Cafe Medina is the brainchild of staffers from the highly successful sister restaurant, Chambar, located next door. The idea: serve some kick ass, globally influenced, Belgian breakfast in a cool, renovated space on Beatty Street. Cafe Medina is a much welcomed addition to the curiously named Crosstown (who’s actually responsible for naming these areas, anyway?) neighborhood, filling the breakfast void in the area nicely.
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Located on Kingsway in Burnaby and tucked away in a corner is Lao Shan Dong, a noodle house that serves Taiwanese noodle soups with a nice selection of tasty side dishes. Taiwan is known for their beef noodle soups: soups made from beef broth, stewed beef and slow cooked beef tendon and (often) with heavy doses of spicy chili oil. Tre and I have been here before and our experience wasn’t all that memorable, but we decided to give Lao Shan Dong another try in hopes they just had an off day. But in the end, it really comes down to personal preference. Whether Lao Shan Dong is the best for Taiwanese noodle soup in the city — is up for debate.
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I find it interesting how some Chinese restaurants come up with their names. It either sounds completely made up because it doesn’t translate well in English, or the name simply doesn’t meet the food expectations. But at Shanghai Wonderful in Richmond, the food really is — wonderful. Shanghai cuisine has its own unique characteristics. Alcohol is commonly used in cooking seafood and meats, sugar is used to infuse foods and sauces. And salted meats and preserved vegetables are used to spice up dishes. At Shanghai Wonderful, you can taste all these ingredients. The dishes are well executed, savory and simply yummy.
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Located in Vancouver’s thriving Main Street neighborhood, Locus serves up West Coast style dishes. Normally, we associate West Coast style food with local, but unimaginative dishes that are heavy on presentation and light on flavour. But at Locus, it’s all about the food and the flavors. We were seated in front of a fireplace, which was cool. The ambience was moody with a modern grunge feel to it. Imitation wood trees were used as decor throughout. Dark wooden tables, chairs and booths with dark hardwood floor planks added substance to the atmosphere. Techno music played quietly in the background, loud enough to make the place feel alive, but quiet enough to enjoy a conversation.
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(Clockwise from Left to Right: 1. Jonker Street. 2. Laksa. 3. Daily Specials)
Jonker Street Restaurant is named after a famous street in Malacca, Malaysia — a crossroads of cultures where Malay, Chinese and Indian traders exchanged spices and recipes to create unique dishes influenced by all three cultures. Jonker Street can now be found on the edge of Yaletown on Pacific Boulevard, where diners are swept away — if only for a brief moment — from the yapping little dogs and luxury SUVs to the exotic market stalls of Malaysia.
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