Zawa (The Drive, Vancouver, BC)

Patios what good summers are stitched with!

Prior to this week of rainy weather, me and M headed out to The Drive on a sun-shiney weekday evening to take in some cocktails and grub. The intense heat of the office and the lack of motivation to cook brought us out to the patios of Commercial Drive...

While the popular spots like Havana, Memphis Blues, Fets, and The Reef were quite full, we went to the end of the Drive for some sunshine and serenity (as well as available free parking! :)



We decided on Zawa since it was close to where we were parked and the menu looked goof-proof: pizzas, burgers, sandwiches and pasta.

To start off, we ordered a bellini and fuzzy navel. The drinks were quite affordable, although we ordered bellinis the rest of the night - the fuzzy naval was extremely plain!



There were two waitresses on staff that night, plus the owner. The patio was quite busy, and the turn around was quick, considering people were lounging, chatting in groups, and enjoying the sun.

We did, however seem to get the one waitress that was completely disinterested in her job. She was unhelpful with suggestions and slightly aloof. One could say that she didn't like her job, or that she lacked the personality for the job. Or, it just wasn't her day.

It took a while to flag her down to take our orders, and it was probably about five to ten minutes after I placed my order that I noticed that she didn't ask me what type of bun I wanted my sandwich on, nor did she ask me what type of side I wanted.



I ordered the Santa Fe Chicken Sandwich and I wound up with a chicken sandwich on a wheat Kaiser roll (I wanted ciabatta) with caesar salad (I had wanted fries - possibly yam fries, if they had them). The chicken sandwich was a touch dry, but it had the right toppings - cheddar, bacon and guacamole. The caesar salad was good - you could taste the salty parmesan and anchovy, but the Kaiser roll was not the right fit for the sandwich. When we got our food I was just starving so I just ate.



M ordered the seafood fettucine, which came with shrimp, prawns, and clams in a cream sauce. I could detect some MSG in the sauce but overall, it was quite good for the price - there was a lot of seafood in his dish!

With reasonable value and options like "build your own burger / sandwich", I'm sure I'd eat at Zawa again. However, the service was quite lacking. Hopefully next time I can luck out and get the right waitress!

Zawa

920 Commercial Drive [map]

Vancouver, BC

Phone: 604-255-0470

Review: Charlie Don't Surf (White Rock, BC)

The sun has been glorious as of late.

We've been having cocktails on the patio, the plants have been happy, and last weekend, we did some driving and relaxed out in White Rock.

It was a good outing - we did some antiquing along the way, found some bargain bin deals (printer cable for under $2!) and strolled along the pier and boardwalk.

The first stop we wanted to make was The Boathouse, but since they were pretty lukewarm about wanting our money, we took off down the street to Charlie Don't Surf for some grub.

We were promptly seated on the patio after the hostess served another patron (she greeted us and asked us kindly to wait 30 seconds on the red couch / kings throne while she did so).

We started with a pair of cocktails - M ordered his standard caesar (it came with two pickled green beans), while I ordered the Charlie Martini. The caesar was tasty, but small. The Charlie Martini was nothing too special, but it was a nice clean drink to go with the deep-fried seafood that we were about to order!



A sidenote - my martini was served unstrained. I'm no martini expert, but something tells me that the strainer on the martini shaker is supposed to remove thise ice. I didn't mind it as it was a full-strengthed Grey Goose concoction...but I'm just saying...

We ordered calamari to share. Initially, we were thinking of *only* ordering fish and chips, but added on the calamari as we were sitting near a sign that boasted calamari as a "must order" dish at Charlie Don't Surf.



As we later noted, the calamari was at the bottom of the list - it was crispy and not too greasy, and there was a good tzatziki with it, but there was simply too much batter. The batter fell off every time you tried to spear a piece of calamari, and also fell off inside the small container of tzatziki provided. I wouldn't say it was disappointing as it was a good size, but I'd change up the batter a bit so that it didn't crumble everywhere.

Finally, our fish and chips came - the kitchen had the foresight to separate them onto two different plates since we were sharing, which was nice. M whispered that because they separated them, we had twice the tartar sauce! lol - he makes me laugh.



The chips were nothing too special. The fish was nicely done though - flakey, tender, crisp and not greasey. Service was great as well - our server was available when we needed her, and came by to check on us a couple times.

I was telling M how "Charlie" reminds me of: a) my brother, or b) Charlie Sheen, in his current role as "Uncle Charlie" on the sitcom "Two and a Half Men". With that in mind, this was nice patio / pub grub with an emphasis on alcohol and sun!

I'd come back to Charlie Don't Surf for more of their food, especially with good company and to enjoy some sun.

Note: the brother is *not* an alcoholic womanizing bachelor like Uncle Charlie, but he *does* appreciate a good fish & chips!

Charlie Don't Surf

15782 Marine Drive [map]

White Rock BC

Phone: (604) 538-1988