Tag Archives: Victoria

09.07.22
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[Victoria, BC] Post Fringe Festival Thoughts and Upcoming Events Schedule

victoria fringe 2022

The 2022 Victoria Fringe Festival is a wrap, and it’s almost a full return to form. This event ran from August 24 to Sept 4 and was well attended. I passed by many lineups while wandering Downtown Victoria at those venues that hosted, and the one big thing that changed, as a result of the pandemic, was the lack of seeing talents run from venue to venue to pass along flyers of their shows, and saying you must check it out. While there were fewer places hosting, that’s to be expected (assuming if they adhered to indoor health code regulations).

An internal change that not every patron is aware of is to buy tickets in advance (online or at the box office). I observed a few people were unaware, and instead of being turned away, were allowed to purchase at the door. I’m glad Intrepid Theatre was aware this situation may happen, and were prepared. I suspect further revisions will be in store to help streamline future events. And as the world transitions to accepting Covid-19 won’t go away, further tweaks will be made. All anyone can do is to be mindful in how things must now operate to keep everyone healthy and safe.

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08.24.22
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When It’s Time to Return to Parks Kitchen

20220724_140815606 Trounce Alley
Victoria, BC

Hours: Weds to Sun 11:30am to 9pm.
Phone: (778) 265-2227

ES: Park’s Kitchen reinvented itself many years ago. The last time I’ve been there, this restaurant was a Japanese only restaurant but these days (even prior to the pandemic), they expanded their menu to include Korean, and I think that’s a good thing! The only downside is that their Japanese selection isn’t as varied anymore.

I’ve been meaning to return here, but every time I walk through Trounce Alley, it’s en route to Quazar’s Arcade to play video games rather than for a bite. I’ve often been tempted in because of the daily specials, but alas, I’m meeting up with other pals. After hanging out with Don at the said place and challenging each other to Street Fighter and other intensive battle games, we worked up an appetite!

DK: Let’s see now–I’ve got a notepad open, a photo of Park’s lunch special for inspiration, a refreshing glass of ice water–all the elements required to knock off another barn-burning blokepost.

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08.10.22
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Too Hungry While At North Park Multicultural Festival

20220724_113628DK: Victoria, BC’s North Park Multicultural Festival is unique for a couple reasons: 

  1. Vendors aren’t charged any fees 
  2. It’s explicitly marketed as culturally diverse. 

Does this make the quarterly event wildly different from any of the other market-type events hosted throughout the CRD? I certainly hoped it would!

ES: I wasn’t aware of this event until Don told me, and I suspect it started up when health restrictions were lifted to allow for such gatherings. Out by my neck of the woods, Saanich, we also have a similar type of show but do I really want to go to Uptown Mall? 

Downtown is a better choice–North Park is west of the city core, and it’s a beautiful area with a handful of diners and other goodness to wander around in. 

With this event at Royal Athletic Park, it took up one side more than to use the baseball diamond field. All I can say is batter up! Don and I were there to see what was offered, and there were some interesting goods that I could’ve picked up, but I wanted to fill up instead. I didn’t have breakfast.

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06.29.22
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Hot Dog Hu$tlin From The Causeway to Catering

20220612_110841Inner Harbour Causeway
790 Government St
Victoria, BC

Phone: (236) 838-4091
Hours: Thurs to Sun 11am to 5pm 

ES: Hot Dog Hu$tlin expanded their operations from Vancouver sometime ago and after talking to the owner/operator, he said they are often the competitors to Japadog. They were the talk of the town for the North Van. 

I’m glad they came to sell at Victoria’s First Annual Prawn and Fiddler Festival, as that was the scent that drew Don and me towards the cart when we patrolled the area before the official start of the event. It wasn’t just the scents of the bratwurst and the grill that had my spider sense tingling!

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06.15.22
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Is it Too Fast and Furious with Finest at Sea’s First Annual Spot Prawn and Fiddle Fest?

Screen Shot 2022-06-14 at 10.25.23 PM

DK: If I were more prone to hyperbole, I would encourage Ed to title this post “Angry Protesters Clash With Security, Disrupt First Annual Spot Prawn and Fiddle Festival.”

But that is not the real story of this promising new event. True, three young protesters were escorted out of the park shortly after the festival started, but most people missed whatever their message was. My advice to young activists: make sure your banner is facing the crowd when you’re being whisked away.

Maybe next year we’ll all learn why listening to fiddle music while sucking down prawns and watching youth rugby makes us bad people. For now, however, blissful ignorance! The real story of this year’s event was a large crowd got the chance to enjoy some damn good BBQ spot prawns.

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ES: June 12th marked the end of the season for harvesting these sweet, lovely crustaceans, and I’m going to miss them. Technically, one can buy them in the freezer section, but there’s no denying when they’re from the ocean to the tanks to the grill, the taste difference is enormous!

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01.12.22
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A New Ramen Player in Town, and It’s All Arashi

20220111_1426402950 Douglas St Unit 222
Victoria, BC

Hours: Tues to Sun 11:30am to 8:30pm
Phone: (778) 922-2950
Website: www.ramenarashivictoria.com

Sugoi! Victoria ni atarashī totemo oishii rāmen-ya ga arimasu yo. As for whether that’s grammatically correct, I think I got my statement right and insert a pun for good measure.

Ramen Arashi is a diner that opened over the holidays. I’ve been keeping tabs on when they’d open since they’ve been making noise mid last year on the social media front. They’re not competing in the busy downtown area, and I think they’re likely to carve a niche in Burnside. They’re located a few blocks south of Mayfair Mall and I’d visit this operation in a heartbeat. Their bone broth has a nice additional peppercorn flavour.

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