The Bon Vivant Blog

This is a tour worth taking if you are at all interested in food, how it is made and why it is so expensive. When you see the amount of work that goes into these products you marvel at how anyone can make any money making food products. We met our wonderful guide Laura at [...]

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Amazing. Not only does he produce the best pastries that I have had in North America – and better than many I have had in France, but he has replicated his business in North Vancouver and opened a Kitsilano branch. He will be busy. Saturday morning – about 11:30 (late start) – we pick up [...]

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Save this place for a special occasion since at $275 per person for the tasting menu (vegetarian option available) or $175 for a five-course prix fixe, this is not a cheap experience. But I have to say that it is worth it. Come hungry because this is a 4 hour epic meal enjoyed at a [...]

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This was probably my favourite store in Italy. It’s inside an old church that has had its inside torn out and about 4 floors of books and restaurants installed. It’s a huge bookstore, with at least 3 restaurants – one for sandwiches, one for pasta, and one that is a wine bar (there may be [...]

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Usually when you’re traveling in European countries, “Mexican” restaurants aren’t real Mexican food, but rather are Tex-Mex; so when we were in the beautiful lakeside town of Como, who would have thought that we’d find a “Mexican” restaurant that served some of the best pizza in town? This place was in the Lonely Planet, so [...]

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This is one of the best patisseries in Spain and can hold its own around the world. In fact, it is famous for the world’s best chocolate cake, an award that pastry chef Carles Mampel won a few years ago. Try the chocolate cake or for that matter any of the other beautifully presented desserts [...]

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Bakeries occupy this special place in my heart – the good ones are run by people who love food, who put that love into what they do, and produce an exceptional product that just makes you happy. Flour is this kind of a place. Sunday morning – pouring rain and blowing wind, I was going [...]

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This is a popular totally vegan restaurant in the heart of Kensington. I remember when it first opened as a tiny storefront with a few seats which soon expanded into the building next door. I have a strange addiction to their muffins – which have a nice crusty top and are tasty but with a [...]

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A popular local Kensington coffee shop just off one of the busy streets. – but it is definitely worth the short stroll. There is no real signage except for the coffee cup with a galaxy-like symbol above the door. [ad] The beans are roasted in house and the baristas rigorously trained before they serve actual [...]

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One of my favorite places for indian roti – hands down. Be careful that you don’t just walk by this tiny unassuming shop. The tip off should be the customers inside that something special is there. Order a roti that is made to order right in front of your eyes. This can take a bit [...]

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