Fishing for lunch... Barb's place · Monday June 25, 2007 by colin newell
I am a big fan of Fish and Chips. Everywhere I go, I have to try and find the best Fish and Chips that the city has to offer.
Barb’s Place in Fisherman’s Wharf, Victoria B.C. Canada is a stop I make a few times a year.
Let me just say that I have been coming to Barb’s for years… since Barb actually ran it. She does not anymore – Barb’s was sold to some dude a few years ago.
My overall experience, once I got past the sticker shock ($17.50 for a 2 piece Halibut and Fries meal!) was, well, blah.
It is not that exciting and certainly not worth the gold they demand for a floating kiosk style joint. The fish is OK for a product that is delivered to their door. The batter is bland and a tad soggy. The fries are mushy and instantly forgotten.
The upside of the Barb’s experience is sharing a table with tourists. There is always talk-story and you will always make new friends here. And if that isn’t enough, the buskers are entertaining and original and sea lions feed a few feet away.
In the end analysis, Barb’s Place could well be the most expensive order of Fish and Chips in North America – I do not know.
All I know is… It is OK. Nothing to write home about. They do have a captive audience here – I mean, tourists wander off of cruise ships within a few blocks so I think the pricing here comes down to the “what the market will bear” economic theory.
For some reason on this particular Saturday, I was inclined to order some Onion Rings ($4.50) — possibly the most expensive order of Onion Rings anywhere.
Good thing this is enough food for my wife and I. Yes, we share a double order of Halibut and Fries.
With Onion Rings and a single refillable “pop” – that comes to $27 or so.
On a scale of 1 to 10, this Fish and Chip meal comes in at about a 6. I have had way better for less.
In a continuing series on food and drink on Vancouver Island, Colin explores the good, the bad, and the downright tastless.
Hands in your pocket rant #2 · Wednesday June 6, 2007 by colin newell
We have known for years now that Canadian chartered banks have been screwing their customers with obscene ATM fees.
Bank profits are at record levels. And how to banks respond to their record braking profits? They raise fees more.
Actually, they do other things.
They screw their employees out of fairly earned wages. And they have been doing this for years.
Here is the trick. I can it the Walmart maneuver
Load up the employees with more work than they could possibly complete in a 7 to 8 hour shift and then stiff them for the unauthorized overtime that they end up doing.
There is nothing that angers me more than giant companies and corporations that rip off their hard working and dedicated staff… and get away with it.
Now CIBC is in the cross-hairs.
Apparently they have garnered some media attention now because people are coming forward (and hiring legals) to report these and many other similar abuses.
The payout could be in the hundreds of millions of dollars (representing a lot of unpaid overtime)
Remember this friend: Banks are not your friends.
Banks think that they are doing you a great big favor to handle and exploit your money.
Think about this the next time you want to open a bank account. Think about trust companies and credit unions.
This just in - Canada does not matter · Sunday June 3, 2007 by colin newell
The Washington Post is on the eve of closing its Toronto bureau.
Which leaves no American newspapers with real staff in Canada.
I guess it is good to stay below Uncle Sam’s radar.
I mean, look what happened to Iraq?
Olympic Rant #10 - Live from Whistler · Tuesday May 29, 2007 by colin newell
That is right folks. In order to serve you better, I have come up to ground zero for the 2010 Olympics… Whistler B.C. Canada
The drive up here through all the construction was absolutely mind boggling – on a scale that is almost unimaginable.
Billions and billions spent on the 2-week party for uber-jocks, royalty and the corporate elite.
And all on your coin my Canadian friends.
Ok. Those words again…
Friend, Sea to Sky, host country and driven by nature…
Phrases I am forbidden to use…
upon pain of persecution.
Cheers – day one Whistler rant series.
