This pacific northwest city has been on my bucket list for ages and I didn’t know when I would get a chance to explore it until a friend of mine reached out and said she was going to run a race there and wanted to know if I could tag along! I’ll be honest, we were planning to go in May {aka teacher hell month} but I’m glad I bit the bullet and booked my flight because it was beautiful. I only really had 2 full days there {after spending the night in the Toronto airport} and we mainly ate and drank most of the weekend so these are the best places we visited:
Perfect Salmon Benedict with a classic mimosa at The Flying Pig
The Flying Pig Olympic Village:
We started off with an amazing brunch at this place. I am not kidding when I say I wanted to order everything on the menu but finally settled on Smoked Salmon Benedict. It was so delicious and I love how it also comes with a side salad like many dishes in France do as well. Many of my friends ordered the breakfast sandwich as well. We also got the Poutine but I’ll be honest I wasn’t floored. Mimosas were a plus as well!
Traditional Irish breakfast from Mahony and Sons {minus the tomato because they are weird}
Mahony and Sons (Stamps Landing):
This place was perfect on a beautiful day! Vancouver doesn’t really have a rooftop game, but they have the porch game nailed perfectly. This restaurant is right on the water and has an awesome Irish pub feel. A huge beer and cocktail menu (pretty reasonably priced) and amazing traditional Irish dishes. Their breakfast platter was to die for right at the high of brunch. But they also have shepards pie, fish and chips, and banger’s and mash to get you right into Ireland as well.
Craft Beer Market:
If you are an avid reader of my blog you know that beer is not my thing at all, but this beer market was an awesome place to hang out for the afternoon. It is so immense on the inside that you need a few minutes just to walk around and look at this beautiful place. But do sit outside and enjoy the beautiful view of the city and all the city goers. The best part is that they have wine specials and a full bar so you can even get margaritas! Check their website because they have great happy hour deals even on the weekends.
Quirky restaurants and delicious drinks near Blood Alley
Blood Alley:
Right in the heart of downtown, this interesting little street is so quirky and you wouldn’t know it existed unless you looked for it. A local suggested this place to us and it has lots of cute shops, bars and tiny restaurants to take a break from your daily adventures. Places like Gringos, L’Abbatoir and Wildebeest are great!
Lee’s Donuts:
Granville Island is a must go to Vancouver but also stop at this delicious donut shop. Their famous one tastes just like a delicious krispy kreme. There donuts are a little bit heavier but so good!
Delicious wine and frozen bellini at Milestone’s
MileStones Grill and Bar:
We sort of stumbled upon this place helping a friend get to the train station but ended up loving it! We went to the location a little bit south of the city but they have tons of other locations as well. The best reason to go is because of their happy hour deal you cannot beat it! If you have a sweet tooth like I do make sure you get the peach bellini.
The Diamond:
This beautiful historic looking restaurant right in the heart of the city is the perfect dinner spot. It’s a little on the pricer side but the location is so prime. Take a few friends and share a bunch of their snack menu and it’ll be totally affordable. The best part is that you can get reservations on open table!
