1966 replies to this topic

[jamiemaw]

Piccolo Mondo becomes Saveur

I went to the soft opening of Saveur (850 Thurlow Street at Smithe) on Sunday evening. Chef Stephane Meyer, the first time I've ever seen him out of his whites, was casually dressed and greeting folks at the door. Guests were mainly old friends of Piccolo Mondo. Michelle Geris and George Baugh handed the restaurant over for next to nothing, and M. Meyer et sa femme have redecorated: painting, hanging fabric dividers, adding a small lounge area with soft furniture near the entrance, and a large communal table in the middle of the room. It's a softer looking room now, but with the same beautiful glassware, cutlery and linen. And Meyer has taken the menu to the left slightly, from Italy, across the Cote d'Azur to a more French-influenced place.

The menu is a three course, $38 prix fixe but you'll be able to order a la carte from it very soon--although at these prices why bother. There are about a half dozen items proposed for each course; here's a random sampling from a highly skilled chef:

MENU EDITED

Jamie,
Do you know if Saveur is open for lunch?
Eric

Eric,

I doubt that they're open for lunch. In fact this morning there was no answer or message at the old Piccolo Mondo number (688-1633), nor was there a new number available at directory assistance. I'll circle by later today to see what's up.
But presuming they're open for dinner, I'll be very interested to hear your feedback.

Jamie

Edited by jamiemaw, 16 November 2004 - 10:49 AM.

[Coop]

Finally got to Go Fish. I really liked the staff and my Oyster Poor Boy. The guy who seems to be in charge is a real food lover. He knew where everything came from,and how it was prepared. The oysters were grilled instead of deep fried, they came off the boat about 50 yards away. Juicy and fresh they came with sauteed onions and a pepper mayo. The fried fish also looked great, it was served in a steamer basket. Amazing what a place can do if they give a sh!t.

[2roost]

Lift Bar and Grill

The much anticipated restaurant on the water in front of the Bayshore has acheived permit status and should open before Christmas.

I have toured the site and it is a stunning room and with Keith Krentz and Dave Jorgenson manning the fires the food should be first rate. With three or four months to sort out the kinks before Patio season it could be "the" summer restaurant of 2005 (and beyond?).

Check out the website http://www.liftbarandgrill.com/ for more details.

[merlin]

Looks like an intersting spot for a future visit.

Interesting that they have gone the Riedel "O" glass route to serve their wines.

[2roost]

Interesting that they have gone the Riedel "O" glass route to serve their wines.

Is that "O" as in "O No - I forgot the stem ?"

[Coop]

I don't know. I can have lunch across the water at RVYC for about half the price. I love the pictures of the boat houses though.

Don't mind those O glasses though. Dishwasher safe!

[2roost]

Lift tomorrow (Dec23rd) for dinner. Oh, and there are no pictures of boat houses that I could see - could see real boat houses though.

[Andrew Morrison]

if anyone wants to write about lift over the holidays i'd appreciate you getting in touch with me before waiterblog goes public january 1st. i'm isolated on the island until new years eve and won't be able to go....if anybody goes and can put pen to paper without having an embolism and is eye-high in the christmas spirit of charity and goodwill...give me a shout as i'd truly appreciate it.

my posts should dwindle over the next few days, so i just want to wish you all a very merry christmas. eat well, drink better. play safe.

Edited by editor@waiterblog, 23 December 2004 - 01:25 AM.

[jamiemaw]

OPENING SOON
BC Restaurant Industry News

Ah, January, the time of snow, monsoon, occasional sunshine, early daffodils, and rapid restaurant change. Read on . . .

Downtown Vancouver

WHEN GOOD THINGS HAPPEN TO GOOD PEOPLE DEPT.
Upon his return from Lyon, France where he’s once again attending the Bocuse d’Or culinary competition (but this time as a judge—Team Canada placed 8th under chefs Morgan Wilson and Ryan Stone from the Marriott Pinnacle), Michael Noble (ex-Four Seasons Hotel, Metropolitan Hotel and Catch, Calgary), will join Earls as Head of Culinary Development. After an introductory tour of Earls and affiliated properties throughout Canada and the U.S., Noble’s first launch will occur shortly at Paramount Place. “Everyone in the Earl’s organization is thrilled,” Stan Fuller, the president of Earls told us today. “We chose Michael and he chose us.”
Noble, in addition to pioneering the renaissance of our local cuisine via the aggressive sourcing of local ingredients, is also rightly known for the formidable apprenticeship and mentoring programs he implemented at the various properties noted above.

We recently reported in Vancouver the westward movement of the new-build downtown restaurant nexus. Where restaurants sprouted along the Yaletown corridors over the past decade, there’s movement back to Robson and especially Alberni, spurred by the potential footfall traffic generated by the Shangri-la and Paramount Place multi-use developments. The Granville Mall remains the Great Divide for quality dining. So watch carefully the former Bruce fashion space on Alberni (just west of Burrard). There are some exciting designs for a 200+ seat CFD restaurant and bar in the clear-span space—nails bang shortly for a planned Labour Day launch. More news soon.
Nearby, Romy Prassad, ex-executive chef at Jack Evrensel’s CinCin, is refreshing the second-floor former Settebello space. With partner Dee Anand, he plans to open the to-be-named restaurant before spring break.
Replacing Prassad at CinCin will be Andreas Wechselberger, previously executive sous at CinCin and prior, executive chef at Teatro, Calgary, where he replaced Mission Hills’ Michael Allemeier.

Perhaps the solution for the Granville Mall will be the proposed refurb of the 900-block, continuing south from the recently revamped 800-block, now recast in retail, restaurant and office space. With the Capital Six slated for redevelopment (on the podium: Orpheum extension, rehearsal hall and music school) with a large-scale residential tower above. Farther north of The Bay, The 440-suite Hudson, again with commercial and other amenities at street level, should combine to offer the city both more centrally-located restaurant opportunities and the night-time street life that drives them.

False Creek

Harry Kambolis, the quietly successful proprietor of Raincity Grill, has inked the lease to Riley’s, the well-located but under-used False Creek space just a smoked octopus’s throw from that gem called C. Concept is being refined, menu developed, but look for an informal approach to seafood and more—watch this space . . . .

Whistler

Meanwhile at Whistler, CinCin sib Araxi’s exec chef James Walt decamps for a year to Rome. Replacing him is Andrew Richardson, formerly opening sous chef at West in 2001, and then Carter House Inn in California. Richardson also worked at Cioppino’s and Sooke Harbour House.

Yaletown

LilyKate—a 2,700 square foot restaurant (70 indoor seats in dark wood, espresso-coloured banquettes and a zinc bar; 35 patio) and shop—will open February 7th at 1265 Hamilton Street (604-687-5885). Offering “the comfort food people long for and crave”, proprietor Britta Joyce will show a home style menu of mac and cheese, meatloaf, and apple-stuffed pork chops from exec chef Elke Brandstatter. Pastry chef Carley Makela will offer pecan sticky buns, whoopee pies, German chocolate cake and New York cheesecake. The shop will feature pastries, foods, prepped meals and quality condiments.

At Bluewater, Chef Frank Pabst has launched (suspended during Dine Out) a 7-course “Unsung Heroes” menu that celebrates many of our under-recognized coastal species such as anchovies, mackerel, sardines, sea urchin, sea urchin, geoduck, cuttlefish, squid and periwinkles. Sounds an interesting bargain at $79, runs until February 28th; individual tasting plates are available--I'll take mine at the bar with some neat Smirnoff--it won this week's New York Times tasting against all the big quadruple-filtered boys.

Wine Country

Driving from Kelowna to Sun Peaks for the annual Ice Wine Festival last weekend, Mission Hill’s Director of Sales Ingo Grady proudly shared some news: Mission Hill’s Anthony von Mandl will soon become the first Canadian president of the International Wine and Spirit Competition, an accolade indeed. Other notables who have served the position include Baroness Philippine de Rothschild, Robert Mondavi and Wolf Blass (and you thought it was just another crafty marketing brand). Von Mandl knows the competition well—it was a Mission Hill chardonnay (winemaker John Simes first vintage, a 1992, in fact) that won the IWSC’s Avery Trophy for Best Chardonnay in the World, at the London competition in 1994.
Famously, the French judges at that competition professed an inability to pronounce the word Okanagan let alone know how to spell it. They insisted on a re-tasting. Mission Hill won again.

The best of the wine dinners was at The Val, where Grady (Mission Hills and Gehringer Bros. co-hosted) and I ate some well-prepped tuna and a hearty turn of duck. Nice job.

Kelowna’s Bouchons Restaurant near Prospera Place plays to packed houses most nights. It’s from the same Richard and Martine Toussaint who used to run Vancouver’s Café de Paris and short-lived Cyrano, now occupied by CRU; chef André Bernier pushes out quality bistro food with plate bending accessories, often including miniature vegetable timabales, terrines, scalloped potatoes or good frites. You might not often associate the words bistro with vegan, but a call-ahead request for one of our guests showed a four-course vegetable tasting menu laden with flavour—a tough stunt at this time of year. Free advice: Order the satisfying cabbage and bacon soup.

The attractively designed next-door Waterside Wine Bar (it’s not) offers many by-the-glass locals and a short menu. The only caveat—nearby parking spaces are few, especially on hockey nights. Bundle up.

Pierre-Jean Martin and his wife Sandrine Raffault have opened La Boulangerie, a day-only room in a former fast food taco space on Lakeshore just south of KLO. Restorative soups, quiches and husky sandwiches en baguette and a terrific retinue of pastries and breads. Martin uses only French flour, by the way, and the drive-thru window raises obvious and attractive questions.

La Bussola has moved west into new downtown premises. Scampi and veal rate well, pastas well-made, solid cellar.

Farther south, Joie is changing its name to reflect that accommodation will only be available for folks attending its cooking school this season.

Other Business

The BC Restaurant and Foodservices Association (BCRFA) recently announced the first inductees to its new BC Restaurant Hall of Fame.

Herewith, their press release:

“We founded the Hall of Fame to celebrate and promote excellence in BC’s culinary traditions and pay tribute to the outstanding individuals, past and present, who have shaped this vibrant industry,” said Richard Floody, Chair of the BC Restaurant and Foodservices Association.
“British Columbia ’s restaurant scene is one of the most dynamic in North America , if not the world and we are proud to honour those who have made it the success it is today,” said Bing Smith, Chair of the BC Restaurant Hall of Fame Committee.
Leading the list of the first 16 BC Restaurant Hall of Fame inductees are Erwin Doebeli of the William Tell and Umberto Menghi of Umberto’s who were named in the Active Category, which celebrates the exceptional restaurateur who is currently active in the BC restaurant industry.
Inductees in the four categories (Active, Pioneer, Industry, Friend of the Industry) are:
Active
Celebrating exceptional restaurateurs currently active in the BC restaurant industry.
· Erwin Doebeli: The William Tell
· Umberto Menghi: Umberto’s
Pioneer
Pioneers of the BC restaurant industry, either retired or deceased.
· Hy Aisenstat: HY’s Steakhouse
· Nat Bailey: White Spot
· Frank Baker: The Attic
· Mario Corsi: Park Royal Hotel and Corsi Trattoria
· Frank & Eva Iaci: Iaci’s
· Mike McLaughlin: Old House Restaurant, Comox
· Louis Stervinou: Devonshire Seafood House and Ondines
· Peter Szasz: Szasz Restaurant
· George Tidball: Keg Restaurants
· Joe Troll: Troll’s Restaurant
Industry Award
Individual—retired, deceased or active—who is or has been a chef, server, manager, bartender and who has demonstrated exceptional professionalism working in the restaurant industry. These individuals will be recognized for making their restaurant a special experience for customers.

Back of House·
Bruno Marti: Chef/Owner, La Belle Auberge

Front of House
Ann Bentley: General Manager, Aqua Riva

Friend of the Industry

An individual who has provided exceptional support to the restaurant industry – either a supplier, restaurant reporter, or politician who has consistently supported BC’s restaurant industry.
· Harry McWatters: Sumac Ridge Winery
· Peter Whittall: Neptune Food Service
Inductees were chosen by a panel of 50 judges made up of industry leaders from throughout the province.
The Hall of Fame presentations will be made during a special industry celebration on March 7, 2005 at BC Place Stadium. The permanent home of the BC Restaurant Hall of Fame will be at the new Center of Excellence in Hospitality at the downtown campus of Vancouver Community College .
Limited tickets available.
TO PURCHASE TICKETS: call Kathy Rutherford at (604) 669-2239 or (800) 663-4482.

It was, as they say, an honour to be nominated, but certainly more befitting that the longtime vets mentioned above be given their just desserts. Congratulations to all.

Edited by jamiemaw, 28 January 2005 - 04:42 PM.

[Keith Talent]

whoopee pies?

And this is probably a stupid question, but I'll not let that deter me. Is West in the space (or hell, even the same block) that Szasz was?

[nwyles]

whoopee pies?

And this is probably a stupid question, but I'll not let that deter me. Is West in the space (or hell, even the same block) that Szasz was?

you are correct. Same spot

[jamiemaw]

whoopee pies?

And this is probably a stupid question, but I'll not let that deter me. Is West in the space (or hell, even the same block) that Szasz was?

you are correct. Same spot

Gianni Picchi was there in between until some GST issues caught him up. After cooking at The Stump Lake Ranch and The Beach Side in West Vancouver, he's now rumoured to have struck out--on his own again, that is.
There were some amazing souvenirs when he renovated the old Szasz's space, including a perfectly petrified tray of food including a plate of goulash, circa 1961, although carbon-dating is notoriously unreliable when it comes to paprika.

And while on the subject of carbon-dating, the Szasz's were cousins of the fabulous Gabor sisters, who could be espied, from time to time, taking a traditional Euro-weiner or two in the back room.

Edited by jamiemaw, 29 January 2005 - 12:40 PM.

[jamiemaw]

whoopee pies?

Keith,

I may have got the spelling wrong. Instead of 'whoopee' as in the old Krak-a-Joke cushions that replicated flatulent barnyard sounds when your maiden-Aunt Florence sat down for Christmas dinner (remember, she was quite capable of her own replications after three loads of turkey, Brussels sprouts, and the second helping of mince pie), it may actually be spelled 'whoopie', i.e. that what dear Auntie Flo had never made, perhaps for the reason cited above.

Semantically yours,

Jamie

Edited by jamiemaw, 29 January 2005 - 12:41 PM.

[stovetop]

Thankyou Jamie for the news.

My vote goes to George Tidball

I think I have an even more curious inkling to check out Earls, I was wondering where Michael Noble was??

What is the latest on this, is there a press release???
steve

[stovetop]

Jamie; I worked at the Armoury restaurant with Jack fuller and Chef Henry Bachman, a great kitchen and front of house staff, many years later many front of house staff work for Earls.
The front of house staff at the armoury all were very good, it was one of the best crews I have worked with.
steve

[merlin]

Jamie; I worked at the Armoury restaurant with Jack fuller and Chef Henry Bachman, a great kitchen and front of house staff,  many years later many front of house staff work for Earls.
The front of house staff at the armoury all were very good, it was one of the best crews I have worked with.
steve

LOL...then you may have thrown me out on a couple of occasions Steve...remember those big overstuffed chairs downstairs in the lounge...made one feel like you were in that Tom Hank's flic with everything so big...

Henry Bachman...now there is a name from the past...

Jack Fuller? Did he go to Calgary [Bankers' Hall]or is he the Fuller brother with the Red Deer Earl's.

Funny, I was just speaking with Brian Plunkett from Calgary last week about Noble having left Catch [never impressed with the fine dining room, poor service, overpriced, less than inspiring fish whether it was purportedly day boat catch or line caught, etc.] but did enjoy some meals in the oyster bar downstairs and the staff spoke highly of "chef" and his training] and wondering where he would end up...Earl's...that is interesting....excuse this Albertan's ignorance...hey, we do it for "King Ralph" virtually daily...but what is Paramount Place?

[jamiemaw]

Thankyou Jamie for the news.

My vote goes to George Tidball

I think I have an even more curious inkling to check out Earls, I was wondering where Michael Noble was??

What is the latest on this, is there a press release???
steve

With pleasure, Steve. Obviously there were lots of interesting discussions going on over the Christmas holidays, and like a kid staring at the Christmas tree, I've been sitting on a few of these announcements since then.

Quite a message to the industry in Michael Noble's appointment. And certainly an interesting sidebar to the convergence of value in "brand extension" casual dining rooms (Feenie's on Broadway and soon in Burnaby, Harry Kamboli's new digs, Enoteca, the Small Plates phenomenon et al) versus established CFD chains like Earls that have been hiring well-regarded 'names' such as David Scholefield and Anthony Gismondi to deepen value and taste on their wine lists. It's also interesting to note that Earl's purchasing VP George Piper instituted an organic greens program long before many FD rooms.

Although I know there's some snobbery out there about CFD or so-called 'three-ring binder' chains, recent road trips through the States and UK continue to corroborate what I've long suspected--that several of the CFD chains that were birthed here in Western Canada (Earls, Cactus Club, The Keg, Joey's Global Grill, Milestone's) do a quite remarkable job at a very tough price point--at a $20 to $25 average dinner check.

The new rooms (wait till you see Paramount Place; the new Park Royal Cactus Club is a sleek beauty) are gorgeous. The service training is legendary--I hosted a couple of teams from the UK in the past year who came explicitly to see how it's done.

So I got to thinking, how come they're noticeably (often, remarkably) better than what's available in Eastern Canada, the States and the U.K.? I reckon that in a smaller sized city such as Penticton, say, the local Earls may be the dependable, default choice for a casual meal.

But it strikes me that the real determinate is in a larger city such as Vancouver, where the competition for customers at this price point is especially fierce given the virtually unlimited value choices, especially in Asian cuisines. In short, they simply have to be consistently excellent, with nary a microwave and a very limited dependence on the deep fryer. Add in intrepid sourcing and highly integrated distribution (economy of scale) of raw product. Add back the service. Add in an expert real estate team. And add in that one ineffable element--a sense of humour and, dare I say, even fun, and you get the point.

That might be one reason that The Keg is doing so well in Dallas, beating them at what we might have assumed was their own game.

I suspect we'll see a press release in a week or two, and that Michael will visit us here in person once he's settled in after his trip to France. We probably shouldn't forget that he follows some other highly skilled development chefs: Chris Mills (who is now at Earls siblings Joey's Global Grill and OPM), Alain Leger (ex-Metropolitan Hotel, now executive chef at the Brentwood Bay Resort--both of whom trained under Noble). And Cactus Club has one of the most skookum development kitchens in the country at Broadway and Ash--you may have seen their development team featured, with president Richard Jaffray, on a recent 'Chef at Large' on FNC. Turns out it's a very tough process to develop a chain-wide recipe.

It also intrigues me that the food media, who intrepidly chase the next new FD room or perhaps more esoteric Asian or storefront neighbourhood find, virtually ignore this category (with the exception of Tim Pawsey of The Courier, who regularly weighs in on CFD), even though many Canadians, especially at this end of the country, surely don't. But don't ask me. We had occasion to canvass a number of name chefs a while back as to where they eat on their nights off. While many preferred Japanese with their spouse, if the family was involved, you probably already know the answer.

Cheers,

Jamie

Edited by jamiemaw, 29 January 2005 - 01:32 PM.

[jamiemaw]

Jamie; I worked at the Armoury restaurant with Jack fuller and Chef Henry Bachman, a great kitchen and front of house staff,  many years later many front of house staff work for Earls.
The front of house staff at the armoury all were very good, it was one of the best crews I have worked with.
steve

Earl's...that is interesting....excuse this Albertan's ignorance...hey, we do it for "King Ralph" virtually daily...but what is Paramount Place?

Paramount Place is a major mixed-use 24-storey eatertainment complex (with a sturdy residential tower above) and defined by Hornby, Burrard and Smithe streets. In addition to the cineplex (which will offset the loss of the soon-to-disappear Capital Six complex on Granville Mall), there will be a number of new restaurants, including a state-of-the-art new build Earls. It's pretty.

Edited by jamiemaw, 29 January 2005 - 12:32 PM.

[stovetop]

about earls food consultants

Léger has also been a product development chef/project co-ordinator at Earls 52-unit restaurant chain in Vancouver and opened their new chain concept “The Publik” in Edmonton, where he was responsible for menu and recipe development, research and food product tasting and kitchen design.

Yes; this shows how small our world is, they worked together, so there is that contact. These days a chef might want to have a family and a life so choices a chef might do could be a little different then the past, might choose something because of lifestyle and family life, being a hotshot chef can hamper a social life and definately crumbles most home lifes.

Myself I see many big name chefs changing lanes, many of them have done there time in vancouver, leaving for a better life and more money, it is hard to buy a house in van on a chefs wage.
steve

[canucklehead]

I have lived in a number of cities in the US and Asia and you simply do not see the same kind of domination of that earl's-keg-cactus club that you see in Vancouver. There are larger chain places such as Chili's and Cheesecake Factory but the quality and service at earl's et al is much much better.

As with anything - I think competition breeds excellence. The cost structure and economics in Vancouver are tougher than anywhere else. Though absolute rent etc... in other cities may be higher - the margins between what people take home and what people make are razor thin here. You have to be very very good to get people to part with their money in Vancouver.

Also - these CFD restaurants reflects a combination of a high awareness of food but a general lack of food snobbery (look at the postings in the Vancouver forum vs. other cities) in Vancouver. But for most people really interested in food - the FD are always pushing the envelope and bringing increasing sophistication into the Vancouver dining scene - but the CFD are very quick incorporate trends that work into their menus (White Spot has Butter Chicken!).

It was very interesting to see on Food Network Chef Michael Smith pitch new ideas to the Cactus Club and seeing the thought process of what gets on the menu.

I really tip my hat to anyone who opens a restaurant in Vancouver - particulary those who compete in the CFD price range even though their quality may be better (HSG). That is why I think most people (myself included) hold back on really slamming a bad place - they die a quick death on their own.

I have heard that there may be some consolidation between some of CFD companies in Vancouver not sure if there is any truth to this - but with the hyper competition and the tough real estate game - I would'nt be surprised.

[vandan]

well dosa hut (hastings and clark) seems to unfortuanately have bitten the dust, although i'm not sure how it survived the month and some closing time a few months back(when i originally thought it was gone) shame as south indian in general and dosa places specifically are few and far between here, and also the brass monkey on denman is also history , a little too wannabe hip for my tastes anyway and as i was walking down denman the other day i noticed the soon to be opened newest place in pooch eats the doggie-style deli( yup, not kidding) and it gets worse the sell t-shirts lauding their eats with the caption the dsd" why dogs like to like their bowls", sorry folks just thought fair warning was in order here for your next venture down denman way

[peppyre]

The "Doggie-Style Deli" on Denman Oh my!

OK, so let's clarify this a little bit. Is this a deli for the residents of the area or their pets?

[*Deborah*]

The "Doggie-Style Deli" on Denman     Oh my!

OK, so let's clarify this a little bit.  Is this a deli for the residents of the area or their pets?

Oh MEOW!!!!!!!

[barolo]

Leaving aside the all the obvious jokes - the opening of a food store devoted to dogs in the West End doesn't surprise me at all.

There's lots of pampered pooches in Vancouver and already a number of dog bakeries or deli's, not to mention the success of Modern Dog magazine - the lifestyle magazine for urban dogs and their companions. Then there's the dog spas and summer camps.

[Coop]

Dosa Hut was closed last time I went by.

[vandan]

me thinks its for pets and owners in equal measure, no?

[Mooshmouse]

The occasionally oblivious one here, asking how Sami's (Sami Lalji's place) on West Broadway and Oak has been closed. Anyone know when and why?

[annanstee]

The occasionally oblivious one here, asking how Sami's (Sami Lalji's place) on West Broadway and Oak has been closed.  Anyone know when and why?

Say it isn't so! NOOOOOOOOOOO! Stellaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

[Mooshmouse]

It is so. I drove past today on a birthday-gift buying expedition and noted that there was a pink and white sign plastered over the front door that read something like "Coming in April" or words to that effect.

[Vancouver Lee]

Since the thread is titled "Openings and closings", I thought I'd add an opening I noticed this weekend...

The Kathmandu Cafe at Grandview and Commercial. It seems they intend to open in April.

The sign in the window (and the very basic web site) speaks of Nepali and Tibetan food. Sounds interesting....