Once or twice a week, Scout poses 60 questions to a local who has made life in BC that much more interesting. They pick and choose. The minimum response is 20 answers (a Rorschach test, for sure).

Today, it’s the turn of Mayor Gregor Robertson…

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Scout Q&A

Default drink: Happy Planet juice

Book you’re reading: “Community: The Structure of Belonging” by Peter Block

Last place traveled: Mexico with my family

Worst cliché ever: “Let the chips fall where they may”

Your ancestry: Scottish

The thing that makes you the angriest: Homelessness

Ice cream flavour: double chocolate

The trend you wish you never followed, but did: I used to have really long, shaggy hair back in the day. Not a good idea.

Sport you gave up: Rugby

Mac or PC: Mac

Favourite sports team: Canucks.

Best concert experience ever: Manu Chao at the Commodore last year

The dish you’re proud of: My homegrown salads.

Town you were born in: North Van.

Old television shows you can tolerate re-runs of: Star Trek. Can’t go wrong.

First memory: Dropping plastic toy soldiers with parachutes off my Dad’s apartment in the West End.

Album that first made you love music: The Beatles, Abbey Road.

The career path you considered but never followed: Doctor.

Biggest hope: To see the end of homelessness in Vancouver.

Favourite book as a child: Lord of the Rings.

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Biography

(from VoteVision.ca) A successful businessman, community activist, and politician, Gregor is bringing a new brand of leadership, action and vision to City Hall.

In 1990, two events changed the life of Gregor Robertson: his wife Amy became pregnant with their first child, and he was soaked with chemical herbicide on an industrial farm. Those two events changed the way he viewed the world and launched him on a leading path of responsibility and sustainability – first as an organic farmer and sustainable business leader, and now as the Mayor of Vancouver with a vision of change.

Later that same year, and ahead of his time, Gregor started an organic farm near Fort Langley. That venture soon led him to create Happy Planet Foods, and over the next decade, he helped grow the company into one of Canada’s leading organic food businesses, showcasing sustainability long before it was a buzzword.

His business success earned him the Vancouver Mayor’s Environmental Award for exemplary achievement in 2003 and the Ethics in Action Award in 2004. Later that same year, Gregor was named one of Canada’s “Top 40 under 40” by The Globe and Mail. Throughout those years, Gregor remained committed to organic quality and fair trade, proving that commercial success and sustainability can go hand in hand.

But as a successful entrepreneur committed to social responsibility, Gregor became increasingly aware of the government’s neglect of small business, the environment, and the problem of homelessness. In 2005, he made the decision to enter politics and was elected MLA for Vancouver-Fairview and served as the Opposition Critic for Small Business and Co-Chair of the Caucus Climate Change Task Force. He also led a successful campaign to protect affordable rental housing in Vancouver, helped put a copy of Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth in every public high school, and has been a tireless advocate for small businesses impacted by the Canada Line construction. Gregor also introduced and championed private members’ bills mandating clear food labeling and the reduction of carcinogens, toxic substances and genetically engineered food.

He is now bringing his brand of business, environmental and responsible leadership to city hall.

Gregor lives in Vancouver with his wife Amy, and their children Terra, Satchel, Jinagh and Johanna. He is an ardent bike commuter, and in his spare moments he plays soccer and the tuba.

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Michelle 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 by the beach in Vancouver 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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Each week, Scout poses 60 questions to a local who has made life in BC that much more interesting. They pick and choose. The minimum response is 20 answers. A Rorschach test, for sure…

Andrey Durbach is the executive chef and co-owner of Parkside, La Buca, and Pied-a-Terre restaurants, and the author of the children’s book Delicious Chicken Soup.

Default drink of choice: Cold beer

Drink you’ll never have again: Instant coffee

Sexiest fashion item for the opposite sex: Choker necklace

Favourite wine varietal: Sangiovese

The person you can imitate: My French Bulldog, Withnail (and yes, I know he’s not a person).

One thing you’d like to change about Vancouver: I’d change the rain into sunshine

Bartender who could sell you anything: Charles Forsberg

The thing that you eat that is bad for you that you will never stop eating: Ice cream

Cheap place for dinner: Phnom Penh

Three things about your neighbourhood that make you want to live there: Cioffi’s; the privacy; the views.

Last place traveled: Montreal

Biggest fear: Rats

Cliche that you use too often: It’s not a cliche, but I do swear a lot

Best sneaker in the world: Lacoste

Best bar stool in the city: Don’t have one

What are you proud of: Maintaining a vibrant and meaningful relationship with my wife while working my entire adult life in the time sucking, soul crushing, pressure cooker of the restaurant industry

The thing that makes you the angriest: People who think that 8:30 is too late for dinner

Saddest thing about Vancouver: The shitty architecture

Talent you wish you possessed: I wish I were mechanically inclined

Musical instrument you long to play: The mixing board

Sport you gave up: Football (the one you play with your feet)

The game you’re best at: Sauce station on Saturday night

Mac or PC: Mac, of course

The scariest situation you’ve ever been in: In the back of a Honda civic doing a 720 across three lanes of traffic on an iced up I-5

Best concert experience ever: Talking Heads, Burning Down the House tour

Describe your tattoos: A half sleeve Ganesha, in full regalia, seated on a lotus flower surrounded by an aura of conch shells, very detailed and brightly coloured.

The dish you’re most proud of: Green pea, mint and ricotta agnolotti with ragu of lamb cheeks

The thing that makes you the most nervous: Irrational people

Town you were born in: Winnipeg

Old television shows you can tolerate re-runs of: Yes, Minister

Quality you admire most in yourself: My capacity for independent thought

Album that first made you love music: Joe’s Garage by Frank Zappa

The career path you considered but never followed: Air traffic control

The one country that you have no interest in ever visiting: China

The thing you’re addicted to: Manchester United Football Club

Each week, Scout poses 60 questions to a local who has made life in BC that much more interesting. They pick and choose, with the minimum response being 20 answers.

Kurtis Kolt is the General Manager at Gastown’s Salt Tasting Room and has been in the Vancouver wine and food industry for the better part of two decades. Working alongside legends at The Fish House, Beach Side Cafe, CinCin and Liberty Wines honed his front of house skills, food knowledge and wine experience. He is certified by the Wine and Spirit Education Trust, The Wine Academy of Spain and is currently enrolled in the Winemaking program at UC Davis. Kurtis’ managing and wine-directing experience has launched two local restaurants, Main Street’s Aurora Bistro and Gastown’s Salt Tasting Room onto the international culinary map, securing many appearances in both local and international print media and television. Both restaurants won gold as Best New Restaurant in the Vancouver Magazine Restaurant Awards and were named one of Canada’s Top Ten New Restaurants by enRoute Magazine in their respective years. Along with receiving a Gold Award for his much-acclaimed wine program at Salt Tasting Room from the Vancouver International Wine Festival, Kurtis has received the Premier Crew Service Award from Vancouver magazine. He’s also not half as serious as all of this makes him sound.

Three things about your neighbourhood that make you want to live there: Gene (coffee spot at Main/7th). Proximity to downtown. Abundance of cheap eats.

The thing that you eat that is bad for you that you will never stop eating: My (roughly) annual Big Mac. An umami wonder.

Drink you’ll never have again: A chocolate milk called Tayo. It’s made from potatoes and it’s awful.

Bartender who could sell you anything: Sophie Taverner, Josh Pape, Jay Jones, Mark Brand, Nick Devine, David Wolowidnyk or Wendy McGuinness.

Book you’re reading: The Audacity of Hope by Barack Obama, McSweeney’s Issue #28, plus the Sunday New York Times is religion for me.

Last place traveled: Yaletown. We had an overnight stay at the Opus Hotel and it was fantastic.

Biggest fear: Being without my wife, Wendy. We’ve decided it’s best if we die together when we’re very old in a plane crash or something.

Your paternal grandfather’s personal story: Jack A. Kolt grew up in a small Manitoba farm town and worked on the Canada Pacific Railway. He started the Canadian Polish Athletic Club as a way of getting disadvantaged youth into sports and involved in their community. His motto was “Building boys is better than mending men.” He led an orchestra and started my father on a very successful career as a musician and a teacher. He has a street named after him in Winnipeg. He was devilishly handsome, smoked cigars, and dressed like a dandy. He was a voracious reader, an avid gardener and had a great sense of humour. He lived to be 89 and passed away peacefully after a casual and warm visit with my parents. His funeral was standing room only. I cried way more than I expected to.

Best bar stool in the city: Chambar, tucking into a Mussels Congolaise with a fresh glass of Stella Artois.

What are you proud of: Being a part of an exciting, dynamic, progressive wine and food scene in Vancouver with so many fantastic, passionate peers and colleagues.

Best fine dining restaurant in the city: Vij’s is the best restaurant in this city, regardless of dining level…

Food your mom makes better than anyone: These crazy Sour Cream Cookies that she found in an old Mennonite cookbook that are unbelievably delicious.

Local person you admire most: Personally: my wife. Professionally: Barb Philip MW. Culturally: Rich Hope.

The thing you’re most ashamed of: Whenever I’ve let my wife down.

Best concert experience ever: Yo La Tengo w/ Lambchop in Hoboken, New Jersey during our first trip ever to New York.

First memory: Being in nursery school, and sneaking into the church it was attached to. I’d never been in a church before. There was a janitor at the opposite end and I assumed he was God.

Quality you admire most in yourself: I’m pretty easygoing and very rarely angry.

Album that first made you love music: No clue, but it would have been something of my parents’ when I was really young. Neil Diamond, Kenny Rogers, The Mamas and The Papas, something like that. I always hate it when people say something like The Smiths, The Pixies or The Velvet Underground to give themselves cred. It’s like, REALLY? You were into The Pixies when you were 4, huh?

The career path you considered but never followed: I wanted to get into the non-profit sector, something literary and culturally based, a community centre of sorts. I got close, but it became too risky, finance and fundraising-wise. I met too many people doing similar things who struggled and were tired and had completely lost out on their life-balance and time with loved ones.

Biggest hope: You know, I’m just so happy Obama got elected. Clung to that one for four years.

Each week, Scout poses 60 questions to a local who has made life in BC that much more interesting. They pick and choose. The minimum response is 20 answers. A Rorschach test, for sure…

A chef by trade, Anthony Nicalo has spent his lifetime examining the connection between fine food and its farmed roots. Now, he carefully chooses exquisite, naturally farmed wines from small sustainable farms to include in the Farmstead Wines selection. The delicious wine in every bottle that bears the Farmstead seal meets a rigorous certification program, ensuring that each wine is not only naturally farmed and handcrafted, but is made with truly sustainable practices. These are rare, artisan wines of world class quality and consistency. To learn more, visit http://www.farmsteadwines.com.

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Three things about your neighbourhood that make you want to live there: Moccia, Donald’s Market, and short drive to Cioffi’s.

Sexiest fashion item for the opposite sex: I’ve always liked the look of a men’s button down in the morning.

Favourite wine varietal: depends on what I am eating, but usually something with varietal character, balanced, un-spoofulated with nice acidity. Nebbiolo and Riesling are good bets.

One thing you’d like to change about Vancouver: People who are friendly but not nice. You don’t have to fake it just because you are on the West Coast. There are too many authentic, nice people in Vancouver to let the phonies have a say.

Bartender who could sell you anything: I don’t usually require a hard sell.

Cheap place for dinner: Nuevo Leon. Whenever I am in Chicago, I eat there at least once. They make their own tortillas and the lengua lampreada is fantastic. And it is BYOB!

Book you’re reading: Hot, Flat & Crowded by Thomas Friedman, Reality Check by Guy Kawasaki and The World Without Us by Alan Weisman. I simply cannot read one book at a time.

Last place traveled: Mexico. My wife was there for work and if I didn’t go it would have been over a month since I saw her. On the way, I met someone from the Austrian Embassy in Mexico City that wants to import Austrian wine- nice bonus.

Cliche that you use too often: Wine is grown, not made. But I don’t think it has quite reached full-on cliche status because I am usually the only one saying it.

Dead film actor you wish was still making pictures: Al Pacino. I know, I know, but the 70s and 80s version has left the building.

Best sneaker in the world: Seriously? We figured out 20 years ago that it wasn’t cool to make sneakers in sweat shops, but we happily drink wine sprayed with loads of chemicals and processed with powders, enzymes and industrial yeasts. Our standards for things we eat and drink should be at least as high as what we wear on our feet.

Your ancestry: American Mutt (Russian, danish, french, english, german) but everyone thinks I am Italian

Your paternal grandfather’s personal story: Paternal grandfather? Mediocre father, mediocre grandfather, lived long time. My maternal grandfather is another story. Papa Bill was brilliant, hardworking, salt-of-the-earth, good father, fantastic grandfather, died young.

Sport you gave up: I still haven’t completely given up soccer. And don’t plan to – goalkeepers can play a long time.

The number of fist fights you’ve been in: I’ve broken up a number of them. A kid punched me in 5th grade, but I just told him he should walk away quickly.

Cologne/Perfume you loathe: Too much of anykind. Especially at restaurants, wine tastings, etc.

The dish you’re most proud of: A few years ago, I made dinner for a friend and a girl he liked. The menu was my usual seasonal, simple approach. It worked. The objective of any chef should be to cook so well that you actually get other people laid.

Old television shows you can tolerate re-runs of: My lovely mother-in-law turned me on to Allo-Allo. I find it hilarious.

First memory: Planting seeds in my Papa Bill’s acre garden and driving the tractor with my Grandma Judy sitting on the back. I would always try to hit the bumps.

Album that first made you love music: Run DMC “Raising Hell”

Default junk food of choice: Wine, cured meats, cheese.

Biggest hope: Changing the way the world thinks about farming, food and agriculture. We will never be sustainable until we regain our respect and connection to the land. And sustainable is not just some green marketing bullshit, it is the ability of planet Earth to sustain human life.

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photo: Pete Roggeman