appreciator

Well.... I'm not sure if they have them or not but, you may want to give them a try as it would make sense for a place called Brioche to actually make them And if you scroll along in this Best Pain au Chocolat in Vancouver?, Who cares about calories! thread, you will come across recommendations for brioche from both SenSes and Sweet Obsession. This thread also has a recommendation for SenSes brioche: Yummy Christmas Goodies, What's good around town? And this thread Best baked goods on my route to work, Whither do I find my morning muffin? 3rds the recommendation for SenSes. Folks, I think we have a winner.. .ding, ding, ding OOPS.... I've just re-read your initial post and you aren't looking for "brioche" but "brioche bread". Whole other tray of muffins. Oh well. Perhaps SenSes or Sweet Obsession or Brioche may still be good places to check out. edited because I should read more carefully before I post

Glad to hear that you had a great time again at Vij's... from my experience the food is always good and Vikram is the consummate host. Now I'm sure you will enjoy C again and just so you know, I did not leave it off my original list of recommendations for any reason other than that you already planned on going there. As to West and Chambar... absolutely top notch choices. I'm sure you won't be disappointed and as I am link happy today will add some further praise to your reading material. First up links to other threads on West: West Early Prix Fixe, Tried it yet? West Restaurant, DOV Experience West Restaurant in Vancouver, Tasting menu at the Chef's Table Awards and recognition for West & Chef Hawksworth And now Chambar: April 25th Dinner @ Chambar, Chamber Going to Chambar tomorrow night (sat 16th), Must have menu items? While this thread is not specifically about Chambar, it sings the praises of it, along with other restaurants we've recommended above: Good Eats Near UBC This one's probably interesting from a "historical perspective" Chambar Opening? Okay... that's probably more than you needed Oh and p.s. Aurora isn't open for lunch at least according to their website: Aurora Bistro

You can find it at... Dundarave Wine Cellar 2448 Marine Drive West Vancouver, BC V7V 1L1 Phone: (604) 921-1814 Hours: Sun - Tue 10-8; Wed-Sat 10-9 Dundarave has a delivery of the King Merlot coming in this week, so the winery tells me. Phone to put some on hold, it may go fast. They received a case last week so maybe there's a few bottles left on the shelf...or not. cm ← Thank you Chef Metcalf.... now another reason to head to West Van. After meeting Kim and Frank (I think?) of the Dundarave Fish Market at Chambar on Monday night, I'm very interested in visiting their place as well. So Dundarave Wine Cellar to pick up wine, lunch at the Dundarave Fish Market followed by a stop at Whole Foods, pretty much rounds out a Sunday afternoon

Well there's Chambar, Adesso, Bistro Pastis, Cru, Parkside, West, Lumiere, Le Crocodile Bacchus, Il Giardino and many, many more. Don't forget to pop into the Hamilton Street Grill for Vancouver Egullet indoctrination via Gingerbread Pudding... pretty much key to your whole Vancouver Foodie Experience I'd say. I've never eaten at any of the places that you've referenced above so can't say how any of my recommendations compare but I'm sure someone else will pop in with that info. I also think we've covered some recs before I'm going to see if I can dig up some links and report back. Here's one and seeing as we've been having such fabulous weather lately, it's almost like August right now: Two nights in Vancouver in August, Where do we want to eat? in case you want to try some Asian food there's this thread: Asian food in Vancouver, Help me plan my trip! This thread was kinda fun: Culinary Tourist in Vancouver, How would you spend your day? I think that's about as far back digging as I can go... but I know that there are quite a few more threads with specific "I'm coming to Vancouver, where should I eat recommendations ". edited to add links and to add a couple of places I inadvertantly forgot.

I was looking for the KV King Merlot this past weekend and could only come up with a Merlot. Even their website doesn't call it King Merlot so I am just wondering if this is something special that may have only been at this tasting, or has anyone seen this anywhere around town. The Broadway International Wine Store at Broadway and Macdonald carries a few KV wines, including a Merlot. I tried their Brakeman's Select which is a blend of Pinot Noir, Merlot and selected other red varieties. I won't bother to attempt to describe it as all attempts at such are mostly useless, but I will say that we enjoyed it, especially after it had been open for a couple of hours. Here's a link to the KVW website in case anyone is interested: Kettle Valley Winery I guess I could fire off an email to them to inquire about the King Merlot but thought I'd try to get more details here first. edited because I can't spell!

Sure... 'cept for those of us who have been banned due to our "faulty" taste buds

I think some of the patio issue has to do with percentage of seats outside compared to number of seats inside, number of washrooms etc. Not sure what the deal is with patio umbrellas though. Is anyone interested in knowing why certain regulations regarding patios and patio furniture are in place and what purpose they serve? P.S. Like your movie sketch there Zuke.... are you shopping this around yet?

Felicia's sounds great.... I've added it to my list!

You're most welcome! It took me quite a while to come up with that list and I see that I missed a place I've never heard of Felicia's! Where might this place be and what have you heard about it? Nosy parkers want to know By chance is this the sushi lunch you are planning to have at Shiro? If so, you may want to check to see that they're open for lunch on Saturday because I have a sneaking suspicion that they aren't. If you're going for dinner just never mind me. I'm sure you will love it there as those of us Shiro fans will attest!

This is a cool thread but I can't believe how long my list is and I'm sure I've missed out on some great places that I just can't think of right now. I'm going to have to get busy. Maybe I should tackle them in alpha or reverse alpha order Accent's (Contemporary European Cuisine) {heh, I'm curious} All India Sweets & Restaurant Amacord Aurora Bistro Ba Guo Bu Yi Szechuan Baru Blue Water Cafe Bravo Bistro Brix C Cafe Artigiano Cafe D'Lite Cassis Chambar (soon to be ticked off the list) Ch'i Cioppino Circolo Coco Pazzo Cru Diva Elysian Room Epic Felicia's Go Fish Gotham Gramercy Grill (I believe someone from Herald Street Cafe runs this place) Hapa Izakaya Henry's Kitchen Hermitage Horizon's (the view's gotta be worth something) House of Selassie Il Nido Japone Kirin (I'm hoping that the dim sum here will finally convert me) Le Gavroche Lift Liliget Feast House Living Room (now that it's changed hands) Long's Noodle House Lunch Box Soup Maurya Modern Club Montri's Nemoto Cafe Nickie's & Lola's Ocean 6 Seventeen Octopus's Garden Okada Pair Bistro Parkside Phat's Phnom Phen Raincity Grill Random Rangoli Relish Rodney's Sausi's Saveur Savoury Coast Shiru Bay Spice Islands Indonesian Restaurant Tamarind (crossing this off in early May) The Ordinary Cafe The Pear Tree The Reef Tojo's Totoyo Umami Velvet Cafe Vintropolis West Wild Rice William Tell Yuji's (only had take out and I don't think that did the place justice) And I didn't even include places in North/West Vancouver, Whistler, the Fraser Valley or Vancouver Island. We are very lucky to have such fantastic places to choose from, no wonder it can make for such a long list! edited to add: Raincity Grill (how could I forget?!), Felicia's 'cuz it sounds like a cool neighbourhood type place, and to fix the name of Ocean 6 Seventeen (ty Tarteausucre

I finally have a dessert that I think is worthy of mentioning here. Butterscotch Pot de Creme with dark chocolate toffee crunch. Flavoured with premium scotch and topped with dark chocolate cream. Shared it with a few other people at a dinner gathering last week and it was unbelievably good. Smooth chocolately, butterscotchy goodness. Normally, I am not a dessert person, but I think I could have even eaten a whole one of these myself. Now... I bet you're wondering where I had this marvel..... wait for it.... Milestones. Yes, that's right. And the rest of the meal was pretty darn good as well. But that dessert, man-o-man, I'll be getting some more before their spring promo ends.

So the objection to this whole thing is that chefs/ restaurateurs of a certain calibre should not, in their right mind, endorse anything that "we" the dining public deign to be inferior. Is that the gist of it? Frankly that seems a little elitist to me. White Spot has been an institution in Vancouver since 1928. Rightly or wrongly, they have their place. I think we have yet to get to the bottom of what this current campaign may be about so who are we to cast aspersions. While checking out the White Spot website though, their latest promotion seems to be Spring Salads White Spot Spring Salad Festival... one of which is a calamari caesar salad... sound familiar to anyone?

As a friend of mine said to me on Sunday, while I was griping about someone squished beside me in the cattle call that is aka the Sun Run with their umbrella dripping a small waterfall down my back, ...."there will always be inconsiderate people out there, get used to it". And I think that goes for this whole birthday cake scenario too. Customers are going to show up with all kinds of bizarre requests, their own food, their own wine (if they think they can get away with it), cheerios for the kiddies etc. I guess you could just give them the old heave ho when you witness one of these aberrations but undoubtedly that is probably not going to garner the best lasting impression. Better to slap on a smile and suck it up. Your graciousness will be remembered, especially by the birthday person. Disclaimers.... "you" being the collective you, not anyone in particular. Oh and waylman.... glad you had such a great meal at Chambar. I'm really looking forward to trying it myself in the not too distant future.

Ann (or anyone else) have you tried this place yet? I was having a post sun run brunch with some fellow runners at Stamps Landing Pub today and took a quick peak at their menu. Looks pretty good so I am curious to give it a try one of these days but would be interested to hear any early reports. Alas, I can't recall the name... something with numbers in it though, perhaps.

Thanks Shellback for the insider scoop... always good to know. One thing about sushi... you want it to be "fresh"! And I agree, busy restaurants are a good thing... you know the turnover is going to be there And thanks Sam re: the name of the place on 4th and Burrard - Totoyo. I too have been meaning to check it out... just haven't ventured down that way for a while. Lauraf.... I used to like Shijo... food was always quite good (though a tad pricey) but frankly, they could use a makeover, or at least a paint job. Now I know that shouldn't necessarily detract from the cuisine but to me it does. When I go out for a nice meal and I'd rank Shijo up there in that category, then I want ambiance and service as well as food. Chipped paint and dried flower arrangements don't cut it. Now granted, I haven't been in a while so perhaps they have made some updates. If so, I'll definitely be back. Alaskan black cod (aka sablefish) robato(sp?)... yum, yum, yum.

Possibly... but I worked there a long, long, long time ago. At least it feels that way. Okay... just pulled out an old resume... it was indeed a long time ago... 1988 to be exact! I can remember getting there earlier and earlier almost on a weekly basis because of those darn people addicted to their early morning espresso. We were supposed to open at 8:30 or so and had to get in at least an hour ahead of time for prep. The regulars would see us and start knocking on the door, requesting a "quick" espresso. Next thing you know... we end up opening the doors at 7:30 because we're there and may as well keep the regulars happy. That's what it's all about right? Oh those were the days....

The name of the place that makes Jamaican patties on MacDonald is, funnily enough, The Patty Shop. (4019 MacDonald Street, (604) 738-2144) There used to be a good place for rotis etc. on 4th called Roti Bistro but I'm not sure if it's still there. Maybe someone else knows. Here's a link to a mini review in VanMag:Roti Bistro mini review

Actually, that is a great idea. Will report back next week! ← So.... bagel tasting brunch at your place on Sunday... when should we all be there? "kidding"

Man o man you get around, don't you Morris? Just the other day you were reaking bloody havoc over at the wine fest while continuing to ingratiate yourself amonst the powers that be at Earls....''' When will it all end? When will you have sewn all that you reap? Okay... that was pretty bloody lame (but better than I had before ).....

re: emoticons... eeets the blushing one I want.... most closely resembles my natural state.... will try some clickety clickety. Encountered some very knarly emoticons earlier today in an email. I'd link 'em but just bet they're fraught with issues. So suspicious am I! Back to sushi.... how about that place on 4th and Burrard? Has a name that I obviously can’t remember.... Sam's been there I think... And thank you Lorna.... seems like Tuesday evening through Thursday evening may be best.... Helpful hints in action. Anyone want to tackle my (organized) tax return????

Recent thread by Deborah has brought this up in my mind. I want to know when the fish is delivered and therefore what day is best to hit what sushi bar. Anyone care to share some insider knowledge? I'm thinking about a chart (happy to plot one if provided with info btw): Bob's sushi palace - deliver most fish Sunday a.m. - eat there later that afternoon; Joe's sushi emporium - deliver most fish Mondays after midnight - best eat there on Tuesday; Jane's Sushi express - fresh (flash frozen) fish deliveries daily.... what else do you expect from a woman in business? Bwha, hah, hah. Seriously folks, this info would be good to know. May spawn a topic elsewhere about deliveries.... but starting with fish seems to be .. timely Oh, and yes.... I do realize that most fish needs to be flash frozen before serving raw... so please keep that in mind w/ your replies. P.S.... where might one find the other emoticons beside which those are displayed at left... I'm thinking: embarrassed, bloated, chuffed etc./

I'm going to have to try Aji-sai again after the notes here and in other threads. Last time I ate there (close to when they opened), the chef was extremely rude to his waitresses (spoke to them in Japanese so only those who understand would have a clue) (sorry M, but it's true) and the food was a bit different than expected. Not that this is a bad thing (food, not communication), just different. As an example, the dynamite rolls are not fried and served rolled in corn flakes as I recall. I think they tasted oka - good, not great but can't quite recall specifics. Other items on the menu were quite tasty. One of the servers used to work at Taka (obviously one of my favs, as you'll note if you read elsewhere in this forum), and she is great. I'll need to go there again to see how things are these days. And thus... a new thread is spawned.... where and when to get the best sushi in Vancouver.

Andrew, I too have to add my kudos to your post above. In fact, it’s actually one of the best posts I've read for a while. Now don't let that go to your head I think that the best restaurant reviews come from people (whoever they may be) who truly love food and love to eat (simplistic as this may be). Let's face it, we all have different tastes and those tastes are pretty subjective. But c'mon, who isn't sucked in by a comment such as: That's just an example, and I've only pulled from Andrew's post because, A) it rocked, and B) it was handy. I've read some great reviews by many of our local resto critics; Jamie (of course), Tim Pawsey, Mia Stansby etc. but what really grabs my attention is actually things out of the ordinary from those who are not in the professional critic biz. While perusing various periodicals, you will occasionally come across snippets as part of other commentary that just make you want to dive in and see what that person is talking/raving about. Sometimes...in those out of the ordinary places.... you read something so striking that it draws you right in and you know you're going to go and try it at the very first opportunity. To me, those places are where magic is found

re: "the seagull has landed" too funny I used to work at the bagel place on 6th and Fir and we had some, shall we say interesting , thoughts/comments about visitations from him as well.

Best brunch I've had in recent memory, and possibly ever, was at Feenie's. Absolutely f'ing fantastic smoked salmon benedict. And the regular coffee is some of the best restaurant coffee I've every had.