Our friends at The Uncommon Café, 477 Powell Street, have another set of fun cooking classes lined up for the summer. The classes are led by Valentine Kitamura owner of Tartine Maple. Valentine was born and raised in France and is a chef that has worked in hotels in Paris, Singapore, New Orleans and Toronto. She now works with The Uncommon Café, a commissary and café located just across the street from Oppenheimer Park. This great spot now has a lot of great company with Ed’s Daily, The Heatley and The MacKenzie Room just minutes away. We’ve set out below their next series of classes which we expect will be delicious and fun.
Dinner & Demo: Summer Appies & Desserts Without Heat – July 6th 6-9 pm
This is a demonstration cooking class after which dinner will be served to all the class participants. Some of the delish dishes you will learn to make include Hummus, Gazpacho, Ceviche, Panna Cotta and Sorbet. The cost of this class is $75 per person, but if you book in advance (one week prior), the cost is $65. You can book your spot online via Eventbrite.
Cooking Class: Brioche Making – July 13th 6-9 pm
This class was offered in June and was so popular, they are doing it again! In this class, Valentine will teach you how to make Brioche. Once you have the basic dough mastered, she will teach you how to make a Basic Brioche Loaf, Braided Brioche, Brioche Cinnamon Rolls and Brioche BBQ Pork Buns. What I love best about their classes, you get to enjoy a class of wine while brushing up on your kitchen skills. The cost of this class is $65 per person, but again if you book one week in advance, the cost is $55. You can book your spot online via Eventbrite.
Choux & Champagne: Eclairs Cooking Class – July 20th 6-9 pm
To celebrate Tartine & Maple’s one year anniversary, they are hosting a class that will be about Choux Pastries. The evening will also include a cocktail party with champagne as well as samplers of some of the best dishes prepared in their cooking classes such as Tabbouleh, Quiche, Brioche and Mmmmm … Chocolate Mousse. The cost of this class is $60 per person, and again if you book on week in advance, the cost is $50. Visit Eventbrite to book your spot.
As you can see, signing up early guarantees you a spot at a reduced rate. If you haven’t already checked out their classes, we encourage to pop down and give them a try.
Tags: Appies & Desserts, Brioche Making, Champagne, Choux, Cooking Class, Eclairs, The Uncommon Cafe
On Thursday, July 28th, Homestead Junction is hosting a workshop that will take you through what you need to do this fall to ensure your bee garden blooms next year. They will take you through which bulbs, seeds and shrubs are best planted in the fall. You will have actual hands on experience processing seeds for planting and you will get to take seeds home to use or share with other gardeners. If you have specific questions on how to support/encourage bees in your neighbourhood, you are invited to bring your questions with you. The class is led by Lori Weidenhammer who is the author of Victory Gardens for Bees: A DIY Guide to Saving The Bees. Class runs from 6:30 to 8:30 pm on Thursday, July 28th at Homestead Junction and costs $15. A small price to pay for helping encourage our bee population.
As it’s Friday, we are hankering for cocktails and we are lucky to have some great spots in East Van for just that. One of our fav spots for drinking them that we don’t get to as often as we’d like is 
Car Free Day
The 
Our friends at 
ILiveInEastVan.com 