Fraiche fare in West Van
The toughest seat in town to nail down come Saturday (March 1) will likely be Wayne Martin’s brand-new Fraîche (2240 Chippendale Road, West Vancouver). Reservations only (604-925-7595) and dinner only, Tuesday to Sunday, to kick off what Martin, owner of Crave (3941 Main Street) calls a place for “West Van neighbourhood” fare. Down the road: brunch, lunch, and a “Fraîche Express” takeout.

Asian stix on the drive
Lusting for satay and salad rolls? Boosting the tiny number of Asian restaurants on the Drive, Stix Noodle & Grill (903 Commercial Drive) serves up Malaysian, Chinese, and (largely) Vietnamese dishes with meals around $6.99. Open 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. daily, eat in or take out (604-568-6768).

Let leap-year babies eat steak
Here’s a small compensation for only having birthdays every four years: call Morton’s Steakhouse (750 West Cordova Street, 604-915-5105) if your birthday is on February 29. The first five people to reserve score a free steak-and-seafood dinner worth $59.50.

Chefs on the green
Settle in for cooking shows at The Green Living Show, this weekend (February 29 to March 2) at B.C. Place. On Friday catch Sean Cousins of So.Cial, Brian Fowke of Metro, and Chris Whittaker of O’Doul’s; pick up tips on Saturday from, among others, Michael Carter of Sip Resto-Lounge and Ralf Wollmann of Rocky Mountain Flatbread. Sunday brings on Josh Wolfe from Coast and Stefan Pimenta from Le Gavroche, again among others. See www.vancouver.greenlivingshow.ca/.

Dames wave scholarship wands
Thanks to the fairy godmothers from Les Dames d’Escoffier, recipients of the organization’s annual scholarships have attended pastry boot camp and trained to be sommeliers. The awards fund everything from basic training to specialized courses, short- or long-term. The application deadline is March 31; the form is at www.lesdames.ca/.

Natural chickens cross the road
Cioffi’s Meat Market & Deli (4156 Hastings Street, Burnaby) now gets deliveries of Polderside Farm chickens ($10.99 per kilogram) from the Chilliwack grower on Fridays. This European variety of naturally raised, unmedicated, vegetable-grain fed free-run, and very flavourful chickens are at Bishop’s, Raincity Grill, La Buca, and elsewhere.

Mangez français in Coquitlam
Polish up your French and kick off Francophone Month with music, dancing, and feasting at the 19th annual Festival du Bois this weekend (March 1 and 2) at Mackin Park in Coquitlam. Fuelling the good times will be tourtière, poutine, maple sugar pie, and sticky maple taffy at the Sugar Shack’s sugaring off. And don’t miss Sunday’s syrupy pancake breakfast in the main tent (www.festivaldubois.ca/).

Olympic chefs prep for gold
Tickets are selling fast for March 14’s fundraiser at the Kinsmen Recreation Centre (5430 10th Avenue, Tsawwassen) for both the centre, and B.C.’s Culinary Olympic team who will compete in Germany this fall against chefs from 39 countries. The team will be cooking up premium eats for guests to taste together with top-flight wines. Tickets ($75) are available at Mud Bay Wines (1227 56th Street, Tsawwassen) or by calling the Recreation Centre on 604-943-0225.