Restaurant Review: Aphrodite's Cafe and Pie Shop

Aphrodite's Café and Pie Shop (3598 West 4th Avenue, Vancouver V6R 1N8)
Website: http://www.organiccafe.ca/
Cuisine: Western, Organic, Vegan
★ ★ ★ ★

Food ordered [07/22/12]:
- Hummus and Roasted Garlic Plate (Vegan) (house made hummus, served with a roasted garlic bulb, roasted tomato, sesame crisps and 8 grain crackers) $13
- Chicken and Shiitake Quesadilla (roasted organic chicken, shiitake and oyster mushrooms, avocado and white cheddar in a whole wheat tortilla, served with fresh salsa, sour cream and a meadow side salad) $16
- Harvest Vegetarian Chili (Vegan) (seasonal vegetables and four types of organic beans in a rich tomato sauce, served with our multigrain bread and meadow side salad) $14
- Turkey Pot Pie (local organic turkey and a blend of vegetables in our famous pie crust, with a meadow side salad) $13
- Apple & Cheddar Sandwich (tangy apple slices and white Cheddar with hummus and greens, served with a meadow side salad) $14
- Genmaicha Green Namasthe Tea $3.25
- Decaf Americano $3.25
- slice of Blueberry pie with Mario's Gelati vanilla ice cream $9.25

How exciting to be home in Vancouver!  I had dinner here with my family in a group of five.  I cannot hide my excitement for the food in my home city.  I couldn't help but think that an organic, vegan cafe with such locally-based décor could not exist in London.  Please recommend one if you know of any!

I had heard a lot of good things about Aphrodite's Café and my mother recommended it to me for the quality providence of their ingredients.  It has definitely become a local institution and I had fairly high expectations.  The restaurant is divided into two parts: a small cafe where there is a takeaway counter and a few tables to have a cup of coffee at, and the main restaurant which comprises of two larger rooms.  We ate in the main dining area.  The restaurant obviously caters to the local community and had suitably warm, friendly service.

All of the décor seems to be locally sourced with many pieces listing the artist and a price.  I must note that I use the word 'décor' in the broadest sense possible.  Hanging from the ceiling are myriad piñata-- yes, of the children-screaming-papier-mâché variety.  As you can see in the picture above, you can order a custom-made one for upwards of $300.  I spied models of one of the Sedine twins and Roberto Luongo amongst the hangings in the restaurant.  The rest of the furniture is rustic and mismatched.

The food was beautifully presented and complexly flavoured in many ways, although was not perfect and I found it to be on the expensive side.  Even with that in mind, I must say that it was definitely worth it to go.  We shared the hummus as an appetizer.  The hummus was smooth but had a strong flavour of garlic which surprisingly was not overwhelming once paired with the roasted half garlic bulb.  I'd never seen garlic roasted like this before but thoroughly enjoyed it.  The texture of the garlic is creamy, more so than the hummus, and the flavour rich.

Hummus and Roasted Garlic Plate.

I ordered the chicken and shiitake quesadilla as an entree.  I can't really comment on the others since I had a bite or less of each although I have to compliment their multi-grain bread.  Obviously home-baked, it was perfectly fluffy and yeasty.  The quesadilla was good but not great.  The flavours were mostly balanced although there was more avocado, and in larger pieces, than I'd have liked.  It made the quesadilla overall a little too rich as avocado can easily make a dish.  The salsa was fresh and managed to balance the meal out.  The salad included sunflower seeds and sliced carrots and beets with a vinaigrette dressing.  There was too much dressing for my taste although I generally prefer a very light application of dressing so others may find it fine.  I must emphasise the point I made earlier that despite these detractors, the entree was balanced.  This is not a compliment I will usually give to Western-style food which is too often singularly flavoured but to the restaurant's credit, both the hummus and the quesadilla definitely were.

Chicken and Shiitake Quesadilla.

Harvest Vegetarian Chili (Vegan)





Turkey Pot Pie.

Apple & Cheddar Sandwich

The only real disappointment of the restaurant was their blueberry pie.  Perhaps I was expecting too much but it is their specialty.  The crust I felt was a little bland and had a cookie-like texture.  I very much favour a continental-style flaky pastry crust so it may be a matter of personal preference.  The filling was fresh and sweet although I must compare it to the blueberry pie that White Spot used to serve.  My apologies in advance for mentioning a now defunct dish (they do not serve their blueberry pie anymore, only a different miniature version which is not good) but I have yet to find a blueberry pie which outshines theirs.

Overall it was a highly enjoyable meal, not just for the food but the experience!

Blueberry Pie with Ice Cream

Photographs: Me