Just For You: The Power of Gratitude
Home Cooking: YAM’s Guide to Squash
Around Town: New bookstores, winning chefs, October events

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If you ask me, Thanksgiving is the best holiday of them all. The weather’s still reasonably nice, but cool enough for a cozy sweater, there’s no need to shop for gifts or go crazy decorating, and it’s all about a great, big festive meal. I love that this holiday gives us a reason to stop and think about the things that make us grateful, and that it gives us a little pause between the back-to-reality busy-ness of September and all the festive shopping-baking-decorating-partying whoop-de-doo that’s just around the corner. Most of all, it’s an excuse to bring all the people you love the best around your table, and what could be better than that? 

From all of us at YAM, have a wonderful Thanksgiving — and yes, you should definitely have that second piece of pumpkin pie!

Joanne Sasvari
YAM Editor-in-Chief

We have a tradition in our family, and it’s one you might share. Each year, when we sit down for Thanksgiving dinner, before we dive into the turkey and all the fixin’s, each person around the table has to say what they are most grateful for.

Some years we’re just happy to be together; others, there are more personal things to appreciate. Lately, we’re mostly just thankful that we live, not just in Canada, but in this beautiful corner of it.

Giving thanks makes us all reflect on how fortunate we are. It makes us feel good, and it makes us want to do better. And it really, really makes us appreciate that turkey dinner when we can finally enjoy it.

The thing is, practising gratitude shouldn’t just be a once-a-year thing. It has real physical and mental health benefits. It costs us nothing, but rewards us with stronger, better relationships.

Here’s how — and why — to do it every day.

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH Island Eyecare

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There is much to love about fall — cashmere sweaters, the return of prestige TV, a new Louise Penny mystery — but our very favourite thing about the season is the return to the kitchen. We love spending a chilly autumn day leisurely roasting, braising, simmering, stewing and/or baking something delicious. And one of the things we love cooking most right now is squash.

We also love just looking at squashes, all piled up in colourful heaps at our favourite markets: yellow, green, orange, blue and white; big and small and teeny-tiny; smooth and warty; round, oblong, tear-shaped and like something Cinderella would hitch a ride in. 

Squashes look cool with their varied colours and shapes. But they are also good for you (low in calories, high in fibre, loaded with essential vitamins and minerals), highly versatile and, most importantly, deeply, richly flavourful. Find our guide to cooking with squash right here.

> Victoria (really) loves books
This city already has the highest concentration of independent bookstores in Canada, and now we can add two more to the list. Meant Well Books, which began as a mobile operation, has just opened a brick-and-mortar location in Estevan Village. Its first chapter started in June 2025, when Melanie Brouwer and her then-nine-year old daughter Arlo first fired up their customized green book truck and “book scooter” for deliveries. Look to them for new titles, with a focus on Canadian content. Meanwhile, Alphabet City Books, which has been operating as a pop-up out of Habit Coffee on Pandora Avenue, is moving into permanent digs in the Lim Dat building on Government Street in November. Owners and long-time booksellers Michael Pollard and Talia Freimanis promise a curated selection of new and used books in this charming setting. 

> New scene at the Belfry
Nigel Shawn Williams begins his first full season as artistic director of the Belfry Theatre with one of Harold Pinter’s most acclaimed plays, Betrayal, which runs October 27 to November 22. We’re excited to see the first Belfry performance of a play by the Nobel Prize-winning playwright, but we’re even more excited to see what Williams will bring to one of our favourite venues.

> Big news for one of Victoria’s tiniest restaurants
Lumache has made the long list of finalists for Air Canada’s Best New Restaurants (ACBNR). The 16-seat restaurant, known for chef James Frost’s meticulously handcrafted pastas and sommelier Heather Dosman’s intriguing wine pairings, is one of six B.C. restaurants among the 40 finalists in these prestigious awards. The top 10 will be announced November 16. 

> Heading to the nationals
Congratulations to chef Corbin Mathany, chef-owner of Ugly Duckling Dining & Provisions! Mathany won gold at Victoria’s Great Kitchen Party, held September 29 at Oak Bay Beach Hotel, and will be joining Chef of Distinction Milton Rebello at the 20th annual Canadian Culinary Championship finals in Ottawa January 29 and 30. The CCC is a major fundraiser for youth in sports, music and culinary; tickets and info for the finals are available here. 

> Spinning a yarn
The Beehive Wool Shop marks its 120th anniversary this year, making it one of the oldest continually operating businesses in Greater Victoria. In celebration, it will host a Winter Fibre Market on November 14, bringing together 20 Vancouver Island vendors showcasing hand-dyed yarns, local fleece, handmade fibre art, fashion items and giftware. 

OCTOBER 24 | Dance Victoria

Dance Victoria presents Rhino by Out Innerspace, blending theatricality, humour and innovative design. Follow an unlikely cast questioning whether their best days are behind them in this surreal, dreamlike cinematic dance experience at McPherson Playhouse. > Get tickets starting at $35

NOVEMBER 4 | Hob Fine Foods

Join HOB Fine Foods’ Global Spice & Heritage Collaboration Dinner featuring chefs Castro Boateng, Israel Álvarez Molina and Leroy Borrega, and savour rich culinary traditions from three continents, along with a taste of YAM’s holiday issue. > Book your seats today