Valerie van der Gracht 
…the most fun you can have on a Sunday afternoon. I joined the many excited participants lined up on Sunday outside of xoxolat chocolate shop waiting with anticipation to collect our Culinary Scavenger Hunt map. This fun event is organized by Richard Wolak of Vancouver Foodster fame. What a great idea! You get … Read more
On Sunday March 30 I was Seattle bound for TASTE WASHINGTON! My first trip down to a wine tasting event that has been running for 17 years. Taste Washington! is the largest single region wine and food event in the United States. Featuring more than 225 Washington State wineries and over 65 Pacific Northwest Restaurants. … Read more
Or in this case getting there, and back, was worth the trip! This past week I attended Taste Washington! for the first time. One of our experienced wine writers, Karl “mywinepal” mentioned this wine tasting event and I was intrigued. But more about my time at Taste Washington! in a future article. This was a … Read more
We are absolutely thrilled to announce that MyVanCity.ca has been nominated for an Excellence in Engagement Award (non profit). This is truly an honour and we couldn’t be more excited. Now we need your vote to put us over the top! http://socialmediaawards.ca/voting/excellence-in-engagement-non-profit/ Here is what the nominator said about MyVanCity.ca My VanCity MyVanCity.ca is a … Read more
Who knew? There is a wonderfully classic dining room smack dap in the middle of “old town” Duncan on Vancouver Island. Opened just this past November I was delighted to have discovered this adorable establishment while I was in Victoria attending Culinaire. What first made me even consider the foray up Island from … Read more
Before you even arrive at Culinaire Victoria in the Crystal Gardens expectations have been set pretty high. Although quite a different event from Scott Gurney’s popular Brewery and the Beast it still has the earmarks of the same success. Brewery and the Beast debuted in Vancouver in 2013 on a brilliantly warm and sunny … Read more
My afternoon this past week was an introduction to new beverages that are either speculative or recently listed in the government liquor stores presented at a New Product Salon. Here is what I sampled, in random order, which is only a fraction of what was being poured. The majority are speculative beverages and I … Read more
You know I enjoy wine tastings even though I consider myself to be an entry level taster or a novice wine taster but it wasn’t until I started to discover other events beyond wine tasting that I came to love food and wine (or beverage) events. First it was experiencing Parksville Uncorked. I … Read more
We are giving away 2 free tickets to YVR Foodies East is East in Kitsilano on April 6 from 3 to 5 pm To enter you must do three things, Sign-up for our newsletter, Like us on Facebook and Follow us on Twitter: Sign-up for our My Van City newsletter http://myvancity.ca/newsletter/ (mandatory for 1 entry) Like … Read more
There is no doubt that the number of events, including dinners, receptions, lunches, grazings and seminars are many during the Vancouver International Wine Festival. For me there is always one that stands above the crowd, not necessarily the fanciest or most expensive but the one that, in my opinion, best captures the essence of what … Read more