Italian Kitchen, Coming Soon, Victoria report, seafood menus, Four Seasons reno, Stichelton at Salt, Golden Mile Cellars, St. Hubertus Rose

RESTAURANT UPDATE

OFFICIAL RELEASE FOR ITALIAN KITCHEN


The Glowbal Group has released the official announcement of their latest restaurant, Italian Kitchen, and it looks like the by-invitation only party will take place on August 29th.

ITALIAN KITCHEN OFFERS A TASTE OF LA DOLCE VITA
(Directly from the Press Release)

Vancouver, BC (August 17, 2007): A spectacular coalescence of old-world charm and new-world sophistication, Italian Kitchen arrives in downtown Vancouver as part of the Glowbal Restaurant Group's successive expansion through Vancouver's most vibrant neighbourhoods.

The latest newcomer to Vancouver's prolific restaurant scene, Italian Kitchen will feature a multi-regional modern Italian menu dished up in ultra-sleek surroundings conceived by Emad Yacoub and Shannon Bosa Yacoub's Glowbal Restaurant Group collection (glowbal grill & satay bar, AFTERglow, COAST Restaurant, Sanafir Restaurant & Lounge, Glowbal Catering) and crafted by Box Interior Design. ... TO CONTINUE READING.



Filed in DAILY NEWS/Greater Details .... and RESTAURANTS/ News and Rumours.


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DINE AND DASH
SOME THINGS YOU MAY NOT KNOW YET


Over on Beatty St., the city’s most popular little hole in the wall, the Kolachy Shop, has papered over its windows and posted a sign on the door stating that it will be reopened in September with a new look, a new menu and a new name - Kolachy Co. A peek inside at the renos reveals a major face lift going on. It looks like they have moved the serving counter way back into the space and are making room for tables in the front

Looking for a perfect restaurant for a secret rendezvous? Newly renovated and renamed La Vallée in the Executive Inn Vintage Park (1379 Howe Street) may suit you if you're looking for a new dining spot for any occasion. Sibling to San Francisco's famed Masa's, the menu features “contemporary wine country cuisine� inspired by Napa, Columbia and Okanagan Valley wines.

Sometimes a name like Pie by Night Pizzeria (1147 Granville Street) is enough to get us in the door. Happily the pizzas are decent too. These ones are of the thin crust variety and almost healthy -- toppings are fresh and there is no oil or sugar in the dough. Clubsters will be pleased to note the hours: they're open from 4:30 p.m. to 4 a.m. daily.

Construction is already underway for a new Cactus Club at the Bentall Centre on Burrard St.

In Yaletown, the space briefly occupied by Diner and then Lucky Diner has been leased by the people who also own the Queens Cross Pub in North Vancouver. Apparently they intend to turn it into a wine bar and tapas place. Banano’s Caribbean restaurant on Pacific is now gone and Salsa and Agave (presumably offering something in a Mexican theme), will be moving in shortly.

Schnitzelz is due to open on Denman, north of Robson, and is speculated to be part of a German cuisine-style chain.

Desi’s Downtown has opened in space once occupied by Ambrozia.

Thirty-four-year restaurant vet, Afghan Horseman has relocated from Broadway and Cambie to lofty digs at the entrance to Granville Island (202-1833 Anderson).

With a mandate of serving organic, fair trade coffee direct from farmers in developing countries, Yaletown's AGRO Café has expanded to a second location on Granville Island (1363 Railspur Alley). In addition to excellent organic coffee, almost everything else on the casual breakfast-through-dinner menu is organic too, including beer and wine.

Kicking up the heat in Kerrisdale is Suvai at 2279 West 41st Avenue. There's much to like about this classic French eatery opened by Sri Lankan-born, recent Toronto escapee and former Mildred Pierce exec chef, Segar Kulasegarampillai. There'll be even more to like soon in the form of a very good wine list. Word out of Toronto has it that he makes a wicked cassoulet.

In the pipeline: Linda Meinhardt of Meinhardt's on Granville is opening a fine-foods store at 3151 Arbutus Street next to the Ridge theatre next spring.

Cute-as-a-button Oyaji Zushi in the Waterfall building at 1542 West 2nd Avenue, is already drawing a roster of regulars with goodies such as the tuna crunch Oz roll (unagi and garlic chips), donburi, udon, and lovely sashimi. Eat in or take out.

Joining Yew Street's hill-climbing restaurant row is chipper little Sea Shanty Fish & Chips (1629 Yew Street). Decked out in the usual salty memorabilia, the shop serves reliable cod (or halibut) and chips, plus side orders of mushy peas and poutine. If you're lucky, you might score a streetside patio table.

49th Parallel Coffee Roasters is opening a coffee house at 2152 West 4th and it should be open by mid-September. It will serve all of the coffees that they supply to Artigiano and coffee houses, restos and stores around B.C., Portland, Calgary, Laval, Brooklyn and NYC.

Bean Around the World vacated their location at 3007 Granville Street amid controversy after a large rent increase. They've moved one block south under the new name Phoscao Café. This came about because allegedly, Cowboy Coffee, the Bean Around the World franchiser, did not approve of the new location.

If you're in the mood for a cuppa, check out just-opened T Room (4445 West 10th Avenue) for lovely pastries, daily fresh croissants, as well as soups, salads, and sandwiches. Tea (and high tea too) is served indoors and in the garden.


Filed by Judith Lane and Rhonda May

Filed in DAILY NEWS/Dine and Dash ... and RESTAURANTS/News and Rumours.



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REGIONAL REPORT - VICTORIA

Vancouver isn't the only place sporting new restaurants, Victoria is getting its fair share too. Beyond Stage and Red Fish, Blue Fish, which we profiled earlier, Holly Lenk has sent us a long report on others such as Niche, Bon Rouge and Jack's Place. Plus she adds information on new winery cafes, a cidery on Vancouver Island, and the latest on such upcoming events as the Vancouver Island Feast of Fields, The Great Canadian Beer Festival and the Cowichan Food and Wine Festival. There's more as well, but too much to list today on the lead page. Read it in the Victoria Section Here.

Also, we sure to check our Victoria and Vancouver Island Calendars of Events which we update on a regular basis.

Filed in REGIONAL/ Victoria

THE MEDIA HOUND

Alexandra Gill tries the Dungeness crab dishes on offer at Prima Taste, Sea Harbour Seafood Restaurant, Senova and Elixir.

Fried, Simmered and Sauteed: the best in Crab. (The Globe and Mail, August 15, 2007)

For more on the Chili Crab Festival at Prima Taste, click here.

Our thanks to Judith Lane for sending us the amuse-gueule of the day: Police Qualify as Sommeliers to Combat Wine Fraud.





TODAY'S PRESS RELEASES - comments from the Foodatrix (chops, slices, dices)


The Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver has issued a press release today on the renovations it plans to make in November for the hotel's restaurant and lobby areas. You can read the details here.

Pretty straightforward stuff, however we did find some amusement in the last two lines.

"Executive Chef Rafael Gonzalez's food is intensely flavorful. "Vancouver is a melting pot of so many cultures." says Chef Gonzalez. "I want to respect the integrity of the flavours of the natural ingredients, but make them dance on the plate. I'm bringing fresh, local and new to the table."

"Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver has been a part of the community for over 31 years and this renovation is significant." says General Manager Guy Rigby. "This isn't just a renovation; we are adding a whole new flavour to the city".

This is a lot of pompous press rhetoric of course, but in a city like Vancouver which has seen approximately 100 new restaurant openings in less than one year, Executive Chefs and Hotel General Managers are going to have to do more to prove they are bringing something fresh, local and most of all NEW to the city, than just saying so.

If anything, the Four Season's entry into the game seems lamely late out of the gate. No doubt the design of the new arrangement will be pleasing to the eye, and there is no question that the Four Seasons was long overdue for a sock pull up in their interior design department, but the expensive results will probably be identical to that of every other corporate entity out to prove that Vancouver is a "world class city". Why else hire designers from San Francisco unless to ensure that the hotel conforms to the chain's identity as exhibited by their other properties world wide.

Ironically however, it may have been the old Chartwell restaurant that actually brought something unique to the table. Soul wasn't the least of it. Neither was the community involvement exhibited when Chefs Wayne Clark or Doug Anderson were in the kitchen and Ruy Paes Braga ruled the roost.

There wasn't anything like it in the past. Let's hope that's still not the case in the future.



Oh Lordie. I'm thinking that everyone wants to be a food writer these days. But no, I'm wrong. What everyone really wants to be is a celebrity chef with their own show on television. This could get brilliant or brutal.






SALT SINGS THE BLUES, SAXON STYLE!
(Directly from the Press Release)

Salt Tasting Room is proud to announce that it has received a delivery of a very rare English blue cheese.

Stichelton, (the old Saxon name for town of Stilton), is the love child of the combined passion of leading UK cheesemakers Joe Schneider and Randolph Hodgson (owner of Neal’s Yard Dairy).

Stilton cheese, like Champagne, is strictly controlled, i.e. must use pasteurized milk and synthetic rennet. Stichelton is made from unpasteurized organic milk & animal rennet, and is in essence the way that Stilton used to be.

It is 20 years since England produced raw-milk Stilton, so tasting Stichelton is like tasting a piece of lost history. .... CONTINUE READING.


FILED IN FOOD/Peak of the Season


































BC WINES

WHAT WERE THEY THINKING?

Is this a call for a return to classic, elegant, even if conservative, wine label art?
Love the winery and its wines. We're not so sure about this new image for Golden Mile Cellars. Even though we've been known to break a few "rules" ourselves.

What do you think? Send us an email at contact@cityfood.com. Love it or lose it?

We'll take a poll and let you know what the result is. Read the Tasting Notes Here.

Filed in DRINK/Obscure BC Wineries





THIS WEEK'S ROSE PICK

ST. HUBERTUS GAMAY NOIR ROSE
Okanagan BC, 2006

Go Canucks! When we hear Gamay in terms of wine, most of us associate it with those from Beaujolais, France (and Beaujolais Nouveau). Here in British Columbia we often see this light to medium-bodied red wine labeled simply as "Gamay Noir", but its official name is Gamay Noir à Jus Blanc. ... TO CONTINUE READING.

Listed in DRINK/A Bouquet of Rose

PLACES:

1) TransContinental - Restaurant, Gastown, Vancouver
2) Boneta - Restaurant, Gastown, Vancouver
3) Stage - Restaurant, Victoria
4) Cobre- Restaurant, Gastown, Vancouver
5) Deuce - Restaurant, North Vancouver

THINGS:

1) Canadian Barista Championship
2) Sardine Festival in Steveston
3) Solly's @ Night
4) 2007 cocktail trends
5) City Dine Event

MOST INEXPLICABLE CONNECTION:

None today

NUMBER OF COUNTRIES LOGGING IN: 122
NUMBER OF CITIES WORLDWIDE (visiting yesterday): 74 (#74 was San Francisco, California)