18.--FOOD FIGHT! Papa Murphy's vs. Delissio Frozen Pizza

photo credit: The Pizza Review via photopin cc

It didn't seem fair to match Papa Murphy's up with a delivery pizza place, and the only heat-up-and-serve-at-home option available was frozen pizza. So we decided to match our favorite frozen variety up with Papa Murphy's and see who would k.o. the other.

At first glance this match up didn't seem fair, either. Let's face it, frozen pizza is frozen pizza. There's a reason why pizza chains flourish in the face of the cheaper frozen option. Most of it tastes blech. But there are a few exceptions, and Delissio (Diogiorno in the U.S.) is one of them. So we stuffed both into to the oven at home and waited for the results.

Papa Murphy's makes their pizza right before your eyes. The ingredients are fresh and prepared that morning. The cheeses are also shredded that morning. There is something kind of exciting about seeing your pizza made before your very eyes. You can't say the same for frozen pizza. You take it home, slide it out of the cardboard box, think "meh", and shove it into the oven.

But the playing field is a little more even when they come out. Both look tasty. Both give off that mouth-watering aroma that makes you want to eat more than your share. And both are the size you want it to be.

The big surprise is that we actually preferred the taste of Delissio over Papa Murphy's. It could be the ingredients were more calorie-laden than the fresh-made, I don't know. I do know I preferred the crust over Papa Murphy's. The crust! The frozen variety tasted like pizza crust. Papa Murphy's tasted like bread sticks. I'm not sure why.

There is no high road with pizza. Fresh ingredients are no good if they don't result in a better-tasting pizza than frozen. I'll stick with my home-made pizza, which tastes better than any prepared, frozen or food chain, but in the meantime I have to say, I was disappointed in Papa Murphy's, which has apparently won awards.

Winner: Delissio Frozen Pizza

17.--Gulberg Fine Cuisine

  My sister reminded me the other day that I had not yet done a blog featuring East Indian food. This is odd, because I love the cuisine. We chose Gulberg Fine Cuisine; primarily because it was located in the area in which we were running errands. (First rule of a successful business--location, location, location.)

The restaurant itself is comfortable, clean and spacious, with booths everywhere, something I have always appreciated. There is nothing worse than being packed  in like sardines along both sides of
of a single long table. How people assume that's fine dining I'll never know. I like a little privacy between my elbow and a stranger's, thank you very much.

The host was very friendly, a real people-person, warm and welcoming to everyone that entered the store. It didn't matter if they were in business attire, punjabi suits or jeans and flip-flops, everyone was greeted with equal respect and warmth.

We chose the butter chicken, the chicken curry, and of course the requisite roti to go. The food arrived in good time, freshly prepared. The butter chicken was pretty much what I expected; rich and tomato-based with chunks of chicken generously filling the container. It was the chicken curry that was the delightful surprise--not overly hot, with a really lovely blend of spices. Truth to tell, it was better than the butter chicken, and that's saying a lot because I'm such a fan.
Although the meal was filling I think it could have done with a free side of rice to make it a real deal. That being said, I've paid more for worse.

The next time we go I'll be eating in the restaurant itself. At about nine to fifteen dollars an entree it's worth the money, for the atmosphere and the food.

16.--Ten Really Cool Food Websites

photo credit: ecstaticist via photopin cc

There are ups and downs to spending time on the 'Net. You use up huge chunks of time that might be better spent, well...living. Housework has a tendency to suffer; your family begins to take on the uncomfortable patina of unwelcome interruption, rather than being your reason for doing things. Stuff doesn't get done. Things happen late, or don't happen at all.

The upside is the discovery of strange new worlds, and this is no less true for food than it is for anything else. Below I've listed ten sites related directly or indirectly to food that you should know about. Some of them are wicked cool.

http://www.just-eat.com/   JUST EAT is the world's leading online takeaway ordering service. Ordering online is simple, quick and efficient for both the customer and the restaurant owner. The JUST EAT end-to-end system for online ordering makes the takeaway ordering experience better for both parties.

 http://foodbeast.com/content/  FOODBEAST is the premier food news resource. A one-stop location for food news, culture and entertainment. Birthed from a small apartment in Orange County, with the goal of providing a clean display of current food trends, products and industry information. Written by and for the average eater.

http://foodsense.is/  Food Sense is a unique resource for thoughtful, food-loving eaters and home cooks who have a palate for plant-based eating - for themselves or their loved ones; three days a week, or every day of the year.

http://verygoodrecipes.com/food-blogs  Almost all the active food blogs. The best cooking blogs and greatest food blogs ranked in an almost complete list! Forget "Exclusive" Top 10, Top 50 or Top 100 lists: this is an INCLUSIVE list of food and recipes blogs! There are also more than 60660 recipes to peruse.

http://www.john-west.co.uk/discover-the-story-behind-your-can/  This UK company allows consumers to track the fish in every can they process by typing a tracking number (found on the can) into their website, no matter what country you're in. Very cool.

https://www.foodpairing.com/  Foodpairing is a source of inspiration that allows chefs, bartenders, and others in the food industry to create new combinations of ingredients for dishes or drinks. Foodpairing is not based on intuition or existing recipes, but on science, providing an objective overview of possible pairings. You can sign up for free (“lite”), or you can pay about twenty bucks a month for the extensive version, which has far greater applications for you. The Lite version in itself is worth perusing, though.

 http://punchfork.com/  Punchfork makes it easier to find the best new recipes from popular sites. They use conversations on social networks to show you high quality recipes that passionate cooks are talking about right now. This is a must-see website.

http://www.fraserhealth.ca/your_environment/food_safety/  Our environmental health officers conduct more than 16,000 inspections of restaurants, food facilities and stores annually. We also educate food handlers and consumers about safe food handling practices.

 http://www.slowfood.ca/  The philosophy of the movement, founded to defend gastronomic pleasure and seek a slower and more aware pace of life, extended its focus from the virtues of food to considering the quality of life and identity. It aims to recognize the history and culture of every social group as it interacts in a network of reciprocal exchange. Whether you consider a variety of fruit or a traditional local dish, you cannot ignore its relationship with history, material culture and the environment where it originated. Slow Food stresses the importance for agricultural and livestock production to maintain a balance of respect and exchange with the surrounding ecosystem. That is why Slow Food has been defined a movement of eco-gastronomes.

http://www.foodbloggersofcanada.com/?doing_wp_cron=1353253625.7391159534454345703125  Food Bloggers Canada has a dedicated team working in the background to keep things ticking along and bring you new content and opportunities.
They’re a diverse bunch but they share one common denominator: food.

Just oooooone more...
http://www.thenibble.com/  This delightful little site has dozens of diverse articles relating to food, cooking and baking items, and stuff you want to know, like the difference between buffalo and bison. It's also chock-a-block full of recipes. I dare you to look at this magazine and not be foodie-frenzified.

I hope you check some of these sites out. They're well worth your time.

 

15.--Barcelo's

Parking to the right a bit tight

We went to Barcelo's because we like chicken, the same reason we stopped going to Nando's near Guildford Shopping Center on 152nd street. We used to love Nando's, but they changed either the method of cooking, or the spices used, or the type of marinade they used (if indeed they use one; I don't know) or something; whatever changes they made to the chicken, they weren't good changes for my taste, nor my family's.

Barcelo's was a place we hadn't tried yet, and the only other choices we knew of being Church's or Kentucky Fried Chicken, we decided to give it a shot.

It was a nice surprise. The restaurant itself is appealing, spacious and clean and comfortable, although the parking lot outside left a little to be desired; there isn't much and the spaces are a tight fit, even with my compact car.

little lounge area for waiting

The food, however, is good for fast food. The chicken is reminscent of Nando's before it changed its flavor (note: we don't know if the changes are chain-wide; we only ever went to the one near Guildford). We ordered the spicy fries, which are not spicy. You have to add a sauce eerily similar to the Nando's peri-peri to make them spicy, which for some nameless reason annoyed me. If you have to add the sauce yourself don't call them "spicy", is my opinion.

The chicken was hot and juicy and flavorful. My sister said her chicken wasn't all that juicy, but my brother-in-law's, and mine, were. The young man behind the counter was considerate enough to tell us approximately how long our to-go order would take to be filled (eight minutes). Nine minutes later, which in my opinion was a pretty good guestimate on his part, we were walking out the door with our order. Three half chickens and a side of fries came to 36.25, including tax. A wee bit pricey but everything is these days.

self-serve pop

Ultimately I would have to say that whenever we decide we want fast-food chicken, we will be going to Barcelo's. At some point in the future we will be checking out other Nando's in the area. If we find that the original recipe has only changed for the one in Guildford, there will be a food fight comin'.

14.--FOOD FIGHT!--DONAIR

Stomachs, get ready to ruuuuuuuuummmmbbbbbble!

(FOOD FIGHT! Is featured in this blog the first Saturday of every month)



I decided on donairs this month because I have never had a donair, apparently being the black sheep of the family since when I confessed same to said members they looked at me as if I had just said, "I don't know what rain looks like." So it occurred to me that if I used donairs as a food fight I could try one at two different places, thereby putting to rest the family's sudden suspicion that I don't know what I'm talking about when it comes to food, due to my lack of donair experience.

The reason I chose Meditalia and Donair Affair is because they both got such high scores on Urbanspoon; if you're going to try something for the first time you may as well go with the one people like the best. Meditalia is located just off 72nd Avenue and 137th Street in Newton and Donair Affair pretty much on the corner of 108th Avenue and 148th Street in a little strip mall. Both places are small but clean, with personable people working behind the counter. In both cases we ordered the lamb and falafel donair. In Meditalia this is on the board but you have to ask for falafel with your lamb donair in Donair Affair. We also ordered a side of hummus at both places. Both orders came to approximately the same price--around 30, 32 dollars for three lamb/falafel donairs with one order of hummus.

Medalia's crib

Meditalia danced out a 330 g. (11 1/2 oz.) donair, with crisp lettuce and tomato (not too much), falafel and lamb. The lamb tasted like lamb, and fresh at that. I was amazed at the complexity of this simple fast food. This is a good example of layers of flavor. Spices, chickpea, crisp vegetable all harmonized in a really lovely way. The hummus was nice as well. Thick and full of flavor, with cumin top notes that didn't overpower the dip.

Weighing in at a whopping 535 g. (18 3/4 oz.) came Donair Affair's contender, a lamb donair with falafel added. The hummus came with two pita breads. If you are starving and need to fill up in a major way I recommend this place. Unfortunately, it didn't come up to par on taste. The meat was supposed to be lamb, but we really couldn't distinguish any lamb flavor; it could have been a really good meat spread for all we could tell. The lettuce and tomato, while crisp, was oddly flavored. If something can be stale and crisp at the same time the lettuce was a good example. The hummus was rather thin, more like store-bought tzatziki than a chickpea spread, although it did have a lovely lemon top note that won my brother-in-law and me over. My brother-in-law assured me that the donair was as good as most others but that is damning with faint praise; what it really means is that it is rather generic.

Donair Affair's crib

Meditalia, on the other hand, stands out in its quality. Ultimately if I am craving a donair I will go to Meditalia; in fact, I would be hard-pressed to try anyone else. I don't think many would come even close to creating a donair I was as happy with.

 Winner: Meditalia

 

13.--Polonia Bakery & Deli





Polonia Bakery & Deli is one of those great little places that offer you items you can't get anywhere else--breads, jams, types of flour and crackers, canned goods, bakery items...I don't think there is a Polish person in the lower mainland who doesn't know about Polonia Bakery. It has been in the same location for just about forever. When we went in this morning 'round about 11:30 the place was packed. Four people were running around behind the counters filling orders and processing purchases. You have to take a number (up to your left at the main counter) and wait for them to call you; a vigilant attitude is necessary here because if they call your number and you don't respond they wait only a few minutes before calling the next. They have to; it's crazy busy in there in the mornings. You can go in the afternoons, of course, but if you want to buy a certain loaf of bread or certain dessert from the pastry case you are likely to be disappointed. The stuff sells quick.


You gain weight looking at the pastry case

Their sausages are nice though not spectacular; likewise the breads. What you do get is variety. My sister and I spent close to an hour there the first time we went, just browsing the food shelves.
They have ready-made meals in the freezers at the far left of the front of the store when you go in: beef stew, cabbage rolls, beans in tomato sauce, croquettes stuffed with sauerkraut and mushrooms, borsche, tripe soup and more.
Should you wish to, you can get lunch at the back--soup of the day, sandwiches, perogies.

Canned goods boast everything from sprats and mackeral to sour cherry jam. Buckwheat groats, noodles, flours and grains jostle for position. Everywhere you look there is something
tasty to try.
We bought a Bavarian bread loaf, some incredible-looking apple/cranberry tarts, a few jelly donuts--which actually taste like donuts should, not like the stuff they sell in donut shops--and the sauerkraut/mushroom croquettes (plus some baked turkey because it was on sale). When our number was called (and we made sure we didn't take a number until we were ready to purchase, keeping an eye on the number ahead of us just in case), the server, who seemed to speak little English, was careful to ask whether we wanted our meat sliced. This was repeated for the bread we asked for. Her attitude might be construed as unfriendly if one was in a poor mood to begin with, but a smile given was a smile returned, especially once the order was filled--we suspect from sheer relief. It's somewhat of a chore to try and serve a customer who doesn't speak your language when you don't have a fluent grasp of theirs. When such communication is successful, you're happy, right?


Not spectacular but good

We felt a little awkward at first as there is no Polish at all in our linguistic family tree, and most of the staff and customers were all ordering in Polish. My sister asked for the apple tarts and when our server grabbed the wrong pastry and was corrected, we were quickly informed that what we were pointing at were not apple tarts, but apple-cranberry, as if the entire store had been watching and thought the server had been in error. It wasn't said in an offensive way, however, so my sister and I minded not at all. We simply acknowledged our mistake with a smile and ordered them.
By the time we were done we felt comfortable enough with how the store was run to know that we would be back to buy more stuff. And that's a priority anywhere there's food.










    
    






















12.--Sushi & Roll

Let's face it--there's a lot of sushi places in Surrey. Every strip mall has one, practically. But we were desperate for a place to have lunch, having driven around the Whalley/Fleetwood area for a half hour or so (hey that's a long time when you're starving hungry) and not finding anything open or appealing. Our last stop was the Olympia Restaurant just off King George Blvd. (seriously, why did they change that name from King George Highway? Its initials are KGB...), but when we went in our ears were intimidated by a live band setting up, why in a restaurant I don't know, and then when we came out we saw Sushi & Roll kitty-corner from it with a "Grand Opening" sign on it and decided to check it out. Sushi was sounding pretty good right then. I would have eaten a rock.We were delighted by the place when we entered--it has that wonderful clean, minimal-but-artistic feel that Asian restaurants do so well. There weren't many people in it when we entered; I assume it was because we caught it between lunch and dinner rushes at 2:45 in the afternoon. We were shown to a table and given a really lovely complimentary green and brown-rice tea that the server kept filled throughout the meal. My sister ordered the Chicken Udon, my brother-in-law, the Beef Teriyaki, I asked for the Sweet Potato and Prawn Tempura, and we decided to share a small plate of Gyoza as well. Five minutes later we heard a sizzling noise, and the server came up to our table with a truly spectacular Beef Teriyaki, inset on a wooden tray. It sounded like it was still frying, and the steam billowed up from it in volcano-like resplendency. No kidding, we were really impressed. A few moments after that he brought my sister her Chicken Udon, a generous portion, almost enoughfor two, and a couple of minutes after that came my Tempura, the sweet potato slices the size of the palm of my hand and the prawns which were big to begin with but with the tempura batter seemed massive. We dug in with a will, being as I think I've mentioned twice now starving, and were pretty pleased with not only the portion size but the taste. The vegetables were crisp but cooked, the noodles weren't mushy, and the tempura was not greasy like some other tempuras at other restaurants. I did think there was too much batter on them, but it's a small criticism swimming in a large pool of approval. We would have loved to try the sushi bar but when we saw the portions of our meals we knew there was no way we could eat any more than what we had. Sushi & Roll also has a lovely house spice--that's what it says on the little shaker, "House Spice"--a truly splendid combination of pepper flakes, poppy seed, orange peel, and other things I have forgotten, which begins as just flavor on your tongue and gradually builds in heat until you have a lovely intensity and which seems good on everything. I know, I had a bit of everyone's and tried it. I would have put it in my tea if the server hadn't been looking. After having eaten our fill we called for the bill and discovered to our shock that the whole thing, along with my brother-in-law's Coke, came to a measly $32.59! And that includes the tax, my friends. We have often spent that amount for three at McDonald's.

The spectacular Beef Teriyaki

Clean and charming



Sweet Potato and Prawn Tempura





Chicken Udon, Gyoza and a lovely mild sauce

I highly recommend this delightful place. As soon as I am hungry again (possibly next spring), I will be going back for the sushi.