The Vancouver Foodster Poutine Challenge was a success featuring creations from restaurants and food trucks from around greater Vancouver. Each restaurant featured their poutine creation from February 2-27, 2022. Our media judging panel determined the ultimate winners of the challenge, and this was quite the task as each judge who tasted each creation with a rigorous process based on taste, originality/uniqueness and presentation/appearance.
Our Media judges for this challenge were: Deanna Woo, Emma Clark and David Grange.
Each media judge will have scored the creation with a maximum of 40 points as follows: Overall Taste 20 points, Originality and Uniqueness 10 points, Presentation and Appearance 10 points). The total number of points a cake creation could earn is 120 points.
The Winners are:
1st Place:
{111 points}
Food by Fanta
Pommes Paolo Bites
Price: $15 (add chicken cubes $8)
Created by: Chef Parinya Loptson
Description: Bite sized fried potato Paolo stacks in bacon fat served on top of pineapple with Gruyere cheese curry sauce, cheese curds, bacon bits, dill and chilli oil. Accompanied by a side of fruits and vegetable pineapple yogurt slaw.
Ingredients:
Yellow potatoes, Bacon Fat, butter, salt, ground pepper, curry sauce, Gruyère, cheese curds, bacon, pineapple, dill and chilli oil; and Slaw: pears, tomatoes, cabbages , carrot, apple, mango, pineapple yogurt, cream cheese, mayonnaise, chilli, lime juice, salt, mint, cilantro and parsley.
Offered: All day (call the restaurant to pre-order at least one day in advance)
Available for takeout/delivery: no
Food by Fanta
20542 Fraser Hwy, Langley
Tel; (604) 530-6803
Instagram @foodbyfanta
2nd Place
{108 points}
Hilltop Diner Cafe
Hilltop Diners Jalapeno Mac and Cheese Poutine
Price: $15.00
Created by: Samantha Shon, Megan Howard and Katie How.
Description: Our house cut kennebec fries, topped with cheese curds, double smoked bacon, and crispy jalapeño macaroni and cheese bites. Topped with our homemade beef gravy and chipotle aioli.
Ingredients: Fries, cheese curds, bacon, beef gravy, chipotle aioli, breaded and deep fried jalapeño Mac and cheese bites.
Offered daily, from11AM – 2PM inside dining.
Takeout: Yes
Hilltop Diner Cafe
23904 Fraser Hwy, Langley
Tel:(604) 514-9424
Web: https://www.hilltopdiner.ca/
Instagram @hilltopdinercafe
3rd Place
{105 points}
Shameless Buns Restaurant
Manila Frites
Price: $17
Created by: Matt Brennan and Corvette Romero – Owners of Shameless Buns
Description: Our poutine is an homage to La Belle Province with our shameless twist. Unlike most of our loaded fries at Shameless, – we wanted to really pay tribute to the humble Quebecois poutine, by keeping things simple. We’ve infused classic brown gravy with Mang Tomas, (also known as Lechon Sauce) which is a Filipino ‘All Purpose Sauce’ typically used for dipping lechon (roast pork.) Mang Tomas is sweet and tangy in all the right places and pairs perfectly with our gravy. Our lechon (roast pork – which is one of the National dishes of the Philippines) is fatty, porky and littered with delightfully crispy cracklin’. We dice up our lechon and sprinkle the goods all over the place. Of course we had to use squeaky cheese curds and the whole lot is piled high on our Palabok fries. We look forward to you embracing the marriage of the Philippines and Quebec, in our brand new Manila Frites.
Ingredients: Palabok Fries, Lechon with Cracklin’ (Roast Pork), Cheese Curds, Mang Tomas Gravy,
Offered: during regular business hours (Wednesday and Thursday – 11:30-8; Friday and Saturday – 11-9; Sunday – 11-9
Takeout and Delivery: Takeout is available, we will also be offering on UberEats, Skip the Dishes and DoorDash.
Shameless Buns Restaurant
5772 Fraser Street
Tel:(604) 668-0505
Web:https://shamelessbuns.com/
Instagram @shamelessbuns
In the People’s Choice Awards category, the public who tried the Poutine creations were the ones who had the opportunity to cast their vote throughout the challenge.
The Winners are:
1st Place People’s Choice:
Shameless Buns Restaurant
Manila Frites
Price: $17
Created by: Matt Brennan and Corvette Romero – Owners of Shameless Buns
Description: Our poutine is an homage to La Belle Province with our shameless twist. Unlike most of our loaded fries at Shameless, – we wanted to really pay tribute to the humble Quebecois poutine, by keeping things simple. We’ve infused classic brown gravy with Mang Tomas, (also known as Lechon Sauce) which is a Filipino ‘All Purpose Sauce’ typically used for dipping lechon (roast pork.) Mang Tomas is sweet and tangy in all the right places and pairs perfectly with our gravy. Our lechon (roast pork – which is one of the National dishes of the Philippines) is fatty, porky and littered with delightfully crispy cracklin’. We dice up our lechon and sprinkle the goods all over the place. Of course we had to use squeaky cheese curds and the whole lot is piled high on our Palabok fries. We look forward to you embracing the marriage of the Philippines and Quebec, in our brand new Manila Frites.
Ingredients: Palabok Fries, Lechon with Cracklin’ (Roast Pork), Cheese Curds, Mang Tomas Gravy,
Offered: during regular business hours (Wednesday and Thursday – 11:30-8; Friday and Saturday – 11-9; Sunday – 11-9
Takeout and Delivery: Takeout is available, we will also be offering on UberEats, Skip the Dishes and DoorDash.
Shameless Buns Restaurant
5772 Fraser Street
Tel:(604) 668-0505
Web:https://shamelessbuns.com/
Instagram @shamelessbuns
2nd Place People’s Choice:
Chop & Chew
Pulled Pork Poutine
Price: $ 21.25 (upgrade meal with a side for additional $13.25)
Created by: Shayan Keshvadi in collaboration with previous Chef Christopher St. John Smith
Description: Battered fries layered with cheese curds and housemade bone broth gravy, topped with coffee rubbed pulled pork that has been hickory smoked for 12 hours (two rivers pork shoulder).
Ingredients: Battered Fries, Cheese Curds, Bone Broth Gravy, Pulled Pork, Green Onions.
Offered: All the time
Available for delivery through DoorDash and SkipTheDishes
Chop and Chew
1842 Lonsdale Ave, North Van
Tel: (604) 971-2475
Instagram @chopandcheww
3rd Place People’s Choice:
Hilltop Diner Cafe
Hilltop Diners Jalapeno Mac and Cheese Poutine
Price: $15.00
Created by: Samantha Shon, Megan Howard and Katie How.
Description: Our house cut kennebec fries, topped with cheese curds, double smoked bacon, and crispy jalapeño macaroni and cheese bites. Topped with our homemade beef gravy and chipotle aioli.
Ingredients: Fries, cheese curds, bacon, beef gravy, chipotle aioli, breaded and deep fried jalapeño Mac and cheese bites.
Offered daily, from11AM – 2PM inside dining.
Takeout: Yes
Hilltop Diner Cafe
23904 Fraser Hwy, Langley
Tel:(604) 514-9424
Web: https://www.hilltopdiner.ca/
Instagram @hilltopdinercafe
Thank you to the chefs and establishments that accepted my invitation and featured their Poutine creations on the menu for the past few weeks during this challenge.
I encourage you to visit the winning places to try their Poutine creations! See the entries here.
By: Richard Wolak