Today on Pacific Palate…I looked back on the food that was consumed during the World Exposition in Vancouver in 1986, and heard some memories Bob Wiles, the executive sous chef at the Pan Pacific Hotel, one of the most important restaurants in the city at the time, the Pan Pacific. Bob started working at the Pan just a few months after it opened and was there for the whole Expo excitement.
Here are some Expo 86 food trivia facts I found on line:
— 7.5 million hamburgers were sold during the fair.
— Enough Cotton Candy was sold to fill the British Columbia Pavilion to
the top.
— 8 million ice-cream products were sold.
— 4.2 million hot dogs were sold. Placed end to end, the line would
stretch from Vancouver to Seattle and back.
— 1/4 million pounds of coffee was brewed.
— 1.2 million gallons of beer was consumed.
I also made up a few recipes from some 1986 recipes I found at Epicurious.com. These came from the pages of Gourmet magazine…and are definitely 20 years old. Read them carefully, and try them if you dare. Make sure you look at the comments that follow the recipes, as they point out some failings, errors and omissions. For example, the green bean recipe calls for the beans to be boiled for 12 minutes until tender. 12 minutes makes mushy beans! I adapted the recipe for Clams Catalplana with some success, though, serving the resulting stew on couscous. Here’s the photo: 
But don’t boil the clams for the 1/2 hour it says in the recipe! Simmer them just until they open, then serve. The entire list of 1986 recipes is here, and below are the links to the specific recipes I tried.
Celery Boats with Gruyere Pesto
Green Beans with Coriander and Garlic
Clams in a Cataplana Casa Velha
