organicgoddess

Alright! Dinner at the All Season's Cafe. 620 Herridge Lane, Nelson 250-352-0101. Dinner for 2 with wine, desserts, and dessert bevvies was $115 plus tip. Disclaimer: Same as last time, I know the owners and some of the staff. The menu on the website is not up to date- some items have changed. Sorry Daddy-A, no more 5 spice duck salad. The wine menu on line is not a full listing either. We called ahead by a few days to get a deck table. This is a must for summertime dining here, and later in the summer you need to call further in advance. We were seated right away and given a bread basket with a small bowl of hummus to snack on. They've made a few changes since we were there last: the menu- I love this- opens up to 3 slim pages.... of wine! They win wine awards every year for their wine selection. On one of the fold-in pages is all the food. So it's basically wine menu and oh, yeah, we have a bit of food if you're hungry. We picked a white to go with the hot day- a half bottle (which turned out to be one of those mini bottles) of Dry Creek fume blanc. Very spicy and strong citrusy fruit flavours. The label says bracing- yes indeed. I picked the rosemary & goat cheese polenta with basil pesto and tomato confit. It was served with asparagus and broccoli spears, as well as thinly sliced carrot and zucchini. It was delicious- the polenta had a very smooth rosemary flavour with chewy edges. I love rosemary and goat cheese together. The tomato confit was interesting- I really liked the first few bites, and couldn't figure out what the flavour was that I was tasting, and I liked the way the flavours mixed together. Then I figured out it was mustard seed, which, after a few more bites, became overpowering. The asparagus was perfectly cooked as were the other veggies, and had a nice fresh flavour. They're from a local farm. A little less confit, a few more veggies would have been good. My boyfriend had the rack of lamb daily special, done medium. He loved it. It came with mashed potatoes, some sort of gravy/jus, pecan-pistachio pesto, and veggies- carrots and zucchini. I sampled some of the lamb, but not being much of a meat eater, what can I say except it tasted good. The pesto was delicious, and tasted very lamby to me- they went very well together. The wine was super with both of our dishes- very palate cleansing. For dessert, we picked the orange blossom creme brulee and bourbon pecan pie with vanilla ice cream. I had some orange muscat, and he had Taylor port. Mmmmmm. The creme brulee had a thicker than usual crust, which made me happy because I usually run out. He thought that there was too much though. It had a very subtle orange flavour, hard to detect but it was delicious nonetheless, smooth, creamy, and perfect. The pecan pie was boozy, sweet, and rich. Nice flakey pastry. Excellent ice cream. The weather was excellent on the deck. It sits beside the restaurant and is surrounded by a hill with rock walls and lots of shade from maple trees. It was fairly busy and it was interesting to eavesdrop on nearby tables. I tried to stop though after the woman next to us raved about a dessert made from cream cheese and fat free cool whip lest I ruin my appetite. On the other hand we heard lots of 'oooohhhhhhs' as diners were served, and 'that was the best dinner/steak/fish'. Service was very attentive and friendly (of course we know the servers, but they were friendly to everyone else too)- water was refillied frequently, and we didn't have to ask for a thing. Although the All Season's is an award winning restaurant, it's a very unpretentious- people do tend to dress up but eveyone's relaxed. It was a great night out.

The Redfish is okay for a cheap breakfast but I find it's a little on the greasy side. They have a nice tom yum soup, and a good $4.99 basic burger and fries deal- that's what I go there for. Stanley Baker's is my preferred breakfast spot, across the street and down the block a bit. Rice has great bennies on the weekend. I don't get over to the East Shore much. I *think* that Abracajava has closed down, but not sure on that. I'm going out for dinner Saturday night to the All Season's- I'll let you know how it is! It's usually great. I haven't had their spring menu yet.

I've heard that Nelson has one of the highest number of restaurants per capita... which could just be one of those rural myths. Regardless, we have a great variety for a small city, and lots of excellent quality eateries. I love to eat but I don't have much experience reviewing restaurants, so let me know if you need any more info. Rice Bistro 301 Baker St., Nelson 250-352-0933 Last meal: Wednesday May 25 Disclaimer: I'm friends with Dean the owner, Tessa the manager, and a few of the staff... in a small town that's what happens! It's a good thing they make good food. Rice began years ago as a little sushi and rice bowl cafe on a side street. A few years ago, it moved to a main street and much more upscale location. Purchased not long after by Dean Symonds, the menu has changed to include more creative Thai and South Asian influenced dishes- it bears little resemblence to it's former self. The great drink menu has a nice selection of wines, but the main draw is the delicious sake and fruit based drinks- very nice on a summer night. Dean and Tessa are attentive, accommodating, and friendly hosts. Two girlfriends and I went out to Rice for dinner last week. We picked the inexpensive Dunaver Pinot Gris to accompany Rice's spicy flavours. I had the Thai Green Curry, without seafood (tofu instead), one friend had the Thai Green Curry with the seafood, and the other had the Coconut Masala Chick Pea Curry. Dean brought on a new cook within the last month or so, and I really like the improvements made in the curry. It's my favourite dish there and now even more so. The tofu and veggies were served on a bed of rice noodles and topped with cucumber slices. The veggies were tender and the tofu was nicely firm. The sauce is flavourful, rich and plentiful, although it was a bit too spicy for me- I haven't been eating much spice lately. Dean brought a shot of coconut milk for me to add to cut the heat which worked well (he offered to retoss my dish but I declined). It was so good I'm glad I didn't have a spoon because I would have slurped up all the remaining sauce in my bowl. My friend with the same dish enjoyed her's, which didn't look as hot- the sauce on mine was a darker green. My other friend enjoyed her Chick Pea Curry... she didn't say too much about it, but then, we were there to visit not to critique our meals. The wine went nicely with the meal and cooled our palates. For desert we picked the Gelato Quartet. I'm trying to remember them all: green tea, vanilla, raspberry, and mango I think, each served with it's own sauce including a caramel and a ginger sauce... can't remember the other two! They were nicely presented in a long narrow boat, accompanied by chocolate-filled wontons and gooseberries. In the summer, Rice sets up a large covered patio which at least doubles it's seating area. There's often a local dj playing nice lounging beats on weekend nights. It's a great spot for a late summer dinner or for drinks before heading out for a night on the town.

I'm kind of late coming into this... Like clockwork, every year as soon as the weather turns nice, people start asking, where is the local produce? Many people seem to forget that after it's nice enough to plant, it can take 2-4 months before we start getting a harvest from our local farmers. And even if it appears nice enough to plant, in a lot of areas farmers still have to wait until the safe frost free times to put our their crops, which might not be for several weeks or longer after the first bit of nice weather. I'm sure that the places you have been looking for local food will have some as soon as it's ready. If you go looking in about 3 weeks you'll see tons of local produce- there's no doubt a fair amount of early crops on the coast already. Things are just starting here in the Kootenays, yet people have been asking for it since at least early April, since we had such an early spring. We just have to be patient, living in Canada!

I'm so glad to hear Genesis is still there and still good. I had a great time working there and learned lots of Chinese pushing the dim sum cart around. The macrobiotic menu is really great and unusual even for a large city- I've never seen anything like it anywhere else. We used to have people order the bbq tofu and then ask us repeatedly- are you sure it's not chicken? Are you sure? For Chinese, the sizzling platters are excellent, and if you want rich, get the won tons wrappers stuffed with cream cheese and crab (fake). Very addictive! Working at Genesis spoiled me for Chinese- nothing else measures up so I don't even bother. If you go, tell them Velvet says hi and sent you- Philip was the manager, the owner's nephew, and I'm sure most of the kitchen staff is still there too- all the owner's relatives. I was there for a couple years so they'll remember me.

I'm not sure if it's still there and as good as it was...try Genesis restaurant on 22nd. I used to work there when I lived in S'toon. Great Chinese and dim sum, and a macrobiotic/vegetarian menu too....mmmm bbq tofu. There used to be an excellent Vietnamese restauant, located on Ave A ? about 10 years ago and then it moved downtown. Saigon House? It was soooo good, alhtough I didn't go there much after it moved.

Up this week we have more fava beans, yum, yum! Mustard greens are very nice right now too. Tonight I'm going to have the favas simmered in a bit of water with butter and salt, just the same as the other day. I'm going to make curried greens with the mustard and spinach.

Caramel Cone Explosion Peanut Butter and Chocolate Neither of which I have been able to find in quite a while.

Thanks! I love the forum- I just launched it to my customers this weekend. I love message boards period, they are such a great place to share info. Kumquats- I usually eat them raw, just make sure to eat the skin too because that's the sweetest part. They are great snacks because the strong flavour is very satisfying. They do have a few seeds but nothing major. You can cook them, just very, very briefly, like 30 seconds. Slice them in quarters lengthwise, so you get long strips. Let the pan get hot with a touch of oil it in then add kumquats and saute. You'll be able to tell when to stop as they get soft and kind of translucent- remove them from the pan immediately. Puree half and make a salad dressing, then toss the remaining cooked ones in with the salad. Very nice with spinach, toasted nuts, and goat cheese or asiago. You can also use a cooked kumquat puree as a sauce for meat or especially fish. I think cooked kumquats with sauteed sliced fennel bulb and fish would be a great dish. I'm not a meat eater so I haven't tried it but I know the flavours would work. Lamb I'll bet would be good too.

I'll take that seguay.....speaking of organic message boards, I've just set one up for my business here. It's new and I haven't launched it yet...feel free to check it out. I have a grocery produce review section which I'm quite excited about. It's great that you are making an effort to eat more organic, Zuke. About those sausages, it sounds like they are grass fed, which is much leaner than grain fed. With the ground beef that we sell, you have to add oil to the pan to get it cook properly. If you are looking for well priced certified organic beef, give Pro-Organics a call- last I heard they were selling beef from the same farm that I get mine from and at good prices at the Saturday sales. Not sure if they still are- they were pricing every cut the same price per pound. Pretty much all of the produce I eat is organic, since that's my business. This week's picks for me: -the fava beans from California are very nice right now. Last night I had them simmered in a bit of water, just on their own. -the fennel is great now- I made a nice salad with it, celery root, beets, and carrots the other day. eta- the kumquats! They've just started coming in- they are so good, I can't get enough of them! Literally though, which sucks.

No, it wasn't there. The restaurants I've noted down to check out (not all of them, if I get to one I'll be happy) are: -CozyMels -SuperMex- has the 50 tequilas I think -Taqueria Canonita -La Barca ?? I can't read my writing! Any comments?

Well, no they aren't. The wholesalers are: ~Wild West Organic Harvest 2120 Van Dyke Place Richmond 604-276-2411 ~Pro Organics 4535 Still Creek Ave. Burnaby 604-253-6549 Some of the organic food home delivery services do Saturday sales. Try calling SPUD (Small Potatoes), they might have one. They are at the bottom of Commerical (I think they are still there, anyways). If not then maybe one of the other ones in Van does. The farmer's market is a great place to get produce too, although not neccessarily inexpensive, depending on what you want and who you get it from.

I've been noticing the rain in California too. I don't live there, but I sell produce. The lettuce and spinach has been terrible quality and more expensive for the last three months than I've ever seen it. I'm glad the rain is letting up. But more glad our local supplies are starting. We've had such a mild winter that we'll have local lettuce in a couple weeks!

Hi~ I'm fairly new around here and didn't see an thread about this yet (please steer me in the direction of that which might already be here). I'm in the southern interior of BC, Canada. We'll be getting our first harvest of radishes next week. Quite exciting, our first fresh field produce of the year! We've also been getting spinach from a local greenhouse and we'll have greenhouse lettuce in the next couple weeks. Both are about a month earlier than usual due to the extra sun we've been having. What is the fresh, in season produce where you live?

I too am interested in inexpensive to moderately priced yet good Mexican in Vegas. It doesn't have to be on the strip, but somewhat nearby or downtown. I heard there was a place with 50 different tequilas. I'm going down in June. Can't wait!