Josh Michnik named 33 Acres Brewing for a “master” number in numerology that acts harmoniously with two other master numbers – 11 and 22 – to “create a triangle of enlightenment.” I’d believe it at 33 Acres, a wonderfully airy cafe that brews seasonal beer, cider and coffee. I enjoyed a flight featuring 33 Acres of Nirvana amber ale, 33 Acres of Cider, a cloudy, pale apple cider; 33 Acres of Audrey, a golden-hued Belgian rye IPA with lingering bitterness; and 33 Acres of Frank, a copper-hued single hop sour.

Chef Jean-Christophe Poirier and GM Matthew Morgenstern made Ask For Luigi a bastion for Italian food in Railtown. The cozy 36-seat space displays black and white photos of sign language gestures, a thoughtful touch. Albacore tuna crudo with clams escabeche made for a bright, piquant starter. Luigi meatballs seamlessly melded chuck, brisket, golden raisins and pine nuts. House-made tagliatelle verde paired spinach pasta with sorrel kissed lamb ragù. Pappardelle with chicken livers and artichokes proved heartier.

Longtime designer Jackie Kai Ellis opened Beaucoup Bakery & Cafe near Granville Island in 2012. She sold the business to two team members, Betty Hung and brother Jacky, who recently expanded to the St. Regis Hotel. Pastries include a buttery almond croissant with flaky crust and small, circular kouign amann with winning caramelization. 49th Parallel beans fuel their coffee program.

A Mount Pleasant industrial park hardly seems like a destination for sugary creations, but that’s where Adam Chandler and Jess Rosinski debuted Beta5 Chocolates in 2011. The name Beta5 refers to the structural ideal for sugar crystals. Raspberry Earl Grey Cream Puff featured an Earl Grey core, tart raspberry layer, raspberry lid and crisp choux pastry. They developed a bonkers Bourbon cashew bar finished with fleur de sel for Meat & Bread. Ice cream includes 66% dark chocolate and rhubarb vanilla swirl.

In a true small world moment, I met Matthew Senecal-Junkeer when he was touring L.A. coffeehouses. We randomly reconnected at The Birds & The Beets, an airy Gastown cafe he founded with Trevor Pruegger in 2015.. Their food resembled California seasonal dishes. Weekend only breakfast egg & barley bowl combined colorful pickled radish and cauliflower, pepitas and sesame seeds, crunchy cole slaw, carrots, raw kale, mushrooms, and miso dressing. Fluffy caramelized onion and ricotta quiche and came with a small salad of kale, green lentils and herbed vinaigrette with cilantro and radish tops. Brioche toast rotates, just like everything else, and hosted rhubarb preserves and candied rhubarb on house-baked bread. The Birds & The Beets also takes coffee seriously.

Hidalgo born chef Hector Laguna and his team bring international flair to Botanist’s seasonal menu at the Fairmont Pacific Rim. Botanist presents sustainably certified seafood like sablefish and local ingredients like maitake mushrooms in unexpected ways. Pastry chef Kate Siegel keeps pace with creative desserts like Black Forest Cherry, a decadent Black Forest cake that looks like the featured fruit. Bartender Jeff Savage complements the food with cocktails like In The Pines, Under The Palms (play on a Martinez) and God Loves Figs (a sherry cobbler riff). Botanist also hosted one of my top meals in 2023, a collaborative dinner with Lazy Bear.

Brewmaster Conrad Gmoser and business partner Nigel Springthorpe debuted Brassneck in 2013. They crafted a triangular Mount Pleasant tasting room with reclaimed wood, featuring blackboard menus and growler fills up front and high top seats in back. To get the best sense for Brassneck Brewery, ordering their four-beer flight. I was impressed with all four selections: Hibiscus Wit, a Belgian wheat ale that looked like fruit punch; Stockholm Syndrome, a crisp amber farmhouse saison brewed with Brettanomyces; Viognier Changeling, a cloudy, tart fruit beer with Viognier grape must; and Fu Manchu, a golden saison brewed with spicy Sorachi Ale hops.

In 2011, Jordan Cash partnered on Cartems Donuterie with Rajesh “Rags” Narine and Mark Tagulao. Cash now runs Cartems donut shops in downtown Vancouver, Mount Pleasant, and Kitsilano. The downtown outpost features a roll-up garage door, decorative fluorescent rods, and smiley face thought bubble logo. If you’re looking for basic donuts, Cartems is not the place. I enjoyed their creative Earl Grey cake donut with candied rose petals and Smoked Maple Walnut raised donut with good chew and bold flavor.

Erica Bernardi and Ben Ernst partnered on Earnest Ice Cream in 2012 and now have four locations. I visited Mount Pleasant. The company’s committed to eco-friendly business practices and produces small-batch ice cream with seasonal ingredients. Depending on the day, Earnest may offer ice cream flavors like whiskey hazelnut, Velvet Fog, or lemon poppyseed, all “seriously good.”

Betsy Ng and brother Bruce opened Elephant Garden Creamery in Grandview-Woodland in 2018. The siblings specialize in ice cream with Asian flavors and textural twists. They fold matcha ice cream with “dalgona” honeycomb nuggets and supercharge tangy yuzu butter ice cream with lemon curd. Mango coconut sticky rice, Vietnamese coffee and Hong Kong milk tea are staple flavors.

Chef Angus An has built a Thai restaurant empire that includes Sen Pad Thai on Granville Island, Longtail Kitchen in New Westminster and higher end Maenam in Kitsilano. The Fat Mao location I tried downtown served knockout nham ngeaw, a compelling Northern Thai soup with pork rib, pork blood, tomato, mustard greens, fried garlic, fried chilies, and red cotton tree flowers. They toss albacore tuna “ceviche” with bracing herb vinaigrette.

Chef Robert Clark and marine biologist Mike McDermid founded The Fish Counter, a sustainable Mount Pleasant seafood shop, in 2013. Perhaps even more importantly, in 2005, the partners founded Ocean Wise Seafood program, the Canadian equivalent to Monterey Bay Aquarium seafood watch list. Fish and chips may be the best reason to visit The Fish Counter, whether it’s halibut or ling cod, both served with sturdy, skin-on chips. You should also swing by the deli counter for smoked fish, including smoked salmon “hot chips,” smoked sockeye maple nuggets, and smoked sablefish candy for sale by the gram.

Now Kitanoya Marketing Corp. president Kazunori Kunimura helms five Guu izakayas in the Vancouver metro area, plus one in Toronto. The West End outpost, Guu with Garlic, dates to 2001. Highlights during my high energy Japanese dinner included kimchi udon with bouncy noodles and mentaiko (cod roe) and chicken karaage featuring deep-fried thigh and crispy skin flaps. Hotate starred sea scallop with bonito flakes, fried garlic slivers, soy sauce and butter, served with raw onion salad. Spot prawn sashimi dipped in soy sauce with wasabi may be the showstopper, especially when you request deep-fried heads.