Ensemble (CLOSED)

Oh, that ginger cocktail...

Living in a city with such an enriched and vibrant culinary scene, the buzz surrounding restaurant openings, closings and visits from renowned food personalities (hello, Guy Fieri!) travel faster than you can say, "..what already?" It's most definitely an increasingly competitive industry out there - kudos to those who have been able to sustain and succumb to Vancouver culinary standards while my most sincerest condolences are sent to those who weren't so lucky, so to speak...!

On this Friday night, I, along with a few other dining companions, ventured to one of the newest and hottest dining spots in town - Ensemble.  The mastermind behind this relatively newly-opened restaurant is none other than Dale MacKay, Canada's first Top Chef Canada winner.  He has quite the impressive culinary background having previously worked as the Executive Chef of the late Lumiere and db bistro moderne, as well as working alongside celebrity chef and renown television personality Chef Gordon Ramsay.  Perhaps a product of his winnings, here, Dale aims to showcase his ability to utilize classic French techniques of cooking to Pacific Northwest ingredients.

Food:

Cornmeal Crusted Scallops

- accompanied with a tamarind date puree and topped with cauliflower
- I thoroughly enjoyed the delicate and unique pairings of this dish - although I wish the scallops were a bit bigger but they were, nonetheless, very fresh and juicy

Pulled Pork Sandwich (Top Chef winner)
- for the $10 price tag, and given the size of the other plates - this burger had great value!
- it was generously filled with tender, saucy, pulled pork (how a pulled pork sandwich ought to be) with quite a pronounced smokey flavour and aroma
-sided with a deep fried pickle and a piece of very sweet watermelon - this was quite satisfying!

I was also able to sample some of my dining companion's (who likes to go by the initials of J.B) Sweet and Sour Eggplant,Vancouver Island Mussels, as well as the Potato Gnocchi.  The Eggplant was quite the aesthetic pleaser and fared quite well on the taste buds, too.  The baba ghanoush, yogurt and tomato complemented the sweet Asian flavours of the eggplant, which was also cooked perfectly.  The Mussels were the least favourite and devoid of any praise.  There was barely any broth and I expected a more prominent curry flavour.  Although the portion was generous, the mussels were teeny tiny.  The fries were good, but the Mussels were definitely an overall letdown.  Of the three things sampled from what J.B had ordered, the Potato Gnocchi was most satisfying.  Paired with a tomato butter sauce and olives, the Gnocchi was perfectly seared, chewy and executed very well.

I also strongly enjoyed their Ginger Gimlet (so much that I had 2, for the night).  It's a cocktail composed of tanqueray gin, house ginger lime cordial, and topped with a kaffir lime leaf.  It was wonderfully refreshing with just the right proportions of ingredients and bursting with a soothing gingery taste. 

the amazing Ginger Gimlet

Service: 

Prompt and informative


Value:

Fair


Ambience:

The decor is modern and contemporary, the room was actually quite dark while the noise level was louder than expected, especially given that every table was occupied.

Overall: 7.7/10

Yay: Come here for a little taste of Dale MacKay's inventive winning creations...and that ginger cocktail! Mmm! The portion sizes are perfect for sampling a variety of dishes.

Nay: The place didn't "wow" me as much as I thought it would but for some reason, it was what I had expected.  There is definitely room for improvement.

Cafe Regalade

                                       Voulez-vous manger une superbe brunch aujourd'hui?

                         (translation: Do you want to eat a superb brunch today? lol!

                                       Just wanted to throw some French in there!)

Food:

Pork Confit Sandwich:  This was one of the specials of the day.  While waiting, I saw that someone had ordered it and it looked too darn good to pass up.  Luckily, I had persuayed one of my d.c's to order it and boy, did it not disappoint! The sandwich was beautifully presented - thick slices of tender seasoned pork laid diagonally atop a bed of cooked sauteed creamed spinach (?)  and garnished with finely-chopped cilantro.  The baguette was perfectly toasted and very fresh.  It was also served with a side of nicely-dressed salad and house-made (?) potato chips.

Basque Breakfast: 2 sunnyside up eggs, piperade, chorizo, aioli sauce.  A rather heavy, but flavourful and decadent breakfast.  What I loved most was that 2 (of the 5) accompanying slices of baguette were spread generously with a (seemingly yolk-based) aioli sauce.  The sauce and bread went so well together and though it is not the healthiest thing one can eat, it paired superbly well with the eggs, choirzo and piperade.  This was also served with salad and wonderfully-seasoned potatoes on the side.

Lyon Breakfast: 2 poached eggs, mushrooms, bacon, pearl onions, spinach, potatoes, red wine sauce.  Another well-executed breakfast entree.  I had only sampled a bit of this but I loved dipping and soaking the baguette in the sauce.

Fresh Pancake with Blueberries:  First five words that were overheard after a bite was taken out of this pancake: "Omg, TRY THIS!"  At first, we were a bit puzzled by the seemingly lack of blueberries; but low and behold, they were all nestled in the middle of the pancake.  This was the most delicious pancake any of us had ever experienced.  First off, not only was the thing as ginormous as a pancake can be, but it was thick. And dense...and moist...and simply irresistable.

just a fraction of the (most delicious) pancake (ever)

Service:

We arrived to a full house on a Wednesday at about 1 pm only to be greeted with a rather rude welcome (and this was after us having to flag down a server/host).  After telling the server that we had been standing at the front entrance for quite a while (with no greeting or acknowledgement), the server replied with, "well, we're full" in quite an unpleasant, standoffish manner.  Well, one of my dining companions is certainly one to not take any of this rubbish, so to speak. She immediately turned around to inform me of the server's blunt dismeanor.  We later suspected that the server had overheard us, for her attitude and demeanor had changed 180 degrees!

All in all, we didnt' receive (or expect) the best service but it was satisfactory.

Value:

Unbelievably reasonable - $3.95 for the pancake, brunch entrees range from $10-14

Ambience:

Loved the colorful hog statues and masks dispersed throughout the cafe, limited seating

Add caption

Overall:  9/10

Yay: Where (I mean, WHERE?) else, in Vancouver, can you find a place that serves an excellently-executed (key words) French breakfast, brunch (...lunch and dinner?) Prices are also ridiculously reasonable

Nay:  Not the greatest service, and I can envision the place being super busy come prime brunch and dinner periods

**Interesting fact: Sibling bistro to the ever-so-loved La Regalade in West Van.  No words necessary. Both bistros are two peas in a (perfect gastronomical) pod. Yup, I said it!

La Regalade

La Re...diculously great!!!

Food:

'Tis the season to be jolly, fa la la la la la la, la...LA! With the holiday season come holiday dinners, holiday cheer, and of course, lovely holiday eats (not to mention holiday weight gain)!  First dining destination of the holiday season? Le Regalade, an authentic, cozy little French bistro situated in the semi-boones of West Vancouver (though, it's not as far as it seems! :))

We were served a basket of French bread to start.  As for an appetizer, I started off by sharing the Foie Gras Duo with Black Pepper and Fig.  Yum!  It was served alongside a huge piece of toasted, wheat French bread (?) and a bit of greens.  The foie gras was soft, creamy and melt-in-your-mouth delicious.  I enjoyed the Foie Gras with the Fig more (vs. the one with black pepper) for its soft, creamy and sweet combination, paired wit a nice, toasty piece of crostini.  A delightful start, indeed!

1/2 Roasted Duck with Sauteed Apples

For my main,  I originally was quite ecstatic (and quite anticipating) to try the Veal Liver (that was listed on their online menu), but only came to a disappointment when I noticed that it wasn't listed on the actual menu.  Instead, the server had recommended the 1/2 Roasted Duck with Sauteed Apples.  Being quite a lover of the French's preparation of how they like to cook their duck, I opted for that instead.

Our mains arrived in huuuge cast iron pots/skillets, piping hot, and bursting with scents of aromatic deliciousness.  My entree was nicely presented in a wide skillet, surrounded by diced apples, and topped with tiny pieces of chopped onions.  It was perfectly roasted, the skin was crispy and I really enjoyed the (unsually) sweet flavours the apples brought to the dish.  The apples were plentiful, sitting in a bed of sweet, tangy apple jus.

Beef Shortribs in Peppercorn Cream Sauce

As for the other mains, my fellow d.c's decided on the (braised) Beef Shortribs in Peppercorn Cream Sauce (soooo good, best of the night, imo).  The sauce was so creamy, so rich and so flavouful.  The shortribs were as tender as you can get, while accompanied by carrots, onions and other delicious veggies.  I also sampled the Beef Cheeks - rich, tender morsels of deliciousness.  The scalloped potatoes and the mac'n'cheese was good (though, not great), but served as good carb fillers to the entrees! (I believe all entrees came with a side) 

Complimentary assorted Macarons

Though we chose not to have dessert (remember the 1/2 roasted duck!?), we were given complimentary Macarons to end our  savoury meal.  There were 3 flavours: Strawberry, Caramel, and Chocolate.  They were to-die-for, especially the Caramel one - sticky, chewy, sweet and light-tasting all in one circular, edible wheel! Mmmm...

Service:

Our server wasn't necessarily rude, nor did he exhibit a poor attitude in any respect...BUT he was quite unaware, unknowledgeable, unattentive, uninformative (and ultimately, unhelpful).  By "quite", I meant that he had no knowledge of what types of wine paired well with certain foods (didn't even know what kind of wine the restaurant had), gave a d.c Sprite (when she clearly asked for lemonade), and totally misinformed another dining companion when she asked what "coquillettes" was in English.  He said it was scalloped potatoes, but clearly it arrived to be mac'n'cheese!


Value:

Very reasonable and fair - huuuuge entree portion sizes!


Ambience:

Totally bussstlin' in the bistro! We arrived to a mad fullhouse, a semi-loud atmosphere with servers running to and fro, an open prep area/kitchen right when you walk in.  Seating wasn't very comfy (as we had a table situated right in the corner, near the cash machine and bar)


Overall: 8.3/10

Yay:  Come here for some nice, scrumptious, hearty authentic French cooking! Generous portions.

Nay:  Not the ideal scene for a nice, romantic, candle-light, dim, sobre night out.

***Interesting fact:  Their only other location is a recently opened location in Manila, Philipines! Lucky Manilians!





Posted by: J

La Brasserie

                                              a little bit of French...a little bit of German...

and a whole lot of value!

Food:

La Brasserie has been on my list of restaurants-to-try for quite some time now.  One, being that it is a "Franco-German" restaurant (you don't have very many of these in Vancouver) and two, I have come across an abundant number of food bloggers who have visited this restaurant and have got nothing but good things to say.  Thirdly,  I've also read that they have a Truffle Poutine on their menu and with a sudden poutine craze -reading, seeing and craving nothing but poutines - it was very fitting to finally pay this little "gem" a visit...

Truffle Poutine...*drool..

On this night, my dining companion and I started off this lovely evening with a nice glass of Villa Wolf Riesling ($8) each.  For our appetizer, I suggested the Mussels and Frites in a Lemon Parsley Cream but asked to substitute the frites for a Truffle Poutine (of course) and pay a little more ($4).  While reading and 'prepping' (lol!) for this visit, I was also aware that they served Lamb Cheeks here. Yes, the idea of eating cheeks from any type of animal may be a little daunting, to say the least, but knowing me - I love the tripe, tongue, liver, stomach, tendon, ear, feet etc. etc. (obviously, I have a limit so don't even think of going on a hypothetical question rampage - e.g, Would you ever eat a ______ of a ______?) Point being is, my friend once had Veal Cheeks from Le Faux Bourgeois Bistro once and said that they were amazing.  Thus, this evening allowed for a great opportunity to pop my cheek-eating cherry (boy, does that ever sound wrong!)

Mussels in a Lemon Parsley Cream

To start, we were served two types of bread: french bread and othe ther being some sort of rye bread with butter and a Pork and Chicken Rillette (similar to pate).  The pork and chicken rillette was more like a pork and chicken spread/salad, with shredded pork and chicken, mayonnaise, seasoning, etc.  I thought it was ok and a nice start to the meal.  The mussels were very plump (always a good thing) and I enjoyed the lemon, parsley cream broth (though no broth can ever compare to Chambar's).  The Truffle Poutine was ah-may-zing - with a plentiful amount of huge mozarella cheese curds and teeny tiney pieces of truffles throughout.  The frites themselves were crispy - no complaints there!



Braised Lamb Cheeks with a Carrot Puree



My entree arrived as Braised Lamb Cheeks in a Carrot Puree with an assorted array of beautifully-presented vegetables: baby carrots, cauliflower, parsnips, brussel sprouts and long green beans.  I don't think I have ever had an entree accompanied in the presence of the recommended amount or an exceeded amount of vegetables!  The lamb cheeks were moist and very tender, though a little salty but they were delicious, overall.  The vegetables were all very fresh and cooked and boiled to perfection.  The portion size was quite generous as well.  My d.c opted for one of the specials: Roasted Quail with Spaetzle (?).  Not sure what her entree was exactly as the server spoke way too fast.  I had a sampling of her quail; it too, was quite tasty, cooked to perfection and I loved the crispy roasty-ness aroma to it.

Service:

Ok - not super friendly nor over-the-top and worthy of praise

Value:

Quite relatively reasonable - $20 and $22 for our entrees

Ambience:

Nice, romantic, dim-lighted ambience - perfect for a romantic date or a small group dinner outing

Overall: 7.9/10

Yay:  Come here for the truffle poutine! Generously-size portions of generally well-executed Franco-German fare, perfect dining destination for a romantic date

Nay: Not the right place for huge group outings, no reservations taken - first come first served!




Posted by: J



Les Faux Bourgeois

More like: Les Genuine Bourgeois...(ain't no "Faux" here!)

btw: Scoe is back! :) .. watch out for metaphors galore...

Food

Yeahhhhhhhhh….what a restaurant! This restaurant was going down my throat like water running down a fountain, just running smooth to my stomach sound …mmmm.

We started off with some Rosé wine, which was nice, dry, and not too sweet! Smooth! In the appy department, we opted for the Escargots de Bourgogne in garlic butter sauce, which was something to die for - the snails were ready to set sail on the crispy toasted French bread slices, waving up and down in my mouth. So juicy! After, we dipped the extra bread in the garlic butter sauce. Simply phenomenal! Our 3 entrees consisted of the: Canard (Duck) Confit, Beef Tenderloin, as well as the Seared Scallops. The duck confit was crispy, tender, and juicy...while the beans and sprouts elegantly complemented the sauce it came with! Next entrée was the Beef Tenderloin, which was perfect. OMG, “perfect” is right!!!! Funny thing was: the server asked me how I liked my steak, I replied with: “Rare... but how rare is rare here?”. He then said, “The French only know one type of rare, that’s blue rare!” It was simply perfect because that is exactly how I love my steak- rare! Man, was it ever flawless – with a nice, charcoal rare taste, it raced to my mouth like a race car. Layed flat like a piano, while the tenderloin played my keys like Beethoven! Last entrée was the Seared Scallops with Almond and Butternut Squash Risotto and Amaretto Sage Cream (not listed on the menu, but rather, one of the daily specials).  It was so tender and juicy, I just surfed it, it was not overcooked…but just plump and perfect!

Although we were near full, J still had room for dessert. As a result, we both ordered an Espresso (with 2 shots of Kailua :) ) each, along with a Crème Brulee. The Crème Brulee was fabulous – nice creamy custard, while the Espresso was topped off nicely with swirls of whipped cream goodness. Always a nice addition...we couldn't ask for a better way to end the meal!

Service

Since it was a small restaurant and we sat in the middle (where the waiters were trampling back and forth), every time a waiter bumped me, they apologized. The service was great! So polite and nice.

Ambience

Very happening, nice upbeat beats playing in the background, something Wiz Khalifa and Elzhi could spit venom to. Loved it, very dark, with edgy paintings! It was simply, straight phenomenal.

Value

Very good and affordable, hence the 3 entrees! Portion sizes were excellent as well.

Overall: 9.5/10

(although J begs to differ – she gives it half a point less, but still an impressive 9/10)

Yay: Affordable and phenomenal French cuisine. ‘Nuff said!

Nay: Reservations may be hard to come by (ensure at least a 2-week-in-advance reso!)

Posted by: Scoe

Provence Mediterranean Grill

"fratalian" (french & italian, keke) cuisine done right...

Location: Vancouver (Point Grey)

Food:
We started off with a wonderful Antipasto Di Mare which consisted of "scallops, prawns, clams, and mussels steamed in white wine, garlic, lemon, herbs and tomatoes". 'Twas excellent The fabolous brothy concoction was perfect and perfectly suitable for my palate - with just the right amount of garlic flavour and esp. when you dip and smother bread into it...oh my. Now, if you didn't know, I'm a saucy kinda girl (haha). (Well, we're both very saucy people - literally - we LOVE sauce). All in all, a lovely start indeed.

My main entree was the Wild Mushroom Ravioli (in the very same praise-worthy brothy sauce noted above) and it did not disappoint...at all. It arrived hot and the portion size was very generous (I couldn't help but compare the portion size to what you would get at, say, Cactus Club, or Joeys). This dish had at least a good 12-14 pieces of ravioli (vs. the 6-8 range of ravioli you would get at CC or Joeys), without skimping on the quality. Couldn't quite complain about the wonderful shavings of asiago, either ;)
My dining companion had the Eggplant and Boccocini Lasagna and as expected, quality of the flavours were very consistent with the other entree and appy, as well. Although the portion was not as generous as the ravioli, the flavour and wonderful tomato sauce made up for it.

Service:
Nice, prompt and genuine service.

Value:
At $18 for the ravioli entree and $15 for the lasagna, I wouldn't complain!

Ambience:
Nice and cozy. Great little "gem" of a place if you're in the neighbourhood.

Overall: 8/10

Yay: Great place for french and italian flare if you're wanting a nice, quiet bistro-like setting.

Nay: Perhaps it's not exactly the best place to hold parties for large groups?
** Interesting note: I thought this location was better than the (Provence) Marinaside one. Quality of food is a tad better, perhaps given the size of the restaurant, and thus, more focus is placed on the execution in the quality of the food?

Posted by: J