Mike O'Reilly

Upon meeting Saturday when I awoke, I was happy to see it resembled the name of the next day; it was a beautiful, bright, and blue September morning that was pleasantly crisp. I took a cue from yesterday and left my waking hunger unchecked as I ambled up to the shuttle school bus. Its population was a little greater today, so when I arrived at Elliston Municipal Park again, I wasn’t too surprised to see there were hundreds already on site to take in Saturday’s festivities. Fortunately, the bus arrived with plenty time to take in the scene before the highly anticipated Food Hike. The entrance to the park played host to a dozen or more booths where local artisans…

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  The community of Elliston, nestled in on the northeast side of the Bonavista peninsula, played host to a world-class festival this past weekend as it welcomed some of the best chefs and musicians from across our province – and the country. This is the sixth year of the unique Roots, Rants & Roars festival, but it was my first time attending. I had only heard positive reviews from friends who were there before and, even more tellingly and enticingly, the festival had a near-mythic status for my buddies who are in the cooking industry. While I didn’t completely know what to expect coming into it on Friday, at the other end of the weekend I found myself with a…

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  On the Saturday of 2014 Labour Day Weekend, St. John’s saw the debut of the Harbourage Festival, featuring artists Mick Davis & Thin Love, Repartee, Elliott Brood, Matt Mays, and Hey Rosetta! As the name would suggest, the harbour front was the setting of this unique festival. I was lucky enough to have a chat with Lorne Loder and Jon Loder, who were part of the small team behind this new endeavour.   Q: First of all, thanks very much to you both for making time to talk to me as you finish up what must have been a busy weekend. Secondly, and more importantly, congratulations on what I thought was a very successful day. I had a blast…

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