Vancouver, BC
For my second DOV excursion, I visited YEW restaurant + bar located inside The Four Seasons Hotel. This time, dining along with me were W and our friend/colleague Miss K.
I've previously eaten at YEW once and that was nearly 2 years ago but I so remember clearly the salmon I had was incredibly delicious. I haven't had the chance to do a re-visit since then so this was a good opportunity to check out YEW again. Off the bat, I was a little disappointed that the hostess didn't ask to check my coat for me. It's not a big deal but sometimes these little touches add up points in my book.
Once seated, we settled in, made our orders and had complimentary bread and butter sent to our table.
Porcini Soup
Porcini mushroom with Farmhouse Camembert Rye Toast
This was my starter. The soup had a light earthy taste, although the fragrance of it reminded me of Campbell's cream of mushroom LOL. I thought it would be creamy (perhaps it's my cream of mushroom soup perception?) but in the end I thought it was not bad. The Camembert was warm and soft while the toast was just alright. I might try making the toast at home!
Winter Pear Salad
Compressed pear, Winter greens, Candied Agassiz Hazelnuts, Blood orange vinaigrette
W and Miss K had the salad. From their reactions, I don't think they found it very exceptional. Kind of like a regular salad with pear. I tried a bit of the greens since I can't eat pear and I found the vinaigrette a bit too tart for my liking. With the kind of bitterness from the greens, I would like a sweeter dressing but maybe that's what the pear is for?
Black Cod
Honey-thyme glaze, Parsnip souffle, Glazed carrots and green beans
YUM-O!!! The black cod was done just absolutely perfect!!! A crispy exterior with a soft, buttery interior... The fish was already seasoned nicely so I didn't really need the glaze at all. I liked the carrots and beans too which still had a nice crunch to it. The parsnip souffle was the only part I wasn't too fond of. I've never encountered a root vegetable made into a "dessert" (the exception being carrot cake!) so I guess I just thought it was a little strange.
Veal
Braised veal cheek, Hazelmere celery root, Spinach and Shiitake ragout
I only tasted the veal from a small bite but it was tender and flavourful. The celery root seemed like a very creamy mashed potato so this could be deemed a light version of a meat and pototoes dish.
Risotto
Buttercup squash risotto, Black trumpet mushrooms & Crispy brussel sprouts
I only had a small bite of the risotto as well so I can't provide much commentary; however, Miss K found it to be quite good. I deem her to be a pretty good foodie so I trust her taste buds.
Everything went well up until we were finishing up our entrees. W finished first so the busser swiftly took his plate away first. Since Miss K and I were still eating, W decided to nibble on some bread. But when the busser took away Miss K's plate, she also took away the bread without asking if we still wanted it! So, my plate of food was the only thing left on the table and it made me feel kind of awkward :( Miss K said that, technically, the busser should wait until everyone has finished with their plates and ask the guest for "permission" before removing them. Anyway, once I was finished eating, she came by to pick up my plate the second I set my knife and fork down. We were a little annoyed by the "efficiency" of our busser but oh well...
Chocolate
Milk chocolate pot de creme, Sweet spiced poached pears, Milk jam
Kind of like a thick, sticky chocolate-caramel-y pudding, everything with the pot de creme was good! I mentioned above that I can't eat pears because I'm allergic to them (and many other fruits) but I can eat them when they are cooked so I was able to try the poached pears. I think I like the poached pears from MARKET more. What I found funny was that the pears from MARKET looked like salmon sashimi while the pears from this dessert at YEW looked like tuna sashimi to me LOL...
Pineapple
Carmelized pineapple tart, Vanilla bean chiboust
The custard filling was sweet which coupled well with the slightly tart pineapples. However, the tart shell was a bit too hard making it difficult to break apart with the fork. I liked the pot de creme more hehe...
After finishing the meal, we sat and chatted for a while. We didn't expect another server to bring a plate of these for us to snack on! There were cocoa and icing sugar dusted almonds and toasted coconut crusted marshmallows. That was a nice gesture. It made me feel like we were welcome to stay longer rather than rushing us to leave so they could have the table back. Perhaps, this was to make up for the annoyance we experienced earlier. Anyhow, I enjoyed the evening and would come back to YEW when the opportunity arises again. They definitely do good fish!!
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