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Posts Tagged ‘Chris Whittaker’

Forage [Dine Out Vancouver 2014]

Posted in Bistro, Canadian, Culinary Events, Dessert, Dine Out Vancouver, Dinner, Joyce, Meat, Neighbourhood Gem, Restaurants, Seafood, Vancouver, West Coast, tagged bison carpaccio, Chris Whittaker, Crispy Pork Belly, Dine Out Vancouver 2014, Financier, Forage Vancouver, French Toast, gnocchi, Robson Street, Seafood Chowder, West End on February 3, 2014| 5 Comments »

The one Dine Out that I most looked forward to this year was at Forage. Since the menu was released, there has been a lot of buzz about it. And people had been raving about it since the event kicked off on January 17. Finally my day has come to give it a try.

Food

Forage has been a two-time champion of the Ocean Wise Chowder Chowdown so obviously I had to order its Seafood Chowder. While it’s thick and creamy, it wasn’t overly rich; and there was no shortage of ingredients (and lots of salmon and shrimp) in the chowder, which I loved. I was hoping that the quail egg was soft poached and the yolk would ooze out, but it didn’t. I liked the addition of chicharron as a crunchy element but it became soft and a bit chewy after sitting in the soup for a bit.

My friend CP ordered the Bison Carpaccio and she said it tasted very good. Unfortunately I’m still off red meat so I didn’t try any. I thought the presentation was pretty good despite the rustic feel.

For entree, I went for the most-raved about Pork Belly. It looked and tasted like the Chinese-style Roast Pig. Skin was super crispy and meat was tender. The apple chutney/slaw had a bit of acidity that rounded out the richness/fattiness from the pork belly. (more…)

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Dishcrawl West End – Eating My Way Along Robson Street Part 2

Posted in Bistro, Cafe, Chocolate, Culinary Events, Dessert, Dinner, Food Bloggers, Group Dinner, Joyce, Neighbourhood Gem, Pizza, Restaurants, Tea, Vancouver, West Coast, tagged brown butter, Capstone Tea & Fondue, Chocolate Fondue, Chris Whittaker, Dishcrawl, Dishcrawl Vancouver, Farm to Table, flatbread, Forage Vancouver, gnocchi, mushrooms, Robson Street, West End on July 4, 2013| 2 Comments »

Continuing our journey from Part 1 of the Dishcrawl West End tour, we kept on heading eastward from Hida Takayama Ramen and arrived at the door of Forage Restaurant. You would remember my interview with its Executive Chef, Chris Whittaker, a couple of weeks ago, so yes, I did know ahead of time that we would be coming here for a tasting trio. I was quite looking forward to this stop.

Forage Restaurant

Forage Restaurant (1300 Robson Street)

Once again, each table is given three full-size plates to share. First of all, the Nettle Gnocchi with Brown Butter was very good. It’s slightly crispy on the outside, and pillowy inside. The brown butter added extra richness, savouriness and nutty taste to the dish. I don’t eat gnocchi often, but other ones I’ve had tend to be more doughy, whereas this one seemed to have more potato content. It’s almost like pan-fried mashed potato balls.

Nettle gnocchi with brown butter

True to its Farm-to-Table and seasonal concept, the next dish features the Foraged Mushrooms that are currently in season. This is a very simple dish, but that’s also the best way to let the ingredients shine in their own light. (more…)