We have a double pass to go see Portishead play the PNE on October 24th. Should you want it, be sure to stick close to our little Facebook page over the next 48 hours. It’s where – in addition to posting photos, videos and news tidbits that don’t make Scout’s front page – we often give away concert tickets and other awesome freebies. It’s a bookmark that pays dividends in intel and good times, so “LIKE” it at your leisure. Ahem: we’ll also likely drop a heavy hint on Twitter an hour or so before the giveaway, so you might as well follow us while you’re at it.

EVENT GOODS | Mark your calendars! Taste Chile presents Dish n’ Dazzle – a showcase for Vancouver’s dynamic hospitality industry – on June 17th at the Fairmont Pacific Rim. Benefiting the BC Hospitality Foundation (helping hospitality professionals in times of critical medical need), this exciting joint fundraiser will feature more than 20 wineries from across Chile’s diverse wine regions, food from a dozen of Vancouver’s best restaurants and a high-stakes Sour-themed cocktail competition featuring several of our best bartenders. In the main “tasting room”, guests will move from station to station in an interactive, informal setting, enjoying food, wines and premium liquors. This “dazzling” night is sure to delight and entertain, just as it did last year!

Taste the Wines of Chile and support the BCHF at this always amazing event! Get your tickets here ($99 via the BC Hospitality Foundation).

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If your big night or festival is the right fit for Scout, we’ll reserve the “EVENT GOODS” spot in our front page feature carousel for you to get the word out. Email michelle [at] scoutmagazine [dot ca] for details.

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by Andrew Morrison | So I was given a tour of the most highly anticipated restaurant in recent memory the other day. Yup, the three year wait for the return of David Hawksworth’s food is finally coming to an end. The place was buzzing with saws, banging with hammers and generally giving the clear impression of its happy imminence. Hawksworth in the as yet unfinished restoration of the Rosewood Hotel Georgia should open shortly. It’s a week out at the earliest.

It was a thorough tour, but I obliged their request to not take any pictures that would reveal any of the three rooms in their entirety or the private York Room upstairs. I was not permitted to take any photos of the pool, the outdoor terrace and bar, the Spanish Ballroom, the cafe or the stunning lobby of old, restored…like, wow. But I managed to shoot 35 frames nevertheless.

The restaurant isn’t finished yet but I’d eat there, happily and tonight in its 40 seat Pearl Room under the stunning centerpiece chandelier. I’d subject myself to courses next door in the 30 seat Art Room, sitting next to the commissioned work by local art heft Rodney Graham and served by Chad Clark’s staff. I wouldn’t mind hearing sommelier Terry Threlfall popping corks and to taste David’s cooking again. No. The din of workmen and staff in tank tops and t-shirts training at barman Brad Stanton’s 8 seater and getting into the sawdust of an Old Fashioned would be just fine.

I want to eat at Hawksworth. I want it to be good, maybe even the best. And I think it can. It probably shall…

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Two Chefs And A Table is located at 305 Alexander Street | 778- 233-1303 | www.twochefsandatable.com

The GOODS from Two Chefs And A Table

Vancouver, BC | Two Chefs and a Table are pleased to announce the return of our Cinco de Mayo feast for a second great year. Thanks to last year’s quick sell out, we’re going to be offering the menu for three nights starting on Cinco de Mayo itself and finishing on Saturday May 7th.

This year’s menu again features five courses of regional Mexican dishes made with local ingredients and combined with complimentary drinks true to the spirit of Cinco de Mayo. From Molotes which are a traditional holiday food in Oaxaca to Chiles en Nogada a Pueblan favourite to Pozolé, the traditional soup which is found throughout Central Mexico and whose recipe dates to pre-Columbian times. Like everything made at Two Chefs and a Table, the ingredients being used in our Cinco de Mayo feast are locally-sourced from our favourite farms like Polderside, Pemberton Meadows and Sloping Hills whenever possible to ensure utmost freshness and quality.

The range of drinks to accompany the course ranges from our favourite Mexican beers to tequila-based cocktails and even a delicious Petite Syrah from L.A. Cetto, one of Mexico’s leading wineries, to accompany the main course. Details and menu after the leap…

The cost for the Cinco de Mayo dinner is $75 per person, not including tax and gratuity and reservations are recommended for this popular event. Two Chefs and a Table is located at 305 Alexander Street in Railtown. For more information or to book your table, call 778-233-1303 or email info@twochefsandatable.com.

Cinco de Mayo Menu

Amuse Bouche
Tiger Prawn Ceviche: lime juice, avocado, fresh prawn
Served with Champagne cocktail of El Jimador Blanco tequila, lime sorbet, champagne

First Course
Pozolé: braised pork jowl soup
Served with Negro Modelo beer

Second Course
Molotes: hand rolled masa harina filled with shredded pork, salsa verde
Served with Batanga: Cazadorés Reposado tequila, lime juice, Mexican cola

Third Course
Chilis en Nogada: Poblano chili stuffed w/Polderside chicken, raisins, garlic, onion & cilantro, creamy walnut sauce, pomegranate seeds
Served with Agavé Stormy: Cazadorés Reposado tequila, lime juice, agavé syrup, ginger beer

Entrée
choice of achiote marinated Sloping Hills pork tenderloin, pipian verde, jicama & guava salad or grilled, marinated Pemberton Meadows skirt steak with grilled nopales, mole rojo, esquites
Served with L.A. Cetto Petite Syrah 2009 (Baja, Mexico)

Dessert
Cinnamon fried plantains, unbaked mango cheesecake
Served with Don Julio Anejo tequila

About Two Chefs And A Table

With one eye on the wonders of its spectacular setting and the other turned to the bustle and cosmopolitan energy of the city, Vancouverites have shaped a unique lifestyle that includes indoor and outdoor pursuits. Then menu concept at Two Chefs and a Table mirrors this balance, combining techniques from classic French cuisine with superb locally ingredients and influences from Vancouver’s broad cultural mosaic.

Two Chefs and a Table creates food to satisfy all sides of this fantastic city: from the casual to the classy, the sporty to the serious, with dishes which span lusty simple tastes and textures to more complex preparations—always delivered with flair, passion and precision.

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In addition to providing daily editorial, Scout is dedicated to supporting and promoting cool, interesting, and independent British Columbian businesses through the publication of their press releases and event info. To learn how to get your news up on our front page, check out our supporter details page here.

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I took a gander inside the upcoming Pink Elephant restaurant at 1152 Alberni yesterday. Even if you’re not entirely sure about the hot pink and light grey colour palette, it’s nevertheless impressive what they’ve done with their allotted 2,800 square feet, especially considering the address used to be the entrance to an underground parkade (for serious).

So what do we know about it? It’s an 88 seater and the newest province in the Chen Empire, aka Thai House Restaurant Group (see also Urban Thai, Charm, Samba, etc). Split on two levels with the kitchen and an approximation of a chef’s table filling the mezzanine, it’s a voluminous box sound-softened with faux concrete linoleum floors. A communal table runs down the center of the main floor and is flanked by an 8 seat bar backed with flat screen and a series of deuce booths complete with stainless steel foot rests. The straight-lined look comes courtesy of restaurant first-timers Horizon, and as you can see their aesthetes have really tucked the garish brand’s shirt in (this place is freakin’ pink).

As for the food, the plan is tapas-style Thai street chow priced in the $5 to $15 range with nothing over $20 (menu 1, 2). The chef is Parichat Poomkajorn stable poached from cousin Thai House on Robson. Expect opening day before the end of the May.

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