Cheesecake Etc

After dining on some little bites at Grapes and Soda, Viv and I decided to head elsewhere for dessert.  That elsewhere lay only a short walk around the corner on Granville.  Ah yes, time to relive our youth (specifically our University years) at Cheesecake Etc.  Man, this was a regular hangout in the mid-to-late 90's where we could get our cake and eat it too.  Many good memories here.  I guess there are many others making new memories since they have expanded several times over the years.

Onto the cheesecake, they do bake them here, yet at the same time, they are super light and easy to finish.  On that note, we each got our own where Viv went for the Cheesecake with Blueberries.  As mentioned, this baked cheesecake was super light and airy.  Easy on the sugar while exhibiting a mild cream cheesiness, the slightly sweet blueberry sauce provided a nice balance of flavours.  For myself, I had the Chocolate Cheesecake with Strawberries.  As sweet as the concoction appeared, it really wasn't.  There was a slight bitterness to the cake thanks to the conservative sugar content.  It wasn't particularly chocolaty, but decent nonetheless.

After our meal at Farmer's Apprentice a week later, we still had an appetite for 2nd dessert.  So we rounded the corner once more and shared the Mandarin Orange and Chocolate Cheesecake.  Again, the visuals suggested super sweet, but it wasn't.  In fact, the chocolate on top was not sugary at all.  By virtue of the orange slices, the cake almost ate lighter.  Both Costanza and Elaine had the classic Cheesecake with Strawberries.  Now everything that needed to be said about the cheesecake has been said.  However, the strawberries (much like the one with my chocolate cheesecake) was too saucy.  Nothing wrong taste wise with a balance of sweet and tangy, but just not enough chunks of strawberries.  Whatever the case, if you have a hankering for cheesecake in Vancouver, this is a good bet.

The Good:
- Simple menu, they serve cheesecake
- Light and airy while not too sweet

The Bad:
- Drinks are pedestrian (but you don't come here for the drinks right?)
- Strawberry sauce could use more strawberries      

Farmer's Apprentice

Named one of Canada's best new restaurants by EnRoute Magazine over 2 years ago, Farmer's Apprentice has been on my bucket list since.  However, each time we planned to go, it was during their annual vacation.  This time around, we persevered and booked a time right after they got back.  However, their once simple farm-to-table menu became even simpler with a set $55.00 dinner consisting of 7 tasting courses.  With fairly high expectations, we all decided on the Omnivore menu.

Being a bit anti-climatic, our favourite dish of the meal was the first being the Fermented Tomato Dashi.  As simple as it appeared, the flavours practically exploded with hits of aromatic tartness from last year's heirloom tomatoes.  Also, the use of kombu added an umaminess that was further heightened by the oregano oil.  Either I was super hungry or I was off my game since I decided to start eating my Warm Kale Salad before I took a photo of it.  We had to reconstruct one (messily I might add) for that purpose.  The slightly wilted kale was complimented by pickled coronation grapes, toasted buckwheat and cashew cream.  This was pretty tasty as the vinaigrette was impactfully acidic and slightly sweet.  I thought the ingredients were well-thought out and harmonized with each other including the smooth and aromatic cashew cream.

We then moved onto the first of two proteins with the Albacore Tuna with cabbage and carrot jus. High quality and buttery soft, the tuna was naturally sweet and emanated a taste of the sea.  There was a very mild sweetness from the jus which let the tuna shine, but could've used a bit more punch.  After this dish, the wait for the Mangalitsa Pork with poached pear was nearly 40 minutes long. Not sure what the problem was, but that is not good pacing in our opinion.  Even though the pork was on point in its preparation being tender with a touch of pink, the dish as a whole was underwhelming.  We found that the mustard and pork jus was far too low-key (albeit pleasantly sweet).  The pork itself didn't have enough inherent flavour to stand on its own.

Next, we were served a visually stunning and whimsical dish sporting a slice of Celery Root topped with prosciutto and egg yolk.  Served on the side were Red Fife Parker Rolls accompanied by onion butter.  Unlike the rest of the table (their reception was lukewarm), I liked individual components of the dish.  The egg yolk was perfectly runny where I soaked it up with the warm rolls that benefited from the sweet and aromatic whipped onion butter.  Although the prosciutto added the necessary saltiness, I was indifferent with the starchy root.  For dessert, we were served grated Frozen Gala Apples with elderflower sherbert and meringue.  We were universally unimpressed with this as there were whole clumps of frozen and bland apples.  As much as the tart sherbert saved the dish from being flavourless, it wasn't enough to change our minds.

Arriving with the final bill, we were treated to little bites consisting of Corn Bread with whey cream.  These little bites were almost crunchy and a pleasant end to a decent, yet not particularly memorable tasting meal.  Over the next week I thought about it the meal some more to see if our expectations were too high.  However, despite the reasonable-pricing ($55.00) for the tasting menu, there wasn't enough there to make us return.  Strangely, Viv and I much preferred our visit to their sister restaurant (Grapes & Soda). To be fair, the meal was still good execution-wise while the service was solid.

The Good:
- Meal as a whole was executed properly
- Attentive service
- Ingredients were fresh and good quality

The Bad:
- Flavours were not impactful (as if something was missing)
- With only 2 menus available per month, there are limited options   

Grapes & Soda

Another mid-January and another start of Dine-Out Vancouver...  If you were expecting a post with a DOV preview (like last year), you've come to the wrong place.  As much as I see the value of DOV for many people and the fact it has definitely improved over the years, I don't usually participate.  So to celebrate the beginning of DOV 2016, Viv and I visited a non-DOV restaurant in the newly-opened Grapes & Soda.  This decision was also partially influenced by the fact we have reservations at Famer's Apprentice the following week (they are sister restaurants).

We actually arrived pretty early being able to take advantage of their happy hour.  In addition to $7.00 glasses of wine, we jumped on the reduced price on the Seared Albacore Tuna with quinoa, herbs and lemon dressing.  Buttery, appealingly soft and nicely salted, the tuna was on point all-the-way.  Unfortunately, the quinoa was sub-par being soft and lifeless.  At the very least, the impactful acidity from the lemon kept things bright.  Also on the happy hour menu, the Okonomiyaki was topped with a cabbage and apple slaw drizzled with a house-made mushroom teriyaki and spicy mayo.  Lightly crispy on the exterior and completely soft in the middle, the flavours were subtle including the woodsy teriyaki sauce and the slightly acidic slaw.

Moving away from the happy hour menu, we went for the Braised Chuck Flat with trumpet mushrooms and atop caramelized onion foam.  As much as the meat was completely lean, it was moist and fork tender.  The braise was able to penetrate the meat where there was uniform flavour that was natural and meaty.  This was accented by the sweet onion foam and the firm Earthy chew of the mushrooms.  At first, I didn't notice the daily feature of Foie Gras Torchon with grilled brioche, wild greens and fig jam, but when Viv pointed it out, I was all over it.  Texturally, it was on point being buttery and rich.  However, it was far too salty for my liking.  Even with the addition of the syrupy sweet jam, the flavours didn't balance.  We found the grilled brioche to be firm enough while retaining an airy softness.

Our final item was the Stuffed Bone Marrow featuring beets and served with crostinis.  Normally, bone marrow would be heavy and greasy, but with the addition of beets, this was lessened to a degree.  I found the beets to be only mildly sweet.  They were a touch heavier due to the absorption of the bone marrow fat.  I liked how they didn't overseasoned the mixture so that we could taste the bone marrow.  Based on these dishes (and there were not many more on the menu), we thought Grapes and Soda was a pleasant and reasonably-priced spot for some shared bites to go with our beverages.   This could easily be a place to visit on a regular basis.

The Good:
- Small focused menu of little bites
- Reasonable-pricing
- Attentive service

The Bad:
- Very tight quarters

Nat's New York Pizzeria

There we were...  cruisin' down Broadway prior to Noodlemania, with empty stomachs.  That was a very precarious situation as Emily and I were in the danger zone.  Yes, the time just before a feeding, but being famished at the same time.  What to do?  Wait til Noodlemania starts or eat something beforehand, even though that would mean way too much food?  Well, there wasn't much debate as we stopped in front of Nat's New York Pizzeria for some pre-carbs prior to the main event full of more carbs!

We decided on 2 slices each where I chose the Meat Deluxe and Spicy Mushroom.  Seeing the usual ingredients in a deluxe, but with just lots of it, we found pepperoni, green and red peppers, mushrooms and onions.  This loaded pizza surprisingly didn't get soft nor wet due to the heavy duty thin crust that was more crunchy than chewy (might've been due to the reheat).  I personally loved the spicy mushroom as it lived up to its namesake with chili flakes, jalapenos and big meaty slices of mushrooms.  It ate rather hearty for a non-meat pizza.  There was a noted spiciness from the first bite that lingered way past.

Emily's 2 choices included the Chorizo Mushroom and BBQ Chicken.  Not as spicy nor impactful as we would've expected, the chorizo did eat heartily with lots of toppings that included an equal amount of mushrooms.  Again, the crust stood up well to the amount of ingredients.  Lastly, the BBQ Chicken consisted of chicken bits, red onion and peppers.  We liked how they were conservative with the sweet BBQ sauce.  I personally would've liked to see less onion as it dominated both texture and flavour.  Overall, we were satisfied with the slice pizza we ordered.  I didn't necessarily bring back memories of my past visit to NYC, but it did the job for a reasonable price.

The Good:
- Crust stood up to the toppings
- Lotsa toppings

The Bad:
- Due to the reheat, the crust wasn't as chewy as I would've liked