Chow Times on The Vancouver Sun

He he he … here you go!

Hello-World-Chowtimes

Suanne and I started blogging almost 5 years ago. It was our Hello World post above (link here) that started our accidental journey into the world of food. As I sit here, I am just amazed how food had played a big part in our lives.

When we landed in Canada, Suanne doesn’t know how to cook. She lived a privileged life where mummy and our maid does all the cooking. I remember the very first meal that Suanne cooked in Canada. Faced with unfamiliar stoves and different ingredients, she made her first family meal just after four days we were here. Yeah, the food was really terrible. I lied and told her it was OK. And she burst into tears! You see, I blinked when I said that.

Looking at her today, she is pretty good and knowledgeable with cooking and food. She even put together a cookbook called Diversely Delicious (link here) just a few months ago.

Trust me when I said I … didn’t care much about food before chowtimes started. Back then I would just be happy going to the same restaurants every time. But this blog had changed my view of the culinary world. The more we wrote about food, the more we wanted to find out about it.

But anyway, the article below that appeared in The Vancouver Sun today meant a lot to Suanne and I … and I mean A LOT. This was totally unexpected as I thought it would only appear in the website of The Vancouver Sun. To see it in the Saturday edition of The Vancouver Sun in print is something else.

Vancouver-Sun-06-Nov-2010

I had always admired big names like Mia Stainsby. Yeah, when I grow up I want to be like her. She is big time in the Vancouver food scene and I was taken by surprised when she contacted me. I was thinking she wanted to just gather bloggers opinions for an article she is working on. She called and we talked. It was a very nice chat but I think I went on and on too much. Yeah, after that call with her I was kind of regretted I talked too much … and can’t believe I said what I said. 🙂

She does work fast. I got a glimpse of how she worked — checking and cross checking our discussions to make sure she got everything correct. Then she said she wanted have pictures taken of Suanne and I with food. We arranged for the photographer to meet up at the Mui Ngo Gai restaurant but I guess because of miscommunication, that did not happen. So we arranged again, this time at the Aberdeen Center Food Court.

Yeah, this morning I picked up the Vancouver Sun outside the door and I quickly flipped to the Arts and Lifestyle section … and there you go … that picture of the smiling pretty girl holding the wind-sand chicken wings and that handsome guy with a bowl of beef tendon noodle soup. LOL!

Yeah, like I said … it meant a lot for Suanne and I that Mia chooses to write about us. So thanks a lot Mia!

And of course to all of the readers who had supported chowtimes all these years, the site is not what it is without your active participation in many ways.

Excuse me while I go take a shower now. Am gonna go to a frame maker today. Anyone know of a good and cheap place? 🙂

This Post Has 0 Comments

  1. Crispy Lechon

    Congrats again Ben. It’s a well deserved recognition. More power to you and here’s to at least another 10 more years of blogging. 🙂

  2. Laurie

    Congrats Ben!! How exciting!

  3. LotusRapper

    What a cute couple ! Congrats Ben & Suanne !

  4. Joyce

    Awesome-ness!

  5. Yakqueen

    What a lovely way to start a weekend! The headline aptly captured the role of Chow Times in the lives of many of us! Thank You Ben and Suanne and Congratulations =)

  6. Chubbychick

    Congrats Ben and Susannne! I gotta say your blog really started my addiction to reading food blogs 🙂

    1. Crispy Lechon

      Come to think of it, I think I can blame Chowtimes for my food porn/blog addiction. I now read or check on average 30 plus food blogs a day. Whenever I see a new post my adrenaline starts pumping and I get a high. Chowtimes ruined me for life. Now, I can’t live a day without reading a food blog. Huhuhuhuhuhu.. LOL.

      1. LotusRapper

        CC & CL, you two “crack” me up …..

      2. Rmd_Foodie

        I totally agree with you Crispy Lechon! Chowtimes was the first ever local blog that I read and ever since then, I’ve been addicted to food blogs! Of course I’m not as bad as you. I’m only up to 28 food blogs that I keep up with, compared to your 30+! LOL.

        Congrats Ben and Suanne for such a great accomplishment! You really are an inspiration to a lot of the other food bloggers out there that followed in your footsteps. I hope to be one of those inspired people and start a food blog of my own if and when I stop procrastinating. LOL. I wish you guys many more yummy and food-filled years of blogging!

        1. Ben

          Hi Rmd_Foodie: I hope you start a food blog of your own soon. Let me know if you need any help and I would be glad to help. Thanks for the kind words. Ben

  7. Gloria

    Congrats Suanne & Ben!
    I follow your blog everyday and check daily
    If it wasn’t for your blog I would never have found my “all time favourite restaurants”!

  8. agingteen

    Congratulations! That is so awesome! Very much well deserved! I read your blog religiously everyday! Thank you!

    1. Ben

      Hi Buddha Girl: Hehehe. I don’t know and I ask myself why chowtimes is perceived different from so many good and better food blogs out there. Just being myself, I guess. Being “in the business” for so many years does help a lot. Ben

  9. Lissa

    Saw your twitter post on this. Congrats! I’m going to a pic of your picture with my iPhone. In case I chance upon someone who looks like you, I have confirmation! Oh yeah, will def. say hi. 🙂

  10. Elaine

    You are lucky Ben hahaha! Because guys do the cooking nowadays 😉

    1. Buddha Girl

      Yes!!! I totally agree! I make Buddha Boy cook and I will blog on it…LOL!!! Lucky Ben!!!

      1. Ben

        Hi Buddha Girl and Elaine: Oh, I would gladly swap my roles with Suanne anytime. 🙂 While I don’t cook … no, I lied. I DO cook. I can make my own instant noodles and I do know how to fry an egg. Anyway, as I was saying, while I don’t cook, I believe that deep inside me lies a budding chef. Serious, I see all the chef shows on TV, their works is so simple. All they do is yell at people in the kitchen. I can do that. Ben

  11. Chris

    Congrats Ben! Michael’s usually has some good deals on frames, and may have a good coupon floating around online for some additional savings. Never had anything framed there though so I can’t say how good/bad their work is!

    1. Ben

      Sorry Chris. He he he … I was just kidding about the frames. Ben

  12. angie

    Congrats guys!

  13. Franklin

    Congrats!

    I hope you don’t make the posts into a video-only thing. I love reading the posts and looking at the pictures more.

    1. Ben

      Hi Franklin: No, I am not looking to do a video-only thingy. That was a off-the-cuff comment I had to Mia Stainsby. I was saying that technology changes. Many years ago, people were fiddling with BBSs and then Mailing Lists and then Geocities and then blogs and now Twitter and such. All these changes over time. One day in the very near future, blogs as we know it today will be passe. We all need to see how this will evolve. So I have a few ideas and short videos will be ONE of them. Videos is useful to demonstrate somethings better than just words and pictures. But I know too that videos could be extremely boring if not done well. Ben

  14. PD

    Congrats! Browsing the food porn at Chowtimes is one of my guilty pleasures, especially when I’m studying late at night! 🙂

    1. Buddha Girl

      LOL!!! PD, you and Crispy Lechon makes a great team of “food porn hunters”…HAHAHA!!!

  15. nova

    congratulations! this very well deserved!

  16. Jaime

    Ben and Suanne–I just wanted to say congratulations to the both of you on making it in the Sun today! The moment I heard about it, I was thrilled! My friends make fun of me for going nuts at your food photos during lunch at school (especially when I was eating a PB&J sandwich while going ga-ga over your images of king crab haha, but heck, you’re blog brightens my day!

    Congrats, again 🙂

    Jaime

  17. Jaime

    Speaking of frames Ben, IKEA has some decent ones that are affordable and visually appealing. Hehe, having done visual arts for my undergrad, I’d like to think my artistic opinion is reliable haha. You may also want to check out Michaels.

  18. Doug

    Congrats Ben. I can’t wait for the next edition of the 8GTCC dinner!

  19. Marike

    Well deserved recognition!!! Once I stumbled onto your site, I was instantly hooked! Now I’m truly addicted…sometimes checking many times a day for updates. 😉

    Your humour, enthusiasm and unique view (being chinese illiterate) makes it all the more interesting. Keep up the good work!

  20. jer

    Congratulations Ben and Suanne. I hope one day to be featured in a newspaper haha. I don’t see it happening anytime soon.

  21. HM

    Congratulations Ben & Suanne! You have certainly given your readers lots of pleasures, keep up the great work and you both deserve the recognition! Pss…..you need a bigger freezer to store all those food! LOL!!

  22. Jayda

    That’s wonderful you two! I’m not surprised you are getting recognized for all your contributions to the local food culture. I love that you incorporate personal touches into each blog and are objective in your reviews…… plus it is so very lovely to see you work as a team….. as all good marriages should be.

  23. Darlene Clarke

    Well deserved. Congratulations and thanks for the reviews and recipes. Ben & Suanne you are the best.

  24. Anton

    Nice Job, Suanne and Ben!
    Well done and well deserved!
    Congratulations.

    1. Ben

      Hi Anton: Hey, you were reviewed by Mia before too. Thanks Anton … catch up with you again sometime this month. Ben

  25. Ryan

    Congratulations! You deserve every bit of recognition. Would love to see videos of Suanne teaching Ben to cook. I would pay good money for that 😉 Hope you can continue for a very long time.

  26. fmed

    Count me in as a member of the Chowtimes Appreciation Society. You and Suanne are unsung heroes of the Vancouver food scene. You cover the little shops and stalls that the big media outlets just cannot cover (for the lack of resources and familiarity with the cuisine) or will not cover (where is the ad revenue for such places??). This city’s food scene would sure seem far less interesting without Chowtimes. Bravo!

    1. Ben

      Hi fmed/Melody: Humbled by your words but uplifting at the same time. Thanks a lot. Ben

  27. Su-Lin

    Congratulations on the Vancouver Sun article!

  28. Novi

    Congratulations Ben and Suanne!! So happy for you!
    I have enjoyed dropping by your blog since last year, learned many new recipes and read many interesting posts on all kinds of good eats around town. Thank you so much!

  29. Shellback

    Well said, Fmed. Ben and Suanne’s unique perspectives and unsatiable curiosity is what makes Chowtimes such a delight to read!

  30. TS (eatingclub vancouver)

    Oh wow, CONGRATULATIONS!!! We weren’t here this past weekend, or I would’ve gotten a copy of the paper. But, good thing you scanned the whole article. =)

  31. Jean

    Congrats. on the profile article in the Vancouver Sun!

  32. Lissa

    I was curious about this Wind-Sand Chicken Wing. So, at Aberdeen Centre today I ordered that to try. It’s cooked very nicely but I don’t see what so special about it though. My mom cooked this kind of fried chicken wings all the time.

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