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The iconic neon piggy on West Hastings in Vancouver’s notorious Downtown Eastside stood among the big red Woodward’s W as one of the most recognizable signs of my childhood.
I was keenly interested to read about the efforts of restaurateurs Mark and Nico Bran to reopen the butcher shop and diner (which closed in 2009). They leased the four-storey building with an eye to incorporating ways to revitalize the neighbourhood too.
The basement is used by a local urban farming group. A second-floor kitchen does catering for assisted-living hotels in the area. The sidewalk take-out window has items like breakfast sandwiches starting at $1.50.
The Brands’ challenges ended up being chronicled in a reality show called Gastown Gamble on the Oprah Winfrey Network in Canada. It premiered last night and repeats Friday at 8 p.m.
The camera lights and cables were still hung from the ceiling when my sister and I visited Save On Meats diner last month. The decor is an attempt at retro but you can tell most of it is reproduced retro.
The long counter is supposed to encourage the mix of construction workers, lawyers, police and down-and-out types who used to frequent the old Save On lunch counter. But when we went it was almost all hipster types, most with their laptops out.
We wrote our name on the whiteboard at the entrance and waited for a table.
The menu is extremely affordable (especially for downtown Vancouver) and the fare is all diner (breakfast, burgers, comfort food).
My fried chicken ($11) was excellent. Hot, crispy, not overly salty skin with moist dark meat. Too bad the side of fries was mediocre, and the steamed carrots and peas just sad.
My sister’s ribs ($11) were “fall apart tender” as advertised but it was slathered with a weird tangy, Asian sauce rather than a bold BBQ sauce as we had assumed. The warm biscuit was the best part of this plate.
I would come eat here again if I was in the area, as I appreciate the affordable prices and accessible casual diner, but I wouldn’t drive out of my way to visit.
I wish I needed to bring some meat home because we had fun browsing the counter at the butcher shop. Lots of selection from simple ground beef to more unusual offerings like rabbit.
There’s a huge meat cutter in the back with a sign: “Only authorized staff may use band saw.”
Save On Meats, 43 West Hastings St., Vancouver, (604) 569-3568. Diner open Monday to Saturday 7 a.m.-10 p.m., Sunday 8 a.m.-10 p.m. Butcher shop open Monday to Saturday 10 a.m.-7 p.m., Sunday 10 a.m.-6 p.m.
Gastown Gamble airs Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m. and Fridays at 8 p.m. on OWN Canada.
I was starving by the time I grabbed a late lunch at Nu Greek on Robson. This is from the same owner as fancy restaurants Raincity Grill and C. Nu Greek is not to be confused with Nu (its sit-down restaurant on Granville), or Nu Street (its food trucks), or Nu Greek Broadway. Got that?
Nu Greek on Robson has three high-top tables shoved in the corner so you know few people actually sit down to eat in this tiny storefront. I guess it does a brisk takeout business for the downtown crowd.
I couldn’t figure out what I wanted from the menu” target=”_blank”>menu but the Workout Guy hanging out at the counter insisted that the two-skewer combo was the way to go, and that the Chinese guy at the grill was the “best chef in town.” Ooookay.
I ended up getting the No Wheat Combo ($8.50), which was two skewers, Greek salad, a chickpea and mint salad and a bottle of water. I was worried it wouldn’t be enough, so I got a side of Greek fries too ($4.50).
While I waited, Workout Guy proceeded to tell the next customer the No Wheat Combo was the bomb because he was off rice and bread until he could lose the 25 pounds he gained over the holidays.
When I opened my non-Styrofoam (yay!) container, I was caught off guard by the fresh and flavourful salads. The Greek salad had big chunks of sweet red and yellow pepper, cucumber, pitted olives and a large hunk of feta. The chickpeas had bite still, lightly dressed with mint and olive oil. Very nice.
The marinated lamb and chicken skewers I chose were surprisingly moist. The tzaziki on the side was garlicky but not enough to make my co-workers want to kill me for polluting their workspace.
Well played, Workout Guy.
Nu Greek, 542 Robson St., Vancouver.
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I also bought a coffee and cinnamon bun before work, and then a can of espresso and a chocolate bar on my way home.
So that concludes my five days of #visaeveryday where I used my VISA for all of my small daily purchases to see how my rewards would add up.
I have a cash-back VISA that gives me one per cent back on my net purchases. Since I spent an average of $50 daily on #visaeveryday, I earned a stunning $2.50 over the last five days. If I kept using my VISA on those small purchases all year, I’d get $182.50 back toward my goal of a Maritimes trip.
#visaeveryday has been an interesting exercise. I don’t condone racking up debt for the sake of rewards, but as someone who pays off her credit card bill every month, I think it’s a great incentive.
Now to that Twitter giveaway I promised. I have a $50 pre-paid VISA card to give away to Canadian readers/followers. To enter, tell me on Twitter what your big reward purchase would be from using your VISA points. You must start your Tweet with @ugonnaeatthat and include #visaeveryday. I’ll pick a random winner on Friday morning. Good luck.
Bit of an unexpected busy day being called into work. So I used my VISA to buy second breakfast (good ole A&W), late lunch (curry tonkatsu rice and spicy tuna roll from Ebi Ten) and a treat for the end of the day.
Don’t forget, after five days of #visaeveryday to see how much I’ve earned on my cash-back VISA, I’m giving away a $50 prepaid VISA card via Twitter.
(This is a sponsored post.)
(This is a sponsored post.)
Made only one purchase today for #visaeveryday. We had brunch at the Richmond location of Browns Socialhouse.
Normally, grammatical offences would have knocked this casual dining franchise off my list. First, its name. Shouldn’t it be Brown’s or even Browns’? Socialhouse is not a word. And its noun-verb mixed motto of “Restaurant. Bar. Socialize” is like nails on a chalkboard to me.
Now that you’re fully convinced I’m batty, I will say I was impressed with Browns Socialhouse. (It took a Groupon deal to get me through the doors though.)
We started with one of the better Caesars (1 oz. $4.50) I’ve had in a long time, made with proper horseradish and two salty olives. I was happy to see Redeye on the bar menu.
Browns successfully pulls off twists on the traditional brunch menu. My prosciutto eggs Benedict ($10.95) had two soft poached eggs atop spicy tomato chutney, a smudge of goat cheese, and garlic flatbread. I liked that it wasn’t drowning in cheese on a rock hard English muffin. The side potatoes are nothing special though.
Jason’s corned beef hash ($11.95) had two highlights: the meat was not fatty and the addition of relish added a wink of sweetness.
All their eggs are free-run for that nice bright orange yolk.
H had the appetizer quesadilla ($11.95) which was so good — chicken, jack cheese, sweet green chiles, spicy salsa, homemade guacamole, sour cream — that we ate the rest of what he left.
I wouldn’t hesitate to return for lunch, dinner or drinks. Decor is your standard dark booths/chrome fixtures/funky oversized prints of rhinos/sports on TVs over the bar.
Our server was excellent — and very pretty, as are the rest of the staff. I caught H staring at a curvy blonde waitress in a short skirt. Then I realized he only had eyes for the broom she was wielding. Toddlers are weird.
Browns Socialhouse, Unit 1020-11660 Steveston Hwy., Richmond, B.C., (604) 275-3322. Open Monday 11 a.m.-11 p.m., Tuesday to Friday 11 a.m.-midnight, Saturday 10 a.m.-midnight, Sunday 10 a.m.-11 p.m. Brunch served on weekends until 2 p.m.
Child-friendly notes
Room for strollers: No.
High chairs: Only boosters. Most tables are booths, or bar height. The few regular-height tables have big leather chairs so your own strap-on booster won’t work.
Change table: No.
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Day 2 of using my VISA for daily buys to see how my cash-back rewards add up. According to today’s purchases, I’m all about food (duh) and mundane errands squeezed in before work. I cut new keys ($11.76), bought some shoelaces ($5.59) and got an impromptu boot shine ($9.52).
As usual, I headed to JJ Bean for my second breakfast ($5.95). Their Americano Misto keeps me alive most days. And sometimes with a chocolate croissant for good measure.
For lunch, I finally tried Grounds for Appeal, the hilariously punned cafe in the Law Society of B.C. building. It’s THE go-to place for Indian food for my co-workers. And now I see why.
The cafe makes six curries (four meat and two vegetable choices) every day. I ordered a combo of one meat (lamb) and one veg (dal) for $10.50. It wasn’t until I got back to my desk that I realized how much food was packed into my bag. One container EACH of the lamb curry and the dal, as well as surprisingly fluffy rice with green peas AND a piece of naan bread.
This was amazing homemade Indian. Sauces with depth and flavour. Lentils that had been simmered for hours. I counted about nine huge chunks of tender lamb. I tried to save half of the massive portion to bring home, but I ended up picking at it all afternoon.
Grounds for Appeal also serves standard coffee, baked goods and sandwiches. But why insult your tummy by forgoing the fantastic Indian dishes? Seriously, great food and bang for your buck.
Grounds for Appeal, 845 Cambie St., Vancouver, (604) 681-8558. Open weekdays for breakfast and lunch. Closed weekends.
My wallet is usually stuffed with receipts because I try to use my credit card for almost everything. It’s gotten quite a workout lately after three months of renovations and the associated costs of moving this week. So when VISA asked me to spend up to $50 on “small things” for five days to see how much it adds up in rewards, I was definitely in.
I have a cash-back card, because why shouldn’t my purchases pay me back. Every penny counts right? I usually put any cash-back rewards back into regular household spending. But this year, I’d like to put it towards a return trip to the Maritimes, especially St. Andrews where we got married.
I’ll be blogging about my five days of purchases here and on Twitter using #visaeveryday. At the end, I’ll be giving away a $50 pre-paid VISA card so stay tuned!
It seems I’ve been packing and unpacking endlessly so today I rewarded myself with lunch at the ABC Cafe in Richmond’s Aberdeen Centre mall. This used to be Seventh Heaven but now a new owner and chef are behind the Hong-Kong style menu, plus Chiu Chow dishes.
I got my standard chicken steak with black pepper sauce ($9.95). It came with a soup, bun, rice, and basic steamed veg, plus choice of hot drink (milk tea! Always milk tea). All that as well as pleasant service for a grand total of $13.14.
Then I went to Home Depot and picked up a sparkling new green bin ($33.59) for recycling organics. After that, I went home to unpack some more and program the new thermostat. I lead an exciting life.
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 Sushi Kimura had food blogs and critics buzzing this spring. Chef Itsuroku Kimura moved from L.A. — where he owned and ran four restaurants — to retire in Vancouver for the better air quality. But he got bored of playing golf so he opened Sushi Kimura in a very unlikely spot in East Van.
The cool and relaxing restaurant reflects Kimura’s love of jazz music, which plays in the background. “Sushi that swings” boasts the website. Kimura shows his passion and creativity best through omakase.
I love omakase, which comes from the Japanese for “entrust.” You basically trust the chef to present a creative selection of dishes. It’s not for picky eaters or people in a rush.
Sushi Kimura has the best omakase deal in Vancouver. Where most restaurants start the price points at $60 or $100, Kimura offers the multi-course meal starting at $30 per person. The more you pay, the better quality ingredients get included in your meal. Reservations are recommended especially if your group has special requests (ie, allergies or aversions).
We visited Sushi Kimura for a delicious seven-course lunch in April with Gigi, Kevin and two babies. (Yes, I know that was several months ago.) We decided to splurge on a $40 omakase and told the chef we were pretty adventurous and had no dietary restrictions.
Omakase usually starts with the lightest dish, so our first taste was a salad of arugula and spinach sprinkled with crispy millet (like Rice Krispies), Parmesan, and a light olive oil vinaigrette.
A very creative assortment of palate teasers came next. I tried the most intriguing one first. A shot glass held a raw oyster with sake and mirin, and a raw quail egg on top. Oh my god, it was good. The briny oyster, the potent alcohol, and the egg sliding down all at once made me feel like a samurai warrior.
In contrast, a second oyster on the half-shell was simply drizzled with sesame oil and soy sauce for a daintier taste.
A round of ankimo or monkfish liver pate was topped with a spoonful of berry jam. An interesting combination I’ve never seen before but I felt the sweet jam took away from the creamy Japanese “foie gras.” Monkfish by the way is an ugly mofo.
Rounding out the plate were a salted smelt, a piece of conch (also known as sea snail) rolled in sesame, pickled lotus root and steamed kabocha squash. They didn’t leave much of an impression individually, but presented with the oysters and ankimo, the textures, flavours and colours played well together.
Our third dish was a beautiful surprise of live sea urchin. Chef told us with a grin that the uni was usually reserved for more expensive omakase but because it was fresh that day he wanted to include it in our meal.
You don’t mess with fresh sea urchin (OK, actually their gonads. GONADS!) so the only accessory to this was some olive oil, salt and pepper and a spoon. I enjoyed that the black spiky shell was part of the presentation. This uni is textbook awesome: slightly sweet with a tinge of ocean air; creamy like a just-set pudding; bright orange like the middle of Prairie sunset.
I was still reveling in uni happiness when the sashimi plate arrived: two thick pieces of dark pink bonito tuna, some red snapper, salmon and saba (mackarel). Like others have commented, Sushi Kimura doesn’t excel at perfectly cut sashimi but seriously, as long as it’s fresh and tasty and not six-inches thick, I’m never going to turn down decent fish.
Turning to heavier dishes, spaghetti with crunchy battered soft-shelled crab arrived with a very light tomato sauce. Then a steamed lobster tail with steamed broccoli, cauliflower, snap pea and a wedge of what was either papaya or cantaloupe. Both were tasty and I appreciated the showcasing of its main ingredients but neither held the same wow factor as the earlier starters.
After a bit of a wait, butternut squash soup with garlic toast was served. It was a decent, homemade soup but somewhat odd in that it would not have been out of place in a French or Italian restaurant.
A plate of nigiri ended the main dishes with admiringly different fish than the sashimi: albacore white tuna, toro, Atlantic salmon, and shrimp.
Dessert was green tea ice cream all around our table.
The servers didn’t always explain what was on the plates so the chef was more than happy to call over from behind the sushi counter to tell us. It would be pretty entertaining to sit at the bar for an entire omakase to chat with him.
You can order single items off Sushi Kimura’s regular menu but for a special experience, it’s definitely worth it to try their well-priced omakase.
Sushi Kimura, 3883 Rupert St., Vancouver, (604) 569-2198. Closed Monday and most major holidays. Open Tuesday to Thursday 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m., 5:30-9:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m., 5:30-10 p.m., Sunday 12:30-3:30 p.m., 6-9:30 p.m.
Child-friendly notes
Room for strollers: No.
High chairs: One high chair, two boosters.
Change table: No.
Hi all! Thanks for your entries and answers as to what you’d make with a new food processor. You mentioned a lot of things I didn’t even realize could or should be done with a processor! Shows you how much I still have to learn about cooking time-savers.
The randomly chosen winner of a new KitchenAid food processor is Kim D., who said she would make some pumpkin cheesecake Victor, who would have corn beef parties. Hm. What do you wear to a soirée like that?
And apologies to original winner Kim from California who graciously forgave me because I goofed and overlooked fact winner has to be from Canada.
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