Tag Archives: local

Rocky Mountain Flatbread Co.

Sheepie and I wanted to go back to Sweet Revenge, but it had a really long lineup, so we walked around in the neighbourhood and came upon Rocky Mountain Flatbread. Since we already had dinner, we were only there for dessert. We both had their special daily cheesecake $7.50 each.

The server was kind enough to make me a Rooibos Latte $3, and allowed Sheepie to instruct her on how to make a Latte Macchiato $3 – which apparently doesn’t exist here in Canada. It’s my favourite drink in Europe (pretty much the only thing I drank while traveling), but here, nobody knows what it is. However, I try to stay away from caffeine since I end up not being able to sleep till 7am in the morning (and get up shortly for work! – yup, I’m dead on those days…)

Rooibos Latte $3 and special Cheesecake $7.50 Macchiato $3

The place has a nice warm cosy atmosphere with the birch coloured seatings and red walls. The cheesecake and drinks were really good and I’m eager to come back to try their food next time. I was attracted to their sustainability initiave. Their dishes feature local & organic produce, free range organic meats & Ocean Wise seafood. They are handcrafted daily in house and all of the flatbread pizzas, pastas, salads, daily soups & desserts are available gluten free for an extra fee.
The service was good and looking forward to coming back!

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Farmer’s Apprentice

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My friend sent me a link on Star.com. At second place was this restaurant called Farmer’s Apprentice. She wanted to check it out, so we went for lunch on Saturday. Their menu changes daily (which makes me think of how much paper they throw away compared to conventional menus) and are well known for cooking up their recipe using local ingredients.

I arrived to find a lineup and as I looked at the list of names on the waiting list, I was unsure whether we wanted to wait 30-40 minutes. However, since other parties had more than 2 persons, we got lucky and got our tables fairly quickly out on the patio at a tiny table for 2. They really put every inch of the space in and outside of the restaurant to use.

It was a nice cloudless day, but it was still chilly. I was glad that there was a blanket for my legs, but by the end, my butt was frozen cold. Note to self; do not eat outside if it’s not summer…lol. But that is only for me – I’m ALWAYS cold.

Since we couldn’t really decide on what to get, we decided to get 2 different dishes and share. We got the Smoke Sablefish $17 with wheatberries, braised greens, hazelnuts, yogurt, and 2 soft boiled eggs. The other one was the Oat Porter Bratwurst $15 with lentil ragout, fire roasted peppers, romanesco and 2 poached eggs.

Oat Porter Bratwurst $15 Smoke Sablefish $17

The portions were small, but still filling. The bratwurst was soft and juicy with a touch of herbs for flavour. Loved the poached eggs. My friend liked the lentil ragout, as did I, especially with the sauce.
The sablefish was a small portion but it was light and fresh. Presentation for both plates were alright.
My friend knows well about my blog, and we both discussed at the end of our meal on the carrot ratings. We both came to the conclusion that it is a bit over-rated. The food was good for sure, but we weren’t blown away for a second position restaurant.

It’s just my preference, but I’m not a fan of eating outside, lining up, being in a crowded restaurant or a noisy atmosphere. Service was a bit slow at times, but with a busy restaurant like that, I guess it’s understandable. But they were friendly.

As we left, we saw all the ingredients outside sitting in the sun. I hope it’s not like that during summer time.

As I checked their website for more info, they did list where they got their ingredients, but it wasn’t that obvious. From a marketing point of view, this should be more prominent and should be the USP (unique selling point) of this restaurant. After seeing how they were a lot more conscious of their sources, it did change my mind, especially after seeing a documentary on animal slaughterhouses and how animals are tortured, it did get me thinking of finding places that were focused on organics and humane raising of animals. But Farmer’s Apprentice should push this idea more.

Will we be back? Perhaps.

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West End Vancouver Farmers Market

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West End Farmers Market Saturdays, June 1 – October 19, 2013
9am – 2pm each week
1100 Block of Comox Street across from Nelson Park at Mole Hill

After reading more health books, I realized how much toxins are really in our daily food, and how it is affecting us, unfortunately in a negative way. I’ve been able to eliminate eating canned foods, frozen meals, and processed snacks. My appetite has been pretty good, meaning that I don’t get that empty stomach feeling between meals, craving for food, especially sugar.

I had switched from eating ‘normal, regular’ gum, to sugar-free gum (make sure it’s not sugarless! There’s a difference between sugar free and sugarless. Sugar free means it’s free of sugar. Sugarless means there’s just ‘less’ sugar) However, all of them had aspartame, which I have read some negative reviews on, so I’ve switched to a gum that contains no aspartame. I thought it would be expensive, but surprisingly, a pack cost on $1.29 (contains 10 per pack) – not bad. By the time of this posting, I have completely gotten rid of my gum addition. I no longer chew gum at all, so now I have 3 packs of non-aspartame gum just sitting on my shelf. I guess it’ll come in handy at one time or another, and it’s not something that would go bad.

Last but not least, eating fresh vegetables and fruits that are organic! This can be pricey…so don’t try to go all organic overnight. It can be overwhelming, for you and your wallet. Try buying them when they are on sale, or even better, if you have a yard, why not start growing your own?

If you don’t have a yard, or not well enough to garden, then you can go check out the Vancouver Farmers Markets around Vancouver and Lower Mainland. Check out their website at eatlocal.org to see other locations, dates and times.