I had been to La Casita twice before, but hadn’t written any reviews. The first time—on an evening after a busy street festival—they were all out of chiles relleno. Oh no! I had enchiladas, which turned out to be very good, but I forgot to take pictures. The second time I went, it was really late at night and it was way too dark for photos, plus I was absolutely starving and I engulfed my chile relleno. I remember thinking, Was that the best chile relleno I’ve had in Vancouver or was I just starving?

So, as  you can imagine, after two very positive experiences at La Casita, I was thrilled when the guys from vaneats.ca contacted me to ask if I’d be interested in reviewing the sampler platter they would be offering in their custom-made dining package with La Casita. Apparently, they’d heard of my passion for Mexican food. Yay me!

Then Saturday happened. Oh Saint Patrick,  you can really mess me up, you. On Sunday, the Big Man and I were feeling a bit, uh, sluggish, you might say, so we didn’t really eat all day and then it was 4 pm and we were starving, so we headed to La Casita.

Our meal began with complimentary chips and salsa. The chips are made on site from scratch and are very good. The salsas were quite unusual, but this was a good thing. The red salsa, described as a typical red salsa by the waitress, was not actually typical at all. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it, but it stood out for sure. The green salsa looked like avocado sauce, but as soon as I took a bite I knew it wasn’t. I asked the waitress and she said it was a coriander salsa. Mmm, this green soupy-looking stuff was divine!

I ordered the sampler platter, of course, as it was included for free as part of my review, but I also ordered the chile relleno. I had to know if it was as good as I thought it was the last time I’d tried it. I knew this was too much food, but I figured I could take the leftovers home. The waitress came back from the kitchen and asked if it would be okay if we started with the sampler platter as the chef didn’t think all that food would fit on our table at once. He he.

The sampler platter arrived and it was big, but so were our appetites (or so we thought). The sampler platter included chipotle shrimp, mole chicken wings, super nachos, cabbage salad with avocado, and chorizo quesadillas, as well as some Mexican rice and a corn tortilla.

We started with the mole chicken wings and the chorizo quesadillas. I told my husband to take 3 of the 4 chicken wings because I am not usually a big fan of mole and he just loves the stuff. Then we started eating the wings and I was blown away by how tasty they were! Not too chocolatey, not too intense—no, this mole was smooth and silky. I would easily order this again, but next time I won’t be sharing them so readily with the Big Man! The chorizo quesadillas were good, but didn’t wow me as I had expected. I love chorizo, and these quesadillas were packed with chorizo and ooey-gooey melted cheese, but we found the tortilla to be a bit too thick and overwhelming. They were tasty, but I guess I would have preferred them in a thinner flour tortilla or in several smaller corn tortillas.

The cabbage salad was light and refreshing and served well to cleanse our palates between the other items. The next item we splurged on was the chipotle shrimp. Wow. I was really impressed with the shrimp, so much so that I asked the waitress how to order just the shrimp next time I visit the restaurant. First of all, these shrimp were perfectly cooked, not overdone as shrimp so often are. Of course, I would expect expertly cooked shrimp at a seafood restaurant, but I wouldn’t expect it from a Mexican restaurant. This opened my eyes to seafood done Mexican style. To be honest, I’ve never ordered seafood at a Mexican restaurant, save for fish tacos. This is going to change from here on out. Perfectly plump, mouth-watering, expertly seasoned shrimp? Yes please!

We saved the nachos for the last because we didn’t expect much from them. They were coated in a sort of refried bean sauce, sprinkled with cheese and fresh salsa. We make nachos at home all the time, so nachos need to be pretty freakin’ good to impress us.

I took one bite and my eyes widened in surprise. What? They looked so simple, but tasted amazing! I urged Big Man to try them and he reluctantly did, but then he had the same surprised reaction. Deliciousness! The sauce was so unexpected, so unlike anything you’ve tried before on nachos. I identified that the sauce was made with refried beans and cheese mixed together, but then the waitress mentioned that there was also seasoned beef in there. Because we’d waited to eat the nachos, the cheese had plenty of time to get super melty so that each chip was absolutely loaded with yummy sauce and gooey white cheese. These are not your everyday nachos. These are, indeed, “super nachos.”

By the time we ate the sampler platter, we conceded that, yes, this is definitely a platter for two, even if you are super hung over from wild St. Patty’s Day partying, and then you went to an art auction and drank and bid (never a good idea), and then you went to your place with friends and drank some more, and then crashed without drinking enough water, and then woke up the next day and didn’t eat all day. Yes, even then, this platter serves two.

But then came my chile relleno.

La Casita’s chile relleno is $17, a hefty price tag for sure. Of course, the platter is huge and comes with mounds of Mexican rice, refried beans, cabbage salad, the biggest chile relleno you ever saw, a dollop of guacamole, and three corn tortillas. In short, it is served just as it should be.

In Vancouver, seeing a Mexican dish served “as it should be” is quite the feat. I’ve ordered chile relleno just about everywhere I could find it in this city and I have seen it in various twisted and unnatural forms. But no, not at La Casita. I can say that their chile relleno is indeed the best that Vancouver has to offer.

What makes this chile relleno the star of the city? Well, first of all, it comes with corn tortillas. I get really annoyed when I have to order these “on the side” and pay extra, when they are supposed to come with the dish in the first place! Okay, got that out of my system. Next, look at that rice. It is bright with seasoning, not plain white rice (I cringe when I see white rice on a supposed Mexican dish). The guacamole is chunky and delicious.

And, then, there is the chile. It’s freakin’ massive! It is packed with melted cheese inside, dipped in batter, basted with two kinds of sauce (a red sauce and salsa verde), and then topped with more melted cheese. That’s a little piece of heaven there. I was not “just hungry” the last time I had the chile relleno: it is the best chile relleno in Vancouver.

What about the price? $17 is pricey for me. As you know, I expect Mexican food to be cheap. Well, I’ve thought a lot about this and I have decided that since most chiles relleno in Vancouver go for $15 or $16 a plate, plus an extra $1.50 to $3.00 for corn tortillas that should’ve been included in the first place, then La Casita’s $17 chile relleno is actually a reasonable price to pay. Especially because you’re simply not going to find a chile relleno of the same calibre anywhere else in Vancouver, and you’re especially not going to find it for less.

Speaking of prices, you can go to vaneats.ca today and purchase this limited-time offer of the custom-made sampler dining platter for only $18. It is a steal and I highly recommend it!

La Casita
101 West Cordova St.
Vancouver, BC V6B 1E1
604-646-2444
info@lacasita.ca

Disclaimer: while the sampler platter was free, we paid for the rest of our meal and all previous meals. The free sampler platter was delicious and definitely a bonus, but it did not affect my review in any way.

Two ladies who do qualify to be friends of mine are the sisters behind India Base, a base sauce for a host of Indian dishes. Harjoyt Kang and Kash Chahal aren’t technically sisters (one is the sister of the other’s sister-in-law, if that’s confusing enough for you), but as “partners in crime” who love to cook and laugh together as they do, they may as well be sisters.

Tell me these two aren't adorable? Oh, that's right, you can't.

Harjoyt and Kash watched their mothers spend hours in the kitchen each day and they thought there had to be a better way. It turned out, there was. After weeks of experimentation, Harjoyt and Kash came up with a North Indian base sauce that passed the scrutiny and experienced palate of their mothers. Taste-tested and approved by Indian mothers? Fresh, real ingredients; homemade in small batches; no preservatives; gluten-free and vegan friendly? Ok, I had to try this.

I contacted Harjoyt and Kash for an interview and requested to try their products. Not only did I procure a jar of India Base and some lentils, but they also whipped up two of the recipes they’ve created for their sauce. I was able to sample Chickpeas with India Base and Cauliflower & Potato with India Base, along with some naan and yogurt.

Although these two dishes had the same base (made with onions, garlic, ginger, tomatoes, chilli peppers, and lemon juice), they were unique. The Chickpeas with India Base was a soup loaded with chickpeas, onions (from the sauce), and cilantro. Mmm, was this ever yummy coupled with the warm, soft naan!

Chickpeas with India Base, served with naan

The Cauliflower & Potato with India Base was a thick vegetable dish with chunky pieces of potatoes and cauliflower, topped with fresh cilantro. It had the same base sauce, but tasted very different. Perhaps due to the concentration of the sauce (it wasn’t thinned out like in the soup), this dish had a bit of bite to it. The seasonings in the dish, which were spicy with a pungent, mouth-watering aroma, were complemented by the cool, tangy homemade yogurt. Nom nom nom nom.

Cauliflower & Potato with India Base

As I was scarfing down my prize, my husband came home early and I was caught! The first words out of his mouth were, “Mmm, what smells so good in here?” Even my son, the pickiest eater ever, wanted—yes, actually wanted—to try the dishes. I didn’t want to share, with anyone really, but I did. The Big Man was impressed with the “nice, mellow aftertaste” and the Little Man wanted me to cook this again.

So about a week later, I tried out Harjoyt and Kash’s Indian Lentils with India Base recipe.

India Base with yellow and orange lentils

The soup (or the stew, as I made it, because I overcooked the lentils) was yummy and filling and, again, tasted different from the other two dishes somehow. How is this possible? I have no idea, but I love the versatility of India Base. It truly is “Indian food—from scratch—made easy!” These lovely ladies have taken the guesswork out of making Indian food. They have also provided their customers with loads of recipes on their website, so you could use India Base each day of the week and still have more recipes to try!

If you want to try India Base for yourself (and I highly recommend that you do), you can meet Harjoyt and Kash and sample their sauce at the Farmers Market at the Port Moody Recreation Complex this Sunday (March 4th) from 10 am to 2 pm or at the Abbotford Farmers Market on Saturday, March 17th, also from 10 am to 2 pm. Jars of India Base are only $5!

Try it. You will love it.

India Base
www.indiabase.ca
604-788-5709
604-270-4647
harjoyt@indiabase.ca
@India_Base

As a big fan of Max’s Deli sandwiches, as soon as I saw the sign go up (while still in construction) on West 8th Avenue at Cambie, I got really excited. Max’s Burgers is located just across the street from Whole Foods and only a few blocks from my house, so I was constantly walking by, staring, and dreaming about those burgers. I figured if the burgers were anything like the sandwiches, they’d have it made. Waiting, waiting, waiting for the restaurant to finally open was agony: I love me a hot beef injection.

The menu at Max’s is unpretentious, which is exactly how a burger joint menu should be. While they have dogs, milkshakes, and floats, I kept my attention on the burgers. Their signature burger is the $9 Big Max. Clean and simple, this burger comes with a 5 oz. fresh Alberta chuck patty, lettuce, tomato, and Big Max Sauce on a brioche bun. A side of hand-cut Kennebec fries accompanies this basic burger. You can ask for “Max’s Style”  (fried red onions) or for a chicken burger patty at no extra cost. You can make it a double burger for $3. Toppings, like cheese, bacon, or mushrooms, are an extra $1.50. Pretty reasonable for sure.

If you don’t feel like building your own burger, they offer a selection of “Fabulous Pre-Fabs.” When Big Man and I went we each ordered one of these specialty burgers.

Big Man got The British Columbian with bacon marmalade, applewood smoked bacon, cheddar and “the fixins’” for $12.50. Big Man really liked this burger, despite the fact that he said the bacon marmalade was “a bit much.” He said that the next time we visited, he would order the Big Max and add bacon and cheddar. He loved the patty, which he felt had a bit of a “kick,” and he also loved the soft brioche bun. Overall: thumbs up.

Max's Burgers | The British Columbian, $12.50

I got the Pushing Buttons with sautéed mushrooms, truffle mayo, swiss cheese, lettuce, and tomato for $12.50. I made it “Max’s Style” to add sautéed red onions, which complemented the other ingredients.

I found my patty to be a bit too peppery. Although Big Man liked this about the patty, I thought it slightly detracted from the flavour. The meat was high quality, so this helped. The truffle mayo, swiss cheese, and mushrooms were a perfect medley of flavour. The Total Flavour Package was a win (in spite of the peppery patty).

Max's Burgers | Pushing Buttons, $12.50

But, the best part of the experience was actually the fries. Wow! Normally, fries are the side dish. At Max’s, they are the star. Fried in beef tallow, these crispy spuds have a potatoey taste that socks you in the taste buds. When I walked past the kitchen and saw stacks of boxes of uncut local potatoes, I realized why. You just cannot beat local BC potatoes, freshly cut on site. You can’t beat it! The fries here are truly fantastic.

Fresh + Local BC Spuds

If I have one word of advice for Max’s Burgers, it would be to cut back a bit on the pepper in their patties. Other than that, it’s all a go. I will definitely be back to Max’s Burgers.* It fills a serious burger void in the area and I’m thrilled to call this place my local burger joint.

Max’s Burgers
521 West 8th Ave.
Vancouver, BC V5Z 1C6
604-873-MAXS (6297)

*Note: So I did go back, like the next night. I had a Max’s Burger with cheddar cheese and fried onions. Again, the patty was a bit too peppery, but the burger was still very tasty. The fries were just as amazing the second time around. Here’s the kicker: we tried the strawberry and banana milkshakes and there were stand-out in the extreme. One of the best strawberry shakes that I’ve had in Vancouver, possibly the best.

This isn't the first action this car has seen: http://vancouver-bites.com/2010/07/03/la-taqueria/

Needless to say, I’ve been feeling a little down. I was craving Mac’n'Cheese, that oh-so-comfy comfort food that makes everyone feel better. In particular, I was craving “The Brooklyn” from The Mac Shack. When I tweeted my predicament, The Mac Shack told me they would bring it to me.

Predicament:

car crash + sadness = need for Mac

= need for car to drive to get Mac + no car

= disappointment and thwarted desires

Bring it to me? Yep, they said it sounded like I’d had a rough week and I deserved a little comfort. A RAOM, they called it: a “Random Act of Macness.”

And let me tell you, it was just what I needed. We devoured that thing.

Of course, it has been quite the journey to get to this point. I’ve had The Mac Shack three times and it wasn’t until today that I felt ready to write a review. Full disclosure: I realize now that only once did I pay for my meal, and that was a partial payment. This does not influence my review, as you will see.

The first time I had The Mac Shack was on Grand Opening day. I was really excited, since you know, Mac and Cheese is kinda my thing. I was lucky to find out about The Mac Shack via Big Man, after he’d been trolling around on Twitter. I freaked, like I do, and this was before we realized they were giving away free Macs to their first 500 Twitter followers. Whaaaaaa?!

So Big Man and I followed them and received our coupon codes for free Macs. On opening day, we drove all the way over to West Blvd at W. 38th Ave. When we got there, we were turned away! Temporary closure due to the overwhelming response on their first day of business. I was pissed and I didn’t hide it. Like any sleazy snob, I vented my frustrations on the Internet behind my semi-opaque mask of anonymity. Immediately, I got a tweet to return to the restaurant as it was just a miscommunication.

Grumble. Grumble. This better be good, I thought.

So, we snuck back in. As usual, I didn’t pay attention to the menu and assumed that the three sizes of “Regular,” “Ultimate,” and “Jumbo” equated to “A Little Hungry,” “Fairly Hungry,” and “Really Hungry.” So, for the three of us, I ordered a regular Lobster Mac ($15), a regular Classic Mac ($6), a regular Bacon Cheeseburger Mac ($8), and an ultimate Royale ($16). We used two of our coupons and only had to pay for the Lobster Mac and the Royale.

That's a lot of food

So, it took about 45 minutes to get our food, which was tiresome, but understandable considering this was their first day of business. Overall, I liked the Mac, but I didn’t love it. I wasn’t blown away.  The portions were large and the value was there. A “Regular” feeds 1 person, an “Ultimate” feeds 2, and a “Jumbo” feeds 3-4. I would’ve known that if I had read the menu. The Macs were good, particularly the Classic and the Bacon Cheeseburger, but I feared that my expectations had been a little high. Remember, I’m always looking for the Mac that takes me back to my childhood.

The Royale comes with bacon, bell peppers, broccoli, mushrooms, chicken, chorizo, and shrimp with Mozzarella and Gruyere cheese in a rose sauce

Obviously, no self-respecting reviewer would publish a review based on a Grand Opening experience. Of course, I don’t have any self-respect, but I still waited to write the review.

Thwarted in my attempts to get back to The Mac Shack, I wasn’t able to return incognito. About a month or two after their Grand Opening, they had a media event and I made it on the guest list (I’m not usually one of those bloggers who gets these types of invitations). So, I headed back and was able to try their re-worked menu. This was a great experience because I was forced to try a lot of Macs, some of which I would never have ordered on my own. And that is how I met Brooklyn.

Brooklyn is a lovely Mac made with Naramata Blue Cheese and AAA Sirloin Steak, with caramelized onions and mushrooms in an aged balsamic reduction and rose sauce. Blue Cheese in my Mac? Whaaaaaaa?!

But it was The Brooklyn that really caught my taste buds at the media event. Sure, I also enjoyed the Lobster Mac (yet again), which comes with a hefty portion of lobster even when you aren’t at a media event (yes, it did the first time I tried it too). The Veggie was tasty, although not something I would personally order on my own. The breadsticks with tomato dipping sauce were better than expected. And the Bacon Cheeseburger Mac was good the second time around.

But only one of these Macs lingered in my memory: The Brooklyn. (My musings on why we are drawn to certain Macs can be found here.) The rest were good, but only the Brooklyn would keep me coming back. It is something about the sweetness of the caramelized onions mixed with the tanginess of the blue cheese that just makes me crave it. The large slices of tender steak don’t hurt either.

Which brings us back to the present time. Today, The Mac Shack brought me an ultimate Brooklyn. Whenever I get free food (which is very rare), I have to ask myself one very crucial question:

Would I pay full price to eat this?

So an ultimate-sized Brooklyn is $17. Tonight, this fed Big Man, after a long day of work; myself; and Little Man, a growing boy. Dinner for three for $20. Yep, that’s a deal that I would gladly pay for.

Is this the best Mac’n'Cheese I’ve ever had? No.

Is this the best Mac’n'Cheese in all of Vancouver? Maybe/Maybe not. That really depends on you. What kind of Mac’n'Cheese do you like? Let me explain.

In my quest for the best Mac’n'Cheese, I’ve heard a lot of recommendations. You can’t believe how many times I’ve been told to go to Burgoo for the best Mac in the city. And again and again I have to say, “Sorry, I like a lot of things at Burgoo, but the Mac ain’t one of ‘em.” But think about that for a minute. Why do so many recommend Burgoo? Is it that their taste buds are seriously flawed? I don’t think so. I think that everyone is different and, thus, everyone wants something specific and unique in their ideal Mac. For myself, I was lucky enough to be able to try a lot of the Macs at The Mac Shack until I found one that was the right fit for me.

Will I eat at The Mac Shack again? Definitely.

It works like this. If you love burgers, you aren’t going to stop until you try every single burger you can get your hands on. Now, once you eat your way through the city until you find your number one favourite burger, does that mean you stop eating burgers everywhere else? No way!

Similarly, I don’t plan to stop looking for that number one best Mac ever, but in the meantime I’m sure I’ll continue to crave The Brooklyn.

Find your favourite Mac at:

The Mac Shack
5395 West Boulevard
Vancouver, BC V6M 3W4
604-267-4225

I haven’t posted in a long time. I know. I’ve been busy.

Also, I’ve been trying to lose my blogger fat. It’s like baby fat, but you don’t grow out of it. You do, however, grow out of your skinny jeans. I gained 30 pounds in my first year of food blogging. Since December, I’ve lost almost 20 of those pounds. But I’ve still got a ways to go.

That isn’t to say I’ve stopped eating. Oh no. But I have tried to limit eating out to once a week. Since I’m only eating out once a week, it’s hard not to keep going back to my old favourites. You know, those restaurants I’ve already posted on. Add to this the fact that I started a graduate studies program, and you can see I’ve got plenty of excuses not to post.

But a new breakfast joint has brought me back to you, dear Reader. OK, it’s not actually that new and it’s not a breakfast joint, but their new-to-me breakfasts make me happy. And they are very reasonably priced. A bonus for all you like-minded cheapskates out there.

It’s Edible Canada. Located on Granville Island, this is classy, yet casual, (classual?) dining at a very affordable price. I don’t actually know how they do it. Rent has got to be a killer.

Take, for example, my favourite: Breakfast Tacos. Three corn tortillas filled with scrambled eggs, pico de gallo, avocado crema, and FRESH salsa for only $9. A steal to be sure.

Breakfast Tacos, $9

Or the hearty Island Breakfast for $11. This meal comes with scrambled eggs, sausage, pork belly, and home fries fried in duck fat. Oh yeah, they’re gooood.

Island Breakfast, $11

If you want to fill up on even less, try the Granville Island Breakfast Bun. For only $7, you get a round panini-style breakfast sandwich filled with melted smokehouse cheddar and scrambled eggs, as well as a substantial side of the duck fat fried potatoes.

Granville Island Breakfast Bun, $7 (pictured with a side of double smoked bacon, $3)

If you want to live high on the hog, you can add a side of sausage or bacon for $3 (get it? get it?).

Now, if you’re not a grad student like me, you might be able to order just anything from the menu, without even thinking of the price. I do admit that I splurged once and got the Yarrow Meadows Duck Confit Hash for…gulp…$14.

Yarrow Meadows Duck Confit Hash, $14

I almost broke the bank that day, but it was so worth it! Two poached Fraser Valley eggs perched on a hash of roasted potatoes, wild mushrooms, corn, and onions. This meal was packed with duck meat and practically dripping with duck fat.

Mmmm duuuuuck

Delicious, but dangerous. Not only is it very rich, you might die of a coronary. At least you will die happy.

I highly recommend sharing this with a friend. Maybe you can pair it with their fruit and yogurt parfait, which seems like a much healthier option (though probably not as good!).

Big Man says the breakfasts are good, but a little pretentious. I heartily disagree. I don’t know of another place that serves up ingredients of this quality at such a reasonable price. Plus, service is friendly even when you arrive sweaty from your morning bike ride. If you haven’t been, check it out!

Edible Canada at the Market
on Granville Island
1596 Johnston Street
Vancouver, BC
604-682-6681