Batard At Last

I have waited months for Batard to open its doors. Then it took me few more months to find myself free on a Saturday morning to discover it. And here I am in one of the fanciest looking cafés of the neighbourhood

I was most excited about the breads. Afterall, I have been eating Chris Brown's breads for the past 3 years or so and excited to have his bread withing walking distance

But unfortunately, this is where my interactions with Batard may have to stop. You see, I was expecting to be able to go and sit down with a nice cup of coffee and enjoy a snack of BC wildsalmon pate with Chris Brown's toast

But this is how it was served: I was asked to pick up a plastic container of the paté from the fridge and called to pick up the toasted bread and coffee. What a mismatch food presentation experience to the fanciness of the place itself. This is not what a $10 snack should look like or be served in a place that is building its image as an old fashioned eating establishment

So I will be stopping by to pick up the exceptional Chris Brown's bread, maybe try some of these appealing looking baked goodies. But as a café experience, Batard can learn a lot from another small authentic marché down the street

Batard

  3958 Fraser Street

Vancouver, BC

www.batardbakery.com

Friday Meal

Friday is a day of prayer for Muslims. And given my respect for all religions, I find having lunch at Al-Watan on a Friday very spiritual.

So I dragged a helweh with me and we went for our regulars; starting with a Pakistani tea for her and a mango lassi for me.

Of course, I cannot go to my favourite Al-Watan without ordering the Biryani.

Along with it, a selection of other dishes and a potato stuffed Naan.

I so love my lunches at Al-Watan.

Al Watan

6084 Fraser Street

Vancouver, BC

604-324-6378

 

 

 

Yu Xiang Yuan

When I saw this sign on Fraser Street, I was thrilled thinking Peaceful Restaurant open another location closer to me.

But I guess those signs are a dime a dozen in China and this was for Yu Xiang Yuan Restaurant

Handcrafted noodles for each dish that come in a choice of cutting, dragging, pushing or round noodles.

Once you are over the confusion of the noodle options, the place seems family run with elegant seating, comfortable atmosphere and friendly service.

The menu selection has a mix of dishes one sees elsewhere and some unique options.

Below are the foods ordered.

The Zhajiang Pork with cucumber was my favourite, even though I am not sure the choice of noodles went well with this dish.

The Xin-Jiang Noodles with fried chicken and potatoes was an experience for sure. Overly salty and does not work well with dragging noodles, but the potatoes were excellent.

Pork and chives dumplings were alright - not the best wonton dough in the city though.

I am glad I tried it. I am not sure I will rush back.

Yu Xiang Yuan

6591 Fraser Street

Vancouver BC

Longest Noodles on Fraser Street

Ho Yuen Kee is a Chinese restaurant that is known for its noodles.

And its noodles, which are hand made by the way, are so long that you have to stand up to be able pour them, so make sure you have a long-armed guy at the party.

At least their noodles come on the plain side so you don't splash neighbouring tables with sauce.

In addition to making their noodles, they make (and are well-known for) their own wontons and dumplings.

Their wonton soups are as simple and plain as their noodles, but definitely worth ordering given the taste.

And if you are a seafood lover, you can choose your (live) crab or lobster and they will prepare it in two sauces to choose from.

However, if you go for this, check the daily market price since this plate on its own may exceed $40.

The beef with green pepper in black bean sauce was very tasty.

The lemon breaded chicken was exceptional.

But what they served that was much better than any other restaurant I tried them at was their lettuce wrap - a huge portion that is freshly made.

A great place for big crowds, worth the visit (and you can discover the rest of the Fraser Street Finds along the way).

 Ho Yuen Kee Restaurant

6236 Fraser Street

Vancouver, BC

604-324-8855

 

Saturday Brunch on Fraser

The Fraser Street Finds series of articles cluster around places to eat and shop at on Fraser Street south of 44th Street.

But the new hip part of Fraser is starting to show its face south of 33rd Street, including a place well known for its brunch line-ups on the West side but now we have its line ups on Fraser Street (and remember to bring cash, it is cash only on Fraser).

Rated as the #1 Brunch Place at Best of the City Dining, and almost walking distance, I went in real early to try it out. Friendly service, basic place, food good and sizable portions. I had the special with a Tex Mex touch. Tasty, a bit salty, eggs excellent, potatoes not the best I brunched on.

Something to mix things up on Fraser - try it out.

Jethro's Fine Grub

3455 Fraser Street

Vancouver, BC

www.jethrosfinegrub.com

Apna Bhaa

It is very difficult to describe Apna Bhaa.

It is a store of Indian sweets, but has 3 tables for people to sit and eat at.

It also has a menu of Indian food with some not so common names that seem to be cooked for you when you order in the small kitchen behind the store.

It also has deep freezer with trinkets on it. Oh the discoveries.

The sweets look fresh and tasty, with lots of white and creamy elements.

Sensibility takes over and I just order three menu items that seemed interesting but not sure what they are.

 
Next time I think I will go for the sweets.

 

So Wacky Hot

At 6045 Fraser Street , you find Thurga Mini Mart, a great Sri Lankan food market that is worth a blog article on its own.

But until then, I will tell the story of the so hot food they carry.

If you think you can tolerate hot, I challenge you to eat two of those patties in one sitting.

And then dig into this luncheon box - a selection of curries and Sri Lankan vegetarian dishes, a piece of chicken, all served over rice. Everything is wacky hot, including the rice.

 Give it a try - Thurga Mini Mart, 6045 Fraser Street, Vancouver, BC!

Fraser Street Finds

There are always new finds on Fraser Street (Read more at Fraser Street Finds), specially when a small street festival is taking place.

The highlight of today's discovery is seeing the lovely one and only Beespeaker Saijiki with a variety of bee pollens.  

But one cannot ignore parrot man either with his red and green parrots.

Phew, I thought the green one ran away. But it was simply passed on to the owner of one of my favourite Fraser Street produce stores.

And yes there are foods to discover - Indian, Himalayan, Chinese, Pakistani, Bengali, Bakeries and others yet to be discovered. Today's stop was dim sum.

Dinner was also picked up - freshly made Sri Lankan food from the newly discovered Sri Lankan store that deserves a blog post on its own.

Today's favourite find though remains this white and creamy Chinese double milk pudding. Simply yum.

Wacky Block

A perfect block for Wacky Thursdays.

And I am not talking about the block of Fraser Street that I was on, even though that is a wacky block indeed.

I am talking about a meal I had at Angel Cake Café called Gold Block, a.k.a. Wacky Block.

What is a Gold Block you ask? It is a block of bread, emptied, toasted and filled with something or another (my filling choice was curry chicken made with lots of salt and artificial Chinese curry flavours).

But it was decadent, filling and fun to eat.

It is definitely a sight. 

And you won't miss on any piece of the bread block since the inside is also tasted and serves to keep the filling warm.

It is a genuine idea for sure. They have a Cheese Gold Block, a Beef Brisket Gold Block and the Chicken Curry one.

Yes, Angle Cake Café is worth the trip. It is a typical Chinese diner, with both Chinese and North American food. The portions are large. The prices are excellent.

Next time I am trying the Chicken Gordon Blue.

And that is not where the fun ends at the Angel Cake Café.

I hear their breakfast, lunch or dinner specials are so large that can feed two for under $8.00.

I personally enjoyed their fresh watermelon juice. I am still not sure whether this was purely a good frozen watermelon or watermelon juice with added sugar.

One side of the café is dedicated to desserts which look way better and tastier than any of the Chinese bakeries in the neighbourhood.

Cash only; worth a try for cheap food and fun outing.

Angel Cake Café

5995 Fraser Street

Vancouver, BC

604-323-8948