Teddy Rose Book Reviews Plus More


Apr 15

19

Restaurant Review/ Grand Opening: The Park at Graze, Vancouver, BC Canada

Posted by Teddyrose@1 on April 19, 2015
Posted in Vegan Restaurants  | Tagged With: , | 9 Comments

GrazeOur favorite vegan restaurant in Vancouver is ‘Graze’.  So when Michael Lyons, the owner told us he was going to open up a new, more laid back restaurant up stairs, we could hardly wait.  He did crowd funding with “Fundrazr” and we even contributed.  So, we were invited to the grand opening, which was on April 11th.

Mike’s vision was a year round summer theme.  Like an indoor park.  When you first walk in, you see a food truck.  There is a place with pillows and blankets on Astroturf and wall painted like a meadow.  There is a wall to wall ceiling height movie screen with a beach scene.  I could watch the waves lap back and forth against the sand for hours.  There was a beach bar and a dock with heavy beach chairs that lean back.  There were also picnic tables in the middle. Hokey? Yes, a bit, but fun!

We decided on the beach chairs.  We got drinks at the bar and then “beached” ourselves on the dock. By the time we diced to place our food order at the truck, the place was packed, I would say over capacity.  The food took an extremely long time to come out.  However, we were enjoying our selves anyway.  It was also the grand opening, like a dry run, so to speak, so we didn’t expect the service to be fast.  However, the servers were all super nice, just like the servers in Graze.

Once the food came out, we did enjoy it.  The menu for the food truck will change to differentGraze Burger themes.  Tonight we tried the veggie burger, Buffalo wings, fries, coleslaw, potato salad, and collard greens.  There was also BBQ seitan which, looked good but we had too much food.  My favorite was the veggie burger that has a smoky flavor but all the food was really fresh and good.  Something to be expected from the sister restaurant to Graze.

The collard greens were different than what you would expect as they were pickled.  I am guessing the chef at Graze had a hand in that because she likes to pickle.  I am totally addicted to her pickled green beans and buy them by the jar full.  They are crisp with a smoked flavor.

The new restaurant is still a work in progress.  The stairway needs lighting and there are some wires hanging, etc.  However, I do recommend you stop on by.  We will certainly be going there to eat frequently.  I am looking forward to see what other food themes they come up with for the rotating menu.  Mike mentioned, Mexican, Jamaican, and Carnival.  I hope there isn’t cotton candy with the carnival theme, even the sight of it is a bit nauseating to me.  LOL!

4/5

Apr 15

18

Restaurant Review: Fynfood In Vancouver, BC Canada On Robson Street

Posted by Teddyrose@1 on April 18, 2015
Posted in Restaurant • Vegan • Vegan Restaurants  | Tagged With: | 2 Comments

FynfoodWe bought the Groupon. As vegans, we see it as our duty to try new vegan restaurants. Burgers were mentioned on the Groupon but they didn’t have burgers. So we settled for a wrap each, a soup, and desert. Drinks were included so I asked the server/casher/food preparer if any of the juices were fresh squeezed. The server said yes, the orange juice, so we ordered that. Soon after, the server came out and told us she only had one wrap left so we ended up with one wrap and one sandwich.

The server brought out the soup first. It tasted just like Cambells Vegetarian Vegetable with a lot of extra oil. I would be willing to bet it was from a can. The sandwich and wrap were unmemorable and the so called “fresh squeezed orange juice” tasted like a cross between Tang and Cool-aid. I mentioned the orange juice to the server and she said that a place close by squeezes it for them but it is fresh. Well, I was not born yesterday, I know what orange juice tastes like, it was not orange juice. I would have preferred orange juice from concentrate to this stuff!

The cheesecake was fair. The actual cheese cake part showed promise but the strawberry jam topping was well, strawberry jam. Nothing special. If I were offered a free meal there, I would not accept it.

I should also mention that it only had two-two person tables inside. I did hear the server say that there are tables in the mall part.

Robson Street is the highest traffic Street in Vancouver with both cars and pedestrians.  It is a “must shop” street for tourists and has thousands of restaurants.  I recommend you walk right on by this one.

2/5

Apr 13

21

Restaurant Review: Plum Bistro in Seattle, WA

Posted by Teddyrose@1 on April 21, 2013
Posted in Seattle WA • Vegan Restaurants  | 4 Comments

We were in Seattle for a couple days and as always, scouted out vegan restaurants on the web before going.  The one we were most looking forward to was Plum Bistro and it did not disappoint!  Our waiter, Will was very attentive.  We arrived early, because they don’t take reservations for less than 6 people. 

  It was still Happy Hour, so we got a 12oz. beer for $5.  Coming from Canada, that is a bargain.  The prices are a bit on the high side for the mains but the meal was so good.  My husband and I are middle aged, so appetites aren’t what they use to be, so we often split meals.  We had the ravioli, stuffed with vegan ricotta.  That was the best vegan ricotta and ravioli we have ever had! 

 I have to say I expected more than 4 ravioli total but they were big.  I would have preferred 6 for three each but know 4 would have been too many for me. Especially since I asked to see the desert menu first, my habit.  So with room for desert, we shared the chocolate hazelnut beignets.  To say that was the best chocolate desert I ever had, is an understatement!  It actually brought tears to my eyes!

Thanks to Will and Plum for the memorable meal we will be back!

The food and service was 5 star but because of the pricing, I took a star off.  We didn’t expect it to be cheap but the portions should either be a bit bigger or the pasta should be under $20.
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