James Beard Media Award Winners for 2019 Now we want to read and listen to all and everything on the list. AND you know our cookbook library is about to get a little bigger! YIKES ! Congratulations to the 2019 James Beard Media Award winners! The James Beard Awards Gala is on May 6, when they announce the Restaurant and Chef Award winners and stream the event live on Twitter and at jamesbeard.org/awards, as well as tweeting the winners in real time. Catch up on all of this year’s Media Award nominees with links to read and clips to watch, below: Books…
Author: cassandra
Vancouver Opera Festival starts tomorrow We’re off to a couple operas this year and will report back! Sunday’s a full day of fun! Read on for more….FESTIVAL GUIDE HERE! Vancouver Opera Festival launches with performances of Rossini’s La Cenerentola in the afternoon and Gounod’s Faust in the evening. On Sunday, there is a free Party on the Plaza featuring a full day of music, performances, and fun. The 3rd annual Festival aims to engage, inspire, and entertain our community over nine days through voice, music, theatre, and the visual arts. Explore fairy tales and fables from around the world. The River of Light—a world premiere of a monumental…
Coquille Takes Happy Hour To a Whole New Level Thursday afternoon happy hour at this Gastown seafood establishment is getting more interesting with a calendar of featured Ocean Wise seafood and invited guests to share stories, knowledge and tricks of the trade. It’s been just over a year since Coquille opened their doors in Gastown and the team have had an incredible year of developing new and existing relationships with shellfish farmers, fishermen and women along with seafood purveyors from near and far. Seafood Sessions, which will take place every Thursday during happy hour starting on April 25th, is aimed at showcasing…
Left Over Hot Cross Buns For Pudding Another grand recipe from Angie Quaale from Well Seasoned In Langley. “At my house with Easter dinner, I always serve Hot Cross Buns. But, I always buy too many thinking everyone likes them as much as I do. Alas, the turkey & gravy is too delicious, the sweet potato casserole too tempting and then there is pie, usually a couple of kinds, so the hot cross buns remain. This creates an interesting opportunity for a future brunch or even a dessert. I cut the hot cross buns into cubes, put them in a…
Celebrate BC Seafood In The Comox Valley Michael and I love heading over to the Island to get a family visit in with his Mom and Dad and inevitably end up getting our fair share of seafood on our journey; but is there ever enough? If we time it right, however, we can make sure we certainly get a ton of oysters, if nothing else, by hitting up the BC Seafood Festival in June. When I first started going to this seafood festival, maybe a decade ago or so, there was just a few events, and it has now blossomed…
Chef Benet Hunt Nabs Last Spot On Top Chef Canada There was a twist on this year’s Top Chef Canada, as the last spot in the competition wasn’t decided until the first episode when Chefs Paul Kim, Chef Alexei Boldireff and Chef Benet Hunt went head to head to decide who’d go on to the final competition. After a grueling match, Chef Hunt was chosen to go forward and we caught up with him after the episode aired. Congratulations Chef Hunt, can you tell us a little about Ayden Kitchen and Bar and the food and beverage program there? At…
Sweet & Savoury Delights At Beaucoup Bakery I’ve been reluctant to post this as it’s just around the corner from my cycle studio, and I feared I’d be too tempted once I looked more closely at the new items, but I’ve decided I’ll just spend a bit more time in those classes and then hope over for perhaps that Lavender Rhubarb Orange Choux! Beaucoup Bakery & Café (2150 Fir Street) is taking inspiration from popular blooms this season and infusing floral flavours into its new spring menu. Customers can treat themselves to three new pastries and two vegetarian savoury options:…
Chinese Restaurant Awards….Winners Announced I was watching a little behind the scenes action as the judges ventured out to try all the restaurants nominated for these awards, and they certainly did their due diligence. Congrats to all the winners! Critics’ Choice Signature Dish Awards 2019, presented by Alberta Canola Growers #ABCanolaCriticsChoice For the past eleven years, Vancouver has witnessed a tremendous growth in the local Chinese culinary scene and has recognized outstanding dishes produced by talented chefs and their skilled staffs, under the watchful eyes and discerning tastes of those behind the annual Chinese Restaurant Awards. This year’s judging panel is…
Seafood Feasts at Provence in Yaletown Until April 30th, Provence Marinaside in Yaletown is hosting their 11th annual Poisson d’Avril. In France, ‘Poisson d’Avril’ (April’s Fish) is a one-day affair corresponding to our April Fool’s Day. The good folks at Provence believe you can never have too much of a good thing and have extended the fun to encompass a month-long celebration of all things fishy. Join them for a three-course prix-fixe menu value priced at $59 with optional wine pairings (Canadian $21/ Old World $26) curated by Provence’s Wine Director, Joshua Carlson. Poisson d’Avril’s ‘fish forward’ menu offer a…
Enjoy Delicious Healthy Meals At the Healthy Chef Competition We’ve been attending this event for many years and it’s always an fun and tasty night! Last year’s coverage here. On Wed, March 20, 2019, the BCPMA Healthy Chef Competition, will welcome 500+ guests to its 20th annual event. Ten restaurants will create an array of meals where fresh produce ingredients are the stars of the plate. Protein plays a supporting role. It is co-hosted by BC Produce Marketing Association and BC Chefs’ Association (BCCA) and takes place at the host hotel, Hyatt Regency, Vancouver, BC. If it’s your first…
The Vancouver Magazine Restaurant Awards Will Be Announced April 29 It’s always a tense moment when Van Mag drops it’s finalists for the highly-coveted restaurant awards and every year the competition seems to get more difficult. Here are the finalists copied right from the Van Mag announcement. “Below you’ll find the spots that our judges deemed worthy of vying for the the elusive gold medal in their respective categories. From holes-in-the-wall to big-fancy-deals, these are the rooms that reached for excellence the past year, who served the dishes that implanted themselves in our judge’s memories and who created an environment that…
Food Network Canada Brings Us Another Season of Top Chef Canada #TopChefCanada Premieres Monday, April 1 at 10 p.m. ET/PT Food Network Canada is Available on National Free Preview from March 1 to April 30 Cast of Top Chef Canada, Season 7. (L-R): Renée Lavallée, Max Straczek, Erin Smith, Sebastien Laframboise, Takeshi Horinoue, Phillip Scarfone, Mijune Pak, Mark McEwan, Eden Grinshpan, Chris Nuttall-Smith, Janet Zuccarini, Chef Contender, Wallace Wong, Paul Moran, Tania Ganassini, Hayden Johnston, and Dennis Peckham. Image Courtesy of Food Network Canada. Get a first look of Season 7, here Food Network Canada’s #1 series last spring*, Top Chef Canada, returns with the nation’s best and brightest professional chefs as they prepare…
Join VCC Alumni and Students At The Annual Gala We missed Flourish last year, but won’t let that happen again, so stay tuned for coverage on this years’ gala, or, better yet, get there yourself and enjoy all the delicious dishes with wine pairings! Flourish Gala is a fundraiser for the Vancouver Community College Foundation to provide scholarships and training materials for current and future VCC students. This is an intimate evening showcasing the work of VCC’s highest-achieving students, faculty members and alumni. In addition to tasting creations by Vancouver’s leading culinary minds, guests will experience the best of VCC’s fashion arts,…
Drink up for a good cause with the Mother of Dragons Cocktail at Gotham Steakhouse In celebration of International Women’s Week, Gotham Steakhouse & Bar is offering a special cocktail, and donating proceeds to a local charity. Created by bartender Carolyn Yu, Mother of Dragons is a fiery blend of Hennessy VS Cognac, Cynar, Bittered Sling Malagasy Chocolate Bitters, and housemade Dragon’s Tears tea. Gotham is proud to share proceeds from this special promotion with The Pacific Immigrant Resources Society, a charity that helps refugee and immigrant women and young children settle in Canada by providing community engagement opportunities, ESL lessons and affordable…
2019 Sporting Season Off To Tasty Start At BC Place Stadium Last week we headed downtown to gain five pounds check out the new menu at BC Place as Centerplate kicked-off the 2019 sporting season, and we sampled some of the new menu additions that will help fuel ‘Caps fans at Whitecaps FC home matches. While we didn’t eat the Outrageous Burger (in name and character), we did have a mini-version and a rather large piece of the Rainbow Grilled Cheese, a total favourite. Created by BC Place Executive Chef, Will Tse, the new additions will be available for purchase at…
Spirited Industry Professional, Sommelier of the Year, Wine Program Excellence Awards The Vancouver International Wine Festival announced the 2019 trade competition winners today at Celebrating Excellence: 16th Annual Awards Lunch Featuring California Wines, presented by ContainerWorld. The Celebrating Excellence program is part of the three-day Trade Days Conference; the program honours those professionals who contribute to this region’s exceptional wine and food culture. Guests enjoyed a meal prepared by Vancouver Convention Centre Executive Chef Mark Massicotte, exquisitely matched with a selection of 40 wines from California. 2019 SPIRITED INDUSTRY PROFESSIONAL AWARD The annual Spirited Industry Professional Award is presented to an individual who has…
What To Do In Vancouver This Week How can we be celebrating the last week in February already? I’m feeling like I’ve done nothing this year, it’s a blur, it’s just flown by and it’s been a lot of reaction and not much pro-action. After a week in Kelowna for the Canadian Culinary Championships (congrats again to Chef Yannick LaSalle) and a couple of events and meals out, it’s time we made some proper plans for the year before it disappears. We’ll work on that over the next while, and are definitely going to get into planning mode, but in…
Wine, Wine All Around – and Many Drops to Drink It’s not too late to get in on the action at the 41st Vancouver International Wine Festival as a few stellar events still have tickets available. This week’s festival includes 53 events, 160 wineries, 16 countries, 1,425 wines and 25,000 participants. Join them! If you attend only one of the festival’s events, make it an International Festival Tasting. The Tasting Room at the Vancouver Convention Centre is the heart of the festival, where you’ll find ~725 wines from 160 wineries and eight regional tasting stations representing 16 countries. Discover exciting…
Grain Artisan Flour Miller Rebrands as Flourist and Launches Bakery We love Grain, now Flourist, and are thrilled to hear their products and now baked goods, will be available at a new bakery and cafe coming soon. From the release: The Vancouver-based, artisan flour miller and farmer-direct dry goods supplier formerly known as GRAIN has rebranded as Flourist and will open a 2,800-sq.-ft. bakery and cafe at 3433 Commercial St. in East Vancouver later this spring. The new bakery and cafe will feature fresh flour stone-milled on site, sourdough bread baked daily, coffee and baked goods, an all-day approachable food program and…
Give and Give Back This Valentine’s Day With East Van Roasters Finally getting around to some V-day content here on GLV and didn’t want you to miss the news about East Van Roasters! If you’re shopping for something sweet for yourself or someone special this Valentine’s Day, head to East Van Roasters (319 Carrall St., Vancouver). This social enterprise will melt your heart with a new assortment of artisanal chocolate goods made in-house with love. Established in 2013, East Van Roasters is a certified charity and social enterprise operated by PHS Community Services Society, a non-profit housing and health care…
