Tag Archives: late night

The Denman Tap House

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The Denman Tap House Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - ZomatoFor Halloween night, Sheepie was invited by some friends to the pub on Denman. I’m a quiet, soft spoken yogi (lol), so it’s not quite the scene where I usually would go to. The entrance fee was $5 per person, though the guy after us was charge $10 for some reason. Inside, the music was blasting with a small dance floor, the bar and dining area. The place was decorated with a spooky but fun Halloween flair, and all the servers were dressed up. I’m pretty sure if I were to return, I wouldn’t know who was which server.

idearabbit-denmantaphouse idearabbit-denmantaphouse2We arrived around around 9pm. The place was half empty. It was extremely difficult to understand our server who spoke at such a low frequency in the midst of the loud atmosphere. Sheepie ordered a glass of beer $3.50 (special that day) along with 6 Layer Dip and Chicken Fingers & Fries. I don’t drink, so nothing for me.

idearabbit-denmantaphouse3The food didn’t arrive for nearly 40 minutes. When we asked our server, she said there were a lot of orders, even though the place wasn’t all that busy yet. Sheepie wanted to take a photo of her scary costume, but she mumbled something and walked away. When she brought Sheepie’s beer, he asked again, and again, she mumbled something and walked away. Was she just playing her costume role as a dead funky skeleton? She was so rude…

idearabbit-denmantaphouse4The 6 Layer Dip $9.95 had guacamole, re-fried beans, sour cream, salsa, chipotle, alioli and cheese with Nacho chips. The bowl had everything all in one (hence the name), but it was just a mix of everything, and not a food you could ‘savour’, though I guess at these kinds of places, that’s not your main concern.

idearabbit-denmantaphouse5Chicken Fingers & Fries $8.95. The fries looked good, but they were soooo salty. It came with Honey Mustard and Ketchup, but the salt was too much already. I didn’t have much of it. The chicken was crispy.

As it got closer to 10:30pm, the place started to get packed. Soon, it was impossible to walk around. I heard some glass shattering. I left around 11:30pm as I needed to get up 6am the next day.
Perhaps it’s not the best time to evaluate the restaurant. I’m not sure how crazy it gets on a normal night. I hate loud music and having to shout and guess what the other person is saying for a conversation, and from some of the reviews that I had read, it seems that that’s the case normally. Plus, like I said, I don’t drink, so pubs/bars aren’t my venues. Poor food and terrible service.
Later, when I was writing this post and checking my receipt, I was shocked to see that there was already a 15% gratuity added on the bill. It was only 2 of us! So we had paid double the tip to her for bad service! ARGH! And she just stood there as we searched our wallets for cash, never saying anything that it was added. Terrible greedy waitress! Never return!

Taste: carrotcarrot    Price for Value: carrotcarrot

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Pho Central

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Click to add a blog post for Pho Central on Zomato I had been to Pho Central when it was at the old location. It was filthy and tiny, though their pho were good. I had always walked by it and seen how full it was, so I suspected that their pho must be still good.

I met a with a friend for lunch around 1pm. It wasn’t overly busy, so it was good timing. The interior was quite spacious and nicer than most other whole in the wall pho places. In fact, this must be the best one I’ve been to in Metro Vancouver area. It has a bar on one side with blue LED lighting which gives it a modern, moody look.

idearabbit-pho_central1 idearabbit-pho_central2 idearabbit-pho_central3 idearabbit-pho_central4I ordered the Beef Ball Noodles Soup $8 (regular). I was surprised by the portion. It must be the biggest one I know. The broth wasn’t overwhelmingly salty, and the noodles and beef tasted great. We kept eating, but it seemed like the amount never shrunk. Each bowl of Pho came with a plate of sprouts, slice of lime, jalapenos and Vietnamese basil. I usually put in all the sprouts, a sprinkle of torn up basil and squeeze the lime. No extra sauces. I know most people use them, but a recent reading has taught me that the use of extra sauces aren’t authentic. I guess it’s like how California rolls aren’t authentic Japanese rolls (in fact none of the fancy rolls are). I often don’t like a lot of sauces on anything since it usually covers up the real flavour.

I love this place! I think it’s the best Pho in town – in terms of quality, quantity, price, atmosphere, location and service. Extra points for serving water in glass, and not plastic. The spoons for the noodle soups are also porcelain and not plastic.

Back for Dinner
This time I returned with Sheepie who isn’t a fan of Pho (what?! lol). Anyways, there were plenty of non-Pho dishes to order and he ended up getting the Chicken Curry. Looked spicy, but it wasn’t too hot. The chicken were super tender and really just melted in your mouth. I again ordered the Beef Ball Pho – sorry, I’m just in love with this bowl!

It was super busy this time with usually 3 groups waiting by the entrance. However there were no compromise with the food quality. Service was a bit slower, but that was expected.

My favourite Pho in Metro Vancouver!

Taste: carrotcarrotcarrotcarrotcarrot    Price for Value: carrotcarrotcarrotcarrotcarrot

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Pho Extreme Xe Lua

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Click to add a blog post for Pho Extreme Xe Lua Restaurant on ZomatoI was craving for some Pho around 11:30pm, and the only place that was open nearby was this one – open 24/7. I had driven by it everyday from work, and wondered what their Pho was like. I was disappointed to see the poor reviews, but since it was the only one open, I gave it a shot.
Despite being midnight, it was full-house with 2-3 groups waiting by the door. We were lucky that a table had just opened up.

idearabbit-phoextreme idearabbit-phoextreme2 idearabbit-phoextreme3 idearabbit-phoextreme4 idearabbit-phoextreme5 I had been there when it was a sushi restaurant – in fact there were 2 different sushi restaurants previously there in which I had gone to both. With both of them closing down, I thought this location was poor for some reason, even though it was on a prime location on the corner of Broadway and Cambie. I guess I was wrong about Pho Extreme Xe Lua.

Since it was late, I only ordered a small Beef Ball Pho $8 while Sheepie who was not a Pho fan had the Grilled Chicken Sub $4.75 (Zomato’s menu is outdated – so there are price increases). For a small bowl, I thought it was pricey, especially when the best Pho (that I know of in Vancouver) cost $8 for a regular bowl  – and it was one of the biggest bowl I’ve had. Not to mention really tasty.

idearabbit-phoextreme6The bowl came in a cheap plastic bowl, with the noodles all clumped up. I didn’t realize until more than half way through the bowl that I never got any of the toppings!! Argh! I was hungry but also half sleepy, so I guess I wasn’t thinking. Boo – sucks even more that the table next to us had some which they barely had touched. Sheepie explained that his sub would be great if one had walked for miles in the dessert and was all worn out and it was the first food one had in days…lol.

The broth was super salty, and nothing rich about it.

The server’s shoes were almost black with oil and dirt. His pants were dropping a bit. There was a ant fly crawling on our table. The place is overall ok, but feel a bit dirty.

Being open around the clock is a huge plus, but the food isn’t good. Anyways, it’s bad to eat so late, right? Would not return unless I absolutely, really have to.

Taste: carrotcarrot    Price for Value: carrot

Atmosphere:  carrotcarrot   Service:  carrotcarrot
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