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Vancouver, B.C.: What Seattle should be

Low Speed Chase
Editor-in-Chief at Large

When my girlfriend got her sizable tax refund, she set aside a chunk of it for us to go on vacation. A little time out of one’s home city can do a lot of good. After weighing our vacation options, we decided to live it up for two days in Vancouver, B.C. After all, what better to do with a tax return designed to help stimulate the American economy than to go blow it in another country?

Vancouver has several things up on Seattle. Besides more relaxed drinking laws, it offers a different scene, good for longtime Seattle residents looking to experience something new.

Though it and Seattle are about the same size, Vancouver feels much larger. For shoppers, there are many stores Seattle doesn’t have. Night-owls like that events go on well into the night, and most places are open past midnight, with some bars and clubs open until 4 a.m.

All this without sacrificing the things many Seattleites have come to love: the moderate climate and waterfront location.

In planning our trip, we picked a weekend (“as soon as possible”) and booked a hotel on Hotels.com, which usually has heavily discounted rates. We chose the Howard Johnson near Davie on Granville, which we knew to be clean, cheap, and right in the center of everything. That area is a good one to aim for when choosing a hotel.

Wining and Dining

When we arrived in Vancouver, it was nearly 80 degrees and the only thing on my mind was a cold drink. The Wildfire, a bar adjacent to our hotel, turned out to be a good option. It was there that we discovered the Bellini, described to us as an Italian margarita.

Traditionally made with a peach base and champagne, this one involved rum instead. The result was a cross between a Slurpee and a peach smoothie, totally refreshing, and far more alcoholic than I’d expect from the taste. The Wildfire becomes an upscale bar by night and looks the part, but is fairly relaxed during the daytime hours we were there. A decent, if pricey, food menu accompanies a good list of beers and drinks, but the Bellini is its finest feature, and is a mere $4 (Canadian).

Before even heading for Vancouver, we decided we would eat at Romano’s Macaroni Grill, an upscale Italian chain that every state in America seems to have except Washington. A year ago in Omaha, we had eaten at one and vowed to return; B.C. was a way to do so without having to return to Nebraska.

B.C.’s Macaroni Grill is housed in a mammoth stone mansion at the corner of Davie and Cardero Streets. During nice weather, outdoor dining on the lawn is available, though we opted to sit inside to get refuge from the sun.

The service is excellent, with waiters who are attentive but don’t intrude into your meal like some have a knack for doing. The food is what fine Italian dining should be, and the menu has many options so deciding is hard but enjoyable.

For an appetizer, we went with the artichoke and shrimp dip, an interesting taste but far spicier than it should have been. The warm rosemary roll served before all meals there helped ease the spices. Deciding your entree carefully is important at the Macaroni Grill. Since they use a wide variety of sauces on their pastas, it’s easy to end up with something far lighter or heavier than expected. The lasagna, chicken cannelloni, and manicotti are all recommended.

A full bar with lots of specialty drinks and good wine and beer lists helped complete the meal. Pleasantly stuffed, we bypassed dessert.

For the after-dinner entertainment, we headed to Granville Island, located just south and west of Downtown Vancouver. A mecca of boutiques and bars, Granville Island is a tourist trap by day, but pleasant at night.

Granville’s nightlife is perhaps best known for the improv comedy of Vancouver Theatre Sports League (www.vtsl.com). Based on input from the audience, the actors put together skits meant to crack people up, and usually succeed. The theater is known for talent, boasting such alums as Colin Mochrie and Ryan Stiles of “Who’s Line is It Anyway?” fame.

A few shows run each weekend, beginning at 8 p.m. and getting more risque by the final show at 11:45 p.m. Most of the content of the earlier shows is fairly mild, but if you’re concerned, check their Web site for details.

The theater where the shows are held is right next to the water and near plenty of restaurants and shops, so there are things to do if you have time to kill before or after a show. The theater also has its own full bar, and allows patrons to bring drinks into the theater for consumption during shows.

The show we opted for was “TheatreSports,” where two improv teams compete to see which can get the highest ratings from audience judges. When it concluded around 11:30 p.m., dessert sounded good.

Death by Chocolate is, as its name implies, a haven of chocolatey desserts. There are several locations around the city, and usually are open late (well past midnight). Looking through the menu at the artful pictures of all the creations is almost as fun as eating them.

Our night ended around 2 a.m. when, exhausted, we crashed at the hotel.

The next day was filled with crepes, one of the main reasons I come to Vancouver in the first place. Cafe Crepe on Robson Street has far better crepes than you can find in Seattle. Though they have a huge menu of both sweet and savory crepes, I always go with the fried egg and emmenthal cheese -- a delicious and filling bite for about $6.

Vancouver on a Budget

This time in Vancouver, we had allotted a decent chunk of money-- far more than we usually use on a weekend B.C. trip. You can easily see the city the cheap route.

A good way to keep it inexpensive is to do a lot of exploring. Neighborhoods like Kitsalano and Granville Island have plenty to look out without buying anything. Stanley Park, a massive maze of trees, beaches, and attractions like a mini water park, is free to explore.