Alibi Room

157 Alexander.

nice big open space. great to accommodate lots of people.

accomplished list of beer and wine. perhaps the best in the city.

http://www.alibi.ca/

brunch on the weekends. eggs benny served on potato latkes. mmm.

$$

Nelson the Seagull

CAFE

315 Carrall Street

www.nelsontheseagull.com/

Guu

1698 Robson.
IZAKAYA

my favorite of the Guu's is Guu with Garlic on Robson . For izakaya, Guu Robson and Kingyo (on Denman) are at the top of my list. Favorites are the daikon salad, salmon carpaccio, pumpkin balls, and kim chi.

The other Guus (838 Thurlow and 375 Water Street) are great. At the Guu in Gastown, the spinach gomae is unbelievable.

http://www.guu-izakaya.com/

$ - $$

Nuba

LEBANESE

3 locations.  
Gastown:  207 West Hastings,

Just off Main st:  146 East 3rd.
and Kitsilano. 

For authentic Lebanese cuisine, hummus, baba ghanooj, taboulleh, lentils, roasted cauliflower, feta, olives, etc.

Turkish coffee with cardamom, perfecto.

http://nuba.ca/

$$

Cobre

52 Powell Street. gastown.

Nuevo Latino Cuisine.

ceviche, taqueria, boars belly ...

http://www.cobrerestaurant.com/main.html

$$-$$$

Six Acres

203 Carrall Street.

substantial beer list. great food. pub-sy, bricks, wood. one of my favorite places to hunker down with a couple friends for a good chat.

http://sixacres.ca/

$$

Jules Bistro

216 Abbot Street.
FRENCH

adorable french restaurant, with black and white tiles, and a girl playing piano on thursdays, a lot of yann tiersen songs.

dessert: amazing chocolate fondant. a friend of mine who lives in Paris said that this was better than any fondant she could find in Paris.

dinner is a little pricey.

$$ - $$$

Diamond

6 Powell Street.

nice room with big windows to look down on gastown. and the bartender knows how to make'em. faux dim sum menu.

http://di6mond.com/

$ - $$

the Irish Heather

212 Carrall Street.

Good for drinks. Has a whiskey bar in the back called Shebeen, and a long table cafe open in the day (and some nights for the long table series) called The Salty Tongue. Also affiliated with the Salt Tasting Room down the block located in Blood Alley.

http://irishheather.com/

Salt Tasting Room

45 Blood Alley.

Salt can be difficult to find: Blood Alley runs east-west, and Salt is located between Abbott Street and Carrall Street. You can't see it from the street -- you have to walk down the alley a ways until it becomes visible. (It's around the corner from Six Acres).

Salt is great for cheese plates, meats, wine, dessert ...
a cute narrow wood and brick room.

http://www.salttastingroom.com/

Revel Room

238 Abbott.

I had an amazing pulled pork sandwich here. Good for cocktails.

bit loud on the weekends though.

http://www.revelroom.ca/Revel/Welcome.html

$$

the Greedy Pig

307 West Cordova

gastown gets busy especially on fridays and saturdays, but i find The Greedy Pig works out well when six acres and irish heather are full-up.

open for lunch, dinner.
http://thegreedypig.ca/