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Gastropod
Part of the new restaurant renaissance sweeping Kits, this striking wood-lined contemporary dining room is the perfect setting for a modern, French-tweaked menu - expect salivating locals to eye you jealously through the floor-to-ceiling windows. With intriguing dishes such as wasabi-infused salmon and an oyster and horseradish 'snow' creation, the restaurant's three-course prix fixe dinner is a veritable bargain if you want to go the whole hog.
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Glowbal Grill & Satay Bar
Attracting the power-lunch, after-work and late-night crowds, this hip but unpretentious joint has a comfortable, lounge-like feel. Its menu of classy dishes fuses local ingredients with Asian and Mediterranean flourishes - the cheese tortellini with smoked chicken is ace and the finger-licking array of satay sticks is a recommended starter. Good value lunch specials are offered daily and there's a smashing seafood-dominated weekend brunch menu.
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Go Fish
Nestled on the seawall between Granville Island and Vanier Park, this seafood shack serves the city's best fish-and-chips, offering a choice of halibut, salmon or cod encased in crispy golden batter. The smashing fish tacos are also highly recommended, while the ever-changing daily specials often include praise-worthy scallop burgers or ahi tuna sandwiches. There's not much of a seating area, so head to nearby Vanier Park for a picnic.
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Goldfish Pacific Kitchen
Don't be blinded by the dazzling blue marble bar and bustling open kitchen at this swanky new joint; it's the menu that should catch your eye. Fusing West Coast seafood with gentle Asian nudges - delivering treats such as roast halibut with pea leaf and coconut pineapple sauce - this place is worth a night out if you're looking for an exciting alternative to the regular Pacific Northwest salmon dinner.
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Gorilla Food
More guerrilla than gorilla, this tiny hole-in-the-wall take-out joint is a pilgrimage spot for raw food devotees. Mimicking the diet of its namesake, nothing is cooked, leading to innovative treats such as crunchy lasagne (strips of zucchini substitute for pasta) and pizza made from a dehydrated seed crust and topped with tomato sauce, tenderized zucchini and mashed avocado. Save room for an icy almond shake dessert.
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Gusto Di Quattro
A smart-casual but never ostentatious family-run Italian eatery, this welcoming, warm-hued restaurant covers all the pasta classics as well as any other restaurant in town - but the prices make this a better deal than most. More adventurous diners should make for the duck fusilli or tiger prawn linguini. The wine selection is good and some international tipples have started to infiltrate the mostly Italian selection in recent years.
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Habit Lounge
A smashing cafeteria-style dining room with a welcoming ambience and a knowing 1980's feel - who knew that orange vinyl benches and minimalist artwork could be so cozy? - this is like a postmodern update of the classic neighborhood bar. Encouraging shared plate experimentation, the well-priced menu includes adventurous treats such as duck ragout, carrot and brie pierogies and pan-roasted halibut, served with broccolini and arugula pesto.
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Hamburger Mary's
A colorful throwback to the days of chrome trim, juke boxes and black-and-white checkerboard floors, Mary's is all about fab burgers and mondo milkshakes. The heaping all-day breakfasts and weekend brunches are something to write home about, too. If it's a fine day, you might have to wrestle the locals for a spot on the people-watching patio. Consider dropping by after a pub night out: this is one of the city's best late-night hangouts.
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Hapa Izakaya
If you think Japanese restaurants are all about sushi, drop by this popular reinvention of a Tokyo tapas bar. Within its cocoon-like windowless interior and black-on-black color scheme, you'll discover comfort food treats such as steaming hot pots and beef skewers marinated in miso - all best washed down with an ice-cold Sapporo beer.
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Hart House Restaurant
This handsome Tudor-style mansion with a romantic, old-school dining room overlooks the grassy shores of Deer Lake - a natural oasis in the middle of suburban Burnaby. The creative menu has updated northwest cuisine favorites and the weekend brunch - Dungeness crab cake Benedict is recommended - is especially worth the trek. You can walk off your indulgence on the park trails.
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Havana
The granddaddy of dining on the Drive has still got it, hence its buzzing patio on most summer nights. It combines a rustic Latin American ambience with a roster of satisfying Afro-Cuban-southern soul food dishes, with highlights ranging from yam fries to slow-roasted lamb curry and a satisfying platter of clams, mussels and oysters. Port, brandy and single malt lead the drink list. Arrive early to beat the crowds.
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Hawkers Delight
This unassuming Asian hole-in-the-wall offers a taste of authentic Malaysian and Singaporean soul food, all made from scratch at this family-run favorite. Peruse the photo-menu, with dishes such as aromatic coconut milk curry or yellow noodles with tofu and spicy sweet potato sauce, then head straight to the counter to order. The dishes are super-cheap, making this one of the city's best and most enduring cheap eats.
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Hon's Wun-Tun House
Part of the city's favorite Chinese restaurant minichain, Hon's flagship Chinatown branch is suffused with inviting cooking smells and clamorously noisy diners. The giant, 334-item menu ranges from satisfying dim sum brunches to steaming wonton soups, bobbing with juicy dumplings. For something different, try the good value congee rice porridge, a fancy-free soul food dish that takes three hours to prepare and comes in seafood, chicken and beef varieties.
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Irish Heather
At Vancouver's only real exponent of the European gastropub movement, great draught beers are offered alongside gourmet comfort food. That explains dishes such as bangers 'n' mash, made here with top-table pork sausages, pinot noir gravy and colcannon, a mouthwatering potato and cabbage mash. The Belgian chocolate pâté is a naughtily decadent dessert, but hitting the back courtyard with a beer is also a good way to wind down after dinner.
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Italian Kitchen
Sit upstairs by the window - open in summer - and tuck into a hearty, well-priced menu of gourmet Mediterranean comfort food. The pastas (crab ravioli is recommended) are perfect, but the antipasto sharing platter - a large dish of delectable finger foods such as tiger prawns, prosciutto-wrapped asparagus and dangerously addictive cheese-filled zucchini flowers - will have you singing an aria or two on your way out the door.
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Kelong Singapore Cuisine
Spicy Malaysian and Singapore approaches combine in this bright and breezy restaurant - batik fans will enjoy the interior here. If you're starving, tuck into the hearty beef redang or sambal chicken, then sit back and eavesdrop on the conversations about who spent too much at the nearby shopping malls. Vegetarians are equally well looked after.
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Kettle of Fish
'Eat lotsa fish' is its motto, and staff will do what they can to help you do just that. Oddly and overly decorated with land-based vegetation, Kettle makes phenomenal dishes with ingredients from under the sea. Daily fresh sheets might include Szechuan spearfish or cornmeal-encrusted oysters.
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La Bodega
The most authentic Spanish restaurant in Vancouver, it's all about the tasting plates at this country-style tapas bar. Pull up a chair, order a jug of sangria and decide on a few shareable treats from the extensive menu - if you're feeling spicy, the chorizo sausage hits the spot and the Spanish meatballs are justifiably popular. There's a great atmosphere here, so don't be surprised if you find yourself staying for more than a few hours.
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La Casa Gelato
Vancouver's appetite for the gelato craze is sated at La Casa Gelato. It is simply a must to sample some of the more adventurous tastes from its 200+ flavours, including the ridiculous wasabi, kimchi and balsamic vinegar ones. Winter brings out the curry flavours, and summer begets the beer flavour.
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Le Crocodile
Hidden along a side street in an unassuming building, this surprising Parisian-style dining room is right up there with the city's top-end best. Instead of focusing on experimental shenanigans that only please its chefs, it has perfected a menu of classic French dishes, each prepared with consummate cooking skill. Try the braised veal shank with wild mushrooms, washed down with a smashing bottle from the mother country.
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Le Gavroche
Hidden along a residential side street, it's easy to overlook this smashing heritage-home restaurant that fuses West Coast ingredients with classic and contemporary French approaches. Emphasizing les fruits de mer with unexpected flair - check out the Alaska black cod with burnt orange and anise sauce - it's a good choice for a romantic dinner. Wine lovers should also rejoice: there's a selection here that will have you crying with gratitude.
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Lift Bar & Grill
Hanging over the seawall in Coal Harbour near Stanley Park, the swanky Lift serves unrivalled views of the verdant rainforest and mist-cloaked mountains from its wraparound windows and heated deck. If you can pull yourself away from the vistas, dip into gourmet comfort dishes such as bison strip loin and prosciutto-wrapped salmon then sidle over to the shiny bar for martinis: ask for a Sticky Granny Smith if you dare.
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Lumière
While Rob Feenie is the city's most famous chef, he's never taken his eye off the ball at his flagship restaurant. Deceptively unfussy preparations are the order of the day, with French-inspired, Asian-brushed masterpieces such as sake and maple syrup-baked sablefish served amid contemporary-chic splendor. If you really want to push out the boat, launch into one of the multicourse tasting menus - it will be the culinary highlight of your trip.
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Metro
This chic West Coast eatery near the Tourist InfoCentre offers a galloping romp through contemporary Canadian fusion cuisine. Its unusual pay-by-the-ounce approach to meat and fish can be pricey if you want to sample a few different flavors. If you're put off by the giant 50-item selection, head to the swanky oyster bar and shuck your way through a few, complemented by a fruity bottle of BC wine.
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Naam
A rare relic of Kitsilano's hippy past, this vegetarian restaurant has the feel of a comfy farmhouse. It's not unusual to have to wait for a table here at peak times, but it's worth it for the hearty stir-fries, Mexican platters and sesame-fried potatoes with miso gravy. This is the kind of veggie spot where carnivores are also happy to dine. There's nightly live music, an array of great organic beers and a popular patio.
