A Weekend of Decadence

I didn't mean to write again so soon, but damn! I've been eating out all weekend (and it was a long weekend, too). And everything was so good, I feel like I need to share it with you. Plus now I'm sick, and the cats have finished their morning battle and are curled up in strategic warm spots all over the house and we are being quiet and sleepy all together, so it seems like a good time to sit and write. I have taken over the living room because my roommates are away and my bedroom is full of boxes. I got so excited about my upcoming move that I'm practically all packed, but my new landlady called this morning and hinted that they miiiiight need a little more time because they're painting and reno-ing down there and... So I'm going to keep calm (I REALLY don't want to delay my move, because I'll be flying to Saskatoon mid-March, which means there's a good chance I'll have, like, a WEEK to settle in before I have to leave noWHYblerggnashteeth) and I'm going to tell you all about the amazing food I ate this weekend instead of getting sad. 

First up: Bows x Arrows on Fraser is incredible, and you should really drop everything and go there RIGHT NOW. J and I rolled out of bed on Saturday and heard the siren call of Breakfast Cooked By Somebody Else, and I took a chance on BxA because I'd seen a brunch menu in their window one night as I walked by. Don't be put off by their coffee shop aesthetic: they DO serve real food, and they ARE licensed. (Although, should you only want a coffee, their cappuccinos are very fine.) For breakfast, J had the Welsh Rarebit: basically cheese-on-toast. BxA serves theirs with roasted mushrooms and a fried egg on top, and it was rich and delicious. I chose the smoked salmon scramble: delicate pink house-smoked salmon, scrambled eggs, thin slices of that very seed-y, heavy rye bread, and a side salad that was bursting with lemony dressing. I'm not usually a fan of salads with breakfast, but this one was so good I scarfed the lot. (It helps that they use some kind of green- watercress? that's much more interesting than lettuce.) While we waited for breakfast to arrive, we also shared a small almond-flour cake with a generous dollop of chocolate icing, and it was chewy and dense. The rest of their pastries looked just as good- definitely a cut above the usual coffee-shop fare.  
In fact, everything was so good that the very next day I took my mother there for our semi-weekly brunch date. We missed the brunch cut-off by minutes, but decided to stick around and order Happy Hour snacks. (Here's how it works: BxA serves brunch from 8:30-11:30 weekdays; 8:30-3pm on weekends. After that, there are snack-y things, and then they do dinner Wednesday-Saturday as well.) 
While we waited, we drank Caesars. 

Someone else's Caesars in the background, while my mom wrestles with an olive, and the herring tartine sits patiently. 

I'm not a giant fan of tomato/clamato juice, so I'm not a connoisseur, but these were very good, made with house-spiced jalapeño tequila and house-made anchovy tomato juice;  garnished with pickled onions and fresh-grated horseradish. In fact, that's the secret to BxA's success: they seem to make as much of their food as possible in-house, so you're going to taste the difference. Then came the snacks: smokey, creamy potato-ham soup, smoked herring tartine, homemade pickled veggies, and a lovely little heirloom potato salad. Everything was bursting with flavour. 

Look at those cute purple potatoes!

Potato soup with ham.

Oh look, there's a record with a naked Prince on the cover, nestled by the beer taps! 

We left feeling very satisfied, but not in that overstuffed, uncomfortable way, and to top it all off? The total for everything: four snack orders, 2 Caesars, and a glass of beer for me, was just over 40 dollars.
Bows x Arrows is at 4194 Fraser St @ 26th

Back to Saturday, where after brunch, the decadence was just beginning. Big Rock Brewery was having an open house, so J & I headed straight there (hey, at least we walked). In an impossibly generous bit of marketing, Big Rock had decided to open their doors from 12-5; giving away 2 beer tickets to each customer, as well as a free growler (with a gift certificate for a free fill), free canapés, and a brewery tour! Although we were still stuffed from brunch, we enjoyed our porter (a full pint for free!), and I also had a (free) pint of their Rock Creek cider, since I'm not much of a beer drinker. The tour was informative and fun, with a free sample of their Midnight Rhapsody porter and a chance to meet the brewmaster at the end of it. 

My sweetheart, being all cute and handsome. 

And as we left, the hostess urged us to take not one, but two growlers each! They were too busy to fill them up then (hence the gift cards), but I'll definitely be back to make use of them soon. It's about time as a Vancouverite that I learn to obsess about beers. 
Big Rock Brewery & Taphouse is at 310 W 4th Ave.

Finally... yesterday. I was hired to do a few hours of session work on someone's album, which is pretty much my favourite way to spend a day. Since the studio is in east Van and it was a gorgeous morning, I decided to walk there, but changed my mind as I saw the #22 bus approaching. My reasoning? If I jumped on the bus, I could probably fit in breakfast at Yolk's before my session began. Unfortunately I'd totally forgotten that it was Family Day, and even though it wasn't yet 9am, the lineup was already out the door. Oh well. I walked north and east, remembering that Scandilicious Waffle House was nearby and on the way. Ha- no lineups there! Just a cosy table in the corner, counter service, and the best waffle I have EVER had. No joke. I ordered the Valhalla, which came with maple-bacon jam, crunchy bacon pieces, and a generous slice of back bacon. Amazing. 

The Valhalla steals my heart by being so... bacon-y. 

I also had a cappuccino. Before I left, I had to try one of their double-chocolate cookies, which tasted as incredible as it looked: almost black; chewy and sweet and melt-in-your-mouth. The rest of the baked goods looked just as good, so it was with some disappointment that I realized I didn't have to do another recording session later in the week, as we got through all the songs that needed a backup singer. Good thing I'm moving closer to Scandilicious... whenever I do move. Sigh.
Scandilicious is at 25 Victoria Drive

Lest you think that my life is one big date with my plate, l must tell you that 
a) it's not 
    and 
b) I've just started up a bit of a support group for me and some friends who want to start eating better and getting healthy. My patterns are fairly predictable (and common): Get healthy in the summer: cavort and run and bike and play outside and eat all the good stuff, and then pack on the pounds each winter as I eat starches to stave off the wet, grey, cold weather and indulge my sweet tooth far too often. It's a pattern I'd love to break- I'm realistic enough to know that I'll never be perfect, but I'm hoping this'll be a step in the right direction. 
(Totally going back to Scandilicious for that lemon krinkle cookie though. Just sayin'.)

Catching up.

A perfect pear from Fort Langley, back in those golden late-summer days. Sigh. 

I'm back! And of course I've been eating non-stop for months and I haven't been telling you about it, which is mean of me.

But so much has been happening. I came back from the prairies and enjoyed the rest of my summer; lived in Fort Langley for a while and cycled and ran like crazy; then I started teaching music again at one school, and also at another school for the first time. Teaching preschool music, which is hard. But very fun, when it works. I got hugged a lot today, for instance. And a mom told me that her daughter has been making images of me out of play dough all week. ("Does she stick pins in them?" I asked her.) I am taking a psychology class at university, so that one day I can pursue my dream of becoming a music therapist. I am playing in bands and writing music and learning to play the bass and the ukulele, and and andandand...

[Oh yeah, and an orange-faced racist, sexist reality-show clown got elected president in the states. It's enough to make anyone eat the pain away.]

"You are the busiest lazy person I know," exclaimed my boyfriend the other day. "Lazy" is really my term for it, since I would usually rather be curled up on the couch drinking red wine and writing or reading than anything else. But somehow this has ended up being a lie, as I race around being an early childhood music teacher and a student and a musician, and so many things. And I realize again that although I claim to be lazy, in fact I am anything but.

One thing I am still not though, is much of a cook. Oh I try. But although I love food, I don't always love making it. Partly because it's mostly for one, except when my boyfriend's around. And partly because my work schedule is weird and so I find myself having cooking binges once every couple of weeks and then having a million frozen breakfast burritos or soups or spaghetti-sauce-frozen-in-a-bag at my fingertips, which is amazing. But a lot of the time I'll still be going out for lunch or dinner (or breakfast, let's be honest).

So, with that in mind, I figured I should just pluck a few names out of the air for you, since it's been so long. After all, if they've stuck in my head with all this other stuff going on then they're probably worth writing about, one way or another. You'll find that this list has a very east van bias, since that's my place of residence and work. No apologies. Here goes...

BREAKFAST

Fable Diner
Some of us mourn the loss of Reno's (at the corner of Broadway and Main); not because their breakfasts were outstanding (they really weren't), but because they were dirt cheap and still served cafeteria-style, meaning you grabbed a tray, placed your order and paid at the till, and then got served pretty damn fast with an edible meal that wouldn't bust your budget. Old people on tiny fixed incomes loved it. Well, I don't imagine they're still flocking since Fable opened up, but the quality of the food has vastly improved. On one hand it's the epitome of hipster gentrification; on the other hand: thick, delicious bacon! Avocado toast with smoked salmon, arugula, and poached eggs! Huevos Rancheros! It's not perfect, (the coffee is boring, for example), but the brekkie selection is on point. Bonus points for being 2 blocks from where I work, for those mornings where my sweetie and I want to grab a bite before I have to run to the ol' day job.

Bandidas
More bonus points for being a mere 6 blocks from my sweetie's house. Also, great big kudos for the breakfast salad I almost always order: ALAN’S BREAKFAST $12 Romaine, purple cabbage, cilantro, cheese, pinto beans, balsamic vinaigrette, guacamole, and apple salsa, topped with two fried free-range eggs. Served with two fresh, hand-made corn tortillas.
Add a side of roasted yams and potatoes $2.50

[Don't order the yams/potatoes though. They're not worth it.] 

When I'm not down with the health program, I order the Lemmy, which is basically an orgy of cheese, poblano pepper, and- who the fuck cares? There's cheese. That's all you need to know. 

Lunch

Blacksmith Bakery, Fort Langley

It seems so long ago that I was wearing next to nothing in the summer heat, cycling furiously from the converted barn I was house-sitting to the centre of tiny Fort Langley to swim in the muddy waters of the Fraser River off Braw Island Regional Park and work up an appetite for the incredible food at Blacksmith. But by my calculations it was only 3 months ago. Such innocent, happy times! 

Seriously, you should run (drive, fly), not walk, to this bakery; not only because Fort Langley will make you feel happy, but because Blacksmith's is the bomb. Sandwiches made with lemon-y guacamole and fresh, chewy bread. Tasty cappuccinos. And the desserts... Suffice it to say that I broke all my healthy summer vows on my birthday so I could eat their chocolate Guinness cake. And I regret nothing!  Their baked goods taste homemade in the best way, which is to say they taste buttery and rich and unpretentious and real. I'd walk back there from east van for their food. It's that good. 

Bao Down

And now for something completely different. Healthy, it's not. Delicious? Yup. Steamed bao (buns) stuffed to the gills with meats, veggies and sauces. Eat with fries, of course. They have Poke Bowls, for those who do want to be healthier. 

Dinner

Honestly, it's going to be either sushi or pizza most of the time. The pizza's gonna be thin-slice Neapolitan style, because that's what I love. If I happen to be downtown, alway Nicli Antica. In my 'hood? Barbarella's. The service is well-meaning but vague; the cocktails are tasty and the pizza's yummy. 'nuff said. 

Sushi? Damn, there's a lot of mediocre stuff around here. Kishimoto is doing it better. Damn them for not being open for lunch, but I had takeout with my roomies a while ago and it rocked. Tiny Naruto Sushi on Commercial at 12th has a kickass Spicy Tuna Roll. 

Sometimes I'll leave the music puppy-mill (kidding) at 8:30, and want to be instantly stuffed full of carbs. What can I say? Teaching kids can be bloody hard. When I want comfort food I head right to Peaceful Noodle at 5th and Main for some Peaceful Beef Roll or Spicy Noodle. (The spicy noodles do NOT leave your insides feeling peaceful, FYI, TMI. But it's a small price to pay.) 

Coffee

Besides my go-to, Matchstick, I have to give mad props to East Van Roasters for combining good coffee with incredible chocolate in a tiny, gorgeous space right down on Carrall Street. I walk in there  and instantly I wish that more places in Vancouver looked and felt like this. I've been cutting back on the coffee recently, partly because I've had some very disappointing ones so I felt that I should just avoid it in general unless I knew it was going to be exceptional, but I had the best mocha EVER at EVR. In fact, it was so good I could't finish it, because it was thick and rich like drinking chocolate, and I'd foolishly ordered one of their salted chocolate chip cookies as well. In the chocolate department, I also have to sheepishly admit  that I love Waves (yup, it's a chain- shoot me now) for using real chocolate chips in their hot chocolates and mochas, and giving you a choice between white, milk, and dark.  (As if there's a choice. Choose dark, ya wusses.) I've already had 2 of their seasonal candy cane-topped mochas and I see no reason to stop until a) Christmas comes or b) I get sick of candy canes and chocolate (never happen). 

There's a lot to be scared of. Winter is coming. It's getting dark so early. Did I mention that Donald WTF Trump is taking over the White House? We light candles against the dark; we bundle up, even on the balmy west coast; we eat warm and comforting foods to swell our bellies against the dangers and the scarcities. It's not enough, it's never enough, but we try. You'll find me here from time to time as the days get shorter, eating and blogging faithfully about it. See you around. 

Fox On The Run

I hit the ground running as soon as my plane landed in Saskatoon last Friday. A quick cab ride straight to rehearsal and boom! I'd missed over 2 days of rehearsals due to my Vancouver teaching job, so I had some catching- up to do. This show is a play-through, meaning that there is music in almost every moment of the play. Outdoor puppet theatre is hard, sweaty work, and tremendous fun. Doing a show based on Cree legends with a partially Cree cast means that we've done some interesting things as a cast, including smudging, feasting, and going to a sweat lodge (amazing, spooky, spiritual, and very, very, very hot). We actually met with a nutritionist yesterday, who gave us all advice on staying healthy and hydrated once we actually start performing outdoors in the sun and heat (after that sweat lodge it should be no big deal). It's one of the many supportive things this company has done for us, and I think it's going to be a wonderful 6 weeks, as long as I can sort out the fragile balancing act between staying hydrated and not having to pee for the entire length of every single show.

Where your mountains at, South Saskatchewan? 

Because we are rehearsing at a synagogue, we have Saturdays off, a thing that is almost unheard-of in live theatre. So while I had to jump straight in to work last Friday I was then rewarded with an instant day off. First things first: I managed to find a bicycle so I could commute between home and work. The little used 6-speed folding (!) Schwinn that I found for a dirt-cheap price has started several conversations with total strangers so far. I've affectionately nicknamed it the Blue Snail, because its small wheels make my rides a bit slower than I'm used to. The selling feature for me was its cute little basket, which makes it possible to transport lunches, scripts and groceries without having to carry stuff on my back- essential in this prairie heat.

One thing I wanted to make sure of was sticking to my no-flour, no-dessert eating plan while I was here; and I was nervous, because Saskatchewan is a land of bakers (is it me, or is this province especially obsessed with Long John-type donuts?). Surprisingly, my salvation came from the very place I feared most: the Saskatoon Farmers Market.

Browsing around there last Saturday I noticed the usual sweet and sticky baking stalls... but also a company called Fit Fuel In A Jar. Salads to go? All nicely packed into 750ml Mason jars? Requiring no prep or cooking on my part? SOLD. I bought just 4, since I wasn't totally convinced I'd like them... and ended up devouring them for my lunches because they are straight-up delicious.

Here's the skinny: each jar costs 11 dollars. And yes, that's a bit pricey. But honestly, if I bought all the stuff I'd need to make them, I wouldn't spend much less than that, and the convenience of having healthy meals all packed and ready to go each day is worth the extra cost. You can order online, and either have them delivered (in the Saskatoon area) or pick them up from the farmers market on Saturdays. Because they're large and include protein, I find them to be a perfect lunch (or dinner): they're fresh, packed with flavour, and yet light enough on these hot days to keep me energized for the afternoon half of rehearsals. Here are some of the meals I've tried:

• ginger chicken & soba noodles
• sundried tomato & lentil salad
• chicken, mandarin & cranberry salad
• thai steak salad

This week I ordered 10 salads (the ones above, plus a peanut shrimp salad) and picked them up this morning. They just fit in the back of the Blue Snail. I rode gingerly home - Saskatoon streets have a LOT of potholes- with 8 of them in the back and 2 more swinging from my handlebars. (It reminded me of one of my beloved Dorothy Sayers novels, where Lord Peter Wimsey is fretting over the transport of some wine of rare vintage and Bunter reassures him: "The damage is at present negligible, my lord.")

Big salads, little bike. 

I'm already scheming to reproduce these once I return to Vancouver. Does anyone have a business like this in YVR? If you know of one, get at me, because I can't find one. I'm almost tempted to start my own meal-in-a-jar company...

Of course, it's not all healthy eating, all the time. A girl needs her breakfast fix once in a while (it's been mostly granola, yogurt and fruit during the week). 

Something I noticed working here last year is that breakfasts are damn expensive in this town. Even the so-called diners and greasy spoons want to charge you something like 11 bucks for a basic 2-egg-bacon job that you'd pay less than 8 dollars for in Vancouver. What gives, Saskatoon? 

I figured that since I was gonna get fleeced any which way, I might as well get something a little more interesting. After some research on Google, I decided to check out The Hollows, which is in trendy Riversdale, pretty close to where I'm staying. 

You would be forgiven for thinking that The Hollows is actually a run-down Chinese restaurant called Golden Dragon, since that is what the signs on the building (not to mention the impressive neon dragon) would have you believe. They seem to have taken it over lock, stock and barrel, which is part of its Hipster-ish appeal. The menu embraces local ingredients, and a mix of old and modern cooking techniques. Brunch (served weekends) varies from the delicious-sounding Trout Benedict to Pear & Lavender Oatmeal (I want to try that next time) to Breakfast Poutine (which 2 people raved about independently when I mentioned that I was going to The Hollows), to my choice, which was called, prosaically, Rice & Beans. I wouldn't say it was outstanding; it was okay, and more to the point it contained neither potatoes nor bread and so it was okay for me to eat. Far more entertaining than my breakfast was the unexpected company of 2 people from Tourism Saskatchewan, who were filming a segment in The Hollows, and wanted to share my table as it head the best light in the place. We ended up having a nice chat, and they told me about some places I should check out while I was here. My table companions wanted to film their actress drinking a cocktail, so at 11am I found myself sipping a Gin Fizz while the woman across from me had a Rhubarb Margarita. The Fizz was an interesting mix of fizzy and creamy, and both drinks were very attractive. Overall, I'd splurge on The Hollows once or twice more during this contract, if only to try more cocktails and maybe their dinner menu. 

This is Fenster. Fenster ate plastic last week and it got stuck in his intestine.
Now he has a cone head and a big incision in his tummy.

It's already 6pm, and so my day off is nearly done- so soon! I spent a rainy afternoon playing salsa music on Spotify and dancing around the kitchen watched by a sceptical cat, whilst cooking up sausages (shout out to Benlock Farms, which sells amazing Angus beef products). 

Another intense week awaits. At least I know that my little area of the fridge is stuffed with an assortment of tasty meals-in-a-jar, ready to carry me through the next 6 days. 

They're Baaaaack...

Bandidas Taqueria has become so popular lately that this little fox has stayed away, not wanting to squeeze in to the almost non-existent waiting area or lurk outside on the street to try and get a table. Recently they closed their doors to expand and renovate, and vegetarian hipsters around the drive went hungry.

Fear not, hipsters! After being shut for a while, this 7-year denizen of the Drive is back, with double the space (they took over the Himalayan restaurant next door), and soon-to-be open 24 hours (my server told me that they're planning to make that schedule switch around the end of June). They had a casual re-opening today, missing the long weekend by a hair (perhaps that was intentional, in case they had to work out any kinks in their newly-expanded space). My breakfast-loving partner and I were practically alone in the restaurant, and got served our Mexican Breakfasts (pinto beans, eggs, apple slaw, guac & cabbage) in record time.
As always, the food was delicious, and left me feeling way better than if I'd had a cheaper, greasier, breadier breakfast elsewhere. I love going to Bandidas in the evening for their cocktails, but as it inevitably starts to fill up with customers again, I'll probably wait until their 24-hour service starts, so that I can enjoy a cheesy burrito and hibiscus margarita in the wee hours.

I predict that Bandidas will do very well as a 24-hour restaurant (after all, the Naam's been doing it for an eternity over in Kits). Especially on the nights that the Rio Theatre has their late-night movie features. Arriba!

A Tale of Many Breakfasts Part 2: Diners

 I don't know if this is a city-specific thing, but Vancouverites have a weird habit of lining up for meals that may not be bad, but certainly aren't worth waiting for. Sophie's Cosmic Cafe? Stepho's on Davie? The Red Wagon? They're okay, guys. Not great, not exceptional. Just okay. But hey, if you want to waste your time lining up, go ahead. I'll be across the road at some underappreciated breakfast haunt, getting served the best breakfast ever in record time. 

You can add Jethro's Fine Grub to that list of places I won't be lining up at any time soon. I've been curious about this place for a while now: it's in my 'hood and it's always jumping on weekends. Last Thursday I took my mom there for brunch, and was left wondering what the fuss was about. We're both Benny freaks, so it was smoked salmon bennies for both of us. Utterly unremarkable (and expensive) bennies. A plain, lightly toasted English muffin (not crisp enough to stand up to the double onslaught of egg yolk and Hollandaise sauce), a piece of meh smoked salmon, a decent egg, some ok sauce. Nothing terrible, nothing great. Rounded out by some very dull potatoes and absolutely no extras: an unattractive presentation. 

I must admit that I spied shamelessly on other diners' meals and the pancakes looked insanely huge, as did a breakfast burrito. But I prefer my pancakes thin and crisp (actually, I basically just prefer crepes and am always sorry when I order pancakes and waffles for breakfast). Coffee was...hot. The service was very friendly and pleasant, but because the room itself has absolutely no atmosphere, it's not a place I'd want to linger. Which, given their lineups, is probably the idea. Sorry Jethro's but I've had better meals in far cheaper spots. 

Which brings me to Joe's/Nelly's Grill(s).

Confusingly named, because Joe's used to be on West 4th, but is now located on Main Street. While the one on 4th Avenue is now Nelly's (apparently a relation to Joe). Get it? Don't worry about it. Just go there if you want an affordable, no-frills breakfast that won't bankrupt you.

My sweetie and I go to Nelly's (I still think of it as Joe's) on 4th quite regularly and I always get The Brit because I'm charmed by a breakfast place that serves baked beans with toast and eggs. As a child of British parents, I ate beans-on-toast every week ("please put the beans beside the toast, mummy, so it doesn't get soggy"), so this dish is pure nostalgia. I tell a lie though, because last time I got some kind of hash and it was fan-freakin'-tastic. Poached eggs, nice salty fried potatoes and veggies... Sorry Brit, I've found a new fave. Service is brisk and friendly, and prices are decent. This is a no-frills-no-trendy-no-lines kinda joint. You don't have to go out of your way to go here, because your own 'hood probably has something similar. But these guys do it well. 

Joe's/Nelly's is at 3048 Main St and 2061 w.4th Ave

Photo courtesy of my sweetie, who is never too busy
eating to social-media the hell out of something.

Hey, speaking of doing it well, Sunshine Diner is kicking ass and taking names when it comes to breakfast. Can you get past the way-over-the-top '50's diner decor, complete-if that is the word- with life-sized Elvises and Marilyns frolicking in plastic rigor mortis splendour? Well okay, I guess that's part of the charm, along with the sawed-off Chevy reservation desk just inside the door. Though he lives oh-so-close, my guy had never been to Sunshine, and it had been years for me. So off we went, on a late Saturday morning. Although there was a lineup, we were both appeased by the free coffees that materialized for all of us who were waiting outside (there's not much room to wait inside). It's the little touches like that that make for good customer service. Also, we only had to wait about 10 minutes, which is respectable. 

Yeah, we both ordered Bennies. I had a half order of the Popeye (avocado, cream cheese, a delicious mushroom slice, asparagus and spinach) and my guy had the Blackstone. These were Bennies done right: crispy muffins, delicious Hollandaise, perfect poached eggs. Served, cutely, with a bowl of crispy brown potatoes and a really nice fruit bowl: not your usual tired melon chunks but banana, apple, even blackberries. Presentation: on point. Major kudos for getting the carbs absolutely right and making us feel as though we were making a healthy choice by including a really good fruit bowl. This attention to presentation and balance (fruit to counter the fat and starch) was what was so sorely lacking at Jethro's. Sunshine could have cruised by on its kitsch, so I'm glad to see they're so much more than vaguely creepy plastic Elvis statues. 

Sunshine Diner is at 2649 West Broadway, in Kitsilano.

I'm going into Show Mode this week, as I'm in a musical that's opening on Tuesday. I foresee a lot more eating out in my near future. Stay tuned...

A Tale of Many Breakfasts: Part One

I've been eating out non-stop.

Blame my schedule, which is not conducive to home cookin' right now, or blame a sudden upsurge on the financial front, but I've definitely been chowing down at a LOT of restaurants lately. Unfortunately, a lot of it's the stuff-this-late-night-donair-down-my-gullet-at-11pm kind, rather than quality eats. I even had a convenience store tuna sandwich the other day, and that is about as low as you can go. 

However...
The good thing about my schedule is that my work doesn't start 'til afternoon. Which leaves a lot of time for breakfast. Oh, the breakfasts I've had lately! 
I admit, these are all on the fancy-breakfast end of the spectrum. No cheapo greasy spoons here. But with Reno's closing (although a note on the door says they'll reopen in 2016), my go-to greasy spoon is out of commission. On, then, to the following places, which range from coffee bars to actual restaurants. Here is Part One, which deals with places that are not so much breakfast joints but manage to do a mean brekkie anyway...

33 Acres Brewing Company

So.Much.White.  It's a Hipster thing.  Photo courtesy of a site called Wit & Delight

I'm not sure I'm totally qualified to review 33 acres, given that
a) I dislike beer and 
b) I've never tried their weekend brunch waffles, although I hear good things. 

In my defence, 33 Acres- located at 15 West 8th- has pretty minimal seating, and I dread the idea of waiting in line for breakfast, as I've mentioned before. However, if you go of a weekday morning the place will be mostly peaceful and while the waffles are unavailable it doesn't really matter because there is still a limited but delicious selection of breakfast-y items. 
Yes eggs (poached being the only option), yes toast (chewy, hearty bread from Nelson The Seagull)... but if you're me, you've met your true love in the Muy Caliente. Get it on a buttery, flakey biscuit: sliced avocado and poached egg with a drizzle of honey, a sprinkling of sea salt, and the most delicious sweet/spicy red pepper jelly on the side. It's my new favourite brekkie, no lie. One day, I WILL be back later in the day to check out their food truck pairing (different ones park out there every day of the week), as well as 33 Acres' own charcuterie plates and their house cider (sadly only available in-house at this point). The coffee is also wonderful. I'm on the fence about their aesthetic because it's so very, very Hipster- all white tiles and sparseness with copies of Kinfolk Magazine for sale. If you follow Socality Barbie on Instagram, you'll know what I mean when I say that she would be very much at home photographing her cappuccino here.  However, I have to admit it's a lovely space to sit in on a sunny morning, so I guess I'm more Hipster than I'd like to admit. 

Matchstick Coffee

Photo courtesy of Matchstick's website

Speaking of Hipster aesthetics, my local coffee bar would be the prototype. White tiles? Check. Warm wood to contrast the sterile whites? Check. Actual record player providing the house sound? Yup. Coffee being made in pretentious glass beakers? Oh yeah. Yet I can no longer mock them, because dammit, they are way too good! Not only their cappuccinos, which I love, but their baked goods and breakfasts as well. Buttery muffins (they tend to stick to 2 or 3 flavours), interesting savoury scones and- I'm serious here- THE best croissants I've ever had. I have strong opinions on croissants and these are incredible, the best mix of a buttery interior and a flakey exterior. Before 11 you can also have baked beans and poached eggs with their delicious toast, which is also of the heart-chewy variety. Matchstick has 2 locations: my local, which is where Fraser and Kingsway meet, and Chinatown, at 213 east Georgia. 

Marche St. George
Okay, by this point in the blog I'm having a battle within myself between the part of me that hates, just hates this trendy need to have everything be sparse and white or grey, as if colour and clutter were somehow gauche, and the part of me that really likes some of these places, despite their desperate trendiness. Check out Le Marche St. George's online store if you don't believe this is a thing. I looked at their textile page and immediately felt as if I was Dorothy in Kansas, seeing the world only in shades of grey. I like colour. I like it a lot, especially in my home. I would hate it if my room didn't have its red Persian rug, or my blue-and-red quilt.
On the other hand...
I love biking to the actual market (located on the corner of 28th and St. George Street in east Van) and eating a cheesy crepe while sipping coffee and listening to their excellent musical choices. You won't find eggs-and-bacon here, but the crepes are fabulous. They also sell very pricey and delicious indulgences like: drinking vinegar! Which is a thing (another trendy, trendy thing) I love, and I happily coughed up a twenty for a bottle of Pok Pok apple drinking vinegar, which is amazing when mixed with: sparkling water, a squirt of lime and a spoonful of pomegranate seeds. Or with vodka and cranberry. 
You can get a sweet or savoury crepe at Marche St. George (or a flatbread, or a croissant, or a pot pie) and if you're lucky (seating is very limited) you can sit inside, or head outside and grab a table out there if the weather's warm. Local parents obviously love this cafe, which is awesome, but it means that at certain times of day the cafe is filled with strollers and hip-but-still-exhausted moms. . In contrast to its uber-white-coloured online presence, the actual market gets major points for being warm, cluttered, wooden and welcoming. 

Stay tuned for the next installment of A Tale of Many Breakfasts, where I'll review Jethro's Fine Grub and The Sunshine Diner! Both refreshingly free of the colour white! 

Jackalope: Birthday Breakfast, the Hipster Herd Mentality, and Sizzling Skillets.

The end of August is a wistful time to have a birthday. You might get sunshine and heat. But even if you do, the leaves are changing and falling, there is a nip to the air as the sun sets, and the clouds are just as likely to start rolling in and reminding you that the seasons are changing.
Lucky me! Last Saturday was my birthday, but it will be remembered by Vancouverites not for being the happy day of my birth, but because there was an epic windstorm that left many thousands without power, and uprooted trees and flung branches far and wide. I tell you, it's been hard to believe that last Wednesday I was basking in the sun at the PNE. Even harder to believe that the PNE is still on. Feels like a lifetime ago.
Anyway, before the winds really ramped up on that fateful Saturday, my mom took me out for a birthday breakfast. Our first stop was Yolks, but I'd dragged my feet, as I'd forgotten it was the weekend. By the time we got there the lineup was out the door. Now, much as I love Yolks, I wasn't going to wait in any damn line, not on my birthday! So we did what any self-respecting people of gently English extraction do: we slunk away and tried to think of another place to eat that wouldn't be packed to the gills.
As we were in east van anyway, a thought struck me: why not try Jackalope? I'd looked them up recently and noticed that they had a brunch-on-weekends menu. We weren't far away... We hopped in the car and headed east to take a look.
As I suspected, the lineup across the street at Red Wagon was ridiculous, while Jackalope was warm, welcoming, and blessedly empty, considering the wind and threatening skies outside.
An aside here- In a city as large and as blessed with amazing restaurants as we are, it absolutely boggles my mind that people will line up for breakfast, or any other meal for that matter. But especially breakfast! Picture this: it's the weekend, perhaps it's your only day off after a tough work week. You want everything to go your way. You've slept in, you've stretched lazily, and now it's mid day and you're in serious need of sustenance. So you go to the same trendy place as every other hipster in the freakin' city and stand in line for an hour? What the actual fuck? There are so many places to eat in Vancouver! And while some places, like Yolks, put out a breakfast so seriously good that I would-almost-stand in line for them, most of them are mediocre at best. Okay, rant over. It works to my advantage anyway, because I will always look for the place that doesn't have a lineup, and now that I have a boyfriend who is practically allergic to waiting in line (and adores breakfast), this isn't about to change.
So, Jackalope. Serious hipster vibe: Tom Waits on the system, deer heads and the mythical Jackalope itself peering down from various walls, beefy wooden tables. (They call themselves a Dive Bar on their website. Guys, if you call yourself a dive, you're not one. Hell, if you have a damn website, you're not a dive bar.) But for all that it's trying a little hard, it's a charming place, and one that I'd like to hang out in some stormy winter night, drinking too many ridiculously delicious cocktails and boring someone with my life story.

Hey look, it's a Jackalope! 

In fact, I did hang out in Jackalope one night last year, with an ex-flame, and indeed drank at least one wonderful cocktail. Unfortunately, the evening- which had begun pleasantly enough- took a left turn into Awkwardsville when I mentioned that I was seeing someone new, and soon I had to scramble off to band practice, as both of us had had very different ideas of where the evening was going.
Now I was back, and determined to try a meal, because I remembered being sorely tempted last time I'd been there.
Jackalope loves their skillets, and many of their meals- especially of the brunch variety- nestle in mini skillets brought to your table resting on a wooden board. Watch your flailing limbs: these things are HOT! After some deliberation I ordered the Skillet Hash, with a side of bacon, and Mom ordered the Huevos Rancheros. Service was friendly, fast and attentive, and soon we were munching happily on our brunch. No lineups for us!

Jackalope's brunch menu.

My skillet hash was, in a word, fantastic, with some nice touches that elevated it above the everyday version. My notes simply say kale and corn in the hash, which is true- plus there was some yam in there as well, making the hash seem almost...healthy? (But in such a delicious, tasty way.) The bacon was meaty and cooked just right: not too crunchy, not too limp. Mom's Huevos Rancheros was also in a skillet (of course), and equally yummy, although I was in the mood for potatoes, not rice, so I was glad I'd chosen the hash instead. Our drip coffee was fine as well, although I'm an espresso girl, so I wished they'd had a machine. But that wouldn't really fit in with a dive bar, would it?
So now I've discovered what an excellent breakfast Jackalope does, will I be back? Damn straight, at least until the lineups start. "You know," I mused to my mom as we munched "I could have eaten at Denny's for free today, seeing as it's my birthday and all." But that was only to get a rise out of her,
because of course, I'm so glad we didn't.