Joyce Skytrain Area

[dagoose]

We drive from Seattle to Whistler fairly often, I've posted here before looking for good Chow finds on our route. The area we've had the most success is around the Joyce Skytrain stop--a quick turn off Boundary gets us a number of quick, cheap hole in the walls. Last weekend we did Joyce Jaozi on the way up and Bo Laksa on the way down. I'd love to get more suggestions about places that make a good quick stop on the road. We eat everything, I especially love places that we can't get good versions of the food in Seattle (like Jaozi and Laksa!)

Thanks!

[el_lobo_solo]

I was en route to BLK for a new salad, pickled mango, and a pretty in pink and fun-looking dessert, called faluda (BTW both very yummy) but made a pit-stop at a newish Pakistani place beside BLK, Bahirsay. Wouldn't have known about it if not for reading other food websites. Bahirsay is adjacent to the halal meat store and serves flavourful haji biryani and Arabic sweets. I got the chicken biryani, which comes with raita. Apparently, it takes 8 hours to make the biryanis. They also have beef and veggie versions. Soon they'll have hareesa and perhaps samosas.

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Bahirsay
4942 Joyce St, Vancouver, BC V5R, CA

[betterthanbourdain]

thanks i was curious about the briyani and been wanting to try it...
it looked pretty dead in the middle of the day.
how was it to compared to others in town?
how much was it?
only beef chicken or veggie option?
ty

[el_lobo_solo]

This stretch of Joyce is never really bustling, although there are some gems there. Biryani isn't a regular thing for me, but I liked it. Some places add cashews and have more cardamom pods, I think, but Bahirsay doesn't. And there are only 3 options, all $6.99 with a free soda at the moment. Tuesdays are $2 off.

[betterthanbourdain]

wow that is really good deal. esp on tuesday!!! hmm i can make it early tuesday . are they open before 1130/noon? not sure why they say it takes 8 hours to make it, though?
i didnt get he 'haji biryanni' reference. it that in reference to a famous bangladesh biryanni shop?t
yes i remember my neighbor that was indian/tamil that made their biryani with roasted cashew, cardommon, cloves, raisin etc... for deevali. i would always look forward to the invite as a kid....
and as u mention there are so many biryannis from so many countries. also, I am surprise Bo didnt get into the biryanni action. bet he can make a really good version.

[fmed]

I saw that and had wondered about it...thanks for the intel. (We need to get you a digital camera ;-).

[el_lobo_solo]

I know. I really regret not having one for the faluda at BLK. A pink ice dessert with rose-water, basil seeds, ice cream, jello thingys, sweet beans, nata de coco, tapioca, pieces of sponge cake, and a walnut? It was so neon during the grey afternoon.

[slugsunderfoot]

this is weird because i do not remember seeing this place, period. totally recognize the halal meat / fish store- but not the new ' cafe '. regardless, i have this tuesday free. i'm a goin'.

[betterthanbourdain]

there is a sign that says 'Briyanni'(sp?) . you cant miss it. its a few store over from Bo's

[betterthanbourdain]

walnut? interesting. sounds like a perfect treat on a hot summer day. an asian dessert/treat no doubt, very Bo like to come up with interesting winning food.
the faluda would be similar to Malaysian Ice Kacang or ABC(Air Batu Campur).
agreed u need a digicam.. -

[grayelf]

Drooling, els, drooling. I am really starting to get into these types of desserts which seem to pervade east asian cuisines. And I'm so there for anything with rose water :-).

[betterthanbourdain]

think i am going to pop by tomorrow at noon. snap some pics and post it for ur perusal...

[el_lobo_solo]

@betterthanbourdain: Bahirsay is open 12-7 and no idea where the "haji" comes from but that's how they list it. And if you intend to take pix of the faluda, you may want to call BLK ahead to see if they have it on hand. I think it will be a regular item in the summer though.

[betterthanbourdain]

els, thanks. i did call as you suggested.
attached are the pics of biryanni and south asian/burmese faluda.

[el_lobo_solo]

that was my Sunday afternoon right there. Nice photos.

[betterthanbourdain]

nice.. :-D since I dont come out this way often.

I had the beef empanada's got some cakes and pastries from pana too but wanted to try the beef 'sandwich'. anyone with a report? also had Bo's Mohinga.

And now off to Chambar.... I seriously need help...

Bo mentioned the chowdown. I mentioned seafood. he suggested chili crab.

[el_lobo_solo]

I think the beef sando goes by "churrasco". I haven't had that for a while. They use, as I call it, the "circular bread". Don't think the meat is grilled as the name would suggest. It's messy and drippy with a dressing I can't place.

[betterthanbourdain]

Bo mention it was pretty good. but at $7 seems a little pricey. yes i did see the circular bun, and see some gentleman buying a dozen of them plain.

He wasnt as impress about the biryani. Of course there is a burmese biryani ...... i'd agree with him on the biryani, wasnt that great. i was hapopy with the tuesday deal. but wasnt happy that the meal was cooked the day before and put into containers and brought to the store then microwaved and served at this location.

[fmed]

I haven't gotten back to Bo on the Chowdown yet. It's a busy month for eating for me.

[betterthanbourdain]

yes understandably. waiting for better weather.....

[fmed]

Basil seeds...grayelf! Quick!

[grayelf]

I know, I know! This weekend, the SO will be away, I will have the car, and what he doesn't know won't hurt him :-). Micro mini down at Joyce Skytrain, anyone??

[LotusRapper]

LMAO !

Shouldn't SkyTrain be the de facto method of getting there ?

[el_lobo_solo]

New resto has taken over the "hand-pulled noodle" place on Joyce, across the street from BLK. Popped in this afternoon, which happened to be their opening day. Golden Fortune Restaurant is all vegetarian, and they've scooped 4 of the now-defunct Bo Kong cooks. I just had a take-out snack of spring rolls and a veggie soup, which were ok, but hope to try other items. It was cool to see the smiles on the proprietor's face who kept saying, "This has been a dream for so long."

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Golden Fortune Restaurant
4963 Joyce St, Vancouver, BC V5R4G7, CA

[fmed]

Excellent! That hand-pulled noodle place was merely "OK"...so nice to see a vege option there.

[el_lobo_solo]

I went back for a take-out dinner this evening. I ordered a couple of things: chili deep fried oyster mushrooms and chili eggplant in Chu-Hau (sp?) sauce chow mein. Well, kudos to me because I unknowingly picked two of their famous dishes, apparently. Got them with medium heat, but will ask for more next time. The mushrooms were lightly breaded, almost like tempura, and were very tasty and addictive. The noodle dish was good too and plentiful. Hope to try their vege dim sum soon.

[slugsunderfoot]

- we walked by this place today after our splurge at bo laksa. the former ' hand- pulled noodles ' estab had always intrigued me because they had seemingly been there for YEARS- but you never saw anyone coming or going. really please to see this new venture and looking forward to having a look at their menu. too bad about Bo Kong. was that the richmond one which closed ?

[el_lobo_solo]

Bo Kong's Main St. location closed. I was at BLK today too this afternoon. Roti canai at an outside table in the sun. ahhh... BLK will be closed this Sat. to celebrate Burmese New Year. Looks like there'll be a big celebration, with lots of food and music, at the Japanese Language Centre on Alexander St. I'm glad they're getting a break.

[slugsunderfoot]

- you probably arrived just after we split. we sat outside as well. the children playing around us were added entertainment.
- next time i will ask for less peanut sauce in my wrap. the laksa itself was incredible.

[grayelf]

Slugs, please to speak more about the wrap you had. It seems 'Hounds usually go for the other stuff at BLK and I don't recall much commentary about it.

[slugsunderfoot]

- the wrap ( vegi ) was very, very good- but i scarfed it down quickly without having a good look at its contents. lettuce ( natch ) for sure, plus thinly- sliced raw onion, carrot, maybe daikon ? possibly some tiny mushrooms and definitely bean sprouts. everything wonderfully fresh and tasty- with ww roti to boot ! - next time i will ask for about 1/2 the amount of sauce, however. the tea leaf salad is high on my agenda as is another vegetarian option described but not retained by my grey matter. to be continued...

[el_lobo_solo]

So the wrap used roti bread? That's new. I know a lot of us were disappointed that they only used tortillas, contrary to some of the wraps' names (e.g. roti wrap). If anyone's a big fan of BLK's wraps, they're now selling them at a bubble tea place on E. Hastings, called Bubbles and Bits.

[slugsunderfoot]

- could be wrong about the bread. roti is what i remember.
- ' bubbles and bits ' : ! D

[LotusRapper]

http://strategyiseverywhere.files.wor...

[fmed]

Sadly, I saw a For Lease sign in the window at Prayag Raj. It is no more.

[el_lobo_solo]

beat me to this sad news. saw it today too. nothing seems to last long at that spot.

[el_lobo_solo]

For lease sign is gone, and resto is still open. Not sure if new ownership already or if the resto is in its last days.

[rosetown]

OMG, I had marked Prayag Raj as closed in the database. Luckily when I displayed its record it allowed me to show it as re-opened. I never knew I could do that. :)

[fmed]

I did a double-take the other day when I noticed that the restaurant was open while the For Lease sign was on the front window.

I may have to have a quick look to see if the ownership changed. At the very least, I hope that they are still serving Gujerati food.

[rosetown]

Glad it's still open - it would be a lose. Can't wait to return in June.

[dagoose]

On the way up we stopped at Popular Chinese. The XLB, while passable, didn't hold a candle to the better ones around town, I thought, and I disliked the presentation in the little trays--found them hard to eat properly and get the right balance of soup/filling/wrapper. That said, we really enjoyed most everything else. The green onion pancake was a different style than I'm used to (served with hoisin sauce?) but good. The dan dan noodles I thought were excellent but the real star was the shanghai style pan fried rice cakes with pork. Great anise flavor, perfectly cooked pork. Still debating where to go on the way down, though we may just return to Bo Laksa for more roti canai!

[fmed]

I agree about the XLB. I made the same observations about the little dipping dishes they use to to cradle each piece here on this forum. I thought it made the bottoms gummy and partially uncooked. A number of people online have called it the "best" so I thought I'd mention it.

Thanks for the report. Of course, you can always go to one of the restaurants in the area and get a roti at BLK to go.

[fmed]

Inspired by this thread, I concocted an excuse to drive through the area and eat.

I've been attempting to eat at Hu's Hu Nan for a couple of years only to be thwarted by late openings, closures, or odd private gatherings being held at the restuarant. I noticed it was open as I was driving by so I stopped.

I've wondered about this place for a while because authentic Hunan food is a rarity. Also, there were reports that the family running the place was from Changsa (in the Hunan Province) and used to run a well known Hunan restuarant there.

As it turns out, that family sold the business about a year ago to the former proprietors of Lucky Noodle (next to Shalin Noodles on Broadway). The new owners are still serving Hunan food, but a very very toned down version (the chef is from Nanjing).

I ordered my favourite Hunan dish - the Smoked Hunan Bacon with Garlic Sprouts. I could hardly detect the signature fieriness of the pickled chilies (despite my attempt at ordering it "hot"). This rendition certainly pales in comparison to the blazing food at the excellent Alvin Garden (Imperial St, Burnaby, - just 15 minutes to the East). However, the dish was still alright. Not really Hunan though. Nice change from Shanghai and Cantonese - both well represented right around Kingsway & Joyce.

[PolarBear]

>> Inspired by this thread, I concocted an excuse to drive through the area and eat. <<

As I've long suspected, fmed, you're easy, in regards to culinary expeditions. ; > P

If you ever have the fortune to end up in central California, give us a heads up, we will introduce you to Chef Liu at Hunan, it will rock your world.

Cheers,

Dave

[fmed]

I have read the reports on Chef Liu down in the California Boards with envy. I will make my way down there soon enough!

[fmed]

A few places come to mind:

Prayag Raj (Gujarati)
Goto King (Filipino Soups and Breakfasts - near Joyce Station)
Van-ya (Homestyle Japanese - Harold and Kingsway)
La Panaderia (next to Bo Laksa King - Latin American Sandwiches)
Popular Chinese (some folks think it has the best XLB - slightly east of Kingsway and Joyce )
Jambo (Indian-Ugandan-Fusion - Kingsway)
Simply Curries (Pan-Indian)
Da Rae Oak and Chosun (Korean)

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Joyce Jiaozi Restaurant
5171 Joyce St, Vancouver, BC V5R4G8, CA

Jambo Grill
3219 Kingsway, Vancouver, BC V5R5K3, CA

Da Rae Korean Restaurant
3510 Kingsway, Vancouver, BC V5R5L7, CA

Cho Sun Korean Restaurant
3486 Kingsway, Vancouver, BC V5R5L6, CA

Popular Chinese Cuisine Restaurant Ltd
3377 Kingsway, Vancouver, BC V5R5K6, CA

Simply Curries
3343 Kingsway, Vancouver, BC V5R5K6, CA

Prayag Raj
3293 Kingsway, Vancouver, BC V5R5K4, CA

[el_lobo_solo]

you've made my area proud, fmed! more Filipino at Cucina Manila (beside Goto King, same owners). Would also add Chili Pepper House (Indian style Chinese on Kingsway at Rupert--slightly west of Kingsway and Joyce)

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Cucina Manila
5179 Joyce St, Vancouver, BC V5R4G8, CA

[fmed]

It's an incredibly eclectic area for ethnic food. I think the most eclectic in the city, actually.

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Chilli Pepper House
3003 Kingsway, Vancouver, BC V5R5J6, CA

Cucina Manila
5179 Joyce St, Vancouver, BC V5R4G8, CA

[rosetown]

Thanks to dagoose for starting this topic, and to fmed for going with it. el_lobo_solo, I'm almost as excited as you. I often visit and stay with my twin sister who lives in the area just off Kingsway. I've done the walk from Killarney to Boundry and back and wondered what magic lay behind the store fronts.My next visit will be perhaps, a week after the Olympics. There is one green grocer, same side of the street as Safeway and a block or 2 west. It's always elbow to elbow. I love shopping there. Perhaps you know the name?

[el_lobo_solo]

Consumer's Market, the one beside Pine House Bakery. Another similar one going west on the same side of the street beside the Vietnamese pho place and another one across the street from Consumers. We're spoiled. If you go in the other direction (east and sharing the parking lot with Cho Sun restaurant) is Hyundai, a nice Korean grocery place.

[fmed]

Consumers' Market:
http://maps.google.ca/maps?hl=en&...

[fmed]

Also not to forget Los Guerreros (Latin American groceries)
http://maps.google.ca/maps?hl=en&...

An next to it is Congee Noodle King - which, IIRC, is run by the same group as Congee Noodle House on Main

This area is incredible.

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Congee Noodle King
3313 Kingsway, Vancouver, BC V5R5K6, CA

[rosetown]

Right, it's Consumers Produce, and on the opposite side of Kingsway is another that is dirt cheap. In both, you gotta watch the quality.
fmed, I didn't know that Johns was Japanese. Good quality for more money. The Japanese are sticklers for quality. Shopping in Osaka, I found apples, differently priced, because of perceived quality. You gotta love it. :)

[fmed]

John's is Chinese (Mainland, IIRC). The restaurant around the corner, Van-ya is Japanese run.

[rosetown]

Sorry, I didn't read carefully enough. Duh.

[el_lobo_solo]

Van-ya changed owners within the last couple of years, but the quality is still very good and very homestyle Japanese. Regulars haven't noticed any changes for the worse. rosetown, I lived in Osaka too and always went for the cheapest produce, which was still good quality. Having Van-ya in the neighbourhood ensured I didn't miss Japanese food too much. Another decent sushi place on Joyce (just south of the station beside Subway) is Shiosai. It's run by a very nice older Japanese couple and straight-up sushi, no cooked food.

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Shiosai Sushi
5228 Joyce St, Vancouver, BC V5R6C9, CA

[rosetown]

I''ve taken the liberty of adding Consumers Produce, Joyce 99 Market, and John's Farm Market, since they are an integral part of the neighborhood.

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Consumers Produce
3388 Kingsway, Vancouver, BC V5R 5L2, CA

Joyce 99 Market
3369 Kingsway, Vancouver, BC V5R 5K6, CA

John's Farm Market
3320 Kingsway #320, Vancouver V5R 5L1, CA

[rosetown]

I've added Bo Laksa King as well, and added neighborhood tags( Kingsway & Joyce) to all listings in this thread. One can search Vancouver by that tag or if you already have one these restaurants & markets displayed, Kingsway & Joyce, will appear by the address in blue. Select it and all will be displayed.

fmed, I can add the some of the others not in Chows database. Are you still having trouble adding. Oddly, I've never had a problem.

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Bo Laksa King
4910 Joyce St, Vancouver, BC V5R, CA

[fmed]

Awesome rosetown - Thanks!

I still can't add new entries here and I haven't been able to get motivated to email CH a list of new places.

[el_lobo_solo]

hey, look at the map: apparently the Joyce Station area is in San Francisco! I've got the best of both worlds now. Wonder if CH is reading the "CA" in the links as Cali?

[fmed]

It is probably John's Market. It is at Harold and Kingsway. (There is Van-ya around the corner for homestyle Japanese. It is run by this nice Japanese family. I haven't been in years, but it still has good reviews online). Here's a Google Streetview:
http://maps.google.ca/maps?hl=en&...

There are a number of other restaurants there that I didn't add to the list since I have not been or can't vouch for. (eg a Korean hotpot place, a Hunan restaurant, a couple of Cantonese places, a not very good Pho place, Bino's - a faded Vancouver institution.)

[rosetown]

Here we go, let me know if I've missed any.

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Van Ya Japanese Restaurant
5615 Harold St, Vancouver, BC V5R4J9, CA

Panaderia Latina Bakery
4906 Joyce St, Vancouver, BC V5R 4G6, CA

[fmed]

Goto King
5179 Joyce St, Vancouver, V5R4G8, CA

Thanks again rosetown!

[el_lobo_solo]

Mezbaan (Indian, not mentioned yet)
3499 Kingsway, Vancouver, BC V5R 5L5

thx rosetown!

[fmed]

I noticed Ben reviewed it favourably on Chowtimes. I've been wondering about Mezbaan for a while (have you been, lobo?)

[el_lobo_solo]

I've been a few times, usually for take out and never disappointed. Great curries and puts Samosa Garden across the street to shame. I hope it survives because that particular block of Kingsway is tough. Maybe the good reviews on Chowtimes and dinehere.ca will help out.

[fmed]

adding link

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Mezbaan
3499 Kingsway, Vancouver, BC V5R, CA

[rosetown]

added the requested links

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Goto King
5183 Joyce St, Vancouver, BC V5R 4G8, CA

[rosetown]

missed one

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Los Guerros Latin Food Products
3317 Kingsway #102, Vancouver V5R 5K6, CA