Paul B

Tools and Techniques, the venerable cookware store in West Vancouver (16th between Marine and Belleville) is closing down -- the owner is retiring. Everything in the store is 25-50% off. I scored a nice Scanpan pan there last night.

Simplest thing in the world -- I invented it one night because of what was to hand: peas with pesto. Shell and cook the peas. Toss them with pesto and a bit of olive oil. My kids went nuts for them. I also lost to throw some peas into a lemon risotto.

Start with the oysters and beer. Go to cassoulet and good red wine. Finish with serious cheeses, some grapes, and more red wine. Simple, but the last meal I'd eat if I knew my time was up.

Is it similar to Taiwanese jerky? There's a place in the Aberdeen Centre in Richmond (suburb of Vancouver where the airport is located) that makes this treat. It's made fresh in sheets and sold by weight in a variety of flavors. I always buy it when I'm there because it's addictive. Have to try the Vietnamese version. . .

Do they list out the Wine Spectator and Wine Advocate scores on their wines? ← They had some posted. And, by the way, they do some serious wine tasting at a central bar at certain hours every day. Woot!

On Sunday my wife and I dropped our son off at the airport early in the morning. We then headed into Richmond hoping to score some dim sum. But either we were looking in the wrong places or it was simply too early -- we couldn't find any place open. Then we saw a very busy parking lot in the Market Square (Central Square?) plaza -- this is the one just south of the Aberdeen Centre. People were streaming into a little restaurant called the Lido. Naturally, we followed. We had to wait a few minutes to be seated and while we did a young woman, surprised (I think) to see occidentals in the restaurant, told us she comes all the way from Coquitlam to have breakfast at the Lido. She recommended the pineapple buns. We got a seat and were confronted with a menu and signs entirely in Chinese. Eventually an English menu was found and we noted different types of baking, congee, rice rolls, "instant noodles," and not much else. We ordered two pineapple buns, a bowl of smoked duck congee that came with a turnip cake, and a beef rice roll. The buns came immediately and were still hot from the oven. Good, but a bit bland. The congee was fine -- not horribly salty like much congee I've had, but still rather bland. The rice rolls were big, soft, and fresh, but -- you guessed it -- bland. The turnip cake was terrific. The whole meal cost $13 and we were stuffed. So, here's the question -- this place is obviously recreating some essential Chinese culinary experience that draws people from all over the lower mainland. What is it? Is this a form of Hong Kong diner that I'm not familiar with? Does anyone know? People were lined up out the door when we left. I'm not sure I'd go back to the restaurant for the food, but it was an interesting culture experience.

998 Marine Drive, right across the street from the Indigo Books. It's in the new building that went up there after last year's fire. The original branch is in Victoria -- I've not been to it. The new one has only been open for a bit over a week. Here's a map: http://www.everythingwine.ca/locations.htm

I had a chance to nip into the new Everything Wine store on Marine Drive in North Vancouver. I only had a few minutes (I'll go back this weekend) but my first impression was pretty durn good. Nice layout, lots of interesting wines, and what appeared to be some serious bargains. Now, I'll be the first to admit that my wine knowledge is restricted -- I'm not bad on Italians -- so I was hoping the more knowledgeable would chime in on what they saw as good deals in the store. Cheers!

My wife just got the seeds she ordered from the island. I always insist she gets some heirloom tomatoes. This year she's also got a whole whack of lettuce varietals. Fingers crossed.

Savary Island in West Van makes great ones every year at this time. Haven't checked yet to see if they're in, but chances are.

Next week I'll be in town for a conference at the Fairmont Dallas on Akard Street. Officially it's in the Arts District, but seems fairly close to the West End. Are there any options for cheap meals in that neighborhood? Like, within walking distance? For breakfast I'd even be willing to go for fast food. Many thanks in advance. I've never been to Dallas before. Looking forward to it.

Shalizar is, bizarrely, about 100 meters from my house but I still haven't been there. Some neighbors went when it first opened and said that the food was okay but the service totally disorganized. But yesterday I was out with a friend who said he ate there recently and really liked it: good food and fine service (but no wine list to speak of). He said he'd go back. I guess I really should make the trip.

Boy, I hope so. Many thanks for the suggestions. I shall go armed.

Six of us are going to make the trek out to Surrey on Saturday to see the Jane Cardiff, Forty-Part Motet show. Afterwards we want to grab dinner, perhaps at one of Surrey's Indian restaurants. Any suggestions? The gallery is in Bear Creek Part at the corner of King George Highway and 88. Many thanks in advance.

Whole Foods gets in some interesting taters on occasion. But you best call before you make the trip.

I'm waiting for my wife to get home so I can get the car and go to a band practice from 5-7 while she goes to yoga from 6-7:30. So that I can have a quick meal on the table at half past 7, I've made pasta e fagioli with sausage. It's just simmering on the stove right now (3:30). I'll turn it off soon, let it sit on the stove (covered) while I'm at practice, then come home, stir in the sausage, and heat it up. Kids love it, I love it. Everyone's a winner.

Couldn't find the recipe. Please post or send it to me! Many thanks.

Well, I'm in the Fish Store in Ambleside at least once a week, but when I'm downtown I always grab fish at T&T (the Chinatown branch). Fresh? Most of it is ALIVE.

We went out on Saturday with two other couples to Chill (on the beachfront -- something like that) in the 1400 block of Marine Drive in West Van. This is in the space that used to be the Beachside Cafe. Anway, nice space, cool location (for West Van), but a rather odd experience. The service alternated between scattered ("Oh! You want to put your coats somewhere?") and aggressive ("Is everything delicious?"). It was also a bit slow considering that the place wasn't near full. Took forever to get our drinks, and most of those were just beers. Anyway, good news is the starters are great. Excellent ribs, crab cakes, and foccaccio. Nice salads. Bad news is that the main that they were pushing, pheasant, was dry and stringy. Almost inedible. We all agreed the best thing to do would be to order a bunch of starters and share. We didn't stay for dessert.

I'd go with the Lee Valley idea. A couple of super useful gadgets that they stock: the microplane grater; a nifty jar opened; a doohickey to hold your stirring spoon on the side of the pot. All well under $20.

Sounds good. I'll give them a try. Thanks.

Does anyone know a good, reliable Chinese food restaurant on the North Shore that delivers to the Ambleside area of West Van? We used to order from C-Wok, but it's been closed for almost a year and we haven't found a good replacement yet.

When a friend of mine, who couldn't boil water to save his life, became a bachelor a couple years back, I bought him a copy of Barber's Urban Peasant. It saved his life: simple, no-nonsense recipes that take the mystery out of cooking. I still make his sausage and cabbage strata. RIP.

The bakery on Granville Island (forget it's name, but it's outside the market) has parbaked French bread and various types of buns.

Yes, La Regalade for portions. I love that place, but even I (a fair trencherman) can rarely finish one of the daily specials. Memphis Blues is also a good bet -- especially if you get one of the assorted platters. Other places to think about: The Tomahawk in North Van for their burger lunches which are pretty durn big (at least the last time I was there); all-you-can-eat sushi places, like the one on Georgia not far from Denman. The Iranian take-out places (there's one near me on Marine near 14th in West Van, and another on Lonsdale) tend to give big portions. Some pubs can also be very generous with their meal portions, heavy on the fries, but your friend may not mind. But hey, if you want Brobdignagian portions, drive across the border.