rebar Restaurant - a sensory explosion
Funky and whimsical, those are the two words that come to mind as I sit and eat my yogurt, mango, banana parfait (served in an ice cream sundae glass) with raisin toast on the side. The walls are grass green to match the wheat grass growing in pots above the bar. Metallic cake pans adorn the walls adjacent to the front door and Godzilla perches above my table peering into my oh-so-freshly-squeezed orange juice. I am in rebar, a restaurant that proclaims to serve Victoria’s healthiest and funkiest food. At this point, I would tend to agree.
The waitress talks loudly about her gourmet picnic the day before and a regular customer makes the rounds hugging the staff. The juice bar menu includes items with names like Capital Iron Basement, Haiku and Cathedral Groove. My vinyl tablecloth explodes with an over-the-top flower pattern in primary colours. Overall, healthy for my tummy, entertainment for my ears and eyes.
The kitschy corner restaurant is in Bastion Square, downtown Victoria.
Quails’ Gate Estate Winery
I had dinner at the Old Vines Restaurant at the Quails’ Gate Winery in Kelowna a few weeks back. I must admit the food was fabulous – while I was hesitant purchasing a Thai fusion plate at a BC winery, the dish was incredible, especially following an afternoon of wine tasting at other vineyards.
Along with the tab, I picked up a little tidbit I thought I would share with you. Quail’s Gate holds Wine Appreciation Evenings, where you can “learn about the history of Quails’ Gate’s wines and winemaking, taste wines and explore the art of food & wine pairing.” Sounds like a rather nice way to get into the Okanagan mood. Reservations required, email hscott@quailsgate.com.
Vancouver is one giant movie set
Don't be surprised if you're walking around in Vancouver and you see a man hanging off a cable as in this picture (by CharlieBrown) I pulled of Flick. It's the filming of X-men 3 last year. This is one of many movies that was shot in Vancouver. The TV and film business is booming and Vancouver and movie and TV sets are everywhere. Especially the Vancouver Art Gallery seems to be a favorite spot. So keep an eye out for the little "crew" signs, large mobile dressing trucks, large lights and flying men on cables during your next visit. You might even spot a celebrity.
A flavour for everyone
Spring is slowly making it's way into Vancouver so it was time for my first gelato of the season. There are lots of great places to get ice cream and gelato and picking a flavour is always is a challenge for me.
So when I visited La Casa Gelato, I was in for the extreme challenge because La Casa Gelato offers over 200 flavours of gelato and ice cream. Reading all the labels can take a long time but it's fun to see al the different flavours. There are the everyday vanilla, chocolate, lemon and such. But they offer flavours that range from interesting such as Guinness Draft or Pear Gorgonzola to very interesting such as wasabi or garlic. They offer free samples so you don't have to commit to anything to try it.
La Casa Gelato is located somewhat off the beaten path in a bit of an industrial part of town at 1033 Venables St (view on Google Maps). But it's but near Commercial Drive, where you can, among other things, enjoy other Italian foods.
Playhouse International Wine Festival 2006
I attended and volunteered for the wine festival this past weekend and I just wanted to let you know this was a fantastic event if you enjoy wine or if you are looking for new wines to purchase to take to dinner parties! The evening tastings were held at the Vancouver Convention Centre at the Waterfront and the theme region this year was France. There were 60 wineries serving 240 wines from 7 different regions in France (including Champagne). Altogether the festival had 750 wines, 185 wineries and 15 countries participating this year. Besides noticing people getting friendlier as the night progressed, the evening consisted of wine tasting, food sampling and a dance performance by a group of gals (Can-Can style type dancing).
My recommendations for next year, is to attend the tasting room on the first night (Thursday) as noted on the festivals website. It is less busy and you'll have a better chance of purchasing the hard-to-find wines in the Festival Wine Shop. When I went, the wines I wanted to purchase were all sold out. Oh! and be sure to have a bite to eat before hand! They do have samples of cheese, chocolate and other snacks but it won't fill your stomach.
As for volunteering, this was my first year and I'll probably help again next year as it seemed to be a well organized event. It was run by a great group of people and lot's of volunteers who have been returning to help almost every year. I'm not sure how many times you have to volunteer in order to move from spit bucket removal to tearing tickets at the door. But whatever job I'm assigned to, I'll be there again next year!
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