Hey there. It's Tuesday again!
September seems even shorter than normal this year, as the beginning of autumn is coming as we're kicking into print production mode. Our intrepid editor-in-chief Nathan Caddell has returned from Toronto, and we have a brief window to make a newspaper before I leave for a wedding next week.
If you think we can't do it… well, we've always loved being the underdog.
— V.
Senior editor

Main Street's Lila puts intimacy on the menu

Meeru Dhalwala thought she might finally be done. After nearly 30 years at Vij’s, the celebrated chef was thinking about slowing down. Then she got a call from Shira Blustein about redeveloping The Arbor's old spot on Main Street to keep the neighbourhood thriving. “That’s what attracted me,” Dhalwala recalls, “her desire to actually participate in creating what she wanted versus just whining about what she doesn’t have.” The result? A restaurant built around regular life, designed to make life in Riley Park just a little brighter.

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In a time when technology is taking over jobs, the Straight remains what it has always been: a small team of scrappy journalists, doing our best to cover the stories that matter to the city we all love.
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Right now that includes free tickets to see our September comedy cover stars in action (Emily Woods, Mark Thomson, Jess Lupini, and Sean McDonnell), as well as our ongoing dining deals with restaurants like Minami, Pourhouse, Dovetail, and Prophecy.
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SPONSORED BY DAVID A. HAUGHTON - ARTIST
Portraits - The Ancient Ones. Painting the Trees...Not the Forest
Portraits - The Ancient Ones
Visual Space Gallery, 3352 Dunbar Street, Vancouver
October 1-14, 2026; Noon-5PM daily (extended hours until 8PM on Tuesdays & Fridays)
33 portraits of individual old-growth cedars that echo the dance of the trunk, the contortions of the great branches, and the resilience of these massive, towering, ancient trees.
Haughton's twenty-fifth solo exhibition in Vancouver.
The artist will be in attendance throughout the exhibition.

Vancouver Fall Home Show returns with a stacked lineup

As the weather cools down, it's the perfect time to start on all those DIY projects you've been putting off. And if you need some inspiration, the Vancouver Fall Home Show is here to get your creative juices flowing—with a little help from HGTV personality Sarah Baeumler, and other design experts.
Burnaby Halloween Festival returns with a month of spine-tingling events
Ready to find your ideal workspace? For businesses of all sizes—from startups to enterprises—discover the coworking space that fits your needs. Connect with a WeWork professional today.*
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SPONSORED BY SUNSHINE COAST TOURISM
Glow at your own pace.
From Gibsons to Lund, fall quietly steals the show. Harvests become happy hours, nature becomes your binge-watch, and art fills every corner of the Coast. With fewer crowds and more room to roam, the Sunshine Coast unfolds on your time…and no one else’s.

Flamenco can be complicated. Just ask Victor Fernández

Victor Fernández's hometown of Granada is home to the famous flamenco caves, where visitors take in the powerful dance form. “It’s complicated in that, yes, there is a relationship between flamenco and tourists,” Fernández explains, ahead of his appearance at the Vancouver International Flamenco Festival this week. "When we are doing flamenco for tourist crowds, we are trying to give them the best of ourselves.”
The 10 best movies we saw at Toronto International Film Festival
Buds and Suds is here for the long haul

Pop Eye: Finally, we can all agree that Ed Sheeran sucks

Ed Sheeran doesn't just make music for wusses: he is one. The Nando's-loving musician proved to be quite literally chickenshit this week, as he failed at the very easy task of agreeing that a genocide was bad and made, of all people, Macklemore look cool. Mike Usinger has more in this scorching Pop Eye.
On Our Radar: The Fomites' tongue-in-cheek track "Insidious"
New from Mateína: A zero sugar, organic yerba mate that delivers clean energy — no crash, no weird ingredients. Just plant-powered fuel that works.*
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Fall Arts Preview 2026: All the shows you need to know
VanDusen is getting autumnal with Harvest Days
Kingsgate Mall is getting whimsical
Tacofino and Rise FC have teamed up for tacos

MUSIC: Delilah Bon and Vancouver's own Gadfly team up for A Night of Feminine Rage. (September 22 @ Hollywood Theatre)
BOOKS: Authors Cheuk Kwan (Have You Eaten Yet?) and Linda Lau Anusasananan (The Hakka Cookbook: Chinese Soul Food from around the World) discuss global Chinese cuisine. (September 22 @ VPL Central Branch)
DANCE: Choreographer Mohit Mathur is running a Bollywood dance workshop, open to all. (September 23 and 26 @ Presentation House Theatre, North Vancouver)
LIVING: The Interior Design Show is back, and wants to make your home beautiful. (September 24-27 @ Vancouver Convention Centre)
THEATRE: Dial 1 for UK sees a Mumbai tech worker dream of life in London—and seize his chance to live it. (September 24-27 @ Presentation House Theatre, North Vancouver)
COMEDY: Deadly Dinner Party tasks improvisers with solving a closed-room murder. (September 24 to October 30 @ The Improv Centre)
Want to know what else is happening in Vancouver? Check out our events listings.
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