On my last night in Vancouver I had the opportunity (really, the pleasure) to stay at The Opus Hotel, located in the up-and-coming Yaletown district. I’ve stayed at hundreds of boutique hotels around the world and was really quite surprised with how well this property was put together and run.

The building itself is very well done and features 96 luxury guest rooms inside– each with all the top details and modern amusements you would come to expect. iPod docks, a great mini-bar (even with some oxygen if you’re feeling tired), comfortable modern furnishings, soaker tub in the bathroom, etc. And most importantly, a great bed! My room had a small but nice balcony that let in some fresh Canadian air.

Rooms are designed around five unique themes from modern and minimalist to daring and dramatic– with really everything in between. Each room corresponds with one of the personas from within their Lifestyle Concierge– a really great idea that gives you recommendations for your visit tailored to your personality and mood. The idea is fairly simple– 7 different personas that just about everyone can identify with. Into arts and culture and want to see what the city has to offer in those realms, check out Susan’s recommendations. Want to go off the beaten path? Billy’s the man, and so on.   Good for food, shopping, entertainment and so on.

I would definately give them a nod for an up and comer in the area, and a brand to keep your eyes on in the future. They’re even on Twitter!

Vancouver is a fantastic city to explore and discover new restaurants – especially if you like seafood as much as I do. The access to quality ingredients would make any food connoisseur drool. It certainly had me blissed the whole week I was there.

I didn't need to go far from my hotel for my first big dinner, and the experience at Yew Restaurant was certainly worth celebrating. After undergoing a massive renovation in the lobby of The Four Seasons ($4 million Canadian dollars for the restaurant alone, I'm told), a dramatic space was born, seating more than 128 guests. You're dazzled in this gorgeous space by its massive 40 foot ceilings, a floor to ceiling fireplace, and a communal table formed from a single piece of western maple.

The Executive Chef, Oliver Beckert launched a dinner menu he calls No Passport Required, a way to lead his guests on an enticing culinary journey to far away destinations — all without the need to leave their comfortable downtown Vancouver seats. April was “Japan” month (my favorite, of course) so I gave up the reins and went for it.

My Japanese adventure started with King Crab Soup, a Sake based broth with Daikon and Shiso. Very simple, light, and tasty. Large chunks of King Crab which tasted like they’d been lifted out of the sea a few hours earlier. Soup was followed by a Miso-Marinated Black Cod served with Asparagus, Edamame and a Kombu Broth — a classic. Dessert was a Pink Grapefruit Parfait with Ginger and Vanilla Consomme and Almond Milk Caviar.

My guest loved his dish from the daily menu– the fresh wild Salmon, miso-broiled with Chinese Broccoli, Baby Shiitake Mushrooms, Squash and a Plum Puree. If you're not up for food from the sea, they offer Wild Boar, Venison, or a pasta dish for the vegetarians.

There's also an impressive wine selection with more than 150 bottles available by the glass– (yes, one hundred and fifty) and they'll open nearly any selection you might want to sample.

Our Parfait was an ideal ending for us, but if you’re feeling especially brave, finish off with a selection of their Homemade Ice Cream and Sorbet's – Nutella, Carmel Honeycomb, S'more Ice Cream — and then call the cardiologist! Delicious.

I popped into GOODFOOT Vancouver while exploring Gas Town today. Very spiffy looking space with a nice selection of the usual goods. Living in NYC certainly makes me spoiled but I found the selection to be pretty tasteful here. Some quick-strike Nike’s, Visvim, as well as a few very good looking Ransom pieces. If you’re in town it’s certainly worth the visit.

36 Powell Street
Vancouver, BC
604-806-3613

I’m headed to Vancouver and then Whistler tomorrow for the week. I’m primarily out there to speak at a special industry session during the Telus World Ski & Snowboard Festival but I have ample time to explore Vancouver and hopefully catch more spring powder if this snow keeps up. I’m looking forward to it all.

I’ve never been to Vancouver, crazy right? So– where should I go? Shop? Eat? Explore? I’m told I should also hop over to Vancouver Island and see some whales or run with the bears or something too.

If you’ve got thoughts please leave a comment below, or drop me a note. Thanks!

Fleming Creative Group, a firm in Vancouver, Canada, recently called on Eric Chan, a.k.a. Eepmon (see also: one of our favorite techie-slash-artists) to create an installation piece for their reception area. Chan was given the company’s motto, “The Story Through Design,” for inspiration, and worked all through the month of August on the over fifteen-foot long/seven-foot high design. Chan approached the work with the same intensity that we’ve grown to expect from him (if you haven’t checked his site before, GO. It’s nearly perfect.), and the completed piece is nothing short of incredible, with saturated colors and lifelike graphics working together to form a powerful first impression for Fleming’s entryway. Given the rapidly evolving area (aesthetically) that is design, commissioning such a piece was a brave thing for a creative firm to do, so points go out to both Fleming’s for going for it, and Eric for pulling it off.

Outward Creative is the online portfolio of Eli Horn, a Vancouver-based freelance designer, web developer and artist with strong talent in all three areas. Eli’s website does well to demonstrate his creative and technical aptness with a clean and interactive layout that’s simple to navigate yet impressive to use. Mr. Horn is still a student at IDEA (Illustration/Design: Elements & Applications) at Capilano College — a fact that will pull your eyebrows further upward as you search through his very developed art and design work — and if his Photoshop experiments (like this one) are any indication of his academic success, I’d say someone’s getting straight A’s. Eli is currently available for projects and collaborations, so if you’re in the market, go get him while he’s fresh!

Some lighting merely accents the space it illuminates, but this incredible lamp deserves a whole room of its own. Handmade from hundreds of thin bamboo strips, it’s just one of many pieces in the lighting and furniture line by Vancouver-based Kozai Designs, a company dedicated to introducing Japanese design aesthetics to the North American market. The production of their pieces also reflect this; assembly and sourcing takes place on both sides of the pond. Their online store offers a limited selection, but any of their pieces, along with custom commissions, are available to order by contacting them directly.

Boogie, the infamous street-photographer has a show coming up on November 17th, 2006 at 36 Powell Street in Vancouver. Boogie originally born in Serbia migrated to the US in ‘98. His work has appeared in Rolling Stone, Vice, among many other publications. His new book of behind the scenes street life, It’s All Good is available now through Powerhouse Books. We don’t know how Boogie, now Brooklyn dwelling got his street credibility to go deep into the gang-life for photo opportunities the way he does– but we sure are impressed. Full flyer after the jump.

READ MORE…