A no messing around guide to the coolest things to eat, drink and do in Vancouver and beyond. Community. Not clickbait.

Scout List: Our Eclectic Agenda For Discerning Vancouverites…

The main objective of this website is to scout out and promote the things that make Vancouver such a sweet place to be. We do this with an emphasis on the city’s independent spirit to foster a sense of connectedness within and between our communities, and to introduce our readers to the people who grow and cook our food, play the raddest tunes in our better venues, create our most interesting art, and design everything from what we wear to the spaces we inhabit.

The Scout List is our carefully considered, first rate agenda of super awesome things that we’re either doing, wishing that we could do, or conspiring to do this week. From our calendar to yours…

CULTURE

Gastown’s Catalog Gallery jumps into bed with The Jealous Curator. The result is a show of New York photographer Mikael Kennedy’s works. Kennedy spent the past decade on the road Kerouac-style with his Polaroid camera taking thousands of pictures while drifting across the continent. In 2010, he had his first solo show in New York City, entitled ‘Shoot the Moon’ (an exhibition of 500 Polaroids edited down from thousands). Vancouver artist/blogger The Jealous Curator became so besotted with Kennedy’s work that she set to work bringing at least some of the exhibit to Catalog. The gallery is showing 50 images pulled from the original ‘Shoot the Moon’ show. They’re all photographs of women: “The images are titled with the name of the woman, the location of the photo, and the year, leaving it completely up to the viewer to piece these relationships, friendships, and chance meetings together.” Show runs until July 17. Looks pretty sweet.
Opening Reception: Thursday June 30 | Show runs until July 17 | 56 Powell | Free

Shawna McLellan has guest curated the T-Shirt Art Show for the Gam Gallery. It’s just that, a show of art within the theme/format of the t-shirt, featuring work by local artists Don Pottie, Kristin WolfMarissa ChowHeidi Nagtagaal, Shawna McLellan, Cheyenne GoldingHeather MartinJohnny Kasiuk and Aja Rose Bond. Sounds awesome.
Opening night July 1 |  7pm | The Gam Gallery (110 E Hastings) | followed by a dance party with DJs Tom Whalen, David Mattatall and Johnny Kasiuk.

It’s International Co-op Day and the The British Columbia Co-operative Association is putting on a sweet shindig to celebrate. They’ve arranged to have co-op booths; a farmers market, fair trade booths, live music, public theatre, stilt-walking, face-painting, puppetry, a swap meet, a picnic, and a kite build and launch set up at Trout Lake on Saturday. Hot damn, that’s a load of fun! The event is intended to raise awareness of the links between co-ops, credit unions, and a wide range of organizations and projects that promote cooperation and sharing to improve the quality of life in our neighbourhoods and our city. Can’t fault that. More information here.
July 2 | 12-5 pm | Northwest Field Trout Lake Park ( 3350 Victoria ) | Free

CANADA DAY

Celebrate Canada Day with a proper marching band-guided, float-forward parade. The fun starts at 7pm at Georgia and Broughton, travels along Georgia to Burrard and finishes at Burrard and Hastings.
July 1 | 7-8 pm | Down town Vancouver | Free

Don’t miss the two barge simultaneous pyrotechnic Canada Day Fireworks extravaganza. Sure, it’ll be visible from numerous locations (Coal Harbour, Stanley Park, West Vancouver and North Vancouver) for free, but it’ll be crowded and are we really ready for massive crowds again in Vancouver? Consider supporting Strathcona Community Centre’s Food Security for Children program to save your spot in the reserved area with unobstructed views and easy access to washrooms. Proceeds from ticket sales will be donated to the charity.  Grab your ticket ($9.99) here.
Friday, July 1 | Around | 10:30 pm | $9.99 for a sweet spot

The Excitations, The Gay Nineties, Battle Snakes, Joyce Collingwood, Bad Fate
and The B-Lines play the Biltmore for your Canada Day pleasure. Also on the ticket: The Futurists, Vacation, Connor Brady and Photobooth. Everyone happy and playing their favourite CanRock covers, followed by a very patriotic dance party. How could it be any better? I’ll tell you: Re-Up BBQ will be outside dishing out a special Canada Day menu, that’s how! More here.
Friday, July 1 | Bands from 8-11, DJs to follow | Biltmore Cabaret

Vancouver-based architect Matthew Soules and architectural writer Adele Weder are spending their Canada Day giving tours of West Vancouver’s B.C. Binning Residence. Head over to the North Shore to check out this National Historic Site and learn why it has had a lasting impact on artists and architects across Canada. Proceeds support the maintenance and restoration of the residence. Details here.
July 1 | 1 pm-4 am | 2968 Mathers, West Van | Admission by donation

MUSIC

The Jazz Festival is still on and worth checking out.

The Sidewalk Cellist, aka Clara Shandler, is playing a free cello concert on the Napier Greenway every Saturday until the end of August. Concerts are weather permitting, but imagine it: summertime cello music floating down the Drive. This city is pretty cool.
July 2 | 2-4 pm | Napier Greenway (Britannia Community Centre) | Free

The Kulth Festival (pronounced coolth) is a cool little folk music festival going down in Coombs a few weeks from now (July 16 + 17  at The Coombs Rodeo Ground on Vancouver Island). Billed as “The Folk Festival with an Edge”, Kulth has gathered a pretty impressive group of talented musicians to entertain (including Ron Sexsmith, Piper Davis, Headwater). While they’re gearing up for their main event they’re also bringing Vancouverites a sampling of what to expect with a free gig at the Electric Owl next week with Piper Davis, Elekwent Folk, T Nile, Neighbour and The Boom Booms all playing. Find out more about the festival here.
Hit the preview Thursday, July 7 | 5pm-12:30am | The Electric Owl | Free

Oh, and Britney Spears is in town. Who says Scout is elitist?

FLICKS

Catch the perfect Canada Day film line-up at the Rio Theatre. This week, they’re showing Strange Brew and Fubar for the Friday night midnight movie double bill. Dig out your toques and mullet wigs. If turn up in costume you can take $1 off the $8 ticket price.
Friday, July 1 | 11:55pm | Rio Theatre | $8

David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive is playing at Vancity Monday night. “Lynch’s poison pen letter to the dream factory that is Hollywood is an infinitely fascinating hall of mirrors in which nothing is quite what it seems.” If you haven’t had quite enough Lynch for one evening, stick around for the 9:30 screening of Lost Highway. Cue the spooky Twin Peaks soundtrack…
Monday, July 4 | 6:45pm | Vancity Theatre (1181 Seymour) | $1

Meanwhile, over at Fifth Avenue Cinemas, you can still catch Tree of Life and Midnight in Paris. Great flicks.
Various times | Fifth Avenue Cinemas | $12.75

Queen of the Sun: What are the bees telling us?” is playing at the Denman Cinema Thursday night. Queen of the Sun is a profound, alternative look into the problems and solutions of the global honeybee crisis from Taggart Siegel, the acclaimed director of the award-winning, grass-roots hit The Real Dirt on Farmer John. Box Office Magazine calls it “The Feel-Good Advocacy Movie of the Year.”
Thursday, June 30 | Denman Cinema (1779 Comox) | $7.95

GLUTTONY

Calabash is opening it’s doors for lunch. That’s good news.

The Artisan Sake Maker on Granville Island is launching new kasu recipes and packaging on Canada Day. WTF is kasu, you ask? It’s the residual yeast from sake production. It can be used as a pickling agent, a cooking paste to add flavor to food and as a marinade. Sample some kasu cookies, try some kasu ice cream. You know, get kasu with it.
Friday, July 1 | 11:30am-6pm | 1339 Railspur, Granville Island

Grab locally grown produce from good people at your neighbourhood farmer’s market. Main Street on Wednesday rocks. This week’s suggestion: Pick up some beautiful garlic scapes and fresh pasta from Campagnolo, add a little olive oil, some lemon zest, lots of pepper and freshly grated Parmesan. See you there.

Trout Lake Farmers Market | Saturday | 9am-2pm | Trout Lake | Free
Kitsilano Farmers Market | Sunday | 10am – 2pm | 2690 Larch @ 10th | Free
West End Farmers Market | Saturday | 9am-2pm | 1100 Block Comox | Free
Thornton Park | Wednesday | 3pm – 7pm | Main Street Station at Terminal | Free
Dundarave (West Van) Saturday | 9am – 2pm | Between 24 & 25 on Marine
Oak Street Market | Wednesday | 3-7pm | Oak @ 49th (Unitarian Church) | Free

UBC Farm is up and running for the season. They have lots of goodies to offer, from eggs and fresh arugula to beets. This season they’ll be offering farm tours starting at 11am each Saturday. Meet on the hill above the market by the picnic tables five minutes to 11am. Tours will be approximately 30 minutes in length.
UBC Farm Market: Saturday | 9-1 | UBC Farm

UBC Farm is also getting its drink on. “Learn to make nutritious, refreshing summer drinks that can be made using garden herbs and fruits! In this popular class, discover how to make old fashioned ginger beer, Kombucha (a fermented tea beverage), Amazake (a sweet, ‘cultured’ Japanese rice beverage). Bring home recipes, nutrition information and a kombucha starter culture! Participants will have the chance to explore and harvest some of the wild plants growing around the UBC Farm. Impress your friends and family with your new-but-ancient skill as brew-master.”
Wednesday July 13 | 6pm-9pm | UBC Farm Centre | $40

Chef/blogger Owen Lightly is serving up a feast on Saturday night “featuring the flavours and textures of the Southern United States. Big flavours, stiff drinks, good times.” The menu goes a little something like this:

Fried Beaufort Oyster, Bacon Cornbread Waffle, Remoulade Sauce
Side-Stripe Prawn Étouffée, Steamed Rice
BBQ Beef Brisket, New Potato Salad, Horseradish Dressing
Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie, Vanilla Ice Cream

Sold! It’s going to be good, and only 50 beans (includes one cocktail). Again, I’m letting you know now because it will sell out. Send Owen an email if you want to get in on this action : owen [at] butterontheendive.ca.
Saturday, July 2 | 5:30 & 8:30 pm| address provided with reservation confirmation | $50

If you are involved in or know of an event that you think we should add to the Scout List, drop us a line and we’ll see what we can do. Keep in mind that we’re looking for cool, cheap and accessible events. Michelle [@] Scoutmagazine [dot] ca.

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late-may-2009-169Michelle Sproule grew up in Kitsilano and attended Bond University in Australia and the University of Victoria before receiving her graduate degree in Library Sciences from The University of Toronto. She lives in beautiful Strathcona and enjoys wandering aimlessly through the city’s shops and streets with her best friend – a beat up, sticky, grimy, and uncooperative camera.

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From our calendar to yours comes this carefully considered agenda of cool things we are doing, wishing we could do, or conspiring to do in Vancouver over the days and weeks ahead.