Page 74 - Dreamscapes Magazine | Fall/Winter 2024

GREAT ESCAPES
Surrey:
CANADA’S NEXT GREAT FOODIE DESTINATION
BY ROBIN ESROCK
Set to become British Columbia’s largest city by the end of the decade, Surrey boasts a culinary scene as large as its growing population. Located about 40 minutes by Sky- train from downtown Vancouver, high-quality indie restaurants reflect the diverse population, from South Asian street food to modern lounges, family-owned kitchens, and upmarket whisky bars.
HIT THE SPICE TRAIL
Curated from over 750 eateries, Surrey’s online Spice Trail is a
handy intro guide. Kick your taste buds off with the dry-roasted beef ularthiyathu and tingling Kerala fried chicken at Kerala Kitchen. A block away, the spicy butter-cheesy momos at Kathmandu Bar and Grill demand repeat visits. On the south side, beeline to Afghan Kitchen for kiwi-marinated meats and traditional, family-recipe dips. Newly opened on King George Boulevard, the stylish Combine transitions from a daytime coffee shop into the evening’s charcuterie highlight. Pick three farm-to-table meats or fine cheeses, three condiments, and pair them with a flight of four quality B.C. or international wines, served in a flight with two-ounce pours.
A DRAM FOR WHISKY DREAMERS
If you visited Skye Avenue Kitchen and Lounge every day for 10 years, you could order a different whisky every time. Located steps away from the Central City Skytrain station, the chic restaurant pairs the largest collec- tion of whiskies in Canada (and the fifth largest in the world) with dishes that include soy-glazed Japanese milk bread, lobster cobb salad, pista- chio-crusted lamb loin, and a grilled wagyu tenderloin that will haunt my dreams forever. A towering illuminated bar with rows of bottles exhibits just some of the 4,000-plus label collection; the rest are stored down- stairs but readily available for clientele. Scotch, Irish, bourbons, ryes—the collection includes rare bottles you simply won’t find anywhere else, and a knowledgeable staff to guide a world-class whisky tasting.
KEEP CALM AND EAT GOLGAPPA
Also known as pani puri, golgappa is a popular street dish in India that consists of a hollow, deep-fried shell, filled with veggies, and drowned in various “waters.” Popular with locals, Apna Chaat’s modest standing bar serves fresh golgappa “shots” with a half dozen waters that range from sweet and minty to “are you sure you can handle this?” spicy.
YES, IT IS CAKE
The popular Netflix series Is It Cake? challenges talented bakers to create cakes that look like real-world objects. A breakout star in the third season is a young Surrey chef named Jujhar Mann, who crafts appetizing treats from his Mann and Co Bakeshop in the Newton neighbourhood. Infusing cakes with hard-core Indian spices, be sure to order Mann’s Indian pop- sicle-inspired rose kulfi royale opera cake or his pistachio-layered entremets with its hidden raspberry explosion. DS
Robin Esrock is the bestselling author of The Great Canadian Bucket List. 74 DREAMSCAPES FALL/WINTER 2024
WHY GO NOW? Surrey is experiencing rapid growth across its six neighbourhoods, wel- coming over one thousand new arrivals a month. In 2023, Food and Wine Magazine named Surrey as one of the world’s Next Great Food Cities.
PHOTOS: ROBIN ESROCK