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Enjoy Canada Day festivities all long weekend

Restaurants like Tapenade Bistro will change up the menu Monday

Food and drink are almost as synonymous with Canada Day as the colours red and white. And the many restaurants, bakeries and pubs of Steveston do not intend to disappoint when as many as 70,000 people descend upon the waterfront town on July 1.

The Buck & Ear Bar and Grill is starting the party early with festivities running the entire long weekend, said manager Gennesse Langdon.

"We've done a beer garden on Canada Day in previous years, but because it's on a Monday this year, we weren't going to risk people going away," said Langdon, who has worked on both the pub and hotel side for nine years.

"We're spacing out the festivities. We still have a rockin' party for people that want to come by."

On Friday, the Buck is featuring music by DJ Denise and will be open until 2 a.m.; on Saturday, North Vancouver reggae band Mostly Marley is performing; and Sunday is barbecue and blues night, starting at 7: 30 p.m. with live music by the Mud Bay Blues.

"On Monday, Canada Day, we have a band in at two o'clock in the afternoon called Toy Zebra. They play a lot of classic rock and newer stuff. They're young kids, about 20-years-old and they are phenomenal. We're open 10 a.m. until 1 a.m."

Prizes will be given out all day including Molson Canadian swag and a bright red painted adirondack chair topped with a giant maple leaf.

Over at Tapenade Bistro, owner Vince Morlet says the elegant eatery has a little more fun on Canada's birthday.

"We tend to run the restaurant in a very casual fashion. We change the menu to reflect what the day is about - family. So we focus on fish and chips, burgers, things like that," said Morlet, adding they still add a bit of flair to the dishes.

Staff wear whatever they like that day, which tends to be a lot of the country's national colours, and there will also be an R&B Brewing Co. keg display outside.The special beer of the day will be R&B's Bohemian Lager.

"We're casting the net a bit wider. On Canada Day, we become Vince's Diner."

Another place in Steveston that knows all about good old fashioned family food is Dave's Fish & Chips on Moncton Street.

Celebrating their 35th anniversary on Canada Day, Bryan Scott now runs his parents' business.

"My dad (Dave) and mom opened the restaurant in 1978. I've been managing it since 1999," said Scott.

On Monday, Dave's will open for takeout at 9: 30 a.m. with the dining room opening at 11 a.m., and there will be kids meals on special for $5 as well as drink specials.

Scott recommends people show up early because he said the place can fill up fast.

"The sidewalks are absolutely packed. Last year we had 36 seats outside that were full from open until close."

Scott is also planning a customer appreciation week to commemorate their anniversary later in the summer.

After lunch, people in search of dessert can head to Bell's Bake Shop on 1st Avenue for some celebration-themed treats.

Steveston native Jennifer Bell opened the shop in 2010 and has been serving eight flavours of unique cupcakes every day, and said she will have something special planned for July 1.

"We're usually closed on Mondays, but we are opening on Canada Day. We'll have a table out in front of the shop selling cookies and other Canada Day goodies," said Bell.

Last year, the bakery's beaver tails - a mini cinnamon sugar donut shaped like a beaver tail atop a cupcake - proved very popular.

Bell, who grew up in the Seafair area, said she has a soft spot for the Salmon Festival, which she has been attending since she was a child.

She even appeared in the parade with her mother and sister in previous years.

The bakery will be open early in time for the parade and closed shortly after it ends, around 2 or 3 p.m., she said.