Don’t want to break your pre-summer diet with drugstore chocolate? Vv Magazine’s West Coast Editor Alexandra Gill rounds up the best spots for Easter Sunday brunch in Vancouver…
Easter Sunday brunch, much like the great Easter egg hunt, is a tradition with devout religious roots. Egg-centric feasts evolved to celebrate the end of the privations of Lent — during which the consumption of eggs was originally forbidden, even though all those darn hens kept poppin’ them out, temptation be damned. Thus, the excess and need to feast on them.
But as with brunch in general, Easter Sunday brunch is a less pious ritual for most people today. According to Williams Grimes, writing in the New York Times in 1998, brunch is a North American invention that can be linked to the hangover. Quoting English writer Guy Beringer, who published an 1899 essay titled “Brunch: A Plea,” Grimes explained that a later breakfast accompanied by a little hair of the dog would make life a lot easier for “Saturday-night carousers.”
Whether you’re catching up with family and friends this Easter Sunday brunch or simply nursing the previous night’s overconsumption (or both), there are plenty of places in Vancouver for stuffing your stomach. Nothing is sacred anymore. Even the BC Liquor Stores will open this Sunday for the first time ever. Thus, we offer you a list of Easter Sunday brunch spots in Vancouver sorted by type of venue rather than individual restaurants.
HOTELS
Hotels don’t close for holidays and neither do their restaurants. Lucky for us, Vancouver’s hotel dining scene has vastly improved in the last few years. In fact, we predict the coming of a retro throwback to the days when fine dining restaurants were confined to hotels. There simply aren’t many other landlords who can afford them anymore.
Some of the better hotel restaurants, all of which will be open for brunch this Easter Sunday, include:
-Seafood-centric YEW at the Four Seasons
-Haute Hawksworth at the Rosewood Hotel Georgia
-Rustic Italian Cibo Trattoria at the Moda Hotel
-Swanky Boulevard at the Sutton Place Hotel
-Local, sustainable Forage at the Listel Hotel
-Chic French Tableau Bar Bistro at the Loden Hotel
CHAIN RESTAURANTS
Chain dining is nothing to be ashamed of. Vancouver is headquarters to some of the best chain restaurants in the country. And most of them, including Earls, Milestones, and Burgoo, offer great brunches. (Cactus Club and Joey’s do not have egg menus, though some locations do open before noon.)
GLOWBAL GROUP
Although not a chain, except for Trattoria, the Glowbal Group applies similar policies across its vastly-popular collection of restaurants. Coast is already fully booked, but there will also be brunch specials at Italian Kitchen, Trattoria, The Roof, and The Fish Shack.
TRADITIONAL BRUNCH SPOTS
Almost any restaurant that specializes in weekend brunch will undoubtedly be open this Sunday. May we suggest:
GRANVILLE ISLAND
Vancouver’s favourite inner-city getaway will be hopping throughout the holidays. Bridges Bistro and Dockside Restaurant are both offering traditional buffets, while Edible Canada at the Market will have its regular brunch on Saturday and Sunday.
PARKS
Craving brunch with a picturesque view? Look no further than Seasons in the Park and The Teahouse in Stanley Park. The Grouse Mountain Easter brunch, alas, is already sold out.
HIGH TEA
For something a little different, try high tea on Easter Sunday. The Urban Tea Merchant, Neverland Tea Salon, and the Xi Shi Lounge at the Shangri-La Hotel will all be piling their tiered towers high with dainty delicacies.
DIM SUM
It wouldn’t be Easter in Vancouver if we didn’t suggest dim sum as a midday Sunday option. In addition to Kirin Restaurants, our favourite dim sum go-to, we recommend Dynasty Seafood, Golden Paramount, Neptue Seafood, Vivacity, and Sea Harbour – all of which were Best Dim Sum finalists for the Vancouver Magazine 2014 Restaurant Awards.
Related Link: Hot New Vancouver Restaurant Openings: Spring 2015
Where will you be grabbing Easter Sunday brunch in Vancouver? Let us know in the comments below or follow us at @ViewTheVibe!
