A no messing around guide to the coolest things to eat, drink and do in Vancouver and beyond. Community. Not clickbait.

COMFORT FOOD GUIDE // The Electric, Souped-Up Corn on the Cob at Beetbox

This series maps out our editors’ picks for Vancouver’s best and most legendary comfort foods. We encourage readers to steer us towards their favourites in the comments or by using the hashtag #ScoutYVR on social media.

I went over four decades stubbornly thinking basically-buttered and salted corn on the cob could not be improved upon. This has been changing of late, my palate either maturing or getting bored. The most recent corn experience to disabuse me of this old notion was the ridiculously flavourful corn at Davie Street’s unassuming Beetbox, the colourful, plant-based cousin to Chinatown’s Juke Fried Chicken. Each piece of corn ($6 per order) is dusted with a special seasoning (vinegar powder, freeze-dried corn powder, various spices) and generously treated to a smear of – stay with me here – vegan mayo fortified with fermented Korean chilies, miso, confit garlic and calamansi juice. The effect is bright and mildly spicy with a gentle acid tang, all up in a creamy texture reminiscent of melting butter. For certain, few things this cheap taste anywhere near as good.

Beetbox
Neighbourhood: West End
1074 Davie St.
(Closed)
604-233-8269

COMFORT FOOD GUIDE // The Gently Spiced Spaghetti Vongole at Nightingale

This simple, classic Italian comfort dish sees a tiny but impactful upgrade in its recipe at Chef David Hawksworth's Nightingale.

COMFORT FOOD GUIDE // The Best Biscuit Sandwich in Vancouver Is Kind of Absurd

It's too much to ask of a biscuit to contain such a load and maintain any structural integrity, so embrace the mess.

Ceramicist Shuobi Wu Shares Recipe For Special ‘Homecoming’ Lotus Root Soup

"No matter how old I get, wherever I go, that one or two times every year that I went home, the first meal was always the Lotus Root soup."

COMFORT FOOD GUIDE // Hundy’s Tater Tots Dusted With Housemade Ketchup Powder

These are served hot and naked save for a dusting of ketchup powder that makes them glow ever so unnaturally and attractively.