Vancouver BC Meetup

October 15, 2008 1:56 PM

Hey Cascadia. This month, there have been meetups in Seattle, San Fran (twice!), and Portland. What about Vancouver, BC? How about Nov 8th (Saturday)? That gives everyone enough time to RSVP.

As for venue... I'd have no complaints about the Brickhouse on 730 Main, but would be open to other places. I'm biased towards the Brickhouse because I could walk there.

posted by sleslie to MetaFilter gatherings at 1:56 PM (63 comments total)

I'm up for it!
posted by Turtles all the way down at 2:08 PM on October 15, 2008

The Brickhouse was so-so for a meetup. No food! But I am not positive I can make it, so I can't really dictate where it should be.
posted by birdsquared at 2:23 PM on October 15, 2008

Guu on Thurlow might be a good location. It's fairly cheap, and there is a semi-private room in the back that would facilitate conversation.
posted by KokuRyu at 2:35 PM on October 15, 2008

Count me in.
posted by timeistight at 2:47 PM on October 15, 2008

Oh perfect, right after the USian election. I might be needing some friends in Canadia.
posted by Slarty Bartfast at 2:52 PM on October 15, 2008

Do you have to reserve a table for Guu? The reviews say its a small place.
posted by sleslie at 3:30 PM on October 15, 2008

I'm not sure Thurlow Guu lets you book a table. I like the food there (it's one of my mainstays for lunch, being ~5 min walk from my office) but it can get pretty noisy and packed in there on a weekend evening so it may not be ideal for conversation.
posted by juv3nal at 4:15 PM on October 15, 2008

Ah-ha! About damn time. Call me tentatively in.
I really liked the Brickhouse and I thought we had a lot of fun there last time, but the lack of food was a drag. That said, I prefer a pub to a restaurant because it is easier for people to come and go and it's less intimidating to join the table.
posted by PercussivePaul at 5:00 PM on October 15, 2008

I'm in. We're way overdue on a meetup, though since winter's approaching, that makes it easier to keep people in town.
posted by myopicman at 5:02 PM on October 15, 2008

Other suggestions just to say something constructive:

The Charlatan on Commercial Drive (there was a meetup there once but I didn't make it). Many beers on tap.

The Cascade Room or the Habit Lounge on Main at 10th. They're side by side. Habit is more of a lounge and Cascade is more of a bar. Both are pretty spacious.

The Five Point at Main and 15th-ish, though it's rather small and tends to fill up in evenings
posted by PercussivePaul at 5:07 PM on October 15, 2008

Well, I'm two blocks away from the Brickhouse, so I'll go there tonight to see if there's food. The reviews say that there is food, and when I went there last Friday the people standing outside looked reasonably well nourished. Not bucket o' breakfast meat at Denny's nourished, of course...
posted by sleslie at 5:17 PM on October 15, 2008

last time we were there, all you could get were bags of chips from behind the bar. I see evidence online that there may be a bistro upstairs... but seem to remember seeing a yoga studio.
posted by PercussivePaul at 5:28 PM on October 15, 2008

I should be in town, and therefore in.
We went to the Nelson the last time Jessamyn was in town, which had cheap drinks and food. On a Saturday it might be full especially since it's not huge to begin with.

Do we have a preferred neighbourhood? I think it'll be easier if we get that out of the way. Personally, I'd like something near a skytrain but am not super-fussed about it...
posted by heeeraldo at 8:39 PM on October 15, 2008

Just got back from the Brickhouse. No food, and the bouncer suggested Chinatown nosh (Hon's, Kent's, there's a Canto-BBQ place that's open late on Keefer) if food was an issue.

Venue-wise, I'll leave it to the Vancouverites from here. But count me in.
posted by sleslie at 8:46 PM on October 15, 2008

Turns out I'm visiting Vancouver for a conference 10/28-31, if anyone's interested in a meetup then.
posted by gingerbeer at 9:04 PM on October 15, 2008

I approve of all of these locations, but I will be out of town that weekend. If it's another time, I'd be in.
posted by vernondalhart at 10:55 PM on October 15, 2008

Well, these guys had weekly meetings, so let's pick one of their places...

http://www.couchsurfing.com/wiki/Vancouver

now, for the date... Let's please those couple of people desperate enough for a meetup that they're piping up in here and move it to 10/30, 2 weeks from now exactly. Gingerbeer, bring a couple bottles of the stuff when you come. Oct 30th is before the US election so I won't have to listen to whining and moaning about VP Palin and fraudulent Diebold machines, and it's Devil's night, the day before Halloween.

I'll mark it on the board. Vote for the location.

Brick House, 730 Main Street
Library Square Pub (!), 350 W. Georgia St
Backstage Lounge, 1585 Johnston Street (on Granville)
Ivanhoe Pub, 1038 Main Street
The Kingston Pub, 755 Richards Street

Time? Anytime after 6pm sounds reasonable.
posted by sleslie at 7:25 PM on October 16, 2008

How the heck do you mark it on the board... I feel stupid...
posted by sleslie at 7:25 PM on October 16, 2008

got it.
posted by sleslie at 7:27 PM on October 16, 2008

2nding Library Square on Georgia.

Count me in.

As an alternative: Fogg 'n Sudds on Robson. There's good food, great beer, and "tower of power" specials for getting the whole table drunk on the cheap. I've had two successful meetups there with other groups. It would be my 1st choice.
posted by MaxK at 1:32 AM on October 17, 2008

Crap. I was going to be up for a conference Nov 8. Oh well, have fun you all.
posted by Slarty Bartfast at 1:22 PM on October 17, 2008

Oh, Canada! How nice of you to change your meetup for the visiting American!

So you're not actually changing it for me, but I figured I should live up to the USian stereotype by assuming it was all about me. I promise to not whine (too much) about our election, and listen to you whine about yours instead.

I'm staying in some hotel on Robson, but imagine I can make my way to wherever you're drinking. I'm looking forward to meeting some Canadian mefites.
posted by gingerbeer at 6:23 PM on October 17, 2008

I'm pro brickhouse, but that's because it's fairly close to where I live.
posted by vernondalhart at 11:53 PM on October 17, 2008

Well, that or the Ivanhoe, which is closer.
posted by vernondalhart at 11:54 PM on October 17, 2008

I remain tentatively in. Library Square looks like a nice pub but it appears to turn kind of dance club-ish in the evenings. They have a website. Their event calendar on the 30th says "Join us after the Madonna concert with DJ Ana". Probably wouldn't be a big deal if we got started early enough.

Actually, I notice from the website that the same people own The Lamplighter in Gastown. That place used to be a good live music venue but it got bought out and re-done and I've heard it's more of a mainstream-type pub now. I haven't been there since but it looks nice enough. They seem to have a typical pub menu, not too expensive, and $3.50 beers on Thursdays.
posted by PercussivePaul at 1:31 PM on October 18, 2008

The Lamplighter was awesome when I was there around 9 months ago. Gets pretty crowded through part of the evening, but it might not be too bad on a Thursday.
posted by MaxK at 6:15 PM on October 19, 2008

It has fallen out of favor as a meetup spot, but for the benefit of anyone reading this thread: if the ocean dried up, the mountains crumbled, and all the cool people died, Vancouver would still be a good place to live, because of Guu. I love that place more than life itself.*


* Except the one is gastown. That one sucks.
posted by limon at 9:31 PM on October 20, 2008

I am in favour of simple and uncomplicated. It seems that most of the hipsterish places have limitations. Why don't we go to Fogg 'n Sudds for the meetup, and if it becomes necessary, branch off later? It's not a place I would normally go, but they are prepared to handle groups, are large enough to do so, have food, and I think we could all get to know each other just fine there.

My $.02
posted by Turtles all the way down at 6:38 PM on October 21, 2008

Let's parse this...

Food was important.

"No food is a drag," says PercussivePaul. Despite the fact that his name implies he is a drummer, starving does suck, and this is a good point. At the Brickhouse, it has been reported by the apparently ever-starving Paul that all you could get is "... a bag of chips." A field reporter (me) confirmed this, and notes two additional things: One, there wasn't even Doritos, which the entire world enjoys, and Two, it was about 30% douchebaggy.

There were a lot of places mentioned one or two times.

Let's get some of these barely-mentionables out of the way. The Library thing gets "one honorable" for playing rather cool music (Wisconsin-era Garbage?! NIN B-Sides? French Dance Pop!) for a venue selling previously frozen hamburgers, but good music cannot trump crappy food when you're in Vancouver. Also, the Library thing will be flush full of Madonna-addled VanCougars, notes our hard working reporter PaulPercusive.

The Ivanhoe... could mean the best meet-up ever in the history of Metafilter, or it could be the worst. That's some rather strong variability for these troubled economic times, and I think we can agree that variability is a bad thing these days.

MaxK says that "... the Lamplighter was awesome." And???^*

Guu... no one has said anything bad about this place. In fact, a passing American who notes their location as NEW YORK professes his/her love for the place so much so that it trumps limon's will to live, just like in that play with that couple called Romeo and Juliet. That's quite an endorsement. juv3nal notes that "... it can get crowded there on the weekends," but the meeting was moved to a non-weekend day, a Thursday, because gingerbeer (a fellow Cascadian from San Francisco, California) really, really wanted to attend.

So.. are we gonna let two Americans tell us what to do? Yes. Yes we will.

Guu's on Thurlow. Oct 30th, after 6pm.
[google map]

meet anytime after 6pm. Please RSVP, and I or someone else will save the table that KokoRyu noted was a "...(facilitor of) conversation."

*sorry MaxK but it was a funny turn of phrase
posted by sleslie at 7:11 PM on October 21, 2008

To clarify -- who is RSVPing with whom?
posted by MaxK at 10:56 PM on October 21, 2008

I'll be there.
posted by timeistight at 7:44 AM on October 22, 2008

I will be there! How will I recognize you all?
posted by gingerbeer at 9:46 AM on October 22, 2008

Just say "I'll be there" in this thread to RSVP, and then someone won't look like a lonely dork at a large table telling the waitress that, yes, honestly, my friends are going to be here any minute, honest, and yes, I need this large table, and, no, they're not imaginary friends.

To recognize us? That's always a problem. I've always just asked random tables and used a little bit of intuition (internet nerds, diverse group, they don't know each other...)

I'll write "mefi" on a business card and put it on the table. I just wrote it and I'm putting it in my wallet.
posted by sleslie at 10:35 AM on October 22, 2008

I'll be there!
posted by MaxK at 11:55 AM on October 22, 2008

I'll be there, and so will my camera.
posted by heeeraldo at 2:42 PM on October 22, 2008

I too will show up.
posted by vernondalhart at 7:50 AM on October 23, 2008

I'll be there.
posted by juv3nal at 2:35 PM on October 23, 2008

With bells on.
posted by myopicman at 12:24 AM on October 24, 2008

The bells will be on me too. Can't wait!
posted by Turtles all the way down at 10:36 AM on October 25, 2008

Now that it's a different date,
and it will be at Guu, which is great,
I'll be there, with my little camera, mate.
posted by birdsquared at 4:28 PM on October 25, 2008

Not only will I be there but I'll be bringing the lovely and charming Mrs. MaxK.

...

She just informed me that I forgot 'wonderful' as well. My mistake.
posted by MaxK at 11:57 PM on October 25, 2008

I wish I could be there.
posted by rtha at 9:10 PM on October 26, 2008

I might drop by as well.
posted by concreteforest at 11:05 AM on October 29, 2008

I might be there, depending on work load
posted by seawallrunner at 12:01 AM on October 30, 2008

Can't make it. That makes me a sad panda. :(
Have fun everyone.
posted by PercussivePaul at 2:04 PM on October 30, 2008

aha! I'll be there as well.
posted by benign at 3:49 PM on October 30, 2008

The wife and I will see you folks in a couple hours!
posted by MaxK at 3:54 PM on October 30, 2008

Anyone hold a table for 10?
posted by concreteforest at 6:14 PM on October 30, 2008

no, we didn't -- we're outside Guu and there's an hour wait so we're abandoning ship to a locale yet to be determined.
If you haven't left yet call me at 604.618.4016 to figure out where we are.
posted by heeeraldo at 6:30 PM on October 30, 2008

Oh no! Just about to head out now to meet you. Will call first.
posted by gingerbeer at 6:36 PM on October 30, 2008

We are at Fogg n Sudds on Robson and Jervis -- call me if you get lost.
posted by heeeraldo at 6:49 PM on October 30, 2008

Ha. Just left there. Will head back!
posted by gingerbeer at 6:54 PM on October 30, 2008

My pictures, which I'm sure will be the crappiest of the ones taken tonight, will be up shortly, but I wanted to link to the donut/bacon Obama symbol that was discussed.
posted by birdsquared at 10:23 PM on October 30, 2008

As promised, my (9) photos from tonight's meetup.
posted by birdsquared at 10:47 PM on October 30, 2008

I'm amused at the grim reaper in the background of the last (first?) photo of that set.
posted by vernondalhart at 11:02 PM on October 30, 2008

Holy christ I love that donuts/bacon t-shirt.
posted by rtha at 11:05 PM on October 30, 2008

Actually, the Grim Reaper shows up in both the last (first in time) and first (last in time) pictures. I also like the way the R.I.P. gravestone looks to be related to timeistight in the shot with myopicman and I...
posted by birdsquared at 11:11 PM on October 30, 2008

mine are up, now.
posted by heeeraldo at 12:41 AM on October 31, 2008

Thank you all for a great meetup and showing the visiting American so much hospitality. I remain impressed that we talked more about the US election at the Canadian meetup than we did at the San Francisco meetup last week. If you care what the visiting American thinks, please vote for Gregor Robertson!

If any of you are coming to San Francisco, let us know and we'll host a meetup for you and return the favor.
posted by gingerbeer at 9:10 AM on October 31, 2008

Mine are now properly titled.

They aren't as good as heeraldo's, but have the great advantage of not including me.
posted by timeistight at 10:19 AM on October 31, 2008

My photos, should they turn out, will probably not be posted anywhere for some time.

Good times though, everyone. Thanks.
posted by vernondalhart at 2:45 AM on November 1, 2008

Congratulations, Vancouver mefites, for taking my advice and electing the right guy! I'll probably be back in your neck of the woods a bit sooner, and will send up the meet-up bat signal when I do.
posted by gingerbeer at 6:46 AM on November 16, 2008

I wore the Donuts/Bacon t-shirt to San Francisco's No on 8 rally the other day and got many compliments. On the way to the rally, I stopped at a local fancy donut place for a donut. This place makes - wait for it - a maple-glazed bacon donut. It is delicious. The folks working there that morning loved the shirt. I expect to see some of them wearing one the next time I go by.
posted by rtha at 6:55 PM on November 16, 2008