Fast Food Poutine: New York Fries

A couple weeks ago, just after another interview, I treated myself and my driver (my stepsister, thank you Sophia!) to some yummy junk food. New York Fries, which is an entirely Canadian company is a fast food place you can find in just about every food court. I used to work there so I know too much and they have this three step process to cook their fries. It's not that great. I often feel like I have this grainy-sandy feeling in the back of my throat after I eat there but that might just be me because they are popular and everybody likes em.

It always looks good and there's nothing to complain about with that gravy and cheese though! I think their other versions of fry toppings (The Works esp!) are more a reason to go than their classic poutine.

Fast Food Poutines

• SFU Mackenzie Cafe
• A&W
• Roo's Pub
• New York Fries

Check out the rest here:  Vancouver Poutine

POUTINE: Firefighter's Club

IT HAS BEEN SO LONG which is really a good thing because I don't have anywhere to work out anymore D:

BUT. You can't keep me away forever. Branden's parents invited us to go with them and his grandparents for Mother's Day. It is his Grandma and Grandad's favourite place to go and they have their usual spot and their usual meal and it's really cute teehee.

I ordered the Firefighter's poutine (duh!). It was a pulled pork poutine and the fries were AMAZING. The cheese curds were good and the gravy was too. Nothing out of the ordinary but ordinary is tempered by the default awesome for poutine, right? ;D But the fries man, they were super good.

Oh no, I have to rank this now, don't I! I forgot about that apart haha... Let's see...

I have a choice here. I think this was actually good enough to not be considered just "fast food" like Roo's Pub... (Sorry Roo's).

Now looking at this list... It's somewhere on par with Club Ilia and Spud Shack... I think...

1. Dunn's Famous
2. Preston's
3. Brado Pizza
4. Mean Poutine
5. Smoke's Poutinerie
6. Zako's Deli
7. The Kaboom Box
8. Club Ilia
9. Firefighter's Club
10. The Spud Shack
11. Belgian Fries
12. Frenchies
13. La Poutinerie
14. Fritz
15. La Belle Patate
16. The Cambie
17. The Metropole Community Pub
18. Dougie Dog

The fries were amazingly good, much better than Spud Shack's, but Club Ilia's gravy and beef were a bit better. It's also got a couple other locations, check out their website!

In case you're interested, here's the address: 6515 Bonsor Ave, Burnaby, BC V5H 3E8

Ding Hao Taiwanese Noodle House and Bubble Tea

Hi everyone! I've been sitting on this post for a while, I hope you enjoy <3

Okay, so if you're local, I totally have a new place for you to try in Coquitlam (oh god I just gave away my location...) Eh. Over the summer one of my friends did me a huge favour by coming out to my area for hangouts (HI CAITLYN) and in return I decided to buy her lunch. BUT she's a vegetarian, so I had to do some googling.

One of the first and only things that came up were Ding Hao Taiwanese Noodle House and Bubble Tea. Apparently they're one of few places in the area that make noodles in the traditional Taiwanese way. I don't know what that means but I figured it would be something like pho, but new. The first time I went, I got crispy chicken and clear noodle soup or something like this. The soup itself was vegetarian I think and you can see some leafy greens and onions floating around in there. The noodles were amazing. They're really doughy and the whole meal was filling. My crispy chicken came on the side and was kind of too much food, hah.

The next time I went my friend (shoutouts to Ronak!) got the noodle in sesame sauce with cucumber, which is also a vegetarian dish (where did you all come from??).

And that's actually the end of this story because I'm pretty addicted to this. The sesame sauce is extremely rich, and the first time I had it I had a hard time finishing it (but by next week I was craving it again). I think the trick is to mix the cucumber in so that if you're feeling overwhelmed you have some of that and you're ready to go again.

Their bubble tea is fabulous too! (And HUGE)

In conclusion, you should find your local Taiwanese Noodle House and try some new things! Let me know what else on the menu I should try! :)

Poutine: Smoke's Poutinerie

I'm going to end this year with my favourite food: poutine! I finally got around to trying Smoke's Poutinerie, which is just past Smithe on Granville street in downtown Vancouver. The prices were average (about $8), all poutine was one size and there is a TON of variety!

I opted for the traditional, but some of my friends got a little more adventurous! Hopefully I remember all the names...

Traditional

Chicken Chili

Country Style

Double Pork

That same week I went again and tried the Double Pork, which includes bacon and pulled pork. The menu is quite extensive and though the boxes appear small when you get them, it is definitely a LOT of food!

Now for the breakdown on the traditional... The gravy was pretty good, but nothing special and the cheese was squeaky, though also nothing special. The fries were also average and got soggy pretty fast. The double pork one was considerably better, though that might just be because of bacon... and pulled pork.

As it stands, I think I have to give some bonus points for the variety which puts it right...

1. Dunn's Famous
2. Preston's
3. Brado Pizza
4. Mean Poutine
5. Smoke's Poutinerie
6. Zako's Deli
7. The Kaboom Box
8. Club Ilia
9. The Spud Shack
10. Belgian Fries
11. Frenchies
12. La Poutinerie
13. Fritz
14. La Belle Patate
15. The Cambie
16. The Metropole Community Pub
17. Dougie Dog

I had to think really hard about how it stacked against Mean Poutine, but nothing beats those batter Costco-style fries.

Have you guys been to Smoke's before? Where would you rank it?

(Happy new year by the way! See you next year!)

Poutine: The Spud Shack

Well it has been a long time since I had one of these, hasn't it!? My glorious friend Paul graciously introduced me to this fantastic little place, right by New Westminster skytrain station and it was really good! I wish I'd gotten better photos.

I got a medium for $7, and they also serve beer and other things. I forgot to get a photo of the menu! Sorry!

The gravy was really good and the cheese was actually squeaky! Personally, I don't put a lot of weight on squeaky cheese but I know some people want to know things like that. I actually like stronger tasting cheese, honestly, and it wasn't that melty despite the hot, delicious gravy. The fries were also very light and crispy, which was awesome.

I got the regular poutine, but for all you veggies out there, there is a vegan option and that's pretty cool. I might go back to try that one.

SO, how does this stack up?

1. Dunn's Famous
2. Preston's
3. Brado Pizza
4. Mean Poutine
5. Zako's Deli
6. The Kaboom Box
7. Club Ilia
8. Spud Shack
9. Belgian Fries
10. Frenchies
11. La Poutinerie
12. Fritz
13. La Belle Patate
14. The Cambie
15. The Metropole Community Pub
16. Dougie Dog

That's not very high, is it? D: It was really really good though. The problem is,  I remember those other ones being better somehow. This definitely beat the Belgian though, which had great cheese, but watery gravy.

Poutine: Club Ilia

SFU, where I just graduated from, finally got a fancier dining establishment to open up there which is where I found myself when I went up to help my friend invigilate the midterm for the class she's teaching (I have really cool friends <3). I saw poutine on the menu and you know how it is...

We split it between us so the photos shown are half the amount you get. Also this was a beef poutine.

The gravy and the beef were freaking delicious, and the fries were amazing! The cheese was good but it wasn't anything special. For the $12 or whatever the full size came to, this was a good meal.

For its ranking, it fits right in above Belgian Fries. Club Ilia's poutine was of much higher quality in my opinion, and omg those fries.

1. Dunn's Famous
2. Preston's
3. Brado Pizza
4. Mean Poutine
5. Zako's Deli
6. The Kaboom Box
7. Club Ilia
8. Belgian Fries
9. Frenchies
10. La Poutinerie
11. Fritz
12. La Belle Patate
13. The Cambie
14. The Metropole Community Pub
15. Dougie Dog

Don't forget the full list is HERE.

Have you been following my poutine adventures? Which one looks the best so far?

Poutine: The Metropole Community Pub

Last Saturday I went out to a place called The Metropole Community Pub on 320 Abbott in Gastown (the touristy part of downtown Vancouver). Poutine was on the menu for $6 so I dove right in.

The fries here were really good and so was the gravy. The cheese didn't taste like anything special but it was perfectly melty. This one was a lot smaller than The Cambie's but it was the same price. Because of the enormous size difference, I'm gonna have to put it under the Cambie.

1. Dunn's Famous
2. Preston's
3. Brado Pizza
4. Mean Poutine
5. Zako's Deli
6. The Kaboom Box
7. Belgian Fries
8. Frenchies
9. La Poutinerie
10. Fritz
11. La Belle Patate
12. The Cambie
13. The Metropole Community Pub
14. Dougie Dog

The full list here.

Poutine: The Cambie

I have not been out for a long time! Not for me anyway. On Wednesday the 12th, I walked the stage for my graduation from my Bachelor's of Science degree =3 I'm a biologist now! An unemployed one, but it happened. My friends and I went out after to celebrate being graduated and mostly unemployed.

The Cambie is on 300 Cambie St (SURPRISE) in Vancouver. They serve food nice and late so it's a great place to stay at and have a drink. For the record, I had a Bazooka Joe, my first tequila shot, and I think a velociraptor (with pineapple juice chase). And a long island iced tea. It was fun!

That second photo is so you know just how big this thing was. For $7 +tax that's pretty good!

This was the "traditional poutine" but they had other kinds. As poutines go, it was alright. There was nothing special about it and they tried to add spices. I recommend that if you want a spiced poutine you head over to Zako's Deli. Looking at my list here, all the other poutines had something special about them. This one's on par with Dougie Dog which is not to say that it's bad, not at all! It was just regular. If you're looking for some eats in the night, or someplace where you can drink and eat and talk, take your friends to the Cambie. I'm gonna put it above Dougie Dog, because at a base price of $7, this is definitely bigger. Three of us shared it.

1. Dunn's Famous
2. Preston's
3. Brado Pizza
4. Mean Poutine
5. Zako's Deli
6. The Kaboom Box
7. Belgian Fries
8. Frenchies
9. La Poutinerie
10. Fritz
11. La Belle Patate
12. The Cambie
13. Dougie Dog

The full list here.

Cuba Nails #4: Refreshing! (but fail)

Keeping hydrated on the beach was a big thing! It was an open bar but sometimes you just need something REFRESHING. This guy had a little stand a little ways back and for one peso he'd chop the top off a coconut and stick a straw in it =3

Not the coconuts that you're used to seeing but look how HUGE they are!

I tried for the traditional brown coconut type. I started with Joe Mocha. Because I wanted it to look fuzzy I thought one coat of Zoya Pixie Dust Godiva would do it.

 It didn't quite work out. I think next time I'd try bar glitter or a fan brush.

Oh well. I thought I could finish it up with a white french tip to represent the delicious crisp white flesh =3 I used Julep Kate. Not the greatest but it did the trick.

It could have been much worse but I definitely didn't do Cuba what it's worth. Oh well. Have you guys tried coconut? (Honestly, it wasn't that great but it was refreshing.)

BAKING: Angelfood confetti cupcakes with Strawberry Whip Icing

First, I'd like to say I found the first bug in the watermark program: it doesn't mark my non-nail pics! IT KNOWS SOMEHOW! *cough* Anyway, the boy will get to this ASAP as I will pester him.

Okay, to post. It was my friend's kids' birthday party(ies?) and being socialized little girls, their favourite colour is PINK. Last year we made fantastic angelfood cake cupcakes with strawberry buttercream icing but hey, this year we have Gramma's vanilla whip icing which means we get to experiment! We were a little leery since the chocolating of the recipe didn't turn out nicely, but this isn't a dry ingredient so we dove right in after a bit of thought!

This was lots of fun. We modified the recipe a bit to avoid adding lots of fluid via pureed strawberries. So from before the original recipe was:

Here's what you'll need:
5TBSP Flour
1CUP Milk
1CUP Butter
1CUP White Sugar
1TSP Vanilla

We modified this by using only half the milk (0.5CUP Milk) and adding 0.75CUP pureed strawberries. Our first step came out MUCH more dense and gluey which was to expected.

(Full instructions for this recipe here - nothing was changed, only ingredient measures as noted above)

Cupcakes were made with Betty Crocker Angelfood confetti cake.

Angelfood cake cupcakes!

 I forgot how marshmallow-y they are pre-baking! Teehee~ They poofled up nicely =)

I didn't get a photo of our lumpy glue paste but it was extremely relieving when we added the strawberries and the icing whipped up just like there were none! These next two pics is where I try to show you the pretty pink it became but alas, kitchen lighting was not my friend.

That's okay though, because you can see it in the next photo!

This icing is PERFECT for piping! Lookit my pretty lines =D If I'd had the patience I would have flowered the whole thing xD As it were, Branden covered up the middle with chopped strawberries, which is where the rest of our $3.98 package went. I think they worked out quite nicely!

These tasted absolutely amazing! You guys need to try this icing recipe and it's extremely pliable! Tell me what you put in it! Better yet, tell me what I should put in it! I'm already thinking of redoing my mango-coconut devilfood cupcakes with this icing instead of buttercream. What do you think?

Fast Food Poutine: Roo's Pub

I talk about Vancouver a lot, but in reality, I live in a suburb about an hour's drive away called Coquitlam. There's not a whole lot to do here but we do have some things. One of them being Roo's Pub (2962 Christmas Way). The best thing about them is their student night with the "Douglas College Burger" - Douglas College being the local one.

For $5 you get a huge burger and for an extra dollar or two, you can make the side of fries poutine!

And here's the burger and fries (a different time)

NOMS!

All in all, it wasn't bad poutine. It was pretty good actually, but nothing special as compared to some of the other ones I've eaten (right?). If you're just craving some, Roo's is a good place for you to go if you're in the area =)

Click here for the full list! <3

Check out Roo's website too!

PS: In five days, I'll be bald! If you've got a little bit of extra moolah, consider sending it to BC Children's Hospital via moi! =D

Baking: Cupcakes with Vanilla Whip Icing

Hello again everyone! I have a sweet treat for you today! This is a recipe from Branden's Gramma for Vanilla Icing that is a little bit whipped cream like, and a little bit ice cream like. It is FANTASTIC, to say the least, and versatile.

Here's what you'll need:
5TBSP Flour
1CUP Milk
1CUP Butter
1CUP White Sugar
1TSP Vanilla

(Notice: NO Icing sugar involved!)

Alright, now for instructions...

1. Cook flour and milk until thick (approximately 6 minutes)

This is what it becomes. It looks like PASTE. Gross =P You have to let it cool until it's cold!
3. Cream together sugar and butter and vanilla, add it to the flour mixture and then BEAT IT TO ALL HELL - until it's creamy.

It will stand up like whipped cream when it's done, but until then it will look rather curdly. You can add chocolate (we found a 1/3CUP works well.

It makes quite a bit too! Enough for a full layer cake icing, sides and filling, or 24 well iced cupcakes ;)

Take a look!

Vanilla icing on Betty Crocker devil's food cake

With sprinkles!

=D They went pretty fast!

That last picture has the Betty Crocker's devil's food cake with vanilla icing and Betty Crocker French vanilla with vanilla icing (+1/3CUP Cocoa to make it chocolate)! It turned out nice! For whatever reason the chocolate one was lumpy even before we added the chocolate but they were still delicious. And rainbow sprinkles =D

You guys should try this recipe and let me know how it worked out for you! You know it'll be good, it's a GRAMMA RECIPE!

Poutine: The Kaboom Box

Food truck Wednesday happened at SFU last week!! Guess what I found?

THE FREAKING KABOOM BOX! The last two or three times I've tried to find them and eat, they'd run out or been closed and I had been left sad (and in the rain, thanks Vancouver). BUT NOW...

Hells yea, b*tches! And it's vegetarian! I didn't even know! I LOVE MUSHROOMS. (It came to $6.50 after tax.)

Mushroom gravy is the best guys. Seriously. It is AWESOME. And the cheese was really good stuff. I wish there was more (not that they skimped, no way). On top of that, these fries are AWESOME. They're better than they look and they look pretty good at that!

You're lucky I managed to pause to get a pic halfway through. And Kaboom box has heavy duty biodegradable forks! The entire franchise is impressive and I am definitely up for going back.

Now where does it rank? Hmmm...

1. Dunn's Famous
2. Preston's
3. Brado Pizza
4. Mean Poutine
5. Zako's Deli
6. The Kaboom Box
7. Belgian Fries
8. Frenchies
9. La Poutinerie
10. Fritz
11. La Belle Patate
12. Dougie Dog

Click here for the full list <3

The Kaboom Box had WAY better fries than Belgian, but it was not as filling or enormous as Zako's Deli. It earned its place next to the greats though, and I definitely recommend it! Any of you tried anything good lately?

Fast Food Poutine: A-ampersand-W

(Note: the title looks like that because "&" isn't allowed in the box... lame)

Herro!! I hope you guys are ready for some greasy good because A&W put out their wonderful new coupons and they included (OMG) POUTINE! My friend had some bad news, so we staged a kidnapping and snoped her right out from coffee with her mother ;)

As you can see, it came in that generic fast food container but dude, this is one of the better ones! The gravy is amazing! It tasted like it could be chicken gravy, and the cheese curds were the real thing (I got so sick after - I'm lactose intolerant, it's how I tell xP). Somehow, the fries even stayed crispy even after a bit of time soaking in that gravy! Me and my posse were totally impressed... Check us out ;)

$5 coupon ;)

BEST FWIENDS FOR EVAR.

What's your favourite fast food poutine? What should I try next?