VANCOUVER: Cannery

Mmmm.. how I love the aroma of the Lobster Oil at the Cannery.
The drive into the restaurant builds up anticipation as you drive through the cargoes, you feel like you are in the middle of an action film, you have to pass on a secret code to an intercom at the entrance, driving through hundreds, if not thousands of cargoes.

As you arrive at the restaurant, you find yourself in what appears to be the inside of a fishing boat, with nets and anchors at the entrance. You have a gorgeous view of the water and a relaxing atmosphere that makes it very comforting while you dine.

As you are seated, a basket of bread is placed in front of you, the server comes along and pours out a orange oil, take a deep breath, is that lobster? Yes. Their renowned lobster oil. I cannot get enough of it. I usually stuff myself up before my appetizer comes.

We went for the Dine-Out Vancouver promotion a few years ago. Good timing for me to introduce them now as they are now taking reservations for Dine-Out this year. (I know, I am missing out!)

We started with the Roasted Parsnip and Fennel Soup with smoked Queen Charlotte sable fish. The soup was creamy, a little on the rich side, surprisingly the cream soup didn't overpower the fresh flavors from the sable fish.

The other entree we ordered was the Ahi-Tuna Carpaccio seasoned with wild paprika, lemon gelee, chili oil and avocado salad. Very fresh and the tuna was grilled ever-so-lightly, keeping the juices and freshness. Mmm.. sooo good.. The chili oil was an excellent choice.

The main courses just stole the show.

1.) Grilled Swordfish Filet brushed with arugula and almond pesto, chipotle pepper sauce.
- Meaty texture accented well with the sauce, I love how the flavours aren't too strong, hey, it's healthy too!

2.) Slow-cooked Pork Shank glazed with tandoori demi, served with tiger prawns, sesame seeds and cilantro.
- Sooooo tender and the tandoori sauce was such an excellent choice instead of the usual boring sauces.

3.) Grilled BC Salmon over oyster mushrooms and baby shrimp in a scallion basil cream sauce.
- The salmon steak was a medium rare. Didn't ask for my preference but that is what I always prefer. I loved it. The sauce wasn't that good to be honest, I didn't think the cream sauce was that special, something you could get anywhere, however, I did love the mushrooms.

Desserts...

Orange Cheesecake over coffee crust, semi-sweet chocolate sauce. The cheesecake was far too heavy, and not very orangey. I prefer my crust crispy, unfortunately theirs was not.

Velvet Chocolate Tower filled with brandied cherries and raspberry coulis. The name and description left me with high expectations of an actual "tower", turns out to be a regular-sized dessert. Chocolate mousse on the outside, was not exactly "filled with brandied cherries", but chocolate was rich. Can't go wrong with chocolate.

Their prices are reasonable relative to other restaurants in the same category. Overall, the Cannery is one of the best in Vancouver in terms of everything... it is unfortunate that this place is relocating in 2010, I've got to return before then.

VANCOUVER: C Restaurant

Who likes Seafood? What about desserts? C Restaurant along the waterfront provides them both with contemporary class. Incredible food is only the start of the many praises I've got for this restaurant. The ambiance is fun yet classy, everything in this restaurant has good taste, from the snow white interiors, to their lighting, their cutlery, glasses, etc. Their ever astounding creativity surprises me every time, you could order the same dish 10 times and you would get something slightly different, always looking good. Despite their inconsistent presentation of their dishes, the flavour, temperature and taste have always been consistently surpassing my expectations (and high is that).

There was however, one disappointment, the service of the servers there were not as attentive as expected from a classy restaurant like this, and making reservations was a pain. We made reservations 3-4 days ahead of time and when the hostess called to confirm the day before, instead of marking us down for a table of 6, she only marked down a table for 4 and thus we had to reschedule our reservations.

Be prepared for forking out extra money if you are planning on ordering wine as their wine list is overpriced.

Lobster Set Menu we ordered from consisted of Lobster Carpaccio, Lobster Bisque, Lobster and a Maple Syrup Creme Brulee.

The Lobster Carpaccio turned out to be very fresh and sweet, the chives complimented it well.

Portion for the lobster bisque was not very generous, however, the bisque was very light and foamy, we begged for more.

The Lobster was shelled and placed on top of spinaches and potatoes. They used an apple sauce as the sauce. First time for me to have lobster with apple sauce and it was superb. The lobster was fresh and the apple added just enough sweetness.

I absolutely adore maple syrup and Creme Brulee has been my favorite dessert since I've known of it. This combination impressed me so much that I literally cleaned the bowl with my tongue... just thinking about this is making me drool...

Trumpet Royal Mushroom Risotto sidestripe shrimp, spinach, lemon parmesan broth

Grilled 'AAA' Beef Striploin goat cheese gnocchi, parsnip, rapini red wine jus

Milk Chocolate and Cinnamon Mousse Cake white chocolate ice cream, dried cherry

VANCOUVER: Diva At the Met (Metropolitan Hotel)

Diva At the Met (Metropolitan Hotel):

Would never have thought of coming this restaurant if not for Dine Out Vancouver. Ever since the first time going to this restaurant, basically, there wasn't a year that I attended this event leaving this restaurant out. Their $35 courses are always worth it, the service always spectacular and the food always fresh and never a disappointment.

Appetizer: Spiced Butternut Squash Velout and confit pork belly, golden raisins & toasted almonds --- Butternut squash is always delicious, the soup was extremely creamy, the confit pork tasted just like bacon bits, however the almonds

Fraser Valley Duck Terrine pickled vegetable salad black pepper gastrique --- The presentation (seen above) was very nicely put together, the salad on the side was blah, the sauce was good but the greens were just blah. The duck terrine was flavorful but a bit on the heavy side, would be nice if it came with bread or crackers.

Leek and Potato Soup with Nutmeg Mousse --- Leek was a bit on the strong side, nonetheless, it went nicely with the nutmeg, mellowing it down just a tad and same with their other soups, creamy!

Entree: Moroccan Spiced, Seared Rare, Ahi Tuna creamy orzo provencal, olive tapenade carrot emulsion --- The Ahi Tuna was seared perfectly, crust was just done and the inside was warm. The carrot emulsion is not a common sauce for Ahi Tuna however it did go very nice with the entree.

Aromatic Braised and Glazed Veal Cheek warm, creamy onion tart thyme-scented jus --- The creamy onion tart thyme was excellent, sauces were great and the veal cheek was not as tender as expected. The greens on the side were a bit on the bland/boring side, plain boiled peas, a little bit of a disappointment. Presentation on the onion tart could be improved, taste was good.

[No picture avail for this one]

Aromatic Braised Short Ribs with sherry vinegar lentils, thyme jus --- Extremely full of flavour and so tender that it could be pulled apart without a knife. *thumbs up*

Wild Forest Mushroom Risotto with parmesan flakes and truffle oil --- The first word that came out of my mouth were "Wow!" A vegetarian dish like this, with flavours so heavily infused, the risotto were cooked just so precisely, tricking your mind into thinking that the whole kitchen just opened up for you. Intense flavour with so much heart put into perfecting this simple yet sumptuous dish.

Dessert: Upside Down Chocolate Souffle topped with Housemade pistachio ice cream --- We were already exorbitantly full by the time we got to this point in the evening and swore to only have bite of the dessert. Boy were we ever wrong. This lava cake was the best I've had, and NO, I'm not a bit exaggerating. I'm not the only one who felt that way about this cake. My company is not a big fan of desserts yet he we were fighting over the last bite of dessert.

Stilton Cheesecake rhubarb compote, port wine glaze --- The port wine glaze was excellent. Cheesecake was not "cheesy" enough.

VANCOUVER: Fleuri @ Sutton Place

I must say... the customer service at this hotel was absolutely phenominal. Our server and the host was very helpful and extremely friendly. They were able to make us feel special. It's a nice restuarant and the layout was quite impressive in itself.

This was the menu. The sweet pea soup was best part of the whole meal. Very rich and smooth all at the same time! The Croque-Monsieur was delicious!

Appetizer: Sweet Pea Soup with Croque-Monsieur provided a dual sensation of smooth yet crispy at the same time!

Entree: Lemon and Oregano Glazed Cornish Hen with Oyster Mushroom Risotto in a Nicoise Olive Jus

Smoked Bacon Wrapped Beef Tenderloin with a Gratin of Sweet Corn and Gorgonzola au Jus

Dessert: Grand Marnier Creme Brulee and Dark Chocolate Marquise with Raspberry Mint Syrup - Now with a duet like this, can't really go wrong. The dark chocolate was rich, paired exquisitely with raspberry mint. Creme Brulee was perfectly made with a very thin layer of caramelized sugar and cold creme brulee, indeed proves to be my favorite dessert.