27 June 2009

Something new

I like to think I am familiar with Vancouver -- I generally know where the major areas are and I can find my way to the "usual" stops. Well, for some reason (maybe because we are here for three nights in a row), this visit to the mainland has been about new places. Yes, there will be some usual stops (we will go to Science World, IKEA, Yaohan and Daiso/Aberdeen) but from the time we got off the ferry, there have been new things too. 

First, we made a detour so Hubby could get some film footage of a specific location in Tsawassen. Oddly, after nearly 40 years of visiting the mainland, it was the first time either of us had actually investigated the town. We checked out the library, found a nice toy store, and had a good lunch at Nikko Sushi.

Next, we headed for Richmond (generally our home base when we come over) and ended up in the Richmond Public Market for the first time ever. Oddly, we were lured there by a flyer on the ferry for an "outlet store" -- it turned out to be hilariously unimpressive but the rest of the market was worth the stop.

We met a friend for dinner and chose a restaurant based on the rough idea of "somewhere in Kits area" and I would like to thank Google Maps for helping us find a fantastic place. We ended up at Banana Leaf, a Malaysian restaurant. Hubby and I had the tasting menu (a very reasonable $25 per person for 7 dishes); Kiddo had curried chicken and coconut rice, as well as tasting from our plates. Honestly, it was one of the best meals I have had in a long time and Hubby has promised to find and test Malaysian recipes.

Today we are off to meet other friends at Trout Lake, a park I had no idea existed before this weekend!  

1 comment:

Mrs Robot said...

I'm more than happy to assist anyone develop their relationship with Malaysian food! You can do a lot worse than begin at the Food Safari website. It's the site of a TV show that is excellent in every respect but one: it's on at 7:30, when I'm usually eating. It makes whatever you've made for the evening seem dull and inadequate!

The site itself it just the thing for someone making their way into a new cuisine. Have fun!