- been distinguished by

"McDonald,

53 - Friday, June 7, 1985 -

North Shore News

Emilio’s for a change of pace

FOR A CULTURAL splash of cold water, my wife
and I ventured across Lions Gate Bridge into the

hurly burly of big city Friday night dining.

The business of table hop-
ping demands such _ occa-
sional tong distance hops
beyond North Shore borders,

- in order that tabs be kept on
- cross-town competition and

note be taken of the lastest
culinary habits and trends
peculiar to Vancouverites.

I am happy to report that

* though the North Shore re-

mains separated from the rest
of the Lower Mainland by
vast stretches of water and
vast stretches of philosophy,
its restaurants are -on par
and, in many cases, superior

--to those in the big city.

Emilio’s, 1540 West Se-
cond Avenue, has always
the
striking glass, tile, ‘and
whitewashed’ wall design of

its Mediterranean architec-

‘Not so

‘IT’S A FUNNY thing about Chevy Chase. He

doesn’t have to tell jokes

/ By COLIN LAMONT

He ‘has the look and
nature of a natural klutz.
With his big puppy-dog eyes

‘and clumsy, cute manner,

Chase can be a riot. Whether
he is tripping. over-his own
feet, falling off a chair or
cracking his head against a
doorframe, you chuckle
because you know it is all in
anormal day for him. .

It’s a funny thing about
Chevy Chase. When he tells
too many jokes, he is not
funny. In his’ latest fun-
nyman flick “Fletch’’, he is
not funny. In fact he is bor-
ing, banal and base, ail
because he won’t keep his
mouth shut.

Fletch is based on the
novel series by Gregory
about a_ wise-
cracking undercover reporter
called J.M. Fletcher. Chase
fits the bill to play the part

summer retreat that has beei
lifted intact from Rhodes or
Corfu, dropped off between
a marine store and railroad
tracks, and left to beckon all
suiff-necked West Coasters to
join in a celebration of
Mediterranean opulence.

Inside Emilio’s is a cool
Mediterranean courtyard at-
mosphere of wide-open tiled
spaces, fish ponds, huge pot-
ted fig trees, and ceiling to
ceiling skylights. It demands
Hawaiian shirts, Varnet
sunglasses, white pants, and
tropical anecdotes over tall
drinks.

Unfortunately, the
restaurant has never lived up
to the potential of its interior
design. Emilio's three levels

funny,

to get a laugh.

but either his own ego or a
poor over-hyped script gets

in the way.
It’s not the character of
Fletch that kills the ex-

Saturday Night Live come-
dian. It’s the lines. I can’t
recall even one straight line
that Chase has in the whole
film. That means whenever
he opens his mouth, he is
cracking off to whoever will
listen, even if the audience
won't.

The plot of Fletch had
promise. As an undercover
reporter doing a story on the
flow of heroin onto a beach
in Los Angeles, Fletch
(Chevy Chase) is proposi-
tioned by a successful look-
ing businessman, Alan Stan-
wyk (Tim Matheson). Stan-
wyk, mistaking Fletch for a
junkie, offers him $50,000 to
kill him, saving him from a
slow, painful death by bone
cancer.

The film’s strongest points

GCOd0000 000000000
SUPER SUNDAY BRUNCH
Nam-3pm

Scrambled Eggs & Hash Browns
Bacon & Sausage
Watfles & Toast
Fresh Fruit & Juices
Six Different Salads
European Style Cold Cuts
Croissants, Danish. Twists
A Selection of Cheeses
HIP OF BEEF

“each week one additional item”

3780 Under 9390

Free
Adults Children 5-12

Reservations Accepted

Coach House Inn 985-3111

700 Lillooet Rd., N. Vancouver
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fol?)

“and 265 seats make it perhaps

too vast and too ambitious an
operation for average
ownership.

by Timoth wy Renshaw

ture. The building sits like a
Greek millionaire’s palatial:

Like a gifted but difficult
child, Emilio’s has confound-
ed its various owners since it
was originally launched nine
years ago. It has consequent-
ly had a series of false starts
and abrupt stops that have
consistently stifled any
momentum built up between
these interuptions.

Emilio’s latest owners,
Ted, Yee, and Sarah Mah,
who took over the
restaurant’s challenging reins
March 15, have once again
changed the restaurant's
menu. The Mahs have gone
for more family oriented
food at more family oriented
prices.

There is a good selection of
smaller dishes: 10 appetizers,
from Deep Fried Camembert
($3.50) to Steamed Clanis

Fletch

are centered around the
humorous array of disguises
that Fletch doas to aid him
in undercover work. Chase is
at his best here, improvising
his. facial expressions and
comical manoeuvres to fit
each character.

Chase should realize
with all his experience as a
stand-up comic that you can
kill an audience with

laughter but vou can kill
yourself with too many bad
jokes.

Mussels and mariniere
appetizer

Ie Mag,

CL

Next Weeks Special June 11-16

RESTAURANT

($5.25); six salads, from the
Granville Market ($3.25), a
lively tossing of tomatoes,
cucumbers, mushrooms, and
Romaine lettuce in
vinaigrette, to Crab, a blend
of mushrooms and Romaine,
topped with fresh crab. There
are also three soups, all under
$3, and a_ two-selection
Children’s Corner, featuring
the Petite Gourmet Burger
and Chicken Drumettes, both
$4.95,

Main dishes come in full-
sized hunger stumper’ por-
tions for the calorie un-
conscious. There is the man-
datory cross-section of steak,
seafood, and poultry dishes:
a 7-ounce New York Cut
($10.95), Poached Halibut
($9.95), and Oven Baked
Chicken ($8.95).

For the waistline-obsessed
aerobatics, tan, and health
spa sets, Emilio’s offers a
Lighter Affair section featur-
ing Fettucini in three styles
and two sizes, $4.95 to $6.95.

The restaurant’s new menu
and ownership, however,
have, as yet, been unable to
dispatch afl the culinary
demons that seem to haunt
the location.

Waiters get lost in Entilio’s
tiled expanses or grow weary
of climbing its many stairs,
and service consequently suf-
fers.

NOW
SERVING

° BroaRtast”
* Lunch ’
Eat in, Take Out ’
Try our homemade saiads, ”
European cold cuts & ¢
cheese to go or our ow;
pasta Sauces

CATERING
SERVICE
\" Mountgin Hwy, NV

1373 Marine Drive
West Vancouver

926-4913

You can’t beat
Chariey’ s for

¢ Lunch

¢ Dinner

* Dancing Thurs.
Fri. & Sat. nites

e Sunday Brunch

60 Semisch. North Van. 984-0274

A Spinach Mushroom Toss
($3.25) proved satisfactory.

Pacific Prawns
($5.95), sauteed in a sauce of
tomatoes, onions, white
wine, and herbed butter,
were excellent, Barbecued
Back Ribs ($3.95), double
baked in honey-barbecue

sauce were good, but the’

Escargot-Stuffed
Mushrooms ($4.25), covered
in cheese and brandy basted,
arrived cold, ruining a good
idea through poor execution.

Al
| Ws

Offering fine
foods and the best
in light classical
entertainment
Open daily for
lunch and Sunday
Brunch

All Shows Begin

at 8:00
Reservations: 669-2649 Validated parking available.

“

Large Pizza
5 Toppings:
e Sauce « Cheese

« Plus any 3 others

Hours: Sun-Thurs Som tipm
Fre & Sat Spm lam

Fully Licensed
986-3010

‘a TH CLASSICS

JUNE 6, 7,8 & 13, 14,
“BROADWAY SHOW

Ann Warn Peg
Clyde Rowett

Free Delivery after S pm, minimum order of $6 60.

Wooden Plate Restaurant
2988 Mountain Hwy.

The Seafood House Platter
($11.95) presented a substan-
tial slab of barbecued
salmon, a skewer of grilled
prawns, and a mound of
steamed clams all aboard a
bed of rice.

Emilio’s, has the raw
materials of location and at-
mosphere. It awaits the
magic of good staff and first
class food to - assure ils
longevity. New management
must be given the benefit of
time to develop both.

STOPPERS”

Pat Waldron

Restaurant
f 238 Abbott Street fi
Vancouver, 8.C.

THE PIZZA
MADNESS
Continues

-986-2475

BLACK SHEEP

SPECIAL OF THE
WEEK (JUNE 9-15)

BBQ RIBS

$ 6”
Valid Daily 3-8 P.M.

| ee Re le ae Nn ee Rol ee a eel oloel |

' Gourmet

Burgers

GOOD ONLY
2 FOR JUNE 9-13
COUPON 3-8 P.M.
1 Buy any one of our delectible Gourmet Burgers and
yyour guest will receive another of equal or lesser
j value absolutely Free with this coupon!
tup to
$5. 50 Coupon Special!!

“Black Sheep
121 East 12th St. (off Lonsdale)

North Vancouver 984-9595