what’s good: a fully loaded salumi board
the salumi we make and server within the restaurants is always changing and delicious, and represents better than anything else that we do, what we’re all about. every last piece of everything turns into something, and if we’ve done our jobs right, it tastes like hard work. this salumi board is full of what’s good.
Their salumi does taste like hard work. I’m a big fan.
Using the whole duck…
Sautéed breasts for dinner. Render duck fat from the extra skin. Cure and confit legs. Stock with the rest!
what’s good: stuffed trotters
i stuffed these bad boys or girls with quince & raisins from milan, as well as local chanterelles, apples and pulled pork. we then cooked ‘em sous vide and will slice and sear them on the plancha and serve them with some goodness over the weekend. yummy.
We had the pleasure of dining and an overnight stay at Sooke Harbour House over the weekend. So relaxing, highly recommended. Here’s the tasting menu we enjoyed, plus some iPhone pics…
Rustic Arugula & Pink Lady Apple Soup
With smoked Albacore Tuna loin, shaved apple, chervil salad, and leek oil
Seared Sockeye Salmon
Served with Purple Potatoes, Basil, Mint, Morels, Ragley Farm Snap Peas, English Peas and shoots, chive creme fraiche, Arugula oil, and candied walnuts
Chilled & Cured Pork Medallions
Three served with Soba Noodles, Sea Lettuce, and organic Soya Bean salad.
Beet jam, Daikon Radish, Shungiku
Cilantro and carrot with miso ginger-tamari emulsion
Ragley Farm Turnips, and sweet chili oil
Panfried Silver Grey Rockfish
With Dungeness Crab, basil and Plum Roma Tomato Vinaigrette, Sweet Cicely emulsion, Sweet Tooth Peppers and braised Daikon Radish, smoked fish spaetzle, Savoy Cabbage saute
Organic Roasted Duck Breast
Presented with a confit of French Fingerling Potatoes, Ragley Farm Lacinata Kale, heirloom carrots, roasted duck and Summer Savoury meat stock reduction, Anjou Pear and butternut squash coulis
Day Lilly Brioche
Served with oven-roasted Lavender Roma Tomato compote and Fig Leaf ice cream
Plate of Artisan Cheeses
Hillary’s Cheese Company (Cowichan Bay) - Belle Ann and St. Clair
Moonstruck Cheese (Saltspring Island) - White Grace and Beddis Blue
Belly Rack at Refuel
They don’t come around often, and when they do they sell out quickly. Dry cured and slow cooked. Totally yummy.
Spring in Vancouver
Jake at Cherries and Clay takes a great stab at justifying the legalization of BYO wine / corkage in BC restaurants. It’ll be a happy day in our household if that happens. It’s a privilege we’d use rarely, but it would be great to have the option… and to know that it’s priced such that the restaurant isn’t suffering for it.
Kenji over at Serious Eats took on the awesome/herculean task of eating the entire secret menu at In-N-Out Burger. I’m in for a 2x2 protein style with a whole grilled onion.
I just got a kick in the pants to start posting here again. Here’s my favourite video of the week… Grant Achatz and Craig Schoettler doing a walkthrough of their new custom bar setup at Aviary. I’ll definitely make a trip to Chicago to check this out!
wd~Bentley - Course 9
Chocolate Ganache with Raspberry, Long Pepper and Ricotta
2006 La Cappucina Passito ‘Carmenos’ Carmenere Oseleta, Veneto Italy
Ah, the final course. Please imagine I didn’t take a big scoop out of the right hand side… Yummy.
