ORTO ARTISAN PASTA

Orto Artisan Pasta is a cute little Italian restaurant in North Vancouver offering pasta made from scratch. The restaurant is on the smaller side and reservations are only accepted for parties greater than six. However the parking lot is transformed into a patio for outdoor seating and you can sit in the garden. The garden where vegetables are grown for their kitchen!

Before arriving on a Sunday evening, I was advised through the phone that there will be no wait as long as we sit at the patio. Guaranteed. We ended up waiting 30 minutes though and it was disappointing to see that the same table which was available when we first arrived at the restaurant was the same table we were seated at. I get hangry way too easily...

Waraku Sushi

The last time I had sushi in North Vancouver was at Sushi Bella, an experience that makes me steer clear of the franchise. Also on that day, I considered going to Waraku Sushi but because the exterior looked meh… I passed on the restaurant. However, I decided to give the restaurant a try after finding their Facebook page. There is not much information online but the photos on their Facebook page did not look bad. What lured me in is that the restaurant used to offer mirugai and there are a few unique dishes, so I thought perhaps the restaurant could be a little gem on the Lonsdale strip.

Walking in, the staff was welcoming and we were seated in a tatami room (minus the tatami…). The interior has a rustic look and majority of the material is unfinished wood; from the booths, dividers, pillars and the rooms to the tables. As for the seating arrangements, there are booth seats along the wall, the usual seats by the sushi bar, a few rooms at the middle of the restaurant and smaller tables on the opposite side. All the booth seats were taken when we arrived and I appreciate the waitress for seating us in a room rather than at the small tables. The restaurant is also fairly clean but the rooms could have been wiped down better.

Zestea

Zestea is a bubble tea restaurant and the newest addition to join the Lonsdale strip in North Vancouver. The restaurant offers both Belgium and Hong Kong style bubble waffles, bubble tea, fresh fruit juice, milk and yogurt smoothies as well as slushes. Walking in, the waitress asked if we were looking for something to go or for here. For those grabbing take out, there is a menu posted at the counter.

The restaurant is newly renovated, clean, looks bright and has a welcoming atmosphere. There are comfortable seating arrangements and although another table could have been squeezed in (which would be too tight), I am glad the restaurant chose not to. Also, there are a few seats outside as well. As for the service, the people here are friendly. Every one of them.

Sushi Bella 美 : North Vancouver location

You know what? I am going to park and we will walk to the closest restaurant which is Waraku Sushi because we really do not have time to look for a place that looks good right now. Walking up to Waraku Sushi, the restaurant seemed to be closed and was, despite an unlocked door and the open sign lit. After standing there thinking we are in a rush and I rather have a burger and be gone, we walked up to the next restaurant which is Sushi Bella. This is also when a man who was walking his dog overheard us and mentioned the restaurant is great, as well as that he was picking up some take out.

According to my blog, I have posted forty Japanese restaurants in ten months and only two out of the bunch has served not so fresh sashimi. To be fair, one was an AYCE and the other, a slow food stall at Aberdeen Centre which may be expected for not serving the freshest sashimi. However, the third in this case is apparently (according to some reviews on Urbanspoon) quite a busy Japanese restaurant on the Lonsdale strip! Anyhow, trying out Sushi Bella based on convenience rather than looking at photos unlike my last two great Japanese finds (Kaya Japanese and Tokyo Hon), we walked in for lunch.

Walking in, the restaurant did not look very busy and had Korean rap music playing in the background. As for the seating arrangements, there are seats at the sushi bar, a few tables for two and up a couple of steps at the back of the restaurant, tables for four or more. In addition, outdoor seating is available as I overheard a couple's request to be seated outside.