VA2007 - Dining - Small Wonders

Eight years in, small-plates dining is now a firmly entrenched culinary tradition in Vancouver. Ready to sample a small plate? Here, three top restaurants will provide a tasty introduction to the local scene.

Salt Tasting Room

Blood Alley, between Abbott and Carrall Streets, Gastown, Vancouver, 604-633-1912
Gastown restaurateur Sean Heather's bold new wine bar doesn't have a kitchen. Instead, diners choose from a broad selection of bottles to match carefully chosen tasting plates of charcuterie (think wild boar salami or Pamplona chorizo) and wonderful cheeses from around the world. Each selection comes with a choice of condiment — but no average horseradish or mustard here: Guinness grainy mustard, spiced peach chutney or rosemarymarinated olives are standard fare.

Kingyo Izakaya

871 Denman St., Vancouver, 604-608-1677
Once quirky, raucous places filled with homesick ESL students aching for a taste of the Japanese pub food of their homeland, the izakaya has been embraced by the mainstream. Menus change quickly: the luscious eel risotto served one night might be replaced with prosciutto-wrapped tempura prawns the next. Kingyo Izakaya, a relative newcomer, raised the bar on the scene this year, knocking out longtime awardwinner Hapa Izakaya as Best Japanese Casual at the Vancouver Magazine Restaurant Awards. The shochu-based cocktails here are carefully crafted, as are the menu selections: if it's on the fresh sheet, opt for yuzu jalapeño pasta, with anchovy-like tiny dried fish tossed with spaghettini, or grilled miso black cod.

Bin 941 Tapas Parlour

941 Davie Street, Vancouver,  604-683-1246
1521 W. Broadway, South Granville, Vancouver, 604-731-9421
There are two Bins in town — the original on Davie Street, and a second location in the South Granville district — and both have the trademark narrow, busy, boisterous atmosphere that's the envy of restaurants three times their size. Proprietor Gord Martin's tapas bars feature west coast fusion — steer yourself over to the pan-roasted wild B.C. sablefish filet, accessorized with caramelized Japanese kabocha squash and an applewood-smoked scallop, or the perfect accompaniment to a lager: skinny Yukon gold frites drizzled with balsamic reduction.