Las Vegas!! ~ Photo-log

Aria Resort & Casino

3730 South Las Vegas Boulevard

Las Vegas, NV

 

Viva Las Vegas!! W and I escaped the cold and rainy weather and spent a few days in Las Vegas doing what I would love to do everyday: sleep, eat, visit fun or scenic places/lounge in the hot tub/not have to clean up after myself, eat some more, and sleep some more. LOL!!

 

Our flight was through West Jet and I chose them because they offered flights that made the most time out my valuable vacation (morning flight to LAS, late night flight back to YVR)

I had my heart set on living at Aria because a few of our friends also went there and said it was a really good hotel. Aria just opened in December of 2009 so it's one of the newest hotels on the strip! Its contemporary design and style makes it look more sleek and modern compared to its neighbours that have a more European, elegant, and lavish look. Speaking of neighbours, I thought Aria's location was not too bad! It's part of the development called City Center which includes the Vdara hotel, The Cosmopolitan hotel, Mandarin Oriental hotel, The Harmon hotel (contruction halted due to deficiencies in the structure...it may be demolished and rebuilt), The Veer residential towers, and the Crystals (a super expensive, high-end retail mall). City Center itself is nestled between Monte Carlo hotel and Bellagio and there is also a tram that runs between these 3 places! Quite convenient!

 

Aria's hotel lobby was tall and spacious! The ceiling was decked out in an autumn theme when we arrived. 

 

Then, after the American Thanksgiving, its ceiling suddenly transformed to a Christmas theme!!

 

According to Aria's website, their rooms average around 520 square feet. Some other hotels boast larger rooms. I thought it was quite spacious for us. There's also a large floor-to-ceiling window that offers a corner view (which apparently every room has). Luckily, we were facing the strip so we had a pretty nice view; but not nice enough because we were only on the 9th floor....not high enough for a GREAT view =P

 

One of Aria's selling feature is that there is a touchscreen console to control every electronic/electrical item in the room. So, you can turn off the lights, turn on the tv, and open or close the curtains with the touch of your finger all without moving about. It was tricky to navigate the console at first (I kept turning off all the lights and closing the curtains at the same time when I just wanted to close one darn lamp!) but it's quite handy at night when you want to shut everything off and go to sleep without leaving the bed. Don't worry, there are also individual switches for these things if you aren't very electronic-savvy.

I liked how each room has a good-sized foyer leading into the bedroom. It feels like walking into an apartment rather than a cramped hotel room.

Overall, I thought Aria was a great place to stay on the strip! It's a quick walk to access the tram to Bellagio and the newly built overpasses from City Center to the strip makes it easy to go to other places on the boulevard. If you are interested, I've included some tips and facts to help you determine if Aria is your hotel of choice when you visit Las Vegas.

- There is a $25 resort fee for each night you stay. This fee ensures your access to the gym, pool, business center and their wifi network but it's a scam because you can access their wifi for free!!! There's no password or anything =P

- There is no coffee maker in the hotel room. If you can't live without coffee in the morning, you'll either have to go out and buy a cuppa or bring your own coffee maker or electric kettle (we bought our own electric kettle)

- DO NOT TOUCH the mini fridge and snack tray as it is weighted. Even if you move or pick up something and put it back in its original place, the sensors will trigger and think you have taken it. Then they will charge you a whopping fee.

- The mattress is very pillowy soft. If that's not your sleeping style, ask housekeeping to help you flip it over because apparently the other side is harder. I have not tried this but I've heard other people that have done it.

- Airport shuttle drop-off and pick-up is located in their underground parking garage so if you are travelling to the hotel this way, unfortunately, you can't make a grand entrance at the front.

- The main floors have a strong vanilla scent wafting about which I think is to help mask the cigarette odours. It's personal preference whether you like the scent or not but I found it disgustingly sweet. But I guess it's better than breathing in the actual cigarette smoke.

Cumpari's Gelato & Cafe

535 North Road
Coquitlam, BC

It was another girls' hang out! We went to Cumpari's for some desserts and girl talk. Despite the lack of places for desserts in the Tri-Cities area, this was only my second time here. I guess I've always ventured out to downtown for my desserts.

 

Cumpari's is a pretty spacious and large cafe with a good selection of gelato and cakes, and they also have some panini sandwiches as daily specials; however, be warned: their items are quite expensive for this area (probably due to lack of competition, they are able to set their prices this high?). They have additional seating on the second floor but it was closed off when we were there. 

 

Regular-sized coffee

I ordered a regular coffee to go with the sweets. Cream and sugar was available on the side. Their coffee was actually not too bad.

We ordered 3 cakes to share between the 5 of us. Ok, they were pretty big slices so perhaps it justifies the high prices...

Pistachio cake

I am not a big fan of pistachio so I only ate a few bites of this cake. I couldn't really detect much pistachio flavour but the cake was moist with the creamy layers in between.

Ferrero Rocher cake

I chose the Ferrero Rocher cake since I wanted something chocolatey. I thought this was a pretty good cake. The cake part was meh (like regular chocolate cake) but the dense fudgy layer was rich with chocolatey hazelnutty goodness, albeit a little too sweet. The little crispy balls on the outside provided a bit of texture to the cake.

Mango Greek Yogurt cake

This cake had layers of sponge cake sandwiched between another 2 layers of light and tangy mousse, then topped with a mango flavoured jelly. It was actually quite refreshing because the mousse was airy and not very sweet. The mango jelly provided most of the sweetness. This one seemed like the healthiest cake out of the 3 haha...

If I was craving for desserts, Cumpari's still wouldn't be one of my choices but for a local place to hang out over some drinks and sweets, it's still not a bad place to go.

The Coffee Bun

1011-1163 Pinetree Way
Coquitlam, BC
(Henderson Place, facing Lincoln Ave.)

The Coffee Bun is a bakery and cafe that offers their special UFO-shaped baked bun, some desserts, as well as a variety of coffee (they serve Kicking Horse coffee) and teas. The original store is located in North Vancouver and their second store opened up in Henderson mall a while ago.

I've been meaning to try this place but there's always something else that pulls me away. I guess it's some sort of vibe that the mall emits that makes people divert away haha... The locals know what I'm talking about. This mall is like a mini ghost town! There are more vacant shops than there are tenants! Anyway.

On a sunny but chilly weekend, my sis and I wanted to have something to warm up after a walk in the park with my niece. Since we were close by, my sis suggested popping into The Coffee Bun. I was quite surprised that the cafe was filled with people! There were some teens hanging out and some middle-aged ladies having tea and chatting. We opted to buy the buns home to eat. I also bought a cup of green tea. They have fruit teas and herbal teas but I just picked a green tea from a tea bag.

Red bean coffee bun

As the buns cooled off a bit during the car ride home, I re-heated them in a toaster oven. It helped crisp up the topping again. The buns reminded me of the Hong Kong style bun "Mexican bun" which also had a smooth, crumbly and sweet top. The red bean one had an adequate amount of sweetened red beans inside. The beans were soft but still retained its round shape. I found this bun a little too sweet for my liking.

Vanilla custard coffee bun

I liked the vanilla custard bun more. The filling was smooth and not too sweet with hints of vanilla flavour. It gave the bun a more light and airy feeling. My sis liked the red bean one more though.

I would like to go back to The Coffee Bun again and try their other flavours (they have chocolate, cinnamon, cream cheese, as well as savoury ones like garlic and coffee bun sandwiches). However...it'll be hard to resist those vibes emitting from the mall!!

Sushi K Kamizato

Suite 2105 - 2850 Shaughnessy Street

Port Coquitlam, BC

 

I really have to thank all the local food bloggers as they are my source on finding new restaurants. On one particular blog, I read about a newly opened Japanese restaurant located in Poco and was intrigued by their menu. So, I gathered up my sis, my bro-in-law and W to check it out!

 

It's a rather small restaurant seating only about 20-25 people. Reservations are highly recommended if you have a large party. 

 

Spinach Gomae

Fresh spinach leaves tossed in a light soy sauce and sprinkled with crushed sesame seeds

We started off with the spinach gomae. This didn't look like a typical gomae! Rather than blanched spinach, the greens here were left uncooked and  lightly tossed in a soy sauce and sprinkled with sesame seeds. I quite liked this version as it wasn't very heavy.

Ocean Wiser

Raw ebi (shrimp), salmon belly, cucumbers, topped with salmon and avocado and drizzled with black sesame, green onions and their special sauce

This was one of their creative rolls. Even though it was busy-looking, the whole package was well made and it was really tasty! The shrimp was a little lost amidst the other fillings though. I'm not sure what their special sauce was but it tasted like a really light soy sauce. I'm actually quite fond of the way they do their rolls because it's easy to pick up and eat and they are not slathered with sauces that overwhelm the ingredients. Some places have ginormous rolls that are cut really thin so everything falls apart when you pick up. These were well made and everything was fresh.

House Roll

Imitation crab meat, salmon, tuna topped with a zesty mayo sauce that has been torched

I am so accustomed to house rolls being these massive rolls with everything but the kitchen sink stuffed inside. This one surprised me a bit but in a good way haha. For one, it's small enough to pop the whole thing in my mouth (which, to me, seems to be more traditional) and two, there was just a thin layer of mayo on top which provided the right amount of flavour and kick to the roll. 

Tako Wasabi

Marinated chopped octopus and wasabi stems(?)

Halfway through the meal, the lady of the restaurant bestowed upon us a complimentary appetizer!! She apologized and said that this was to make up for the long wait of our dishes as it was a pretty busy night in the kitchen. I didn't think the food took that long to come out but anyway, that was such a lovely gesture! I have never tried tako wasabi before because I was always quite scared of the strong, nasal-clearing, tear-inducing Japanese horseradish. I am glad to say that I tried this and now I love it (at least Sushi K Kamizato's version)! The wasabi still gave me a strong kick in the face/mouth but it was mixed together with the chopped octopus, pickled stems and another sauce so altogether it was very YUM-O!

Saba Battera

Mackeral pressed sushi with shiso leaf in the middle and topped with ginger and green onions

Next came the saba battera. This was my least favourite sushi out of the meal. I thought the rice was kind of dry and the overall flavour was subtle. The shiso leaves and the ginger/green onions helped temper the mackeral which can be salty and fishy. However, their saba wasn't very fishy or salty so that was good.

Tiger Eyes

A ball of sushi rice wrapped with marinated salmon that's lightly seared and then topped with chopped scallop and tobiko mixed with mayo

This special little package is not on their menu but it should be!!! I saw this from the food blog I read and it was offered as a "special of the day" but it was not offered on the night that I went. I asked the lady of the restaurant if they still offered Tiger Eyes and she was so shocked that I knew about it! LOL! She even asked me how I knew about it and I told her I read about it on the Internet and I wanted to try. She looked so thankful and appreciative. I was actually quite touched!

As the description suggests, this sushi is one package full of deliciousness! The salmon was coated with just enough marinade that it dídn't make the sushi all soggy and overwhelm the delicate scallop. I thought this was very unique.

Sushi Combo

(L-R) Tuna, Salmon, Hamachi (yellowtail?), Ebi (shrimp), Ika (squid), Tako (octopus), Hotate (scallop)

The nigiri sushi were well made and the fish seemed very fresh. I liked how they really put some thought into the sushi like adding a shiso leaf underneath the squid and torching the scallop and brushing it with some lime juice. Usually, sushi combos have your run-of-the-mill salmon, tuna and shrimp. But here, they included pricier items like the squid and scallop. I like this kind of variety.

With Dynamite Roll and California Roll (4 pieces each)

These 2 rolls were kind of ordinary but, again, I liked how they were small and easy to eat.

BC Roll

BBQ-ed salmon skin and cucumbers, drizzled with a tangy and sweet sauce

Man oh man, I don't think I have raved about a BC roll before! Often times BC rolls are an afterthought and, for me, are ordered as a cheap sushi filler. But this one! The salmon skin was crisp and still warm, and there was a good ratio between skin and meat! I don't know...maybe it's just me...I thought that this was the best BC roll I have ever eaten in a long time.

Chicken Teriyaki Don

With shredded carrots and cabbage

By the time this rice bowl came, I was stuffed so I didn't try any of this. From its appearance though, it looked pretty bland. There doesn't seem to be enough sauce on the chicken and the rice to provide colour and flavour. To me, it just seemed like a sad looking teriyaki-don.

Complimentary ice-cream (mango and green tea mix)

At the end of the meal, we were also given complimentary dessert in the form of ice-cream! Not too fond of it though because the mango was too sweet which overpowered the green tea part. And the green tea ice-cream was not very strong in the first place anyway. I love a good strong matcha/green tea ice-cream! Nonetheless, it was free and I appreciated a sweet treat to finish off the night.

I would recommend Sushi K Kamizato, not only for its food, but also because of the service and attitude of the people working at this restaurant. They are passionate about their food and they make everyone feel welcomed. At one point, the sushi chef even came over to say hi and ask us about the food! They were so gracious and grateful to all their customers. Definitely a cozy and lovely sushi place that I would go back again :)

Vancouver food carts [2012]

During the spring and summer months of this year, W and I visited various food carts that were dispersed throughout the downtown core. Since my work place wasn't very close to the majority of the food carts in terms of walking distance, often times I wasn't able to go try them out on my regular lunch hour. I had to take vacation time from work in order to conduct most of these visits!! Now that's dedication! 

 

We went to Mom's Grilled Cheese cart on a blustery cool spring day. This cart was located on Howe St. and Robson St. near the Vancouver Art Gallery. Browsing through the 70's diner-themed menu, we decided to go with the classic grilled cheese sandwich and a hot cup of tomato soup. What could go wrong with this classic combo?

Grilled cheddar cheese on white bread with pickle on the side

Roasted Tomato Soup topped with Basil Mascarpone

 

The grilled cheese was everything that you'd expect. The bread was grilled perfectly with butter on the outside (so it was quite greasy handling it) while the cheddar cheese was melted and gooey on the inside. It came with a side of chips and a slice of pickle. The pickle was a nice addition to help cut the richness of the sandwich.

 

The tomato soup was a good partner with the grilled cheese as the tangy and sweet tomato also helped offset the oiliness of the sandwich. The greenish cream you see floating is actually the basil mascarpone. Originally, it looked like a dollop of cream but eventually it melted into the soup providing an herby creaminess. On that cool windy day, the cup of soup also acted as a handwarmer while I was waiting for my grilled cheese.

 





Brass Chicken Sandwich

Beer brined rotisserie chicken in gravy, on a buttermilk bun, topped with crispy onions and dijon mustard

Next, we headed to La Brasserie Street at the corner of West Georgia and Granville St. As lunch hour was nearing the end, luckily we did not have to wait in line. Their sandwiches were pretty huge! All those fried onions poofed up the sandwich so it was actually a little difficult to eat without them spilling out. The bun was great in that it was a bit chewy but not tough which held up the fillings well.The chicken was moist but it seemed a little lost amidst the onions. Once we've squished the sandwich down, everything shined through in each bite.

On a sunny summer day midweek, a coworker and I headed out to Waterfront for lunch as she wanted to try Fresh Local Wild, on the corner of Burrard and West Hastings St. I, on the other hand, wanted to check out Ze Bite which was just a block away on Burrard and West Cordova St.

 

Oyster Po'Boy (left)

Sawmill Bay jumbos, trailer made tartar, sesame seed bun

My coworker, K, loves oysters so she ordered their Oyster Po'Boy. I took a bite and the meaty oysters were very crispy on the outside but still retained its creaminess inside despite its small-ish size. I found it pricey (around $11) for just the sandwich. If it came with a side of chips to make it look more like a meal, it would have been better.

Beef Bourguinon (right)

Slow cooked beef with red wine, vegetables and herbs

I wanted something hearty so I opted for a bowl of Ze Bite's stew. Well...I was quite disappointed with their beef bourguinon. Firstly, the beef was not stewed long enough so it wasn't tender yet. The tuber veggies (potato and carrots) did not have enough time to absorb the juices in the stew as well so they were not soft and lacked flavour, especially the potatos. At $11 a bowl, it didn't seem to be worth its value for the small size and flavour of the stew.

On another day in which I have taken the afternoon off, W and I headed over to Holy Perogy (used to be located on Homer St., beside the Public Library). As indicated in their name, they specialized in perogies!

W and I decided to go with the classic cheese and potato perogy with sauteed onions and sour cream on top. The cheese they used was white cheddar, and with the sour cream and onions that were sauteed until just translucent, the whole package looked very pale and bland. I don't really remember but I believe their perogies were not pan fried either...I think they were just boiled. The cheese was not very pronounced so it lacked quite a bit of flavour. There were at least 6 to 7 good sized dumplings in there so it would make a filling lunch. I'd suggest trying their other zesty flavours rather than this one.

The last food cart visit was on another warm and sunny day. I was amped to go visit a couple more places before summer was over! As W and I were walking along Alberni St. we saw a crowd hovering around Le Tigre, a new food cart that popped up in downtown recently. Apparently, the Food Network show Eat Street was filming at Le Tigre that day!! So cool that we got to catch some of the filming and customer interviews! However, Le Tigre was not on my list of carts to try so after watching for a few minutes, we headed off to....

The Kaboom Box II on West Georgia (between Burrard and Thurlow)! I was soooo looking forward to trying their Oyster Po'Boy but they did not have it on their menu that day!! BUMMER!!!

Crab Cake Po'Boy

Canadian rock crab, deep fried and served with organic greens and house-made lemon-garlic aioli. 

Well, without our 1st choice, we went with a similar #2 choice: the crab cake po'boy. The guys manning the cart were nice enough to cut the sandwich in half as W and I were sharing! The crab cake was still really good though, despite my disappointment with the oyster po'boy. It had a light, crispy crust while the cake was filled with lots of crab meat. Though I couldn't really detect much lemon-garlicy flavour in the aioli, it did help keep the sandwich moist. The bun was soft and chewy which complimented the crab cake. I liked how it wasn't very messy to eat, except for a few stray greens falling out.

Reading an article from The Vancouver Sun, I found out that there was a new player in the food cart scene: Mogu! This cart specialized in Japanese-inspired fast food featuring 3 different sandwiches and chicken karaage (marinated fried chicken). I had to go check it out! After walking a couple blocks, we arrived at the corner of Howe St. and Dunsmuir St. I absolutely loved the artwork on their food truck! It had Godzilla chasing after a crowd of people holding Mogu sandwiches!

Pork Miso Katsu Sandwich

Breaded deep fried pork cutlet, house made red miso sauce, Asian hot mustard coleslaw

This was the sandwich that I wanted to try. The description screamed UMAMI (translation: a pleasant savoury taste) to me already! We noticed the sandwich was pretty big (good value)! The fried pork cutlet was smothered in the red miso sauce then topped with a small amount of coleslaw that was laced with wasabi (the hot mustard). There's no lacking in flavour here! Each bite was filled with the miso sauce, almost to the point where I thought it was bordering salty. I would have liked to have more coleslaw in there to break up the rich sauce and to give the sandwich more crunchiness. Aside from the tender pork, the bun was like a soft and slightly sweet brioche bread so a better heaping of coleslaw would have helped give the whole sandwich more texture. By the last few bites, the sandwich became a soggy mess due to the soft bun soaking up all the sauce.

Well, those are all the food carts I have visited this year. In a month or so, most of the food carts will go into hibernation over the winter or move to other parts of the city to continue their business. We will have to wait until the spring time for the carts to come alive again on the downtown streets. Until then, I will just have to stare at my photos and try to reminisce all those umami flavours!

Cache Bistro - Brunch #2

1269 Hamilton Street
Vancouver, BC

My sister organized a bridal shower for her good friend and the afternoon's activities were relaxing mani and pedi's at a spa in Yaletown. So, we decided to have brunch first at Cache since my previous brunch experience there was pretty good.

Perusing through the menu, I didn’t know whether to order a breakfast item or a brunch/lunch item. Decisions decisions! My sister was gracious and agreed to share our plates so I could sample 2 dishes.

House smoked wild Coho salmon and gruyere sandwich

Open faced with onion jam cream cheese, onion, fried caper, hand cut pomme frites, soup or organic green

I selected the open-faced sandwich as it sounded appealing. For my side, I opted for the lobster bisque. Visually, everything looked really fresh and tasty. In reality, it was just so-so, except for the bisque. The bisque was A++!! There was no lacking in flavour and richness in this soup and it was yummy to the last drop. The sandwich, on the hand, needed a bit of work. Essentially, it was the baguette that was the problem. It was cold, hard, and the crust was super chewy. Even the steak knife that I requested to cut it did not help at all. While I was trying to saw the open-faced sandwich into bite-sized pieces, all the toppings came tumbling down onto the plate. In the end, I took bites of each element individually rather than eating them all in one well-mannered bite. I think it would have helped if they toasted the baguette so the crust would be crisp and easier to cut through. Either that or they should have used fresh baguette. Bread was not good at all.

Double Cheese French Omlette

Swiss cheese, cream cheese, black forest ham, chives, choice of white, whole wheat or multigrain toasts

My sister decided on the omelet and I requested for the yam hash rather than regular potato hash. A few minutes after we put in our order, the waitress came back informing us that they ran out of yam hash!!!!! NO YAM HASH!?!?!?! I was so looking forward to their yam hash!!! I was greatly disappointed and I seriously had half a mind to just walk out and go somewhere else to eat. She advised that the chef could give us yam fries instead. Well, with no other choice (I was very adamant on having yam) we reluctantly went with yam fries. I have never paired yam fries with an omelet.

The omelet was not bad but not spectacular either. The cheese inside the omelet was not ooey-gooey but there were ample amounts of cheese and ham inside. The yam fries were good in that they were crisp on the outside and soft in the inside but it just wasn’t my yam hash. They also apparently forgot the toast that was supposed to arrive with the omelet. My sister did not realize this until the next day. I was too distraught about no yam hash that I did not realize this either. Another disappointment.

Dessert Sampler

(L-R) Blueberry tart, Chocolate pot de creme, Ginger creme brulee

Between 9 girls, we ordered 2 dessert samplers to share amongst us. Their desserts of the day sounded attractive when the waitress recited it for us. When I heard “ginger crème brulee” that did me in and I convinced the other girls to order the sampler.

What a big fat disappointment. As a crème brulee, it was quite good. It was creamy, thick, rich with vanilla and had a nice “not-too-thin, not too-thick” crunchy torched topping. As a GINGER crème brulee, it was absolutely blah. There was no ginger flavour at all. I’m not sure if they were trying to be considerate so as not to overwhelm people with ginger but seriously, if they called it ginger crème brulee, I expect at least a tinge of ginger aroma or flavour. There was nothing here.

The blueberry tart was your regular blueberry tart. Nothing special there with a seemingly store-bought frozen tart crust, fresh blueberries and a dollop of whipped cream. Totally something that I could re-create at home.

The chocolate pot de crème was the best out of the 3. The dark chocolate was dense, smooth, and just slightly sweet so the dark chocolate shined through. But still, only 1 out of the 3 desserts met my expectations. I felt so guilty too because I convinced the whole table to order the desserts but they fell short of expectations.

Side note: When we were ordering, some of the girls asked me for recommendations. I suggested the crab cake benedict as I quite liked it when I had it last time. The girls wanted their eggs poached to medium and it was noted by the waitress. However, when their food came, their poached eggs were fully cooked! The yolk was hard throughout! When I saw that, I immediately wanted to tell the waitress but the girls didn’t want to make a big deal out of it so they just ate it as is. I felt so guilty (again) because I recommended it to them but it did not come out as expected. I was so enraged too!! I know the chef is usually not like this so I am thinking that this is an extremely off day for him. But if the chef is a professional and has expectations of himself, I think the chef has a right to know…

I was majorly disappointed in my second brunch at Cache. After this visit, I talked to W about it and he said that one of the sous chefs had left the restaurant not so long ago so he’s guessing that the head chef was still trying to handle the kitchen without a helping hand. Hopefully, this was just a one-off situation and that he’s gotten a better hold now. Because the chef and the owner of the restaurant are friends with W, I really hope that Cache will succeed. I do think that this place is a gem in the Yaletown neighbourhood.

*Sorry for the long-winded post; I really wanted to air out my disappointments from this meal.