Burgoo (Pt. Grey)

Well, today was another manic Monday. There was a staff meeting that went to about 4:45 and I had to get to my softball game by 6:45. You might think 2 hours would be plenty of time for that; however, I was in North Delta and had to get home to North Burnaby. Then, I had to get to my game at Lord Byng in Vancouver. I actually made it early to the game; but Miss Y (who was with me at the meeting) barely made it on time. The team has agreed that we should just get Miss Y a GPS. The game itself was really high-scoring, our team won 28-14. I had a second straight solid game and some team members thought I on the juice a la Alex Rodriguez. I just surmised that all my eating had given me strength (at least that's what I believe...).

After the game, we had the usual discussion as where to eat. Bear suggested that we go to Burgoo since it was nearby. Having never been to Burgoo, I was still thinking of other places to go. However, Judes pipes up and confirms that Burgoo is really good, especially on this cold and wet day. Bear was a bit miffed that I listened to Judes and not him. Well, Judes is better looking than Bear! So you might be wondering what a place like Burgoo serves for food. Well, Burgoo is a term that refers to a stew made with whatever is on hand. But, Bear insists that his explanation is better - Burgoo is just roadkill. Now you know why I was skeptical of his ideas! In addition to stews, Burgoo serves up soups and sandwiches as well.

Being a bit boring, 3 people ordered the Irish Stew. However, after trying it, I understood why they ordered it. The well-portioned stew was packed with vegetables, dumplings and tender lamb (that had been braised in Guinness). In addition to the stew, there were 2 large scoops of mash potatoes. I really liked the simplicity of the stew, right down to it's natural colour. Judes had the Sunset Corn & Chicken soup with a Chicken Caesar Club. I tried the soup and it was fabulous. The sweet corn and spicy chipotle was tempered by the creme fraiche. Also, the addition of lime and cilantro gave the soup some zing and aroma.

Boss Woman had the Pacific Chowder and I didn't get to taste it. Boss Woman described the soup as creamy with plenty of salmon and veggies. Moreover, there was just enough hits of fish flavour to give it an overall seafood taste. By the way, the pictures are not a good representation as to how big these soups really are. These large cups are sufficient as a meal in itself! And this is a great segue to my meal. I already had my mind set on the Kentucky Burgoo (since I am at Burgoo); but I noticed that there was a Lobster Bisque on the fresh sheet. I absolutely love Lobster Bisque, so I ordered it as well. Of course this was before I knew how big the soups were here. Unlike most bisque's I've had, the one at Burgoo was not all that creamy. Rather, it was predominantly a tomato-based soup with some cream. Thus, the lobster was cast in more of a supporting role. The tartness of the tomato masked some of the other flavours in the soup. They should have called it Tomato Soup with Aroma of Lobster. With that being said I thoroughly enjoyed the soup - it just wasn't Lobster Bisque.

Now to the signature dish - the Kentucky Burgoo. This is what the whole thing is about; a hodgepodge of meats and veggies in a stew. I believe there was lamb and beef in the stew with Lima beans, corn, tomatoes, cabbage and okra. All of this was served over 2 Burgoo biscuits (you can get mashed potatoes instead). The stew was quite a bit different than the Irish Stew. It was much more savory and tangy. With the addition of tomatoes (and possibly tomato paste), the stew was richer and had more depth of flavour. Not sure why but the meats in my stew were a bit drier than that of the Irish Stew. In the end, I only finished half my stew, partly because I was full from the soup and the stew itself was quite hearty.

Bear and Milhouse went a bit further than all of us and decided to have dessert! They both ordered a Chocolate Banana Bread Pudding each!!! Again, the picture does not do it justice. The thing was just massive and it was topped off with a scoop of ice cream! Since both of them were begging us to try some (they couldn't finish it), I took a bite. I must say this dessert is a winner. Despite the fact it should've been very sweet due to all the ingredients, it wasn't too bad. The soft banana bread was delicate and it went really well with the ice cream. This was definitely a comfort dessert. In fact, the whole menu and restaurant is based on the concept of comfort food. If food could actually give you a hug, that's how it feels to eat at Burgoo (if getting a hug from roadkill is your thing).

The Good:
- Pretty good stews and soups
- Pretty good portions
- Good service

The Bad:
- Menu is focused primarily on soups and stews, if you don't like that, this is not the place for you
- Despite being a good value, prices are not cheap

Burgoo
4434 West 10th Avenue
Vancouver, B.C.
604-221-7839
www.burgoo.ca

Business Hours:
11:00am - 10:00pm (7 days a week)