by Joy Metcalfe

Vanna White with Vancouver’s own celebrated bingo caller Conni Smudge (Bingo For Life at The Junction Pub every Tuesday).

BINGO WITH VANNA WHITE …

She came, she saw, she conquered and she made a number of worthy charities very happy.

Yes indeed the warm and personable Vanna White was an instant hit during her two days of working the bingo crowd at the Coliseum out at the PNE raising funds for six different charities.

It was the first ever Big Bingo Blast-off and Wheel of Fortune’s White was the star.

In between greeting, posing for pictures and chatting with all her delighted fans, she also popped over to Hastings racecourse to watch the ponies run. She dined at Silks Restaurant on the property and met more than 2,000 people between the bingo and racing enthusiasts.

She was accompanied by Howard Blank’s wife, Cassiana on both days, and even stopped in at the casino to surprise players on the Wheel of Fortune slots.

Larry Hennessy of Jack 96 radio was the enthusiastic emcee while Howard was co-MC.

From all the reports I’ve had, everyone was impressed with Vanna’s outgoing personality and genuine good-naturedness. Come back soon, Mz. White, you were a delightful breath of fresh air! ...

David Aisenstat celebrating the family’s 60 years in the restaurant business at Hy’s Encore, named for his father and the firm’s founder.

HY’S CELEBRATES 60 YEARS …

A hearfelt thank you to Neil and David Aisenstat for the invitation to the marvellous party that they hosted a couple of weeks ago to mark their family’s 60th year of involvement in the city’s vibrant hospitality scene.

Hy’s Encore was a leader in “the place to be” category to enjoy superb service, cuisine and a chance to “see and be seen”.

It was the late Vancouver Sun columnist Jack Wasserman who wrote extensively about the romantic, dimmed setting at Hy’s, the tender succulent steaks, the cheesy buns, who was holding hands with whom and the nightly cast of characters like Harry Moll, Basil Pantages, Lisa and Nick Masse , Wally Dezura, Danny Baceda and Herb Capozzi who prowled about the area, checking out the new arrivals on the Hornby-Howe area strip like the Casa D’ Italia, Charley Brown’s, The Mark and George Vicker’s Living Room.

CTV’s Jason Pires, Sandra Hermiston and Mark Dreischen

Jack and his columns brought the whole exciting downtown night scene to life way back when.

Hy’s was certainly hopping on the 60th anniversary evening a couple of weeks ago, as the Aisenstats managed to bring us all back together again with wonderfully fond remembrances of the good old days, along with great expectations for the future.

It was an exciting evening of positivity and everyone was glowing!

Spotted among the 200-plus guests were CTV early morning host Jason Pires, weatherman Marke Dreischen and producer Sandra Hermiston enjoying the do, along with Stile Brands’ Dorothy Budden, wine whiz Tim Pawsey, reporter Condrea Fung, top chefs and caterers Vanessa and Dino Reinards, Glowbal king Emad Yacoub, the boss lady of Granville Island and president of the BC chapter of Les Dames d’Escovvier, Cate Simpson, and the quietly brilliant Michel Jacob of the equally famed Le Crocodile was also on hand adding his sincere congratulations to the beaming Aisenstats … and so many more.

Topping off their 60th year, in grand style, Hy’s was awarded the top Gold prize for their classic steaks, char-grilled to perfection, their setting and their service in Vancouver Magazine’s latest survey ……

KUDOS TO THE COCCHIA CLAN

Speaking of steaks, Century Plaza’s Wendy and Sergio Cocchia were pleased that their C/Prime Restaurant received an honorable mention for their chargrilled goodies in the VanMag listings but even more importantly, for the avalanche of kudos for their young daughter, Connie and her creative artistry in the film business with her first movie, When Time Got Louder.

It’s a touching story based on real life events and Connie, as producer, has drawn on her own experiences of having a non-verbal sibling with ASD so perfectly detailing the impact of autism on the individual and the family. Deeply moving, very well done, well worth watching. Kudos to you, Connie and to your team of Ken Frith and Jason Bourque.

Really looking forward to whatever your next film production might be…

And don’t forget that Wendy’s super fundraising luncheon for the worthy Pacific Autism Family Network is on at the Bayshore on Friday, Nov. 25. Get your tickets soon as it’s almost totally sold out …

FELICITATIONI!

It was a terrific turnout as well, as the Italian Chamber of Commerce in Canada West celebrated its 30th year in business here with a gala party called the Grande Festa, attracting more than 180 dressy guests.

The star of the evening was the irrepressible head coach of the Vancouver Whitecaps, Vanni Sartini, of Florence, Italy. Vanni was an outstanding keynote speaker and he dedicated his speaking engagement to his gorgeous wife, Barbara, who has always travelled to various places to be there with him.

Also attending were Italy’s consul general Fabio Messineo, influencer Dr. Clinton Lee, Air Canada’s business development manager James Howey, Brian Jessel BMW’s sales and marketing manager Abdel Karim Awwad, representatives from Bosa Foods and Tom Lee Music, and event media partner Our City Tonight's Jim Gordon and Leeta Liepins, who all contributed to the fundraising success for the Variety Club’s Tent 47.

Which made Variety’s board members Neil Mcwachern and Bianca Zanatta very happy.

There were numerous silent auction offerings but only one live auction item and it was a doozy! The auction item consisted of two Air Canada Business Class tickets to Rome and a five-night stay in Tuscany at a first class resort. That was scooped up for $12,500! Lots of happy shrieks of joy there…!

The Italian Design Week, which encompasses clothes, furniture, sustainability and glamour automobiles, was launched with a gala gala do on Main Street at the headquarters of Alpha Romeo to welcome their special guest of honor, Paolo Treviso, the vice president of design for Pininfarino.

Throughout the week, there were cocktail receptions at Poliform, Ginger Jar in North Van, and at the Stefano Ricci store on West Georgia – the only Stefano Ricci store in Canada!

Closing night for this week-long exhibition of Italian ingenuity, sustainability and classic design will be held at Brian Jessell’s BMW location in Burnaby on Thursday, November 3.

AN AUCTION FOR ART’S SAKE …

Speaking of happy shrieks of joy, congratulations to that hardworking group of art enthusiasts who produced the 40th annual Splash Art Auction for Arts Umbrella last month at Fairmont’s Hotel Vancouver. The auction raised the coffers to a record breaking total with a great deal of help from art enthusiasts like Arts Umbrella co-founder Carol Henriquez (I recall when she began and it was a tough uphill climb) and Splash co-chairs Christie Garofalo and Bruce Munro Wright, along with co-emcees Gloria Macarenko and Fred Lee.

The 550 guests were thrilled as Arts Umbrella president and CEO Paul Larocque announced, with a big drum roll, the grand total of $1,775.

That money supports all the good works that Arts Umbrella has accomplished for the past 40 years for young people ….

COCKTAILS ANYONE?

And finally, scoop, scoop, scoop ! There’s another Vancouver Cocktail Week in the works. It will take place next March 2023 from March 5 through 11. Whoopee!…

Til next time … Cheers!