Metro

[D90]

Metro

200 Burrard Street

Vanoucver, Bc, V6C3L6

604.662.3463

Website: http://metrodining.ca/

Last night a friend and I went to Metro for her belated birthday dinner. We passed the restaurant three times until a security guard pointed us in the right direction - tucked away inside the glass building on the corner of Cordova and Burrard.

We were greeted by at least five staff members lining the entrance which was nice and a little intimidating. We were initially seated at a corner booth then asked to be moved to the bar, so we could have a better view of the action in the kitchen. The room is gorgeous: the dark hard wood floors, white seating, wrap-around bar to the bright retro/Jetsons-like lighting. It all works to create a very warm yet modern space. On a side note: Tim, where did you get the silverware from? I want those knives!!!

The service was very friendly and the staff was confident when asked to recommend a dish. No one tried to bs and guess when asked a question about the menu. This being their third day of service I believe, they took the time to look at the menu or ask someone nearby which I appreciated.

I was told the menu had not been finalized but everything looked good. I loved the onion/corn chutney that came with the duck sausage, and the duck main was perfectly cooked. I would definitely order the veal tenderloin, leeks and porcini risotto dish over and over again, minus the Meyer lemon foam (too over powering).

Another great move was bringing over the bread and pastry chef over from Rare. Rice pudding & buttermilk ice cream was absolutely perfect on their own, and the pistachio dacquoise should be bagged and sold by cute hostesses; it would put girl guide cookies out of business…. okay I am exaggerating a little but you get the idea that it’s a must try.

Now for the pictures, enjoy…

-Bahjis Dumplings w/ Yogurt

-Truffle Parmesan Pomme Frites w/ Sundried Tomato Ketchup.

-Smoked Duck Sausage w/ Onion Corn Chutney.

-Provimi Veal Tenderloin w/ Timbale of Porcini Mushroom Rosotto, Melted Leeks and a Meyer Lemon Foam.

-Okanagan Quail w/ Saffron Fondant Potatoes, Wilted Watercress and a Honey Mustard Aioli.

-Queen Charlotte Island Halibut w/ Salty Chive Spatzel and Wasabi Aioli.

-Fraser Valley Duck Breast w/ Orange Pomme Mash, Glazed Walnuts and Seedlings.

-Rice Pudding Ice Cream over Poached Rhuarb and Brown Sugar Crumble.

-Pistachio Dacquoise w/ Lemon Curd and Buttermilk Ice Cream.

I wish Metro and their staff all the best and I can see them being around for a long time, giving some of the other power lunch destinations a lot of competition.

D

Edited June 27, 2007 by D90 (log)

[Panda]

Oh wow, great photos. I hope I get a chance to go before I head to TO, but it seems unlikely. I guess I'll just have to wait till I get back .

[waylman]

The place looks very "metro"

[thpme]

I had dinner with some friends at Metro last night. We were informed that the oyster bar wasn't ready yet. No worries. Overall the food was very good at Metro, and the duck and deer were the standouts for us. However problems came when we received our bill. We were not properly informed about the "minimum order" on all the meat dishes. The waitress came back after taking our orders and told us that the kitchen can't do rabbit and deer for less than 4 ounces. But she failed to inform us about the minimum order on other meat dishes as well. Therefore, some of us ordered 3 ounces of pork and steak but were charged for 4 ounces each.

When we told the waitress about the issue, she wasn't really apologetic. She insisted that she had told us about the minimum order on "all" meat dishes, while she clearly only mentioned rabbit and deer. She came back with 10% off on those two items, which was mere 2 dollars off in total. Also, because of the size of our group, we're charged mandatory 17% gratuity, which we were not informed in advance either. I personally do not have a problem with mandatory gratuity, but we did not feel the level of service this time around warranted the amount of tips especially when the way this particular waitress handled the situation.

I've also dined at Rare before, and absolutely loved it. In terms of service, Metro still has a long way to go comparing to Rare. But the menu is interesting and the room is beautiful. Most importantly, we did enjoy the food very much.

[Andrew Morrison]

I had dinner with some friends at Metro last night. We were informed that the oyster bar wasn't ready yet. No worries. Overall the food was very good at Metro, and the duck and deer were the standouts for us. However problems came when we received our bill. We were not properly informed about the "minimum order" on all the meat dishes. The waitress came back after taking our orders and told us that the kitchen can't do rabbit and deer for less than 4 ounces. But she failed to inform us about the minimum order on other meat dishes as well. Therefore, some of us ordered 3 ounces of pork and steak but were charged for 4 ounces each.

^ Wow. That must be a recent change. In the first couple of days I was told customers could order just 2 ounces of each...too bad.

Edited July 2, 2007 by Andrew Morrison (log)

[a.cheng]

Luckily for me, I have been graced with the opportunity of being at Metro twice in the previous week for lunch. Both of those experiences were standouts in my book. I think the open kitchen is very intersting idea and the other additions that are coming will make a real contender in this industry. I will try to post photos, when I get them.

First time around, I tried the Hanger Steak off their lunch insert and I felt it was cooked really well and the two sides, the spinach and the butter beans, were nice accompaniments with the steak. And for dessert I had the Chocolate Canadian Maple 'Moose Torte. I was kind of mixed on this one since the raspberry sorbet that went it was very flavorful, the torte was decent, but the cookie that was also there was really dry and sugary, which wasn't that great. It may have been just small slip in the kitchen because I didn't see any maple on that plate, oddly enough.

The second visit, I came with a friend, since I kind of wanted try something off their Cut to Order menu. We started off with the Grilled Citrus Humboldt Calamari, which wasn't available the first time I was here, and were we surprised when we the dish came to our table. I know it says grilled on the menu, but we thought the plate was going to come out all deep fried and such. However, this was a pleasant surprise, as I really enjoyed it. The citrus really helps add flavour to the calamari. We were practically drinking the broth at the bottom of the bowl after we finished the squid. For our mains, my friend had the Wild Salmon and there wasn't one negative comment from her. I thought the quiche that came with the dish matched the salmon almost prefectly and both tasted really good. I had the Nicola Valley Deer, which was done rare, and I never knew deer would taste this good! The meat was tender and not tough or overdone. The taro chips that came with it may have been a tad bit oversalted/seasoned, so I counteracted that by mixing the salad with it. Unfortunately, a small incident came up and we were unable to get our dessert.

I think the service at Metro was amazing both times. The reason for this is because we probably were the most underdressed people in the whole restaurant and not their usual clientle I'm guessing. Yet , the staff treated us with the same amount of respect and courtesy, as the other guests there. First time around, the waitress there offered me a newspaper, as I was dining alone that time and I thought that was good gesture to make. Very good service, if this holds up I can definitely see myself coming back here more. Its got a bright future if it can keep a good level of quality in their food and service.

[Chef Fowke]

I had dinner with some friends at Metro last night. We were informed that the oyster bar wasn't ready yet. No worries. Overall the food was very good at Metro, and the duck and deer were the standouts for us. However problems came when we received our bill. We were not properly informed about the "minimum order" on all the meat dishes. The waitress came back after taking our orders and told us that the kitchen can't do rabbit and deer for less than 4 ounces. But she failed to inform us about the minimum order on other meat dishes as well. Therefore, some of us ordered 3 ounces of pork and steak but were charged for 4 ounces each.

When we told the waitress about the issue, she wasn't really apologetic. She insisted that she had told us about the minimum order on "all" meat dishes, while she clearly only mentioned rabbit and deer. She came back with 10% off on those two items, which was mere 2 dollars off in total. Also, because of the size of our group, we're charged mandatory 17% gratuity, which we were not informed in advance either. I personally do not have a problem with mandatory gratuity, but we did not feel the level of service this time around warranted the amount of tips especially when the way this particular waitress handled the situation.

I've also dined at Rare before, and absolutely loved it. In terms of service, Metro still has a long way to go comparing to Rare. But the menu is interesting and the room is beautiful. Most importantly, we did enjoy the food very much.

←

Nothing could be further from reality at Metro.

To make it VERY VERY CLEAR....

We have over 38 items on the menu meant to be shared as Metro Plates....the Contemporary Canadian Cuisine's answer to tapas.

ALL proteins are cut to order and are available in sizes from 1oz - 1000oz (stock depending).

On Friday night, as an example; we had a young couple come in and sample 9 different meats and fish ~ all at 1oz each. It was very cool to watch them enjoy; I did ‘feel’ for our wine manager as he tried to pair wines for each dish…..

With that said, we do not guarantee the cooking doneness on anything under 4oz. We will do our best.

The kitchen at Metro was the largest spend on the restaurant build...the money was spent so we could execute a very unique and quality driven food program.

I am online 6 - 7 nights a week....I have 24 bar seat around the kitchen and bar ~ sample the food and talk to me anytime.

[Chef Fowke]

Looks like the oyster bar will be installed as early as Wednesday...so that mean a week Wednesday in the Vancouver construction world!!!

Cannot wait to sit at the bar and eat a few dozen oysters after a big night's work on the stoves at Metro! Bi-valves are my passion!!!

[SushiCat]

Congrats to Chef Fowke, Tim and all involved. I can't wait to come in to see and taste! Sounds like things are off to a great start.

[Daddy-A]

We were not properly informed about the "minimum order" on all the meat dishes. The waitress came back after taking our orders and told us that the kitchen can't do rabbit and deer for less than 4 ounces. But she failed to inform us about the minimum order on other meat dishes as well. Therefore, some of us ordered 3 ounces of pork and steak but were charged for 4 ounces each.

^ Wow. That must be a recent change. In the first couple of days I was told customers could order just 2 ounces of each...too bad.

ALL proteins are cut to order and are available in sizes from 1oz - 1000oz (stock depending).

On Friday night, as an example; we had a young couple come in and sample 9 different meats and fish ~ all at 1oz each. It was very cool to watch them enjoy; I did ‘feel’ for our wine manager as he tried to pair wines for each dish…..

With that said, we do not guarantee the cooking doneness on anything under 4oz. We will do our best.

This was more like what I was told on Saturday evening ... i.e. they can't guarantee doneness on smaller portions. Seems like a resonable situation.

However, I didn't mess around with no 4ozs! The "Metro Retro" that night was the Braised Vennison Shoulder. Dear God! That's the most meat I've had on my plate since our Luau! One small thing ... unless I've missed something, I don't believe that braised meats are cooked to doneness. Somebody should tell our server.

A.

Edited July 3, 2007 by Daddy-A (log)

[Clover]

I went to Metro on Sunday night for a light late supper while watching the fireworks. All national holidays should be observed in such fashion!

We went with the four-ounce versions of the dungeness crab and sable fish, as well as the tomato and mozzarella salad. All were good, but I can't stop thinking about the rich, smoky, sweet, complex flavour of the sablefish with a brandy glaze.

I found the opening and closing of the meal particularly charming. First, I love that the bloody mary comes with an oyster. We ended with the baked cheesecake mousse that created this wonderful sensation of starting with light and tart flavours of apple and something like whipped cream (but not quite, perhaps the espuma?) and then as you work your way down you find the earthy, rich, crunchiness of a delicious walnut cookie.

I am looking forward to getting back at an earlier hour when I can enjoy some heftier portions. The hanger steak lunch is calling...

The service overall was pretty good, especially considering the surrounding craziness from the fireworks and crowds. I'm also sure things will get smoother. I was really impressed with the hostess who offered that exceptionally thoughtful and inviting service I found at Rare.

[Chef Fowke]

PRESS RELEASE

METRO

A new restaurant by Brian Fowke and Tim Keller

Cuisine

Metro is “Metropolitan Canadian Cuisine”. Cuisine and ingredients that are purely Canadian, organic wherever possible, seasonal and inspiring. Chef Brian Fowke's cooking style is modern, built from classically trained techniques and the very Vancouver influences of Canada’s multicultural society. He strives to bring the best out of the bounty of our region’s farms, fields, forests and oceans.

Metro features a 20 item small plate menu, full entrées featuring meat, game, poultry and seafood and daily ‘blue plate" or Metro Retro plates. A specialty of the restaurant is fresh seafood, meat and game available by the oz - Menu attached.

Location

Metro is located on Vancouver's downtown waterfront in the heart of the hotel and convention district, close to Gastown, the entertainment district and financial centre. Because of their proximity to the financial district Metro hopes to offer a 3-6 pm “Exchange Hour” this Fall.

200 Burrard Street

Vancouver BC V6C 3L6

Phone 604-662-DINE (3463)

Fax 604-662-7562

info@metrodining.ca

www.metrodining.ca

Quick Facts

Metro Restaurant

Capacity: 209 seats

Private Dining Room: 24 seats

Radiant Heated Patio: 62 seats

Bar: 20 bar stools

Lounge: 45 sofa seats

Stand-up reception: 250

Serving lunch and dinner from 11am - midnight 7 nights a week

Décor, logo and name

Designed by David Nicolay and Rob Edmonds of Evoke International Design, Metro combines European and Canadian design elements. The room is in natural neutrals of grey, creams and browns with a colour palette influenced by the mountains, water and city scape.

Site lines – Across from the Burrard inlet the view from the dining room and patio is the Pacific Ocean, North Shore Mountains, the white sails of the Pan Pacific Hotel and Convention Centre; Cruise Ships when in dock, and the downtown skyline.

Metro is the first restaurant in Canada to use Mikasa's new line of luxury restaurant-ware fine china, flatware and stemware.

Italian designed Chairs and barstools are made in Canada using soft cream Italian leather. Slate and tile is from Brazil. Handcrafted chrome and glass light fixtures are made in Portugal, the design inspired by London Modernist designer Tom Dixon. All wood is Canadian Walnut.

Metro is short for metropolitan, referring to Vancouver as an international city and downtown as the central location for the restaurant. However, it is also a play on words as the original location was to have been in the Vancouver Seabus terminal and former train station. Keeping this in mind, white subway tiles are used throughout the kitchen to keep the lines of the open kitchen space clean and minimalist and to pay homage to the subways and metros of Paris and London.

Sustainability and Ecology

Metro has invested in the top-of-the line ecologizer to ensure all air leaving the building through venting is cleaned to a total neutral level before recycling back outside. This new technology is being used for the first time in a Canadian restaurant. For more information see the July/August edition of hvac magazine, www.plumbingandhvac.ca.

Cleaning, paper and linen products are organic and recycled where possible and Metro works with Canadian Linen to use only cotton and natural fabrics and environmentally responsible cleaning techniques. Metro strives to have a paperless office, however paper used in menus and other guest products are 100% post consumer waste stock (processed chlorine free, FSC certified, manufactured with wind power & Green Seal approved)

Seafood – Metro uses species that are abundant and resilient to fishing pressures, are well managed and harvested in a method that ensures limited bycatch on non-target and endangered species and uses a method of catch that ensures there is limited habitat loss associated with the harvesting method.

Food miles are kept to a minimum with as many BC products as possible. Pemberton Meadows beef; Nicola Valley game, bison and deer; Specialty items from outside of BC include - from Alberta, Prairie chicken; Saskatchewan, Berkshire Natural Pork; From the Baja, Spiny Back Lobster and from Baffin Island, Caribou.

Team

The metro team is made up of the industries top seasoned professionals and young up and comers.

Restaurant Director/Owner -Tim Keller, Rare, Joe Fortes

Executive Chef/Owner - Brian Fowke, Rare, Joe Fortes

Director of Operations - Trevor Forsberg, Rare, Opus Hotel, Joe Fortes

Director of Service - Chris Stearns, Salt, Lumiere

Bar Manager - Justin Tisdall, Lumiere, Feenie’s

Maitre d’Hotel - April Robinson, Rare, Canoe

Restaurant Manager/Barista - Barrett Jones, Café Artigianno, Opus Hotel

Day Manager/Business Development - Whitney Lewis –, Lumiere, Skoah Spa

Assistant Manager - Simon Cox, Oliver Bonacini Restaurants

Chef du Cuisine - Cari Reid, Royal York, Chateau Laurier

Chef du Cuisine – Rare Restaurant, Colleen McClean, Feenie’s, Lumiere, Café de Paris

Suppliers

Rare and Metro use a number of excellent small and large suppliers, however those they wish to especially acknowledge are:

Mikuni Wild Harvest, Wild and domestic mushrooms

Hills Foods, Organic meats, game meats and specialty poultry

Finest at Sea, Fish, seafood

Evergreen Herbs, 100% Organic herbs and vegetables

[SBonner]

I'm off to Metro tonight with Helen . I'll report back. This should be a great night.

SB

[mtigges]

How was it SB? We're going Monday night for my wifes birthday.

Will you be at stoves Chef, or is Monday your day off. I'm also curious if we should sit at the bar or not.

[Daddy-A]

How  was it SB? We're  going Monday night for my wifes birthday.

Will you  be at stoves Chef,  or is Monday your  day off.  I'm also curious if we should sit at the bar  or not.

←

I'm not SB (nor do I live in his 'hood) but I can answer a couple questions here ...

I'm pretty sure Chef is spending Monday at home with some charcoal, meat and frosty beverages. The bar is still an awesome spot, but if the weather holds, I'd sit on the deck.

The trio of gravalax and a glass of rose ... *sigh*

A.

[SBonner]

Here's my review:

Dinner last Friday at Metro was without a doubt one of those nights to remember. Metro is a beautifully designed room with great acoustics and sight lines. We reserved seats at the kitchen bar and got a bird’s eye view of the proteins being cooked and plated under the watchful eye of Chef Brian. The evening began with a couple of well executed cocktails and attentive service of the bartender’s. We started off with a sampling of the Metro plates, tapas with a Canadian twist; The mildly spicy Bahjis dumplings and truffle parmesan pomme frites get the thumbs up for flavour and great presentation. The Metro plates range in price from $6 to $9; next time we are planning on trying the grilled citrus humbodlt calamari and steamed dumplings. Although we opted out of ordering oysters, we had some enroute from So.Cial, Metro has an innovative selection listed as 12 varietals and catagorised as West Coast, Premium, and Ultra-Premium ranging in price from $11.94 to $21.95 per half dozen. All oysters are served with a fresh horseradish foam and citrus vodka mignonette.

On the Cut to Order menu, in which you can order your meat and seafood by the ounce, we ordered a series of proteins in various weights based on mine and Helen’s preferences. Top marks for the Berkshire pork tenderloin, $3.52 per ounce, with its apple puy lentils, sautéed fennel, and birch vinaigrette. I thoroughly enjoyed the rabbit roulade, $3.50 per ounce, and its accoutrements of turnips, baby carrots, and lemon thyme gravy you could not help but smile at the juxtaposition of the rabbit and its favourite veg on the same plate. The Nicola Valley venison, $3.48 per ounce, was perfectly paired with a cherry preserve, taro root sticks, and bean and olive salad. From the sea we had the Baja Diver Scallops, $10.66, which are plated with a wine and truffle broth, wilted lovage, and prosciutto. The sablefish, $3.86 an ounce, was superbly flavoured with a smoked oyster mushroom risotto, brandy glaze, and apple chips.

Dessert concluded with a sampling of the rice pudding ice and baked cheesecake mousse. The rice pudding ice cream was a delicious creation enhanced by some poached rhubarb and brown sugar crumble.

On the wine front the list is offers a good breadth and width of varietals and regions with a heavy weight on wines of provenance with wine enthusiasts. I see a Lumiere, a.k.a East coast sommelier influence, on the list. The wines by the glass are well suited to the cuisine so there is a lot of flexibility in wine and food pairing options. I was pleasantly surprised to see ½ litre formats of wine available. Many fine dining restaurants opt out of this option but I think it is a great idea with the sharing aspect of the menu. My only suggestion would be that their food and beverage buyer have a few more BC options available by the glass to compliment the locally sourced focus of the food menu. I do like beer and the beer selection needs some work – possibly some great bottled options from some of the top BC microbreweries on the Island.

Service was extremely well executed, I think with Chris Stern’s time at Lumiere and stages at Trotter’s, shows here. From the time we walked into the room, through dinner service, and on our departure, we felt looked after, entertained, and spoilt. Sitting at the kitchen bar it is a load of fun to have the chef’s chat with you and even in some cases present and describe your dish that they just made with enthusiasm and pride.

Metro – we will be back many times to experience the entire menu. This restaurant gets my nod for best new restaurant.

Stephen Bonner

Edited July 18, 2007 by SBonner (log)

[mtigges]

We were there Monday.

We started on the patio which is a really terrific patio, but it got a bit chilly half way through our drinks, so we moved to the bar.

I agree with your assesment of the room. The bar seats look uncomfortable, but we were there for about 3 hours, and no problem at all. The aesthetics of the room are quite nice.

We took a long time deciding on our food, but everyone was patient and pleasant. And, especially apologetic when my second martini had a fruit fly in it. Didn't bother me, being a brewer, I'm always picking them out of my glasses, but still not nice. Stearns made a nice joke about having corraled and taken care of him.

We had the calamari and the rooster drops from the appetizers. Both were great. The calamari is phenomally tender. My only beef is it should be served with a couple slices of bread to soak up the delicious sauce. The chicken was cooked perfectly, and delicious.

The reason we had a tough time deciding on our mains was that Michelle didn't know if she should commit to the challenge that she wanted to. Namely the 36 ounce "delmonico" ribeye. In the end she did. It is taken straight from wet pack, seasoned and grilled before finishing in a (probably) 375 convection oven. It was a great piece of meat, and it was definitely beefy. I would have appreciated it more delicately cooked so more of the steak was to the desired doneness, but I understand the impracticality of that. Part and parcel of ordering it was the experience of it, and while she agreed it wasn't the greatest steak she has had, she enjoyed it very much (and she finished it with only a couple tastes from me).

I had quail and the diver scallops. Both were excellent. As with the rooster drops the poultry was cooked perfectly. Just a hint of redness around the bone. Hopefully other diners won't be turned off by that.

To finish, Metro comp'd a dessert. A trio of rice pudding ice cream & rhubarb, chocolate icecream and a brownie kind of thing, and mango sorbet with apple, grape and mango. The comp was because Michelle was having a b'day. I'm not sure if Brian read here that it was a birthday dinner and made them aware or if they figured it out on their own, either way, it was very nice, and appreciated.

An excellent night, great food, the cooks were friendly and fun to watch and we left very satisfied.

Well done Chef Fowke.

Mark.

[TimK]

I have to admit that i saw the posting that you were coming in for your wife's birthday and made a note in Open Table. Busted.

[lauraf]

Oh Tim, that's truly awful. Hang your head, man, hang your head.

Must also add my kudos re: Metro. (Trying to stay OT ) Have been once each for lunch and dinner. Service outstanding each time, and food excellent. I agree that this is one of the best new restaurants of 2007 - out of how many new rooms to rave about??? (Oh, and insert my standard disclaimer here because I do business with the owners of Metro, so . . . .) Anyway, as impartially as I can be trusted to be, I highly recommend checking out Metro.

[Daddy-A]

Careful! All this love is bound to earn Metro a scathing review from Ms. Gill!

A.

[Chocoholic]

I had dinner at Metro about two weeks ago with my wife Connie. I concur with all that was said above in terms of great quality room, food and service. What we liked a lot was the menu card, it is ingeniously folded. Every time you open another flap you discover another list of items.

We will return tomorrow evening with friends to try some more dishes...looking forward to it.

[Chef Fowke]

AG was in for dinner on Saturday. She looked well; actually very attractive.

Photographer took great care in the photos today.

Review should be out soon. Let's see if we are batting 1000 with her!

Edited July 31, 2007 by Chef Fowke (log)

[Daddy-A]

Review should be out soon. Let's see if we are batting 1000 with her!

Perhaps 2000? *sigh* [CLICK]

A.

[barolo]

Ouch!

OK, now I have to stop in after work to check it out for myself.

Given all the positive comments on Metro that abound, a contrary review will probably increase business.

[waylman]

Wow, that was brutal.