Dining in Vancouver

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Topper
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Re: Dining in Vancouver

Post by Topper »

ukcanuck wrote: also if you like steak cooked outdoors there is a place way up Carmi ave, nearly half way to Beaverdell on the mountainside called the lost Moose grill, that has a unique set up, with a big outdoor woodfire grill, and spectacular view.
Not even close to half way to Beaverdell, but ya, its up the hill. When i bought my truck, the salesman sent us up there for a meal and said to bring him the tab. Closed that day damn it. Nice spot and being on the east side of the valley, I imagine the sunsets up there are terrific.
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Re: Dining in Vancouver

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Topper wrote:
ukcanuck wrote: also if you like steak cooked outdoors there is a place way up Carmi ave, nearly half way to Beaverdell on the mountainside called the lost Moose grill, that has a unique set up, with a big outdoor woodfire grill, and spectacular view.
Not even close to half way to Beaverdell, but ya, its up the hill. When i bought my truck, the salesman sent us up there for a meal and said to bring him the tab. Closed that day damn it. Nice spot and being on the east side of the valley, I imagine the sunsets up there are terrific.

I usually say halfway so people get the Idea its way up there, the farther up you go the less likely it looks like a restaurant is gonna be around the next corner. The last time I was there was in the winter, coming back from the Xcountry ski trails up that way, was really nice with the snow covering the roof of the grill, I hesitate to recommend the steak as I am no chef and its always seems to me that' knowing how to cook a steak is what separates a real restaurant from a fast food grill. but it was a big slab of meat that covered the plate and atmosphere can make a good meal great and even an OK one better...
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Re: Dining in Vancouver

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Was awesome...just off main and Hastings east van...talk about a smorg..
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Re: Dining in Vancouver

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rats19 wrote:Was awesome...just off main and Hastings east van...talk about a smorg..
Not my thing... but I understand a lot of rats prefer to eat at that location.
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Re: Dining in Vancouver

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Rats02---rats21002 we were all there, some stayed, I didn't get a good vibe for the longevity of the place..way to much food and low prices..so the ratfam got outta dodge.

Oh...rats01 passed on a few years back... :D
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Re: Dining in Vancouver

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Eddy Punch Clock wrote:
rats19 wrote:Was awesome...just off main and Hastings east van...talk about a smorg..
Not my thing... but I understand a lot of rats prefer to eat at that location.
:D Well done sir!
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Re: Dining in Vancouver

Post by Farhan Lalji »

Can't remember if I said this or not but Cactus Club near Burrard Sky train station is one of my favorite places.

I always get the Prawn Ravioli and Bruchetta whenever I go.

There was also this one ridiculously hot half white/half Asian waitress there that literally made the veins in my penis almost explode due to her being hot.
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Re: Dining in Vancouver

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Farhan Lalji wrote:Can't remember if I said this or not but Cactus Club near Burrard Sky train station is one of my favorite places.

I always get the Prawn Ravioli and Bruchetta whenever I go.

There was also this one ridiculously hot half white/half Asian waitress there that literally made the veins in my penis almost explode due to her being hot.
The butternut squash prawn ravioli? I wish they'd make a gluten free version of that...

The CC on Marine at Market Crossing...man-candy and Jensen Ackles of Supernatural frequents that one often. :D
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Re: Dining in Vancouver

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LotusBlossom wrote: The butternut squash prawn ravioli? I wish they'd make a gluten free version of that...
I've had that once and it was good, but I wouldn't order it again. From what I've tried, the miso salmon is my favorite...it's actually a really good dish. I shake my head at the fact that there seems to be as many CC's in Vancouver as McDonalds :eh: but they're busy and ever growing so they're clearly doing something right. The new English Bay location is always bursting at the seams, even on rainy days.

Donny - I've been to Edible again since posting about it last week ;) The service was brutal (to the point where the manager apologized and covered some of our bill), but that was the only time the service has not been great......and the food was bang on, as always.

Planning a trip to NYC in the fall. Haven't been since 2007. My restaurant list is long. Place I am most looking forward to is Eleven Madison Park - 3 Michelin stars and recently rated the 10th best restaurant in the world (2nd in North America, behind Per Se which ranked 6th)
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Re: Dining in Vancouver

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KeyserSoze wrote:
Planning a trip to NYC in the fall. Haven't been since 2007. My restaurant list is long. Place I am most looking forward to is Eleven Madison Park - 3 Michelin stars and recently rated the 10th best restaurant in the world (2nd in North America, behind Per Se which ranked 6th)

...well the general group seems to enjoy the experience, the odd voice of dissent as always but reviews look pretty damned good.

Nice principle, pick an ingredient and design your meal around it.

Cool looking place as well.

Should be a trip.

Let us know how it goes.
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Re: Dining in Vancouver

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Restaurants make mistakes, it is how they respond to those mistakes that really matters. The manager comped part of your bill, good for them. Who knows, maybe a server didn't make in that shift and the front of the house was in the weeds. Management and owners are never happy giving away food or drinks, but if it compensates for a mistake and a customer isn't lost, it is worth it in the long run.

I'd love to dine at a three star place. The chef I trained under had a two star place in France, my mentor apprenticed under Verge at his three star place. They explained the ranking this way. First star is for food, second star is for better food and now wine list and front of the house ambience and service come into play. Three star food is on par with two star but the plating and technique goes over the top. There are likely more people working in the kitchen than diners in the restaurant. Wine, service and ambience are all above and beyond.

They also noted that it is impossible for a three star place to make money, hence the existence of a smaller outlet bearing the chefs name as well as endorsement contracts, publishing deals and onward to support the business.

edit: looked at the web site, as Donny said, interesting concept, here's a list of ingredients, tell us what you love and what you hate and we'll cook for you.

On a side note. I don't like the current fad of landscape plating. disjointed scatterings of little picture perfect bites around the plate. Nor am I a fan of the overly thick sauces that have more of a puree consistency to them. I wasn't a fan of the high tower piled up plate with six different flavoured oils squeezed out of bottles either. The pendulum, as always, has swung to far.
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Re: Dining in Vancouver

Post by donlever »

...I'd be interested in your opinion of Homero Cantu (and the molecular gastronomy fad/phase) Topper.
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Re: Dining in Vancouver

Post by Potatoe1 »

The Best Dining in Vancouver this weekend was in my back yard.

Picked up a new Kamado style grill /smoker and made some of the most delicious veggies, salmon and steak I have ever eaten.

I had 10 friends standing around, drooling, while they waited for the next batch of stuff to come out.

I don't think I will ever go back to a gas grill, I actually cant believe the difference the grill and some wood chips made.
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Re: Dining in Vancouver

Post by LotusBlossom »

Topper wrote:....

On a side note. I don't like the current fad of landscape plating. disjointed scatterings of little picture perfect bites around the plate. Nor am I a fan of the overly thick sauces that have more of a puree consistency to them. I wasn't a fan of the high tower piled up plate with six different flavoured oils squeezed out of bottles either. The pendulum, as always, has swung to far.
I am taking a plating course, and I have been discussing things with my father about how to plate meals, and he said it's completely different now than when he was working. Interesting you feel this way, because I'm feeling extremely overwhelmed with stuff I have learned with my dad, and how we used to plate things when he catered from time to time and how things are plated today. I guess it depends what the ambiance of the restaurant is, or what type of event that night... too many different styles, so much to learn :(

A restaurant related question here has anyone tried Ki at the Shangri-La? I am reading it's modern Japanese, but the ones I have been to recently in LA and when we were in Malibu, was a little disappointing. So I've stuck to eating at the tradition sushi and Japanese places in Vancouver. Would anyone recommend trying it out that has been?
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Re: Dining in Vancouver

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Donny - Molecular gastronomy.

My science background really influences my interest in food. I want to know why some flavours work well together, and why some don't. I want to know what is happening when food cooks and how it cooks. Chefs have done this for millennia. Dry heat vs moist heat cooking of meats and developing bread doughs are two examples. Chefs use thickeners, flour, corn starch, agar agar, all very natural.

I love the idea of an immersion cooker and often thought of making one when I was in culinary school, but I also recognize that meat needs some browning to develop flavours.

Where I have my problem with what now dubbed "modern cuisine" is the chemistry set in the pantry to make pearls and powders from liquids. To me that is not food.

Spud - Komado style grill.

Congrats. A friend in Calgary bought a Big Steel Keg a couple of years ago. Definitely the best style of charcoal grill available. From slow cooked 200F(10-20hr) bbq to 600F+ flash grilling, those grills are the cats meow.

When I visited my fiend, I made an apricot stuffed lamb loin on it. He said he was doing pizza once week on his last summer.

Often I'll but a pan of smoking chips under the grill and on top of the burners of my gas grill, but it isn't the same.

LB - plating

Sight and smell have such a huge impact on our taste of food, plating is critical. My tastes and styles are probably very traditional. There is a reason things become traditional and that is because they work. I like my flavours to combine on the plate. To me, that is what differentiates each course of a dinner. A dominant flavour, with three or for complimentary flavours and some contrasting textures. Get all of those in each bite and you have a successful plate.

The current landscape style with thick sauces looks more like an attempt to combine three tasting menu courses on one plate. Thomas Keller said that when he put together the tasting menu for the French Laundry, ideally he would have liked one bite courses but settled on two to three bites because he felt that after one bite the surprise and excitement of the flavour was gone.

I mentioned a few days ago that I was happy to see terrines come back into vogue. I have had some good discussions with a foodie friend who is into all these new fads. A couple of years ago it was sausages and slow cooking, now its nose to tail eating.

It is probably because I trained under classic French chefs with firm roots in neuvelle cuisine (fresh ingredients, sauces naturally thickened instead of using a roux, olive oil instead of butter and cream), that I don't follow many of these trends.

I made my own prosciutto, several types of sausages, and rillette long before charcuterie became a fad. In the restaurant we always used the animal nose to tail, it was called controlling your food costs. We made a duck sausage for a special seven course dinner we did for a winery. Duck being so lean, we brought in pigs feet for the gelatin to bind the duck meat, moisture and flavour in the sausage. We made and served terrines for appys.

I consider all of this to be part of a chef's tool kit and part of a varied and interesting menu while sitting back and watching the popularity rise and fall with fashion.
Last edited by Topper on Fri Jun 01, 2012 11:10 am, edited 1 time in total.
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