Starbucks (The First Starbucks at Pike Place)

Ambiance: A take out place, no place to sit, more of a tourist attraction

Seating/Wait time: No seats.  Extremely long line-ups.

Dress Code: No shoes, no shirt, no service!

Crowd: Everybody

Meal: 

Personal Remarks:  It's just the name!  This flagship location is not going anywhere, and others, as well as myself come here for the sake of saying that we did.

The coffee here isn't made with magic ferry dust compared to other Starbucks.  The only difference is this place get's more foot traffic and tourists.

This place has great unique cups as souvenirs which aren't over priced, most of the cups were under $10.00, which is not bad.

Even though this place has non-stop line up's, you will order a drink here.  It's the same as going to Disneyland, you don't like the 3 hour line up, but you always find yourself in one.
The most annoying thing about this experience is that after being in one line for 30 minutes waiting for someone to take your drink order, you'll shimmy over to the next line up which was just as long to wait another 20 or so minutes to pick up your drink.  OH JOY!!!!
 
This location has no seating.  Simple reason, they're so busy, they don't want you to stay longer than you have to.  Besides, the entire store is a line up or people browsing the wall of souvenirs.

What did I order? My usual, a Peppermint Mocha, I indulged and ordered a "Venti" because we drove all the way here and it seemed stupid not to order the Venti after all that waiting.

Value: 3/5 Overall: 3/5

Hi-Nippon Japanese

Ambiance: Semi Traditional with the "Shoe's Off Booths"

Seating/Wait time: Good amount of seating, not that busy.

Dress Code: No shoes, no shirt, no service!

Crowd: Everybody

Meal: 

Maki Combination A
Wild Salmon, Tuna, Kappa 1 Roll Each
$7.50

Maki Combination C
California, Dynamite, B.C. 1 Roll Each
$10.95

Personal Remarks: Hi-Nippon ran a great race, then lost their breath at the finish!  T.I.P.S., "To Insure Prompt/Proper Service"!

It wasn't until after I ordered the Maki Combo A & C that I noticed their lunch menu.  After carefully looking at their lunch special, a Lunch Box for $8.95 is an amazing deal!

Click Picture to see Menu

I even contemplated about cancelling one of the Maki's and order one of the Lunch Box's.  I think the Lunch Box's would be a great take out item.  The deal lasts until 3:00pm.  So, if you work in the area, this is a great place to go for the deal.

Other people ordered the Lunch Box's and they were full size, not specifically made smaller "lunch versions".  You definitely get your money's worth.

The food here is average.  I like the fact they used wild salmon as opposed the cheap salmon for the roll.  The food was clean, the rolls were not as tight as they should be, so once you pick them up, the sushi would fall apart.  

Other than the sushi falling apart as they go from the soy sauce plate to your mouth the food is edible.  Nothing really to rave about here.  But there is something to complain about.

Everything was great, they earned the normal 15% gratuity from me.  However, when it came time to pay, I put my hand up and no one was around so I got up and went to the cash register.  The 2 sushi chefs noticed me but pretended not to see me didn't bother to get one of the 2 waitress from the back to see if I could be helped.  

When one of the waitress saw me, she just ignored me.  She wasn't "my" waitress/server so I guess that's why didn't ask me what I wanted. Then, the phone rang.  I see my server dashing out from the back to answer the phone.  

I could over hear most of the conversation and it was someone calling asking to speak with the owner or an employee.  My server responded that owner or employee was out of town, and continued the conversation with them.  

I was starting to get agitate because my server was standing in front of the cash register and could have used the hand not holding the telephone to tap on the touch screen POS and print my bill.  Instead, I stood there in front of her for 6 minutes for her to finish her phone call.   

I was just pissed at how bad the service got at the end.

The other bad part was the other waitress that was "not" my server just stood there playing and throwing fake punches with the sushi chefs and chatting in Korean.  

In the end, when it came time to tip.  They got $1.00!

The service here was good throughout, it's just the end that really pissed me off.

Value: 4/5 Overall: 2/5

Viet Sub Vietnamese Cuisine

Ambiance: A take out place

Seating/Wait time: Small, just a few seats.  Expect line up's at lunch.

Dress Code: No shoes, no shirt, no service!

Crowd: Everybody

Meal: 

Vietnamese Ham with French Bread$3.25

Personal Remarks:  No bull, this place makes Japadog look like yesterdays "IT Place".  For the price of 1 Japadog, you can buy 2 Full Size Viet Sandwiches! (Not Exactly, but close.)

They have it bang on with price and taste!  

The one I ate is a bit spicy because of the jalapeño sauce, but it's not too spicy.  It's also filling but I think I could have ate half of another sandwich.  

The great thing is, the bun is toasted so it's going to be warm when you get it.  The price is very affordable so I bought one for my dad and brought it over to him.  He really enjoyed it too.  It was great that when I brought it to him, they were still warm.

Japadog is next door, but this place is the better deal!  Once more people realize that, Japadog will have to do some price adjustments or this place will increase their price (which I think is more likely to happen).  

To maximize revenue, this restaurant can charge the same amount for a sub as a Japadog.   I'm glad they haven't done that yet.  Right now, the consumer is getting the benefit because you can practically get 2 subs for the price of 1 Japadog.  Or if you have a friend with you, order 3 subs and split the third one which is about the same price as 2 Japadogs.  Sometime's I find that 1 Japadog doesn't fill me up anymore.

I really enjoyed my sub and I will definitely be going back to try other ones.

Value: 5/5 Overall: 5/5

Cabin 5555

Ambiance: Modern and Clean

Seating/Wait time: Good amount of seating available, still pretty busy at lunch.  

Dress Code: No shoes, no shirt, no service!


Crowd: Everybody


Meal: 

Deep Fried Chicken Leg Rice Set Meal

$7.05

Strawberry Slush 

$4.50

Personal Remarks:  The restaurant is very clean, the updates are nice. It's a shame the food and service don't match the décor.  


I came in here alone for lunch and it took them forever to serve me a glass of water.  After the water came, I was sitting there with the menu closed at what felt like an eternity for my order to be taken.  Needless to say, the service at this restaurant sucks. 


The price for the food is fair and similar to every other bubble tea Taiwanese restaurant.    However, the sides were not good and small.  The chicken was over burned and dark because they reuse the oil too much.  


The drinks here, mainly the slush drinks are more expensive than other similar restaurants and it didn't feel like I was getting more or anything better than other restaurants.  


I came here expecting this place to be comparable to Bubble World because they both seem similar but found this place lacking in all aspects of a restaurant.  


Don't waste your time or money here.  When you leave you're just going to feel worse than when you walked in.

Value: 2/5 Overall: 2/5

Blowfish Sushi and Japanese Food

Ambiance: Simple and Clean

Seating/Wait time: Limited seating, but not a very busy restaurant.  I normally order take out.

Dress Code: No shoes, no shirt, no service!

Crowd: Everybody

Meal: 

Chopped Scallop Roll $3.75
Full order Salmon Sashimi $8.25

Personal Remarks:  Average is the first word that comes to mind.  My sister introduced this restaurant to me.  


This restaurant opened before "Riz Sushi" and this was the closest and cleanest sushi restaurant in the area relative to the others.  Size wise, they try to keep things more traditional.  It's not "Samurai" size. 


For the sashimi, paying $8.25 I was expecting sizes similar to "Sushi Garden".  Value wise, it's not here.  They should reduce the price of the sashimi if they're going to be charging the same as other restaurants that give more.  


If you're coming here, just stick with the rolls.  This place is a couple of dimes over price, so if you're eating here it's going to be for convenience and you don't want to drive further.

Value: 3/5 Overall: 3/5

Bao Chau

Ambiance: Simple and Clean

Seating/Wait time: Ample seating, pretty big restaurant.  

Dress Code: No shoes, no shirt, no service!

Crowd: Everybody

Meal: 

Bao Chau House Special Beef Noodle Soup LARGE 
$7.00

Personal Remarks:  A true staple in the Renfrew area.  I've been coming here since High School, the kids of Templeton, Vancouver Technical, as well as Notre Dame have some kind of history with this restaurant.


If you are looking for a quick-filling-Vietnamese meal, this place comes to mind. The soup base is rich in flavour and is actual soup.  Not like other restaurants where it's mostly watered down soup.  


They give you a lot of noodles and a good amount of extras!  The noodles come out really fast after you make an order too so if you're in a hurry this is a great place to go.  Great place for take out too!  Please go try and enjoy.

Value: 5/5 Overall: 4/5

Cora Breakfast and Lunch

Ambiance: American style diner


Seating/Wait time: Big restaurant, but still very Busy for brunch, expect to wait 20-30 minutes.


Dress Code: No shoes, no shirt, no service!


Crowd: Anyone

Meal: 

Crepomlette (Ham and Swiss)
Stuffed with a Western-Cheddar omelette, covered in Hollandaise sauce, served with fresh fruit and toast.
$12.95

Personal Remarks:  Don't be fooled by the pictures on the menu.  I relied on their nice picture and was heavily disappointed with what they brought me.  The first words that came out of my mouth was literally, "Where's the rest of it?" 


The picture showed massive amounts of fruit overflowing to the edges, the plates looked so full making you think, "hrmm...I guess I need to loosen another notch on my belt.  BUT NO! The fruit cup was dinky! If I didn't put that piece of toast there for the sake of the picture the plate would be so empty.  


The crepomlette was tiny in comparison to what the picture showed and left me disappointed.  There are other things on the menu, and I truly recommend you trying other things.  Avoid this dish at all costs because value wise it is not there at all.  Because of the misleading advertising my overall experience at this restaurant is completely ruined.  


A lot of the items are overpriced, and it seems you're just paying for the fruit.  Last thing, the Hollandaise sauce is not tasty either and take a look at that strawberry! So much white on it, they gave me an unripe strawberry which was not sweet at all.  It was a very disappointing experience.

Value: 1/5 Overall: 2/5

Bubble World 大頭仔 (Richmond)

YUCK! ~CASH ONLY~

Ambiance: Asian Modern and Clean

Seating/Wait time: Ample seating. Wait time is inconsistent, sometimes busy sometimes not so much. Weekends it's pretty busy and expect to wait if you have a group.  Weekdays, it's not as busy.

Dress Code: No shoes, no shirt, no service!

Crowd: Anyone, Family

Meal: 

Deep Fried Chicken Leg with Noodle in Soup
$6.95

Personal Remarks:  To be frugal, order the noodle version instead of the rice.  That way you don't need to order a drink to quench your thirst.  If you order the rice version, you're going to be tempted to want to order a drink.  Also, the rice version is more expensive and eating either will make you full anyways. 


I eat here very often and tried pretty much everything, in the end, I just figured this is the best for my wallet.  The soup base is very watered down and the bak choy is just 2 cloves.  I'd wish they be a bit more generous with the vegetables because the meal is very heavy with the fried chicken.  There is definite value for this meal and it's a restaurant that you would come back to again and again strictly for the value you get.  


What I noticed about the service is that they become exponentially slower when they get busy because they only have 2 waitress's on the weekdays (m-thurs), then on (f-sun) they go up to 3 waitress's.  The manager definitely needs to address efficiency by hiring one more waitress.  So, if you come here and the place gets busy, expect a lot of running around, diminished efficiency,  and a lack of service altogether.  However, just keep in mind that this place is only good because of it's food is edible while still maintaining value.  


If you sit for hours sipping on a bubble tea and it never reaches empty they won't kick you out.  So, you and your girlfriends can chat for hours here.  If they had free wi-fi, I'm sure there would be no table turn-over, and this would turn into a textbook ridden restaurant.


NOTE: The drinks at this location are more expensive than the Take Out location on Granville St..  So, if you're just craving bubble tea, I'd save the extra dollars and spend the money on gas to drive to the Granville location.

Value: 4/5 Overall: 4/5

The Tipper

Ambiance: Pub, rustic, like a recreation room with tables, no it's not a romantic restaurant!


Seating/Wait time: Not a busy restaurant, just take a seat


Dress Code: No shoes, no shirt, no service!


Crowd: Anyone


Meal: 

Beef Dip 

shaved roast beef, swiss cheese, fresh made au jus,
served on a toasted garlic Portuguese bun
 $9.89

Personal Remarks:  This is not a well constructed sandwich.  A well constructed sandwich does not fall apart as you eat it.  


When you order this sandwich, accept the fact that it will get messy.  The Jus is going to run down your fingers as you eat this, meat is going to be sliding out the sides because the bun is too small.  The beef is quite dry, so I don't think they do this daily,  I'm pretty sure it's not fresh and just re-heated meat.  


This is a finger lickn' sandwich.  Just make sure you don't do what I did, which was order it during a business meeting.  I was extremely embarrassed eating this thing because it made me look like a slob.  Portion and taste wise, it's okay, definitely not a $10.00 sandwich  what let me down was that the Jus was said to be fresh made, but it didn't taste like it, actually none of it tasted fresh.  


Also, the pricing really bothered me .89 cents?  If this was priced at $6.89 it would have the value and would be reasonable for the quality, but it was just $3.00 short of where it should be. 


 For $10.00 I'd expect everything to be made in house, but it just didn't taste that way.  The only decent priced item on the menu is the beer and I think that's how they get people through the door.

Value: 2/5 Overall: 3/5

Araxi

Ambiance: Great in the Summer, Bad in the Rain and Cold

Seating/Wait time: Reservations is strongly recommend.  Make the reservations when you're in Vancouver, you save on long distance and hotel room phone charges.

Dress Code:  Casual is okay

Crowd: Anyone

Meal: 

Valrhona Chocolate Fondant milk chocolate and earl grey ice cream with chocolate dentelle $12.50

Okanagan Poached Pears brandy poached pear,
sour cream ice cream vanilla mascarpone cheesecake, almond streusel crust $11.50

Personal Remarks:  I came here thinking it's going to be posh, but then I realized, i'm in whistler to snowboard, why would I bring a suit.  When I went in, it was apparent that a lot of other people had the same mindset.  People came here to eat the food, not to look good.  So, don't worry if you left your dining out clothes in Vancouver.  That's okay!


I came here for deserts only because I thought a posh dress code was in effect.  The desert was way too sweet and the SERVICE SUCKED!  When you come here for desert they sit you at the bar area which is in "no mans land" away from the dinner service area.   You feel totally exiled being in this area, the bar tender is constantly looking down wiping the same glass cup deep in his own thoughts or just waiting for closing time.   Periodically, a couple of waitresses would speed walk past me or take the furthest route to go around my table just to avoid me.   


In addition, no one once ever offered to refill my water since and it wasn't until the very end when I asked for the bill that they brought me some water.  The no water thing would not be a big deal, but the deserts were excessively sweet and I really needed something to wash the food down.   Paying so much for these beautifully presented deserts would have been gratifying if the service was also just as rich.  


This restaurant left me feeling like I didn't even want to pay for the food because the experience was so unpleasant.  It was like my wallet weighed a hundred pounds because I know that paying them would give me so much resentment later.  This place is just not worth it.

Value: 1/5 Overall: 2/5

Japadog - Burrard and Smithe

YUCK! ~CASH ONLY~


Ambiance: Great in the Summer, Bad in the Rain and Cold


Seating/Wait time: Peak Hours = Bad, expect to wait at least 10 minutes.  


Dress Code: No shoes, no shirt, you still will get service!


Crowd: Anyone


Meal: 

Okonomi

$6.75

Terimayo

$7.25 

Personal Remarks:  I came here before they opened all the chains and it was so much better before.  I'm thankful that with all the growth and expansion this little company is having they their hot dogs did not get smaller with the price increase.  


No matter which hot dog you try they are all tasty and it might time a few visits to find out which is your favorite.  


My favorite is the Terimayo and I like to pile on the wasabi mayo. You HAVE TO TRY THE WASABI MAYO!!!! It's so unique and makes your already tasty hot dog 10 times more tasty!  


Despite their growth, the taste is still the same hasn't changed.  If you do get the chance to go visit their Rosbon store, I recommend trying their skinny fries, it's not great, but it's seasoned well and worth a try.  Split the cost with some friends, or be nice and treat them.  Japadog will be a staple in Vancouver.  


There is too much hype and it is starting to get overrated, but life is too short, don't let that be the reason you don't enjoy a japadog.

Value: 3/5 Overall: 5/5

Café Salade de Fruits

YUCK! ~CASH ONLY~ 


Ambiance: Small bistro and weird, weird because there is a seating outside the foyer of the building.  Very tight and claustrophobic feeling.


Seating/Wait time: Very limited seating, so if you have to wait, you'll be waiting for a long time, best to try another time.  However, I've been here where it's completely quiet.  So, bring your lucky rabbits foot with you  


Dress Code: No shoes, no shirt, no service!


Crowd: Anyone

Meal: 

Lunch

Moules et frites $13.99

Personal Remarks: The value is definitely here for this restaurant.  You can easily fill up on the mussels and fries, just remember to save some bread to dip into the mussel and white wine broth or ask for more bread.  I know it's being cheap not to order more food but trust me, your stomach will hate you for consuming more food on top of this. 


You could order a light appetizer, but what's the point? This is enough!  Overall, I hate these "cash only" restaurants because when you want to order more food, you can't.  I carry plastics with me and hardly ever carry cash, so I try to avoid eating here for dinner because i'm sure my bill would easily get to $50.00.  


The dinner menu is a bit more expensive, so it's a good idea to just come here for lunch and hit up another place for dinner to maximize your value when eating out.  This place is great for value, but overall experience is kind of lacking

Value: 5/5 Overall: 3/5