Life in the Lower Mainland (BC, Canada)

For Dining Out for Life on March 25th, I picked two places to try: Emelle's Catering for breakfast, and Nook for dinner. My good friend Lynn who lives downtown recommended Nook as one of her favourite places quite a few months back, and I had been meaning to go for quite a while. I had reports of it being a terribly busy place, frequently with lineups and no reservations taken, so it was awfully kind of my dining companion to drive out for an early 5pm dinner. It didn't get really busy till closer to 6pm, and then the ~30 seat restaurant was full and had diners waiting at the door. (There isn't much room to wait, either, and in case you're out on a rainy day, bring your umbrella as the awnings outside aren't contiguous enough between stores to provide proper coverage against rain.) Our server took his time with us (ah, the advantages of having the restaurant to yourself!) and patiently satisfied my companion's curiosity about the restaurant (open only ...

For Dining Out for Life on March 25th, I picked two places to try: Emelle's Catering for breakfast, and Nook for dinner. I didn't have any particular recommendation for Emelle's, but rather chose it because it was very close to where I volunteer for the Vancouver Crisis Centre and could pop by in the morning after my shift. I had a look at their website beforehand, and had picked out their Corned Beef Hash and Jumbo Buttery Croissant. When I got there and checked the menu again (in case of something new -- websites can be notoriously outdated, like Le Gavroche 's, which makes no mention of their Lobster Fest as the "latest news" on their website is from November 2005), there was mention of butterhorns and I thought to ask about it. Sadly, I was told that it wasn't being made anymore, and should have been taken off the menu. No problem. Jumbo buttery croissant it is! Oops... No, that wasn't on the menu either. In fact, I was told that the ...

Look what I got in my e-mail box today! "...Come into the restaurant and mention that you are a "LOCAL" and receive 50% OFF your food bill Sunday till Wednesday for the month of March (not in combination with our "weekly specials")." Here's the link , which takes you to their March/April 2010 newsletter. Scroll down for their weekly specials.

Dine Out Vancouver -- It's coming! Hurrah! Reservations start Monday, April 19th.

I finally got myself down to what used to be Feenies (I waited too long, and POOF, they're gone) but now db bistro moderne to try their "NY's original db burger", listed as "Top Sirloin Burger Filled with Braised Short Ribs, Black Truffle; Served on a Toasted Parmesan Bun; Pommes Frites". Soup of the day was French Onion, and I gave that a pass since I already had my eye on the burger and was committed to dessert. After I placed my order, I was offered a "mushroom soup latte". A very flavourful mushroom soup with light foam (of something I forgot -- sorry) served in a tiny cup with a tiny spoon. I did catch sight of other diners treating it like a soup, but I decided to treat it like a small coffee, and after stirring in the foam -- bottoms up! There was still a bit of mushroom soup at the bottom that needed to be scooped out. All it all, tasty soup but more of a novelty than anything. Next, the obligatory bread and butter. Sad to say, borin...

Had to run to the Land Title Office of BC today to get my parents' place re-registered to be under just my mom's name (my dad having passed away in January). Funny how it's not that important, but if you want to straighten things out, they'll charge you $73 and change. Anyway, the Land Title Office is in New Westminster, and I had a boo at DineHere to see whether there was an interesting place for lunch. (Truth be told, I've always had a dim view of New Westminster as a place where great dining experiences are to be had.) Anyway, a look about the nearby places listed on DineHere came up with The Hide Out Cafe  on Carnavon Street. The site is a bit (okay, a lot) skimpy and the online menu was non-functional on the morning I checked it, but it had had good recent reviews on Dine Here , and I went to look for the mango chicken wrap that was talked about. It did not disappoint! If the mango chicken wrap (made in-house) were to be improved, I think it would be t...