edm

well, chefs like D. Hawksworth have started playing around with "sous-vide" and slow cooking, canisters and CO2... I also think West will be getting a pacojet soon... Oh, i would love to have one of these babies! But really, my opinion is that this kind of cooking involves extremely strong technical skills and knowledge, and that is still lacking around our beautiful west coast. Most people in Van are still at the Mussels&fries stage... The last thing we need is some Dubrulle graduate kid with too much money starting fooling around with adult toys. Let's keep on the right tracks, and get the basics right.

maybe one of the issue is that there's NO freaking cash working as a chef!!! Even when you're a big shot. I am personally so fed up with the restaurant industry than i just decided not to go back on a line...

to take with a grain a salt: 6-million $$ project. a 200 seat restaurant plus a take-out. I think they're planning on offering all kinds of different food: italian, chinese, japanese... and my bet is that none will be good... Supposedly they want to use some local ingredients... But as business oriented as they seem to be, i kinda doubt it. Opening is about 2 to 3 months away.

you'd have more luck in Europe, where people can legally pick up leftovers from street markets and the fields after harvests! Pasta's the way to go. And probably Chinatown for produce! Good luck

i think we should go all there and tell them that its crap. BOYCOT the goddamn BG, Cobs, starbucks, safeway,etc that abuse our vigilance by playing on the convenience factor. Support our local businesses that support our local farmers and growers!!!

"Taverne Henri 4" sur l'ile St Louis?

i do confirm that Sean Wiegele and myself are not working at Bravo Bistro anymore. And that it has been a month now since we got laid-off. We are working on our own project. No more sweating for other people!

-Yoshi, Denman & Georgia -Salade de fruits! -Rangoli -petit cafe, on Main, for tasty vietnamese -Slickity Jim's for the unpretentious, decent brunch -Go fish! (my first exp there was kinda funny though. after they put my F&C up, a try a couple of fries, and share my impressions: soft (but cooked) and under-salted. 5staff behind the line. the only answer i got: "we can re-fry them if you want". haha!)

as simple as brushing them with butter and demerara sugar. Then baked. Beautiful with ice creams, mousses... Or fill them up with almond cream and soaked cherries! Then baked. So goood! In Morocco, they make "Pastilla", for instance. Usually braised pigeon with spices, veg and dried fruit. Fill a feuille and fry. Served with a nice tabbouleh, or any salad (minty and fresh). Really nice!

thanks Anne. Any investors out there??? Lots of ideas, no cash, same old story

i can confirm the rumours, but not the actual closure. It is very likely to happen though... But the 18th's just around the corner, so dont panic. In case the Davie location does shut, my guess is the event will be moved to the original Bravo location on Denman. As anyone read the review by Tim Pawsey?

levelling by the bottom is never a good idea... I wont thank Cobbs or Starbucks for offering a mediocre quality that is slightly better than average. They make uneducated people think that they're getting the real stuff... But i guess it's become like voting, u dont choose the one you believe in, but the lesser evil of the bunch... It'll fun when our streets will be filled with Safeways, Starbucks, Cobbs, and Shoppers Drug Marts, with a few 99ct-pizza joints in btwn!

I am on the island right now. After eating Local organic eggs, spaghettis and pesto for three straight days on Salt Spring island, privileging the view and stunning setting of Ruckle Park's campground, i got to Victoria yesterday in the afternoon. Had dinner at Brasserie L'ecole. Good endive salad, disappointing duck main ("magret", cooked well..., came with roasted potatoes and unseasoned beans.... are u trying to dry me out, so i can swallow more vino??), good cheese. I love their place, nevertheless, and rarely leave unhappy. Tonight, after a nice hike in East Sooke Park, dinner at Zambri's. Another of my favourite! Very good meal, started with marinated octopus and squid with borlotti beans and olives. Good balance, good seasoning, satisfying... Then, S.S. Island Lamb, braised, with polenta, roasted peppers and goat cheese. Lamb was a bit over to my taste (they actually braise it "a la minute"...) but very good dish overall. The lamb was of very good quality, and the braising juices called for more bread!! Dessert was a ricotta cake with poached pear. Simple & nice! And i had to wash it all down with a glass of Grappa. Tomorrow morning, before biking back, it's breakfast at Wildfire bakery. And i'll pick up some bread for my vancouver pals to taste. Such a great week!!! BIG NEWS: of course, being here right now means i am not cooking at Bravo Bistro anymore. The poor response to our food had as first effect something along those lines: "YOU'RE FIRED!". So, it's been quite a disappointing ending to a 3-months commitment to make it happen. But what a PERFECT timing for some vacations!! Such fantastic weather! No regrets...

hi, i'd just like to know the best recipes for this italian classic. Any secrets ingredients besides the basic mascarpone, egg and sugar mix? What alcohol do you use? Thx a lot

T&T is not a bad bet either. Just make your way through the dead drawn upside-down floating specimens, and you might find a nice fresh piece of fish!

Hey Travis, how's it going? I'll try to stop by this week to sample some of your food. ( & maybe i'll try to lurk Lucas into my new venture!.......)

El Rey is a good alternative to Valhrona. It is sold at Whole Foods, in West Van. Approx. 15% cheaper (for pros), and the quality is on par. Good things about it: Single origin (Venezuela) Will soon be Fair-trade & Organic. They are waiting for the certifications, but already work following the principles of sustainable farming and fair wages for the farmers. Dont use additives, and dont mix in Forastero beans (inferior quality cocoa), unlike some Callebaut chocolates. We can always do a tart degustations and compare the Apamate 73.5% with the Araguani 72% !

Edit: Someone said in one of the DOV threads that their server at Parkside had said they told their regulars not to come during Dine-Out as the quality of the meal suffered. Yes, i did say that. Because that's basically what my waiter said. Because i knew him from Blue Water Cafe, he might have felt like he could tell me these things. But i am still a guest, and i dont appreciate feeling like a second-class customer (or an "in the know" second-class customer, for that matter). As i was disappointed with the "suckling pig terrine", which was in fact Pork rillettes molded into a terrine shape, and came rather dry and lacking in seasoning, his answer was that most people didnt know the difference (WTF!!). So i guess it's OK. The braised veal was very well cooked, but lacked in depth and was crying for more seasoning. The veg on the plate were very poor, over-blanched and under-salted. Dessert: i wanted to try the creme brulee. Good, not nothing special. The classic Toffee pudding was a better choice, and the ice-cream was well done indeed. My waiter was kind enough to remind me that it was very important to feel full at the end of the meal. But you know what, that's TOTALLY missing the point of eating... To me, the big issue with DOV is that most places lower their standards. THAT IS A MAJOR MISTAKE. Organizing chaos is a big part of our job, and so is blowing away our guests. Our expectations, taste and experiences set our own standards, and that carries in our restaurants. Do not rely on people's lack of experience with food. Give 'em your BEST, because nothing else is good enough. I dont think most of Vancouver, french-inspired food could make it in a more grown-up city. It's not there yet. But i hope that i'm part of something, a change towards better food, one baby step at a time. No chance

eh, you know what's worse? Putting in 70 hours a week, for 10 customers a night! (when we're lucky)

dont you think that if a restaurant is part of dine-out, they should think very well of the menu they put up, in order to make it practical and constant in terms of quality? Come on, most places dont even change their menus that regularly anyways. So what's 2 weeks doing the same 3 or 4 dishes? My point is that if you decide to be part of such an event, you have got to do your best to be up to expectations, your customers' obviously, but yours in the first place. Some restaurants in this city should maybe stop having their guests into believing they're doing THEM a favour. It's the wrong approach, far removed from what our profession is all about. I've seen DOV menus offering caesar salads, endive and blue cheese salads, frozen salmon, frozen elk, vacuum-packed, pre-portionned food of all sorts, branding themselves as seasonal and regional temples of gastronomy. Having professionals on this forum is great, maybe we can actually share some of the dirty secrets of our reality, instead of being an internet version of the glamourous food network Canada... clean, good looking, sanitized. Meanwhile, have a look at this: http://www.montrealenlumiere.com/english/table/guests.php

input about DOV, last night @ Parkside. Our waiter : "We tell our regulars not to come during Dine-Out, because we are not able to maintain our standards" "25 dollars IS a great deal, you know" so hell... i should thank them for receiving mediocre service and food? I feel so blissed...

the mignonette at Blue Water is based on red wine vinegar and contains black pepper, shallots, lemongrass, etc.

Here is a mixed bag of my feelings on the subject Amdy, comparing West to a two-Michelin star... I find that most europeans restaurants working at that level will use produce that are local and of extreme freshness. There also is a level of dedication (make the best out of what's around you) and professionalism that is hardly matched here. I mean, you'll have 20 or 30 chefs doing 60-80 covers per service. Over here, most will do 3 times as much guests with a crew 3 times smaller... Because of geography constraints, it is hard, i mean really hard, to get good products. Fish is the biggest issue: Boats go out for weeks and tend to flash-freeze all their catch. Right now, basically all the fish you see on menus are frozen, which does alter the quality of the delicate product. (T&T probably is your best bet right now). halibut, salmon, scallops, shrimps... The best food i've had in Van has been coming out of West's kitchen. But what really strikes me in the city is that we do not have, yet, a truly fantastic restaurant on par with what you could find in the States or in Europe. There are many skilled and experienced chefs in Vancouver. They could probably do 2 or 3 star food, given that they get out there and seek the best of BC. But they tend to work in restaurants that will do 100 to 200 covers a night... Or they tend to catter to what people want. One do not go The French Laundry or L'Arpege to eat what they want. They go there to eat someone's cuisine, someone's take on the surrounding terroir, with confidence, excitement and anticipation. Whatever the chef cooks, they'll have. I do envy Montreal' s culinary scene. When will we have a event comparable to "Montreal en lumiere". I mean, we can both promote our own backyard AND invite the world to our city. Why not a festival where top Japanese, Chinese and Aussie chefs (for exple) come here and enlighten us whith their visions?

Overall, i see DOV as a beneficial, valuable event. But is $25 for a three course meal really such a bargain? What is the actual quality of the meal and the overall experience? Are restaurants on top of their game when they're THAT busy? Who benefits the most from the event?

My wife & i ate at Bricourt in May, the weather was perfect & the food was superlative (IMO better than an earlier meal at Gagnaire although the degustation menu was not taken at PG). Raw john Dory, warm Cancale oysters, sea bass with elderflowers, breton lobster & the best lamb i have ever eaten- dessert was just average, but the caramels were very good! Better value than Paris. Oh great bottle of Loire sancerre & good array of cheese.