June 2010 - San Francisco
Calgary weather has been crappy. Rain, snow, wind and only teases of sunshine have poked through the grey clouds. A trip to potentially sunny California was just what the doctor ordered and hey….why not drop by some of the big guns while there…Gary Danko, Michael Mina and Masa's for fine dining and The Slanted Door, Hog Island Oyster Company, Boccalone, Ferry Plaza Wine Merchant, etc. for snacks, lunch or just general mayhem. On the one hand, these getaways are a wonderful respite from our weather….on the other hand this kind of dining reminds me of the ingredients we lack here in Cowtown. This isn’t to suggest that we don’t have our local culinary heavyweights because we do…but there are some things that living in landlocked Alberta just doesn’t offer.
Gary Danko is doable for anyone going to San Fran so long as you book in advance, well in advance. Reservations are only made via phone and you will need to confirm your space ahead of time. This is a not a big restaurant. Very cozy and well decorated you will definitely hear the conversations around you and all of them revolve around the food. The Spring Tasting menu for $102 per person is a bargain. The optional wine pairing for $67 is also worth the money. This is definitely a great place to splurge if you have to pick one spot! On to the dishes.
I began with a 1 oz. serving of Black Sea Osetra Caviar ($95) which was not part of the tasting menu but I figured for the money it would be a nice treat with a glass of champagne. Very nice buckwheat blini were served and though the eggs did not pop the way I had hoped there’s no such thing as bad caviar!
1st Course – Glazed Oysters with Osetra Caviar, Zucchini Pearls and Lettuce Cream. Paired with 2008 Spitzer Point Gruner Veltliner from Austria. This dish was so rich Warren Buffet would blush. The oysters were wonderful and the salt from the caviar and texture of the zucchini pearls were a great combo. The wine cut right through everything and was a splendid match.
2nd Course – Horseradish Crusted Salmon Medallion with Dilled Cucumbers and Mustard Sauce. Paired with 2007 Clot de L’Oum from France. Again a great wine pairing with perfectly cooked salmon and easily one of the prettiest dishes I ate. The mustard sauce was a tad stronger than I would have hoped for but I appreciated the creativity of this dish overall. I LOVED the horseradish crust.
3rd Course – Seared Filet of Beef with Yukon Potatoes, Curried Cauliflower, Cumin-Cilantro Butter and Tamarind Glaze. Paired with 2003 Eaglepoint Ranch Sangiovese from California. There’s a lot going here. Every bite tastes a bit different than the next given the blend of ingredients. The flavors really worked with the wine and I am not a huge sangiovese fan.
4th Course – Cheese Cart! What’s a big-ass dinner without a cheese cart? Loads of Farm House and Artisanal cheeses were offered and are typically paired with a 2005 Amarone della Valpolicella Classico…since yours truly picked the stinkiest of cheeses I was offered 1998 Domaine Fontanel Rivesaltes Ambre Grenache. My wine pairing here was PERFECT. Great cheeses here!
5th Course – Baked Chocolate Soufflé with Two Sauces. Paired with a 2007 Michel Chapoutier Banyuls (Vin Doux Naturel). Wow! So that’s what soufflé is like at sea level! LOL This dessert was unreal. Light, chocolaty goodness!
I’ll admit that with the caviar, extra champagne, etc. that this meal was pricey. But even if you don’t do the 5 course tasting menu there are a la carte selections and you can always go with 3 courses ($68) or 4 courses ($85)! Regardless your money will be well spent at Gary Danko.
A few other favorite dishes not to be missed while in San Francisco...
Located in the Ferry Terminal Building you cannot miss out on the meat cones at Boccalone! Pick your own meats or allow the team to give you an assortment of their housemade nasty bits. For $4.50 per cone...it's pretty hard to not to have more than one!
Though the room was warm and stuffy at Restaurant Michael Mina (air conditioning is a challenge in the old buildings) the service was excellent and the concept of trio tastings is sure to satisfy anyone looking for variety and value. For $105 you get a 3 course meal....but it's really 9 different tiny dishes! Hmmm...my two favorites were the Shellfish Trio and the Fatty Pigs.
The Shellfish Trio featured 1) Dungeness Crab, Roasted Shallot, Grilled Country Bread 2) Island Creek Oysters, Applewood Smoked Bacon, Fennel Remoulade and 3) Catalina Island Abalone, Grilled Abalone Mushroom and Pernod Emulsion.
Next up was The Fatty Pigs...1) Tenderloin, Schnitzel, Spatzle, 2) Short Rib, Braised Cabbage, Poached Apple and 3) Braised Shoulder, Potato Rosti, Apple Mustard. Simple fantastic...and a great pinot noir to match!
Last but certainly not least....a few goodies from the $89 4 course tasting menu at Masa. The Fresh Pea salad with mint and chili was one of the simplest, freshest, yet most flavorful veggie dishes I've had. Just gorgeous!
The roasted leg of goat was a smashing treat! Lovely texture and look at how well cooked and presented. I think Masa's may be one of the more underrated fine dining experiences in San Francisco. Every dish we had was excellent and their pastry chef is out of this world. Easily the best two desserts I tasted were at Masa's. Enjoy!
May 21st - Divino
There are few things I enjoy more than saddling up to the bar at Divino and tasting wines with Brad Royale and downing whatever new cocktails Brian has invented since the last time I saw him. This evening was a particularly saucy affair that included 1999 Silver Oak, 1999 Wolf Blass Platinum Label Shiraz, 1996 Chateau Labegorce Zede from Margaux and some 2008 Carlisle Zinfandel. There were several other samples on this evening but they have since faded in the fog that developed after a few hours. Besides the great wines we shared I have to say this was one of the best meals I've had at Divino. There's a few new menu items and I'll be craving a do-over of this evening once my cholesterol levels have returned to normal.
First Course...I was coerced by the Killer-B's into having the Duck Egg. Wow. This dish is richer than Bill Gates and sexier than Megan Fox and if I didn't know how evil this was for my waistline I'd have eaten 3 or 4.
So with all that red wine in front of us....what else would I order besides the bone in rib steak? Another calorie bomb and cooked to perfection. Look at that color....AC/DC said it best....Sink the Pink dammit. I'll dream about this steak over and over until I have it again. The mound of butter on top of this beast was food porn at its finest.
If you haven't been to Divino in a while I highly suggest you move it on over and get down there. After these two plates I couldn't bring myself to order cheese....a first for me! Cheers.
May 11th, 2010 - An Evening with Best’s, Featuring Viv Thomson. Hosted by Richmond Hill Wines and The River Café.
This time of year is fantastic, and not just because BBQ season is here…I love the fact that many wine personalities from Australia trek to Calgary because crush is done and they have wine to sell!
Best’s is one of those under the radar producers for those who aren’t in the know when it comes to Australian wines. The labels don’t attract a lot of attention…no cute little critters…and if you’ve never heard of the rare Thomson Family Shiraz or their Pinot Meunier…don’t expect people who are in the know to tell you (which makes me think twice as I write this).
Away we go…. 1st Course - Grilled B.C. Spot Prawn (Chipotle Yogurt, Mizuna, Fennel, Radish). Paired with 2008 Riesling. Every time I eat a perfectly cooked shrimp it reminds me how they are destroyed. The yogurt here was really simple, really impressive and provided just the right zip with the Riesling. Very nice pairing.
2nd Course – Cedar Planked Wild Spring Salmon (White Bean, Fiddlehead, Shimiji, Nasturtium Beure Blanc. Paired with 2005 Chardonnay ‘Concongella Vineyard’. Again, perfectly cooked seafood. Firm veggies and an artery clogging sauce…all in support of a tasty chardonnay.
3rd Course – Noble Farm Duck Breast (Polenta, Kale, Huckleberry, Maitake, Crisp Shallots. Paired with 2004 Pinot Meunier. Pink duck is a turn on and polenta just makes my day, so the wonderful shallots were the proverbial cherry on a food sundae. Oh….the pinot meunier was one of the best drinking wines I’ve tasted in a long time. I hate finding new wines to collect (cellar space issues) but this was spectacular, velvety, liquid wine porn on the palate.
4th Course – Butter Poached Royal Elk Farm Tenderloin (Nettle Chimichurri, Rose Finn Potatoes, Ramp Relish, Green Beans). Paired with 2005 Thomson Family Shiraz and 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon. Look at the elk picture….it’s freakin’ raw but it was wonderful. Had a grilled taste that surely came from a quick flame-on after the poaching. The Thomson Family Shiraz is a gorgeous, silky red that I will now start collecting (zut!). I have to admit the cabernet was nice, but really was in tough against the shiraz here though it did possess wonderful green pepper notes and was an excellent example of the varietal.
5th Course – Dandelion Honey Pine Nut Madaleine (Cherry Wine Reduction, Fig and Cherry Mousse). Paired with Swan Hill Muscat Liqueur. I could have eaten 20 of the madaleine but the mousse really went over the top. Great end to a wonderful meal and a Muscat liqueur here was a solid choice, if a little heavy. This was a great evening and proved to be an excellent introduction to Best's portfolio of products. Excellent value all around!
d’Arenberg Wine Dinner Hosted by Parker House & Harvest Vintage Imports - April 26th, 2010
When I received the invite to this dinner I was excited being a huge fan of the d’Arenberg wine portfolio. Visiting the winery in Australia during a trip last year was a highlight and this dinner included a guest from the UK, Claire Scott, Regional Brand Ambassador for the wines (that’s her job, seriously!). Claire flew over volcano ash from the UK to attend a series of events in Canada and immediately struck everyone as a very good wine soldier who knows this winery inside and out.
These wines almost always represent excellent value for artisanal products and are well made under the direction of Chester Osborn. Their flagship Dead Arm Shiraz is a wine I began collecting almost 10 years ago but several of their products have become favorite value picks for me. White or red, you’ll be hard pressed to find a runt among the litter when it comes to d’Arenberg wines.
My excitement eventually wore off and upon reading the invite further concern overtook my enthusiasm. Parker House was going to attempt an “Australian” themed dinner…which did not bode well...for a variety of reasons. First, and most importantly…what the hell would the new chef of Parker House (Joel Cumberland has replaced Andrew Keen) know about cuisine down under?
Second…I have been to very few balanced wine dinners. Either the food is completely outshined by the wines or the chef’s ego gets in the way and dishes are intended to be the highlight rather than a partner to the wines. It’s a tug-o-war that simply fails time and again. Given that chef Cumberland was new and possibly wanted to make a statement….I figured a train wreck was a distinct possibility.
Fortunately…I was wrong! When the big day arrived two things became clear immediately upon my review of the menu…Joel had done his homework on the food and GM/Sommelier Adam Snelling had worked very hard with the kitchen to ensure harmony with the wines. There was a bit of ego with this menu but it was focused towards the pairings and not hubris, which one might expect from a new chef looking to impress.
1st Course – Dungeness Crab Napoleon (Green Apple, Tarragon, Phylo). Paired with 2008 Hermit Crab Viognier Marsanne. One of my top 10 value whites, this was a gorgeous pairing. Tarragon and crab are a perfect combo; the green apple complimented the ingredients and the wine wonderfully. Not overdone, these ingredients spoke loudly.
2nd Course – Shrimp Bisque (Spice Grilled Prawn, Candied Lime). Paired with 2008 Dry Dam Riesling. Riesling cuts through silky smooth bisque like a plastic surgeon sculpting a new set of…cheeks. The candied lime was a great flavor enhancer for my palate.
3rd Course – Lamb Tenderloin (Sweet Potato Pavé, Charred Leeks, Brown Butter). Paired with 2006 Custodian Grenache. Is there an Aussie red that does NOT pair well with lamb? Perfectly cooked lamb and the Pavé was gorgeous.
4th Course – Kangaroo Vol au Vent (Pear Parsnip Purée, Pixie Dust). Paired with 2007 Wild Pixie Shiraz Rousanne. I’ll grant you that Roo may be a bit hokie from the Canadian perspective but it’s popular in Australia. The purée was a miss for my palate, (too dominant).Given that this was the debut of Wild Pixie in Canada something special was called for, enter pixie dust! Made from dried blackberries put through a coffee grinder this demonstrated great creativity on the part of Chef Cumberland.
5th Course – Cheese Plate. Paired with 2005 Ironstone Pressings (70% Grenache, 25% Shiraz, 5% Mourvedre). The mild blue cheese was served with a lovely honey, toasted walnuts and fig compote. The Ironstone lives in the shadow of Dead Arm but showed very well in this pairing. The bonus pour of 2006 Dead Arm allowed for immediate comparison. The Harvest Vintage duo (Kelly and Chris) really are good-people!
6th Course – Passion Fruit Pavlova. Paired with 2008 Noble Wrinkled Riesling. There isn't a more Australian dessert than Pavlova (named for a ballerina) and the passion fruit meshed wonderfully with the wine. If you haven’t tried any Aussie dessert wines you’re missing out! Excellent value when compared with sauternes. After 6 courses and 7 wines…we were all done.
I can’t say enough about the presentation of each dish and how well the flavors complimented the wines. It’s a shame more of Calgary did not get to experience this evening (limited seating of course) but here’s hoping that Joel Cumberland turns out to be more than a one evening wonder because if he does Parker House could reach new heights.
As for the wines…I’d lost touch a bit with d’Arenberg as a brand since my trip last year (hard to top Dead Arm on the winery verandah) but the evening reminded me why I fell in love with their line of products and why I need to remind myself more frequently of the quality that exists here. Thanks to all who made this event happen, it was a stunner.
Chef's Table Kensington, April 2010
So many people have raved about Chef’s Table in Kensington that it was clear to me I was well behind the curve in seeing what this spot has to offer. New Chef, Jeff Park, has rolled out a tasting menu that looked pretty good online but needed to be tasted to be understood and appreciated. I was happy to finally make up for my oversight and book in for what turned out to be a lovely dinner.
At $98 for 6 courses plus an additional $48 for wine pairings the menu provides excellent fine dining value. Other than the room being a tad too warm, the setting and service are top notch. I know it seems like a small detail but I love it when restaurants line up their waiters to serve a table all at once for every course. This is especially important when ordering a tasting menu. It’s a disaster any other way and I'd be pissed if I was a chef watching my food creations stagnate while customers wait to eat what’s in front of them. Other restaurants in Calgary would do well to learn from this practice.
Dinner began with an amuse bouche of goat cheese and onion tart. A nice beginning and the amount of butter in the pastry sent shock waves to my ventricles. There’s nothing better than homemade pastry; I don’t care what’s in it when it’s well made.
Our second course was Albacore Tuna Tartare with cucumber gelée, avocado, yuzu dressing and micro shiso. Thought I find tuna tartare to be an overplayed dish this was a great beginning. I almost enjoyed the cucumber gelée more than the tuna itself as I found it to be a refreshing component both texturally and creatively.
Next came the Sunchoke Risotto with Smoked Black Cod Beignet, Mascarpone and Grana Padano. I love the sweetness of sunchoke and the risotto was cooked perfectly. The cod beignet was nice but after having two that were cold in the center there’s work to do on that element. I would still recommend this dish as the risotto was soooo good.
The fourth course was one of the best dishes I have eaten in Calgary. The BC Line Caught Halibut is crusted with chorizo and panko. It’s something I hope to eat again and again. It’s served with haricots vert, slow cooked fennel and sauce vierge. The plate is gorgeous but I could have cared less after tasting the halibut and chorizo. Delicate…with mild spice but not a hint of greasiness from the chorizo this is sure to become a signature dish so long as halibut is available fresh on a seasonal basis.
Once I had recovered…the menu kicked our asses up another notch with the Soy Glazed Spring Creek Short Rib. Served with chesnut pomme purée, broccolini, pickled shimeji mushrooms and soy ginger braising juice. The meat was of course fork tender and lovely but the unexpected zing provided by the shimeji mushrooms was what really sent my taste buds over the top. Again, such a simple component added a wonderful complexity that I think few appreciate given our propensity to be carnivores.
The menu was bookended by an extremely sexy dessert of Poached Bartlett Pear served with mascarpone sorbet and saffron vanilla syrup. The perfect ending to a very well executed dinner.
I had few issues with Chef’s Table and will absolutely be back. As a final note, I asked for a sample of the blue cheese polenta that is served with the lamb (I just had to, I love blue cheese!) and if the halibut and chorizo doesn’t haunt me at night that polenta will surely do the trick. This is the best $150 I’ve spent on a tasting menu and wine pairings in a long time.
Charcut Opens! March 2010
Charcut Roast House is the newest restaurant to grace our downtown core and features a menu reminiscent of an old world bistro. Anticipation has been oozing over items such as roasted marrow, crispy chicken skin salad and loads of charcuterie and roasted meats.
My first visit was pretty much what one expects from any new spot open less than a couple of weeks. The service was a tad clunky, the food was mostly spot on with the odd miss and the space was packed with excited diners who seemed to be ordering the same 5 or 6 dishes.
The room at Charcut is well done, sporting a dark but lively atmosphere with floor to ceiling glass windows perfect for viewing whatever mishaps may be occurring just off Stephen Avenue. Personally…I love the fact there is an open kitchen and a view into their raw meat locker. Definitely not a place for the vegan crowd.
We kicked off the meal with the large charcuterie board, two orders of roasted bones, crispy chicken skin salad and the baked cheese. The charcuterie board and baked cheese were excellent but we sent one of our roasted bones back due to a lack of marrow, the crispy chicken skin in the salad was blackened and inedible. The server happily brought another bone and a new salad with no questions asked. It was clear that whoever was expediting was missing a few beats but overall things were good.
Our table ordered a collage of mains. The leg of lamb, butcher steak, and roast chicken were all very good. All were cooked perfectly, well seasoned, and served warm. Most people won’t have a clue what butcher steak is but it’s sliced up so the average diner will be none the wiser. Our desserts included cookies with a vanilla milkshake and some fresh “doughnuts” with chocolate. Both were very, very good. A bumpy beginning but a very strong finish to our evening!
The one thing missing from Charcut is a comprehensive wine list. Too many Canadian wines for my liking and if you’re going to serve this kind of food you need a few more sophisticated wines. I guess the excellent beer list helps make up for this but doesn’t help winos like me. The wines are serviceable for the everyday drinker but cork dorks will be disappointed. When I go back I’ll be sure to inquire about corkage. The key is that I will definitely go back.
A few chinks in the armor of a new restaurant are expected but there were no issues that preclude me from looking forward to my next round of roasted beets, marrow, and meat. I hope Calgarians embrace this type of cuisine and allow Charcut to set a new precedent for those of us who enjoy the “nasty bits”. While they don’t solely rely on charcuterie there’s enough to allow even the most conservative diner to…dip their tongue in the fat…so to speak. Buckle up, order many dishes and don’t ask too many questions if you’re the queasy type and you’ll be just fine. Cheers!
Las Vegas, January 2010
Dining in Las Vegas has come a long way from buffet lines and 99 cent breakfasts. Celebrity chef’s have capitalized on the cachet their name brings to a casino’s ability to extract cash from the rich and famous or the average tourist. There’s Thomas Keller, Guy Savoy, Bobby Flay, Emeril Lagasse and perhaps most famous of them all, Joel Robuchon.
The thing that irks me about these places is that while the dishes are inspired or created by the restaurants’ namesake…none of them are cooking my food. These chef’s make guest appearances from time to time but that’s it. Joel Robuchon apparently cooks in Vegas 6 times a year, which is great if your timing is perfect, otherwise you’re not really eating his food.
Beyond the naming rights methodology that casino’s use for restaurants, it crushed me to hear from our server at Keller’s Bouchon Bistro that my blood sausage had in fact been purchased and not house made. Now…only a food nerd like me would go to a spot like this and get excited about ordering blood sausage…but I digress. I paid top dollar to eat in a restaurant occasionally graced by a famous chef and then found out the main ingredient wasn’t even created in his kitchen! No matter how much I enjoyed the sausage, and I did, it was clear to me that my experience was somewhat manufactured and not pure as it would have been if I traveled to California to eat at Bouchon.
So what should you expect from one of these restaurants? Expect a reasonable facsimile of the chef’s food when you go to the celebrity chef spots or any outpost of chain dining, but do not expect the best they have to offer. While dining at Encore we noticed that they make a point of telling their customers that the food you’re eating is being cooked by a chef whose name is on the menu. I like that. Oddly enough, one of the best meals I had in Vegas was at Encore. Hmmm…
On the plus side of posh dining in Vegas...let me tell you about the pomp and circumstance of dining in one of the chef hotspots. If you haven’t tried Joel Robuchon (The Mansion) what you get is much more than a food experience. It’s Vegas at its finest from a customer service perspective. Let me explain.
After the complimentary gold limo picks you up at your hotel you are whisked away through Vegas to the private MGM “Mansion” entrance through the iron gates and past security where you are met by a hostess who walks you down their private hallways, past the high roller rooms (not open to the public) and through a beautiful garden with the “token” giant fountain. This is about a 5 minute walk and along the way you are bedazzled at the underbelly of the MGM that you’ll never know exists unless you can afford to play in the high roller rooms. I have to admit…even before we arrived at the restaurant I was impressed.
Upon arriving we were warmly greeted by another hostess and the General Manager. We were seated and my wife was offered a stool for her purse…didn’t realize they even made stools for that…anyway in true Euro fashion the service was entirely relaxed and glacial in pace. A stark contrast to the activity raging right outside the doors, but in the Robuchon dining room you are in another world, isolated in elegance and oblivious to the vulgarity of the casino floor. It takes about 10 minutes to wind down before you can take it all in.
We were offered glasses of champagne (Bruno Paillard Rosé) which at $45 USD a glass was a tad steep but if you’re going to fret over cost this is not the place to dine. We did not opt for the degustation menu (17 courses) but selected the 4 course meal ($195 USD PP) which included amuse bouche, the bread trolley, cheese trolley, and dessert trolley. The amuse bouche was a tin of caviar served on top of crab in a fennel cream. It was fantastic and I could have easily eaten 5 more. The bread cart probably had 30 different items to choose from and I had to pick 3…it was like leaving several children behind to have to choose 3!
For my palate the food ranged from excellent, flavorful expressions to good, but not great. I should note that if you select certain courses with more expensive ingredients (black truffles for example) you do pay a supplemental fee. I was not impressed by their fresh truffles and thought they were completely lacking in aroma. They provided a textural component but I have whiffed many a truffle that gave much more to a dish than these. On the plus side, the onion and melted cheese tart they were shaved on was fantastic. Perfect pastry abounds at Robuchon but for $40USD extra I needed a lot more from the truffles themselves even though the portion was staggering.
My second course was probably my favorite. Chesnut veloute with foie gras and smoked lardons foam. Low calorie all around the horn on this one. A gorgeous soup that left me wanting more. My two mains were nice, highlighted by the duck and seared foie gras, but nothing made me tingle as much as the amuse bouche or the soup.
What came next blew my doors off…the cheese trolley. This wasn’t just a bunch of cheeses pimped up for my selection…this was a religious experience. How they manage to get the products on that cart into the USA is beyond me…and if you’re a cheese lover you know the difference between European cheese making techniques and North American standards. There are no local products that compare to what I tasted at Robuchon.
After the cheese trolley you are exposed to the dessert trolley which contains all the house made chocolates, caramels, etc. that Robuchon has to offer. There had to be 50 items on it and again…having to choose and leave others behind was painful…but fear not…they give you a box of candies to take home.
A note on the wine list…it’s an encyclopedia. I haven’t asked a sommelier for REAL help in years, but there were simply too many selections. The sommelier was Canadian and did a fine job of helping me select a white and a red from Burgundy. Prices of their wine allows for anyone to afford a choice or two so I had no complaints.
Looking back on the evening I have two thoughts. One…this was not the best food ever produced in a Robuchon kitchen. It was a reasonable facsimile. Two…I have never felt so special as an anonymous customer. I will go back and spend the money again. The 3 trolley’s and caviar amuse bouche are worth the visit…aside from the pomp and circumstance. At the end of the day…I didn’t mind not seeing Joel Robuchon.
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