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.
Earlier this month, the Glowbal Group’s newest initiative “Society” (1257 Hamilton Street) opened in Yaletown. With the tagline of “Opposites Attract. The Unexpected Reigns”, Society most definitely has unique, unexpected menu offerings!! Described as a “union of opposites”, the menu offers comfort food – but with a twist.
So for example, classic tomato soup accompanied by mini grilled cheese sandwiches (hmm, following the “tapas” trend?), Mac & Cheese balls (think crabcake style), apple pie with vanilla ice cream and a Nutella milkshake (spiked with Baileys). As for prices, Society’s express lunch menu is a pretty good deal. Less than $10 for sandwich-y types of food. Also, several of their menu items contain cotton candy as an ingredient, including on their drinks menu, the “Candy Collins” which is probably the most creative drink I’ve ever had. It came with a generous fluff of cotton candy on top, and I was advised by the bartender that I could either eat it plain, or melt it into my gin to sweeten as desired.
The The Donnelly Hospitality Management group (Pop Opera, Bar None, Library Square, etc.) has reopened the downtown pub Smiley’s as “Smiley’s Public House” (911 West Pender Street).
The space has been given a sleek makeover that has drawn both thankful regulars and new clientele. Smiley’s Public House delivers the style of a modern, British-style pub while retaining the warmth and character of a traditional pub. The open-concept room boasts 240 seats and a range of table sizes, including 16-seat picnic tables. Guests come in to loosen their ties, tuck into modern pub food, watch a football match and engage in good-natured banter around the pool table. The dance floor brims on busier nights, and a DJ spins to the after-work crowd on Fridays.
The Glowbal Group’s newest initiative, SOCIETY Dining Lounge (1257 Hamilton Street), opens next Thursday, October 29th. With its slogan “Opposites Attracts”, this restaurant promises a contrast between glamour and comfort, with cuisine that embodies the union of opposites. For example, childhood staples are given a modern twist with “refined, inventive ingredients”. Look out for their Tomato Soup with Mini Grilled Cheese Sandwiches and Shake n’ Bake Chicken.
Décor boldly contrasts glamour with comfort. Its 40-seat street-side patio with eggplant-hued leather banquettes and wicker chairs lend a feel of Sunset Strip to the loading-dock sidewalks of Hamilton Street. Inside is where SOCIETY comes together. Overhead, two oversized electric pink, handcrafted Mod-Murano chandeliers set the tone. Below, snug banquettes of deep purple and pearly leather, and tufted black-leather bar stools with striking gold legs set apart the more casual brasserie chairs. Upstairs in the lounge, up-lit bronze acrylic panels line the back wall and combine with an eclectic mix of lounge seating options. Bronze toned wooden screens of geometric interlocking circles surround the double height space, separating the lounge from the dining area below, creating allure and a sense of mystery.
For a video sneak preview of SOCIETY, click here.
Tourism Vancouver, BC Hydro, and over 30 Vancouver restaurants have joined together to put on the “Candlelight Conservation Dinner” on October 28, 2009 by “dimming the lights and dialing up the ambiance” to raise awareness about the conservation of energy. Restaurants will be providing special Candlelight Conservation Dinner offers to members of BC Hydro’s “Team Power Smart“, including 2 for 1 entrées, $5 gift certificates, and complimentary appetizers/desserts. Participating restaurants include Las Margaritas, Nyala African Cuisine, Sanafir, Section (3), So.Cial Le Magasin, Stonegrill, and The Refinery.
Since 2008, Vanessa has kept her readers and followers ‘in the know’ on local happenings, facilitating for the discovery and support of brands, businesses, and experiences available in Vancouver. Vanessa combines her expertise in living a modern Vancouver lifestyle with a approachable relatability that inspires her followers to think – hey, if she can do it, I can too!
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