Smooch Food: Love Letters to Every Bite

✨ At a Glance: Quick Facts 📍 Location: Slo (Near Granville Station — Downtown Vancouver, BC) 🧁 Ordered: Date & Walnut Muffin ($5.00), Chocolate Banana Muffin ($5.00), Unsweetened Oat Milk Matcha Latte ($7.75) ⭐ Smooch Verdict: A triumphant win for the muffin hunt! Despite a rough initial impression with the shop's scent today, the exceptional crunchy-topped muffins are a local hidden gem. The matcha is acceptable but won't dethrone the city's reigning green tea champions. Our Tuesday adventure continues! After wrapping up an early food court lunch over at Metrotown, we jumped on the SkyTrain and h...

✨ At a Glance: Quick Facts 📍 Location: Cazba Persian Grill (Metrotown Food Court — Burnaby, BC) 🍢 Ordered: Dolmades ($7.99), Chicken Breast Jujeh Saffron ($17.99), Beef and Lamb Loghmeh ($18.99) ⭐ Smooch Verdict: A solid and delicious food court option! The flame-kissed, charred meats steal the show with their juicy texture and deep flavours, making it a perfect, comforting stop when you are near Metrotown. Happy Tuesday! Today turned out to be a bit of an unusual day for me because I had to head out for an ultrasound appointment over near Metrotown. Once the medical errand was out of the way, we naturally found ourselves wanderi...

This is my personal checklist of the winners in The Georgia Straight Golden Plates Awards 2024 and 2025: Best by Cuisine . It’s my "Love Letter" to the diverse flavors of Vancouver—a roadmap for every craving, from the comfort of my favorite Filipino childhood dishes to the spice of a perfect Malaysian laksa. African ⬜ Axum Restaurant (2024) ⬜ Harambe (2024, 2025) ☑️ Simba’s Grill  (2024, 2025) ⬜ Kilimanjaro Snack House (2025) Caribbean ⬜ Baby Dhal Roti Shop (2024) ⬜ Calabash (2024, 2025) ⬜ Havana (2024) ⬜ The Lion's Den Cafe (2025) ⬜ The Patty Shop (2025) Chinese ⬜ Bao Bei (2024, 2025) ⬜ Dinasty Dumpling House (2025) ⬜ Dynasty Seafood Restaurant (2024) ⬜ Mott 32 (2025) ☑️ Peaceful Restaurant (2024) Filipino ☑️ Goldilocks (2024) ☑️ Hapag Ihaw-Ihaw (2025) ☑️ Jollibee (2024) ☑️ Kulinarya Filipino Eatery (2024, 2025...

CF Pacific Centre, located in the heart of downtown Vancouver, is a major retail destination, and its food court, the Urban Eatery, is a key part of the experience. This underground dining space is a bustling hub for shoppers, office workers, and tourists alike, offering a wide array of choices from well-known chains to unique local spots. The food court is constantly evolving, with new vendors appearing and others moving on, so this list is a snapshot of the offerings as of the publication date and is subject to change. ☑️ A&W ☑️  Cazba Persian Grill ☑️ Cha House ✔️ Dairy Queen / Orange Julius ☑️ Edo Japan ☑️ Flaming Wok ✔️ Jugo Juice ☑️ New York Fries ☑️ OPA! of Greece ✔️ Subway ☑️ Taco Time ☑️ Thai Express ☑️ UMI Sushi Express ☑️ Vina Vietnamese ☑️ Chachi's (closed) ❌ Hula (closed) ...

✨ At a Glance: Quick Facts 📍 Location: Nana's Green Tea (Vancouver, BC) 🍵 Ordered: Hot Matcha Latte ($8.60 + $1.10 oat milk), Matcha Swiss Roll ($8.30), Matcha Shiratama Parfait ($17.10) ⭐ Smooch Verdict: An absolute paradise for green tea purists! While the Swiss roll was sadly a bit on the dry side, the unsweetened ceremonial matcha latte was flawlessly smooth, and the decadent, multi-textured parfait was worth every single spoonful. Matcha has my whole heart. My absolute favourite colour is green, which is honestly the original reason I always found myself ordering it! But as I have tried it over the years, I recently realised that my ab...