Restaurant Review: The Fat Badger

The Fat Badger sees the team behind Denman’s Espana enriching the West End once more.

The British gastropub, at the corner of Alberni and Cardero, is cosy and mostly hunter-green, with a crackling fireplace, a long communal table and a wee patio. Snacks are true English classics: a scotch egg resting in a puddle of HP sauce and chips with chicken tikka masala, paneer and cheese curds that are better than poutine (we’ll be back to sample the Badger’s Sunday-night supper of roast and yorkshire pudding). Dessert is a collection of tricky-to-find classics: sticky toffee pudding in a piping pool of butterscotch and topped with vanilla ice cream, and Eton mess served in a generous portion (but we could have eaten it out of a tub).

Service is jovial and lax—a pub shouldn’t take itself too seriously and The Fat Badger doesn’t. Upon delivering a course, our waitress cheerfully exclaimed, "All I do is feed you guys!" It’s not often you hear a comment both completely accurate and somehow unusual. But that seems like this Brit pub’s vibe: a classic concept underrepresented in the city and executed with equal parts poise and a true-to-character relaxed affability.

It’s a great little spot to go have someone feed you. —Adrienne Matei

The Fat Badger, 1616 Alberni St., Vancouver