Jeffy Boy

My personal favourite, which happens to be another of Coop's recommendations, is Pho Thy, on Victoria at 39th. The pho is excellent, and the spring rolls are superb. I think it's the spring rolls that keep me coming back. I've also been curious to try a "Vietnamese sub", which I've seen at a number of places. What are they like?

Is he nuts? Why just today another old lady criminally mistook the gas pedal for the brake in the parking lot of the Semiahmoo Mall and launched herself through a plate glass window. (most common crime in White Rock).

Two ideas: "Goin' to Grandma's" - your twenty-something host follows some (good looking) twenty-something to their grandma's house for dinner, where she still make it the way they made it back in the old country. Play up the great traditional cuisine, and the importance of maintaining connections with your family and heritage. Show always ends with a toast made in the native tongue. Opa! "It's (Not Quite) a Living" - reality show - follow along for a day with some guy who's life revolves around partying, probably lives at home, and works at a fast food place in order to earn beer money.

Cosmo's on Marine Drive in White Rock is good. Go sometime other than Friday or Saturday night if you want to avoid the belly dancers. They're not exactly the first team - I think they work the Delta/Surrey/Langley circuit.

I think the place in Lansdowne is actually called Curry Express - I love that place! I went to (Playland) at the PNE a few weeks ago. I had a snowcone there, and it was made with chunks of ice that were way too big (not shaved ice). Imagine the crap shooting out of a snowblower digging into the frozen pile left at the foot of a driveway in suburban Montreal after the plow has come by. All the flavour ended up at the bottom.

Although I don't believe it for a minute, I'm intrigued about the no-hangover claims. If someone could invent a no-hangover beer, they would be rich. I know I'd drink it. Probably a lot of it!

I've also become an Ouzo fan recently, after a great visit to a Greek restaurant. I'm currently working on a bottle of Ouzo Boutari. I prefer mine with equal parts Ouzo and water, with lots of ice.

It all comes down to supply and demand, simple economics. If a restaurant can charge a high price for wine, and "get away with it", more power to them! Nobody is forcing anyone to go to that restaurant. If their prices are more than the market will bear, those chickens will eventually come home to roost (no repeat business or word of mouth).

Sounds like a beautiful evening: friends, family, good food, good wine. I wish I was there. You are SO right that life is short and that you only live once. I believe I will go get myself another beer! Cheers!

Welcome to eGullet, butter! I haven't been to Shiru Bay, but found a review that helped shed some light on what they might be up to. I think it's all quite clearly explained in the name of the place that appears on their sign: "Shiru-Bay Chopstick Café Izakaya-ism Japanese Fusion Gourmet Bistro Tapas Bar Flavour of Tokyo". You see, it's a tapas bar, with flavours of Tokyo, but it's really kind of a bistro, but it's so good you would call it gourmet, and then there's this whole fusion thing going on too. Does that sound like what you ate?

Hi Kristian, and welcome to Vancouver. Most beautiful city on the planet! Best liquor store I've found in the Vancouver area is the one at Cambie & 39th, in Vancouver (not too far from Richmond). The selection is quite good. The liquor stores in Richmond are all pretty basic, unfortunately. There are also a couple of specialty stores downtown Vancouver, where you might find some more obscure brands.

Also in Courtenay is Tita's, which has excellent and surprisingly authentic Mexican. Havent tried that one, where is it? Tita's is on 6th Street. (click on the link for more info, including their menu).

Also in Courtenay is Tita's, which has excellent and surprisingly authentic Mexican.

Yes, how does he recover his $1M investment? Granted, some of it may be "necessary" maintenance, but anything beyond that is wasted if it doesn't somehow help him increase volume, increase his selling price, or decrease his operating costs. To use Kevin's car analogy, if I'm in the taxi business, and I've got a '98 Buick Century that needs some maintenance, maybe I need to spend a couple thousand on it - needs new brakes, tires, and some transmission work. But blowing $20K "pimpin'" it with new chrome wheels, custom paint and interior neon lighting is probably not a good investment. Unless of course I'm actually going into the pimp business.

Sorry, still doesn't compute. That would explain why it might not cost him $1,010,000. I don't know how you could spend a million on just the kitchens. And as Keith says, you're pissing it away if you can't generate revenue from it. Maybe it's a TV studio / kitchen? I could see that costing a bundle.

Excellent! NZ Sauvignon Blancs and Rieslings are among my favs. Bring 'em on.

I think you're right about the Greek place. My wife reminded me last night that it was, in fact, crappy. I was confusing it with another place.

I'd second the vote for Red Rooster. It's my favourite in Naramata. Elephant Island is also unique and worth a visit, for its fruit-based wines - like cherry, blackcurrant, crab apple, cassis. Quite unique, and it's serious wine, not shit-made-outa-stuff-other-than-grapes. If you've got time, I'd think about checking out a couple of wineries before heading up to Penticton/Naramata: Burrowing Owl, Gehringer Bros and Tinhorn Creek in Oliver; and Hawthorne Mountain and Blasted Church in Okanagan Falls. Penticton's not exactly a mecca of fine dining, but Theo's is a good spot for Greek food. And though I haven't been, I've heard good things about Villa Rosa for Italian.

I'm onto Ouzo at the moment. Ouzo, on ice, with equal part water. Delicious, refreshing. Anesthetizes your tongue. Then your brain.

I think you'd have to be insane to run a restaurant today and not have some kind of presence on the web. At least the basic info - location, phone number, hours. If you can post a menu that's up to date, even better. While I agree some of the flash stuff can be annoying, I've come to expect it for a high-end restaurant. Or at least a good looking web site with some pretty pictures of food. So it may be a marketing gimmick, but it works on me.

Actually I was suspicious he might be a partner in Kim Phung inc. Myself, I own shares of Prata Man, and am heavily invested in laksa futures.

I don't like how I cringe when I pick one up! I managed to break a stem when washing one the first time with no effort at all. Now I handle them like I'm defusing a bomb. And those stemless Reidels are the stupidest friggin' things I've ever seen. Anyone happy to hold a white wine by the bowl doesn't deserve Reidel.

I agree with these - if you want a 3rd type, I suggest a port glass. That size/shape works well for just about any dessert wine, and liqueurs too. Or maybe a champagne flute. OK, maybe you need 4 types....

Went last night to a new restaurant in Crescent Beach (South Surrey) named the Harbour House. The menu is Mediterranean / West Coast, and the place has been open for only two weeks. It's in a nice new building on Beecher St, and the inside looks like an elegant home. Both food and service were excellent - a pleasant surprise given they opened so recently. The two of us shared an antipasti platter to start, a nice assortment of meats, cheese, olives and grilled vegetables. My osso bucco was very nice, and my wife had a good Penne Bolognese. Both paired well with a bottle of Fetzer Zinfandel. Prices were quite reasonable, with entrees running in the $17-25 range. I think this restaurant raises the bar in the South Surrey/White Rock area. The chef is 26 year old Kevin Wall, who obviously learned a few tricks at Villa del Lupo. Harbour House has no presence on the web yet, but their phone # is 604-542-3271.

Coop, With your suggestions, I've been to both Kim Phung and Pho Thy, and they are head & shoulders (and tendon and tripe ) above my previous, limited pho experience at Pho Hoa in Richmond. Pho Hoa is mass-produced mediocrity by comparison. I was at Pho Thy just today for lunch - got a small #2 soup (terrific) and an order of the deep fried spring rolls. I think the spring rolls were the best I've ever had - crispy, tasty, delicious. 8 bucks total.