DINE AND DASH - (November 18, 2008) RESTAURANT CLOSINGS
Has Aurora Bistro closed?
That was a question that has been showing up on our keyword search box for the past week, although we didn't take it seriously. Rumours persist however, that Chef Jeff van Geest has indeed closed his Main Street restaurant and that the staff are already out looking for other work.
Hopefully if true this is not some sad end, but actually an indicator of healthy change or maybe bigger things to come. We'll keep you posted.
ADDED: This official announcement confirming the closure came in this morning (November 19) Aurora Bistro Announcement
After more than five years of operation in Vancouver’s emergent Main Street neighbourhood, Aurora Bistro has closed its doors. Aurora Bistro opened in June 2003 to rave reviews and has remained a popular regional restaurant winning numerous awards.
Despite the restaurant’s broad following and significant acclaim, it recently became evident that the business could no longer remain profitable and continue to operate.
To close the restaurant was a difficult decision to make, but after committing five years to Aurora as a hard-working chef and active restaurant owner, Jeff Van Geest is ready for a fresh start and welcomes more time to spend with his family.
“I want to thank my incredible staff for their hard work and dedication to Aurora. I also want to sincerely thank our suppliers, customers, our dear industry friends and the food and wine media for their amazing support over the years” says Van Geest.
COMMENT: We can't tell you how sad we are to get this news. In this economy, it was inevitable that vulnerable restaurants (read small, independent places stretching to maintain high standards) would feel the effects. And the closure of any restaurant that has given it their best feels like a little death, but we are especially sad to see this happen to Aurora Bistro - one of the brightest lights on the BC regional food scene. We wish Chef Jeff and his team the four R's: much good rest, recouping, reinvention and a return to us in the future.
Chef Ned Bell of Cabana Bar and Grille has won the jazz improv record for this year’s longest trumpet solo with his recent, opera-length press release. Perhaps only his Mom could have made it to the end of that one, but the short version is that the launch this summer of his Kelowna bistro was very well received by both locals and tourists, he’s got plenty of irons in the fire for the future, and has obviously hired a public relations person to tell us all about it.
We ran into Ned at the Penticton Farmer’s Market last Saturday and beyond his numerous aspirations for Cabana, he seemed most excited about the developing chefs’ scene in the Okanagan. Cabana will be hosting the next meeting of the small but quickly expanding Okanagan Chefs Collabortive, and in an even bigger scenerio, Kelowna will be the host city for an assembly of the Canadian Chefs Association in June 2009.
If that doesn’t focus a spotlight on the Valley’s food and restaurant scene, we can’t think what will. Unless it is the Olympics.
Last weekend the Penticton Chronicle newspaper ran a cover story about how both Kelowna and Penticton will need to shore up operations at their respective airports in order to be ready for the games. Both terminals now feature direct flights to the US, and with Vancouver International expected to be clogged and overwhelmed by extra traffic and long, intense security checks come February 2010, the Okanagan is expected to be the preferred gateway for International visitors arriving on their own private planes.
Meaning of course, a sudden flow of well-heeled travelers who could be encouraged to stay on a few days to ski, and/or check out the local wineries and restaurants.
You can bet Ned Bell will be ready, but in the meantime, he’s thinking a bit closer to home. He says he would like to work with the FarmFolk/CityFolk people to develop a Feast of Fields Okanagan. (He’s participated in every version across Canada, including Toronto’s.) And, considering the quality of the Penticton and Kelowna Farmers’ Markets, we think he has a good point.
Back in Vancouver … Zin Restaurantand Lounge (in the Pacific Palisades Hotel) may not be known by that name for much longer. The Robson street restaurant is currently working on plans for a re-branding which will include: a new name, a new menu concept (they’re apparently going to follow the local westcoast and sustainable route more devotedly), and of course, a new chef in Karen Gin. It could happen anytime between now and next Spring …they just need to get a green light from the Kimpton Hotels Group, the owner of the Palisades.
As we can see from their latest release, the Loden Hotel is finally predicting a mid-October opening.
Better late than never? Maybe not so much for chef Marc-Andre Choquette.
According to a phone call we received today from a high profile US food publication, they may be considering adding a Canadian chef to their top ten line up of "New Chefs To Watch", and Choquette was one of the Vancouver chef's they were inquiring about.
Granted that's a whole country of chefs to compete with for the one potential spot, but the greater barrier for Choquette is that in order the qualify, the chef must have been cooking at the restaurant for a minimum of one year.
In the photo: almond croissants are a specialty of the Cafe de France.
DINE AND DASH - (September 10, 2008)
Checking over yesterday's posting we realized we'd created the wrong website link for R.TL (see below). Making the correction led to new information:
1) the framework of a resto blog that refers to an owner with connections to Dubai; a question (good one) "How do you get a landlord to pick your restaurant over a Starbucks"; and 165 responses from automated spam engines.
2) and on the home page, an insignia for an R.TL Magazine. Presumably this is so they can print their own story.
Let's just say a work in progress .... (more on this later.)
Oh yes, also forgot to mention yesterday that all the desserts for R.TL will be supplied by Yaletown's Chocolatl.
Every food writer's quandary ... sometimes in our research we come across a discovery we'd rather selfishly keep to ourselves. But then we think about duty, obligation to our readers, yada, yada, and well, here's today's reluctant posting ...
Just wait until the coffee addicts lining up at the 858 Beatty Street Starbucks find out there is a much better option just around the corner and up one block at Smithe and Cambie. What used to be a little homespun effort called the Edge Cafe is now the third installation of Cafe de France (the original is on Mainland street in Yaletown, the second on Hornby and Nelson St.).
Why is it better than Starbucks? Let us count the ways: less crowded, less noise, free newspapers and wireless internet, more comfortable seating, fresh sandwiches served on French baguettes, coffee for on-site drinking served in thick china cups. All that, and less expensive too. And did we mention the pastries? No plastic Starbucks fare here. The baked goods come from the company's own affiliate of Boulangerie la Parisienne.
Most of all, we appreciate the two darling Japanese girls who manage to complete your coffee order without barking out your personal java peculiarities for the world to hear.
DINE AND DASH - (September 2, 2008) REGALADE HAS AN ASIAN TWIN. WHO KNEW?
We had no idea that West Vancouver's La Regalade had a sister restaurant in the Philippines, but according to this website, they do. (Lead from Cate Simpson.) (Photo of restaurant from Restaurant-Dining Critiques.)
Luck Sarabhayavanija has said farewell to OThai restaurant, citing a disagreement with investors who want to take the Kitsilano restaurant in “a different direction”. Apparently they feel Vancouver doesn’t need another Thai restaurant, and have a family/west coast casual theme in mind. (Well, we certainly do not have enough of those, do we?) We wish both Luck and his wife Anne much good fortune in any future endeavor they chose to undertake. Life keeps moving forward….the couple recently celebrated the addition of a third child to their family.
Red X Red the new Tapas Lounge and Vodka Bar on Granville Street will be holding their grand opening on Thursday, September 4th. See the details on the restaurant here.
DINE AND DASH -(August 22, 2008) THE GIRLS ARE GETTING AROUND.
Latest rumours ...
Carol Chow has left the Quattro family of restaurants and is now at the Sequoia Grill(Teahouse) in Stanley Park.
Lynda LaRouche, who was once the Executive Chef of the Teahouse, has left Watermark Restaurant on Kits Beach, destination unknown.
Karen Gin (formerly with Diva at the Metropolitan) is the new Executive Chef of Zin restaurant, at the Pacific Palisades Hotel. (This last one is confirmed.)
...The 2010 Olympic Games are going “organic" by namingHain Celestial Canada as the “official supplier of natural and organic packaged grocery products". The agreement with Hain Celestial -- known for such products as Yves Veggie Cuisine, Terra Chips, Earth'sBest baby food and Imagine Soups – not only has received exclusive Official Supplier sponsorship and promotional rights in the organic category for the 2010 Winter Games, they also get sponsorship rights for the Canadian Olympic team for Beijing 2008, and London2012. As would be expected in these cases, capacity for quantity trumps quality, not to mention the size of the cheque books involved. Other food companies that have contracted similar deals with VANOC include Coca-Cola, McDonald’s restaurants, General Mills, Saputo and Weston Bakeries.
In a letter posted on the Food & Winewebsite, by Associate Editor Ratha Tep entitled “Why I Want to Move To Canada’s Wine Country", Ms. Tep declares …
“Last week, when I visited British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley—an up-and-coming wine region a five-hour drive east of Vancouver—the jaw-dropping views made me want to ditch cramped NYC and permanently perch myself on top of one of its hillsides. Or at least have a picnic and take dozens of shots with my camera. Note: The best views are at Gray Monk Estate Winery, known for its delicate Pinot Auxerrois, and at the supertiny Arrowleaf Cellars, which conveniently has red picnic tables overlooking the Okanagan Lake. But the best fusion of wine and sights on my trip was at the grand Mission Hill Winery, with its sprawling Spanish-Moderne buildings (including a 12-story bell tower), Chagall tapestry and crisp, peachy Grand Reserve Chardonnay. And yes, there’s an awesome view of the vast Okanagan Lake, and, new this summer—with that view as a backdrop—food and wine–themed movies like No Reservations and A Good Year playing in its outdoor amphitheater in the evenings.”
In an earlier letter on Vancouver’s Asian restaurant scene, she gives the chopsticks up rating to Shanghai River of Richmond, Japa Dog, Tojo’s, Motomachi Shokudo, and Kintaro.
Restaurants in the King Country area of Washington State are going to have to get bigger signage. A five-month phase in of requirements for food nutrition labeling begins tomorrow (August 1) that will require some 1,700 local restaurants to comply with the following new rules which must be in full effect by January 1, 2009:
For full service restaurants with more than 15 locations that offer similar menu items, nutrition information must be printed in one of five different formats: 1.) on the menu. 2.) In an appendix to the menu. 3.) In a supplemental menu. 4.) In a menu insert. 5.) At an electronic kiosk at each table. For fast food restaurants with more than 15 locations that offer similar menu items, nutrition information must be posted inside restaurants only. (Drive-throughs are exempt until August 1, 2009).
The restaurant community is grumbling, but imagine if they lived here and also had to do it all in French!
And did we mention this one?
Starwood Capital Group and Marine Drive Properties announced that the $200 million dollar hotel-condominium development at Wyndansea Oceanfront Golf Resort (located next to Pacific Rim National Park and home to the Jack Nicklaus Golf Club) will be known as the 1 Hotel Vancouver Island at Wyndansea.
1 Hotel and Residences is a global luxury hotel brand that focuses on environmentally sustainable architecture and interior design. In addition to its 180 suites and 95 Beach and Golf Villas, 1 Hotel Vancouver Island will feature an eco-conscious spa, fitness facility and salt water pools. The restaurant and wine bistro will feature locally sourced foods and wine (natch). Other resort amenities are expected to include a deep-water marina for luxury yachts, resort clubhouse and seaplane service from downtown Vancouver.
(Marine Drive Properties is also the developer of Tauca Lea Resort and Spa in Ucluelet.)
Word out of Seattle is that Chef Kerry Sear is selling his Cascadia building and location and moving his restaurant operation back under the roof of the Four Seasons Hotel Seattle, taking on the title of Hotel Executive Chef in the process. Here's a statement from the real estate blog www.urbanashley.com.
"..Kerry Sear, the owner and chef of Cascadia Restaurant in Belltown is selling the space where the restaurant is located (2328 First Ave- 1st between Bell and Battery) and transitioning to the Four Seasons Hotel and Private Residences to become the executive chef of the hotel and director of food and beverage for the hotel and residences.
The restaurant is listed for $1.25 million but Sear is not interested in selling the name or menu. Prior to owning and operating Cascadia, Sear spent 15 years working with Four Seasons in Vancouver B.C, Toronto and Seattle, and will continue to focus on Northwest cuisine with ingredients from local markets, ranchers and farmers.
Cascadia will remain open until the space sells so if you are looking forward to their awesome Happy Hour (mini-burgers, my fav) on a beautiful summer evening…you better not waste anytime! ..."
One needs a play book these days to keep track of what winery is playing on who's agency team. The latest rumour from the wine industry (unconfirmed) is that Charles Heidsieck and Piper Heidsieck Champagnes are leaving their former Vancouver agents, Maxxium, and taking their account to Select Wine Merchants – the take over happens June 1. Select has confirmed that they have hired on Scott Oliver (of Fosters) as their new COO.
Details on the new Blackberry 9000 a.k.a. "the Bold" were released yesterday (skip the Salon ad), and one of the reasons given for the effort put into its stylish design was due to consumer desire for something that looked "fierce when they put it down on a restaurant table". In honour of the Bold, we link to this You Tube video. Nothing to do with food, we just think it's cute.
Thierry Busset, Cin Cin’s top drawer pastry chef is in Paris today, finalizing the purchase of some very specialized cooking equipment. He’ll need them when he and Jack Evrensel (owner of Top Table Group Restaurants) open their new haute pastry and chocolate shop in Vancouver. No location has been announced yet (they are still finalizing the real estate deal), but we can expect to be buying the city’s best gateaux before summer. The name of the new shop? “Thierry”, but of course.
If you have been wondering what Chef Connor Butler has been up to lately in his baroque restaurant lair near the entrance to the Granville St. bridge, then just ask Nancy. Public relations whiz Nancy Wong has just taken on the eccentrically talented and ponytailed chef as her latest client. Other local restaurants represented by Wong include Wild Rice, Cobre, Provence and Provence Marinaside.
George Brown chefs school (the Centre for Hospitality and Culinary Arts at George Brown College) in Toronto is thinking internationally. They have just organized a study exchange program for their students for study in Piedmont and Emilia-Romagna via a collaborative agreement with the Slow Food University of Gastronomic Sciences in Italy. In addition to the student exchange program, the agreement with George Brown College will create further training and program-development opportunities between the two schools. A similar exchange program has also been developed between George Brown and one of India’s top culinary training institutions. As referred to in an article by James Chatto in the February 2008 issue of Toronto Life, haute Indian cuisine is the big, hot thing in Hogtown right now, with several Vij's-like eateries having opened throughout the city in recent months. To further assist their Canadian students in exploring the intricacies of Indian cuisine as an accredited course study, George Brown has even installed an authentic tandoori oven in its Toronto kitchen.
Hart House restaurant in Burnaby has officially announced the appointment of Edwyn Kumar as General Manager. Kumar is well known and respected on the local culinary scene, having previously served as restaurant director of CinCin and Lumière."
After ten years on the air, the CBC has cancelled food journalist Don Genova's Food For Thought column. The last one should air today on BC Almanac around 12:50 p.m. It's a retrospective of Genova's best moments on the show. If you miss it, or want to know more about what Don is doing now, you may visit his blog posting at: http://blog.dongenova.com/2008/03/food-for-thou-3.html where you will also find links to his All You Can Eat podcasts. The cancellation is part of a larger plan to cut back on existing programming and to skew future content towards a younger demographic of listeners. Expect to hear about the cancellation of more very popular (and award-winning) programs in the next couple of months. As one middle-aged acquaintance grouched to us recently "If all the commercial stations want to aim everything at teenagers, then that is their privilege. They have advertisers to support that. But the CBC is funded by tax payers' dollars, mostly people with demographics like me, and we deserve to have something intelligent to listen to!"
Latest gossip from the Lumiere camp is that David Sidoo has just hired wine guy Bruce Stephen to work for the restaurant in a management consultant capacity. (Possibly to assist with the hiring of new managers for both Lumiere and Feenie's, although this part is second hand information, so apologies to any current managers for whom this may be news.]
Although Stephen has lately been on the scene as a wine writer for such publications as Vancouver Lifestyles, his background is in restaurant and hotel management. Previous employers have included the Sutton Place Hotel, Joe Fortes restaurant,and the Four Seasons Hotels.
What else? Well, there's talk about changing the name of Feenie's as the Sidoos continue their campaign to remove the "Iron Chef'"s tattoo from his former restaurants. Wonder what they have done about Rob's initials that were welded onto the stainless steel ovens in the million dollar Lumiere kitchen? Probably crowbared off by now. [According to a response to this posting, word on the street is that the initials were removed from the ovens the day Feenie left.]
[We may be able to check this out ourselves as the cameras follow Chef Dale Mackay as he squires TV personality Glada De Laurentiis through the Lumiere kitchen and the newly renovated Tasting Bar on the Food Network (Sunday January 27th at 2:30 pm DT/PT/) ]
Outgoing manager Sebastien Le Goff's last day at the restaurant will be February 5th.
Finally: For a laugh read this. Nice try, "Sandy". Beyond the obvious (every second word), proof positive that you are not a restaurant reviewer is in calling squid linguine innovative. Either that or you were a zygote in the '80s.
RESTAURANT SNEAK PEEK PINKYS STEAK HOUSE (Wednesday, December 12, 2007)
It won't be "officially" open for business until after December 19th, but Pinkys Steakhouse, the new restuarant to move into the space vacated by LK Dining Lounge on "the block too far" in Yaletown, is already operating and serving from their temporary menu.
A sneak peek last night revealed two very promising features. 1) They will be serving an organic, 12 oz Porterhouse steak, and 2) if you can't finish it (or any of their other steaks), the kitchen will finely slice the remains, place it in a sourdough loaf, along with some other fixings, and can you trot on home with a subway sandwich all primed for the next day's lunch ... or the midnight growlies, which ever comes first. We like!
Italian To Go, the sidekick to Italian Kitchen on Alberni Street, is now open for business, serving quick, casual meals for eat-in or takeout.
Chow restaurant at 15th and Granville reports that their second round of sound proofing has just been completed and it's made a marked improvement in the ambience. If the noise level put you off this small but promising restaurant before, maybe a second look would be in order. A good excuse for a revisit would be to check out their Christmas Shoppers' lunch menu. (Scroll down this page to see the menu.) Sounds so good you may forego the shopping.
It sounds like Rob Feenie's PR company may have a new press release in the works ... oh Gawd, what now?
The latest from Craigslist ... "Due to open in January, Fraiche Restaurant and Lounge boasts an incredible view of the ocean, Lion's Gate bridge and the Vancouver skyline. A state of the art open kitchen and contemporary dining room and lounge will provide a great atmosphere for staff and patrons. The listing also promises candidates "the opportunity to work with a successful and renowned Chef and professional management."
Also from CL ...Here's a good job for anyone who can boast good contacts with local suppliers and who doesn't feel queasy on a waterbed.
The Loden Hotel is advertising for employees again (this one is for an assistant restaurant manager, although they need a pastry chef too), so the wheels must be creaking forward on that stalled project again.
RESTAURANT NEWS ITS A BABY BOOM ! - Glowbal Restaurant to Open Next Restaurant on West 4th Ave. November 22, 2007, 2 p.m.
...and there are even more babies heading this way ... and this time the bundle has the Glowbal Restaurant Group's name on the label. No births yet, let's just say they are expecting. We hear that the Glowbal Group has just acquired the lease to the old Chianti'sRestaurant space on West 4th Avenue, and this will become the site of their next restaurant in 2008. No details yet as to name or theme, but these are expected to be announced shortly. The rumour is that it will be similar to Italian Kitchen, only more rustic -- less cocktail trendy, more trattoria-style. Watch this space for more.
No one can say the company is not prolific. They opened their most recent restaurant, Italian Kitchen, late last summer, and its adjoining take out cafe, Italian To Go, is scheduled to open on December 3rd.
DINE AND DASH - Tuesday, November 20, 2007 PELICAN BRIEFS
Hey, since when did pelicans get into the act? This wasn't meant to be baby talk day at CF Online, but it's turning out that way. The latest news to drift this way is that Anthony von Mandl of Mission Hill is about to become a father. Mr. von Mandl announced this himself at the recent Mission Hill employees' harvest party. Apparently the mother of the child is a homeopathic doctor with whom he has been in a close relationship for quite some time.
It may not be what some people expected, but then every empire needs an heir apparent. Or maybe Mr. von Mandl got tired of explaining where the family part was in the MissionHill Family Estates. Perhaps the right time had just finally come. Regardless, congratulations are in order. Ring those bells, Anthony!
Yep, it's a Roman media circus out there right now.
Following Mia Stainsby's opening archery show in today's Vancouver Sun, the Sidoo's PR team strikes back with an interview with Chef Dale Mackay of Lumiere today on CityTV.
if you want to get a good gawk at Exhibit B, tune in. He'll be on the CityCooks Show with Simi Sara at 6 p.m.
Update: CityTv has confirmed that the MacKay show was taped on October 26, 2007 and that there was a gag order not to talk about Rob Feenie's impending departure from the restaurant.
Oy! This situation is turning into more and more of a farcical puppet show by the hour. Apparently Hill and Knowlton has been on the blower with every radio and TV station in town, whipping them into a frenzy about covering the "Feenie Story". The result being, that the stations are scrambling to put someone, anyone, on the air who is willing to discuss it.
Christy Clarke, for example, has booked Province restaurant critic Mark Laba on her 2:30 p.m. show on CKNW tomorrow, even though Laba admits that he hasn't crossed Lumiere's threshold in over three years. That sort of place is just not his beat. Even so, they want him to come on the show and talk about Rob Feenie anyway.
This should be good. Mark tends to say exactly what he thinks, and that could likely be something that Hill and Knowlton hadn't planned on.
Well, the truth is finally getting coughed up. The Vancouver Sun will break the "Rob Feenie is Leaving Lumiere" story in tomorrow's (Saturday's) edition of their paper. However, the whole article is already available online.
And just when we were about to say that we thought it was going to be the Globe and Mail who was going to have the honours, we see that the G&M has also rushed Alexandra Gill's version into print. Not to our surprise, none of it is much different than what we first guessed back in September 26th.
Feenie is scheduled to appear tomorrow at noon on the Best of Food and Wine Show with Anthony Gismondi and Kasey Wilson (CFUN 1410), although he has stated that "he is NOT going to talk about it". Well, we wish him luck with that one.
Quite frankly we are happy to hear the end of this business.
Rob, we sincerely wish you all the best in your future endeavours. Mr and Mrs Sidoo, we wish you good luck, period! Chef Dale Mackay, we wish you hadn't had to walk into this mess.
UPDATE: Aw, now wait a gall darn minute. This story isn't over yet. We can feel it in our bones. Does anyone else smell a ploy here?
We're not accustomed to receiving full press releases on restaurant furniture so we were not sure what to expect, but this is what the new chairs at Nu restaurantactually look like. Not quite what we had imagined, but interesting in their own quirky sort of way.
A sort of new Nu renew, they are not actually new chairs, but rather the old ones with a new ergonomic backing pad. The addition is meant to give fuller support to the lumbar region, and hopefully to prevent customers from lumbaring right off their seats, as some have been reported to do after a cocktail or two or three.
We think they look a little like someone has left their alligator purse or briefcase behind them while making a quick trip to the powder room, and we suppose if they were real croc hide, some people might try to pinch them for conversion for just that purpose. But no, in keeping with Nu's conservationist policies, the material is jungle faux. Which also means there will be no stock of crocodile steaks in the freezer for any upcoming big game dinners.
P.S. Our CFOL readers are applauding Nu for finding a way to recycle the chairs instead of throwing them into the landfill, and that yes, they are a lot more comfortable now.
Italian Kitchen's New Bambino
Yes, even though it is barely a couple month's old itself, Italian Kitchen already has a little panini in the oven, so to speak.
Italian Kitchen's owner, Glowbal Group, took over the space next door to the Kitchen on Alberni Street and have been renovating it to become Italian To Go, a chic but casual cafe that will serve espressos, cappuccinos and other Italian coffee drinks. It will also offer soups, panini sandwiches and quick eating items that may be eaten on premise or taken away.
One happy rumour is that Italian Kitchen's famous kobe meatballs and some of their pasta sauces may even be available packaged up as cook-at-home freezer items, so when your Italian mother-in-law comes over for dinner you can lie like stink.
There's nothing to see at the moment, the facade is still covered over with paper. But expect to hear about an opening in only a couple of weeks or so.
W and S Almost Ready to Open
Is South Granville becoming a Mecca for happy homemakers, or what?
Joining the retail row of luxury home furnishings outlets in the area is a new 3,500 square foot retail space for Williams and Sonoma, the successful kitchen and tableware chain that grew from the original shop founded in California by Chuck Williams in the 1950s.
The new store will be located at 2935 Granville Street and is aiming for an opening in early December -- just in time for the Christmas shopping season. The company already has a number of stores in Alberta and Ontario, but this will be its first venture into British Columbia.
DINE AND DASH - October 26, 2007 A couple of newsworthy items came out of last night’s sold out dinner for Tinhorn CreekWinery at Le Gavroche restaurant.
The first is that Tinhorn Creek has started plans for a restaurant at the winery. The blueprints (once given the green light by the building authorities) will have room for approximately 65 seats inside the restaurant and 65 on a patio outside. It will be located near the area that now houses the winery's outdoor amphitheatre.
Tinhorn Creek will own only the property and the facilities. The restaurant operation itself will be run by Le Gavroche owner, Manuel Ferreira, making this Ferreira’s third BC restaurant after Le Gavroche (Vancouver’s West End) and Sonova (in Kerrisdale).
There is no word yet on whether Ferreira plans to do a Portuguese-style menu for the winery restaurant or if he has something else in mind. Perhaps he is still reeling from the collision he experienced only a few days ago with a large stag on the road outside of Osoyoos. An accident which totaled both his truck and the deer, but fortunately left his own person unharmed.
Now that he will be overseeing three restaurants, Ferreira is definitely going to need more help back at Le Gavroche, and he seems to have found this in the form of an all new kitchen team and front of house staff.
Former chef at Le Gav for the past 8 years, Roger LeBlanc, has left for New Brunswick and plans to open his own restaurant.
“He used to work for 16 hours a day, now he will be working 24,�? sympathizes Ferreira.
New in the top spot is Chef Stefan Pimenta. Born in New Delhi to parents of Portuguese decent, Pimenta has lived in the (previous) Portuguese colony of Goa. He has been employed at Le Gavroche for the past two years as Sous Chef and previously had worked at Circolo and Whistler’s Apres Restaurant. Before that he apprenticed for four years with Hervé Martin at L’Hermitage on Robson Street.
Starting tonight (October 26), Pimenta will feature a Wild Game tasting menu at Le Gavroche, all of it paired with wines from the restaurant's well stocked cellar, but thankfully, none of it the result of Ferreira’s frightening fender bender.
Don’t expect next year’s BC Wine and Oyster Festival to be anything like it has been for the past thirteen years. In fact, in 2008, oysters may only play a small role in it. The organizers, Liberty Wine Merchants, say that next year’s fest (to be called Taste BC 2008), will be a much larger proposition, including a wider category of edibles that will feature many kinds of local food products. The qualifier being, that the foods must be of artisan quality and must originate from BC – the better to match the BC wines, of course.
According to Liberty, as the Oyster Festival grew in popularity, it had become increasingly difficult to find a reliable supply of oysters that would be of sufficient quantity to feed the crowds. Opening up the event to other food producers will take the pressure off that situation as well as address the fact that since the festival was launched in 1994, our local food scene has expanded in many interesting directions, other than just the seafood that our province is known for.
Negotiations with the Hyatt Regency Vancouver Hotel over the booking date are still taking place, but it is expected that Taste BC 2008 will continue to run in January (possibly January 22, 2007), although it may no longer be essential to hold the event in that month. Mid-winter had originally been chosen in order to coincide with the peak of the local oyster season.
BC Children’s Hospital - Oak Tree Clinic will remain as the charity beneficiary,and CityFoodwill continue to participate as a print sponsor for the event. Ticket prices will be in the $50 range. We will have more details on the Festival later.
A great place to sleep it off…
Did you forget that The Sutton Place Hotel had plans to operate its own private wine store? After public announcements made last year, talk about the project appeared to have been sidelined while the hotel’s developers contended with various city permit and construction hurdles (some of them concerning the public sidewalk which physically bordered the shop's foundation area). Like many others in similar circumstances, these set backs to the target completion date resulted in longer delays than usual thanks to the city’s civic workers strike.
However, it would appear that the wine shop will be open soon -- perhaps in only a couple of weeks. We’ll soon have more details about this update as well.
Your Dream Boat?
Love him or hate him for the sheer impertinence of coming from “nowhere�? to star in his own Food Network cooking show, but Anthony Sedlak, Canada’s “Hot New Dish�? (the Food Network’s words, not ours), aired his new series “The Main�? today at 3:30 pm Pacific Time. (Check the scheduling for rerun times at www.foodtv.ca.) If you’ve missed your chance to ogle (or gag), you could always try to win the chance to meet Anthony aboard The Caribbean Odyssey luxury liner via a contest the Globe and Mail is currently running for a 10-day “meet the Food Network celebrity chefs�? cruise at www.globeandmail.com/sailaway.
Sure he's a rebel without a cause, but can he cook?
Speaking of the newly media-groomed Mr. Sedlak, just a question here, but why is it when they get their hands on a baby-faced chef, the first thing the stylists want to do is give him a little Rufff-rufff-ness by putting him in jeans, t-shirt and a black jacket and photograph him slumped loutishly against an exterior wall? Sedlak in particular looks like he's waiting to join a rumble between the Sharks and the Jets, while Sam Stern tends to give the impression he's just dodged his babysitter ... Oh, never mind.
Say …. "Mont d’or at $6 per 100 grams!!"
If you’ve been around the food scene for a really long time, you might have recognized Diana Becker, one of the founders and former owners of the Dubrulle Cooking School and now a culinary tour operator, smiling from the pages of Sunday’s New York Times. Becker was illustrating a story about Vancouver’s booming condo construction scene by posing in front of her new $900,000 apartment in Vancouver’s downtown Jameson House.
She was smiling broadly so we have to assume that her home's resale value must have gone up another 100 Thou or so since the shutter snapped.
DINE AND DASH - September 26, 2007 THE LEGEND OF FEENIE
We received notice this morning that the BCAMA are having their “Marketer of the Year�? Gala tonight at the Westin Bayshore. Although invited, we won’t be attending because to tell the truth, the thought of being trapped in a ballroom filled with Marketers makes us break out in hives. However, it is interesting to see that this year’s award recipient is the White Spot.
As stated in the invitation:
“The evening will feature a welcome reception, dinner and a presentation on how White Spot transformed itself from a legendary diner to a contemporary dining experience.�?
Okay, just our opinion, but should they really be getting an award for this? ... Like, isn’t that going backwards?
Whatever … White Spot Executive Chef Chuck Currie and Chef Rob Feenie will be doing the “presentation�? during the evening and they are always kind of cute together.
And speaking of Mr. Feenie …. Lately it has baffled us that so much attention has been focused on Feenie’s little conniption at the Feast of Fields event when so many bigger fireworks have been going on at Lumiere itself. And what’s up with that? According to who you talk to, or what you care to believe, the following has gone down, and all of it or none of it may be true.
Feenie is suing David and ManjySidoo (the majority owners of Lumiere, Feenie's Restaurant and Rob Feenie's trademarked name). The Sidoos are suing Feenie. Feenie is trying to find new investors to replace the Sidoos and has his big fish on the line. The Sidoos have already replaced Feenie with the new chef they have imported from New York. The New York chef has high credentials but doesn’t have a clue about what the dining scene is all about here on the Canadian westcoast. The new chef put FARMED TIGER PRAWNS FROM THAILAND on his menu. Feenie wasn’t happy about it. Feenie now only owns 20 percent of the restaurants. Feenie now only owns less than 14% of the restaurants. Feenie owns zip-all percent of the restaurants and the Sidoos are charging him to eat there. Feenie went ballistic when he saw the recent cover of Wine AccessMagazine (featuring a butler-like Feenie waiting on Mr. and Mrs Sidoo out in the middle of a vineyard). [Maybe it was the added touch of Mrs. Sidoo’s skirt slit clear up to her yahoo, but we thought that particular shot to be an even more ironic illustration than the football stance one previously published in the Vancouver Sun which made it look like Mr. Sidoo had Feenie by his kumquats.]
Oh to Hell with it…you know what we’d like to see? We’d like to see Rob Feenie walk away from the twelve course tasting menus, the Relais & Chateau, the set of expectations about Iron Chefs, the million dollar kitchen, the Van Mag Restaurant of the Year thing, and all those other heavy crosses and find himself a fun and funky little diner somewhere. Someplace on the route to the Okanagan and near a golf course, where he could chill out, get mellow and make his feenie weenies, his special sandwiches and all the things he really loves to cook. We can just see the sportcars piling up in the parking lot on a summer Friday night now.
Whatever else you might want to say about him, Rob Feenie is a damn fine cook and although we don’t have an expensive set of wheels, we’d pedal our trikes up there as fast as our little legs could go if he did.
Because what would lie at the end of that road would truly be the makings of a legendary diner.
DINE AND DASH - August 16, 2007 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.
CHRIS WHITTAKER has joined O'Douls at the Listel Hotel Vancouver. Read the press release here.
Mark Anthony Wine Stores have split up the operation of their retail wine outlets. This spring they sold the ownership of their wine import stores in Shaughnessy (King Edward), Cadboro Bay (Victoria) and White Rock to Everything Wine. They have retained the four stores selling their domestic products under the name of Artisan Wine Shops and will be adding a fifth store to that group shortly. There has been no official release on this yet, but we understand the King Ed store is already selling wines outside of the Mark Anthony portfolio, such as Summerhill.
We hear that chef Dana Reinhardt has sold her partnership in Cru to business partner and ex-marital partner Mark Taylor, leaving Taylor now as sole owner of the wine-centric restaurant on Broadway. No word on where Reinhardt may show up next. THE FOLLOWING IS A CORRECTION/CLARIFICATION TO OUR POSTING YESTERDAY FROM MARK TAYLOR CONCERNING CRU'S CURRENT CHEF: "Alana Peckham has been Chef at Cru for the last 18 months, has done a fabulous job and I'm delighted to retain her as Chef. Shaun Snelling is Sous-chef. Dana Reinhardt was an active owner, but has now stepped down."
And finally it looks like Britta Joyce has thrown in the towel with her LK Dining Loungein Yaletown– apparently to pursue philanthropic work in Africa. Chef Travis Williams and his kitchen crew will move to Nigel Pike’s CascadeRoom, a new restaurant opening on Main Street in early August. Joyce’s last project for the LK Dining Lounge will be a fund raiser for Global Partners for Development on July 14, 2007. After that, we are not sure whether she intends to close or to sell the restaurant that started out its branding as the homespun Lily Kate's and then later morphed into a Latin club-style venue.
And lastly, an update from Ken Iaci on how things are coming along since fire destroyed his Papi's Ristorante in White Rock. Ken says:
"After many requests I thought it was about time I let everyone know the status of our rebuilding. It has been almost 6 months since the fire, we finally have a tentative date of reopening. We have been told to plan our reopening for approx mid to late September. In the meantime, Claudette and I have been keeping ourselves busy in our market next door to the restaurant. We began to serve Sunday brunches 6 weeks ago and it has become a great hit. We offer a selection of Frittatas, Italian style breakfast items and Gingerbread Waffles to name a few dishes. So I have decided to take it one step further, we will be opening for dinners in the Market . Open on Wed, Thurs and Fri from 6:30 pm. I will go to the markets in the morning and select items for that evenings menu approx. 4 appetizers and 4 entrees. Colin from the Winebar will take care of service. We have approx. 20 seats so calling ahead would be recommended. We start dinners on July 6th and are almost booked out for opening night. I'm very excited about the concept. it will be very casual but I promise you a great flavourful and creative dinner. Reservations are available by calling the Market @ 604 277-7444. We look forward to seeing eveyone. We would also like to thank everyone for their well wishes and support. Claudette and I so fortuate to have so many great friends of Papi's."
Great Flying Kiwis! Well, actually, kiwis can't fly, but fans of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc and lamb chops should still be excited to hear that the land of the long white cloud has gotten a little closer in time. Air New Zealand is about to initiate direct flights between Auckland and Vancouver beginning in November. Oh man, we can hear those sheep jokes now.
Get ready to polka, Italian Kitchen may be holding their opening party bash as early as August 1.
The Loden Hotel is about to release some news concerning their in-house restaurant Voya - stay tuned.
Why did this take so long? Someone has started a website that is like a cross between Craigslist and YouTube featuring homemade videos of stuff people want to unload. Whether you are in the market for beer making classes, a handmade tea pot or need to quickly hire a cougar for a formal dinner party, thanks to the vids on RealPeopleRealStuff you can see exactly what you are getting and witness some of the very funny pitches that go along with them. No surprise that it didn't take the real estate people long to jump on this one. There's no special section for Vancouver as yet. But as the sign says, "post an ad and there will be."
Alex Gilljust wants to have fun. The girls cut it up during their honeymoon in Las Vegas. (Remember when six of them married themselves in Kitsilano last summer?) Could you guess that one "bride" is a corset maker? ...And proof that wine agents get up early in the morning, thanks to all who wrote to let us know (some as early as 7:30 a.m.) that the brunette-a go-go in the little black dress is none other than Vicky Ainley of Vino Allegro.
Nothing official about a Vintropolis sale yet, although the goodbye party for the staff was said to have been held last Saturday night.
We didn't witness it but it sounds like the partners of the new Goldfish restaurant put on a considerable schmooze for media and other "friends" at their pre-opening on Monday night. Bud and Dottie Kanke were there, as well as UmbertoMenghi and wife Marion, and all guests went away with a swag bag that contained a bottle of Tantalus Reisling among other gifts. Although they didn't drink it, the Tantalus may have been the best free wine all night. Apparently, just a short time before show time, it was discovered that the wine donated by a local agency for the evening's event had been stolen by culprits unknown. Other BC wine was quickly substituted but the staffer in charge of the bar judged it to be "a bit lacking", so the libation was quickly switched to the martinis that some of the more lively attendees were already well into.
Too much of a good thing? An Australian is reportedly feeding Viagra® to oysters to make the mollusks a more potent aphrodisiac. Next time the shuckers down at the raw bar tell you that keeping the customers in oysters is a hard job - believe them.
The last time we brought up the news that Vintropolis might have been sold, it turned out that they were not - this despite confirmation from one reliable source that they had heard this direct from the horse's mouth on one side of the sale table, and also from a second source who claimed to have been told the same thing from the horse's mouth on the other side. Neither horse ever did return our inquires to them directly about it.
So now we hear once again that the Yorkville wine bar has been sold - this time to a purchaser who is not in the wine business, and who has a name that might be Alex Fraser (?). One of the owners of Vintropolis has also been seen packing up boxes of furnishings at the back of the store.
Believe this or not - it's only a rumour at this stage.
Looking for a cheesy line of work? Les amis du fromage "might" be looking for a counter person for their West 2nd location. We say “might�? because although their want ad came in today, their website states they are NOT hiring at this time. It's safe to say though, that we doubt any large mice or nibblers should apply.
This is the grand opening week at Flo Tea Roomand everything on the menu will be 10% off until June 17th. Manager Harmony Cheung (we love her name), recommends the 'sweet & sour pork meal', the 'spicy crispy chicken meal', the 'honey beef shortribs meal', the 'prawns with coconut cream sauce on rice', and the hot pots as a few of her favourites. She says you should also give the buble teas a try...the mango slush or mango green tea is “really delicious�?.
Hey look who else is 15 this summer. It sounds like Bar None must have been in the nursery with CityFood mag back in 1992. While our birthday celebration will take place later in the season, Bar None is having its anniversary party tomorrow night. From 8 to 11 it’s an invite-only situation but they open the doors to the public at 11.01 p.m. For more info click here.
You'll soon be hearing more from Fred Lee, social columnist about town for the Vancouver Courier. And we mean that quite literally. Lee has teamed up with CBC veteran Margaret Gallagher (currently a reporter for TheEarly Edition), to create a new weekly food show that will air on CBC Radio. Right now the two are in production for the first of the 10 segments that each week will theme around one seasonal ingredient. At present they are planning 30 minute segments, but if the show is well received, these could be extended to fit an hour-long format. Content will be mostly industry interviews with chefs, growers, etc., and with recipes made available via a companion website.
Look for the programs to start June 29th on the dial at 690 AM at 7:30 p.m and each followng Friday after that. The Lee-Gallagher show will join a small number of radio programs that focus exclusively on the food and wine industry (another is the Best of Food and Wine Show with Anthony Gismondi and Kasey Wison which airs every Saturday at noon on CFUN 1490), but it will be the only one available to listeners right across Canada.
With the building of the Skytrain connector it would seem that everyone is busting pavement to get to Richmond. The location of the Vancouver International Airport and the approaching Winter Olympics may have something to do with this disruptive urgency, but some people would say that we all just want to get to Richmond faster in order to be in time for dinner. Once the train is working, you can bet that more car-less city dwellers will be heading down to the malls of the "Golden Mile" to go shopping at the great Asian grocery stores, not to mention eat at the many top grade Chinese and SouthEast Asian restaurants.
Certainly that thought must be behind the release of a new publication, The Richmond Asian Dining Guide -- a culinary road map to the area's multiplicity of eclectic regional cuisine. To introduce the guide, Tourism Richmond will conduct dining contest entitled ‘Eat your Way to China’. This gastronomic promotion will entices diners to discover the various Asian cuisines featured in Richmond, with the help of the new Guide and its accompanying Passport. One lucky diner will not only explore Richmond’s culinary scene, but will win the ultimate culinary experience: a trip for two to China, featuring stays in both Shanghai and Beijing, home of steamed dumplings and succulent Peking duck.
Meanwhile, The T&T Supermarketwill be going to Thailand. In partnership with the Thai Trade Centre in Vancouver, they will be holding a 2007 Thailand Festival at all T & T stores (eight in total) in Greater Vancouver from July 6-12. Look for featured Thai dishes taught to the T&T chefs by a famous chef and cooking teacher from Thailand, Dr. Naruemon Nantaragsa; exotic Thai fruits air freighted from Thailand; Thai drinks, juices and desserts; in-store Thai massage; and Thai fruit carving displays.
We'll be happy when the T&T in Crosstown (Keefer) finishes the major reno it's making in its deli area. The old one was just a broom closet compared to the expansive hot prepared takeout counter in the Richmond store.
And let's not forget Japan, or at least its famous beverage, saki. Edible BC still has a few spaces available for their sake dinner on June 19th with special guest Masa Shiroki who will teach participants all about the world of sake while sharing his three special chilled sakes produced right on Granville Island. Check out the menu on the Edible BC website and then book online before all the seats are gone! This is a steal at only $59.95 per person and tickets won't last.
Is it too early yet to be thinking of Cornucopia?... Maybe not, because it's also good to know that Quattro at Whistler will be holding a wine maker's dinner on November 9th that will feature the truffles of Alba and the wines of Batasiolo. More on this later ...
DINE AND DASH - (November 18, 2008)
DINE AND DASH - October 31, 2007
DINE AND DASH - October 26, 2007
With the building of the Skytrain connector it would seem that everyone is busting pavement to get to Richmond. The location of the Vancouver International Airport and the approaching Winter Olympics may have something to do with this disruptive urgency, but some people would say that we all just want to get to Richmond faster in order to be in time for dinner. Once the train is working, you can bet that more car-less city dwellers will be heading down to the malls of the "Golden Mile" to go shopping at the great Asian grocery stores, not to mention eat at the many top grade Chinese and SouthEast Asian restaurants.