Sorry Fannypack, but the real reason why I asked you to go with me to Bestie (a German restaurant in Vancouver’s Chinatown) was so that I could name my post as such. I used you I know, I’m sorry. Hey at least we got a date and some Bestie/Bestie badges out of it right?
As we were driving on the approach to the location our GPS was suggesting was Bestie, we could NOT find the restaurant. We decided to trust our GPS though, parked, and walked on. We were across the street and STILL we couldn’t find the restaurant, until by fluke, I saw the name “Bestie” on the window. Not on the awning. The window. The one that’s hidden in the shadows and partly behind the metal fence. Why wouldn’t you change your awning?? It was not especially easy to spot on the cloudy rainy day we visited.
Anyways…
I did like the decor and lighting of the restaurant. However I think they might have had the heat on high the day we were there.
The restaurant definitely has more of a hipster vibe than a Chinatown vibe. There were very chillaxed servers in slicked-back hair and high-waisted jeans, male cooks with man-buns and torn white t-shirts, patrons with big black thick-rimmed glasses…you know, the works. I guess that’s what gentrification and “revitalization” does to what’s supposed to be preserved as a historical heritage neighborhood. But in the end progress is inevitable.
Enough of my pseudo-rant though. On to the food!
I saw our neighbours having what seems to be an alcoholic flight of some sort. So I asked the waitress for the same.
It turned out to be a Schnapse Flight ($24). This actually isn’t ‘advertised’ anywhere, as in it’s not on their drinks menu, so I think you have to specifically ask for it.
They selection they brought me was the ULLR, Becherovka, Barenjager, and Echt Stonsdorfer. You are hit with the aroma of booze when it’s in front of you.
ULLR has peppermint and cinnamon notes, with the cinnamon most prominent. It tasted the most like mouthwash out of the four.
Becherovka has notes of herbs and spices, with the herb-y note most prominent.
Barenjager is made from all-natural honey and if you read my review of Locals Restaurant and their mead selection, you’ll see that I love notes of honey, so this was easily my favorite. This was also the thickest of the bunch, much like the fluidity of a slightly runny honey.
Echt Stonsdorfer is again infused with herbs, and also fruit. Slight tang, but not much.
I got quite a buzz after this. At lunch.
I was quite excited to try Bestie’s Pretzel Board ($8). It came with “stinky cheese sauce & pickled ‘n’ cured delights”.
The pretzel crust was quite tough and chewy, and I wished it overall had more thick parts so that it’s more bread-y, as that’s the type of soft pretzel I like. So I must admit I couldn’t say I was pleased with this.
The stinky cheese sauce was a lie. It was not stinky at all. It also had the consistency (not temperature) of clumpy cheese whiz straight out of the fridge. (Hitman edit:Wendy sure likes her food stinky, the stinkier the better! This is one of my favourite things to bug her about; I keep telling her she should take a trip to the Philippines to try some pagpag…)
The mustard selection were the winners here. The original mustard has strong hits of horseradish, while the grainy dijon was more…well…mustard-y. The third one was the sweet counterpart.
Lastly the star of the show. We picked the Classic Pork Thuringer Sausage and Sauerkraut ($9.5). Instead of being cut up on a bed of fritten (fries) and slathered with curried ketchup, the sausage was served whole on a bed of house-made sauerkraut, served with mayonnaise, house mustard, and curried ketchup on the side.
Does the picture make the sausage look big? ‘Cause it’s not. It was average sized, and frankly, small for the price we paid. The flavor was very good though. Savory and juicy without being over-salted or greasy. The casing was a bit tough though.
The fries were the clear winner here. Perfectly crisped and delicious with the different dipping sauces.
I guess I can say for the both of us that we were a bit disappointed with Bestie. The food was good, but not sensational. It definitely left us wanting more especially considering the price. It’s Chinatown after all, where the heritage has Asians searching for the best cheap deals (we found a Chinese hole-in-the-wall down there that continues to serve full meals for under $5, go explore for yourself while there’s still time!).
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