Feel-good Friday: perfect pairings

Food, Friends, Fun…..what would life be like without all that?  Not so merry.feelgoodfriday2

Last night I attended the 12th Annual Chef Meets BC Grape event with a good friend.  A fun fundraiser put on by the British Columbia Wine Institute and the Arts Club Theatre Company – a toast to the extraordinary chefs and winemakers who call BC home.  Along with food, British Columbia is growing into a world class destination for premium wine.  The proceeds from the event go towards funding local playwrights and emerging artists.

Here is a sampling of my favourite wine/food pairings of the evening:

Chicha restaurant presented a Tuna Causa – cilantro whipped and chilled potato topped with sesame and soy, BC local Haida Gwaii Albacore Tuna, a crisp fruit and ginger ponzu, and a Peruvian rocato chilli aioli.  Paired with Lake Breeze Spice Jar.chefmeetsgrape2

Hart House Restaurant presented a Pancetta wrapped pork terrain with sourdough crisp Hannah Brook Farm peach and apricot mostarda, Barnston Island micro arugula.  Paired with Moon Curser “Afraid of the Dark” red.

Moon Curser Wines. Love the label.
Love the label on Moon Curser Wines.
Daniel Chocolates to Finish
Daniel Chocolates to Finish

Lift Bar and Grill presented smoked sturgeon, dark soy & nori emulsion, putanesca jam and squid ink rice puff.  Paired with Desert Hills Gamay Noir.

chefmeetsgrape1

Miradoro (at Tinhorn Creek) presented chanterelle lobster mushroom and pancetta risotto with Okanagan peach, grilled corn & rosemary.  Paired with Tinhorn Creek Pinot Noir.

Provence Marinaside presented seared scallop, prosciutto crisp, Okanagan peach broth with lemon thyme salt.  Paired with Misconduct Suspect Series Chardonnay Viognier.

A nice BC Port - Fall is fast approaching
A nice BC Port – Fall is fast approaching.  Goes well with chocolate.

Honourable Mention:

The Observatory (at Grouse Mountain) presented mushroom boar belly, chanterelle mushrooms, brioche, frissee with Tantalus Vineyards Riesling.

The Westin Bayshore presented Albacore Tuna Poke, avocado, taro root with Bordertown Estate Winery white.

*Torafuku (modern Asian eatery) presented onion ash beef terrine wrapped with Portobello, local vegetables, **foie gras, potato pave, chimichurri and hunter sauce.  Paired with Gold Hill Cabernet Franc.

Pinnacle Harbourfront Hotel presented Duo of duck-spiced rubbed duck breast, duck confit goat cheese croquette, habanero jam.  Paired with Quails’ Gate Gewurztraminer.

**On a personal note I object to the way foie gras is produced.   I wish that restaurants refrained from using Foie Gras on their menus.  At the same time, *Torafuku had the longest tasting lineup.

All in all this was a most enjoyable evening and a perfect start to the weekend.

Oh don’t you know….the weekend starts on Thursday!

Photos: d. king

 

Fun for Foodies

Have you seen Chef’s Table?

 I’ve been watching the series on Netflix. It’s not your run of the mill cooking show.  It’s so much more because in each hourly episode the series focuses on a particular chef that will inspire the hell out of you.

From Chef Meets BC Grape
From Chef Meets BC Grape

You find out their story: what drives them, how they shop, about their relationship to food and their style as they prepare a culinary specialty.  And it all looks so pretty….even something so simple and singular as a carrot.  But it’s not just a carrot, it’s a carrot from the chef’s family run farm that tastes unlike any other carrot.  And it makes everything you make seem so……...well, ordinary?

Anyway….just wanted to tell you about two upcoming chef inspired events in my home town, Vancouver because I really feel that Vancouver is becoming a world class dine out city.  So much so that I just found out about a dine out week taking place next month that is very inspiring (UPS – upcoming post soon).  But in the meantime:

#1 – Chef Meets Truck:

Roaming Dragon Pan-Asian Food Truck
Roaming Dragon Pan-Asian Food Truck

On September 13, the Chefs’ Table Society of BC, in partnership with the Yaletown BIA and the Streetfood Vancouver Society host the inaugural event Chef Meets Truck in Yaletown at the intersection of Hamilton and Nelson. The event will run from 6:30pm-9:30pm and consists of Vancouver restaurant chefs hopping on board local Food Trucks to serve up the foodie event of the season. This collaborative event brings Vancouver’s hottest restaurant and food truck chefs together for the first time ever.

Purchase tickets to the inaugural event for $69 + taxes and fees here. Tickets include food samples from the eight participating food trucks, as well as, wine and beer samples from Nichol VineyardLock and Worth Winery and Brassneck Brewery.

A portion of the ticket sales will be donated to the Greater Vancouver Food Bank.

Participating food trucks and chefs include:

Community Pizzeria with guest chef Angus An (Maenam)

Feastro with guest chef Lucais Syme (Cinara)

Fliptop with guest chef Vikram Vij (Vij’s)

Kafka’s Coffee Truck with guest chef Christophe Bonzon (Chez Christophe)

Mom’s Grilled Cheese with guest chef Travis McCord (La Pentola)

Roaming Dragon with guest chef Scott Jaeger (The Peartree)

Tacofino with guest chef Frank Pabst (Blue Water Cafe)

Via Tevere with guest chef Phil Scarfone (Nightingale)

This event would not be possible without the support of:

Bella GelateriaBiota FermentationBrassneck BreweryF.I.S.H (Fresh Ideas Start Here)Kins Farm Markets. La Grotta Del FormaggioLock and Worth VineyardNichol VineyardWindsor Meats

#2 – CHEF MEETS BC GRAPEchef2

Thursday, September 15
Vancouver Convention Centre East
999 Canada Place, Ballrooms A, B, C
7–9:30 PM

Tickets are selling fast to the largest tasting of BC VQA wines in Vancouver! This popular fundraiser is a unique opportunity to taste a selection of more than 300 wines from 90 of BC’s top producers.

A tasting event for both novice wine tasters and connoisseurs—you can expect to sip and savour vintages of established labels, and find new favourites from an abundance of up-and-coming, family-run, and boutique operations. Guests will also have the opportunity to taste specially prepared pairing dishes from 12 BC restaurants!

Participating restaurants include:

  • Chicha Restaurant
  • Fable Kitchen
  • Hart House Restaurant
  • Lift Bar and Grill
  • Miradoro Restaurant
  • Provence Marinaside
  • Torafuku Modern Asian Eatery

Tickets are selling fast—buy now to avoid disappointment!

  • $90 Regular
  • $75 Groups of 10 or more (by phone only)

Bon Appetit!