a north shore gem fit for yaletown
district mussels
It seems that all I’m doing these days is attending farewell parties. But at least with my co-worker Kate’s farewell, I knew that I’d be able to see her almost any time I wanted (unlike Mr. Cambodia, Irwin).
Much to our chagrin, Kate took a new job with another company. After five years of being with us, it was time for her to spread her wings. So although I was sad that I wouldn’t have my friend to chat with every day, I was proud of her – and knew I’d be seeing her outside of work just as much, if not more.
As our department comes from almost all corners of the Lower Mainland, many of our get-togethers begin on the North Shore where our office is located. So for Kate’s farewell dinner, we decided on the district.
I had been there once before for wine and appies, and thought it was a needed edition to the Lower Lonsdale scene. Full of quirky and ethnic eateries, Lower Lonsdale isn’t exactly trendy. But maybe the district can change that?
It’s a small space, currently only holding about 25 or so people (although I think they have completed their expansion next door), so as we were a party of 10, we had to order in advance. My co-worker Adam, who is a bit of a district regular, raved about the 8 oz. tenderloin. And since I had been craving a good steak, I decided to try it.
The district’s menu is a combo of sharing plates and entrees. It’s pretty small, but for a space that size, I appreciate it. I get scared when I see a tiny restaurant with a large menu – how can they possibly master all those dishes?
the no. 13 burger
Their wine list is also small, but mighty. According to their drink menu, “the district social house only pours BC wines in a nod to supporting local growers and vintners. The majority of our boutique wines come from an area in the South Okanagan called the Naramata Bench just above Penticton on the eastern shores of Okanagan Lake.”
Now there’s something that appeals to my “eat and drink local” mentality.
Adam and I decided the Road 13 Red – Honest John’s would be a perfect compliment to our steaks. I took it pretty easy that night, but several of my co-worker’s tried the mojitos and caiprinhas (the official drink of Brazil – my latest vacation destination – only six more weeks!).
The current space is very intimate and perfect for a romantic evening – and thankfully the couple sitting next to our group had a good sense of humour and didn’t mind us intruding on their evening. The kitchen is wide open and watching the two chefs cook was like watching a well-choreographed dance.
As a woman, I also have to give them props for a lovely bathroom. They do also have a small patio, so hopefully with the expansion, that will expand as well. It did seem a bit of a shame to be cooped inside on such a gorgeous night, but we weren’t the only ones. The place was very quickly packed, and we arrived very early at 5:45 (they don’t take resos after six on the weekends).
After lingering over our wine (simple, clean, and fresh), our meals arrived. As it’s always hard for me to get a bite of everyone’s meal during a group dinner, I’ll just focus on my steak.
The steak was baseball cut, which I don’t think that I had ever had before. For those of you who don’t know what that means, it’s called baseball cut because of its rounded shape. The sirloin is one of the leanest cuts and is probably one of the most flavorful.
8 oz. tenderloin
The steak was carefully grilled to medium rare (my favourite) and was lightly seasoned with a blend of pepper and other spices. I don’t think that a good piece of meat needs too much seasoning and this steak definitely delivered – each bite was a flavour explosion. The meat was paired with frites (good, but nowhere as good as Bistrot Bistro), and something that looked like a cross between asparagus and broccoli.
After doing some googling, I discovered that I had been served broccolini – a cross between broccoli and kai-lan, Chinese broccoli, that does taste like both broccoli and asparagus. It was sweet, buttery and delicious. I actually invited more people to taste my broccolini than my steak.
I think our group was supposed to leave after two hours, but since there wasn’t a line at the door, they allowed us to stay as long as we wanted. And considering Lower Lonsdale also lacks in good places to drink, our restaurant table quickly turned to lounge after dinner.
The district’s blog describes their expansion as having “a lower ceiling, fireside lounge kind of a feel with touches of brick, hardwood and halogen.” Hmm… sounds good to me. I’m not so sure the district is the perfect place to spend a hot summer night, but for good food, service and wine, it’s the place to be in Lower Lonsdale. So hop on the SeaBus and try one of Lower Mainland’s soon-to-be newest hotspots.
the district
013 Lonsdale Avenue
North Vancouver | BC
778.338.4938
thedistrictsocial.com
It seems that all I’m doing these days is attending farewell parties. But at least with my co-worker Kate’s farewell, I knew that I’d be able to see her almost any time I wanted (unlike Mr. Cambodia, Irwin).
Much to our chagrin, Kate took a new job with another company. After five years of being with us, it was time for her to spread her wings. So although I was sad that I wouldn’t have my friend to chat with every day, I was proud of her – and knew I’d be seeing her outside of work just as much, if not more.
As our department comes from almost all corners of the Lower Mainland, many of our get-togethers at least begin on the North Shore, where our office is located. So for Kate’s farewell dinner, we decided on the district social house.
I had been there only once before in the winter for wine and appies, and thought that it was a needed edition to the Lower Lonsdale scene. Full of quirky and ethnic eateries, Lower Lonsdale isn’t exactly trendy. But maybe the district can change that?
It’s a small space, currently only holding about 20 or so people (they are in the middle of expanding next door), so as we were a party of 10, we had to order in advance. My co-worker Adam, who is a bit of a district regular, raved about the 8 oz. tenderloin. And since I had been craving a good steak, I decided to try it.
The district’s menu is a combo of sharing plates and entrees. It’s pretty small, but for a space that size, I appreciate it. I get scared when I see a tiny restaurant with a large menu – how can they possibly master all those dishes?
Their wine list is also small, but mighty. According to their drink menu, “the district social house only pours BC wines in a nod to supporting local growers and vintners. The majority of our boutique wines come from an area in the South Okanagan called the Naramata Bench just above Penticton on the eastern shores of Okanagan Lake.”
Now there’s something that appeals to my “eat and drink local” mentality.
Adam and I decided the Road 13 Red – Honest John’s would be a perfect compliment to our steaks. I took it pretty easy that night, but several of my co-worker’s tried the mojitos and caiprinha (the official drink of Brazil – my latest vacation destination – only six more weeks!).
The current space is very intimate and perfect for a romantic evening – and thankfully the couple sitting next to our group had a good sense of humour and didn’t mind us intruding on their evening. The kitchen is wide open and watching the two chefs cook was like watching a well-choreographed dance.
As a woman, I also have to give them props for a lovely bathroom. They do also have a small patio, so hopefully with the expansion, that will expand as well. It did seem a bit of a shame to be cooped inside on such a gorgeous night, but we weren’t the only ones. The place was very quickly packed, and we arrived very early at 5:45 (they don’t take resos after six on the weekends).
After lingering over our wine (simple, clean, and fresh), our meals arrived. As it’s always hard for me to get a bite of everyone’s meal during a group dinner, I’ll just focus on my steak.
The steak was baseball cut, which I don’t think that I had ever had before. For those of you who don’t know what that means, a steak is called baseball cut because of its rounded shape. The sirloin is one of the leanest cuts is probably one of the most flavorful.
The steak was carefully grilled to medium rare (my favourite) and was lightly seasoned with a blend of pepper and other spices. I don’t think that a good piece of meat needs too much seasoning and this steak definitely delivered – each bite was a flavour explosion. The meat was paired with frites (good, but nowhere as good as Bistrot Bistro), and something that looked like a cross between asparagus and broccoli.
After doing some googling, I discovered that I had been served broccolini – a cross between broccoli and kai-lan, Chinese broccoli, that does taste like both broccoli and asparagus. It was sweet, buttery and delicious. I actually invited more people to taste my broccolini than my steak!
I think our group was supposed to leave after two hours, but since there wasn’t a line at the door, they allowed us to stay as long as we wanted. And considering Lower Lonsdale is also lacking in good places to drink, our restaurant table quickly turned to lounge after dinner.
The district’s blog describes their expansion as having “a lower ceiling, fireside lounge kind of a feel with touches of brick, hardwood and halogen.” Hmm… sounds good to me. I’m not so sure the district is the perfect place to spend a hot summer night, but for good food, service and wine, it’s the place to be in Lower Lonsdale. So hop on the SeaBus and try one of Lower Mainland’s soon-to-be newest hotspots.
