What to do in April in and around Vancouver We’ve been busy focusing on the positive in Vancouver with the #VancouverIstay project (you’ve checked it out right?) and looking ahead to April there’s even more reason to love what Vancouver has to offer. Garagiste North – April 17, 2016 First and foremost, wine lovers need to set this Sunday aside, well at least a few hours of it, to explore the smaller producers of our province. Held at the Wise Hall in East Vancouver, this once a year experience will walk you through the up and comers, and those who just don’t want…
Author: cassandra
We Love Vancouver – Join the Vancouver I Stay Team You may have seen my Facebook rants, along with many of my friends, as we are not pleased that our dear city is has been receiving hate mail of late (well at least one Dear John letter). We’ve decided to do something about it and are starting with a bang March 31, 2016! Can we count on adding you to the Vancouver I Stay team? [vsw id=”tDN_GS0wV5M” source=”youtube” width=”425″ height=”344″ autoplay=”no”] Media coverage: CBC News CKNW Lynda Steele Vancity Buzz The Vancouver Sun The Province CBC Radio (kinda missed the point) 25:40 Vancouver I…
Where to Eat, Stay and Sip – Savour the Good Life in Penticton! We are often in the Okanagan, as my parents, sister and all her crew live in Kelowna and Michael would move to Osoyoos if he could, he loves it so much. So, we often find ourselves in the middle of the valley, traveling to and from destinations and stay a night in Penticton to enjoy some great food and their local craft beer! Where to stay? Barefoot Resort The coolest spot to stay in Penticton is the Barefoot Resort in a Yurt! What’s a yurt you ask? “Most…
Rocky Mountain Flatbread Showcases Local Artisans One of my favourite places to lunch at is Rocky Mountain Flatbread as I am massively addicted to their shrimp sandwich; juicy Ocean Wise shrimp, sunflower sprouts, and tomatoes on their house made bread. I also love the frozen pizzas for a quick meal at home, and the pasta and pizza is excellent. Everything is made from scratch with local and well thought out ingredients, and they are super concerned about being green and looking after their diners as well as the environment. This spring they’ve partnered up with local artisan food providers to bring…
Now that the Easter eggs have been found and you’ve eaten your fair share of turkey or ham, it’s time to turn your thoughts to what is up for this week. Experience Taste Washington There’s still time to book a trip down to Seattle and hit up Taste Washington as it’s this coming weekend! It’s all about Washington wine and food and it’s everything delicious. Purchase your tickets to all of the premier events happening during Taste Washington’s four days – March 31 – April 3, 2016. Tickets for the Grand Tasting*, Red & White Party, The New Vintage and Seminars are…
Osoyoos Oyster Festival Events for 2016 April 20-24 For the fifth year in a row I am heading up to Osoyoos for their annual oyster festival and it’s Michael’s third year! We’re huge fans of bivalves and when they are paired with oyster friendly wines, beers and libations, we love them even more. The oyster festival was created to give oyster farmers a bit of a break, while entertaining locals and visitors in the shoulder season. The weather is always sunny, and just a little bit crisp, and the room rates are reasonable. The youngest oyster shuckers in action above! This year,…
I am not a fan of shopping, unless it’s for food or cooking utensils, but I have a few spots I have found that I can head to and not leave in tears, and that’s basically my current approach to fashion. So, in the hopes of reducing some tears of other non-shoppers out there, I’m sharing a few of my spring finds. I’ve bought a few of these and am coveting the others. These are all body flattering outfits as that is the number one concern around these parts! Here’s my fav’s that work for me right now! [slideshow_deploy id=’34108′]…
What’s Up for Easter Around Vancouver?? We’re staying in town this weekend and I think the theme will be more spring cleaning than bunny hopping, but we’ll likely at least get a brunch in and Tess, Michael and I will be boozing it up on Saturday night at BC Distilled. I mean tasting and evaluation some local spirits. We’ll also be checking out the newest Greek Restaurant in the city – Nammos Estiatorio, I’m thinking there will be some octopus, dolmades and tarama on my plate soon. However, we will fit in at least a few Easter festivities and think you should too. Here’s what’s up for…
Head to Olympic Village For Brunch at The Flying Pig Olympic Village is no longer the ghost town it first was, and now there’s plenty to choose from when it comes to eating out. When it brunch comes to mind, however, we’ve recently been sold on the menu at The Flying Pig. While the name implies a heavy, meaty menu, and there’s plenty of pork should you wish, there’s also lots of lighter fare such as the trout salad that I enjoyed at brunch. The Flying Pig refers to the restaurant as a “nouveau Canadian Bistro”… offering a simple, seasonally inspired…
Butter Celebrates – Rosie Daykin Shares her Fabulous Sweets Butter Celebrates, is bakery owner Rosie Daykin’s second cookbook (Butter Baked Goods was released in 2013) and this time she is sharing a year of celebratory recipes. From Valentine’s Day to New Year’s and everything in between, Daykin has recipes for every festive occasion. If you define celebrations as time with family and friends, full of laughter, love, witty toasts, good music, general chaos and delicious food, as Daykin does, you’ll love this book and the anecdotes that make both a great resource for baking, and an entertaining read. Full of…
Vancouver Events March 21-26, 2016 There’s brilliant sunshine blasting in through our windows today in Vancouver and plenty of distractions that could keep us from our many tasks! Here’s what’s Good This Week March 21. Locals Only Wines, Meads, Spirits and Ciders at Edible Canada Tuesday March 22 Trade: 12:30 – 2:00 | Public: 2:00 – 4:00 An afternoon exploring the diversity & creativity of our coastal producers. Meet the farmers, fermenters and distillers that define our cool climate coastal appellation. Info Ugly Duckling Dinner at Royal Dinette Tuesday, March 22 – Cast-offs, offcuts and scraps considered the “Ugly Ducklings” of the culinary…
Happy Planet’s Nut Smoothies Make Mornings Sweet I’ve just returned from California and had the most spectacular time with plenty of amazing food and wine, and now it’s time to getting back into my home routine. When I travel breakfast can be anything from just a cup of coffee, a muffin on the go, or a full sit down meal with the works (yesterday I even had shrimp and grits), but now that I’m back home I have to get back to my routine as I am focusing on my increasing the nutritional value in my meals and need to drop…
Wedding Count Down Is On After attending the wedding of my very good friends this past weekend, I am suddenly acutely aware that I better get planning my own! We’re going to be covering a few things in our new wedding count down series. My amazing friend, Summer Dhillon, looked like royalty alongside her king, Patrick Giesbrecht, and I am sure she had a few facials and make-up sessions along the way, and I had better ask her for some pre-wedding advice soon, but I fear I need far more sprucing, and I’ve got to put a plan in place. There…
Vancouver Icon Bin 941 Shines On I was a devotee to the Bins back in the day, both 941 and 942, and had many a first, and a few last, dates there. These were the first real tapas-style dining opportunities outside a few of the Spanish and Greek options that existed at the time. Owner and Chef Gord Martin took home many a restaurant award and chefs as amazing as Tina Fineza assisted on menu design and made the place legendary. Recently we revisited Bin 941 (Bin 942 closed a while ago) and I was a little shocked to find out…
Happy Planet Grab And Go Single-Serving Soup We’ve often thrown a bag of Happy Planet Soup into our grocery bag for those times when we don’t have time to cook from scratch. Squash and cashew with coconut, tumeric and cinnamon is a favourite and we’ll usually grill up some cheese bread to complete our meal and pop open a beer or two as well. Now it’s even easier to sup on soup even if you’re solo, or perahaps if your partners in the mood for one soup and you another, as Happy Planet has just released the Grab & Go single…
Testing Out The New CND Beauty Collections Last fall I discovered Onyx Aesthetics Studio at 425 Abbott Street in Gastown and was thrilled (yes nails thrill me!) to return for the unvailing of a new collection of my favourite nail polish brand, CND. CND has the Shellac Brand, which tend to last about 2 weeks and the home Vinylux weekly polish. If you are in the salon there’s no reason not to get the Shellac, especially since you can take it off a home if you are patient with their nail polish removal system. This does takes patience, and I have…
A Round Up Of What’s Good In March around Vancouver VIFF presents Crushed Her father’s death brings Elliot back to the family home and business, a 100-year-old vineyard on the brink of bankruptcy. Here, she unravels the mystery of his death by facing her own traumatic past. The film explores themes of loss, memory, and renewal, while paralleling the disintegration of a family with the corporate abuse of a landscape. This “environmental thriller” has been enthusiastically received by juries and audiences alike, screening at the Montreal, Napa Valley and Melbourne Underground film festivals. Friday March 11th at 6:30 PM -…
Hopcott Farms Expands Retail Space Family-run Hopcott Farms opened their retail space in 2006 and has now increased it’s Pitt Meadow facilities to a total of 7,700 meat-filled feet! We never miss the chance to stock up on grass-fed beef, meat pies, sausages, bone broth and pepperoni if we are passing through, or even near Pitt Meadows, and now we can stop in for lunch as well. We sampled menu items and toured the facilities in January and wish we lived closer! The Hopcott’s are now providing even more healthy “pick up and go’ dinner options, and there’s a bistro focused…
International Women’s Day – Industry Insiders This International Women’s Day, L’Abattoir invites guests to their private dining space for an empowering panel discussion between some of the leading ladies of Vancouver’s hospitality industry. Moderated by L’Abattoir’s Assistant General Manager and Wine Director, Lisa Haley, guests will include Andrea Carlson (Owner/Chef, Burdock & Co.), Kimberly Hall (Restaurant Manager, Hawksworth), Lauren Mote (Owner/Operator Bittered Sling, Bar Manager Cibo Trattoria and UVA Wine & Cocktail Bar), Karri Schuermans (Owner, Chambar), Jill Spoor (Wine Director, Fairmont Pacific Rim), and Meeru Dhalwala (Co-owner/Chef Vij’s and Rangoli). These high-profile women will discuss the challenges they’ve faced in getting to where they…
Maybe this is the year that we watch The Oscars, or at least the red carpet part. There’s many a house party we’ve heard and if you’re invited to one, perfect, if not there’s still a few spots around town to celebrate. Oscar Party at El Camino’s Catch the Academy Awards during El Camino’s annual Oscar Party on Sunday, February 28, from 3 – 8 pm. Oscar-themed fun will take centre stage during the soiree, including rousing games of Oscar Bingo. Food and drink specials will be offered (including a Bocadillo and a Pacifico for $12). And of course — the…
