Hiro Sushi

Hiro Sushi Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - ZomatoWith so many sushi restaurants in town, and after trying years of different sushi, and slowly moving up for better quality than quantity, I stopped going to lower-end, cheap sushi places. Not only did I want quality, I have had several bounds of food poisoning, or simply not feeling well after some fishy sushi. It’s just wasn’t worth it.

From the outside, I could tell by the bold red and yellow signage that this wasn’t an expensive place. But Sheepie was up to it.

idearabbit_hiro_sushi1 idearabbit_hiro_sushi3When we entered, there were no Asians dining. Oh oh… and it was less than half empty. The walls were covered in murals of Spanish or Greek like scenery… must have been some European restaurant before. They kept it as it is, and now had Japanese decor hanging in places. idearabbit_hiro_sushi2 I ordered the 3 items with miso soup combo for $10.95. With 88 items to choose from, there’s something for everyone to order. Brown rice is available with extra charge.

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The miso soup came out right after we ordered. It was super quick!

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I chose Yakitori from the Appetizer list. It was covered in panko, and was grilled flat. Unusual, but tasted ok. However, it wouldn’t be something I order again.

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Gyoza of 5 pieces were good.

idearabbit_hiro_sushi6 Salmon Avocado roll had really large pieces, making it a bit hard to it, but otherwise, it was decent.

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Sheepie had the Hiro House Combo $11.95 (14 pieces) of Hiro House roll, Salmon roll and 3 pieces of salmon. The roll pieces were huge. The salmon nigiri was pretty good.

The service and food was satisfactory, but wouldn’t be on the top list of go-to sushi places.

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Gallery Cafe

Gallery Cafe Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - ZomatoAfter living in downtown for so long, and visiting the gallery several times, I don’t know how I missed going to this cafe. It can be easily missed as it is on top of the gallery.

The cafe was pretty bare. It had an European cafe feel, and had a high-end charm. We each had a piece of dessert with Coffee $2.25. Nice presentation! The chocolate cake was really creamy and tasty. Mmmmmmm!

Since it was warm, we sat out on the patio. Definitely would come back again for sure!

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Taste: carrotcarrotcarrotcarrot    Price for Value: carrotcarrotcarrot

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Trattoria Italian Kitchen in Kitsilano

Trattoria Italian Kitchen Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - ZomatoFor our company’s Christmas dinner, we decided to dine at Trattoria. Hearing that many other companies were also hosting their dinners there, we were excited for our dinner experience.

We made reservations and arrived around 5:30pm. The table was set very nicely with menus, glasses and cutlery wrapped in red-checkered napkins.

idearabbit_trattoria_kitsilano1idearabbit_trattoria_kitsilano2For appetizer, Sheepie and I shared the Caprese $13.95. Surprisingly, our dishes came out already separated on two huge bowls. Mine were with sliced red tomatoes, while Sheepie’s was mostly yellow tomatoes. We were kind of puzzled with how the burrata looked. Taste wise, it was pretty good, but was slightly disappointed that it wasn’t in it’s traditional form. The texture of the sliced burrata, tomato and sandwiching some basil leaves in between was something I was looking forward to. The three colours of red, white and green is supposed to resemble the colours of the Italian flag, and usually, this dish jumps out at me because of the vibrant colours.

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For my entree, I had the Wild Salmon $24.95 with sweet pea risotto, lemon beurre blanc and seasonal vegetables. The salmon was well done, maybe slightly dry, but was pretty good. I’m not sure why I like congee, but not so much when it comes to risotto. When it comes to western rice, I prefer them to be very dry. But maybe it did compliment the salmon.

idearabbit_trattoria_kitsilano5For dessert, I had the Vanilla Crème Brûlée $8.95 with seasonal fruits (meaning a tiny slice of strawberry and mint leaves) and gluten free chocolate cookies (actually, only one piece).

idearabbit_trattoria_kitsilano4Sheepie had the Zeppole al Cioccolato $8.95 which were five Italian-style donuts with chocolate gianduja and vanilla creme angalise. It reminded Sheepie of Timbits, but of a fancier and larger version with chocolate filling.

Service was excellent even with the busy, but cozy atmosphere.

Taste: carrotcarrotcarrotcarrot    Price for Value: carrotcarrotcarrot

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