cocktails

The Rain at Grain Stays Mainly on the Pane

August 9, 2013
Grain brings a breath of fresh air

 Grain’s slide-away wall brings Burrard Street right inside Regional cuisine is not what first used to come to mind at The Hyatt Regency Vancouver. However, all that has now changed. The main floor bar (just off the lobby, overlooking Burrard near Melville) has been convincingly reinvented and remodeled as Grain Tasting Bar (655 Burrard St., […]

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Tales of the Cocktail on Tour Returns with a Delightfully ‘Cheeky’ Launch

February 14, 2012

Vancouver’s classiest cocktail salute is back with a vengeance this week. Judging by the weekend pre-show and first day’s activities, it promises to far outshine last year’s inaugural event, which was impressive—even more so considering it was the first run. Where cocktails and bartenders mix, even the most functional of activities is likely to turn […]

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Tales of the Cocktail on Tour Returns to Vancouver in time for Valentine’s

January 27, 2012

It’s just a couple of weeks until Tales of the Cocktail on Tour rolls into Vancouver, Feb 12-14, to no doubt repeat its highly successful inaugural show from last March. Not familiar with this pretty awesome salute to the wood? Read all about last year’s here. This year’s program is greatly expanded. From the 2012 release: Held once […]

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It’s Always Pimm’s O’Clock Somewhere

September 10, 2011

  Our Borage is in flower so it’s time to resurrect the Pimms bottle. Here’s an update to last year’s post (which our friend Ross says is way too long, anyway…) Pimm’s recipe:  You will need (per drink): • Borage flowers and small leaves (ideally) or Cucumber, or both • 2 oz. Pimms No 1. • 6 oz of […]

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Tales of the Cocktail Vancouver: Looking Forward to Next Year

March 21, 2011

We’ve been taking stock of last week’s cocktail infused days, sifting through images and notes from Tales of the Cocktail—the New Orleans success story brought to Vancouver by TOTC founder Ann Tuenneman. Kudos to the contingent of savvy folks behind the Canadian Professional Bartenders Association—such as Jay Jones—who brought to this event an energy that […]

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Top BC Bartenders Strut their Stuff in a New Age of Alchemy

October 30, 2010

Last Monday, months of hard work came to fruition with Dish ‘n Dazzle—a fundraiser for the BC Hospitality Foundation. It was a lively time, with a fantastic buzz in a spectacular setting, at the summit level of the Vancouver Convention Centre, sporting dazzling views of the harbour at night. If you were ever in doubt […]

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Vancouver’s L’Abattoir: Gastown’s newest destination

August 27, 2010

Tuned up heritage bar and dining lounge adds up to historic district’s latest lively lure Walk into Gastown’s newest star, L’Abattoir (217 Carrall St., 604-568-1701) and the first person you’ll likely meet is Shaun Layton, who runs everything bar-wise here.  Shaun is one of the best. We know that, having watched him and tasted his efforts […]

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Bao Bei, Vancouver: Small Plates as ‘Petits Plats Chinois’

April 15, 2010

Steak tartar like never before Vancouver’s Chinatown has fallen on rough times these last few years, its once unique shopping eclipsed by Richmond’s glitzy malls. Even our foraging finds us more often at T&T’s live seafood bar than the eminently more interesting fishmongers on Gore and Pender. Until now, with the exception perhaps of oversized […]

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