We came here for a birthday dinner with a very large party. Everything was fantastic from beginnning, almost to end which I will get into later.

If you haven't been to The Diamond yet, you need to try it. Its a cocktails and tapas restaurant on the second floor in the centre of Gastown that also doubles as a bartending school. The ambiance is very relaxed and comfortable inside. From the moment we arrived, the service was great with drinks never empty for long and food flying out of the kitchen.

We ordered a few tapas between the two of us including the BBQ short rib sub, tuna tartare, gyoza, and was also lucky to try a few other dishes. All of them were fantastic but my favourites turned out to be the ones I ordered. I had a couple classic vodka martinis (and a couple Pabst Blue Ribbon beers to keep things real) and my dining partner was drinking their cocktails with the Buck Buck Mule being her favourite. At over 10 bucks each, they are not cheap but very delicious. The food is reasonably priced though.

Overall I enjoyed my experience right up to the end until our server gave us the bill. She never mentioned that there was an auto gratuity included in the bill which I find very irritating. The bills were split up and many in our party never noticed especially after how many cocktails were consumed. I am fine with the auto-grat, but at least mention it when handing out the bills. Other than that little blip, the evening was very enjoyable and I would definitely return.

The drinks are often quite good, which is a huge plus for them, yet the menu is quite limited and simply ... okay. The gyozas are pretty much the only thing I would consistently order. The servers are either happy, spaced out, harried, or too cool for school, but they all more or less fall under the "hipster" category, so this place appeals to a lot of Vancouverites. The owner, Josh Pape, has an air of having done it all before -- shaking his drinks as though he could easily do it in his sleep, allowing his mind to drift back to what, judging by his constantly down-turned mouth, can only be a very unpleasant memory. (Still -- though he's not exactly the friendliest bloke to everyone, he isn't exactly rude, either.) This provided much fodder for story-telling, however, and my friend and I were able to entertain ourselves for hours trying to guess what would make the owner of one of Vancouver's hottest places look so bored with it all. For this reason, and because the atmosphere is fantastic -- the wallpaper, lighting, location, exposed brick, warm colours, secret doors, vintage glassware -- I consistently have a very pleasant time, indeed.

It was a Saturday night. Not super busy, but we showed up late. We sat down and enjoyed the ambiance of the heritage building with a nice variety of patrons. A random mix you expect to find in Gastown.

We asked for a recommendation on the wine list. The waiter advised us to stay away from one of the wines because it might be too sophisticated for us. Unfortunately, the wine he suggested was exactly what we said we didn't want. The food was unremarkable. Although the crab cakes tasted nice. *i ended up throwing a bison burger on the bbq when i got home to quench the hunger of unsatisfying tapas portions.

The reason we went for dinner was because we had heard from friends it might be a good spot for a special event. So as we left we spoke briefly with the owner. He informed us events are possible with the right customer. Confused, we walked out and I noticed there was a serious leak in the stairwell ceiling. I ran back up the stairs to inform my newly acquainted owner friend. His response was "is that right?" as he walked off.

Everything in all a nutshell. Love this place as its super casual eventough its a nice enviorment. This place was great, from the food and service, Quite busy that night, but our server was attentive, food portions were perfect. There are a lot of restaurants in Gastown, but definately you should check this place out.

I love sitting at the bar watching the boys create. Chelvis (you'll know who) is so intense, a complete perfectionist. Great drinks menu, great ambiance, the owners circle the room making sure everyone is satisfied.
The food, tapas style, is highly recommended. Both the duck/chicken and short rib subs are fabulous and good sized portions. The handmade gyoza is probably the best I've had and the ceviche is.. well.. elegant.