Happy New Year! Stella and I wish you the best, biggest and brightest in 2014! xo Denise & Stella
Author: Denise Alba
Brunch at The Flying Pig
The Flying Pig is now one of my favourite places to go for brunch. There was an hour-long wait at Café Medina, so we decided to wander down Water Street in Gastown, and happened upon The Flying Pig. Why we’ve never eaten there is actually beyond me. I had the French toast – thick-cut brioche…
The Coffee Bun
One of the best things about Lonsdale Quay, apart from it being surrounded by North Shore nature, is a little coffee shop called The Coffee Bun, known for its namesake: the coffee bun – a buttery bun covered in a sweet coffee-flavoured topping and filled with anything from vanilla custard to coconut. It’s unlike anything…
Garry Point
After breakfast at The Sweet Spot (fresh-baked lemon curd + blueberry brioche) Stella and I took a walk at Garry Point this morning, and it was actually a perfect day. Almost like the calm before the storm, it was quiet – only a handful of joggers and the lone kite flyer – and the water…
Lonsdale Quay
There’s nothing I love more than spending a winter morning by the water. I love the mist, the cold breeze, and what I particularly love about Lonsdale Quay is sitting out on the market patio and seeing the Vancouver skyline across the water. It’s as beautiful shrouded in clouds and fog as it is in…
The Christmas Market
I went to the Christmas Market last week. I’ll be honest, I’m not into arts & crafts, so I pretty much just went for the food: waffles, bratwurst, spaetzle, mulled wine and apple cider. In true Vancouver style, it poured the night we went, but in a way only a true Vancouverite could appreciate, the…
Bacon Cupcakes
Bacon is not something you’d typically associate with cupcakes. Neither is King Kong or a Buffalo wing. Typically, you’d think vanilla or chocolate and pastel buttercream, much like the ones you’d find at Butter. But apparently, things are changing. Mancakes is located right next door to our favourite ramen place, Jinya Ramen Bar downtown, so…
Home is Party Dresses & Bûche de Noël
I always look forward to dinner at my aunt’s house on Christmas Eve – the party dresses and the desserts are my favourite. There is always way too much food, some sort of wii tournament going on, and puppies skidding across the living room hardwood. This year, Stella wore a little ruffled and polka-dotted number…
Merry Christmas
Merry Christmas, everyone! xo Denise & Stella
Home is Rain or Shine Ice Cream
Apart from snow on the ground, today was very much typical of December in Vancouver – 2 degrees and wet – the perfect day for ice cream at newly opened Rain or Shine Ice Cream in Kits. Vanilla is my favourite flavour ever – it’s not lame – and Rain or Shine’s vanilla is my…
Home is the Seawall and Ramen
The shortest day of the year in Vancouver also happened to be snowy and one of the coldest, and I could think of no better way to warm up than with black ramen at Jinya downtown. I’ve missed frosty morning walks with the pup – solo early morning runs by the Detroit river just don’t…
Home is Stella
As if my suitcase wasn’t already full of presents for her, I found a pink My Little Pony at a bookstore at the airport that I decided she needed to have. My Little Ponies were my favourite when I was little (I still have a bunch in my room right now), and besides, pink is…
Pup & Grub 