Saturday March 20, 2010 marks the first day of Baker’s Market in Vancouver this year. Located at 408 East Kent Avenue South (back door at #115), this indoor market unites bakers and foodies, with yummie baked goods for sale including fresh artisanal breads, soft German pretzels, butter croissants, cupcakes, cookies, brownies, marchmallows, cakes, muffins and more!
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Print out the below coupon and receive one free Starbucks pastry with the purchase of any handcrafted, brewed or iced beverage on March 23, 2010 between opening at 10:30am.
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Whether you are looking for a healthy snack alternative, or to just enjoy a tasty frozen dessert or nutritious smoothie, Yogen Früz offers more than just a delicious treat…

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Not too long ago, I wrote a posting on Modern Mix Vancouver about Domo Tea’s Chocolate Ecstasy Flavoured Infused Matcha. With the same craving for a sweet healthy drink this morning, I opened my new can of “Vanilla Cloud” flavour-infused matcha, which happens to be Domo Tea’s top selling product.

Vanilla Cloud has a rich silky texture and a mild matcha flavour enhanced with natural vanilla. Made with organic matcha tea, organic evaporated cane juice, and all natural flavours. Contains no cholesterol and no saturated or trans fats.

As a personal preference, I enjoyed the vanilla more than the chocolate flavour – I thought it blended better with the matcha taste. To intensify the vanilla aroma, you can top up your drink with vanilla-flavored soy milk. At $10 for a 100g package in a resealable can, Vancouver-based Domo Tea products are available at several groccery stores (especially health/natural food stores) in our city, including Urban Fare and Capers.

Amazing. In just over a year, Qoola Frozen Yogurt has already opened its third location! Join them today at Metrotown for Vancouver’s first self-serve yogurt bar. Six flavors of yogurt will be available with tons of toppings, the famous “QRUSH” and more! And, all proceeds today (February 11) will be donated to the Red Cross.

This morning, despite the Vancouver sunshine, I was craving a warm beverage of some sort and came across a powder sample of Domo’s “Chocolate Ecstasy Matcha“. I’m pretty sure I got this little packet in a goodie bag from some sort of MMV-related event I went to several months ago, but haven’t had a chance to try this until now.

Chocolate Ecstasy fuses the soothing warmth of hot chocolate with the healthy and exotic taste of organic matcha, so you get the best of both worlds. It’s the perfect drink for a frosty winter morning or a cozy evening in. And you can use it to make an amazing chocolate martini or three, if you’re having one of those nights.

More chocolate than green tea match, this presweetened drink is easy to prepare. Just add a bit of hot water to dissolve the powder and top up with milk or a soy substitute for your daily calcium fix. This product is available at several groccery stores (especially health/natural food stores) in Vancouver, including Urban Fare and Capers.

I’m going up to Sunpeaks this weekend for some snowboarding and coincidently, a wine festival! Since you (my reader) are probably not at Sunpeaks if you are reading this right now, I will leave you with a local wine event to check out. Vinter Raimund Pruem of German winery S. A. Prum will be on location at Granville Island Liberty Wine Merchants (1660 Johnston Street) this weekend on Sunday January 17th between 3 and 6pm. More details and a $2-off coupon is below!

Practically everyone I knew got at least one Starbucks gift card for Christmas! Here is a reminder of what you can get by registering your Starbucks giftcard…

Yum! I love tea. Below is the press release from The Urban Tea Mechant, which is opening a new flagship store this week in Vancouver:

This week, downtown Vancouver will be introduced to a new concept in retail shopping, dining and service with the opening of The Urban Tea Merchant (1070 West Georgia Street), a three thousand square foot store on West Georgia and Alberni Street offering a unique blend of food and beverage, retail, home decor and, say owners Karinna and Tom James, “a sensory experience”!
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As the exclusive North American distributor for the luxury French tea line, Thé Ô Dor, The Urban Tea Merchant will carry the complete line of the beautifully packaged hand blended aromatic teas as well as a wonderful collection of fine harvest teas, all purchased by weight. The retail shop will feature unique European home decor merchandise, gifts, china and glassware with an interesting selection of tea related products including tea pots and kettles, as well as Charbonnel et Walker chocolates and imported French macarons. Additionally, the retail store will offer a tea consultation counter where guests can taste and choose their preferred blends.
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The Urban Tea Merchant is also home to Vancouver’s first Salon de Thé, a 30 seat tea salon offering exquisite afternoon teas, light lunches and petit plates in a separate dining area, and a Thé et Chocolat Bar, offering en route (to go) classic teas, tea lattes & chilled tea infusions as well as chocolates and scones.
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Lunch items, with recipes that incorporate tea infusions, include a quiche trio, beef tenderloin with white truffle mash puree, poached salmon or duck breast as well as more casual items like beef pot pie and macaroni with trois fromages. The Urban Tea Merchant opens this week, December 3rd, 7:00 am until 7:00 pm with expanded hours through the holiday season.

…an event that highlighted the importance of cooking from the ground up with premium local ingredients.