Capones Restaurant and Jazz Club (website, map, 1141 Hamilton Street, Vancouver, BC, Canada, phone: 604-569-1770) is one of Vancouver’s hottest places for live jazz music in the downtown core.

Located in the trendy Yaletown shopping and restaurant district (which is accessible via the Yaletown-Roundhouse Canada Line train station), Capones features live jazz music 7 days a week combined with their upscale and sumptuous food reminiscent of the great pizza, pasta, and other meat and seafood specialties found in New York’s fine jazz eateries.

Capones recently underwent a major renovation and features a brand new bar area. I haven’t seen it yet and am looking forward to checking it out soon!

I visited Capones a few months ago. For an appetizer, we ordered the baked brie cheese which was topped with fresh sweet blueberries (pictured below). For the main course we tried their pastas, the Carbonera fettucini and the seafood fettucini (also pictured below). As usual the food was very delicious and the portions were just the right size – not too big to be uncomfortable but still enough to be heartily satisfying.

Prices are reasonable considering the restaurant’s location and the quality of the food. A meal tends to be around $20 to $40 per person depending on whether you order appetizers or drinks.

The music that night was provided by Phyllis Adelyne, an accomplished jazz singer with a warm personality and a classic sound drawing back to greats like Ella Fitzgerald.

I can’t wait to see what great performers and tempting dishes Capones has in their lineup next. Highly recommended.

Baked Brie Cheese from Capones Restaurant and Live Jazz Club in Vancouver BC Canada.

Carbonara fettuccini pasta from Capone's restaurant and Live Jazz Club in Vancouver BC Canada.

Frutti di mare (seafood) fettuccini from Capones restaurant and live jazz band club in Yaletown, downtown Vancouver BC Canada.

Phyllis Adelyne singing jazz at Capones Restaurant and Live Jazz Club in Vancouver BC Canada.

Insadong Korean Restaurant (website, map, photos, 403 North Road, Coquitlam, BC,  Canada, phone: 604-936-3778) is one of my new favorite places to go for Korean food in the Greater Vancouver area. It’s located just on the Coquitlam side of North Road, near Lougheed Mall in Burnaby. It’s within walking distance of the Lougheed skytrain station.

kissy of Coquitlam writes on dinehere.ca:

Love to be there. I have been in this restaurant a few time and every time I was there it was a pleasure for a spicy Korean style. The taste of the food was so impressive with a big portion of Kim chi and beef. Shabu hot pot beef was my favorite food there and big.. even it was a small size. The taste was rich with a healthy vegetable and tasty Kim Chi ingredients. The service was fast and excellent as well. Keep maintain the quality and services like this, I will be back again.

Prices for a full meal range between $10 and $20 per person depending on which dishes you order.

The spicy soft tofu soup (with seafood, pictured below) is $8.99 and comes with a side of rice and all the usual Korean accompaniment dishes like the kim-chee (traditional spicy cabbage), the candied cooked potatoes (my favorite), sprouts, and more. The soup and side dishes are a meal in themselves.

We also ordered some fancy salads such as the Smoked Salmon Salad ($7.99) and the Seafood Salad ($9.99) which were amazing “fusion” style dishes with great Korean influences but also making use of West Coast ingredients.

One great dish to order is the Dolsot Bibimbap ($9.99) – a healthy bowl filled with vegetables, rice, and meat. Here is a video of Gwyneth Paltrow showing how to make Bibimbap:

Below are some photos I took of the restaurant and our meal. I’ll definitely be back!

Korean food from Insadong Korean Restaurant in Coquitlam BC Canada.

Spicy soft tofu soup from Insadong Korean Restaurant in Coquitlam BC Canada.

Smoked Salmon Salad ($7.99) from Insadong Restaurant

Korean Seafood Salad from Insadong Restaurant in Coquitlam, BC, Canada.

Insadong Korean Restaurant interior (Coquitlam BC Canada)

Photo gallery of Insadong Korean Restaurant on Flickr

Tsui Hang Village Chinese Restaurant (map, 1193 Granville St, Vancouver, BC, phone: 604-683-6868) is a large, well kept Chinese restaurant near the Granville Street night-club entertainment district at the corner of Davie and Granville.

Popular with the after-bar crowd, Tsui Hang is open very late at night (even until 3 or 4 in the morning – but be sure to call them to confirm) and gets busy with talkative night-clubbers recovering from an evening dancing and imbibing.

The airy dining room is well lit and nicely maintained with some beautiful oriental vases displayed high above the dining room floor. Upon overhearing me remarking to my friend on the vases, the waiter interjected that they are “not real”. But although the decorative vases may be imitations, the food at Tsui Hang is definitely the real thing. If you’re a fan of Chinese seafood dishes, you’ll appreciate the menu (which is quite extensive and has a variety of vegetarian items too).

We ordered the Sauteed Rock Cod Fillets ($14.50, pictured below) and the Mixed Seafood Chow Mein ($13.50, also pictured below). The food was really tasty, the fish tender and enveloped in a delectable and nuanced sauce – even receiving positive comments from my dining companion who is of Asian descent. We also ordered a bowl of steamed rice ($2.00) which was quite large and nicely accompanied the two dishes.

Looking for something quick and on-the-go? Tsui Hang also has a take out window facing Davie Street which offers specials like sweet and sour pork on rice and chow mein for around $5.00.

Sauteed Rock Cod Fillets ($14.50) from Tsui Hang Village Chinese Restaurant on Granville Street, Vancouver, BC, Canada.

Mixed Seafood Chow Mein ($13.50) from Tsui Hang Village Restaurant in downtown Vancouver BC Canada (Granville Entertainment district).

Another shot of the same Mixed Seafood Chow Mein dish from Tsui Hang Chienese Restaurant on Granville Street in Vancouver.