Review of Granville Room

website
957 Granville Street
Vancouver
604.633.0057

Meal
Dinner

Cost
$$

Entree
Sesame Seared Ahi Tuna
Porcini Mushroom Ravioli

The Low-Down
Delicious

Review
The Granville Room is meant to be a bar/lounge, but I ended up at this place due to an Entertainment Coupon (on a side note, coupons are awesome). The ambiance is very interesting as the place is narrow and long. The entire back wall is a mirror, which had me fooled that the place was even longer than it was. The Sesame Seared Ahi Tuna was delicious and was seasoned just right. It was interesting because there was a variety of flavours. The Porcini Mushroom Ravioli had a wonderful sauce and cooked perfectly. I have to admit the portions were a little small, but the presentation was lovely.

Sesame Seared Ahi Tuna

Porcini Mushroom Ravioli

Review of Sushi Bella

website
152 Lonsdale Ave
North Vancouver
604.987.8633

Meal
Dinner

Cost
$$

Entree
Tempura Udon
Ocean Dream Roll
Big Island Roll
Drunken Tiger Roll

The Low-Down
Delicious

Review
I've been to Sushi Bella before they opened up the larger restaurant. It used to be known as Saru Sushi, and I've always been a fan. Their rolls are very unique and surprisingly tasty. I haven't seen most of their inventive rolls elsewhere. Most have combinations I thought were, shall we say, interesting. However, after giving most of them a taste test, I have to say that they've been pretty enjoyable. Now, with a larger sit-down restaurant, I'm able to enjoy a more comfortable experience with their sushi. Their prices have gone up slightly since their small, take-out days, but I think it's still worth it. With their innovation and price placement, I'm a happy returning customer.

Tempura Udon

Ocean Dream Roll and Big Island Roll

Drunken Tiger Roll

Review of Pho Hong

5975 Kingsway
Burnaby
604.454.9727

Meal
Dinner

Cost
$$

Entree
#1 Pho So with Spring Roll Special

The Low-Down
Delicious

Review
There's always a type of food that you can always eat and that you fall back on when you don't know what you're craving. Pho is one of those dishes for me. Pho So (#1 on the menu) is their pho with everything. I love this place because they always give you so much meat and noodles. Their broth is also very clear and tasty. They have a special where you can add a spring roll to any large bowl of pho. Definitely worth it!

#1 Pho So with Spring Roll Special

Review of Finch's Tea & Coffee House

website
353 W Pender Street
Vancouver
604.899.4040

Meal
Lunch

Cost
$

Entree
The Full Vegetarian

The Low-Down
Delicious

Review
I have to admit, I'm not a vegetarian. In fact, I loathe sandwiches. So I'm not sure what possessed me to order a sandwich with no meat, but I'm sure glad I did. This sandwich was packed with ingredients which were fresh and scrumptious, then placed with care between two slices of toasted bread. I think this was probably the best tasting sandwich I have ever had. And if all vegetarian dishes tasted like this, I would consider converting. I noted that I was pretty full for the rest of the afternoon, but I was a little thirstier than usual. Definitely a place I'd come back to!

The Full Vegetarian

Review of Le Bistro Chez Michel

website
224 W. Esplanade
North Vancouver
604.924.4913

Meal
Dinner

Cost
$$$

Entree
Plat de Cote a la Bourguigonne
Paella

The Low-Down
Average

Review
The dinners came with bread which was very tasty but would have been better if it came warmed. The butter was whipped and really soft. The Plat de Cote a la Bourguigonne was a plate of beef short ribs in an interesting sauce. The ribs were very soft and delicate. However, I'm not sure if I enjoyed the sauce as much. The only way I can describe it was that it had a very dark taste to it. The Paella was very fragrant and yummy. Unfortunately, the scallops were overcooked. Overall, I'd say an average dinner.

Plat de Cote a la Bourguigonne

Paella

Review of L'Artista Ristorante Italiano

website
3981 E. Hasting Street
Burnaby
604.298.8110

Meal
Dinner

Cost
$$

Entree
Linguine della Casa
Penne del Pescatore

The Low-Down
Delicious

Review
The bread came out hot along with nicely whipped butter. The crust was crispy but the inside was fluffy. Just the way I like it! When the pasta came, it was piping hot. There are many places that give lots of pasta but no fillings. This place is definitely not one of them. Both pastas were filled. The seafood was cooked perfectly as well. With the Entertainment coupon, this meal was a steal!

Bread and Whipped Butter

Linguine della Casa

Penne del Pescatore

Review of Kawawa

E15 - 4700 Kingsway (Metrotown)
Burnaby
604.435.8577

Meal
Dinner

Cost
$

Entree
Kawawa Ramen

The Low-Down
Average

Review
I consistently say that ramen isn't all that great of a meal. Funny thing is, I consistently go try ramen restaurants when enough time has past for me to forget the last experience. Well, here I am again at a ramen shop. And once again, it's pretty average. I thought I would go for one of the specially named items on the menu. I thought, "It might just surprise me". Nope. Wrong again. This is pretty average. If you're craving ramen and just finished shopping, this might be a place you want to hit up, but I definitely wouldn't purposely come here.

Kawawa Ramen

SIDE NOTE: I recently came back from Japan, and the ramen there is SUPERB! I still crave the ramen in Japan. I was going to give this a disappointing rating after the experience in Japan, but I thought I should compare it to Vancouver standards. So average it is.