have you ever wanted to enjoy a burger with a side of punk rock? if so; this is the place for you. located on commercial drive, this restaurant is literally named after a song by the punk band snfu. it was also featured on you gotta eat here! in season 5.
the vibe is a whole ton of fun and the edginess of the restaurant adds so much to the entire experience. the servers are all very friendly and covered in piercings and tattoos. my favourite thing are the hundreds of vancouver gig posters wallpapering every inch of the walls. i found myself reading as many of them as i could see! i visited on a saturday evening and our accommodating server seated us near the back of the restaurant (a perfect area to take in the scene of the whole place).
i'd heard that their shakes were pretty good, so i started there. their boozy shakes sounded especially fun! i picked the black forest shake (chocolate ice cream, milk, fudge, 2oz cherry bourbon, topped with whipped cream and chocolate drizzle - $11.95) because i was obviously there on serious business. this is a great item to order if you want to have dessert before dinner and you also want for there to be booze involved. this was a pretty good milkshake and it captured the elements of a black forest cake quite well. creamy, sweet, with a hit of bourbon. (but i have to say, the best boozy shake out there is still the legendary shake at save on meats.)
cannibal takes a lot of pride in their beef - which is a desirable thing to see in a burger-centric joint. their beef is certified organic from bc, so it doesn't get more fresh and local than that. of course i was going to order one of the cannibal specialty burgers and it had to be the big blue (blue cheese stuffed patty, a crispy onion ring, more blue cheese, horseradish chive mayo, l.t.o.p - $14.95). i also ordered hand-cut fries ($2.95) on the side. as a lover of blue cheese, this burger seemed like a majorly obvious choice. this burg was solid. i liked the patty because it tasted very fresh and was very clearly homemade. i especially liked that there was still a hint of pink inside and that it hadn't been cooked into oblivion. i did, however, find the patty to be a little bit dense and i couldn't really find the blue cheese inside. luckily, the blue cheese on top was much more prevalent and added the funk that i craved. the onion ring was perfectly battered and fried, it added a great crunch. i liked the bun because it was buttery and had a nice bite to it. the pickle was delicious. this burger was very messy!!!
the fries were good! they were cooked to a perfect golden and the seasoning on them was delicious.
maybe not the best burger that i've had in my entire life, but definitely a very decent one made with good ingredients.
the overall experience at cannibal café was a good one. it's a really cool restaurant with a fun atmosphere. the prices seemed a little bit high (especially with no sides being included with the burgers) and the food could've been a little bit more exciting. they serve a weekend bunch that i will certainly return to try.