Little Japan, Big Mistake

I was downtown Vancouver a few weeks ago for some training and found this place, against my better judgement. It was either Curry Express (awesome butter chicken), Quizno's (expensive version of Subway), or this place. I guess I must have been craving Yoshinoya or something because for some strange reason, I decided to go to a place like Little Japan in the food court of Harbour Centre.

Time was running out on my lunch break, and the sign caught my eye. Since it was "Today's Special", they probably had these things ready to go.

Today's Special turned out to be $0.01 cheaper than on any other day, I was really impressed.

Yes, as you can guess, this review is not going well. It was nasty.  The rice must have been the lowest grade rice known on earth and tasted like.......well, not rice.  The beef was bland and watery, along with the soggy moyashi (bean sprouts), and whatever other vegetation there was in the meal.  I think mushy would be a good word to describe the veggies.  The meal was filling, but I might as well have eaten a bowl of sand. 

It was my mistake to have any expectations at all, my first clue should have been that it was in the food court of Harbour Centre, downtown Vancouver.   I've seen some people say that the place is better than reviews and ratings indicate, and they've been there on numerous occasions, but clearly they have no clue what food should taste like, let alone good food.  I don't recommend this place to anyone.

Cheese Fondue at Bridges

During the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver, Bridges restaurant was home to House of Switzerland. There were two things on the menu that drew a lot of attention - Cheese Fondue, and Chocolate Fondue.



They had a couple of special menus during the event, but I opted to try the cheese fondue for $55 CAD. I've never had cheese fondue, and I'm a big fan of cheese. I like all kinds of cheese, prepared in any number of ways, but I've never tried fondue.


For $55 bucks, I was expecting a bit more cheese.....this was for two if you could believe that.
For $55, you get a boiling vat of cheese, some bread, some mini potatoes, and some pickles....
Dripping, gooey, cheesey goodness, just like in those old Asterix comic books. Tasted great, and filling too.

Cheese fondue was quite an experience, and we figured, may as well keep the theme going all night so chocolate fondue, another first for me, was ordered.

I was kind of surprised that bananas and strawberries weren't included, but whatever, it tasted pretty good.

At the end of the day, it was an experience. Bridges offers atmosphere, a spectacular view in the evening, and our server was incredible. Would I pay for fondue again? No way. It's great dating stuff, but best bang for your buck, not a chance.

Joey's on Broadway

Some friends from work got together a few days ago and grabbed a bite to eat at this place called Joey's on Broadway. Someone mentioned that it was a new chain owned by Earl's. It felt familiar, but a bit more upscale than Earl's. I was worried by the exterior that this place would be impossibly expensive, but after looking at the menu, it turns out that it wasn't all that bad.


That's a really cool display....look at all that booze!
I have no idea what this was.
Caesar - $less than 10 bucks - The server was incredible, and she really delivered when it came to my Caesar. I was just kidding around with her when I told her what sort of things I liked in a Caesar, and she brought everything I mentioned. Those extra olives and beans really brought a smile to my face. When I get a celery stalk in my Caesars nowadays, I feel insulted.
My neighbor's lobster pasta. This must have been awesome.
This burger didn't look to bad, but where's the beef? I didn't order this, and on first glance, the burger looked massive, but in this picture, the patty looks pretty small right?
7 oz CAB Top Sirloin for $20.49. It probably tasted really good, but 7 oz....I could eat three.
New York 12 oz striploin , $28.99 - The seasoning was out of this world, however, I asked for fat and bloody (blue rare to rare) and it came medium-well. The side veg were adequate, but unecessary and the mash potatoes were great, but barely an ice-cream scoop there. Overall, though, I was pretty satisfied with the taste, but then again, it was not a hungry-man's meal. I could easily have eaten two of these, despite the steak being overcooked to what I requested.
This was probably some sort of ahi-tuna salad, a pretty common fusion-style salad that most places have nowadays. I think they came with chopsticks......
Another burger, this one topped with a couple of onion rings. The Caesar salad looks like a nice alternative to the bowl of fries.
Someone else's top sirloin with Sauteed Garlic Butter Mushrooms added in for $3.99 - apparently these were awesome.
1/2 lb of king crab legs with drawn butter for $13.99 - looked tasty, and I should have taken up on the offer of a taste, but alas, I was too shy.

I want to install these graphics in my own washroom. I would go back, just for the bathroom. Seriously though, the steak, although not perfect, tasted great. The servers tried their best to accommodate such a big group, and overall, I think most of us were quite happy with the place. The atmosphere is fun, yet relaxed, and yes, the washroom designer sure has a sense of humor!

Celine's Fish & Chips

It's not bad, it ain't Moby Dick's, but it ain't bad. I've always found that everyone on Granville Island is a little over-priced sometimes. For example, I will never, EVER, eat at the Chinese take-out there. For a three item combo, I pay nearly $3.00 more for some sub-par Chinese food....why bother when I can get some awesome food-court Chinese food at Yaohan Centre?

Anyway, I usually make it a point to never have Fish & Chips outside of Moby Dick's, but sometimes when I'm on Granville Island, I get a craving for something greasy, and the only thing fulfilling enough is the Taco Salad from the Mexican take-out, or the Sampler Platter from Celine's Fish & Chips.


The Sampler Platter - $13.81 gets you one hunk of cod, ONE Oyster (as opposed to their advertised oyster(s), 1 small breaded prawn, some calamari, onion rings and French Fries.

It's filling enough, and you feel quite guilty for eating it after, but you're really not concerned with how incredibly greasy this meal is while you're shoveling it down your throat. It's not too bad I guess, and even though I always say I shouldn't eat this stuff and I'm never going back, I always do.

Alleluia again

The world's best HK milk tea that's one of the optional drinks that comes with most lunch/dinner sets. I've been told it tastes so good because they use the equivalent of three tea bags to brew one cup of tea....I could be wrong.
Another optional drink is the ice lemon tea. They use almost half a lemon in each cup in this strong tea. This stuff is nectar, so damn good.
The soup of the day that comes with the All Day Special and the All Day Mix & Match Special is usually your run-of-the-mill cream soup with whatever ingredients they have left over. It's drinkable most of the time.
Baked Seafood on Rice $6.25 includes a drink - from the miniset menu. They used to have a larger version of this dish with an oyster and spinach on the All-Day Special menu, but for some strange reason, they've taken it off.
I really wish they had the larger one again.
The All-Day Mix & Match Special for $9.25. Pictured here is Minute Steak, Rib Eye Steak, and Pork Chop Cutlet.
Pretty much the same as above except with the additional yam fries for $1 more.


Not sure what this was, some sort of mixed seafood with spicy thai noodles. $8.95 or 9.95....
Pan-seared chicken fillet with some sort of noodle....less than $10.00 for sure.

The bottom line is Alleluia is dirt cheap for what you get, and that's a sit-down meal, that most often turns out pretty good, a pretty good drink, sometimes a bowl of soup, plus left-overs because they pile on the food, all for usually less than $10.00. What's the cost of fast-food nowadays? $7.99? $8.99? A meal at McCrap's is getting up there, and a lot of other places are too. Even prices in food courts are getting outrageous. I'd rather sit down at Alleluia any day of the week. HK fast food is the way to go.