Life in the Lower Mainland (BC, Canada)

Less than one day left to get a 40%-off SocialShopper coupon  for Salchicha's Meat Bar . As deals go it's really good value, especially when you are not locked into some sort of tasting menu with limited options. Note that the SocialShopper page talks about mango mustard chicken and build-your-own paninis, but we couldn't find either on the lunch menu. So if you really want either, call ahead. There are a few vegetarian and gluten-free options. The room is long and sort of narrow, and a very pleasant respite from the very dilapidated neighbourhood. Pretty quiet on weekday afternoons, so that's your best bet for large groups or a slow, lingering lunch with excellent company. Their made-in-house lemonade might not be ready yet so early in the day, though. Shakshouka Maraguez ($13) Slow cooked spicy tomato sauce and poached eggs with our famous made in-house spicy Maraguez sausages served with focaccia bread and tahini sauce Comes sizzling to your table. Ver...

Hungry Guys Kitchen  is a bright, clean oasis of a new place (almost 1 year old) on rather dilapidated downtown Granville. Simple food, good price, tastes fresh, good value/portion for money if you're just looking for a filling meal that doesn't cost too much. Not really a good choice for the indecisive as you direct them to assemble your burrito or bowl, but with some nudging I convinced them to put together their recommendation. Just under $9 so after tax it was just over $9. And just one burrito is worth two burgers so you might just want to order one to share.

Virtuous Pie 's smallish brightly lit room with communal seating looks spacious up until around 6pm when the dinner rush starts and goes out the door. So come early or do takeout. At $12 per small pizza (one size only, and apparently no bulk discount) the price is OK for a basically thin-crust neapolitan style pizza. With this type of pizza and the typically sparsely distributed toppings, you are at great risk of having a slice with an OK amount of toppings, or too little; and it's also hard to get an even distribution of the stated ingredients. Don't believe the picture-perfect ad copy on the website and go see for yourself. Virtuous Pie isn't alone in uneven toppings for small, thin-crust pizza, so it's apparently a niche pizza sort of trait and you either accept it or you don't. Add 1 star / 1 point if you are vegan because beggars can't be choosers. We had separate orders of pizza (placed at different times) with the gluten-free crust (+$2 extra...