Word of Mouth = Good Food IN my Mouth!

Ok so here’s the deal: I’m of Caribbean, often called West Indian heritage (which is not exclusive to Jamaica for those who don’t know). My mom is from Trinidad and Tobago and my dad is from Grenada. When I lived back in Toronto, I was able to get all the Caribbean food I desired; courtesy of my mother and of the huge Caribbean population in Toronto opening restaurants. Then I moved to Vancouver and that STOPPED. There isn’t a large West Indian population here and I could count the number of GOOD restaurants on one hand.

 So when an opportunity arises to check out a new restaurant that may just reach my expectations and give me a taste of ANY Caribbean food I jump at the opportunity…literally haha. So off I went yesterday to check out Kingston 11 in North Vancouver.  This is a Jamaican Reggae café that has been recommended to me by too many people to remember. I was skeptical at first because I didn’t want to be let down (it really can be quite disappointing), but boy was I beyond happy!

        This was a time when word of mouth really came in handy for me. The one staff member working was fast, friendly and apologetic when letting me know I had to wait 20 minutes as he made more rice. But when the food did arrive there was no let down. I had the Jerk Chicken and Oxtail combo and it was hot, delicious and filling.

Will I be skeptical again when told to go to another Caribbean restaurant? Yes; I’m too cautious in Vancouver. BUT I will be going back to Kingston 11 for some great comfort food. If I can’t have many restaurants to choose from, I can at least have one!

       Please do visit Kingston 11, you won’t be disappointed!

Where argh the Pirates?!

     The Pirate madness and countdown continues! Only two more days until movie theaters are flooded with fans and kids demanding teeth rotting goodies. Funnily enough I don’t see a lot of advertising for this movie, especially compared to the overload of advertisement when Pirates 3 was coming out in theaters. I couldn’t go to a web page without seeing some sort of picture, animation, or a “watch the trailer now’ link. But with Pirates 4, I’ve barely seen or heard anything.

     Maybe I’m not going to the right websites, but you’d think that a movie that cost Disney almost $200 million to create would be viral on the internet. So far, the official trailer uploaded to YouTube on December 13 2010 by Walt Disney Studios has just over 1.8 million views. But in comparison, the ‘official’ trailer for Hangover has received over 2 million views and has only been posted for just under 7 weeks.

     If I was Disney I would want to team up with Google to have a Pirates themed graphic or animation on the Google homepage. If you were searching with Google on May 11^th you would’ve seen the Martha Graham tribute animation that got coverage on USA Today, Science News Daily, The UK Telegraph and more. http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2385178,00.asp

     Using this avenue for promotion reaches a diverse global audience which can equal the one thing that we can be sure Disney is interested in ...money. However, I am aware that this would cost great amounts of said money, and who knows if Google allows for advertisements on their homepage…hmmm something to look up.

     Regardless I will diligently be at the theater on May 22^nd to see Pirates 4 (I would go on May 20^th but I’m really not one for the opening day crowds). And if you’re anything like me, you would NOT watch the trailer below because it will only spoil it!!

Mad about pirates!

    Ok so I'm sure I'm not the only one who has May 20^th marked on their calendar right...RIGHT?? C'mon people it's when Pirates of the Caribbean 4 comes out! Ooooh shiver me timber I am beyond excited. I was one of those fanatics convinced there was going to be a Pirates 4, and had no shame in telling everyone who uttered “Argh!” ...even if they said it in frustration. 

    Walt Disney Studios posted a video on You Tube of Kermit the Frog covering the world premier of the Pirates of the Caribbean - On Stranger Tides, at Disney World in Orlando Florida. Cutest and Funniest thing ever! Check it out below.

 

He said, she said check out Bill!

What is one way to perk up your spirits during an afternoon class in which you're doing endless research?? A text message from a friend asking you to go on a movie date! AND not just any ol’ movie, but the premier of the documentary on Bill Cunningham, an acclaimed New York fashion photographer.

How did the buzz about the movie land on her lap and get hot potatoe’d over to me? Well over dinner we realized it really one of those I heard from a friend of a friend stories. After the tale of ‘he told that guy, who told her’ ended, we realized that everyone who heard about the movie (and there was a surprising amount), was in some way involved in the fashion industry. It doesn’t come as much as a surprise as the documentary is on a fashion photographer and was advertised on several fashion columns and blogs, in addition to newspapers and magazines like the Georgia Straight and Fashion Ezine.

As dinner progressed we questioned whether or not it would have been worthwhile for the documentary to be advertised in other news sections besides fashion. Will someone who is reading the technology column be interested in a documentary about a fashion photographer? Does the firm in charge of marketing this film determine this or have we as a society dictated the boundaries of who will be interested in what? On my last sushi roll I realized I have more questions than answers. I started to question whether or not we stereotype, or if the marketing firms decide it’s really not their job to change societal values, but rather to cash in on them. Hmmm... something to investigate.

Regardless of how the information about the film came to me, I am overly glad that I took the opportunity to attend the premier. It was an excellent documentary about Bill Cunningham, who you quickly come to learn is one of the most grounded men working in the fashion industry. And although I had to stay up until 3:00am trying to finish my assignment, it was definitely well worth it. If you haven’t done so already, please do see Bill Cunningham New York!