by Michelle Sproule | 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…

Pop-Up | Chef Owen Lightly of Butter on the Endive presents a series of pop-up dinners at Le Marché St. George this week ( 3 consecutive 5-course dinners and one casual Sunday brunch in the beautiful Marche space). For each of the dinners, Owen will be collaborating with another local chef. All (excluding the Sunday brunch) are $65 and require a ticket, which can be pre-purchased by pay pal. Alcohol is BYOB for each event. Get all the details here.
May 3-6 | 5:30 and 8:30pm seatings | $65 | Details

Learn | Fusion Kitchen is a start-up social enterprise that helps recent immigrant women develop their transferable skills, work experience, and self-confidence to gain employment in the Canadian workforce. Even though many of the women that come to Canada are well educated and have years of professional experience, it is often difficult for them to find a good job that makes use of their skill sets. Fusion Kitchen got the idea to tap in to some of this skill to offer Vancouverites unique cooking classes with a seriously authentic vibe. Each 3-hour class features a tutorial and hands-on cooking of “mom’s cooking” dishes. “When you enter the kitchen and learn to cook with our teachers, you are taught about the ingredients used, the secrets to making the perfect dish, and details about the culture.  We provide a community where knowledge, skills, and culture are exchanged.” This week you can drop in to learn how to cook Pakistani food (think Mint and Lentil Kebabs and Strawberry Lassi!).
May 4th | 6-9pm | Woodlands Smokehouse (485 Commercial) | $65 | Details

Grow | Do you love the idea of eating fresh, home-grown food but a touch baffled as to how to get things rolling with the space you have? The World In A Garden is hosting a small-space gardening class with Bonita Magee of FarmFolk CityFolk. Bonita will lead workshop participants through the varied practical methods of small-space gardening. Take away your very own starter plants and the skills to grow food at home.
Thursday, May 3 | 6-7 pm | The World In a Garden (W. 57th and East Blvd.) | $15 | Details

Create | There’s an opening at the Gam Gallery this weekend. Julia Kreutz’ No Man is an Island is a series of mixed media pieces using simplistic, collaged images with drawn and inked additions. In addition to showing her works, Kreutz will host a drop-in collage workshop for anyone interested in getting a little creative on a Saturday afternoon.
Opening Reception Friday May 4th | 8-11pm | Gam Gallery | Free
Open House\Workshop Saturday May 5th | 1-5pm | free/materials provided

Portraits Of Cool | Smash has a show of portraits by local lecturer (Emily Carr) and photographer Art Perry right now. The show boasts over 30 ‘portraits of cool’ taken by Art Perry over the past 40 years. “His images are as honest as his subjects. Never a studio photographer Perry has taken these portraits over the past forty years with a handheld camera and greyhound-fast film in hotel rooms, backstage, backyards, graveyards, street corners, cafes and studios. Always the intimacy and spontaneity of the moment are revealed in a naked truth. This is the history of hip.” Perry will be at the Gallery on Friday night to talk about his work.
Friday, May 4 | 8pm | Smash Gallery | 580 Clark Dr | Free

Feast | Spot Prawns are coming to the docks of Granville Island this weekend! The season begins on Saturday with the 5th Annual Spot Prawn Festival at False Creek’s Fisherman’s Wharf (just west of Granville Island on the south side of False Creek). The event, founded by the Chefs’ Table Society of BC, will include a huge spot prawn boil, accompanied by sides, sauces and Terra Breads’ baked goods, wine, and beer tent, featuring pours from Mogiana Coffee, R&B Brewing, and Ganton & Larsen Prospect Winery. Good times. Scout editor Andrew Morrison will be on the Organic Ocean with Cpt. Steve Johansen that morning fishing for the year’s first catch. Listen for the airhorn announcing the boat’s arrival at around noon and rush down to the dock to get your fresh prawns! Details here.
Saturday, May 5 | 11am-3pm | False Creek Fishermen’s Wharf | $12

Cultivate | Down in The Flats you can hook up with urban beekeeper Russel Godwin of Urban Sweet Honey to learn the process of getting an apiary started in your own backyard. Russel will walk you through where to obtain supplies, how to care for honey bees and how to gather and make your own honey. Russel will also discuss the health benefits of local raw honey vs. pasteurized honey. Solid Saturday activity!
Saturday, May 5 | 12pm to 2pm | KJM Country Gardens (straight down Blenheim past 55th) | $25 | Details

Gig | There’s a groovy line-up hitting the stage at The Biltmore on Friday night. Headwater is playing with guests C.R. Avery & The Madison 22 Review, plus The River and The Road. That’s a lot of cool for $15.
Friday May 4 | 8pm | Biltmore | $15 | Details 

Splurge | Got Craft? You should. Because “mall is a four letter word” and there is no reason that you need to visit one with Got Craft? on the scene. Make your way over to Commercial Drive on Sunday to check out the supercool handmade wares of over 50 indie artists. This event is a Scout favourite, definitely one of the best craft shows we have. Score a free swag bag of goodies, which include handmade items from vendors at the show. | Details
Got Craft? | Sunday, May 6 | 10am – 5pm | Royal Canadian Legion (2205 Commercial Drive) | $3

Grad Show | This weekend is the annual Degree Exhibition at Emily Carr.  I go to this show every year and it blows me away every time. Wander the galleries, hallways, foyers and classrooms of the campus to take in the work of the 369 graduating students.  Students exhibiting their work have come through ECUAD in disciplines of animation, ceramics, communication design, drawing, digital and interactive arts, film/video/integrated media, illustration, industrial design, interactive design, painting, photography, printmaking and sculpture. See you there!
Opening Reception | Saturday May 5 | 5-10pm | Emily Carr University of Art + Design? (Granville Island)
Degree Exhibition | May 6-20 | 10am-6pm? | Emily Carr University of Art + Design? (1400 Johnston, Granville Island)

Plan | It’s Mothers Day next week — Sunday, May 13th. Figure out your reservations now! There are oodles of brunches to choose from but don’t sit on it too long. And bring flowers. Moms like flowers.

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Michelle Sproule grew up in Kitsilano and attended 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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