about: food. photos. blogging.

i will be surprised if anyone is still following this blog - considering the fact that my last two posts were in december and then in may. but, if you are... know that i have not forsaken writing about or taking photos of food. i have merely redirected my food-loving energy to other mediums.

the first: i thoroughly enjoy taking photos & writing short captions on my instagram (@joey_arm_strong).

the second: i spend a few hours each week dedicated to blogging for the dirty apron, my place of work, at dirtyapronblog.com
please do follow my writing there, as we share recipes, talk about food, and share about what's going on at the dirty apron delicatessen & cooking school.

callebaut chocolate

the dining room at the dirty apron

to die for banana bread

p.s. i got married just about 4 weeks ago! :)

may

happy may!

 please forgive my lack of posting in the last 4 months:

1. i got engaged! and am busy busy busy planning our wedding.
2. i am posting more on my photo blog: joeyarmstrong.ca/blog
3. started working full time at a local gourmet delicatessen.
4. i am posting food photos fairly often on my instagram (@joeyarmstrong). if you don't have instagram you can follow my feed on my facebook page: joey armstrong lifestyle photography. 

and i leave you with a few photos from my phone. a few great meals i've had, along with wonderful coffees.

chicken baked w/ butter, olives, prunes,
apple juice, thyme, leek, garlic. 
served with mashed potatoes & steamed green beans w/ coconut oil

summery salad: 

chickpeas, mint, olives, cucumbers, yellow peppers, lime juice, olive oil.

 

coffee with friends is important. 

even when life is busy. 

(@ nelson the seagull)

(@ matchstick coffee) 

 (@ jjbean)

(@ jjbean) 

 (@ bump n grind)

pasta with prawns & garlic sauted in butter, 

tossed w/ olives, parsley, cilantro

 salad: butter lettuce, mango, toasted pecans, 

hemp hearts, honey mustard dressing

orzo pasta tossed w/ pesto, olives, parsley, raisins

palki | indian cuisine on commercial drive

last week, the boyfriend & i ate at palki, an indian restaurant on commercial drive. i quite enjoyed this food experience. (which in this case involved me stuffing myself then proceeding to take the leftovers home & stuff myself again. i don't eat leftovers. unless its ethiopian or otherwise amazing)

palki is located where the restaurants rime and lime used to be. it doesn't stand out from the sidewalk, & i know i have walked past it a few times not knowing it was there. but inside, it is spacious, simple, & classy. it isn't overly elegant, but the decor also isn't tacky. the tables are all a dark wood, which i love, and the color scheme is simple with greys, blacks & bits of purple.

we sat at a window table & enjoyed the sun streaming in while we people watched. (people-watching on the drive is always quite fun.)

the boyfriend is great: waiting patiently for me to take photos, before he can eat. he also doubles as a hand model in his spare time.

full liquor bar at the back of the restaurant. water is served in beautiful jars made of panchaloha (mixture of 5 metals that keeps water cooler than room temperature, with no need for ice)

appetizer platter: veggie pakora, chicken pakora, veggie samosas. 3 dips: green chutney, tamarind sauce, & raita (yogurt & herbs). my favorite appetizer combination: veggie pakora dipped in the tamarind & the raita.

channa masala. it was good, but not the best i've ever had. i love that they serve the entrees on dishes with candles underneath to keep them warm. your food will not get too cold here.

butter chicken. so creamy. so tasty.

mixed grill platter from the tandoor oven. lamb shishkabobs, tandoori chicken, chicken tikka (murgmalai tikka), and prawn tikka. marinated in their housemade yogurt raita, the chicken & prawn tikka were tender & delicious. i didn't fancy the lamb shishkabobs much, but the chicken tikka is a definite must order, in my humble opinion.

this is the raita made from their own yogurt. yeah. pretty and delicious.

your indian food experience just isn't the same without naan. we had both the plain naan & the garlic naan. the garlic naan could be inhaled on its own it is so flavorful. but the plain naan is good for dipping in the curries or eating with the meat. or just dipping into the raita. (i really love the raita. can you tell?)

next time you are looking for excellent indian food for an average budget, definitely check out palki. if you are new to indian cuisine, this is a great place to start your journey. you won't look back.

palki restaurant
1130 commercial drive
604.215.1130
lunch buffet m-f 11:30-2:30
s & s lunch 11:30 - 2:30
dinner everyday 2:30 - 10:00

gingerbread men

first of my christmas baking this year.
not that i'm going to be baking tons...
but its fun to bake with my mom.
haven't had christmas with my whole family in 5 years so it'll be pretty fun!


p.s. if you are in vancouver and need some local, unique gifts, head over to the One Of A Kind show at the convention centre! its still on tomorrow from 10am til 9pm and sunday from 10am til 5pm. my sister has some paintings there, and i'll be there for quite a while tomorrow (saturday)!

elysian coffee - perfect cup of clover

elysian coffee.
broadway & ash.
(also a location at 5th & burrard.)
they frequently change their coffee selection
(always using freshly roasted beans)
but i believe (don't quote me on this) they use mostly (or a lot of) intelligentsia coffee.

while i normally drink americanos, at elysian i drink their coffee by the cup.
they use a clover & make it to perfection.
if you normally take sugar, you probably won't with this coffee, i promise you.
they also serve tasty goodies made fresh on site.
i'm always drawn to their chocolate cookie with the dusting of icing sugar on top.
i used to make those cookies in high school, so they taste nostalgic to me.
(can things taste nostalgic?)
there's a tap on the bar for water. sparkling or still. your choice.
sparkling water isn't my cup of tea, a bit too fancy for me.
but it might just be your cup of tea. (or water.)

elysian coffee

broadway location:
7-7 everday

5th ave location:
mon- thu 7-7:30
fri 7-10
sat 9-10
sun 11-5

why you should do the culture crawl this year

those of you readers who live in vancouver, i have for you 3 reasons to go to the vancouver east side culture crawl this year:
(specifically my sister andrea armstrong's studio)

1. this is what one of her walls looked like last year.
isn't it pretty?
this year's is even better - i've seen it in progress.

2. guess what is across the street from her studio?
yeah. jj bean.
(keep in mind it closes at 6pm friday, and 5pm saturday & sunday)

3. i made cookies last year for andrea's studio.
and guess what?! i made more this year too.
(and no, my dad didn't make them.)

(i kinda made a lot last year. but this year looks pretty similar.)

(this is what her studio looks like. from the outside.)

crawling hours:
friday november 18: 5pm-10pm
saturday november 19: 11am-6pm
sunday november 20: 11am-6pm

bump n grind: chocolate peanut butter cups + americanos

bump n grind
corner of commercial + venables, vancouver

i've always kind of hated the name of this place, so i never ever went in. but this past summer i tried it out... and honestly i've been missing out. their americanos are pretty great, but the best thing they have is their chocolate peanut butter cups. and what better then to pair chocolate with coffee? not much, i tell you.

so go. go now and eat a chocolate peanut butter cup. with an americano. thank your barista. then come back here and thank me (and my sister who introduced me to them).


bump n grind cafe
916 commercial drive
mon - fri 7-7
sat + sun 8-7
@bumpngrindcafe