Kaneda Sushi

My post Vegas hangover had me craving something fresh and healthy, and what better meal to breathe life back into my broken body than sushi. Kaneda is located on Broadway between Granville and Hemlock. They are a dine in/take-out/ All You Can Eat/late night sushi joint with a pleasant decor and mid range prices. Theres a 15% discount on take-out orders, and a $30 minimum for delivery items. Right now they have a special where you can get a california roll for 99 cents.

My favourite item was the Salmon Nigiri ($1.50), it was the best I’ve ever had. The fish was so fresh and buttery, I could have eaten a whole meal of just nigiri. Look how succulent they are! Nom nom nom

The appetizer tempura ($6.95) came with two prawns and three root vegetables, and best of all, it was served with miso soup. What an excellent deal. The tempura batter was light and cooked all the way through, however the prawns were a little over cooked. Still, taste wise, everything was delicious.

When dining in I always try to be adventurous with my orders, but my take-out order staples are always Dynamite and Spicy Tuna. The Spicy Tuna was delicious, not drowning in sriracha sauce and not too fishy. The roll was perfectly balanced between spice and flavour, allowing the tuna to shine through. It was $4.25.

Like the spicy tuna, my dynamite roll was very fresh, especially the avocado – such a vibrant green! I don’t always like lettuce in my dynamite rolls but this was the perfect balance. I really enjoyed this, even at $4.50. But you get what you pay for, and this was worth it.

On my second take-out adventure I steered from the path and ordered a Yam Roll and a Gomaae roll. Sadly, the Gomaae was a little underwhelming. I was hoping it would have a peanut sauce drizzle over it, alas it was a little dry. But still, and interesting roll and who knows, the dine-in version might be better. I felt that at $4.00, this roll was over priced for what you got.

I don’t usually like Ebi Nigiri because they are alway so dried out, but after having tried the salmon and loving it, I thought why not. The ebi ($1.50) was better than other joints, still not my favourite, but I would order it again.

The yam roll was light for a battered root vegetable. Again, for a vegetable roll, I thought $4.00 was over priced.

24/7 Thai Cuisine. . . When you need Thai Food at 4am

24/7 Thai Cuisine is exactly what you expect its going to be: inexpensive Thai food at any hour of the day or night. There is no glamour to this restaurant, just simple cheap food served hot and fast. I was skeptical to eat here because it looks a little run down from the outside. You can find 24/7 Thai Cuisine on Broadway and Oak, sandwiched between the 7/11 and a japanese restaurant that never looks like it’s open. Dont let the looks of the place deceive you – they have a big menu with your classic Thai staples, as well as some items you wouldn’t expect to see, such as pho.

The restaurant doesn’t offer much in the way of decor so we got our food to go. As we were the only customers at 10:30 pm, our food was prepared quickly.

The fried vegetarian spring roll didn’t wow us, I don’t think I would order these again. It was really garlicky, a flavour I didn’t expect to be so prominent in a spring roll. The dipping sauce was too vinegary for my tastes, but Phil liked it.

I ordered the Shrimp Pad Thai. Decent portion size as you can see, although I should have asked them to make it spicy! 

The dish used a thinner rice noodle than other places, a change that was different but still enjoyable. The seasoning was good, it wasn’t too sweet and the prawns were cooked perfectly. I didn’t expect it to be the best Pad Thai, but I wasn’t disappointed by it either. If you’ve got a late night craving for Thai food give it a shot, I think this food would be most enjoyed after a night out drinking. They also deliver from 4pm-10pm with a $25 minimum order. If you want to dine in there is an entertainment coupon for them as well.

Cinco de Mmmmmayo Baja Shrimp Tacos

Happy Cinco de Mayo everybody! For those of you wondering what Cinco de Mayo is all about, google it! Or Wikipedia it! For us it meant splurging on delicious Americanized Mexican food, and gosh darn it the meal was amazing.

 If I can depart any wisdom on my readers it is trust staff recommendations. The first time I entered Chronic Tacos, wide-eyed and hungry, one of the colorfully tattooed cooks took me under his wing and guided me through the ordering process. Battered fish/shrimp Baja style is the way to go, and he was 100 percent right.

I ordered three tacos, the battered shrimp (pictured above), grilled fish, and the carnitas (shredded pork). They recommend getting it “baja style” which includes fresh squeezed lime, cilantro, and Baja sauce. DO IT.

The heaping tacos are made to order with fresh ingredients and varying degrees of hot sauces. My only complaint is that guacamole was an extra $1.00. Other than that, the prices are reasonable for the amount of food you receive.

I was told my battered shrimp was going to take a while, as they were making it fresh. At 9:00pm this was welcomed, proving again the freshness of their products. The shrimp was well worth the wait. There were about four large shrimp, enough for each bite to be delicious. Crunchy on the outside, tender inside, I recommend trying this. It was also loaded with fresh tomato salsa, cabbage or lettuce, and cheese. The grilled fish wasn’t as outstanding, and didn’t have as defined a flavour. The only thing that stood out for me was the taste of the tomatoes, so I don’t think I would get it again.

Baja Style Battered Shrimp Taco

By far the shrimp was my fave, with the carnitas coming in second. This taco came with guacamole,  probably why I liked it haha, but compared to the bursts of flavour in the shrimp the carnitas was only so-so. They don’t skimp on portions though, this taco came filled with meat and had a hardy spoonful of guacamole.

Carnitas

If you’re hungry and craving good fast food (yes, I believe there is such a thing), go for Chronic Tacos. Today they are featuring Cinco De Mayo drink and food specials  at all their locations, and festivities at their Gastown location!  Might just have to make a repeat appearance….