Dine Out Vancouver 2013 – Rocky Mountain Flatbread

Wednesday, January 30th, 2013 :: 9:00 am

Rocky Mountain Flatbread – 1876 W 1st Ave, Vancouver – January 25
Price per person: $18

This restaurant isn’t exactly on top of everyone’s list of Dine Out places, but it did fit the requirement for having a casual environment for good chats and also a budget Dine Out menu with tasty food. I’m sure a lot of people have eaten here before, but for me it was new!

My selection:
Appetizer: Basil Blackberry Salad – Assorted greens, crimini mushrooms, mango & roasted red bell peppers, tossed in a basil & blackberry dressing
Entrée: Naturally Meaty – Organic tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, fresh spinach, spicy certified organic ground beef, Italian sausage, shaved red onions & sliced roma tomatoes. Topped with fresh herbs & asiago cheese
Dessert: Wine-poached BC pear with ice cream

Getting right into the courses, for appetizers, we had a choice between any of the salads they offered or the soup of the day, which was cauliflower. The basil blackberry salad was very tasty, had quite a bit of different vegetables in it, and I liked having the mangos in there. For the main, we had a variety to order from off their dinner menu, then we all shared a slice of different flavours. In the end most of us concluded that the special Farmer’s Market one was the best tasting, as was the Naturally Meaty. The desserts were choice between chocolate brownie, cheesecake, or wine-poached pear with ice cream. The pear was a light one to finish with, though I had hope they left off the orange slice garnishing (as it reminds me of Chinese restaurants…)

Overall I’d give it a 7.5.

Rocky Mountain Flatbread Dineout

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Specials menu

Rocky Mountain Flatbread Menu

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Rocky Mountain Flatbread Oven

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Cauliflower soup

Cauliflower soup

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Basil Blackberry Salad

Basil Blackberry Salad

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Farmer’s Market Pizza

Farmer's Market Pizza

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Country Harvest Pizza

Country Harvest Pizza

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Assorted slices

Assorted Pizzas

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Warm Double Chocolate Brownie with Ice Cream

Chocolate Brownie

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Almost Famous Cheesecake

Almost Famous Cheesecake

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Wine-poached pear with Ice Cream

Wine-poached pear

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Dine Out Vancouver 2013 – Catch 122

Wednesday, January 23rd, 2013 :: 11:23 pm

Catch 122 Cafe & Bistro – 122 West Hastings St, Vancouver – January 22
Price per person: $28

My second Dine Out experience, and this time it was on my birthday! I’ve passed by Catch 122 before but never ate there before. Apparently their brunch and coffee is pretty good, definitely will come back to this part of Gastown to check out their menu next time.

The atmosphere was quite dark overall, except for the pocket of light from the kitchen and back tables. Other than that, it looks like a normal coffee shop by day.

Their bread was what you’d normally get at a French restaurant. For appetizer, I got the Avocado Tequila Sorbet, and a Sorbet it was. I actually didn’t know what to expect but having avocado icy was new but fresh to me. The Prawn bisque with the scallop looked really good to me too. Did not get to taste the ravioli but heard it was good too. Onto the entree – really like how they cooked the trout, it still had a lot of the moisture in it without being overcooked or too dry. What did it for me was the maple butter on the side – absolutely great with the fish. Had a bite of the ribs, a bit drier than previous ones I’ve tasted. For dessert, all I could hear for the sticky toffee pudding was “mmmmm…” (in a good way), and an interesting twist to peanut butter jelly sandwich. Another icy dish (although it does make the meal taste refreshing overall).

My selection:
Appetizer: Avocado Tequila Sorbet, Salmon Tartare – house-made avocado Tequila sorbet
Entrée: Pan-seared Steelhead Trout, Maple Butter – asparagus risotto
Dessert: PBJ ice-cream sandwich – House-made peanut butter ice-cream, raspberry sorbet, chocolate chip cookie

My friends brought a cake for me, and surprised me with a burger-shaped cake. How awesome is that?? For those that are wondering, no, you cannot eat the lettuce, but everything else is edible. From T&T supermarket!

They were quite patient with us throughout the night, and was nice enough to cut the cake in the back for us! Overall, I’d give it a 9.0!

Catch 122 Dineout

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Will definitely need to come back here for brunch and coffee soon!

Catch 122 Dineout

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Their menu was different – came in filing folders

Catch 122 Dineout Menu

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Catch 122 Dineout Bread

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Prawn bisque – with seared scallop

Prawn bisque

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Duck confit ravioli – house-made duck confit ravioli, ricotta, sage butter

Duck confit ravioli

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Avocado Tequila Sorbet, Salmon Tartare

Avocado Tequila Sorbet, Salmon Tartare

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Beef side ribs – smoked and braised in house-made barbecue sauce, bone marrow mashed potato

Beef side ribs

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Pan-seared Steelhead Trout

Pan-seared Steelhead Trout

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Sticky toffee pudding – hazelnut Baileys cream

Sticky toffee pudding

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PBJ ice-cream sandwich

PBJ ice-cream sandwich

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Hamburger birthday cake!

Hamburger Cake

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Great dineout thanks to my awesome friends :)

Catch 122 Dineout

Dine Out Vancouver 2013 – Boathouse Kitsilano

Monday, January 21st, 2013 :: 11:21 pm

The Boathouse Restaurant – 1305 Arbutus St, Vancouver – January 21
Price per person: $28

Here we go, my first dine out of the year! Been going at this for a number of years now, if you want to see the previous restaurants, just hit up the search at the top of the page!

Brought my parents here on this cold foggy day in Vancouver. Must’ve been a slow Monday night, when we got there earlier on in the evening there wasn’t too busy, but filled up nicely as the night went on. Atmosphere wise, it was pretty good.

Those that have been reading my food posts for a while will know that I like to point out the bread that’s served even before the meal. To me, it’s the first thing you’re eating when you get there, more likely than not you’re hungry/starving. So of course it plays a part in your first impression of a restaurant. We got their sourdough – it was nice and warm, toasty on the outside and soft on the inside (with some soft butter on the side). Perfecto, we’re off to a good start!

My selection:
Appetizer: Calamari
Entrée: Thai Lobster & Prawn Bowl – 4 oz. lobster tail & a skewer of prawns with vegetables, in a green curry over jasmine rice
Dessert: Molten Chocolate Brownie with vanilla gelato

The Calamari for appetizer was just ok for me, but the Lobster Bisque was really good. The Lobster portion was quite decent, along with the shrimp skewers, both had a good grilled taste to it. Rice was cooked Thai style, which was quite delicious. I was quite surprised at the size of the dish and was really full by the end of the course. I had a bit of the sirloin (not pictured), and it was cooked very well, right on the requested Medium (along with a big portion of mashed potatoes). For dessert, both required you to have quite a sweet tooth (thankfully I do!). Brownie was just as you’d expect it (but nicely done) as was the Mocha Mud Pie. Tasty finish!

I’d say, one of the “stuffed” experiences I’ve had for a Dine Out. Overall, I’d give it a 8.5!

(warning, food may appear better in photos!)

Boathouse Dine Out Menu

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Boathouse Dine Out

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Boathouse Dine Out

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The “toasty on the outside, soft on the inside” bread I was talking about

Boathouse Dine Out Bread

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Lobster Bisque

Lobster Bisque

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Calamari

Calamari

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Thai Lobster & Prawn Bowl

Thai Lobster & Prawn Bowl

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Molten Chocolate Brownie with vanilla gelato

Molten Chocolate Brownie

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Mocha Mud Pie with chocolate ganache & maple almonds

Mocha Mud Pie with chocolate

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Rainy Gastown

Monday, January 7th, 2013 :: 12:33 am

Just a normal day in Gastown. Did you know that the bricks on the roads were all transported on ships from China back in the days?

Gastown Water St

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Gastown Steam Clock

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Gastown Lamplighter

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Hidden gem of Gastown

Gaoler's Mews

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That’s a giant clothespin!

Big Clothespin

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Gastown Water St

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