29th Ave Cafe

I don't even know if Yoshoku-Ya is still in business, but as soon as I heard the owners changed, I had no interest to return.  I thought to myself how crappy for Vancouver to have lost such a great place to eat, and I always thought that the place would eventually be discovered and it would be packed with people.  I'm not sure if it ever did, but apparently the owner didn't really like the hustle and bustle of downtown Vancouver, and decided to set up shop somehwere else a little more relaxed.  The location they chose was on 29th ave and Boundary, and it really is the last place you'd expect to find a yoshoku-styloe restaurant.  29th Ave Cafe is the new stomping grounds for the original owner/operator of Yoshoku-Ya, and thank goodness he decided to continue his work.

I don't know how long they've been open at this new location, and though it wasn't particularly busy, word obviously spread around that he set up shop here because there were several Japanese customers that managed to find their way out here, where very few Japanese restaurants (let alone yoshoku restaurants) operate. 

The menu is pretty much the same as when they were running Yoshoku-Ya, except the don't have Kaki-fry!  Aaaaaaaarrrrrgggghhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!  Well, I had kaki-fry every single visit to Yoshoku-Ya so I never tried anything new, I guess it was time for a change.

The Ebi Fry was still on the menu, but I guess because a lot of the local clientele don't eat rice, or perhaps a lot went to waste, the meals don't come with it anymore, but you can still get a plate of rice for an extra $1.  The meal is pretty filling though, despite appearances, and I'm almost positive you could get full from it, even without the rice. 

The deep fried prawns are of decent size, nice and crispy on the outside, moist and juicy on the inside.

I decided to try something different so I got the tonkatsu meal.  Tonkatsu is a lot like weiner schnitzel (except we're talking pork, not veal) .  It's a pounded pork chop/loin coated with bread crumbs and deep fried.  I think every country has a variety of this dish (the HK places have the porkchop cutlet which is similar). 

The meal comes with a side of salad and their own dressing which tastes similar to thousand island.  I'm not much of a salad guy, but this simple salad tastes great and goes really well with the meal.

I think they changed the potato salad.  It tastes different from what I remember, and I think it might even be the same potato salad available at Costco.  Apologies if I'm wrong though. 

A little drizzle of Bulldog sauce and you're ready to rock and roll.

As you can see, the cut is pretty moist inside and not all dried out as some other places.  In a way, I'm glad they didn't have kaki-fry, otherwise I probably would never have tried this.....though, I still hope they add kaki-fry to their menu =)

The custard pudding was really good.  Home made and very sweet.  The little mandarin oranges were a nice touch and I literally wanted to lick the syrup off the plate.  I could have eaten 10 of these, even though I was full. 

To the owners of 29th Ave Cafe, thank you for not quitting the business!  The food was great, the service was friendly, the location was decent, and on top of that, it wasn't a pain in the ass to find parking!  Looking forward to my next visit, please bring back kaki-fry!

Kingyo Izakaya

Kingo Izakaya is one of a few izakayas in Vancouver and a fantastic place to get a drink have a few really good snacks.....although it seems that many people go there with the intention of having their entire meal there and hardly drink at all. What's an izakaya? Wiki defines it as a type of Japanese drinking establishment which also serves food to accompany drinks. My definition? A place to have a good time and get really railed.

Kingyo has a really rustic Japanese feel to it, and no wonder because it looks like much of the furnishings were discards from an old castle or temple. I'm not sure about the name of the design company, but I do know that they are the same company that brings you http://www.budo-aoi.com/

Some sort of bullying? I've heard of people tossing runners up on power lines, this is the first time I've seen someone's zori hanging like that.
Some would say that Kingyo's designers are almost a little eccentric. Haha, Kingyoman instead of Kikoman.
The pictures today are from Kingyo's new lunch menu and below is an assortment of pickles, which are great on their own, with a bowl of rice and a cup of tea.

However, I cannot survive on pickles alone so I got the tonkatsu set. It comes with refillable rice and cabbage salad.
The tonkatsu, or deep-fried pork cutlet was huge, and you really can't tell by the picture alone. It was soft and moist on the inside, and crispy on the outside.
Japanese mustard, not to be confused with wasabi came with the meal, and blended well with the tonkatsu.

Black sesame and white sesame came with a little grinder, which was then added to the sauce before dipping your tonkatsu in.
They've already got a great dinner menu, and now they're open for lunch. If you find yourself downtown, and have around $12 or so in your pocket, I'd recommend you drop in:

http://www.kingyo-izakaya.com/