It’s an epic challenge, but it would most definitely be an experience of a lifetime!
Perhaps some of you foodies out there have heard about what the City of Richmond is proposing to the masses. Essentially, Richmond is holding a month-long open audition for foodies and bloggers alike to cover the staggering amount of restaurants in Steveston and Richmond.
The deal: As sweet as it gets. A salary, a stipend for the restaurants, a gym membership and accomodations whilst you eat your way through the city. As a food blogger myself, my skin is crawling with excitement at the mere thought of being a paid food-blogger. I have faithfully written this blog for almost two years now without any hand-outs. All the meals I reviewed came out of my own pocket, fueled by my inexhaustible passion for food of course.
The successful applicant will be sharing each restaurant experience rather than critiquing. This can be done through video, photography, stories, and any other creative delivery method you can think of. The position also requires a strong connection with social media channels. Am I describing you right now?
This type of opportunity does not come around every day, so I encourage other writers and food enthusiasts to apply!
Bonne chance!
Let me get this straight. Mandatory restaurant dining EVERY SINGLE DAY of the year for a full year. In Richmond. That seems more like a harsh sentence than the opportunity of a lifetime.
For a full year, you will be a slave to Richmond and its mostly Asian eateries. Can’t leave Richmond for an entire year. Can’t go on holiday. Can’t go visit my dying relative on the Island for a couple days cuz to do so would be in violation of the job’s contract (Is that even legal under BC labour laws!?). Not only that, but must blog EVERY SINGLE DAY about it, with photos and video and tweets and all that other social media crap to boot. Sounds a lot like the makings of Richmond’s answer to Sherman’s Food Adventures – that blog of pure daily drivel and grease drippings based in Vancouver.
Richmond dining for a year? I wouldn’t wish this sodium-cholesterol-duck-fat-MSG sentence on my worst foodie enemy.
Seriously, this is one of those careful-what-you-wish-for “opportunities.”
Great PR stunt by the Tourism Richmond, I’ll admit that much.
Still alive and ever cynical,
YRS
PS: Did you read Eat Magazine’s annual best-of list published in the current edition. In addition to it being mostly wrong, and rigged in favour of its advertisers, they had the utter gall to let their own magazine stand as first place in a couple of the categories. Not only an advertorial publication, but a vanity press, too! Ha!
Haha, I thought your internet days were over? I suppose your workplace has computers and the net too;)
The city acknowledges the fact that eating out every day is unhealthy, and therefore have supplemented the offer with a year membership.
Cynical YRS indeed, sure it’s a PR stunt but I know secretly deep down inside there’s a part of you that may want to apply for this too. Hah
The job also states they are not looking for a critic. So essentially, the blogger would be tooting Richmond’s horn for all things positive. I never read Eat Magazines annual best-of list, last year was enough to make me steer clear of their dollar-biased “votes” and winners.
Haha vanity press, great term. Whatever happened to “any publicity is good publicity”.
Have you been to Big Wheel yet? There’s a case study.
The vacation stipulations and “at least once per day” is on the extreme side of things,
Who said my Internet days were over? I sure didn’t. I did say my online footprint would be greatly diminished. No more Internet or TV at home and… amazingly the sky hasn’t come crashing through our condo roof.
The Richmond challenge should come with mandatory medical oversight, like the guy in Super Size Me who ate McDonalds for 30 straight days. Full medical tests before the 365 days begins, and checkups and blood work each month to ensure the participant isn’t actually putting his/her life in danger. You can go the gym all day, but if you are shoveling fried Chinese foods, duck fat, pork rind, kung-pow-chicken and egg-foo-yung down your pipe everyday, or spending your free time at Richmond’s infamous all-you-can-eat buffets, there is no gym, hot yoga or fitness fad that’s gonna save you.
I could never do anything like this because I’m too honest when it comes to restaurants, and I know too much about the PR biz, enough to know I could never be a indentured shill for a city’s tourism board for an entire year.
Big Wheel not on my radar. Heard too many bad things about it. And why take a chance when I can go to Pink Bike?
I plan to revive YRS from dormancy in a couple months when we take a trip down to San Francisco and Napa. Look for that trip report on my blog in mid-late April. I suspect the wine will be flowing at a good pace.
Keep on eating,
YRS