MogoPerks One Under Party!

The perks of being a Mogo Member are pretty sweet if we do say so ourselves – as you can clearly see in this video from our party at One/Under that we had last month. As proponents of the “don’t quit your daydream” lifestyle,  Mogo arranged for a fabulous night of golfing fun at One Under in Vancouver for our members – whom we love so much! From fun photo booths for those model moments (with our MogoCard props, of course) with your friends, to taking a big swing at the $50,000 hole-in-one shot, to the complimentary beer, pizza and charcuterie that was being served, this event produced countless smiles.  Every attendee also left with a Mogo swag bag full of delightful goodies from Postmark Brewing, Later Magazine, and One Under. If you didn’t make it out to this event, do not fret! There’s plenty more where that came from. Mogo is throwing their very first Toronto #MogoPerks event on Thursday, April 30th! They’ve teamed up with Kastor & Pollux to bring MogoMembers an exclusive party featuring cult accessories brand No Fun Press – filled to the brim with free booze, free pizza, music, giveaways, art installations

Vancouver Seafood Lovers: the spot prawn festival is here!

Starting this weekend (May 5, 2012), seafood enthusiasts in Vancouver have another reason to get excited. The 6th Annual Spot Prawn Festival will be hitting our shores at False Creek Fisherman’s Wharf. Get your fill of these googly-eyed ocean-dwellers and enjoy some of the best cooking and locally-available fresh fish in Vancouver. The festival is held by the Chef’s Table Society and offers up great food, wine and access to locally sourced ingredients. For only $12, you get a steaming plate of fresh prawns, sauces and a chunk of bread to go with it. Enter draws, see the crowds and get your fill! Got any tips for more summer festivals in your area? Let us know!

Got Craft? They do! Vancouver's upcoming craft art fair

Vancouver’s DIY scene is a pretty awesome one, and it gets stronger with every passing year. That doesn’t mean, however, that we can’t celebrate the DIY initiatives that we love. With that in mind, may I present Got Craft? This twice-yearly celebration of indie artisans and crafters descends upon the legion at Commercial Drive next Sunday, May 6. Like previous incarnations (they’re usually one each spring and winter) this promises to be a huge affair, bringing dozens of vendors and over 5000 attendees (!!!) to a day-long event in the heart of the Drive. This year, they’ve added a sewing lounge run by awesome local sewing shop/school Spool of Thread, so you can learn to sew while getting your craft on. Oh, and there will be DJs too, in case you feel like dancing while you shop (don’t we all?). What’s awesome about the crafting revolution, in my mind, is that events like this—along with websites like Etsy and awesome stores that choose to carry local, handmade products—take crafting out of the fussy, grandma realm and into coolness. I have a few pieces of handmade jewelry and some scarves from fairs

Taste the City Vancouver - win dinner at 15 great restaurants

Vancouver is truly one of the great cities for dining out, but sometimes the non-stop restaurant-ing can get pricey… even though you want to hit all the top spots in the city. Vancouver Magazine feels your pain and are rolling out a great contest: Taste the City. The grand prize winner will receive 15 $100 gift certificates to Vancouver’s top dining destinations. enough to dine out every month for more than a year! 15 runner up, almost-winners, will get $100 to one of the participating spots. Places like The Boathouse, Zeffereli’s and Market are up for grabs. All you need to do is enter the contest and cross your fingers! Good luck, Vancouver!

The Best Comedy Shows in Vancouver for Your Buck

I don’t know if there’s something in the air lately, or what—maybe it’s because the Comedy Fest just happened, too—but there seems to be an overabundance of awesome and cheap comedy happening in Vancouver these days. I am always on a budget that screams “never do anything fun!” but when I do have a little bit of money, I’d prefer to laugh over most other forms of entertainment. With that in mind, here are some post-Comedy Fest laughs you can grab on the cheap. Have fun! 1. The Laugh Gallery – Monthly @ The Havana, www.eastvancomedy.com, $5 This long-time standup show is hosted by the most adorable, teddy bear like comedian around, Graham Clark. It’s back in a regular timeslot now—as part of the amazing East Van Comedy series at the Havana on Commercial Drive—after floating around for a while, and I for one couldn’t be happier. Come for the laughs, stay for the prizes, which Clark sources from local secondhand shops and which run the gamut from awesomely terrible to just-plain-awesome. Check the website for the next monthly installment. 2. VTSL’s Rookie Night – Every Sunday night @ The Improv

The best pasta deal in Vancouver: Quattro

Are you ready for some pasta, Vancouver? Whether you’re carbo-loading for a big race, or because it’s cold out and you just need some warm food with a glass of red win, Quattro is a great option for budget-conscious eaters in Van-city. When you scan the menu at Quattro on 4th, you might notice some expensive items and wonder what kind of ‘budget’ I’m talking about… BUT if you hit this Italian eatery on any Monday or Tuesday, their entire pasta list is only $10 each. That’s right – for the price of a ‘select’ footlong sandwich at Subway, you can dine in a really cool spot and have high-end food. Just remember to arrive early and to put the napkin on your lap (not tucked into your shirt collar). The menu: $10 Pasta Menu Join every Monday and Tuesday for $10 Pasta Night at Q4 in Kitsilano. Ten different pasta for $10. Spaghetti Quattro For Italians only Fettuccine Ghiottone Fettuccine with minced chicken, in a brandy cream Penne Arrabiata Penne with pancetta and mushrooms, in a spicy pomodoro ragu Spaghetti Bolognese Spaghetti with minced beef, veal and pork in a red wine, tomato ragu, finished with

Five Awesome Vancouver Meals for under $15

When I was a kid, my mom used to give me $20 for a week’s worth of “fun food.” This meant I could spend it on things like candy (or in my case, chips…I’m way more into savoury than I am sweet.) and not feel bad, as long as I was also eating my bag lunch. (FYI: I used to trade my yogurt for Dunkaroos. Sorry mom.) Oh, the good old days! Now I’m lucky if I spend less than $20 on a single meal, nevermind a week’s worth of foodertainment (copyright, me). It takes awhile in any city to find the good food options under $20…and even more time to find ones under $15. But, intrepid reader, I’ve done the hard work for you. (Please note that I’m a meat eater, but all of the places below have veggie options. This is Vancouver, after all) Et voila: 1)    Re-Up BBQ – Hornby @ Georgia St., 11am-3pm Daily What an awesome day it was just a year or so ago when the food cart revolution finally hit Vancouver! Thanks to some forward thinking on the part of our city government, Vancouverites finally have access

CONTEST: What do you love about the Grey Cup?

It’s that time of the year – GREY CUP TIME!!! The BC Lions are taking on the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in Vancouver’s newly redone BC Place., and it should be a great game! There are definitely a few great reasons to love the Grey Cup: the sport the players delicious snack food Let us know who you think will win and what you love about the Grey Cup and you can *win a $25 Superstore gift card *- just in time to stock up on snacks for the game! ————————– TO ENTER: Leave a comment below telling us who you think will win and what you love about the Grey Cup. (1 entry) Post the following on Twitter (1 entry): RT to enter to win a $25 Superstore gift card from @mogomoney – http://bit.ly/uokrev ————————– *UPDATE: *Our contest winner is Jenny (@depotato)! Thanks to everyone for playing. Image by ElvertBarnes

Vancouver Happy Hour: Goldfish in Yaletown

Happy hours:This column will detail some of my favourite options for wetting your whistle or grabbing some appetizers. While most of my posts will be Vancouver-specific, we’re ready to roll these out across the country. Be sure to hit the comment thread to tell us about your favorite watering holes. I work in downtown Vancouver — that’s right, some of us bloggers are proudly out of our parents’ basements! — and there are a ton of happy hour options around the city. One that’s located just around the corner from me is Goldfish. It’s a trendy seafood spot in Yaletown, but offers one of my favorite deals in the city. Seafood + drinks + a place to catch a game? Why not. The Deal: From 4-7pm in the lounge (does not include seating in the ‘dining area’) enjoy $1 fresh oysters, $5 glasses of wine and 1/2 price appetizers. This is definitely competing directly with Rodney’s ‘buck a shuck’ oyster deal around the corner… and you know what? It’s working. For a pre tip/tax total, I was charged ~$15 for a glass of malbec, 5 oysters and some fantastic tuna poke. That’s an awesome

Get Free Stuff & Enter To Win: Visit Mogo @ Vancouver's Celebration of Light!

Are you in Vancouver and looking to get out, have some fun and get some great free swag? Come join us at the Celebration of Light (a.k.a. the best fireworks show you’ll ever see)! The Fireworks are one of Vancouver’s biggest outdoor events of the year and we’re going to be there, right in the heart of English Bay, handing out frisbees and more! Come visit our booth and we’ll help you figure out your best air guitar move and snap your pic in front of our awesome Rock Star backdrop – you can enter to win an Xbox 360 and Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock game bundle through our Live At Squamish contest! The Celebration of Light is on July 30, August 3, and August 6! Our team will be walking all around the area – keep an eye out for the blue wigs – or you can come visit our booth, see the map below! View Mogo @ Fireworks in a larger map Fun Fireworks Facts: The fireworks are launched from a barge in English bay – each show takes 16 people and 3 days(!!) to set up. Up to 4500 bombs/shells are used in each