Port Moody turns 100 and Vera's hamburgers

Saturday dawned cloudy but quite warm, a perfect day for a parade.  Port Moody turns 100 years old this year not a spectacularly long time, but a significant one. The City decided to celebrate by having an old fashioned down home parade, so we walked over to watch.

There were several marching bands, including one very enthusiastic Chinese drumming band, which was accompanied by their leader holding up a small red boom box playing rather tinny  Chinese music.

There were some nods to the past such as people riding penny farthing bikes, which when asked, told us that they used a ladder to mount, and really dismounting was the problem.

There was a fairly large contingent of first nations which seemed appropriate, because they had been here far longer than 100 years.

Aroma Restaurant Port Moody

Aroma restaurant is my new favourite restaurant in Port Moody, and second only to Vj's as my favourite Indian restaurant.  It has taken over the space at 50 Spring Street in Old Port Moody that up to this point has been the home to one unsuccsesful restaurant after another.  Aroma has found the secret, serve really good food, friendly personal service and reasonable prices.  My Father and I went there a couple of weeks ago for dinner and I realised that though I have been there many times I have not posted about it, so I thought it was about time.

To start with we ordered shrimp pakora $11.95

These were lovely fresh plump shrimp marinated battered and deep fried they were very tasty, crisp and not greasy at all.

Cassa Fabesso - A Port Moody treasure

I had heard of Casa Fabesso last summer when a friend of mine told me about this very authentic Italian Restaurant down at Reed Port Marina just off the Barnet Highway. But I had not got around to going and my Father had been saying that he was interested in going, so last week in the last throws of Summer the two of decided to go try it out.

We were greeted by Anna and shown to our table, we had declared at the time of booking that we would have the seafood dinner and seafood we had.  There are no menus and each course arrives with a quick explanation by Anna, but I did not feel that I was being talked down to, like I sometimes do in these circumstances.  The first course was bruschetta topped with a home cleaned and preserved anchovy.

Bruschetta

This was just a couple of bites, but it was delicious and there were many more courses to come.  The next dish was perhaps my favourite tuna carpaccio.

Tuna carpaccio

We got a thin slice of tuna served with a wonderful fresh citrus dressing it was every bit as good as the tuna carpaccio I had in Sorrento last November.  Both of us loved this dish so simple but so fresh and good.