Heavenly Paradise@AdelineAng.com

It was the grand opening of Fredericton’s authentic Vietnamese restaurant on Dec. 30th 2011. Vietnamese food is rarely found in this city. This is the second restaurant that claimed to offer authentic Vietnamese food, after the existence of Asia Beef Noodles in downtown (Queen St) since a few years ago.

Located at the corner of Prospect and Symthe (at the Fredericton Dental Centre), Saigon Noodle House surely has its advantage to attract clientele from nearby businesses and passers-by. The restaurant opens 7 days a week for lunch & supper, offering a wide variety of Vietnamese and Thai cuisine at an affordable price. It’s a franchise restaurant; there’s one in Saint John and another one in Moncton.

“Please wait to be seated.”

The restaurant’s dine-in menu. Take-out menu is available too.

Rice paper roll with tofu, with sweet fish sauce as dipping sauce. $5.99.

Rare beef pho (noodle soup). One of the best clear broths I’ve had! $9.99.

Lemongrass shrimp with rice, served with crispy spring roll, side salad, fragrance rice (molded in star shape), and soup. $14.99.

There was a promotional discount of 15% for their grand opening, with complimentary jasmine tea and mint ice-cream for dessert. Overall, it was a great experience. It’s highly recommended to anyone who enjoys or would like to try out some delicious Vietnamese food in town.

Anything that I’d really want to pick on? More bean sprouts in the noodle soup will be great. I also noticed that mint leaves were left out. I’d actually prefer a separate plate of bean sprouts, cilantro, and mint leaves to go with noodle soup. That way, I can add the desired amount of veg into the soup. This seems to be the way that most Vietnamese restaurants will present their pho dishes. Preference of serving size will be greatly appreciated too, e.g. small, medium, large. I won’t complain about the generous serving size of pho, but given a choice, I’d have opted for a smaller portion to avoid wastage.

The only complain that Miles had for his dish was that  it could be spicier!

Address: 1012 Prospect St, Fredericton

Reservation no: 506-206-3494

How many of us here experienced food cravings? Hunger? Dieting? Reality shows that food can bring us fulfillment, but also regrets. Too much or too little, is not doing us any good. I’m not sure about anyone else, but I suffer from food withdrawal every time, after a major trip back to Canada. From my observations, this could due to over exhaustion, jet-lag, and most of all, I went all out savouring my favourite food items during trips. Food then, back in Canada, seems so blend and not very appetizing. Even though I might loose some weight from staying active while traveling, my eating habit (a.k.a. food withdrawal) contributes much of my lighter weight after trips. It might sound weird, but it happens….

After the first few weeks of food withdrawal, my body finally clued in that it needed food regardless. Gradually, food can be enjoyable once again.

The horseshoe-shaped German pastry topped with buttercream and chocolate, from the Farmers market. Flaky pastry and delicious icing. It’s not too sweet.

Spicy food, spicy food, where are you? Miles and I visited the “New York Fries” at the mall one day and decided to get a poutine, featuring “The Works.” French fries were topped with beef chili, cheese sauce, sour cream, green onions, and bacon bits.

To add on a spicy kick to it, some hot peppers were added on the poutine. Forget about the unhealthy part, it was an appealing delicious snack!

It only seems appropriate to talk about Tim Hortons this time of the year, when “Roll Up The Rim” contest is back, for the 25th year! It’s usually around this time of season when snow is melting, rain is pouring, and occasional speckled fresh snow on the ground and trees. It’s a mix feeling for me, the joy that winter is ending and spring is approaching, as well as a lost feeling due to the scenery change; 8-ft high snow bank is gone and the green is resurfacing. On top of that, there’s also a sense of urgency, hinting “time is ticking, and the next season is fast approaching!”

It’s almost an excitement to visit Tim Hortons nowadays, hoping to get a “winner” cup ;) From Canadian-owned to American-owned, Tim Hortons is now a stand alone public company trading on the Toronto and New York Stock Exchange. The corporate head office resides in Oakville, Ontario, Canada.

Let’s take a peek at some of the new products at Tim Hortons:

Raspberry Lemon doughnut, sprinkled with red & yellow candy bits and topped with raspberry jam in the middle.

The Caramel Chocolate muffin; baked with chocolate chips and filled with……

Caramel! Of course….

Caramel Crunch Doughnut; sprinkled with crunchy caramel pieces on a chocolate layer, and filled with creamy caramel.

Keep rolling, keep winning. Not for me though, for some odd reason, I’ve yet to receive a winning cup! Oh well…

It was Halloween on Sunday. People with their Halloween costumes were seen walking around town on the weekend. I prepared some Halloween treats for the special occassion ;)

I liked the one on the front left. He was quite a character ;)

The Happy Baker is looking busy, with a basketful of breads, cupcakes, and other delightful goodies!

The cakes on display, look delicious.

Cream-filled croissant, drizzled with chocolate sauce and dusted with icing sugar.

A closer look at the croissant.

Blueberry Cream Cheese Tart.

Smiley face cookie, with raspberry jelly sandwiched in between.

The Raspberry Surprise Tart.

Hot cross bun and lemon tarts.

Aromatic coffee beans on sale too. A complimentary “Happy Baker” bag on a minimum purchase of $20.

When it comes to food catering, cakes for parties and weddings etc., The Happy Baker is certainly one of the best in town. Although it can be a bit pricey, the pastries are super delicious and certainly a nice treat to the taste buds! Try it, and you’ll love it!

Tim Hortons, the all-time favourite “kopitiam (coffee shop)” in Canada. I don’t visit Tim Hortons very often, but I make an effort to take some pictures when I’m there. Here are some of the pictures from Tim Hortons for the past six months or so.

The fall treats from Tim Hortons. Pumpkin spiced muffin and doughnut. There was even pumpkin spiced tea offered, around the Halloween season.

Cinnamon raisin, blueberry, whole grain, plain…. lots of options available for just a bagel. Can’t make up your mind? Try this “everything bagel.” Toasted “Everything bagel” with cream cheese (choice of plain, strawberry, or garlic & herb).

Hot breakfast sandwich, with a seasoned egg patty, a slice of processed cheese, and choice of sausage or bacon, on freshly baked tea biscuits.

Yummy breakfast sandwich!

Hot breakfast sandwich for the bagel lovers!

Candy Cane Doughnut; chocolate doughnut with chocolate glaze, and candy cane sprinkles. Needless to say, it was for the Christmas season!

Pastry filled with cream cheese and topped with raspberry jam.

Caramel Apple Fritter, made of chunks of apple and spiced of cinnamon.

Canadian doughnut, in conjunction with the Winter Olympics Games 2010 held in Vancouver, British Columbia on Feb. 12th to 28th.

It was just a business project created for his MBA entrepreneurship class, but 6 years ago, Naz made his business plan a reality by opening up the Caribbean Flavas Restaurant. An award-winning restaurant nestled in the heart of downtown Fredericton, this casual fine dining restaurant offers cuisine that is influenced by different cultures; African, Asian, European, as well as Indian.

The tropical decor reminded me a lot about tropical countries such as Malaysia. Miles and I went to this restaurant during lunch hour and enjoyed their lunch entree. It was a pleasant experience. We had the choice of mild or spicy for our food. Needless to say, we opted for spicy! Miles who used to take Canadian spicy has improved on his tolerance for spicy food dramatically by getting used to savouring the authentic hot & spicy Asian food ;)

Miles ordered this “Trini-Curry-Wrap up Roti (Indian flat bread).” A choice of chicken or tofu in cashew curry sauce with chickpeas and vegetables, wrapped in roti and served with garden salad tossed with in-house mango vinaigrette.

I had the “Twist of Jamaica.” Crusty Pastry filled with seasoned ground beef and Tandoori onion rings, drizzled in sweet chili sauce.

Craving for some Chinese food? How about savouring some authentic Chinese food? Mei’s Restaurant is one of the places to visit! Located in the heart of downtown Fredericton, the restaurant has received lots of good reviews after it has been changed under the new management. *Thumbs up*

Out of all the dishes we ordered, dessert was the only one exempted from the hot & spicy category. A warm, hot, and spicy lunch on a cold, windy winter day :)

 Fish in soup with numbing spice. The more you eat, the tastier it is! And of course, the more intense burning sensation is on tongue!

 Thick and yummy beef soup with eggs.

 Fatty pork with mixed veggie. Does this remind you of bacon?

 Ma Po Tofu. Tofu and pork cooked with hot spices.

Crispy Milk for dessert. The crispy texture resembles the Chinese doughnut, filled with soft and sweet glutinous rice. It tasted great on its own, even without dipping in condensed milk served on the side.

What’s your favourite chocolate? Smarties? M&M’s? Kit Kat? Lindor truffles? My favourite chocolate is Ferrero Rocher, the milk chocolates and dark chocolates are delicious! By the way, any Toblerone fan out there?

Toblerone chocolates come in white, milk, or dark chocolates. Take your pick!

Too small of a piece? How about turning this chocolate bar 45 times larger?

A Toblerone chocolate bar that weighs 4.5 kg! It’s 45 times heavier than the regular 100g chocolate bar. It’s humongous!

Good news to the Toblerone chocolate fans out there. Your chocolate supply for the year! :P

How did you celebrate Christmas? To me, Christmas a great time for traveling and and having a get-together with friends. Other than that, there is not much to look forward to, since I’ve no family here in Canada. To cheer up my Christmas spirit, I might give myself a gift or two for Christmas. I know, it sounds pretty pathetic…

Last year, however, I celebrated Christmas with Miles and his family. A truly Canadian Christmas celebration; Christmas tree, treats, gifts, food etc.

I couldn’t remember the last time I was excited about Christmas and anticipated for the Christmas morning to come. Even though I never truly believed in Santa as a young kid, I was always looking forward to receiving my stuffed Christmas stocking on Christmas morning.

It brought back my childhood memory when I received a stuffed Christmas stocking in the morning! I’ve never had that many Christmas gifts in the past. Unwrapping each gift brought great excitement. That was one of the greatest fun celebrating Christmas!

Christmas decoration on the dining table.

Turkey and ham, with homemade beets and pickles for on Christmas day.

Homemade minced meat pie.

Plum Pudding. A must-have Christmas dessert in Miles’ family. It has a similar taste to fruit cake.

Hard Sauce, goes with the plum pudding. It is made of butter and icing sugar, and tasted like cake batter.

Christmas tree with gifts from Santa!

Cracking the nuts can be fun; walnuts, Brazil nuts, hazelnuts, and almonds.

There was a group of us who attended a friend’s farewell party at the East Side Mario’s Restaurant. John, who was part of the “gang,” has decided to move to Toronto for a more stable job. John, we shall miss you always :)

Despite the sadness of John leaving us, we had a great meal together. Of course, I had fun snapping pictures too ;)

The interior of the East Side Mario’s.

The signature crispy garlic bread. Freshly baked. Yummm…

Caesar Salad.

Bruschetta. Fresh Roma tomatoes, garlic, basil, olive oil and balsamic glaze served on herbed flatbread.

 Cheese Cappelletti for cheese lovers! Pasta stuffed with ricotta cheese filling, topped with even more ricotta, baked with our Besciamella-Tomato sauce and our blend of Mozzarella, Provolone, Gouda and Parmesan cheeses.

Firecracker Shrimp Farfalle. Large black tiger shrimps sautéed in extra virgin olive oil with fresh green chilies, snow peas, Roma tomatoes and basil. Served with bowtie-shaped paste tossed with herbed garlic olive oil.

Zesty Sicilian Pizza. Italian sausages, Capicolla ham, black olives, pizza sauce, and four cheeses.

 Sizzling Calamary Al Diavolo. It’s the signature appetizer. Lightly seasoned calamari sautéed with garlic, onions, red, green and hot cherry peppers and served sizzling in a herbed tomato broth with lemon.

 The New Yorker pizza. Pepperoni, red and green peppers, mushrooms, pizza sauce and blend of cheeses.

Cannoli.

Cannoli (meaning “little tube” in the Sicilian language), one the most famous Sicilian desserts that can be found in almost all Italian pasticceria. The Cannoli shell is made of flour, sugar, salt, eggs, water, vinegar, and vanilla. It’s traditionally filled with rich and sweet ricotta cheese.

Chocolate Mousse cake.

Halloween is celebrated on October 31st each year. It’s a secular celebration that involves trick-or-treating for young kids, costume parties, pumpkin carving, ghost tours, watching horror movies etc.

My halloween experience from last year can be found here. This is my first year giving out treats to the young children at the door. Most kids came between 6 and 8 p.m., with their halloween outfit.

Halloween treats.

Trick-or-treating:

This cute “monkey” was my favourite!

Pumpkins were hard to find this year, especially the good ones, due to the wet weather. Nonetheless, we managed to find some small pumpkins for carving.

The black cat.

The haunted house.

The owl.

This big pumpkin was carved a week before Halloween, but it lasted only for a few days before the pumpkin was rotten so badly that we had to throw it out.

The Diplomat Restaurant in Fredericton opens 24/7 all year round, except for Christmas Day. The wide selection of Canadian and Chinese cuisines cater to various taste buds. A previous post about Diplomat can be found here.

The restaurant is extremely busy during lunch and supper hours. Be sure to make a reservation before hand. Otherwise, be prepared to wait in line for 30 to 45 minutes, if not more. The Diplomat Restaurant is one of my favourite restaurants in the city of Fredericton. Here, breakfast is served all day long! Besides that, lunch and supper buffet is offered during weekdays; brunch and supper buffet on the weekends.

Looking for a nice restaurant in Fredericton? You can never go wrong with the Diplomat Restaurant.

The Diplomat Restaurant.

Diplomat’s Special Fried Rice, my all-time favourite. It contained chicken, scallops, shrimps, and crab meat.

Fried rice garnished with green onions, was served with the chicken curry dish.

The medium hot curried chicken with onions, broccoli, green and red peppers, snow peas, and Chinese cabbage.

The yummy hot sauce compliments the dishes perfectly. It’s a must-have!

Address:
253 Woodstock Rd, Fredericton NB E3B2H8

Tel: 506-454-2400

The Issac’s Way Restaurant in Fredericton offers a cozy dining ambiance. It features a bar section that serves a variety of alcoholic beverages.

There are lots to choose from the food menu. Miles and I had a hard time making up our mind for what we’re going to have.

Finally, I made my decision and settled for the Smoked Salmon Salad. The “hot” smoked salmon was served on a  bed of greens with sliced cucumbers and onions, dried cranberries, mandarin oranges, toasted walnuts, with their very own citrus vinaigrette. This went along with a freshly baked bread stick on the side. The meal turned out great and it was very filling.

The Smoked Salmon Salad.

Miles ordered the Big Isaac Burger. It was piled high with onion rings, grilled mushrooms, mozzarella, lettuce, tomato, and pesto mayo on a Kaiser bun. 

The Big Isaac beef burger is piled high with onion rings, grilled mushrooms, mozzarella, lettuce, tomato, and pesto mayo on a Kaiser bun. It was served with a generous serving of home fries and pickle. It was a challenge to take a bite off the burger. Miles really had to open his mouth big and wide. No kidding!

The BIG Isaac Burger.

Dessert time… Miles had a Triple Chocolate Cake and I had a Brownie Cheesecake. Yumm…

The Triple Chocolate Cake with delicious chocolate icing.

The Brownie Cheesecake drizzled with chocolate sauce.

Address:
73 Carleton Street
Fredericton,
New Brunswick E3B 3T2

Tel: (506) 472-7937

The blueberry season is here! Brand new blueberry treats on Tim Hortons‘ menu, namely Whole Grain Blueberry Muffin, Blueberry Bloom Donut, and Blueberry Glazed Donut.

Fresh blueberries taste good, and blueberries in baked goods give a unique flavour to them. They are yummy! I was excited to try out the new blueberry treats at the Tim Hortons. They are offered for limited time only.

These blueberry treats tasted great! Looking forward to trying them again, for a treat someday…

Blueberry treats with Iced Coffee on a hot summer day.

The Blueberry Bloom Donut, with blueberry jam at the centre and candy sprinkles around it.

The Blueberry Bloom Donut is made of Timbits (bite-size donut). What a neat idea!

The Blueberry Glazed Donut, with lots of berries in it.

The Whole Grain Blueberry Muffin filled with blueberry goodness.