ITALIAN — REVIEWS — FÖDA kost

SAY MERCY!

It's a few hours before dinner service on a late summer afternoon. Antonio Cayonne and Andrew Jameson are seated in their restaurant's dining room, laptops open and chairs stacked around them. We begin talking about their early years, long before Say Mercy! even broached the horizon. The business partners—who speak to each other with evident admiration and clear respect—met in Toronto over a decade ago while working in the hospitality industry. It would only be a few years later when they both found themselves in Vancouver for different reasons: Jameson had family in the city and Cayonne, a talented actor and performer, wanted to further explore the West Coast film industry. But fate would have it that the duo soon meet a skilled chef named Sean Reeve.

FRASERHOODTracy GieszAugust 29, 2020CASUAL, PATIO, FARM-TO-TABLE, VANCOUVER, ITALIAN, MODERN-CANADIAN, COMFORT-FOOD, LUNCH, FINE-DININGComment

CAFFÈ LA TANA

In North America, it's not often you find a daytime caffè, known for its coffee and pastries, that is also lauded for its handmade pasta. To be fair, Caffè La Tana is the sister establishment of adjoining Pepino's restaurant, an Italian American-themed pasta house with equal emphasis on handcrafted dishes. But the lunchtime pasta menu at the 1,100-square-foot La Tana certainly sets itself apart. The eatery has already gained international media coverage since opening in the fall of 2018—and is much adored for its modish Instagram account which notifies enthusiasts of their daily pasta options.

COMMERCIAL DRIVETracy GieszFebruary 12, 2020Caffé La TanaCASUAL, BAKERY, VANCOUVER, ITALIAN, FARM-TO-TABLE, COFFEE, COMFORT-FOOD, LUNCH, BREAKFASTComment

NOOK

At both the Olympic Village and Kitsilano locations of the casual-Italian restaurant, service is a blend of unaffected and exceptionally jovial. During dinner, classic rock lingers on the speakers—this is certainly a place that loves its vinyl—and there's a sense of cohesion between the FOH and kitchen staff. Frequently outfitted in KISS, Van Halen, or Fleetwood Mac t-shirts, servers and management rarely give off the sense that they're frazzled—even on incredibly high-volume nights.

OLYMPIC VILLAGETracy GieszNovember 21, 2019COMFORT-FOOD, VANCOUVER, ITALIAN, CASUAL, LUNCH, OPEN-LATEComment

ASK FOR LUIGI

Whenever anyone asks for the 'best pasta spot' in Vancouver, Ask For Luigi is the first off all Vancouverite's lips. Offering an intimate, romantic room, with elegant, informed, and classic service, this Italian-inspired restaurant certainly delivers. Known for its rich yet fresh handmade pasta, the Ask for Luigi enterprise has our generation smitten with pasta again. They also have a team that can deliver to your door, as there is often more demand than the little room can house.

RAILTOWNTracy GieszDecember 19, 2017ITALIAN, COMFORT-FOOD, VANCOUVER, CASUALComment

NIGHTINGALE

Only recently has the term "Modern Canadian" become so reiterated. It's often offered up as an erudite way to describe a Chef's interpretation of their menu and where they draw inspiration from. Cooks across the country are seeking vision from traditional fare but putting a modern spin on each dish, while respectably trying to "keep it Canadian". The term is rooted in the mass Farm-to-Table movement that has taken restaurant culture by storm, championed by the likes of chef personalities like Dan Barber and famous food journalists like Michael Pollan. But Modern Canadian cuisine has rightly found that a focus on local produce--and a connection to the farmers they source their ingredients from--lends exceptionally to achieving the richest of flavour, texture, and succulence. Enter Nightingale.

FINANCIAL DISTRICTTracy GieszJune 24, 2017VANCOUVER, MODERN-CANADIAN, COMFORT-FOOD, LUNCH, WIFI, FARM-TO-TABLE, OPEN-LATE, ITALIAN, FINE-DINING, CASUALComment

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