Afternoon Tea @ LuvCravings

saw this place putting an ad and article in a local chinese magazine and was attracted by it. a friend heard that the owner had a passion to start a cafe for a long time

  

filled with sets for 3 people

velvet cupcake, chocolate mousse, chocolate coated strawberry

the mousse was too heavy to finish

strawberries were huge and sweet even though not in the season, the best out of the 3

scones (cheese and earl gray) and quiches

prefer the earl gray one as it was lighter than the cheese

sandwiches

nothing too special

tray of tea samples but there were a ton more to choose from

the menu we chose, the other one has more items for more $

tea set area

LuvCravings

4018 Cambie St 

Vancouver, BC V5Y2H5

(604) 563-1818

-the atmosphere was modern and cozy, especially since the afternoon tea sets were served in a different area
-everything was pre-made so reservation is necessary, they dropped one of the quiches and had to replace with another scone, if you want specific items from the menu you have to mention in reservation
-hard to say if i want to revisit just for the tea set as the food was average and nothing surprising
-can see that the owner (assuming) is really interested in tea as one of us wanted coffee instead of tea but she replied that coffee's taste would be too strong and defeat the purpose of the tea set, but she said she would still offer it to us if we really wanted it
-server was superb, offered us a ton of teas to smell before finally settling done on one, she really knows her teas
-instant 10% discount if you like their facebook page, also got free scratch and wins at the end for next visit
-free parking in back and close to King Edward Station

Style: tea, sandwiches 

Visited on: Mar 6, 2013

Coming Soon - Five Guys

seems like it will open in a month or so. gotta love their free peanuts

Five Guys

605 Robson Street 

Vancouver, BC V6B 5J3

for the time being, can visit the one in Bellingham

Five Guys Burgers and Fries

Afternoon Tea @ Globe @ YVR

most people living in vancouver will probably rarely visit the Fairmont at the airport. saw a groupon from teambuy for $36 in june and decided to give it a try. previously have tired the downtown one and it was the same price groupon offered by dealfind. the airport one however offered additional sparking wine. the most recent groupon even included 2 free hour parking which would have been a much better offer. first time i tried booking was on a holiday and was rejected. this time was a weekday and had no problems booking

tea set

 

sandwiches

scones

sweets/desserts

fruit starter

quite plain, no real fruity taste

weird that they just soaked it in red water

would be nice if it was sugary water instead

sparking wine

tea samples for you to smell

tea temperature lasted till the very end

Globe @ YVR (Fairmont Vancouver Airport Hotel)

3111 Grant McConachie Way

Richmond, BC V7B 1M8

(604) 248-3281

-place was quite quiet with only 3 tables and 1 server, we were the only ones eatting the tea set

-great place to relax while watching planes landing on the runway

-we were free to choose wherever we wanted to sit

-parking is a big hassle as its expensive, best to skytrain in

-comparing to the downtown tea set, this one was more casual and modern while the other was more elegant and classy
-if there was no group/discount, i would never come again due to location inconvenience

Style: tea, sandwiches

Visited on: Oct 22, 2012

Lunch @ Prince Chinese Seafood 王子海鮮酒家

this is the second most frequent dim sum place i go to in east van. quite packed on weekends as there are a limited amount of chinese restaurants around. the renovation really made this place look more upscaled and made me enjoy coming more, didn't really like this place before

black sesame roll

not chewy enough

Pine House bakery makes them better

pineapple bun with bbq pork

rice rolls with fish paste

fried yam and taro

nice dessert that's not too sweet

taro is very soft and powdery

mushroom dumpling

Prince Chinese Seafood 王子海鮮酒家 

2881 Grandview Hwy 

Vancouver, BC V5M 2E1 

(604) 430-6808

-hard to find parking in their mall

-some unique dim sums 

Style: chinese (中式), seafood (海鮮) 

Visited on: Oct 21, 2012

Steak @ Black + Blue

it was another birthday for me so decided to go for something nice. saw coupon ad in Chinese newspaper so decided to try the newest addition of Global

Beef Carpaccio

parmigiano reggiano, garlic herb bread

arugula, extra virgin olive oil 

Tuna Screamer

ahi tuna, serrano 

Steak House Nachos

house spiced potato chips, bacon 

cheddar cheese, b+b steak chili   

8oz Tenderloin 

8oz New York Strip

side order of mashed potatoes 

prime rib

only this comes with sides

yorkshire pudding, mashed potatoes, seasonal vegetables

red wine jus, caramelized pearl onions 

Ahi Tuna

my friend said her dad makes it better 

inside Black + Blue sear

charred on the outside, rare/raw on the inside 

steak sauces

Peppercorn, Chimichurri, Steak Sauce 

Black+Blue Butter Cake

not as sweet as expected

perfect finish for the meal 

upstairs seating

a bartender walked around with this trolley hoping to get orders

open dry aging room

Black + Blue

1032 Alberni Street

Vancouver, BC V6Z 2V6

(604) 637-0777 

-we were not allowed to eat our own cake, their reason was allergy problems, but they still displayed the cake to us
-end up they gave me a free dessert and i was happy
-same as the reviews i have read, only steak is good here for entrees
-appetizers were pretty good but pricy
-seating upstairs in a corner so not as noisy as others suggests
-nice servers and environment
-no sides to steaks, have to order own
-steaks were somewhat overcooked from requested
-tenderloin was really tender, felt like too tender, ended switching plates with newyork strip, was too firm, to relieve each other
-used gift cards from Costco ($80 for $100) and also a coupon ad from Chinese newspaper (15% off), if no discount, not worth coming

Style: steak, west coast

Visited on: Oct 17, 2012

Dim Sum @ Pelican Seafood Restaurant 又一村海鮮酒家

only come here with my family friends as they live nearby so it is one of the most frequent dim sum places i go in Vancouver

pan-fried maggi salmon

top: steamed spareribs

bottom: steamed seasoned chicken feet

$2.99 specials

huge portions

snow mountain bbq pork bun

lots of meat

onion pancake

onion chives bun

almost double the size of other places

lots of shrimp inside

Pelican Seafood Restaurant 又一村海鮮酒家

1895 E Hastings St

Vancouver, BC V5L 1T1

(604) 251-3395

-overall good food and service
-they have late night dim sum now to attract more young people to come at night
-more special discounted dim sums, $2.99 each
-they increased their portions hoping to attract more customers
-like their big hd tvs, they turn on canucks when its playing or other basketball games
-parking quite easy

Style: chinese (中式), dim sum (點心), seafood (海鮮)

Visited on: Oct 7, 2012