Life in the Lower Mainland (BC, Canada)

You may have seen this week's Georgia Straight article on Avocado Toast and be inspired to get Avocado Toast if you happen to be at Tour de Feast. STOP. Yelp reviews do seem to point out the toast (and for fair reason since the dish is quite tasty) BUT it's NOT the same thing the Georgia Straight is talking about. At Tour de Feast, it's more like a toast composition with some avocado on the side. You also get a bigger place that a slice of toast with green mush on top. Worth getting? Yeah, *maybe* even at the $14.50 price point. But if you are hoping for avocado styled onto toast like the picture in the Georgia Straight article... Nope. Avocado Toast ($14.50) choice of bacon strips or sausage, and crisps or salad The avocado tucked in the side looks like an afterthought to make this "Avocado Toast". Looks plain and overpriced, so you will probably surprised that this is actually really quite tasty -- probably in all the easily overlooked parts like...

I had a black winter jacket on ('cause it was cold!) and black toque and black jeans. Hardly dressy casual on the outside but definitely not trashy or looking like a bum. Nevertheless I was met at the door by an older man who walked up very close (as in, inside your private space bubble close), with arms crossed and a voice tone that challenged me to be in his restaurant. WTF? Fortunately I was part of a reservation. Never have I felt this sort of turn-you-away-at-the-door "welcome" before anywhere, even in Vancouver, though I've seen it happen to my very casually dressed friend at Jules Bistro in Gastown . My friend convinced me to try their Burgundy Beef Fondue  claiming that the amount of meat was way more than pictured online. It is $36 online but $38 in the restaurant and you must have a minimum 2-person order. I haven't felt so ripped off on meat since Wildebeest's tiny meat portion on their supposed 32-oz ribeye for $93 . The portion of meat in ...

Smallish room, dimly lit, overall nice ambiance dominated by a lovely bar. Points for that. Our table got to try a lot of things. I personally got two of the features of the day, so you will likely not experience them yourself, BUT there are lessons there that you should take note for your own visit to Tableau. Free bread and butter after you have ordered. Not many restaurants do that anymore (Pictures by a fellow diner at our table.) Baked Cheese & Pasta Casserole ($22) blue cheese, gruyère & parmesan cheese Yup, it's basically mac 'n cheese. Strong but thankfully not overpowering blue cheese aroma. For the price, go for something more interesting. If you're vegetarian then beggars can't be choosers, I guess. Maybe try going on $18 Meatless Monday instead. Portion looked like 2 cups, possibly 3 cups max. Feature flatbread ($12) Today it was something about a roux base, ratatouille , and small cubes of chicken. Where's my ratatouille? S...

I can't remember what initially attracted me to try Linh Café , but I was definitely sold on it when they replied that 90% of their dishes are gluten-free (but of the desserts, apparently only the chocolate mousse cake is gluten-free). It's a smallish place, so if you do not have reservations, expect their earlier dinner seating to have a small lineup on busier days like Fridays evenings. You are probably safe to do a walk-in later, maybe around 8pm. Larger groups and chatty diners should probably go later so that you don't feel pressured to eat and get out because of the lineup at the door. Decor is okay, with some interesting things to spot such as a row of painted pig heads. Also be sure to check out the potential desserts in the counter before you get started with dinner. I am normally careful to save room for dessert, but the dinner service at Linh Café surprised us and only two of us had any room for more than a couple of bites -- on top of doggy bagging some o...