Updated on 27th February 2011: this outlet has closed according to Urbanspoon.com.
The bad thing about having a food blogger dinner at Long’s is that we can’t stay long. We already over extended our welcome at Long’s when we stayed over 2 hours. Long’s was kind enough not to shoo us away.
As a matter of fact, they were rather respectful of us … especially when there were at least four SLRs trained on every dish even before the dish lands on the table. So, we stayed until we overheard that a party of 10 was waiting for a table … and we had the only table in Long’s that can fit 10 people. Sandy (the friendly waitress) did not even bother to hint that we should go. Rather, we thought we should just let others savour the good stuff Long has. We decided to just pay and go.
It was still early and we thought it was still early. We decided to adjourn to another place to continue our little gathering.
I suggested that we meet at a Gelato place for something light, ice-cream and a place where there are enough seats to fit us comfortably without having seen as overtaking the whole outlet. We drove a few blocks … quite a few blocks to Vivo! Gelato.
I had heard so much about Vivo! Gelato before but I rarely go that this part of Vancouver. I had always meant to visit them. At first I thought it would be something like some of the Gelato joints in Richmond. I was rather surprised at how spacious and pleasantly decorated the place was. What really surprises me was how busy Vivo! Gelato was. All the while we were there, there seems to be a constant line of people waiting to pick their choice of gelato.
There was more than enough seats to cater for all of us. We commandeered a corner for ourselves.
There was a good selection of gelato at Vivo. They have two counters of what you see above. Frankly I was not paying much attention to their flavours at all. I just wanted to grab something and get back to the gathering!
Our selection was straightforward. I just asked what their best selling flavour is and got just that … mango and chocolate. Suanne and I wanted it served in a wafer bowl. The gelato was finished in no time … but we continue our chatting.
That’s nice that you all cleared out rather than lingering at the restaurant. I always feel like I should not overstay my welcome either but sometimes I’m with people who feel they have a right to sit until they are ready to leave. It makes me very uncomfortable…
But anyway, Gelato! Love it! My favorite flavor is Stracciatella which is a white base (not sure if it is vanilla or white chocolate) with chunks of chocolate in it. Usually I like more creative flavors but I had Stracciatella once and it converted me!
I suggest a place in the Granville Island Market food court area. I forgot the name but it’s quite obvious as it’s the only stall selling pizza. The gelato there is creamy and thick, with pure ingredients. I ordered a hazelnut flavor which they call the donatella. It contains chunks of chocolate and nuts!