being oily and greasy.
• It was almost like a moist and rich shortbread cake and very buttery in an authentic stollen way, not a butchered “American stollen” way too.
• From bread to marzipan the whole thing was creamy and consistent in texture with all parts being moist.
• The marzipan centre was fairly large and it wasn’t that sweet and I could tell it was actually made with ground almonds and not just all sugar.
• The marzipan was creamy and soft and it had a real almond flavour and not just extract, although I wouldn’t mind a bit more extract.
• It had no grainy granulated sugar texture either and it was less sweet than most.
• It had a good amount of slivered toasted almonds, lots of juicy plump big golden raisins and moist rum soaked dark raisins.
• I prefer all golden raisins, but I don’t mind the dark, which are the ones usually used anyways. The golden ones are a bonus.
• It had an orange scent, but no candied orange or lemon pieces. I like candied citrus fruit if it’s fresh, and I’m neutral to them being in stollen.
• The stollen spices were on the mild side, likely to suit tastes of the mass market, but overall it was delicious.
• The only other thing was the shape. I wish it had been the traditional stollen shape with the hump in the middle. It didn’t affect flavour, but it’s part of the aesthetic.
• I was actually told that they used to make it in traditional shape, but I guess with the high demand, it’s now the more mass produced looking rectangular loaf.

**Four Seasons (The YEW) Stollen – 5.5/6

• About 450g 1lb $20
• Available at Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver at The YEW Restaurant.
• This was easily my second favourite and part of the creme de la creme of stollen.
• It had a classic coating of crispy granulated sugar that wasn’t too thick, but I do prefer the powered sugar (not icing sugar) and that’s just personal.
• It was super moist and buttery without being oily or greasy and it’s very slightly less rich than the Thomas Haas one.
• It was still like a rich shortbread cake, and just like the Thomas Haas one the whole thing was creamy and consistent in texture with all parts being moist.
• It was sweet, but not too sweet and full in flavour.
• It had a pretty big stick of marzipan (bigger than the Thomas Haas one) in the centre that was soft, but slightly floury in texture with less almond flavour than the Thomas Haas one. I was hoping for a bit more almond extract or natural almond flavour.
• The marzipan was heavy and still made with ground almonds and smooth in texture.
• It was mild on the stollen spices, but it had lots of crunchy toasted almonds, no dark raisins, and only juicy plump golden raisins which I think is best. It tasted better than most of the raisins we had in all the other stollens.
• It didn’t have much or any orange and lemon peel though, which again I’m neutral to if it’s fresh and good quality.
• Like the Thomas Haas one it was the loaf shape instead of the traditional hump shape, but at least it didn’t affect flavour.
• The differences between this one and the Thomas Haas stollen are extremely marginal, and in the end it comes down to personal preference.

Even side by side they looked almost identical. I liked that the FSV stollen was made with all golden raisins, but I liked the richer flavour of the Thomas Haas cake.

Note: It’s interesting to note that Thomas Haas’ (who previously worked for Four Seasons before opening his own shop) stollen recipe is likely inspired by the long time Four Season Vancouver pastry chef, Gerhart Witzel, who comes out of retirement to make the FSV stollen.

Sweet Thea Stollen – 2.5/6

• 350g $10 600g $15
• Sweet Thea found at the local Farmer’s Markets in Metro Vancouver.
• This was the first one we tried and it was pretty dry and there weren’t many stollen spices.
• It wasn’t very buttery in flavour and it had some raisins which weren’t very plump or juicy and some almonds, but no apparent citrus fruit flavour.
• The marzipan was noticeable grainy and very sugary and sweet.
• The outside was dusted with icing sugar and I prefer granulated or powdered sugar.
• It didn’t really taste like a stollen and it was lacking in flavour in the bread part and in general.
• It would be good for bread pudding and we had a bread pudding pile.

The Sutton Place Hotel Stollen – 4/6

• 450g $15
• Available at La Boulangerie at The Sutton Place Hotel, Vancouver
• This was decorated with a candy cane and fondant flower and it looked a bit bake sale like.
• Oh no! Is that a green candied cherry? I can’t say I’m a fan of those anytime I see them.
• This was more bready with layers than cakey and it wasn’t too sweet, but it didn’t have as many raisins or almonds.
• It actually tasted like a Hot Cross Bun/Cake, so it wasn’t really stollen. The bread part was almost layered.
• It wasn’t too sweet and it was moist with some raisins and some candied lemon and orange zest.
• It also had some sliced (not slivered) almonds, so they were almost unnoticeable and just added in texture.
• I could taste more stollen spices in this than the Thomas Haas and Four Seasons Stollen which I liked.
• The marzipan was on the small side and off centered, but it was creamy and it wasn’t all sugar. It had a good amount of almond extract in it and it had great flavour. It was a good marzipan!
• The outside was a crust of granulated sugar and icing sugar and it was a bit thick, but not overwhelming either.
• Despite it being more like a Hot Cross Bun than a stollen, I liked it!

“Last Year’s Winner” Home Made Stollen – 2/6

• This was last year’s winner at the Stollen Off and it was the exact same recipe this year, but it didn’t turn out so well.
• It ended up breaking apart and was a bit dry and crumbly, so it just shows you how high maintenance and technical it is to make.
• Bread pudding pile.

The Fairmont Hotel Vancouver Stollen – 3/6

• $22
• Available at The Fairmont Hotel Vancouver.
• This one is a bit difficult to order because Hotel Vancouver doesn’t really advertise it.
• You kind of have to ask for it and you might want to call ahead to avoid confusion. The person who brought it did called ahead, but there was still confusion.
• It comes wrapped in plastic wrap and it’s quite rustic, but the whole ordering/picking up operation is a bit “black market” stollen.
• This was the most yellow in colour out of all the stollens.
• It had a bit of a floury aftertaste which I only noticed going back to it after the Thomas Haas and Four Seasons Stollen. I thought it would be an eggy aftertaste if anything.
• The marzipan stick in the centre was a bit small, but it was super creamy, melt in your mouth soft, almost a bit doughy, but not chewy and also not too sweet. I actually really liked the marzipan in this one! It was one of my favourite marzipans.
• I could taste the stollen spices, but it wasn’t too strong and it had nice pieces of orange peel, lots of moist dark raisins that weren’t particularly large or plump, and some almonds although not many.
• My other concern was that the outside was a bit dry and the centre was moist so it was slightly inconsistent.
• The outside was very lightly dusted with powdered sugar which I liked.
• Despite this not being an authentic stollen, although it did have the nice hump, it was actually pretty good.

Fieldstone Stollen – 1.5/6

• 800g $15.95
• Available at Fieldstone Artisan Breads in South Surrey/White Rock, BC.
• This was just sitting on the table and it didn’t look like their specialty. Their other baked goods looked fantastic though!
• It was crusted with a thick layer of icing sugar on the outside which was way too sweet.
• It tasted quite stale and bready and the raisins were a bit dried out and there was a lack of flavour and stollen spices.
• It wasn’t very eggy and the marzipan was small, creamy and not sweet, but almost oily looking.

This is just to show proper shape for an authentic stollen.

Artisan Bake Shoppe Marzipan Stollen – 4.5/6

• Rum Stollen: Small (500g) $9.99 Medium (700g) $13.99 Custom order large (900g) $19.99
• Marzipan Stollen: Small (500g) $12.99 Medium (700g) $14.99 Custom order large (900g) $29.99
• Available at Artisan Bake Shoppe in North Vancouver, or the German Christmas Market in downtown Vancouver.
• Their Marzipan Stollen still has a bit of rum because the fruits are soaked in it.
• This one had a sugary granulated sugar coating that was a bit too thick and crunchy for my liking.
• There was a gap between the marzipan and bread which isn’t very ideal, but can be overlooked. I’m not sure if it’s like that all the time.
• It smelled and tasted like a dense cinnamon raisin bread more so than a stollen, but it had a good amount of stollen spices and aroma.
• The cake had a nice butteriness, but not as rich as the Thomas Haas and Four Seasons one.
• It had moist dark raisins, juicy plump golden raisins, a bit of candied orange pieces and a decent amount of almonds, but the bread was slightly dry.
• The marzipan was creamy and almost not that sweet at all, but I could have used a bit more extract or almond flavour. There was a good amount of it.
• It took on the authentic shape of a stollen and it was pretty good!

Plöger Marzipan Stollen – 1/6

• Marzipan Stollen: Small (350g) $20 Large (680g) $24.95
• No Marzipan Stollen: Small (350g) $10 Large (680g) $12
• Available at Plöger Delikatessen in Vancouver.
• Plöger Delikatessen is a traditional German Bakery in Kitsilano that’s been open since 1935.
• I haven’t tried their other stuff, but this was probably one of my least favourite stollen and it was the most expensive without the quality to back it up.
• The bottom was scorched and there were very little raisins and it was the driest stollen with the least flavour.
• There were no almonds and the marzipan was almost like a jelly and it didn’t seem house made.
• It had a dusting of icing sugar and the right shape, but it was quite stale and disappointing.

Fol Epi Organic Stollen – 4.5/6

• 550g $26
• Available at Fol Epi Organic Bread & Pastry in Victoria, BC.
• This was an organic stollen and you could tell the ingredients were high quality.
• It was quite dense and it had the strongest cardamom flavour of all the stollens.
• It was loaded with a variety of raisins, currants, lots of fresh candied citrus fruit, and whole toasted organic almonds.
• It was definitely more like a fruit cake than a stollen.
• The marzipan was also the most noticeable and it was the only one where it wasn’t smooth and I could actually bite into ground almond crumbs. I actually kind of liked that too because it made the ingredients taste really fresh.
• It was almost overly moist, but all the ingredients are organic so I’m not sure if that’s why it was like that. It could be from the abundance of fruit too.
• It came across as a Christmas Cake meets a raisin bread and the overall flavour was strong with spices and fruit.
• The outside was dusted with granulated sugar and there was an apparent cinnamon and clove flavour coming from it as well which made it very aromatic.
• It had the strongest cinnamon and cardamom flavour of them all.
• The bakery itself is worth checking out despite the stollen not being the best.

Stickling’s Marzipan Stollen – 2.5/6

• Small (450g) $10 Large (1200g) $20
• Available at Stickling’s Specialty Bakery in Peterborough, Ontario.
• The marzipan centre was very small and it was grainy and sugary without much ground almond flavour and texture.
• It had almonds, raisins, candied orange and the bread was quite moist, but inconsistent.
• The outside was a bit dry and the centre of the bread was moist so you had to eat it together.
• It had a light dusting of powdered sugar and it was edible and okay, but not necessarily a good one.
• This went in the bread pudding pile.

Ruby Eats Stollen – 1/6

• 750g $10.99
• Available at Ruby Eats Toronto, Ontario.
• This one smelled like cheese so I’m not sure if it went off or if it always smells like that.
• The fake candied fruit was overwhelming and visually displeasing already.
• It was quite dry and stale and it tasted more like a shortbread cookie.
• The coating looked like cheese and smelled like it, so we didn’t put this in the “bread pudding” pile.
• If you toasted it, it would be passable biscotti.

Nougat Marzipan Stollen – 1/6

• 480g $7.50 (He said it was a “special price” on Dec. 14, so it could vary.)
• Available at Nougat Bakery & Delicatessen in Kitchener, Ontario.
• This was one of the least favourite and it was incredibly stale and hard to cut, bite and chew.
• There were big hazelnuts in it which is unusual and the marzipan was almost a sheet in the centre.
• I love hazelnuts, but these ones tasted a bit old.

Grain Harvest Marzipan Stollen - n/a

• Sizes, with or without marzipan all between $5-11
• Available at Grain Harvest Breadhouse and St. Jacob’s Farmers Market, Ontario.
• This one smelled like rotten eggs so I think the outer coating went off during travel time. That’s why I rated it “n/a”.
• Nonetheless, it didn’t look good with the giant pieces of candied green cherries that I really dislike.
• I did try the bread part and it tasted like regular bread with no spices and it was quite dry.
• The whole almonds were the best part and I just plucked those out.

La Mir Matinale German Christstollen Stollen – 3/6

• 2lbs (1000g) Stollen Dresden, 1lbs (750g) Stollen Dresden
• Available at La Mie Matinale bakery in Montreal, QC or you can order online.
• This is a lesser known bakery in Montreal and they use a stollen recipe that’s been in the family for 50 years.
• This had an overwhelming amount of icing sugar coated on the outside and it was just cracking into bits as we sliced it.
• Not only did it have and an icing sugar crust, but it also had a coating of granulated sugar so it was extra sweet on the outside.
• There was very little marzipan that was off centered and it was a bit stiff, chewy, grainy and sugary and almost like fondant.
• It was very dense and loaded with almonds, plenty of semi-moist raisins, lots of candied orange and lemon pieces.
• It even had walnuts and dried sour cherries which aren’t traditional to a stollen although still tasty. This was the only one with those ingredients.
• It was bordering on a Christmas/fruit cake, but the minimal bread part there was, was quite dry and crumbly.
• I could taste the cardamom and aromatic stollen spices and it had a ton of ingredients in it, but it was on the sweet side.
• If it wasn’t for the overload of icing sugar crusted on the exterior and the grainy marzipan it was actually pretty good.

KuchenMeister Stollen - 2/6

• Available packaged at specialty grocery stores like Galloway’s Specialty Foods in Richmond, BC. Marzipan stollen in a box $11.49, Marzipan stollen not in a box$7.49.
• KuchenMeister – Imported from Germany. 750g for$10.99 online.
• This is a very popular store bought brand of stollen in Germany.
• It had lots of raisins, cranberries, candied orange and lemon peel which were a bit fake.
• The marzipan was moist, but off centered and it didn’t have much ground almonds.
• The coating of icing sugar was overwhelming and it was really sweet overall and bready and it had a perfume like aftertaste.
• It’s servable, or good for bread pudding.

Bahlsen Edel Marzipan Stollen - 2/6

• Available packaged at specialty grocery stores. Bahlsen – Imported from Germany. 500g for $9.39 online.
• This is another popular store bought stollen in Germany.
• It wasn’t as sweet as the KuchenMeister Stollen and I’d rather serve this one if I’m serving something in a package.
• The marzipan was in a swirl rather than in the middle so it was almost like a Marzipan Stollen roll.
• It was soft and bready and the crust separated from the cake.
• The raisins were quite dry and it was good for bread pudding and not bad for being mass produced and packaged.

Oebel Marzipan Stollen - 1/6

• Available packaged at specialty grocery stores. Oebel – Imported from Germany. 500g for $7.59 online.
• This is made in Köln in Germany and it was another packaged stollen.
• The icing sugar was too heavy and the bread tasted stale which was obvious in flavour.
• The marzipan was chewy and there were a lot of raisins, but it tasted like dry raisin bread.

Swiss Bakery Stollen - n/a

• $15 $20
• Available at Swiss Bakery.
• I tried this one at The One of A Kind Show in Vancouver and I liked it so much I bought it.
• However now that I’ve tried so many, I’m actually not sure where this one would stand anymore so that’s why I rated it “n/a”.
• This one had just the powdered sugar coating with no granulated sugar or icing sugar which is what I prefer, and it’s not thick so I liked it.
• The marzipan is pretty big, but since the stollen is so large overall, the marzipan looks a bit small and the ratio is a bit off.
• There were a ton of moist plump dark raisins, lots of cranberries and whole almonds.
• It had no orange or lemon candied fruit or flavour or golden raisins. I do like the golden raisins better.
• I actually liked the flavour of the marzipan better than the Thomas Haas one, but it was small relative to how much bread there was.
• The marzipan was softer, creamier, a bit sweeter with a tad more almond extract, but it didn’t have as many ground almonds as the Thomas Haas one either.
• It was a bit more on the bready than cakey side and it was moist with a decent amount of stollen spices, but not a lot.
• This one is made with natural and artificial rum flavours.

**Fol Epi Panettone – 6/6

• Available at Fol Epi Organic Bread & Pastry in Victoria, BC.
• This was pretty much the star of the show, which isn’t even fair because it’s comparing apples to oranges, but it was hands down the best panettone I’ve had to date!
• Do you hear what I hear?… Do you see what I see?” Perhaps a Follow Me Foodie to the Pannettone Playoffs in 2012!?

Restaurant: Jellie D’s
Cuisine: Coffee/Sandwiches/Diner/Breakfast/Bakery
Last visited: October 16, 2011
Location: Surrey, BC (Surrey/Whalley)
Address: 9535 120th Street
Price Range: $10 or less

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

Food: n/a
Service: 4
Ambiance: 1.5
Overall: n/a
Additional comments:

• Family owned/operated
• New owners
• Coffee/Tea
• Fresh home made breakfasts
• Home baked cookies/pastries
• Made daily doughnuts
• Subs/Wraps
• Hole in the wall
• $3 all day breakfast
• Budget friendly/cheap eats
• Catering available
• Mon-Fri 11am-3pm
• Weekend times vary

**Recommendations: $3 All Day Breakfast Combo

This was an ultimate cheap day. I don’t know, blame it on Follow Me Foodie in New York as to why I was uber frugal. Well actually I was in the area and and looking for time to kill and I had an Entertainment Book that was about to expire. I almost haven’t used one and I honestly can’t stand those books anymore, but it’s for a good cause, so whatever.

Anyways I was flipping the book to see what was in the area and Jellie D’s was the only option for a snack type of place. I had driven by this shady hole in the wall before, but I never ever considered paying it a visit.

Outside the restaurant was a massive banner advertising an “All Day Breakfast Combo for $3″. That actually caught my eye and looked fun to try, so I went inside. I felt super cheapo using an Entertainment coupon for a $3 brunch… but I also had a coffee and a strawberry smoothie to make up for it. The total bill came to $3.50 with the coupon… it’s almost embarrassing. But hey, it’s that kind of place. And who doesn’t want to save money?

It’s under the new ownership of an Indian family and they’re making an effort to change the menu by also making things fresh in house. It’s mainly a sub and sandwich shop, but there is an omelette bar and the wife bakes all the cookies in house. They don’t even serve doughnuts after 2pm because they care about freshness and they do seem to have passion for the business. There’s not much more to say, but if you’re looking for something cheap, it doesn’t get much cheaper than this.

On the table:

Real Fruit Strawberry Smoothie – 1.5/6

• Regular $1.75 Large $2.50
• The menu said “real fruit smoothie” so I was expecting real strawberries, but it was powder.
• The smoothie tasted like strawberry milk and it was very thin and just made with regular milk and a bit of ice.
• It wasn’t thick, creamy or icy and I wasn’t too happy with it, but at least it wasn’t expensive.

$3 All Day Breakfast Combo - 3.5/6

• 2 eggs any style, 2 slices of toast, 2 bacon, sausage or ham, and home made hash browns $3
• This was a bang for your buck.
• It’s not anything you couldn’t do at home, but it was what it was and it was enjoyable.

• The eggs weren’t greasy and cooked perfectly over easy.
• The ham was just regular ham as to be expected.
• The toast was white or brown (your choice) and that was normal.
• But the hash browns, these hash browns were actually better than normal. They were seasoned very well and a bit spicy and almost Indian tasting. It had a little bit of dried herbs and they were very tender and buttery. This was the best part.
• It’s cheaper than IHOP, Denny’s and McDonald’s.

Wow. Probably my shortest post yet.

Food Network’s Diners, Drive Ins & Dives in Vancouver, BC!

What Guy Fieri missed and what he needs to come back for!

If you missed my Foodie Friday segment on News 1130AM radio (11am every other Friday) here’s a recap! To listen to it click here.

By now you probably know that Food Network’s popular show Diners, Drive Ins & Dives and host Guy Fieri recently came up for a visit. This is the first time they’ve shot in Canada and his first stop was in Vancouver, BC. As beautiful as the city is, it’s also delicious!

Some of the local “Diners, Drive Ins & Dives” he visited included Save-On Meats, The Red Wagon, Tomahawk Restaurant, Falconetti’s East Side Grill, Peaceful Restaurant and food cart Fresh Local Wild. Not to discredit anywhere he visited, but I just want to highlight some of my personal “Diners, Drive Ins & Dives”. Here are a few I think he really needs to come back for! I nominate these places as potential candidates for his show.

Follow Me Foodie’s Diners, Drive Ins & Dives

1. Hilltop Cafe Diner

Photo from Sherman.

Heart stopping menu highlights: Everest Burger, Cowboy’s Eggs Benedict

2. Phnom Penh

Heart stopping menu highlights: Phnom Penh’s Deep Fried Chicken Wings, Marinated Butter Beef, Filet Beef Luc Lac with Egg on Fried Rice

3. Be ‘wiched Cafe

Photo from Sherman.

Heart stopping menu highlights: Chain Gang Chili, Apple Pie Stuffed French Toast, Triple Citrus Cream Cheese Bars, Pumpkin Cookies with Warm Icing

I have lots more to add to this list, but these are just a few of my highlights with only some of the city’s best heart stopping dishes.

Want to hear more Follow Me Foodie talk? Tune in every other Friday at 11am on News 1130AM!

Restaurant: Kyoto Sushi
Cuisine: Japanese/Sushi
Last visited: July 13, 2011
Location: Surrey, BC (Surrey Newton)
Address: 13651 72 Ave
Price Range: $10 or less, $10-20

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

Food: 2
Service: 3 (really depends on who you get)
Ambiance: 2
Overall: 2
Additional comments:

• Voted “Best of Surrey”
• Japanese owned/operated
• Extensive menu
• Lunch/dinner combos
• Cheap party trays
• Serves limited bubble tea
• Budget friendly/cheap eats
• Delivery available
• Small parking lot
• Accepts Visa/MC/Interac
• Mon-Sat: 11am-3pm, 5pm-10pm
• Sun & holidays: 12pm-9pm

**Recommendations: n/a, but the Takoyaki was good

It’s been voted as “Best of Surrey” and “Best Japanese in Surrey” since 2002 to 2006 and I just didn’t get it. I didn’t even come in with those expectations and only noticed it when I saw their menu. Sure I didn’t try a huge selection of food, and maybe I ordered the wrong things, but I don’t really see it getting much better. I actually don’t even see it being “Best in Surrey”, so I can’t even say it’s good for the area because it does get better than this.

Yes, it is Japanese owned and operated, but that doesn’t necessarily make it good and authentic. Personally I would rather go to Tawara Japanese Restaurant, Ta-Ke Sushi, Tokachi Sushi, or Akasaka Japanese Restaurant if I wanted to stay in Surrey for Japanese food.

The place looked clean and comfortable and the lunch time crowd wasn’t big at all so it was easy to get a seat. I must say that the service is hit and miss. The young server that helped us most of the time was a sweetheart, but the owner wasn’t very friendly at all. She told, not asked, us to move tables after seating us at one and gave no explanation as to why. It took the other server to kindly explain that someone just made a reservation for that table, but within that hour, no other group ever came. I think boss lady does most of the kitchen stuff though, so there’s a ying and yang in hospitality.

There is a lot of good food in Surrey, but Japanese is not exactly an area it excels in. I could see this being popular for people that live and work in the area, as it’s walking distance to many small businesses, but “BEST IN SURREY”? Really? I won’t compare it to Vancouver standards, but the experience was quite underwhelming.

The prices are very affordable, but they skimped on some ingredients and quality, so I have to say “you get what you pay for” rather than “it’s a bang for your buck”. A few things I ordered didn’t even match the menu description, but it’s not a place I would really bother bringing up the issue with, or really coming back for in general.

On the table:

Deluxe Sashimi – 1.5/6

• 18 pieces $19.99
• This was a pretty sad sashimi platter and overpriced for what it was.
• It’s the “Deluxe Sashimi” too, which is their highest priced platter, which should mean it comes with the highest quality and freshest sashimi of the day, but it wasn’t.
• The sashimi wasn’t that exotic and there wasn’t even any tuna, toro, or Wild Sockeye Salmon on it. Those are almost standard for any sashimi platter, and they are on the menu.
• Besides the selection of sashimi, the freshness also wasn’t there. Some of the fish tasted treated with lemon, and the mackerel seemed cooked or at least made ceviche. Major no no.
• The shredded daikon salad also tasted fishy, like it was strictly meant as garnish and not to be eaten.
• The wasabi was strong and perhaps the best part.
• Tako (Octopus) Sashimi - 2/6
• It was two relatively large strips in the centre and they were a bit dry and seemed treated with lemon first.

• Salmon Sashimi – 2.5/6
• The salmon sashimi was so average and the cut was a bit rough.
• It was pretty thick slices, but to have 6 pieces of salmon sashimi and none being Wild Sockeye Salmon on a Deluxe Sashimi platter was so disappointing.
• It’s not the worst salmon sashimi I’ve had, and it was okay, but I’m not about to recommend ordering salmon sashimi a la carte.
• Surf Clam – 2.5/6
• I don’t mind if surf clam is on a sashimi platter, but the quality tasted like the frozen kind.

• Mackerel Sashimi – 1/6
  
• This was pickled, which is essentially a method of “cooking” raw fish with lemon.
• Mackerel doesn’t keep long as sashimi so after a few days a restaurant would be forced to pickle it.
• It was very tangy and the meat was firm with lots of lemon flavour.
• This was extremely disappointing to have on a Deluxe Sashimi platter.
• Tai Sashimi (Sea Bream) – 2/6
• This was the most exotic the fish got and it was sliced so thin it was almost transparent.
• It had a lemony flavour and not just because it was touching the lemon slice. It should be fresh enough to not require any lemon.

• Ebi (Shrimp) – 2/6
• The shrimp was cooked and again it’s not particularly something I want to see on a Deluxe Sashimi platter.
• Prawn Sashimi – 1/6
• There were two raw prawns with the heads and those were warm and tasted quite fishy with a fishy after taste. I didn’t feel confident eating them, but I was fine afterward.

**Takoyaki – 3/6

• 5 pieces $3.99
• This was not bad, and they’re new to the menu.
• They make them in house and they take a bit longer, but that’s a good sign and they’re served hot.
• Takoyaki is a Japanese fast food snack and it’s pretty much a lightly battered and fried, or grilled, octopus ball or dumpling.
• It was their own version and they drizzled it with some very tangy mayo based sesame vinaigrette (?), topped it with fresh red bell pepper, parsley and bonito flakes.
• The sauce was more sharp with vinegar and I couldn’t taste the nuttiness of sesame, but I think that’s what it was.
• Traditionally it’s supposed to be topped with nori instead of parsley, but this was their own version so I don’t mind.

• They had a thin batter and were quite fluffy, creamy and moist with a small piece of octopus that was a bit overcooked and chewy.
• The fluffy part is just a Japanese pancake batter and it’s almost like mashed potatoes, but it’s a flour batter with no potato.
• The ginger flavour was a bit mild, but I liked the tang of the sauce and sweet crunch of fresh bell pepper which was a nice twist to the traditional recipe.
• I prefer my takoyaki a bit more savoury with a different sauce, but these were still pretty good.

Kyoto Roll - 1/6

• Real crab, chopped scallop, tobiko, cucumber, mayo & spicy sauce $4.49
• It was edible, but the crab was fake, the scallops was almost MIA, and it was avocado instead of cucumber.
• It was almost all artificial crab meat and the scallop was maybe the size of a 12 year old girl’s pinky nail in each peice.
• The “crab” was very creamy and heavily dressed with lots of mayo and it was very overwhelming. The filling was almost wet.
• The seaweed got a bit chewy and the spicy sauce and mayo was just the most standard spicy mayo you can think of. It was spicy, but it was quite mild, but still there.
• The price is cheap, but it’s a pretty small roll. At least the rice was flavoured, although at times dry.
• The worst part is that I purposely ordered this instead of the House Roll because they told me the House Roll used kani (fake crab)… but so did this one! It clearly stated “real crab” on the menu too.
• The server even took it back the first time without me saying anything to confirm that it was in fact the Kyoto Roll. That just made me think she knew it wasn’t too and i just didn’t have an honest experience.

Restaurant: Villa Verdi Ristorante Italiano
Cuisine: Italian/Pasta
Last visited: July 5, 2011
Location: Surrey, BC (Newton)
Address: 13620 80th Ave
Price Range: $20-30

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

Food: 2 (based on couple items I tried)
Service: 2.5
Ambiance: 2.5
Overall: 2
Additional comments:

• Since 1996
• “Fine dining” in Surrey
• Northern Italian cuisine
• Home made sauces
• Daily specials
• Cozy/Elegant
• Very old fashioned
• Spacious
• Liked by neighbourhood locals
• Pricey
• Wine list
• Live piano Fri. & Sat. evenings
• Dinner: Mon-Sat 5:30pm – late
• Lunch: Mon-Fri 11:30am – 2:00pm

**Recommendations: n/a

I really wanted to like it. I really did! With a 90% + rating on Urbanspoon and no blogger posts I was expecting to discover a hidden gem. It’s not hidden, but it’s close to a strip of Surrey trailer parks (I’m serious), so it’s quite an unexpected find. Being located on the busy King George Blvd, I have driven by it before, but it was never a place I planned to check out. However my dining partner had a good experience here once, so based on that we tried it again. As much as I want to support the smaller local restaurants, things didn’t go too well.

It’s kind of rare for me to see a spelling mistake from a non-Asian restaurant…

I can’t deny that it does have its strong following considering it’s been open since 1996. That was before I was born! Lol, just kidding, but did you believe I was 15? Anyways it is likely a neighbourhood favourite and gem for those who would never really leave the area for food. Or maybe it’s due to the live piano they offer on Fridays and Saturdays… ? Either way I didn’t get it and all I can say was that it was “fine dining” in Surrey. I don’t want to snub the suburbs or Surrey, but I want to encourage people to explore too.

The decor is incredibly old fashioned, but still “elegant” in a very “grandma’s dining room” kind of way. With the gigantic pots of Best Western artificial flower arrangements, and flamingo pink colour theme, I tried to look at it as charming and cozy. It’s quite formal or “fancy” inside and it still is unexpected for the area… of trailer parks.

I’m more familiar with the hole in the wall eateries in Surrey, so to come in with “Vancouver” standards for fine dining wouldn’t be fair. However if a restaurant is going to present itself as fine dining with fine dining prices, white tablecloth service, and professional uniforms, then I will still come in with high expectations. I can’t say Villa Verdi met those expectations. It’s not Italian, but if I was going to fine dine in Surrey I’d go to Old Surrey Restaurant before this, but even that isn’t saying too much.

I’ll try to give the benefit of the doubt that I didn’t try many items on the menu, and perhaps we ordered wrong, but I’m just not inspired to make a revisit. Just trying a couple plates I could kind of see their philosophy and style and it just wasn’t for me. Also I find the prices to be pretty much downtown prices, and for what I had it wasn’t justified. That’s probably another reason hindering me from going back and also what hindered me from ordering a dessert. But don’t worry I had two bags of goodies from Soma Chocolate in Toronto waiting for me after!

On the table:

Complimentary Bread & Butter

• It was likely store bought and just a regular soft and fluffy, slightly crusty, but not chewy baguette served warm.
• The other bread was a multi-grain bun, but considering we were two, it should come with two.

Antipasto Platter – 2/6

• For two $16.95 (It used to be $15.95)
• Assortment of cold meats and vegetables.
• It was only a couple slices of 3 assortments and they were likely store bought, which is fine if it’s from a great supplier, but it was ordinary.
• The vegetables are likely all pickled in house, but they weren’t pickled or marinated well and they were just plain, tangy and flat.
• It was a pretty sad antipasto platter and I didn’t find it worth it.
• The quality wasn’t there and the ingredients were mostly vegetables.
• There was nothing imaginative or special and it’s wasn’t that traditional either.
• For $19.95 I could have gotten an excellent antipasto platter enough for 4 people at Q4 – see here.
• Pickled Carrots – They were tender and tangy, but I don’t even think they should be on the plate.
• Pickled Mushrooms – They were tangy, juicy, lemony button mushrooms, but there’s nothing to it.
• Roasted Marinated Eggplant – They were tangy and well coated with olive oil and one of the more “special” vegetables considering everything else was kind of boring.
• Pickled Pearl Onions – They were sweet and tangy and marinated with balsamic vinegar and these were quite enjoyable and flavourful compared to everything else.
• Capicola – It’s probably not made in house and it was thinly sliced, but it was pretty fatty and then there was heat, but it’s not spicy. It wasn’t that salty and I couldn’t taste any freshly cracked black pepper in the flavouring. I’m not much of a capicola eater to begin with, so I really didn’t care for this. The quality was not bad though.

• Pickled Cauliflower – It’s tangy and tender, but nothing surprising here.
• Pickled Artichoke Hearts – They were tangy, but plain and not marinated with anything else. I prefer the marinated canned ones even.
• Tomatoes with Buffalo Mozzarella – It had a bit of basil puree and olive oil vinaigrette on top, but it was what it was. The basil was actually quite strong, but overall it was such a small portion. It makes me question their Caprese salad.
• Hearts of Palm – I liked seeing them on the platter since it’s not common, but they were plain again. They were tender and a bit tangy and if you’ve never had them they taste like artichokes or white asparagus stems. For great hearts of palm try the Qualicum Beach Diver Caught Scallops with butter browned fresh hearts of palm at Cobre Nuevo Latino.

• Salami – Again it was quite ordinary and decently salty, but no apparent black pepper flavours. I’m not much of a salami person either, but it was what it was. If I go for cured meats it’s almost always prosciutto. A great prosciutto platter is from The BiBo which showcases 3 types of prosciutto – see BiBo Tagliere Cold Cuts Platter.
• Marinated Olives – I’d prefer a variety, but the fact that it came with more than two was good enough considering everything else pretty much only came in two.

• Prosciutto e Melon
• The prosciutto wrapped melon was easily the best thing on the platter, and in which case I would just order the Prosciutto e Melon as an appetizer alone for $10.95.
• On the other hand, I can easily prepare this at home and it was nothing out of the ordinary here.
• The prosciutto was thinly sliced and wrapped around a decently ripe cantaloupe. This is pretty much the only time I actually enjoy eating cantaloupe.
• The contrast of salty buttery prosciutto with the slight crunch of a sweet juicy melon is an unbeatable combination.
• A drizzle of fruity olive oil and touch of Maldon salt would have been nice, but it wasn’t going to get that far although it should have.

Daily Seafood Cannelloni Special - 2/6

• Pasta rolls stuffed with basa, salmon and crab with tomato cream sauce and mozzarella cheese $19.95 +$2.95 for split order
• It said on the menu, but I missed it. There was a +$2.95 for split orders and I wish we were made aware upon ordering too.

This was the other half of the order and topped with Parmesan cheese and black pepper.

• This was the special of the day and it did come highly recommended. Being that it’s seafood and it was a special of the day, I was quite confident.
• It was a very saucy cannelloni and the pasta rolls were home made.
• The pasta was chewy and it was a bit past al dente, but not mushy either. I prefer mine firmer.
• The sauce was a smooth tomato and cream sauce mix and it was well salted with good acidity and tang, and it actually made the dish quite rich and extra creamy.
• It was covered with lots of baked mozzarella cheese and it was more Northern Italian in style, but it also just seemed quite American… but I’m not even going to get into “authenticity” here.

• The sauce was creamy enough, but then the filling was also creamy.
• The inside was stuffed with what seemed like an almost pureed mixture of basa, crab meat, salmon and other fillers.
• It tasted like stuffing and it was very mushy and I never really bit into any chunks of seafood at all (despite what the photo may show).
• For $20 I want to actually see, taste, and bite, into tender flaky pieces of fish and crab.
• I could taste some itty bitty bits of dried salmon (likely frozen) and it did have a seafood flavour, but it was more filler than anything. I couldn’t even tell what the filler was though.
• Even some olives or capers in the mixture or just coarsely mixed seafood would have been better. Even shrimp to give it texture! Anything! Okay, I’m getting frustrated, I should stop, but you get the point.

I don’t normally show the bill, but it was $50+ for 2 people for 2 items for lunch, which I find pricey without the quality. Not getting the heads up from the serve on the split charge, although it was on the menu, still bothers me.

Restaurant: Stacked Modern Diner
Cuisine: Diner/American/Breakfast/Brunch/Sandwiches
Last visited: July 3, 2011
Location: Surrey, BC (South Surrey)
Address: 15388 24th Ave
Price Range: $10-20 ($9-12 plates)

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

Food: 3
Service: 3.5
Ambiance: 4
Overall: 3.5
Additional comments:

• Modern diner
• Opened January 2011
• Neighbourhood favourite
• All day breakfast
• Home made sauces
• Made from scratch food
• Organic eggs/coffee/tea
• Bread from COBS Bakery
• Some comfort food
• Hot/Cold sandwiches at lunch
• Contemporary & fun atmosphere
• Affordable
• Family friendly
• Senior Day Tuesday
• Mon-Fri 1/2 Sandwich + soup $5.95
• TV available
• Fully licensed
• Eat in/Take Out
• Mon-Sun 8am-3pm

**Recommendations: Eggs Benny, Mac ‘n’ Cheese, Chocolate Walnut Brownie

You would barely notice if you weren’t looking for it, and that’s also why I missed it the first time around. It’s located in a rather newer development of South Surrey and it’s very unassuming. It’s one of the units in a building complex of small businesses and it only opened this year. Prior to this it was a lounge and I can’t even imagine it being one because the area and space just wouldn’t suit it. I guess they figured as much too, and that’s why the same owners changed direction and created Stacked Modern Diner.

The restaurant is quite small and it’s a great concept for the area. Most of the diners in the neighbourhood would be long withstanding old-fashioned ones, so this was quite refreshing. I find places like this a dime a dozen in Vancouver, but I guess the grass is greener on the other side. If you’re looking for a good old greasy spoon, the suburbs are the way to go, but if you want something posh then there’s easily more selection in Vancouver. I like both modern and classic diners, but I’m probably more likely to check a modern one out first.

The ambiance is all modern art and retro memorabilia. Being that I’m a fan of Andy Worhol, I loved it! It was cute, playful, tongue and cheek and it got me excited as soon as I walked through the door. I expected to see a jukebox and waitresses on roller blades chewing gum, but I guess my imagination took me further.

It looks more like a diner than the food suggests. Rather than the expected list of burgers and milkshakes they had one burger and an extensive list of hot and cold hand made sandwiches and all day breakfasts. I was expecting to see more throw backs and old fashioned comfort foods with modern twists, but it was more like a cafe than a diner. Everything is home made and most of the ingredients are local, and the eggs, tea and coffee are organic.

Apparently I ordered some of their best menu items, but if this was the best then I’m not really in a rush to go back and try more things. The food is home made and the recipes are very simple so there wasn’t really anything special. Nothing I had was really quite there yet and some things felt underdeveloped or rushed. I think it will largely depend on who’s in the kitchen though, and the things I tried sounded better than they tasted.

I’m not too familiar with other diner options in the area, but I already like Be ‘wiched, McJac’s Roadhouse Grille, and Belle’s on Thirty Two a bit more. They’re different styles, but those all have distinct items that would get me through the door again, however I probably enjoyed the ambiance at Stacked Modern Diner most.

Stacked Modern Diner wasn’t bad, but I was expecting a lot more and it didn’t take anything to the next level. I just missed the passion and love behind the cooking and recipes and I feel like they could do a lot better. Maybe I’ve explored too much competition in this “modern diner” category that I was a bit underwhelmed. There’s nothing that really wow’d me enough to make me go back for it, but it was good and the experience was enjoyable.

On the table:

Bottomless Mighty Leaf Tea – $1.75 – They serve organic Mighty Leaf Tea and Salt Spring Coffee.

Bubba Eggs Benny – 3.5/6

• Bubba: Hickory Smoked Creamy Shrimp $10.50
• All served with scratch hollandaise on a toasted focaccia with fresh fruit and hash browns.
• Hash Browns – 4/6
  • The hash browns is more like a hash with chunks of skin on white potatoes and fried red onions that were well seasoned with salt and herbs.
  • They had crispy skins and they were really buttery and creamy and seemed infused with olive oil.
  • The centres were fluffy, tender and moist and I really enjoyed the hash.

• Bubba Eggs Benny - 2.5/6
• It sat on 2 squares of super soft and fluffy crustless focaccia bread from COBS Bakery that absorbed all the sauce like a sponge.
• The shrimp was frozen and there was quite a bit of them, but they were very overcooked and dry. They didn’t seem creamy and I couldn’t taste the hickory or smoky flavour.
• I’m not sure where the heat came from and it wasn’t spicy at all, but there was a heat coming from something, perhaps the prawns.
• It was a bit boring and I wanted some avocado or something more because it was just a basic shrimp benny.

• The poached free-range egg was the best part, and that was perfect.
• The hollandaise came unnoticed especially after the egg popped.
• The hollandaise was buttery, but bland and I couldn’t taste any tang or kick.
• It was a very saucy eggs benny, but the sauce was mainly the natural egg yolk and buttery hollandaise which wasn’t creamy, rich tasting or very flavourful.
• The sauteed red onions were chopped into thick slices so they were almost still raw and spicy rather than caramelized.
• I loved the poached egg, but everything else wasn’t well executed.

Pulled Pork Sandwich – 3/6

• Slow cooked pork, served with house made Root Beer BBQ sauce topped with Sweet Pickle Slaw. All sandwiches served with sweet pickle slaw & fries or Caesar Salad, choice of COBS Bread, whole wheat, French, Sour Dough, Bap Bun, Bagel or Focaccia. $10
• “Pulled Pork Sandwich” already caught my appetite. And then to see “Root Beer BBQ Sauce” was the icing on the cake… or literally the sauce on the meat.
• I’ve actually heard of  Root Beer BBQ sauce before, and even Cherry flavoured Dr. Pepper BBQ sauce (with meat smoked with Cherrywood), but usually it’s more popular in the States. I assumed it would be a sweeter take on sauces made with beer, and I could see the sweetness playing well into a sweet BBQ sauce. I was stoked!
• The pickled slaw side was a bit small and it was quite wet too, but not heavily dressed with gloppy mayo.
• The slaw was made with cabbage, red onions and fennel and the fennel was a nice surprise! It gave a licorice background and nice crunch to what would have been a boring cole slaw.
• The slaw was more sweet than tangy, but it wasn’t even that sweet. It just seemed kind of bland again and it needed more.

• I didn’t get a choice of bread for this one, but the bread also seemed hollowed out a bit on the inside so it was less bready.
• It was stacked with meat, but it was more like a roast pork sandwich than a pulled pork sandwich, so it was a knife and forker.
• I had to put some effort into chewing the meat since it was large chunks instead of tender fine shreds of softly pulled pork that melt in my mouth. Personally I prefer pulled pork actually pulled.
• I don’t mind huge chunks of roasted pork, but it makes it very noticeably if it’s dry, and this one was a bit. Parts of it were moist, but since it’s relatively lean meat, most of it was a bit dry. Luckily it had some sauce though.
• The Root Beer BBQ sauce didn’t live up to my expectations. I think it has potential to be much better, but it just seemed under developed in this case.
• I could taste the Root Beer, but it wasn’t in your face either. It was sweet and syrupy, but not thick or sticky. I still wanted the bold flavours of BBQ sauce and even a bit of a tang, but it was just sweet and that’s it.
• The pickled slaw was also sweet instead of tangy, so it was sweet on top of sweet and I just didn’t see where it was going.
• For an excellent pulled pork in the area I prefer Be ‘wiched – see their Pulled Pork Sandwich and Chain Gang Chili (Pulled Pork Chili).

**Mac ‘N’ Cheese – 3.5/6

• Home made with blend of garlic, cream, white cheddar and mozza, served with house salad $9
• For some reason I was offered either fries or Caesar Salad so I asked for 1/2 of each. I wasn’t aware I’d be charged at extra $1 for the split though.
• The fries were crispy and seasoned with Cajun seasoning, but it wasn’t very spicy. They were a bit over fried and dried out though.
• The Mac ‘N’ Cheese looked really plain and bland and seemed like it had been sitting there.
• I was hoping for some fresh parsley or even a cheesy baked gratin crust or bubbly browned cheesy mozzarella topping.
• Thankfully, it tasted better than it looked.

The top layer was really dry and it didn’t look fresh at all. I wasn’t impressed with my first bite into it.

It was when you got to the bottom layer that it was actually really good.

• It seemed more like an Alfredo sauce than it was a Mac ‘N’ Cheese though.
• I think it might have been garlic powder rather than actual sauteed fresh garlic too.
• The noodle wasn’t overcooked but well salted and the sauce was well seasoned, creamy, buttery and rich, but not thick.
• The sauce almost tasted like a melted cream cheese sauce and it had that grainy texture.
• The top portion of the noodles had no sauce and the sauce just slips off the noodles, so you had to dip them into the sauce which was all at the bottom of the dish.
• It’s not a stringy ooey gooey mac and cheese, although the top possibly could have been if it was fresher.
• The sauce was unassumingly good and I liked it, but the dish was just poorly assembled.
• For a place like this I expected the mac ‘n’ cheese to be killer, but it wasn’t really anything I haven’t had before.

Caesar Salad – 2.5/6

• Crisp romaine, house made Caesar dressing, homemade croutons and parmesan cheese. I got this as a side.
• I think this is going to be inconsistent depending on who’s making it. This one was a bit careless, but the dressing lacked the anchovy bite, lemony zing, and also some black pepper. It was a bit gloppy and Ranch like, and the highlight was certainly the croutons.
• The croutons were just made from the ends of the Focaccia bread used from the benny I think, but they were crunchy and good.
• A home made Caesar Salad in the area that I enjoy more is the one from Belle’s on Thirty Two – see their’s here.

Banana Bread – 2/6

• $2
• It’s made fresh in house, but it looked better than it tasted. It was a bit “healthy” tasting.
• The bananas used didn’t seem ripe and it wasn’t really that sweet or as strong as it could have been in banana flavour.
• There were little chunks of banana in it, but they had no flavour and they weren’t creamy. I thought they were softened walnuts. There’s no nuts in it though.
• It was moist and chewy, but it lacked butter, oil and sugar, so it was almost bready with airy holes and a bit bland, which is odd for banana bread.
• It had a nice crispy crust, but I wasn’t keen on texture of flavour of this banana bread.

**Chocolate Walnut Brownie - 4.5/6

• $2
• I ended up telling my friend about this and she brought me one!
• This made up for the banana bread and I actually really liked this! It’s a solid brownie.
• It’s fudgey and chocolaty with a moderate amount of chopped walnuts. It’s sweet from the icing, but not too sweet without the icing.
• It’s very soft, creamy, smooth, rich, indulgent, moist and tender and just melts in your mouth with no crumb.
• The frosting is soft, sweet and sugary, but the layer is quite thin and I didn’t need too much of it.
• This would make any chocolate lovers day swell.