Sherman's Food Adventures: Michelin Recommended
Showing posts with label Michelin Recommended. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Michelin Recommended. Show all posts

Moltaqa Moroccan

Trying to hit up the last few restaurants on the Michelin guide for Vancouver, it has brought me to Moltaqa Moroccan.  This has actually been on my radar for quite some time even before it became Michelin-recommended.  However, it is the same thing over and over again - too many places to eat at and so little time.  We made it a point to go there since we actually do like Moroccan cuisine, in particular a lamb or chicken tagine.

So before those tagines, we had went for their Moroccan Hummus and bread.  This was an extremely smooth and creamy hummus with the strong nuttiness of sesame seeds that were on top.  I got a bit of the garlic, yet was wanting more lemon.  Even the squeeze of the lemon wedge wasn't enough.  Maybe I like things more acidic, so the hummus overall was very good.  The side of Moroccan bread was fantastic.  A bit crispy on the outside and plenty fluffy inside, it was perfect for mopping up the hummus.


Our next small plate was the Duck Pastilla.  Oh my, this was absolutely mind-blowingly delicious.  Beyond the flaky and crispy phyllo casing, the ample amount of duck inside was moist and well-spiced.  There was definitely the sweetness of the onions while the powdered sugar made this almost a quasi-dessert.  But it all worked well with the combination of savoury and sweet.  Loved the almonds too as it added texture and nuttiness.


Continuing with the same protein, we had the Flambe Duck with cherie sauce.  The flambe was served tableside and that was pretty cool.  However, this dish was not only for show, it was also super delicious.  The skin of the duck breast was blackened with Moroccan spices and hence had rich fall flavours cinammon and cloves.  The duck itself was moist and tender while complimented perfectly by the sweet and tart sauce.  The side of roasted root vegetables were prepared nicely.

Finally, here we are with the tagines!  The first was the Lemon & Olive Halal Chicken Tagine with saffron.  This was truly an aromatic dish with the saffron coming through.  The chicken itself was super tender and moist with the salty brininess of the olives and the tangy lemon being quite evident with each bite.  There was also the earthiness of the turmeric as well.  With olives and thinly sliced lemon at our disposal, we could make each bite even more flavourful.  We had rice as our side dish for this tagine.

For me it was all about the Tagine of Lamb with saffron prunes and almond.  This was delicious where the lamb fell off the bone and was at its fatty best.  The meat had the gelatinous fattiness that I was looking for.  Due to the lamb being more robust than the chicken, the saffron was much more muted, but still present.  There was a certain sweetness to go with the rich Moroccan spices.  I had the side of cous cous with chickpeas with this.

We had a few cocktails to go with our meal in the Moroccan Cherie Sour and La Bel Aicha (we were also served some olives at the outset of the meal).  I found the sour to be quite nice and appetizing with the classic fall flavours of Moroccan spice paired with bourbon and white cherries.  A bit of sweetness to go with that tang.  As for the other cocktail, it was floral and refreshing with some ginger notes.  Overall, we quite enjoyed our meal at Moltaqa.  The portions were generous and the flavours were exotic.  Considering its Yaletown location and the deliciousness of the food, the prices were fair too.  Will come back.

The Good:
- Impactful exotic spices
- Generous portions
- Reasonably-priced

The Bad:
- Maybe a few repetitive spices, but I didn't mind

Gary's Restaurant

Gary's Restaurant has been on my radar for a little while and it was also on my "to dine at" list.  I did suggest to some friends that this was an option for our dinners, but there were no takers.  However, Jo messaged me out-of-the-blue to meet up for eats and suggested Gary's!  Well, what a nice coincidence!  I mean, it is also great to meet up with Jo as I haven't seen her in quite some time, but it was also even better that we got to hit up a place I wanted to go to!

This cozy little spot on 12th at Granville has great lighting due to the large windows in front.  We looked over the menu and decided to order a la carte rather than the tasting.  As much as the tasting seemed appealing, we wanted to choose our preferred dishes.  It all began with the Rye Rolls with an herb butter.  I found the rolls to be fairly fluffy with some chew to them.   The salt on top really added a flavourful crunch.  Loved the butter as it was whipped until airy.

Onto the actual plates, we had the Kanpachi Crudo with strawberries, sumac vinaigrette and shoyu.  As for the slices of kanpachi, they were fresh-tasting and looked the part too.  There was the usual natural sweetness and the essence of the sea.  I'm usually not keen on fruit and fish, but the strawberries were sweet and didn't clash.  I found the sumac vinaigrette a bit earthy and maybe lacking in enough acidity to really make an impact.  The restrained use of the soy ensured that the fish maintained its starring role.

Next, we had the Raw Beef with king james blue, chicory and house-made potato chips.  First and foremost, the diced beef was buttery and didn't require much chewing.  It was visually-appealing and tasted fresh.  With intermittent pops of nutty saltiness, the stilton also added body and creaminess to the tartare.  There was some crunch from the chicories but overall, the whole mixture was pretty soft.  Seasoning was mild with a good balance of salty, sweet and tang.  Loved the potato chips as they were thin and crispy.

For the larger plates, we had the Ling Cod with Argentinian prawns and cherry tomatoes in a Calabrian chili butter sauce.  As evidenced in the picture, the cod filet was beautifully seared with crispy portions.  Inside, the fish was moist and flaky with some butteriness.  It was also well-seasoned and tasted great on its own.  However, that silky sauce had a spicy nuttiness to it and was well-suited for the fish.  It was not too strong, but also had impact at the same time.  Those prawns were perfectly cooked with a delicate meatiness that was aromatic.

The most filling dish was the Pork Collar with parsley sauce, grilled onion and Swiss chard.  Fatty with its classic rebound meatiness, the pork collar was nicely brined.  It was had an inherently full-flavoured taste to it while not being salty.  The meat was tender, but maintained a bite.  I found the parsley sauce to be creamy and bright.  The veggies were cooked perfectly where they were wilted, but still had lots of texture left.

For dessert, we had the Paris-Brest with lemon verbena cream, strawberry and chantilly.  Texturally, the choux pastry was crispy on the outside and fairly light on the inside.  I found the chantilly to be a bit melty, but it was still light and creamy.  The lemon cream was mildly-flavoured while the strawberry was sweet.  Overall, it was a pleasant meal at Gary's with properly-prepared proteins and focused flavours.  I would be open to a return visit one day!

The Good:
- Properly-prepared proteins
- Nice flavours
- Great service

The Bad:
- Seating is a bit tight for tables of 2

 

Ask For Luigi

There are just some restaurants I haven't revisited for quite some time and one of them is the popular Ask for Luigi.  Yes, it has been 10 years since I've dined on their Michelin-recommended food.  Not sure why it has taken me so long to return, but Jess made a reservation for us to grab some lunch.  I'm glad she did so because I probably would've been running off to try the latest and greatest, but forgetting places that have been around and continue to be awesome.

As if I needed anymore Burrata especially since I had it the night before at Bar Corso.  Hey Jess wanted it and honestly, I wasn't complaining.  Absolutely love burrata!  This one here came with tomatoes, strawberry vinaigrette & pistachio.  I thought the heirloom tomatoes were fresh and sweet.  Nice firmness on them while still being ripe.  This came with a whole burrata that we cut open to reveal the creamy insides.  I thought the vinaigrette was balanced and provided both sweetness and acidity.  The one thing I would've liked was a few flakes of fleur de sel to elevate the flavours.

We ended up with the Mussels with nduja sausage, fennel & pomodoro because they were out of the cauliflower.  No problem as these mussels were so on point.  They were plump and buttery with everyone of them opened.  It sat it a tangy pomodoro amped by the addition of nduja.  This added depth and a meatiness that wasn't overbearing.  There was some spice but generally it was mild with the aromatics of the fennel coming through.  That grilled bread on the side was both necessary and utterly awesome.

On another visit with Roanna, we went for the other appies I didn't have last time including the elusive Fried Cauliflower.  Last time, we didn't get to try it because they were sold out.  I remember from the first time I visited Ask for Luigi that they were very good.  Turns out my memory was right as the cauliflower was cooked-through but still firm.  It was drizzled with aioli and topped with a considerable amount of parm.  Sneakily, the star of the dish was the fried chickpeas as they provided complimentary texture.

We weren't really into ordering a salad this time around, so we went big with Luigi's Meatballs sitting in a fresh tomato sauce.  These benefited immensely from the sultanas and pine nuts as it broke up the meat texture with plump sweetness and a sweet nuttiness.  As for the meat, it was a bit firmer than I remembered, but I haven't had these in awhile so am not sure.  Now that didn't impact the eating enjoyment we had as the meat was moist and lacking in filler.  That tomato sauce was perfect being only lightly tangy with natural sweetness.  Very bright flavours.

We had the pasta of the day being the Duck Ragu in a light pomodoro.  This was absolute money with mildly tangy tomato sauce that was complimented by the richness of the duck ragu.  There was plenty of tender morsels of meat that had the gaminess of duck that was also well-seasoned by the stewing with the herbs and tomato paste.  Again, the tanginess of the pomodoro provided a certain brightness to break up the heaviness of the ragu.  The gamelli pasta was perfectly al dente and held onto the ragu beautifully.

The other pasta we had was the Bigoli Nero with frutti di mare and uni butter.  Oh this was so rich and buttery.  It exhibited further luxury with the creaminess of the sweet uni mixed into that butter.  There was definite brininess to the dish but also the seasoning was on point where everything was properly salted including the pasta.  Seafood was perfect too with delicate prawns that had a snap and buttery mussels.  The pasta itself was firmly al dente.

Much like the visit with Jess, Roanna and I went for the pasta of the day which was Vongole Tagliolini in a white wine butter sauce with chili flakes and anchovy breadcrumbs.  This featured all the best things about fresh pasta.  Texturally, it was al dente with a certain dry firmness, unlike dry pasta, which can be gummy or too wet.  As a result, the dish ate a bit dry and possibly could've used just a touch more butter.  The clams were plump and buttery while offering up their usual briny sweetness.  Loved the anchovy breadcrumbs on top as it provided both crunch and saltiness.

Trying to hit the rest of the pastas, we had the Rigatoni alla Bolognese.  This was very good with firm noodles bathed in a creamy bolognese that was not short on tender nuggets of meat.  The rigatoni was the perfect vessel here since it held onto the sauce and kept things moist and flavourful.  It was ever-so-mild with a rich meatiness.  About that meat, it was slow-cooked to the point it was buttery and airy.

Our last pasta was the most surprising as it did not contain any meat.  The Radiatore Verde & Mushroom Trifolati was my favourite on this second visit with Roanna.  Even more effective than the rigatoni, the radiatore held onto the olive oil and garlic beautifully where there was bursts of aromatics.  The plethora of mushrooms added woodsiness as well as moisture and the usual squishiness.

For dessert, I went for my favourite in the Olive Oil Cake with candied orange and whipped ricotta.  This cake is the must order here.  It was soaked in syrup being moist and aromatic.  The whipped ricotta was super light and creamy.  The citrus really came through in a subtle floral manner.  As you can see, the food at Ask for Luigi is as solid as it has ever been.  It certainly continues to be a destination for great pasta.  I will not take another 10 years to be back!

The Good:
- On point pastas
- Prominent flavours
- That banana bread (only available during brunch)

The Bad:
- Super tight in there with limited table space
- Not the best area at night

 

Zab Bite - Thai E-Sarn Cuisine

When I was dining at Bravo, I noticed Zab Bite across the street.  Honestly, I had some idea what the place was, but wasn't all that familiar.  I got to try the place out for brunch (that they no longer offer) where we tried a selection of their existing menu items as well as a few new ones.  Zab Bite focuses on E-Sarn cuisine which is native to the Northeastern part of Thailand, where most of the people are Laotian.  They are well known for their spicy and sour flavour profiles.

We had a bunch of items arrive at our table at the same time, but I'll talk about the Assorted Appetizers first.  The Veggie Spring Rolls were crunchy and the cabbage inside still had a bite.  Equally crunchy, the Shrimp Wrap featured a meaty and briny shrimp inside.  In the middle of the platter, we found Pork Jerky that was plenty pungent with the saltines of fish sauce.  They were chewy and meaty.  On the side, the Crispy Pork Toast featured not-overly-greasy toast.  On the top, there were slices of pork jerky that I found a bit chewy.  Nice aromatics from the sesame though.


Onto two more small plates, we had the E-Sarn Pork Roll. Similar to Vietnamese Chả Lụa, this was sliced and deep-fried.  The result was a crispy exterior giving way to a chewy and meaty interior.  This was served with a side of sriracha hot sauce.  One of my favourite items of the meal was the Jaew Chicken featuring a marinated and grilled boneless chicken thighs topped with toasted rice flour.  This chicken was so juicy and flavourful with a nice char on the outside.  The side of dipping sauce added spice, sweetness and acidity.

One of their newest dishes is the Thai Chicken Rice which is also known as Khao Man Gai (a variation of Hainanese Chicken).  The poached chicken thigh was fairly juicy and tender.  It was mildly fragrant and was accompanied by a spicy soy bean sauce.  Think along the lines of Nong's Khao Man Gai in Portland.  This sauce here was less gingery and sweet, but definitely more spicy.  It was good in its own way.  The rice firm and chewy (in a good way) while nicely seasoned.

We also had a soup that was a bit different than the usual Tom Yum and Tom Kha (which they do have on the menu too).  It was the Tom Zab that was a spicy-sour clear soup with mushroom, rice powder and dried-chili.  The flavour profile in this is representative of Northeastern Thai.  It was clean-tasting with notable tang and spice.  There was fragrance in the form of lemongrass, galangal and cilantro.  We added pork to the soup where it gave it more body.

Another popular Northern Thai and Laotian dish is Khao Soi.  We went for this with chicken in this case and it sat in a Thai coconut curry with egg noodles topped with crispy fried noodle, fresh shallots and lime wedge.  This was a pretty good version with aromatics and fragrance emanating from the coconutty and slightly spicy broth.  The noodles were al dente while the chicken drumsticks were tender and took on the flavour of the curry.  

My favourite dish of the meal was the Pad See Ew with stewed beef.  This was somewhat reminiscent of the one at Sen Pad Thai with its mung bean glass noodles.  There was good wok hei (a very hot wok with lots of BTUs) that added smokiness and caramelization to the dish.  The noodles were appealingly chewy and completely seasoned by the soy and the braising liquid for the tender nuggets of beef.   The gai lan were cooked enough but still crunchy.


To go with our meal, we had a few classic bevvies including the Fresh Young Coconut and Thai Milk Tea.  Beyond drinking the sweet coconut water, the coconut flesh was at its tender delicious best.  As for the milk tea, it was creamy and flavourful without being excessively sweet.  Onto dessert, we had the Mango Sticky Rice with a pandan-infused sticky rice.  It was topped off with a kanom dok jok or Thai lotus flower cookie.  This was a pretty solid version of the dessert with sticky rice that was aromatic topped with fresh sweet mango and coconut milk.  Overall, the food at Zab Bite was pretty good.  I particularly enjoyed the Tom Zab, Pad See Ew and Khao Soi.  They aren't open for brunch anymore, but you can still get these dishes for dinner!

*All food and beverages were complimentary for this blog post*

The Good:
- Generally solid eats
- Fairly reasonable-pricing
- Some Northern dishes that are different

The Bad:
- When the weather is warm, the A/C isn't sufficient

Bravo

I've been meaning to visit Bravo for quite some time.  With its Vanmag win as the best new restaurant, I felt it was a place that I needed to try ASAP.  Located in the former Ubuntu Canteen, Bravo features sustainable seafood with a dry-aged fish program.  Chef Jonah Joffe is both co-owner and Executive Chef.  I was so impressed with my first visit, I came back within a month to try more dishes.  This blog post will include dishes from both meals.

The first thing on the menu is the Oysters and depending on the day, there are certain ones you can choose from.  We decided on the Shigoku and Sunseekers since they were relatively smaller, which we prefer.  The Sunseekers were much creamier and had a hint of cucumber.  With a mild brininess and balanced flavour, the Shigoku had a clean finish.  Lemon wedges, horseradish, spicy cucumber aguachile and fermented red jalapeno were served with these.  I really enjoyed both of the condiments as the cucumber was refreshing and bright while lightly spicy.  Being spicier and more bold, the fermented red jalapeno went well with the Sunseekers.


Sometimes a simple Burrata turns out to be one of the highlights of the meal.  This was such the case where the creamy burrata was complimented well with braised tomatoes, kale gremolata and pistachios.  Since burrata is such a mild-tasting cheese (albeit buttery and creamy), it needs a boost and indeed the components did that.  The fresh braised tomato added sweetness and tanginess.  Then well-seasoned gremolata brought a bright tang and aromatics.  Of course the pistachios did its salty nutty thing with some added texture to the dish.  This was served with Livia Sourdough, but on the 2nd visit, we actually added an extra dish that was served with whipped butter and maldon salt.  That bread was good to soak up everything as most dishes were served with a killer sauce.  Loved that butter as it was creamy and airy.

I always enjoy a toast with fish on it (particularly anchovies), so when I spotted the Gravlax Toast, it was a must order.  To top it off, it also included boquerones!  Yes, I got my anchovy toast in a round about way...  In addition to that, we found café de Paris butter and fresh herbs.  The combination of tangy brininess of the boquerones with the sweet butteriness of the salmon ensured that our taste buds were taken care of.  The seasoned butter provided extra seasoning and richness (reminded me somewhat of the sauce I had at Le Relais de L'Entrecôte) while the herbs (in particular the dill) afforded some bright and fresh flavours.

One of their signature dishes is the Tofino King Salmon with maple ginger dressing, cucumber and avocado. This dish was all about the main ingredient as it should be.  The slices of aged salmon were super buttery and soft.  The natural sweet fishiness (in a tasty way) was at the forefront.  I thought the dressing was super delicious and impactful without getting in the way of the salmon.  There was a certain umaminess about it where it wasn't exactly salty, but there was lots of flavour.  The sweetness of the maple probably helped curb the saltiness.

Another showstopper was the Spencer Gulf Hiramasa with passionfruit aguachile, cantaloupe and espelette.  This was so good, we ordered it both times!  The firm hiramasa was a bit buttery while naturally sweet.  That passionfruit aguachile was spicy, sweet and tangy.  Sure, this was a case of the sauce overtaking the main ingredient, but it worked.  It was so good, we wanted to coat each piece of fish with as much as we could.  This passionfruit aguachile would be a great sorbet too!

From powerful to subtle, we transitioned to the Hokkaido Scallops with coconut leche de tigre, calamansi and finger lime.  Since Hokkaido scallops are so delicate, the sauce had to be both memorable without drowning out the natural sweetness.  Call it a success as the buttery scallops were still the main focus, but the aromatics of the coconut milk were present as well as a background brininess.  Acidity was balanced with the calamansi and finger lime.

Another dish we ordered both times was the Fremantle Octopus with brava sauce, labneh and tomatillo.  The braised octopus was tender, yet still retained its signature bite.  It was torched, so that there was some caramelization and slight charring.  Normally, we find brava sauce on top of potatoes, but in this case, it provided quite the tanginess and acidity.  Possibly a bit too powerful, but it was dialed back with the creamy labneh.  Other than the contrasting colour, the tomatillo sauce added another layer of tanginess.

One of the best dishes was the Manila Clams in a shiro dashi with fried tofu and sesame.  All the clams were fully opened and cooked perfectly.  They were plump, buttery and at their briny best.  That clam nectar seeped into the dashi where it was sweet, briny, buttery and full of umaminess.  I would've preferred a less firm tofu, but at the same time, I understand that a softer one would possibly fall apart in the cooking process.  The side of sourdough was a must here as the broth couldn't be wasted.

The one dish we were indifferent about was the Kale Gnocchi.  Nothing wrong with the sauce here as the pistou was creamy, aromatic and bright.  Interestingly, they added toasted pine nuts to the dish which made this a quasi-pesto.  However, rather than blending it into the sauce, it was more impactful as whole nuts.  Loved the maitake mushrooms where they provided "meatiness" and the onions added sweetness.  We also had some parmigiano reggiano crisps for texture and saltiness.  So the main issue was the gnocchi itself.  They were pillowy soft, but in mid-chew, they were mealy.  We would've preferred a firmer gnocchi.

Another awesome dish was the Tagliolini with humboldt squid bolognese, taggiasca olives and herb ricotta.  Beyond the al dente pasta, which was neatly plated, the bolognese was beautiful.  I've never had it without some form of pork and/or beef, so the squid was definitely different.  It was tender, yet with a rebound bite.  There was some natural sweetness to compliment the tang of the tomato.  Extra punch was provided by the sweet olives and everything was balanced out by the creamy ricotta.  Excellent dish.

The Cascade Steelhead was another solid dish where the fish itself was perfectly executed.  Flaky, moist and still buttery, the steelhead had a rich flavour.  It sat atop a horseradish soubise which was creamy and rich.  The horseradish was definitely there without being a distraction.  There was natural sweetness from the onions.  Hidden underneath the broccolini and dill, we found some crispy fingerling potatoes.  About that dill, it was nice addition to the plate as it brightened things up. 

Last but not least, the Seared Scallops was higher level. Each one of the plump scallops were seared beautifully while still being a bit rare inside and supremely buttery.  They were well-seasoned but the lemongrass & coconut sauce was so aromatic and impactful, it just made the dish.  Unfortunately, both times, we were so full, we didn't get to dessert.  I guess that would be on my next visit (which is guaranteed).  For these first 2 meals, the food was fantastic and well-executed.  Loved their aged fish and frankly, all of the other seafood creations. Bravo definitely earns its title as best new restaurant. 

The Good:
- Expertly-prepared seafood
- Bold and impactful flavours
- Focused menu

The Bad:

- Gnocchi was not our favourite

 

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