hired belly’s best restaurants and dining

Unwrapped: Beach Bay Café and Patio

By |2021-03-23T16:56:26-07:00June 4th, 2015|Dining|

Beach Bay's fresh feeling and bright interior, across from iconic English Bay The wraps are off Beach Bay Café and Patio, across from English Bay, in the West End of Vancouver (1193 Denman St., 604-685-7337). I was in for an informal meeting and wine tasting and—while the restaurant is still very much in [...]

5 Great Reasons to Visit Unsworth Vineyards

By |2021-01-23T15:34:00-08:00May 29th, 2015|Dining, Wine|

A restored early 1900s farmhouse is the centrepiece that serves as Unsworth's restaurant 1. It’s on Vancouver Island Even though the setting is beautiful and quite easily reached from Vancouver, I’ll confess: Over the years, I’ve had a bit of a love-hate relationship with Vancouver Island’s wine scene. I’ve always had huge admiration [...]

Nose to Tail: When Only the Beast Will Do

By |2020-05-17T19:44:04-07:00March 12th, 2015|Beer, Dining|

Nose to Tail at Campagnolo Roma Dramatic pig skull presentation at Campagnolo Roma makes the point I’m both intrigued and reassured by the resurgence and resilience of nose to tail dining. I’m a big fan of the whole beast movement, for any number of reasons. I’m intrigued because it really is a [...]

Amici Miei, a Flavour-packed Family Italian

By |2021-06-03T18:23:29-07:00February 23rd, 2015|Dining|

Amici Miei owners Marcella and Manrico CLOSED. I love it when I discover new little places with a whole lot of heart. There’s no question that’s the case at Amici Miei Cucina Italiana (1114 Denman St. 604-563-6610), in Vancouver’s West End. Owners Manrico Serpente  and Marcella Gentile told me they came to [...]

4 Sustainable Tastes at Vancouver Aquarium

By |2023-07-29T09:19:42-07:00February 22nd, 2015|Dining|

No, they weren't on the menu. But isn't everyone mesmerized by jellyfish? There's something very reassuring about walking into Stanley Park on a perfect, almost Spring evening. This night was spectacular. A crystal clear partial eclipse of the moon was framed by a cascade of brilliant stars, Venus and Jupiter. I was on my way [...]

4 Great Reasons to Fall in Love with Nettles

By |2021-11-15T09:27:24-08:00February 16th, 2015|Dining|

Nettles, freshly cut. Put them in the crisper and they'll keep for at least a couple of weeks. Or dry them. My love affair with Stinging Nettles is a relatively recent occurrence. When I was growing up, in England, it seemed they were everywhere, including at the bottom of our garden. It was [...]

Goodbye Kits Kitchen: Brian Fowke moves on

By |2018-01-21T15:05:12-08:00February 1st, 2015|Dining|

Brian Fowke... Time to move on.  Tim Pawsey photo Fresh daily proponent Brian Fowke says it's time to move on from his cherished Kitsilano Daily Kitchen, which will now become AnnaLena ... This from today's mail: "I have just put my chef's knife down for the last time at Kitsilano Daily Kitchen. With [...]

Michel Jacob’s Le Crocodile Celebrates 30 Years

By |2018-01-21T15:05:13-08:00December 7th, 2014|Dining|

Rob Feenie and one-time mentor Michel Jacob (courtesy le Crocodile) It’s a fact of life. People just have to ask me: “What’s your favourite restaurant?” It's always tough to answer because, as a rule, I don't play favourites. "It depends," I'll say ... Chances are it might be the ‘flavour of the month:’ [...]

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