psychoexgirlfriend
Member Since: March 10, 2008Reviews
Ba-Le Sandwich Shop
Ba Le Sandwich Shop is located at 701 Kingsway, at the corner of Kingsway and Fraser St. It's seriously the best Vietnamese sub place I've ever had. And I'm Vietnamese. And I'm picky. And this. Is. The. Best. All the kinds of sandwiches are listed... +
Ba Le Sandwich Shop is located at 701 Kingsway, at the corner of Kingsway and Fraser St. It's seriously the best Vietnamese sub place I've ever had. And I'm Vietnamese. And I'm picky. And this. Is. The. Best.
All the kinds of sandwiches are listed on the menu at the top. Look to pay approximately $3 - $4 for a sub sandwich. Add another dollar if you want a drink too. For under ten dollars, you and a friend can enjoy quite a nice lunch!
The food is fresh - the bread looks like it's baked that day. Crusty on the outside, soft and lovely on the inside. The meats and vegetables are tasty and definitely authentic. I recommend the special sub (about $3) which is cold cuts, pate, parsley, picked vegetables, hot peppers served on a fresh French baguette.
The service is ....efficient if anything. The Vietnamese lady who runs the show (trust me, you'll know who it is) gets your order, writes it down and starts to work right away, taking about two minutes to make your sandwich. You pay the cash and go. No place to sit. No real "dining experience". But it works. There's always a large amount of people waiting for a sub.
One big thing I have to warn people about: the parking sucks. DO NOT, under any circumstances, pull into the lot. It's crowded, the parking spaces are oddly shaped, people can't park not drive. Park on Kingsway or on Fraser instead. Much easier. Trust me on this one folks.
Overall, pick up a sandwich at Ba Le when you come by to visit. Authentic Vietnamese food that - for once - is not pho at a great price. I promise you won't be disappointed.
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Sushi Garden (Burnaby)
Sushi Garden, located at 4635 Kingsway across from Metrotown and about three doors down from The Cactus Club, looks like a hole in the wall kinda place....save for the mass of people outside waiting to get in. The food is just delicious over at... +
Sushi Garden, located at 4635 Kingsway across from Metrotown and about three doors down from The Cactus Club, looks like a hole in the wall kinda place....save for the mass of people outside waiting to get in.
The food is just delicious over at Sushi Garden. Pieces are big, juicy and fresh. I highly recommend the Toro (tuna belly) which just slides right down your throat in a good way. And the Tropical roll (I think that's what it's called) with the mango slices in it. Sounds odd but the mango adds just the right touch. Yum yum yum. I'm drooling thinking about this. Like I said, all the pieces you are served are big. Usually taking about two bites to finish one piece, although I just shove the whole thing into my mouth anyway.
The prices are great. It's surprisingly well priced, considering the quality of the food. They could probably get away with charging 20% more and it would still be a good deal. You can get a decent meal for $10 and a great meal for $20 (which some left over for a late night snack).
The service is good, when you finally actually get table. There are usually anywhere between one to three servers working. And this place is usually crowded, crowded, crowded regardless of time of day. So you can understand that it's hard. You sometimes have to flag someone down to order or to get the bill.
If you're lucky, you'll get seated within five minutes; if you're unlucky, about thirty or more. Don't bother going around lunch. If you do, maybe get take out instead. The wait can be horrendous and I'm sure they've lost a bit of business to DaiMaSu across the street. However, I promise you that it is worth the wait.
The atmosphere is another thing... It's not great. White walls, dingy tables and chairs. They aren't much for decor. But then again, no one is going there for the decor so much as the food. I just added it as a warning in case you were expecting something posh. Maybe don't take a first date there, especially if they're hung up on appearances. (Then again, maybe it's a great place to take a first date to suss out if they're superficial like that. At the very least, you'll have a yummy dinner even if the date is crap.)
Overall, Sushi Garden is a great place to go for sushi. I recommend it to Vancouverites and visitors alike. Yum yum yum!
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Sui Sha Ya (Richmond & Burnaby locations)
Sui Sha Ya is a popular All You Can Eat sushi restaurant in the Lower Mainland with two locations, one in Richmond at Lansdowne Shopping Centre and the other in Burnaby at Metrotown Shopping Centre. All You Can Eat is $20.00 in the evening for a... +
Sui Sha Ya is a popular All You Can Eat sushi restaurant in the Lower Mainland with two locations, one in Richmond at Lansdowne Shopping Centre and the other in Burnaby at Metrotown Shopping Centre.
All You Can Eat is $20.00 in the evening for a good variety of sushi fare, from your standard California roll to Oyster Motoyaki to Yakitori etc. (Please excuse me as I butcher the spelling of various menu items.) Sounds like a great deal, but this is pretty standard for most All You Can Eat Sushi restaurants. This restaurant is also popular for its late night (usually open til midnight or 1am on weekend nights) sushi where it used to be (still is?) $10 All You Can Eat.
In terms of the quality of food, it's average. The fish I find is alright, although I was once served frozen salmon sashimi. I'd probably stay away from the cooked food as most of it tastes like it's been sitting out for a while or its overcooked. Especially the gyozas. Don't touch the gyozas... Trust me.
There is a warning that management will charge you for any leftovers from All You Can Eat, although I've never been charged for it. Mainly, I think they'd charge you if there's an excess of leftovers which makes sense. I found a good way to get around the charge is to ask for the bill before you've finished eating.
The atmosphere is casual. Wear whatever you want, no one will look at you funny. There are semi-private tables for big parties as well as small tables for two to four people in the open area of the restaurant. The semi-private tables require you take off your shoes and sit benches around the table. It's cute in the trying-to-be authentic Japanese kinda way. (Btw, everyone there is Cantonese people. Good luck trying to get away with Japanese there.) The crowd is loud as you'd expect and generally alright; unless you're going late night when all the college kids come out (because they can't afford the full price of All You Can Eat).
Overall Sui Sha Ya is a great place if you just wanna get your sushi fix or you're a poor college student like I was when I first discovered it. It's cheap and it's a lot of food. But if you're craving authentic and delicious, I'd recommend you keep looking.
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Love the One You're With by Emily Giffin
Below is the review I wrote for this book when it first came out. I figured I might as well copy and paste. This is such a great book. I've been a fan of author Emily Giffin from the day I absentmindedly picked up her first book Something Borrowed... +
Below is the review I wrote for this book when it first came out. I figured I might as well copy and paste. This is such a great book.
I've been a fan of author Emily Giffin from the day I absentmindedly picked up her first book Something Borrowed a couple of years back. I loved it and made sure to pick up her next book Something Blue when it came out the next year. And Baby Proof the year after.
Love the One You're With is her latest book release. I picked it up earlier this week and just finished it at around 8:30 this morning.
A quick synopsis: the book is about a woman who's with the perfect man leading her perfect life. Until the guy - the one that got away - comes back into her life and turns things upside down. Sounds like fluff and it definitely is, but it's got a lot of intelligence behind it too. Great for summer reading, as are all of her books.
I find Giffiin's books to be smarter chicklit than your regular Shopaholic series. She delves into some pretty honest and sometimes hard questions about life. If anything, I'd place her next to Marian Keyes, author of great books such as Sushi for Beginners and Anybody Out There? in the chick lit genre.
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stila cosmetics Lip Glaze
Starfruit is my MLBB lipgloss when I'm feeling more pink than beige (that would be where MAC Rubia comes in). Colour: Stila describes the colour as a "shimmering coral" whereas I'd say it's a warm pink with gold pearls. On my lips, it's a healthy... +
Starfruit is my MLBB lipgloss when I'm feeling more pink than beige (that would be where MAC Rubia comes in).
Colour: Stila describes the colour as a "shimmering coral" whereas I'd say it's a warm pink with gold pearls. On my lips, it's a healthy pink - what I imagine my lips would flush if I were ever to actually exercise one day... It's perfect for those natural or neutral face days. I also find it works pretty well paired with a slightly smoky eye. My fav look is with a bronze/gold smokey eye, a bit of bronzer and this gloss.
Smell: It's sugary and juicy - probably like a starfruit (although it's been about ten years since I ate a starfruit so I can't be sure).
Texture: One big drawback about lipglazes is their stickiness factor. It's really sticky... Like, MAC Lipglass sticky. One quick turn of your head and you'll be eating gloss coloured hair. The good new is that it tastes a lot like starfruit! ;-)
Packaging: The packaging is a good and bad thing. It's a good thing because when you twist the bottom, the gloss oozes into the lipbrush at the top. No more fumbling around your purse looking for the lip brush! It's already attached. The packaging's a bad thing too because you'll find that the first, second and probably the third click doesn't do too much to dispense the gloss. Maybe the fourth click will do it. Keep trying; it's a-coming! A few people have said that they do this so vigorously (frustration probably?) that they end up with too much gloss. I find I like clicking it slowly and watching the gloss slowly ooze out. It's probably gross to some people but I have a sick fascination watching it...
Price: Soooo friggin' expensive at $28 CAD I believe. Available at Sephora. And in Vancouver, at BeautyMark in Yaletown and Kiss & Makeup at Park Royal.
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Philosophy Purity Made Simple One-Step Facial Cleanser
I recently picked up this item, my first foray into pricier (read: not drugstore) cleansers. According the Philosophy, Purity is a cleanser, toner and makeup remover all in one. I was ambivalent about these claims when I first read them. However, I... +
I recently picked up this item, my first foray into pricier (read: not drugstore) cleansers. According the Philosophy, Purity is a cleanser, toner and makeup remover all in one.
I was ambivalent about these claims when I first read them. However, I am happy to report that it does a decent job living up to its claim. Purity is an absolutely awesome cleanser. It takes away the day's dirt/oil really well without leaving my skin dried out, but instead soft and touchable. It works so well, I actually skip my toner altogether. As a makeup remover, it can remove my eyeliner but my mascara gets left behind. It gets left behind on my face cloth. I have found however that I haven't needed to use my L'Oreal makeup morever since.
The price is steeper than I'd like at $26 CAD for an 8oz bottle and $42 for a 16oz bottle. I'm better off going to the States and buying a couple of bottles as they're $6 and $10 less respectively.
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Men Are Like Mocha Lattes by Lisa Summers
Just finished reading this book last night. Men Are Like Mocha Lattes by Lisa Summers follows Canadian abroad Lindsay Breyer has she completes a year at a teaching college in New Zealand. I found the book a light and easy read, although like the... +
Just finished reading this book last night. Men Are Like Mocha Lattes by Lisa Summers follows Canadian abroad Lindsay Breyer has she completes a year at a teaching college in New Zealand.
I found the book a light and easy read, although like the previous reviewer below me, I had a little trouble getting into it at first. This was due to the format which is more diary/train of thought than narrative.
The characters were well-written. Lindsay is a flawed heroine: she's sweet, smart and well meaning but gullible and easily taken advantage of. Drew, Lindsay's romantic interest in the book, is selfish and manipulative. What I like best about Summers's writing is that she doesn't feel the need to spell it out for you; she trusts that her readers are smart enough to figure out what Lindsay's doing wrong: hopefully seeing a little bit of themselves in the character and learning/growing from it. (Okay, maybe not that far but I can see it happening...) I found myself so wrapped up in the characters that sometimes, I found myself angry at Drew for being a jerk or angry at Lindsay for letting him do it. (I guess I definitely see myself in Lindsay)
I also found the obvious comparisons between New Zealand and Canada amusing, especially in the face of powerhouse countries like Australia and The United States. I found myself chuckling as I recognized certain situations, like where the Kiwis kept calling Lindsay "American" because it's "the same thing". (I'm sure I'm guilty of thinking the same thing of Kiwis and Auzzies.) I wish Summers wrote more about this and her culture shock of going to a foreign country.
Overall, I found the book amusing and fun; definitely worth while picking up. However, I do wish we got to learn more about New Zealand. I did find the glossary in the back funny and worthwhile reading all the entries.
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Kiehl's Lip Balm #1
I discovered this product two years ago when my cousin from TO came over to visit and HAD to stop by the Kiehl's store. I have heard great things about this lip balm but just didn't bother figuring out what the hype was all about. Lip balm is just... +
I discovered this product two years ago when my cousin from TO came over to visit and HAD to stop by the Kiehl's store. I have heard great things about this lip balm but just didn't bother figuring out what the hype was all about. Lip balm is just lip balm right? Wrong! This is truly an amazing lip balm - far superior in my opinion to Soft Lips or Chapstick or even Smith's Rosebud Salve.
Kiehl's lip balm is the one I turn to when, during the winter months, my lips are hopelessly chapped. A good night's sleep with this applied and my lips are baby soft the next morning. When I need a good exfoliation, I slather this on and run an old toothbrush over my lips - much more effective than the ole water and toothbrush combo. Plus I condition my lips at the same time as exfoliate. I also find this balm to be great mixed in with a bit of MAC pigments for instant custom made lipgloss (my favourite is Apricot Pink with this).
Kiehl's Lip Balm has SPF 4 which I love since my lips are cold sores from unprotected sun exposure. This really helps and I wear it everday alone or under lipstick or gloss. Packaging is great as comes in a tube. (It used to come in a pot as well but I don't see that advertised on their website anymore so maybe that's discontinued?) Thus, more sanitary for those who are averse to using pots. A tube lasts you forever at 0.5 fl oz - I've had mine for a year and am only just now running out.
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Smiths Rosebud Salve
Smith's Rosebud Salve is a lovely multipurpose product. I was a skeptic at first since how great can it be, especially if it supposedly does so many things? (Jack of all trades, master of none syndrome.) Among its many uses, it is a lip balm, a... +
Smith's Rosebud Salve is a lovely multipurpose product. I was a skeptic at first since how great can it be, especially if it supposedly does so many things? (Jack of all trades, master of none syndrome.) Among its many uses, it is a lip balm, a moisturizer, a zit treatment, a diaper rash treatment, etc.
I mainly use it for my chapped lips. It does a great job at conditioning them to a more manageable feel - much like my beloved Kiehl's lip balm but without the greasy feeling.
This past week, I also used it on the annoying zit on my chin that wouldn't go away, even though I attacked it with benzoyl peroxide and a good extraction attempt. A dap of the Rosebud Salve at night before bed and the next morning it had dried up! I am a convert! Nothing has ever worked of fast and effectively.
The smell is definitely rose as the name suggests. I don't find it overpowering or nauseating but I can see how others would. The salve comes in a tin which can get unsanitary but just remember to only apply with clean fingers and you should be fine. There is a lot of product so it will take a long time to get through the whole thing.
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Herbal Essences All That Shine
The back story: My hair is dull, dull, dull. It is naturally black but I am currently growing out a dye job. It is also very thick, coarse and naturally slightly wavy, so I always try to tame it by blowdrying and/or straightening it. I have a wide... +
The back story: My hair is dull, dull, dull. It is naturally black but I am currently growing out a dye job. It is also very thick, coarse and naturally slightly wavy, so I always try to tame it by blowdrying and/or straightening it. I have a wide array of shine serums, deep conditioners and heat protectors to help my hair look presentable each day. All of this effort has lead my hair to be dull, dull, dull.
The scoop: Applying All That Shine is very much like applying any "at home" hair dye kit. The Clear Shine Booster goes on damp hair for 10 mins. Rinse. Apply the Shine Amplifying Conditioner for 2 mins. That's a big plus, as you really don't need to be a rocket scientist to figure out how to do this. Another big plus is the amount of product that's given. I've got short to medium length hair and only used about a third of the bottle - and that completely saturated my hair. The smell? It's a tolerable chemically fruity scent - quite reminiscent of the Herbal Essences lin of shampoos and conditioners - although much stronger.
The results: Having styled as usual (blow dry, heat protector and straighten), as per the instructions on the box, I found my hair to be... quite the same. How disappointing. I was envisioning my hair to shine like a sheet of glass. I was expecting to blind my boyfriend with the sun bouncing off the shiny surface of my hair. It actually looked more or less the same. Perhaps a big more shiny but nothing I can't achieve from buying a shine serum like John Frieda or even a cheapy one from Citrus Shine. The differences from before and after the application? My hair definitely feels softer especially where it was dyed previously, but I suspect that to be because of the Shine Amplifying Conditioner and not so much the Clear Shine Booster. Unusually, my hair also feels drier (I didn't even realize your hair could be both soft and dry but here we are) especially near the ends, which I suspect to be because of the Shine Booster. Yikes, a big no-no, since my hair's already dry as it is. There's also the lingering smell left over from the treatment which I oddly find rather pleasant. The product is supposed to last up to six weeks on my hair which more than enough conditioner to allowing for that.
The verdict: I suspect Herbal Essences All That Shine would be great on those with normal or slightly dull hair. It will definitely give you more shine than usual. On my very dull hair, I found the results to be less dramatic than I was envisioning. My hair is slightly shinier but it's rather akin to giving a bite of your sandwich to an Ethiopian kid dying of starvation - it helps, but it's not helping that much. The conditioner that comes with the product is wonderful, leaving hair very soft. I'd highly recommend that product alone to anyone with normal to very dull hair. Overall, I like the product but I'm not crazy about it.
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