The Milltown Bar & Grill

Where: The Milltown Bar & Grill - 9191 Bentley Street

When: 8:30, Thursdays

Web Presence: Clues and hints for the upcoming week can be found on their facebook page.

Team Info: Up to six people. Got more? Split into two teams!

Prizes: There's a 40 dollar gift certificate (redeemable future weeks only, alas), with a random prize for second-to-last place as well. Copious amounts of shots to be won in-between the rounds on bonus questions as well.

Format: Four rounds, twelve questions. Questions can be worth any number of points. There's also arbitrary enthusiasm points to be won as well.

Food and Drink: Good burgers, and tasty pizza to be had. The menu is pretty extensive, so chances are good you'll find something to eat. It's burger night on Thursdays, which means carnivores get a pretty sweet deal on a burger and a beer. Pretty straightforward beer selection, but $5.25 Pale Ales and $6 boozy Arnold Palmers are a good game day specials.

The Milltown Bar and Grill is one of the few quizzes in Vancouver that is located on an island. I'm trying to rack my brains to think if there is one on Granville Island, but I'm not sure there is - so I guess that we can safely say that this is the only trivia night you'll find on an island. It is also the only quiz in Vancouver that is in Richmond.

Wait, what? The Milltown is on Richmond Island, a tiny island just North of Vancouver International Airport, and only accessible through Marpole. De jure Richmond, de facto Vancouver. It has great views of the flightpath, and if you happen to have a boat, you'll have few problems docking at the nearby marina. I assume. I don't have a boat. For such a far-flung locale, the bar is cozy, warm, and quite full. Most of the tables were playing trivia, so it is safe to say the community here is doing quite well. The food is good, and the staff are super friendly.

But, how's the quiz? I imagine that is why you are here. In a Vancouver where quiz companies are extending their reach across multiple bars, it is refreshing to find a new quiz that has a personal touch, and isn't another franchise of a larger concern. It's four rounds of homespun questions, with plenty of sports, and plenty of multiple point questions. There's a fair share of true or false, and the tried and true maxim of "pick whichever answer seems less likely" held up pretty well here. Is 90 mile beach actually 90 miles? Of course not! There was a fair number of difficult questions (the Welsh name of the official residence of the Prime Minister?), but mixed in a few softballs that could be answered by looking at one of the many televisions (Who was playing in the Thursday Night Football game).

In a rarity for quizzes about town, there was no music round. However, if you're an extroverted type, there were ample opportunities to get bonus points by going up and singing a song during our theme round on Pop Princesses. Whether or not you got any points, and how many you got, appeared fairly arbitrary, but that's how it goes sometimes. The theme round, I might add, is nominated and voted on by quizzers the previous week, which I think is a pretty cool idea. The "vote via hooting and hollering" is something I find a bit tiresome, especially as the night stretches on, but the crowd digs it here. There was also a "Win Two Shots" minigame at the end of each round - the quizmaster would load up imdb and read out movies until one of the gathered people submitted the actor that had a role in all of them. Ties are broken in a fun manner - one representative from each team goes up, and goes had to head trying to name more of something (the five largest buildings in Vancouver, the elements that start with the letter 'A'), which I think is a great tiebreak.

It was a fun night, though a late 8:30 start can make getting back a little tricky if you don't live in South Granville, or drive. There is a shuttle service available for patrons who have four or more drinks, but we didn't quite reach the cutoff there. Fortunately, airport proximity mean cabs are easy to come by. It's certainly a quiz I will come back to, but likely in the summer, when the walk down the causeway to the bar is warmer, and I can watch some planes landing.

Coming in for landing: A bit tricky to get to, but a fun quiz in a cozy atmosphere.

IQ 2000 @ The Colony

(but also Kits)

Where: Colony Main, 2904Main Street  and Colony Kits, 3255 West Broadway

When: 8 PM Mondays for the Main Street Edition, 8 PM Wednesdays for Kits

Web Presence: You can follow IQ2000 on Facebook, for all your IQ2K needs

Team Info: Team limit maxes at seven, ostensibly

Prizes: Various cool prizes to be won. Free beers for successful and loud teams, augmented by local prizes ranging from salsa to piercings.

Format: Four rounds of about ten questions

Food and Drink: I seem to recall standard upscale pub food that fancies itself better than it actually was. You'll find something for everyone on the beer list, from affordably priced domestics to local craft offerings.

I'm kind of cheating here, doing two reviews at once. I think that every bar should be given a fair shake, even when the quizzes are run by the same folk. That said: These quizzes are pretty much the same, from the stylish host to the Donnelly-lite decor of the gastropubs that contain them. I thought for quite some time on how I could write a substantively different review for each experience, and, through my own faults as a writer, came up empty-handed. The differences boil down as follows: There's slightly different flavouring in the prizes, and the Main Street event traditionally attracts more teams. Also, there's no big screen at the Kits location to support IQ 2000's fantastic visual presentation.

To be honest, though you might actually think I'm getting two reviews for the price of one, the truth is, I'm getting two for the price of none. We're big fans of IQ 2000 at Vancouver Pub Quiz, as you probably noticed. Since we've reviewed his quiz so many times, we will point to in the direction of our review for the erstwhile Mr. Brownstone, now the location of Colony Main. Take that description, drop it into the slick confines of a Blueprint Group property^1, and there you have it.


TWICE AS NICE:  It's an IQ 2000 quiz: lots of hooting, hollering, good questions, and an excellent presentation. If I had to choose between the two, I'd say the Main Street location is the better of the two, mostly due to its superior attendance, competition, and features the visual show as well.

Gotta get that Royal Jelly

---

1 Unfamiliar? Imagine a the restaurant equivalent of any recent song by The Weeknd^↩

The Junction

Where: The Junction, 1138 Davie Street

When: 7:30 Mondays. Don't worry about getting there early, as the place was empty until around 7:25, and the quiz didn't really lurch into motion until nearly 8.

Web Presence: The Junction's event calendar has a mention.

Team Info: 5 brains per team, presumably in accompanying bodies.

Prizes: Each of the halves awarded a pitcher of beer to the top two teams, and the score for the second half is cumulative. Two mini-games provide an additional pair of free pitchers.

Format: Two halves, each of which consists of 10 questions, a short music round, and a video round. The first half also included a picture round.

Food and Drink: There is food and drink, but both selections are unimpressive.

Years ago, we would always go to pub quiz on Mondays. Well before the mania took hold and I had to start a blog just to keep the quiz nights in town straight, we would sit at the same bar every Monday, order some food, drink some beer, and hopefully answer some questions. It was ritual, it made Mondays not so bad, and it made us a number of good friends. Times changed, the quiz shut down, and we've drifted around on a more or less itinerant schedule for some time. Last Monday, however, we were able to get some of the old teams back together, and headed to Davie Village on a cold and rainy night, and have a nostalgic Monday night quiz.

The Junction is a quiz that has interested me for quite sometime, because unlike the other quizzes I am yet to review, I had absolutely no idea as to what it would be like. No related quizzes, no mutual quizmaster, nothing. I hadn't even been to the bar itself. Finally, it happened to me, and I got the chance to go. Turns out, it is a spacious, welcoming place, that doubles as a de facto small club at night. You'll get a taste of this at the end, as quiz segues smoothly into industry night, and you're more than likely to run into a different crowd than your usual quiz night there.

The HCMC train station does little to clear the waters

All that said, now I know. The quiz is run by Richard Romano, a charismatic young host who will keep you entertained, all the while blithely redirecting any complaints about content or even  unfortunate mispronunciation. It sounds like there is a regular co-host, but their role was filled in by someone who allegedly wrote the entire quiz in 40 minutes, which is rather impressive. It was an enjoyable quiz, with only a few slip ups betraying the hasty composition. I can't imagine that they'll forget that Ho Chi Minh City used to be called Saigon (and not the other way around) anytime soon.

The evening started with a video that I would describe as "Not Work Safe," but definitely a lot of fun, before the picture round exposed our lack of knowledge of what fashion designers actually look like. Even with the help of it being a matching category, we only answered one of them successfully. We should have just saved ourself the time and brain anguish and answer Calvin Klein for each image. We'd have scored the same. So take our experience as an object lesson: if you want to win a pub quiz, don't answer the first nine questions incorrectly.

The rest of the quiz was fairly standard pub quiz fare, but the themed music rounds were delightful. Who would have thought that this would be the night I'd finally hear a non-regulation Black Sabbath song at pub quiz (the untouchable "Electric Funeral"). The video rounds were usually clips off of off-brand humour websites that showed some "wild and crazy" thing and then you had to answer a question based on that, à la the old quiz at the ANZA club. Unfortunately, the content wasn't as well curated, and I felt it became kind of a drag, especially after watching a 4 minute long Seth Rogan skit. The marking was a communal, which sped up the evening significantly, which comes in handy when there is a dance floor waiting in the wings. 

After all is said and done (You're going to be the lonely one): A fun quiz that I'd gladly go to again! Some of the questions were a bit sloppy, but the night had a distinctive character to match the venue and surrounding area. Definitely the best pub quiz on Davie.

The Bimini

Where: The Bimini, 2010 W 4th Avenue

When: 7pm, Mondays. It might start a little late in the face of a hockey game, but at least you'll have a distraction while you're waiting for the quiz to start.

Web Presence: Nice Guys Trivia, who run this party, have a Facebook page you can follow.

Team Info: Bring as many as you want, as far as I can tell.

Format: Similar to the Calling's old Monday night quiz, it is 8 rounds, split up into 2 halves of 4 rounds apiece. The entirely Vancouver Province-based "In the news" round remains, alas.

Prizes: Beer, beer, beer and more beer. I think there is also a 12-week long trivia "season," and I'm not sure what the grand prize for that is. A trophy? A plaque? I'm not certain, but I think that free beer is a pretty safe bet. I think you might also have a chance at winning some swag here as well.

Food and drink: The usual Donnelly pub fare - 2.5-3.0 on Yelp level food, and drinks that are a bit pricy if you navigate away from the safe shoals of the specials. Fortunately, the drink specials are really good. $3 beer? Now that's a newsletter I subscribe to!

So I finally, finally got the chance to go down to West Fourth and try out the quiz night at The Bimini. I don't tend to frequent Donnelly pubs that often - their style isn't really my style, but I was glad I was finally able to make the bus ride down to Kitsilano and enjoy the bumping quiz at the Bimini.

Much as the former quizzes at The Calling, this is run by the nice guys of, well, Nice Guys Trivia. It has been at least a year or maybe even two since I last took in a Nice Guys quiz, and it seems they've tightened up their game. The quiz is much the same as I recall, and very similar to the boys at Falconetti's quiz - A picture round, a general knowledge round, a music round, multiple choice, break. More general knowledge, more music, "In the news," and then Bonus questions, which is a nice way of saying questions that are tougher than average. They also add some beer into the mix, with two games of pub standard "Head or tails" for pitchers and pints mixed into each half. Fun fact: In Russia, this game is called Орёл или ре́шка - "eagle or lattice" which is way, way cooler. Independent of country, it is also a pretty good excuse to stand up and stretch.

The man gets around

Now, the main complaints I had back when I bitched out the quiz at the Calling were that it took too long, the music round was simple, and the "Today in the Province" round was a joke. I'm very happy to say that almost all of these have been fixed - the quiz started late due to a (fairly dull) Habs loss, but we ended on time, and the Herculean labour of marking 25 teams did not seem to stretch on nearly so long. The music round had a few groaners, but was a lot better than I recalled. I do wonder if Johnny Cash's American Recordings are owned by every single quizmaster in town, though. They're good, but it seems I hear them all the time in music rounds. Finally, what about the "In the News" Round? Well, two out of three ain't bad. At least they didn't ask how much a flight to Cancun was this time, but I think they can do better than this. Unless of course, they get a kickback from Postmedia to mention their colourful picture book every week. In which case, keep it up and make some paper.

The questions remain more on the "everybody have fun" end of the spectrum as opposed to "let's bust some trivia chops" end, which is a good fit for the location/crowd. The atmosphere here is great, as the place is swarming with teams - most of whom seem to be wise to the strategy of reserving a spot ahead of time and then showing up as the quiz starts. Competition was fierce, and the top teams had some impressive scores, if unimpressive names. If you're playing to win here, make sure you know your music - out of a (roughly) 90 point quiz, a little over 40 of the points came from recognizing songs and artists. Get yourself a music expert or two and a copy of the Province and you just might waltz away with it. Even if you don't swing with the quizerati at this event, you can enjoy the charming hosts, Ed and Jeff, Perhaps you could just play a game of pinball, pool, or foosball in the surprisingly well-stocked games room. Or maybe, just maybe enjoy a three dollar glass of beer or two. There are worse things to do on a Monday night.

If you read just one paragraph, read this one: A fun, lively quiz, where you stand a pretty good chance of having a fun time. It tends a bit towards the easier side, and make sure you read the Province before showing up.

Woo Hoo! Classic Simpsons Trivia

Where: SD Galleria + Sushi Lounge, 4316 Main Street

When: 7pm, one Monday a month. As with EXP Bar's video game trivia, I'm not entirely certain of the dates. See their website below for the up to date information.

Web Presence: The official website for the whole continent spanning operation is found here, but the Vancouver-specific twitter account will give you better information regarding upcoming events in town.

Team Info: 6 people per team, but they don't enforce this at all - if you can fit around a table, you're golden. Also, this is one of the rare quizzes that has a fee! the first week was $5 per team, but it has since been upped to $5 per player. Officially the steepest entry fee in town, but check out the prizes!

Format: Half quiz, half Simpsons love-in. 3 rounds of 10-20 questions each, with an intermission after each round where you watch an episode of a certain television show.

Who indeed?

Prizes: Check this out! There's a whole boat of prizes to be won here, mostly through raffles. You can win things such as: Simpsons comic books, autographed by the talented Nina Matsumoto! Simpsons guest star action figures! A one-third obsolete Simpsons day calendar! $25 Gift Certificates to SD Galleria! An impressive display of more or less interesting swag.

But... what about the team that wins the whole thing? What about the Gay Robots From Star Wars, as the kings of trivia mountain were so named? Well, they get a reserved table for next week (see below), a pitcher of beer, and their entire team immortalized in a drawing by Bongo comics illustrator James Lloyd. Best prize in town? Very probably. I guess the only question is, who gets to keep it?

Food and drink: The food is sushi and various other Japanese delicacies that you'll recognize if you've ever been out for sushi before. There is also a bonus menu with Simpson's themed dishes (Million Dollar Birthday Fries!A Galaxy of Prawns!). The drinks are ludicrously cheap, from their $3 Ryes to their $4.25 pints of White Bark. They aren't full pints, but that might help you out in the long run, especially at that price.


I've a friend, who shall remain nameless, even though he has a name. He lives in Toronto now, and has been frothing at every single orifice that one may politely froth over the fact that Toronto has a Classic Simpsons trivia night. It has been running there, and in cities throughout the United States for several years, and last month Vancouver was lucky enough to have Woo Hoo! Classic Simpsons Trivia open up a branch on the west coast. It is even polite enough to put on its show on a Monday, when there are relatively few quizzes to compete with.

The next order of business is an administrative warning. Even though it has only been around for 2 months, it is proving immensely popular. There were few seats remaining at 6:30, let alone 7. The place starts filling up around 6, so I suggest your team shows up early in order to guarantee seats for all. You can send someone down to hold a table, but you'll have a tough time reserving more than 5 chairs, and if you do manage to do so, you're probably an ass. But that's enough judgement for now.

The show goes along swimmingly with able hosts Simon and Leonard enthusiastically sharing MC duties before a captive audience. The enjoyment was widespread, although yr corrsp thinks that it was a little like shooting fish in a particularly crowded barrel, but he is a noted curmudgeon. A question I don't want to answer: Would people have less fun if everyone just gathered in a room and watched 3 episodes of the Simpsons without host or quiz? Somehow I doubt it.

That is not to slander the questions - they were fantastic. First off - it was all "Classic" trivia - i.e. seasons 1-9 i.e. the seasons you watched and loved. Also, the questions were all about on-episode content - gags, characters, plots, etc. Nothing about the creators or episodic ephemera, which means there will be no nasty surprises at their definition of trivia. There were few gimmies, and those were hilarious, so no one minded. A delightfully unique aspect to this evening was the post-question reactions. At most quizzes, a question is read, followed by (a) the muffled sounds of furtive discussions, or (b) stunned silence, based on whether or not a team knew what was up. Here the question would be met with either (a) howls of laughter or (b) the same stunned silence, which was excellent.

The difficulty ranged from easy-medium, to fiendishly hard. If you've only seen a few episodes and think you can remember who Homer's boss is, this is probably not for you, although you will still have a lot of laughs. But if you, like your humble author, grew up watching the Simpsons religiously at their 5:30 and 7:30 time slots, these questions will delight and challenge you. I can sense that you may want a brief taster, so I'll leave you with a sample of the fine work of Woo Hoo! Simpsons Trivia:
- True or False: Riding the monorail gives you mono?
- Name any 2 of Homer's lifelong dreams in the first 9 seasons.
- Troy McClure turned down the role of McBain's sidekick in McBain IV: Fatal Discharge to direct and star in what film?

Play "Taking Care Of Business!": Do you enjoy watching the Simpsons? Come on down.

Yours truly

A Noble Quiz Embiggens The Smallest Man

It would appear that this month's trial run of Woo Hoo Classic Simpson's Trivia was a success, and they'll be running another in April. This is great news, for a number of reasons:

1) It is "Classic" Simpsons trivia  - covering the nearly unimpeachable first 9 seasons.
2) I wasn't paying attention and missed it, so now I have a chance to go.
3) Maybe it'll stick around even longer. There has been a Toronto edition of this quiz and it sounds like great fun. 

The quiz will be on Monday, April 21st, at Simply Delicious, AKA SD Galleria Sushi Lounge, which you can find at 4316 Main Street, starting at 7 PM. I've added it to my calendar, you should at it to yours!

Check out more info at the official Facebook Page.

The Cove, Redux

Where: The Cove, 3681 West 4th

When: 8pm every Monday

Web Presence:  The facebook group has quiz info and flat out gives away three answers each week, which you'll want to take note of because the corresponding questions are unbelievably difficult.

Registration Fee: Nobody really does these anymore, so from here on assume a quiz is free unless we tell you otherwise

Team Info: No de jure team limit, but the compactness of the venue and corresponding smallness of the furniture will make it tough to get more than six around a single table

Format: Three rounds of 15 questions each

Prizes: Free shots given out for funny answers or creative team names, as adjudged by the host.

No, Hassan, it's poker chips now

The new hosting regime also carries on the "magic keys" prize format, with numbered poker chips substituted for the previous macguffins. After each round, the first, second, and third place teams receive three, two, or one chips, respectively, and the total points winner after all three rounds gets a free pitcher and eight chips. The host then draws a random number, and whichever team holds the chip with that number wins their choice of grand prize: a $50 Cove gift certificate, or the contents of a mystery box.



Food and Drink: Won't thrill you. I also tried a Blood Alley beer which I didn't care for in the least.

This blog reviewed The Cove back in 2012; since then, however, the old Kits watering hole has gone through two changes of hosting duties, so we thought it prudent to give it another go -- especially since Cascade's What the #!*@?'s recent retirement has left a great void on the Monday night quiz calendar.

Reading back over that review, it seems things under the new stewardship are substantially the same as they were then, but there seem to have been a few changes, mostly for the better.

I never tried the Cove quiz under the previous host, but the new emcee tends the helm well. Chris writes the questions himself and his tastes incline somewhat to the geeky; last night we got a point last night for knowing that Peppy's famous exhortation in Star Fox 64 was "Do a barrel roll!" and I'm sure future weeks will have similar such content in store.

As opposed to the previous two freelancers, Chris is an in-house host, doubling as Cove's marketing manager, one especially pleasant consequence of which is that he can give out free drinks essentially whenever he pleases, which is quite often. Come up with a witty joke answer and you've got a very good chance of winning your table a round of shots. And on the subject of complimentary spirits, the night I was there, the quiz was apparently sponsored by Canadian Club who had brought in a pair of Cactus-Club-waitress-types to dole out Dixie-cup-sized samples of their whisky.

As for my nitpicky critique, I'll say this: if you want to hint an answer on facebook, that's OK; give the answer outright, if you must; but something's wrong when the question is so impossible that you could only get it right from being given the answer. For example, who played "Stock Boy" in Home Alone? His subsequent appearance in 1997's Picture Perfect notwithstanding, I'd place Jim Ryan well outside the canon of suitable quiz answers. This goes a bit beyond the pale of rewarding those who follow your social media to additionally punish those who don't. (I also challenge the figure of two-hundred-something total deaths in the Game of Thrones series so far. The Battle on the Blackwater alone claimed several thousand casualties! Did we mean named characters? Please specify next time!)

The more I think about it, the more I like the magic keys prize format. While elite teams are still rewarded for their knowledge, lesser contenders can still compete and have a good chance of taking home the big prize. No more juggernauts running wild week after week. Call it enforced egalitarianism, but this seems like an idea too good to stay confined to one venue -- don't be surprised if every quiz in town is giving out poker chips, keys, ping pong balls, or buttons before long.

Our last reviewer had it about right the last time. This is a strong quiz with a good host, a fun mechanic for giving away the big prize (it was a full-size metal toboggan this week!), and the steady flow of free shots and pitchers are a pleasing addition.

Cascade's What the #!*@? Quiz -- a mainstay of the Vancouver quizzing scene -- coming to an end

Sad tidings indeed from Main Street. Karen, the longtime quizmeister of the Cascade Room, has announced that effective next month, that establishment's venerable quiz will be no more--at least as a regularly-scheduled event. From their official facebook page:

Now for those of you who were not with us last night, an announcement! After more than 5 1/2 years, 165 quizzes and close to $30,000 raised for more than 70 charities, our What the #!*@? Quiz night is coming to an end. Our last quiz will be Monday, November 25th…please come and join us for a fond farewell…I've enjoyed almost every single second of it

I will continue with some special event Quiz Nights as well as Quiz Nights on request so keep in touch! This is not "goodbye"…it's "most likely see you soon". So I'll expect to see lots of familiar faces on the 25th xo k

For those who don't know, Cascade is one of Vancouver's longest-running and greatest pub quizzes. Many Vancouverites first caught the pub trivia bug there, including, I am sure, at least a few individuals who now run quizzes of their own. Yet none of them have ever duplicated the sheer quizzing pleasure of Cascade, which was probably best encapsulated in their famous "what's-in-the-shot" rounds, the likes of which we may never see again.

The continued success of Cascade owes everything to Karen's extraordinary commitment to her craft. Each week (and later, fortnightly, and eventually monthly) she would hammer out a full set of questions, the freshness of which was attested by the habitual inquisitions on the news of the day and other happenings of only a few days' vintage. Her annual Quiz of Champions, an invitational grand prix featuring only winning teams of the past year was yet another (hugely successful) expression of the same--for participants it was nothing less than the Wimbledon of Vancouver quizzery.

True to the progressive ethos of Mount Pleasant, 100 percent of proceeds from the quiz went to a local charity of the players' choosing, a fact which makes abundantly clear that the undertaking was, at bottom, a labour of love and not a mercenary ploy to pump up Tuesday night patronage (though that it certainly did).

After more than a half-decade of unflagging quality, the departure of What the #!*@? is to be sorely lamented. As mentioned above, Cascade's final regular quiz takes place November 25 and is sure to be a night to remember.

Bad New, Everyone!

I hate to say I told you so (as some Swedes once mused), but the quiz at the Anza Club is cancelled this month, due to the Canucks playing on the Friday in question. Too bad. Head down to the Storm Crow Tavern on Wednesday to catch the Vancouver Quizmasters in action, if you need to get your fix of Shaun and Eric

Also, The Cascade Room's quiz is now officially a once a month quiz. Look for it the last Monday of every month.

Monday Night's Alright for Quizzing

So, as with last time, let's handle this in point form:

• The Cove's quiz night is now being hosted by hosted by the team of Eric Fell (of Anza Club notoriety) and Patrick Maliha. I caught the first half of the quiz this week, and it was a good time.
• But you miss Debbie's quiz? Well, fear not, because that quiz has shifted to Gargoyle's Bar and Grill, on West Broadway. Stop by the website and have a good laugh at how old the welcome images are (Jose Theodore in an Avs jersey!). I imagine the quiz will be similar to the old Cove quizzes, or the ex-Fray (current Cedar Cottage) quiz.
• Between those 2, and the Academic quiz night, it looks like Monday night is the night for quiz in Kitsilano. You're almost as spoiled for choice as on a Wednesday.
• The Cascade Room's Monday quiz was cancelled, and they are trying to reschedule sometime soon. Follow the facebox page if you want to find out when it actually ends up happening

Cascade Room Trivia On Hiatus

The summer downtime in quizzes is here, and with that, the Cascade Room will be taking more than a monthlong break, until mid-September. I can't give you the exact date that it will be back, but I'll try and let you know. Until then, go to the Cascade for some mixed drinks or frosty pints, but not for quiz.

James Bond Trivia at the Cascade!

I feel that as the resident blogger about Vancouver pub quizzes, I should let you know about these things. The Cascade has held (and will hold again), James Bond themed quizzes. If you fancy all thing 007, I advise you come check it out. Since one was just held tonight, the next one won't be until the fall, to coincide with the premiere of Skyfall.

Come on down, and work that MI6 brain!

In case you were curious, yes, this does supersede the regularly scheduled quiz.

The Cove

Heads up: the Cove has changed the people running the quiz as of March 26th, 2013 - see our updated report!

Where: The Cove. Located at 3681 West 4th, in Kits

When: 8PM Mondays, every week.

Web Presence:  A facebook group, with Quiz info, including a free answer every week

Registration Fee: Nope.

Team Info: No team size limit, so bring as many as you want

Prizes: Distributed in a novel fashion: The top placing teams in each round get to choose some keys. At the end, the teams with the highest score get the remainder. At the end of the night, a key is drawn at random, and if you have the key with the correct number on it, then you win the prize! Which is a cash prize, I think. The better you do the more keys you win, and the better your chances at taking home the prize. First place still gets the bragging rights, though

Format: 3 Rounds,as far as I remember, but I haven't been here in a while. 15 questions per round when I was there.

Food and Drink: The food's pretty alright, and they have pretty decent specials on "craft" beer on Mondays.

The Cove is located in deepest, darkest Kits, which works out great if you live there, or at the University, but is kind of a pain otherwise. Its a pretty fun quiz, always fills up with people, (but not until about 7:45 or so) and the bar usually has its share of Monday night Football watchers as well. If you like football, and quiz, then this is probably the one you want.

This quiz night is run by a lady named Debbie. You can read a news article about here running quizzes as a side gig. It seems to pay pretty well. There's a few extracurricular activities that don't affect the quiz itself, but I guess can win you some beer, if you are fast and good at naming groups of things (Security Council countries, brat pack members, etc). The questions themselves aren't usually bad, but I have been blown away by really awesome questions. No music round/pictures, which I'm fine with. The hostess marks all the papers herself, which slows down the quiz quite a bit in between rounds.

They usually give out free answers on their facebook page every week, so check that if you're a newcomer. If you're a regular, stop reading this. You probably know the place better than I do. The facebook page is also handy to let you know if things have been rescheduled. I don't know how often it happens, but I have shown up on a Monday and been quizless in Kitsilano. The bar itself is a nice place to watch a game, as there are tonnes of TVs. I can't say how well the quiz behaves during a Canucks game, but the culture seems to be good enough that I imagine they'd just let the game run silently in the background, and then turn up the sound while the powers that be marked papers.

Too Long? Didn't read?, Not bad, but not great. Better than any other options in Kits though, and runs every week.