Annapurna
(604) 736-5959
Address: 1812 W. Fourth Ave
Homepage

Goddess of the Harvest gets tired, retires.
a Quick Bite

By Mark Freeman
Eat Vancouver writer

I really wanted great Indian food last Sunday and I really wanted my first review to be a positive one. But there are times in life when we can’t have the things we want.

I had a date that night, so to take the focus off of me and my many faults, I suggested we review a restaurant and focus on their faults. It turned out that the restaurant I wanted to review, Jolly’s Indian Bistro on W. Broadway, is closed on Sundays, so my date and I decided to check out Annapurna, on 4th, near Burrard, which serves vegetarian Indian cuisine. Luckily, my date was a vegetarian. She’s probably iron-deficient, but an attractive, knowledgeable expert on vegetables.

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Red Burrito
Locations downtown, Commercial,
and North Van, see Homepage

The Red Menace
a Quick Bite

By Jason
Eat Vancouver writer

Burritos have been a staple in the Southwest USA for at least two decades now. Coming in sizes as large as a human forearm and stuffed with ingredients like rice, beans, potatoes, fresh salsas, and several varieties of braised or grilled meats, a burrito can be a meal in itself. Portable, delicious and often more healthy than a burger, the trend has recently spread to the rest of the States with several big chains ensuring that stumbling across a decent burrito is about as easy running across a bad George Bush joke in an academic talk. McDonald’s commands the surprisingly not-as-bad-as-you’d-expect Chipotle chain and Wendy’s oversees the pretty-bad-if-not-for-the-salsa-bar Baja Fresh chain. There’s also Qdoba, which offers a fine burrito and a rewarding customer loyalty program, one outlet being found in the food court at the Seatac airport.

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Fetch Hotdog Stand
Address: The NW corner of Water and Abbott St, Gastown (map)
Partial menu

Hours:
Approximately 11:30am – 3pm on most reasonably nice days

Quite Fetching
a quick bite

By Jason Chin
Eat Vancouver editor

As the search for the best pho in Vancouver ends with something of a whimper, Dan and I have been pondering over what iconic dish to throw down next. It is tournament season, after all. We’ve tossed around ideas like hamburgers, dim sum, and butter chicken, but we’ve had trouble getting enthusiastic about any of them. Although it doesn’t quite roll off the tongue, one idea that we’ve played with is a hotdog down. That idea ended a few days ago when I tried Fetch hotdog stand in Gastown, because I believe I’m ready to invoke the mercy rule.

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Habit Lounge
Address: 2610 Main St (map)
604-877-8582
hours available on their homepage

** (of four stars)

The Flying Tiger
Address: 2958 West 4th Ave (map)
604-737-7529
hours available on their homepage

** and 1/2 (of four stars)

Share and Share Alike

By Jason Chin
Writer

Statisticians describe mediation as what occurs when one variable explains the relationship between two others, who without this third variable would have a merely specious relationship. One might interpret the relationship between The Flying Tiger and Habit in the same way: one is Asian-themed, the other has few Asian inspirations; one is full of Kitsilano yuppies, the other is Main Street hippies; one is brightly-lit and very modern, the other is like the inside of a Pandora’s box. Long story short, they don’t have a lot in common unless you analyze the situation a certain way. Both menus feature items that are perfect for sharing.

Oh yeah, and they’re both really good, too.

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The Noodle Box
Address: 1867 West Fourth Ave (map)
Tel: 604-734-1310
homepage

Hours:
Mon-Sat 11am-9pm
Sun noon-8pm

Scenes from an Urban Noodle Stand

By Jason Chin
Eat Vancouver Editor
Thursday, September 21st, 2006

** (of four stars)

It claims to create meals under the very broad description of “Southeast Asian.” It is located in Kitsilano, home of all of the yoga accessories and puppy paraphernalia one’s heart could desire. It started in Victoria, BC. It experienced more false starts and delays of game than the Arizona Cardinals this week. It is a space more evocative of uptown chic than noodle joint. I was skeptical.

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The Foundation
Address: 2301 Main Street, Vancouver
Tel: (604) 708-0881

Hours:
Daily 5pm-1am

The Foundations of a Good Restaurant

By: Russell Ball
Vegan/Vegetarian Columnist
Sunday, November 27th, 2005

** (of four stars)

I’ve been longing to dine at Foundation for months since I heard about it – one of the few very vegan-friendly restaurants in Vancouver. I finally got the chance after spending a long afternoon at Metrotown, and my wife and I stopped at Main Street on the way home. It was about 7pm on a Saturday and when we got there it was packed. Every table was full, but it is a small establishment. Foundation has about 15 tables, and can probably hold 45-50 people, which is small compared to many large chain restaurants. We were willing to wait however, and were seated within a reasonable time, although I noticed the shorthanded wait staff (1 server and 1 busboy) could barely stop serving food so they could clean off empty tables.

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Dharma Kitchen
Address: 3667 West Broadway Avenue, Vancouver
Tel: (604) 738-3899

Hours:
Mon. - Sun. - Noon - 10 PM

Mindful Dining

By Russell Ball
Vegan/Vegetarian Columnist
Wednesday, September 21, 2005

** (of four stars)

Dharma Kitchen is a new establishment near the Alma and Broadway intersection, an area that is slowly growing in population and commercial variety. Hopefully the restaurant-going populace of that area can reach enough of a critical mass to support a specialty restaurant such as Dharma. The Kitchen’s slogan is “The Food of Mindfulness”, which is reflected in the fully vegan, Thai-inspired menu. In that same vein, Dharma does not serve any alcohol, or any sumptuous desserts. Personally, the lack of a dessert menu seemed confusing, what is it about dessert that speaks of mindlessness – is it the absence of nutritional value?

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