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 list of super sweet things that we’re either doing, wishing that we could do, or conspiring to do this week….

Mmmm Perogies…

Tonight is perogy dinner night at the Holy Trinity Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral on 10th (just off of Main). The delicious old-school perogies are handmade by church volunteers. A ‘regular dinner’ will cost you $11 and consists of 6 perogies, 2 cabbage rolls, sauerkraut or salad and Ukrainian sausage. If you are looking for something a little lighter, borscht served with rye bread is only three bucks. To me there is something so magical about wandering the Spring streets of Vancouver on a full belly of perogies with enough money left in my pocket for…a live musical performance (see next post).
June 5 | | 5 till 8 pm | Holy Trinity Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral | 154 E 10th | $3 – $14

Lost Hombre

The Skinny on this Acoustic/Indie/Pop band from a recent press release: “Lost Hombre sprang into existence in April 2008 after singer/songwriter Owen Belton’s return from Stockholm, where he was working on a music score for the Cullberg Ballet. On Owen’s return to Vancouver, more acoustical music flowed from his song writing, this time accompanied by words and pop sensibilities. Lost Hombre’s debut album “Into the Sunset” was written in Vancouver over the next few months.Owen has enlisted the help from Adrian Buckley (Orchid Highways, Tomorrows) whom Owen had played with in the late 1990s in Sing Sing Dead Man, recruited to play drums for the recording of Into the Sunset. Nicely filling out the live sound are Charles Britton on guitar and backing vocals, and Daniel McCormack (City of Glass, La La Boom Boom) on electric bass.” Totally worth checking out!
June 5th | WISE Hall | Tickets at the door

Tofino Food & Wine Festival

The 7th annual Tofino Food & Wine Festival goes down this weekend and it’s going to be a good one. Some of the highlights include: Salacious Secrets Reception at Long Beach Lodge Resort (featuring tasting stations manned by Kettle Valley Winery, Outlandish Shellfish Guild and Natural Pastures); a winemaker’s dinner with Road 13 at The Wickaninnish Inn, and Grazing in the Gardens an afternoon of tasting canapes and wines while wandering through Tofino Botanical Gardens. “The mission of the Tofino Food and Wine Festival is to promote BC Culinary Tourism and Sustainable Food Sources while enjoying the company of friends and family of the culinary community.” How can you go wrong with a mission like that? It’s not too late to get tickets.
June 5, 6, 7 | Tofino | Visit their website for event details and ticket prices

“Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.”

Michael Pollan, on tour to promote the paperback version of In Defense of Food, will be hanging out in Vancouver today. The author, on his only Canadian stop for his tour, will be speaking at a fundraiser for the superwonderful UBC Farm and it will be a great way to spend your Saturday afternoon. For the price of your ticket you’ll get a copy of In Defense of Food, a guided tour of the Farm. There will be live music and event organisers are encouraging everyone to bring a picnic lunch and a blanket to sit on.
June 6 | 1pm | UBC Farm | $45 Barbara-Jo’s Books to Cooks

Bowen Island Country Fair

Great event for those of us with kids, and even if you don’t have ’em this is still a pretty fine way to spend an afternoon. Park your car in Horseshoe Bay and walk on to the ferry for the short (and beautiful) trip over to Bowen today for the annual Country Fair (it’s a short walk from the dock up to Crippen Regional Park). This year they are going with an old-fashioned theme – expect a pie baking contest, pony rides, farm animals, sack races, and the awesome like.
June 7 | 10:30am – 3:30pm) | Crippen Regional Park | Adults $8 Kids $5

Bags & Bling

Fab Fairs fifth annual Bags & Bling show at the Heritage Hall boasts accessories from 45 local designers (jewellery, handbags, scarves, hats, belts)
June 6 | 11 am–5 pm | Heritage Hall | $2 (kids free)

Planning our Cities

Walking Around the World: Innovation and inspiration for Designing, Engineering and Planning our Cities. Presented by SFU: “The obesity epidemic, congestion, pollution, peak oil and climate change are just five of the imperatives that demand we walk more — and walk more often. Yet the barriers to walking have intensified in recent years. This presentation will show how streets around the world are being opened up again to people on foot, with spectacular benefits for our personal health, and the health of our cities, our communities and our children.”
June 8 | 7 – 8:30pm |UBC Robson Square| FREE (Call 778-782-5100 or email [email protected] to reserve a seat)

West End & Kits Farmers Markets Open

Not that the trek over to Trout Lake isn’t worth it, but if you’re living down town or in Kits (and would rather walk than drive) you’ll be glad to know that both of these Farmers Markets open today. Same deal as the others – they’re good places to buy locally grown produce from good people.
WE: June 6 | 9am – 2pm | 1100 Block of Comox | FREE
Kits: June 6 | 10am – 2pm | Parking Lot of Kitsilano Community Centre | FREE

Get to Know Your…Landfill

Visitors to the 9th Annual Vancouver Landfill Open House will have the opportunity to take a guided bus tour of the landfill, learn about its environmental protection systems, discover how landfill gas generates electricity and heat, watch (possibly the coolest part) the bird control hawks and falcons in action. And, if that last bit about the hawks and falcons wasn’t cool enough (hot date!), there will also be free hamburgers and hot dogs. Find out more.
June 6 | 9am – 3:30pm | Vancouver Landfill | FREE

Breakfast at Tiffany’s

Maybe Landfills aren’t your thing. Maybe you’re more of a Diamond person. At Tiffany & Co this morning you can enjoy a civilized light continental breakfast before an informative presentation of the superior quality, brilliance and beauty of Tiffany diamonds along with a guide through the full array of engagement and band rings and discussion of what to look for when purchasing a diamond ring.
June 6 | 9 to 10 AM | Tiffany & Co. (723 Burrard) | Call 604.630.1300 to reserve a space

Tequila Mockingbird Orchestra

Ambiguous Arts Festivals presents performances by the Tequila Mockingbird Orchestra and Chervona and the Underscore Orkestra from Portland, Oregon. Tequila Mockingbird Orchestra is Victoria’s legendary gypsy-ska band. Have a listen – promises to be a good toe tappin’ evening.
June 6th | WISE Hall | $15, try Red Cat

La Traviata

Opera Pro Cantanti presents Verdi’s classic about frivolity, folly, and faithful love. From the Opera Pro Cantanti website: La Traviata is perhaps the most beloved of all operas. Social pressures, combined with tragic misunderstandings, lead to a son’s despair, a father’s regret and a doomed courtesan’s expression of the purest love. At the same time, this tragic tale gives life to some of the most joyful and memorable melodies of all time.”
June 7 | 7:30 pm | Cambrian Hall (215 E. 17th) | By donation. Info 604-646-0406

Get to Know Gastown

The Gastown Shuffle is a walking tour of the Gastown nieghbourhood that takes you on a spin through some of the areas coolest bars and shops. Between stops at watering holes such as the swish new Diamond, The Metropole, Deighton’s Well, Revel and The Lamplighter, Shufflers will be lead to hip retail stops like Livestock, ALife, Complex, Stussy, JD’s Barbershop. The Shuffle ends at the Modern with the sounds of famed California DJ Peanut Butter Wolf (as well as Dam Funk, Hedspin and U Tern). There is no cost to participate, simply ask for a Shuffle badge at any of the participating locations listed above and get into the shuffle -begin and end at any bar. There is no schedule at all. Participants are encouraged to hang out at each location (each venue gives each participant a free Heineken, shot of Sauza or Red Bull drop shot) and move when they want to.
June 10 | 7-11pm | Gastown | FREE

Mid-week Farmers Market

One last gem of good news regarding the Farmers Markets: this week the mid-week market (previously held at Riley Park) will start up in it’s new location – Main Street Station at Thornton Park (across from the VIA Rail Station and near the Main St Skytrain Station). It runs until 7pm so that you can pick up grub on the way home from work and is conveniently located next a hop skip and a jump away from everyone’s favourite rustic Italian joint Campagnolo, great place to stop in for a cold beer and an asparagus salad).
June 10 | 3pm – 7pm | Thornton Park | FREE

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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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