Granville Island Quick Bite Guide 2006

[eatrustic]

A recent visit to Granville Island with visiting family members made me realize how few places I've tried besides market food-court stuff and Go Fish.

Go Fish, the destination that day (Tuesday) was closed and my sister did not want to fight for a table in the market so it was up to me to find something simple and pleasant on or in the immediate vicinity of the island.

I thought it would be helpful to locals and visitors alike to start this thread and for us to give current impressions of the various food establishments on G.I.

Cat's Meow:

As the weather was not great outdoor seating wasn't an option so we decided to try Cat's Meow (normally the name alone would send me running but the menu suited the visitors).

The food is the usual mix of burgers and casual fare in a fairly cozy room right near the water park and the bike path. We had burgers, quesadillas, and a fish and chips. The Burgers were fine (not worth a burger club but did the trick) and the fish and chips was a bit odd as the filet seemed to be breaded rather than the expected freshly battered. The service was friendly and a food service problem was taken care of very nicely by the server and the manager to boot.

Go Fish:

What more can you say? A little "shack" just off the island, near the fishing boat dock, it is the current (and world class) standard for local (fresh fish) made to order "fast" food. Sandwiches, fish and chips, soups, salads. (check for days closed)

In the market:

Market Grill: my fav for their grilled chicken burger "Grill Special" a nice juicy grilled chicken breast with chunky fries.

Stock Market: Great hot cereals with fresh fruit compotes (before 11:00) and a nice rotating selection of hearty soups. Anything with snapper is great.

Rubina Grill: Great spicy Okra and Potatos, bland but tasty Butter Chicken.

After that I find many of the places in the market underachieve with adequate but not really top quality fast food offerings. Any other great picks?

Outside the market I've tried the Dockside at the Granville Island Hotel. I find that it's a great out of the way spot on a sunny day. I like to sit on the waterfront patio with one of their house brewed beers, alas the food is the usual (relatively) "pricey for what you get" hotel fare.

What about places like Tony's Fish and Oyster Cafe or even the Pacific Culinary dining room, Sandbar, Bridges etc?

[mtigges]

I just get a baguette from the bakery by the busker area, some rillette (did I spell it right? the duck and pork shred mixed with duck fat) from oyama and a bottle of Verns beer. Pretty much the best lunch going. And on July 1st you get to sit in the grass and enjoy free jazz.

[annanstee]

Rubina Grill: , bland but tasty Butter Chicken.

 

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Okay, but the Butter Chicken has potatoes in it. And that is wrong.

I like Tony Only's- I think the Fish and Chips there are perfectly good. I heard that the cook used to be from the Only.

[eatrustic]

Yeah, I agree about the potatos in the Butter Chicken, cut so that they blend with the chicken (and still they charge a supplement for it!). Portion sizes are skimpy as well. Like I said most of the fast food on that side is underachieving.

They need to open up a Kent's Kitchen there, (Chinese of course, not Indian) even with the higher rent they would rock.

[barolo]

I am an early morning shopper at the market so my consumption revolves around JJ Bean, Lee's Donuts and Terra apple focaccia but I'll add a couple of comments.

Bridges Bistro is overpriced I think ($17 for mussels, $8 for edamame), there's a new restaurant on Railspur Alley replacing Kharma Kitchen (?) which may be worth checking out. I think you are better off making a picnic out of ingredients purchased in the market than eating at most of the food court places.

[Zucchini Mama]

I like the tiny café and the dining room at PICA. It's good for a quick bite--they have little lunches at the counter that they heat up, and lovely desserts to choose from as well. I like to take my parents to the dining room for lunch, where my father makes really bad jokes about frogs in his soup and mortifies the poor students with his strange sense of humour.

Is it Friday when they have their seafood brunch? A group of eGullleters could probably swoop in and clean them out before the fires have been lit under the chafing dishes.

You get to watch the students at work through the big windows, so it's kind of like dinner and a show.

[Mooshmouse]

...there's a new restaurant on Railspur Alley replacing Kharma Kitchen (?) which may be worth checking out.

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It's the Railspur Alley Café and Bistro. I dropped by one Friday morning to check it out, but service was excruciatingly slow and I ended up seeking caffeine at JJBean. Will try again another day.

[Shellback]

This may not be right on Granville Island... but on 2nd Avenue, beneath the Waterfall building - Sawa Tea Shop (1538 West 2nd) serves a healthy organic Japanese meal. The menu is limited, just daily specials of 3 or 4 different lunch sets, eg. Japanese Onigiri (rice balls) with salad and miso soup, Ginger Pork or sukiyaki beef with rice/soup, etc. A break from the hustle bustle of the market, you can enjoy a quiet Zen moment in Sawa's tearoom sipping tea and appreciate the art exhibits on the walls.

[Zucchini Mama]

This may not be right on Granville Island... but on 2nd Avenue, beneath the Waterfall building - Sawa Tea Shop (1538 West 2nd) serves a healthy organic Japanese meal.  The menu is limited, just daily specials of 3 or 4 different lunch sets, eg. Japanese Onigiri (rice balls) with salad and miso soup, Ginger Pork or sukiyaki beef with rice/soup, etc.  A break from the hustle bustle of the market, you can enjoy a quiet Zen moment in Sawa's tearoom sipping tea and appreciate the art exhibits on the walls.

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Wow, thanks Shellback, that is a great tip. I have been in that place before and I didn't realize they served lunch.

[Abra]

If you like spicy breakfast food, and I do, Rubina made me some excellent masala eggs. It's not exactly called that on the menu, but I just asked for extra spicy with pickle, and got a giant plate of spiciness. Just right! They are too expensive, though, I totally agree.

[annanstee]

Abra, were they on the menu, or did they do them for you especially?

I remember when they first opened (and how excited I was- this was pre potatoes-in-butter-chicken) they had a breakfast menu that I really liked-but they got rid of it. Is it back?

Shellback, I will chime in with thanks on the Sawa tip. I will definitely try lunch there. I pass that place all the time on my way to work.

Edited February 28, 2006 by annanstee (log)

[paul mitchell]

Oyama....duck prosciutto....all that needs to be said.

[jcarroll42]

...there's a new restaurant on Railspur Alley replacing Kharma Kitchen (?) which may be worth checking out.

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It's the Railspur Alley Café and Bistro. I dropped by one Friday morning to check it out, but service was excruciatingly slow and I ended up seeking caffeine at JJBean. Will try again another day.

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Hi guys.

My wife and I have been to the railspur alley bistro twice now. They were originally planning on staying open late, but now they close ~7ish because it's slow in the evening (if I got the story straight).

Which is a shame, because I had an absolutely amazing burger there a few days back. They grind their own sirloin, and the quality is way way higher than other GI options (and only ~$11). The meat was flavorful and *juicy*. Storm IPA was ~$3.50/pint (Wednesday night special). And nice fries on the side as well. We had almost gone to Cat's Meow to grab a quick bite, and I'm really glad we didn't

The other night I had a really nice spicy merguez panini w/ salad. Also really nice, and cheap. They have pizzas on the menu as well, which look good but I've not had.

There's a small wine list, some bar seats, and plenty of seating. And free WiFi!

So I'm pleased to see the addition to the neighborhood. I'm only sad that the railspur area is a total dead zone for foot traffic, so I don't think it'll last long...

- jeff

[Abra]

The masala eggs were on the menu, I just asked for extra spicy with pickle. They had 2-3 breakfast dishes on the menu.

Oyama anything, of course.

[barolo]

Jane Mundy gave them a good review in the latest EAT magazine as well. Perhaps the longer daylight hours will help to increase the late afternoon/evening business for them.

Is it really that dead on Railspur Alley? It never seems that way when I am there.

Hi guys. 

My wife and I have been to the railspur alley bistro twice now.  They were originally planning on staying open late, but now they close ~7ish because it's slow in the evening (if I got the story straight).

Which is a shame, because I had an absolutely amazing burger there a few days back.  They grind their own sirloin, and the quality is way way higher than other GI options (and only ~$11).  The meat was flavorful and *juicy*.  Storm IPA was ~$3.50/pint (Wednesday night special).  And nice fries on the side as well.  We had almost gone to Cat's Meow to grab a quick bite, and I'm really glad we didn't

The other night I had a really nice spicy merguez panini w/ salad.  Also really nice, and cheap.  They have pizzas on the menu as well, which look good but I've not had. 

There's a small wine list, some bar seats, and plenty of seating.  And free WiFi!

So I'm pleased to see the addition to the  neighborhood.  I'm only sad that the railspur area is a total dead zone for foot traffic, so I don't think it'll last long...

- jeff

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[Foodie in Vancouver]

We are taking in the Snides of March at the Waterfront this week (Bob Robertson and Linda Cullen of Double Exposure fame). What should we consider for our Quick Bite? And it will need to be in and out in about 1 hour so I think that lets the PCIA off the list. And I have never had a successful meal at the Sandbar so that's another. Any recommendations?

[eatrustic]

As my flow of visitors continues I get to try a couple of G.I. eateries off my normal beat.

Railspur Alley Cafe and Bistro:

After hearing about this place upthread I looked forward to trying it and have since gone twice. The first time was solo, mid afternoon. I like the space, half-way down the little craft alley (Railspur), it is bright and fairly spacious with an open kitchen and an upstairs, balcony style seating area as well.

I asked for a recommendation for lunch and the special- Jambalaya with Cornbread was suggested over something else on the menu. Unfortunately it was as far from Jambalaya as you can get, more like a dry Paella. The cornbread literally crumbled in my hands. Luckily my pint of Storm IPA (beer) was excellent as usual. To their credit the Jambalaya was taken off the bill when I was "quality checked" at the cash.

The second time, with visitors, was again mid afternoon. We had the Chicken Quesadilla, Asparagus and Pepper soup and a Tuna Nicoise and a plate of their fries with roasted garlic aioli. The Quesadilla was ok with too little salsa/sour cream. The Asparagus soup was way too thick. The Nicoise was a nice piece of seared tuna on mixed greens with a really vinegary dressing. The fries (tried both times) were not crisp enough.

I still have hope for this place as everything is made from scratch, they just really need cooks who pays attention to detail things like overly thick soups, vinegary dressings etc.

Docksider Restaurant - Granville Island Hotel

A new chef doesn't appear to have changed much so far. The setting and in house brewery is the reason to go. The relocation of the bar (which sat squarely in the view window) several years ago makes it worthwile to sit inside on a cool day with a nice view over False Creek. On a warm day (or night) outside on the waterfront terrace is the place to be. (Way more of a local feel than the zoo on the deck at Bridges).

We had a good burger, a tasty pint of Pale Ale, a soup of the day that tasted like powdered base was used and nice seafood salad.

As usual the prices for anything fancier are hotel based so judge accordingly.

[jcarroll42]

Been back to Railspur Bistro again since my first (very positive) visit.

I had a pizza (the one with chorizo) which was pretty disappointing. Sort of swimming in melted mozzarella, though the crust was quite nice.

My wife had a Caesar salad which was pretty tame with croutons that tasted like they were out of a bag.

So - mixed. I had a great burger the first night, and the fries were excellent too. But other things on the menu have been hit and miss. Maybe different kitchen staff?

- jeff

[Vancouver]

I finally got around to trying Railspur as well. I had the spicy merguez panini and I must say I really enjoyed it. It had the right amount of heat. The sweet red peppers they added balanced out the spice from the lamb sausage. The fries appeared handcut, of the large chunky variety and were hot and crispy. Overall it was an excellent lunch for the $8. Much better than what is available in the market itself.

I look forward to returning and trying some more.

It appears that the slow service issues raised earlier have been worked out. The place was packed (every table taken) but the service was extremely friendly, efficient, and overall left me with a very positive impression.

I noticed they have an upstairs seating section too, which I don't recall Karma having had. But maybe I just never noticed.

I'll definitely be returning, and hoping that the mixed experiences reported above get worked out. I was happy to see they were crowded.

Here is a link to their website: Railspur Alley Cafe and Bistro website

It appears on the website that they are now open until 9pm some nights. (Perhaps that needs updating? Or maybe they really are?) They also seem to have live jazz on Thursday nights from 7 to 9.

Cheers!

Edited May 26, 2006 by Vancouver (log)

[Quarki]

I heard there was good poutine at GI... like Quebec poutine!

Anyone have any leads?

[Vancouver]

Take the aquabus across to downtown and walk up to Davie street. The belgian fry shop between Granville and Howe on the south side of Davie has quebec style poutine.

Cheers!

[Vancouver]

Which is a shame, because I had an absolutely amazing burger there a few days back.  They grind their own sirloin, and the quality is way way higher than other GI options (and only ~$11).  The meat was flavorful and *juicy*. 

I am going to agree with this entirely. I just had the "Railspur Burger" for lunch there. It was by far one of the best burgers I have had in Vancouver. My apologies to Vera's and Modern Burger. Railspur may just have you beat! I agree entirely - the meat was extremely flavourful - perhaps a garlic kick to it? But the juiciness was really the highlight. It is how I remember burgers used to taste and a taste I have been craving for a long time. It is not $11 though - it was $9.50.

Cheers!