Câche Câche

Our dinner for the night happened to be at Câche Câche, which is a hidden raw bar tucked behind Fracture Brewing.  At first, I didn't even spot Fracture Brewing and had to make a few circles around the block.  Now if you didn't know that Câche Câche existed at all, you wouldn't be necessarily looking for it.  However, we knew and after a few bevvies in the bar portion of the place, we were taken to our seats in the restaurant at the back.

About those drinks, we had the Pimm's Punch, Tea & Roses and Falling Leaves.  The second from the left was a virgin cocktail, which I didn't catch the name of.  As for the Pimm's Punch, it was pretty strong even though there was still fruitiness to be found.  I thought it was quite good though.  The Tea & Roses was a bit floral and also not lacking in alcohol.  Falling Leaves tasted very much like its namesake with fall flavours and a certain warming feeling (even though it was cold).

Onto the restaurant, it was cozy and featured a small kitchen.  We selected a bunch of cold plates that they built a seafood tower for us.  The first tier included Caviar Service, Scallop Crudo, Shrimp Cocktail and Albacore & Mackerel Rillette.  Of course the caviar was a treat especially with creme fraiche and potato crisps.  Buttery and fresh, the scallops were mildly seasoned with chamomile oil and some soy.  Cocktail shrimp had a sweet meaty snap and were accompanied by Mama Lil's cocktail sauce and preserved lemon aioli.  However, I thought the rillette was the best item of the bunch with a creamy combination of tender tuna mackerel.  This was further enhanced by the tangy and sweet piperade.

The bottom tier of our seafood tower featured a dozen Oysters, Concorde Pear and Hamachi.  Accompanied by the usual condiments including hot sauce, mignonette and lemon, the oysters were buttery, briny and properly shucked.  As for the hamachi, it was supremely fresh and delicate with a taste of the sea.  It was lightly dressed with green apple, sea lettuce and jalapeno.  Crispy and ice cold (excellent temperature), the pears were well-soaked with port wine and lemon.

With the bevy of goodies from our seafood tower, it was almost easy to forget we had more food coming.  The Sardine Toast featured bread that was crunchy, yet not hard.  It still had a chew in the middle (which was good).  The sardines were salty (as expected) but not overly so.  It was complimented by a red onion, caper and cornichon aioli which was creamy with bite.  Lots of dill topped the whole thing as a squeeze of lemon added the necessary acidity.

Of course we also had to get the Lobster Roll featuring a heavily brown-buttered crustless loaf.  Hence, the exterior was super crispy and nutty while the the middle was stuffed with butter-poached lobster in a tarragon aioli.  This was a nice little bite with all the sinfulness of the butter, sweetness of the lobster and aromatics of the aioli with tang and acidity.

The most majestic dish was the Roasted Whole Snapper in a sriracha and charcoal butter.  The fish itself couldn't have been prepared any better.  The meat was flaky and soft while the skin was slightly crispy (even with all that sauce).  About that sauce, it definitely had a kick due to the sriracha, but it wasn't overpowering.  Of course the butteriness came through as well as the earthiness of the charcoal.

For dessert, we shared the Apple Cider Donuts with cinnamon sugar, apple butter and custard.  These little bites were a perfect end to a fantastic meal.  They were warm, soft inside and crispy on the outside.  I found the custard to be just semi-sweet complimented by the taste of the apple butter.  Gotta say this was a real treat where the ingredients were fresh and the execution was practically flawless.  Nice hidden little spot to share small plates and enjoy drinks from the bar.

*All food and beverages excluding gratuities were complimentary for this post*

The Good:

- Fresh high-quality ingredients

- Thoughtful flavors

- Cooked items executed well

The Bad:

- Seating is a bit tight but it is cozy

- Limited menu, but they do focus on cold seafood plates and they do it well