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

SCOUT LIST: 10 Things That You Should Absolutely Do Between Now & Next Week

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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. You can also check it out in the Globe & Mail, from our calendar to theirs…and yours!

CHOCOLATE | Did you know that there’s a hot chocolate festival going on at this very moment? No word of a lie. Twenty eight of Vancouver’s top chocolate makers (and a few bakers and even a gelato maker) have created interesting twists on the classic winter comfort drink. In addition to their regular line-up of drinking chocolate, East Van Roasters in Gastown will be serving Hives for Humanity, a dark drinking chocolate with honey (accompanied by a honey nib caramel). Thomas Haas – with a shop on Broadway and another in North Van – has created something called The Campfire that sees hot chocolate with smoky caramel, smoked Hawaiian sea salt and vanilla marshmallows, and Soirette Macarons has developed a hot chocolate called Granville Island Grocery List. It involves beet and saffron with a Gjetost macaron. Sound tempting? Check out the full list of participating businesses and their signature hot chocolate offerings here.
Now – February 13 | Various Chocolate joints about town | DETAILS

PuSh | The PuSh International Performing Arts Festival continues to fill stages and unlikely venues around the city. This week, check out Seed, a docu-theatre performance that explores the topic of genetically modified food by giving voice to those most directly tied to the issue (from farmers and activists to researchers, lawyers, and the Monsanto public relations team). Yup, the dialogue is comprised exclusively of verbatim quotes from court transcripts and interviews. Also consider Act 1: Eat 1, a three-course communal meal followed by a PuSh Festival performance for only $47 (this week dine at Bitter and then settle in at SFU’s Goldcorp Centre to watch L.A. Party/An Evening with William Shatner Asterisk). PuSh has many more performances to choose from. Peruse the full schedule here.
Now – February 2 | Various venues, Various prices | DETAILS

STUFF YOUR FACE | This Wednesday through Sunday, the north plaza of the Vancouver Art Gallery will become Street Food City. Yes, the dream returns: a flock of food carts will congregate in a common geographic location long enough for a street food buffet of sorts to appear like some sort of fantastically aromatic apparition. Vendors will include Mom’s Grilled Cheese, Tacofino, The Juice Truck, Yolks, Aussie Pie, Holy Perogy, Vij’s Railway Express, Roaming Dragon and many more.
Wed, Jan 22 – Sun, Jan 26 | 11am-3pm (5pm on Sat+Sun) | Vancouver Art Gallery | DETAILS

INDIE I DO | If you or someone you know is getting hitched in the coming year, do us all a favour and attend the Indie I Do show at Heritage Hall this weekend. Brides and grooms don’t have to go mainstream. They don’t have to offer chicken or fish with bad wine. They can do something different. Indie I Do offers a whole new world of possibilities: skip the predictable venue, try vegan cupcakes over traditionally bland wedding cake, factor in a some super8 film, commission cool little letterpress to sort out your invites. Have a look at the list of vendors here and help spread the word. A more inventive wedding is in everyone’s best interest!
Sat, Jan 25 | 11am-5pm | Heritage Hall (3102 Main St) | DETAILS

ART | The Macaulay Fine Art Gallery is showing The Rope At The End Of The Rope, new works by artist Brad Phillips. From Macaulay Fine Art: “In the main gallery, Phillips’ paintings take the subject of objects in his studio and life that relate to painting on a daily basis. Notes to himself, a cornice to burn incense on across from his desk, the flowers next to where he works, and a woman alone on a beach make up the various parts of an ongoing quasi-autobiographical body of work.” The Rope At The End Of The Rope continues until March 1st with an opening reception on Thursday, January 23 between 6 & 8pm.
Jan 23 – March 1 | The Macaulay Fine Art Gallery (293 E 2nd Ave) | DETAILS

FILM | The ‘Midnight Movie’ at the Rio this week is Stanley Kubrick’s adaptation of Stephen King’s The Shining. It’s a late night screening with bar service, and bar service is a good idea with a Stanley Kubrick film. If you’re feeling inspired, dress up in a film-related costume and take $2 off of admission.
Fri, January 24 | 11:30pm | Rio Theatre (1660 E Broadway) | $8/$6 in costume | DETAILS

FUSE | The Vancouver Art Gallery really lets loose every few months. These occasional breaks from the usual civilized gallery behaviour are known as FUSE – an evening of music, live performance, DJs and art. This time around, the VAG team will collaborate with the PuSh International Performing Arts Festival to present FUSE-goers with something a little different. From the VAG: “FUSE: The PuSh Festival Edition celebrates a place where visual art meets performing arts, where site-specific and experimental practices flourish, and where audiences are consistently surprised and even challenged by what comes next.” There’s something sort of magical about wandering an art gallery after hours, particularly when one is permitted to enjoy a glass of adult refreshment.
Fri, Jan 24 | 8pm–1am | Vancouver Art Gallery (750 Hornby St.) | $17 | DETAILS

ICONS | Head to the magical, subterranean caverns of the Biltmore Cabaret this Sunday and browse hand-picked vintage like you’ve never seen before. Expect vintage-clothing vendors, flea-market finds, psychedelic posters, fancy antiques, accessories, shoes, jewellery, records, retro household items, cameras and all manner of other curious trinkets.  This is a cabaret, so the bar will be open! Shoppin’, drinkin’, and dancin’ are all encouraged!
Sun, Jan 26 | 11 am–5 pm | Biltmore Cabaret (2755 Prince Edward) | DETAILS

WINTER FARMERS MARKET | Winter can be tough. Stay strong, take your vitamins, and eat well by loading the fridge with fresh, local food. Shoot over to 30th and Ontario to get your fill of fruits and veggies. Look for kale, crispy apples, leeks, beets, potatoes and squash, as well as goodies like baked goods, preserves and local honey. Yay farmers!
Sat, Jan 25 | 10am – 2pm | East Parking Lot Nat Bailey Stadium | DETAILS

HEADS-UP | Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet will perform Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre next week. Set to a sublime score by Sergei Prokofiev and executed with precision under the direction of choreographer Rudi van Dantzig, this show will be stunning. And what better way to roll into February than a little bit of love and loss between star-crossed lovers?
Jan 30 – Feb 1 | Queen Elizabeth Theatre | Tickets from $29 | DETAILS

Check the Globe & Mail every Thursday for our Special Weekend Edition of the Scout List

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late-may-2009-169Michelle 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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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, right now.

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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.