City 1 Cafe

All the other reviews of this place are pretty much accurate. The service from all the guys is terrible, and that poor lady just runs around workin her butt off! I’m getting ahead of myself here. Came here for lunch and ordered the curry beef brisket with rice, the Hainanese chicken rice and the fried rice (its a lotta rice) with a roti on the side. The food came fairly fast and was really delicious. I gotta say the Roti style here isn’t spicy or that oily so I was definitely a fan. The chicken too was made really well and did make me think of Malaysia! Unfortunately this place does lose a lot of points for service. I really didn’t like how the guys didn’t seem to want to serve us. I mean even as we were paying (seriously you don’t want my money?) they didn’t seem to want to give us change. Overall high on food, low on service from the male staff.

The Hainanese chicken is great, but the service is awful. There is one lady that works her ass off, and a bunch of useless dudes standing around the till pretending to work. Because she’s overloaded, there are always tables covered in dirty dishes, and the service is super slow. If you ask a dude to do something for you, you’re guaranteed to get snapped at. We used to come here a lot because it’s close to my work, but the service is so bad that we usually get take out. That said, I’m currently sitting in their restaurant waiting for my take out order that one of the dudes insists I never called in (despite the fact that their number is in my call history) and just called me a liar in front of a whole quiet restaurant. So, yeah. Not sure if I’m ever coming back after this.

No better place on the west side for a quick Hainanese chicken rice. The chicken skin is gelatinous and loose on the carefully deboned meat, which is my favourite style of the dish («white cut chicken»). The rice is oily and soft and instantly addicting. Garnish is spring onion-​ginger oil and sweet red chili sauce, both of which are standard — although I wish they gave a bit more onion-​ginger oil. Comes with a bowl of pork broth for $ 8.95, this is definitely a deal by Vancouver standards. Ambiance-​wise, they could cut the cheesy music; even silence would be better.

I’m really not sure how to feel about this place — we’ve been here once and had the half chicken with rice and soup. Long story short, it’s probably the best Hainanese chicken we’ve had here so far (the chicken itself — I do feel that Mui Garden kinda has the edge on the rice) but the service is so strangely surly that I almost feel like it’s something I need to brace myself for, and I’m not sure when we’ll be back again. I’m really not the sort of person that requires great ambience and terribly attentive service in a restaurant, but I wish it didn’t feel like the owners would rather be anywhere but there doing what they do.

Horrible service and unfriendly staff. The place was half empty and wait staff were hesitant to seat us. Then it still took forever for them to take our order. Food not worth the rude service. Won’t be coming back.

Decent food, clean atmosphere, very well priced, free parking, but the service is subpar. You can tell that the people working don’t want to be there. I know this is supposed to be a no frills kind of place but it doesn’t take all that much to say thank you or make eye contact when customers walk in the door. Just not smart business.

This place was packed for lunch which is a good sign! Lots of people from different demographics were here today, so it was nice to know it wasn’t just some «hip joint» or popular with seniors — everyone was here!
Honestly there’s nothing special here. If you want decent food at a really reasonable price, come here. There were 6 of us and the bill came out to $ 94 with taxes included and we had enough for someone to take leftovers home.
— The hainanese chicken was nothing to write home about. It was not bad but it didn’t stand out. I’ve eaten a lot of hainanese chicken and this was just average. The portion size was great for the price so I can’t complain.
— The curry beef was really rich in a good way and definitely works well with copious amounts of rice. The potatoes were perfectly cooked but I found that their beef cuts were at times too fatty. I’m used to brisket and tendon bits but there was a lot of connective tissue and fat. They could have trimmed it better.
— The green beans were really good. Perfectly seasoned with a little kick but not too greasy.
— The sauteed/​stir fried bok choy was really nice. No garlic and just perfectly cooked. I hate it when bok choy is soggy/​too soft or too crunchy because it was undercooked.
— The roti was disappointing. I love roti. I could eat roti all day long and dip it in the sauce but this one… no thanks. My favorite roti in town is at Banana Leaf.
Overall if I were in the area, I’d still come to eat here. But it’s not a place I’d go across town for or ever get a craving for and need to come.

This review is for their Haianese Chicken rice only. Half chicken with 3 bowls of rice and soup to be exact. They use free range chicken so the meat is naturally not as mushy as regular chicken. Chicken meat is still sufficiently moist and the gelatin was there under the skin. Only complaint was dish needed a tad more soy sauce, I end up diluting the sauce with the soup so to give the whole dish sauce.
The rice is properly made, not extremely greasy with a ginger, almost nutty taste to it. You can ask for white rice if you don’t like oil rice.

Together with my bff we tried the place only by luck… unplanned…it was chinese new year and the original plan was to buy steam buns in down town… heavy traffic that we wasted morethan an hour to be there which is just 7 minutes drive from my place, all parking full while the parade is in progress… mission failed so we drove back home… both of us starving so we decided to visit this singaporian little restaurant… quite place to eat, service is extremely slow considering theres only 5 person inside… swipe machine is down good we had cash… everything was very unpleasnt except the taste of the foods, excellent beef curry, good satay chicken and laksa… free parking… try it your self not really a bad place

Definitely Fucks with the Hainanese Chicken Rice. The best chicken in town. Agreed.

Eccentric. Don’t mess with the owner, the chef, or anything other than the chicken. It’s the best in town.
You go here for chicken rice only. If you don’t know what chicken rice is then don’t bother reviewing. I have been all around the world and make this dish myself. For the sophisticated pallet, you would be hard pressed to find a better hainanese chicken in Vancouver.
That alone is worth the five stars. Just turn a blind eye to the rest of the place.

Considering how many authentic, Malaysian places out there: hello Tropika, Kaya, Banana Leaf, you only come here out of convenience or if you’re shopping at Safeway in the same plaza.
I tried their chicken wasn’t memorable, not good, not bad.
This restaurant has so much potential if they upgraded their décor, and heck, even changed their name, certainly doesn’t feel like a restaurant that you want to bring your good friends too lol.
Sounds mean but I’m trying to be helpful.
free parking.

I cannot pinpoint what’s wrong with this place. It was cute and people were friendly.
Their hainanese chicken was boneless so that was a bonus for my husband cuz he never eats anything with bones (yup. that’s right). We also tried their fried rice, deep fried tofu, and laksa. Nothing out of the ordinary. The flavours are not very exciting as it should be … I expect southeast Asian food with a bit of spicy and hotness should dance a little on my tongue, at least.
I don’t crave it go again.

This place didn’t hit the spot for me.
After a very disappointing lunch at Harvest which left me hungry and begging for more food, my dear sweet heart took me here hoping to cheer me up.
We ordered a «regular» non-​free-​range chicken with chicken rice and chicken soup. I ordered a beef brisket curry with rice and a Malaysian hot coffee. I don’t understand why half order and full order both use free-​range chicken but not the individual/​regular chicken & rice. I honestly would pay the premium just to have free-​range chicken for my regular chicken & rice and I am sure there are other customers who feel the same way. The texture of the meat is night and day. So dear owner, if you’re reading this, please consider.
The chicken soup which came with the lunch combo was milky white. This is new because usually the chicken soup I had would be clear broth-​ed. Anyhow, the chicken soup was delicious. It was full of chicken flavor and with the wonderful sweetness of vegetables such as that of carrots.
The condiments that came with the chicken were, I believe, house-​made. The red was spicy and the green was green onion, ginger in oil. They were homey and fantastic with just plain rice.
I din’t enjoy the chicken at all. Again, first the texture was soft and limpy. And there was a very strong chicken/​gamey smell which was offensive to me. Even the condiments couldn’t mask this chicken stench.
My beef brisket curry was just alright. The briskets and the potatoes weren’t braised long enough so the meat was tough and potatoes weren’t tender.
The highlight of my meal was the Malaysian coffee. There’s something about store-​bought instant powder shit that makes me feel so at home.
After having Nong Khao Man Gai from Portland, other chicken and rice just don’t taste nearly as good.

I came to Café 1 based on a friend’s recommendation. I tried their speciality dish the Hainanese Chicken and had their satay beef, chicken, and pork. The food was ok… For Hainanese Chicken Mama Lee’s (on West Broadway) is significantly better!
It’s an ok family restaurant in a central location. I would come back but if I want the best Hainanese Chicken in Van City… Mama Lee’s!

Things ordered:
Roti, served with a side of curry dipping sauce
Deep fried spicy tofu
Deep fried wings
Curry beef brisket
Hainanese chicken
Roti was nicely charred form the cooking and had a bit of crispness on the bite. The curry sauce that was served with it had good flavours but was a bit watery to my liking. All in all, still quite good.
The tofu was likely the lightest seasoned tofu I’ve eaten at an Asian restaurant. No MSG maybe?
Wings were hot and crispy. They were good.
Curry beef brisket was very tender and the curry had good flavours. Not as good as Mui Garden’s but Mui Garden sets the bar for me in terms of curry. There were coconut shreds served on top of this dish.
Hainanese chicken. First off, I am not a huge fan of this in general. I normally would not order this at a restaurant. Having said that, I would order this for myself the next time. It is THAT good. This is coming from someone who doesn’t eat Hainanese chicken much. I got the regular chicken, not the free range. The chicken is deboned and is smooth and delicious. This was easily a 5 star stunner.
Coming back to try the laksa and the skewers another time.

The hainanese chicken with the rice cooked in the chicken soup, served with scallion and ginger purée and soup was fantastic – among the best I have found in Vancouver.
The four seasons green beans with minced pork was tasty and well seasoned, not overly oily or overcooked.
The roti canai had a great curry dip though I wish the bread was a tad crispier.
Finally the meat skewers were great. The peanut sauce was nice and light and fresh and well seasoned. The chicken skewer was the standout for me with a slight crispness.
Service was slow but friendly, and I would think the delays were because of the New Year. The credit card machine had also broken which was somewhat inconvenient though worth the hassle for the great food. A true gem!

Tasty hainanese chicken with rice at a decent price. Curry is also very good. Service is friendly too!
I find the food to be great on cold fall/​winter days… or summer days… actually I’m happy to come in year round…

Yes to boneless Hainanese chicken! Who would have thought, an inconspicuous restaurant would serve such flavorful, delicious, juicy chicken?
A cozy small space, this place was quite full on a Wednesday night. We shared an order of the individual sized Hainanese chicken and an order of the curry beef brisket, with a substitution of roti over rice for $ 1.00 extra.
The chicken was perfect; I can’t complain about boneless chicken! I would say it’s on par with Prata Man. The grated ginger dip and the sweet chili sauce were great complements.
The curry beef brisket had a decent amount of soft brisket; there wasn’t too much fat like briskets from other places. The curry wasn’t too spicy, which was perfect for me. I particularly enjoyed the roti– crispy on the outside, and a soft and fluffy on the inside.
Great service and a casual atmosphere, I’ll definitely be back here for more Hainanese chicken!

Another great find thanks to the infamous Marc D.
The interior is super plain and the piano music is almost annoying, but the food is decent.
Get the Hainanese chicken and oiled rice. Likely the best I’ve had. Not sure what the oil in the oiled rice is (maybe chicken broth), but it sure beats Uncle Ben’s.
The roti was nice and flaky, but the curry dipping sauce was not quite what I’m used to. The satays were alright.
I’ll be back for more.
Be careful parking here though. Putting angled parking stalls within tight lanes is ridiculous.