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During Dine Out time, there are a number of culinary events happening in the same two-week period, including the Brunch Crawl series put on by Vancouver Foodster. It’s similar to his series of Tasting Plates, except it happens on a weekend morning, perfect timing for brunch.

We were invited to check out the Kitsilano edition this past weekend. In 4 hours, we visited 6 restaurants in the neighbourhood:

• Darby’s Public House
• Krokodile Pear
• Linh Cafe
• Momento Coffee
• Novo Pizzeria
• Rain or Shine Ice Cream

Food

The event started at Novo Pizzeria where we were served a trio including Arugula and Blood Orange Salad, Novo Breakfast Pizza & a Sicilian Canoli. Pizzas at Novo have always been great – this one was no exception, especially with the use of a sous vide quail egg on each slice. The canoli was light and flaky, with nutty flavour from the pistachios and citrus fragrant note from the orange blossom water and citrus essence.

Next, we beat the football fans and made our way to Darby’s Public House, a popular pub in the neighbourhood. They served a generous portion of their brunch items: Half an Eggs Benedict, Hangover Hash and Mini Huevos Rancheros. The poached eggs were perfectly cooked, with runny yolks bringing everything together. Although I’m not particularly interested in Mexican food, I found myself enjoying the Huevos Rancheros with the subtle heat in the jalapeno ginger sauce. A fried egg would have worked well but poached egg was just fine.

Then, a coffee stop at Momento Coffee. They were the winner of the Barista Signature Beverage Challenge (which I helped judge), and I was quite looking forward to a nice cup of coffee. And they didn’t disappoint.

We each received a cup of French pressed Panama Esmeralda Gesha, and no milk/cream and sugar was found available in store because it was served to us the way it should be enjoyed. It was light but full of fruity notes. Even for Mr., who is not a coffee drinker, it was a very good cup of coffee. In addition, we had a cup of Cold Oats, as well as a choice of buttery Croissant or Pain Au Chocolat.

And if you think there was a lot of food at this event, you are right. At our 4th stop, Linh Cafe demonstrates its fusion cuisine by offering some Nem Spring Rolls (Vietnamese spring rolls) and Spicy Liver Pate Baguette Stick, as well as Peanut Macarons. It was a great “East Meets West” trio. Many components on the plate was house made which was quite impressive.

The weather forecast called for a rainy day but we were blessed with some sunny breaks. Regardless, it didn’t stop us from going to Rain or Shine Ice Cream for a couple of scoops. We tried London Fog and Blueberry Balsamic and they were served with some waffle pieces. I especially liked the twirl of balsamic in the Blueberry Balsamic, the hint of acidity definitely helped with digesting all the food we’ve had so far.

Last, but not least, we visited Krokodile Pear, a Fresh Cold Pressed Organic Juice bar on West 1st. It was just a short 5 minute walk from West 4th Avenue.

We got to sample two of its juices, The Rockies and English Bay. The Rockies reminded me of the Chinese tapioca coconut milk dessert. It was light yet nutty with ingredients that have a lot of health benefits. English Bay was fruity and refreshing. I can definitely see the appeal of having freshly pressed juice everyday.

Final Thoughts

Overall, the six restaurants not only served us a lot of food, but they also served us a lot of quality, interesting menu items. It definitely opened our eyes as to what the Kitsilano neighbourhood has to offer beyond the big names on the West 4th stretch.

If you thought you missed out on a great event, don’t worry. Vancouver Foodster and Dine Out Vancouver are offering 4 more Brunch Crawls in the coming weeks, learn more about them here:

• Main Street: January 24
• Downtown Vancouver: January 25
• West End: January 31
• Commercial Drive: February 1