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Screech Sampling

Getting out of town for a few days is always a good thing in my books and sometimes an adventure is a mere short plane ride away. Believe it or not, I had never been to St. John’s, Newfoundland, which seems crazy to me. I’ve heard so many colourful tales about this city but just hadn’t had the opportunity to make it there in the past.

I’m sure that many of you are privy to this already but I was pretty impressed by not only the dramatic landscape of the city but also the bustling downtown. I loved the steep hills and gorgeous view of the harbour and Signall Hill. After exploring downtown, Water Street really stood out for me, with a bounty of cool bars, restaurants and boutiques stretching out for blocks on end. The city felt slightly bigger than I expected with an influx of young, creative types everywhere I went. Truthfully, there was a lot I loved about St. John’s but I’ll try to narrow it down to a few favourites for you.

There’s certainly no shortage of diverse restaurants to find some great nosh with local ingredients. We were impressed by the fancy Portobello’s (amazing cod and scrunchins and possibly the best view of the harbour) and the hip Gypsy Tea Room (think Economy Shoe Shop with fine dining in the back). But in the end, our two mainstays were the new vegetarian restaurant The Sprout (inexpensive, healthy fare) and Rocket (gourmet coffee, market, hearty lunches). These were definitely the two that we kept coming back to day after day.

Luckily for us, the weather was unseasonably mild and this really left me no choice but to meander about and check out the shopping options. Model Citizens is a vintage boutique that is chock full of designer treasures. Situated quaintly on one of Saint John’s multiple stairwells leading from Duckworth down to Water, this darling shop takes rooting out of the equation. As I’ve mentioned a katrillion times before, I am a fan of vintage boutiques that do the hunting for you and neatly display hard to find pieces. Model Citizens had an array of looks from Marc Jacobs, Chloe and Frye (to name just a few). Happily, I scored a 1970s Coach purse in tan leather that is in mint condition. In my mind, it was worth coming to St. John’s for this alone…

Twisted Sisters Boutik is also another stop I’d recommend. Basically, this pretty boutique was like temptation island for me because of the vast selection of amazing boots, especially new Fryes, which are just a tad out of my price range although I spend a great deal of time coveting them. The shoes and clothes in Twisted Sisters are quite exquisite and definitely worth checking out.

I would also be remiss if I didn’t mention the decadent chocolate available at The Newfoundland Chocolate Company, teasingly located on Duckworth across the street from our hotel. I’m not ashamed to admit I polished off a gourmet bar in one sitting and was pretty tempted to take home an adorable chocolate pumpkin for Halloween.

Essentially, I had a lovely time in St. John’s and there were lots of quirky memories to be made. From climbing Signal Hill on a sixteen degrees sunny day (to be licked by a giant Newfound dog at the top) to dancing up a storm with my pals from The Domestics to Mark Bragg at the Breezeway, I truly had a blast. It was also comforting to run into old filmie friends at local watering hole, The Duke, which is the hangout for Republic of Doyle cast and crew. And lastly but not least, I finally screeched myself in at the St. John’s International Women’s Film Festival closing party. Screech is 40 percent alcohol, deliciously sweet and a little dangerous for a lightweight like me. To play it safe, I wouldn’t recommend more than a glass or two unless you’re planning to dance your way into the night….

- Nicole

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