BC Living
Classic Acai Bowl Recipe
How to Make Granola Bars From Scratch
5 BC Food Tours That Will Tempt Your Tastebuds
Nature’s Pharmacy: 8 Herbal Boutiques in BC
How Barre Enhances Your Flexibility
Top Tips for Workout Recovery
Inviting the Steller’s Jay to Your Garden
6 Budget-friendly Holiday Decor Pieces
Dream Home: $8 Million for a Modern Surprise
9 BC Wellness Hotels to Relax and Recharge in This Year
Local Getaway: Enjoy Waterfront Views at a Ucluelet Beach House
Getaways for busy entrepreneurs
7 Beauty and Wellness Influencers to Follow in BC
B.C. Adventures: Things to Do in January
Making Spirits Bright: Where to See Holiday Lights Around B.C.
9 Essential Winter Beauty and Skincare Products
5 Books You’ll Want to Cozy up to This Winter
The Best Gifts for Homebodies in 2024
Just try to resist the pie at Vancouver's Acme Café; with so many varieties, you're bound to visit often for lunch or an afternoon snack
Acme Café’s chicken pot pie comes with a perfectly flaked crust and house salad
Going during either of those times almost guarantees you’ll get a seat in one of its four large booths. If you’re not so picky there are also tables for two and a curvy countertop to cozy up to. In a setting that has all the great diner tropes; black and white tiles, ceiling fans, counter stools and formica tabletops, it’s the perfect backdrop to an authentic yet modern eating experience.
(Image: Gerilee McBride)
Having already survived two years sandwiched between Model Express (a store featuring the newest in Pretty Woman apparel) and a construction zone for a new set of condos, Acme (located at 51 W. Hasting St., Vancouver) has proved it’s worth repeat visits. I go back to time and again because it consistently serves up good quality diner favourites like chicken potpie ($12.50) served with an unnecessary but perfectly dressed side house salad and baked to order so the lovely flakey pastry top always comes out just the right shade of delicious.
It’s also the place to go for pie, lots of pie. From whoopie pies (mini cookie pies, $1.50) to key lime to banana cream to lemon meringue, it has all the classics. Make sure to ask your server for the day’s listings as it has a revolving Mecca of sweets and treats ranging from $0.75 for a single cookie to $4 for a slice of cake. $5 will getg you the piece of pie of your dreams.
You’re not going to get light food here, these are diner staples made with butter and shortening and real cheese. The mac and cheese, which is decadent on its own ($9), has the option to add bacon ($11) and who could resist that?
If you’re looking for something less enormous than the potpie or less blissfully coma-inducing than the mac and cheese, you can always go for one of the delicious sandwiches but beware, these can hardly be mistaken as snacks as all sandwiches come with the addition of either a cup of the daily soup or a side of broccoli slaw and potato chips. Oh, and a pickle!
Whatever you get at Acme Café, rest assured that it will be done right, and right again, and it’s the excellent customer service and attention to detail that keeps me coming back. That and its damn fine cup of coffee.
Gerilee McBride is a Vancouver-based writer and designer working in the BC publishing industry. When not reading or writing she can be found biking, gardening or re-upholstering old office furniture. She also blogs about these things at www.talkandnottalk.com.