Northern Cafe & Grill: Serious Hole-In-The-Wall Diner Eats

I’ve been known to frequent hole-in-the-wall joints. In fact, some of my favourite places to visit are down-to-earth eateries where the owners love what they do and are unpretentious about it. Well, I’m happy to say that I’ve found a new place that meets these standards. I suppose “found” really isn’t the right word as Northern Cafe has been around since 1949. But I can hardly be blamed for not visiting until now… tucked away on the second floor of a building supply store – you seriously are not going to come across this place unless you were intentionally trying to find this place (or if you happen to work in the trades).

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Mon Ami Gabi – Paris Hotel (Las Vegas): Outdoor Dining

Mon Ami Gabi is one of the more well-known restaurants located in Las Vegas. With the looming Eiffel Tower replica overhead of the outdoor patio, it’s not difficult to imagine that you’re in a street-side café in Paris (well, aside from the countless drove of tourists walking along the sidewalk). You’ve also got a view of the Bellagio fountains across the street (while the fountain show isn’t scheduled to start until 3pm during the weekday, you’ll occasionally get to see an impromptu display when they test the fountains – something that surprised us).

Nizzy’s Cafe: Home-Style Cooking

I’ve noticed the signs for Nizzy’s Cafe in the past… mainly when I head further down Byrne Road to get to Fraser Park Restaurant. Located in one of the many business parks in the area, parking can be a bit of an issue as they only have a couple of spots and the street parking fills up quickly from all of the local businesses.

Old Farmhouse Kitchen (Avalon Dairy): Hit and Miss

If you’ve ever found yourself in the dairy aisle of your local grocery store, you’ve probably heard of Avalon Dairy. This local dairy producer has been around the Vancouver area for a very, very long time. A number of years ago, they moved their location over to North Fraser Way in Burnaby and have a small eatery at this location called Old Farmhouse Kitchen.

Cafe 106: London Fog and Tuna Melt

Cafe 106 is a smallish cafe on the corner of Royal Oak and Grimmer in Burnaby. When I first came across the name, I briefly wondered if there were 105 other similar cafes somewhere around town but quickly realized that “106” is their unit number.

Cafe Sweets & Beans: Wing Tower

On the corner of Kingsway and Burlington in Burnaby, it’s difficult to miss the large, turn-of-the-century, Johnson mansion (also known as “Glenedward”) whose main upper floor has been occupied by Sushi Oyama for a number of years. What many people might not remember is that this building once housed a funeral home until the early 80’s… something which has always been the focus of ghostly rumours among those of us that do know of the history of this location.

Trafiq Cafe and Bakery: More Than Just Cakes

If you’re looking for cakes in Vancouver, the place that everyone talks about is Trafiq. Operating a cafe on bustling Main Street, they offer up a variety of sandwiches, cakes, and pastries.

Season’s Apple Cafe: Napoli Tuna Sandwich and Tuna Melt

Season’s Apple Cafe is an Asian-run Italian cafe located in a mini mall on Tenth Avenue in Burnaby, near the Burnaby-Coquitlam border. I stopped by here in mid-July to grab a quick lunch and took a seat on their patio.

Hiel Cafe: Newish Cafe on Burnaby-New West Border

Hiel Cafe is located at the busy intersection of 6th Street and Tenth Avenue on the Burnaby/New Westminster border. Due to the traffic, and despite the parking lot, it can be difficult to find parking since street parking is restricted and the parking lot always seems full from the rest of the business complex that it’s located in.

The Hide Out Cafe: Grilled Chicken Panini

If you find yourself near the BC Provincial Law Courts in New Westminster and you’re looking for a place to hide out, you only have to go across the street to duck inside The Hide Out Cafe.

Bows & Arrows: Tartines and Lamb Ribs

I’m really behind in my blog posts… after recently hearing that Bows & Arrows had sold and plans to close down after this Sunday’s brunch service, I figured I should push this post up while they’re still open. I actually visited back in mid-April after having wanted to try this place for a number of months.

Spade Coffee & Spirits & Treats & Small Plates: Meat Breakfast Sammy

A couple of months ago, I noticed a strange thing in my social media feed… all of a sudden, there were countless pictures of a black spade on a white wall. No, not a shovel… the spade that you see in a deck of cards. Intrigued, I did a bit of digging and found out this was for a place called Spade Coffee. But it’s much more than a coffee shop.