Amuse Bouche
Defn: to tickle your palate, whet your appetite, make your mouth happy
Amuse Bouche is where we share with you the things that make our mouths happy. From recipes to wine reviews, from producer profiles to our culinary journeys - this is sightseeing for your tastebuds.
There are so many amazing food and wine events across this province. We recommend visiting Wine & Dine BC News - an excellent resource for keeping track of these events so you can plan your calendar and don't miss out. And Cityfood Magazine is a terrific site for keeping track of Vancouver's food & beverage related press releases, restaurant news, promotions and more.
Visit often - we'll be tasting, travelling and posting for you.
Cheers,
Treve Ring
Amuse Bouche Editor
Kim Thai the Silent Chef is not so Anonymous Anymore – by Stephanie Yuen
General Manager Linda and Chef Thai welcomed guests
Who is Kim Thai? He’s a good friend of mine, a creator of divine West Coast cuisine; someone that enjoys working with fresh ingredients resourced locally. He is also the Executive Chef of The Coast Plaza Hotel & Suites (Comox & Denman) and was the Culinary Director and Executive Chef of The Sutton Place Hotel for many years. Chef Thai is the silent type that shines in his culinary cockpit; his comfort zone is the hotel kitchen. There, he masters global recipes by fusing in his Chinese and Vietnamese cooking secrets.
But fans he has many. A lot of my foodie friends have been enjoying his cooking since his Sutton Place days. I met another 60 of them in an engrossing wine paired fundraising dinner hosted by The Coast Plaza Hotel & Suites and Sumac Ridge Estate Winery for A Loving Spoonful.
That enchanting evening took place on the roof top dining room where an amazingly wine-paired 6-course dinner was served. Jason James, Winemaker for Sumac Ridge was on hand to describe each wine pairing. From smooth Truffle mousse stuffed chicken (Sparkling Tribute) to the velvety Roasted venison chop (’05 Red Pinnacle), each bite was an eye-closing pleasure.
While each course was as intriguing as the next one, it was dessert,however, that was my favourite of the evening. This is my first encounter of both chocolate (in the form of ‘Gold dusted bitter chocolate brulee’) and Pont l’Eveque (uncooked, ripened cheese) on one plate. With roasted pistachio and marinated fig and a glass of ’05 Sumac Ridge Pipe, I was on cloud nine!
Another highlight of the evening came towards the end when Chef Thai was placed at centre stage as the grand auction prize. His ‘Multicourse dinner cooked at your home for 8 plus boxes of Sumac Ridge wines’ was auctioned off for a very impressive $2500! Chef Kim Thai cannot stay anonymous anymore.
Captions:
An inspiring dessert with chocolate mousse and Pont l’Eveque
Sushi, Sake & Summer – by Sheila Whittaker
Sushi, Sake & Summer, July 25, 2010
It was a magical night to be on the terrace of the Granville Island Public Market. The intoxicating stylings of the Emma Posti Quintet flowed over the candle-lit cocktail tables as the full moon slowly climbed above False Creek. It was hard to say whether it was the light breeze, the atmosphere, or the anticipation of celebrity sushi Chef Hidekazu Tojo’s meal bringing goose bumps to the bare arms of the attendees.
Global TV news anchor Sophie Lui was there to welcome 100 guests to the sold-out event that raised $4,000 for the YWCA. Vancouver YWCA provides over 30,000 hot meals each year to the women and children of the downtown eastside through its Crabtree Corner facility. Funds from this event will help run a series of seminars and demonstrations for underprivileged women so that they can feed their kids in a healthy, nutritious, organic way.
Tojo and his team of chefs, Masayoshi Baba, Michi Ogawa, Akira Usui, and Tomoaki Kinoshita, served guests buffet-style, allowing them to interact and answer questions about the menu. GardenWorks collaborated with Chef Tojo by providing fresh, seasonal herbs and they attended the event to share information about herb gardening with guests.
In addition to six of Tojo’s original rolls (Tojo Roll, Golden Roll, Spicy Tuna Roll, Spicy Tropical Roll, Spider Roll and Northern Light Roll), the team also prepared Salmon Teriyaki, yakisoba, organic green salad with soba noodles, and shrimp and cucumber salad with vermicelli noodles.
All of this could be washed down with unfiltered and unpasteurized Granville Island Osake Junmai Nama, artisan sake made by Masa Shiroki. Although he makes half a dozen types of sake, he chose to pour only one so that guests could focus on Tojo’s food. The Osake Junmai Nama complimented Tojo’s seafood well, as it was light, crisp and dry with citrus and riper tree fruit notes.
Wine, beer and cocktails were also available to sip while strolling around the creek-side patio and admiring the cityscape. Granville Island Brewing offered Ginger Beer and Robson Street Hefeweizen, while Victoria Spirits showed off Canada’s first premium gin, fashioned into a delicious Shizo Martini. A selection of wine was generously poured by St. Hubertus Estate Winery.
Evaleen Jaager Roy, author of Four Chefs One Garden and YWCA board member, was on hand to sell and sign books, with $1 of each sale going towards feeding kids on the downtown eastside. She is an avid cook and gardener, and her book takes readers through the seasons with four of Vancouver’s great chefs: Michel Jabob (Le Crocodile), Umberto Menghi (Umberto’s & Il Giardino, in Whistler Trattoria & Il Caminetto), Hidekazu Tojo (Tojo’s) and Vikram Vij (Vij’s, Rangoli).
***** Editor’s note *****
After the final ticket counts were tallied, a grand total of $4000 was raised for the YWCA. Thank you Vancouver for all of your support of this fantastic fresh food initiative!
Edible BC & Evaleen Jaager Roy would like to extend our sincerest gratitude to all of our generous suppliers & partners. Their contributions to this amazing event allowed us to raise much needed funds for the Vancouver YWCA.
Please extend your thanks to these wonderful sponsors:
Musicians Emma Posti, David Blake, Wynston Minckler, Stefan Thordarson & Jens Christiansen
12 Tickets Opened Up! Sushi, Sake & Summer – Tojo Comes to Granville Island for one Amazing Night!
Sushi, Sake & Summer!
*12 Tickets Just Opened up for this Sold Out Event*
Come and join Edible British Columbia, Celebrity Sushi Chef Tojo, GardenWorks and Author Evaleen Jaager Roy of Four Chefs One Garden for an unforgettable evening on Granville Island, Sunday, July 25, 2010.
This exclusive event, held outside on the False Creek Waterfront, will be where 100 lucky guests will gather to enjoy the masterful cuisine of Chef Hidekazu Tojo, sip award winning sake by Artisan Sake Maker Masa Shiroku, sample local wine and craft beer and watch the sun set on our beautiful city. Chef Tojo will gather his inspiration from the seasonal fresh local herbs onsite, grown by GardenWorks. Guests can watch the master chef at work and sample his creations while learning more about herb gardening and growing these culinary delights.
Author Evaleen Jaager Roy will be on hand to discuss her recent book, Four Chefs, One Garden. This book combines inspirational, seasonal local cooking and gardening with sumptuous photography and original recipes from Vancouver culinary icons Tojo, Vikram Vij, Michel Jacob and Umberto Menghi.
Global TV morning weekend news anchor Sophie Lui will be the evening’s Master of Ceremonies. All net profits from this event will be directed to the Vancouver YWCA ‘s Crabtree Corner facility, and used to provide nutritious meals to needy women and children living in the Downtown Eastside. The YWCA provides over 30,000 meals to women and children in need every year.
Tickets for this outstanding event are only $100 each plus HST, and can be purchased on Edible British Columbia’s website here or by calling our retail store at (604) 662-3606. Only 100 tickets will be sold, so act quickly to reserve your space. We expect this event will sell out quickly as an exclusive evening with artisans such as these does not happen very often!
Sushi, Sake & Summer
July 25, 2010
8-10pm
$100 per person, plus HST
For more information:
www.ediblebritishcolumbia.com
www.fourchefsonegarden.com
www.tojos.com
www.ywcavan.org
www.artisansakemaker.com
www.gardenworks.ca
Get Ready to Taste Victoria!
Once again this summer will see a local wine and food festival in our province’s capital. The second annual Taste: Victoria’s Festival of Food and Wine will run from July 15-18 in downtown Victoria and the Saanich Peninsula.
See here for Treve’s account of Taste last year
Taste will feature more than 10 events led by local food and wine personalities including Chef David Mincey of Camille’s and culinary Olympian Chef Brad Horen, as well as Victoria Sommelier and Master of Wine candidate Louise Wilson. Festival guests will experience British Columbia wines and the coveted offerings of Vancouver Island’s artisan producers, growers, farmers, fishers, and chefs.
The weekend kicks-off Thursday, July 15 with the The Main Event, an evening of BC wine tasting along with offerings of fresh and seasonal Vancouver Island cuisine at the Crystal Garden in downtown Victoria. This event will feature the characters behind the wines and the hospitality of Island chefs along with the live music of Greenlaw – an amazing feast of the senses.
There are various wine and food seminars over July 16, 17 and 18 – including a Riedel Tasting in support of the BC Hospitality Foundation. Industry professionals are welcome to participate in this hands-on workshop, trying 4 wines and tasting them from 5 different glasses. Explore what works, what doesn’t and why. All proceeds from the Riedel Tasting go to the BC Hospitality Foundation – an absolutely fantastic cause.
You can view the complete Taste schedule of events here. Book your tickets soon as space is limited – and Treve will see you there!
For more information about Taste, contact Kathy McAree at Kathy@VictoriaTaste.com
1.6 Mile Dinner – Version 2010
Last year Eric was fortunate enough to participate in Orofino Vineyards’ 1.6 Mile Dinner (read here to remind yourself of the amazing evening). We’ve just heard from John at Orofino that this year’s version is planned for Sunday, August 1. If you find yourself in the Okanagan this August (and if you’re not planning to, WHY NOT?), we urge you to take part in this amazing locavore feast. The details below are from John ~~
1.6 MILE DINNER
*AND – NEW OPTION THIS YEAR*
FARM TOUR
(Farm to Plate )
1.6 MILE DINNER
A unique celebration of the beauty of the Similkameen Valley in all her forms. The evening will consist of a six course meal consisting of only the best foods provided by artisan producers from within a 1.6 mile radius of Orofino Winery. Each course will be expertly crafted by chef Darin Patterson, chef and owner of Bogner’s of Penticton (recently named the top chef in the South Okanagan region by Okanagan Life Magazine!). Delectable surprises, unique produce and world-class flavours will be paired with Orofino`s best wines.
Please join us in our beautiful winery courtyard for an enchanted evening of fine dining, remarkable wine, and good company!
Dates: Saturday, July 31st and Saturday, August 1st
Time: Welcoming wine and canapé`s at 5:30. Dinner to follow.
Tickets: $125 per person. Contact Orofino at (250)499-0068 or Orofino@nethop.net for reservations
This is a fundraising event for Cawston’s Kobau Community Park.
FARM TOUR
The connection between food production and food consumption will be clearly illustrated in this unique opportunity for those looking for a true localvore experience. Tour the farms of Cawston, the official “organic capital of Canada” and meet the farmers that grow the world-class produce being used in the 1.6 Mile Dinner that evening. Join John Weber, proprietor and winemaker of Orofino Winery as he takes you on a tour of some of his unique neighbourhood producers. Chef Darin Patterson will prepare a tasty bite at each property visited using the farm’s produce in a special way. Listen to the stories of the farmers and gain intimate knowledge of food production in the Similkameen Valley.
This is an excellent opportunity for those staying in Penticton for the weekend who want to participate in the 1.6 Mile Dinner at Orofino without worrying about transportation to and from the event.
ITINERARY
NOON: Meet at Bogner’s of Penticton restaurant in Penticton for a gourmet lunch prepared by Darin and his staff. Darin will talk of his commitment to using locql food in his restaurant. Tour his restaurant property to see his gardens that supply the produce for his menu offerings.
BUS TO CAWSTON (40 minutes)
TOUR AND TASTE: Visit Cawston’s unique producers and explore the beautiful Similkameen Valley with Orofino owner/winemaker John Weber. Get first-hand experience on the farm. Chef Darin will host a special tasting at each stop. We promise a few surprises!
1.6 MILE DINNER: Orofino’s signature event. Enjoy world-class scenery with an amazing 6 course dinner using only food that is produced within 1.6 miles of the Orofino property. It is an amazing evening of celebrating the Similkameen and its producers.
RETURN TO PENTICTON BY BUS (approximately 11pm)
DATE: Sunday, August 1st, 2010. Farm tour option is only offered on this day!
TICKETS: $275 per person all inclusive
CONTACT: (250)499-0068 or Orofino@nethop.net
NOTE: Seating is limited for the farm tour. It is an all-inclusive event. Let us take care of everything from noon until late that night!
A silent auction will be held both evenings of the 1.6 Mile Dinner with proceeds going to Cawston Community Kobau Park. Details will be forthcoming!
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