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Hole in the Wall Restaurants


DarkDante

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I like to hear about some of your favorite hole in the wall restaurants.

I just found one today by Main and Broadway called Budgies. It is a great funky small place with burritos and tamales. The tamales there are delicious!

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cool topic! i love this place in surrey on 108th called Malaysian Hut. it's a very small family run restaurant that has very authentic malaysian/ singaporean food. I usually go there with my s'porean friends lol... they have a really good laksa and sambal eggs! mmm.... might be time to go there again.......

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I like to hear about some of your favorite hole in the wall restaurants.

I just found one today by Main and Broadway called Budgies.  It is a great funky small place with burritos and tamales.  The tamales there are delicious!

Budgies! I drove by it the other day and it looked a little scary - even for me. But I will check it out now that I know someone else done the deed. My memory of driving by it was it was on Kingsway on that triangle where it meets up with Main. Right behind where Bain's chocolates used to be - on the other side of the block of Aurora Bistro.

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Tandoori Palace on Commercial Drive & Grant.

Awesome, and I mean aaawesome Butter Chicken. Friendly, warm service, good food. And they deliver.

The belly rules the mind.
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I like to hear about some of your favorite hole in the wall restaurants.

I just found one today by Main and Broadway called Budgies.  It is a great funky small place with burritos and tamales.  The tamales there are delicious!

Budgies! I drove by it the other day and it looked a little scary - even for me. But I will check it out now that I know someone else done the deed. My memory of driving by it was it was on Kingsway on that triangle where it meets up with Main. Right behind where Bain's chocolates used to be - on the other side of the block of Aurora Bistro.

My mistake, that's the one. I got confused with how Kingsway and Main meet in that triangle. It was very busy when I went there today, so I took that as a good sign of a great place to try.

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No such luck on a website. Tandoori Palace is located at 1439 Commercial Drive, and their telephone number is 604-254-8452.

Aside from their butter chicken, I also love their mutter paneer, lamb curry, and aaloo gobi. Excellent mango lassis too!

Joie Alvaro Kent

"I like rice. Rice is great if you're hungry and want 2,000 of something." ~ Mitch Hedberg

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At Banano's on Pacific Ave in Yaletown (between Davie and Drake) you just have to try their menu! I think I can attribute at least a good 33% of my winter weight to eating the food here it just so damn good. Best Mexican in Vancouver IMO. I'm so thankful that the Grind is now open to balance all the good places I have found in the last 6 months. Not that I am cutting back in anyway on my eating routine, I just am burning the calories more now ... :cool: . This years goal: 38 min!

Particular standouts are the Beef: Nachos, Burritos, and especially the Enchiladas. They also specialize in Salvadorian cuisine that I have yet to try because the above items are just too good.

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I was tempted to mention the tiny (4 tables, 3 bar stools) little Japanese cafe at the south end of the McD's parking lot on the corner of Marine and Pemberton in the thread enquiring about good Japanese in North Van. I'll do so here!

Don't know the name of the place, but their short menu was very honestly prepared and presented when I worked close by, and the young couple ekeing out a living there deserved support.

My lunch time sometimes coincided with his salmon delivery, and it was an added delight to see chef-san carve up that night's fish on the spot!

I hope they're still in business.

John

"Venite omnes qui stomacho laboratis et ego restaurabo vos"

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At Banano's on Pacific Ave in Yaletown (between Davie and Drake) you just have to try their menu!  I think I can attribute at least a good 33% of my winter weight to eating the food here it just so damn good.  Best Mexican in Vancouver IMO.  I'm so thankful that the Grind is now open to balance all the good places I have found in the last 6 months.  Not that I am cutting back in anyway on my eating routine, I just am burning the calories more now ...  :cool: .  This years goal: 38 min!

Particular standouts are the Beef: Nachos, Burritos, and especially the Enchiladas.  They also specialize in Salvadorian cuisine that I have yet to try because the above items are just too good.

Try the special colombian plate that they sometimes offer on the chalkboard. A nice selection of several foods hard to find in Vancouver otherwise. I haven't tried teh Salvadorian yet, but I bet it is good too.

Cheers!

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Ohhh, PaoPao - thanks for the heads-up on Banano. I am definitely going to try that sometime in the next couple weeks...

My favourite hole-in-the-wall is Caffe Presto Panini on Hornby St. (same block as Bacchus). It's a tiny little Italian place with two things on the menu: pasta and panini. The best way to dine there is go as a twosome and split a pasta dish and a panini (they'll happily split them for you, and each of you gets your own little pasta cup, a panini half, and a little carrot salad and some greens). Nothing on the menu is over $9.95 (most dishes are $8.95), and they have the tastiest tiramisu around. It's usually packed at lunchtime, and the owner keeps it open until 7 or 8ish at night for the small dinner crowd.

I believe the Georgia Straight once mentioned that many of the photos of Italy dotting the walls were done by Vancouver School photographers, including Jeff Wall. A little culture with your pasta is always a good thing.

Jenn

"She's not that kind of a girl, Booger!"

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Tried Green Ginger for lunch on the weekend 2967 W. Broadway.

Less that 10 seats so I suppose that qualifies as a H-i-t-W.

Very veggie very well done.

Best Lentil soup I've ever tasted and let's be frank-WTH can a person say about Lentil soup-this stuff was fabulous.

The Mandalay Curry wrap was a little underwhelming but the Chai was delicious-smoky and mysterious with a tiny bite at the end-must be white Pepper I suppose.

Well worth a quick stop if you're in that 'hood.

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Mavis's Kitchen inside Jericho Square or Plaza or whatever that thing is called at 4th n Alma. Spice Islands (Indonesian) at 41st and Dunbar ('lunch specials from 4.95")

Drew Johnson

bread & coffee

i didn't write that book, but i did pass 8th grade without stress. and i'm a FCAT for sure.

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At Banano's on Pacific Ave in Yaletown (between Davie and Drake) you just have to try their menu!  I think I can attribute at least a good 33% of my winter weight to eating the food here it just so damn good.  Best Mexican in Vancouver IMO.  I'm so thankful that the Grind is now open to balance all the good places I have found in the last 6 months.  Not that I am cutting back in anyway on my eating routine, I just am burning the calories more now ...  :cool: .  This years goal: 38 min!

Particular standouts are the Beef: Nachos, Burritos, and especially the Enchiladas.  They also specialize in Salvadorian cuisine that I have yet to try because the above items are just too good.

Try the special colombian plate that they sometimes offer on the chalkboard. A nice selection of several foods hard to find in Vancouver otherwise. I haven't tried teh Salvadorian yet, but I bet it is good too.

Cheers!

Have to report that I tried the specialty plate yesterday for lunch and OMFG it was great! For $12.95 you get Fried Plantains, Excellently seasoned beef and beans, an arepa (sp?), Chorizo, Fresh Avocado slices, Rice, and a fried egg on top of it all on one plate! I think it's equivalent to the Lumberjack Breakfast for those in Latin America. Topped it all of with a good dose of their picante sauce and ohhhh ....... my Latin Roots we're starting to sprout. Well, that's if I had Latin roots and wasn't Swiss. :raz: The owner and her Mom who run the place are so nice and charming too. I told her as of yesterday I was officially addicted to their food. Then afterward made my way over to Lillykate for their Chocolate cake ...... it was about as perfect of a lunch I have ever had. I'm thinking about going again today but in the back of my mind I think it might be a bit embarrassing 4 days in a row....... :shock: They'll start to think I'm stalking them for their food ....... hmmmm, maybe I am :laugh:

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No such luck on a website.  Tandoori Palace is located at 1439 Commercial Drive, and their telephone number is 604-254-8452.

Aside from their butter chicken, I also love their mutter paneer, lamb curry, and aaloo gobi.  Excellent mango lassis too!

Thanks Moosh! I'm always on the lookout for tasty delivery.... :biggrin:

"Never eat more than you can lift" -Miss Piggy

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Nick's on Commercial and ??? Hastings I think. I'm sure many of you know the place....fantastic Italian food....I highly recommend the Lasagna or ravioli with Spareribs.

mmmmm...nick's! sooooooo good! it's been a long time but i think i'm going to have to go there soon. they have a really good lasagne! and i love their spaghetti and meatballs... very authentic ....

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Nick's on Commercial and ??? Hastings I think. I'm sure many of you know the place....fantastic Italian food....I highly recommend the Lasagna or ravioli with Spareribs.

mmmmm...nick's! sooooooo good! it's been a long time but i think i'm going to have to go there soon. they have a really good lasagne! and i love their spaghetti and meatballs... very authentic ....

Nick's?? Really? I'll give you Nick's over Anton's, but gimme Da Francesco or Osterio Napoli anyday. At the risk of seeing a return of da' boyz from Nick's in these forums fitting me for concrete shoes :shock: I'd say Nick's may have been da' place, but it's living on reputation alone now.

A.

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My grandmother LOOOVES Nick's. She has very good taste, but I think it's partly nostalgia for her. She's been eating there ever since she moved to Vancouver in the early 60's and lived on Commercial. Now that she lives 2 blocks away from Nick's, whenever she wants to go out for dinner that's where we go. After having been to Da Francesco's, I may have convinced her that there are better places to go. Quite frankly, I can't risk eating at Nick's again. Last time I was there, I was very very sick. Plus, it's not a cheap little hole in the wall anymore. It was bloody expensive!

Da Francesco's for me thank you!

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