Vancouver Good

I was treated to a breakfast of champions last week when I participated in a morning tasting of the delectable confections from pastry chef Paul Croteau and the recently announced Paul Croteau (PC) Confections.

The back story:
Paul hails from Quebec, spent time working in France, and is currently the pastry chef for Refuel and Campagnolo. PC Confections was created primarily because his confections were so delicious and popular that Paul and his partners wanted to let the general public have access to purchasing them.

Paul’s confections are created with French technique and everything is handmade from scratch daily using all the good ingredients.

The sweets:
Here’s a view of our tasting plates, though my iphone does not do these treats justice:

What I sampled, as shown L-R in the above picture:

Passion fruit & Raspberry Jellies (“Patés de fruit”) – I’m not generally a fan of jellies, but these were outstanding. I particularly enjoyed the passion fruit, which was so fresh, bright, and almost refreshing while the jelly melted easily in my mouth. The Raspberry jelly was also delicious, but with a sweeter, stronger raspberry jam like flavour.

Nougatine – Similar to a sweet Italian meringue, this is the French version, made with egg whites, honey, sugar, hazelnuts, pistachios, and cocoa nuts. Light, sticky, chewy, and sweet.

Almond Square – This sweet tasted like a Florentine, but with a  softer texture. The base was a sweet dough, topped with a  mixture of almonds, caramel, fruit, sugar, and butter. The combination was a rich and buttery dessert. Paul said this is one of his favourite confections from the collection.

A soft salted caramel - wrapped up in simple white parchment, a perfectly sweet & salty bite. Great smooth texture as well, there was no caramel getting stuck to my teeth – it melted beautifully.

Hazelnut Grignotine- this was my favourite from the tasting. A hazelnut toasted, salted, and covered with dark chocolate and cocoa powder. These are addictive little treats. Crunchy, salty, sweet – you cannot eat just one. Like the equivalent of popcorn for dessert lovers.

French Macarons – the ultimate French cookie – beautiful, chewy, sweet, and requiring expert technique to make. At the tasting, Paul detailed the keys to a truly good French macaron:
- The bottom & top should be a uniform size size to properly seal the filling
- The macaron should have a glossy finish
- The texture should be crunchy as you bite in, but soft as you taste the macaron

While the ingredients for a French macaron are relatively simple, there is technique to proper execution – it’s easy for something to go wrong. As Paul makes between 800-1000 macarons each week, he says this is a craft where practice does make a difference.

PC Confections makes Macarons with seven different fillings, I tried three:

- Macaron with a salty caramel filling. Can you think of anything better? The filling is amazing, a smooth combination of whipped butter, caramel, and maldon sea salt.
- Macaron with a Valrhona chocolate ganache filling. Rich, bitter, and sweet – like a little chocolate sandwich.
- Macaron with a pistachio filling. This flavour will be available in stores soon, a delicious and nutty centre.

My half-enjoyed macaron’s on the plate here, don’t they look scrumptious?

Additonal macaron flavours include lemon, coffee, and vanilla pistachio. Paul mentioned he’ll probably do a pumpkin flavour this fall too.

Where & how to buy:
- The PC Confections kiosk at Oakridge Mall, atrium entrance
- 49th Parallel Coffee on 4th avenue sells them in the afternoons at the cafe
- Selected farmers markets

Paul Croteau Confections Price List
Grignotine – $6.95
Soft salted caramels – $7.95
Patés de fruits – $9.95
Nougatine – $5.95
Almond square – $9.95
Macaron – $1.50 each, $4.50 for 3

These will make great hostess gifts and a great dessert option for dinner parties. My friends can expect these come holiday season.

For some better photos of Paul and the sweets, visit the PC Confections Flickr page.

Thanks again to Julia, Katharine, Paul, & Refuel Restaurant for hosting the tasting!

Paul Croteau Confections
Oakridge Centre, 650 41st Ave. W. (atrium entrance)
Vancouver

I stopped by Everything Cafe for lunch last week and plan to return soon. It’s a great spot for a well-priced, hearty & healthy lunch.

The menu is simple but interesting. One soup prepared daily, five salads (all vegetarian), five sandwiches, a daily quiche, a cheese plate, and a charcuterie plate.

I enjoyed Mike’s Reuben sandwich with a beets & cheese salad. The sandwich was rich from the excellent corned beef*, a smattering of sauerkraut, thousand island dressing, and melted swiss cheese on rye. On the side, my marinated beets with frisee and goats cheese was a light, fresh accompaniment.

My dining partner went for the meat ball sub, featuring the now famous meatballs from sister restaurant Judas Goat. The meatballs were rolled in a tomato sauce, tucked into a soft bun, and topped with shavings of ricotta salata cheese. Delicious & moist with a salty bite. On the side was the Mediterranean macaroni salad, tossed in a tomato dressing with arugula, olives, and feta.

Dishes I have my eye on for the next visit: Good ‘ol potato salad, a TLT (T=smoked trout), and the grilled cheese with smoked jarlsberg, brie, and caramelized onions.

Sandwiches range from $8-9 dollars, and you can add a salad or soup for $3 more. Great value for what you’re getting. The restaurant is also open for breakfast, serving coffee & baked goodies.

Weekday lunches are looking up!

Everything Cafe
75 East Pender Street, b/w Carrall & Columbia
Vancouver
604-681-3115

* The supplier of corned beef is Mike Vito, of J. Beethoven’s corned beef fame. If you ever see them at Granville Island, do yourself a favour and buy some for dinner at home one night. INCREDIBLE!

Several months ago, a friend and I took a lovely food tour of Vancouver’s Chinatown with Edible British Columbia guide and chef Dora Ho.

Edible BC really started the whole food tour scene  that is blowing up now, with lots of new companies offering great food tours to locals & tourists today (the most notable newbie – Vancouver Food Tour).

I’ve done a Commercial Drive tour and the Chinatown tour with Edible BC and enjoyed both of them. If you’ve never been on a food tour, well it’s pretty fun. You talk about food, you eat lots of samples, then you talk about food some more, and eat a little more. Really, how can this not be fun?

Here are highlights from our Chinatown Tour:

• A good thing about booking a tour on a cold February day – it’s not too busy! It was just my friend and I that were signed up, so we had a nice, private tour
• We started our tour over dim sum at Jade Dynasty Restaurant (137 East Pender St), where Dora ordered up traditional dim sum fare while explaining its background in Chinese culture. Dora’s most recommended dim sum at Jade Dynasty are the deep-fried sesame balls filled with black sesame paste. Very yummy.
• After dim sum, we walked through Chinatown and around the free side of the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Chinese Garden (50 E. Pender St), while Dora gave us a historical overview of Vancouver’s Chinatown and pointed out key buildings and landmarks
• A tea tasting was next at Ten Ren Tea and Ginseng Company (550 Main Street), where we sampled different varieties of Chinese teas and Dora showed us proper tea brewing techniques
• After tea, we strolled through Chinatown’s plentiful produce stands, where Dora pointed out some exotic Asian ingredients,  and I picked up some Asian greens.
• More food was next at the Sun Fresh Bakery House, which specializes in fresh steamed pork buns, and the sweet cocktail buns filled with a sweet coconut and peanut filling. The pork bun was so good and juicy, the juice squirted out and ran down my entire jacket! A messy, but yummy affair. I also picked up a pack of freshly steamed red bean paste buns, my absolute favourite.
• After our snack, it was over to Guo Hua Enterprise, a store selling a crazy amount of Chinese herbal medicine and ingredients. My friend did a medicinal reading with a Chinese medicinal expert at the store and bought a week’s worth of prescribed herbal remedies. I have a brave friend as there were some totally strange ingredients in there! While we waited for my friend’s “prescription” to be made up, we munched on some Goji berries – a recent mainstream health food that’s been around forever in Chinese culture.
• Next was the Dollar Meat Store, where you can buy fresh meat from the butchers.  But more importantly, you can buy bbq pork, roasted duck, and Chinese sausages. So delicious! We bought a pound of BBQ pork and duck – believe it or not, we were headed to a dinner party after this tour.
• And finally, our last stop was at Ming Wo Cookware’s Chinatown location – the original and biggest store out of its five locations around Vancouver.
• The tour lasted the entire afternoon, starting at 1pm and ending around 5:30pm. An additional takeaway from the tour included a handout with details on the places we visited plus additional recommendations.

It was a great time – thanks to Dora and Edible BC for a fun afternoon!

Read more about Edible BC’s Tours here. The price is $65/person with the dim sum lunch, or $40 without the lunch. I’d definitely recommend having the lunch – it immerses you more into things.

Another tip – there’s a buy 1 get 1 free coupon in the Green Zebra Guide, which I used for this tour. The savings on this one item paid for the coupon book.

Edible BC also offers an excellent tour of Granville Island. Happy eating, on whatever tour you join!

Looking for some proper Italian food? It’s at Lupo Restaurant, located on the edge of Yaletown. I dined here with a group of people a few weeks ago and loved the food, service, and restaurant ambience. The entire menu reads of deliciousness, and deciding on your courses will be tough.

Highlights:

• Lightly cooked asparagus with a runny poached egg, garlic, anchovy, and light olive oil. Fresh and rich without being too heavy
• Spinach and ricotta raviolo with a hazelnut butter sauce. Perfectly cooked pasta and so good with the nutty butter sauce.
• Fettuccine Bolognese – if this is on the menu of an Italian restaurant, I order it. It’s one of my “test” dishes, so to speak – I went through a 1-month period where I made about 10 different bolognese recipes at home. Lupo’s version is great. Meaty, rich & flavourful, clinging to fresh pasta.  The way it should be. I’m bringing my husband back to try this one.
• Sablefish with spinach, grappa, and orange marmalade. I didn’t try this dish, but a few people around the table raved about it
• The dessert list is seasonal but traditional, featuring gelato, tiramisu, panna cotta, and tarts. My tiramisu was excellent – creamy with a nice edge of liquor and coffee.

Located in a beautiful heritage house (formerly Villa Del Lupo – read the back story here), I love the setting. The inside is quite modern with clean lines and colours. The upstairs provides a nice space for a private party or group event. Just watch out for the washrooms – unlocking the doors are tricky!

Around my table of 8 people, everyone loved the meal. A few people felt the portions were a bit on the small side, so plan to order 2-3 courses for dinner…as they do in Italy!

The food brought me back to my trip to Italy last year. Great flavour, but simple and seasonal. My kind of food.

Lupo Restaurant
869 Hamilton Street (b/w Smithe & Robson)
Vancouver
604.569.2535

Had a delicious dinner at Chambar Restaurant the other day. I haven’t been in a couple years (although Cafe Medina next door is a regular haunt), but it doesn’t look like business has slowed down much since opening to much fanfare in 2004. Probably because the food is good, the restaurant is innovative, and the service is great. A good combination for a full restaurant.

First, the food – an interesting menu, all dishes executed wonderfully:

• Salade de Baies, lightly dressed greens atop a silky sheep feta and fresh berries
• Les coquilles st. jacques – perfectly tender and seared scallops with smoked bacon and pickled vegetables
• Grilled ostrich with sweet onions and potato crisps. Some of the most tender ostrich I’ve ever had
• Moules Frites – some of the best in town. I love the Congolaise, mussels cooked with tomatoes, coconut cream, chilli, and cilantro. The frites are crisp and dusted with a smoked paprika. And also order some freshly baked bread for soaking up mussel broth.
• As good as all our food was, the dessert made the meal. We shared the “Le Cafe Belge,” a creamy espresso cheesecake topped with layers of chocolate mousse, cream, and crispy chocolate wafers. SO GOOD. Not too sweet and a perfect balance of chocolate & coffee, crisp and creamy textures. I’ll remember this dessert for a while.

One Vancouver restaurant trend I’m liking is the filtering and carbonating of their own water, rather than flying in “gourmet” bottles of sparkling water from New Zealand or other far off places. Our sparkling water was unlimited and just $2.00 – a big difference from the $6-10 charged for Pelligrino at many restaurants.  While it does not help their profit margin much, it’s a much better environmental choice. I know Boneta also does this.

Service at Chambar is always great. Professional, relaxed, and fun. It’s always lovely dining at Chambar – I’ll be back again sooner next time.

Chambar Restaurant
562 Beatty Street (@ Dunsmuir)
Vancouver
604 879 7119

As a food lover and blogger, I’m always being asked:  “What’s your favourite restaurant?”

I don’t know about other Vancouver food lovers, but I find this question impossible to answer. There is no way, NO WAY I could name one restaurant as my favourite. Vancouver has so many good places, it’s a lucky place to be.

However, year after year, Cru Restaurant remains one of my favourites, delivering on all fronts: food, wine, service, and price. You can drop a good sum of money here, but you can also have a great time for about $60.

Sandwiched between unlikely restaurant neighbours Vera’s Burger Shack and Memphis Blues BBQ (although Cru was there first!), Cru is an elegant small restaurant that seats about 40 people. As a diner, you can choose between a daily prix fixe menu for $38 or sample a selection of dishes from their small plates menu. I typically go for the small plates, which let you try a few different flavours and the selection is so great, there’s something for everyone. The menu changes up, but there are always some dishes that stay. Some of my all-time favourites:

• The Cellar Door Caesar: This still remains my favourite caesar in town. It’s probably the most fattening too, but it’s worth it. Crisp romaine lightly grilled with a mound of asiago cheese and thick creamy dressing on top. Then, a few made-to-order buttery croutons on the side. So good.
• Syrah-braised beef short rib with a teeny, but potent pot of macaroni and cheese. The short rib is a tender delicious bite and the rich macaroni and cheese puts it over the top. Like the Caesar, I don’t think Cru can ever take this dish off the menu.
• Sweet spring pea risotto: There’s usually a seasonal risotto on the menu, but my favourite is the Spring version, usually full of beautiful green vegetables and a tender & creamy rice
• Cru Brushchetta: Soft bread, flavourful tomatoes, a good bite
• Classic Creme Brulee – I just love Cru’s version. Smooth and creamy texture, perfectly browned sugar top. Just a well executed, simple dessert.

I could go on, but I’ve never had a bad dish at Cru, so I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. Service is always friendly, attentive, and knowledgeable – the servers are always more than willing to talk food and wine. In fact, I believe a server at Cru was the one who convinced me I had to go to the French Laundry when I was in Napa Valley a few years ago. One of the most memorable (and expensive) meals of my life.

I’m always thankful for Cru. Good food, room, service. A relaxing and delicious place to go.

Cru Restaurant
1459 W. Broadway (@ Granville), Vancouver
604-677-4111

Summer 2010 in Vancouver isn’t exactly warm so far. But, one thing I love about this city is how it loves patios. Even if the sun comes out for just 20 minutes, people are on the patio. And when Vancouver gets (and it will come) our beautiful sunny summer weather, the patios will be packed.

I’ve seen lots of great top patio lists for Vancouver already, but below are some favourites & recommendations. And remember, this is a list for patio first, food second.

Downtown
The Gallery Cafe (at the Vancouver Art Gallery), 750 Hornby Street (best accessed off of Robson & Howe): If you want a truly sunny patio, nothing beats the Gallery Cafe’s huge outdoor licensed patio atop the Vancouver Art Gallery. A great place to catch some rays, people watch, and catch up over a glass of wine. Food is cafe style – sandwiches, salads (with art gallery prices).

False Creek North
Nu Restaurant, 1661 Granville Street (under the Granville St. Bridge): Nu features and all-seasons patio right on the water, with tables, couches, and a great view of False Creek and Granville Island across the water. A great spot for lunch or dinner while enjoying the view is a relaxed setting. And the food here is great.

Coal Harbour
Cardero’s Restaurant, 1583 Coal Harbour Quay: Cardero’s makes many best patio lists because, it’s a nice patio! A big, airy space right in the centre of Coal Harbour. A calming location away from the bustle of downtown Vancouver.

Willow Stream Spa and the  Fairmont Pacific Rim Lobby, 1038 Canada Place Way (near Burrard & Cordova) - The newest Fairmont Hotel is beautiful on the inside with a great outdoor patio off the lobby lounge, which features live music daily. Plus, the Willow Stream spa on the 5th floor is just completing construction on an incredible outdoor patio, which will include fire pits, hot tubs, and outdoor treatment – I hear it should be ready later this month.

Gastown
Chill Winston, 3 Alexander Street: Right in the centre of Gastown by the Gassy Jack statue is Chill Winston’s huge patio – perfect for drinks while overlooking the cobblestone roads and Gastown shops. Downsides: it’s a busy patio so there can be waits, and you’ll get your share of people asking for spare change. While it’s shadier, the small patio at Jules can be a good alternative.

Granville Island
Sammy J Peppers, 1517 Anderson St, right inside Granville Island. Remember, what I said about patio first, food second? Sammy J on Granville Island does sport a fantastic patio for those who want the breeze, but not the glaring hot sunlight. It’s a fully covered patio, overlooking the boats and a boardwalk. A good spot for a beer in a slightly less crazy part of Granville Island in the summer. (but if you like crazy, hit up Bridges or the Backstage Lounge)

Main St.
Crave Restaurant, 3941 Main St (near 24th): You’d never guess it from the front of the restaurant, but Crave has a beautiful patio in the back of the restaurant. It’s been nicely lanscaped and feels like a comfy backyard. Food here is good, but inconsistent. Brunch is my favourite meal here.

Burgoo Bistro on Main, 3096 Main St (near 16th): The Main Street Burgoo has a great patio right on Main Street that gets plenty of sun.

Kitsilano
The Boathouse on Kits Beach (formerly the Watermark Restaurant), 1305 Arbutus Street: I’ll miss the prawn spring rolls at the Watermark, but otherwise, I’m sure the Boathouse will fit right into the Kits Beach scene. An incredible view of the city, mountains, and beach.

The Smoking Dog, 1889 W. 1st Ave (@ Cypress): I used to live 50 steps from the Dog and enjoyed the patio regularly. Sun drenched, quiet street, great French bistro food.

Yaletown
The Keg, 1011 Mainland Street: I haven’t been, but everyone I know is raving about the patio at the new Keg in Yaletown.

Jules Bistro is an elegant, laid back bistro preparing simple and tasty French fare. A great restaurant to stop into for lunch, dinner, or an afternoon snack. For me it’s one of those reliable restaurants where you know you’ll have good service and food at a reasonable price.

The menu offers traditional French bistro fare: French onion soup, croque-monsieur, mussels and frites, steak frites, escargots, and more. They used to have frogs legs too, but they don’t seem to be on the menu anymore. Everything is freshly prepared and delicious. The most expensive menu item is $25 and the restaurant also features a daily three-course fixed menu for $25.

My last visit was a ladies lunch a few weeks ago – I devoured a beautiful seafood quiche with a buttery crust and tender filling with a light green salad and plenty of salty, crispy frites. Mmmm.

I also love the room – it’s quite charming, spacious, black & white with a European feel.

Gastown is packed with great food options these days, but Jules remains a favourite for me. No gimmicks – just good food and a nice setting (and a patio too!)

Jules French Bistro
216 Abbott Street, Vancouver
604-669-0033
Open Monday to Saturday, 11:30-10pm

Mmmm, there’s a delectable new bakeshop downtown called Crème de la Crumb and it’s worth many return visits.

Tucked into a teeny space on Granville Street between Pender & Hastings, walk into a heavenly smelling shop filled with baked breakfast goods, plenty of treats, and gourmet sandwiches for lunch.

Examples:

- The memorable vanilla bean cinnamon bun. Moist, gooey and rich with a vanilla bean icing, it’s the perfect size treat. Not so big that it’s “too much” and not so small that it’s not enough.
- A rice crispy square filled with cranberries and chocolate – I love good rice crispy squares!
- Scones and loafs, all freshly made from scratch each day
- Light and fluffy Belgium waffles. They were making them last time I was in the shop. It took some serious willpower not to buy about 10 of them.
- For lunch, a pan seared salmon sandwich with rich garlic aioli and arugula. Light, but satisfying

Chef/owner Lydia Lai and her staff are usually on hand to serve up your food and give you tips on maximum food enjoyment (ie. put the cinnamon bun in the microwave for 20 secs for maximum gooey-ness). They’re all very lovely – the type of business and people you want to support.

Also available for catering, I hope to keep coming back to Crème de la Crumb for a long time.

Crème de la Crumb Bakeshop & Catering
Twitter – cremedelacrumb
466 Granville Street, (b/w Pender & Hastings)
(604) 683-5595

I was in the West End today, a ‘hood I haven’t been to in years, it seems!

I had to go find something to eat to honour such an occasion. While La Brasserie and Mis Trucos were tempting (and on the list!), I was solo and tired so opted for something much more casual – La Belle Patate, land of all things French-Canadian in the way of poutine – 30+ different kinds, including some crazy combinations (a donair poutine?).

But the only poutine that appeals to me is the classic – fries, curds, gravy. I haven’t enjoyed a real Quebec poutine in nearly a decade, but based on my memories, La Belle Patate’s poutine is pretty good. The fries are real potatoes, fried but not crispy. The cheese curds are fresh and actually have some flavour. The gravy is as it should be – a thin and salty layer over the fries and curds.

Go for the poutine – I’m not sure I’d order plain fries, as they were a little too dark and on the mushy side. I’d also steer clear of their “shakes,” which don’t seem to be made from hand scooped ice cream and milk.

If you need a junk food fix or something to soak up the alcohol on a late weekend night, La Patate fits the bill. I enjoyed the food and service much more than Fritz Fry House – the usual late night french fry hangout.

Oh, and if you are really gung-ho on poutine, they have all you can eat poutine for $25. Dangerous. There are people I know that should never know about this.

La Belle Patate
1215 Davie Street (b/w Bute and Jervis)
Vancouver
604-569-1215