california

can you believe tomorrow is the first of june?!  vancouver has not been very lucky in weather this spring - too many cold and rainy days.  this is in part what prompted our trip to california this weekend.  it was a last minute kind of thing, we were craving warmth but mostly we wanted to meet up with old friends.  tim, jo, and their two little boys live in los angeles and we are *stoked to spend some time with them... in the sunshine. 

photo from here.

have a lovely weekend.  i hope the weather is warm and sunny wherever you are.  we are taking an extra long weekend so i will see you back here on tuesday. 

*a california slang word meaning to be excited about something

dinner and a movie

from me to you is a pretty cool photography blog i recently came across.  her dinner and a movie posts are a favourite feature.  blogger jamie takes inspiration for the meals she cooks from the movie she chooses to rent that particular evening.  isn't that clever?  and her photography is pretty awesome.

lemon grilled chicken with dried fruit couscous, homemade pita & hummus and the hurt locker

tacos al carbon, homemade tortillas, fresh roasted salsa and frida

french mussels & amélie

pasta puttanesca and valentino the last emperor

last night i was at the theatre with the lovely patrycja watching the best exotic marigold hotel.  it was a delightful, touching, and funny movie based in india. here is my version of a dinner and a movie.  after checking out the trailer below you will want to watch it and maybe cook yourself an indian meal to go along with it.

indian spiced chicken with raita and the best exotic marigold hotel 

beginners

i recently saw a great film, beginners.  the film is about a guy reflecting on the life of his 75 year old father who comes out of the closet and is dying of cancer.  all the while he tries to make sense of his new relationship with a girl he met at at costume party.  it's a warm and sweet film. the film also stars a cute little dog.  another reason to watch is anna's outfits, so cute and french.  see trailer here.

 

all photos from here

weekend pics

food was the highlight this weekend.  are you surprised?  if you have been visiting this space often then you probably aren't.  we love to eat.  but more importantly, we love to support chefs that are passionate about cooking and the chefs from edible canada and butter on the endive are such people.  choosing local products, quality ingredients, and ensuring an inspiring atmosphere in which to eat.

edible canada

eric pateman of edible canada opened a take-out window with a canadian bacon-centred theme at his restaurant on granville island.  stefan and i have been patiently waiting for this weekend so that we could try it.  it was well worth the wait.

patiently waiting for our order

i had the bacon salad, stefan had the bacon tacos, and kai had the bacon hot dog. we all shared the 'to die for' banana bread. worthy of another visit sooner than later.

and then a chai from one of my favourite cafes

we watched some street performances - high schoolers singing hairspray numbers

a very funny juggler/strait jacket escape artist/comedian - he is a regular at granville island

butter on the endive

you will remember i posted about butter on the endive when they hosted their first chef in residence dinner.  lucky for us, owen lightly jumped in and did it again.  they collaborated with blue owl boutique - a charming shop filled with one of a kind antiques.  you had the feeling that everything in the shop was chosen with love.  the teacups were so sweet (i may need to make a visit back)!  the space beckoned me to photograph it; so many inviting vignettes.

the evening began in the shop with an olive oil tasting led by tonio creanza.  he spoke about the history of his family's olive grove, sang us a song, and inspired us to use good quality olive oil in everything! 

 

 

we then moved upstairs to one of the apartments of the connaught building (amanda's father has owned it since 1958) for dinner.  the owner of blue owl boutiques, amanda michas, curated the apartment upstairs.  she turned this empty space into a cozy place for a small gathering (it was worthy of being photographed).

dinner was superb, again.  we started with some bread goodness, rustic, fluffy and perfect.  we ate it dipped in olive oil and with salami from d original.  my favourite dish was the fresh chick pea puree on a piece of toasted bread.  but the fava bean soup with tortellini, spring vegetables and pesto was a close second. 
actually, the raw salmon with lemon and sea asparagus was nice too.  the rhubarb sauce served with the pork was so good, it reinforced my love of rhubarb.  i may need to give stefan another rhubarb challenge.  anyway, the evening ended with quince cake and hazelnut gelato.  i needn't say more.  it's quite the dining experience.  if you live in the vancouver area, i would highly recommend it.

 

 

 

 



guest chef james town (in white)





pedalheads + concession food

kai's highlight of the weekend was participating in a bike challenge hosted by pedalheads. the riders received a medal for their participation.  the skilled events included timed cone slalom course, ladder bridge challenge, can crush, timed track stand, and standing sprint.  although kai missed a couple of the challenges he did really well with the others, especially the slalom and ladder bridge and received a silver medal for his efforts.  he was a proud boy.

 

 

 



kai receiving his silver medal

 

sometimes you just have to eat and it wasn't so bad!

 

and, we were also 'wowed' with the tricks and skills displayed by a couple of the people from trials stars.  watch their video here; it's pretty awesome stuff.