I go back and forth on if I want everyone to know about these places so they're a big success, or if I want to keep them my little secret.
Don Taco
One of the most common questions I get from Arizona and California transplants is, where do you go to get Mexican food. Many people will swear, there is no good Mexican food in Vancouver, and I said it myself easily for 6 months when I first moved here. I hesitate to recommend Mexican food because there are so many varying opinions on what's good... Do you want the place that has sizzling fajitas and sings Happy Birthday in Spanish? Or do you want soups loaded with weird animal parts and a badass salsa bar and street tacos? If the latter is your preference, the answer is Don Taco. It's on Fourth Plain with 500 other Mexican food restaurants but save yourself the research and just go here.
Pho Star
Speaking of soups with weird animal parts... maybe there's a theme to this post... but I think I believe this is the best Vietnamese food in Vancouver. My partner, an ex chef out of LA agrees, if that gives any weight to my opinion. I actually don't get the pho myself, but he does (with extra tendon, woof), but I swear by the vermicelli with honey lemongrass pork and shrimp skewers... it is one of those energizing, feel good meals, no matter the season. A perfect char on the meat makes your car smell so good on the way home.
Devs Coffee Bar
We've got no shortage of coffee carts in parking lots in Vancouver, but there are many I wouldn't waste my time on. Devs, has one of the best breakfast sandwiches around... served on a bagel, with a hashbrown in it. They're super quick, with someone taking orders from cars in line during the peak hours, and it's served perfectly hot with your choice of meat. I'm putting this one here instead of on the coffee post because I simply love them for their sandwiches.
Tonallis Donuts
Since you're in the area (at Devs, obvi) you may as well head across the street to Tonallis for donuts. I'm thinking at some point I need to do a whole post on donut shops where I talk about why we don't go to Voodoo, and about how some of the most popular donut shops are actually not the best, and disclose where the best are (spoiler alert, my other top choice is in the last sentence of this paragraph.) Tonallis is in my top two...and I'm going to categorize these ones as 'special occasion' donuts. In addition to your classics, this is where you come if you want an instagrammable seasonal donut, or donuts for a celebration. It's cute as heck in there, but if aesthetics isn't your thing I do always suggest the Donut Nook for the actual best quality basic donut in Vancouver.
