The Intelligence Brief is our weekly compendium of food and drink news sourced from outlets all over the world, including right here at home.

Punch tries to make sense of these very strange and incredibly violent midcentury ads for Angostura Bitters.

David Wondrich provides a history lesson on the cocktail menu and explains why keeping the classics is just as important as innovative offerings.

As malls lose their lustre for a generation of online shoppers, the food hall moves in to try and lure them back.

After a seven0year run in Chinatown, Mamie Taylor’s is set to close with a special bash at the end of this week.

Next up on Scout’s never-ending tour of Vancouver’s best comfort foods is the legendary cheese toast at Hy’s Steakhouse.

Vancouver Is Awesome looks at the impact of coronavirus on the local restaurant industry.

Similarly, Eater explains the effects of coronavirus on American Chinese restaurants.

“In addition to the decline of visitors from China who might visit Chinese restaurants in U.S. cities, many American customers have stopped visiting their local Chinatowns due to baseless fears or misinformation.”

Meanwhile, the New Yorker’ Helen Rosner interviews a couple based out of China as they share their experience running a popular cooking series while living under lockdown.

VV Tapas Lounge Sommelier and Manager Rachelle Goudreau on favourite local wines, under-the-radar wineries and finding first-love bottles at CinCin.

Eating via Instagram honours this week go to @liviasweets for what can only be described as a bread-lovers dream:

 

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Sun soaked loaves just waiting to be your breakfast-lunch-dinner-midnight snack. It’s pretty wonderful, no? ? on film by @kyle_mchowe . . . . . . . . . #sourdough #opencrumbmastery #breadwall #restaurantdesign #yvreats #vabcityeats #liviabakery #livsweetly

A post shared by Livia (@liviasweets) on Feb 16, 2020 at 9:40am PST

Another opening to look forward to: Straight and Marrow will open in the former Bistro Wagon Rouge space with plans for a cocktail-forward bistro concept.

Ucluelet Brewing Company’s Allan Cukier on a typical day at work, brewing mentors and the one beer that started it all.

Employees of San Francisco’s famed Tartine Bakery move to unionize after staff report the company has neglected to respond to issues of unsustainable wages, decreased hours and insufficient health care benefits.

When training to become firefighters, I highly doubt any of these brave humans thought they’d one day be called to save a 10 foot tall bottle of wine.

Shout out to all the restaurant and bar folks that put in hard hours this past Valentine’s Day weekend. According to this article from NPR, these shifts tend to be some of the most dreaded of the year.

Portland barman Jeffrey Morgenthaler shares a photo essay on the team that helps him run two of the best cocktail joints in America.

Sooke’s Sheringham Distillery takes first place in three separate categories at this year’s Canadian Artisan Spirit Competition.

And speaking of big wins for local distilleries, Vancouver Island distillery Shelter Point takes home the gold for best rye in the country at this year’s Canadian Whisky Awards.

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