Joeys Restaurant

Restaurant franchises are something Michael and I try to avoid, but we've always had a soft spot for Joeys. This weekend we made a short shopping trip to Burnaby and decided to get dinner at Joeys Burnaby located on 1899 Rosser Ave. The restaurant's location was nearby where my aunt lives, so I'd like to give a shout out to her!

The decoration is like any other Joeys located throughout the Vancouver area, although Michael and I thought it was really hard to find the place since it was located adjacent to a main road and tucked upstairs in a building. When we finally found the parking lot there were quite a few additional turns through corridors and a few stairs to climb inside to make it to the actual restaurant. As I said, it's quite hidden.

Joeys Restaurant - beautifully presented Pesto Shrimp Flatbread $14

We started with the Pesto Shrimp Flatbread for $14, which featured mozzarella cheese, sun dried tomatoes, chipotle aioli , and basil. From the sounds of it, I thought there were going to be actual pieces of mozzarella, but when it arrived, I was quite disappointed to see there was just a slight smear of it. Other then my mozzarella catastrophe, the flatbread tasted really good. Filled with flavours, the shrimp was fresh and the chipotle aioli gave it the right amount of heat. I also loved that the flatbread was soft and fluffy.

The delicious taste of Joey's Blackened Basa is always consistent

For entrees, Michael had one of his favourites at Joeys, which is the Blackened Basa, served with a tomato pickled salsa with rice and vegetables for $19.50. Michael said that his fish was very soft and fluffy, crunchy on the outside but melting apart like butter on the inside. It came in two separate fillets, large portions that promise to fill even the hungriest of diners. A bed of rice is laid under the fish to complete the plate. Delicious.

Butter chicken and salad, no thanks on the naan bread

For myself, I chose the Bombay Butter Chicken for $17. One of the reasons I love Joeys is that they offer their menu to diners who are non-meat eaters. Since I was a little sick today and wasn't feeling really meaty, I substituted my chicken for its soy variety. The classic butter chicken dish is usually served with rice, but I also decided to change things up, vying for a tossed salad instead. The butter faux-chicken arrived mixed in with bell peppers which added some colour to the broth; there was a little heat to it but my cold tossed salad really balanced it out. The naan that was served on the side wasn't your familiar soft and fluffy naan though, it came in like nacho texture and it appeared to have chutney baked into it. Why mess with good naan?

Overall the experience in the restaurant I felt was alright, I would give it a fair "meh" for the dining experience. Michael thought the service wasn't that great which I have to agree, but other then that he really liked his food

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Relish Gastropub

Ever since Rodneys Oysters Michael and I have been search for another place that serves raw oysters just as tasty - and cheap. Michael found Relish Gastropub and Bar, which serves a "Buck a Shuck" oysters from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. daily. Relish is located on 888 Nelson St., Michael read around reviews and they didn't sound that bad so he thought we would give it a try.

Pretty generous drinks deals served here daily

Relish seemed to be tucked in pretty well blended in with a bunch of office towers, so you'll really have to look for it. The lounge seemed pretty modern looking, and its modest size made the place look a little more cozy and intimate. One of the highlights is its $3 beer deals for different days of the week, since today was Friday, we each got a sleeve of Kokanee.

Tastefully presented, but a bit small

Michael and I thought the oyster were pretty tasty but were  much smaller then we had expected, which was a little bit disappointing. One thing that bothered Michael and I was that when we slurped the oysters, there was an unappealing crunch to it, I thought it was very sandy but Michael thinks its the shell being chipped from poor shucking. The oysters were served with four house made sauces from hot to mild, our favourite was the relish one, I think it's because it reminded me of Rodneys.

The best part of the meal, in my opinion

We also shared a poutine for $11, they sound like just regular cheese curds, gravy and fries, but the menu description forgot to mention there's quite a bit of heat to the poutine. From first glance, the poutine doesn't look too much, as a matter of fact it didn't look too appetizing. Well, looks can be deceiving, it ended up tasting really good with ooey gooey goodness from the cheese curds and gravy. The hotness of the pepper and chilli flakes did get a little overwhelming at one point though.

Homemade burgery goodness :)

Michael ordered the Mini Beef Sliders $11, which were braised short rib with white cheddar, BBQ sauce, and caramelized onions with aioli. Michael thought it was interesting that instead of using beef patties they used a slice of cut beef and everything including the bun was homemade. It also came with a mini marinara dip that tasted not bad and a mini salad on the side.

I am still undecided about whether I'd come back since I thought the food was pretty mediocre and that this place is definitely not for seafood. Lesson well learned. Michael said he would come back for the beer deals and bar food, but definitely not for their oysters.

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Mazazu Crepe and Ajijiman Hanabi

Mazazu Crepe

Today was our lazy Saturday and we decided to stay local. Since Richmond doesn’t have much of a “downtown” theres no street vendors around the city. So we ended up going to Aberdeen Centre located at 4151 Hazelbridge Way. Aberdeen Centre has one of the best mall food courts compared to the other malls in Richmond. The food court offers from Japanese desserts, teppanyaki, Korean barbeque, and various traditional Chinese and Hong Kong casual dining. 

I paid a visit to the Mazazu Crepe, which serves Japanese style crepes. They offer savoury crepes such as the classic ham and egg or tuna. But today my sweet tooth was tingling and for $3.57 I chose the cinnamon with fresh crème. The crème went really well with the cinnamon and complimented each other. The crème was not overwhelming or heavy. 

Ajijiman Hanabi

Michael also went on the Japanese route, he paid a visit to Ajijiman, which serves Japanese snacks and barbeque goodies.  He had the Grilled Chicken Don for $7.37. which served Chicken lying on a bed of rice complimented with teriyaki sauce and mayonnaise which kicked the rice up a notch. As for the chicken, Michael thought it was cooked to perfected, not bad for something you get at a food court.

The Takoyaki didn’t taste very fresh though. Michael didn’t want to finish it and he had expected it to be much better. The sauce tasted really good though, and the dish was presented very well with six pieces in total. At least it only cost $4.

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