Yes, we have street vendors. But what if you want to sit down for lunch and not spend a bundle? These three new downtown counter-service cafés fill the gap between fast food and a full-service restaurant. Do they make it worth leaving the brown bag at home? The Dish investigates.
1002 Seymour St.; 604-681-2551. Communecafe.ca
My, how Seymour Street has changed. Commune Café, in the new boutique Level Hotel, adds a punch of liveliness to this formerly decrepit strip. Tina Fineza (Flying Tiger, Abigail’s Party, Les Faux Bourgeois) was the opening consultant chef who created the organic, free-range, sustainable seafood blueprint for its sandwiches, salads and Iranian flatbreads.
What’s Hot: The paninis and hoagie-style sandwiches are amply stuffed with tender house-roasted meats and delicious fixings. Go for the silky-fatted porchetta panini with earthy roasted peppers ($9) or hot Fraser Valley shaved beef ($9) with melted stilton and caramelized onions.
What’s Not: The smoked sablefish and quinoa salad is lovely and light, packed with fresh mint and zested with lime. But the $12 price tag ($9 for chickpeas and greens) is fairly steep for this type of venue.
Libations: The all-Canadian lineup – from wine and beer to tea and Pop Shoppe soda – is impressive.
Sweet Sensations: Baked goods are from Mix Bakery (as is the bread), but the display of granola squares, strawberry rhubarb crumble and cupcakes didn’t look all that enticing. Nutella brioche toast on the other hand…
Service/Decor: The doodle people in the cheerful Keith Haring-style graffiti murals outshine the servers, who could use a bit more personality.
Bottom Line: Premium ingredients aren’t cheap, but this cute neighbourhood hangout will quickly lose its allure if the food quality drops after the opening consultant chef moves on.
Giovane Café
1038 Canada Place; 604-695-5501. Giovanecafe.com
This chic, Euro-style café, bakery and deli in the Fairmont Pacific Rim hotel feels like it has jumped off the pages of a glossy design magazine, almost self-consciously so. It’s too bad the Italian pizza, panini and pastries don’t receive as much love.
What’s Hot: Small personal pizzas ($10) are almost all authentically topped with the same sorts of cured meats, potatoes, roma tomatoes, anchovies, gorgonzola and herbs that you’d find in Italy (no Hawaiian abominations here). The crust is crispy, yet thin and pliable enough to fold over. Would probably be less greasy if made fresh-to-order, rather than par-baked and reheated.
What’s Not: There’s nothing wrong with a thin sandwich. We don’t always have to stuff ourselves into a food coma. But when a $9 grilled panini is this lightweight, each bite counts – and it would be nice actually to taste the tomato-walnut pesto daintily daubed under marinated Portobello mushrooms that are barely moist.
Libations: Superb coffee. Locally roasted espresso from 49th Parallel is freshly ground and pulled into strong, appropriately bitter shots. Free cooler water infused with orange slices is a nice touch.
Sweet Sensations: The cult-worthy sugar buns and chocolate zeppole ($4) are voluptuous brioche baseballs filled, respectively, with vanilla and chocolate pastry cream. But I certainly wouldn’t order a cake here after tasting the bakery’s dry, flavorless tiramisu with jellified mascarpone.
Service/Decor: Two service counters (one for the barista, one for the kitchen) make ordering an extremely confusing ordeal. The cakes behind the coffee counter were so shockingly old that the raspberries on the cheesecake were sprouting blue mould. Seriously.
Bottom Line: Never trust a restaurant that puts more care into its merchandise shelves than its display food.
Sweeney’s of Yaletown
1091 Hamilton St.; 604-689-4505. Sweeneysyaletown.ca
The Galley Patio & Grill at the Jericho Sailing Centre is a delightful waterfront gastro pub. So it’s no surprise that its owner has created an equally enticing casual eatery inshore. Anchored in the centre of glossy Yaletown, Sweeney’s offers excellent value for its scrumptious slow-fast food: soups, sandwiches, salads and baked goods all made from scratch.
What’s Hot: The meatloaf sandwich ($8) – creamy Pemberton Meadows ground beef smothered in a fresh tomato sauce (as good as Nonna’s) in a chewy ciabatta bun – was so good, I ordered a second to take home for dinner. The crispy duck confit sandwich ($9.50), piled high with crunchy Asian coleslaw in a soft, sesame-seed roll, is no slouch either.
What’s Not: Although the aroma of freshly roasted butternut squash and onions will have you salivating the moment you step inside, the house soup for which it was destined ($6.50 with bread) needs more broth to cut its sweetness and pablum-like thickness.
Libations: Salt Spring coffee, about a dozen craft beers, and a small, well-edited wine list available in 100 or 200 ml glasses. Non-alcoholic beverages could use more variety.
Sweet Sensations: Not a huge array of choice, but daily desserts such as ganache-sandwiched macaroons and chocolate mousse topped with creamy Guinness foam are knockouts. Chef Glenn Saunders is a former pastry chef at Montreal’s Decca77.
Service/Decor: General manager Gerard Egan is a salt-of-the-earth fellow who makes you want to pull up a stool and stay a while. If in a hurry, call ahead for pick-up.
Bottom Line: This down home respite is exactly what this overpriced neighbourhood needs.
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