43 W Hastings Street, Vancouver (Gastown)
Save On Meats is part butcher, part diner, but all around amazing. With your typical tiled floor, big booths and long bar, walking into Save On Meats is like walking into the 1950s with a cool Vancouver twist. I've been to SOM twice so far, once for their all-day breakfast and once for ice cream. Any place that serves all-day breakfast is a winner for me. With a menu that has true diner classics like burgers, milkshakes, and even a Salisbury steak if you're feeling particularly fancy, there is something for everyone. Things do sell out quite quickly, like their apple pie, so get in there early so that you don't have to face the disappointment at the prospect of no pie a la mode for the day. A community staple, SOM also has the token program, where tokens can be purchased for $2.25 and given to a person who may be in need so that they can receive some food, which is a really cool endeavour to try and increase inclusivity in the neighbourhood. Come by for the food and stay for the experience. Also, their sausage is incredible.
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1300 Robson Street, Vancouver (Robson Street District)
If you ever was looking for a place that was stereotypically Canadian to celebrate your Canadianess and sport your red and black flannel without being questioned, then Timber is your go to place to celebrate your patriotism. With the promise of always showing the hockey game, waitresses wearing plaid flannel and beaver hanging out by the entrance, there certainly is no other place in this city that screams "O Canada". Cleverly named for what must seem like an entire forest in their restaurant, Timber's long wooden bar tables and benches are lined with beautiful wood, or timber as they say in the industry. The space itself is very spacious, with long communal bar tables on the leftside when you walk in, a massive bar, a less rambunctions right side with tables for two or four, and a large area in the back for parties. The kitchen is completely open and you can look into it and watch the staff cook up the dishes. Timber takes no reservations, but on a Friday night (Black Friday night) at about 5:45 and a hockey game on, my friend Mateo and I were able to seat ourselves no problem. Timber has a lot of great looking cocktails and serving up a classy wine selection and a fantastic local beer selection. We decided to split a draft beer flight, which was $15 and so worth it. Probably my favourite part of the whole night. We had the Dageraad Blonde, Bridge Bourbon Blood Orange Wheat, Powell Street "Old jalopy" Pale Ale and a house Radler with fresh grapefruit juice. Radler was the first "beer" I ever had, so I had get that - and I loved it!. My other favourite was the Blonde. However, the food was a little less impressive. We ordered a bannock to share (which was half off, thanks to happy hour that runs from 3-6PM!), I had the perogies and Mateo had the elk (elk?!) tourtiere. The last time I had bannock was in grade 4, when my class did an overnight stay at one of the Coast Salish Big Houses in Squamish as part of Outdoor Education. We cooked bannock on a stick over an open fire. Nearly 10 years later, I was eating it again with a delicious plum chutney. This dish took me back to grade 4, and I was hooked. The bannock was nice and soft and perfectly cooked, and the plum chutney was incredible and paired so well with it. I was unfortunately not as fond of the main dishes that we ordered. I was debating between the mac and cheese and the perogies, and ultimately going with the perogies made me question my choice. The three perogies were served on a small plate over a blanket of sour cream and topped with roasted Ambrosia apple, cheddar, smoked onions and sauerkraut. I personally love perogies, but I did not like these at all. For starters, I thought that the center was a little bland, and the flavours of the sweeter apple and sour sauerkraut made for a confusing dish. As well, the wrap of the perogies were incredibly soggy - probably because they were swimming in sour cream - and were the consistency of Chinese dumplings that sit in soup. It was really weird for me, and I was expecting to bite into a pork center; instead, I was faced with a colourless, flavourless unknown. I had the option to add bacon (+$4) or brisket (+$6), and in the interest of saving money I politely declined. It might have been worth my while to do so. Oh well. Mateo offered me a few bites of his elk tourtiere that had a lard crust and was served with a green tomato ketchup. I couldn't really get past the lard crust, but it was good - like puff pastry but a little denser. But in all, it was just the crust and the minced elk, which made it kind of like a shepherd's pie without the mashed potatoes or the peas. In a word, really underwhelming for the price, but I guess it's made up for in size. From what I saw at other tables, the bison burger looked delicious and the mac and cheese looked like a fair size as well. But bone marrow? I'm not too sure if I can stomach that. While the food wasn't that great, the service was quick and friendly, something that I appreciate in a business. Timber is definitely a walk on the Canadian side, but I think that I can be a Canadian and afford to leave this out of my national identity. Timber also serves a weekend brunch, which I might check out one day. However, I would only suggest making your way out to Timber if you happen to be in the area or if you have a car. Walking from either Granville or Burrard station takes about 12 minutes, and if you aren't fond of the unknown parts of the animal or soggy wannabe perogies, then don't make a special trip. Perhaps cozy up at home in your own plaid flannel, get yourself a cup of tim Horton's coffee and enjoy some mac and cheese in front of a roaring fireplace. 151 E Broadway Street, Vancouver (Mount Pleasant)
A new edition to the Main Street strip, Fable Diner brings the diner experience to a whole other level. Ever since opening their doors in early July 2016, the spinoff of Fable Restaurant in Kitsilano aims to bring a classy twist to classic diner foods - think burgers and milkshakes rubbing shoulders with Ancho Salmon and gnocchi. Located in the historic Lee Building, the restaurant interior blew my mind away. Fable Diner tried to maintain the integrity of classic diner furniture. Faux leather booths, chrome frames around mirrors and very 50s-inspired wallpaper prints all with a classy, Vancouver touch: forest green and woody caramel faux leather, birch-coloured wood and clean white tiles. The decor made my heart stop. However, this was as far as it went when it came to being mindblown. Classic diner food aside, many of the dishes that are on Fable Diner's menu are just classic, comfort foods to begin with. I went with my fellow food columnist Gemma to go scope out the place for The Peak and we were slightly underwhelmed at the food. We decided to order one share plate and have one breakfast item (for her) and one lunch item (for me) - all of which can be found on their all day menu. To start, we shared their Baked Macaroni & Cheese, a new item on their menu that was recommended to us. Mac & Cheese is my jam, so I was looking forward to trying this one. This particular version was not totally flawed - the cheese sauce, which was made up of cheddar, parmesan and swiss cheeses, was super creamy and flavourful. In all honesty, they should have stopped it right there, and if they wanted to bake it, top it with some breadcrumbs and maybe some more parmesan, throw it in the oven and voila, there's your baked Mac. However, the chefs went to great lengths for this one - the dish was baked and topped with breadcrumbs, feta cheese, and corn nuts. The feta cheese was a little off, and this is coming from someone who likes feta cheese. The flavour was too strong and frankly distracted me from the cheese sauce. But when I wasn't being distracted by the feta, the corn nuts got me: crunchy chip like chunks that were completely out of place and just ruined the overall texture. I feared that I would chip a tooth with this one. Gemma ordered the Veggie BLT (which is found on their breakfast menu, oddly enough) and I ordered the FD Burger. We both got an order of housemade creamy tomato soup as a side. I tried a few bites of the Veggie BLT, which obviously doesn't have any bacon in it since it's veggie. But the bacon was replaced with something out of the blue - smoked shiitake mushrooms. If you've ever had any dishes with shiitake mushrooms in them, you'll know that they are slimy and slippery and just unpleasant. Biting into that in a sandwich was not a good day. The FD Burger was a standard burger that allowed you the option of a variety of add-ons ranging from $1-2 in price. We're talking basic stuff like a cheddar slice or bacon and really wacky stuff like cola onions and kimchi. I just went classic with a cheese slice in my housemade, double pattied burger that had lettuce, tomato, pickles and a special housemade sauce. There is nothing special about this burger; but then again, I'm not sure what I was expecting. However, the biggest problem that arose with this burger was the fact that the patties are cooked at medium-well. Ground beef in any kind of manifestation should always be cooked well done to avoid food poisoning. Apparently, medium-well burger patties were at one point taboo (because hello, salmonella?), but are now making a comeback as the new hip thing. I didn't notice this on the menu until afterwards. Needless to say, I had a stomach ache afterwards and felt overall very squeamish. We could potentially point fingers in a couple different places, but I think we can all agree on the undercooked ground beef. The one saving grace was the creamy tomato soup. Step aside, Campbell's, Fable has this down. A delicious little soup that is not too sour and just creamy enough to the point where it is so light. There are no words, which might be a good thing after all of the disappointment that I felt already. All the desserts and the milkshakes looked and sounded delicious, but unfortunately (or maybe not?) we were too full to try any of them, nor did we try any of their cute little cocktails. I say cute because each of the cocktails are named after a fable. I will give their service the credit that it is due - their service is phenomenal. Our server was incredibly friendly and helped us answer all the questions that we had about the food. Despite how busy it was that day, all the servers were professional, friendly, and the food came out quite promptly, and frankly much quicker than other places that were much less busy, so kudos to them! I had been waiting to go to Fable Diner for a long time, and the moral of the story (as with many other things in life) is to not put anything on a pedestal. I had high expectations for what was described in the media as a upscale diner experience that brought unique and innovative tastes to the table. Maybe it was the high expectations or maybe we chose the wrong combination of dishes. Don't judge a book by its cover, and of course, take this review with a grain of salt. But maybe steer clear of these dishes and find something else that tickles your fancy. I plan on returning sometime in the future - after my stomach forgives me first. 101 W Cordova Street, Vancouver (Gastown)
I went to La Casita with my friend Douglas to celebrate National Taco Day (October 4), which coincidentally was on a Tueday! There are a lot of taco restaurants in Gastown, and La Casita is a brilliant example of this. We were at La Casita around 6:30, which I thought would have been a busy time but surprisingly was not. After being seated relatively quickly, we got our drinks and complimentary chips with two different kinds of salsa. Tacos were on special that day for 4 for $10 with choices such as fish, carnitas, chicken, mixed veggies, and others - the exact ones that I chose! The tacos were delicious, with my favourite one being the mixed veggie taco, which had potatoes, cauliflower, and a really great crema fresca. On the flip side, I didn't really like the fish taco - fish tacos that I have had in the past were usually fried but this one had fish that looks like it came from a can, which was interesting. In all, the tacos were delicious and the decor of La Casita is super quirky with pinatas hanging from the ceiling. The one thing that brought me down was the service - the restaurant wasn't super busy during the time and it took a long time for our order to be taken. However, the food was delicious and further proves that our taco scene is unique and amazing.
105 E Pender Street, Vancouver (Chinatown)
"Chinatown's finest currywurst," it says on Bestie's simple website. A quick Google search on what exactly currywurst explains that it is a type of German fast food which consists of a German bratwurst that is served with curry ketchup. Having never heard of or tried anything of this nature before, I had always been eager to try out Bestie's unique fare, and I recently had the opportunity to do so. After a long day of biking, we wandered into Chinatown and checked into thehumble restaurant; Sporting white walls and colourful vinyl furniture, the smell of bratwurst and fries filled the room. I ordered the Salad Banger Combo which consists of any bratwurst and two sides. I chose the classic pork Thüringer and paired it with cheesy fries and a salad of the day, whch was a mean black bean salad. It was the perfect portion size. The bratwurst was DELICIOUS! My friend tried something also quite interesting: a Leberkäse Melt, which is Bestie's take on a Bavarian burger that has fine German meatloaf with onions and apples. My favourite part about the whole meal was the sauces - the amazing mustard and the curry ketchup! I wish I had more room for their ice cream sandwiches - one of these days, I will return for those! Go check out Bestie, with your bestie! 1305 Commercial Drive, Vancouver (The Drive) I've always loved board games growing up as a kid, and when I found out that board game restaurants were actually a thing in the city, I knew that I had to check it out! On this holiday, Victoria day Monday, my friends and I checked out Storm Crow Tavern on Commercial Drive., which is dubbed by the restaurant as "Vancouver's original nerd bar". And they are indeed right - the vintage-y wooden furniture is decked out with Star Trek posters, Minecraft swords, comic book clippings, and a huge shelf that was filled with various board and card games. To combat the not so sunny weather, we deicded to check it out and play a classic, Monopoly. We got there right when it opened, so we were able to get seats right away. I heard that it usually gets quite packed in the evenings, so this was super nice to get a seat without having to wait! Due to the fact that it was a holiday, they were serving their weekend brunch. We each ordered Eggs Benny, which you could build yourself. The Benny came with the English muffin and the poached egg x 2, and you could two items such as cheese, bacon, sausage, avocado.. the list goes on. This dish comes with some fruit and super yummy hashbrowns. Everything was delicious! To add the already competitive nature of our Monopoly game, we ordered mimosas, which were also quite nice. Great atmosphere, friendly service, and definitely something unique in the city where you can have fun the old school way! However, one thing I did notice is that the brunch menu that they have on their website versus what I had in front of me in persion is completely different - online, they advertise that they have things like "Fantasy Frittata" or "Stuffed Banana Bread French Toast", neither of which I saw on the menu today. I'm not sure if the regular lunch/dinner menu is like that too, so I would defiitely suggest not getting too attached to a dish when you are checking out the place online, just in case the menu is completely different! Other than that, the place is an absolute gem and a whole lot of fun. 12 Water Street, Vancouver (Gastown) | 4288 Main Street, Vancouver (Main Street)
I've begun to realize how many vegetarian/vegan friends I have as well as how abundant Vancouver's vegetarian/vegan scene has become! Spoiler alert: vegetarian food is awesome! One evening I went with my old friend Rebbecca to Meet, which is a vegan restaurant that boasts a super chill vibe and delicious vegan fare. The original location is on Main Street, but earlier in 2016, they opened a second location in Gastown! The restaurant is located in the inner courtyard behind Coffeebar, and it is all kinds of perfect. One of the walls even opens up to the courtyard, giving off the feeling of eating outside while sitting comfortably inside. We showed up around 6:30, which was apparently the perfect time. After about 10 minutes, we got our table, and once we started dinner, we looked to see that it was not only packed inside but outside as well - the wait was apparently 45 minutes to get in! The food was incredible - I tried their Mac and Cheese, which, when vegan, uses no cheese at all. Regardless, it was incredibly flavourful and delicious and didn't taste any different from regular Mac and Cheese. Rebbecca had the organic quinoa and roasted yam salad which looked incredible, and she enjoyed! Great atmosphere and service at Meet! The one thing I will say about the place is due to its popularity and busy-ness, it gets quite loud, so talking and catching up becomes a challenge. If you are looking for a quieter place to talk to someone, Meet might not be your place. Nevertheless, Meet has got me all hyped up for vegetarian and vegan food and I will definitely be back again! 307 Cordova Street, Vancouver (Gastown)
TASTE: 4/5 SERVICE: 3/5 PRICE: $$ I swear, I'm not a greedy pig. But The Greedy Pig, a cozy little nook in Gastown, serves up all things pork and it's amazing. Perfect on a chilly night, their sandwiches filled with hearty helpings of meat is every meat lover's dream. So vegetarians, beware. Unfortunately I was feeling under the weather the entire week and the days that followed, but I do not regret my decision to go and have their pulled pork sandwich. The tangy sauce that slathered the braised pork totally livened up my senses - way better than eating plain bread. Because of my sickness (boo) I couldn't join my friend Mateo in a drink either. They have a selection of $8 creative cocktails and some red and white wines to choose from. It's a really cozy ambiance as well, with vintage booths, wooden high tables and very dim, with the only lights coming from the tiny candles sitting on all the tables. So if you're in the mood for meat, go check out The Greedy pig. Or, if meat is your thing but you're not really feeling it that day, check out their other options like their Mac & Cheese, Grilled Cheese Sandwich, or Root Vegetable Pot Pie.
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