YVR: A Traveler’s Plea for Noodles

Photo by stu_spivack via Flickr (Creative Commons)

I flew into Vancouver International Airport last week with a craving: I wanted pad Thai, or some vaguely similar, spicy, wok-fried noodle dish, and I wanted it bad. On the five-hour flight from Toronto, as images of tofu bits and crushed peanuts danced in my head, I didn’t fret—I was confident I’d be able to satisfy the urge during my one-hour layover. After all, I thought, where better to find some airport noodles than in a foodie city that’s home to one of the most vital Asian immigrant communities in North America?

I thought wrong.

Sure, YVR has plenty of Asian food offerings—in the international departures area. For us poor souls waiting on domestic connections, there were only soups and sandwiches to be found. I ate some watery minestrone before boarding a plane to Whitehorse, Yukon (where Thai food is in decidedly short supply) and nearly a week later, my craving is still going strong. So YVR officials, if you’re out there, won’t you help future traveling noodle-cravers out? I’m not asking for a lot—no fine dining necessary, just a small, mall-style counter would do.

In the meantime, I’m headed over the border to Alaska next weekend—I hear there’s a decent Thai restaurant in Skagway.

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