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Going to Vancouver in 2 weeks and need some help with restaurants. Dont want to go to places I can get here in the US but we are basic meat and potatos people. Not into fancy food. Can someone give me recommendations for a Thai restaurant, fish & chips place, canadian (west coast quisine) that would suit our palates but not be astronomical in price. thanks Lynn

Vancouver has such wonderful restaurants and I've been to very few. Others here can give you good advice. My husband and I are always in search of basic food, not doused in garlic and herbs and not that artfully-arranged-in-the-middle-of-the-plate stuff. Just thought I would mention that, although it's French, we have enjoyed the food at The Chef and Carpenter. They have fresh, tasty basic meat/potato/vegetable meals. It's at 1745 Robson St. not far from Stanley Park.

Lynn, For a lot of people both in the United States and Canada, meat and potatoes are not considered to be especially "normal" food. If one is Chinese,for example. Living in the US you should have a better idea of this,you must live in a very small town. Although you consider "normal" to be meat and potatoes, obviously you can get that at any time at home.Since you are travelling and to another country,why not be adventurous and try the local food, it won't be so difficult to find something not too exotic for your tastes and you will have experienced something different from home.

Hang on there, Traveler. I agree that the word "normal" is a bit prejudicial, but Lynn did say she was interested in Thai food and west coast cuisine. I don't think she needs a lecture. I suspect that when she says "normal" she means not the kind of restaurant where you pay upwards of $20 for two tablespoons of attractively presented pasta. Lynn, I'm wondering (other people help me out here) if the Milestones restaurants - there are several of them in Vancouver - might be to your taste. They're kind of like Applebees, in a way, but nicer.

Try Whitespot for a great family style restaurant.. It's a BC Legend and you can only find them in BC.

My boyfriend and I frequently visit "Just One Thai Bistro" on Denman Street (by English Bay) in Downtown Vancouver. We've always had delicious food and great service there, and the prices are reasonable. Actually, you'll find a lot of restaurants in Vancouver reasonably priced in comparison to the prices of restaurants in the USA. For instance, I find that when I dine in Seattle, their prices are numerically the same as in Vancouver, except the prices are in American dollars, which makes it more expensive. Anyhow... ;) You might want to try Cardero's. They're a good representation of West Coast Cuisine (a bit of Asian, a bit of seafood, alder-smoked salmon, etc). They're located at the northern end of Cardero Street, on the waterfront overlooking the mountains, Stanley Park, the yachts and the seaplanes taking off. They have a menu on their website. Keep in mind the prices are in Canadian dollars. :) http://www.sequoiarestaurants.com/carderos_main.html

I tried to post a reply to this yesterday and got stymied. I agree that Milestones is a good choice - reasonable and with good West Coast specialties. There are lots of good reasonable restaurants in Vancouver that specialize in West Coast Cuisine. Most will give you a very good meal with wine or beer for ander $35CAN per. Sometimes the ambiance is worth paying a little extra and for that I would reccomend the Cannery which is right on the Haurbour - although not a high class part of it. While I do love Fish & Chips it doesn't love me so I try to avoid it but I've heard really good things about Bud's Fish & Chips and the Dover Inn on Denman. Most Canadians still have their Fish and Chips 'English' style - i.e. with vinigar rather than ketchup. Try it. Thai food is very popular in Vancouver and there are Thai Restaurants everywhere. But Vancouver's great claim to worldwide fame is the various Chinese, (Cantonese, Mandarin, Szechuan, Hunan, Mongolian etc.) and East Indian, (also about a half dozen varieties). Japanese is also excellant as is Korean and Vietnamese. Asian food is very much a Vancouver specialtie and because there are so many restaurants the competitive factor can make eating out relatively cheap. In fact Vancovuer is one of the most reasonable cities in the world to dine out in - and as a world traveller I know whereof I speak. Few restaurants would run you more than $50Can per, (that's under $33US) even with wine and tip. So bring your appetite and a bit of adventure.

Sorry,but I live in NYC and there really is not a certain food that one could call "normal". Why is Thai "normal"? What actually is normal? When we travel to other countries,that is one of the things we enjoy = eating the food from where ever we go. Do you ever read the European forums,how the people in England and France hate it when people go there and demand food like they have at home? Same thing here..why worry about finding the same thing you eat at home,when travelling? And if all you like is meat and potatoes, you should not have a problem -they serve meat and potatoes just about everywhere.

Where does Lynn say she wants what they eat at home, unless she eats west coast cuisine, Thai food, etc. all the time? Interesting that the people picking apart the poster's wording don't read what was said and/or don't even answer the question. I second the suggestion for Carderos. It's casual and has a great location.

I think Milestone's is a terrible choice. Definitely overpriced for what they serve.

Chacun a son gout - or as my father says - 'That's why there's chocolate and vanilla'!

thanks those of you who understand what I meant or rather cared to take the time to read what I said instead of picking apart my words and choosing to "hone in" on one or 2 of them:-) Lynn

Anytime Lynn, Enjoy the meat and potatoes.

Okay, so while we're on the subject (sort of) does anybody have any restaurant suggestions for Victoria (not Vancouver) - somewhere fairly ordinary, non-elegant - on the Peninsula, or not too far into the city? We're spending our first couple of nights at the Waddling Dog,just off the highway, and I'm not sure we're going to feel like going downtown for dinner the night after we arrive. And since we're vegetarians, just the potatoes, please. :)