SNAPSHOTS | YVR 2024 | DAY 1

It feels like it was just yesterday but apparently it's been a few years since my last trip to Vancouver. This time, I took advantage of the February long weekend to visit with my mom and sister. 

 

 

We had an early flight and arrived in Vancouver shortly before 7:00am. We picked up our rental car and were on our way. Not much was open that early in the morning, so we resorted to browsing around Walmart before breakfast. 

 

We visited Yin Ji Chang Fen, a restaurant specializing in rice noodle rolls, congee, and snacks. If this place sounds familiar, it's actually a chain and we tried it once in Toronto. This is Vancouver's first location (technically in Richmond), but the menu and ordering process is pretty standard across all locations.

 

We got the shrimp with chives rice noodle roll ($9.99) and the dough stick rice noodle roll ($8.75). The rice rolls were just as I remembered, smooth and silky. I especially love the Chinese doughnut roll because of the contrast in textures. Prices here were surprisingly more expensive than in Toronto, at least $2-3 more for each dish.

 

We also ordered the shredded pork and preserved egg congee ($10.75). The congee was nice and thick, and the meat was really tender. A good portion for sharing and a great option for warming up on a rainy day.

We visited Lansdowne Centre next, which was still decked out for Lunar New Year.

 

Lansdowne is not your traditional kind of mall, but we were able to kill time perusing T&T, Winners, Homesense, Daiso, and a few interesting Asian snack stores. 

 

 

The next stop on our Asian mall crawl was Parker Place. There was a new stall in the food court that had caught my attention. Yummy Bao sells steamed buns, dumplings, and wonton soup. They make everything fresh, with several aunties carefully folding each bao by hand. As with most spots in Richmond, it's cash only!

We got the A1 combo ($9.99) which comes with 5 pork buns and a cold soy milk. Great deal!  

 

The pork bun was really good. Soft and fluffy, with a generous amount of meat inside. There's also lots of soup so be careful when taking your first bite!

 

Aberdeen Centre was next and it too was decked out for Lunar New Year. 

My mom and sister always order the deep fried intestines ($11.50) from Wu Fung Dessert in the food court. It has a crispy texture and fatty, chewy centre. I would say it's an acquired taste because it is quite gamey.

 

While we were taking a break at Aberdeen, I almost forgot that I had pre-ordered mango mochi from Rice Holic in Admiralty Centre. Thankfully it was only a few minutes away. 

 

This mango mochi ($4.99 each) went viral all over Instagram and TikTok. It features half a fresh mango wrapped in chewy, soft mochi. Quantities are limited so it's best to pre-order on their website to guarantee you get some! 

 

Even though it wasn't mango season, the mango was ripe and pretty sweet. Would recommend! 

 

My sister and mom were also on the hunt for durian mochi so we walked across the street to Pacific Plaza. On the second floor is another hole in the wall food court.

Car's Dessert is a stall that specializes in fresh mochi and baked sago pudding. Again, cash only.

We got 4 durian mochi ($13.00). Unfortunately, I don't eat durian but my mom and sister really enjoyed this.

 

We were finally able to check into our hotel at this point, so we settled in and freshened up before heading out for dinner. Our dinner destination was John 3:16 Malaysian Delights, a popular Malaysian restaurant with 2 locations and a 3rd express location in the Aberdeen food court. I love Malaysian food so I was really excited to give this restaurant a try.

 

To start, we got the roti canai (2 pieces) with curry sauce ($10.95) and the satay chicken (4 skewers for $10.95). The roti canai was super buttery and flaky. Along with the curry sauce, they also give you a side of sugar which I thought was pretty interesting

 

The satay chicken was presented on the same metal plate, with cucumbers, red onion, and peanut sauce. The chicken was sticky and caramelized, but I found the overall flavour to be a bit too sweet for me.

 

 

The Hainanese chicken rice ($16.95) was tender and soft, but a bit bland. Not my favourite dish but my mom enjoys it.

 

The best dish of the night was the mamak mee goreng ($15.95). Stir-fried yellow noodles with bits of shrimp, tofu, and potatoes. Make sure you squeeze the lime over top! The noodles are super flavourful, sweet, smokey, and just lightly spicy.

The night was still young, so we explored one of the biggest Asian grocery stores I've ever been in. Foody World was such a trip. You know you're getting old when grocery stores become your playground.

- CT