A few things I ate, drank and discovered around Vancouver this week.
Some weeks have a clear flavour. This one was bright, salty, a little glamorous and unexpectedly dill-forward: an anniversary party with a martini fountain, an especially memorable Indian tasting menu, a pickle festival and a run of drinks that reminded me how much pleasure there is in a well-made glass of something.
September has properly arrived, but I am not quite ready to trade every bright, social evening for a night at home. There is still time for a good party, a good cocktail and a plate that gives you something to talk about on the way home.
Where I went
The Westin Bayshore marked its 65th anniversary this week, and it was one of those Vancouver occasions that made me appreciate a hotel with real local history. The room had an easy, celebratory buzz, and the Cosmopolitan Martini fountain was a draw. I drank plenty of Cosmos before I ever watched Sex and the City, although I still fiercely miss that show, and there is something wonderfully unabashed about a pink cocktail served with a little theatre.
The food made the party feel properly generous: a gnocchi station, plus a bao bar with pork belly, chicken or tofu and all the fixings. It was the kind of fun menu item I may have to replicate for my next party. Give people a warm, make-your-own bao and a Cosmopolitan, and they will be very happy indeed.
What I’m eating
I had a memorable meal at Desi Indian Lounge this week: a seven-course Himsagar tasting menu, paired with wines from Summerland. I was also happy to catch up with my friend Jane, who sampled the non-alcoholic pairings, a thoughtful parallel journey through the menu.
The official wine pairings moved from Solvero’s 2025 Pinot Gris and Pamplemousse Jus’s 2025 Orange Riesling to Lightning Rock’s Cabernet Franc Rosé, Blanc de Blancs, Cabernet Franc and 2025 Carbo Cab Franc. It was an elegant, deeply flavourful evening and a reminder of how much I enjoy a tasting menu with a clear point of view. The dishes felt celebratory without becoming overwrought, and the wine pairing gave the meal another layer of interest.
I am always drawn to dinners that invite you to slow down a little. A seven-course menu can sound like a commitment on paper, but in the right room it becomes a lovely way to spend an evening: a sequence of small discoveries, a well-chosen glass alongside them and enough time to really talk.
https://www.tiktok.com/@goodlifevancouver/video/7685111837926460679
What surprised me
The surprise pairing of the week came at the pickle festival, where I tried a genuinely excellent dill pickle pretzel from Island Pastry Haus alongside Fraser Valley Cider’s Tangy Passionfruit & Guava cider, spiked with dill. The cider has the lush, tropical lift suggested by its name, while the dill brought a savoury, herbal snap that should not have worked quite so well. But it did.
That is one of the reasons I love tastings and festivals. They make room for combinations you would never necessarily assemble at home, and occasionally one of them stays with you. The dill pickle bagel and passionfruit-guava cider are now firmly in that category. I am hoping Island Pastry Haus will join Sea Cider in the cider garden at UBC Botanical Garden Apple Festival in October, where we may even try a cider mustard.
What I’m driving
I have been spending time in the Infiniti QX60 Autograph, and it has been a graceful companion to a full week. It is the sort of three-row SUV that understands its brief: comfortable, polished and genuinely usable, with the feeling of a proper grown-up vehicle rather than an oversized errand machine.
The more I have driven it, the more I have appreciated that it makes a case for the three-row SUV as an everyday luxury. The cabin feels considered rather than merely large, and there is enough room for the bags, bottles, gear and occasional passengers that seem to accumulate over a working week. You do not have to plan every stop around what will fit in the back.
I have especially appreciated its calmness in the city. It is easy to forget how valuable that is when you are moving between meetings, dinner, a party, bottles to transport and the ordinary logistics of a busy week. The QX60 has room for the workday to sprawl a little, but still feels composed when you are simply heading home after a late evening. It feels polished without being precious, which is really the point: a family-sized vehicle that does not make the everyday feel like a compromise.
View this post on Instagram
What I’m sipping
Earlier in the week, I took the SeaBus to Copperpenny Distilling Co. for Negroni Month. My favourites were Edge of the Wild and Reyes of Sunshine, both with enough bittersweet structure to feel like a proper Negroni moment while still offering their own character. The frozen Negroni and the fountain were fun, but do not skip the devilled eggs. A good cocktail needs a salty snack nearby.
The SeaBus is part of the appeal. It turns a drink in North Vancouver into a little outing, particularly on a clear evening when the city looks its best from the water.
Read more about Negronis in my VIA article.
Looking ahead
Next week I am heading to Pemberton for CooksCamp, and looking forward to seeing old friends, making new ones, the Les Dames d’Escoffier BC breakfast, Family Meal, Foraging, Butechery and the Indian Cultural Dinner. I will be picking up the Nissan Pathfinder Platinum for that road trip, so I will save my first impressions of it for next Sunday.
For now, I am enjoying this very Vancouver version of early fall: a hotel party by the water, an inventive dinner, a drink worth taking the SeaBus for and one pickle-and-cider pairing I am still thinking about.
What have you eaten, sipped or discovered lately that made your week better?
