The Fat Badger

He’s taken us to Spain (España) and Italy (Cibo Trattoria) , and now expat British chef Neil Taylor is giving us a taste of his homeland at the Fat Badger. The West End house that contained Le Gavroche for decades has been reincarnated as a bustling gastropub that perfectly encapsulates the creativity at play in modern British food.

Brits in particular will smile at the whimsy of occasionally offering a chip butty (to the uninitiated: a buttered white-bread sandwich filled with big, fat fries) on the frequently changing menu, as well as a winning riff on poutine that incorporates Britain’s favourite dish, chicken tikka masala, with paneer and those fabulous fries.

Taylor has serious cooking chops: house-made black pudding with egg and crispy pig’s ear was sublime; Scotch eggs with HP Sauce, delicious; the beer-battered fish the best we’ve eaten on this side of the Atlantic. Only Welsh rarebit let us down, being over-broiled and under-cheesy. A Knickerbocker Glory (don’t ask, just order) and a couple of pints of lager and lime, and you could be in Blighty proper.

                                                                                             1616 Alberni St., 604-336-5577