Mom's Grilled Cheese Truck

I always, as in always see this food truck in downtown and on the news in the mornings. I swear whenever I pass by their truck the aroma of food smells so good that it makes you want to eat even though your not hungry! Located by Vancouver Art Gallery in downtown near Sears and Chapters, Mom's Grilled Cheese Truck is another new addition to the food truck trend that's been going on in the food scene. What makes this different than the rest of the food trucks out there is that this truck is all about GRILLED CHEESE! Something as simple as bread and cheese is transformed by this awesome food truck into something so delightful that it makes you guilty when you eat all those cheese and butter that's on the bread. Their menu is simple but they do make one heck of a grilled cheese! They also have this retro & old school illustration (which makes me think of diners, milkshakes and comics actually) on their truck that will help you spot them easily even from a block away. Although the wait for the food is a bit longer than most food trucks, the people that serve and cook your food are very friendly so it does make up for the wait. It is a bit on the pricier side at $9.50 per sandwich for their specialty items and then $5.50 for the classic ones. They also give you the option of choosing your own bread, cheese and other toppings, but after all the additional add ons, it may end up even being more expensive than the specialty items. Overall however, the experience and food is one of a kind, so If you are by any chance near Vancouver Art Gallery and Robson during lunch time, go check them out! It's one of the many food trucks that's worth trying!

Meatloaf Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Ebisu (Richmond)

My friend and I decided to go to Ebisu the other day to have some nice girl time since we haven't seen each other in a while. I actually haven't been back to Ebisu in a long time and as I recall my last visit there was not as satisfying and pleasing as I would like it to be. I find that the Ebisu in downtown is better in their overall execution, taste and quality when it comes to their food. After trying the Richmond branch again, I'm still a tad disappointed and unsatisfied with how their food tastes. Compared to my last visit, the only thing that changed is their interior but the food and service is still not as good as I'd hope for. The Richmond Ebisu is located on Ackroyd in the same mall as Chapters and Neptune, and is directly beside Dinesty. If your thinking of getting Japanese food, Ebisu Richmond is not something I would suggest going to or even trying out, I'm sure there are other Japanese restaurants that are 100 times better than this place.

Miso Soup

 Chicken Karrage

 Salmon Cream Cheese

 Chicken Teri Don

 Chicken Teri & Roll Boat

Pearl Castle (Sexsmith)

Milk Tea with Pearls

Pearl Castle has changed a lot with their interior since the first time they opened, and it's nice to see how the owner of the restaurant is still making sure that the appearance of the restaurant is an important aspect when it comes to keeping on top of the restaurant business. Known for their casual Taiwanese food and bubble tea, Pearl Castle is one of the many first restaurants that converted me into a bubble tea loving foodie. If your thinking of eating in Pearl Castle however, I would suggest going to the Sexsmith location rather than the one in Richmond Center. One reason is that the Sexsmith branch is the original one that opened here first in Richmond. Second, the service and quality is way better here compared to the deficient servers and quality of food that you get at the branch in Richmond Center.

There might be some issues on seating and parking especially if you come here on weekends or during lunch/dinner rushes but other than that, the service here is good considering that this is a Taiwanese/BBT restaurant. I've been here a number of times now and sometimes I'm still indecisive as to what to order because of the variety of food and drink choices that they have to offer. If your thinking of getting appetizers or snacks their chicken nuggets, fried squid, fried tofu and Taiwanese style egg rolls are some of our favorite items to order whenever I go with family or friends. If your thinking of ordering hotpot, I would suggest trying out their Beef Brisket hot pot (if you like tomato based soups) and their Miso Seafood hot pot. When it comes to their rice meals, their red fermented pork on rice, chicken nuggets on rice, honey sauce chicken on rice, lemon chicken on rice, Taiwanese sausage on rice, and Chicken Teriyaki on fried rice are some of my favorites. And of course, being in a bubble tea restaurant, you have to have bubble tea! My staple BBT in Pearl Castle is always and forever will be their Passion fruit green tea with coconut jelly! I've tried other restaurant's versions of passion fruit green tea and personally I still prefer Pearl Castle's version better. 

Passion Fruit Green Tea 

Strawberry Banana Mix Milk

Fried Squid

Miso Seafood Hot Pot

Assorted Veggies Fried Noodle

Vegetarian Hot Pot

Golden Lemon Chicken

Sides

Beef Brisket Hot Pot

Seto

Miso Soup

Seto has been around for quite some time now and is very well known for their great service and delicious authentic Japanese food. Opened in 1997, the quality of Japanese food that they make still hasn't changed one bit. Located on Alexandra road in the mall right beside Sheraton hotel, the place is a bit hidden further back in the complex so it might be hard to find if it's your first time coming here. The issue of parking may be a lot easier on weekdays than on weekends because of the wave of customers that Alexandra Road's restaurants would get when it comes to Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Whenever my family and I would come here one of our must have items that we always order is their house rolls. The size and taste is just perfect to us that out of all Japanese restaurants that we've been to, Seto's version is still on top of our list! They are also one of the few Japanese restaurants that still serve family boats, which is also one of the many reasons why I still love going back to Seto so much. It just brings me back to a lot of my childhood memories when I used to come here with my family as a kid. The food choices that they have in their menu is pretty huge so it may seem kind of overwhelming at first. With more options on the menu, this could also mean more visits to Seto to try out their other dishes. The prices on their items are also very reasonably priced especially for the quality and taste of the food that they serve. Some of the people that work there are pretty much still the same people that's been there since before and the service that they provide is still surprisingly well. I can't imagine Seto being open for almost 15 years now and they are still on top of their game. This place is still one of my favorite Japanese places to go to in Richmond and hopefully after trying out Seto, this could be one of your favorites too!

Ebi Sunomono

Gomae

Salmon Tataki

Agadeshi Tofu

Family Boat for Two: House Roll, Chicken Karaage, Tempura, Gyoza, Salmon Teriyaki, Sunomono, Miso Soup, Fruits & Ice Cream

House Roll 

Earls (Lansdowne)

Earls is practically almost everywhere and out of the 65 restaurants that they have, there are 24 here in BC, 2 in the US and 39 that are spread out across Canada. Earls is another one of the many restaurants that's been open for quite a long time now and being one of the kids in the 90's I was very pleased to have had a chance to be part of one of the many long standing restaurants in BC. Although I wasn't born here, you could say I was kind of raised here in 3 out of the 12 months each year and Earls is another one of the many places that we would always go to growing up. 

The Earls in Lansdowne Mall has a great location for parking but when it comes to targeting customers, I would say that the Earls in downtown is much better when it comes to attracting people during peak eating hours. They have a decent amount of options in their menu but sometimes you'll find that the taste of their food isn't as consistent  as when you last visited. I've been coming here since I was small and their menu has changed several times now. One of my favorites in their old menu was their Spicy Seafood Penne, but lo and behold, they took it out (which I think is a wrong move btw) Personally, I think it is one of their best pasta dishes although they currently have a spicy seafood linguini which tastes okay, but it's just not exactly the same as the Penne dish. (I think Penne is a better choice of pasta rather than linguini on such a dish like that but maybe that's just me) Anyway, since the Penne dish is gone, one of the things that we would usually order now is their Baked Brie and Chicken Ciabatta which is a combination of grilled chicken, melted brie, roasted apples, spinach, sweet fig jam, garlic mayo and their house baked ciabatta. They also make great salad dishes so try to at least order one out of their salad items in their menu. The service of the Earls branch in Richmond is still very good, the servers are always well mannered and some are even ahead of you when you want to get a refill with your drink (which I admire). The price is what you would expect with a western restaurant that has very chic urban interior and great service. The only improvement that they would only need I think is the regularity of their taste and maybe bring back some of their old dishes, I'm sure other people may want to see some of their old favorites back.. including me.

Clam Chowder

Caesar Salad

Crispy Chicken Tenders

One Pound Wings

Mixed Field Greens

Warm Spinach and Feta Dip

Baked Brie & Chicken Ciabatta