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Archive for November, 2009

A Night of New Beginnings at Birks

Sunday, November 29th, 2009

On Thursday, November 26th, Birks hosted the “Night of New Beginnings,” a fundraiser for Covenant House, sponsored by TD Waterhouse.

Not to disparage the Charity, but given that it’s Thursday night – the night where bankers and finance folks come out to let loose, the event was surprisingly lame.

To top that off, the itinerary was recognizably b-class… with the items up for auction, be it silent or live, it was just lacking that certain “oomph.”

Now, that’s not to say that a couple more lively souls weren’t out scooping up as much as they could, but you could see some people just going through the motions, bidding on the silent auction, cringing and hoping that they don’t get caught holding the bag.

Surprisingly they raised over 85k. Good for Covenant House, too bad for Birks for hosting a lacklustre event. Note to event organizer: maybe ‘night of new beginnings’ means time to get a new job.

As for my personal quest for new bling, I hear Lugaro is debuting their Rolex Boutique this week and Montecristo is hosting Scotches and Watches.

Rating: 5.0/5 (2 votes cast)

Tags: Birks, TD Waterhouse, West Hastings Street
Posted in Vancouver | No Comments »

Urban Mixer Auto : The BMW 750Li

Saturday, November 28th, 2009

If you want luxury done right, go no further than the BMW 7-Series.

In our minds, the 7-Series is the undisputed king of the road. Packed with every single bell and whistle you could ever imagine and finished in such an attractive package that people just stand and stare, you definitely want to own one. Read more, after the jump. (more…)

Rating: 5.0/5 (2 votes cast)

Tags: 7-Series, 750Li, BMW, Brian Jessel BMW
Posted in Cars | No Comments »

Peter Brown’s on his way out

Tuesday, November 24th, 2009

Alright, that’s a lie, but judging from the crowd, if you weren’t prepped beforehand, you’d certainly wonder what the heck the commotion was.

On Monday, November 23rd, hundreds packed the third floor of the Hyatt to honour Mr. Brown of Canaccord Capital with the T. Patrick Boyle Founder’s Award.

Attendees included Frank Giustra, Police Chief Jim Chu, Premier Gordon Campbell and even Ontario Premier Mike Harris.

The T. Patrick Boyle Founder’s Award is the Fraser Institute’s highest award. It is given to individuals who exemplify the institute’s libertarian values. Mr. Brown is now among a rare few who have received the award; Mr. Harley Hotchkiss, former Canadian Prime Minister the Rt. Hon. Brian Mulroney, Hong Kong’s former deputy leader Anson Chan, Alberta’s former Premier Ralph Klein and Conrad Black (citation needed) are the ones whom we’ve previously seen associated with the award.

From a former Fraser Institute invite:

This award, named for the Fraser Institute’s founder, is presented annually to celebrate the establishment of The Fraser Institute in 1974. T. Patrick Boyle is currently Vice Chairman of the Fraser Institute. Each year, this prestigious award is presented to a person who best exemplifies the mission and philosophy of the Fraser Institute.

To find out more about the Fraser Institute, check out their website, HERE.

Rating: 4.0/5 (4 votes cast)

Tags: Burrard Street, Canaccord, Fraser Institute
Posted in Vancouver | 3 Comments »

Charm Modern Thai Turns One

Tuesday, November 24th, 2009

If you want to know who has the corner on Thai food in Vancouver, go no further than Desmond Chen.

He and his father (Patrick) own Charm Modern Thai, Thai House Restaurant, Chili House Thai Bistro, Urban Thai Bistro and Samba Brazillian Steakhouse.

Don’t ask me how the Brazillian place fits in… other than the fact that it’s, well… Brazilliant.

To the point of this story, on Monday, November 23rd, young Mr. Chen (Desmond) opened the doors of their newest property, Charm, to celebrate the restaurant passing the one year mark of being open, and to celebrate his birthday. The festivities included lots to eat, lots to drink, and a crowd that was nothing short of charming.

Charm Modern Thai is located at 1269 Hamilton Street only a couple doors down from Society. Check out their website, HERE. Oh, and happy birthday, Mr. Chen.

Rating: 5.0/5 (3 votes cast)

Tags: Hamilton Street, Yaletown
Posted in Vancouver | No Comments »

Erin Ganju Speaks

Wednesday, November 18th, 2009

On Tuesday, November 17th, Erin Ganju, CEO and Co-Founder of Room to Read, captivated a small audience at Earl’s Yaletown to tell her story.

For those of you that are unfamiliar with Room to Read, it’s a non-proft organization founded in 2000 by former Microsoft Exec, John Wood, and Erin Ganju.

From Wikipedia:

Room to Read is a non-profit dedicated to promoting education. Founded in 2000, the organization is based on the belief that “World Change Starts with Educated Children,” and the idea that education is crucial to breaking the cycle of poverty in the developing world. By partnering with local communities in the developing world to establish libraries, create local language children’s literature, construct schools, and provide scholarships to girls, Room to Read seeks to intervene early in the lives of children to empower them to improve socioeconomic conditions for their families, communities, and countries through education. Since its founding, Room to Read has provided educational resources to 3.1 million children in Asia and Africa. By 2010, Room to Read hopes to improve literacy for five million children by establishing over 10,000 libraries and distributing nearly nine million children’s books.

To find out more, check out their website, HERE.

Rating: 5.0/5 (2 votes cast)

Tags: Earl's Yaletown, Mainland Street, Room to Read, Yaletown
Posted in Vancouver | No Comments »

Black Tusk Ale Launches

Wednesday, November 18th, 2009

Whistler Brewing Company has a new beer for the holiday season and it’s called Black Tusk Ale.

On Thursday, November 12th, the Mill Marine Bistro hosted a tasting featuring the new beer during the PPV Canucks Hockey action, they even gave away Whistler schwag and everyone had fun.

For those of you curious about the flavour of Black Tusk Ale – it’s definitely a unique dark ale. Not too bitter, pretty smooth with hints of coffee and chocolate – it even goes well with chocolate! Get it soon, it’s only available during the Winter season.

Rating: 4.3/5 (3 votes cast)

Tags: beer, Mill Marine Bistro, West Cordova Street
Posted in Vancouver | No Comments »

Creme de la Creme Media Preview

Saturday, November 14th, 2009

On Tuesday, November 4th, we visited the sneak peek VIP/media cocktail event for the fifth annual Crème de la Crème Luxury Wedding Show.

The “sneak peek” offered an intimate evening filled with the finest trends right off the runway of New York, the best of the best in food and beverage such as chocolate sensations by Thomas Haas and Cocktails by Four Seasons renowned YEW catering. Media was also invited to take advantage of luxurious pampering services throughout the evening.

Creme de la Creme occurs in Vancouver on November 15th, 2009. Catch the original post-preview release, after the jump. (more…)

Rating: 5.0/5 (2 votes cast)

Tags: Howe Street, Media Event
Posted in Vancouver | No Comments »

Toast to the Coast

Thursday, November 12th, 2009

by Tiffany Soper

On Friday, November 6, 2009, the Vancouver Aquarium hosted its annual wine-tasting and food-sampling event, Toast to the Coast. This year, over 370 guests attended and helped to raise $56,000 for the Aquarium’s education and conservation initiatives.

Set against the enchanting backdrop of the Aquarium at night, guests sampled wines from a wide selection of BC VQA wineries and devoured mouth-watering tasters from Ocean Wise restaurants including Mosaic Bar & Grille, the Refinery and Goldfish Pacific Kitchen.

To find out more about Toast to the Coast, check out their website, HERE.

Rating: 5.0/5 (1 vote cast)

Tags: OceanWise, Stanley Park, Vancouver Aquarium
Posted in Vancouver | No Comments »

Society Opens

Wednesday, November 4th, 2009

Glowbal Restaurant Group hosted the most anticipated restaurant opening of the season with the opening of Society on Thursday, October 29th.

Located at the old Yaletown location of Coast Restaurant on the north side of Hamilton Street near Drake, the restaurant, which serves up comfort food done right, makes a valuable addition to the neighbourhood.

On their opening night, hundreds of Vancouver’s prettiest faces lined up to see what Society was all about and they weren’t disappointed.

To catch the original release and to see more exclusive photos from the event, read more, after the jump. (more…)

Rating: 5.0/5 (1 vote cast)

Tags: Hamilton Street, society, Yaletown
Posted in Vancouver | No Comments »

Raj Taneja on the Buzz with Joe Leary – October 29, 2009

Wednesday, November 4th, 2009

Every Thursday afternoon, Raj Taneja appears on Vancouver’s TALK 1410 to fill the listening audience of the Joe Leary Show in on what’s hot and happening in Vancouver.

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Click on the above player to listen to the episode.

In this episode, Raj spoke of the impending opening of Society in Yaletown then switched gears to talk about past events, a Night of Miracles Gala fundraiser for the Childrens’ Hospital, the Visions 180 Fundraiser at Paul Pigeon’s home and the launch of Microsoft Windows 7 in Urban Mixer’s West End office.

Upcoming events cited included the Society launch and a wacky roundup of Halloween events: Veloween, Noir at District 319, Arabian Nights at Sanafir, Naughty or Nice at OPUS Bar and Hookup Halloween.

Check out the Joe Leary Show on TALK1410 online, HERE and don’t forget to tune in Thursday afternoons at 4:15 pm. Update 11/5/2009 – due to changes in programming with CFUN (now TEAM1410), this show is no longer aired – stay tuned for more media love from Raj Taneja, soon.

Rating: 5.0/5 (2 votes cast)

Tags: CFUN, Joe Leary, Radio, Raj Taneja, TALK1410
Posted in Vancouver | No Comments »

Urban Mixer Blog

Archive for November, 2009

A Night of New Beginnings at Birks

Urban Mixer Auto : The BMW 750Li

Peter Brown’s on his way out

Charm Modern Thai Turns One

Erin Ganju Speaks

Black Tusk Ale Launches

Creme de la Creme Media Preview

Toast to the Coast

Society Opens

Raj Taneja on the Buzz with Joe Leary – October 29, 2009

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