From Vancouver With Love, xo: Dine out, Vancouver!

It is the second week of January so naturally, ~~we've all~~ I've already failed miserably at my resolutions for the new year to "eat healthier" and "eat out less"So! What better way to keep the ball {of self destruction} rolling than with eating out at as many of the 2012 Dine Out Vancouver restaurants as possible!

10 years running, Dine Out Vancouver offers seventeen days from Jan. 20th to Feb. 5th to experience culinary bliss from over one hundred of Vancouver's finest restaurants.

It's ok if you feel like a bloated penguin after dinner because you can also "Stay Out Vancouver" at one of the many participating hotels that will be offering special night rates over the festival! {Ranging from $78, $108, or $138} Packages pairing restaurants and hotels are also available to make for the perfect night out!More information here.

2012 Dine Out Vancouver Festival from Barbershop Films on Vimeo.

The festival offers an incredible variety of restaurants with different sets of fixed menus priced at $18, $28, or $38. Dine Out Vancouver is the perfect opportunity to revisit an old favourite, or check out that restaurant that you've been just dying to try!

Cento Notti via Vancitybuzz

My picks! {click the restaurant to see the DOV menu}:

Joe Fortes - perfect for the seafood lover, and practically highway robbery at $38
Hawksworth - at the newly renovated Hotel Georgia, see what all the buzz is about, $38
Cento Notti - the city's newest and hottest Italian restaurant, go for the food, décor, and atmosphere, $28
Hapa Izakaya - choose from Rosbon, Kits, or Yaletown locations, a favourite for Japanese cuisine, $28
Chinois - I have been ABSOLUTELY DYING to try this hot new Yaletown restaurant! Can't wait to compare their contemporary take on the Chinese dessert dofu fa with my mom's! $28
Thai House - never go wrong here with traditional pad thai and more... deeee-lish! $18
Save On Meats - recently featured on "Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives" this Gastown diner is all about the comfort food, $18
Trattoria Italian Kitchen - a Glowbal Group restaurant with an unbelievable menu, a steal at $18

Chinois Yaletown

Noteworthy mentions:

Chambar $38, Boneta $38 {at its new location!}, Black & Blue $38,

Cardero's $28, Water St.Café $28, Pink Elephant Thai $18

Boneta Hapa Izakaya

Pink Elephant Thai

Not to forget all the wonderful festival features this year including culinary tours, cooking lessons and food tastings.

Something you will most definitely find me attending is Street Food City, where the best of Vancouver's street food scene come together at one location so we can ~~sample~~ devour bits and bites from some of Vancouver's most diverse street food carts!

Check out a full list of the festival events here.