First, I love how the Loden Hotel renovated the restaurant formerly known as Voya into Tableau – an urban, French bistro feel, a la Balthazar in NYC. They’ve also added an outdoor patio for afternoon lunches and drinks.

I’ve only been for lunch, but the food was excellent. A nicely cooked halibut cobb salad with fresh greens and a mild blue cheese. Or the quintessential bistro dish, steak frites – sliced steak drizzled with a red wine sauce. You also get a lovely salad with the dish, which makes having steak and fries for lunch much healthier. Portions are a little small, but you don’t leave the restaurant hungry.

The website also says takeout is coming soon. This excites me – as a new mom, I am eating at home more so having access to quality takeout food will be a treat.

The restaurant was bustling at lunch with a diverse crowd, including lots of business meetings – this is a great expense account restaurant.

The restaurant scene in this part of downtown isn’t great, so it’s nice to see Tableau here. I hope it does well.

Tableau Bar & Bistro
1181 Melville Street (@Bute)
Vancouver
604-639-8692

I was in San Francisco this summer indulging in the excellent Bi-rite and Humphry Slocombe creameries, lamenting the fact Vancouver had nothing as good. Now we do.

This is gelato done right, the way the best places in Italy make it. Everything is made fresh with the best ingredients under the watchful eye and technique of James Coleridge, who trained at the Carpigiani Gelato University in Italy. He’s been at the store every time I’ve gone to Bella – definitely talk him up when you’re there if you want to learn more.

What makes the gelato so good? It’s fresh, light, creamy, and so  flavourful, No words can do it justice – you must just try it. For me, it’s all about the nocciola (hazelnut) flavour, which blew me away on my first tasting. Bella Gelateria brings in fresh hazelnuts from the Piedmont region of Italy and makes the hazelnut paste for the gelato on site. Perhaps the most iconic gelato flavour is pistachio, which is light and sweet with a nutty bite – by far the best in Vancouver. For the traditionalists, there are the standard chocolate and vanilla as well. There’s a great selection of flavours, plus some sorbetto options as well.

Prices start at $4.95 for one flavour/scoop in a cone or cup. This is the same price as a cone at those marble slab ice cream joints, and trust me, Bella is better.

Bella Gelateria is located on the northwest corner of Burrard & Cordova street downtown, near Coal Harbour, in the same building as the Fairmont Pacific Rim Hotel.

These are calories worth indulging in.

Bella Gelateria
1001 W. Cordova Street
604.569.1010
Open daily from 11am-10pm (’til 11pm on Fri & Sat)

I’ve seen lots of great top patio lists for Vancouver already, but below are some favourites & recommendations. And remember, this is a list for patio first, food second.

Downtown
The Gallery Cafe (at the Vancouver Art Gallery), 750 Hornby Street (best accessed off of Robson & Howe): If you want a truly sunny patio, nothing beats the Gallery Cafe’s huge outdoor licensed patio atop the Vancouver Art Gallery. A great place to catch some rays, people watch, and catch up over a glass of wine. Food is cafe style – sandwiches, salads (with art gallery prices).

False Creek North
Nu Restaurant, 1661 Granville Street (under the Granville St. Bridge): Nu features and all-seasons patio right on the water, with tables, couches, and a great view of False Creek and Granville Island across the water. A great spot for lunch or dinner while enjoying the view is a relaxed setting. And the food here is great.

Coal Harbour
Cardero’s Restaurant, 1583 Coal Harbour Quay: Cardero’s makes many best patio lists because, it’s a nice patio! A big, airy space right in the centre of Coal Harbour. A calming location away from the bustle of downtown Vancouver.

Willow Stream Spa and the  Fairmont Pacific Rim Lobby, 1038 Canada Place Way (near Burrard & Cordova) - The newest Fairmont Hotel is beautiful on the inside with a great outdoor patio off the lobby lounge, which features live music daily. Plus, the Willow Stream spa on the 5th floor is just completing construction on an incredible outdoor patio, which will include fire pits, hot tubs, and outdoor treatment – I hear it should be ready later this month.

Gastown
Chill Winston, 3 Alexander Street: Right in the centre of Gastown by the Gassy Jack statue is Chill Winston’s huge patio – perfect for drinks while overlooking the cobblestone roads and Gastown shops. Downsides: it’s a busy patio so there can be waits, and you’ll get your share of people asking for spare change. While it’s shadier, the small patio at Jules can be a good alternative.

Granville Island
Sammy J Peppers, 1517 Anderson St, right inside Granville Island. Remember, what I said about patio first, food second? Sammy J on Granville Island does sport a fantastic patio for those who want the breeze, but not the glaring hot sunlight. It’s a fully covered patio, overlooking the boats and a boardwalk. A good spot for a beer in a slightly less crazy part of Granville Island in the summer. (but if you like crazy, hit up Bridges or the Backstage Lounge)

Main St.
Crave Restaurant, 3941 Main St (near 24th): You’d never guess it from the front of the restaurant, but Crave has a beautiful patio in the back of the restaurant. It’s been nicely lanscaped and feels like a comfy backyard. Food here is good, but inconsistent. Brunch is my favourite meal here.

Burgoo Bistro on Main, 3096 Main St (near 16th): The Main Street Burgoo has a great patio right on Main Street that gets plenty of sun.

Kitsilano
The Boathouse on Kits Beach (formerly the Watermark Restaurant), 1305 Arbutus Street: I’ll miss the prawn spring rolls at the Watermark, but otherwise, I’m sure the Boathouse will fit right into the Kits Beach scene. An incredible view of the city, mountains, and beach.

The Smoking Dog, 1889 W. 1st Ave (@ Cypress): I used to live 50 steps from the Dog and enjoyed the patio regularly. Sun drenched, quiet street, great French bistro food.

Yaletown
The Keg, 1011 Mainland Street: I haven’t been, but everyone I know is raving about the patio at the new Keg in Yaletown.

Some highlights:

• The menu includes breakfast from 6am-11am, a lunch menu of pizza, soup, salad, and panini, and a extensive list of sweets, breads, and cakes.
• Menu prices are quite reasonable – the restaurant wants to be a go-to spot for more than just hotel guests. Pizzas are $9, a soup & sandwich combo is $12, and paninis are served with a crisp salad for $8-11.
• Locals can pick-up a fresh artisan loaves of brioche, sourdough, and wheat breads for $6 to take home.
• There’s a beautiful case of whole cakes, pies, and tarts (available by the slice too), including an Apple Galette, Tiramisu, Devil’s Food Cake, and Strawberry Shortcake.

I grabbed a window stool looking over Cordova St, enjoying a nice breeze through the open windows, reading a paper, and munching on my Genovese panini – a slice of roasted turkey breast, pesto, taleggio cheese, on a fruit and nut bread.

I’d say portions are on the small-medium size – not huge, but enough. When I toured the hotel last year, they showed off their huge and beautiful hotel kitchen. All bread and charcuterie and made fresh in-house, and top quality.

Giovane is a great spot for a nice, light lunch. Look for for the big, yellow lower case “g” sign, pointing you to the restaurant off of Cordova St.

Giovane Cafe, Bakery, & Deli
Fairmont Pacific Rim
1038 Canada Place (outside entrance on Cordova just west of Burrard)
604-694-5501
Open daily 6am-8pm

Amidst the blustery, rainy, horrible day, myself and 10 additonal ladies from the Downtown Networking Association donned pink construction hats as we were guided around the in-progress Fairmont Pacific Rim Hotel. To be honest, it all went by in a blur, but here are some highlights I remembered:

• We were greeted by several amazing employees from the Fairmont Pacific Rim, including spa director Paul Hawco, sales coordinator Miki Lawson, the hotel’s executive chefs, and spa expert Anne McCall Wilson, who writes the Willow Stream Spa magazine.
• The hotel will be one of the largest buildings in Vancouver, but it’s being designed to feel more intimate and less like a convention hotel.
• The entrance ways will be incredibly grand, including lots of beautiful marble floors & walls and wood panelling.
• The restaurants and services will include: Giovane’s, an Italian-inspired cafe. A lovely lady (who’s name I can’t remember!) explained how they’re baking everything in-house and will have their coffee roasted by Vince Piccolo from 49th Parallel. The cafe will also include a beauitful showcase wall of art, textiles, and books – all hand picked with a focus on local talent. Upstairs will be restaurant the Oru, which will offer authentic pan-asian cuisine. The kitchen in the hotel is huge – over 3000 sqaure feet -  with several walk-ins,  a temperature controlled room for chocolate, and a pastry kitchen. The executive chef said the menu is being designed at a reasonable price point (think Earl’s or Market at Shangri-La pricing). The hotel will be making as much as possible in house, including their own charcuterie.
• The sample hotel room is quite nice, at around 400 square feet for a standard room. Each room comes equipped with a media area that lets you plug in your computer and feed it directly to your 42″ television. There’s also an espresso machine in every room, and local photographs and art featured. The “standard” bathroom is beautiful, and includes a huge soaker tub and oversized shower. Luxury city.
• And of course, the Willow Stream Spa. Over 11,000 square feet, including a steam room, exercise room, and a huge 2500 square foot patio with a beautiful view. There are treatment rooms for men and women, and a lounge area with a fireplace for gatherings.
• Our tour ended with a glass of bubbly, a canape sampler, and a little gift from the spa.

Overall, I was quite impressed with seeing the hotel in-progress and their committment to quality and their use of local resources. I’m looking forward to seeing the finished product next year and trying the spa and restaurants. Thanks to everyone at the hotel for a great tour.

Stay tuned!

Fairmont Pacific Rim Hotel and Willow Stream Spa
1038 Canada Place Way, Vancouver

Overall, Irashai’s strengths are in their fresh seafood and unique rolls. The room is large with high ceilings, a big bar, and huge booths. The restaurant feels very open, which makes it great for hosting large parties and social gatherings.  I just booked a holiday party at Irashai for about 90 people.

Danielle from Irashai came by after we were seated and recommended several items for us . I found our dinner at Irashai was very good, with some ups and downs. Highlights:

• Red Tuna Carpaccio – generous slices of fresh red tuna with a miso and mayo sauce drizzled on top. The fish was fresh, but the sauce was quite strong and over-powered the fish.
• The best stuff at Irashai are their feature rolls (called “wrap corner” on the menu) – all have fresh fish, beautiful colours, and big portions. We liked the Wild Fish Roll with salmon, tuna, hamachi, and green onion. The Summer Roll with prawn tempura, cucumber, mayo, masago with marinated tuna and avocado was a nice balance of flavours, and the Alaska Crab Leg Roll featuring crab leg meat and mango, lightly deep friend with a lemon mayo sauce was different, but good.  Having been to Japan and eaten a lot of Japanese food, the picky part of me would say the sushi rice was a little too mushy, but I’m probably the only person that noticed.
• Kari Kari Chicken, small pieces of deep fried chicken with a honey mustard sauce – these little bites would be good bar eats, but my dining companions weren’t big on this dish.
• Yam french fries – a specialty of the restaurant, these are crisp and crunch tempura style fries with a tasty asian dipping sauce
• Grilled sable fish – beautifully cooked with great flavour
• Service overall was good, but we didn’t seem to have a designated waiter. One person took our order and then we never saw them again. So, attentive but not personalized.

I look forward to having lunches and group gatherings at Irashai Restaurant. Overall the food is high quality and the menu is interesting, though not traditional Japanese. It’s a fun approach to the cuisine though, so if you’re looking for something different give it ago.

Irashai Grill
1368 W. Pender Ave (@ Broughton)
604-688-8697