Kimbob (!!!)

I was reading the Georgia Straight once last year and I came across an article about this mint little Korean place down on Seymour. They sell kimbob, which is a seriously awesome name (and reminds me of Hanson's "Mmmbop" song) and a seriously awesome food. My life became so much more epic after I found that article. Kimbob is the Korean version of sushi, but it's made with sesame oil in the rice so there's more flavour... you don't really eat it with soy sauce. It's also packed full with way more delicious goodness than regular sushi, beacuse they put in ham and egg and stuff like that. But the best part of kimbob is when you order it, you also get soup and salad - and the total for everything is $4.99. That's pretty insane. I almost didn't believe it, but then I ate it and it was mind blowing.

So if you need food one day when you're downtown, go visit Kimbob E Ramyun (423 Seymour St.).

Blonde Moments and Marble Slab

This morning Nancy and I were driving to work and we noticed that the Honda in front of us was painted a blasphemous puke green color. Nancy said it was gold, but I said it was green, and we couldn't decide until we drove up next to it to get a better look. When we finally checked it out (this was the worst part of my morning, yuck) I said, "it's gold with a green tinge," and Nancy replied, "is that what's written on the side to label it?" I thought that was pretty funny and it made me feel better that Nancy asked a dumb question since yesterday I burned my hand on the lawnmower spark plug. I don't really understand how or why I did this, but it happened and now I have little square burn marks and no feeling in my fingertips.

On a better, less stupid note, last night I went to Marble Slab for ice cream and it was the most delicious experience of my entire week. They make the ice cream fresh and after you choose your flavour they mash it up with the toppings you choose on a slab of marble (this explains the name...). I got my chocolate peanut butter ice cream mashed with Skor bar in a waffle cup. It's amazing and I'm a huge ice cream fiend so I recommend it! Although, for those of you who are easily embarrased and think this sounds like a great place to go, you probably shouldn't bring me along. I'm over-animated and highly excitable enough on a daily basis, so throwing terrific tasty treats into the mix is probably a bad idea for your sanity. I think the girl serving me was a little overwhelmed by my energy....


http://marbleslab.com/

Chocoatl and Chocolat

I love food; Vancouver loves food. I love chocolate; Vancouver loves chocolate.

There's this really awesome chocolate boutique / coffee and tea shop in Yaletown that I read about in the paper last year (props for 'Arts&Life' in the Vancouver Sun) that I tell everyone about because it's so fabulous. It's called Chocoatl, and it's owned and run by a Mexican family so all of the food and drinks are authentically Mexican which I think is really great.

From what I remember, the article said that the family has most of their relatives in Mexico, and they have cocoa bean fields there. That means that instead of ordering mass-produced chocolate ingredients from the typical corporations and food wholesalers, Chocoatl gets all of their supplies directly from people they know down south. To top it off, everything is made right in the store - there are no middle men involved in any part of the production process. I've never ordered the chocolate or snacks there, but they look amazing - like how the chocolates look in the film Chocolat (with Juliette Binoche). But I have had the hot chocolate and it's definatly worth the money - it's a little pricier than Starbucks, with a cup of hot chocolate hitting about $4.50 - because they make it right there and the enviroment and service are great. Plus, you can sit on their little patio and people watch in Yaletown, which is always good, clean, classy fun.

I've ordered two kinds of hot chocolate: the first was milk chocolate infused with hazelnut (it was sweet and nice and had whipped cream), and the second was dark chocolate infused with chili (which obviously was richer and had a nice bite). Both were amazing and I was so impressed so if you ever get the chance, it's worth the 15 minute walk from Granville Station. Plus, it's nice to actually act like a Vancouver local and get a great drink sometimes, rather than getting the same thing everyone else buys at Starbucks or Esquires.

The address is 1127 Mainland St., Vancouver. Get on it.



Also, now that I've mentioned it, go rent Chocolat. It's brilliantly done, beautifully shot, believably acted, etc. Juliette Binoche is gorgeous and captivating, Judy Dench never fails, and Johnny Depp is a fox.


"If you are what you eat, in my case I'd be sweet..." - Jason Mraz