Tag Archives: Saanich

01.21.16
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LANtasy Wants the Fun in Fandom to Return in Victoria, BC!

Lantasy_Logo_white_h100pxMarch 12-13, 2016
Pearkes Arena, Victoria BC

Tickets: $30 weekend pass
or $15 per day.

LANtasy‘s motto is “Play Games, Have Fun” at their upcoming event taking place March 12th and 13th. For the fandom living in Victoria, BC, hopefully everyone can put the incidents of 2015 behind them. The final quarter of that year was less than positive: GottaCon (GC) announced they were closing their doors and Island Fantasy Convention did not happen. The reaction by the community was not kind with how the latter event was handled. However, with a new year Tsukino-Con remains strong and the technical crew behind GC decided to continue the legacy the broad-spectrum gaming event represented.

Jeff Pedlow is one of the department heads. He says this show will exist to bring people together and his group really loves the gaming community that exists here. Despite the name, they are not playing favourites over what kind of activities are being offered at this show. Yes, there will be a heavy Local Area Network (LAN) gaming presence, but there is more to the show than just that — board gaming, miniature gaming and RPGs are offered. People will be encouraged to come in costume (cosplay). Essentially, this event will be just like GottaCon in their early days. In what’s for certain, Pedlow says that his group does not take any money from the event and their goal is to throw community-centric gaming events for everyone living on the island. As their Facebook page shows, there are qualifying events taking place in and out of the Capitol Region that will lead up to the finals at LANtasy.

“If we grow in size, that’s always great, but our primary concern is throwing fun events for the community to come out and enjoy,” said Pedlow.

Even though this event is two months away, perhaps fandom should start planning. In addition to their FAQ about this event, Otakunoculture talked to Jeff about other lingering queries:

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01.06.16
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Asian Inspired Sweets Can Be Found in Gordon Head!

hkdeserts

Miss Fruits H.K. Desserts
4071 Shelbourne Street
Gordon Head
Saanich, BC
(250) 477-3337

J: There’s a trendy dessert shop in Gordon Head that may be borrowing a lot of sweet ideas from Hong Kong. I have never seen the like of this place in Victoria before and I certainly welcome it.

This suburb is a fitting location since it’s known as hub for Asian residents. The first thing I noticed in this establishment’s decor are the bright yellow painted walls, the tight-fitting chairs and the photos on the walls. I don’t think they were built to hold my big ass.

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E: I’m surprised James didn’t hit anything … no wait, he did play bumper shoot as we navigated the tables to our seat. I laughed and the staff giggled.

Since opening a few years ago, it’s become quite the spot for local Asian youth. One of my female friends love coming here and I’d frequent this place more if it wasn’t for the fact I’m careful in how much sweets I eat during a single month. This place is worth visiting to sate a sweet tooth!

Mind you, I’ve always thought the desserts I tasted when I visited Japan were far more innovative and this operation has changed my mind. For a while, I thought it’s hard to beat a bunny eared donut. But over in Hong Kong, there’s plenty of interesting delights too. Miss Fruits H.K. Desserts is importing those ideas over everyone to enjoy!

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12.28.15
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J J Morgan Restaurant Serves No Rum

IMG_20150129_131636632J J Morgan Family Restaurant
1520 McKenzie Ave
Saanich, BC
(250) 721-2188

This corner restaurant by McKenzie and Cedar Hill was once a favourite of mine during my youth. Back then, it was known as Pizza Patio and yes, while I’m dating myself, the memories are oh so pleasant. When birthdays were held here, kids were allowed to head back to the kitchen and make a pizza just the way they wanted it. They could pile the ingredients on high, slather tons of cheese or spread tons of sauce on it and make the product look like a sloppy joe.

Since then, it has become one or two other restaurants before settling as J J Morgan, a traditional restaurant with western flavours than anything else. They have a reasonable Sunday buffet and I went there with buddies a long time ago to chime in about how they fared back then. What they offered did not convince me to return. Fast forward to now, well, it seems the tastes have not changed by much. At least the service is always friendly.

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10.24.15
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In Saanich for Evil Acres — Take 2015

1607035_386482928176879_630313543971803379_nfrom 7 to 11pm daily
continues to Oct 31st
10375 Wilson Rd.
North Saanich, B.C.

In the month of October, some residents of Victoria, BC make a ritual out of going to Evil Acres, a haunted attraction located near Victoria Airport. Part of the joy is in entering the Slaughter House. This spooky abode has changed from what I remember last year. There’s a room that is truly dark, and you have to feel around to find the way out. There’s no joy in going through this home alone (although you’ll get the best experience out of the ‘solitude’ of the situation; some of the best horror stories involve divide and conquer) and I had to wait until two buddies of mine had time so we can go to this spookfest together.

I’m rarely disappointed, even though my stoicness is tough to break. When my writing partner James Shaw is tough to entertain in a concert, I’m harder to freak out when it comes to these walk-through tours. Yes, I can be startled but to get that creeped out feeling, it better be 100% real. That’s just one of the many reasons why I became a paranormal investigator. Although I know most ghosts can not harm you, the feelings you get when something happens and your logical mind can’t figure out, the spine-chilling feeling will just not go away!

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05.23.15
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Saanich with a Side of Baconalooza

VIP

Baconalooza’s inaugural event at Velox Rugby field in Gordon Head will certainly get lovers of swine food arriving in troves. The lunch-time crowd was light, but when the event started at 1pm than noon, perhaps one opportunity was missed in hopes that the dinner time crowd will be busier. This later time is probably when the bacon eating contest will take place, but for one hungry bloke (who skipped breakfast for this show), namely me, I wish I had room to partake in more.

Poor James. He phoned me early in the day to say he’s been struck down with a cold, and I just had enough room to eat for the both of us, but I was taken down by one overloaded bacon cheese burger by the Esquimalt Lions Club (I asked them to keep on piling the bacon on top). However, I did have room for dessert. I could make quibbles in where the beef is sourced and cooked, but hey, I got more than my money’s worth in bacon. I shouldn’t complain.

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04.29.15
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Underclassed and Underdressed at Fireside Grill

Fireside Grill
4509 West Saanich Rd.
Royal Oak District
Saanich, BC
(250) 479-1222

J: When it comes to ghost hunting, Ed never likes to visit a heritage place on an empty stomach. I guess that is why we visited the Fireside Grill.

The tales this building’s owners could tell could make for some interesting pages in a local history book. But I was more interested in the food. Call me uninterested but if we pulled up in the Mystery Van, I would be looking to make myself a hero sandwich rather than looking for clues.

E: Yeah, James can pretty much be like the Shaggy to any Scooby gang should he ever decide to join one. He’s a coward when dealing with spooks but I will gladly try to shake an entity’s hand. Even if I visited a haunted house, I’m willing to bet I’ll find him in the kitchen sooner than later while I go scouting the premises in hopes something supernatural may present itself.

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