One of Vancouver’s flagship restaurants, Diva at the Met celebrated its 15th anniversary last night with a gala dinner (benefitting Big Brothers) that featured an extraordinary array of culinary talent. The hotel business is by nature a mobile affair, where personnel—including those in food and beverage—move around frequently. Hence it was [...]
You have to hand it to John Clerides. He’s always been ahead of the curve. John’s the man behind Marquis Wine Cellars, which was one of the very first private wine stores anywhere in British Columbia. We were among the first through the door when he managed to wrangle a license in 1986—the [...]
Fancy yourself a good mixer? Here’s a great chance to hunt down that silver cocktail shaker you were given for your 21st (well, wasn’t everyone?) and polish up your mixology skills. Tales Of The Cocktail on Tour rolls into Vancouver, March 12-15. If you’re ‘in the biz’ you won’t want to miss this [...]
All too often, the role of BC wine has been overlooked... As you can see from elsewhere here, and from the crescendo this week of the on-line buzz surrounding the live launch of this year's 200 plus menus, Dine Out Vancouver has more than earned its place as the country's biggest restaurant promo of its [...]
With Golden Gate Bridge in the background, and a wealth of wine within, not a bad place to taste, Tim Pawsey photo ZAP may well be the most fun you can ever have at a wine tasting ... We’ve been to a few tastings in our time but nothing quite compares with ZAP—the no holds [...]
Two hours after landing in Oporto, we’re hot on the trail of two essentials: sardines and octopus. Oh—and wine! Well, that’s not too hard to find around these parts. Nor are the first two. Down a narrow side street, not far from our hotel, in the centre of the old town, we discover [...]
Last night we went to one of the more interesting wine tastings we’ve attended in recent times. The occasion was a 75th anniversary pre-screening reception, before a Hollywood Theatre double bill featuring The American and Casablanca. When we arrived, the compact and cozy lobby was packed with people enthusiastically tasting a selection of AOC wines [...]
Followers of BC's burgeoning wine industry will be interested in the results of the 2010 Okanagan Fall Wine Festival judging. The Hired Belly participated in the newly named BC Wine Awards, on one of the best panels we’ve judged with to date, run by Master of Wine Rhys Pender, and including: Benoit Beaudet, [...]
We were already pretty impressed with the Inn at Laurel Point, having checked in to a room with sweeping views of Victoria’s outer harbour against a stunning backdrop of Juan da Fuca Strait and the Olympic Mountain Range beyond. Heading to the provincial capital (just across the strait from Vancouver) is always a [...]
Spot Prawns are here! Last night’s dinner found us foraging on Chinatown’s Gore Street (Vancouver, BC). There we were lucky enough to pick out a couple of pounds of spot prawns with change from a $20 bill. These guys were so fresh some were jumping right out of the shallow tank! Once home, we enjoyed [...]
