Off-Season Down Under: A Wilderness Guide in Australia

During the Sonora off-season, I've been enjoying the warmth of the Australian summer. Here the whale migrations we see at Sonora are reversed. Most cetacean species in Australian waters head to Antarctica during the summer, just as they head to our coast and the Arctic in the northern hemisphere summer. Interestingly, the British Columbian coastline plays a similar role in feeding cetaceans to that of Antarctica.

Our coastline plays a similar role in feeding cetaceans to that of Antarctica.  We too have powerful upwelling currents that lead to the growth of phytoplankton. This vital aquatic plant feeds krill, which in turn attracts thousands of animals to our coastline.

This season of growth and migration is about to begin on the coast of British Columbia. The gray whales, en route from Mexico to the northern Bering Sea, are beginning to reach our coast. These, along with the Pacific white-sided dolphins, Dall's porpoises, killer whales, and many others will soon arrive in the waters off Sonora.

For me, the new season is always exciting: each year is different and our understanding of natural systems grows a little more.

Will the resident Orca—frequently sighted this past winter—arrive earlier this year? Will the upsurge in transient killer whale activity of the past four seasons continue?

The resort opens in May, and we will soon see the mysteries of the new season unfurl before our eyes. 

- Aaron Nagler, Sonora Wilderness Guide

Chef Terry’s European Culinary Adventure - Vancouver to London

After a long flight, I arrived in London on the 18^th and things have been a whirlwind since! My first day in London I visited the Museum of Natural History; it was amazing and featured so many different exhibits including dinosaurs, a life-size blue whale replica and Earth’s Treasury which features many gemstones, minerals and rocks. The Museum of Natural History is located in an area that features 3 of the largest museums in the United Kingdom. For travelers who are interested in visiting

So far, my favorite culinary stop has been Cha Cha Moon, a modern Chinese restaurant where I had dinner in Soho. The above photo is their Sticky Pork – I highly recommend it! The Soho area of London was a lot of fun with people filling the streets, drinking beer and chanting futbol songs (after a Manchester United win) late into the night.

Another memorable meal that I had was at Cinnamon located in a London neighbourhood called Brick Lane. Brick Lane is located in the east end of London in the borough of Tower Hamlets and is famous around the world for their Curry Houses. The area is also home to a wonderful market, art galleries and boutiques.

Before we were even seated this was a new dining experience for me. After choosing where we wanted to eat, we actually bargained the price of our meal with the owner. I had the most amazing, authentic goat curry at Cinnamon, and would recommend visiting this area to anyone who is visiting London and looking for a great meal.

Chef Terry’s European Culinary Adventure

Sonora Resort’s very own Executive Chef Terry Pichor is embarking on a one-month culinary and sightseeing adventure to Europe today. He will be visiting many places throughout Europe, including London, Portugal, Seville in Spain, Morocco, Granada, and Edinburgh.

As this is his first trip to Europe, he is looking for recommendations of sites to visit, where to shop, and mostly importantly, where to eat! Please leave him a comment with your recommendations.

Although it will be a solo trip, Chef Terry will be meeting up with chefs along the way and friends, as well. Who knows what new ingredients and cuisines he will discover? We are excited for him to bring a little bit of Europe back with him when Sonora re-opens in May 2012.

Follow Chef Terry’s European adventures on our Facebook page , Twitter (with hashtag #cheftravels) and this blog. Chef Terry has also been invited to participate in a special food blog with the Vancouver Sun newspaper.

Bon voyage Chef!

Food, Wine & Autumn in New York – Part 3

Without a doubt, the highlight of my experience in New York was on the third day when I attended a seminar with Angel Leon, who is currently working with a university in Spain to develop a method of harvesting plankton. Plankton is how fish fill up on Omega 3 fatty acids, which is an extremely healthy form of Fat. By harvesting and dehydrating the plankton, they have been able to use it as a nutritious alternative to other fats (for example, where you would use butter). Very interesting and forward thinking stuff!

My last night was a great one. It started with the ICC gala and awards ceremony. Dinner was again at Eataly in Birreria where I was lucky enough to dine with friends from the Chef’s Garden and the cast of Top Chef All Stars!

I really enjoyed my time at ICC and learned many new tips and tricks that I cannot wait to bring to the Sonora kitchens. Stay tuned for some exciting announcements about cooking classes, guest chefs and more!

Food, Wine & Autumn in New York – Part 2

Day 2 in New York City I attended a seminar that was hosted by Chef Massimo Bottura, who has been awarded two Michelin stars and placed 6^th on Pellegrino’s World’s 50 Best Restaurants list.

That night I visited the Mario Batali owned Eataly. If you are going to be visiting New York, I highly recommend that you stop in at Eataly. It is an amazing concept – food, wine, restaurants, supermarket, artisans - all Italian, all under one roof. I ate in one of the restaurants inside, Il Pesces, that serves only the freshest fish, oysters, and sea urchin – just to name a few! I cannot say enough good things about the sea urchin that I had. It was drizzled with olive oil, lemon juice and Fleur de Sel and paired with Prosecco. Amazing.

Food, Wine & Autumn in New York – Part 1

On October 2^nd I was lucky enough to attend the StarChefs.com International Chefs Congress (ICC) in New York City. ICC is an amazing professional culinary show that includes three days of the latest trends, techniques and concepts, presented by some of the world’s leading chefs, pastry chefs, mixologists, and sommeliers.

The first night that I arrived I ate dinner at Chef Mario Batali’s Spanish tapas inspired restaurant, Casa Mono, where without a doubt the highlight of my meal was the razor clams cooked à la planche with garlic and herbs.

In the morning I attended a workshop with Chef Jonathan Benno featuring an amazing Baby Pork Belly and Octopus Terrine. In the evening I met up with an old friend from the Four Seasons Hotel who is now living in Brooklyn. He invited me out with a group of his friends for dinner. They have a really awesome weekly tradition – get together, pick a different restaurant, and order and eat the whole menu. I was honoured that they let me pick the restaurant, Ssam Bar from the David Chang group.

Stay tuned for part 2!

- Terry Pichor
Executive Chef

On the Hunt

It was one of the most spectacular wildlife moments of the season: seven transient (mammal-eating) killer whales trapped and encircled a big herd of about 150 Pacific white-sided dolphins in the head of Phillips Arm. Cornered by the killer whales, the little dolphins dashed back and forth along the shore, trying to escape along the shallows where the much larger whales couldn't reach them. The suspense of witnessing this very rare event was breathtaking. Much of the action took place out of sight beneath the surface. These moments of complete silence and stillness were suddenly shattered when a killer whale would leap out of the water and come crashing back down on a dolphins that had been cut from the herd. All would be quiet again and there was nothing to see but ripples on the surface.

After an hour of pursuit along the shore, most of the dolphins had managed to slip past the cordon of killer whales, leaving only a dozen dolphins in a small bay along the shore. Then the final act began. The killer whales, realizing that their prey was hopelessly trapped, grouped together and swam to the head of the bay, making no attempt to hide themselves. But just when we thought the final attack would begin, the killer whales turned and slowly made their way out of the bay, remaining quietly at the mouth. A short while later, the dolphins, thinking the coast was clear, made a final desperate dash for open sea, only to find the killer whales had not gone very far.

One of our guests captured this great video of the hunt.

~ Aaron Nagler, Wildlife Guide