Nude Nu News

[Zucchini Mama]

Mia Stainsby says:

"The duck confit is delicious as is the foie gras "pull-apart" it comes with. It's a spirally bun with foie gras baked into it."

Is that like a foie gras kolachy? :-) I can't wait to take my SO to Nu. He missed out on the C Sustainabililty lunch, so now I can let him know what he missed! He will be all over those chicken wings stuffed with goat cheese.

Zuke

[jamiemaw]

I'm pretty sure this link to the Sun review is public

Sun Review

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Thanks PJ.

[nwyles]

Very positive words from Alex Gill in this a.m.'s Globe and Mail

Len is a man of his word. Nu was as smooth an opening as anyone could have hoped for.

Good job and good luck.

I can't wait to get down there and treat myself !

[Andrew Morrison]

Positive indeed! The link to Gill's article is here.

[~cayenne~]

For those by a television, Rob Clark is on City Cooks right now!!!

[Cap'n Crunch]

Two more great write-ups!

Westender(Andrew)

Province.

Fantastic.

[Andrew Morrison]

Yeah, I wrote a nice write up, but there was a big problem. A major typo. If you pick up a copy of the WE this week, check the table of contents inside the front page. There is a photo of Leonard and Chef Belcham, with the page number of the story, plus a caption that was apparently supposed to read "Nu standards in dining."

Nu-uh. Rather than having someone else point out the screw up, I'll save myself the eventual barbs and embarrassment (I have a busy day ahead of me ).

Instead, it appears thus: "No standards in dining."

Leonard, if you're out there, my apologies. It had nothing to do with me, and I think my review supports that. Still, I couldn't help but chuckle even with the coffee spurting out of my nose this morning when I caught the mistake. Wow.

When spell check foils a newspaper, it makes me want to crawl into a cave and carve.

Edited September 16, 2005 by editor@waiterblog (log)

[nwyles]

Nice to see Len get a bit of notice. With all of the kudos and accolades floating around for all of the players involved ( well deserved I might add ) , Len has been a driving force in this project, bringing all of the players together etc.

Brian ( Chef Fowke ) asked him how he was managing all of the work and he was quick to show him a new pair of shoes that enabled him to run from one location to the other while still looking stylish.

Len is true too his word : A smooth restaurant opening on the quick heels of someone else's not so smooth one. When he told me that one night over beers, I knew he was not being boastful, but honest and sincere about how much he and all of the others had put into preparing for it.

[seanw]

Lots of publicity, look forward to trying but please keep the chemistry set at home cos i drink beer/lager from either a) bottles b) pints...i guess i'm old fashioned that way! Who drinks beer from a pippette? But really it seems like one of the more interesting food openings in a long while & the buzz is good, pedigree is their. Noticed in Vanmag(i think?) that had an ad for C that included a 'chemistry set', i guess an El Bulliesque influence, has this carried over to Nu & has the MG(molecular gastronomy ) phenom been adopted further for Nu? Just cruised the website for menu & it looks expensive(website not menu) holy crap food ventures' K investment is soaring into the stratosphere & my expectations with it, which is good because hopefully such ventures will be challenged to coordinate the hype they invent & the product they deliver.

Edited September 16, 2005 by seanw (log)

[Andrew Morrison]

hopefully such ventures will be challenged to coordinate the hype they invent & the product they deliver.

Bang on. Hear hear.

[canucklehead]

Yeah, I wrote a nice write up, but there was a big problem. A major typo. If you pick up a copy of the WE this week, check the table of contents inside the front page. There is a photo of Leonard and Chef Belcham, with the page number of the story, plus a caption that was apparently supposed to read "Nu standards in dining."

Nu-uh.  Rather than having someone else point out the screw up, I'll save myself the eventual barbs and embarrassment (I have a busy day ahead of me  ).

Instead, it appears thus: "No standards in dining." 

carve.

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Andrew - great review. I did'nt notice the typo until you pointed it out. 'Nu' appears correctly everywhere - except as a bold caption under a picture of Len and Robert!

It is a pretty funny mistake - and completely at odds with a very strong recommendation. Looking forward to trying out Nu soon myself.

[Vancouver]

Figured I would give Nu a few weeks to settle in prior to trying it out and finally made my way there for dinner. First off, the food was quite good.

We had the crispy oyster with Granville Island Lager which was an innovative presentation; the scallop ceviche which had a wonderful citrus kick; the beef tartare which had capers throughout adding a nice flavour and texture; liquid cheddar filled crackers with crisp bacon which was creamy with the nice smokey bacon flavour - although I think a nice extension would be to prepare these with puff pastry instead of the current pouch - somehow the cream screamed out asking for pastry to me; goat cheese stuff chicken wings with the chili gastrique - these had excellent presentation which has previously been mentioned, and I found the gastrique to be the perfect pairing adding a low level of heat to the wings; the roasted bone marrow which was presented with a green apple and poppy seed slaw - this again was an innovative presentation and brought back childhood memories of "soup day" when mom would make beef stock and then dinner would be sucking the marrow out of the bones - yet in a much more dignified way; aspargus with choron sauce which was a very generous portion and the sauce complemented the asparagus nicely; the glazed new carrots - the sage truly highlighted the sweetness of the once again generous portion of carrots; chocolate mouse - presented in an innovative mold as opposed to the standard glass; and creme brulee - which was accompanied by a salty biscuit - the salt was a surprising touch and it actually worked quite well. Overall the food was innovative, well presented, and tasty.

I do have a few observations/questions:

- The waitstaff was very friendly.

- Pacing of the orders needs to be improved. Sitting at a two-top and having all of the dishes arrive almost simultaneously - to the point where there was no room to place the additional plates on the table - seemed unnecessary. Additionally the small spoon for the marrow was presented with the oyster (which had come out prior to everything else). It gave the impression it was to be used to support the oyster and bring it to your mouth while holding pipette. However it was then taken off of the oyster plate and put back on the table after having been used. Small touch, but shouldn't have been done that way - seemed symptomatic of the pacing issue. I imagine Leonard is working hard to get these kinks out of the service though.

- I'm a bit confused by the outdoor seating section. The heaters are a nice touch and keep things warm but what are the plans for once it starts raining? I didn't see any sort of rain covering. Seems a shame to waste that space for the bulk of the year - particularly with the lovely heating system. I suppose some of the tables on the restaurant side have some shelter but my guess is that it will be wet. The tables on the water side are certainly not covered - unless there are plans to create a winter covering? I may be crazy, but I could swear that the sloping towards the drains looks off to me as well. My guess is that along the outside edge there will be significant water buildup and associated growths that will create a difficult cleaning task over the winter months.

- While I know that a lot of time, thought, and money was spent on the decor I must confess the interior design does remind me of a cruise ship - not in a positive way. My apologies. It is just 1 man's opinion.

- The paper menus are already starting to show signs of wear and tear. I guess all of that folding and unfolding takes its toll quickly. I wonder what the replacement schedule is like on these, as they will deteriorate quickly.

- Are there plans to have daily specials/menu changes? Part of the impact of the first visit is the innovativeness of the menu. I wonder if after visiting several times it will appear to be as innovative without being refreshed, fine tuned, etc.?

- I agree with previous comments about the cutlery - it tends to fall off of the plates due to the shape of both. I noticed the staff having difficulties numerous times with the knives not behaving as they were clearing the tables.

- The washroom could have used a bit more attention - the counter tops were wet and with lotion left by a previous guest on the handle.

Overall it was a pleasant dinner. My observations and questions are really just to give honest direct feedback so that what is already a very nice offering can be made even better.

Cheers!

Edited September 17, 2005 by Vancouver (log)

[Cap'n Crunch]

- The washroom could have used a bit more attention - the counter tops were wet and with lotion left by a previous guest on the handle.

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Do you suggest a bathroom attendant wiping up after every customer?

[Keith Talent]

Damn, I had reservations that I stood up based on Andrews opinion. I thought to myself, screw it, I've been to one too many Watermark/Lift styled joints lately, no more for me, Morrison scathes it in his latest review. Sorry Len. "No standards in dining"? Screw that, that's even worse than Gill calling Watermark crap.

[Andrew Morrison]

Damn, I had reservations that I stood up based on Andrews opinion. I thought to myself, screw it, I've been to one too many Watermark/Lift styled joints lately, no more for me, Morrison scathes it in his latest review. Sorry Len. "No standards in dining"? Screw that, that's even worse than Gill calling Watermark crap.

Baaa...

Keith is a sheep.

[~cayenne~]

- The washroom could have used a bit more attention - the counter tops were wet and with lotion left by a previous guest on the handle.

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? (just curious)

Do you suggest a bathroom attendant wiping up after every customer?

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Oh how times have changed, I remember when they did that at the Four Seasons.

[*Deborah*]

- The washroom could have used a bit more attention - the counter tops were wet and with lotion left by a previous guest on the handle.

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? (just curious)

Do you suggest a bathroom attendant wiping up after every customer?

←

Oh how times have changed, I remember when they did that at the Four Seasons.

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They still *do* do that at Brown's Hotel in London, and no doubt in plenty of other places.

[foodiluvm]

After reading rave reviews my first visit with 3 other friends to NU was totally disappointing.

I know grace must be shown for any new restaurant going through its growing pains. But, with that said, Nu is opened by experienced restauranteurs that had somehow failed to impress. A reservation at 8 pm resulted in a party of 4 having to wait an entire hour before a table was ready. Granted there was a larger group who may have overstayed their welcome, lesser known restaurants have been able to handle their guests with timely table turned around. After being seated, it took a gentle prompt to the manager before we were approached to have our drink orders taken, 20 minutes later. This would be 1 hour and 20 minutes after we had arrived at the restaurant. We were not in a rush to go anywhere but having to wait despite a reservation (at a place such as this) was beyond my comprehension. Maitre'd did not attempt to seat us at the bar for drinks but rather had us stand in the middle of the walkway which seemed awkward. The food was less than stellar. The goat cheese stuffed chicken wings were rather bland despite the hype by the server. No guest service recovery was attempted by the staff. The food overall was decent and prices were ok for a restaurant of this caliber. The seats were retro and a nice view to behold but not comfort conducive enough. I agree with an earlier post saying the decor reminded him of a cruise ship and not a comfortable one I might add. I would love to say I hope to return, even for a business lunch, but with the way the evening turned out, it is highly unlikely. There are a lot of kinks Nu has to work itself through and until then, I will reserve my recommendation for others.

Edited September 17, 2005 by foodiluvm (log)

[Daddy-A]

After reading rave reviews my first visit with 3 other friends to NU was totally disappointing.

I trust that in addition to using your first post in this forum to express your displeasure, you also spoke with the manager (Leonard) while you were at the restaurant.

No worries. Even if you didn't, Leonard will be in touch.

A.

[transfattyacid]

Welcome to egullet foodiluvm ,( you`ve been lurking for ages )

No worries. Even if you didn't, Leonard will be in touch.

I find it kinda creepy that with two comparable new waterfront restaurants that have been discussed at depth on this very forum (and subjected to ebandwagonism).

One of which has not offered a response and the other has its manager jump on your coat tails after commenting on your experiences.

Whats up with that ?

Some one getting insecure ?

[Daddy-A]

Some one getting insecure ?

What some call insecurity others call customer service.

Leonard doesn't "jump on coat tails" so much as he replies to customers whose dining experiences weren't up to par. I only wish all managers were as concerned.

Don't get me wrong. A bad experience is a bad experience and one is more than welcome to post about it here. My only question with foodiluvm's post (and others like it) is customers who have poor dining experiences, don't let the restaurant know about it, but then air their grievences on line.

Just my 2 cents' worth

A.

[Leonard]

After reading rave reviews my first visit with 3 other friends to NU was totally disappointing.

I know grace must be shown for any new restaurant going through its growing pains. But, with that said, Nu is opened by experienced restauranteurs that had somehow failed to impress. A reservation at 8 pm resulted in a party of 4 having to wait an entire hour before a table was ready. Granted there was a larger group who may have overstayed their welcome, lesser known restaurants have been able to handle their guests with timely table turned around. After being seated, it took a gentle prompt to the manager before we were approached to have our drink orders taken, 20 minutes later. This would be 1 hour and 20 minutes after we had arrived at the restaurant. We were not in a rush to go anywhere but having to wait despite a reservation (at a place such as this) was beyond my comprehension. Maitre'd did not attempt to seat us at the bar for drinks but rather had us stand in the middle of the walkway which seemed awkward. The food was less than stellar. The goat cheese stuffed chicken wings were rather bland despite the hype by the server. No guest service recovery was attempted by the staff. The food overall was decent and prices were ok for a restaurant of this caliber. The seats were retro and a nice view to behold but not comfort conducive enough. I agree with an earlier post saying the decor reminded him of a cruise ship and not a comfortable one I might add. I would love to say I hope to return, even for a business lunch, but with the way the evening turned out, it is highly unlikely. There are a lot of kinks Nu has to work itself through and until then, I will reserve my recommendation for others.

←

Wow!

We apologize for the experience you had at NU. It bothers me personally due to the fact that the only reason that we do what we do is to create a positive guest experience. Instead of responding to every point that you stated I would prefer to simply invite you back to allow us to show you the positive experience we strive to provide every guest with.

Please call me personally.

Sincerely,

Leonard

NU GM

604-681-1164

[Leonard]

Welcome to egullet  foodiluvm ,(  you`ve been lurking for ages )

No worries. Even if you didn't, Leonard will be in touch.

I find it kinda creepy that with two comparable new waterfront restaurants that have been discussed at depth on this very forum (and subjected to ebandwagonism).

One of which has not offered a response and the other has its manager jump on your coat tails after commenting on your experiences.

Whats up with that ?

Some one getting insecure ?

←

Hello,

Since you are speaking about me, I thought that I would comment on the "coat tails" statement. As all restaurant managers know, it is important for us to use every tool at our disposal to improve every guest experience. Customer feedback forms, word of mouth and forums such as this are some of our most reliable tools.

Leonard

NU & C

GM

[Andrew Morrison]

Leonard doesn't "jump on coat tails" so much as he replies to customers whose dining experiences weren't up to par. I only wish all managers were as concerned.

Bang on. For the etymological record, customers who leave after a bad experience (without saying anything) do what is called a Whine and Dash. It's always good to give them an opportunity to rectify things before you leave.

[seanw]

Yes, from now on just good, happy, smiley reviews! Why make Leonard's job easier or any other establishment who have used the forum to improve customer experiences(Chamber comes to mind). Surely if constructive criticism is to be effective, people should be encouraged to offer their honest appraisal & who knows perhaps it may alleviate the propensity to react with too much sensitivity(afterall you cannot please everybody- wish more places wore their heart on their sleeves) I think it is laudable that GMs like Leonard participate & seemingly listen to whats going on, i would find it extremely boring/unrealistic if all Leonard does is receive platitudes from the masses.

my two cents.