DiVino Wine Bar
The old Dolce Amore gelato shop has given way to DiVino – a new wine bar that serves wine (by the glass or the bottle), cheese and charcuterie in the small-plates tradition. The kitchen is headed up by Hugh Carbery, former sous-chef at Aurora Bistro. (Dolce Amore has been conveniently re-located to a modern new space next door.
I will be checking out this place soon to write a full review. In the meantime, has anyone visited DiVino? What do you think?
1590 Commercial Drive
2 comments July 14, 2008
Commercial Drive culinary tour
Culinary tourism operator, Edible British Columbia, is holding a Commercial Drive Culinary Tour next Saturday, July 19, 2008. Led by local chefs, they’ll take you to all The Drive’s foodie hot spots, from the best place to buy fresh buffalo mozzarella and free-range poultry to Italian specialties such as olive oil and vinegars.
The chefs will introduce you to the local vendors and you will make stops at many places including:
- A traditional Italian coffee house where they roast their own beans
- J N & Z deli (great sausage!)
- La Grotta Del Formaggio a (known for their world-class selection of olive oils)
- Fratelli’s Italian bakery
- Trout Lake farmer’s market.
The tour starts at 8:30 am and costs $65 per person, plus tax. Register online or call 604.812.9660 to register.
Add comment July 13, 2008
Commercial Drive street banners recycled into shopping bags
Every year the Commercial Drive Business Association dresses up The Drive with colorful nylon street banners. While the banners look great and liven up the street, once they are reach the end of their life, they used to end up in the landfill. No more! This year, they were transformed into cool, reusable shopping bags. Designed and manufactured by Dream Designs, the bags come in two sizes ($9.95 and $14.95) and are available at the following stores along The Drive:
They are available in 2 sizes ($9.95 & $14.95) and 10 different colours from these Commercial Drive retailers:
A Small World Shop and Gallery, 2120 Commercial Drive, T: 604.215.0279
Barefoot Contessa, 1928 Commercial Drive, T: 604.255.9035
Donald’s Market, 2279 Commercial Drive, T: 604.255.1440
Drive Organics, 1047 Commercial Drive, T: 604.678.9665
Kali, 1000 Commercial Drive, T: 604.215.4568
Lucky Rooster, 1706 Charles Street, T: 604.251.9119
Mintage, 1714 Commercial Drive, T: 604.871.0022
Riot, 1395, Commercial Drive, T: 604.254.5073
Spa Kwus, #102-1638 E. Broadway, T: 604.879.8367
Spank, 1027 Commercial Drive, T: 604.255.1131
10,000 Villages, 1204 Commercial Drive, T: 604.323.9233
Unityoga Teahouse, 1672 E. 10th Avenue, T: 604.708.8369
Add comment July 13, 2008
Spank Shoes
Spank Shoes is The Drive’s newest shoe store. In fact, it is only one of two shoe stores on Commercial, the other being Kalena Shoes which specializes in high-end Italian leather footwear.
Anyway, Spank carries trendy and fashion-forward stuff; brands like Jeffery Campbell, Seychelles, Poetic Licence, London Underground, etc.
I spotted this adorable eco-friendly polka-dot sneaker by Simple on a recent visit. The outsole and bottom are made from recycled car tire , the foot form is 100% post consumer paper pulp and they’re made with organic cotton. They’re also made without any animal products or byproducts, so supposed to be vegan and veggie-friendly. Love ‘em!
1181 Commercial Dr.
604.568.1229
Add comment July 13, 2008
Review: Timbre Restaurant
Banana Nutella French Toast
I am loving brunch at Timbre Restaurant these days. They have this incredible Banana-Nutella French Toast ($9): four slices of French baguette, battered, then covered with Nutella, bananas, whipped cream and sprinkled with sugar and served with syrup. I loooooooove this stuff. They’ve also got a great veggie hash, plus a bunch of omelettes, various benedicts and steak and eggs.
In the evenings when it is busier I find the room is a bit awkward – tables set to close together, etc – and the service can be a bit slow. But, they have a Sangria night on Thursdays which is worth checking out, and they make a great poutine with blue cheese. Definitely worth checking out if you are in the neighbourhood (though probably not worth a special trip just to come here, IMHO).
2068 Commercial Drive
604.215.7515
Mon to Sun, 11 am to midnight
Add comment July 13, 2008
