Today I am sharing with you my food trip escapade at Zarak By Afghan Kitchen. This restaurant recently opened in Vancouver and already started making noise in social media. I had been seeing videos and post from people who had visited this place and it made me curious. The thing with social media is that you’ll never really know until you try. Technology is so fast and updated now a days that you can make anything look good in social media. I guess that is why business’s owners makes it a point to make the food look stunning to entice people to share and post photos or videos of it. It is more like a free advertisement, and I have to say it works. A lot of the restaurants and cafe I visited and shared in my blogs are from social media posts that I saw. Some are as good as it looks and some are just a hype on something new and popular. So where does Zarak falls into? Let’s see!

How I Found Zarak By Afghan Kitchen

Same as how I found the Wicked Cafe and Bakery, from Instagram. This social media platform is so far my go to when I want to get an idea on places to try in Vancouver. I’ve seen some people posting their dining experiences here and I got curious. I love Afghan style dish and so it was immediately a must try for me.

Where is Zarak Located?

Zarak is located in Main Street Vancouver. It is not as central like downtown Vancouver but it is accessible via public transit and driving. I was surprised how small the place no wonder they easily get booked almost everyday. There are probably less than 10 tables and most of the tables are for z2 and some and few are for 5-6 people. They have bar seating for about 6-8 people and that’s all.

Wicked Cafe & Bakery is located

Address: 2102 Main Street
Vancouver, BC V5T 0K1

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The Menu

So many options to choose from. Whether you want a light meal, a snack, a dessert or a full meal, they got you covered. They have variety of options for appetizers, just be aware that the serving portions are quite small. One order of appetizers could be shared between two people or even just for 1. The appetizers are also quite expensive, so if you have limited budget, I recommend skipping the appetizers. Don’t worry, you will not miss out on anything. They have variety of options too for the main. If you are a meat lover, they have selections of beef, lamb and chicken dishes. They also have some vegetarian options but not quite a lot. Again, the serving portion of most dishes is good for 1 or 2 if you want to share. You’ll need to order more dish if you’re ant a sharing for 3. They have good selections of drinks too, from hot to cold. The cold beverage quite interesting, but as always, the serving portion is quite small. As for the desserts, they only have 3 options, 2 of which we ordered.

Bolani (15.00 CAD)

Flatbread, Ground Coriander, Potato, Roast Onion, House Spice

Very flavourful and delicious. This is so far one of our favorite among our many orders.

Soft Paneer (18.00 CAD)

Mum’s Handmade Paneer, Olive Oil, Cashew, Green Raisin, Sourdough

It was ok but nothing special and exceptional about it. A bit bland and lacking taste

Spicy Afghan Chicken (26.00 CAD)

Ginger Tomato Jus, Jalapeño, Onion, Naan

The chicken was fall of the bone tender and the sauce taste amazing. It was actually the sauce that carried this dish. The chicken on its own is not as flavorful and well seasoned so the sauce was really needed to make this dish stand out.

Beef Kebab + Naan (28.00 CAD)

Overnight marinated kebabs, an ancient method to preserve meat for travellerson the Silk Road.

The beef was cook perfectly, it was juicy and tender. Seasoning wise, it was ok but not as seasoned as I would like it to be.

Chicken Kebab + Qabuli (27.00 CAD)

Saffron, Garlic, Cumin, Ghore Angoor

The chicken was juicy and tender. It was ok.

Bamyan – Non-Alchoholic (10.00 CAD)

This is a non-alcoholic drink, it has a very strong citrus flavor. Definitely lots of ice is needed to take it down. The popsicle bar helps lessen the acidity in some way.

Kapisan – Non-Alchoholic (9.00 CAD)

This blend was quite interesting. It has a very strong Jasmine taste, a bit too much for my taste. The cream foam on top was nice and helped tamed the flavor of the drink.

Mum’s Secret Cake – Tres Leches Cake (14.00 CAD)

Tres Leches, Chocolate Shaving, Pistachio, Condesed Milk Cream

We got curious with this one as Tres Leches is not a traditional Afghan dessert. it was soft and moist, thanks to the 3 milk used to soak this cake. My friends liked it, I find it rather a bit sweet and the cake is not as spongy as the other Tres Leches that I’ve tried before.

Firni Jar (8.00 CAD)

Milk Pudding, Blueberry Jam, Cardamom

This I have to say was my favorite. It was so creamy, milky and not too sweet. It has a very smooth and soft texture which worked well with the blueberry compote mixed with it.

Our entire dinner was complete in just 1 hr from start to finish. It was definitely rushed because there is another group who reserved the table. I would have want a longer time to enjoy the meal. I feel that I would have enjoyed it better if we have longer time to finish our meal.

Overall, it was good food. Was it worth the hype? Maybe not. Is it worth the money? I would say no especially if you are tight on budget. This restaurant is on the expensive price range compared to similar restaurants offering this type of food. On the average, a single person can easily spend about 60 – 70CAD if you want to order a full 3 course meal plus drink. The serving portion are quite small too for the price.

Would I return to this place again? Probably not. Although the service was exceptional and the food was good, I feel that I can get the same or better food for the same and even lower price range. It was a good experience though, now I can have this check out from the list of restaurants that I want to try.

Thank you for stopping bye and reading this post. Until my next food adventure. This is SweetNSpicyLiving signing off. Bye now 😊.

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