I’ve been back in Vancouver for a couple of weeks now, and other than experiencing more rain in two weeks than six months at Orange County, I’m having a blast hitting all the local Vancouver restaurants. When it comes to dining, Vancouver is world class, and best of all, you don’t have to break the bank doing it
While I encourage visitors to explore the city and try as many dining spots as possible, there are three restaurants that stand out as must try. You can’t leave Vancouver without eating at all three of them.
Cactus Club Cafe
The Cactus Club Cafe is one of the most successful restaurant chains in Vancouver. Known for their hip design and hot servers, the chain really elevated its game when it hired Iron Chef America winner Rob Feenie as their Chef Food Architect.
Under Chef Feenie’s tenure, Cactus Club added many of Rob’s signature dishes and has been named “Best Casual Chain†for five straight years at the annual Vancouver Magazine Restaurant awards. Cactus Club Cafe has 20 locations across the province. No matter where you are in Vancouver, you should be close to one.
Phnom Penh
Phnom Penh is an award winning South East Asian restaurant. I have been dining there for as long as I can remember. The place is super popular, and you can expect to line up for quite a while if you don’t beat the lunch or dinnertime crowd.
Phnom Penh has the best chicken wings in town. Period. One bite produces sensory overload. Other must try dishes include the marinated butter beef and special dry rice noodle.
Memphis Blues BBQ
I discovered Memphis Blues BBQ many years back and have been hooked on their food ever since. During one period, myself and some friends would go to Memphis Blues every Friday for a plate of BBQ beef brisket and pull pork. The prices are inexpensive, and the portions are huge. You definitely get your money’s worth at Memphis Blue. By far the best place in Vancouver for BBQ.
The Memphis feast offers every meat on the menu plus the fixin’. The feast is the perfect way to sample BBQ. The only problem with the feast is its size. It’s HUGE – more than enough to feed four people. Needless to say, we couldn’t finish it and had to pack the reminder home.
