Memphis Blues BBQ

Brisket

My BBQ dreams came true last week with a trip to Memphis Blues BBQ on Granville and Broadway. Heavenly fall-of-the-bone ribs and tender brisket accompanied with some mediocre sides, but damn that meat was good.

Ribs

As Guy Fieri loves to point out, look at the bark on those ribs!  We used a lot of the signature Memphis Blues mustard BBQ sauce on the ribs, great flavour combo!

Rib Meal with coleslaw, fries, cornbread, baked beans and BBQ sauce. $17.95

Sliced Beef Brisket Meal with disappointing potato salad, $17.95

The brisket was fantastic, so moist and delicious. The potato salad was the only let down of the meal. It was over salted so we couldn’t taste anything else, but really there was nothing impressive about it anyways. The fries, however, were perfectly seasoned and not too salty or greasy. There was nothing special about the coleslaw either, but it didn’t take anything away from the meal so we didn’t mind it.

Smokey baked beans. Again, not my favourite part of the meal but Phil loved them and they were a nice addition to the meal overall.

The cornbread was pretty good too, although I was the only one who thought it would have been nicer warmed up! Overall, great dinner and the best BBQ in Vancouver I’ve tried. They don’t stinge on portions either, so we had enough food the next day for a full lunch. Next time we’re getting the Memphis Feast ($47), a smorgasbord of all the meat Memphis has to offer, plus the fixin’s. I definitely recommend going with friends so you can chow down on this option, as it will be cheaper than getting a bunch of individual meals.

Vera’s Burger Shack: Best Burger in Town?

The sign boast “You Can’t Beat Vera’s Meat!”, the chain was voted best burger in town five years in a row, but does it still live up to it’s reputation? Phil and I felt compelled to investigate.

It’s not cheap. Prepare yourself for an $8-$13 burger, before sides. That being said, it’s not a wimpy beef patty either. You’re biting into a thick, well seasoned burger with a variety of toppings – some at an additional charge. Still, I don’t like the price, I think it’s a little steep for a place where you order at a counter, and seat yourself.

Phil always orders the beef sliders, 4 mini burgers for $10 served with Vera’s sauce, ketchup and cheddar. When I asked Phil what he thought about them he replied: “Ummm…,” and after a longer pause, “they were pretty good. But they lacked something, more toppings.” I agreed. For the price you expect some other ingredients, “such as caramelized onions,” rationalized Phil. “I mean, the amount of toppings on each slider is like what, half a tablespoon? Vera’s can afford to offer their customers a selection of additional toppings at little to preferably no additional charge.”

If I’m gonna eat a burger, I’m gonna do it right, so I ordered the Canuck Burger ($12.00), which is essentially a bacon cheeseburger.  It came with ketchup, mustard, relish, Vera’s sauce, tomato, lettuce. I like my burgers juicy; Vera’s burgers are consistently dry, and I’m not just talking about the sauce to bun ratio. The patty was overcooked and I had to add extra ketchup.

I apologize for the horrible lighting, but really, there’s nothing special to see.

For $6.00 we shared a side of half onion rings half fries. There was nothing special here, just some fries and a few onion rings

6 onion rings

Vera’s Burger Shack is a love-hate kinda joint; I’ve found people either rant or rave about their experiences, but for me it has been less than satisfactory. I have no problem paying $12 – 16 for a gourmet burger – that is, if I’m getting a gourmet burger.  True, the seasoning of the meat was delicious, however there were too many negative factors taking away from this. All in we spent just under $30. At this price point, I’d suggest trying Cactus Club or Earls, but honestly the McDonalds across the street would have been just as satisfying, and half the price.

Orange Ginger Beef

I improvised on an orange ginger recipe to breathe life back into some leftover steak. Soooo good! Steamed broccoli and rice completed the meal, garnish with green onions and sesame seeds.

Ingredients: minced garlic and ginger, cornstarch, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, orange zest, orange juice, sugar.

Original recipe here

Marinate beef  while rice cooks. Heat a small bit of oil in the pan, add beef and marinade. Since I wasn’t cooking the steak only reheating it only took a couple of minutes to heat up and for the sauce to thicken.

voila!

La Taqueria

2549 Cambie Street
Vancouver, BC V5Z
(604) 568-4406
✭✭✭✭✩

Yo quierro La Taqueria, a bustling pinche taco shop specializing in authentic Mexican tacos. Their website boasts of using organic and sustainable products, their two Vancouver locations have line ups out the door, and their menu lets you mix and match your favourites. What isn’t to love?

For $9.50 you get four tacos of your choice, a good deal but still a little on the pricier side. The tacos are small in appearance however filling; if it’s a big Mexican meal you’re craving you will need more than 4, and that’s where it can get expensive… I do wish there was a little more filling, it was just enough to satiate my appetite and then I was done and onto the next one. Heres what I tried:

Al Pastor: Pork marinated in achiote chili with pineapple.

Hands down our favourite. The pork had a smokey char-grilled taste and the pineapples complimented the flavours perfectly.

Al Pastor

Pascado: Grilled seasonal fish with pico de gallo.

No photo, I ate it too fast!

My second favourite because the fish was tender, fresh and the pico de gallo was delicious. A squirt of lime brought out all the flavours.

Carnitas: Pork confit with pickled red onion

This had a subtle pork flavour, but was not as memorable as the Al Pastor. It was visually appealing but lacked a defined flavour.

Carnitas

Beef Fajita: Skirt steak with onions, peppers and cheese.

This was tasty, but didn’t wow me like the other tacos did; something for the less adventurous palate. I added the salsa verde and lime for a little more zest. 

(in the photo below, the Pascado is third from left, the beef Fajita fourth)

 All tacos come garnished with cilantro and a lime.

I will definitely return to La Taqueria, I loved the ambiance (minus the long line/wait) and I would like to explore their menu further.