This Charming Fishing Village Has the Best Seafood on Canada’s West Coast

All eyes may be on Vancouver, but seafood insiders know that just down the coast lies a tiny fishing harbor worth a detour: Steveston. In this village, the seafood season peaks when spot prawns hit the docks (mid-May through June) — the best time to savor the finest seafood straight from the source. Perched where British Columbia’s Fraser River meets the Salish Sea in the city of Richmond, the compact, picturesque fishing village is also surrounded by farmland sprouting everything from blueberries to Chinese cabbage. With easy access to locally plucked produce and seafood, you can buy off the dock. The culinary scene is as captivating as the views of colorful, bobbing boats and the tidy main street that stood in for Maine on the ABC show Once Upon a Time. From fish feasts and festivals to farms, here’s how to spend a perfect day in Steveston.

Morning: exploring docks and markets

Start your day with a morning stroll along Fisherman’s Wharf, where you can watch boats unload the day’s fresh catch and take in the buzz of the working docks. Chat with the fishermen and purchase fresh seafood like salmon, halibut, and, if you time it just right, spot prawns — straight from the boats at the public sales float. It’s as fresh as it gets here. Not a morning person? You can catch the action into the afternoon as well.

Now it’s time for a proper breakfast (or brunch, if you’re taking it slow). Start the morning right at Breakfast Table, founded by brothers-in-law George Koay and Michael Lee in Vancouver in 2016 and expanded to Steveston in 2023. Here you’ll find Asian-inspired morning takes like beef bulgogi hash, vegan fried daikon cake and tofu bowl, and tom yum pulled-pork rice bowl. For something simpler, drop in at Lee’s Donuts, another Vancouver export (this one a beloved family operation since 1979 that hosted David Chang and Seth Rogen on Netflix’s Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner in 2019).

Consider making your day trip on a summer Sunday so you can catch the Steveston Farmers & Artisans Market (open May to mid-September) to shop locally made handcrafted goods, snack on sweet and savory treats, and chat with friendly vendors, like the volunteers behind nonprofit The Sharing Farm, a community farm that grows produce in town for Richmond residents facing food insecurity. 

Athiana Acres, a regenerative and organic farm in Steveston, is a great second stop for its summer and fall weekend pop-up markets, which include their own produce, herbs, and flowers, along with offerings like cold-pressed juices, plant-based foods, and handmade ceramics from local small businesses. Check the farm’s website for seasonal special events, which have included a five-course dinner courtesy of Michelin-recognized Anh and Chi.

Midday: fish-and-chips and humpback whales

Use the lunch hour to get into some local brews at Britannia Brewing Steveston, where award-winning pours like Adrift Hop Blonde Ale and Ashore Rye Porter tie up nicely with plates like a poached-pear salad and buttermilk fried chicken. Want to go old-school for lunch? Snag fish-and-chips from the counter (is there any other way?) at Pajo’s on the waterfront, or head a few blocks inland to Dave’s Fish & Chips, a favorite since 1978.

Set aside the afternoon for whale watching with Seabreeze Adventures, whose small-vessel eco tours depart from the wharf. Look for orcas and humpback whales offshore, and harbor seals and Steller’s sea lions closer to land. If you don’t have your sea legs, find out why Steveston once had the nickname “Salmonopolis” by touring the Gulf of Georgia Cannery National Historic Site.

Here from mid-May through mid-June? Good, because the monthlong Steveston Spot Prawn & Seafood Celebration highlights the seasonal delicacy with dockside demos and restaurant specials. (If you’re in town on July 1 — Canada Day — celebrate with the wood-fired salmon bake at the Steveston Salmon Festival).

Evening: a rising culinary star

At day’s end, the village is your oyster (literally) at Steveston Seafood House, which has been ruling the scene since 1978 and still offers buck-a-shuck oysters. Look for standouts like sablefish marinated with miso, sake, and mirin, then baked and showered with toasted sesame seeds.

Is chef Nutcha Phanthoupheng’s Baan Lao, named Canada’s Best Restaurant at the World Culinary Awards in 2024, stealing the culinary spotlight from Vancouver? Signs point to yes. Phanthoupheng trained in royal Thai cuisine in Bangkok with Chumpol Jangprai, the executive chef at a two-Michelin-starred restaurant — who dropped in to cook a special dinner in Steveston last fall with his former student — and her tasting menus shine with Canadian seafood and produce. (Look no further than her Phat Thai Kung Mang Kon, a stunning lobster pad Thai featuring fresh Nova Scotia lobster encased in delicate, lacy egg.) Phanthoupheng maintains her own kitchen garden nearby and — power move — uses organic rice grown at her family’s regenerative farm in Khon Kaen, Thailand.

Read the original article on Food & Wine