A small but seriously addictive "snack", crispy chicken skin, TP Photo I’m feeling just a tad guilty because I’ve spent the last few days thinking about chef Hamid Salimian’s amazing Persian-inspired tasting menu that he rolled out for us the other evening. Guilty, because the timeline for this menu is short. It runs [...]
Vancouver Trade & Convention Centre—a spectacular setting, TP photo For many people, the Vintners Brunch—for all intents and purposes the closing event —remains the highlight of their Vancouver International Wine Festival week. And that’s now even more the case, given the spectacular setting in the new convention centre overlooking Vancouver's harbour and North [...]
Johannes Selbach visits Vancouver to talk and taste wine pairings at Sun Sui Wah restaurant
The Mexican partners: Roger Creixams, chef Ana Vander and Claudia Roma, TP photo Something about the shifting scene of the restaurant business intrigues me. And, believe me, it is always shifting. Restaurants come and go, and usually their owners go with them—although sometimes owner and surroundings stay put, and the change comes from [...]
Alessandra and Jean-Francis Quaglia: smartly tapped into changing tastes with their sleek new TWB, Tim Pawsey photo We’ve always felt Provence Marinaside is one of Vancouver’s more under-appreciated rooms—but that might just be about to change with the arrival of TWB, which stands for (drum roll) The Wine Bar—at Provence. (We’re a tad [...]
Siena: braised lamb filled ravioli, Tim Pawsey photo One of the hazards of writing “Best of” / “Year End” lists is that you’re guaranteed to miss one (or more)—even more likely if you’ve been waging a kleenex demolition derby against the lurgy sweeping through Vancouver these days. That said, here’s a greatly expanded [...]
Pork hock and bacon terrine. We were hooked, umm hocked ... TP photo We finally managed to get into forage last night for a serious meal. And believe me, it was serious. Chef Chris Whittaker was showcasing pork from Gelderman Farms (Abbotsford) with Audrey and Jerry Gelderman in attendance. Think Porkapalooza—and then some. [...]
Forage chef Chris Whittaker basks in Chowdown glory, with the original painting (included in his prizes) used for the contest promo, TP Photo Just a day after Forage officially opened, chef Chris Whittaker has been crowned Chowder Chowdown Champion at the Vancouver Aquarium’s keenly contested annual sustainable seafood celebration. Whittaker’s dish wowed not only [...]
Single malts: seeing the light, Tim Pawsey image I’ll be the first to admit it: I’m no single malt expert. But I do have an appreciation for them, thanks to a relatively early introduction to Scotch whisky as a young (almost legal) adult. Before leaving London I worked for my late uncle [...]
Forage Chef Chris Whittaker. Vancouver's greenest chef? Reinventing a legendary room is never easy but when the Listel Hotel decided to close long running O'Doul's, the move afforded no shortage of opportunities. In 10 days or so they'll pull the wraps off forage (1300 Robson St, 604-684-8461), a smaller and considerably more casual [...]
