This is the End... of August.

Hi everyone - I know I have been neglecting my blog. For that I apologize.  I've been super super SUPER busy with work and life.

First off, I'd like to point out that there are some pretty serious gaps in the Manitoba health system.  I have now lived in three different provinces, and Manitoba is #2 in my books for health care (Quebec being the worst, BC being the "best").  I was in some serious pain on Friday, but I didn't want to waste time at emerg, so I tried to find a walk in clinic.  I worked at 1 so I figured I would go up Pembina and find one (I usually go a clinic on Broadway that takes pretty much everyone).  I saw quite a few on Google Maps and figured it wouldn't be hard.

YEAH, 'BOUT THAT...

So... I guess walk in clinics by and large are closed on Fridays here? And closed for lunch? I went to four different clinics - 3 weren't open and one refused me saying that they're at capacity for the day (a la Montreal apparently).  Finally I find a clinic that isn't a walk-in, but I just plead for help. Any help. I was in so much pain and completely exasperated.  The lady just shook her head and told me where the hospital was. So that's where I went.  At this point I was in tears, but I was told it would be a 6 hour wait at Victoria.  I needed to go to work, I haven't been at my job long enough to accrue any significant sick time.

You know what I ended up doing? Sucking up my pain, going to Walmart and getting any OTC remedies I could think of that would (at the very least) reduce my symptoms so I could walk.  $60 later, I was at least "normal" enough to sell stuff, but I was certainly not well.  Although my infection cleared itself up by itself (or at this point I hope), I'm still really angry and bitter about the experience.  Why are walk in clinics predominantly not open on Fridays? Why are they closed for lunch?  Why did the lady at the clinic just tell me to walk to the hospital when I was clearly doubled over in pain?  It's not only a good case in what is wrong with the Manitoba health system but also with humanity as a whole.

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For the last couple of weeks, I only have one review for you! At first I was impressed with myself because this means that my boyfriend and I are eating out less... but that's not really the case.  We just continue to go to spots we like or sometimes chain restaurants or fast food.  Similarly when I dine alone, I go to my favourite places in the village and on Corydon that I have already reviewed.  So no, god forbid I save any money. Ever (and I need new face cleanser, waaaah!).

Tokyo Sushi

Tokyo Sushi is located on Portage in the western part of St. James heading towards Unicity (yes, this is how I describe directions in Winnipeg... more on that...).  We decided on sushi since we had both been craving it for a while and I wanted to try somewhere new in a different area (the only sushi places I've been to in the city are in the village and Corydon areas).  By the time we got to the restaurant, we were both extremely hungry and were ready to gorge on deliciousness.   We were promptly seated in the middle of the restaurant.

The decor of the restaurant is lovely and more what I'm accustomed to being from BC.  When you walk in there is a large wooden arch that is reminiscent of O-Zeki restaurant in Kelowna. You can also see the sushi chef preparing rolls to the right of the restaurant; this is always a good sign.

Our order was taken promptly and as per my usual, my eyes were much bigger than my stomach.  I ordered a sunomono salad, chicken teriyaki roll, alaska roll and some nigiri (salmon, tamago, inari, crab).  So yeah, a lot of food.  Our meal started coming out in various odd parts.  My boyfriend received most of his meal in one go where as I had to wait for each piece to come out.  The largest of these was my sushi which had on the plate tamago, salmon, and crab nigiri, teriyaki chicken roll and the alaska roll.  So where was my inari? How about that sunomono salad that's an appetizer? Hm?

I figured it would arrive later.  By the time we were done our meals, we were both stuffed and  figured it was a blessing in disguise that the rest of the meal didn't come.  Just as we were getting up to go pay, my inari comes out (I should also mention I am the world's slowest eater, so maybe a half hour after we initially got our food).  I didn't really know what to say, but I asked for it to be wrapped up since we were leaving.  We made sure the sunomono that we never received was taken off of our bill, and it was.  However, we didn't receive anything aside from a half-hearted apology at the till regarding it.

The sushi was okay, the seaweed was a little chewy for my liking.  It was maybe a tinge better than average, but nothing to cry home about. The terrible service, however, sticks in my brain pretty hard.  It's the old adage in customer service: If a customer receives good service, they'll tell 5 friends.  If they receive bad service, they'll tell everyone.

6.5/10

Taco Taco Burrito Burrito

I'm always looking for the next great taco. There. I said it. I really like tex-mex taco/burrito concepts and Winnipeg just happens to have a slew of restaurants in the "Taco Del Mar" theme, but done much, much better.  I've already reviewed one (Burrito Del Rio) but now I have two more to add to the list.

Modern Taco Company

Situated on Academy road, really close to Kenaston, Modern Taco Company is in a pretty convenient location for me and there is lots of parking in the back.  Ever since I've been driving in Winnipeg, this seems to be a deal breaker for me. Looking at reviews on UrbanSpoon, I can't help but feel the need to defend this place because it actually is quite good and we didn't even have the Groupon.  It has been on my list of places to try for a while now, so we (the BF and I) went for a late lunch to this little spot.

First off, the place was quite crowded. It's a small restaurant, so on a busy night I could imagine it being crazy.  You order tacos "Unburger" style (ie. you pay ahead and then get served).  Since we were just trying it out, we got four different tacos:  Beef, Pork, Chicken, and Shrimp.  We also shared some chips and dip. Being a foodie couple, we probably looked absolutely ridiculous splitting these little tiny tacos (I'd have half, he'd have half) but we wanted to make sure that we both got a chance to try everything.  For $10, you get four little tacos which are four little bites of delectable goodness.  This is when I realized why Winnipeg doesn't like this place- it's not Burrito del Rio.  You're not going to be stuffed to your face for $10.  That being said, if I was hungry the four tacos would fill be up easily. $10 is not that expensive.

The stand out taco for me was the tequila shrimp taco.  The sauce was delicious and the marinade on the shrimp made it an interesting bite that I'm curious to try again.  Next up was the chipotle pork - delicious texmex style taco.  The only true disappointment for us was the beef taco (we got the beef and queso).  We found that it didn't have enough sauce (we actually considered for a moment that they forgot it) and that the beef was quite dry.  The chips and dip were phenomenal - the salsa was very fresh and the guacamole served with it actually had a really nice kick to it.  We also sampled some of the hot sauces on the shelves and they were all pretty interesting (except the green one - there was something a bit too weird about that one for me).

All in all, I'd come back to try more items on the menu.  If they do another Groupon blast, I'll be sure to pick one up.

7.5/10

Burrito Splendido

I ended up at Burrito Spelndido on the advice of multiple people who told me that if I like Burrito Del Rio, I really need to try Burrito Splendido.  "But it's in Unicity!," I'd complain.  However, now that I have a reason to actually head out that way, Burrito Splendido was on my list of taco restaurants to try.  You can tell it's brand new and very clean.  The first thing I noticed was that they were making the tortillas fresh! Wowza!

Similar in set up to Burrito Del Rio and Taco Del Mar, you pick your toppings as you go and they fold it up into a burrito the size of a small child.  The concept is quite familiar.  The end result, however, is not.  You really can taste the fresh tortilla. I had guacamole on mine which was some of the best guac I've had in the city.  I had the shredded pork and it was to die for.  I guess what I'm saying is that it was one of the best burritos I have ever had. Period.  In fact, I'm thinking about driving out to Unicity today to go back and get one.  Om nom nom nom nom.

Like Burrito del rio, they offer a wide variety of beverages including beers and Jarritos (and I love lime soda made with cane sugar, it's one of my faves).

Next time I'm there I'm going to make sure I get chips and dip. That guacamole... yum yum.

9/10

On a completely unrelated note, I need to go out and buy a filing cabinet today. Or a new vacuum. I haven't decided. I went on a mini shopping spree yesterday at the new Zumiez store and picked up a new Obey hoodie, some socks and a new Obey T.  Other than my Bench stuff, it is my love love love. Needless to say I'm going to be broke for the next while, so expect fewer reviews. Maybe.  I do love me some food...

My Weekend at the Lake(ish) and Fringe Festival

Hi friends!

I'm really terrible at this "posting regularly" thing, so sometimes I need a swift kick in the butt to get me to write about stuff.  Anywho, this post is about two weekends ago now (see, really bad at posting regularly) when I actually took a weekend off (say whaaaaaaat?!) to go do things with my friends and be happy.  And stuff.

Anyways, we decided to check out the carnival/festival that was happening in Winnipeg Beach and then head up to Gimli because I hadn't been there since I was a kid.  I wish I had taken more pictures of the Winnipeg Beach carnival! It was incredible to see that the main waterfront street had all been blocked off and rides and concessions were all set up along it.  On some of the side streets were independent vendors from the area selling everything from art and jewellery to henna (I have to ask, does Winnipeg really like their henna? There were like fifty henna kiosks.)  I was happy to have gone with someone who enjoys carnivals and rides as much as I do - I've always loved the atmosphere of these things.  In Kelowna, I used to go to Westside Daze or the Rutland carnival every year.  We went on pretty much every ride aside from the really small kid rides (however, I must admit we were the oldest people on the bumper cars) and the one ride that you sit upside down for far too long for my liking (I don't like going upside down at the best of times).  The carnival had some of my faves (the high swings, pirate ship, tilt-a-whirl) as well as some newer ones which I hadn't tried yet (like the spin-out, absolutely terrifying). This carnival does it right in Manitoba - you can check them out here.  I should probably mention that I am still the reigning Whack-A-Mole champion - in October, my pal Stevie and I went to La Ronde and it started to rain, I started to get angry and so we decided to take our anger out on Whack-a-Mole and I actually won a prize that wasn't the sad little consolation prize. I've got good hand-eye coordination apparently!

After spending the day at Winnipeg Beach, we decided to go up to Gimli for dinner.  We decided to just park in town and take a walk around to see what we felt like to eat. We ended up at Seagull's restaurant which is located in one of the major hotels.  The fish flies were pretty bad that day, so we were lucky enough to get a spot on the patio since the dining room was completely full. Seagull's has a large menu with enough variety to appease even the pickiest of eaters.  I was all about eating pickerel that day (I think it makes sense - fresh pickerel at the lake is one of the best things in the world).  I had the pickerel fish tacos and my partner had a pickerel sandwich.  The fish tacos had a chipotle-mayo sauce that I didn't care for, but didn't mind either.  The flavours in the taco were fairly benign, which, for a normal fish taco would not be okay.  However, given that this is pickerel, I was excited that I could actually taste the buttery deliciousness of the fish without a whole lot of conflicting flavours.  I just wish there was more fish.

Our service was slow and the waitress was constantly apologizing.  On more than one occasion she forgot about us even though we weren't sitting anywhere secluded. The ambiance was same-old hotel style restaurant. When we were leaving, I couldn't help but notice that there was a wedding going on right beside the restaurant in the banquet hall. I can't seem to find this restaurant on UrbanSpoon, so I'll just give it a solid 5/10 right now.

Half Moon Drive In

The next day, we decided to take a drive out to Lockport to go to the Half Moon Drive In - a Manitoba classic.  I even remember my mom mentioning this place and then gasping with horror when I said I'd never been (however, I do remember going to Skinner's as a kid).  This place is kind of one of those "musts" for drives out to the lake.  I don't really think there is a BC equivalent (at least in the Okanagan).

Given the importance placed on some of these places by long-time Winnipeggers (I'm sure Half-Moon belongs in the same mythos as Kelekis') I was happy to go, even if it was a disappointment or just plain bad (which I kinda always felt about Kelekis).  Anyways, we had burgers, split some fries and had a couple of sodas and the whole she-bang came out to a little over $20.  I actually thought the bacon cheeseburger was quite good - you could taste the beef and the bacon was smoky.  The bun was not too big nor too small.  The fries (which are allegedly renowned) were just "OK" for me.  I found them to be too greasy and fairly limp (I prefer my fries really crispy and on the thin side).

Overall it's a cool little spot in Lockport.  Definitely something to check out at least once.

6.5/10

     

Fringe Festival 

In my efforts to become a better Winnipegger, I've really been trying to get out to all sorts of different events just to get a feel for the city and the culture.  One such event that I went to this summer was Fringe Festival.  A lot of cities have them, but I had yet to go to one.  I spent a couple days in the beer garden watching the street performers (which I think is really cool) and it was a very entertaining way to spend an evening.  I didn't go to as many shows as I would have liked, but I was glad to have seen Grim and Fischer, a mime performance done with large expressive masks.  Last year they put on a show about a man who fell in love with the moon which was apparently brilliant.  Grim and Fischer was (I'm sure) equally brilliant and exquisitely performed and was an absolute wonder.  Wonderheads often play Fringe, so if you're in another city, make sure to see if they're on the roster and DO EEET. It will be worth your while! 

Smoke's Poutinerie 

Whilst sitting at the beer garden on one of the last days of Fringe, I decided to try out Smoke's Poutinerie which is right in the Market Square where all the performers were.  I feel it's strange that I haven't yet tried it given that I lived in Montreal for years and therefore I should know my poutine very well (to be honest, my favourite poutine is still a toss up between New York Fries and Sturgeon Hall in Kelowna).  I love the concept of Smoke's - poutine with all sorts of different toppings - but the execution could use a bit of work.  Unlike other reviewers on UrbanSpoon, I found my service to be really quick and I only waited maybe 3 minutes for my poutine.  I ordered the bacon poutine which was essentially the classic poutine with bacon on top.  In hindsight, I probably should have ordered the classic poutine or the poutine with pulled pork because I felt that the bacon didn't work.  It was too shredded, and too "packaged bacon-bits" for my liking.  I think a crispy bacon would compliment the smokiness of the gravy far better.

Despite the bacon, the gravy was delish.  It had a pepperyness to it that was quite memorable.  It's a cute little spot, but I can't see this being somewhere I frequent, especially when New York Fries is still just so damn good...

6.5/10