McDonald's Canada's New Menu: Chocolate Banana Baked Pie

As promised in my previous post, I will write more about McDonald's new menus.
McDonald's Canada has a new menu that is tastier than the apple pie.
I am not entirely sure that it is Canada only or not, but it is not seen in some states.

It is sweet but amazingly, in McDonald's Canada's standard, it is pretty good.
Even more amazingly, it is 2 for 1.39 right now.
We never see this kind of price in Canada fast food chains.

We ordered it 5 times already over the past few weeks, and we love it.
The custard inside (with chocolate) is warm and the pie is quite solid, not soggy.

I would recommend it to people with kids because it is very affordable right now.

Note:  The Chocolate Banana Pie promotion seems to be over as of April.  They are having Peach Pie in Canada and Cherry Pie in the States.

For Kids: WordWorld DVD

For those with kids, I recommend a program, called "Wordworld".

http://pbskids.org/wordworld/index_flash.html

It teaches kids how to spell through interesting stories.
The characters and objects are cute and are "spelled out".

Here is a dvd box that I bought for my son:


http://www.amazon.ca/WordWorld-Lots-Letters-2-Discs/dp/B002ERQWWC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1297047424&sr=1-1

He loves this show on TV, and he can't get enough of it.  haha.

TJ Maxx Deals: Melissa and Doug Kids USA Map Puzzle

We found a set of kids puzzle that my son would like for his age.
It is made by Melissa and Doug and was on sale in TJ Maxx for only 8 dollars.

Now, the artwork is kind of old style on this map puzzle but I personally like maps and geography, so I bought this for my son.

The United States is a big nation full of interesting people and cities, and it will educational for my kids to know some basic geography.

 I will be looking for more interesting, educational puzzles...

Restaurant: Pho 99 Noodle House near Coquitlam, BC

We went to a Vietnamese noodle restaurant near my place around Lougheed Mall.
We are always interested in having good Vietnamese "Pho" and that is the only restaurant in our area.

"Pho", the word and the noodle is believed to have both Chinese and French influences.
See Wikipedia article:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pho

I understand there are regional differences for the ingredients and the taste of Pho.
However, I also know if I tasted a really bad and lousy Pho.

Now, I have to say that the spring rolls are not bad.
However, the soup and noodle were tasteless, missing some kind of ingredient.

The service of this restaurant was horrendous. 
We went with two babies, and they behaved well.
My older son requires extra spoon and small bowls but none of the waiters even care to check or help.
We ended up using the tea cup as the bowl for my son.

I was like, "oh my....where is the service?"
I might as well ordered take out!

McDonald's New Menu: Spicy McChicken and Angus Wrap

One thing interesting about McDonald's is that they have different menus everywhere in the world.

This is true even for the United States and Canada.

Last weekend, we ate the new menu items (not availabe in BC, Canada): Spicy McChicken and Angus Wrap.

The cost is much cheaper than Canada about 9 dollars for two people.
The sandwich itself is spicy for me.  (I am not a pro spicy eater.)
However, it was great for its value.

With the Angus wrap, I was quite impressed...
The reason is that you get to pick the style you want.

If they have 4 styles of Angus beef burgers, then you have four choices to pick from plus the customizable ingredients.

There are lots of mushrooms in this "mushroom angus wrap" with delicious sauce and thick beef.
This one is one of my favorite and the cost is 2 dollars.

I will try to blog about the menu items not available in US but available in Canada.
I will also try to blog about the McDonald's in Asia when I travel around.

Fred Meyer Weekly Deal: Hot Wheels' Citroen and Lamborghini

I went to Fred Meyer last weekend to look for deals for me and my sons.
Of course, we boys like cool cars and model cars attract both adults and kids.

The Hot Wheels were on sale for only 1 dollar!!
I quickly picked two cars I don't have:  2010 Lamborghini and Citroen racing cars.

Citroen, is a popular French brand in Europe that is not seen much in North America.

The toy cars made for North American market don't have doors that can open anymore.

Tomica cars (Japanese domestic maker) on the other hand, has well made cars with suspensions and open doors.  (priced around 3 to 5 dollars US)
Of course, higher price, higher quality.

Saint Germain Bakery in BC, Canada and Macaron

Passion for macaron....Another macaron discussion.

As discussed in my other macaron posts, we went to visit Saint Germain Bakery in Burnaby, BC, Canada.
http://www.saintgermainbakery.com/en/index.php

In this store, they sell macarons, which they called it, "French Macaroon", to make people understand what they mean.  People in Canada will ask, what is a macaron?
If you say, a "macaroon", then somehow people would understand.
They don't look the same!!

The head chef of this franchise is actually a member of Canada's Culinary Olympic Team as a pastry chef.
Now, I know why they taste good.

These are delicious!  They are 12 for 12 dollars Canadian.
The box also has descriptions of macaron's history.  (Yes, it did evolve from the old macaroon a long time ago.)
http://www.saintgermainbakery.com/en/index.php?p=news

UFO Over Jerusalem

A few days ago, there was sightings of UFO in Jerusalem.
It was hovering over a temple, a tourist attraction and disappeared into the sky in an unimaginable speed.
Youtube link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Xb9JoGyy98

There is no doubt in my mind that many alien civilizations exist in the universe.
From the impossible speed their UFOs or machines can exert, we know many of them have superior technologies.

It is concerning because they have been looking at us like lab rats and we cannot do anything about it.
Here is another clip:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQ-bNOy_CKQ

The UFO sightings these days are of "spherical" shapes, not the traditional saucer shapes.
I wondered...Maybe that is the fashion or the new trendy machines for them?
Just like the new Ipod Touch that everyone wants to get?

TJ Maxx Deals: Girls' Puma Sneakers

We went to the States last weekend to look for more deals.
One of the stops was TJ Maxx, the big discount store chain.

Here, you can usually treasure hunt for brand name clothing, shoes or toys for good deals.
(very cheap if you don't mind things without a box!)

We bought a pair of Girl's Puma Sneakers for only 30 dollars!!
It usually retails for about 100 dollars in Canada plus taxes!

It is brand new in perfect condition but without a box (don't need it anyways).

Taiwanese Food: Zongzi or Badzan

I enjoy buying authentic "Zongzi" (Mandarin pronounciation) or "Badzan", sticky rice with filling wrapped in bamboo leaves.
It is hard to find authentic Taiwanese food shops, so I usually buy from certain places I know.

Zongzi has lots of regional and national variations in Asia and can be a sweet dessert or dinner dish depending on what is inside.

This is what it typically should look like originally.  The long square version is the Cantonese/Southeast Asian version.  They might come in different taste and shapes....

It is hard to take good picture of what is inside and hard to describe the deliciousness of it.
However, this one is of traditional Taiwanese taste and is delicious.

The Taiwanese version typically is filled with mushrooms, pork, (sometimes shrimps, chestnuts or peanuts) and dried egg.
I am not a dried egg fan, but I love the taste overall and can have this dish anytime!!

Creative Cooking: Onion Ring Port Patty

My wife tries all kinds of creative cooking mixing different ideas and cultures all the time.
This time, I don't know what I should call this dish.  :)
Onion Ring Pork Patty?  haha...

We also bought new Corelle dish.

The onion ring is prepared by cutting the center of the onion out.
Then, pork patty is put in with seasoning on the top.
The pork is prepared the same way as you prepare a hamburger patty.

Well, I assume most people would have bought their hamburgers from the frozen section of the supermarket.

Obviously, that will not work here.
 However, this is an easy dish to make with simple ingredients.

Trader Joe's Macaron Post 2 and T&T Macaron

Since many people read my last "macaron" post, I decided to write an additional short post.

Original post: http://bentochihuahua.blogspot.com/2010/08/trader-joes-and-macaron.html

In Japan and Europe, "macaron" has been a popular delicacy for years, but in Canada, it is still unknown to most people.  At work, most people says, "What is macaron?  A macaroon?"
(No!  It is not a macaroon.)

Picture taken in France (2009) at Lafayette in Paris

I think it would take some time for the public and the bakeries in Canada to catch up.However, some Asian bakeries and supermarkets such as "T&T", a Asian supermarket chain in Canada, has released boxed macarons.  (Taste reasonable.)

A chain bakery called "Saint Germain" in BC, Canada also sells macaron.

Now, it cost 12 dollars for a dozen macaron usually in Canada, which is kind of reasonable because France will be 1 Euro per macaron and 100 to 200 yens in Japan.

For the people who have never tried or don't know what is a macaron, give it a try if you have a chance!

Japanese Day for Kids: 7, 5, 3 and Thomas Cake

In Japan, there is a festival, a day for celebration for kids that turns 7, 5 and 3 years old.

I bought a Thomas the Tank Engine Cake from a local Coquitlam bakery for my son.

I am always amazed at the cake nowdays and how lucky the kids now are.

My son, me and my family all enjoyed the cake (can choose whipped cream and all ingredients when I ordered).
The cake even come with a Real Thomas!!
The bakery, Inno Bakery, actually allows its customers to order cake to different theme and sizes.
(Cost is around 30 dollars Canadian, reasonable for its quality without too much sugar.)

I tried to avoid sugary cakes sold at chain supermarket!  They are just filled with sugar and icing.

www.innobakery.com

For Kids: Animals of the World Puzzle (Infantino)

I found this puzzle made by Infantino, which I liked and bought it for my kids.

I was always interested in maps and geography as a kid, and I thought this puzzle can be a good education tool.

A world map with cute animals in that region for 3 year olds to play with:

The puzzle itself has 50 pieces with beautiful glossy print.

It is not large at all:  length is around more than 1 feet (30cm).

Eurofoods (Polish Food) in Coquitlam, BC, Canada

I found a store near my neighborhood on North Road in Coquitlam, BC that sells mostly products from Poland and Russia. 

They have lots of tea, coffee, cookies, chocolate, local cheese, ham, pastries that caters to people from that region.  I supposed they are most welcome by people who feels nostalgic and wants the tastes back home. 

We enjoy food from all over the world, so we bought a bunch of chocolate and cookies.  (We don't actually know what they are but we tried them and liked them.)

The dark chocolate and the chocolate with a baby face (?) taste excellent.
There is also a kind of cooking spice we bought (left upper corner), and we used it for cooking french fries.
It fits the fried foods perfectly!

Hallmark Ornament

Last week, I was also surprised that some ornaments were still left on the shelves in Hallmark Metrotown.
I thought it would be all gone after boxing week.  It was two weeks into January, and most of the ornaments were gone.  I actually managed to dig some treasures out, so I was happy.

This time, I found Donald Duck, Amtrak train, Beauty and the Beast, Classic Barbie and Santa Claus train.
They will be added to my already too large collection for my small condominium.

Tim Horton's Swiss Cheese and Ham Sandwich

Last weekend, we went to try Tim Horton's Swiss Cheese and Ham Sandwich for lunch.
It was fresh (better than 7-Eleven cold frozen sandwiches) because it was made to order.
The taste is good in fast food standard, and how bad can you make a sandwich anyways....haha.

 The soup tastes decent but needs some thing else besides broccoli.  Well, it is broccoli soup.
The sandwich did come with lots of ham and couple of slices of cheese, which is not bad for the value.
For a large sandwich and a soup, I paid about 12 dollars including tax.

Bento Lunch Box: Creative Tempura Combo

My wife made a really creative tempura combo box today, which included several kinds of Japanese tempura.
There are 4 kinds of tempura in this picture:
Tempura Chicken, tempura asparagus, tempura cheese and tempura okra.
When it is warm, the tempura cheese melts in your mouth and is absolutely delicious.

The good thing with tempura is that as long as you have the tempura mix, you can experiment on what you want to wrap.  One can also put different kind of cheese in the middle for different tastes.

Now, depending on your taste and the culture background, you might find these more or less tasty and acceptable.

The picture above also includes salted sesame rice, scrambled egg with chive and broccoli.

Vancouver Restaurant: La Bretagne Creperie

Few months ago, I have heard about this French Creperie downtown that people like and we went try it early January.  They are always busy during meal time, so we made reservations in the afternoon for some crepe snacks.  It is located in downtown Vancouver near "Konbiniya", a Japanese convenience store on Robson Street.

It is a small French restaurant that sells all kinds of crepes with mostly French staff.
It seats about only 20 people, and most clients spoke French on the Saturday I went.

The crepe menu covers everything from seafood to desserts to Hawaiian crepe.
We have tried the Belgian Chocolate Crepe and Seafood Crepe:

People have the option to add fruits on the dessert crepes, which I did not.  The Belgian Chocolate tastes good but I would recommend adding bananas to it.

The seafood crepe tastes good.  The Sauce was excellent but was not enough.  Well, it says seafood but only with shrimps inside....

The price here is high and can run up to 7 to 13 dollars a crepe, including tax and tip.
I would love to try it again but the prices would make me think twice.
I know that is what they pay in Europe, but is it really worth 13 dollars for a seafood crepe?

Maybe I will try other crepes next time.

Tassimo: European Premium Coffee

As I mentioned before, we currently are enjoying the Tassimo machine and are trying out different available drink on its "T-Disc".

Wanting to taste its online European coffee line-up, I order 3 packages from the website.
(3 countries' brands, 3 different tastes which are only available in Europe or online.)

1)  Gevalia's Decaf Cappucino (Sweden).
Gevalia is a household Swedish brand for coffee in the local markets.  However, in the States, it is marketed as premium European coffee and offers all kinds of coffee beans and products different than Starbucks.  It is recognized as a Royal brand by the royal family of Sweden.  The special thing about it is that the coffee T-Discs are Decaf Expresso, which are not common in Canada.

2)  Mastro Lorenzo's Crema (Italy)

3) Jacobs' Kronung (Germany)
Jacob is a household brand in Europe but is not available in Canada.

I have tried the Gevalia coffee, and it tastes Excellent!!
For me, the decaf espresso is still a little strong but the taste if refined.
As a coffee drinker, my wife loves it as well.

For online ordering in Canada, we have to order at least 3 packs with shipping.
Each pack will work out to be around 13 dollars including shipping and taxes.
Amazingly, it is almost the same price is you buy the tassimo packs from Safeway or Save On Foods.
(and you only can get Starbucks or Nabob brands)

For people who want to try a variety of coffee for the Tassimo machines, I would recommend trying the online ordering.

Bento Lunch Box: Asparagus Pork Roll

I haven't been uploading my daily bento box that my wife made and I should do that more often.
Here is one themed bento with asparagus rolls.  The outer layer is made of "butabara", meaning pork belly in Japanese. 

The asparagus is steamed first, then it is wrapped in raw sliced pork.
Next, the roll is fried with salt and pepper for seasoned taste.
The picture does not look that good because it is from my cellphone.
However, the dish tastes excellent!! yum!

Bento Lunch Box: Spring Roll

Last week, my wife was trying out using some spring roll dole to make own spring rolls.
They turned out delicious and actually, you can use the spring roll wraps to wrap different kind of food.
Last time, when we went to a western restaurant, the chef there used it to wrap flavored mashed potatoes.
(and it taste great!)

Here, my wife included one of my favourite Taiwanese pickled lettuce.
Taiwanese people, like Japanese people, love all kinds of pickled or preserved (dried) food items.
Sometimes, the styles are different but they taste great. 
Things from bamboo, mushroom, lettuce, radish...all kinds of vegetables.
I would recommend people trying them out.  (made in Taiwan recommended for quality control)

Funny Flashback: My Old Dell Computer

I like Dell computers because they are cheap, practical and relatively reliable.
Well, I don't think the batteries are high quality but overall, the quality is reasonable.

My last laptop lasted over 4 years from 2004 to 2008 and was a Dell.  My new one is a Dell, too.
The computer must be happy that I used it till the laptop screen is almost completely detached.
(I had to used a box to hold the screen and tape them together.)

You can't really tell from the picture, but the screen could be detached from the keyboard. 

Boxing Week Sale: Babies R Us Clothing

Yesterday, using the gift card a friend has given me, we bought some nice cute clothes for my son.

The brand is Gagou Tagou and I think their design has improved gradually, so we found a few that we liked.
In North America, I think it is hard to find cute clothes for even toddlers because boys has to be "superheroes" or has to wear shark or alligator.  Who says that boys can't wear cute designs when they are young.  It is not that they have to wear pink strawberries and flowers...

Mega Bloks Thomas Train Set

I bought my son a complete set of Mega Bloks Thomas Train set on a good Christmas sale price.
(Reg. $140)
It looks impressive but takes a large amount of space in my little suite.
I hope he shows more interests and utilize this train set later on this year.

Happy New Year 2011!

Happy New Year!!  Time passes so quickly especially when you have family, kids and dogs.
It was an extremely busy and eventful year but it was fun and interesting.
I am glad we are relatively healthy and are looking forward to a prosperous New Year.

My New Year's resolution?  Well, I made some in the past and some just cannot be achieved.
We did not travel in 2010, so I am looking forward to doing some travelling...
Also, I should just try to maintain my exercise regime while working.

If everyone is healthy and working, that is all that counts!
(trying to tell myself that while working)

Barbie Loves Joe Fresh

In Canada, we know there is a brand, "Joe Fresh", which provide affordable clothing for consumers.
This holiday season, they partnered up with Barbie to produce cute sets of pajamas.
The material quality is not bad for its price and the design is cute!
We managed to find a set near our town (lucky):

My Chihuahua's Christmas Present

My cute Chihuahua is enjoying his new Christmas present.
He likes to play with cute animal dolls and sometimes treats them like girlfriends.
(which is hilarious)
He is sleeping well in this picture with his new monkey girlfriend:

Lindt Chocolate: Gift Set

Lindt Chocolate finally opened up couple of specialty stores in BC and we checked it out last week.
They do sell a large varieties of products includes gifts sets, boxes and "pick your own" chocolate.
(many of them you cannot find in the usual grocery stores)
I got a nice set of plates and chocolates for my own house.

Boxing Day Deals: Hallmark Christmas Ornaments

Hallmark makes excellent Christmas ornaments and their prices are not cheap.  They are typically 20 to 35 Canadian dollars and are not usually on sale.  As a collector of ornaments (I collect useless things I might say), I decided to line up for their boxing day sale for 40% off.  Their ornaments are so well made that the prices don't go much lower.  I got a few for my collection this year, and it was definitely worth lining up at 8am along with 20 other ornament fans.

They have many many series of ornaments every year.  Barbie series, Disney Princess series, Mickey series, Hero series, Snoopy Series, Winne the Pooh series....etc, you name it, they have it.

Here are two barbies I got for this year.
To collect all of them every year will require a few thousand dollars in the budget, which is not possible for average citizens.

I also got these funny super heroes ornament.  The Mickey Mouse and Snoopy ornaments were also really detailed crafted.  (way more details than the super heroes above.)

I would definitely consider  buying them next year.

Christmas Gift: Tassimo Coffee Machine

Recently, Tassimo machines has been popular and I bought one for my wife for Christmas present.
I have wondered about what it does and my wife is a coffee drinker, so I thought we should try it.
It operates from a product called, "T-Disc".  It does not require beans or filters and makes one cup from one disc.

It has several models and we bought the one in the upper pictures.
I am not a "pro" coffee drinker, so I don't know the difference in taste, but I do notice that the coffee tastes more refined.  The downside is the cost of buying the T-disc because one disc only makes one cup and one pack of t-disc gives you 8 or 16 cups, depending on the package.  Nabob packages cost around 6 dollars and Starbucks cost around 9 to 12 dollars.

There are also several European brands, which are not imported to Canada (too bad because we only have Nabob or Starbucks to choose from).

There are Swiss, German, Italian and French coffee makers which are not sold...not sure if we can order them online but I sure want to try them out.

Baby Gift: Diaper Cake

One nice co-worker and her husband visited us and brought us a few nice and thoughtful baby gifts.  One of the things I really appreciated is the diaper cake they made.
My wife has heard of the diaper cake but never thought that someone would make it for us.

I really appreciate every little thing we receive because it is the thought that counts.

Wii Mario All-Star 25 Year Anniversary Edition

This game is for people around 25 to 40 who are parents born in the first generation of the video game era. 
I find the original Mario games nostalgic, and I love the character designed, so I decided that I had to get this game.

It turns out that he did not like the older versions.  I guess the new one has better graphics, more tricks, multiplayer options, etc, which were not in the older versions.

Restaurant: Joey Restaurant

We had a chance to go to a restaurant called, "Joey Restaurant".  It is a chain restaurant similar to Earls or Cactus Club, and we have never been there before.  It is before my second baby's 1 month celebration, so we decided to order some dishes that we don't usually order.

First, we actually ordered two cocktails:  Bellini and Mojito.  I loved the Bellini.

Then, we order 3 mini burgers with fries.  For some reason, the food seemed lukewarm.

Then, we ordered a 9 ounce sirloin steak.  It was delicious, but again, the plate wasn't warm and the steak, too.  I kind of miss the Asian style of fresh steak on the steak plate.  Those are really "freshly made".

Next, we ordered Kobe Beef Meatball Spaghetti.  The food was great, but the meatballs were hard.

After waiting for more than 25 minutes, the dessert, chocolate cake with warm chocolate filling had arrived.
It has cranberry sauce on the side and ice cream.  This one was delicious.
The service was very friendly in this place but the food need to be warmer.