Visiting vancouver

I hope you enjoy your trip. Vancouver is beautiful and one of the most livable cities in the world. There are some truly superb restaurants I can recommend, if you like. That said, shopping in Vancouver is generally pretty poor for items of quality as you describe. In the Pacific Centre (downtown) you'll find Holt Renfrew and Harry Rosen - two chains that run close to par with Saks. Across the hall from Rosen's is a free standing Zegna boutique (run by Rosen's) that carries Napoli Couture and has an ok selection - service is excellent. Rosen's also carries Brioni suits and Borelli ties but you'll find a somewhat limited selection. Holt's carries Armani but it's generally all Collezioni. Holt's also has an Hermes boutique but I've never seen Lobbs there. Boboli on South Granville carries Pal Zileri. Leone in the Sinclair Centre carries Versace, D&G and Prada. I've never shopped at either of these places so can't comment on selection or service. Good shoes are hard to come by and English shoes virtually non-existent. For Italian shoes, there's a Ferragamo boutique on Robson St and you might find Bruno Magli's at Holt's or Harry's.

Give your tastes, I would suggest checking out Harry Rosen and the Zegna boutique, both in Pacific Centre, and a store called Qvarvm (i.e. Quarum) on the north side of West Georgia, between Seymour and Richards Streets. Optional would be Holt Renfrew, a huge luxury department store that has a great selection of ties - Charvet, Richard James and other very nice brands - and Leone, which carries almost exclusively fashion-forward brands, including Dior Homme, DSquared, Versace Couture and Cavalli. As far as I know, no one in town carries Attolini, although Harry Rosen has a decent amount of Kiton, Borrelli, Brioni and the like. In terms of shoes, your best bet is Browns in Holt Renfrew. Unfortunately, you won't have much luck even there; lots of Moreschi, Prada and Tods, but no Lattanzi or Lobb. Harry Rosen's shoe stock is even more mundane: Ferragamo, Hugo Boss and Bruno Magli. Leone has (usually hideous) Versace shoes. If you're really bored, go to Boboli (12th and Granville) or Mark James (Broadway and Bayswater). The latter is particularly good if you're interested in achieving the low-key west coast business casual look - lots of John Varvatos and Donna Karan.

If price is no object - or you're on an expense account - Lumiere is the way to go. Be forewarned, however: dinner for two will easily cost upwards of CAN$200, not counting any beverages, tax or tip. If you're not up for that type of bill, try the bistro next door - Feenie's - that has the same owner. West is the restaurant that most often gives Lumiere a run for its money in critics' rankings. Like Lumiere, it's extremely pretentious - and like Lumiere, it has superb food. My other fine dining suggestions are as follows. For Italian/Mediterranean, go to Cioppino's (in Yaletown - huge menu) or Il Giardino (near Yaletown and probably Vancouver's most consistently excellent restaurant). Bis Moreno (across from Il Giardino) is supposed to be excellent also, but it's relatively new and thus I've never tried it. Other options include Villa del Lupo (just outside Yaletown), Bacchus (in the Wedgewood Hotel - great atmosphere) and Caffe de Medici (on Robson Street). Amacord (in Yaletown) is very small and unassuming but very good. Do not believe the tourist hype: stay away from Cin Cin unless celebrity-watching takes priority over good food. For French, your best bet is unequivocally Le Crocodile (just off Robson Street - somewhat contemporary). If you want something almost as good but less expensive, try L'Hermitage (on Robson Street - very traditional French cuisine). Also consider Le Gavroche (on Alberni - also fairly traditional). In the West Coast category, the best value at the moment is Parkside (odd location in the West End). However, it's getting busy and prices as well as the scarcity of reservations are sure to increase soon. Other excellent choices include Bishop's (on West 4th - all organic ingredients.), Chartwell (in the Four Seasons), Diva at the Met (in the Metropolitan Hotel) and Glowbal (totally pretentious, in Yaletown). Best combination of food and views: C (on False Creek), Five Sails (in the Pan Pacific), Provence Marinaside (on False Creek, but in Yaletown) or The Observatory (on top of Grouse Mountain). High-end ethnic food: Vij's (Indian, at 11th and Granville), Sun Sui Wah (Chinese, Main Street) and Simply Thai (Thai, Yaletown). Very cheap but excellent ethnic food: Hon's or Simply Thai (multiple locations). If you want steak, please do not be a tourist sucker and go to either Morton's or Gotham. Do the right thing and go to Hy's. Places I would avoid, because they're either highly overrated or tourist traps: Monk McQueens, Blue Water Cafe and Circolo. Also worth noting: some of the best coffee in North America (don't believe me? check coffeegeek.com) can be found at Cafe Artigiano (just off Robson, on Hornby) and JJ Bean (Granville Island). Trust me, it's worth a special trip if you like a latte. You'll never drink Starbucks again.

Let me know what you think of both.

Frequent visitor - I have the good fortune to live in Victoria. I was at Vij's last night - it's an all time favorite of mine. The only restaurant I'd add to MikeF's excellent list is Tojo's on Broadway: perhaps the most wonderful sushi in Canada/USA.