Early Game Plan
The proactive Seattleite’s guide to enjoying a super-sliding, high-flying, great-dining time at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.
By Kathryn Robinson and James Ross Gardner
Canada Hockey Place
Breaking the Ice
Leave it to the Canadians to plop the hockey venue at the center of the whole freaking Olympic Games universe, right downtown and along the rapid transit line. Expect hockey games, especially any involving the Canadian national team, to sell out fast. Try lower-profile hockey contests across town at the 7,200-seat UBC Thunderbird Arena (6066 Thunderbird Blvd, University of British Columbia). It’s well worth the effort to score admission to a U.S. match. Our men’s hockey team hasn’t won gold since 1980—and it took eighth place at the 2006 Torino Games. The 2010 roster looks promising and a gold medal this time around would go down in sports history. If you do happen to squeeze in for a match, remember, this might not be the time to make Canada jokes—so unless you want a Molson Ice cracked over your crown, hold any impersonations involving “eh” or “aboot” for the car ride home.
Where you’ll eat
Where better than Blood Alley to nosh up before a rousing hockey brawl? Vancouver’s cognoscenti have gone mad for Salt Tasting Room (45 Blood Alley, Gastown, 604-633-1912; www.salttastingroom.com), the minimalist brick-and-concrete shaft of a charcuterie off an alley in seedy Gastown. The idea is tasting plates—a trio each of cured meats and artisan cheeses, with a u-pick assortment of condiments like grainy mustards and peach chutneys—to eat at shared tables with great wine. Or walk just a few blocks to Chambar (562 Beatty St, Downtown, 604-879-7119; www.chambar.com), which—considering its proximity to Canada Hockey Place and its classy Euro-finesse with kicky cocktails and big cast-iron pots of perfect steaming moules frites—is poised to veritably print money (Canadian loonies, of course) during the Olympic siege.
Published: September 2008
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