Ono Seafood

Hidden Entrance!

Menu

         Ono Seafood is a hole in the wall restaurant with a great reputation for having the best Poke on Oahu. Poke is raw fish, often ahi (tuna) mixed with a variety of ingredients such as shoyu (soy sauce) and seaweed. I love raw fish, along with the rest of the family so we hopped over here after Diamond Head. This place is really easy to miss, and is really just a hole in the wall with a few tables. The truth is that we ran in a few circles before finding this place, which is hidden behind a few umbrellas. You order at the counter and take it outside or wherever to eat. Inside there is a big freezer filled with other foods, but we cane here for the fresh poke. We got 2 Super Combo Bowls for $10 each although the normal size comes with 1/3 pound of poke rather than the 1/2 pound out of the Super size. If you get any size poke bowl, you get a free soft drink or fruit juice. Pretty good deal to me, especially when you see that quality and quantity you get for your $10. The service was quick and were very helpful when we were asking about what was good. The only thing they need are a more exposed storefront.

     

Shoyu Ahi and Shoyu Tako Poke Bowl $10

Spicy Ahi and Wasabi Ahi Poke Bowl $10

    As stated before, a super combo poke bowl is $10, and comes with rice and 1/2  pound of poke. Pretty good bang for your buck there. Because we could pick 2 different kinds on each one, we choose the Shoyu Ahi (tuna) and Shoyu Tako (octopus). As a person who quite dislikes tako, I was a bit relectant to try it, and I was glad it was done. The Tako was very fresh, not frozen and at room temperature, but the main draw was that it was so freaking tender. You just needed to chew a little bit, and it would be gone, with the lightly flavoured shoyu sauce. The Shoyu Ahi was even better, or at least better than the run of the mill stuff back in Vancouver. Not saying the tuna isn't good back home, but it just isn't as good. This one had the same dressing as the tako, which made it nice and light and allowed the fish to shine. And boy, did it shine. One bite and you were in ahi heaven, with the fresh ahi melting in your mouth, maybe pressing your teeth together every once in a while. This went great with rice, as the rice had the same flavouring, although it was nothing special, it did it's job as filler. This poke bowl was easily a 4.5/5, and was a 5/5 on what I tried. For poke bowl number two, we got the other popular item, which was the spicy ahi and we decided to get the wasabi ahi for our other choice. Starting with the spicy ahi, it was lathered with mayo, but was still nice and fresh at the same time, complimenting the fish and not overpowering it. Some masago was rolled onto the outside, giving the fish a crunchy feel. For me, the ahi wasn't too spicy, and I can't tolerate that much heat, so most people can eat it. The other poke we got was the wasabi poke because that was the feel at the time. When they said wasabi, they weren't kidding. It gives you the "too much coke burp" feeling, and lots of it. However, once you get past that you get the same fresh fish, with not too much flavour. Not sure if I could recommend this item, for it didn't have too much taste, which wasn't too bad, but wasn't good either. I would give the spicy ahi a 5/5 and the wasabi ahi a 3/5.

Bottom Line: Fantastic Poke and Poke Bowls

Tip: Combo for MORE selection

Overall: 4.5/5

Leonard's Bakery

          After spending the morning as a tourist at Hanauma Bay, why not keep being a tourist for half of lunch? Prior to our stop at Ono Seafood, we stopped at Leonard's Bakery for some freshly fried malasadas. This is probably one of the most the most famous eateries around Oahu, as they sell merchandise alongside the malasadas. If you don't know what Malasadas are, essentially they are just deep fried pieces of dough that have Portuguese origins. If you want a simple explanation, think doughnuts without holes. At Leonard's you can't miss the big flashy sign or the group of people hanging around eating their malasadas. Inside you can see a big case filled with baked goods, but you are here for the malasadas, which are nowhere to be found. Well, I guess that the goods could be gold, but we didn't try any, and they are (obviously) famous for malasadas. The reason is that they are made fresh to order, so there may be a wait. The pricing is average, put up on a board and a few other things so just watch the T.V showing odd and comedy like commercials for Leonards.

        

Malasadas, Cupcakes and Drinks Menu

           You can get two different kinds of malasadas, with or without filling. The filled ones are $1.50 and the none puffed items are $1.10. From what I see, there is no discount from buying more of them and you can pick what flavours you want. For the filled items, there are always the macadamia nut, chocolate, coconut, and custard flavours to choose from along with the flavour of the month. For the normal malasadas, you had the choice of the original sugar, cinnamon and li hing (salty dried plum). Of course we tried everything, starting with the macadamia nut, or the ones on the bottom right and left. Not sure why it was a macadamia nut flavour, as it was just sweet and tasted nothing like the nut. At least the dough was nice and airy: 3/5. Next we tried the original which was very good. Not overly sweet from fillings  this was a nice light airy deep fried ball of joy: easy 5/5. The guava, which was the flavour of the month during our visit was not very good at all. Although it was nice and airy as usual, the filling was much too tart and sour, and made the malasada not sweet enough: 2/5. Finally, we tried the li hing flavour, which seemed like nothing was out of the norm and was just like the original 5/5. Those were the 4 that we tried when they were hot, as we saved the other ones for later. It really isn't the same to write about the fresh and unfresh, so I won't try. Overall, what we tried at Leonard's Bakery was very hit and miss. Some were overly sweet, some hit the target spot on. I think the ones without filling are better than with filling. 

Bottom Line: Hit and Miss Malasadas

Tip: Unfilled > Filled                                        

Overall (hot items only): 4/5                                                                        One of Everything!!!

Marukame Udon

Front Of Marukame Udon

Making Fresh Udon

           After a grueling 8 hours of waiting on a plane and waiting for a rental car, we came out with a free upgrade for our rental car. We upgraded from the cheapest compact car to a moderately priced mid size SUV. However, this was a bit confusing as the rental car attendant just pointed to the lot and said the grey SUV, so we had to get her to explain. Finally, we went in a few circles looking for the exit onto the main road. After a snack at Costco, we finally proceeded to our hotel. Lets just say it was a long day, so what better way to end it than getting some udon at Marukame Udon. There wasn't that much of a line, but by the time we left, or around 8 pm, there was a line and a half. We waited for about 10 minutes, which gave us plenty of time to choose what different kind of udon you want. On entering the establishment we saw someone making fresh udon. Unfortunately I wasn't quick enough but managed to get another snap. Anyways, the way you ordered was to tell the chef what udon you wanted, toppings or not (of course toppings!) and grabbing some tempura left under the warmer. None of us grabbed any musubi or anything like that because it was prepackaged and we had enough food either way. Udon is really filling, you know. Finally, you would grab chopsticks, tempura sauce and pay for your order. Our's came to $31 U.S.D for 4 bowls of udon and tempura. By the way, this place has a 4.8/5 rating on Zomato and was put as the 10th best place to eat in the United States according to Yelp. 

Regular Ontama Udon $4.25 + $3 for Tempura

 Regular Niku Udon $5.25

           Along with my sister, I got the Ontama Udon. It comes with lots of thick udon noodles in a nice shoyu broth with a soft poached egg, along with a scoop each of Tempura Flakes and Green Onion. I just got a sweet potato tempura and a shrimp tempura. Not feeling very adventurous again after walking for 30 minutes with a backpack. The udon itself was actually only $4.25 U.S.D, which wasn't very pricey at all, especially for Hawaii. Adding the shrimp tempura for $1.75 and sweet potato for $1.25 wasn't the best idea, as I barely touched the sweet potato, and was very full at the end. This was a fantastic bowl of udon that made my    taste buds sing. The soft boiled egg acted like a yellow waterfall that streamed into the soup. The broth was just flavorful enough to complement the al dente udon.The large scoops of green onion helped add color, texture and some freshness to the dish, along with the crunchyness of the tempura flakes. The only problem was that as the evening went on, the tempura flakes got soggy and tasted like wet flour. You couldn't really blame them though, as there really is no way to counteract it. I would give this udon a 5/5. My family was kind

Large Curry Udon $7.25

 enough to give me a bit of the Niku udon, which practically just replaced the soft poached egg with some shredded beef. At $5.25, this was a decent value, and was quite good. The beef was very tender, and the broth was slightly richer. However, the difference wasn't that noticeable and just tasted good. It was about that same as the Ontama Udon with the same al dente noodles. I would give the Niku Udon another 4.5/5. The final udon we got that night was the large Curry Udon, which was a pretty large portion as well for $7.25. I didn't get to sample this one because my dad ate it all really quickly and gave me 2 thumbs up and a 4.5/5 rating. He said it had the same al dente noodles with a small hint of spice. Supposedly it wasn't too spicy, although the broth did smell different to me. In the end, Marukame was a very affordable and filling meal that tasted really good too. Definitely would recommend this place as it isn't far from Waikiki. Just remember that the line gets longer as the evening goes on.

Bottom Line: Delicious Inexpensive Udon
Tip: Come Earlier for Shorter Wait
Overall: 5/5 (5/5 for noodle lovers)
                               

Tim Hortons (YVR U.S Departures)

           We all know what airport food is like. Expensive and probably not so great, but that was what my family had to settle for when we had a flight at 9 am to the Hawaiian Islands. Alas, sacrifices would have to be made, which meant some probably not so good food for breakfast. We noticed that there was a Tim Hortons at reasonable prices. I actually sort of like Tim Hortons, so this was pretty good for me. Located beside a couple of more expensive places, it was very popular. Or maybe this was the only decent place. The first thing we noticed was that the pastries case were in the back, and the selection was a lot smaller. However, there is no way to know if they are good unless you try it!

          

 I already had a tiny breakfast, so I just opted to go with a donut so I could see if they were the same as he locations not in the airport. I got the Honey Dip, which was pretty on par with the ones I have had outside of the airport. Heck, it was better, being nice and soft. However, it still has that dense texture associated the donuts. At least it wasn't too sweet or  not sweet, along with a nice airy texture when you first bite into the donut. It was like eating cotton candy for a second. I would give this donut a pretty decent 3.5/5. While it wasn't great, it was better than other Tim Hortons. Unfortunately, I only got 2 pictures as everyone was very hungry, because they didn't eat breakfast. I only got 2 pictures too,and the other one was the hash brown. I didn't like this hash brown because it was about as hard as Dwayne Johnson. Pun Intended. As least it was edible, so it wasn't too hard, but it was indeed pretty hard. Remember kids, hard and crispy are two different things. Wait, I'm a kid! Too bad the large amount was not successful in softening the Hash brown. Overall, it was a pretty disappointing 1.5/5. By the way, one of the reasons that I got a donut was to compare it with the famous Leonard's Bakery on Oahu. Keep an eye out for some Hawaii posts coming your way.

Bottom Line: Decent airport eats.

Tip: Come here if you are hungry.

Overall: 2.5/5 based on what I tried.

3880 Grant McConachie Way, Richmond, B.C, Canada

Miku

View of Waterfront and Lonsdale Quay 

     Before I started this whole food blogging thing, I still loved food. However, I hadn't gotten into the whole aspect of taking pictures before everything (still don't). Hopefully you will forgive me for not taking a picture of Miku's entrance. However, I did have a visit a few months ago, and got a table with a nice view. So to compensate, I have a nice view from our table. If you've heard of Miku, in Downtown Vancouver, it probably is for their Aburi Sushi and seafood. At the price point, it better be good. That is what we hoped to get when we made a visit because my mother loved it. While this comes off as an expensive restaurant, it really isn't if you compare it to Cactus Club, White Spot or any of the other chain restaurants.

Jidori Chicken Nanban $13

        Inside the restaurant, it was very open, bright, modern and nicely decorated. Service was great too, coming around often and explaining everything to us. Our water was refilled often too.  On his recommendations, we started with the Jidori Chicken Nanban for $13. There were about 6 small pieces of chicken. The chicken had a very thin layer of batter surrounding it. The dish also came with some fresh, light tartar sauce and some lettuce slaw. The tartar sauce was so light that it went so well with the chicken. And the chicken batter really let the flavors come through, the chicken was SO JUICY. This was no doubt the best pieces of battered chicken I have ever had. With the crispy slaw and juicy chicken and tartar sauce, I will consider this one of the best things I have ever eaten. A 5/5 no doubt.

Soba Peperoncino $18

           My mom, who had been here before had raved about the Soba Peperoncino for $18, which had hints of spice and lots of seafood. It included squid rings, shrimp, sweet pepper, shiitake mushrooms and tempura flakes. The Soba noodles were cooked perfectly, soft but still chewy and the tempura flakes helped add some crunch. As expected, the squid rings and shrimp were cooked perfectly, and the shiitake mushrooms really helped. The portion size looked small, but was filling being a lot of noodles. Was it worth the price? Probably not, but it was cooked properly and cooked well at that. Overall, I would rate this a 4/5, as it was good but didn't blow anyone away.

          For our sushi, we got two different orders of sushi. The first roll we ordered was the Red Wave Roll, which cost $17. the Red Wave Roll was practically an improved California roll. It came beautifully plated with crab and avocado on the inside, wrapped in some red tuna and topped with a

Red Wave Roll $17

Salmon Oshi Sushi $16.50

sauce made of tiny pieces of onion and what tasted dominately like sesame oil. However, the ingredients were fresh, which made for a good tasting roll. I would rate it a 4/5. Saving the best for last, we had to try some of their Signature Aburi Oshi, so we got the Salmon Oshi Sushi for $16.50. The sushi was pressed into a box shape, seared, they put some of their sweet-ish Miku sauce on top and added an jalapeno slice on top. It absolutely melted in my mouth, and had some spiciness, which made it really good.  The fish was buttery, there was flavor, the sushi rice was fantastic and I could go on and on and on about how fantastic this actually was. This is no doubt a must try at Miku. I give this a 6/5. This was a great way to cap off a meal at Miku. To me, I would consider this one of the best Japanese restaurants in Greater Vancouver.

Bottom Line: Worth the price.
Tip: Ask the servers for their picks.
Overall: 5/5

Miku
200 Grandview St, Vancouver, B.C

Maxim's Bakery (Whalley)

Maxim's Bakery Entrance

        Maxim's Bakery is a chain of bakeries that are scattered throughout the Lower Mainland. Actually, the Chinatown location there is the bakery with a restaurant above. Most of them just have the baked goods and you just buy them and leave. At the Whalley location, you just take a tray, a pair of tongs and go to get your pastries. I go there quite a bit, and the goodies are often very fresh and replenished often. They actually do a thing where there is no tax should you buy 6 pieces of anything, and do cakes for parties and whatnot. Not only do they do whole cakes, but also sell refrigerated small slices of cake. However, we only got the a few of the baked goods even though I will add a few pictures of the cakes I got a while ago.

Sausage Bun with Cheese

         We start with the Sausage Bun with Cheese for $1.75, which had just come out into the baked goods section. When we got home 10 minutes after the purchase, the bun was still warm. The sausage was just your generic sausage, which tasted like the kind of boiled sausage you could make at home. However, the cheese was topped with some green onlion which didn't do too much, but the cheese was melty. Under the cheese, there was some sauce that was a bit sour. It was slightly odd tasting, but it did in fact go pretty well for the bun. The bun was nice and warm. The bun was actually quite airy and really nice, but the one problem was that it was greasy.  However, this bun is still a 3.5/5. IT was acceptable for $1.75 too, even though it was nothing special.

Mini Coconut Bun $1.50

Pineapple Bun $0.60 for 1, $1.50 for 3.

           The next item we got was the Mini Coconut Buns, which looked pretty fresh while one of the employees showed us one of the fresh ones. My mom actually got his one, but she let me try a bit. At $1.50, this was a decent portion with some coconut shredding inside and sesame seeds on top. This was my first one, so I can;t really rate this bun, but it was light and airy like the Sausage Bun. The other item we got is the Pineapple Bun, which cost 60 cents for 1 or 3 for $1.50. This one was a bit disapointing, as it wasn't fresh even though it was around 3 hours after the opening time. This bun was a little chewy

with the outside as it was not very fresh. Probably sat there for quite a few hours after it was baked. Going along with the suspiction that the bun was a bit older, the pineapple thing on top was like eating a pineapple chip. Nor did it help that the bun wa pretty cold. Overall, this bun wasn't too great, probably because it was not fresh. However, on a few other times I have tried this bun, it is actually good when hot. I would give this bun a 2/5. 

8"Black Forest Cake $24?

      As a bonus, I'll show you people some birthday cakes. Whenever we ever get a cake, Maxim is our go to spot. #NotSponsored! Anyways, we like there cakes because the leftovers taste just as good as when we get them. However, stay away from the ridiciously sweet white chocolate. I thought that I liked sweet things, but this was really not good. So yeah, cakes are always affordable. Oh, and the picture on the bottom is their section of cold mini slices of cake. I wouldn't recommend them unless you wanted a treat, but you could probably get better.

Maxim's Cake Case

Bottom Line: Only If Fresh

Tip: Heat+Water=Fresh

Overall: 3.5/5

  Maxim's Bakery
 10153 King George Hwy, Surrey

Cactus Club Cafe Bentall 5

       Before I started this blog, my mom had a not so great experience at Cactus Club. They sent her a gift card after they heard about it. So she took my sister and I to the Cactus Club Cafe Burrard St to give them another try. The building is really nice and very clean, along with everything else. Some back story on Cactus Club: Cactus Club is a chain restaurant limited to B.C and originated in North Vancouver B.C. Personally, I feel they are a casual restaurant with the prices to portions.

Calamari $13.50

       We started our meal with the calamari for $13.50. This was a ridiculously huge portion for the prices, and came with some tartar sauce and spicy Mayo. The squid itself was very good and chewable, and it was nice and crunchy. This is coming from a person who doesn't like squid. The calamari came with some vegetables and jalapeños that were deep fried. The sauces were quite good, and benefited it for the calamari didn't have too much flavour. However, the spicy Mayo didn't have too much spicy flavour  but the tartar sauce definitely went well. Finally, this photo doesn't really do the portions justice, but we rated this massive appetizer a 4/5. 

        

Rocket Salad $17

        My mom loves salads, and she always gets salads at practically any restaurant. So we got the Rocket Salad for $17, which some nice greens and a piece of chicken breast. They actually split the salad into dishes for us. It was really nice of them, but the salad wasn't so good. It wasn't exactly fresh with the greens but the chicken was what really messed up the dish. THERE WAS A GREASE PUDDLE ON THE BOTTOM OF THE DISH! We couldn't even finish our portions, even though we were really hungry.  Oh, and by the way, the reason we got a gift card was because my mother found a clump of dirt in her first salad. I would rate this salad a  generous 1/5 and would not recommend it at all. 

Chicken Tenders + Yam Fries Subbed $15.50 

      For our other entree, none of us were feeling very adventurous so we went with the Chicken

Tenders. They were described as Panko Breaded Chicken. Sauces on the side were the same tartar sauce as before, which was good and some honey mustard, which tasted very good with the crispy chicken. We replaced the normal fries with Yam Fries because my mother raved about them for $2.  They were great, being very crispy but still having that yam flavor. Including the replacement of the yam fries, this dish was $15.50. Although the Chicken Tenders were a step above the normal stuff, I wouldn't say that they were anything special. We would rate it a 3/5. Solid for what it is, but didn't blow us away. However, the yam fries were very good, and i woudl rate them a 4/5.

All our food.

      Overall, Cactus Club Cafe is a great place to stop in for a casual lunch. Although we didn't try that many things, the dishes were pretty good. They definitely are a bit hit and miss, with the deep frying.The calamari was good, and the portions were very good for the price. Although there were a few problems with the salads, so maybe stay away from those.

Bottom Line: Good, but Hit and Miss

Tip: Salads could use some work...

Overall: 3/5

Cactus Club Cafe Bentall 5

588 Burrard St, Vancouver, B.C