In Search of Real Pizza in Vancouver

September 1, 2010 By Remy Leave a Comment

Editor’s Note: This post was originally written for InsideVancouver.ca.

When it come to pizza, Vancouver might not have the storied past of a New York – with its signature big slices – or a Chicago – with its deep dish bragging rights. But that doesn’t mean the city is a pizza wasteland.

In fact, owing to Vancouver’s sizable Italian population (plus some unique contributions from its Greek community) good pizza is available all over the city, from mom ‘n’ pop joints on Commercial Drive to erstwhile souvlaki houses on Broadway and fancy Italian bistros downtown. But what I want to know is where to get great pizza in Vancouver. Not just a good slice but a phenomenal one.

I’d like to put in my own nomination for Vancouver’s best pizza: Bella, which has locations in Yaletown and the West End, plus a few branches in the ‘burbs. Now I know that any talk of pizza supremacy is bound to stir up controversy. Some people like thin crusts. Others like thick, doughy crusts. There’s the issue of toppings – from pepperoni to arugula and everything in between – which can make or break an otherwise decent pie. Not to mention the whole murky terrain of pizzas without cheese and pizzas without sauce and low-carb pizzas that don’t have any crusts at all.

Click here to read the full article on InsideVancouver.ca.

Filed Under Food & Wine, Inside Vancouver Posts, Vancouver, blog entry Tagged With pizza, Remy Scalza, Vancouver

Million-Dollar Shopping Zone

August 26, 2010 By Remy Leave a Comment

Next-door neighbor to both Iraq and Iran, Kuwait is in a volatile part of the world.  But in the decades since Iraq’s invasion, Kuwait has prospered off of a steady stream of oil revenue.  Today, the country is something of a contradiction:  A conservative Muslim state where Sharia law prevails and a consumer-oriented society where lavish wealth has encouraged lots and lots of shopping.  I visited Kuwait recently and spent some time in the country’s largest mall.  I wrote about my experiences for National Geographic Traveler.

Million-Dollar Shopping Zone

By Remy Scalza; Special to National Geographic Traveler

Just beyond the gleaming new subdivisions built in the desert, it rises – glorious and shimmering – in the Kuwaiti heat.

With 250 stores covering 2.5 million square feet, The Avenues is neither mosque nor desert palace but Kuwait’s largest shopping mall, a temple to the cult of consumerism.  I’ve come to be initiated.

Read more . . . .

Filed Under Published Articles Tagged With Kuwait, National Geographic Traveler, Remy Scalza

A New Saudi Presence in Vancouver

August 25, 2010 By Remy Leave a Comment

Photo: Vancouver Saudi Club

Editor’s Note: This post was originally written for InsideVancouver.ca.

Vancouver is a great city for challenging stereotypes. The city’s population is not only incredibly diverse but also mixed. Walk down any downtown street and you’re likely to hear a blend of English, Mandarin, Chinese, Farsi, French and at least a half-dozen other languages. With so much interaction, it’s hard to hold onto simple preconceived ideas about groups of people.

I was reminded of this recently when, on a Saturday night, I saw a group of young guys from Saudi Arabia partying it up on Granville Street. Perhaps no region in recent years has been the victim of as much stereotyping as the Middle East. More often than not, Saudi Arabia is talked about in the context of violence and extremism. In the absence of any real contact with Saudis, that’s all many people know.

But on Saturday night, I saw something entirely different. A small crowd had gathered outside near the corner of Granville and Robson Streets, where Arabic music was being pumped out of a speaker. In the middle of the circle stood about a dozen Saudis, all guys in their teens and twenties. Except for the fact that they were speaking Arabic, it could have been any group of guys. They had managed to plug an iPod into a street busker’s amplifier – the kind of random stuff that happens late at night on Granville Street – and had cranked up a popular Saudi tune.

Click here to read the full post on InsideVancouver.ca.

Filed Under Inside Vancouver Posts, Vancouver, blog entry Tagged With Remy Scalza, Saudi, Vancouver

Baseball in Hockey Land? The Vancouver Canadians

August 22, 2010 By Remy Leave a Comment

Photo: The Province

Editor’s Note: This post was originally written for InsideVancouver.ca.

Vancouver is rightly known as a hockey town, and from October through April (and well beyond that on good years) the Canucks are the hottest ticket in town. During the summer, however, other sports take the spotlight. There’s football with the B.C. Lions, soccer with the Whitecaps and – believe it or not – professional baseball.

Although the squad doesn’t get a lot of attention from local press, the Vancouver Canadians is the city’s very own minor league baseball team. The Canadians are a farm club for the Oakland Athletics and play in the little known Pacific Northwest League from June to September. In the past, the Canadians were a prime source of Major League talent, with Jose Canseco, Sammy Sosa, Jason Giambi and other big superstars spending time with the club.

In 2000, however, the team moved from the AAA to A division and now features mainly untested rookies still a long way from playing in the big leagues. But that doesn’t mean that a trip to the Canadian’s ballpark isn’t a thrilling experience. The team plays at Nat Bailey Stadium, a 5,100-seat field built in 1951 and located in the suburban neighborhood of Mt. Pleasant.

Surrounded by quaint residential streets and equipped with bleachers and wooden fences, Nat Bailey feels like an old-time ballpark. Plus, with general admission seats in the grandstand starting at $12.50, tickets are among the cheapest in town.

Click here to read the full post on InsideVancouver.ca.

Filed Under Inside Vancouver Posts, Vancouver, blog entry Tagged With baseball, Remy Scalza, Vancouver, Vancouver Canadians

Popping the Cork on Canada’s Olympic Neighborhood

August 16, 2010 By Remy Leave a Comment

Editor’s Note: This post was originally written for HGTV.ca.

It was probably the biggest open house Canada has ever seen.  12,000 people toured Vancouver’s Olympic Village over the weekend, taking a peek inside the maze of gleaming new high-rises that housed 2,800 athletes and officials during the Winter Games.  By the time it was all said and done, 36 condos had been snatched up by eager buyers, ranging from a $445,000 one-bedroom to a pimped-out $4.75 million waterfront condo (If you’re in the market, don’t worry:  There are still about 450 units up for grabs).

I checked things out on Saturday, the big opening day, when a mix of buyers, curious onlookers and a few dozen protesters thronged the new neighborhood to witness VANOC (Vancouver’s Olympic committee) officially hand over the keys to the village to the city.  The excitement was understandable.  From the beginning, Olympic Village – which spans seven city blocks and consists of 16 separate buildings – has been shrouded in mystery and dogged by controversy.

Photo: Remy Scalza

When Olympic Village’s private developers were hit hard by the recession last year, the city of Vancouver ponied up $760 million in low interest loans to keep the project going, raising objections from local taxpayers.  Plans to include social housing units in the village have been successively cut back, raising the ire of housing advocates.  On top of that, Vancouverites weren’t even allowed near the village during the Olympics, when access to the area was restricted to athletes and officials.

So what did Vancouver’s newest and most anticipated neighborhood feel like?

Click here to read the full post on HGTV.ca.

Filed Under Vancouver, blog entry Tagged With HGTV, Olympic Village, Open house, Remy Scalza
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