Vancouver Voyage | DAY 14: Rosemary Rocksalt + UYU Ice Cream

One of my sunbaes once commented: "Your photos...are really colourful."
​
It's kind of ironic, really, since he's usually the one decked out in bright blue or highlighter orange garments, whereas I lean more towards muted colours out of sheer laziness. (There, I said it.)

Contrasting colours tend to attract even the least observant of people and pique further interest from already hue-sensitive individuals. That being said, seeing Rainbow Bagels pop up on my feed and realizing that they were in decently close proximity meant that I'd be making the trip almost immediately for the sake of satisfying my burning curiosity.

​Rosemary Rocksalt, which is apparently a common household name when purchasing by the dozen, is a Mount Plesant favourite known for producing fresh, hearty bagels right out of the oven. Along with the classic Plain and Sesame bagels, the bakery-shop also offers a variety called "Almost Gluten-Free".

Rainbow Bagels were my primary item of concern for this trip, though I must admit that I really would have liked to try some of their more traditional styles as well. My eyes got the best of me: before I knew it, I was ordering a Lox and Cream Cheese Rainbow Bagel as lunch and even taking two more Rainbows home to share.
The take-home purchase was bagged for me immediately; the team set out to craft my dine-in order shortly after

I sat down to take in my surroundings: the bakery had a high ceiling from which spherical red light shades hung to provide decoration as well as illumination. Near the entrance was a drink refrigerator and labelled stash of semi-toasty bagels; this was then attached to the cashier area. An array of baking machinery could also be seen behind the counter, while a Neapolitan-style brick/stone oven was embedded into the back baking area of the store.

Witty cartoons and a quirky flowchart hovered above the four-table dining area. While the black-and-white cartoons were based off of creative bready puns and general humour, the lofty flowchart served as a great decision-maker helper. My favourite answer was suggesting customers to purchase a dozen and slather them with housemade cream cheese at home if they arrived in a not-too-famished state.

​Several minutes later marked the arrival of an open-faced Rainbow Bagel topped with smoked BC wild sockeye salmon, capers, and uber-indulgent cream cheese. A slice of lemon and quartered pickle was placed alongside the spherical slots in which the halves were inserted in. The wooden serving planks made for a pleasing presentation.
I paid particular attention to the monogrammed "R" at the corner of plank - it was a simple design that incorporated a sprig of rosemary into the letter.

Lox and Cream Cheese, a sandwich filling which I had opted out of onions, is a classic bagel combo with a refreshing West Coast twist. Sodium-packed capers lent a salty punch to the already-pleasing smoked salmon-cream cheese duo. I suppose I should have requested the bagel to be toasted beforehand, as it was unnecessarily tough to bite into once the other ingredients had been layered on top.
The Rainbow Bagels themselves were an item of supreme interest: an odd "wheaty" aroma floated about them, and they were less spongy than the standard beige-toned variations. Admittedly, I was slightly dismayed at the inferiority of the discovery. I had taken to trying Montreal-style bagels in Vancouver when, in fact, I could have driven over considering my permanent residence along the East Coast. Nonetheless, I have great faith that Rosemary Rocksalt's non-gimmicky creations are far superior in flavour and texture (and fresher too).

The booths were sturdy but comfortable, allowing customers to sit down for a quick meal before moving onto his or her next stop. Outlets were also available at select tables.
Near the front of the shop was an umbrella bucket, water station, and clean assortment of condiments and plastic utensils.

​The second part of my day involved a trip to Gastown, an area which I had never had the luxury of leisurely exploring before. My primary place of interest was UYU Ice Cream.

Following a terribly haunting experience on the bus, I disembarked at W Hastings and Abbott. My surrounding environment had me shaken with the extremely shoddy quality of life. Despite the large commercial buildings that resided just south on W Pender, the stretch along Hastings was by far one of the most horrendous scenes I'd ever witnessed. (I would prefer to avoid detailing the experience once again, so I'll simply describe it as a party of hoarders, garbage-diggers, and severely intoxicated members of the community.)

I decided to move quickly, as I simply wanted to find the ice cream shop and, for a lack of better words, get out of there.
Striding across Abbott twice, I immediately became puzzled at Google Maps' instructions. UYU was nowhere to be found even at the exact spot where I had passed by.

Opting to call the shop for fear of making myself even more vulnerable in an unfamiliar area, I was guided back to the same stretch of Abbott, to the entrance of a very minimal storefront. It then occurred to me why I had missed it the first two times: a grime-covered lady suffering from an insane amount of overdose had been sitting dazed on the bench outside the shop before and I had diverted my gaze both times to avoid the sight and stench.

The world inside UYU was completely different: pure white and serene, with an abundance of triangular elements. The member of staff that served me was the same cheery girl that had picked up my phone call: she introduced me to the various items offered and went on to explain the current selection of soft serve flavours.

After sampling, my final decision lay with the Yuzu Lemon Sorbet. Organic Milk was a nice, subtly sweet vanilla; Salted Caramel was a good balance of sweet and salty, though a bit too creamy for my liking. Cereal Milk bore a strong resemblance to Momofuku's milk bar back home, resulting in a taste that was all too familiar.
(Fun fact: UYU means "milk" in Korean. Recall the "Milky Couple" in Dream High!)

To fully experience the summer limited flavour, I chose to skip the toppings. Although, freeze-dried fruit do make for an interesting crunch.

Drizzles were complimentary though, so I chose a the ever-vibrant Blackcurrant, which the girl squeezed on generously.

Possessing a strong citrusy influence, the Yuzu Lemon paired exceptionally well with the tartness of my chosen drizzle. The sorbet was smooth and refreshing, and managed to retain its shape throughout the duration of my return trip.

​Overall, I was impressed: UYU's soft serve was flavourful as it was smooth. It resisted against melting as well - another significant factor to take into consideraton. The milk crate seating was also a unique approach, as was the uniformity of their triangular-shaped logo and ceiling/wall design.
My sole concern would be the location. Had the environment not constantly instilled fear in my soul with every step of the journey, I'd definitely revisit to try other flavours (and toppings).

My final stop of the day was Shiny Tea to pick up a Mango Black Tea and Apple Vinegar Oolong Tea. Both drinks were strongly caffeinated, but where the Mango was sweet and revitalizing, the Apple Vinegar Oolong essentially tasted like a cup of vinegar. Ugh.

​Onto the next adventure!

---