Fall Colors Canadian Style - Chris and Steven let us down · Monday September 22, 2008 by colin newell
About a month ago we got a call from the CBC asking us to come to Toronto to appear on the Steven and Chris show – and like every other media outlet, newspaper and radio station, we bend over backwards to get the message out about specialty coffee. After all, it is our thing. The more we talk about the World of Coffee, the better it is for the people that actually work in the fields, on the farms, the coops and the processing factories – to bring you that cup of Joe that you love so dearly.
It is about the 12 million family members that grow coffee. Not us. Them.
That said, you had better make it worth while to travel several thousand miles to appear on a TV show for three minutes… which is why I deferred the task to the lovely Sara Lee Spector of Every Day Gourmet Coffee – because the CBC does not have a penny for guests who travel from places like Victoria B.C.
Anyway. Sara was somewhat apprehensive about this task because it would mean taking 4 to 6 hours out of her busy day – Along with her hard working staff, Sara is the production back-bone of Every Day Gourmet Coffee.
But that is OK. The CBC and the producers of the Steven and Chris show (like virtually every TV show I have ever dealt with…) promise the moon in exchange for some of our precious time. In Chris and Stevens case, their producer and videographer, Barbara, guaranteed a mention of Every Day Gourmet Coffee and the CoffeeCrew website for our trouble. Hey, I even blogged the event further back in my archive giving Chris and Steven a good dollop of free publicity.
Me being the perpetual cynic, I figured… “Sure, whatever…” TV shows on the CBC with their paper thin budgets will make any number of promises to get the volunteers they need – and we cannot fault them for that – especially when we expect this kind of cheesy treatment.
Anyway – it still burns me up a bit. I contacted the producer today and she said… “Well, this season we are not keying in credits during the show…”
Uhm. Hello. I watched the episode. You were keying in the name and credentials of the guests. What was so difficult about giving credit where it was due?
Oh wait. I know. At the end of the Steven and Chris show, they were giving away Tim Horton’s coffee to everyone on the show.
Tim Horton’s. After a wonderful lecture from Sara on what coffee is all about… We get an ad for Tim Horton’s.
Something smells here, and it isn’t good coffee.
Steven and Chris. You guys can do better than this.
Colin Newell lives and dreams in Victoria B.C. Canada on the West Coast of Canada. He believes in good food, good coffee and great friends. And this is the first in the Fall series of blogs on Food, Drink and Fun for the Fall.
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Summer food fun and drink - feel the love at J & J Wonton Noodle House · Saturday September 20, 2008 by colin newell
Just prior to getting married in the mid-nineties, Andrea and I watched with great anticipation the opening of J & J Wonton Noodle House. For the life of me I cannot remember quite why. Maybe as marriage is a new beginning, so the opening of a new restaurant plays a symbolic role in that chapter.
So. J &J Wonton Noodle House opened in 1994 by Head Chef Joseph Wong, the restaurant is a family run business, bringing the authentic style of Chinese cooking from all over China. Joseph has over 20 years of experience and has won countless number of awards. He previously owned Szechuan Resturant in Victoria, he then decided to re-challenge himself and opened J and J Wonton Noodle House which has become more successful than his last culinary adventure.
For me, the joy of J & J, in part, is being greeting by the ever lovely and vivacious Lillian – Lillian, who has been at J & J since day one seemed to recognize us on our 2nd and subsequent visits.
About 56 visits later, we are still feeling that love.
Lately I have been popping in for semi-business lunches – today for example, I met up with baker-mentor-friend Mark Engels of Bubby Roses Bakery. We both ordered soup – and in Mark’s case, we got the soup that Lillian thought was best for him. Is that caring or what? No one cares what I order! Actually – Lillian does care and explained why the Sichuan Shrimp Noodle soup was more appropriate for me over the Spicy Ginger Beef Noodle soup that Mark got. Sorry. No explanation for you punters out there on internet land.
Anyway – Mark and I both agreed that we have a crush on Lillian and a love for the food at J & J Wonton Noodle House – a joint that is as much embedded in the fabric of foodie in Victoria… as the hanging baskets are part of the streets of the city.
Lunches at J & J are typically under $10 with Tea. The service is prompt, professional and filled with attentive love.
Summer food fun and drink - Tea fest comes to Victoria · Friday September 19, 2008 by colin newell
Tea. It is subtle and restful. Which is the polar opposite of what coffee is. If you want to chill, then pouring yourself a great big mug of Jump Up and Get Busy is probably not a good idea.
So it only makes sense that Victoria is hosting the Victoria Tea Festival
Because… after all, Victoria is one town that loves tea, tea houses, high tea, crumpets and tea, strawberry tea… but do not take my word for it…
So. Kick up your heels. Put on your granny glasses. And pour a cup.
You will be glad you did.
Summer food fun and drink - Kopi Luwak at Coffee Fest 2008 · Wednesday September 17, 2008 by colin newell
This has been the first time I have been to the United States of America since 2002. And
it was good. Very good.
Last Friday we hopped on a morning Clipper to Seattle and were there in a smooth 2 hours or so. The Victoria Clipper is like riding in a jet plane… on the water. Moving along at 30 knots in a high speed jet powered catamaran is a pretty neat way of getting around. It works. In combination with a Clipper Vacation weekend, it makes for a great pre-paid get-away where you can pick your hotel… and go.
We have stayed at the Roosevelt Hotel before so this one was no surprise. I personally like quaint old boutique hotels – and the Roos never lets us down. The rooms are a tad small and rough around the edges, but the place is squeaky clean – and it has Von’s Restaurant and Bar – and dang, I love that place!
Anyway – smooth trip down. Only hitch was, there was a cruise ship in or going out and there was a dearth of Yellow Cabs. We called the number on my cell and we had 3 in about 10 minutes – which was great because we had a fan club shortly after docking.
The ride to the Roosevelt from the Clipper dock is about 7 minutes if it is 5. Check-in was courteous, pleasant and a breeze. We show our chit and we are in. Same for the taxi. It is paid for. You pull your wallet for tips – that is pretty much it.
After getting settled in the hotel, it was off to the convention to pick up our conference bag and credential holder. Another breeze.
Walking onto the coffee fest floor for the first time ever was a total knock in the socks for me. The air is filled with coffee, caffeine, chocolate and love. The Love was in the room. For 30 bucks one could spend 3 days drinking coffee and espresso, tasting chocolate and smoothies and rubbing shoulders with some of the brightest in the business. How fun is that?
The social side of this event is killer – next year I am going to plan more and get involved with more stuff. As it happened, I met up with numerous coffee friends and Seattle area buddies and turned it into a marathon. Andrea and I had a great time and will do it again next year.
Highlights? Tasting the free samples of farmed Kopi Luwak. For those folks who do not know what Kopi Luwak is… Wiki it.
For me, drinking it – even the 2 fluid ounce sample I was provided was like… ahem… kissing my sister on the lips. Yea. It was that yucky. Two sips and I was rushing for a mango smoothie. I have read all kinds of glowing reports about this coffee – my opinion: It tasted wierd and generally off… not something I would actually pay for. I did discover a neat drink made with taro that was awesome. I could go on and on about the particulars of Coffee Fest, but I think I will save that for my coffee website.
Our new motto: We drink the Kopi Luwak so you don`t have to!
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