Brenda

We do turkey with all the trimmings: Sherry gravy, cranberry sauce with orange zest, sausage apple stuffing, sour cream mashed potatoes, steamed green beans and, this year, mashed sweet potato with cilantro and chipotle (a new recipe). There will be viognier or gewurtztraminer to share and pumpkin and apple pies to finish, of course. Usually, we start with old fashioned tomato juice and a crudite platter with olives, followed by shrimp cocktail (how 50's) or cheddar soup. But this year, my father is rather frail, so we cut down on the courses. I'm getting hungry here... We do it on the Sunday so Monday allows for turkey sandwiches and "Turkey Curry Surprise."

I was in Victoria yesterday (feeding my Choux Choux addiction) and went to Mo-Le for an early lunch. I'm not really certain what all the fuss is about. I mean, OK, the breakfasts looked large - lots of hash browns, the eggs benny looked good, the place was hopping. However, I had corn fritters which were raw and doughy in the middle, a strange tasting cream of smoked chicken soup, and an OK salad. The salsa that came with the fritters was tasty, though. The service was very slow and the music was too loud. I think it's better suited to young uns. For breakfast in Victoria, I'll go for Wlllie's Bakery - nice relaxed atmosphere, quiet clientele reading the Globe, great baguettes with blueberry preserves, and eggs with organic spinach and polenta. Their lunches are good as well. Maybe I'm just too old to appreciate Mo-Le!

Try "The Shady Rest" in Qualicum. It's right on the water (right over the water at high tide). Last time I was there (a while ago, admittedly) they had really basic fish and chips, burgers etc. The view is worth it. http://shadyrest.ca Drive into Nanaimo and go to Delicados North. It's in a strip mall just south of Woodgrove Mall. You can get a great take out meal of tortilla chips, fresh yummy salsa, chipotle sauce, various crunchy fresh salads and hummous and all kinds of wraps and enchiladas. http://www.delicados-deli.com Quality Foods is good but so is Thrifty Foods (another island chain). Thriftys has far better meat - lots of prepared kebabs etc. Finally there is a place called the Landing at Pacific Shores just south of Parksville. It has a website. I haven't been there yet but am curious - looks like seafood. Might be a bit "fine dining" if you know what I mean. http://www.pacific-shores.com/landing_west_coast_grill.html

Had three (!) kinds of sausages last night - the lamb sausages with apricots and spices were my favourite. I iiked the Italian ones- orange and fennel - too good to put in tomato sauce. The chicken with cilantro and chili were very mild - good to have on hand for people who don't like red meat.

Just went down to Victoria from Nanaimo and went to Choux Choux. We bought pheasant and cranberry pate and pork and pistachio pate. I am currently enjoying them on herb toasts that they also sell (I'm also drinking a good Beaujolais!). The pheasant is delicious - spicy - allspice I think? and studded with cranberries - it reminds me of Christmas. The pork is garlicky and unctuous. Like Hugh and Memo, we also bought a variety of sausages to try. I'll let you know what I think of them tommorow. Everything in the shop looked good, and it smelled great! Anyone else been there? If not - go!

Places to avoid are Herald Street Cafe, new owners, or a multitude of new owners have left it dirty, inattentive and thoroughly dreadful. I agree - I never go there anymore. Bad service and really bad food - I used to love their crab cakes - no more. And Brio stole one of their best waiters away several years ago. And speaking of dreadful, The Fairmont Empress Hotel! The lobby and outdoors of the grand old lady may be impressive but the service is terrible, the food and beverage below standard, as is the service in the restaurants and lounges. The Afternoon Tea is just about the biggest rip-off I have ever seen. In fact I once heard a rumor that the reason the Tea is $55.00 per person is because some Food and Beverage Director, new to the hotel, hated it so much he wanted to cancel it all together. The powers that be would not hear of it so instead he doubled the prices figuring that would stop anyone coming. Now they still get the same old bagged tea, pre-made tea sandwiches and mushy fruit salad, but at twice as much! Take a picture of the old gal and go elsewhere! The only time I go for tea there is in the winter with my Aunt who lives in Victoria. If you're with a guest who is from Vic, they give you a discount (only in the winter, though). Even the curry in the Bengal room is lousy now. Plus they don't even give you placemats. And the CP store is gone.... ←

I just got back from Arles. Stayed at the Nord Pinus - great hotel - very unusual. A drink there is a must. We also ate there one night - good simple food -pasta, tuna tartare etc. We ate good pizzas at Estaminet (in the Place du Forum). Also, try the ice cream at Le Soleilis (Rue Dr. Fanton). The cinnamon, apricot, and bitter almond flavours are to die for. We also ate at a neat little place - can't remember the name - "Tarte, Vin, et Cie" perhaps - it's at the end of the Rue des Suisses where it meets Rue Doisneau. Delicious grilled rabbit and pommes dauphinois. The quirky owner was very charming as well - She brought us organic sparkling wine from a little vineyard (gratis) for my husband's birthday. Drink lots of rose. Have fun

Thanks for both your suggestions. I may try Eric McClean. The recipe you gave, Matt, takes less time than the one I have.

Hi everyone Just got back from the south of France where I had chicken with olives and preserved lemons. I would like to find preserved lemons either in Victoria or Nanaimo. Any suggestions? I have several recipes, but they all take several weeks to marinate the lemons, and I want to make the above dish next week. It was delicious, as you probably can tell!

Sigh - living in Nanaimo, I feel I have to stand up for my town. It's darn hard, though! Many people who live here are trying hard to get rid of the ghost of Frank Ney and his white shoes and white belt (known as the " full Nanaimo," I understand). By the way, no disrespect meant to the Old Pirate! But I must say - I lived in Alberta for years, and the people I knew there were split between calling the confection "Nanaimo Bars" or "New York Slice." They're sickly sweet, and I eat them only at Christmas (because they're made by my mother). And I eat them in 1 inch by 1 inch portions. Barolo has the scoop. I love this kind of stuff. Reminds me of Jane and Michael Stern's books.

Your descriptions have made me SO hungry. Weird about the frites at Chambar - anyone else had the same reaction?

I have to say, I loved Ramsay in RKN, and have read about him for years in the UK press (the A.A. Gill turfing was particularly funny). I even hope to go to one of his London restaurants next month. This show - completely OTT. It's junkfood. And it will be my summer TV equivalent of a trashy read... I loved Wendy - every time he'd point out something wrong, she didn't just say, "Yes, Chef, Sorry Chef" and fix it - she'd want to argue and discuss WHY she made the mistake. Too funny

dillybravo It's called discussion. That means some of us here will disagree with you occasionally. It doesn't mean that people don't understand your posts or are trying to shut you down. And as I said before, I think it's healthy to read all these viewpoints. Readers can go and taste for themselves and see if they agree or disagree. I think there are quite a few educated palates on this board: that's what I like about it. But I also appreciate EVERYONE'S viewpoints.

Thanks dillybravo. Bring on the critiques. I'm off to London, Paris, and Provence in a few weeks and am also saving my pennies for meals there. From my last visit, I would say London is still the best food city I've been to (how times have changed from Brown Windsor soup and beans on toast!). They also have some very sharp (and funny) restaurant critics (A.A. Gill anyone?), so I take your point about good honest criticism. But I still think Vancouver is better overall than you say it is. However, we can agree to disagree for now and discuss specific restaurants in other threads. Kindness with teeth - I like that

You seem to be suggesting that Vancouver is full of unsophisticated and mediocre chefs and establishments and that feedback will not help their delusions of grandeur. However, later in the post you go on to say that we SHOULD provide feedback. I'm a little confused. Also, earlier on this thread you said you "never post here." I for one would rather that you DO post here and give detailed feedback on specific restaurants in the appropriate threads. Then, others can join in and describe their experiences. And the owners, chefs, and customers who read and post here can sort through conflicting reviews and come to their own conclusions. I am interested in hearing your take on Vancouver restaurants (I don't mean in this thread as it is a more general discussion). So please start posting!

I agree that we should be respectful when we're discussing a restaurant, and I don't like feeding frenzies either. However, I also think it's OK to say that the first course was cold, or the waiter took too long to bring the cheque at the end of the meal (a pet peeve of mine - I hate waiting to pay), or that a particular dish didn't work and why. I think it's best to tell the management about problems right at the time, but that's not always possible (and some people are afraid of confrontation). So, I would say to restaurant owners, that they should troll these threads and take the feedback as part of how they learn to improve, weighing it against print reviews and customer feedback in the restaurant itself. I probably err on the side of just not mentioning bad restaurants at all (Thumper's mother taught me). But now I feel emboldened. So to Earl's - please tell your servers not to tell customers what beets will do to your digestive system... I kid you not

$36 for mineral water!!

Oops -sorry - just letting my mind wander a la Sunday morning... I'll post those comments in another thread.

I appreciate FoodieGirl describing her disappointing meal in more detail, although I note that Lumiere did take the wine cost off the bill which redeems them in my eyes. Too bad it was a less than stellar experience, though. On the broader topic of whether or not people are too lenient with the Vancouver restaurant scene, I'm not sure. I see some criticism of restaurants on this forum, and I appreciate the honesty. As for restaurant reviewers, I think Jamie Maw is very good, and certainly is critical when it is warranted. Alexandra Gill doesn't write raves all the time. I guess I'm not sure if I want a local version of Joanna Kates who seems to hate most places. And edm, I think Vancouver actually HAS some of the things you say are missing from the scene. That may be my island (read "hick"!) perspective, but when I go there, I am constantly amazed at the new bakeries, restaurants, grocers etc.

Went to Victoria today for a few hours and hit the new Noodle Box on Douglas for lunch. Not too many people there - perhaps because it's Saturday? The halibut in tomato curry (the special) was delicious and the Indonesian noodles with peanut, lime, chicken, asian greens, and cocoanut were spicy and messily good - addictive. They have beer on tap (sorry can't remember what kind - didn't have any). The servings are large. Plates would be nice so you could share things. (I confess, I never asked). I'll definitely be back

They are so good in margaritas. Buy some and compare. And don't forget the 100% agave tequila. ← I'll try that - now if the weather would just co-operate to put me in the mood for margaritas!

I was in Thrifty's Nanaimo yesterday and noticed they had bags of tiny Key limes. I know they're not local but thought people might be interested. Personally, my waistline doesn't need Key Lime Pie, but I'll bet they'd be good in Thai cooking. Or drinks? Daquiris?

Has anybody been to the new Noodle Box lately? How is it? Do they have more tables than the Chinatown location? I am thinking of coming "down island" next week. BTW - I was posting in the fish taco thread re. Penny's Palapa in Nanaimo and thought I should mention it here - a floating Mexican restaurant in downtown Nanaimo- good fish tacos and fresh juices. The service is a bit scattered, but I like the setting so much, I just let it go.

Yes, do - on a sunny day, it's a great place for lunch - the staff are a little disorganized but pleasant

The Fish tacos at Penny's Palapa (on a barge right on the water off downtown Nanaimo) are pretty good. A little chipotle in the sauce and salad on the side. They should be open by now (usually May to October as it's al fresco dining. Think I'll head down and try it out soon.