A closer look at the Tiny Bites grand prizes
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Karen Hamilton
August 5, 2009
I know my descriptions of the Tiny Bites Top Donor and Grand Prize were a little slim, so in light of last-minute sponsorships and the fact that I had all the prizes sitting here in front of me, here’s a closer look at what Blogathon 2009 donors and prize winners Victor Tang and Jason Lau have to look forward to.
First, an update: Andrea came through with a $134.99 post-Blogathon donation to push our collection to an even $2500. We made our revised fundraising goal – hooray!
The Tiny Bites Top Donor Prize
For donating a cool $180 to be this year’s top individual donor, Victor won a unique progressive dinner experience for 2 at the Vancouver restaurants of the Top Table family. Here’s what he and his +1 might experience that night:
Amuses bouches and appetizers at Blue Water Cafe + Raw Bar
Mains and more at West
Dessert and petit fours at CinCin
I am green with envy that Victor gets to sample these stellar restaurants in a single evening of chef collaboration. I hope he is willing to indulge us all in a recap of his dinner with Top Table. Having recently crafted a fantasy progressive dinner for Tourism Vancouver, I’d certainly be curious to see how a real progressive dinner plays out.
The Tiny Bites Grand Prize
Our Gold, Silver, and Bronze sponsors have contributed to this amazing prize package worth $450 $500. Jason, you’re a lucky son of a gun.
Alpha Global Sushi & Bar: bottle of Dan Dan shochu
My favourite izakaya called shortly after Blogathon to belatedly confirm their contribution to the Tiny Bites Grand Prize. I’ve discussed their bar menu in last year’s Blogathon and am so pleased that they were able to participate as a sponsor this year.
Artisan Sakemaker: bottles of Osake junmai nama and Artisan Kasu products
I had the privilege of trying local sakemaker Masa Shiroki’s new line of sakekasu a few months past. If you’re not already a fan of Artisan Sakemaker’s sake, perhaps the new citrus dressing and hot sauce – along with Masa’s suggested recipes - will give you cause to try them this year.
ChristaHoops: custom-fit rainbow hoop
ChristaHoops will custom fit Jason (or his friend of choice) with a beautiful rainbow hoop. Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it – it’s a fun and energetic workout!
Farmstead Wines: bottle of Renato Fenocchio extra virgin olive oil
You may have already tried the beautiful artisan wines that Farmstead Wines imports to our fair city…but have you tried Renato Fenocchio’s exquisite olive oil yet?
Qoola Yogurt + Fruit: $100 gift card for Qoola
This gift card is the equivalent of 20 Qoolalas with 2 toppings or however else you’d like to spend the $100 credit. If you get addicted like I have, it can be reloaded to continue enjoying Qoola till your tummy is done with frozen yogurt.
Rouxbe: 1 year premium membership to Rouxbe’s Online Cooking School
Jason is already a loyal Rouxbe Lifetime member ($199) so he asked me to raffle away the $99 Annual Membership that was in his Grand Prize package (which George F. wound up winning).
Sebastian & Co: $35 butcher shop credit
Jason met me in West Vancouver to pick up 6 different types of artisan sausage plus a smoked applewood cheddar with his Sebastian & Co store credit. I think I’ll be inviting myself over to his house for dinner soon…
Social Bites: 10% off discount passes to future Social Bites dinner excursions
I’ve already said my piece about how fun Social Bites is, both as dinner guest and Hobby Chef. Jason has yet to experience it in either capacity so I hope he takes this opportunity to do so.
Tiny Bites Consulting: Winnipeg Folk Fest cookies
These are the cookies I had with me at The Workspace for fellow Blogathoners to satiate hunger pangs at 3am. Chock full of flax, oats, sunflower seeds, coconut with a little chocolate chip and brown sugar thrown in. Here’s the recipe.
Uva Wine Bar: bottle of 2006 Speri Valipolicella Ripasso
Below are Uva General Manager and sommelier Sebastien Le Goff’s tasting notes on this Venetian wine:
Rich, spicy, black cherry, brooding.
Intense, elegant style, pure and persistent. Fine acidity, balanced. Good length. Drink from 2010.
Speri uses only grapes from the Valpolicella zone to make its wines. In addition to the three traditional grape varieties, Corvina, Rondinella and Molinara, small quantities of other lesser known but long-standing varieties are used like Oseleta, Rossanella, Pelara, and Cabrosina.
The Corvina is considered the most important vine variety due to its tannin content and pigments. It imparts fruity aromas, particularly when it is cultivated on the hills.
The Rondinella is able to adapt to many types of terrain, to withstand drought and lends itself quite well to drying. It is vigorous and very prolific.
The Molinara is mainly used for the distinctive flavour and crispness it gives the wine.Bigger than a Valpolicella but smaller than an Amarone, the ’06 Speri “ripasso” has been re-fermented over the spent skins of Amarone. There’s a floral earthy scorched earth nose with bits of red fruit and spice and a warm, acidic, alcoholic finish. Best with a piece of Reggiano or Manchego cheese. The fruit comes off family-owned sites in the heart of Valpolicella Classico.
Why am I taunting those of you aren’t getting these prizes? Because I hope that you realize that Tiny Bites will be participating in Blogathon next year, and we certainly plan on rewarding you with prizes like these in 2010!
So mark your calendars and earmark some of your dollars for the last weekend of July for Blogathon 2010.
Categories: Blogathon 2009, Blogging for Social Change, Downtown, False Creek, Food, Food Purveyors, Granville Island, Restaurants, South Granville, West Vancouver, Yaletown
Ocean Wise infiltrates the sushi market with Zen Japanese Restaurant
1 Comment Karen HamiltonJuly 25, 2009
Are you familiar with the Vancouver Aquarium’s Ocean Wise program?
If not, you’re in luck. Blogathon 2009 Gold sponsor Coast Hotels & Resorts asked that we spread the word about this terrific initiative to adopt and promote sustainable aquaculture across Canada.
And we had a perfect topic to help us put it in context: the launch of Zen Japanese Restaurant’s Ocean Wise sushi menu, which is going a long way in pioneering the sustainable sushi movement in Greater Vancouver.
The quest for sustainable sushi
If you’ve been paying attention to all this chef talk about exemplifying local, seasonal, and sustainable cuisine, you should already be aware that the line of support is plainly drawn between fine dining establishments and the rest of the restaurant community. There are always exceptions, of course – Qoola immediately comes to mind – but the disparity of philosophy is most obvious when you look across that divide and witness the often unsustainable and eco-unaware practices of ethnic restaurants in Greater Vancouver.
Sushi restaurants, especially those with a casual dining or take-out audience, don’t seem to care whether their seafood is farmed, acquired illegally, or even on the endangered species list. The customer’s demand comes first, and that’s what ultimately matters.
Now, I’ve seen more than a handful of mid-range sushi restaurants with the Ocean Wise label on a few of their seafood items, but until Zen came along, I had never seen a sushi place shift its menu to be at least 25% Ocean Wise. Imagine my surprise when I arrived at the Ocean Wise launch of Zen’s new menu, where a whopping 70% of their offerings are Ocean Wise!
Well done, Zen.
Canada’s 2009 Seafood Guide
Ocean Wise was not the only organization representing marine conservation at the Zen menu launch. Both the David Suzuki Foundation (my Blogathon 2008 charity of choice) and SeaChoice were in attendance – both members of Sustainable Seafood Canada.
SeaChoice took this as an opportunity to present guests with the new 2009 edition of the wallet-sized Canada’s Seafood Guide (PDF). I was pleased to see that BC spot prawns are on the Best Choice category, and chagrined that we haven’t made further inroads to making farmed salmon a more sustainable option.
Did you know?
SeaChoice has recently come out with an iPhone app version of their Canada’s Seafood Guide! Way to bring it to the hipsters, SeaChoice.
The trickle-down effect
My guest to the Zen launch was Johnny Flores, co-owner of Robson corridor’s Sushi Bento. His restaurant services a much more casual audience than Zen’s West Vancouver demographic. However, Johnny had participated last fall in a sustainable sushi PodMob and was on the fence about joining Ocean Wise as a bona fide member.
I’m extremely pleased to report that Johnny, being inspired and awed by the efforts of Zen, told me that he has taken the plunge to become Ocean Wise certified – hooray!
My hope is that this trickle-down effect continues: that those sushi restaurants that can afford to pave the path do engage with the smaller players in the market and similarly inspire them to make the change to sustainable sushi.
Categories: Blogathon 2009, Blogging for Social Change, Downtown, Events, Food, Going Green, Restaurants, West Vancouver
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