88 Eats

Let's drink some bubble tea! We wanted some refreshing mango drinks to quench our thirst on this sunny Weekend evening, so we made the trek to this new spot called Alfa Tea, formerly called Macu Tea. Is it worth the hype and long wait? Or is Macu Tea better? The story behind Alfa Tea Concept is quite interesting. It was formerly known as Macu Tea, a popular bubble tea chain with four locations across Greater Vancouver (Richmond, downtown Vancouver, Kerrisdale, and Burnaby in the Willingdon Square plaza).  Macu Tea during peak times was consistently busy, around 30 minutes to an hour wait. It was a popular chain and brand in Vancouver. However, recent news suggested operational issues with Macu. There were rumours about management conflicts (perhaps franchisee fallout?) that were circulating on Reddit, and shortly after, 3 of the locations are being swapped to this new brand called "Alfa Tea", with the only Macu remaining in Kerrisdale.  Luckily, the line wasn't too ba...

Let's eat some pizza! We ordered some Boston Pizza Takeout and enjoyed some pizza, wings, and pasta for a hefty weekday dinner for 2. For a mid-tier pizza restaurant and chain, does it still hold up in 2026? Boston Pizza is a well known restaurant chain with a good brand image. They've really positioned and established themselves as a reliable, 'safe' place to eat; not outstanding, but not terrible. They have a wide selection of food and dishes, but that comes with trade-offs; as a chain restaurant with many locations, the quality has been known to be inconsistent and the food isn't as memorable.  One thing stood out when I ordered on skipthedishes; it's definitely more on the expensive side. Yes there are built in service and fees for ordering, but part of what you pay goes to the restaurant experience. Next time, I'd probably eat in instead of getting takeout, but let's review the food.  We ordered three things: lemon pepper wings and fries, the Meateo...

Let's go to the movies! Today, we're switching it up and we're reviewing our movie experience instead of a restaurant. We went to Marine Gateway to watch the new Mario Movie. Is it worth it in 2026? With the rise of streaming, many are opting to just wait until movies come out on streaming platforms (like Disney Plus, Netflix). However, the movie experience is something that can't be replicated at home. Movies can be very expensive. On Tuesdays it's half off admission at Cineplex, but otherwise for General Admission, it can easily be around $20 and more (plus add ons). If you want to buy popcorn, snacks, and drinks, it can easily be $100 for a family of 4.  Luckily, I'm part of the Cineclub - every month for $9.99, I get one general admission ticket and can buy one more ticket at that price (extra charges for 3D). This is incredible value because if I'm busy a certain month or the movie listings aren't appealing, these tickets carry forward. Given the ma...

Let's eat some sushi! Today we got Samurai Sushi, which is a popular spot for sushi in South Vancouver. Samurai Sushi's value proposition is large quantities of sushi at an affordable price. That means that all of the rolls are huge, stuffed with sushi rice and filling. But does that mean it's actually good? They used to have 3 locations (Fraser St., Oakridge, and downtown Denman St.), but the Oakridge location was rebranded as Kimura Sushi (still the same menu, different owner). Across the board, the prices are very reasonable and fit a variety of taste palates, from vegetarians to those craving sashimi. We got our sushi from the Fraser St. location. I used to eat Samurai Sushi more often growing up as a high school student; it was cheap, filling, and perfect for a weekday snack after school. Their combos are very reasonably priced relative to other Japanese restaurants. You can also phone ahead to save time. We ordered 2 California rolls, 1 unagi roll, 1 chopped scallop r...