DINER: Stewart & Durbach’s Little “Sardine Can” Opens Up On Powell Street In Gastown

by Andrew Morrison | Chef Andrey Durbach and Chris Stewart officially (if softly) opened The Sardine Can yesterday after a hectic Monday night dry run that saw three full turns of tables. I’ll go a few more times before I get into lengthy dish descriptions and broad analysis, but suffice it to say here and now that the little 20 seater at 26 Powell Street focuses on simple, unassuming Spanish tapas and pretty much nails both the requisite casual ambiance and bold flavour hooks. Durbach’s albondigas, patatas bravas (with soft fingerlings!), fish toasts, and so on are each represented well and are wholly pairable with Stewart’s select list of wines, beers and sherries. The prices are a little higher than I thought they’d be, but rents in Gastown ain’t cheap anymore, and I left feeling more sated than depleted (having torn through half the menu – doubling down on some items – and finding not a dud in the bunch). They’re open from 3pm until late and don’t accept reservations. If you go this week, and you should, be sure to bring cash. While they do accept credit cards and Interac, customers paying cash get 10% off of everything. Take a look at the before and after… Read more

The Long Awaited “Judas Goat” Opens In Gastown’s Blood Alley

Co-owner Scott Hawthorn mugs through a Hunter & Gather designed felt peephole in the entrance to Judas Goat

Judas Goat has finally opened in Gastown, and it looks great for a shoebox hideaway that doesn’t take itself too seriously. For an explanation of the art within from co-owner Sean Heather and shot shots of the pre-opening interior shots of the 21 seat, Spanish-inspired tapas micr0-restaurant and wine bar, click here. For shots from their first full day in action, check below for several… Read more

Gastown’s “Judas Goat” Inching Toward Early 2010 Opening…

I took this video today of construction continuing apace at Judas Goat, the tiny tapas joint going in right beside Salt Tasting Room in Gastown’s soon-to-be-much spiffier Blood Alley. Look for it in January. Read more

Blood Alley Getting Spanish Tapas Bar

From the little known Department of Just When You Thought 2009 Was Going To Totally Suck comes phenomenal news from a Gastown alleyway.

Restaurateur Sean Heather is planning to open a new concept in the small space currently under development right next door to Salt Tasting Room in Blood Alley. It will be a 21 seat Spanish tapas joint, with food items selling for $2 to $3 and liquids focusing on sherry, wine, and beer. There is no name just yet.

Sean will be doing a guest travel blog for Scout when he travels to do research in Spain next month, so stay tuned for more updates as things progress. Arriving late summer ’09. If you have any suggestions for names, let loose in the comments below.

More Saltiness…

Here are some shots from last week’s unveiling of Iberico ham for local chefs in the Salt Cellar. Vegetarians and small children may want to skip it…

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Andrew Morrison is a west coast boy who studied history and classics at the Universities of Cape Town and Toronto after an adolescence spent riding skateboards and working in restaurants. He is the editor of Scout Magazine, the weekly food and restaurant columnist for the Westender newspaper, a contributor to Vancouver and Western Living magazines, and a proud board member of the Chef’s Table Society of BC. He lives and works by the beach in Vancouver.

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