Chock-a-block party It wouldn’t hurt to bring an empty stomach to the fifth annual Davie Day this Saturday (September 6). Pedestrians—who’ll rule the street between Burrard and Broughton from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.—can munch on festival food like mini doughnuts, corn on the cob, and fish and chips from Mr. Pickwick’s. Pubs like the Fountainhead and the Majestic will be extending their patios onto the road, and Moxie’s will be barbecuing burgers alfresco.

For many, Labour Day means a barbecue to end the season with a bang before back-to-school Tuesday. This year, however, the transition has special significance for Muslims. Depending on when the moon is sighted, the Islamic holy month of Ramadan begins on Monday or Tuesday (September 1 or 2). During this period, many Muslims will eat and drink nothing from dawn until after sunset. According to Imam Mohamad Rachid of Richmond Jami’a Mosque, fasting is meant to foster self-discipline and piety.

Purchase popular Taiwanese street eats such as oyster omelettes, tempura rolls, taro balls, sausage rice dogs, and loma rice at this weekend’s festival.

Italian Job Ready, set, dial. Dine Italia, back for Year 3, has dining deals for days—well, from Monday (September 1) to September 15 at least, at a raft of Lower Mainland restaurants. Try old faves like Quattro, Papi’s in Steveston, and Burnaby’s Vita Bella, or Fourth Avenue newbies Trattoria Italian Kitchen and La Quercia. Multicourse menus range from $20 to $50. Find them and other restos at www.iccbc.com/page200.htm .  

If this was Family Feud —100 people surveyed, top-five answers on the board—this would be the question: what snack goes well with beer? Think salty, crunchy, fatty. Peanuts. Potato chips. Or, for something off the board, chips made from cassava, a starchy tropical root. Exotic brand cassava chips are hard-bite crunchy; a 150-gram bag goes for $2.99 at Polo Market (6475 Fraser Street). Also for the adventurous, super-crisp, palm-sized sheets of Haioreum Korean seaweed are utterly addictive.

Phat and phatter The previous tenant at 1859 West 4th Avenue, Cheesecake 101, is gone, but we’re thinking that PHAT—short for pretty, hot, and tasty—is in for the long haul if it follows the success of its Yaletown sib. PHAT finds include excellent Montreal smoked meat, Reubens, barbecue beef brisket, all-day breakfast bagel bennies, and more. Do takeout or grab a seat at the massive communal table.

Blast from the past On Saturday (August 16), Kitsilano restaurants will be spilling out into the street. That’s because West 4th Avenue between Burrard and Balsam streets will be car-free for the Summer of Love festival. Browns Social House (2296 West 4th Avenue) will be flipping burgers on an extended patio next to the festival’s main stage at Vine Street, and many eateries will offer walk-up specials. The fest runs from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

What is so mesmerizing about that miniature-doughnut machine? We’re not sure, but we’ll be watching Those Little Donuts float happily down to cinnamon sugar heaven at the PNE’s opening on Saturday (August 16). From her home in Okotoks, Alberta, owner Annette Johnson tells the Straight that the family business has visited the PNE since 1976. Two bags of 13 sweets go for $5 and, new this year, you can buy five bags for $10. Not to worry: the cooking oil is free of trans fats.

Almost everyone has an opinion on where to get a great burger. But to be sure you’ve had the best, you have to eat around. Tell us your faves and post pictures of them too.

Little balls of takoyaki are on a roll. Everywhere you turn, people are lining up for this Japanese snack. The bite-sized fritters—each studded with a chunk of cooked octopus—are fried in round, cast-iron moulds. They’re then laced with Japanese mayo, a dark sweet sauce, and katsuobushi fish flakes, which dance on the piping-hot dumplings. Takoyaki is always a hit at the Powell Street Festival, which takes place this Saturday and Sunday (August 2 and 3) at Oppenheimer Park.

With just a handful of tables, teeny tiny Korean restaurant Janchee (775 Denman Street) feels like a home kitchen. The welcoming couple behind the counter is too young to make the place a mom-and-pop, yet they do it all, from cooking to serving. The menu is as compact as the space, featuring simple, not-too-spicy sets ($10 with tax) based around soybean or seafood stews served in a small hotpot.

Everything looks good on the menu at Kayan Mediterranean Cuisine on West Broadway: the hot and cold mezza dinner, has delights including Armenian beef sausage, a feta-cheese dip, roasted eggplant, baba ganoush, tabbouleh salad, and falafel.

Proud around town Kick-start Pride celebrations with Saturday’s Picnic in the Park (July 26, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.) at Brockton Oval in Stanley Park, complete with a high-heeled-shoe toss, live music, and a beer garden. Fancy things up on Sunday (July 27) at Dine With Pride at the Vancouver Marriott Pinnacle Downtown Hotel for an auction and awards dinner honouring outstanding community members. Tickets are $100 at vancouverpride.ca/

Urban eats Get ready to gorge on globetrotting treats at Citytv’s Taste of the City, on Saturday (July 19) at the PNE. Admission is free. Featured restos include Brasas Peruvian BBQ, Big Al’s Soul Food, Cassis Bistro, Mona’s Lebanese Cuisine, and many more. Taste tickets are 50 cents, and food samples are $1 to $4. More? CityCooks’ main stage features Simi Sara and chef demos ( www.citytvtasteofthecity.com/ ).

While raw-food dieters turn off their stoves for a diet they claim gives them more energy, better nutritional quality, and a cure for many ailments, experts say a healthy diet of cooked foods can do just the same.

With innovative dishes that place as much emphasis on presentation as on taste, even dedicated bacon eaters might have to admit that good food is good food, whether it contains animal products or not after a visit to this restaurant.

Is organic food worth the premium price? Jeff Cox, author of The Organic Food Shopper’s Guide (Wiley, $15.95), thinks so. Cox’s compact book spells out the advantages alphabetically by product, from artichokes to winter squash, looking at how each fruit or vegetable is grown. He also makes arguments for buying organic meat, dairy, and kitchen staples such as rice. Pro: practical tips, like buy organic if you’re going to zest a lemon to avoid pesticides in the peel. Con: the focus is on U.S.

Scandinavians have easy summer meals down pat. Lay out some cold cuts, a mound of cooked shrimp, some pickled herring, and condiments like lemon slices and fresh dill. Arrange ingredients open-faced on buttered bread or flatbread. But where to get pickled herring? Years ago, I stocked up in Sweden before flying home to Vancouver. Then I found myself at the Richmond location of IKEA (3200 Sweden Way), and discovered that it sold the exact same brands—and they were cheaper than in Stockholm.

Dine for design Diners at Boneta (1 West Cordova Street) can end their meal on Sunday (July 13) with rhubarb cheesecake and a good feeling. That’s because half of the ticket price for the $65 three-course dinner goes to Lu’s Pharmacy for Women. The Downtown Eastside project, slated to open in September, was designed by a team of UBC architecture students, who have paired with Boneta for this fundraiser. For reservations, call 604-684-1844.

Every trip begins with the tiniest seed of curiosity. You might read a travel article, watch a news report about a foreign land, or see photos from a friend’s journey, and so the vague desire to go there is planted in your brain.

Moderne Burger is back After almost a year-and-a-half of papered windows, Moderne Burger (2507 West Broadway) is open once again. Renovations have made the joint bigger, though it still has a shiny happy ’50s-style décor. The signature burger remains the same—a handmade steak patty with no seasoning whatsoever ($7.45). Everything’s made to order, from bacon to french fries, which are cut and cooked on demand.

Skip the brunch lines elsewhere in Kits and grab a chair at the Epicurean Caffé Bistro (1898 West 1st Avenue). This Italian deli charms with marble tables inside and a wraparound patio with climbing ivy outside. The menu offers one sophisticated choice after another. Try Uova alla Fiorentina, a scrumptious concoction of eggs in béchamel sauce that’s baked with bocconcini in a cast-iron pan ($10).

Reading about food is a pleasure unto itself—even if that pleasure is never consummated in the kitchen. Just to whet your appetite, try these samples ranging from Kazakh sprout-and-cabbage salad to corn hotcakes with blackberry syrup.

As Canada celebrates July 1, patriotism dictates that everyone from coast to coast stand up and eat a hot dog. But given that this week also marks the 400th anniversary of the founding of Quebec City, why not indulge in a messy mass of poutine? Dig into a $5 medium-sized serving at Fritz European Fry House (718 Davie Street). Or, for nontraditionalists, Belgian Fries (1885 Commercial Drive) offers over a dozen varieties—with toppings like Tunisian spicy lamb—for $6.98 to $7.50.

Find your inner sunshine at the The Reef on the Drive, where rum is the star, with dozens of different ways to enjoy it while tucking into the rich goat turmeric-and-cumin suffused curry of a Trini roti or ackee and salt fish.

Indian food lightens up Bal Arneson will demonstrate how to give traditional Indian dishes a healthy make-over on Wednesday (July 2) at a class at the Cookshop (3–555 West 12th Avenue, 604-873-5683). Enroll in the $59 session and bring a friend for free, or take a bonus class instead, such as chef Thaung Yan’s Vietnamese Grill and BBQ on July 15.

For those who can’t get it together to pack a nutritious homemade lunch in the morning (damn you who can!), here’s an alternative to expensive takeout. An Indian mom might sniff at Chef Chopra’s heat-and-eat curries (280 grams each), but the vacuum-packed vegetarian meals are surprisingly flavourful. Options include mutter paneer (a rich peas-and-cheese curry), baingan bharta (roasted eggplant and tomato), and Bombay pulav (rice with spicy lentils).

Dancing in the streets One of Vancouver’s most fun- and food-filled celebrations, Greek Day 2008, flows onto West Broadway between Macdonald and Blenheim streets on Sunday (June 22) from 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. There’ll be souvlaki-laden grills, dancing, music, and Greek vegetarian cooking demos at the Cambas Wines Culinary Cooking Tent.

King of the grill If your pop doesn’t qualify for this moniker, sign him up for the first of Morton’s the Steakhouse’s master classes, Grilling 101 ($99) on June 22. Chef Lee Milton leads the edible demo, while participants score tips and techniques—fuelled by beer and wine—before diving into the resulting steak and seafood lunch. Dads walk off with goody bags, grilling cheat sheets, and more. Reserve at 604-915-5105.

Tammy Tromba, the Vancouver-area camp adviser for the Girl Guides of Canada, has a novel way of making dinner when she’s on a camping trip and keeping the kids interested, too. She simply lights her food on fire.

Ever tried soy-fortified spaghetti? The Bean Factory, located in Aberdeen Centre’s food court (4151 Hazelbridge Way, Richmond), offers a choice of the soy-protein pasta or rice as part of its meal combos, with toppings like braised tofu or egg tofu with eggplant ($5.42). The outlet specializes in a variety of soy-based snacks, from smoothies to sliced spicy dried tofu.

The new Ping’s Café on Main Street serves a version of yoshoku, Japanese-style Western food, which the Straight reviewed this week.

Here's the beef Slide into Hamilton Street Grill (1009 Hamilton Street) between June 5 and 15, and help celebrate the resto’s 11th birthday with a killer $11 eight-ounce sirloin-steak dinner deal. Reservations are a must (604-331-1511). On tap on Tuesday (June 10) is HSG’s Peller Estates Wine Dinner (seven courses, $62.50) with rising-star winemaker Stephanie Leinemann.

If you missed him selling samples at the Eat! Vancouver festival, or just want more of that rib-sticking gumbo, here’s where to find Big Al’s soul food. As well as catering, Al Robinson runs the kitchen at the Ringside Bar & Lounge (lower plaza, 4 Bentall Centre, 1055 Dunsmuir Street). There, the Louisiana native cooks up southern favourites like jambalaya, red beans on rice, and fried chicken.

The yoshoku (Japanese-style western food) here isn't standard but an artful, nostalgic take on it, with portions dainty rather than hearty, perfect for grazers, and served on charming, homespun, mismatched vintage dishes.

Last month, this column introduced the benefits and drawbacks of hostelling (“Hostels yield benefits for single travellers”, May 1-8). Now on to the practical: how to make a hostel work for you.

New York isn't just the fantasy of Sex and the City. Its fantastic ethnic diversity is concentrated in its outer boroughs, and that’s why it's worth making the trip.

Simi Sara spends a lot of time in the studio kitchen as the host of Citytv CityCooks (Monday to Friday at 6 p.m.). Yet the kitchen is also where you’ll find her at home, baking cakes, cookies, and muffins. “It’s my hobby,” she says. “It’s the only way I relax.” The cohost of Breakfast Television (Monday to Friday, 6 a.m. to 10 a.m.) lives on an acreage in Ladner with her husband, 11-year-old daughter, eight-year-old son, and chocolate lab, Cocoa.

Southern barbecue may take its sweet time to cook, but that just means you have to kick back with friends and family before savouring its secrets.

After airfare, accommodation is the fastest way to wipe out your travel budget. Staying at a hostel is the easiest way to stretch it, as students gearing up for summer travels quickly learn. Spend £75 ($150) a night on a low-end London hotel, or £25 ($50) for a bed at Hostelling International Oxford Street… That’s a lot of cash that could be diverted into pints of Guinness.

True or false: a vegan diet is a very healthy diet.

It could be claustrophobia, a fear of heights, or just a conviction that the plane will crash. Learn how to leave your worries on the tarmac.

Northern lights will shine in Vancouver tonight (April 17) with two screenings of shorts by Yukon filmmakers. The Yukon Film Society is releasing a new DVD, Picturing the Yukon—9 Short Films, which it’s distributing in Geist magazine’s spring issue.

Vancouver chefs dish about what makes our restaurant scene so great...and so infuriating.

People who cook and run restaurants know a thing or two about good food. So Georgia Straight staffers called up more than 50 industry insiders and asked them what they think are the best places to get a good meal in this town.

Stretching your comfort zone is part of the adventure, but it’s crucial to balance your risks and abilities.

The three-kilometre-long triangle that forms the southern tip of Miami Beach is known as party central, with beautiful people lounging at stylish hotel bars, celebrity-run restaurants, and chic nightclubs.

High on the slopes of India’s Kangra Valley, Dharamsala is a spiritual, new-agey kind of place that attracts tourists as much for its mountain scenery as its laid-back Tibetan vibe. So when I crested a hill just outside of town nine years ago, what I found shocked me out of my meditative state and seared itself into my conscience. Thousands upon thousands of empty plastic water bottles spilled down the slope. This was the town’s solution to a largely tourism-generated problem.

As anyone who has eaten in a pricey Japanese restaurant can testify, part of the pleasure is in the presentation. Although you can create a delicious Japanese meal at home, it won’t be nearly as enjoyable if you ignore the details of serving it. Fortunately, simplicity is the guiding principle.

Star power. Chef Rob Feenie undoubtedly has it, and Cactus Club Cafes undoubtedly hope to cash in on it. The Vancouver-based chain’s recent appointment of Feenie as its “food concept architect” may draw more customers. But Feenie’s association could also attract a whole different set of VIPs: potential employees.