Archive for the ‘Parties & Events’ Category

The Fairmont Waterfront Spring Menu

April 25th, 2012 admin

I was invited to the Fairmont Waterfront Hotel last week to sample their Spring Menu as it launched as well as to meet Executive Chef Dana Hauser.

Minted Split Pea Soup

King Crab on a Pogo Stick

Caesers shooters with Effingham Oysters

I loved the Minted Split Pea Soup as well as the King Crab on a Pogo Stick along with the Caesers shooters with Effingham Oysters.

Making Cocktails

The cocktail master was at work creating and serving up delicious spring inspired cocktails.

Pastry Chef, Stephanie Greenslade and her Honey Comb Ice Cream Cones

Lemon Thyme Drops

Pastry Chef, Stephanie Greenslade presented a selection of garden inspired sweets and treats and my favourites were the Honey Comb Ice Cream Cones , Lemon Thyme Drops, and  Macaron Ice Cream Sandwiches.

The reception took place in Herons West Coast Kitchen + Bar, at The Fairmont Waterfront and featured a great band for our listening pleasure to go along with the wonderful bites and delights.

The hospitality team at the hotel is comprised of Daniel Kaeflein, Director of Food & Beverage; Ian Pullan, General Manager; Dana Hauser, Executive Chef; Mark Wadsworth, Exec Sous Chef and Chris Nielson, Sous Chef.

Herons West Coast Kitchen is located at the Fairmont Waterfront Hotel, 900 Canada Place Way in Vancouver and serves breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner, an all-day menu and dessert; check out their website for the menu and hours.

By: Richard Wolak

 

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New Dishes at The Oakwood

April 19th, 2012 admin

Since I am a fan of Chef Michael Robbins cooking, I was in for dinner to taste some of the new additions to his spring menu!

1st dish:

Fried Octopus

Fried Octopus ($7) with Komatsuna (Japanese mustard spinach), pickled shallots, bacon aioli

2nd dish:

Warm Kale Salad

Warm Kale Salad ($10) cauliflower, brussel sprouts, lemon parmesan dressing

3rd dish:

Canadian Poutine

 Canadian Poutine ($10) in-house smoked brisket, cheese curds and gravy

4th dish:

Mussels and Clam ‘Chowder’

Mussels and Clam ‘Chowder’ ($16) bacon, carrots, potato, celery, white wine, herb croutons

5th dish:

Trio of Masons

Trio of Masons ($15)

1 – Apple Pie, sugar pastry, and vanilla ice cream

2 – Bumble berry cheesecake, graham crumb

3 – Chocolate coated honeycomb, vanilla custard

My take:

I loved the Fried Octopus and the Warm Kale Salad equally, both were outstanding and both were very different. The Canadian Poutine dish that I had was actually a smaller version of their usual sized dish as I just wanted a taster, you have to try this dish to savour the delicious in-house smoked meat. The Mussels and Clam ‘Chowder’ isn’t exactly a chowder as its more mussels and clams than broth, it is a good amount of seafood in the pot. The Trio of Masons are actually 3 individual desserts, perhaps best shared with your dining partner, my favourites in order was the Apple Pie, followed by the Vanilla Custard and lastly the Cheesecake.

The Oakwood

2741 West 4th Avenue, Vancouver 

Tel: 604-558-1965

http://www.theoakwood.ca/ 

 Twitter: @theOakwoodKits

By: Richard Wolak

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Roaming Dragon Tasting

April 17th, 2012 admin

Jory Simkin –co-owner (R) & Kristine Hancock – friend (L)

Roaming Dragon held a menu tasting party last week where they showcased 13 new dishes on their Street Food and catering menus to a packed house at District 319. There were stations set up around the room serving up everything from Ceviche to Tacos, as well as servers passing around all the other dishes.

Ceviche station

Guests were treated to Lychee Infused Vodka Cocktails as well as a Mocktails version which I enjoyed. There was also wine and beer to round out the thirst quenchers. Over at the Ceviche station people were sampling and sampling.

Serving Indonesian Beef Rendang Poutine

I sampled most of the dishes including the fave of the night the Indonesian Beef Rendang Poutine which happens to also be in my Poutine Challenge.

Malaysian Spicy “Debil” Chicken Taco

My other favourites included the Malaysian Spicy “Debil” Chicken Taco, Korean Short Rib Taco, Roaming Dragon “Chop” Salad and the Thai Dragon Burger.

Roaming Dragon

@DragonTruck

Tel: 604-639-3335

www.RoamingDragon.com

By: Richard Wolak

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New Dishes at Hidden Tasting Bar

April 8th, 2012 admin

Visited recently for dinner to taste some of the dishes that were new additions to their spring menu!

1st dish:

Cajun Wings

Cajun Wings

 2nd dish:

Grilled Squid Puttanesca

Grilled Squid Puttanesca

 3rd dish:

Chicken Fatoush Salad

Chicken Fatoush Salad

 4th dish:

Arctic Char with ratatouille pave

Arctic Char with ratatouille pave

 5th dish:

Tom Yum Prawns

Tom Yum Prawns

 6th dish:

Chocolate Lava Cake

Chocolate Lava Cake

7th dish:

B52 Creme Brûlée

B52 Creme Brûlée

My take - My favourite dishes of the ones tried were the Cajun Wings along with the sauce, followed by the Tom Yum Prawns though I would have preferred a light drizzle of sauce over them.  I really enjoyed the Kahlua crème brulee in the trio of crème brulees for dessert.

Hidden Tasting Bar

433 Robson Street, Vancouver

Tel: 604-647-2521

Web:  http://www.hiddenvancouver.ca/

Twitter: @hiddenvancouver

By: Richard Wolak

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Le Parisien Opening

April 6th, 2012 admin

Last night, April 5th, I attended the opening party of Le Parisien, located on Denman in the heart of the West End.

John Blakeley (owner - left) & his bar stars

Le Parisien is owned by John Blakeley, who also owns Kitsilano’s Bistro Pastis.

making Kir Royal cocktails

Guests were treated to red and white wine with topped up glasses throughout the night, Kir Royal cocktails along with delicious canapés from mini-crab cakes to cheese crostini’s and more.

Guests were also treated to wonderful French music by one a musician that people loved.

Guests from L to R -- Julia Watt, Steven Schelling, Nancy Wong & Dianne Chow

Executive Chef Tobias Grignon has mined the bistro repertoire to bring the best of the best to Le Parisien’s menus – roasted bone marrow, roast chicken for two, cassoulet, boudin noir, croque monsieur, moules et frites, côte de boeuf , oysters, omelettes and tartare three ways – all this and much more will satisfy any appetite seeking the authentic taste of France. Le Parisien’s prices also reflect the French bistro ethos of good food at reasonable prices – you’ll find Le Parisien is kind to the budget and the pocketbook.

Guests mingling

Le Parisien is open Tuesdays through Sundays – coffee and pastries at the bar are offered every morning from 8 – 11:30 a.m.; lunch service runs 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. and dinner is offered from 5:30 – 11 p.m. Brunch is served on Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and there is a lighter bar fare menu every evening from 5 – 11 p.m.

Le Parisien is located at 751 Denman Street, Vancouver and can be contacted by phone at 604-687-1418 or online at www.leparisien.ca

By: Richard Wolak

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Chocolate Challenge 2012

March 30th, 2012 admin

WINNER - Lauren Arsenault

Last night I attended the Chocolate Challenge 2012 Finale where the Top 6 entries recipes were prepared by Peter Fong and his team at Ganache Patisserie. There were 80 entrants narrowed down to 6 finalists and none were professional chefs.

Pastry Chefs: Thomas Haas, Rob Feenie & Greg Hook

The Judges were Chefs Rob Feenie, Thomas Haas and Greg Hook who declared Lauren Arsenault as the Grand Prize Winner of the best chocolate recipe of 2012. In 2nd place was Chitoe Okamato and in 3rd place was Susan Wiebe.

Chefs: Mitsuko Kojima & Peter Fong of Ganache Patisserie

The Grand Finale charity event was a gastronomic evening filled with food, wine and chocolate. Hosted by Jill Krop of Global TV.

The 6 finalists who presented their creations were:

 

Chocolate Rooibos Mousse by Lauren Arsenault

Chocolate Rooibos Mousse by Lauren Arsenault (1st place)

Velvety Chocolate by Chitoe Okamato (2nd place)

Chocolate Pear Torte by Susan Wiebe (3rd place)

Chili Lime Tango Truffles by Marni Johnson

Chocolate Raspberry Pecan Torte by Gary Monk

Chocolate Mousse Yule Log by Jane Bailey

Gourmet Warehouse was the gracious host of the evening event and all profits from the Chocolate Challenge 2012 were donated to the Strathcona Back-Pack Program.

By: Richard Wolak

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Spring Menu Tasting at Q4 al Centro

March 28th, 2012 admin

Chef Bradford Ellis invited me in recently for dinner to taste some of his new dishes! Some of the dishes were new additions for his spring menu and others were old favourites.

1st dish:

Palpette Granchio

Palpette Granchio (crab & candied salmon cakes)

2nd dish:

Salsicce pizza

Salsicce pizza $16

3rd dish:

Ravioli Piedmontese

Ravioli Piedmontese $25

4th dish:

Tagliatelle Arragosta

Tagliatelle Arragosta $28

5th dish:

Branzino

Branzino (pacific sablefish) $34 with lemon olive oil, tomato olive tapanede, capers, warm panzanella

6th dish:

Pesce - (tilapia fillet)

Pesce – (tilapia fillet) – with Israeli couscous and lemon brown butter

7th dish:

Chocolate Hazelnut Torte

Chocolate Hazelnut Torte $9 – dark chocolate, caramel, vanilla gelato

8th dish:

Q4 Napolean

Q4 Napolean $9 – sweet cherry compote, vanilla scented whipped Marscapone, caramelized phyllo pastry

A friend dined with me, we shared all the dishes except for the mains where she had the Sablefish and I had the Tilapia.

Each dish was well presented and all were good. I have dined at Q4 Restaurant on a few occasions previously, see one of my previous visits here. We both loved the Salsicce pizza; both pasta dishes were delish including the Ravioli Piedmontese as well as the Tagliatelle Arragosta, my dining companion enjoyed the sablefish which was perfectly cooked and well presented. I loved the Israelli cous cous accompaniment that went so well with the fish. The Q4 Napolean was the standout dessert and one that I order often.

Q4 Al Centro Restaurant

780 Richards Street, Vancouver

Tel: 604-687-4444

Web: http://www.q4restaurant.com/alcentro/Q4_classics

Twitter: @q4restaurant

By: Richard Wolak

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French Made Baking Opening

March 27th, 2012 admin

Catherine & David - owners

Last night, March 26th, I attended the media opening party of French Made Baking, located just North of Broadway on Kingsway in EastVan.

Tree of Macarons

French Made Baking is owned  by husband and wife team David and Catherine, who started off doing the Bakers Market before opening their own bakery cafe in Mount Pleasant.

Pistachio & Earl Grey Macarons

Caneles & Madeleine`s

They specialize in French bakery fare: croissants and viennoiseries, baguettes, sandwiches, quiches, chocolate mousses, macarons, canelés, etc. They also bake individual tarts like apple tatin, lemon and chocolate-raspberry.

Making Macarons

French Made Baking is located at 81 Kingsway in Vancouver and online at www.frenchmadebaking.com you can follow them on twitter @FrMadeBaking

By: Richard Wolak

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