our happy puppy Kimchee

Though I now live in Seattle with my husband Henry, we take off for trips across the border fairly often to visit my family. There, we mostly indulge in Chinese food since that’s the thing I miss most about my hometown. A few weeks ago, I decided to surprise my husband with a day in Vancouver—a “Henry Day”, I called it—filled with activities and restaurants that I chose with his preferences in mind.

classic Chinese breakfast: Chinese donut in sesame pastry (sao bing you tiao)

Those who have The Newlywed Kitchen will know the story of how I met my husband back on an internet food discussion forum back in 2006. A mutual interest in seeking out good food was the “glue” that brought us together; four years of laughing in the kitchen is what keeps us together still. Planning “Henry Day” in Vancouver took a bit of (enjoyable) research. I wanted him to know, at any given moment, that I had chosen a particular spot with him in mind.

Henry’s egg and green onion sesame pastry

With breakfast finished, we headed to Granville Island Public Market, an indoor shopping destination similar to Seattle’s iconic Pike Place market. Granville Island is where Henry and I spent one of our first dates, picnicking right by the wharf with a selection of cured meats, pates, and prosciutto from Oyama Sausage Co. I wanted to recreate that memory.

an ill-composed, hastily taken snapshot of our spread from Oyama

So despite our full bellies, I purchased a few items at Oyama: some salumi (wild boar, house saucisson sec, and truffle flavor), duck prosciutto, and a truffled foie gras pate. We grabbed a baguette, and found a sunny spot by the water.

(We snapped these photos of Granville Island Public Market, too.)

rambutans

jam tarts

more tarts!

the view

After walking along False Creek, I took Henry to another spot he’d been dying to try: Go Fish. This popular fish n chips “shack” by the water serves only wild fish. It opened a few years ago by famed restauranteur Gordon Martin (Bin 941, Bin 942), and continues to be a hot spot with locals and tourists alike. After waiting in line for a good 25 minutes, it was another 25 minutes before we got our order: one piece cod, one piece salmon. I don’t normally enjoy fried salmon, but this piece of fish was still moist. (We both preferred the cod, though!) I’ve never been a fan of the pale, starchy fries at Go Fish, but we were too full to finish them anyway.

the hungry crowd at Go Fish about 3pm

our basket of fried goodness

By late afternoon, we dropped off Kimchee at my parents’ house. She’d had a big and exciting day, and needed a puppy-nap. (We needed a short nap too, to digest!) In the evening, we headed to The Keefer Bar, a new Chinese apothecary-themed cocktail lounge in Vancouver’s Chinatown. I got the Vieux Carre (Whiskey, Brandy, Italian vermouth, Benedictine, bitters), and H got a gin-based cocktail whose name I’ve forgotten.

the scene

the Chinese apothecary-themed menu

Vieux Carre cocktail

takoyaki from the night market for the road!

As luck would have it, Keefer Bar was located directly next to the Chinatown night market. We watched the lion dancers and got an order of takoyaki for the road.

By 9:30pm, we were seated at Kingyo, aguably the best izakaya in Vancouver. H’s love for Japanese bar food is well-known, so this downtown spot was a natural choice.

the fresh sheet

rounds of cocktails

Kingyo’s “Undefeatable” Japanese-style dan dan noodles

scallop carpaccio with radishes, sprouts, and mayo

raw sliced beef tongue (and hot stone for you to cook your meat)

seared beef tongue

the freshest chopped raw mackerel with shiso, kaiware radish, ginger and onion (and the fried fish skeleton, too)

sashimi

gingered grilled pork cheeks and onions

Kingyo exceeded H’s already-lofty expectations: it’s an understatement when we say we liked our meal. Every dish was spot-on: the fish was supremely fresh, and the balance of flavors was interesting and refreshing to our palates–even after a day of heavy eating.

By 11pm-ish, we stumbled out of Kingyo, and were driving around the Kits area when we discovered two-month old Kits Daily, a restaurant run by one of my favorite Vancouver chefs, Brian Fowke (formerly of Rare and Monbella). Service had ended for the evening, and Brian was enjoying some wine with his FOH. The garage door was lifted to let in some breeze on the warm night, and the table was set up right by the sidewalk. H and I meant only to say hi, and to promise to come in soon, but soon the wine and cocktails started flowing, and a discussion of the Seattle and Vancouver food scenes began.

We haven’t eaten at Kits Daily yet, but here’s a look at their chalkboard menu which changes every day. If Brian’s standards and skills are as sharp as they were three years ago, when H and I were regular Rare customers (and they no doubt are), I’m quite certain you’d be guaranteed one of the best dinners to be had in Vancouver here.

So there you have it–a full day in Vancouver, carefully-researched according to my husband’s preferences. I’m sure you’d enjoy any of these spots, too!