Taste of Vancouver

[canucklehead]

I think that the event is tommorow - is anyone going? I have heard Feenie will be there and he has promised no weinee. We can all be thankful.

[gerald]

We will be cooking 4oz vera patties at 3bucks a pop

[gerald]

I Know fish cafe will be there cooking, how many people are expected to attend

[canucklehead]

I went down to a Taste of Vancouver and it was busy. A good friend of mine is one of the principal organizers and he said it was their busiest year yet. There were long line ups for tickets and food.

There was an interesting mix of restaurants that showed up - Feenies (good short rib sandwiches), C (ran out of food early on), Chi (completely mobbed), Maurya, Mosaic, Kiwi Pie, Chutney Villa, Nandos, Mouse and Bean, Wild Rice, etc... It fun was to sample alot of food for not alot of dough - kind like the Anti-PNE food forum.

Vera looked like they were a big hit and ran out of food by about 6pm - very popular burgers. No big chains were there - except for Kelsey's.

It was a really nice day - lots of families and a pleasant busy buzz. You got to hand it to Feenie and Robert Clark for supporting a local event - I don't think that participating builds their clientele - but their booths had alot of tasters - people who would otherwise not get a chance to try their food.

IMO though, the venue is perfect for people whose demographic are families and younger people. I felt like to me that the big winners were Maurya - who got to introduce a whole bunch of people to their restaurant and Vera's - busy and people loved their burgers (people around me were having two at a time).

The goal of the event is to make sure no-one loses money, and maybe make a little. Hopefully nobody lost their shirts.

Edited September 19, 2005 by canucklehead (log)

[vandan]

dude you need to get the name right its called "taste of the city", and yes it was a good time, we need more events of its kind

[canucklehead]

dude you need to get the name right its called "taste of the city

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Do you work for my friend? He is always on my ass to get the name right. When I see a $3 burger - the rest is a blur.

[sniffles]

I agree Feenie's short rib sandwich was good. But the Feenie pizza was a different story, the server mentioned that the pizza was not very popular (an omen!) Ever tried eating a mini pizza after an hour in the oven? That's what it tasted like.

When did C run out of food? We got there around 1pm but there was nothing on the table. Did the food come in late? Or did everyone line up at C at noon?

[quattroporte]

I agree with you, Sniffles - Feenie's ribwich was pretty good, but the Alsatian "pizza" was horrible (although the server claimed it was very good). Three bucks for a dried-out hockey puck-looking thing? no thanks. Vera's burgers were a hit with our family. Great Value. This is a terrific venue to bring the kids to - they got to try lots of interesting things, maybe stuff they normally wouldn't try. Now I know my oldest loves Jambalaya - I would have never guessed....

I've been the past three years, and this was the busiest year yet, but the food was better than I remember from last year. Any chance we could convince Neil to participate next year with his GBP???

[gerald]

sorry about running out 768 burgers in 6 hours we know for next time. I would like some feedback though because those burgers were 4 ouncers, what did you think should we offer them as an alternative?

[quattroporte]

You bet Gerald - perfect for kids or those of us with smaller appetites. I loved the simplicity of your burger - everybody was talking about them!

[canucklehead]

I agree Feenie's short rib sandwich was good. But the Feenie pizza was a different story, the server mentioned that the pizza was not very popular (an omen!) Ever tried eating a mini pizza after an hour in the oven? That's what it tasted like.

When did C run out of food? We got there around 1pm but there was nothing on the table. Did the food come in late? Or did everyone line up at C at noon?

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I heard that C ran out at about 2:30pm or so. They might have had a quick restock but when they ran out again - they decided not to bring in more food. I think everybody was surprised by the crowds - the guys from Chi told me that they had to re-stock mussels for their booth repeatedly.

Gosh - they guys from C must have been really busy - between holding down the fort at the mother ship, working things out at Nu, and running a super busy booth at the taste of the city. Yikes.

I agree with you on the feenie pizza - kind of bland and the constant reheating did it no favors. But that short rib sandwich was pretty good.

[kontemporary]

I agree with you, Sniffles - Feenie's ribwich was pretty good, but the Alsatian "pizza" was horrible (although the server claimed it was very good).  Three bucks for a dried-out hockey puck-looking thing?  no thanks.  Vera's burgers were a hit with our family.  Great Value. This is a terrific venue to bring the kids to - they got to try lots of interesting things, maybe stuff they normally wouldn't try.  Now I know my oldest loves Jambalaya - I would have never guessed....

I've been the past three years, and this was the busiest year yet, but the food was better than I remember from last year.  Any chance we could convince Neil to participate next year with his GBP???

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Interesting. I had the Alsatian mini-pizza and thought that it was very good! The crust was flakey yet soft and little accents of the bacon and cheese. I admit I got that over the the ribwich and salmon because they ran out - but I didn't think the pizza was any bad at all.

My favourites were the salmon tartare from Wild Rice, the dungeness crab watermelon from Ch'i, the strawberry smoothie at Cassis, and pies from Kiwi Pie Co. And the value-hitting burger from Vera's!

I was disappointed with a lot though.. the daube au boeuf at Cassis.. the lamb and salmon at Odoul's (by far the worst).. Le Gavroche's leek/salmon tart and Dockside's crab cakes.

There were some good but non-spectacular dishes such as the sandwich at Mosaic, the other crab cake I had at Fish Café, and Maurya's curry.

I stayed away from the BBQ grills because well, I didn't want to fill out on food that wouldn't be offering anything special. And some places had things I didn't want to bother checking out - e.g. Rossini's pastas, Thai House's bland-looking pad thais.

I regret not checking out Azure Lounge & Grill, Chutney Villa, Ashiana Tandoori, Oasis Pub, Habibi's, and the Observatory. I would have loved to - but my stomach was at full capacity and I was still amazed for spending thirty dollars for myself at Taste of the City.

Anyone knew what C offered before they closed down (I shouldn't have come so late...)?

[vandan]

highlight was chili squid from dockside , the first time i've ever enjoyed squid after hearing so many times that i just haven't had it cooked well or from the wrong place, prawns in coconut curry from oasis were huge and very juicy

[canucklehead]

Here are pictures of Feenie's offerings:

Alsatian Pizaa

Short Rib Sandwich

Salmon - well something - did not get the description

[Megs]

Salmon - well something - did not get the description

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[Daddy-A]

I stayed away from the BBQ grills because well, I didn't want to fill out on food that wouldn't be offering anything special.

Dude, if Memphis Mike was there again this year, you missed out BIG TIME. His pulled pork is almost as good as mine! Seriously thought, he did brisken and pork last year. Both were fantastic.

A.

[canucklehead]

I stayed away from the BBQ grills because well, I didn't want to fill out on food that wouldn't be offering anything special.

Dude, if Memphis Mike was there again this year, you missed out BIG TIME. His pulled pork is almost as good as mine! Seriously thought, he did brisken and pork last year. Both were fantastic.

A.

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Memphis Mike WAS there! Fart! I did not try his brisket - the line up to his booth was insane - it never fell below 30 or 40 people the whole time I was there. And I thought - well - how could it measure up to the Daddy A pulled pork. Stupid me.

Ack - those line ups were insane. And the egullet decoder ring got me nowhere...

[nwyles]

Any chance we could convince Neil to participate next year with his GBP???

Not a chance.

I run my entire restaurant, 5 lunches and seven night with 13 staff members ( including me ). I am very, very careful when I pick events to do. This would shorthand us at the "mothership" and that would not be good. Why do it when I am only a hop, skip and a jump away and you could get the full portion for only 6 bucks !

[shelora]

dude you need to get the name right its called "taste of the city", and yes it was a good time, we need more events of its kind

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Can you please elaborate on why you need more of these kinds of events? As an outsider, the restaurant industry seems to be doing just fine, even a lot more than just fine in Vancouver.

Edited September 22, 2005 by shelora (log)

[kontemporary]

dude you need to get the name right its called "taste of the city", and yes it was a good time, we need more events of its kind

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Can you please elaborate on why you need more of these kinds of events? As an outsider, the restaurant industry seems to be doing just fine, even a lot more than just fine in Vancouver.

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Well I for one thinks it's a great way to taste different places that you haven't been to, get a bang for your buck, and a fun event for everybody to head to - promoting local goods and restaurants.

[vandan]

i agree, well said