Miku Waterfront Platter ($96) 

chef's selection of sashimi, fresh oysters, oyster shooter, mussels, jumbo prawns, kaisen poke, scallop ceviche, kale gomaae

Aburi Sushi Sampler

AAA Sterling Silver Prime Rib

 Pork Belly with Seared Sweetbreads

With all the hype surrounding this Japanese fine-dining restaurant from Vancouver, I went to try Miku back in November for a birthday celebration. The contemporary, upscale space is very nice with high ceilings and fits right in at RBC Waterpark Place. The seafood platter serves 4 and includes a variety of cold seafood with different marinades, but I ended up liking the oysters the most. Famous for the flame-seared aburi sushi, this was not too special for me, and I'm not too big on pressed sushi. The prime rib was pretty good; the mashed potato super creamy and heavy. I liked the roasted grapes with the pork belly. Overall with drinks the bill came to $100 per person. Don't think I would come again but these days people are really willing to spend on Japanese fine dining!

This is my favorite beef noodle restaurant, recommended by my sister. A small bowl of beef noodles is $8-$10, and the smelly tofu is ~$8. The noodles are homemade, the beef and beef tendon soft, and my most favorite part is the broth - just so flavorful without being overly salty or oily. 

Just a word of caution - this place smells when you first walk in, just gotta get used to it; the food is worth it. 

Calamari – spicy tomato broth, lemon aioli, mint

Steak Tartare – pickled chilies, capers, red onion, parmesan, toast

Loved the crostini. Could go lighter on the parmesan.

Prosciutto & Figs Salad – baby spinach, gorgonzola, almonds

A large portion. Love the toasted almonds; could go a bit lighter on the balsamic dressing. 

 

Shake Shack 

Of course we had to try the famous burger chain. It blew me away how delicious it was - so good that we had to visit twice in our short trip. Juicy patty, and the Smoke Shack, with bacon and chopped cherry pepper, had a nice sour-spicy kick. The cheese fries were amazing as well - salty, crispy, soft and cheesy! For milkshakes, I prefer the coffee over the strawberry (too sweet and artificial tasting). Definitely one of my fav burgers now, and way better than In-N-Out in terms of US burger chain.

Lady M

Another popular ig spot, the crepe cake is as good as it looks. Arriving just an hour before closing, they only had the Green Tea Mille Crepe and Checkers cake left. The Green Tea was so soft melt-in-your-mouth creamy that you cannot even distinguish the layers of crepe. The Checkers was surprisingly good - very light with prominent chocolate flavor. 

The Halal Guys 

When in New York, gotta try the street food like the locals! Attracted by the smell as we were walking by, we settled on this Gyro + Rice for a quick, cheap meal. It was so delicious! The white sauce is good but go easy on the red - way too spicy for me! And as I write this post, apparently this chain is coming to Toronto!