Vancouver's best-kept restaurant secrets

Directly from the Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts Press Release:

(VANCOUVER, BC) – Feeling Crabby? Indulge your crabbiness with a three-course menu built around our fresh and local BC Dungeness Crab. For three weeks only, starting Tuesday, June 9th, Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts’ soon-to-be graduating class will be cracking, shelling and cooking in the kitchen for their BC Dungeness Excrabagannza Menu.

The excrabaganza is available for lunch and dinner in the marina-view restaurant at Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts. For $38 per person (excluding taxes and gratuities) crab lovers can choose from a number of dishes on our three-course menu including crab bisque, crab cakes, wild sockeye salmon with crab hollandaise …A detailed menu is attached.

This limited time menu is only offered on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays along side our regular weekly restaurant menu currently featuring BC Spot Prawns (so crabby people can still bring along their not-so-crabby dining companions)

Reservations are highly recommended and available by telephone at 604.734.4488 or online at www.picachef.com. Special discount and promotional coupons not accepted.

Directly from the Wild Rice Press Release:

(Vancouver, BC) – “Summertime and the living is easy” or so the song goes. When the warmer days finally arrive, we feel less inclined to spend time cooking over a hot stove. Summer fare tends to be easier and lighter in keeping with our lighter appetites.

At Wild Rice, celebrating the lightness of summer is as easy as one, two, three. Each month from June through September, Wild Rice will present a special Summer Light Menu. Lighter seasonal ingredients, lighter flavours and light on your pocket book.

Each menu comes with three different food courses. You pick any two for only $22 or enjoy all three for $27.

June’s menu includes Caramelized Qualicum Bay Scallop on a Salad of Pea and Bamboo Shoots, Seared Orange-spiced BC Albacore Tuna served with a Coconut Ginger Rice Cake with a cooling Mango Cucumber Emulsion and Coconut Beignets with Star Anise Caramel and Spiced Pineapple Sorbet.

Owner Andrew Wong has also suggested an optional wine pairing for each course representing some of BC’s finest summer sippers - Joie Noble Blend, Wild Goose Gewürztraminer and Mt. Boucherie Late Harvest Chardonnay. Same light pricing – any two for $10 or get all three for $15.

The Summer Light Menu is offered every day. Wild Rice is open every evening for dinner starting at 5 p.m. and on Fridays for lunch as well starting at 11:30 a.m. Reservations are now accepted at Wild Rice and can be made on line at
www.wildricevancouver.com or by calling 604.642.2882

Directly from The Smoking Dog Press Release:

THE SMOKING DOG FRENCH BISTRO CELEBRATES AN ANNIVERSARY

Wednesday, June 10th, 6:30 pm – Midnight

The Smoking Dog French Bistro invites you to celebrate

Jean and Jude’s four year anniversary as owners of “The Dog”,

a Kitsilano neighbourhood icon for  12 years.

Join us for an evening of great food, great drinks and great music

Ticket’s $25 per person

Included - Hors d’oeuvres will flow all night,

unlimited Pomme Frites and as a special one night feature,

all wines and feature cocktails at just $5 a glass

FEATURING SPECIAL GUEST

JUNO AWARD WINNER JIM BYRNES

Reserve by telephone with a credit card at 604-732-8811

or purchase in advance at the door

Directly from the Mink Chocolate Press Release:

May 25, 2009 (Vancouver, BC) –Mink A Chocolate Café is pleased to announce that it will be supporting the Canucks Autism Network (CAN) this June.

Every month, the staff at Mink A Chocolate Café donates 100% of their tips to a registered charity of their choice.  This June, CAN will be the beneficiary of their goodwill.  CAN makes a positive difference in the lives of children with autism and their families, offering a range of recreational, sports, social, and vocational development programs.  Some of their most popular programs include Zajac Ranch for Children, which provides a safe and fun summer camp experience; the opportunity to participate in a tour of GM Place; and a soccer program.  CAN will also shortly be introducing a martial arts program and a peer friendship program that will provide social and relationship building opportunities.

We hope that you will help us support this worthy organization the next time you stop by Mink A Chocolate Café to pick up one of our luxurious handmade chocolate bars or a cup of freshly-brewed coffee.

Directly from the Summerlicious Press Release:

Summerlicious presented by American Express returns July 3 to 19. A list of restaurants and their menus can now be found at www.toronto.ca/summerlicious and in brochures distributed to participating locations and civic centres throughout Toronto.

Now in its seventh year, Summerlicious features three-course prix fixe menus ($15, $20 or $30 for lunch and $25, $35 or $45 for dinner) at 150 of Toronto’s finest dining establishments across the city.

Restaurants will begin taking Summerlicious reservations on June 18 and American Express Cardmembers can go to the Front Of The Line® to book early reservations on June 16 and 17.

There are 12 new restaurants on this year’s line-up:  Café du Lac, Didier, Domani Restaurant and Wine Bar, Hot House Café, Kultura, Levack Block, Lucien, Madeline’s, MoRoCo Chocolat, Turf Lounge, Vibo and Vivah Festive Indian Cuisine.

Vincor Canada returns as the official wine sponsor of the event, featuring wine selections by Toasted Head and Kim Crawford paired up with select menus at participating restaurants. Other popular local and international brands are also available. The complete list is featured on the Vincor website www.vincorcanada.com.

New for this year is Pilsner Urquell, the official beer sponsor for Summerlicious. The original Pilsner’s long-standing commitment to tradition and authenticity, along with its full-flavoured and bittersweet but perfectly balanced taste, make it a refreshing complement to any Summerlicious meal.