Coffee Shops in Gastown

We had a lot of coffee, tea, lattes, and the like during our trip to Vancouver. Staying in Gastown, we were surrounded by coffee shops around every corner, and we tried a new one nearly every morning (and sometimes afternoon).

JJ Bean

Upon arriving in Vancouver, we dropped off our bags and showered, and had lunch before stopping by for our first hit of caffeine. I went with my fail-safe London Fog, and was decently satisfied, but unbeknownst to me at the time, this would end up being our most-visited cafe.

Ice Cream Tour: Vancouver

We ate a lot of ice cream in Vancouver; in fact, my travel buddy had one (or more) daily.

Earnest Ice Cream

This is my second time going to Earnest; their London Fog is still my favourite iteration of the latte, ever. Can someone split a tub with me next time?

Earnest Ice Cream

I love London Fog. Put London Fog in a food item, and I’ll probably try it. A lot of ice cream shops make Earl Grey ice cream, but London Fog ice cream is harder to come by. The difference lies in the creamier vanilla flavour that is not guaranteed in the Earl Grey versions.

Earnest easily makes the best London Fog ice cream (or London Fog flavoured anything) that I have ever had. Earnest, please sell your ice cream to the rest of Canada!

Earnest Ice Cream
Location: 1829 Quebec St
Vancouver, BC
V5T 4S6 

Catch 122 Cafe Bistro

Chorizo Hash

When we got to Vancouver, our first priority was checking in to our hostel and taking a long-awaited shower (it had been 4 days!).

Our next priority was getting a good meal; Catch 122 Cafe Bistro was just down the street from us, so we decided to grab brunch at 3pm.

Catch 122 Cafe Bistro
Location: 122 W Hastings St
Vancouver, BC
V6B 1G8

My favourite cafe in Vancouver

Full Vegetarian Baguette; sub egg for avocado

I just came back from a week in Vancouver, and living in Gastown, we made it our mission to get our daily caffeine kick from a new place every morning.

Finch’s was not originally on my shortlist of cafes I made before we came, but we passed by it one morning and thought it was adorable – so we made a mental note to come back another morning.

Finch’s Tea & Coffee House
Location: 353 W Pender St
Vancouver, BC
V6B 1T1

Japadog (Street Stall)

Why does the west coast have superior hot dog stands?

Don’t get me wrong, I love the hot dog stands in Toronto, even in all their grimy condiments container glory. They make great snacks in a pinch, but I would definitely be more inclined to eat more street meat if Japadogs were in town.

Café Medina

Tagine, Le Sandwich Peameal, Fricassée Champignon, Fricassée

Café Medina is located in the heart of downtown Vancouver, nestled along a rather blank street; if not for the long lines of people waiting outside, you might miss it when you walk past. The first time we went there, we were told a party of 4 needed to wait an hour, so we walked around Marshall’s until about 45 mins past to leave a buffer. When we arrived back at the restaurant, we actually just made it in time as the hostess had already called our names a few times and was ready to strike us off the list.

Café Medina
Location: 780 Richards St
Vancouver, BC
V6B 3A4

My favourite meals: travel edition

As I’m currently wishing I were anywhere but here, I thought it would be fun to round up all my favourite meals from my most recent trips.

Vancouver
Medina Cafe’s liege waffles with passionfruit creme actually makes my tongue tingle – I loved this so much I had to get it when I went back.

Whitehorse
Burnt Toast offered up the best food for the best prices in an overpriced city in the northern territories. The Gnarly Barley salad has all the fixings of an amazing meal.

Los Angeles
Kang Ho Dong Baekjeong – I’m not even slightly exaggerating when I tell you I have dreams of this meal. Those beef ribs at the end… So. Good.