Girls' Night Out - The Keg, Sephora and Yaletown

Vancity Girlfriends had a little hiatus with the busyness of life!  Thought it would be nice to share with our readers what we've been up to including our Girl's Night Out dates.  

I had a gift card for the Keg so we decided to meet at The Keg on Alberni Street downtown Vancouver which Carolyn also describes as the Shangrila Keg.  This was the first time I went to this location and I loved the atmosphere.  First we met at the bottom of staircase that led up to the front doors of the restaurant.  The staircase was lined with bamboo on both sides creating a natural and beautiful entrance.  I had made Open Table reservations for 5pm and that's also when the dining room and outdoor patio opened.  It was a beautiful sunny evening so we asked to sit in the elegant patio and dine outdoors.  

Happy Hour was from 3-6pm so we had time to indulge in $6 glasses of wine.  I had the white on tap and Carolyn had the red on tap.  Both were lovely blends that I would return to have again.  It was worth going for an early dinner just to be able to have $6 glass of wine.  

For our meals, we didn't order from the Happy Hour menu but instead had the Keg classic dinners which start with a caesar salad and the steak of your choice comes with grilled vegetables and a side of your choice.  I chose the Top Sirloin (8oz) steak with bernaise sauce and a twice baked potato.  The Keg Classic dinners did not disappoint.  We were both completely satisfied with our meals and the ambiance at The Keg on Alberni in Vancouver.  

After our meal, we walked down Robson Street and stopped at our favorite beauty store, Sephora.  I was looking for a new cleanser and moisturizer and found the Ole Henriksen A Brighter Truth skincare kit with the cleaner, serum, and moisturizer.  The brighter truth has vitamin c to help with the sun spots and age spots which I need so I bought the reasonably priced kit at $42.  It has a light fruity scent that is refreshing so we'll see how I feel after I test it for a month.

Then we continued our journey down Robson Street past the Vancouver Art Gallery where there was a busker playing music on the street.  We were both completely full from dinner so the evening stroll downtown was a way to walk off our dinner.  Since Carolyn needed to travel by the Canada Skytrain Line, we decided to walk to the Roundhouse Yaletown skytrain station.  Just outside the skytrain station we were pleasantly surprised with the Underbrella art exhibit.  Umbrellas in the sky.  It was the perfect way to end our girl's night out.  

NaBloPoMo Day 5 - Weekend Getaway Kelowna BC

Weekend Getaway Kelowna BC and Quails Gate Winery Restaurant

NaBloPoMo 2017 Day 5

Every year I have an annual girls weekend where we choose a place for Vancity Girlfriends to enjoy a weekend away from Vancity and to relax without any duties of home.  This year we planned a year in advance and saved up enough Air Miles so we could fly to Kelowna for a weekend in October.  

We stayed at the Sandman Hotel which has a beautiful indoor swimming pool and hot tub (we were too busy drinking, eating and shopping to use it) but it was still calming to walk by the pools everyday and see the serenity of the pool.  We stayed on the business floor and the room had all the amenities such as a shower and bathtub, mini-fridge, coffee maker, TV, and two queen sized beds.  It is conveniently located across the street from Orchard Park Shopping Centre, a BC Liquor Store and close to several restaurants such as The Keg, Milestones and Moxies.  

The first night we made reservations at the Quails Gate Winery Restaurant called The Old Vines Restaurant to get the weekend started right.  I would highly recommend The Old Vines restaurant for any special occasion.  We started with a wine flight and then ordered our main meals.  I had the bison and Vancity Girlfriend Carolyn had the salmon which was served with popcorn.  That may seem like an unusual pairing but it was absolutely amazing.  Dessert is a must.  The names on the menu does not describe the unity of flavors on the dessert plate.  It's a subtle dance on the tastebuds for each bite.  The desserts that are featured below are the Iced Peanut Butter Parfait and the Milk Delice.  I'll never forget the experience of dining at the Old Vines Restaurant at the Quails Gate Winery.  They were unforgettable culinary journey in Kelowna BC.   

Old Vines Restaurant at Quails Gate Winery

Red Wine Flight at Quails Gate Winery

Free Range Bison at Quails Gate Winery

Dessert Plates at the Quails Gate Winery

Salmon at the Quails Gate Winery

Wine Wednesday: Santero Asti Sparkling Wine

I often use the BC Liquor store app to check out what's new and what to try.  They have "wish" and "favourite" list where you can save wines that you have found.  Often I will browse and save sparkling wines on my Wish list.  

So on New Year's Eve it was easy to look at my Wish list and then choose a bottle of sparkling wine that was on sale.  Then when I ventured out into the BC Liquor Store that was completely crowded, I didn't have to browse at all.  I just grabbed the one bottle of sparkling Santero Asti Sparkling Wine and left.

The bottle is pretty and looks almost gold which is great for presentation.  Santero Asti Sparkling wine is sweet like a Moscato so it's perfect for a crowd because it's to sip and drink slowly.  It was our sparkling wine for the New Years toast!  

Give everyone half a glass to celebrate!  Any occasion will do.  

Wine Wednesday: Woodbridge White Zinfadel

Vancity Girlfriend Carolyn loves her wine so when I asked her to take a picture of a bottle for me to share on the blog, this is what she sent me.  Woodbridge White Zinfadel from California was so good that the bottle is half empty.  This is a light and fresh with berry flavours.  There is a pattern that you may find that we like to enjoy light, fruity wines that are easy to drink and pairs well with lots of different food.  She has sold the wine to me so well that I've added to my BC Liquor store wish list.  That's when I discovered that this bottle is only $8.95 so I'll be sure to keep an eye out for it and give it a try.  I know I will.  

Wine Wednesday - Lolea White Sparkling Sangaria

All year long I look forward to the girl's weekend and this year it was a staycation at the River Rock Casino.  

We bring our wines and enjoy a weekend of relaxing, drinking, and eating.  Carolyn brought LOLEA white sparkling sangaria from Spain and it is such a fun bottle of wine!  It doesn't need any gift wrapping with this bottle with polka dots that sounds out from the rest of the bottles.  I love sparkling wine because of bubbles and light fruity flavours so I couldn't wait to try this bottle.

I loved it!  Carolyn said it reminded her of a Breezer cooler.  It was perfect for me!  Then when I checked out the LOLEA website I saw that you could even turn this into a fun punch for a party with crushed strawberries and a splash of vodka.  We drank it straight on ice this time and enjoyed every sip.  

Wine Wednesday - Cupcake Prosecco Sparkling Wine

It was on the girl's weekend getaway staycation where I discovered that Cupcake Winery has the 187 ml small individual trios of prosecco sparkling wine.  Cupcake Prosecco is a sparkling wine that is refreshing with gentle favors of white peach, grapefruit, and honeydew melon.  It is a light fruity sparkling wine in a cute bottle that is attractive for gift giving.  Cupcake Prosecco is from an Italian vineyard.  

There is so much you can do with Cupcake Prosecco and here are the 5 cocktails to try.

1.  Mimosa - Try prosecco with orange juice, or better yet grapefruit juice for brunch.


2.  Sparkling strawberry cocktail - Try a bottle prosecco with 1/4 cup orange juice, 2 cups hulled and blended strawberries and garnish with orange slices and mint.  

3.  Pomegranate Grapefruit Cocktail - Try prosecco with a combination of pomegranate and grapefruit juice.  

4.  Peach Bellini - Try prosecco with peach juice from fresh peaches with simple syrup and prosecco.

5.  Spritz - Try prosecco with soda water for a light spritz with slices of orange as a garnish.  

Just writing about the possibilities makes me want to go out and buy some Cupcake Prosecco to try different prosecco cockatils during the holidays.  

Find out more at the Cupcake Vineyard Website:  http://www.cupcakevineyards.com/

#ThrowbackThursday - Vancouver Meat and Cheese Festival

National Blog Posting Month

Blogging Everyday in November 

#NaBloPoMo Day 10 - Vancouver Meat and Cheese Festival

I love to look at the photos I have taken for inspiration for my blogging posts and I stumbled across some beautiful photos and thought they would be perfect for #ThrowbackThursday.

Vancouver Meat and Cheese Festival was in September and it was its first year so Vancity Girlfriends decided to buy tickets for the Wine and Cheese Tasting that was held at the Terminal City Club.  I blogged about the event in July but was busy in September to share the fabulous photo memories.  

Terminal City Club is a beautiful venue located downtown Vancouver.  Normally you need to be a club member to enter but for this evening everyone was welcome.  The Wine and Cheese tasting was scheduled for one and half hours but it did not take that long for the hosts to discuss the six different types of cheese on the plate and the wines to accompany the cheese.  I learned a lot about Canadian cheeses and loved tasting the wine.  Tasting is key as some of the cheese I definitely had wine favourites.  The "lecture" lasted until maybe thirty or forty minutes but that gave everyone time to chat to each other and slowly sip and taste their wine.  I also recommend refilling the water glass as well.  As you can imagine after drinking six glasses of wine (even taster sizes) we were feeling pretty happy.  So happy also that we decided to go out for dinner after the event to soak up all of the wine.  It was a fun wine tasting event and I'm sure we'll be seeing them back in 2017!  

I felt like I belonged to the club for that evening while waiting by the grand piano in the lobby sitting on comfortable arm chairs.  The only thing that was missing was the pianist.  We lapped up the luxury of the elegant surroundings before dinner.  

Vancouver Event: Cheese and Meat Festival Vancouver

Dear Vancity Girlfriends,

You no longer need to wait until February for a wine and cheese festival.  Carolyn found a wine and cheese pairing seminar at the new Cheese and Meat Festival.  So for one evening in September we will be able to sample wine and cheese and learn about which ones go together.  Now that sounds like a fabulous treat!  I love learning about new things and growing and Carolyn loves drinking wine.  So when you have a Wine and Cheese seminar it makes us both happy ;)  

The Wine and Cheese Pairing seminar is at Terminal City Club on September 17th from 5:30-7pm.  Tickets are $35 each and $7 processing fee so it's around $42 for an evening of learning about wine and cheese.  

Not really sure what to expect as this is the first year the festival is taking place.  But we will be sure to bring our iPhones and cameras so we can share our experience.  Or if you wish, grab a ticket and join us. Find out more at the following link:  http://cheeseandmeatfestival.com/vancouver/

Vancouver Restaurant - Tap and Barrel Olympic Village

Hello Vancity Girlfriends,

It was two years ago in 2014 when we first visited Tap and Barrel Coal Harbour and we loved their cocktails and shared plates.  

Now let's fast forward to 2016 when we discover that Tap and Barrel Olympic Village has sparkling wine on tap.  Tap and Barrel Olympic Village is a short walk away from Main Street/Science World skytrain station.  It's a beautiful short walk along the seaside and then you are at Tap and Barrel.  

We met on a sunny Wednesday evening and even though it was Happy Hour when we arrived at 5:30pm with house wines for $4 and Wine Wednesdays with wine flights on special at $1 discount, my heart was set on trying their new sparkling wine on tap for $9 a glass.

Carolyn ordered the Orchard Hill cider and when I ordered the sparkling wine the server said he needed to check if it was available.  Oh no!  My heart sank and I was browsing the menu to see what my second choice would be if he was to truly disappoint me.  Luckily he returned with a champagne flute topped with Tap and Barrel sparkling wine.  The sparkling wine was delicious, light and bubbly.  We enjoyed our drinks with an appetizer of deep fried pickles while we waited for our girlfriend to arrive.  

Tap and Barrel is a great place for sharing tapas style which is exactly what we did.  We ordered the Maui Wowie pizza, pulled bacon poutine and handmade guac and salsa.  I loved being able to try different dishes with my glass of sparkling wine.  Perfect evening combination with girlfriends.

Tap and Barrel Olympic Village - Pulled Bacon Poutine

Tap and Barrel Olympic Village - Handmade Guac and Salsa

Tap and Barrel Olympic Village - Maui Wowie Pizza

Vancouver Event: Vancouver International Wine Festival 2016

Hello Vancity Girlfriends,

Happy Holidays!  This year we went to the Vancouver International Wine Festival 25 for under $25 Mingler and LOVED IT.  Read our post here:  http://vancitygirlfriends.blogspot.ca/2015/03/vancouver-event-vancouver-international.html

So I've been watching the website and anxiously waiting to see when tickets will go on sale.  This is a popular event and sells out quickly so I wanted plenty of time to tell all my friends about this event.  With a wine mingler, the more people you know there, the more fun it is.  I love trying new wines and seeing which ones make an impression on my tastebuds.  Even better that I go with a Vancity Girlfriend.  

The Vancouver International Wine Festival this year has the ITALY theme and the tickets for the 25 for under $25 Mingler are going on sale on Tuesday, January 12th at 9:30AM.  The wine mingler itself is on Saturday, February 27th from 5:15-6:45pm and tickets are $55.  

Check it out and maybe we'll see you there!  http://www.vanwinefest.ca/page470.htm

Stagette Party: Aphrodisiac Cooking Class at Kitchen Riddles

Dear Vancity Girlfriends,

When you think of getting married and the stagette, you may not think of cooking classes, but that is exactly what we did for my girlfriend's stagette!  It was called the Aphrodisiac Cooking Class which was a private class just for the nine of us.  

Chef Morgan and Chef Tony took care of us for the evening and we started the night tasting their fresh foccacia bread which was orgasmic.  It was freshly baked that evening and the bread melted in our mouths.  We had that with our choice of white or red wine.  

Then we gathered for our Aphrodisiac Cooking Class which is perfect for bridal showers, bridal parties, girl's night out, birthday parties, or stagettes.  There was a large table with enough space for everyone and the ingredients in the middle.  The chef who was teaching that dish was at the front and first he taught us knife techniques and how to chop the ingredients before we cooked.  It was better than watching the Food Network because it's in person.  Yay!  

We prepared and then learned how to cook each step of the three course meal.  The appetizer was crab cakes with arugula which were so delicious probably because of they were "real" crab cakes (no imitation crab meat here).  Instead there was a bowl full of cooked soft shell crab.  We learned how to plate our dishes too before we brought them to the dining area to enjoy!  Throughout the evening there were cocktails and unlimited wine for us to refill our wine glasses.  The chefs were patient and funny and let us be a little wild and crazy!  After all we were there for a stagette, not a cooking class, and it was a beautiful blend of both.  

Our main entree was Prosciutto Awakening which was a prosciutto wrapped chicken breast that is seared and served with a mixture of white and cremini mushrooms sauteed with asparagus and risotto.  An elegant plate indeed.  

For dessert we had a Chocolate Lava cake served with chantilly cream and pomegranates.  This was an amazing 3 course meal and I was so excited that I could recreate these dishes from memory.  That is the beauty of the culinary arts.  Not only was it was tipsy fun stagette, we learned a lot about cooking fundamentals....that says a lot that I can remember that after drinking at least 4 glasses of wine throughout the night.   What a memorable night!  

Kitchen Riddles in Burnaby:  https://kitchenriddles.com/cooking-classes/

Vancouver Event: Vancouver International Wine Festival - 25 for under $25 Mingler

Dear Vancity Girlfriends,

This year we went to the Vancouver International Wine Festival for the 25 for under $25 Mingler that is open to the public.  It was the first time for us to experience such a wine tasting and to have the opportunity to try 25 different types of wine that are all available in the liquor stores for an affordable price of under $25.  This mingler was hosted by The Province's Wine Guy who writes about budget minded bottles of wine on a regular basis and I imagine he gets to taste a few too.  It's great to be able to taste the different wines side by side to compare and to really find out which ones are your favorite.  I'm sure that each wine tastes well for its purpose and paired with specific foods but I'm not a wine connisieur.  Instead we are just Vancity Girlfriends, two ladies who enjoy our glasses of wine together.  

Thankfully the Vancouver International Wine Festival outlines some tips for your wine tasting experience and I am glad I took note of those beforehand.  Even though you may imagine that you want to guzzle all of the wines at once, this is not that type of event, so don't do it.  It is for 'tasting' or 'sipping' the wines and trust me, the ones you enjoy will stand out.  The others you'll just put the rest of the pour in the buckets and move onto the next wine.  With 25 wines in under 2 hours, you really have to pace yourself.  We got our first taste and then went straight to the appetizers to balance the wine with the cheese, bread, meat, and crackers.  Then we went back for more.  Even though it was busy as this is a sold out event every year, there's enough space to get your taster pour and then walk away so the next person can get their chance to talk with the wineries.  There were wines from all different countries including Australia, Germany, France, Spain, and of course the local Canadian wines. 

My favourite of the night was the Quail's Gate Pinoit Noir - light and refreshing pinoit noir that gives a memorable sip.  http://quailsgate.com/wines/quails-gate-pinot-noir/  Quail's Gate Winery is located in Kewlona, BC, Canada.  

We loved the 25 for under $25 mingler at the Vancouver International Wine Festival so much that we are already planning next year's night on the town with #VIWF.  

 

Vancouver's Pizza Barbarella

Dear Vancity Girlfriends,

Now when you want to celebrate a birthday, you must do it in style!  What did Vancity Girlfriend want?  She was hunting for a GOOD PIZZA joint and of course you must celebrate with sparkling wine.  

We found Vancouver's East Side's Pizza Barbarella!  Pizza and wine are the perfect combination.  Since this is a hip joint, they don't take reservations on Friday nights.  We met there at 7pm and had no problems getting a table for the four of us.

It's a quaint casual restaurant with the wood burning oven in the back for their famous thin crust pizza.  It's casual but yet elegant at the same time.  When you open up the wine list, you will be amazed at the affordable prices!  A bottle of sparkling wine was only $25!  I'd go back just for that.  

We started with the bottle of sparkling wine and the antipasto appetizer.  Then for the main course we ordered two pizzas for the four of us which was perfect to share.  We had told the server that we were there for a birthday celebration so at the end of our meal she brought over a banoffee pie with a candle on top for dessert.  YUM!  

The thin crust pizzas were fresh and delicious.  There's something about the flames of wood burning oven that gives the pizza the earthy taste and with the fresh organic ingredients on top, it's not a surprise that we devoured it!  

Check out this Vancouver pizza joint at  Pizza Barbarella

It was the perfect way to celebrate Vancity Girlfriend Carolyn's big day!

Happy Birthday!

Living Social Coupon: Paint Nite Vancouver

Dear Vancity Girlfriends,
As you may already know, I love a good deal!  So that's when the group buying coupons come into play.  It's bad because in the past I've been so obsessed with buying coupons, that I even forgot to make reservations to actually use them before they expire.  Now I know better!  If I'm actually buying a coupon, I basically make the reservations immediately.  Due to the popularity of the deal, you have to plan ahead!  

Bird on a Wire from November Paint Nite

That's exactly what we had to do for Paint Nite Vancouver at the Ascot.  Paint Nite is a night where you can get together with your Vancity girlfriends at a local pub restaurant (in this case the Ascot) and have a drink and paint at the same time.  

With the $25 Living Social coupon your canvas, painting supplies and instructions are all included so you leave Paint Nite with a painting you can hang on your wall.  (alcohol is not included and optional but you know what will happen when Vancity Girlfriends go;)  It's an easygoing atmosphere so you have the choice to follow the instructions or to let your creative juices guide you.  Either way at the end of the night you have a finished painting that you've completed all on your own.

Now we want you and your girlfriends to come and join us at Paint Nite Vancouver on Saturday, February 22nd to paint Hot Pink Flowers!  Spaces are filling up!

After you buy the Living Social coupon, you need to go to the Paint Nite website to make the reservation and enter the coupon code from living social.  There will also be an additional $3 fee for taxes.  Do this right away as you'll notice the dates fill up and get SOLD OUT!  quickly.  Don't worry about making a reservation three months in advance, their customer service is excellent and you can always change your dates if something comes up.  

Step 1:  Buy the Living Social Paint Nite Coupon 
Step 2:  Make the reservation on Paint Nite Vancouver website
Step 3:  Come to Paint Nite!  Enjoy!  Come find Vancity Girlfriends!

Subscription Boxes: Topbox Review (July) and Jacob's Creek Moscato

Hello Vancity Girlfriends,
Well it's Moscato Monday and I'm happy to let you all know that we tried Jacob's Creek Moscato for our vlog night and LOVED it!  You'll be able to see us hold up the empty bottle of Moscato!  

So, we received our Topbox for July and this was not our favourite Topbox.  We do love the packaging for Topbox and I have a gift giving tip which is to reuse it for giving gifts.  

Of course I get SO excited for vlog nights that I always forget to take enough pictures for the blog!  Watch the vlog to see what we got...it includes nail polish, lip gloss, skin care and hair product!