Doesn't TaZte Like Chicken

Location: Regional Tasting Lounge   
1130 Mainland St, Vancouver BC
Website

Author: My Husband

Some of our readers may recall the post about Paris where I wrote “Business travel blends into a blur of planes, hotels, and boardrooms…”. Most frequent travelers can relate to this, where they – just for the briefest of moments – don’t remember where they are. This is especially true when travel takes you to any one of the generic-looking “developed” cities around the world.

But then there are some places that are so different, so in-your-face unique, that you can’t help but be reminded of where you are at every waking moment. Kolkata happens to be one of them. I’ve been in India for the last 2 weeks on business, and I must say that I did not, at any moment, forget where I was.

Kolkata was quite an experience, but one of the curious side effect of staying there and eating local food for a fortnight is that you begin to pine for other types of food. Now, Indian food in India is brilliant, with tastes, smells, and nuances that Vancouver Indian food can only aspire to. However, after two full weeks of eating spicy food, no matter how brilliantly cooked, I started becoming a little indifferent to it. I mean, you would get sick of lobster if you eat it everyday, no? Most people, especially people who care about food, would wholeheartedly agree that variety is the key to gastronomic happiness. Sure, taste is important, but can you see yourself eating the same beautifully cooked dish every night for dinner? I’m sure you would be willing to trade a little quality for more variety, wouldn’t you? So variety and choice is really what enjoying food is about, and that statment then provides a nice segue into the topic for this post.

During the last week of March, Christina and I were invited to a “Foodie’s night” at the recently opened R.TL restaurant. Since we are always game to try out new places, we accepted the invitation. In the interest of full disclosure, we were guests of the restaurant and did not have to foot the bill for our food and beverages that evening.

RTL is located in a cozy little space in Yaletown. We initially thought that the place was more of a lounge than a restaurant, since the L in R.TL stood for “lounge”. The darkly tinted automated sliding glass door entrance didn’t change our impression – if anything, it felt even more lounge-ish. But once inside, we discovered that it was set up like a little bistro. A bistro with very modern touches and a lounge-ish feel, that is. Carrie, who invited us, showed us to a nice table near the window and explained R.TL’s concept to us.

R.TL, as it turns out, is a full-fledged restaurant featuring a menu that focuses on three culinary regions at any given time. Also, in keeping with the “lounge” part of its name, R.TL features a wine program that allows customers to order some pretty high-quality products by the glass (more on this later).

That evening, we were given a sampler of the type of food RTL serves, along with free-range of the beverage menu. Here’s the food:

Starting from the left, a duck liver pate served on a toast point. Next, bacalhal (salt cod) fritters. Then prawns piri piri. Then a Dungeness crab and shrimp cake. Finally, a petite nicoise salad.

As you can see, the sample plate was beautifully presented, and the prawns piri piri as well as the bacalhau really tickled our palette. We would very happily order full size portions of these. The rest were decent, but didn’t stand out all that much taste-wise.

And here are the drinks:

I had a flight of Riesling, Sangiovese (actually it’s a super tuscan – Sangiovese/Cab blend), and a very nice Pinot Noir. These wines showed no sign of oxidation at all, and drank very well. For wines served by the glass, I was really impressed.

And here’s one the machines that dispenses the wine. The Enomatic machine injects the equal volume of argon gas into the bottle from which it had just dispensed, thus minimizing oxidation of the wine. This allows each bottle to keep for days, and allows R.TL to offer some expensive wines to be sold by the glass. This is a win for the R.TL, and a huge win for oenophiles who visit the restaurant.

And RTL does have a good selection of very drinkable wines. I had a quick chat with Alain the sommelier/Operations Mgr and he told me his philosophy was to buy products that he liked and was accessible to R.TL’s customers. The flight of three I had was certainly very likeable, and at the listed prices, quite reasonable.

Because the guests that evening were presented with sampler portions, the chef also prepared some full-sized plates to show us. Here they are.

We did not taste these as my wife and I had another appointment to keep, but look-wise, they were certainly appealing.

So what did we think? R.TL is quite good foodwise, but it is not at the level of, say, the Bins yet. But the ability for guests to buy wines by the glass is a definite winner. Too many times, you see something interesting available on the winelist, but cannot order as you are the lone drinker at the table. The Enomatic machines installed in R.TL has solved that problem nicely. And just for that, Christina and I will return for a few more glasses…

Location: Market by Jean-Georges   
Shangri-la Hotel, 1128 W. Georgia Street, Vancouver
Website

Author: My Husband

Monday Feb 9, 3pm-ish. I was in the office, ensconced in the glass-walled war room with several members of my team, all of whom were guys save one. The team had just surfaced for air after spending an eternity submerged in work minutiae, and the topic of discussion turned to just about ANYTHING other than work.

Most of us were sprawled backwards on our seats, arms folded behind our heads, raised legs resting comfortably against the conference table, chatting away and feeling pretty relaxed. Just then, one of the secretaries walked by holding a brightly-coloured potted plant, and the lone female member of the team piped up with, “Oooh, that’s a nice flower. Speaking of flowers, hey, what are you guys doing for Valentines Day?”

My friend and colleague D sat up so quickly the spring-loaded backrest of his chair almost threw him right off it. “What?!! Is it Valentines already? I totally forgot about it!” exclaimed D, eyes wide open. This was then followed by sighs and much head-shaking from the other guys. K, our female colleague, and the one who undoubtedly prevented several Valentine’s Day quarrels this year, starting laughing, “Yes D, it is this Saturday!! Good thing I reminded you, huh? So ET, what plans do you have?”

Now, in years past, I would have been right there with the guys, looking sheepish and trying valiantly to complete the half-formed witty retort in my mind. But not this year! This year, I had plans made well in advance! Rather smugly, I replied “We’re going to Market for dinner.”

This preparedness resulted from the eGullet discussion I’d been following about Jean-Georges Vongerichten opening his first restaurant in Vancouver. When several eGulleters reported back with positive reviews of the place, named Market, after it opened in January, I started to cast about for an excuse to go and try it. Since Valentine’s Day was less than a month away, it was a no-brainer. I had my reservations made before January ran out of days…

Market is located in the Shangri-la, Vancouver’s newest hotel and the city’s tallest building. Walking into the lobby from the Georgia St. entrance, one gets the impression that this is not your “typical” Shangri-la. Fans of the Shangri-la group’s other properties will find Vancouver’s version to be more contemporary in design and decor. Compared to Shangri-la’s locations in Asia, the property in Vancouver is also decidedly smaller. Nevertheless, the decor looks good and all the details that makes the Shangri-la a 5* chain are still present.

Market is on the third-floor of the hotel, and can be reached via a bank of elevators accessible from the Geogia St. lobby. The restaurant is divided into two distinct sections: a more formal dining room, and a more loungy café. A bar, which was really hopping when we finished dinner, separates the two sections. The dining room has the full dinner menu while the café offers small plates, pizzas, burgers and the like. Remember to specify which section you’d like to visit when making your reservation.

We decided to have the Market tasting menu that evening. Suffice it to say, Jean-Georges’ multiple Michelin stars are well-deserved. The menu that he designed, when taking the price (CAD $65 pp) into account, represents pretty good value as far as fine-dining is concerned. And save for one course, the meal was spectacular.

If I had to describe the meal in two words, “balance” and “harmony” would be my choices. Tastes and textures were beautifully balanced, and all the flavours worked in harmony. In lesser menus, there would invariably be accompaniments or sides that do not work well with the main ingredient, but there were no such problems here. Truly, it was one of the best meals I’ve had in Vancouver.

From this point on, I’ll let the photos do the talking. The description of each course reflects the taste and texture of the food, so I will skip much of my usual colour commentary in this post.

First up, the amuse. “Rice cracker Crusted Tuna, Citrus-Sriracha Emulsion”. Christina liked this so much she tried to replicate it at home.

Next, “Foie Gras Brule, Dried Sour Cherries, White Port Gelee”. Tied for the best torchon I’ve had, right up there with the one I ate at Manresa.

Next, “Cripsy Bacon Wrapped Shrimp, Passion Mustard and Avocado”. This was the one course that we did not find spectacular. It tasted good, but when the other courses were of such high standard, we singled this out to nitpick.

Next, “Sablefish, Nut and Seed Crust, Sweet and Sour Broth”. Fantastic.

Next, “Soy Glazed Short Ribs, Apple-Jalapeno Puree, Rosemary Crumbs”. Also fantastic.

Finally, dessert. Chocolate cake with a molten center and home-made ice cream. Delicious, and a great way to finish the meal.

Well, what can I say? Assuming the service and food standards are maintained, Market may well give Le Croc a run for it’s money as our fave restaurant in Vancouver. We’re already planning to visit again in March.

Location: Suite 410 – 999 Canada Place   
Vancouver, British Columbia
Canada V6C 3E1

Author: My Husband

Christina and I are generally not fans of hotel restaurants. When we travel, we make it a rule to eat in non-hotel-ensconced places, knowing that by so doing, we would avoid the double-trap of high-priced and mediocre quality food. But rules are meant to be broken sometimes, which is precisely how we ended up having dinner at the Five Sails restaurant in Vancouver’s Pan Pacific Hotel.

Having dinner at the Five Sails was a decision some three years in the making. In 2005, Christina and I went for a prix-fixe dinner at the restaurant during that year’s Dine Out event and she came away with a really good impression of the place. Yes, the restaurant was spacious. Yes, it served decent food. And yes, the service was good. But all that paled in comparison to the bank of large picture windows that provided customers with a panoramic view of Burrard Inlet and the North Shore mountains; it was this view that left an indelible impression in our minds. On a clear night, with the lights of the Lion’s Gate and North Vancouver acting as a sparkling backdrop against the darkly reflective waters of Burrard inlet, the view is simply magical. We’d meant to return for a meal outside of Dine Out season, but for one reason or another, it never rose to the top of our LIST.

Finally, for my wife’s birthday last year, we decided to return for dinner at the Five Sails. The restaurant is not operated by the Pan Pacific hotel; rather, it is run by chef proprietor Ernst Dorfler and his wife Gerry Sayers. The night of our dinner, Gerry was working the front of house, and it was she who showed us to our table.

The first thing that we encountered after stepping into the restaurant was the smell of stale seafood – definitely not the kind of greeting that we’d expected for an establishment such as this. And while walking to our table, I noticed the restaurant was more than two-thirds empty. The fact that it was a miserably cold Monday night – and only several days after Vancouver had dug itself out of a snowstorm – may have had something to do with the empty restaurant. It may also have to do with the restaurant being larger than average for an establishment like this. Regardless, the dull stench of stale seafood that lingered in the air did not do much to reassure me that we had made the right decision to eat here.

But since we had already driven all the way here, we decided to go ahead with dinner. We had a couple of cocktails while waiting for our meal to be served, and they were borderline undrinkable. My mojito was cloyingly sweet and had an almost syrupy consistency; I couldn’t help but wonder if a mix was used in its preparation. Christina’s ice wine martini, served in a champagne flute, was embarrassingly bad for $18. It was a mixture of flavors that did not work together, and it is definitely not something we’d try again.

We were each presented with a complimentary amuse bouche before our starters arrived. It was combo of a vegetarian consommé and a layered terrine. It got the taste buds working, and free food is always good!

Christina started with Foie Gras Yin and Yang. This dish offered foie in two ways, torchon-style and pan-seared. The torchon was wonderful: smooth, rich and earthy, it is everything foie should be. The pan-seared was quite good too, though it had a little more vein that we preferred. Still, the liver worked well both ways with the quince and balsamic reduction, and it was a successful dish overall.

I had the lobster bisque. The smoky lobster stock came through clearly in this luxurious soup. Rich and complex in flavors, I drank it all up and didn’t even mind the foam sitting on the surface. The bits of lobster meat in the soup were a nice bonus.

Christina order the roasted Fraser Valley duck breast for her main course. The duck breast was prepared to just the right doneness, and masterfully seasoned. Each bite was juicy and flavorful. The seared foie gras that accompanied this was of a lesser quality than that of the appetizer, this being grittier and more vein-y. The minced duck meat wontons were interesting, though the wonton-skin was definitely too doughy.

I had the lamb loin and lamb chop. Visually, the doneness of the loin looked spot on, but it was a touch too chewy. The lamb chop was much better, with every bite being a nice mix of peppery crust and succulent meat. The accompaniments of ratatouille and potato galette were not very tasty, though that may have been my predisposition towards disliking veggies…

We are usually full by the time we finish our main courses, but we ordered a dessert – a cheesecake and a mini crème brulee – to share anyway. The crème brulee was pretty good, but the cheesecake was strangely gritty. And the pina colada sorbet was positively vile – it was bitter and had a decidedly non-pina-colada like aroma. We left it untouched after a little taste.

Overall, it was a reasonable meal. The occasion and the view from our table played a large part in making it enjoyable. While most of the dishes were competently executed, none particularly wowed us. One gets the sense that the team in the kitchen has mastered journeyman continental cooking, but hasn’t yet made the leap to the level that Vancouver’s top cheffing teams operate at. Given the multitude of restaurants that exist or that will soon exist in the city, it will be quite a while before we would consider a third visit.