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Published: September 6th 2009
Gastown's Steam Clock
Check out the clock on the corner of Water Street and Cambie Street on the half-hour for its unique chime.Gastown is a mix of "hip" contemporary fashion and interior furnishing boutiques, art galleries, coffee shops, restaurants, and nightclubs located in one of Canada's national historic sites. While Gastown is one of Vancouver's tourist attractions, residents in social and newly upscale housing, workers in professional offices and internet businesses, and students attending acting and film schools call Gastown home. Like most tourist attractions, it has its share of souvenir shops too!
Located at the northeast end of the Downtown, adjacent to the infamous Downtown Eastside, Gastown is easily accessible since Waterfront Station, Vancouver's main transportation hub, is on its western tip. However, due to its proximity to one of the poorest neighbourhoods in Canada and the open drug scene that plagues the Downtown Eastside, street people and drug-addicted wanderers, walk the cobbled streets and alleyways. Downtown Ambassadors, wearing red uniforms with hats, ward off the aggressive beggars and street people; unfortunately, panhandling and homelessness are evident all over the Downtown core. While efforts are underway to lessen its impact, it is pervasive.
As a Vancouverite, I am sorry to say that visitors must remain in the core area of Gastown and avoid exploring the
There She Blows!
Visitors and tour buses congregate at the clock for a photo op. area east and south of Gastown. Despite the occasional unwelcome encounter, Gastown is definitely worth a short visit.
We recommend going up the glass elevator 430 feet in 40 seconds at Harbour Centre and enjoying the city view from Vancouver Lookout to first time visitors since it provides a 360º bird’s eye view of our city from the Observation Deck. On a clear day, the view is spectacular and well worth the visit. Shopping at high-end boutiques at Sinclair Centre, touring Canada Place, and walking along the waterfront walkways encircling the Vancouver Trade and Convention Centre are some of the other enjoyable activities to do before or after your tour of Gastown.
Things to See and Do Although most tourists visit Gastown on city tours, it is most enjoyable on a sunny day where the highlight is walking the cobbled streets, watching the Gastown Clock blow, shopping in its eclectic boutiques, and enjoying some of its wonderful cafes and restaurants. Gastown offers some interesting restaurant choices and later in the evening becomes a destination for clubbers until the early morning hours.
Gastown's most famous landmark is its steam-powered clock, located on the corner of
Water Street Cafes and Restaurants
Water Street Cafe, best view of Gastown's Steam Clock from its patio. Cambie and Water Street. Built to cover a steam grate, part of Vancouver's distributed steam-heating system, the clock was built as a way to harness the steam and to prevent street people from sleeping on the spot in cold weather.
The steam powers a miniature steam engine in its base, in turn driving a chain lift. The chain lift moves steel balls upward, where they are unloaded and roll to a descending chain. The weight of the balls on the descending chain drives a conventional pendulum clock escapement, geared to the hands on the four faces. The steam also powers the clock's whistle to produce the Westminster "chime" that signals the passing of time on the half-hour.
Besides some of its great restaurants, the Vancouver International Jazz Festival taking place in late June/early July and the Tour de Gastown, an international bicycle road race that was cancelled in 2009 due to sponsorship money woes, are two of the most popular events that take place in Gastown and draw locals to the area.
Eating & Shopping Highlights Recommended Shopping Experiences • Canadian Maple Delights - A small bistro and shop that offers a touch
Native Artworks
Ceremonial masks from First Nations of British Columbia found at Hill's Native Art, one of Gastown's oldest and largest native art galleries. of French Canadiana that carries an amazing array of maple treats and products, ranging from maple syrup, sugar, butter and jelly, dressings and mustard, maple candies and almonds, maple tea and honey, and soap. Try one of their desserts with a cup of java while sitting in their small, charming cafe.
• Rogers Chocolates - Steeped in tradition, it's rich and flavourful history has earned it the reputation as one of Canada's premiere chocolate makers. First made in 1885 by Charles "Candy" Rogers in the back of his grocery store in Victoria, B.C., this small store at The Landing in Gastown is second to the larger store located on Granville Island. Being born and raised in Vancouver, it is great having the chance to buy Rogers Chocolates in Vancouver, but nothing beats the nostalgia of visiting the original store on Government Street in Victoria where childhood memories of larger and creamier chocolates linger!
• Fluevog - Founded as Fox & Fluevog in the 1970's in Vancouver, this store offers the world's most distinctive shoes. Its second location on Granville Street in Downtown Vancouver is joined by stores across North America.
• Dream Apparel and Articles for People - a fashion
Gassy Jack
Gassy Jack's statue is located at Maple Tree Square, at the intersection of Water Street and Carrall Street. store showcasing local fashion designers since 1993. There is also Little Dream on Granville Island.
• Dutil - a premium denim boutique offering directional brands and the original classics in the $180 to $500 range. Great for girls looking for the trendiest of jeans!
• ModernKid - a lifestyle store on Water Street featuring a comprehensive collection of high quality, beautifully designed products for kids (0-6yrs).
Recommended Restaurants and Cafes • Eating at the Old Spaghetti Factory is your best choice if you are traveling with young children. Decorated in the style of a living museum with historic artefacts adorning the walls, friendly staff serve pasta dishes accompanied by a salad or soup, sourdough bread, garlic butter, roasted coffee or hot tea, and spumoni ice cream at a reasonable price for lunch and dinner . While it offers a fun and relaxed dining experience where children are welcomed with child-friendly activities, the food is basic, yet enjoyable.
• The Water Street Cafe's sidewalk patio is great for people watching as it's across the street from the Gastown Clock as you enjoy seafood, pastas and daily specials for lunch or dinner. There is a romantic quality as you
Gastown Streetscape
With historic Victorian architecture, walking along its cobble-stoned streets, you can discover quaint courtyards, cafes, galleries, fine boutiques, and restaurants with day and night-time entertainment. sit in their restaurant on a rainy day.
• Grab a sandwich at the Greedy Pig for lunch or enjoy dinner and drinks at this hangout that is just one block south of the Steam Clock on West Cordova and Cambie Street .
• Salt Tasting Room is a wine bar that is a tasting room specializing in artisan cheeses, small-batch cured meats, and an array of wines, beers , and Sherries. After assembling a Tasting Plate from their chalkboard’s selection of 10 cheeses, 10 meats, and 10 condiments, enjoy this unique concept. Find the Salt Tasting Room at 45 Blood Alley just around the corner from Gassy Jack's Statue.
Don't ignore my advice and walk to these restaurants since they are not in Gastown proper; However, they are worth taking a taxi, driving to, or getting off the Skytrain at Stadium Station and trying them out: • Dinner at Chambar is highly recommended, as it is one of Vancouver's stylish and hip restaurants that offers Belgian cuisine in a fun and lively atmosphere. Love their mussels and fries! Located at 562 Beatty Street, it is south of Gastown, near Stadium Station.
• Enjoy breakfast/ brunch at Cafe
Outdoor Eating & Drinking
Relax and enjoy small plates and/or entrees with a glass of wine, beer or cocktail at lunch, dinner or late night. Check out Chill Winston! Medina located at 556 Beatty Street. Next to Chambar, it’s a day-time cafe where you can enjoy all-day breakfasts.
Vancouver's History Gastown was Vancouver's first downtown core and is named after "Gassy" Jack Deighton, a seaman, steamboat captain and barkeeper who arrived in 1867 to open the area's first saloon. Check out the Gassy Jack statue at Maple Tree Square at the end of Gastown's Water Street. The town soon prospered as the site of a sawmill, seaport, and quickly became a general centre of trade and commerce on Burrard Inlet, as well as a rough-and-rowdy resort for off-work loggers and fishermen as well as the crews and captains of the many sailing ships which came to Gastown to load logs and timber.
In 1886, the town was incorporated as the City of Vancouver. It fell victim to the "Great Vancouver Fire" that same year, losing all but two of its buildings. The area was completely rebuilt and continued to thrive until the Great Depression in the 1930s and until the instigation of Prohibition. As the centre of the city's drinking life, there were 300 licensed establishments in a twelve-block area. Some of Vancouver’s top Irish
Historic Streetscape
Maple Tree Square is at the intersection of Water Street, Carrel Street and Alexander Street with interesting architecture around every corner. Pubs still are located in Gastown. Check out the Irish Heather, a trendy gastro-pub, located at 210 Carrall Street for Guinness or Whiskey with some great menu selections.
After the Depression, Gastown fell into decline until the 1960s when it became a centre for Vancouver's counterculture and a center of political protest in the city. While its 1970s role as the "Haight-Ashbury North" has been forgotten, the drug culture is alive and well just a few blocks away with its urban blight and tragic victims that wander the streets of the Downtown Eastside and beyond.
Starting in the 1960s, preserving Gastown's distinctive and historic architecture has been a focus of citizens and their municipal government. A recent revitalization project is underway to restore and reuse the existing buildings offering loft accommodation. Gentrification of the area continues to be a political hot button issue.
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rita
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Noodlemakers Restaurant
Is the Japanese restaurant , Noodlemakers, still in business? If so, where is it located? Thank you.