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Neighborhood
Gastown Resurrection
From design stores to coffee houses, the new Gastown’s got it going on.
Here are a few of our favourite stops. |
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604-873-2702
2702 Main St. |
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Eat:
Yankee Noodle Dandy
We love hip as much as the next person but lately the rapid-fire opening of too-cool-for-school
eateries in Vancouver’s south of Main district has us gasping for some calm.
Thankfully serenity is found at Ping’s Café, a small restaurant that
is an oasis of modern design. The hundreds of hanging lights are custom-designed
by Vancouverite Omer Arbel and go perfectly with the contemporary aura and clean,
unfussy decor. The menu takes its inspiration from Japanese Yoshoku cuisine, American
classics done with a Japanese ethos. The result: eclectic masterpieces like a
hamburger-wrapped hard-boiled egg in panko crumbs.—Neal
McLennan |
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beautythroughbalance.ca |
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Spa:
Mud Slinging
When Sherina Jamal began searching for unique ingredients for an all-natural skin
care line, she found a fountain of youth in our harbour. Well, not quite. But
using Canadian glacial clay and Pacific seaweed (both indigenous to British Columbia’s
coastline), along with imported additions such as green tea and grapeseed extract,
Jamal developed Beauty Through Balance, dedicated to well-being both on the outside
and within. With recyclable packaging and energy-efficient production methods,
it maintains an environmental equilibrium that has won the approval of the David
Suzuki Foundation. —Shannon Smart |
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604-568-7677,
zwadadesign.com,
110-1228 Homer St. |
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Decor:
A Fine Balance
Zwada Home is a chic Yaletown hideaway with an intimate approach to interior design,
mixing modern philosophies with old-world pieces to create spaces that are both
contemporary and timeless. Think of the elegant minimalism of antique Asian imports
offset by the gallery’s bespoke line of plush furnishing. To complete the
serene milieu, Zwada also offers fresh-cut flowers arranged at the hands of a
master florist.—Vanessa Scrubb |
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604-732-7900 meinhardt.com,
3151 Arbutus St. |
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Shop:
Young at Hardt
When Linda Meinhardt opened her namesake South Granville market a decade ago,
she revolutionized fine food retailing in Vancouver. Now Meinhardt Fine Foods
is doing it all over again in a new neighbourhood. A second market at Arbutus
and 16th Avenue (next to the Ridge theatre) has expanded on the original’s
mix of prepared gourmet foods, deli and butcher counters and the best of ingredients
in a glassy, new 15,000-square-foot location. A selection of the world’s
finest salts, vinegars, mustards and biscuits, this time with 100 free parking
spaces? Now that’s decadent.—Neal McLennan |
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604-737-4704
522 Beatty St. |
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Shop
Nest
The Crosstown neighbourhood, sandwiched between Yaletown and Gastown, is giving
its bordering shopping districts a run for their money to become Vancouver’s
design centre. Stylish Provide has been joined by the equally well-edited selection
of furniture and art at nearby Nest.
The store showcases modern furniture in a multitude of sleek designs, made to
order in Mexico. Accessories run more local, with freeform wooden vases and lamps
evoking the image of a driftwood-strewn beach. —Amanda
Ross |
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Vancouver:
604-731-2576
2349 Granville St.
Cloverdale:
604-575-2577
407-17768 65A Ave. |
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Shop
Archetique
On the relatively youthful West Coast, architectural antiques are hard to come
by—just ask those clamouring for the bricks recovered from the old Woodward’s
building. Scott Landon and Rob Thomson aim to change that with their new South
Granville store Archetique,
which reclaims 18th- and 19th-century Canadiana and Americana salvaged from points
east: think doors with original brass, working latches and glass from Chicago
circa 1900, or a 19th-century terracotta keystone that once witnessed many a goodnight
kiss at the entrance of a New York apartment complex. —Meaghen
Ng |
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604-929-7277
98 Marine Dr.
North Vancouver |
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Shop
Everything Wine
For years, Vancouverites have been green with envy over lavish wine boutiques
in neighbouring provinces. North Vancouver now boasts its own envy-inducing upscale,
service-oriented wine warehouse, Everything
Wine. Its 12,000 square-feet of retail space is filled with nearly 3,000 labels,
including hard-to-find wines from around the globe and eco-friendly vintages.
Knowledgeable staff tailor selections to your palate and price point, or you can
sidle up to the tasting bar between 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. daily to try before you
buy. —Meghan Jessiman |
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250-544-8217
6170 Old West Saanich Rd.
Victoria. |
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Drink
Winchester Cellars
Saanich’s Winchester
Cellars views the cocktail hour as the next fortified mountain to conquer.
Armed with Vancouver Island’s first distiller’s license and a Jules
Verne-esque hammered-copper-pot still, Ken Winchester has crafted Victoria Gin,
the first handcrafted gin made in the West. Infused with 10 organic botanicals—including
rose petals, coriander and juniper—it’s a complex and elegant elixir.
The first release of 3,000 bottles has local barkeeps asking just one question:
shaken or stirred?—Shelora Sheldan |
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888-855-1050
788 Richards St.
Vancouver |
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Stay
L'Hermitage Hotel
Want to check out Vancouver’s new boutique?
You’ll have to check in first—permanently or otherwise. L’Hermitage
Hotel, a condo-hotel hybrid, sequesters 60 boutique suites on floors five-through-seven.
Premium rooms come with patios bigger than most Vancouver condos, LCD screens
and kitchens fit for a chef with Bosch and Sub-Zero appliances. All the rooms,
done up with leather wallpaper and marble floors, evoke the feeling of crashing
at a tasteful, well-heeled friend’s luxe digs. A full-time concierge can
arrange tickets and reservations, or maybe even an introduction to the cute tenant
you spied in the lobby.—Meaghen Ng |
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778-279-3879.
1329 Marine Dr.
West Vancouver |
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Shop
Verandah Antiques
Even if you can’t say you wiled away your childhood days surrounded by luxurious
furniture at your grandmother’s house in the hills of India, you can still
pretend. New to West Vancouver is Verandah Antiques, a store dedicated to Indian
furniture crafted during the Raj period of British imperial rule (1858-1947).
Handmade using only the finest woods, Raj furniture was influenced by Victorian
and Art Deco design movements. Owner Salman Ansari has selected flawless character
and contemporary pieces—complemented with silk Kashmiri carpets and antique
Afghan and Indian rugs—to best bring the era to your home.—Susan
Hollis |
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604-922-5022
1405 Bellevue Ave.
West Vancouver
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Home Glow
Residential Renovations
Remember when
the hardest part about your reno was choosing which shade of taupe to paint the
living room? These days it’s the lack of qualified tradespeople to execute
the homeowner’s vision that towers over all other concerns. Enter West Vancouver
designer Teresa Cain. As owner of the Interior Solutions Design Group, Cain witnessed
first-hand the havoc the shortage of qualified labour visited upon her clients
and her designs. Instead of hand-wringing she took the logical step of starting
her own renovation company, Glow
Residential Renovations, so that ISDG clients can now have a trusted hammer
to execute their reno plans, all under one, reliable, umbrella.—Amanda
Ross |
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604-681-6211
674 Granville St.
Vancouver
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Drink
Nespresso
For years it was a secret club, which, like the Masons, had its own language and
rituals. They debated the merits of arpeggio vs. volluto, C190s vs. le Cube. And
they fuelled themselves with regular overnight shipments from New York City. We
are talking about acolytes of the Nespresso, the home espresso juggernaut that
has Europe firmly in its grasp. The very good news is that Nespresso
has just opened the first of two North American outlets outside NYC in the Bay
downtown. The outlet offers the full line of machines and capsules, so the java
fix no longer requires the involvement of FedEx. The secret handshake will be
revealed upon entry.—Amanda Ross |
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Shop
Durante
If your love for furniture is categorized by the names of European cities and
former monarchs but your environmental mantra is ahead of its time, New Westminster
company Durante has just
the product for you. Co-owner Karey Durante was inspired to go green when she
observed her young son’s negative reaction to the gasses emitted during
the traditonal furniture manufacturing process. As a result Durante implemented
enviro-savvy processes in the creation of her Luxury Green furniture line. So
while most green furniture lines bow to the modern aesthetic, Durante offers an
old-world elegance with a green-world outlook. —Susan
Hollis |
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Epoque Interiors
2, 1864 W. First Ave.
604-738-8066 |
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Home
Epoque Interiors
A select few individuals own a home designed by French legend Le Corbusier and
a few more are lucky enough to own one of his original furniture designs. Now
Kitsilano’s Epoque Interiors has ensured that the remaining Corbu acolytes
can create an environment of which the master would approve. The company is the
exclusive importer for Canada for kt. COLOR, an elite paint line which replicates
the palette of Le Corbusier in painstaking detail. The creation process eschews
the modern synthetic fillers and pigment pastes favoured in today’s industrial
paint. Instead the natural mineral pigments of 70 years ago are sourced to create
a product that is both historically accurate and visually stunning. Look and do
touch: Epoque Interiors has set up a design centre to showcase this triumph of
colour. —Amanda Ross |
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604-688-6228
65 Water St.
Vancouver |
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Shop
John Fluevog
John Fluevog’s shoes and
boots have transcended the class of mere footwear and become part of the cultural
fabric of the West. Now the brand’s flagship store has moved from the hodgepodge
of the Granville Mall to the suitably edgy yet high-design environs of Gastown’s
Water Street. And not only do the digs look great (check out the back wall panelled
in Portuguese shoe leather), they also showcase the company’s design studio
and the team that’s dreaming-up the next step in footwear.—Neal
McLennan |
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Available at Capers, Urban Fare and retailers across the West. |
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Eat
Zazubean
Vancouverites Tara Gilbert and Tiziana Ienna have created Canada’s premier
line of dark (70 percent!) gourmet chocolate bars, Zazubean.
Being health-conscious, both Gilbert and Ienna wanted the bars to be fully organic
and filled with natural ingredients, plus they both wanted to create a chocolate
bar that was socially responsible (thus fair trade). Chocolate lovers will be
amused by the six varieties they can choose from—women in particular may
cyclically crave the Luna(tic) bar, which includes ingredients such as dong quai
root and chaste tree berry to ease those monthly pains. And those seeking a little
horny goat weed in their chocolate diet should try the Flirt bar—which also
happens to be Gilbert and Ienna’s current favourite. But don’t expect
them to come up with a white or milk chocolate line. “My response is: Never,”
said Ienna.—Colleen Tang |
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Bean Brothers Café Bistro
2179 W. 41st Ave.
604-266-2185
Vancouver |
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Eat
Bean Brothers Cafe Bistro
Caffeine connoisseurs can now sniff, swirl and slurp their way through 38 different
coffees by the cup at Bean Brothers Café Bistro in Kerrisdale. Like sommeliers
who showcase fine wines by the glass, the baristas at this bustling coffee-bar-cum-restaurant
brew single cups of exotic, mostly free-trade and certified-organic coffees—Nicaragua
Las Sabanas and Jamaican Blue Mountain, one of the most expensive coffees in the
world, are two popular choices—for their clientele. “We want to offer
coffee lovers the same kind of experience that wine lovers can get at a great
wine bar,” says new owner Arkady Draliuk. Just no spitting, please.—Ann
Campbell |
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Do
VanDusen Botanical Garden
Eating local, in-season produce is just one of the ways to fight global warming,
support local producers, and give a thumbs-down to monoculture agriculture. As
part of its Summer of Plenty, VanDusen
Botanical Garden will offer visitors an understanding of what it means to
eat fresh and seasonally. Hitting its peak in late August, VanDusen’s Heirloom
Vegetable Garden will provide an idea of what Vancouver gardens looked like around
1896, when growing was still done on a small scale and tended by human hands.
And if you catch the way-retro bug, stop by the seed store to start your own journey
back to the future.—Susan Hollis |
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250-544-8217
6170 Old West Saanich Rd.
Victoria |
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Drink
Winchester Cellars
Saanich’s Winchester
Cellars views the cocktail hour as the next fortified mountain to conquer.
Armed with Vancouver Island’s first distiller’s license and a Jules
Verne-esque hammered-copper-pot still, Ken Winchester has crafted Victoria Gin,
the first handcrafted gin made in the West. Infused with 10 organic botanicals—including
rose petals, coriander and juniper—it’s a complex and elegant elixir.
The first release of 3,000 bottles has local barkeeps asking just one question:
shaken or stirred?—Shelora Sheldan |
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2131 Lake Placid Rd
604-966-5700
Whistler |
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Stay
Nita Lake Lodge
Whistler’s bustling village is justifiably
famous for its fast and occasionally frenetic pace, but until now those desiring
to enjoy the area’s bounty sans the bustle have been out of luck. The newly
opened 77-suite Nita Lake Lodge,
adjacent to the railway station and nestled on the shores of pristine Nita Lake,
seeks to change that. Though only a 500-yard shuttle ride to the 2010 Olympic
downhill runs, the hotel is a world apart from the village scene while still providing
its guests with the boutique xperience (right down to the soon-to-be-opened Station
spa). And when the snow retreats, canoeing and fly-fishing are right at your door.—Lucas
Aykroyd |
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