On Friday night, we went to the
EAT! Vancouver Food + Cooking Festival. It was our first time there so we didn't really know what to expect, but it was excellent! The festival was held indoors at the new
Vancouver Convention Centre, so we took the Skytrain downtown around 6pm.
Game 5 of the
Stanley Cup Finals had started at 5pm, so downtown was full of anxious Canucks fans (tens of thousands of them converge on downtown Vancouver for each Finals game). There was a lot riding on this game, since the Vancouver Canucks and the Boston Bruins had each won two games by that point, and the first team to win four games will win the coveted Cup. There happened to be a "fan zone" right outside the convention centre - i.e. a big outdoor screen where people can congregate to watch the game, which was being played 2km down the road at Rogers Arena - so we checked the score as we walked past and saw that it was still nil all. Tense indeed!
Once inside the Convention Centre, we paid the $16 entry fee and met up with some of our friends: Angharad, Connie, Myla, Rosanne, Aydin, and Nicole. Then we set off to explore the aisles of booths, and decide what to fill our tummies with!
There were dozens of booths, ranging from food/beverage vendors to kitchen utensil salespeople to travel agents. There was also a demonstration stage, a 19+ liquor zone, and an area where people were seated at fancy tables and being served by chefs in white hats. We tried free samples of cheese, yoghurt and softdrink, and bought some Appenzeller cheese and Lorina softdrinks. We also got free sample bags containing tomato juice, hot sauce, chocolate-coated berries, potato chips, chicken stock, and chewing gum!
Along one wall were a number of stalls run by local restaurants, offering mini versions of a few items from their menus. Instead of cash, the restaurant booths accepted coupons, bought for 50c each at the door... so an appetizer-sized portion of food generally cost between 6 and 9 coupons ($3.00-4.50), and tiny desserts cost 3 to 4 coupons ($1.50-2.00). It was a great way to try a few different things without filling up on just one!
Mini pork belly burger (8 coupons/ $4)...
L-R: Ben, Nicole, Rosanne, Aydin, Connie, Myla, Angharad...
A drink with dry ice in it, and peanut butter and chocolate cake (4 coupons/ $2)...
Chocolate fudge and lemon meringue (3 coupons/ $1.50)...
Of course, there was also a big screen at the festival, with Game 5 keeping people riveted. We knew we'd know instantly when something happened, and sure enough... before we sat down to dinner, a massive cheer went up and the whole room burst into clapping and cheering (including those of us who hadn't been watching, too!). The Canucks had scored!! After dinner, the room again burst into applause and whoops of excitement as the game ended safely with the Canucks in the lead, 1-0. It was an electric moment!
After we left the festival, we caught a ride home with Myla. It was a least an hour since the game had ended, and the fans (many of whom would have continued partying downtown until the early hours) were just getting wound up. People were cheering as they walked down the street, strangers were high-fiving each other, drivers were honking their horns as they drove through intersections, and the vibe in general was euphoric. The Cup could be ours as soon as tomorrow (Monday) night. The excitement is contagious!!
The first clip in this montage shows the fan zone during the game, and the rest show the streets post-game...
