1) dawn on Waikiki from our room

We spent our first 4 days in Hawaii in Honolulu at the Hilton Hawaiian Village, which was more by fate then choice. It was the conference hotel and was where I was put up. The Hilton Hawaiian Village is a 'resort' and definitely has the resort feel with gobs of tourists - many Japanese - and all-in-all had the feel of a cruise ship to it rather than a hotel. It has resident penguins, macaws and flamingos, umpteen towers (I was told some 3000 rooms), seven pools all filled to capacity with wee ones, and a small 'village' of tourist shops and restaurants.

Honolulu struck me as any other large American city but in particular I was left with both a feel of a toned down Las Vegas, and, along the main shopping strip - Kalakaua Ave - a feel of Orchard Road in Singapore, though more casual.

We committed to an all sushi diet while in Honolulu and took up residence for meals at Kai-wa (excellent; an outpost of the Tokyo teppan restaurant with superb rolls) and would highly recommend it.

2) G strolls along Waikiki Beach; 3) the penguins at the Hilton

4) aburi tuna roll with spicy sesame sauce; 5) love the yellow rescue board on the fire trucks here

6) cucumber and seaweed salad (the bonito broth with this was stunning)

7) pumpkin and asparagus salad; 8) egg and green onion omelet

9) easily THE BEST hamachi I've ever eaten

10) Waikiki; 11) sunset at Waikiki

12) there she goes

13) dusk from our room

We've been joyously holed up at the St. Regis on Kaua'i since leaving Honolulu and will make our way back to Honolulu mid-week.

 

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Though it's tough, I've been forced to find myself through Easter in Hawaii.

1) view from our hotel on Waikiki

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Vancouver is in many, many respects still a provincial town by which I mean it is a young city with a cultural scene (specifically theatre and culinary arts) that continues to evolve. Food is in its infancy here and trends that hit New York and Toronto shores years ago are novel here now. Witness: macaroons. Witness: the dearth of molecular cooking establishments (Hamid Salimian's fine Diva at the Met notwithstanding). Witness: the tiny handful of top tier restaurants (Blue Water Cafe, C, West, Hawksworth, L'Abattoir). Witness: the current donut rage (I'm not even sure the cupcake rage ever hit Vancouver) led by newbie Cartems whose store is but open 10-3 and is often sold out by noon; expect a line.

1) Cartems, bought today to celebrate Friday; 2) fabulousness sure; healthy? well .... though that chocolate one you see with the sprinkles in top right hand corner is all vegan and baked not fried ... and freaking delicious

As the local entertainment weekly, The Georgia Straight, noted this past week in its edition on the Vancouver foodie scene, the city lacks the population to anchor fine dining. The outrageous cost of living here limits discretionary spending and dining out is often cheap eats or seats at the ever growing chain restaurants that dominate (and dare we say dumb-down menus across the Lower Mainland) including: Joey's, Catus Club and Earl's. Vancouver does do sushi very well sure, its street food scene puts Toronto to shame and can vie with some of the best south of the boarder, and I would challenge you to find a more diverse (regionally-speaking) array of Chinese restaurants in all of the Americas.

I'm not sure where I was going with this actually suffice to say the donuts and the article got me thinking of it. Tonight, we'll head east to try Bitter Tasting Room.

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There was a tremendously beautiful rainbow over Burrard Inlet last Thursday afternoon. It actually spanned from the downtown eastside across the Inlet to North Vancouver with that ominous grey in the background and gorgeous sunshine in the foreground.

1) what a beautiful rainbow

It was a two-fold kind of weekend for us. Firstly, we're into the fabulousness that is NCAA College Basketball "March Madness" so I've been glued to the television. Secondly, we managed to use four of our outstanding Groupons - for a curling lesson at the Richmond Curling Club (loved it and we won!); for a chocolate tasting at Leonidas at Waterfront (stupid Americans tourists who took umteen hours to chose a freaking chocolate aside, this was grand. I mean, com'on, chocolate, how can you go wrong); for a Baskin Robin's St Patrick's Day ice cream cake (just a so-so experience for me); and for lunch at The Mac Shack which is a new place in Vancouver that serves an all macoroni and cheese all the time menu (loved it too!).

2) G shows fine curling form during our warm-up; 3) dark chocolates for moi, milk chocolates for G

At the Mac Shack we had their Royale Mac (bacon, bell peppers, broccoli, mushrooms, chicken, chorizo and shrimp with Mozzarella and Gruyere cheese in a rose sauce) and a Lobster Mac (Asiago & Canadian Cheddar, authentic Lobster meat, oyster mushrooms, lemon, dill and truffle oil in a cream sauce). The Royale is a real winner!

Next, onwards to some more film reviews:

Biutiful

Biutiful is anything but. Uxbal (a stunning performance by Javier Bardem) lives a life of petty crime and human smuggling in the underbelly of Barcelona. Trying to be a father to his two children, Ana (Hanaa Bouchaid) and Mateo (Guillermo Estrella) while simultaneously dealing with his divorced, abusive, bipolar wife (an amazing Maricel Alvarez) Uxbal learns he has terminal cancer. This reality understandably changes Uxbal and Mexican uber-director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu (ex Babel fame) does a simply magnificent job showing us this. Biutiful is as bleak a film as you will see in sometime but the 'humanness' of it thanks to the marriage of Bardem's performance and Inarritu's skilled hands makes the journey through parenthood, love and guilt worth it. An exceedinly fine film. My rating of 8 out of 10.

For G's birthday we headed back for another stay at the Fairmont Pacific Rim and decadently ordered Oru's signature "Seafood Tower" which came to our room with every manner of delicious seafood - shrimps; lobster; crab; mussels; oysters; calms and two types of sashimi (complete with all sorts of accompanying sauces and dips). It was brilliant; simply brilliant and I'd order it again in a nanosecond.

1 & 2) our suite for G's bday

3 & 4) amazing! ... dig in!

5) the folks at Fairmont left us some bonbons too

G also scored tickets to see the first place Vancouver Canucks play second place St. Louis Blues at Rogers Centre. We had great seats and despite being a rather dull defensive game, in the end - in the third period - Burrows scored and Vancouver went on to a 2-0 win. Go Canucks Go! Best of all, there was no post game riot and we had but a not-more-than-4-minute walk back to the condo.

6) hanging out at the game

The seafood theme continued last week when we ventured into Yaletown to one of the West Coast's (and Canada's) finest restaurants - The Blue Water Cafe + Raw Bar (chef is Frank Pabst; raw bar/sushi chef is Yoshiya Maruyama) - for dinner with a very pregnant Sandra and hubby Don. Thanks Don & Sand for a fabulous meal!

7) Blue Water Cafe; 8) moving clockwise from the horseradish at bottom, we have 2 each of: Chef's Creek oysters; Komo Gway; Kusshi; Little Wing; Reed Island and Sawmill

9) the sashimi platter; 10) truffled fries with fresh Parmesan

11) a trio of rolls: spicy tuna; dungeness crab and sockeye salmon

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1) the view from the condo looking out towards the Gulf

My folks bought our condo in Florida in 1990 and I last visited waaay back in the first week of September 2001. How can I be so precise? Easy, G and I flew out from Sarasota on Sunday, September 9th and two days later we're all very familiar with what happened and how the world of travel - in particular - changed dramatically. The past couple years we tried unsuccessfully to get down; such is life.

However, I have been down here a week (sadly without G). I'll tell you though, Sarasota is a farther cry from Vancouver than Toronto ever was. I know that's obvious but getting from there to here is a chore. I overnighted in Seattle and routed from there through Atlanta to Tampa. Strangely, the silly folks at Delta (who I flew with) overbooked the Seattle-Atlanta flight and had the gall to send out an online survey asking opinions about 'overbooked' flights. I replied saying simply, 'hello you dimwits, here's a concept, don't overbook the flight in the first place!'. It's both obscene and embarrassing that an airline is actually conducting surveys on such matters.

Tonight, I'm sitting here overlooking the Manatee River as the sun sets into the Gulf off to my right. It's lovely and I must admit a certain amount of longing that I've missed some 11 years of hanging out in Florida. My folks are in residence too (they're here till May lucky buggers) and I've run with Papa several times; we've ate far too much; ditto drinking; gone beaching; shopped in St. Armand's Circle; worked on a puzzle; visited the South Florida Museum and Parker Manatee Aquarium (where I did see manatees); and lazily lounged. I've been reading Murakami's brilliant 1Q84 (highly recommend if you've not yet given it a read). It's been great! 

2) you know you're home when ... you cross the Sunshine Parkway; 3) ma welcomes me upon arrival

4) papa says hi; 5) the condo complex

6) we've laid in a world of beers (the Samurai was the best by far); 7) our pet flamingo in the entrance foyer (we really ought to let her go)

8) the Manatee River from our balcony; 9) me posing in my casuals

10) these are a wonderful invention; 11) the condo again

12) inside the condo compound we kept an eye out for manatees here (someone said they saw them but, alas, we did not); 13) the pool

14) we did most dinners on the balcony and; 15) watched the sun set

16) this night it was ribs and cauliflower tabbouleh; 17) my favourite beach of olden days - `Sea Oats`at Beer Can Island - my how it`s changed since G and I were last here

18 & 19) a visit is never complete without a visit to the Columbia House at St. Armand`s for their famous 1905 salad and Cuban sandwich and sangria

20) a pelican drifts at Anna Maria Island Pier; 21) there was champagne but of course

22) beaching ourselves at Cortez; 23) ma and papa at breakfast on the beach

 

24) me collecting shells for G; 25) gator on the beach!

 

26) there's ma and papa with the beach to themselves; 27) that one bird was damn angry at the other one

28) visiting the museum; 29) Jaws to the nth power

30 & 31) there is "Snooty" who is 63 years young and the longest living manatee in captivity

 

32) a mock-up of de Soto's home at the museum; 33) here is "Charlie" a 3 year old manatee that lost its mom when she was struck by a boat (sadly, an all too common occurrence). He is being rehabilitated and will be released back into the river. Sadly, unlike Snooty, manatees in the wild have a life expectancy of about 8 years

 

34) at the aquarium mom and I swim with Snooty ... sort of; 35) papa and I looking awfully happy after a jog in the heat

a

36) at the Red Barn Market; 37) the puzzle papa and I were tackling

 

38) heading to Casa Mia Grill for dinner; 39) the harbour as we walk

 

40 & 41) papa and ma at dinner 

 

42) my fabulous cannelloni napoli; 43) we ate and drank till the sun long disappeared

 

44) heading home; 45) arriving safely

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For Valentine's Day we prepared three courses that improved as we worked through them (blame the champagne!). First off were jumbo shrimp quickly pan-fried with garlic, olive oil, lemon, butter and finished with a flambe of whiskey.

Second were Nova Scotia Digby scallops done with curry salt and served with cannellini bean puree, bacon and a micro salad.

Dessert was a fabulous orange anise poached pear served with mascarpone cream (that I flavoured with maple syrup) and toffee sauce. A winner for sure.

All great for sure, but you know, next year we're going out. Far less work involved. We're a week away from Oscar's and we've been busy seeing the films in preparation for a wee get-together we're hosting here next Sunday - we're thinking simple mini-appetizers inspired by the nine best picture nominees. It's been eons since I posted some movie reviews and I've a backlog as long as my wing span so to try and get some of these up ..... here are three I saw way back.

L'estate di Martino (aka Mario's Summer)
It's the 1980s and 15-year-old Italian Martino (Luigi Ciardo) wants to learn to surf, well, and capture the heart of Silvia (Matilde Maggio) who happens to be dating his brother. Conveniently, on the shoreline of his small town lies a US base where Captain Jeff Clark (an excellent Treat Williams of all people) lands occasionally to hang out. Clark, also conveniently, happens to be a surfer and is eventually teaching Mario about surfing, life and girls. The film is directed by Massimo Natale and uses a couple of historically accurate Italian crises - the 1980 crash of a plane near the island of Ustica ascribed to a wayward NATO missile, and the bombing in Bologna's train station in 1985 by terrorists to good effect. The result is a fine movie that while predicable in many respects is beautifully shot with great heart. My rating 8 out of 10.

 Burn After Reading

The Coen brother's success as directors draws A-list stars to their films and Burn After Reading is an example of this. The plot is vintage Coen with quirky characters, subtle humour and violence; this is black comedy through and through. Fitness centre staffer Linda (Coen regular Frances McDormand doing what she usually does) wants a lad and is seeking dollars for plastic surgery. CIAer Osbourne Cox (John Malkovich) has been fired and opts to write a memoir. His philandering wife Katie (Tilda Swinton) accidentally leaves the DVD with his memoir at the gym whereupon happy-go-lucky and not-too-bright Chat (Brad Pitt) finds it. Together with Linda, the duo concoct a plan to blackmail Osbourne. Meanwhile, Harry (George Clooney) a US Marshall and another philanderer doing the lowdown with Katie ends up meeting Linda through an internet dating site. The lives of all these folks and their various schemings all end up at Cox's house one afternoon - with typical Coen results. The stars are all great here and the Coen's commitment to messaging the baser motivations of common Americans is in fine form. Yet, it is this - the film's usualness - that is ultimately its undoing. We've seen these folks before and we know where the brothers Coen are going to take us. My rating 7 out of 10.

 Män som hatar kvinnor (aka The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo)

1) beautiful Lake Louise in winter

I flew from Winnipeg to Calgary very early Thursday morning and by noon found myself - and my three colleagues - in beautiful Banff.

2) the Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge at Winnipeg airport VERY early Thursday morning; 3) the view from my room at Inns of Banff

4 & 5) because ..."If you haven't been to Bumpers, you haven't been to Banff" ... they make THE BEST Alberta steaks and prime rib going

6) Donna stops to grab a photo Sat am in Banff; 7) heading along Highway 1A

On Saturday we drove further west along an icy and snow packed Highway 1A to Lake Louise to enjoy the Chateau and brunch at the Relais & Chateaux accredited Post Hotel. I would argue that Lake Louise in winter is even more pretty than summer. The mountains reveal more of their battleship grey-coloured rock and the Lake is far, far less crowded with tourists. When we arrived the winter fog was in full swing casting the Lake in an eerie yet beautiful state.

8) stopping along Highway 1A for a gorgeous photo op

9) along Highway 1A; 10) arriving at Lake Louise in the morning winter fog

11) you can skate here in the winter; 12) the path up to the Chateau

13) moi in front of the Ice castle right on the Lake; 14) Sue followed by Gail heads up to the late in the early morning light

15) the ice castle on the Lake

16) inside the Chateau looking out to the Lake; 17) G and I sat here in June for dinner

18 & 19) the beautiful ice sculptures

20) Gail and Sue now head back to the truck with the fog gone; 21) another ice masterpiece

22) I built a snowman!

23) the Chateau; 24) it remains for me one of the most beautiful places in all of Canada

25) the restaurant at the Post Hotel; 26) we all ordered tea (it was so cold outside)

27 7 28) the sourdough bread was amazing

29) I ordered hamachi and a perfectly prepared and dressed frisee salad; 30) the view from our table at the restaurant

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1) G checks out the menu at Oru

You could probably make the case that the best hotel in Vancouver is either the Fairmont Pacific Rim; the Shangri-La; or the newly refurbished iconic 1927 Rosewood Hotel Gerogia which hosted the likes of Elvis Presley, Nat King Cole, Katherine Hepburn and British royalty in its heyday, and now also contains, arguably, Vancouver's best restaurant and one of the top 10 in Canada - Chef David Hawksworth's self-styled 'Hawksworth Restaurant'.

I say this noting the absence of The Keefer, which is Vancouver's - and probably one of the world's - most exclusive boutique residences. Located in the midst of Chinatown but a moment from our condo, the Keefer has but 4 rooms, period, and all the buzz that goes from being noted in both Wallpaper and Conde Nast Traveller.

That's all a rather long winded intro to saying we spent last weekend in residence at the Fairmont Pacific Rim in a corner suite that looked out onto Olympic Plaza and Stanley Park. The Pacific Rim is an anomaly in the Fairmont chain because it is unabashedly modern with an art installation the weaves itself around the building's facade. Most Fairmonts of course are staid in a good way with that classic Chateau-like buttressing which is the chain's signature.

2) the living room; 3) amenities

4 & 5) the bathroom with deep soaker jetted tub

6) the living room; 7) the view over to Stanley Park, the Vancouver Harbour Floatplanes and Olympic square in foreground

8) welcome treats from the manager; 9) the bedroom

10) I'm mum on what happened up there; 11) looking down to the pool

We hung out, dined at the fine restaurant Oru, enjoyed the excellent spa services and recouped after a busy week.

Sunday morning found me dashing from the hotel far too early to catch a plane to Winnipeg and I've been holed up here amid snow and cold since. The weather fortunately has not been brutal as Winnipeg in January often is and I've been able to get out and walk the city. I ventured over the Provencher Bridge and the Red River into St. Boniface today which is home to the considerable French-speaking population of Winnipegers and birthplace - as all Canadians ought to know - of politician, founder of Manitoba and Metis leader/rebel (take your pick depending on your view) Louis Riel who lost his battle and his life in 1885 after being found guilty of treason as leader of the Metis rebel movement during the North-West Rebellion.

12) the Canadian Museum of Human Rights continues to rise on the banks of the Red River

13 & 14) had to try some local microbrews but of course

15) the museum from another angle; 16) when in Manitoba, one must have a bison burger!

17) lunching in the lobby bar of Hotel Fort Garry; 18) looking over the Red River from the Provencher pedestrian bridge

19) the Provencher Bridge that links the Forks area with St. Boniface

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1) the finished pie - already half eaten!

Recently we discovered a bag of Meyer lemons at Osaka in North Vancouver and immediately jumped on them. They are delicious tasting - a hybrid cross between a lemon and a mandarin orange. They are smaller than lemons - roughly the size of a lime - and thin and smooth skinned.

We used them here and there and with the ones left, I opted to make a Meyer lemon meringue pie. It turned out fine and yes I cheated by using a frozen pastry crust for the shell but hell, I'm busy so I'm not going to carry any guilt about it.

While I enjoyed the pie, I wouldn't rush to make it again as I find the lemon custard to be just too sweet. Meyers are noticeably sweeter then lemons and probably a little less sugar would have made a difference, especially noting the meringue.

2) here are the Meyers; 3) juiced and peeled

4) the egg yolks and juice gets mixed with; 5) the lemon zest

6 & 7) cornstarch sugar and some water gets boiled till it becomes quite thick

8 & 9) then add in the egg/juice mixture and cook to finish the custard

10) pour this into your prepared pie crust; 11) and prepare your meringue

12) close to being ready; 13) dapple the meringue on top of the custard and then bake/broil to brown (or in my case, burn) the peaks

14) dig in!

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