The Naam- Kitsilano

from Sherman's Food Adventures

Vegetarian? I must be losing it. I was out with my friends last night and I ended up leaving and going over to my girlfriends. She had been home sewing all day and really needed to get out of the house. We decided to go out for a late night bite. At first was  thinking Denny's, I had gone to the gym earlier so I was needing some protein but seeing that I want to try different restaurants and write about them we decided between either Cheesecake etc. or The Naam. I have already written on Cheesecake etc. and I was in no mood for dessert so we hopped in the jeep and headed down West. 4th to our destination.

I was experiencing a little internal conflict at this point. I had been to The Naam about 5 years ago and I vowed I would never return. I went for breakfast with my parents and my only memory was getting coffee spilled on me by an unkempt waitress. Besides an apology (which was free) they didn't find it in their hearts to possibly give us a discount or at least my meal free. I thought most restaurants do that sort of thing.

So one might understand why I was a little hesitant to go back, however I am not a big complainer and even restaurants need a second chance.
We arrived around 10:30 pm and luckily there was no line up outside or anything like I have heard often happens.
We did have to wait a little while to be seated though. No one actually acknowledged that we were standing there waiting for a table, there was no "we'll be with you as soon as possible", not even a sign that we even existed. I didn't care because I am a very happy go lucky kind of guy but I could see this being a negative for people who have short tempers.

We were seated in the corner and we scoured over the menu's. I don't  particularity enjoy tofu so that helped  me choose quickly.

I ordered the Naam Quesadillas (grilled whole wheat torillas with melted cheese, green onions & jalapenos, served with salsa) $7.75

Naam Quesadilla

I really liked this. I was very happy to know that I could still enjoy cheese because there is protein in that!
The jalapenos added a nice spice and it was a very tasty quesadilla. I would rate the quesadilla
4.5/5. The salsa however tasted like Ragu Pasta sauce. That was my only complaint, if the salsa was..salsa it would have been great.

My girlfriend ordered the Sesame Fries with Miso Gravy and Cheese $7.25

Sesame Fries with Miso Gravy and Cheese

These fries are a must have if you come here. The potatoes were cut nice and thick and the cheese on them was wonderful. The Miso gravy tasted so good as well. I was trying to figure out what was in it while we were eating but couldn't really tell. I knew that there would be miso paste but did not know what else...so I looked it up, here's the ingredients:

4 Tbsp miso paste
2 cup veg bouillon
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 Tbsp sesame oil
1/8 cup apple cider vinegar
1/8 cup honey or maple syrup
2 tsp sambal olek (chili paste)
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 Tbsp grated ginger
1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup water

You can also buy it at Capers or Whole Foods.

So I hate to admit it, but I was full after eating all of this, yes vegetarian food got the better of Peter. I wrote this place off because of the terrible service I got before but I will admit I really liked the food.
To sum things up, don't expect to be treated like royalty or anything else here. Come for the good food and the interesting atmosphere, I'm sure you will see some interesting people dining at this place.
The Good:
- Surprisingly tasty food sans any meat
- Wide variety of menu items
- Cool atmosphere
The Bad:...Service (getting coffee spilled on me the first time I went)