Continuing on our Toronto foodventure, we ate bags of popcorn while watching home runs at the Blue Jay’s game. We then wanted real food, so ended up visiting Big Trouble in Chinatown:

The food was greasy, great for soaking up all the cocktails and special drinks we tried:

We had the dumplings, the kimchi brussel sprouts, and the fried shrimp. I can’t wait to start making my own kimchi brussel sprouts, what a brilliant combination.

On the drinks menu, they had “Asian” beers and this cocktail made with baijiu, house made and bottled (bottle on left in image below):

There were 2 flavors of the baijiu, one that was made with a Chinese herbal tea, jiaduobao, and another with mangosteen. We tried both, and I gotta say, both were very bitter and neither of them tasted very good. Alcohol content was very high though, and I’m sure some people would like this type of buzz. They have some sweeter cocktails too, which went down a bit easier.

It was a fun night of loud conversation in an even louder bar, and we got home way past bed time, with our ears ringing. I’m looking forward to more nights like this, in 1 week, at D’s wedding!

Fraser Valley Specialty Poultry (FSVP) invited me to dinner at Edible Canada to find out what happens when poultry meets wine!

FSVP coordinated this event at Edible Canada with Ripples Winery to share a 4 course meal, designed by Edible Canada’s own Director of Culinary, Tobias Grignon, and wine pairings chosen by Sommelier at Home’s, Ashley West.  Chef Tobias put on a great demo before the meal started, and taught us the best way to make a quick and delicious chicken (250°C for about 20 to 25 minutes in the toaster oven!):

Prior to the demo and the introductory speeches about FSVP, they served a generous amount of crispy duck hearts…

…and duck liver pate on a bit of sourdough…

…which I was very grateful to for, having just rushed over from the office.  The Radiance Blueberry Sparkling Refresher paired extremely well with both of these, and warmed everybody up for the dinner party. H was sitting across from me at one of the long community tables, and we both sat between complete strangers, which made for interesting dinner conversation throughout the meal.

Before the Fraser Valley Smoked Duck Salad, paired with the Cheam Gewurtztraminer Blend (photo above of the flavourful, juicy smoked duck breast slices on top of the endives), we learned a lot about the history of FSVP from their General Manager, Joe Falk himself. He talked about the history of the FSVP farm, which has been a local source of poultry since the 1970’s, and now provides duck, goose, specialty chicken, and squab to the Lower Mainland. They’ve been very resourceful with diversifying their products, and now, they even have their line of ready-to-eat products, including a duck sausage, and of course, the smoked Pekin duck breast, which was creatively paired in our salad with the huge duck egg.

The next course was the squab, which I did not get a good photo of due to the fact that it had been a long day already and the wine was very good. I’ve had squab before at many Chinese restaurants, and usually it is fully roasted. This time, it was a medium rare meat, with honey on top, served with a croquette on the side. INTERESTING…

The wonderful men and women around H and I all enjoyed the squab the most, because it had the most original flavour, and I cleared it off the plate too. However, for me, the best was the chicken breast dish after this one. Even though it looks like just a small piece of white meat, it wasn’t just boring old chicken! It was the juiciest, most perfectly poached free range chicken breast I had ever had the chance to taste.

My knife slid through it like it was butter, there was no resistance from the meat at all. Check out how tender it looked:

Wiped the plate clean, with only a small piece of greenery left behind as evidence that there used to be food here.

The squab and the chicken both went well with Intemperance, the blueberry table wine from Ripples.

To close the meal, they served a butter cake, topped with fresh Okanagan peaches and cream, garnished with basil: 

The sweetness of the dessert was matched by Cupere, a dark blueberry dessert wine:

I know for sure I won’t be able to recreate the poached chicken breast without more work and practice on my end, but I was happy to find out that FSVP’s ready-to-eat smoked duck breast from the salad was available at Edible Canada’s market from Aug. 17th to Sept. 30th. Stocking up on these to throw in my salads for lunch (well probably not mine, because I get lunch from work, but H would love it):

One of the reasons I really enjoyed this dinner was that the sources were all local. It always eases my conscience to be able to contribute to the buying local movement. If you’re interested in learning more about buying local meats from the Fraser Valley Specialty Poultry group, check out their website and social medias.

It was also pleasantly surprising to be able to meet interesting new people at an event like this, and spend just that brief moment of my life with them, learning about their families and hobbies and jobs. I would definitely recommend this type of event, as a way to learn more about your food and meet new people around the city.

C and I came here on Friday after work, because we heard they had a good whiskey soda highball:

They use “premium soda” with Suntory whiskey from Japan, which apparently is a big thing over there. This was great for cooling off, after walking around downtown. Maybe it’s just my tastebuds, but I thought they could have added more whiskey.

The server recommended that we order the brussel sprout tempura that they coat with truffle oil. We were pleasantly surprised by what a great match it was with the whiskey. The crispiness was ten out of ten.

I was looking for the traditional miso ramen that most ramen shops offer, but was disappointed that they only had a spicy miso and did not really have the basics… Ended up getting the Tonkotsu Black. I don’t really enjoy this style of ramen, where the soup gets way too thick and greasy. The broth was warm, but not really the right temperature. The egg was included with the overpriced ramen, and we did not need to order it as a side, unlike many other ramen places, but I thought the egg yolk wasn’t quite runny enough. Did I leave it in the lukewarm broth too long? Probably not possible for it to cook more at that temperature. Their ramen just isn’t one of my favourites.



I would go back for the brussel sprouts and the whiskey highball, but I’d order a double. I enjoyed this meal a lot, despite the janky ramen, because I had some one on one time with C, who always patiently listens to me rant on and on… I have a lot of things on my mind lately!

There has also been a lot of good news to celebrate and talk about this week. Hard work from earlier this year might be starting to pay off, and so many announcements! Love is in the air!  J&K got married! New beginnings!

This year started out sort of average, and as the weeks go by, it seems like things are really picking up steam.

Especially the temperature. Tonight might also be the first night of the year that we sleep with the window open, because the temperature is getting up there.

Have a good week everyone.

Sometimes, it feels like I’m stuck in a moment and time is not really moving, but looking back, where did all my time go? I think I’m just impatient and I want to get to the end of the story and get results. So much change yet nothing has really happened… Talk faster, people!

Here’s an example of my impatience. I got my new Mavic Air and waited and waited for the cherry blossoms to fully bloom, but the trees blossomed about halfway and a rain warning was issued, so I gave up on waiting and went out for this shot:



Not bad I guess, but could’ve been more blossom-y.

Waiting for food, also not one of my favourite pastimes. Luckily, B understood that, and for a quick lunch today, we went to Viet House, a nearby pho place on Cambie with good service. She had the #18, Spicy Hue Lemongrass Beef Noodle Soup, ie, BBH or Bun Bo Hue:



Why did they rename it to this fully anglicized version? I’m not sure. I had the #17, House Special. Standard soupy noodles that hit the spot and didn’t break the bank. They had beautiful ceramic bowls holding the soup noodle, and I appreciated the cleanliness of the restaurant. If I go back, it would be at night and I would want to try one of their alcoholic cocktails as well.



A Vietnamese restaurant that serves alcohol out in the open with a real liquor license? Awesome.

The rest of this weekend will be dedicated to working on my patience and catching up with friends before flying out to Boston. I might miss a post this coming weekend, because I’ll be hopping over to Florida as well. Sorry.

As my yoga instructor said this week, it’s not always about reaching the destination, enjoy the steps in between too.

Feeling refreshed after spending lots of time with friends and le BF, combined with night skiing at Cypress yesterday:



…and drinks after work on Thursday at the Irish Heather:



They don’t skimp on their alcohol here. This bright red negroni just melted all my stress from  Thursday (end of quarter, beginning of long weekend, loads of work). We were a bit too late to get food there, because their kitchen apparently closes at 9PM, but I guess it all worked out because I’ll save those food calories for the carbs from all the alcohol in their drinks.



Pretty good vibes here for catching up with friends who are actually about to leave the city… Goodbye, R! I can’t believe it’s already been 5 years since we became friends. It’s impressive that she spent about the same amount of time in a long distance relationship with her fiance. It’s so important to spend time with your partner, but it’s even more important to spend time apart and become an even better version of yourself. Sorry H! I know you’d like to spend every minute with me, but space is NOT just a word made up by someone who’s afraid to get too close (channeling S and Nick Jonas).

I think this was a weekend for revival (no religious associations intended). It felt like I actually restarted relationships with skiing, my friends, who I don't get to see a lot. Took some great naps, and replanted some dying aloe in my house.

Dinner on Friday with one of the J’s, while H was stuck at work. We went to Anh and Chi for some modern Vietnamese food. I had heard of this place through the wonderful world of Instagram, where they did a great job of showcasing their food. Driving by sometimes, they always have a huge line up. Luckily we got there early enough and only waited 15 minutes versus who knows how long the rest of the people waited.

They still had the classic “comfort foods”, but it was plated more esthetically and modernized. There were some twists on some of the dishes, like the satays and a different style of spring roll. They offer vegetarian options, which is always popular in Vancouver. We also had a couple drinks, and the bill came to just under $70. Don’t know if I’d come back at night… Maybe for lunch one day.

Bun bo hue, meat on a stick satay, drinks.

Spring roll was sticky and sweet.

Old Asian Lady drink, and behind it, the Dragonball. Both were good. Better than the food.

Decided we weren’t ready to go home yet! More drinks after, at the Metropole, met up with the other J and her gal p als. Really enjoyed my first time there, I’m coming back for the cheap drinks ($3.50 shots) and pinball!

Sometimes, when you add in one little detail, the change will throw you off completely and you might freeze, forget everything you were able to do before. Go back to the basics of what you were doing, and get back to what you know to reset... - Yoga Instructor Jibber Jabber.

It's Thursday, and nothing will get done tomorrow because all we'll do is talk about our plans for the weekend. Sometimes, I get upset when things aren’t done properly and I really need to learn to just relax. TBH, I think I’m better at not being so anal these days because I’ve learned to do things that help me relax. Eating and drinking, to be more exact.

H & I came to Boston Pizza on a Wednesday night. It wasn’t Pasta Tuesday. We didn’t come here to watch sports on TV. Why did we decide to eat at such a boring chain restaurant? Convenience, I suppose. Double Long Islands were on special, and they have a $9.99 deal for 3 mini pizzas that could be chosen from a list of different flavors/toppings. Not bad. I got a great buzz from the Long Island, so I’m giving this place a 4/5, and I’d go again for the mini pizzas!

From closest to farthest: Deluxe, Perogi, Mediterranean.

Sometimes, it’s more about who you go with though.

This week was rather busy again…

Monday – Scout volunteer event at Ceili’s with H.

Tuesday – Victoria Sushi with a couple of Point Grey coworkers.

Wednesday – This happened:

Went to G-Men with R. I LOVE THIS NOODLE. The soup is thick and creamy. The meat and the noodles are cooked just right. The egg is the best part, yolk is perfect. I think this came to $15.00 each. Don’t bother with fried chicken next time.



Thursday – Yoga
Friday – Made some dumplings with P and H.
Today – Work at the Vancouver Farmer’s Market, bought some Pork & Apple sausage from Stapleton Sausage. Good brunch materials. 33 Acres Brewing was there today, being all L33T with the B33R. #nerd.

It's actually pretty hard to do some of the tasks that are required for setting up the market. I'm small and not used to the manual labor. Carrying those barricades are THE WORST. Usually when I help out at HSCPC events, I wouldn't touch that stuff and somebody (usually a big buff guy who wants to go into policing) would step up. If you see me there next time, please take pity and help me out.

Tomorrow will be the first day I get to relax a bit, although things likely won’t slow down until the end of June.

Another summery song by R3HAB:

You were my conductor of energy, director of fantasy…

Too much fun this weekend.

Friday: A’s bachelorette party, where we walked between The Bourbon and the Charles Bar a few times. The Bourbon was horrid. I never want to go back. Charles Bar was pretty cool, we had a good time. Music is decent, with a good mix from new music (Justin Bieber included), and average priced alcohol ($60 including tip for 9 shots of tequila). H came to pick me up (thanks).

Saturday: Shopping, dim sum, and stomach feeling uncomfortable from the alcohol. I decided to fix it with more alcohol at C’s wine and mussel’s night. THIS WAS GREAT.So great that I didn’t have time to take pictures. But just trust me, it was great.

Sunday: Sleep in (just barely – who has time to sleep past 6:30AM?), and went to yoga. Ended the weekend with the 1st BBQ of 2016 in  Port Moody, where I fed the mosquitoes, while H fed the rest of us. Turkey smokies from Costco, a pack for under $15, onions, ketchup, Sriracha:

I don’t want photos, just let me eat!

Work was difficult today guys.

I’m nowhere close to being ready to fly. This should be a nice and simple check in online, but it’s becoming quite painful as my One Plus keeps dropping internet connection. Work with me PLEASE. Frustrated by the United Airlines app that took 5 attempts to accept my passport scan, haven’t started packing, still hungover from last night at J’s house, and spent all morning recovering with H (who has been expressing his feelings about me leaving tomorrow by sighing every few minutes and pouting a little).

Replenishing with dirty HK cafe food at Happy Date. Can’t live without this. I think this place is better than Lido (another HK style cafe that serves similar food), in terms of price, service, and quality. All of this was only $10! Must go if you ever visit Richmond for breakfast.

From top left, going clockwise: Spanish Omelette, Pineapple Bun with Butter, HK Style Milk Tea, Satay Beef Instant Noodles

Here’s the food from a different angle while I was taking the above photo:


Ingrid Nilsen posted a recent video about how she gets over hangovers. Seems like a legit cure, with avocado and eggs.

Well, I’m hungry again. Bye. Going to forage for food around the house.

What better way to wind down on a Friday evening than drinks at home?


Some people might disapprove of drinking alone, but I did open this with my family near me and poured them a little bit before coming back into my room to put this together.

Cracked open this Chocolate Milk Stout from Hearthstone Brewery (brewery in North Vancouver! Support the locals!), and slapped on a mask. AQ got me the Origins Bests – Mask Trio for Christmas, and I just got a chance to use the Clear Improvement mask:

Dries pretty fast. Feels nice, skin was smooth after. I might get this again, if there’s a sale. It’s only $31, but I’d rather try out some other masks (Glamglow???)


Here’s a bonus from the week. Popbar at Metrotown opened! I tried the matcha bar with dark chocolate dipped in hazelnuts:

Almost $6 for this little bit of sugar. Wouldn’t purchase again, even though it tasted good, it’s just not worth it.

I'm starting to feel more comfortable about the recent changes at the company. This week has been quite hectic, Traveling again in a month – Chicago! Any suggestions for places to visit/avoid?