Life in the Lower Mainland (BC, Canada)

One of the interesting things the Specialty Food Expo 2017 did was have a contest for a selected number of new companies. Attendees then vote for the one they like best and that company wins a prize. This obviously helps them get attention at the Expo but also gets people moving around to look for the stall, which also gets them moving around in general. My pick was Wize Monkey . Not because I'm some kind of tea connoisseur and these teas are the bomb -- I really can't tell and tea is tea and I honestly just go to Superstore and buy what's cheap to flavour my boiled tap water. But what I like about Wize Monkey is that it's a simple concept that can have a profound positive social impact. Coffee is a seasonally harvested product. So why not do something in the off season by making a product from the coffee leaves? With any luck this idea will catch on and the price will go down to less than coffee.

Sheesh, I didn't even know Pearl Castle Cafe existed in the Old Orchard Shopping Centre! Small space, nice and bright decor. Servers very alert tonight -- I can't even glance around to take in the room without catching their eye and having them immediately veer toward my position! Ginseng Honey Grapefruit Tea ($5.95) There's definitely ginseng inside the pot, but I can't really taste it. Quite sweet, no grapefruit bitterness. Overall tasted like a honey-citrus sort of drink. Disappointing for the lack of ginseng flavour so I can't really recommend ordering it.

Normally I wouldn't have bought this combo from Starbucks except they were giving out 5 bonus stars, which goes a long way toward keeping my Gold Card status. The offer (good Feb-12 to Feb-14) is: "Pair your handcrafted Mocha beverage with any cookie, and earn Bonus Stars on top." Cookies are a couple of dollars for a big but thin cookie. I went with the ToffeeDoodle. For mocha, I asked which one qualified and one person at the counter said "any", and the other suggested peppermint. Upsell? Anyway, I went with peppermint and they automatically placed the order for a grande. TIPS: Ask for extra hot. Cool whipped cream on top (with chocolate sprinkles) can really cool down your drink, which is sort of like a weak hot chocolate with coffee flavour. The cookie was thin but broad (and still not worth even $1), and very chewy. Also quite sweet, enough to give a faint burning sensation (the sort you can get with something too sugary) at the back of the t...

Chocolate Arts is a fairly big cafe with a big chocolate bar (including many Valentine's Day packages). They are participating in the 2016 Hot Chocolate Festival and I tried their "Creamsicle" this afternoon. TIP: You can ask for the hot chocolate to be split into two cups. Pretty handy if you are trying several flavours. Creamsible ($7.95) It's white chocolate! So no real chocolatey flavour here, and in the end it tasted like a sweet vanilla drink. The accompaniments were tastier. Overall, unless you really like white chocolate (is that even real chocolate?), give this a pass. Blood orange sorbet was bitter-refreshing like cold grapefruit. After getting a taste of it, I put my portion into the hot chocolate and... it just vanished. Couldn't really taste any change to the hot chocolate. So, don't waste it like that -- or ask for more, I guess. Bitter Orange Macaron was rather tasty, with a strong chocolate flavour accompanying the orange flavour. ...

If you are looking for hot chocolates with very interesting flavours, then Koko Monk is the winner. Not only that, they offer vegan options for all their Hot Chocolate Festival 2016 entries. Past entries are still available as the best ones are retained in their slowly expanding roster of hot chocolates. It's a pretty tiny place but there is one booth that can seat maybe 6-8 persons. We tried the 3-chocolate flights. Two flights came to $21 after tax before tip for three 4oz glasses per flight. You also get your choice of one macaron per flight (value $2). So it works out to about $8.50 to try three hot chocolates -- still less than a single Hot Chocolate Festival drink at a place like Thierry . Istanbul Blues Very interesting gingery-peppery flavour. Rashomon Interesting and complex flavour. Gently sweet with matcha and sake flavour notes. Definitely recommended unless you need your hot chocolate to be chocolate-y. Harem A La Turca Bitter, almost coffee-like in ...

After dinner at Morak nearby, we wandered over to try Noble Cafe in search of bubble tea or good desserts. Strangely enough, the business cards said they were Kick S Good, which were basically in the same location. Could just be a cosmetic name change. Ferrero Rocher Chocolate Slush ($4.25) Yup, tastes like ground up Ferrero Rocher. Tasted a bit thin, but at just $4.25, that's sort of to be expected since Ferrero Rocher isn't exactly a cheap ingredient. Still, give this one a pass and try something else on the menu likely to have stronger and better chocolaty flavour.

Just got back from a hot chocolate crawl downtown where we tried four locations: Thierry - "Milk & Coffee" - 39% Valrhona “Andoa” milk chocolate. Served with coffee flavoured whipped cream with dark chocolate semifredo made of 63%  “Illanka” Peruvian chocolate langue de chat Price came to $10.45 after tax! If you focus on just the hot chocolate, then it definitely is pricey -- remember that you are paying for the whipped cream and biscuit as well.  It's January 30th, so when I asked the person behind the macarons, I was quoted the "Dark & Saffron" drinking chocolate (the correct one according to the schedule; could not see the schedule anywhere in store). But when I ordered the hot chocolate festival's hot chocolate, they gave me this "milk and chocolate" concoction instead, which was supposed to have had its last day on January-29th. Drink was not hot! Flavour was tame and the drink felt on the thin side. Bel Cafe - ...

The Olympic Village Terra Breads is notable for being licensed -- they have wine! They also bake 24-hours a day (but the place is not open 24 hours, however), so unlike some other cafes, what you see in the counter might actually still be fresh no matter what time you go, instead of end-of-the-day leftovers if you go late afternoon or evening. Their Hot Chocolate Festival 2016 entries are very strong for being interesting in taste and good price for portion. Drawbacks include being not very hot by the time it got to us; and the underlying hot chocolate seemed a bit thin and mediocre. Honey Buns ($4.95) Venezuelan dark chocolate, house-made chili honey, cinnamon, bourbon vanilla bean. Served with cinnamon sugar brioche. We got a very friendly front counter person who also let me try a spoonful of their chili honey. The chili flavour is there and there's a good burn in the back of your throat but it starts slow. For several seconds all you get is the normal sweetness of ...

As a cafe, Catfe is OK. It has minimal space and minimal seating on the no-cats side. Broad tea menu ($3.30 for a Starbucks Grande sized cup) but the one I got that had seaweed didn't taste or smell seaweedy... Anyway, be sure to get two sleeves because one definitely wasn't enough against the heat of the cup. Coconut water (canned), coffee, and other beverages available, as well as a minimal selection of snacks (making it sub-par if you are looking for a place to have a light meal). Obviously the draw here is to be the cats, and you better go in with expectations properly set because otherwise you will feel you wasted $5 on the ENTRY FEE (on top of the hassle of making a reservation and signing a waiver before you go in). Yes, you have to pay to see the cats. TIP: Adopt a stray cat (Free). Or go to a petting zoo (costs you lettuce but you can grope any animals that come into range). TIP: Might as well pick up a free Catfe pin at the counter where you sign the waiver. ...