Dine Out—as most people know—is built around a whole lot of special, three course menus. Some 300 or so Vancouver area restaurants offer varying degrees of deals and experiences. Yet what many don’t realize is that Dine Out has grown into the Dine Out Vancouver Festival. The two week long extravaganza includes culinary experiences of all kinds. They range from brewery and distillery visits to foodie tours—and even a secret supper outing.
Swallow Tail Culinary Adventures offers its Secret Supper Soirée on the evenings of January 26, February 1 and 2, 2019. (Sorry, you already missed out on Jan 19. But it was sold out anyway.)
I was invited to tag along for a part of this year’s production (and it is a full-on production) and was duly impressed. If you want to get the group together for a variation on the standard Dine Out evening, this secret supper adds up to plenty of tasty fun. And if you like a little mystery …
Secret Supper… and a whole lot more
Let me just say that the Swallow Tail experience doesn’t go for a song. But at $139 pp. plus tax, grat and service charges it does offer good value. There’s a whole lot more to this secret supper than meets the eye. It’s also important to note that this speak-easy era outingis an entirely legit operation. ;-) Part of that fee goes towards the cost of a Special Occasion License (SOL). That’s needed because some of the evening happens in places not necessarily licensed.
The evening unfolds as you board your private classic 1930s trolley. It spirits you away to the first location for professionally prepared canapés, beverages, and dinner. Ironically, I can’t tell you too much about where you’ll wind up. The destinations are deliberately, well kept secrets. But I will say they’re carefully chosen, interesting and unlikely spots. In fact it’s possible you may not even know they exist. And in this case they fit the Charleston theme perfectly. Hint. You might even come away with a few new dance steps to your repertoire…
A few more teasers. As mentioned, the evening is all inclusive, which means you’ll get to enjoy some smartly paired BC wines. Pairings include drops from Noble Ridge, Gold Hill, Elephant Island and Hester Creek. Wine agent Paul Martin of Peacock & Martin is on hand as informal sommelier. He says he enjoys the chance to keep up his serving skills!
Delicious Dishes
Chef Heather Dosman plates are tasty and well conceived. Each course includes a vegetarian option. Highlights from our evening were a sage squash celeriac pastrami with satin smooth Odd Society whisky cream, and beef ragu with arrabiata spinach cream.
Bruno Feldeisen’s lemoncello lemon curd, olive oil polenta cake—paired with Rye spiked hot Thai tea
A bonus: wicked desserts by star pastry chef Bruno Feldeisen…
Another bonus: A Charleston primer from Rhythm City Productions. The perfect post prandial workout!
Consider this as Dine Out with a difference. Maybe bring a few friends and enjoy some excellent tastes in places you probably never considered. Yes, for sure, it’s a culinary adventure but first and foremost, says Swallow Tail’s chef-owner (and also sommelier) Robin Kort, “People come out to have a good time.”
Check out Swallow Tail and its membership benefits here.
The Hired Belly was hosted by Swallow Tail Culinary Adventures and Dine Out Vancouver Festival.
Well matched BC wines
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