Right from the inset, I could tell Okanagan Street Food was the kind of place with a zealous following, the kind where I'd receive considerable hate mail if I criticized it. When I come back to Kelowna, I could imagine a sign posted at the city limits reading, "Turn back around, Prince Gastronome." We had checked out of the hotel, shoehorned the luggage into the Versa, but we weren't done with Kelowna just yet. We experienced some of the best cuisine to be had in Western Canada, but numerous locals had claimed the real diamond in the rough, the hot girl in baggy clothing, the Tokyo Drift in the Fast & the Furious franchise (yeah, I said it), was a small place known as Okanagan Street Food. We pulled the address off Google, and the phone lead the way. Five minutes later, I was convinced it was in error. We wandered into an industrial park surrounded by warehouses, auto shops, and power stations, where the curbs vanish and trailers are left unattended, where you could confuse vehicles as being abandoned. Then we found it. After wedging the car between two others on a patch of dirt, we pushed past the rainbow striped, spandex strapped bicyclists crowding the building. Obviously, this place was popular. Inside, we found and claimed the last table. It became apparent almost immediately that Okanagan Street Food (which I won't shorten on fear of aforementioned reprisal) is selling itself as much as its food. It has established a brand, selling cups, shirts, and homemade crackers. Soup stock can be purchased by the liter in a fridge against a wall. We felt like outsiders, like everyone else was a regular on a first name basis. I tried to look natural; browsing the menu boards perched precariously over a shelf of hot sauces. There was no dinner menu, barely a dozen offerings between the morning and lunch boards. I ordered the most expensive option, a still reasonable $12 huevos rancheros--with roast chorizo, scrambled eggs, caramelized onions, black beans, fresh salsa, sour cream and cilantro. After only a few minutes, the hubcap-sized plate was delivered, a heaping Everest of fried foods upon a tortilla. I felt the overpowering urge to pump petroleum, operate a rotary drill, or erect a brick wall--manual labor, something requiring me to wear a boilersuit. The meal was that big. And it was good, too good in fact for breakfast. I'm used to cereal, leftovers...or leftover cereal. When I wake up, the time between slithering from bed and the devouring of breakfast is equal to the time it takes to walk to the kitchen and open the fridge--literally anything edible gets forced down before activating as a human being that morning, circumventing the bathroom or even the acknowledgement of my girlfriend. Lunch is different matter entirely, and yet I still can't see myself suffering the detours to enjoy Okanagan Street Food on a regular basis. Having said that, it's still an impressive place with a successful trademark and a reputation backed by impressive meals. But I admit it...if Okanagan Street Food was in my hometown, it probably wouldn't be a regular thing for me. It would still be a success, as much as it would be anywhere. It doesn't require my solitary monetary contribution to succeed, but I can offer it my patronage. I like it because it's not lazy. Breakfast/Lunch places phone it in so very often. They run a buffet or a cafeteria counter. They treat people like dirt, assuming patrons should be thankful a restaurant is willing to cater to them so early in the morning. Trust me, they exist--finding a breakfast/lunch diner serving classic food and doing so better than IHOP or Denny's is difficult. Okanagan Street Food pulls if off. They're better, and no, I'm not saying that for fear of retribution. I live in another city--if I did criticize them, what could they do? I live in Red Deer Alberta by the way, not Prince George. Not there...that would be foolish. Why would I live in Prince George? Its high points are oxygen and paved roads. No need to find me there. But that doesn't matter. Okanagan Street Food is actually good, great. I'd back that brand, regardless of where I lived. Food: 4/5 Service: 3/5 Presentation: 3/5 Value: 5/5 Recommendation: 4/5 read more