fmed's Profile
oysters in vancouver
Oyster Raw Bar has 50c a shuck from 3pm to 5?pm. Look for them on Twitter for details.
Indian in Vancouver
Atithi's is Bengali. (Or at least I believe the chef is). Not really a chow-worthy destination, IMO. There may be a few cloaked in the guise of generalized "Indian". That is an on-going project for me (to find all these places). I'm certain that there are a few in Surrey.
Indian in Vancouver
JR Taste of Ceylon. I didn't have a good first experience there so I have not been back. I have been hearing good things recently though.
Sunny Spot on Main, Vancouver for... roujiamo and cold noodles!
No...some Red Hot Chili Peppers will probably get you in. (Sorry).
Indian in Vancouver
There are a couple of other options on Fraser St that are worth checking out: Madras Dosa House, and Dhaka Fish and Briyani (not Indian - Bengali, and BTW - the chef used to be from Del-hi Darbar for those that remember the place).
I think you are from Toronto Blueicus? I don't know if any Indian here will compare to your city's offerings.
Sunny Spot on Main, Vancouver for... roujiamo and cold noodles!
Not the same Mr Zhang AFAIK. That Mr Zhang opened up a Sichuan Kakaoke joint in Crystal Mall (in the concourse area) and also owns the BBT place at the top left of the escalators to the food court.
Suggestion for Restaurants around Waterfront Station/Vancouver Convention Center
James the owner just won a Gold medal at the World Gelato Festival in Florence Italy yesterday.
Sunny Spot on Main, Vancouver for... roujiamo and cold noodles!
You can get that rjm with fries! http://www.wisemonkeysblog.com/random-sampling-the-famous-xian-burger-at-the-sunny-spot-cafe-on-main-at-10th/
ISO fresh fava beans
They will have it in season for sure. Same with a number of the grocers on Commercial and Hastings-Sunrise.
looking for sangri and ker!
Try Sabzi Mandi's big location near SE Marine Dr and Kerr.
ISO fresh fava beans
Santa Barbara on Commercial Dr usually carries fresh fava during the season.
Authentic Szechuan restaurants in Vancouver?
I believe that place is run by one half of the husband and wife team that runs Golden Spring in Richmond (I can't recall which half). There is some discussion about it in the Chinese forums I hear. (Something to do about a divorce.) I have been there, but it has been ages and I only had on dish (dan dan mian) as I was eating alone. I'll have to check it out. Perhaps even a chowdown.
Where is the wow factor on Hawksworth?
Keep in mind that Vancouver diners had very high expectations of Hawksworth. Perhaps for a visitor less familiar with this city's style and palate, it might just do the trick.
For more casual atmosphere and good food, I like L'Abattoir. It is still pretty sceney.
Late June Honeymoon in Victoria/Vancouver/Seattle - A little help please.
Vancouver's best restaurant IMO are not in the "Fine Dining" category since this city (like Seattle) is pretty casual all around. Your list seems a bit dated now (e.g. Shanghai Chinese Bistro is closed, AFAIK). I'll try to narrow you list down to my own choice out of your list (or recommend something else)
Italian - La Buca or Cioppino's (pricey).
French - Les Faux Bourgeois (casual indie) or Le Croc (more trad)
Chinese - The Jade Seafood (Richmond)
Seafood - I have had good seafood at L'Abattoir - though it isn't decidedly a seafood joint. If you like oysters, check out Oyster Raw Bar's 50 cent shucks I think 3 - 4pm, then buck-a-shuck from 4-7pm (follow them on twitter for details)
Coffee - perhaps Revolver.
Brunch - I'll leave topic to someone else.
The New and Improved Ba Le (Banh Mi)
That's butter-mayo - butter with egg yolk and oil beaten in. Some places just use jarred mayo - but it ain't right!
The New and Improved Ba Le (Banh Mi)
Tung Hing is also my top pick these days (the bread quality is more consistent). Ba Le's buns are not as good as when they first started using the new oven.
That said, Ba Le has a good charcuterie operation which allows them to offer fillings that Tung Hing does not. For example - their Vietnamese bacon (which is rolled and cured pork belly - like a porchetta or a soft pancetta ) sandwich is pretty good. Their baguette is just a notch below Tung Hing's in quality since they bake it fresh in-house also. Tung Hing is definitely more generous with the pickle.
I like both and have actually picked up a few baguettes at one place - then drove to the next place to pick up a few more. (Not all for me, of course).
Where is the wow factor on Hawksworth?
Restaurant acoustics - now there's a topic worthy of discussion! The trendy restaurant designers here (e.g. Evoke or Stanghetta) have a bias towards designing spaces with lots of smooth hard surfaces. No absorptive materials to dampen the acoustics. Nice to the eyes, but just brutal to the ears.
Hawksworth was designed by Munge & Leung (TO) - and if you have a look at their portfolio, they tend towards that same type of design (hard surfaces, industrial fixtures, reclaimed what-have-you, parallel walls, etc.).
It usually isn't the actual sound volume that's the problem - it is the reflections that ricochet off the walls, floors and ceilings that render conversations at the table unintelligible - which then forces diners yell at each other while being only a couple of feet away. They all need to get the help of an acoustician. Again...a conversation for another thread....but please you guys stop designing restaurants without the acoustics in mind! (Rant over!)
Tung Hing Bakery (great banh mi's, etc) on Kingsway
It looks like they updated their website - I remember finding out the same you did (Google). Yeah - they are a chain from TO (Hamilton maybe). Still good despite that!
Where is the wow factor on Hawksworth?
I agree with the gist of what you are saying. I have dined there three times and the service has been great each time - almost apologetic for not being instantaneous, as a matter of fact. However, the food there seems a little dated to me - smacks of the 90's with its sweet sauces, trendy ingredients, and over-embellished platings. Hawkworth's Asian fusion angle - which was innovative during stint at West also feels a bit passé. Maybe it is time to move on. I'm not in any rush to go back, but I will be monitoring his menu on a regular basis to see if something actually interesting comes up.
Suggestion for Restaurants around Waterfront Station/Vancouver Convention Center
Nice cleaver!
Vancouver's Chinatown has been in decay for decades now - a victim of boneheaded decisions by all levels of government that turned the once vibrant Hastings St into a drug ridden hell. It looks like the area is being gentrified one storefront/restaurant at a time, but time will tell if this development strategy will actually work for the area and its troubled residents. Nowadays, the hip new restaurants and its diners seem to revel in the area's "slum" factor - a sideshow while they dine.
Richmond is really the new Chinatown. Similar to many that dot the US - strip malls, modern suburban city planning. Well worth the trip by Canada Line (it will only take you a half-hour from where you are. And it is very very easy to navigate since there is only one line going N-S).
Suggestion for Restaurants around Waterfront Station/Vancouver Convention Center
Unfortunately, there are no good dim sum joints in Chinatown. You can get good steamed buns at New Town Bakery. Get a CCK knife at Tinland!
New Restaurants in Vancouver
Newish places (some are more under the radar than others):
Pizza: Via Tevere and Barbarella
Izakaya: Suika
BBQ: Fat Dragon (from the Fuel team - not everything is great, order with care)
Southern-ish: Chewies
Oyster Raw Bar: look for 50 cents a shuck on their Twitter feeds. (3-6pm?)
Anatolia Express: inexpensive Turkish right downtown.
Lucky Noodle - Hunan on Kingsway
I like their la zi ji. They are not really on my general recommendations list. They have one or two good dishes (e.g. the la zi ji)...but the rest of the menu is a hit or miss. The list of places I posted above all have a solid menus and are reliable in terms of quality.
Lucky Noodle - Hunan on Kingsway
Sure thing: Spicy Legend (Hot Pot), Lucky Noodle (of course), S&W Pepperhouse (Metrotown), and Alvin Garden (actually on Imperial - just a block or so away from the corner with Kingsway.)
There are a few others - but I can vouch these ones.
Lucky Noodle - Hunan on Kingsway
A number of us regulars on this board think that this is one of the top Chinese restaurants in Vancouver...but other than a few brief mentions, I don't see a dedicated thread on Chowhound so I thought I would post my thoughts:
( With pictures here http://www.wisemonkeysblog.com/real-hunan-food-at-lucky-noodle-on-kingsway/ ).
The recent influx of Mainland Chinese has brought over more than just an increase in our real estate prices – they have also imported a taste for spicy Chinese food that until fairly recently, was relatively foreign to Vancouver. As recent as three or four years ago, I recall thinking how precious few places served authentic spicy Chinese food. And those that did specialize in these cuisines are often cloaked Cantonese kitchens that catered to the milder Cantonese palate – serving food that would not have satisfied the Mainlanders’ spice cravings. Over the recent years, with the increasing immigration of these “Northerners”, the number of spicy Chinese restaurants has been steadily increasing to the point where I think we now have enough of a selection to have a solid week-to-week rotation of places to eat.
I still think we don’t have an exemplary Sichuan restaurant (especially after losing a very good one in Chuan Xiang Ge in Richmond), but I think we have Yunan covered (S&W Pepperhouse in Crystal Mall and their less able branch in Richmond), and we now have two very good Hunan joints to choose from: Alvin Garden (Burnaby) and Lucky Noodle (Collingwood).
Alvin Garden, whose food I have eaten since their early days as Crystal Hunan, used to be my go-to recommendation for spicy Chinese. It is still very good, but it now often shows signs of mediocrity. Lucky Noodle (or 湘味浓 – roughly translated as “The Bold Flavours of Hunan”) has now taken over my top choice. It is located in what I consider a new Spicy Chinese Corridor along Kingsway – dotted with spicy hotpot joints, and a variety of spicy Chinese restaurants all the way into Burnaby.
After a shaky first meal there shortly after they first opened (literally not even a week), my subsequent meals have gotten better and better over the last year. This is our third (or is it fourth?) group chowdown there so we have cut a wide swath through their extensive menu in which Hunan dishes dominate (with some dabblings of Sichuan).
The food here has intensity and clarity of flavours – and contrast when you need it. It has enough spice to satisfy the palates of those familiar with this cuisine (we had a number of those sitting around tonight’s table). Smoke is a hallmark of Hunan food and the smoked dishes here did not disappoint. The menu is intimidating to the uninitiated, so let me recommend the following dishes to get you jump started:
Shredded pork with Cilantro
Pork with white chili
Shredded potato with dry chili
Chinese Bacon with bamboo shoots
Stir fried minced pork with sour bean
Mouthwatering chicken (boiled chicken in special spicy sauce).
Lamb with cumin
Pan fried green pepper (“Tiger stripe pepper”).
Water boiled fish
Steamed fish chili peppers
Order that with rice and plenty of water because needless to say, this Hunan food can be blazing hot.
Suggestion for Restaurants around Waterfront Station/Vancouver Convention Center
oops "parks" should be "parts". ( iBlame the iPhone - edited).
L'Abattoir has a bar in the front where you can sit as a lone diner. You may not need a reservation, but you might as well make one.
Suggestion for Restaurants around Waterfront Station/Vancouver Convention Center
Nice to see you around these parts ChemicalKinetics.
Along with the other recommendations, let me add that Gastown is within walking distance of where you will be staying. That area is where most of the new buzzy restaurants are. L'Abattoir for dinner and cocktails is my current favourite there. Revolver serves good coffee and pastries. Alibi room for craft beer.
Closer to your hotel is Miku which specializes in aburi-sushi (a bit of a fad, but the sushi is good). The new location of Meat & Bread is pretty close by too. Good porchetta sandwiches.
Visiting for one Friday night from Toronto and San Fran - suggestions
Kits Daily Kitchen and Bishops.
Who has the best cha gio (Vietnamese fried spring rolls) ?
My old fave was Pho Thai Hoa on Kingsway - but I had a mediocre one there last time I went. It may have been an off night. Check it out.
