Jan-chan’s Tidbits

Last Friday I went to pick up Al after work and we took a walk in Gas Town while waiting for Ken to join us for dinner. I don’t usually walk along Water Street and shop there but this time I managed to find something interesting which might have me coming back.

John Fluevog Shoes Store

As we were walking back towards the skytrain station, a sentence from a store window caught my eye “A walk in the park soothes the Soul.” So I looked in the window and saw this:

See that back drop in there? I was interested in finding out what it was. The store clerk was nice and told me I could take pictures inside the store. It turned out this is the John Fluevog Shoes store (as you can tell from the title on the mural). What strike me as interesting aside from the mural is the way the store is laid out. The shoes are displayed on very low tables as well as what looks like a log split in half (see one of the pictures). I’ve never seen Fluevog shoes before but I liked a lot of the designs. I’m definitely coming back later on for some shoe shopping.

One more interesting fact about the store is that the space actually was never there before. The store was built on an ally way. You can see the side of the two buildings, with their windows, inside the store. They had used a glass roof to let sunlight which makes the store very bright and welcoming. The design studio is located on the 2nd floor near the back. The sales clerk told me they actually design the shoes right there. Very cool.

saltlik - A Rare Steakhouse

For dinner, we decided to check out this restaurant we passed by a few weeks ago called saltlik. The menu looked reasonably priced so we head in with hungry stomachs. Al ordered a beef soup and crab cakes ($13), I had a double bacon cheese burger with skinny fries ($15) and Ken got steak with truffle infused sauce ($21). I’m not a big fan of burgers, but those skinny fries were calling my name! The twins also ordered some martinis for $7 each. I’d highly recommend the Smiling Geisha. It’s very refreshing with the cucumber juice. Of course I can’t miss dessert. I ordered a lemon tart which was bigger than I had imagined it to be. The meringue was very well made, slightly crispy on the outside but gooey on the inside. For the price and the quality of the food, I’d pick saltlik over Keg or Earls. Here are some of the pictures.

More pictures from saltlik in my Picasa album.

Misc Pictures

On our way to saltlik, we ran into a bunch of bikers which were riding in downtown for the closing of the Bike to Work week. Here are some pictures I managed to take while some sped by us (click to enlarge):

Ok I finally uploaded the Apple store opening clip I took on Saturday, May 24, 2008. As you can see from the video, there were a lot of others filming and taking pictures. Oh and I was standing on tip toes (I was pretty far from the entrance) so certain parts of the clips are shaky.

PS: Loving the new ipod.

After fooling around on the Wii Fit on Friday night, Al and I woke up early in the morning to catch the opening of the Apple Store in Pacific Centre (PC). We heard that the first 1,000 people would get a t-shirt so we “had” to go check it out.

We arrived at 9:40 and the line up was already wrapping itself around the outside of PC. It took us a while to find the end of the line. I made Al stay in line so I can go check out the store as well as take some photos and videos (haven’t processed those yet). Just before the store opens, they dimmed the lights and all the Apple staffs inside started clapping and cheering. People at the front of the line followed and it got pretty loud. A lot of by-passers were wondering what was going on. The light came on at 10:00 and the Apple store is officially in business.

When it was finally out turn, we were greeted by a row of Apple staff cheering and giving hi-fives to people walking in. Al and I got our t-shirts, which consist of an Apple logo and the words Pacific Centre next to it on the front. We did a quick look around then bee lined our way to the ipod nanos. They actually have the red nano at the store! I’ve never seen it anywhere else. So I decided to buy that one to replace my old Sony mp3. Actually Al bought it for me as an anniversary gift (gotta give him credit or he’d hunt me down). The specialist which helped us with our purchase were really friendly and knowledgeable. I even managed to take a picture with him (my tourist-syndrome).

Oh one more neat thing I found is that the staffs wear colour code shirts. There are three colours: Black, Blue and Orange. They have “definitions” of the t-shirt (aka the staff’s role) on the back. Check them out in the pictures (click to enlarge):

With a wedding next Saturday and like three mothers to celebrate mother’s day with (my mom, my grandma and Al’s mom), my family decided to celebrate mother’s day earlier. Mom wanted to try brunch so a week ago I made reservations at Griffins Restaurant. The restaurant is located inside Fairmont Hotel Vancouver, right by the Burrard Skytrain Station.

Brunch at Griffins run from 11:30 to 2:30pm. We arrived at 11:30 and got seated promptly at a table by the corner so we got lots of privacy. Fresh orange juice along with your choice of coffee or tea was offered by our server. I love fresh OJ~! We let mom and dad get their food at the buffet station first and during this time I took a couple of photos:

[Chef at the omelette's station.]

[My fresh orange juice. Yum~]

I haven’t had brunch in a very long time (I think my last brunch buffet was when I was 12?) and was surprised to see the many selection of food they offered. Crab legs, smoked salmon benedicts, roast beef, prawns and scallops…they were all so yummy. I couldn’t resist any so I ended up trying out a little bit of everything. Good thing I came prepared for all those food - I went jogging before heading out. Hehe. Oh and here’s the best part - the dessert! Mango cheesecakes, creme caramel, fresh fruits, cream puffs…I think I stood there for 5 minutes trying to decide what to try first. Anyways, for a sample of their menu, visit the Griffins Restaurant website.

[Here's what I got: white & dark chocolate mousse, cream puff with raspberry sauce & macaroon.]

[Al got creme caramel, jello and the same chocolate mousse.]

It was a very enjoyable brunch and we all walked away with a full stomach. Actually Al and I were so full we didn’t even eat for the rest of the day, not even dinner! Their brunch and lunch hours are really busy so if you’re planning to go, be sure to make reservations (or go there early).

Oh and here’s a picture Al took of me after I finish my 2nd plate (you can see the bone off some braised ribs to the side…lol)

Aside from the yummy baked goods and tea, we have found another gem at Granville Island and that’s the Artisan Sake Maker. The sake is handcrafted right there at their studio. After taste testing all of their sake ($5 for 3 tastings) we’ve brought home 4 different ones so far. I find the sake from Artisan Sake Maker much smoother than the ones I’ve gotten at the liquor stores. Continue reading »