Updated on 12 April 2010: This restaurant has closed according to Urbanspoon.

It’s such a shame.

It’s such a shame that such a fine restaurant like The Cannery are forced to close through no fault of theirs.

Last week, I had a week long strategy planning session with our core project members who came from several countries. The meetings were grueling to say the least. On the last day of the meeting, it rested upon me to organize a team dinner. I love planning dinners like these and chose one of the best place one could go to for such team dinners — The Cannery.

If you have never heard of The Cannery, you will never accidentally bump into this place. It is because it is located out of way. As a matter of fact, it is located right in the middle of the Vancouver Port.

To get to The Cannery you need to clear the port security although it is generally no fuss. They will ask where you are going and they will let you through if you just say you are going to The Cannery.

It will feel kind of weird because located in the middle of warehouses, silos and train tracks is a restaurant very unlike what you will find elsewhere in Vancouver.

activeness and charm. When I told them this place will close in just a few months, they said the same thing … “what a shame”. That is said even before we had started eating.

Gail was saying that they can never replace a place like this. They can’t just close this and hope to reopen it in another place with the same experience. Sha said that it will never be the same again. I agree.

You really got to see this place for yourself. I felt it is just the perfect restaurant for just about any occasion. There are nice little corner with the view of the Burrard Inlet for a nice cozy romantic dinner. At another corner is a casual setting at the fire place.

We got ourselves a very nice corner for our group of 13 people. I could not be happier myself. 🙂

Our waitress was a cheerful person and knows the food and drinks they serve very well. Too well, because she rattled off such a long description of the martini that most of us just did not understand what we got. Most of us had that martini “with a dash of raspberry” you see on the right.

We had a few bottles of wines to accompany the food. One of them was Syrah which they all raved about. I had the strong red wine but really, I can’t tell the difference between this vs other red wine. Our waitress offered someone in our party to taste it before they are poured for the rest of us.

Looking at the number of bottles we ordered throughout the night, I can imagine how much this is all gonna cost. Good thing I am not the one who had to expense it!

It was very dim in the restaurant. I had to push the ISO setting to “enhanced” in order take these pictures. Even that, it came out with motion blur for some picture. But really, am glad it turn out mostly OK even with these difficult lightings.

The bread was nothing to shout about and does not wow us at all. I had tasted better … but …

… the lobster oil with the balsamic vinegar pretty much made up for the ho-hum bread. This is produced and bottled in Vancouver and is the invention of their Executive Chef. You can actually buy them at $25 a bottle.

I had a lot of the bread with this dip.

Their menu is laid out as “first course” and “second course” instead of the normal Appetizer and Main.

My first course is the Roasted Mussels ($16). The mussels was kind of OK — no big deal. It was served on a sizzling cast iron pan resting on an iron stand. The better part was not the mussels but the gravy and the really crispy bread.

Here are some of the other first courses that the others in our party ordered. The Cannery’s first courses are … (more…)

The best fish and chips in Vancouver is not a a place where you would stumble upon despite its close proximity to the one of top tourist destination in Vancouver, Granville Island.

Even if you so happen to stumble upon it, you would probably not give this shack a second glance if not for the hordes of customers.

But believe it or not, this humble looking fish shack is started by no other than the same chef behind the Bin 941 Tapas Parlour. That alone explains pretty much the popularity of the food.

Besides the food, it also had a million dollar view of the False Creek. This is certainly a gem of a place.

It is the type of place where you would recommend to tourists and you can be quite sure that they will be impressed with it. Go Fish is so Vancouver — beautiful view and good fish.

Their prices are not too expensive considering that they include GST. Click on the image of the menu above to get a clearer view.

Their specials are shown on the chalkboard. We wanted to just order the Scallop Sandwich but they were JUST sold out.

You place your order at the side of the shack. There was not a line at all when we were there. We had expected a long line as that day was beautiful with the sun out. I guess it was because it was cold and windy that afternoon.

Even that, we were told that it will be 10 minutes for our order. One can just imagine how long the wait is on a busy day. They make the food only when you order it, even the fries, so that you get absolutely the best.

For fish and chips, they had cod, salmon or halibut. Too bad they don’t have a combo of all three. They only have it either-or.

We thought we try the more expensive halibut. It is $10 for a piece of the fish and fries. Interestingly, it is served in a Dim Sum bamboo basket. It is so practical.

The fish looked and smell great. It was piping hot too having just been taken out from the fryer. The menu mentioned that the batter is made with … (more…)

Suanne and I went to Hamilton Street in Yaletown for our Friday dinner out. Of all places, we chose a restaurant along Hamilton St because I want to check out the “happening street” during the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics. I read in the papers that Hamilton street will be made pedestrian only and will be THE connector between the two main party sites for the games.

It will be interesting to see how these restaurants will gear up to maximize on the biggest event ever to be hosted by Vancouver.

We went to Rodney’s Oyster House. Frankly, we are not fans of raw oysters ourselves. I eat it but Suanne, she can’t stand the slimy texture when eaten raw.

We did not have a reservation but on hindsight, it would have been better if we had. It was because they only have one table left when we arrived just before 5PM.

Rodney’s Oyster House has two levels of dining area. We got seated upstairs on the table that overlooks the whole of ground floor. We like that table — great for people watching and observing how the staff shucks the oysters.

Rodney’s is a noisy restaurant. It was not so loud that one could hardly keep up a conversation but it has a very noticeable din.

The first thing they did was to bring the bread even before we got the menu and stuff. Our waiter is great. I read of reviews that Rodney’s wait staff are exceptional, playful and relaxed … they sure are. The waiters are all guys and they are exceptionally good with the ladies. LOL!

The bread was OK … a nice sort of OK. It was sourdough, we think. First thing we did was touch it.  Was it warm? No, it was not but we enjoyed it all the same.

For drinks we had Heineken ($5.75) and Iced Tea ($3.50). I got Heineken because, you see, I am on training.

I am training to drink beer without getting flushed red all the time. Yeah, I know you people don’t think this can be trained. I’ll prove you all wrong. LOL!

I swear … my face was not as red as it used to. Don’t believe me? Suanne can attest to that.

Rodney’s call their Happy Hours the Low Tide. Monday to Saturday 3PM to 6PM. We were there for this, otherwise a meal here could be pricey depending on what one order. I was reading this one review that has a couple spending over $90 just on 18 oysters and two bowls of soup.

We see that a lot of people order the oysters by the platter with at least a dozen pieces, often more. We? We asked for … (more…)