Tag Archives: Vancouver Island

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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01.12.16
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There’s No Need To Talk Like A Pirate at Rumrunner!

The Rumrunner Pub & Restaurant
9881 Seaport Place
Sidney, BC
(250) 656-5643

J: The Rumrunner is one of those restaurants out in Sidney that is divided up into three sections: the pub, the patio and the dining area. We in the Sidney area because Ed wanted to see if anything remained from the Gracepoint set (the police station) that was filmed last year.

E: By chance, I found the Gracepoint Newspaper Truck parked in a private lot next to Saint Andrew’s School near downtown when I was out and about during Victoria Fringe Festival 2015. So why not?

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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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01.03.16
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Dining at Prima Strada’s Original Cook Street Location

IMG_0076Pizzeria Prima Strada
230 Cook Street
Cook Street Village
Victoria, BC
(250) 590 – 8595

E: If I recall correctly, Prima Strada began their operation in Cook Street Village and that place has been one that I’ve been meaning to hit. James and I have been to the Bridge Street location before, and I’ve gone back a few times since. Although the Bridge location is buried in an industrial side of town, the feel, as James once said, was like that of entering a garage. The wide open space was accommodating, but we also craved a change in the form of a very inviting diner over in the Village.

Yes, you can cue the theme of The Prisoner now.

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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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12.15.15
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Sailing Against Tradition at Sushi Island

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Sushi Island
#105 – 1633 Hillside Avenue
Oaklands
Victoria, BC
(778) 433 – 8488

E: This newer restaurant has one great thing going for it and that’s its evolving menu of fusion delights. From the Incredible Hulk which I first tried to the Pink Panther, I’m sure the almighty Thor will pop up one day as a corn, tuna and tamago combination that’s rolled inside out for fusion sushi diners to feast on. Poor Odin; he must be rolling in his grave by now at seeing his son turned from Norwegian to Japanese.

I must say that I wasn’t too sure about this place when it first opened over the summer. The name is not necessarily inviting, but it does live up to being the place to visit for the strange and exotic. I see that with the monkey roll, they are trying to compete against the time-honoured Shiki Sushi downtown. Bananas and rice? Surely they must jest.

James and I met up at Hillside Centre to deal with some issues he’s having with one certain operation, and since we had to wait for them to figure out what to do with us, I said let’s set sail to Sushi Island since it’s nearby!

J: And that certain operation never could get their act together. At least Sushi Island can. I took my mom here before and I praised it to Ed afterwards but he adopted a “we’ll see” attitude. This article will probably be Ed’s way of admitting I’m right unofficially. I love my Japanese food authentic, fusion and mom and pop style (Sushi Plus). If ever I live in Japan, American food would be quickly abandoned in favour of my adopted country. One can only dream.

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