Gastown

AFRO CANADIAN RESTAURANT
Find authentic African food in a tiny hole-in-the-wall in one of the sketchier parts of Gastown, where a great menu and the proprietor’s charm overcome the dubious surroundings. Ethiopian-born Menasbo Kiros offers his guests a crash course in East African dining, with variety that spans the continent. Spicy meat and vegetable stews top fluffy injera bread, the staple of Ethiopian meals that serves as both your plate and eating utensil. Tear into tender lamb with Moroccan couscous ($9), Egyptian fava bean ful ($7) and curried goat ($10), or sample a few on the generous combination platters that start at a mere $13.50. 324 Cambie St., Gastown, 604-682-2646. $-$$

ALIBI ROOM
New owners Nigel Springthorpe and Raya Audet revive railyard institution, upgrading the decor and importing Paul Finlay (ex-Aurora Bistro) to re-tool the menus. Try the roasted free-range chicken breast with a smoked bacon and snap pea risotto ($20), or for veggies, a mushroom, brie, butternut squash and hazelnut strudel with beet purée ($14). Join the film crew hangers on and lofters on the 15-seat patio out front or hide upstairs and admire the view through soaring windows. 157 Alexander St., Gastown, 604-623-3383. $$

AL PORTO
In the heart of the most touristy strip of Gastown sits Al Porto, a restaurant which attempts the daunting task of serving fine Italian cuisine to patrons who have just disembarked from a week-long floating buffet. The result is mixed—for every authentic treasure like gnocchi with braised veal and artichokes ($15.95) there is that very Italian dish of filet mignon with Burgundy demi-glace ($26.95). The ample wine list takes a general double-the-retail ethos which banishes any steals but prevents excessive gouging as well. All in all a pleasant, fair-minded establishment well suited to helping you get your land legs back. 321 Water St., Gastown, 604-683-8376. $$-$$$

BONETA
If you were to run Vancouver’s most talented culinary professionals through a fine strainer, you would get Boneta. Named after co-owner Mark Brand’s mother, this Gastown room is a who’s who of this city’s finest young talent, who operate with the loose improvisational confidence of jazz musicians at the peak of their prowess. Executive Chef Jeremie Bestian’s whimsical menu (projected on the wall rather than printed) changes weekly, but watch for commanding dishes like seared ling cod and crispy pork belly with Du Puy lentils and chanterelles ($18). The cocktails alone make this spot a must-visit—belly up to the bar and watch these gifted liquid chefs ply their brand of palate-bending alchemy first hand. Sophie (the Little General) Taverner’s Negroni gets an added kick from citrus infused Hendricks, and ex-New Yorker Steve da Cruz is as effervescent as the imported Billiot Brut he uses for his custom champagne cocktails. Highly recommended. 1 W. Cordova St., Gastown, 604-684-1844. $$ - $$$

CHILL WINSTON
Chef John Jesten is doing a bang-up job with lunch, dinner and late-night snacks such as golden beet carpaccio with scallop ceviche ($7), caribou carpaccio ($16) and Alaskan scallops ($12). For lunch try roast beef, grilled vegetable or brisket sandwiches ($7.50) or share-plates such as crab cakes ($12) and vegetable tempura ($8). For the drinking crowd there are plenty of original cocktails, lots of beer, a good selection of wines by the glass as well as a reserve list. Open late. 3 Alexander St., Gastown, 604-288-9575. $$

COBRE
Latest in a string of impressive openings in Gastown is Cobre, a room that has skillfully captured the alluring essence of latino tapas and presented it in an enticing package. A helpful list of Spanish terms accompanies chef/owner Stuart Irving’s innovative menu, which flirts with influences that range as far as Cuba, Mexico, and South America. Sample the local albacore tuna ceviche with Peruvian potato salad and pipian rojo ($13), free-range pollo taquitos with house made guac ($14) or the B.C. sablefish with mole amarillo and calabaza verde ($15). Horchata crème brûlée with seasonal fruit is a must. Owner/F&B whiz Jason Kelly’s wine list favours Chile and Argentina, but it’s his cocktails that really take flight (the Pisco Sour, $6.50, is remarkably refreshing). Comfortably decorated in Gastown chic (read: wood beam ceilings and lots of exposed brick) with a private wine vault downstairs, this room is worthy of repeat visits. 52 Powell St., Gastown, 604-669-2396. $$-$$$

FLUX BISTRO
Chef Vincent Wong (ex-Vintropolis) and GM Brian Redillas (ex-Monsoon) have broken out on their own with this new Gastown eatery. From the small plates menu try the lox-wrapped halibut ($11) or beef tenderloin medallion with tomato and bocconcini ($14). For mains, opt for the grilled beef tenderloin with daily vegetables, roasted garlic mashed potatoes, and a blue cheese demi glace ($24). Inventive cocktails, premium sake list and a wide beer selection. 162 Water St., Gastown, 604-678-8800. $$

GUU/GUU WITH GARLIC/GUU WITH OTOKOMAE
Tasty shared plates reign supreme in these frenetic rooms teeming with hungry ESL students and thrill-seeking foodies. Like a bullet train to Tokyo, the authentic Japanese tapas come fast and furious—plunge into spicy hot pots ($6), grilled pork cheek with ponzo sauce ($4.80) and black cod with miso mayo ($6.30) that will have you calling for another bottle of plum wine. The best seats at all three locations are at the bar, which provide an entertaining glimpse into the frenetic kitchen. Check out the rotating daily specials and eclectic cocktails to get things started and then slide into the creamy almond tofu for a satisfying finish. Guu, 838 Thurlow St., West End, 604-685-8817; Guu with Garlic, 1698 Robson St., West End, 604-685-8678; Guu with Otokomae, 105-375 Water St., Gastown, 604-685-8682. $$

INCENDIO
This Burrard Street ristorante’s location is its greatest asset and its greatest curse. Attached to the arty Fifth Avenue Cinema, it’s a shoo-in for a pre-movie bite, but off the culinary screen on its own. Shame because wood-fired pies such as the kooky Ukrainian Angst ($14.99/23.99) with crushed tomato, potato, garlic and rosemary are very good. Less well known, but equally superb are the daily meat and fish specials (at the elusive “market price”), which are also fired. The serviceable, well-priced wine list has some outright steals, such as the bracing Gazela Vinho Verde at $28. There is a sister location in Gastown where patrons are less likely to hold forth on Woody Allen. 2118 Burrard St., Kitsilano, 604-736-2220; 103 Columbia, Gastown, 604-688-8694. $$

IRISH HEATHER
Dark wood benches and rickety high stools in the front section of this gastro pub aren’t built for comfort, but the Irish Heather is about as authentic an Irish pub as you’ll find this side of the pond. Hearty and satisfying grub, especially the Guinness pot pie. On the lighter side, equally good is the puck of warmed goat cheese salad crusted with orange relish. You can mix your Guinness with black currant or cider here, but that, we think, is an impure thought. The Heather, plus siblings Shebeen and Salty Tongue, will be moving across the street in early spring 2008. 217 Carrall St., Gastown, 604-688-9779. $$

JULES BISTRO
Stephan Gagnon and Emmanuel Joinville’s remarkable little spot in Gastown hits all the right notes, conjuring hearty, unpretentious French bistro fare. Beef tenderloin with morel cream sauce ($22) is a palate fondler, and the roasted free-range chicken with port jus and potato purée ($17) might see you loosening your belt. If your tummy can take it, finish with a vanilla bean crème brûlée ($6). Kronenbourg 1664 on tap, Costières de Nîmes by the glass ($10) and a daily three-course table d’hôte (greens, steak or salmon with frites and chocolate terrine) for $21 make this room as affordable as it is authentic. Highly recommended. 216 Abbott St., Gastown, 604-669-0033. $$-$$$

LA CASITA
Owner Cazador de la Torre promotes the Yucatan in fluffy homemade tortillas, chocolaty moles and chile rellenos in small, medium or large formats. The spicy chicken and green chili enchilada swissa ($13) rates with a blended margarita or an ice cold Dos Equis. The room provides an atmosphere of tequila-fueled conviviality, but beware: the casual service loses its cha-cha during prime times. Downstairs room recently renovated for extra seatings on weekends. 101 W. Cordova St., Gastown, 604-646-2444. $-$$

LA MARRAKECH
The vibrant, sultry casbah that is La Marrakech profers mint tea mojitos upon arrival. They’re just the right mood elevator to drink in the rich room, and richer food that flows from owner/chef Abdel Elatouabi’s Moroccan-fired menu. Start with a trio of eggplant, grilled pepper and tomato cucumber salads ($11), or the rosewater and pomegarante-tossed golden beet salad ($11), then make way to kefta meshouiya (grilled mutton kabab, $15). Stop for a blood orange mojito. Mains include “La Casserole d’Essaouria” (seafood in saffron tomato broth) or tender K’sksou Royal (braised short ribs). Don’t miss: the companion blueberry and fig salad. Belly dancers on weekends. 52 Alexander St., Gastown, 604-688-3714. $$

THE MOUSE AND THE BEAN
Mexican cuisine shines in grilled tortas (Mexican sandwiches) by day. And at night? Begin with the creamy guacamole and totopos, a pair of tacos dorados or some huaraches (a chorizo and salsa open-faced tortilla named for the Mexican sandals, $7.50). Then a whomping feast called Plato Mixteco ($16.75): carne asada (thinly sliced grilled beef), frijoles de la olla (black beans), arroz a la Mexicana (Mexican red rice), ensalada de nopales (cactus salad) and a cheese enchilada. Refreshing drinks and family-style service. 207 W. Hastings St., Gastown, 604-633-1781. $

SALT TASTING ROOM
Sean Heather’s empire is spreading across Gastown: the Irish Heather, Shebeen, Salty Tongue and now this—a wine bar and charcuterie house down a cobbled gauntlet that breathes just a slight frisson of danger. Find GM Kurtis Kolt dispensing wine, sage advice, beautifully cut, locally sourced salami, international and local cheeses and cured meats from Oyama, J N & Z, and Moccia’s (there’s no kitchen). Condiments source fruits of the Okanagan. The room can grow loud later, but it’s a good loud—the mood is festive and as light as the simple menu, stencilled on the far blackboard, and on a custom menu, handwritten just for you. Blood Alley (enter off Abbott or Carrall St.), Gastown, 604-633-1912. $-$$

SO.CIAL AT LE MAGASIN
Chef Sean Cousins and Maureen Fleming of Ocean 617 landed on Gastown’s tourist drag in the spring of 2007 in a gorgeous restoration of a 1911 heritage building. The main floor dining room boasts Murano glass chandeliers (dropping from lofty, pressed tin ceilings), ancient fir beams and a lovely bar. There’s another cosy bar downstairs serving freshly shucked bivalves with TVs for avid game watchers (former Canucks coach Bob McCammon and goalie Kirk McLean are silent owners), and a charming butcher shop and deli at the rear with a separate entrance on Cordova. As Cousins serves only top quality meats (he butchers and makes charcuterie on site), leaning carnivorously is recommended for his cut-to-order steaks. Still, his artistry with seafood can’t be understated: with your Joie un-oaked Chardonnay, try the dreamy roasted sablefish with cauliflower purée, caramelized sunchokes, and truffle port jus ($27). 332 Water St., Gastown, 604-669-4488. $$$

STEAMWORKS BREWING CO.
There are two locations, but the expansive Gastown spot is the original and the more popular. It’s the one where beer drinkers are afforded the rare pleasure of downing a few pale ales in the building where they were actually brewed. Recognizing the need for variety to accommodate walk-in tourists and cruise ship crowds, they maintain a huge menu, with everything from a ginger beef starter ($10.99) to a seafood crêpe entrée ($17.99). The blue cheese burger ($10.49), however, is a standout. 375 Water St., Gastown, 604-689-2739; 900 Main St., West Van, 604-922-8882. $$

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