Wolfgang Puck Express – Hawaii 2013

At the far end of Waikiki is the Aston Waikiki Beach Hotel and on the main floor is a Wolfgang Puck Express. 

Kuhio Beach Grill – Hawaii 2013

Kuhio Beach Grill is located on the ground floor of the Waikiki Beach Marriott… just across the street from the beach!  They’re known for their breakfast and dinner buffets but the reason for our visit was because of the free Mai Tais that they were offering as part of our stay.

The Cheesecake Factory (Waikiki) – Hawaii 2013

Kalakaua Avenue is the place to go in Waikiki if you’re looking for shopping in a picturesque setting.  The Royal Hawaiian Center is a four-level shopping mall that spans three buildings on Kalakaua and is owned by the private Kamehameha Schools.  More importantly, you can find The Cheesecake Factory here (which is a must if you’re goiong to fuel your shopping spree).

IHOP (Brentwood) – Country Fried Steak and Eggs

Nothing starts off a cold morning better than a cup of hot chocolate with whipped cream.  I had some errands around Brentwood one Saturday morning and stopped off at IHOP for some grub.  The place was pretty busy – I don’t think there’s very much open this early in this neighbourhood and the food is pretty decent.

Cactus Club Cafe (Richmond)

The Cactus Club located at 5500 No. 3 Road is not exactly styled in the same manner as their other locations… as a matter of fact, it looks like this location hasn’t had a reno for quite some time.

Earls Kitchen + Bar (Lansdowne)

For some reason, I always forget that there is an Earls located in Lansdowne Mall.  Maybe it’s because the mall entrance to this restaurant is usually closed requiring you to enter from outside of the mall.  I’m only bringing this up because when we came by to visit this Earls in February, we walked right by the outside entrance and spent a perplexing few moments trying to find the mall entrance.  We eventually went back outside the mall and entered through their outside entrance and sat down to enjoy some comfortable eats.

Crave on Main – Brunch

Crave on Main is a tiny little restaurant almost diagonally across from Sun Sui Wah and is popular for their brunch items that are served daily until 2pm (Note: they close on Mondays).

West Restaurant – Sunday Brunch

Back in December, we were really trying to avoid the local malls because we knew they would be packed full of shoppers.  Fortunately, Vancouver has lots of shopping areas besides germ-riddled malls… such as Granville Street.  I’ve never really noticed West Restaurant nestled amongst the other stores before as the exterior is a bit understated.

Fish House in Stanley Park

Back in November of last year, we stopped by the Fish House in Stanley Park for lunch.  It’s been years since we last visited this restaurant located next to the tennis courts.  Being a touristy spot, I was worried that it would be busy at lunchtime but I guess the rain kept everyone away because we were the first ones there (a few diners did eventually arrive a bit later).

The Oakwood Canadian Bistro – Dine Out Vancouver 2013

Well, it looks like it’s that time of year again…  That time when restaurants get unusually busy with diners looking to get a good deal on their favourite restaurant or to try out that chic spot that they’ve been dying to visit.  This year, there seems to be more special events than ever but the big draw is always the $18, $28, and $38 tasting menus.

Earls Kitchen & Bar (North Burnaby)

We drive by it all the time but the Earls on Lougheed Hwy. in Burnaby always skips our mind… partly because it’s a little hidden and tucked in a light commercial park close to a Home Depot.

Boston Pizza (Byrne Creek) – Meatball Grinder

Tucked in the corner of the shopping complex at Marine Drive and Byrne Road is an outpost of Boston Pizza.  I’m not sure why they thought this would be a good location since it seems to be very isolated from the rest of the shops but we don’t like crowds too much so it works out perfectly for us.