Valerie van der Gracht 
Usually I like to dine twice at any restaurant before I write a review, but often this is not possible. This time it was my second time reviewing Ugly Duckling. The first time I had the honour of reviewing the exclusive L’Abattoir x | Ugly Duckling | Gastown Meets Chinatown last November. Two champions of … Read more
Earlier this week I conducted a wine tasting of four lovely wines from Blue Grouse. This was a private wine tasting with friends. All totalled there were about twenty wine loving friends gathered in our condo building’s lounge. It was the ideal spot to sit, enjoy the wines and socialize. Our lounge was just big … Read more
Earlier this week I was fortunate to attend the first-ever Canadian seminar and trade tasting of wines from Victoria, Australia. All of these wines were new to me and I was really looking forward to the experience. Wine Victoria brought its leading wineries to Canada, offering an exclusive look at one of the world’s most … Read more
Savour the Wild Dining Experiences in the Heart of Nature In conversation with Chef / Founder Colton Armstrong-Ashley and Creative Director / Founder Saman Rezapour of Savour the Wild prior to their appearance at Culinaire in Victoria. The BC duo redefining live-fire dining. When did you first develop an interest in cooking? As soon as … Read more
I love Japanese food and when SYU reached out to me to do a review I was definitely excited to try out this new spot located in Kitsilano at 1508 Yew Street. Just up the street from the iconic Kits Beach. My first impression was a feeling of tranquility in a calm and pleasant atmosphere, … Read more
This past week I had the pleasure and opportunity to taste the wines from both Blue Grouse Estate Winery and Unsworth Vineyards. The event was billed as Pinot & Pizza and held at Pinhalla (a pinball pizzeria) located in downtown Victoria’s Chinatown. It was indeed a rather intriguing approach and an interesting invitation for sure. I think … Read more
In Conversation with Chef Jay Park winner of Canada’s Great Kitchen Party Chef Jay Park of Boulevard Kitchen and Oyster Bar now qualifies to compete for the Canadian Culinary Championship Did you pursue any other fields before going into culinary? Actually when I was in high school I started into music, playing trumpet, just in … Read more
There are limited number of tickets still available.
In conversation with Russell Stefan – Spirits Business Development & Community Lead and Kevin Titcomb, Master Distiller at Phillips Fermentorium Distilling Co. I posed a few questions to Russell Stefan and Kevin Titcomb just ahead of the Victoria Whisky Festival which runs through Thursday the 15th, Friday the 16th, Saturday the 17th and Sunday the 18th … Read more
Victoria Whisky Festival Thursday 15th, Friday 6th, Saturday 17th Sunday 18th of January 2026.