Life in the Lower Mainland (BC, Canada)

Aside from a small selection of pastries, Bao Bakery also prominently features a lot of bao . They look like the chinese bao (similar to what you can get at the more dedicated Bao Place ) except the fillings sound decidedly Filipino. A bit strange for me since I was raised on the Chinese tradition but if you don't know bao well to begin with, think nothing of it and consider only whether it's tasty. I tried the one that sounded the most interesting and alien to me, which was "Chicken Deluxe (Bola Bola)", with filling containing chicken, pork, ham, and salted duck egg yolk (how many animal parts can you eat in one bite?). Taste is mediocre. The filling is OK but nothing to write home about. What Bao Bakery does offer however is a really decent amount of filling per bun--although from bun to bun you might get a bit more or less. In the pictures below I dissected two different buns from the same package. Two buns will trump a burger in the quantity of meat you...

Poké Time serves up what looks like deconstructed sushi with marinated raw cubed fish. And if you get the Super Cruncheritto ($11.95), they call it a burrito but it's more like a massive sushi roll so packed with stuff that they can't roll it up without some of the fillings squeezing out the ends. Unlike sushi, you're not tasting the freshness of the fish so much as the marinade -- yeah, there's sauce. Still, the entire construction of the Cruncheritto tastes fresh and light despite being filling because of the rice. Compare how much you get for your money to a couple of sushi rolls at just about any sushi restaurant and Poké Time is a winner. The hole-in-the-wall is basically a take-out place that works like a Quiznos or Subway so there's no point scoring them on ambiance. But you can eat in, and if you do, tell them so they don't give you the plastic container for your non-burrito order but rather the reusable bowl that you return after. TIP: Eat in...

Spotted some intriguing vegan, gluten free "nachos" made from beans and rice at Urban Fare-- Beanfields Nacho Bean and Rice Chips --and decided to give them a try. My mom is into chips (crisps) so now and again I try to get her something interesting because otherwise she'd just buy whatever is safe and familiar from Superstore. Good firm crispiness. Taste is bean-like but not so odd that you focus too much on it. Salty enough that you are reminded of basically "normal" nachos. Overall, a pricey snack unless you are vegan and/or celiac, which limits your choices and sometimes beggars can't be choosers unfortunately. What was most surprising, however, was the colour. The packaging clearly indicated a yellow-ish nacho-like colour. The contents, however, were... not. No way these were gonna pass as regular nachos. Depending on the lighting they looked anywhere from brown to grey, and the black didn't help any. The lighting in the pictures from my smartp...