I love mountain top dining experiences and on the top of Grouse Mountain at The Observatory Restaurant they feature a menu offering 3 or 2 courses for dinner. You can dine just as I did recently enjoying a selection of dishes from their 3 courses menu, as Lawrence joined me we opted to have 2 different dishes from each course and then we shared it all which allowed us to try 6 different dishes.

With your dinner reservation the gondola ride from the base to the top roundtrip is included and you can head up 2 hours in advance of dinner and do some exploring on your own which makes for a great night out.

Chef Bruce Woods has put together a wonderful Summer menu featuring as much local ingredients as possible and these are the dishes we had. We started off with some non-alcohol drinks (they have wines, beer and cocktails as well), I had a glass of the Edenvale Sauvignon Blanc while Lawrence had a Strawberry Spritzer.

1st course:

Pesto Risotto

Heirloom Beet Salad

2nd course:

Butternut Squash Agnolotti

Pacific Halibut

3rd course:

Lemon Yuzu Tart

Chocolate Budino

We took the under 10 minute gondola from the base to the top enjoying the picturesque scenery.

At the top we explored a bit, walked some of the trails and took in the views.

I suggest that you check the forecast then make an advance reservation at The Observatory.

While there we were informed that the restaurant offers a once a month Vegan 6 course tasting menu that is often booked up in advance and the dishes change monthly. This sounds like a wonderful experience that we all should do one day.

By: Richard Wolak