Off to that wondrous gem of Vancouver, The Public Market on Granville Island. This is one of the great markets of the world–bustling, colorful, well organized. Counters of fresh fish–salmon (incomparable), sole, halibut, etc. Plus specialties like spiny sea urchins (a delight for Uni lovers), salmon caviar, wood smoked salmon (in a separate building about 50 yards away is The Lobster Man for lobster, mussels and oysters). Two large shops offer superb meat. There’s a chicken shop, stall after stall offering flowers, fruit and vegetables from nearby farms. Terra bakes superb baguettes and scones. A tiny shop stocks a variety of milk products—milk, sour cream, yogurt and butter. There are two large operations that sell cheese, fresh pasta, olives, olive oil and everything else necessary for Italian cuisine. A score of shops that sell specialties–Indian spices, Chinese herbs, nuts, chocolate, Canadian wines, pastries (including that Canadian specialty, butter tarts, unavailable in the USA), etc.,etc., ad infinitum. HG/BSK purchased yogurt and fruit (for breakfast), crisp salad greens, tiny potatoes. Baguette from Terra. Thus provisioned, HG/BSK arrived at their favorite shop—-Oyama. The name is Japanese but this is a French-Canadian place that stocks every conceivable variety of sausage, ham, bacon, mustard, pate, terrine, rillette, etc…Plus, three dozen beautifully curated and aged cheeses. It is charcuterie heaven. BSK’s favorite is the delicious pheasant pate while HG relishes the garlic head cheese. Both love the suave duck pate and the perfectly sliced prosciutto (from Parma). Cornichons, sweet mustard, duck and pork rillettes; Bavarian Weisswurst, sauerkraut were added to their order plus camembert and cumin gouda cheese. Lunched at Stockpot, purveyor of great soups. HG had old fashioned chicken noodle while BSK opted for vegetable. Tonight HG/BSK will devour the Oyama charcuterie and cheeses with a big green salad, crusty bread and plenty of red wine. Weisswurst, sauerkraut, little boiled potatoes, cornichons and sweet mustard are scheduled for tomorrow night.
