Le Petit Belge: Amazing Salmon Benny on Waffles

I don’t make it downtown very often so, when I had the chance in mid-February, I popped by Le Petit Belge for an early morning breakfast. True to their name, this location is kind of small and I was glad that I went early as it quickly filled up in the morning. As you enter, you’ll come to the counter where you place and pay for your order before sitting down.

Chez Michel: French Bistro in West Van

NOTE: I’ve was originally holding back on posting restaurant reviews due to the whole social distancing/pandemic going on but I figure that a lot of these restaurants are probably hurting due to the decrease in business so maybe it’s a good idea to go ahead and finish off my backlog of blog posts. If these restaurants are still open and offering take-out, make sure to try them out. #supportlocalbusiness

Over the years, I’ve come to really appreciate good French restaurants more and more. So when we found ourselves on the North Shore in early November, we decided to pop into Chez Michel. Located on the 2nd floor, this cozy eatery didn’t disappoint.

Burgoo (Kits): Comfort Food

This isn’t my first time dining at Burgoo. I mean, a place dedicated to comfort food? Why am I not here more often?

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).

Café Ile St. Louis – Paris Hotel (Las Vegas): Outdoor Parisian Café Inside a Casino

Cafe Ile St. Louis is one of the dining establishments located inside the Paris Hotel in Vegas. It’s designed to look like a Parisian café complete with an “outdoor patio” with faux buildings. While the sounds from the surrounding casino area takes a bit away from the experience, it’s actually not that difficult to imagine that you’re actually dining in a Paris café.

La Brass: French Bistro in Point Grey

Picking a nice restaurant to go to during the end of the year is a bit difficult because so many restaurants are fully booked for the holidays. I actually wanted to try La Brass during the weekend but they were all full so we dropped by for lunch during the weekday instead.

Origo Club: Afternoon Tea

The number of places that you can enjoy Afternoon Tea has certainly ramped up in Vancouver over the last couple of years. One of the newer and splashier places is Origo Club in Richmond. What sets Origo apart from other places that serve Afternoon Tea is their attached gallery that displays various contemporary Asian art pieces. I know it sounds a bit disconnected from the French-inspired fare that Origo strives for, especially when you consider Afternoon Tea being so closely associated with old world English culture.

Tour de Feast: Croque Madame

Tour de feast is a tiny little restaurant located in the Lynnmour area of North Vancouver that serves up French-inspired foods. It’s probably been a good two years since our last visit here.

Grub on Main: Amazing Grub

Grub is a small eatery on Main Street that’s been open since 2007. It’s funny because I’ve often driven or walked past this area of Main Street and have never even noticed this restaurant. Run by Chef/Owner Ling, there’s a surprising well-rounded selection of options on the menu with 95% of their produce supplied by their farm in Langley.

Adam’s Crepes: Sweet and Savory

Recently, a new creperie opened up in Burnaby along Rumble St, not too far from Makoto Sushi and Stem Japanese Eatery.

Absinthe Bistro: French Food on The Drive

I have a habit of picking French bistros for my birthday dinner. This time around, I opted for Absinthe Bistro which is a smallish restaurant tucked away on the bustling Commercial Drive.

Chez Lui (Tokyo Dome): Tokyo 2017

Breakfast in Japan usually turned out to be some type of bakery item for us (mainly because these were the places that were open when we were heading out). Not too far from our hotel, in the Meets Port building in Tokyo Dome City, is a small bakery called Chez Lui serving up unique French/Japanese pastries.