Weekends are fabulous, especially when your friends are down to eat and explore, even though it’s last minute. C and I left Vancouver at around 7:30 and got to Fergie’s Cafe in Squamish at around 9AM. A line up formed right after we ordered. Last time we tried to eat here, I was under a time crunch and we didn’t have time to wait, but the timing was impeccable on this trip.

Latte to start. Little jars of flowers were placed all around the bar and on the tables, probably to try making the food look better. Eyes eat first.



I had the pullrf pstk hash, on the left, C had the Dubliner benedict:



It is a bit expensive, but brunch foods typically are pricy, especially when the dishes are made with fresh ingredients. I really loved this atmosphere, just a cozy place to eat before heading out for adventures.

We went over to Alice Lake after to walk off the food. LIGHT, SHOW US THE WAY:

Just kidding. We were just jumping around in the light, and didn’t even realize that this Toyota, stopped along the side of the road was actually taking photographs. The lady in the car was really nice though, didn’t honk us or anything. Maybe we were her models? Anyways, her car is my model in this shot. The rest of the lake was nice too, the trees were all golden.

We’re so lucky to have this so close to home.

This weekend was a blur of sleeping in to recover from Minnesota/Kansa, short hike at Rice Lake before dim sum, and then eating as much as I could... Weekends are too short.

Got these little seawood, almond brittle snacks in the mail the other day, called Super Snaps. They’re pretty delicious, $4.99 at select stores, apparently. I keep forgetting to bring them into the office so people can try them out. Crispy, sweet and salty, pretty fair price for the resealable packaging.

Speaking of the office, I think we need more nature in there. Mainly to bring some new life back in, since the office fish has passed away. Nature helps people destress as well, and with all the changes, the ups and the downs... "If it's good, it's wonderful. If it's bad, it's experience."

The last meal of this trip was at the airport and full of vegetables. I had a Cobb Salad from Woody Creek Bakery:

I was exhausted, extremely hungry and probably dehydrated, so choices were difficult for me. I think the lady who took my order was well aware of that, and she was very patient when I couldn’t choose the dressing. After ordering, I went over to the cashier, where there were pastries, beverages, etc. I was eyeing the cookies, which looked really amazing, but I knew I didn’t need more junk food on this trip. So, I paid, and waited for my food with my order number. The last step of this order process was for them to deliver the food to me, which came in a paper bag. I went oveer to my gate, opened the bag, and discovered a chocolate chip cookie that I hadn’t ordered!

I forgot to take a photo of the full thing… Sorry. Too hungry. The salad was good too – they gave me extra avocado because they didn’t have eggs left. Thanks to whoever gave me an extra cookie!



That’s it. Go back through this trip using these links:

PT 1
PT 2
PT 3
PT 4

“What is there to do in Kansas?” I asked everybody I met in Kansas.

“Barbecue food is great!” said everybody I met in Kansas.

So, we had BBQ food in Kansas. We visited Joe’s and I had the Z Man:



Topped with 2 onion rings, there’s a thick pile of brisket in between two freshly toasted buns. Meat is good and all,  but BBQ is not something I’d usually choose. Yet… there was something about this burger, the meat was tender enough to just fall apart at the lightest bite, and the onion rings didn’t get in the way because they were crispy enough. I guess my problem with meat is that it’s sometimes too tough to chew, and I’m too lazy to tear into it, but this was perfectly cooked meat that I had no complaints about. I could not stop until it was all gone.

I would tell my friends to go again for me.



CONCLUSION - No flying monkeys in Kansas, but good BBQ.

The  more hours you put in at the airport, the better you are as a sales person… That’s what R and I concluded, as we sat down with our meals at Ike’s at the Minneapolis Airport:


This was the Hipster Turkey Burger, supposedly with avocado. I didn’t taste any avocado, although I did see a bit of green… The pattie was made of ground turkey. It came with an abundance of fries, and a bit of coleslaw. Overall, I enjoyed the burger, but it was not like I would come back just to eat it again.



I really wish we could've spent more time... NAH WHO AM I KIDDING? I was ready to keep going... Onwards to Kansas, for flying monkeys and witches!

I never enjoyed autumn as much as this year. October is usually a cold, miserable time for Vancouver, and it has been flooding all over the city. Good thing I escaped to the East coast (R might say it’s the Central US, but I still think it’s close enough…). We visited Minnehaha Falls after a tough day of hustling, and before dinner. Nature in the city, more beautiful than Central Park, and better than Stanley Park! It’s even got a friggin’ waterfall:

Work hard, play harder. We had a tough day, and now, it was time to find some good grub. We went to Broder’s Pasta Bar, not to be confused with Broder’s Cucina Italiana (the cafe version of the pasta bar), where after a 5-10 minute wait, we landed a seat at the bar. I had the Dragon’s Milk (cut off in glass above plate) and the Papperdelle with Veal ragu:

I think this is the Canneloni, which RK ordered:

I should have eat first before food blogging next time, because thinking back to this meal is making my stomach grumble. The pasta was done perfectly, just enough sauce so coat everything with delicious flavour. It tastes as good as it looks, let me assure you. The beer might also have helped to enhance the taste. If anybody finds Dragon’s Milk here, drop me a message.

This was one of two meals where I had leafy greens on this 4 day trip:



This was the steak salad at the Urbana Craeft Kitchen, located in the lobby of our hotel, recommended by the server. The steak was perfectly done, and the vegetables were fresh, but too bad it had a large amount of blue cheese that I wasn’t too in love with. Still, impressed by the quality at the hotel.



Got home yesterday, and I still don’t feel like myself yet. Hopefully, my body will reset after this weekend. It's no wonder I still feel like crap though, as you'll see in the next few posts. The night before this salad, I had Chipotle at the Mall of America. They gave me a free meal, because I waited a good 15-20 minutes before they got to me. I’m glad I had a chance to visit the mall though.

Went for a quick sploop with the original bike gang (plus or minus 2) and ended up here, at Musette:



I had the macchiato (middle), while R&B had the espressos on the side. Yum. I think it was Pallet, but it could also have been Phil & Seb. I’m pretty sure it’s Pallet though, because I remember visiting there and it tasted awesomely similar. Sparkling waters in the glasses above the coffees. L had a drip coffee and a roll, which he seemed to really quite enjoy. Prices were decent, and the coffees tasted great. We were also ravenous from our sploop.



What’s a “sploop”, you ask? Most bikers from Vancouver will know this term - it’s a Stanley Park loop that a lot of cyclists regularly visit to train, because it’s got ups for pushing hard, and downs for cruising and breaks.

It’s been a while since I’ve seen so many of my friends in one weekend. My horoscope did say I would socialize this month. It also said I’d travel… and I’m hopping on a plane in about 12 hours!

This week will be about hand shakes and hustlin'.

TD were in town for their Thanksgiving holiday, and after their hospitality while we were in Toronto, H and I had to take them around town. We decided to drop by Parallel 49 for some beer, but little did we know, they had actually renovated with a full food truck inside the warehouse, so we had a truffle poutine to share: 

We also had deep fried cauliflower that were too delicious to resist, and thus I couldn't stop myself in time to take a photo. The cauliflower was coated in a pretty ridiculous sauce that tasted like a soy sauce mix that usually I would find on a Chinese fried dish sauce, but worked amazingly with the cauliflower. It had leeks, green onions... Beer was the usual top notch quality. I'll be back with more out of town tourists, one day.

People say that the grass is greener on the other side, but what if like Demi Lovato, my grass is technicolor no matter where I go?

H and I have attended seven weddings in the span of 8 months this year. We started this season off in February for K&T, April for J&V, end of May for A&G, July for C&J, August for A&M, September for R&B (which we only attended half of anyways…), and finally, yesterday, for K&M. Congratulations to all the newly weds of 2017!

Ceremony and reception were both at Sutton Place Hotel yesterday, with a long intermission in between, which gave us a great opportunity to sneak out after the ceremony and visit Quantum Coffee:



Very similar to the set up in Toronto, the coffee was also on point. I had a macchiato. H had water. I don’t think I’d be back soon though, because there wasn’t a lot of seating available yet.





To recap this wedding, I think the wedding venue was adorbs in that they still had land lines and notepads situated all over the place. The food was OK, they had the mushroom ravioli, similar to what we had at the Convention Center for the Christmas party 2016.

H wore his usual grey 3 piece suit to the wedding, but same as every crowded wedding venue, it got really warm. He insisted on wearing his sweater instead of the vest and jacket though, because I guess it’s a bit less constricting and he thought that would help. So, after our coffees, we went back to the car to grab the sweater and drop off the suit jacket, and at the car:

Me: I think you will get too warm with the sweater, and you look better without it.
H: No, I won’t. I will be fine. Do you know my body or do you?
Me: I do. OK, whatever you want.

Back at the hotel, H was already gleaming, after walking from the car to the hotel.

Me: Just take it off.
H: No! I have to hide my food baby…
Me: Trust me, you look better without it. *H takes off the sweater because he can’t stand the heat… Looks in mirror…
H: I feel so much better! You’re always right, honey.

Yes. I am.

Thanks for planning these fabulous weddings, newly weds of 2017. The awesome food at weddings like these are why we've gained weight and not money. #bitterbutthankful #iamjk #pleaseinviteme2018newlyweds

We ran, and then we got hungry, so we went to the Flying Pig:



W, W2, and JX had the corn beef hash with eggs. W had overhard eggs, although she had asked for overeasy (above). P had the halibut sandwich, but it didn’t look that amazing. I had the breakfast sandwich (below) and I honestly think H makes better sandwiches with more flavour and better ingredients from Costco.



We all had lattes, and it was just acceptable. Where’s the pretty latte art? Not even worth a photo.
This was so overpriced and not all that good. It was edible, but it just wasn’t $25 brunch food level. Maybe the kitchen was still warming up, because we did get there pretty darn early, but if the open sign is up, then at least try to make it worth our money. Wait, we got free house made banana bread as an appetizer, so maybe I'll give it an extra 0.5 points.



This was a busy weekend, but in between all the activities, I had a chance to finish up the Cumberland trip posts, and get a nap in between. This month is looking up…

After all that coffee, we were in dire need of lunch. Huong Lan was conveniently located close to both Regard Coffee and the Buzz Coffee House:



We found this place to be fresh and delicious, but we would not go back to the “best asian food of the city” because it was too overpriced. Over $11 for a bowl of pho that wasn’t even that filling (see Pho Lan for value comparison). They were also reallly busy, which resulted in slower service. 



I was excited to go home by then, and the ferry ride back seemed so long and tedious. The end of this trip really signified the end of Summer 2017, and seeing the leaves with their orange tinge, I had to accept the fact that fall was on the way.



Go back to:
Cumberland, Day 1, Part 1
Cumberland, Day 1, Part 2
Cumberland, Day 2, Part 1
Cumberland, Day 2, Part 2
Cumberland, Day 2, Part 3

After Regard Coffee, we went to The Buzz Coffee House for more coffee!

Great latte art, but coffee quality not as good as Regard, so maybe we should’ve gone here first, and then Regard… Either way, I was coffee-ed out. C1 had one of their “special lattes”, which turned out to be a raspberry truffle (too sweet).

They serve Moja coffee… I remember trying this in Vancouver, and not finding it particularly enjoyable. There are lots of seats for guests to work or hang out. A+D and the 2C’s and I hung out for over an hour there, no dirty looks from the baristas were sent our way.

It’s great catching up with people once in a while and find out that they’re doing great. Gives me faith in the world…

Go back to:
Cumberland, Day 1, Part 1
Cumberland, Day 1, Part 2
Cumberland, Day 2, Part 1
Cumberland, Day 2, Part 2
Cumberland, Day 2, Part 3