Noshwellmenu

[rating:4]

Goldilocks is a popular chain of bake shops from the Philipines. There are a growing number of locations across North America including two right here in the Lower Mainland. We’ve been faithful Goldilocks customers for a while. But with limited seating, large crowds and consistently slow service, you’ll also need a bit of patience. We haven’t been here lately, other than popping in to grab the occasional peanut polvoron, so we thought it’s about time we drop by for the food again.

Like other Filipino restaurants, Goldilocks has a cafeteria-like setup. You line up at the counter and pick out what you want. The lineup can be a bit chaotic as servers attempt to put together orders from the kitchen in the back, while scrambling to heat up prepared meals from the front. After 15 minutes, we finally got our meals and chowed down.

Tre and I usually share a plate of  Garlic Fried Rice. They give you a nice heaping of fried rice infused with garlic, which can be a little heavy on the carbs — and your breath. So be mindful of who you dine with. And if you don’t mind waiting, for an extra$1.50, you can get a freshly cracked fried egg on the top of your rice. Tre especially enjoys the fried egg with an order of marinated barbeque grilled pork skewers to go with his rice. The pork is nicely charred and sweet, and has that familiar reddish hue similar to Char Siu (Chinese Barbeque Pork). I like the Longanisa, tiny links of mild, sweet pork sausage. We also get the Lumpiang Shanghai: miniature spring rolls filled with meat, shrimp, garlic and spices.

Overall the food is good. It’s cooked fresh daily, but is prepared early and ready to go in take out containers that are heated it up when you order. It’s a bit strange watching you’re meal being nuked in the microwave, but it all kind of works. The downside is the limited seating. On the weekends, it’s chaos.

While you’re there, check out the bakery. They have a lot of good sweets and cakes. Depending on the holiday, Goldilocks usually decorates the the bakery area with a theme. I think that’s cool, and very pretty to look at.

The Details

1606 West Broadway, Vancouver
604.736.7744
goldilocks.ca

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