INTERNeX Canada: Have you ever tried a POUTINE?

Canada doesn’t have an official national food, but our famous “poutine” is a strong contender for this title! What is it? A poutine consists of three main ingredients: fries, gravy and cheese curds.

Yup, basically a dish full of grease and calories and probably shouldn’t be eaten, but it is the most delicious thing ever. This is the best thing when you are freezing cold or if you are taking a break from skiing on the slopes.

Cheese curds, which is basically unprocessed cheese that should be eaten when fresh, was invented when dairy farmers in Quebec wanted to save excess production. It has a soft chewy texture with little taste and makes a squeaky sound when you bite into it.

Quebec is also where poutine has originated. Many Quebecois communities such as Drummondville and Warwick claim to be the birthplace of this dish in the late 1950s, but nobody really knows who or where this trend really started.

Now, poutine has become popular all over Canada and in the United States especially in New York and New Jersey. There are many variations to the basic gravy, cheese and fries with additional ingredients such as other cheeses, pulled pork, beans and barbecue sauces. Basically like a nacho, anything goes!

You might have to go to Montreal to find the best and most original kind of poutine, but here are some really good and cheap places in Vancouver to try this dish:

• La Belle Province (1215 Davie St. & Robson St.): This is where you are going to find the most authentic version as it serves traditional Quebecius cuisine.
• Fritz European Fry House (718 Davie Street & Granville St.): As the name hints, Fritz specializes in fries. That’s pretty much all they sell there with a whole bunch of poutine toppings and sauces to try.
• Costco Food Court (605 Expo Boulevard, right across Rogers Arena): This might be an unusual place for poutine as Costco is a warehouse that sells goods in bulk. (Psst, this is a special Smart Saver Vancouver for those of you who got this far in the post!) Their huge poutine goes for about $4.50 and everything on the menu is very cheap. While you need a membership card to purchase anything else in the store, their food court is open to anyone!

You must try this Canadian cuisine while you are living here! It might look kind of gross, but trust me, you’ll fall in love!

Cheers,

Queenie

INTERNeX International Exchange
Suite 200 – 211 Columbia Street
Vancouver BC -V6A 2R5-
Web: http://www.internexcanada.com
Phone: +1 (604) 662 8149
Email: pr@internexcanada.com

INTERNeX Canada: Fun facts about Hockey

First of all: The game is called ‘hockey’ not ‘ice hockey’ my fellow European friends. Of course, it is obviously played on ice and the players wear ice skates but if you don’t want to be identified as a total newbie from a foreign country stop calling it ice hockey – just as a little recommendation for you. 😉

The sport was officially born in Canada in the 1700s when some British soldiers combined a bunch of different sports to adapt it to the snowy and icy outdoors conditions in Canada. Since then, proper rules have been developed and it has become the national sport of Canada today. Every true Canadian is obsessed with it and I know from my own experience that this craziness about hockey does not know age or gender.

When I spent my Easter vacation with a Canadian family last year, there happened to be an allegedly important Canucks game on Easter Sunday. So what did they do about it? Believe it nor not but everyone (Granddad, Nana, Mom, Dad, uncles, aunts and kids) got up from the dinner table, moved to the TV room, everyone grabbed a beer and watched the game together. After it was over, the family gathered at the dinner table again, discussed the game, had some dessert and that was it. Isn’t that funny? To me it seemed weird as I am not used to this kind of excitement for sports and it was particularly different to see a whole family being so passionate about it! I later found out that their entire village gets together once a year around Christmas at the family’s pond for the so-called “Wiener Cup”. It is a traditional hockey competition where family teams or teams of friends play against each other and the winning team gets this ugly and super random trophy (check out the picture, this is the original “Wiener Cup”!!). Actually I’ll be there and experience it myself this winter…Should be interesting, I’ll let you know how I did!

In order to get a hang of the rules and come up with a winning strategy, though, I guess I will have to watch many many real hockey games before…Let’s start today at Pacific Coliseum! GO GIANTS!!! 🙂

Cheers

Marianne

INTERNeX International Exchange
Suite 200 – 211 Columbia Street
Vancouver BC -V6A 2R5-
Web: http://www.internexcanada.com
Phone: +1 (604) 662 8149
Email: pr@internexcanada.com

INTERNeX Canada: Casual Friday Pre-Thanksgiving!

Monday is Thanksgiving and of course we are going to celebrate together with a typical thanksgiving dinner! We know how to celebrate it, but…. Do you know the history behind this festivity?

The origin of the first Thanksgiving in Canada goes back to Martin Frobisher, an explorer who celebrated  for surviving after a long and difficult trip from England… years after this celebration continue when new immigrants were arriving to Canada

Thanksgiving in North America in general has its origins in a mixture of European traditions and aborigines. In Europe, festivals were held before and after the harvest cycles to give thanks for a good harvest and to celebrate the hard work along, with the rest of the community .At the same time, Native Americans were also celebrated the end of the harvest, so the actual Thanksgiving is a mixture between aboriginal tradition and the own tradition that the Europeans brought to Canada. But the main objective was basically the same, to say thank you after a good harvest and to finish a hard work.

In Canada is always celebrated on the second Monday of October and on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States.

So now you know a little bit more, now we are ready to eat our great turkey dinner!

Join us in celebrating a traditional Canadian Thanksgiving at The Irish Heather in Gastown with our INTERNeX family! It´s just $25 (excluding tax and gratuity) and we will be eating Roasted turkey with cherry relish, mashed potatoes, maple glazed yams, stuffing, and brussel sprouts; and pumpkin pie with bourbon cream for dessert!

Don´t miss out!

Remember:

Where? The Irish Heather, 210 Carrall Street Vancouver

When? Monday, October 8th at 7:30

See you there!

Cheers

Irene

INTERNeX International Exchange
Suite 200 – 211 Columbia Street
Vancouver BC -V6A 2R5-
Web: http://www.internexcanada.com
Phone: +1 (604) 662 8149
Email: pr@internexcanada.com

Café Crêpe

I think I’m in love. With crêpes. This weekend, I went for another stroll down Robson Street, however I didn’t get very far. The sweet, sweet aroma of chocolate drizzle, strawberry and nutella made me stop dead in my tracks. Could it be? Love at first bite…

I had always seen the red lights that hovered above this little restaurant on Robson street, but had never stopped to order anything. Usually I eat lunch before heading out for some shopping, but on Saturday all I could think about was food! As soon as the smell of melting chocolate and fresh cut strawberries reached my nostrils, I was running towards the express window at Café Crêpe.

Importing the tradition of the classic European café to North America, Café Crêpe specializes in Parisian sweet & savoury crêpes. There are so many different types of crêpes to try at this hub, it can drive a hungry person mad! In addition to crêpes, they also specialize in french baguette sandwiches, and grilled Italian panini.  As an international café, Café Crêpe also offers world classics like half-pound certified Angus burgers, pommes frites (french fries),thin crust pizza, and a full traditional breakfast menu that includes Eggs Benedict and an exciting variety of omelettes, among other specialties. In addition to serving exceptional Italian roasted coffee, Café Crêpe is fully licensed, offering a vast selection of alcoholic beverages and cocktails, along with select beers and wines.

Everyone NEEDS to try something from this restaurant. Although a little pricey (depending on what you order), you will not be let down! I still dream about this crêpe.

Enjoy your eats!

– Laura