Black Rice Sushi and Ramen Noodles

I am on my way to Sydney to visit CK, and I am so excited. I haven't seen him in about 6 months, and the phone relationship just hasn't been cutting it lately. He is usually in school when I visit, but this time he is off, and we have booked a trip to New Zealand...woo hoo! I am in Sydney for 2 days (just enough time to get rid of my jet lag) and then we are off. We are doing a 10 day road trip around the South Island, and I am just crossing my fingers that I'll be ok driving on the other side of the road (first time ever). I get bad motion sickness when reading or doing anything in a car, so I will be doing all of the driving on this trip while CK will be the trusty navigator.

I had a layover in Vancouver en route to Sydney, and naturally, I could not resist the opportunity to pop into the city for some good food. I called my friend K and we hit the busy streets of Davie and Denman for a whirlwind Japanese dinner.

Our first stop was Akira Sushi. This place is well known for its black rice sushi. Not only is this place cheap, but the food is great too. We ordered a spicy tuna roll and a spicy salmon roll with black rice. Black rice, aka Forbidden Rice, is less starchy and more nutritious than traditional white rice. It is high in fiber and rich in iron. We quickly downed it, and set off for our next destination.

Our next stop was up 4 blocks at Kintaro Ramen for, of course, fresh hand-made ramen noodles. There is always a long line up at this place, and it is reminiscent of a typical ramen joint in Japan – open kitchen, small space, energetic staff, and tight seating.

I ordered the Miso Ramen and K ordered the Shoyu ramen. I would have to say that the ramen was ok…I have had better. However, I heard their cheese ramen is worth trying.

I was insanely full at this point, but there was still some time to kill. I needed something to calm my stomach, so I decided I needed some tea. I started reminiscing about this flower blooming tea I had in San Francisco, and I asked K if he knew where we could find some. Luckily, he had seen it for the first time a few weeks back, and said it was close by.

Our last stop was at Shanghai 1949 for Chinese flower tea. Unfortunately, the tea had absolutely no taste, but the $2.50 was well spent for the entertainment value. When the tea first comes out, it is in the shape of a closed ball. After steeping in hot water for about 60 seconds, the ball blooms into a beautiful flower.

This all accomplished in 2 hours…in time for me to get back to the airport to catch my next flight. Not bad.