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The Seattle crowd does Vancouver

nightscotsman

By nightscotsman
in Western Canada: Dining

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nightscotsman

nightscotsman

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When the Seattle eGullet contingent started planning a culinary trip to Vancouver, I knew that I would have to have at least one dessert at Diva at the Met where Thomas Haas reigns as executive pastry chef. Chef Haas is the former pastry chef at Daniel in NY and voted one of the 10 best pastry chefs in North America by Pastry Art and Design, among numerous other accolades. Having experienced his work last year both at Diva and at Senses, the small pastry shop near the restaurant that features his pastry and chocolates, I could attest to his skill. Not willing to settle for just one dessert, I called Diva to see if the chef would be willing to put together a tasting menu for us. Much to my delight we were informed he was eager and excited to cook for us. We agreed on four courses (which later turned out to be five+) and I let them know that we were adventurous diners and would love it if chef Haas would be as creative as possible.

When we arrived at the beautifully decorated Diva in the Metropolitan Hotel we were greeted like royalty and told that chef Haas had stayed on extra late (he started work at 5:30 that morning) just to serve us. We were also presented with custom printed menus outlining what was to come.

First up was a Carpaccio of Hawaiian Pineapple with Coriander Sugar and Lime Sorbet (Please excuse the poor quality of the photos - we didn't want to use the flash to avoid disrupting other diners):

diva1.jpg

This was certainly one of those "whole greater than the some of its parts" dishes. The pineapple was sweet and very tender (we were told it was a special "golden" variety) and the coriander sugar added both a refreshing clean flavor and subtle crunchy texture.

Second, we were served a raspberry sorbet in cocktail glasses, then the waiter poured warm berry and hibiscus syrup around it and placed two large plates of freshly baked, warm madelines on the table:

diva2.jpg

I would have been happy to go on munching the buttery madelines the rest of the night, but we then moved on to a Coffee and Cardamom Pot de Cremes with a Chocolate Sparkle Cookie:

diva3.jpg

The pot de creme, while very rich and creamy, was not dense and custardy like I've had in the past, but light and foamy. I'm not usually a coffee fan, but this was just wonderful with the cardamom adding an exotic edge. The cookie was just amazing - intensely chocolatey and just barely sweet, it was more of a baked truffle. Chef Haas told us (he came out of the kitchen to introduce each course) that the LA Times had been so impressed with the Sparkle cookie they did a whole story on it - and all you lucky people will find the recipe here.

We would have been completely satisfied (but not over-full) at this point, but then we were served a double course of a Warm Upside Down Chocolate Souffle with House Made Pistachio Ice Cream and "The Haas Bar": a Crispy Wafer of Caramelized Nuts with Chocolate Fondant, Caramel and Fleur de Sel:

diva4.jpg

The chocolate souffle was indeed warm, but feather light - not at all like the ubiquitous molten center chocolate cakes you see everywhere - and very bitter sweet. And the ice cream was pure pistachio perfection. But the Haas Bar, THAT was amazing! He said it was a take off on the Mars Bar, but that's like saying a Rolls Royce is a take off on a roller skate. The texture was like a barely set butter caramel with a crunchy base, the flavor was of rich chocolate and caramel with the shards of fleur de sel adding just the right enhancement and keeping the whole from being too sweet.

Lastly we were served a selection of Thomas Haas Chocolates, Raspberry and Passion Fruit Pate de Fruits and Pineapple Teacakes:

diva5-1.jpg

diva5-2.jpg

diva5-3.jpg

By this point we were quite full and really couldn't finish the candies, but we did our best. The chocolates were of excellent quality with unusual fillings, the pate de fruits were exemplary and bursting with flavor, and the teacakes were delightful.

Chef Haas was incredibly attentive and friendly during our entire "meal" and even though he was obviously very busy in the kitchen, chatted with us about each dish and his background as a chef. Here he is (center top) with with our whole group at the end of our delightful experience:

divagroup1.jpg

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Johnathon

Johnathon

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Wonderful reading! Thank you so much for being as thorough as you are with your sharing of Vancouver dining experiences.

The Thomas Haas bar won my heart (and taste buds) over when I had it as part of the desserts Chef Haas had prepared for the Santi Santamaria dinner at Lumiere (which also included Chef Rob Feenie and Chef Pino Posteraro).

Absolutely exquisite.

Just to let everyone know that the most recent of accolades for Thomas Haas was for Best Last Course awarded at the recent Vancouver Magazine Restaurant Awards. Two years in a row for Chef Haas, and deservedly so.

Edited by Johnathon (log)

"Expect nothing, be prepared for anything."

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nightscotsman

nightscotsman

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Just to let everyone know that the most recent of accolades for Thomas Haas was for Best Last Course awarded at the recent Vancouver Magazine Restaurant Awards. Two years in a row for Chef Haas, and deservedly so.

Excellent and congratulations to chef Haas!

What really impressed me the most was that he didn't try to blow us away with elaborate garnishes and complicated presentations. It was all about balancing flavor, texture, and temperature and a perfectly controlled progression of courses, with not a grain more sugar than absolutely necessary. Delightful, subtle and delicious - what dessert can be in the hands of a master.

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Peter Rodgers

Peter Rodgers

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Thanks very much for two great reports and terrific pictures. Although we live on the East Coast, we have fallen in love with Vancouver -- for many of the reasons given in your first report. Hence, last year, we finally gave in and bought an apartment in one of those architecturally gorgeous high rise condominiums you mentioned. Not exactly down the block for a second home, but worth the hours of flying, if only we can manage to spend enough time there.

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  • 2 weeks later...
scout

scout

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I finally got the chance to stop by Senses today to pick up a few of Thomas Haas' coveted "Sparkle cookies". However, much to my disappointment they were completely sold out (boo, hoo :sad: ).

Just wondering if anyone has tried making them and if so, how did they compare to the real thing?

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scout

scout

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Thanks MsRamsey - I obviously missed seeing this discussion earlier (whoops).

Might try to go back to Senses later this week to get some Sparkle Cookies and if I have to, perhaps a pastry or two.

Take care,

Scout

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persimmon

persimmon

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I finally got the chance to stop by Senses today to pick up a few of Thomas Haas' coveted "Sparkle cookies".  However, much to my disappointment they were completely sold out (boo, hoo :sad: ).

Just wondering if anyone has tried making them and if so, how did they compare to the real thing?

I don't know how they compare to the "real thing", but I have made them at home using his recipe, & I was not all that impressed....I have better recipes!

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  • 2 weeks later...
mamster

mamster

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A sparkle cookie warning: do not use 70% chocolate in this recipe--or if you do, up the sugar. I made what I thought would be the ultimate in Sparkliness, with 70% Scharffen-Berger and real almond flour, and they were downright sour. Stick with semisweet.

Matthew Amster-Burton, aka "mamster"

Author, Hungry Monkey, coming in May

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  • 2 weeks later...
Schielke

Schielke

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A sparkle cookie warning:  do not use 70% chocolate in this recipe--or if you do, up the sugar.  I made what I thought would be the ultimate in Sparkliness, with 70% Scharffen-Berger and real almond flour, and they were downright sour.  Stick with semisweet.

Really? I made a batch with 74% Shonikag and they seemed sweet enough. I made a batch of batter last night with the same chocolate, and am baking them today. I will report back on their sweetness.

Ben

Gimme what cha got for a pork chop!

-Freakmaster

I have two words for America... Meat Crust.

-Mario

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