Torafuku in Vancouver’s Chinatown is now open for lunch service and I’m very excited. I’ve been a fan of this “Lucky Tiger” since it started as an Asian Fusion food truck “Le Tigre”. I’ve been here for events and during Dine Out Vancouver – not once had I’ve been disappointed. If you’ve been following @instanomss on Instagram, then you would have already seen the IG stories and how delicious the food is. 

Lunch Service is available Tuesday to Sunday from 11:30 am to 2:30 pm. The lunch menu offers a great selection of entrees and side dishes ensuring you get a little of everything. You can make any entree into a combo with your chose of sides and a drink for $4.50 more. If you are greedy like me and want it all – it is $16 or $10 for 3 sides.

Torafuku Beef Noodle Soup 15: Limited quantities daily – This Taiwanese beef noodle consists of sake braised beef shanks, 72 hours broth, hand-pulled noodles, bok choy, soft poached marinated egg and pickled mustard. This classic sells out every day so be sure to call ahead to save yourself a bowl! This is one of my favourite and the best beef noodle soup in Vancouver!

Pro Tip: to add an extra level of depth and flavour complexity to your beef noodle soup, be sure to ask the chef for the jar of beef fat and extra pickled mustard. SO GOOD! WORTH THE CALORIES!

There are 6 different rice options to chose from between $12 and $13. Their rice bowls are described as “Awesomeness in a Bowl” and each bowl features their signature “Kickass Rice” – cooked in sake, butter and dashi and served with pickled cabbed, mixed herbs and topped with a perfectly poached egg.

• Pork Belly Rice – Kickass Rice with Kakuni Pork Belly
• Fried Chicken Rice – Kickass Rice with Fried Crispy Chicken
• Crack Salad Rice – Kickass Rice with Crack Salad
• Rice 1/2 – Kickass Rice with Fried Crispy Chicken and Kakuni Pork Belly
• Chicken + Crack Rice – Kickass Rice with Fried Crispy Chicken and Crack Salad
• Pork + Crack Rice – Kickass Rice with Pork Belly and Crack Salad

All are good options. The Fried Crispy Chicken is lightly coated with a crispy crunchy outside and a tender juicy inside. The Kakuni Pork Belly is tender, rich and moist – perfect when you are looking for something a little more filling for lunch.

Crack Salad 11: Brussel sprouts, cauliflower, broccoli, kale, parmesan and lemon. This salad is so good you simply can not have one bite. I love the crispy leaves, cheesy parmesan brightened with a punch of lemon juice. I would eat this on its own. I would eat this with rice.

Side Dishes Menu 3.75 each

Tomato: yuzu plum powder marinaded tomato, shiso, red onion

Cucumber: cucumber agar agar, radish, Kuan Mama’s vinaigrette

Lotus Root: Soy braised lotus root, miso ricotta cheese, green onion

Eggplant: Szechuan marinaded eggplants, crispy rice

Mushrooms: King oyster mushroom tempura, kimchi

If I had to pick just one, I would highly recommend the lotus roots with their miso tofu ricotta cheese. Although you may think the flavour combination is strange, trust me, it works! And it is absolutely delicious!

Working out of the back kitchen of Torafuku is Buttermere Patisserie. We were treated to freshly baked Taiwanese Pineapple Cake. I liked the small teaser size where I can fool myself that I can eat just one. The pineapple cake is made with both pineapple and winter melon for a less sweet and delicate flavour profile. The crust is light without the heavy butter-ness commonly found in #鳳梨酥 !!

I was invited by Torafuku for a menu tasting. All opinions are my own.FOLLOW:

Torafuku Vancouver 寅福
URL: http://torafuku.ca
Cuisine: Asian, Fusion, Izakaya

Hours:
Monday: Closed
Tuesday – Sunday: 5:30 p.m – 11:00 p.m

958 Main Street, Vancouver, BC V6A 2W1
(778) 903-2006

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Masayoshi on Fraser Street is ranked #48 in a list of Canada’s Best 100 Restaurants for 2018. This chef-owned Japanese restaurant is by reservation only and offers an Omakase-only menu. The Chef, Masayoshi Baba comes from Tojo’s and creates all omakase dishes prepared with no MSG, real wasabi, and organic ingredients.

The cozy restaurant seats 20. It is an adult only. It is not baby-friendly. If you are still hungry at the end of your meal, it is not possible to order by pieces (Okonomi) from a daily fresh sheet.

Omakase Menu Prices

• Nigiri Omakase $100 – 14 PIECES, MISO SOUP, DESSERT
• Nigiri Omakase $130 – 16 PIECES, APPETIZER, MISO SOUP, DESSERT
• There are two seatings each evening at 6pm and 8pm.

What We Ate

The multi-course menu changes based on seasonal ingredients – including hot and cold dishes and finishes with rice.

• Dungeness crab. Turnip, melon
• Albacore tataki
• Black cod. Marinated Soy vinegar
• Wild yellowtail
• Baby snapper
• Kohada
• Mirugai geoduck
• Bluefin tuna
• Chi-toro
• Pine nut soup with garden eel. Lime juice. Bone-in
• Ajima
• Isaki grunt
• Baby hamachi
• Bonito with ginger on top – very smoky flavour profile
• King crab
• Hirame
• Scallops from Hokkaido
• Uni
• Tamago – soup soaked. V eggy savoury
• Anago eel
• Panna cotta matcha sauce

Overall our experience was delightful. The fish was fresh and I especially enjoyed the smokey bonito nigiri. The price at $130 per person was a little steep considering a one-star Michelin restaurant in San Francisco is only slightly more. This would be considered higher-end prices for Vancouver.

It would have also been great if they gave you the option to order by pieces (Okonomi) from a daily fresh sheet at the end of the meal if you are still hungry or fancied a repeat of any particular fish.

What was your favourite dish? Let me know in the comments below or tag me on Instagram @instanomss if you’ve tried this menu. I’d love to see your food photos!~

Masayoshi Japanese Restaurant
URL:  https://www.masayoshi.ca/
Cuisine: Japanese

4376 Fraser St, Vancouver, BC V5V 4G3
(604) 428-6272

Monday to Saturday 6:00 pm–10:00 pm

more: Maumi Sushi Bar | Sushi K Kamizato | Miku

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Calling all feline lovers! Catoro Cafe is the newest Cat Cafe to open in Vancouver at 666 East Broadway / Fraser. They have partnered with Cat Therapy & Rescue Society to take in stray cats and prepare them for adoption! For those are not yet ready to host a forever home to these cats, have no time but still want to seek some cuddle time, their Cat Forest is an excellent choice!

Cat Forest

All the cats at the cat cafe are vetted and in healthy conditions. You can either watch the cat while sipping your bubble tea or hang out inside the Cat Forest up to 2 hours! There is no obligation to adopt!

Cat time without commitment!

Cat Forest Admission Prices

• 15 min – $6
• 30 min – $8
• 2 hours – $20

Catoro Cafe Menu

Foggycat Bubble Tea: Thie iced earl grey milk tea was decent and had a nice tea to milk balance. The pearls were soft and chewy.

Stevie was a blind cat but that didn’t stop him from being an incredibly sweet and affectionate cat – getting around the play area, on to tables, and falling asleep on our palms!

Catoro Merch

What’s your favourite Bubble Tea Flavour? Let me know in the comments below or tag me on Instagram @instanomss if you’ve tried this menu. I’d love to see your food photos!~

Catoro Cafe
URL: https://catorocafe.com/
Cuisine: Bubble Tea

666 East Broadway St, Vancouver, BC V5T 1X6

(604) 423-2987

more: Blueberry Coconut Lemon Ice Cream | Blueberry Smoothie |Raw Bars | BARONESS BUBBLE TEA VANCOUVER 小黑糖

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Last night I ate in the prep kitchen at Glowbal with Emad Yacoub, owner of the Glowbal Group with a few selected OG food bloggers – Sherman, Diana, Dennis. Catch our Instagram, in our IG Stories to see us being led down the restaurant downstairs to their prep kitchen for Glowbal’s Secret Chef’s Table. We didn’t know what to expect. Just like a blind date!

This new dinner series is just launching and gives you a super exclusive taste unlike any other you’ve experienced. It’s almost surreal – like a scene out of the movie Chef or For Grace. Spoiler alert below!

The prep kitchen is sectioned off. 10 seater round table, floral backdrop, fresh blooms and ambient music. The air is clear and minimal noise.

The tasting menu includes 8 courses with wine pairing.

Course one – Scallops and Smoked Sable Fish Crudo: This bright and favourable appetizer was perfect to kick off our taste buds. Lime caviar, ginger emulsion, watercress foam.

Wine Pairing: Vanessa Vineyard Viognier 2018 – Okanagan, BC

Course two – Cure Arctic Char: Mandarin pudding, shiso bavarois, cucumber gelee

Wine Pairing: Black Hills Rose 2017 – Okanagan, BC

Course three – Lobster Ravioli with lobster tail, seared foie gras, peas, fava beans and zucchini blossoms. Pair this with a glass of Petit Guiraud Sauternes for a long-balanced and luscious lingering finish.

Wine Pairing: Tantalus Blanc de Blanc – Okanagan, BC

Course four – Plum & Champagne: This smooth and silky granite with lemon Balm was a great palate cleanser.

Wine Pairing: Beringer Vineyards Chardonnay 2016 – Napa Valley, California

Course five – Seared Japanese A5 Wagyu served with honeydew, smoked purple potato, and a black truffle croquette explosion.

Wine Pairing: Domaines Barons de Rothschild Lafite ‘Legend R’ 2015 – Medoc, France

Course six – Smoked Pancetta wrapped lamb loin, lamb cheeks, wild mushrooms and bell peppers

Wine Pairing: Arinzano ‘Hacienda de Arinzano’ 2014 – Rioja, Spain

Course seven – Tender venison loin served with beef and blueberry crumbs, fennel purée, roasted date, and red current foam

Wine Pairing: Treana 2015 – Paso Robles, California

Course eight – Jivara Chocolate Mousse: feuilletine, caramel, gold flakes. Open up the circular sphere to a pleasant surprise! I won’t ruin it for you!

Wine Pairing: Burrowing Owl ‘Coruja’ – Oliver, BC

For more information on reservations Glowbal’s Secret Chef’s Table visit www.glowbalgroup.com/glowbal/

more: SESAME HAND SHREDDED TURKEY RECIPE | 芝麻手撕火雞 | Blueberry Coconut Lemon Ice Cream | Blueberry Smoothie | Raw Bars

Glowbal by Glowbal
URL:  https://www.glowbalgroup.com/glowbal/
Cuisine: Pacific North West

590 W Georgia St, Vancouver, BC V6E 1A3
(604) 602-0835

I was invited by the Glowbal Group for a menu tasting.

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