I recently spent a week test driving the Honda Ridgeline Trail Sport 2024 pickup truck around Vancouver and Squamish while visiting some restaurants in the area.
It’s powered by a 280-hp V-6 with all-wheel drive and had snow tires on the vehicle when I was driving it.
On my way to Squamish I stopped at Goldie’s Donuts & Bakery that opened recently in Horseshoe Bay; the company that operates this already very busy bakery also has an outlet in South Korea that has been operational for quite sometime. The shop is known for their 24 Hours of Slow Fermentation for the brioche dough for their donuts. Here I had one of their Matcha Creme Brioche donuts.
After a fairly quick 30 minute drive I arrived in Squamish for a visit to Geo Cider to try their special Stuffed Poblano Taco by Chef Carlos A. Martinez. The tacos feature a battered poblano pepper stuffed with creamy melting cheese and served on a corn tortilla, with a bed of perfectly cooked rice. They top it off with a deliciously mild morita chile salsa, crumbled feta cheese, red onions, cilantro, and toasted sunflower seeds for an extra crunch that’ll leave you craving for more! You can enjoy our taco duet with refried Mexican beans on the side, topped with warm, fresh corn tortilla chips.
While there I also had their house-made Horchata and a Geo Cider Margarita apple cider that is (zero proof).
I then headed back in the truck for the city before enjoying a quiet night.
An untraditional pickup in many ways, the Ridgeline surprises from behind the wheel. On the road, it is well-mannered, and its handling is extremely competent.
While the Ridgeline is not intended for hardcore off-roading, Honda decided to give its pickup truck a touch of off-road capability for 2024 with the addition of the new TrailSport trim level. TrailSport models get General Grabber A/T Sport all-terrain tires, additional underbody protection, and exclusive Diffused Sky-blue paint.
The next day I visited C Prime Modern Italian Steak House and Wine Bar to try some new dishes off their recently launched Spring menu.
Started off with the beautiful and tasty Tonno Tartare with Yellow Fin Tuna, Avocado Mousse, Calabrian Chilies, Capers, Pistachio, and Squid Ink Crisp.
The delicious Cavatelli features their Hand-Made Small Shell Pasta with Foraged Mushrooms, Oregano, Crispy Kale and Pangratatto.
The Raviolo is for the leek lovers as they feature leek cooked 3-ways in this dish, Twice-Stuffed Pasta Envelope, Lemon Ricotta, Roasted Leek, Parmigiano Tweel and Walnuts.
Exuding Westcoast, the halibut dish is a beauty with Seared Fennel, Clams, Fingerling Potatoes and Olives.
Both desserts were standouts, the Olive Oil Pistachio Cake was deconstructed with very good olive oil and Pistachio Chantilly, and Local Rhubarb Purée.
The Chocolate Budino is for all the chocolate lovers, its outstanding with
Chocolate Custard, Caramel, Hazelnut Feuilletine and Dark Chocolate Crème
On Saturday morning I visited Toloache Mexican Kitchen to experience their
Mexican buffet brunch that takes place every weekend and I loved all the different dishes that I tried including their delicious desserts. The weekend that I was there they were celebrating Cinco de Mayo, This brunch happens now on Saturday and Sunday’s from 10am – 3pm, no reservations, you just line-up outside and once seated inside you can enjoy all the different dishes and they change them up every weekend.
I had and loved their Tamale, Mole Chicken, frijoles, made my own tacos, Chilaquiles, Veggies mix, along with a Horchata and Coffee and then their desserts that included their home-made Concha, Flan, Mango pudding and Tres Leches cake. They even served everyone table to table some Mexican candies. Go early or late whichever works best for you.
One thing that I like to listen to is Alt Nation on Sirius XM and that is what we did as we drove out to South Surrey for dinner. Every Ridgeline comes standard with an 8.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system. It features a physical volume knob and screen icons that Honda says make it easier to use than its predecessor was. The Ridgeline also comes standard with Apple CarPlay which I used, and it also has Android Auto.
On Sunday night, Lawrence joined me for the drive to South Surrey were we had a delicious dinner at newly opened Noble at the Hills. The restaurant is situated overlooking the beautiful golf course with a talented kitchen lineup that includes Culinary Director – Graham Marcea and Executive Chef Travis Mccord.
We started off with a couple of Mocktails (not on the menu yet) I loved the Orgeat with grapefruit while Lawrence loved the Pineapple Refresher.
On to the food, the Arugula Salad was tasty with charred lemon vinaigrette, crushed pistachio, and fresh parmesan. The Meatballs were large and tasty as well with beef & pork, marinara, toasted breadcrumbs, parsley, fresh parmesan, and a couple pieces of their focaccia.
All the pastas are made in house and we tried a couple which were both delicious. The Rigatoni a la Vodka with vodka sauce, basil, and fresh parmesan; and the Bucatini Cacio Pepe, a classic dish with butter, pecorino, black pepper.
They offer a selection of classic round pizzas as well a square pan deep dish pie. We went with one of the classics, the Burrata & White Anchovy with san marzano tomato, fresh oregano, burrata, white anchovy, Sicilian olive oil, and basil.
For dessert, we had a couple of stand outs, the glorious and creamy Tiramisu which is made by Chef Sabrina thats made of lady finger, espresso and mascarpone and the Ice Cream Sundae with vanilla soft serve, milk chocolate, crushed pistachio, and black cherry.
By: Richard Wolak
Disclosure: Honda Canada provided me with the 2024 Honda Ridgeline Trail Sport to test drive, and photograph. As always, all opinions and photos are my own.