North Vancouver/Vancouver – Day 11 of a 12-Day BC Road Trip
It was warming up on Day 11 and the sun was out! It was really starting to look like spring!
Day 11
North Vancouver/Vancouver
To start our day, we headed to New Town Bakery & Restaurant in Chinatown to get takeout dim sum. I was surprised, but glad, that there was not as much of a wait at New Town. New Town also has a restaurant section inside for dine-in customers. We got 2 orders of pork dumplings (siu mai), 2 orders of shrimp dumplings (har gow), 4 steamed BBQ pork buns, and 4 fried shrimp rolls. This sounds like a lot of food for 2 people and it is! We headed to Kitsilano Beach to meet up with a friend and share the dim sum (i.e. we bought enough dim sum for 3 people). Due to Chinatown’s proximity to East Hastings, you may see some unsavoury people wandering around, but overall the main area of Chinatown is quite safe.
We enjoyed our dim sum at Kitsilano Beach. The sky was a beautiful blue.
Next on our list was a hike to Twin Falls in Lynn Canyon. Twin Falls Trail is a fairly easy hike with some steep areas. It will take about 1.5 hour round-trip. The main attraction on this hike is, evidently, the Twin Falls. Eventually, we reached a bridge overlooking the two waterfalls and the river. On the way back, we walked through the car route of the forest and then through the neighbourhood. On the car route, we passed by a film set that was packing up. They had just finished filming an episode of a superhero show.
Side Note: Another easy hike in the area of Twin Falls is Rice Lake Trail. The round-trip time is 1 hour with very minimal elevation gain. Here are a few photos of Rice Lake from when we went a few years ago:
After our hike, we headed back to Lonsdale Quay area. I wanted to check out the Polygon Art Gallery. Admission is by donation. The feature exhibition, Feast for the Eyes, during our visit was all about food photography. Very interesting to see. The art gallery also has an open balcony with a view of the quay.
Polygon Art Gallery
After the art gallery, we headed to Crackle Creme! Crackle creme is a cafe located near the Georgia Viaduct making cute macarons and delicious crème brûlée in all kinds of flavours. We shared the white chocolate rose crème brûlée and 4 macarons – lavender, passion fruit, root beer, and matcha.
Side Note: If you have time, Dr. Sun Yat Sen Garden, a classical Chinese Garden, is only a 10 minute walk from Crackle Creme. Here’s a picture of the gardens when we visited during the Lanterns of the Garden Festival back in 2018:
We then headed to check in at our hotel for the evening, Wedgewood Hotel & Spa. Wedgewood Hotel & Spa is an elegant 5-star hotel located in the heart of downtown. We dropped off our car at the valet and headed up to our room on the 9th floor. From our balcony, we had a great view of Robson Square.
Next stop, happy hour at Joe Fortes Seafood & Chop House. Joe Fortes is a Vancouver staple and has been serving up amazing food since 1985. Happy hour is between 3-6pm every day. My favourite happy hour special is the $1.50 per freshly shucked oyster. We ordered the calamari, a dozen freshly shucked oysters, and 2 glasses of wine.
Joe Fortes 
Calamari 
Freshly Shucked Oysters
We then walked to Marutama for ramen. Originally from Japan, Marutama is a popular ramen spot due to their signature creamy chicken broth. We ordered the original ramen and the cha-shu ramen. The ramen tastes even better with a scoop of fried garlic!
We had one more stop for the evening, Bacchus Lounge and Restaurant for an evening drink. Bacchus Lounge and Restaurant is an award-winning restaurant located at the Wedgewood Hotel & Spa. The lounge was completely full, so we gave them our room number and headed back to our room until they called us. The lounge also has a pianist playing between 6-10pm on select nights. We were called down in under an hour and seated in the lounge. We ordered the Elderflower Bramble and the Boulevardier cocktails and spent the rest of the evening sipping our cocktails while enjoying the evening piano music.
Complete Day 11 Itinerary
*Travel times may vary. Check Google Maps for most accurate travel details.
9:00am: Dim sum for breakfast at New Town Bakery & Restaurant Chinatown.
10:00am: Relax at Kitsilano Beach (13 minute drive from New Town Bakery & Restaurant Chinatown).
12:00pm: Go for a hike to the Twin Falls Bridge in Lynn Canyon (37 minute drive from Kitsilano Beach). If you have time, add Rice Lake to the hike.
3:00pm: Visit Polygon Art Gallery (19 minute drive from Twin Falls Bridge).
4:00pm: Stop for an afternoon snack at Crackle Creme (24 minute drive from Polygon Art Gallery).
5:00pm: Go to happy hour at Joe Fortes Seafood and Chop House (7 minute drive from Crackle Creme). Order before 6pm for happy hour prices.
6:00pm: Have dinner at Marutama Ramen (12 minute walk from Joe Fortes Seafood and Chop House).
7:00pm: Cocktails at Bacchus Restaurant & Lounge (18 minute walk from Marutama Ramen).
12-Day BC Road Trip Itinerary
Click “Download” below for an excel version of my 12-Day BC Road Trip Itinerary. Feel free to use the excel file as a planning template for your own trip in BC!
Travels with Carolyne 
Last time I was at that pier in North Van, there was a 300 foot mega yatch, 6 stories in height…had to be worth at least 200 million, the poor folks. I hope you had great weather in Tofino. Longbeach is the Best! Thanks,
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