Tiki-themed and Classic Cocktails at The Westin Bayshore’s H2 For the latest Crafted Spirits Show on TSN1410 I interview Dylan Williams over some well-designed cocktails and happy hour eats at the newly opened H2 Rotisserie & Bar in the Westin Bayshore Hotel. Trader Vic’s was one of my favourite stops in the city back in the day, so it’s great to see a cocktail menu paying homage to the tiki bar that was once the “it” place in Vancouver. Williams also knows his classics and the menu salutes a lot of our local spirits and ingredients. Head down to the patio…
Author: cassandra
What Should be on your Agenda It’s the last week of August, which always seems scary, but I’m feeling kind of ready for the upcoming season. How about you? Fretting that it’s the last days of summer in Vancouver, or full into the fall!? I’m getting my finances organized, back working out intensely, cooking lots a home (only happens when I’m happy) and feeling a lot of creativity and clear thinking going on. Don’t know about you, but I am better off keeping resolutions at this time of year than I am in January. In any case I might finally…
Spotlight on Kamloops – Where to Eat, Drink, Spa and….Swing We’ve been traveling around British Columbia a fair bit this summer and one of the highlights has to be my trip to Kamloops. I’ve been to this city a few times in the past year or so, initially on my way to Sun Peaks as a mere stopover, but once I got to know a little bit about all that Kamloops has to offer, I had to book some more time to explore. I’d been up in Chase at Turtle Valley Bison Ranch, and then drove down to meet my…
PNE Food – Venturing Outside the Comfort Zone There’s still time to catch the fun at the PNE (lots of great bands still to play too!) and there’s definitely some PNE Food you’ll not want to miss, and perhaps some that you may find just a wee bit iffy. Michael had work off last Wednesday, and luckily it coincided with this year’s media food tour, so we both headed to the fair, ensuring went came hungry. First up there was Chicky’s Chicken and their Chicken Feet. I’ve tried chicken feet during dim sum was not really all that keen, but…
Pemberton’s Blue House Organics and Vancouver’s Cacao Restaurant Raise Funds For Venezuelan Children’s Hospital We don’t need much incentive to purchase farm fresh vegetables, but when we hear we can support a local farm, while assisting hungry children further afield, we’re even more motivated. This summer and through the harvest season Blue House Organics from Pemberton, B.C., and Cacao, a Latin restaurant in Kitsilano, are raising funds for children in Venezuela, all while nurturing locals. The Venezuelan project, Fundació Barriga Llena Corazón Contento, translating to Full Belly, Happy Heart, is a volunteer initiative led by several renowned South American chefs, including Carlos Garcia…
Recipe for Causa Atun – Whipped Potato Topped With Tuna and Ponzu Dressing Recently my fellow members of Les Dames d’Escoffier, Your Secret Chef’s Karen Dar Woon and Chicha Restaurant’s Chef Shelome Bouvette, presented a cooking class at the Vancouver Aquarium’s Fin To Tail event. Seafood was donated by Fresh Ideas Start Here owner Jenice Yu, who is also a Dame. Dames do great things and I’m super proud to be part of this talented group. Here’s the recipe or this beautiful dish, which is available at Chicha Restaurant at 136 East Broadway. Photos by Leila Kwok. This recipe has four…
What We Are Recommending This August! Summer Fun. It’s been a busy week so far and it’s only Thursday. Already we’ve been out to Langley to Central Park Farms to explore sustainably raised meat on the farm cooked by Chef Adrian Beaty, dined aboard a yacht as a fundraiser for Les Dames d’Escoffier and managed to get some great work outs in as well. It’s going to be a hot weekend in Vancouver so our fans we will be out if we’re not. Science World: Alfresco Science World, in partnership with The Dirty Apron present, Science World: Alfresco! This intimate culinary experience, created…
Noodlebox Pairs With Food Gays, Julie Van Rosendaal and Dreena Burton This August Noodlebox Canada has launched a guest feature recipe series with three innovative recipe creators to showcase each of their dishes, one available for a week-long run this August. My pals the Food Gays were asked to collaborate and you can scroll down for their segment on GlobaI TV! I give a shout out to these guys/gays any chance I can because they are nailing it! Great website (Food Gays) with excellent photos and recipes. I’m a big fan of Julie’s too, and was lucky enough to travel…
What To Do In Vancouver This Week of August Hard to believe we are hard into the second week of August. Summer’s been good to us so far, but it’s flying by and this smoky haze we have hanging over us is putting a bit of a damper on what would have otherwise been some damn fine days. We went up to the Okanagan last week and spent some time with my Mom and Dad, visited some Summerland cideries, a brewery, and winery, and had some excellent meals at home with fresh garden produce as well as at some great…
Chef Ken Nakano’s decadent take on Steak – Recipe for Slow Grilled Wagyu Beef We’ve been posting a lot about pork lately, but we can’t neglect beef, and we do eat our share of it! We had a delicious wagyu beef recently and when we saw this recipe it reminded us we better get some on the BBQ soon. Then this delicious recipe was shared with us and we couldn’t help but share with you. You may have to adjust a bit if you don’t have a smoker, or perhaps use your BBQ and some wood chips. Thanks Chef Nakano…
Pirate Pak Day For Adults Raises Funds For Zajac Ranch For Children Who doesn’t love an old school White Spot Burger, especially when you’re helping raise funds for a worthy cause! On Wednesday, August 9, you can order up an Adult Pirate Pak at 62 White Spot restaurants throughout British Columbia and four locations in Alberta. For the eighth consecutive year, a toonie from the sale of every Pirate Pak will be donated to Zajac Ranch for Children, a local charity that provides kids and young adults with life-threatening illnesses and chronic disabilities a unique summer camp experience. Pirate Pak…
PNE Food Vendors Reveal Newest Crazy Food Items for 2017 Each year the food at the fairs around the world gets crazier. Some people flock to try anything weird and wacky, while others just prefer a good old hot dog or burger. Once again our Vancouver PNE Food items sounds a little different, some items may shock some, appeal to others, and absolutely revolt a few. You’ll find the persistent warm mini donuts and corndogs, caramel popcorn, cotton candy and fries, and some new foods to try. Here’s a few you may or may not want to gorge on. What will you be…
Chef Trevor Bird Collaborates With Egg Farmers of Canada For Devilled Eggs Recently we headed to Fable Restaurant for a Canadian Egg Feast with Chef Trevor Bird and wine pairings by Sommelier and co-owner of their sister restaurant, Mission. A most delicious progression of egg dishes were presented including these pretty Soy Stained Eggs. We’ll have a series of egg dishes from Canadian Chef and Egg Ambassadors, first up these eggs. 4 eggs 1 cup (250 mL) soy sauce 1 cup (250 mL) rice wine vinegar 2 tbsp (30 mL) Sriracha sauce Boil water; place eggs in water and cook…
Lick Your Plate Cookbook – Simple, Easy Homecooking I’ve got a lot of cookbooks to catch up on and feature! Lick Your Plate landed March 2016, but is a classic, with more than a few great recipes that I need to share with y’all. Lick Your Plate has 160 recipes easy to follow recipes for home cooks that are quick and simple, but full of flavour . There’s lots of fun to be had reading through this and the ingredients are readily accessible. You’ll find chapters on No Fork Required Appetizers; Steamed-Up Soups; Crunch Time Salads; Pick of the Crop Vegetables; Fueled-Up…
Juice-forward cocktails with Carissa Campeotto from Black Bamboo Joe Leary and I taped another episode of my segment, Good Life Vancouver, part of his TSN1410 Hand Crafted Spirits Show, this time with Carissa Campeotto from Black Bamboo, a new pop-up! Listen to the segment here: From the release…. The city’s newest pop-up experience, Black Bamboo, is ready to elevate the everyday cold-pressed juice with its cocktail bar at 1219 Granville Street (back alley entrance). Guests can expect to celebrate summer vibes in a tropical-inspired and intimate room, while enjoying music, live entertainment, champagne, and of course, juiced cocktails. Black Bamboo has partnered…
Everyday We Eat Canadian Food, but Food Day Canada Is Extra Special If you joined our twitter chat on August 2nd, you may be a little extra pumped about Food Day Canada, but even if you missed it there’s still time to plan for your celebration on August 5th! It’s a chance for all Canadians to join hands in one massive concurrent party in praise of our farmers and fishers; our chefs and researchers…and, above all, our home cooks. You can head to one of the Food Day Canada restaurants or plan your own party! Remember to use only Canadian ingredients to create…
H2 Rotisserie Pride-themed Menu On Until August 10 Last week we were doing yoga at the Westin on the pool (details here) and today we’re heading back there to talk about their cocktail program for The Craft Spirits Show with Joe Leary on TSN1410. There are lots of reasons to visit H2 Rotisserie & Bar and here’s another one! H2’s Chef Caitlin Mark, a proud member of the LGBTQ2+ community, has created a Fresh Sheet: Pride Edition, available during dinner for two weeks, July 27 – August 10. The colourful three-course meal begins with a Caprese Salad, featuring rainbow heirloom…
Drink Up For Charity, Pride-Themed Cocktails Benefit the Dr. Peter Centre Start celebrating as until August 6, dozens of bars and restaurants across Vancouver will shake up an array of signature cocktails in celebration of the Dr. Peter AIDS Foundation. I’m feeling rather thirsty already! Scroll down for a cocktail recipe featuring Long Table Distillery from Justin Taylor of the Cascade Room. Establishments will be offering Pride-themed cocktails with partial proceeds from the sale of each drink donated directly to the Dr. Peter Centre, a facility in Vancouver’s West End that provides services for British Columbians who face poverty, homelessness,…
Stellar Southeast Asian Food at The Union Lately we haven’t been venturing much outside the neighbourhood to dine, and have been eating rather unadventurous dinners. Fortunately I got an invite to dine at The Union, and remembered how good some of my previous meals there, so packed full of flavour, so I was totally game. The Union, led by Chef Lisa Henderson, dishes up the flavours of Southeast Asia using fresh, locally sourced ingredients. The restaurant, located on the cusp of Chinatown, recently revamped its dinner menu, hence the invite. New dishes include: Pulled Pork Crepes with hoisin BBQ sauce…
On August 2nd Prepare For Food Day Canada August 5 And Win Prizes! I’m working to help promote Food Day Canada with as a Food Day Canada’s Culinary Ambassador @goodlifevan along with Chef Michael Smith @ChefMichaelSmth , Amy Matheson @amyemathe and Julie Van Rosendaal @dinnerwithjulie and the whole Food Day Canada Team. Date: Wednesday, August 2nd Time: 8 – 9 pm EDT Location: @FoodDayCanada on Twitter We’ll learn about the REAL Canadian cuisine from some of the experts and hope you’ll share your own foodie stories and even get a bit of help planning your Food Day Canada menu. How does it work? Starting at 8 p.m.…
