604: The American

I saw their post two days ago, and here I am at @downlowburgers, which is just steps away from Torafuku! I went in at 3 pm and as soon as I stepped in, I asked the server if they still have the special donut burger. The server beamed and said, ”yes, and only on Mondays!" I refrained from shouting back in excitement, "Yeah, I did my research and here I am!!!" Instead, I smiled back and responded nonchalantly, "Oh yay. That's awesome!"

As soon as I saw down and without even scanning the online menu, I ordered my fried chicken burger with the Lee's Donuts. Man, I can only say that they did not disappoint!!! I already mentioned from my previous post that the donuts from the Lee's (possibly my distant relatives ??) are the best in town. But the actual star here is the fried chicken! The outside was super crispy and the inside was so tender and juicy that the juice was seeping through the wrapper. The batter was fried perfectly but I didn't think it was too greasy or filling. They also chose chicken thigh over breast, which really tells you they really thought it through and picked the best ingredients (oh hello to the best donuts WITH chicken thigh).

I think the last time I ordered a burger was two years ago because I just don't like ordering burgers from restaurants. Beef patties tend to be quite too meaty or dry, and fried chicken burgers are generally sandwiched with chicken breasts and they turn out dry... This exceeded way above my expectation. In fact, the thigh was fried so well that the attention was focused mostly on the chicken and the donut became somewhat unnoticeable. It's still great though but I think I would prefer eating them separately to fully enjoy everything to the fullest. I chose mildly spicy and so the combination gave a lot of flavors - the sweetness with the savory and then a kick from the heat. They were also very generous with the pickles, but too bad I'm not a fan of pickles :(. I did give it a try since it would add another layer of flavor to it but yeah I don't like pickled things.

Then I found out from a friend later on that this restaurant is known for its fried chicken burger and usually has lineups. With covid and my late afternoon arrival, I was lucky to be seated right away :)

The setting was also very interesting. It had an arcade, pool table, and a bar area. Not sure what it was but the vibe made me felt like I was in the states. Then later on I found out that their store name was changed from Downlow Burgers to the Americans (so many realizations after this meal).

In summary, this restaurant has won many thumbs up from a very challenging and fussy customer who generally hates burgers. I'd come back for their burger without the donuts. The donut was just kind of hiding in the background, so I didn't think it added that much extra satisfaction in this meal. I think I'd prefer a separate trip to the Lee's for dessert.

NOTE: Donut burger is only available on Mondays

Price: $13 without a side

($2 extra for a choice of: fried onion rings/ fries/ house salad/ caesar salad)

Taste: 4.7 / 5

atmosphere: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

seating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Price Performance ratio: 4.7 / 5

Location: Vancouver

Burger Menu: Here

Drink Menu: Here

604: Tacomio (Pick up Window)

Only Joyee would eat standing outside a taco restaurant in an industrial area, and utilize the car hood as a table, and eat shamelessly while pedestrians walked by glaring over (if there were any). But it was 4 pm and I haven’t had breakfast or lunch and I was starving.

Usually when someone’s hungry food tastes extra good, but today was an exception. The meat was a little too dry for me and the tortilla shell needs to be either crispier or softer (one or the other). The burrito had a tad too much rice and I also didn't like that they’ve used chicken breast - it was a bit dry and too chewy. The shredded pork was so dry that it's like as if they overcooked it with a microwave and it sucked all the moisture out... Good thing it was drenched in flavourful sauce. The burrito wrap was nice though. It was soft and springy. Overall, the burrito wasn't too bad but I think I am just way too spoiled from my food adventure from Texas. They are reasonable with their portions and everything was drenched in sauce so it was flavourful.

So far the closest burrito in Canada that resembles my favourite Tex-Mex burritos from Dallas is Chipotle... I shall continue my hunt and report it to you guys.

P.S - Man, last week there wasn’t enough meat in my burrito and this week they loaded it with chunks of dry meat. 🥺🥺 Geez, I feel like I'm such a difficult customer. Dallas, what have you done to me?

Price:

$3.50 per Taco || $11.95 per Burrito

Taste: 2.9 / 5

atmosphere: NA

seating: NA

Price Performance ratio: 3.9 / 5

Menu: Here

Location: Pick up Window || UBC || North Vancouver

Joyee Cooks: Dan Dan Noodle (擔擔麵)

Recipe inspired by my favourite Shanghai Restaurant - Top Shanghai:

中文食譜: 按此

Serves 2

Ingredients:

A.) Marinade Pork

• 1/2 cup minced pork

• 1/4 tsp salt

• 1/2 tsp oyster Sauce

• 1/2 tsp sugar

• 1/2 tsp dark soy sauce

• 1/2 tsp soy sauce

• 1/4 tsp white pepper

B.) Sauce

• 2 shallot (diced)

• 3 cloves of garlic (minced)

• 1 chili pepper (sliced) - optional

• 2 tbs Chinese/ white wine

• 4 tbsp peanut butter

• 4 tbsp sesame paste

• 1 Tbs soy sauce

• 2 tbs black vinegar

• 5 tbs sugar

• a few tbs hot water (to thin out the sauce)

• 1 tbs sesame oil

C.) 2 packages noodles - cooked and drained.

D.) Garnishing (optional)

• 1/4 cup cucumbers (sliced)

• A dash of sesame

Procedure:

1. Mix all of Ingredient A together and set aside

2. Heat roughly 1 tbs of oil in a skillet pan under medium heat. Add diced shallot and minced garlic. Cook until shallot is translucent.

3. Add minced pork and stir until all the lumps and chunks are loosened up.

4. When all the moistures have evaporated and the pork bits look slightly golden brown, add wine and cook until wine is completely evaporated.

5. Reduce heat to low-medium heat. Add soy sauce, sugar, peanut butter, black vinegar, sesame paste and mix well.

6. Add hot water to thin out the sauce if it's too thick to your liking. (See consistency in the image below)

7. Add red chili (if you want a good kick. You may remove the seed to reduce the spiciness if you want something milder, or omit this step.)

8. Keep stirring and add cooked noodles. With quick hands, mix well.

9. Drizzle with sesame oil and mix well.

10. Garnish with shredded cucumbers and sesame

11. Serve.

Tips:

• It's okay to undercook your noodles initially because you will toss the noodles back into the pan with the sauce. You can finish cooking the noodles at that stage

• You do not want to overcook your noodles while you are incorporating the noodles with the sauce. I like my noodles to be chewier so I always work with quick hands. Remember that the noodles will continue to cook after you remove from the heat!