Al Basha @ Cornwall Ave

Last weekend, it was threatening to snow, so we decided to have a quick meal somewhere close by. Al Basha had just opened a new location on Cornwall Ave (at Cypress), so we wanted to give it a try after getting a coupon in the mail. They also have another location on Broadway.

I forgot to take a picture of the exterior, but it was bright and easy to spot despite being a small diner. We were greeted by the owner (?), who took our orders and got right to making our wraps.

The coupon we had let use choose two wraps for $10. I got a chicken shawarma wrap and J.S. chose a beef donair.

Here's a picture of the menu. The simple menu makes it easy to decide on what to have, whether you are a meat lover or a vegetarian! I'd love to try the falafel next time!

We had the choice of various vegetables such as lettuce, tomatoes and onions. He also spread a generous layer of hummus before piling on the vegetables on the open pita. He was attentive and put more onions on J.S.'s wrap when he learned that he liked onions (and less on mine when I told him not as much onions on mine).

You can also choose to have hot sauce on your wrap. We decided to skip the hot sauce this time... Looking good already!

The owner kindly posed for a picture with the shawarma machine while his staff served up the wraps. He had shaved the chicken off the machine and put it on the grill for a couple minutes before putting it on the pita. He also grilled the beef strips before putting them on the wrap.

I love the bright red and white checkered paper used to wrap the pitas! Makes me feel like I'm about to have a picnic, mini individual basket and all!

Here's an overview of the little diner. It's nice and cosy with a handful of tables, but it's also bright with white fluorescent lighting (my favourite kind of light, if anyone cares to know). I like bright places where I can actually see what I am eating!

Let's get chomping on the food! One bite in and I see the chicken! The vegetables were fresh and crisp, a nice contrast to the warm and toasty chicken.

Here's an inside look at our wraps! (Obviously mine looks better! Hehehe! But J.S. liked his beef donair just fine.)

Let's take a closer look. Juicy charred chicken with some tasty black bits, can't really tell what they were but it was yummy!), and tomatoes and lettuce! What you can't see is the generous amount of creamy hummus spread over the bottom layer of the pita. That hummus was literally the best I've ever had! I need to ask the owner how he makes the hummus so good!

The chicken was nicely grilled and moist, with a slight sweetness to it. Definitely the kind of chicken I like! I think it would still taste good if it was served at room temperature.

If I need to grab a quick and easy meal, I'll definitely come back to Al Basha for their wraps! I'd also like to try one of their platters, which come with an assortment of dishes served with rice. Their prices are reasonable and competitive, and the friendly staff will make your visit even more enjoyable! Give it a try someday!

Al Basha is located at 1937 Cornwall Ave, Vancouver, B.C., V6J1C8.

There's also a location at 3143 Broadway W, Vancouver, B.C., V6K 2H2.

♥ Nikki

Transylvania Flavour on West Broadway/Arbutus St

A couple months ago, I got a Groupon for Transylvania Flavour. I have never heard of this restaurant although it's conveniently located on West Broadway and Arbutus Street. We must have passed by this a dozen times because we always see B.C. Sushi yet never noticed the tiny place with European fare.



The almost invisible sign is so hard to notice and the entrance is actually at the "open" sign right next to the huge B.C. Sushi sign. Here's a picture of the entrance.



When we went in, we were cheerfully greeted by a lady who showed us to our table. We made reservations for 6:30 p.m. and the restaurant was filling up fast, with many customers also holding on to their Groupons.



After observing the restaurant for a couple minutes, it's easy to tell this is a family-run restaurant. A man (whom I assumed to be the owner) named Nick and (presumably) his wife take care of all the customers personally and they do not have any other waiters or waitresses! They bring menus, serve water, take orders, dish up the food, bring the bill for every single table, all with a cheery smile on their faces.



We ordered the Knight's platter, which came with eight different dishes meant for sharing between two people. They comprised several appetizers on the menu.



I don't have pictures for all of them because it was so awkward to keep taking pictures every few bites! People need to know that there are food bloggers out there trying to do their work! :P Next time, we should just request to sit in a secluded corner so we won't disturb other patrons trying to enjoy their food. But rest assured, I have photos to accompany the best-tasting treats!

1. Caesar salad

Lovely crisp lettuce with creamy, homemade Caesar dressing, topped with a generous helping of shredded Parmesan cheese. My only complaint? They served the lettuce "head" part, which I don't think should even be served to the customer.

2. Perogies



European-style "dumplings" as I call them, these thick pasty dough pockets are filled with mashed yam and Friulano cheese. I didn't know they were filled with yam, but guessed it was the sweet taste of pumpkin. They were topped with roasted red pepper sauce (I could identify the very distinctive taste), sour cream, bacon and spring onions. I would prefer this to be pan-fried and not deep-fried as the flour in the dough was heavy enough.

3. Cabbage Rolls

The juicy, tender meat loaf wrapped with cabbage surprised me. Cabbage rolls are infamous for being soggy and lumpy but this held its shape well and the cabbage was not overdone. They were topped with sour cream, spring onions and bacon bits.



*Here's another picture of the platter as I do not have pictures of each individual dish.

4. Meatballs

These meatballs looked like mini slider burger patties, and a little too dry to me. But they were moist and tasted quite special, unlike other meatballs you usually have. The tomato sauce on the top was a nice touch to the little patties. I'm sure these would go great as sliders for a fun twist.

5. Schnitzel



I couldn't tell if it was chicken or pork (I'm thinking it's chicken) schnitzel. Schnitzel is a traditional European dish where a piece of meat is pounded thinly, lightly covered with bread crumbs and pan-fried till golden brown. This schnitzel was dry and did not have very exciting flavours to it; it was nothing more than a chicken cutlet to me. I'd prefer a Japanese tonkatsu any day.

6. Paprika-dusted fresh-cut fries

Boring ol' fries. No hint of paprika whatsoever. I think mashed potatoes would make a better side dish to balance out some of the heavier items in the platter.

7. Mititei (Romanrian-style sausages)



I thought these were going to be regular grilled sausages, but they were certainly out of ordinary! First of all, they were skinless; none of the tough, rubbery exterior to interfere with the intricate flavours of the meat. These sausages had strong spices in them and it gave my tastebuds a kick. The special characteristic of these sausages was their texture -- they had a little bounce to them when you bite into them, since they contained gelatin. I would have enjoyed these a lot more if they weren't charcoal burned to a black, bitter layer on the outside.

I'm saving the best item for last -- the one thing that stood out among the rest in the entire platter. The winner of the platter goes to....



POLENTA AND CHEESE CROQUETTES!

I've never had polenta ever, and this sure made my first polenta experience an unforgettable one! Polenta is a thick pudding made from cornmeal and it tastes creamy and rich on its own. I loved how they mixed it with cheese and deep-fried it into pretty little rounds! Sure makes it easy to eat and good to look at.



The cheese in the croquettes held the polenta together nicely and gave it a richness that not many ingredients could. The crusty outer layer of the croquettes gives it a great crunch. These come drizzled with sour cream and their signature roasted red pepper sauce.

If there is one thing you have to try from Transylvania Flavour's menu, that has got to be the polenta croquettes!

We concluded the meal with complimentary chocolates which they brought when our bill came.



I was rather impressed with the restaurant's service, especially there was only the two owners of the business serving the customers. When we were finished with our food, the restaurant got quite busy and the cooks from the kitchen personally dished up the food to the customers. I like how they tried to keep to the family-run restaurant by not having any other waiters or waitresses. Yet the owners still had time to come around the tables and ask us how we were doing and refill our water glasses.

Definitely a good place to visit with a bunch of friends as their serving sizes are quite generous and good for sharing! It would be fun sharing a few appetizers with a couple of drinks while catching up with friends. Great for people who love deep-fried food (I personally thought it was a little too heavy). Excellent service is a plus! Do make reservations as it can get quite packed during dinner hours.

Transylvania Flavour is located at 2120 W Broadway St., Vancouver, B.C.

♥ Nikki

Mediterranean Grill at Denman St

On April 30, it was a Vancouver Canucks game day and we were walking around downtown and decided to eat dinner early. We decided to have Mediterranean Grill! We tried that last summer and it wasn't too bad!



It is just a tiny little cafe with a counter and the ready-made food on display, kind of like those stalls in a food court. The menu items are on the signboards, along with pictures.



This is about all there is to the food area, and there are a handful of tables and that's about it. Just a friendly little cafe and not a classy high-end restaurant.



Looks like a popular place for take-out too.



The food is premade and sitting in warmers like a cafeteria line. I was a little concerned by the number of microwave ovens they have there. While we were waiting for our food, I watched intently and all they did was pile the food on a plate and stick them in the microwave for several minutes. Not the best place to go for fresh food, even though there was someone grilling the meat on a flame grill.



Let's move on to the food!



JS ordered the BBQ kabob plate, where the kabobs are long pieces of little nubs of beef with a hollow centre. I cannot imagine how they skewered them in the first place, grilled them and successfully remove the skewers without tearing apart the meat!

The meat was a little bland but tasted good with the tzatiki sauce that came with it. There was a generous portion of long grain rice which had a little saffron in it which made it yellow. There was also a Greek salad of tomatoes, red onions, olives and cucumbers, as well as a piece of pita bread.



I ordered the chicken shawarma wrap. It may look small but it was enough to fill me up! Shawarma is just a wrap filled with small slices of meat shaved from a bigger chunk of grilled meat. It was quite a lot of chicken and Greek salad, all rolled up neatly in a big pita.



It looks flavourful but it was not as tangy as I expected. The meat was again a little bland but tasted great when I added some hot sauce onto it. Over all, I enjoyed it very much.

The BBQ kabob plate was $9.50 and the chicken shawarma wrap was $6, so we paid less than $18 including taxes. The cafe also had a station for ice water and cutlery.



This is a nice place to go if you want something inexpensive and quick to go. I have a new-found liking for Mediterranean food in the past year, even though the names sound so intimidating at first! This is one of the most reasonably priced places I have seen in Vancouver.

Mediterranean Grill is located at 1152 Denman Street in Vancouver, B.C.