Vancouver Trip (Day 4)
Tuesday 9/4: Granville Market Tour + Oysters
I did a shorter run this morning along the waterfront near the Convention Center and then a longer yoga practice in the room. Mr. E and I enjoyed a light breakfast in the Club Lounge and then headed to the south waterfront to catch a False Creek Ferry across to Granville Island for our 10:30am Market tour, again with Vancouver Foodie Tours.
Our guide this time was Michael, who led our small group of nine (two from Sydney, two from Melbourne, one from Christchurch, two from Atlanta) on a 2-hour tour, starting with a sit-down tasting at Edible Canada. The dish was steamed sturgeon with roasted veggies, chick peas and a summer squash puree. Yum! We were able to choose wine or juice, so both Mr. E and I tried the Pinot Grigio to accompany the fish. The next stop was at JJ Bean for French-pressed single-origin Ethiopian coffee, which neither of us found very tasty (too sour and acidic). Good thing we'd already had coffee to-go from the Club Lounge!
A Bread Affair was our next stop, where we all got paper bags full of two types of bread and also got a surprise bit of a sweet bread sample from the staff as we admired the baked goods.
Michael advised us to save some bread fot the next tasting at Oyama, where most of the group enjoyed an array of charcuterie but I instead got some lovely olives and a gourmet cheese spread.
Benton Brothers Cheese provided our next samples of two cheeses, including a sharp white cheddar that paired well with the honey crisp apples from No. 1 Orchard, our next stop. We then headed out to the north patio to enjoy the sun and scenery while munching on the apples.
Once we went back inside, we sampled a light peony tea lemonade and finished up with light and fluffy honey-glazed donuts from Lee's. We ended our tour back at the Edible Canada Market, where we concluded with tastes of truffle sea salt, maple syrup, and dark chocolate toffee brittle. Mr. E bought some of the salt for gifts, and we then bid farewell to our group and guide to continue some additional tastings on our own at Liberty Distillery and Granville Island Brewery. We passed by colorful murals on the industrial silos.
Mr. E tried the whisky flight, and I ordered the gin flight at Liberty. We departed with a new t-shirt for Mr. E and a small bottle of Old Tom gin for me. At the brewery, we shared the "map" tasting of all 10 beers, including the three rotating taps, along with a margherita flat bread to help absorb some of the adult beverages.
We left the island on the Ferries and paid a slight up-charge to travel to Yaletown in the hopes of procuring bargain oysters during "Low Tide" at Rodney's, a recommendation from our foodie guide Michael. Unfortunately, due to availability, there were no oysters on special, so we decided instead to try Joe Fortes again. Since we were too early for Happy Hour, we finished up our souvenir shopping on nearby Robson Street, and had no trouble getting into Joe Fortes on a Tuesday late afternoon. We shared a dozen oysters while sitting at the bar with a glass of house white (me) and a local beer (Mr. E).
On our way back to the hotel, we stopped at nearby Pokerrito in the hopes of trying out a poke burrito. Unfortunately, we ended up with a bowl instead, which was still very tasty but not quite what we wanted, and most of it got left behind in the hotel mini-fridge. A bit later, we headed back to the Club Lounge for a final time and lingered in the quiet and peaceful upstairs area where we watched the sunset and read.
I went back to the room around 9pm to pack, and Mr. E joined me after finishing up his wine. Bedtime around 10:15pm for both of us this evening.
I did a shorter run this morning along the waterfront near the Convention Center and then a longer yoga practice in the room. Mr. E and I enjoyed a light breakfast in the Club Lounge and then headed to the south waterfront to catch a False Creek Ferry across to Granville Island for our 10:30am Market tour, again with Vancouver Foodie Tours.
Our guide this time was Michael, who led our small group of nine (two from Sydney, two from Melbourne, one from Christchurch, two from Atlanta) on a 2-hour tour, starting with a sit-down tasting at Edible Canada. The dish was steamed sturgeon with roasted veggies, chick peas and a summer squash puree. Yum! We were able to choose wine or juice, so both Mr. E and I tried the Pinot Grigio to accompany the fish. The next stop was at JJ Bean for French-pressed single-origin Ethiopian coffee, which neither of us found very tasty (too sour and acidic). Good thing we'd already had coffee to-go from the Club Lounge!
A Bread Affair was our next stop, where we all got paper bags full of two types of bread and also got a surprise bit of a sweet bread sample from the staff as we admired the baked goods.
Mr. E tried the whisky flight, and I ordered the gin flight at Liberty. We departed with a new t-shirt for Mr. E and a small bottle of Old Tom gin for me. At the brewery, we shared the "map" tasting of all 10 beers, including the three rotating taps, along with a margherita flat bread to help absorb some of the adult beverages.
We left the island on the Ferries and paid a slight up-charge to travel to Yaletown in the hopes of procuring bargain oysters during "Low Tide" at Rodney's, a recommendation from our foodie guide Michael. Unfortunately, due to availability, there were no oysters on special, so we decided instead to try Joe Fortes again. Since we were too early for Happy Hour, we finished up our souvenir shopping on nearby Robson Street, and had no trouble getting into Joe Fortes on a Tuesday late afternoon. We shared a dozen oysters while sitting at the bar with a glass of house white (me) and a local beer (Mr. E).
On our way back to the hotel, we stopped at nearby Pokerrito in the hopes of trying out a poke burrito. Unfortunately, we ended up with a bowl instead, which was still very tasty but not quite what we wanted, and most of it got left behind in the hotel mini-fridge. A bit later, we headed back to the Club Lounge for a final time and lingered in the quiet and peaceful upstairs area where we watched the sunset and read.
posted by jms | 4:48 PM
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