Zambri's for Dine Around

Zambri's is one of our regular places to go for a great Italian meal. This time it was to experience their dine around menu.

Vitello Tonnato: thinly sliced slow roasted veal striploin, sauce made with tuna and capers. I normally do not eat veal, but gave this a try because it sounded different. This has to be the best veal I have ever tried and would try again if given the chance. Divine.

Brasato di Maiale al Vermouth: slow cooked pork with orzo in the risotto style, chesnuts, dried figs, sage, and orange gremolata. Served with Unsworth pinot noir. A wonderful dish that made my body comfortable and happy with its slowly mingled flavours. A delight.

Torta Monferrina: dark chocolate and winter squash infused with warm spices and amarena cherries. A perfect way too end the meal. Who knew squash and chocolate go well with each other! Yum.

As always, it is one of the best Italian restaurants in Victoria, along with Il Covo Trattoria.

The Bengal for Dine Around

Another Dine Around, my wife and I along with friends enjoyed, was at The Bengal. It was the Bengal Room in the Empress Hotel, but it had closed about a decade ago and used as extra conference space. Recently it had been touched up and turned into a brunch room for hotel guests. We got to experience a supper meal here that was delicious.

Roasted aubergine (eggplant) and coconut soup. Not something I have ever had, but I enjoyed the deep flavours. The pakora in the middle was a nice touch.

Braised Tandoori-spiced lamb shank with masala potatoes, black kale, mint onion chutney, and pudina raita. With this I had a glass of the Vanessa Vineyards Syrah. Lamb is not often served in restaurants anymore and having this expertly prepared shank was a treat.

Fall poached pear with spiced vanilla sorbet, fruit gloss, and other tasty things. The textures and flavours were interesting apart from one another and better when combined in various combinations.

A very enjoyable evening with friends and good food. The three courses were just right and I did not feel hungry or overstuffed after the meal.

Boom + Batten for Dine Around Victoria

In VicWest, and looking over the Victoria harbour, is the Boom + Batten restaurant. It is a place my wife and I had yet experience. Dine Around Victoria was the perfect time to check them out.

After a good walk we entered the establishment. The vibe inside was modern and hip so I was immediately out of place (ha ha), but I pushed onwards.

To start I had a tuna tataki with broccoli, rice, sesame salad, fresh pea shoots, and spicy chili pear dressing. Very fresh taste with the tuna and the ingrediants mingled well with each other.

For the main I ordered the Pan roasted Barramundi (like bass) with potato gnocchi, ratatouille, and brown butter sauce. To drink with it I got a glass of Phantom Creek Estate 2021 Viognier from Golden Mile in the Okanagan. I had not had Barramundi before and look forward to having more in the future. The brown butter certainly enhanced the flavours with the sharp wine. Delicious!

For dessert I ordered sticky toffee and date pudding with salted butterscotch sauce and vanilla bean ice cream. Its fantastic taste combination rivals the same dessert at Cafe Brio, but perhaps that is because the chef who made it worked there for over a decade. Yummy.

We had a great experience and would eat here again.

Chai Moka, Music of Rebellion, and Raman

After walking my wife to her workplace, on Monday, I continued the rest of the way downtown. Directing my feet to Victoria's Chinatown I stopped for nearly two hours at Bean Around the World. I like their vibe, coffee/tea drinks, baked treats, and quiet atmosphere. I've also been here many times because they are a great establishment and open early. The wood interior and corners just suck the sound of conversations away so that you can enjoy your own private sphere of relative quiet. While editing some stories I first drank a chai moka combo and later a blueberry oat muffin. Sorry, I forgot to take pictures.

    Next it was a visit to the Royal BC Museum for the Beyond the Beat exhibition on its final day. It focused on different types of protest through music or what musical artists were trying to sing about to illuminate an injustice or imbalance of rights. It was presented extraordinarily well and I was thankful to be able to see it.

    The exhibition was well laid out with plenty of room to walk around people. 

    Various artists and collectors made their belongings available to highlight important events, eras, or careers of pivotal artists. A short video, for when it was in Winnipeg's Canadian Museum for Human Rights, is available here.

    For lunch I went to Mentora Raman on Store street near Chinatown. 

    The combo white and red miso, with pork bone broth, was not overly salty. Also in the meal were bean sprouts, menma, two soft-boiled eggs, chashu, corn, bok choy, and seaweed. A side of pickled daikon was also served. I consumed everything and barley any broth was left once done. The raman was also fresh tasting and the pork was divine. I am so very glad I was walking home so I could bur off some calories. I would eat here again and prefer it to a few other raman places in the downtown area.

    The morning and first two hours of the afternoon were a much needed excursion. 

The Courtney Room - New Years Night

For New Years we went to an early supper at The Courtney Room in downtown Victoria. This is a fine dining establishment so be aware. For myself, my wife, friend, and his daughter it was well worth it.

To start I had the dry aged kampachi crudo with magnolia flower dashi, dulse, toasted rice, and roasted tomato. The kampachi is an amberjack fish and was very delicate in texture that melted in the mouth. The tomatoes and magnolia dashi combined nicely with the fish and made for satisfying bites.

For my main three of us each ordered the charcoal grilled Alberta beef flat iron with salsa verde and side of root vegetable pave. An side order of mushrooms was also ordered and pleasantly they were chanterelles. The steak was grilled perfectly rare and the salsa verde and jus made for satisfied bites all around. The root vegetable was a good accompaniment, but we wondered what they were yet forgot to ask. To accompany it three of us ordered a bottle of Château Le Loup 2022 Saint-Emilion Grand Cru, which was a Merlot and Cabernet Franc blend from Bordeaux, France. It went fantastically with the steak and had a pleasant tourist-like lingering. As I was the designated driver I just had half a glass.

Dessert was an apple entrement with cold apple juice spheres, crunchy smoked wheat, cookie like crumble, and topped with a maple and cinnamon crisp. It was light and satisfying. But wait...there's more.

As a bonus they had a final plate. From top to bottom: apple and ginger jelly square (someone already took thier when this photo was taken), dark chocolate spheres with milk chocolate and caramel liquid interior, and salted caramel soft chewy candy.

An excellent meal and a good place for a special night out.

Looking Back on 2025 and Ahead to 2026

The year of 2025 had many adventures and events. I am thankful that I was able to experience them and hope others were able to enjoy their own life events. "Personal growth" would be the term I would use for this year with many things achieved on my own or through my own efforts. I would also use the same term for the introspection done when I made a few boneheaded decisions.

    There were four pleasant trips to my wife's parents place in the Okanagan Valley including the Christmas Holidays. Also had a long weekend camping on Hornby Island which is also a relaxing experience. The huge trip this year was going to Europe for 66 days, seeing Spain and Italy. Mostly short trips within BC in 2026 and possible a long one. Stay tuned.

    A total of 55 fiction books were read in 2026. Standouts include: Abrams, Peter - A Perfect Crime; Balogh, Mary - One Night For Love; Child, Lee - The Enemy & The Killing Floor; Ellroy, James - Black Dahlia; Faulkner, William - As I Lay Dying; Greene, Graham - The Power and the Glory & The Third Man; Henderson, Zenna - The Anything Box; Knebel, Fletcher and Baily, Charles W. - 7 Days in May; O'Brian, Patrick - Post Captain & HMS Surprise; Paterson, Katherine - Bridge to Terabithia; Quinn, Julia - It's In His Kiss, On the Way to the Wedding, and Happily Ever After; Reid, Iain - I'm Thinking of Ending Things; Rice, Anne - Interview with a Vampire & The Vampire Lestat; Sacher, Louis - Holes; Stark, Richard (Donald Westlake) - Nobody Runs Forever, Ask the Parrot, Dirty Money; Wells, Martha - Murderbot 0.5, 1-4, 4.5, 5-7.

    Five graphic Novels were read: Cooke, Darwyn - Richard Stark's The Outfit and The Score; Miyazaki, Hiyao - Nausicaa books 2 through 4.

    For non-fiction, 16 magazines were read (Archeology and National Grographic) and six books: Astronauts Guide to Life by Chris Hadfield; Bird by Bird by Anne Lamont; Sacred Origins of Profane Things by Charles Panati; Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari; The Definitive Edition of Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl; Walking on Alligators by Susan Shaughnessy

    With podcasts, 208 were listened to. They are great when traveling or cleaning the house/yard: American History Hit: 29; Ancients: 68; Betwixt the Sheets: 10; Debaters: 9; Frountburner (30 min): 1; Gone Medieval: 41; History Hit: 1; Ideas: 49

    Three music specials were watched: Europakonzert: From Berlin with the Berliner Philharmoniker with Krill Petrenko and another concert by the same folks in Barcelona inside the Sagrada Familia; Simon and Garfunkel: Concert in Central Park.

    Two live Early Music Society (EMSI) concerts were attended: (Brilliantly Baroque by Tafelmusik and Yule by Trio Medieval

    Films in a theatre watched numbered four and movies seen in a home were twenty-four. Standouts include (T=Theatre): A Christmas Story, Brazil: Director's Cut, Chef, Edge of the Knife; T Fantastic Four: First Steps; Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga; Ladybird; Little Women (2019); Pride & Prejudice A&E Episodes 1-5; T Superman; The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo; The Lunchbox; The Warriors: Director's Cut; White Noise (2022)

    Animated films seen numbered nine. Standouts include: Kiki's Delivery Service, Princess Mononoke; Spirited Away; Superman Vs The Elite; Whispers of the Heart

    For animated TV, 149 hours were watched. Standouts include: Batman Caped Crusader (10); Batman Beyond (33); Creature Commandos (3); Invincible S2 (5); Rick and Morty (10); Star Wars: Clone Wars S1 (20) S2 (20) S3 (1); What If (S1: 9; S2: 9)

    For competitive TV, 179 hours were watched. I appreciate the British shows most of all for its humour and "feel good" atmosphere. The one I enjoyed the most were: Great Pottery Throw Down (8); Junior Bakeoff (40); Top Chef Canada (8). I do need to get out my models to assemble and paint while seeing these as I can imagine the extra models I can paint with 179 hours!

    Of the 12 documentaries watched, the ones of most interest were: American Experience's Forgotten Hero: Walter White & the NAACP; Blue Box; Chasing the Moon (three episodes of 2hrs ea); Fight to the Finish; Hannah Arendt: Facing Tyranny; Satan Wants You; The US and the Holocaust (2hrs each and only one of three episodes watched so far)

    With 130.5 hours of non-fiction TV watched, there were many that were particularly enjoyed. Those are: *Apocalypse War of Worlds (5); *Art That Made Us (2); *Being Beethoven (3); Daily Show (3); Exploring India's Treasures with Bettany Hughes (2); Fake or Fortune (9); Finding Your Roots (9); House Special (30 min, 5); Icons Unearthed (Batman) (6); Icons Unearthed (Harry Potter) (5); Icons Unearthed (Marvel) (6); Icons Unearthed (Spider Man) (5); Icons Unearthed (Star Wars) (6); Nova (11); Secrets of the Brain (2); Secrets of the Dead (6); *Shakespeare: Rise of a Genius (3)

    Fiction TV watched, at 249.5 hours, is always a little more bloated than I want. I need to be more severe on stopping to watch a show that is slightly better than "meh" or lower. Standouts of what I saw were: All Creatures Great and Small (7); Cloak and Dagger S2 (7); *Daredevil S3 (13); *Expanse S5 (10) & S6 (6); Jessica Jones S3 (13); Leverage: Redemption (10); Punisher S2 (13); Resident Alien (10); Secret Agent AKA Danger Man S1 (30 min; 33) S2 (1hr; 1); *She-Hulk (9); *Shogun (10); Wandavision (30-45 min, 9); *We Are Lady Parts (30 min, 2); Wolf Hall (6)

    So that is 2025 in a snapshot. Here is to a pleasant and non-stressful 2026! Happy New Year everyone!

The Year since Camping in September

Apologies everyone. Things just got a little busy with learning at Camosun, writing, local traveling, and reading. Here is a synopsis of what has happened in the last four months.

My wife and friends went to the Chobap Sushi Bar. It is high end Japanese cuisine served with flair and flavour. Everyone enjoyed the experience. Below was one of the many servings of the evening.

When my wife took a trip with her best friend I bachelor'd it a bit. I ate the meals I wanted and watched a new film almost every night. The director's cut of Brazil was my favourite of the films seen.

I had not gone to the Ultimate Toy Fair in a few years and decided to see what was hip in the hobby. Some wonderful trips down memory lane. Next one is May 23-24 in 2026.

Outside the Toy Fair I encountered a very tall Batman and absolutely had to ask for a picture. Very cool.

Over Thanksgiving we drove to my wife's parents place for a relaxing long weekend. While there we walked to a local winery and restaurant, Peak Cellars. Their wood fired oven pizzas were very tasty.

A local deer was scared by something and crashed through the fence shared by our neighbour. We propped up the lattice to make it look functional.

Saison, just North of Duncan, was a favourite stop on weekends but they shuttered their pastry business and focused on grape growing about five years ago. It had fabulous pastries and the best chicken pot pies. I discovered that they would be open on select dates over the month of December and over special holidays in the future. We checked it out while also visiting the Duncan Farmer's market. A delicious excursion. 

Biking to downtown Victoria, for some writing and shopping while my bike was having its yearly servicing, I discovered that City hall had bedecked its square with nice lights. As it was around 730am, and nobody was about, I snapped some pictures and enjoyed the lights.

I took a twice around walk with a friend along Langford lake and while he took a phone call I saw this unusual stump. You never know what you'll find as you walk and talk in curated woods.

Now it is the Christmas holidays and I am relaxing while enjoying good conversation, reading, writing, and eating. Have a happy 2026!