Our Vancouver Visit

Over the past few years we’ve been making our way through the Pacific Northwest and this fall we finally completed our exploration with a trip to the city that will be hosting the 2010 Winter Olympics – Vancouver, Canada.

From the moment we landed, we could see why Vancouver is often called one of the most “livable” cities in the world. The people are friendly, the landscape is beautiful and nature surrounds you. We enjoyed walking the city in the bright sun (and, of course, pouring rain). And along our treks, we found some outstanding places to eat, drink and be merry.

Right outside of Gastown (one of our favorite neighborhoods in the city) was Medina Cafe, a warm, elegant, little spot serving a mean cup of chai and out of this world waffles (they’re prominently displayed in front window and it’s hard to resist their appeal as you walk by). You can order your waffles with a variety of sides, and we got each ours with a side of maple syrup and a thick scoop of plain yogurt. We found ourselves there every day and we tried some of their lunch fare, which was as delicious and well-prepared as their waffles. It’s the perfect place to start out your day.

Medina Cafe Waffle

One of the standout dinners we had was just next store, at Chambar, the nighttime Belgian restaurant counterpart to Medina, which certainly embodies the same charm and good taste in design.

Though we ventured all around the city, we often found ourselves spending a lot of time in and around Gastown, trying out the highly acclaimed Boneta for dinner, and afternoon drinks at So.Cial, a french restaurant where we discovered that a “Bloody Mary” is called a “Ceasar” in these parts.

View from the bar at So.Cial

We also tried  lunch Salty Tongue Cafe, which was a great little spot serving comfort fare like and soup and sandwich combos. With a central 40 ft. communal table, exposed brick and large pop-art paintings on the wall, it’s bright, fun and comfortable and the food was light and tasty as well.

Soup & Sandwich at the Salty Tongue Cafe

One great place we tried that we had read about beforehand was Bin 941, which turned out was right around the corner from your hotel. We especially loved their kalamata olive hummus (thick and served like a cake) that comes with fresh hot Navajo bread, a must-have if you ever visit!