Vancouver Getaway: Friday

Friday was a slightly cooler day in Vancouver (maybe 15 C), but still absolutely beautiful, with no wind.

La Pentola in our hotel won best new restaurant in Vancouver years ago, but I am thinking it has gone downhill.  We went for breakfast on Friday, and thought it was terrible (although we've read good reviews about the lunch/ dinner).

The omelette was, in my opinion, the worst kind of omelette there is.  It was puffy eggs (microwaved?  pre-cooked?) wrapped around the filling, instead of the filling being added to the eggs during the cooking process.  I don't think there was any cheese in it; I couldn't detect it.  The veggies/ meat all just fell out, so it was next to impossible to get a bite of it all together.  The Italian sausage was tiny, diced up pieces of cured sausage, like you'd cut up for a charcuterie board or to have with cheese and crackers.  It tasted weird warmed up and in an omelette; I was expecting meat that started out raw, and was cooked for the dish. The tough stems of the shiitake mushrooms were left on and quite difficult to chew through, so I just left them.  The potatoes were unseasoned and completely flavourless.  It was bad.  And we aren't overly picky people.  Christopher had the oatmeal, and called it gruel.  It too lacked flavour, and toppings.  Even a sprinkle of brown sugar would have gone a long way.  I didn't think it was possible to screw up breakfast this bad, but it was awful.  Also, the service wasn't good, which made it an even worse experience.

The lunch and dinner menu at La Pentola sounded really good, but we were too scared to try.

After breakfast we walked, and walked, and walked.

We got to Stanley Park, which is absolutely gorgeous!  I had been once as a kid, but I didn't remember it at all (I think we only drove around it), and Christopher had never been, so we were really looking forward to exploring.

We had a late lunch at MeeT, which is an excellent vegan restaurant.

The burger special was made to taste exactly like beef, and it totally did!  We would have never guessed that it was vegan, and that it also contained more protein than a beef burger of the same size!

On the side we had topped fries, which were amazing.

We also shared the mac and cheese, and it was pure perfection - the cheesiest, creamiest, most delicious bowl.  We ate every last bite of everything.

After lunch we popped into The Distillery to hang out and rest our feet a bit more, and then we were on the move again, wandering all over the place.

For a late dinner we headed to Sura, a Korean restaurant.

 

 

This was a late meal, and to top it off we hopped around to a couple of different places for private-room karaoke, which was so fun!  We sang songs we wouldn't normally sing, and had a great time picking random songs, and then often cancelling them halfway through when we realized we totally didn't know them as well as we thought we did - haha!

Have you been in Stanley Park?  When was the last time you were really disappointed with a restaurant dining experience?  How is your week going?  Any plans for the weekend?

Yves Veggie Cuisine

We love to eat plant-based meals, as we know the health benefits of a plant-heavy diet, and we haven't met a vegetable that we don't like.  I recently received some products from the people at Yves, and was excited to try them (I think Christopher might have been even more excited.  He will always choose a veggie burger or veggie dog etc. over the meat alternatives).

This week we tried the Kale and Quinoa Bites.

These appetizer bites are vegan, free from gluten, cholesterol, artificial preservatives, artificial flavours and colours.  They are a good source of fiber, packed with vegetables, and are non-GMO.

They're a breeze for a snack, as you just toss them in the oven for 10-11 minutes until heated through.  We enjoyed them dipped in tzatziki sauce.

They have delicious little flecks of kale and carrot throughout them, as well as potatoes, onion, quinoa, chickpea flour, spices, and ginger - mmm!

This week we also tried Yves Veggie Ground Round.

Ground round is a great vegan alternative to ground beef.  I recently found out that my mother-in-law always uses it in her lasagna, which I didn't realize, even though I've had her lasagna a few times.  It's got the same look and texture as ground beef, and is clearly quite indistinguishable from the meat when used in a dish.  I've used ground round many times in spaghetti sauce, lasagna, and chili. 

It's a good source of protein (9 grams per 1/3 cup), a source of fiber, non-GMO, cholesterol-free, artificial preservative/flavour/colour free, and has 90% less fat than regular ground beef. 

We used it to make spaghetti sauce for dinner.

The third Yves product we tried were the Falafel Balls.

These Middle-Eastern vegan bites are filled with chickpeas, onions, carrots, herbs and spices.  They are great on their own (just heat and serve), or in a pita, sandwich or wrap.  They are a good source of fiber and iron, and are free from gluten, cholesterol and trans fat.  They, like the other products we tried, are also non-GMO.

We enjoyed the falafel balls in whole wheat pitas, with tzatziki sauce, Greek salad, and mustard. 

We're huge fans of falafel, and have made falafel pitas a few times before.  Falafel is traditionally served with tzatziki, which is traditionally made with Greek yogurt.  However, if you don't have Greek yogurt on hand, you could also make it with sour cream.

Sour Cream Tzatziki Sauce

- 3/4 cup sour cream (Greek Yogurt for traditional Tzatziki)
- 1/2 an English cucumber, grated, and liquid squeezed out
- 1 T dill
- 1 1/2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 T lemon juice
- sea salt to taste

Mix together and enjoy with Yves Falafal Balls, or Yves Quinoa and Kale Bites, in your pitas, etc.

Have you tried any Yves Veggie Cuisine products?  

Do you try to incorporate plant-based meals into your diet?

For recipes, meal ideas, and other information follow:

@YvesVeggiePage on Facebook   
@YvesVeggie on Instagram

* The Yves products in this post were provided to me free of charge.  All opinions are my own. 
* High-resolution images of the products provided to me by Yves.  Other photos are my own.