Dineout Vancouver 2014 Part 2: Chambar

This post is part 2 of our Dineout Vancouver series this year. If you haven't checked out our previous post, which includes a little blurb about what Dineout Vancouver is, you can find it here . This Dineout adventure takes us to Chambar ($38), a Belgian-inspired restaurant near crosstown (or the Stadium skytrain station).

We started off with two appetizers from their dineout menu and a side of Belgian poutine. The cauliflower soup and gambas played well, with generous portions. The gambas were unexpectedly not spicy and full of garlic as their Spanish counterparts, but the bits of chorizo were nice. Below is a picture of the poutine which we recommend because it's delicious and not as heavy as poutine normally is. It is taken beside their Earl Grey cocktail, which is basically tea-infused alcohol with what we understood was some Italian aperitif/digestif. 

Belgian poutine and an Early Grey cocktail

Cauliflower soup 

For mains, we went with the spiced rubbed duck breast with chestnut hummus, Brussels sprouts, pistachios and wild berry compote, a twist to what's normally offered on the regular menu. We also had the steelhead trout with swiss chard, shaved zucchini, meyer lemon, parsnip puree and mustard sauce. It's hard to pick a favorite because the flavors of the two were very different. We also regret not having room for the mussels, because Chambar mussels are also highly recommended and delicious. 

The trout (aka Duo de truite)

Spiced duck breast! 

What is interesting about this Dineout experience was that it left a dessert option for people that don't like dessert. We ended up with the coconut raspberry pannacotta (sweet..), which is served with a green apple sorbet, and the cheese plate (savoury!) which featured brie, blue and cheddar cheeses, each with a corresponding "sauce" (tomato jam, balsamic reduction, etc) and crostini. The pannacotta had a very smooth texture and is less gelatinous but is paired well with the sorbet which is tart. Our favorite cheese was the cheddar paired with the tomato jam because it really brought out the "cheesiness" of the aged cheddar.

Raspberry pannacotta and green apple sorbet

cheese plate 

The Chambar experience left for very happy stomachs and it would be a great place to have a nice dinner on occasion (we forgot to mention the eclectic background music and a good drink selection apart from what's featured here). This is our last post in our Dineout Vancouver 2014 series. We'll be back in the kitchen soon!

Cheers! 

Dineout Vancouver 2014 Part 1: Baru Latino

January is a special time of the year for Vancouver food lovers. Come mid-January the Dineout Vancouver Festival rolls around. It's during this time that the city enjoys 3 course meals for either $18, $28, or $38 at restaurants that would offer those same meals at a higher price for the rest of the year. We find it a good way to discover new eats or try things that don't normally fit in our "eating out" budget. Our first feature restaurant in 2014 is called Baru Latino, which is located in Point Grey/ Kitsilano close to the University of British Columbia.

Here's a look at their Dineout menu 

Baru Latino, from its name, is a Latin restaurant. Most Latin restaurants in town feature tapas, but Baru also has a solid lineup of Latin main courses and features Live Jazz on Monday nights. You can find their dineout menu here .

Ecuadorian Ceviche

Beef Tiradito

We ordered two kinds of appetizers. The Ecuadorian ceviche uses less fish and more other seafood and is served with a root vegetable biscuit. Later on we found out they offer two other kinds of ceviche which is made very differently depending on the Latin region. We also had the Beef Tiradito - a Latin rendition of carpaccio.

Paella! 

We made a unanimous decision to both order the Paella -- because this might have been the first time we've had Paella since moving to Vancouver. This Paella felt very fresh - without all the oily stuff we were expecting. The rice is less sticky and it's less loaded with chorizo and chicken, but filled with a lot of good seafood. The Paella is also served in a plate in a sizeable portion that we didn't worry about overstuffing ourselves, thankfully we had room for dessert...

which we forgot to snapshot. The dineout menu doesn't give diners a choice on dessert, but it does not disappoint! The Latin flan (better known to us as Leche Flan) was nice, sweet, VERY creamy and is served with a berry compote on top and mango/raspberry puree on the side. We'll be tweaking our existing recipe in a future entry to achieve a less gelatinous and more creamy texture to replicate this so stay tuned! 

Overall, it was a good dining experience and we're likely to come back to either try the other types of ceviche or more of the tapas not offered in the Dineout menu. Cheers!

Supporting Local Causes: Aprons for Gloves Part 2 - Roasted Vegetable Lasagna

Last time we spoke of bruschetta with balsamic reduction to support our fundraising feast for Aprons for Gloves and the Restaurant Rumble, which by the way, is happening TODAY.

Part 2 of our fundraising feast for one of our dear friends and hopeful fighter (shout out to Aston!) involves making roasted vegetable lasagna from ALMOST scratch (yes, almost scratch because we didn't really make the noodles).

Here it goes!

Roasted Veggies:

1. Squash: rub with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Place in 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes.
2. Zucchini, red and yellow peppers: rub with salt, pepper, balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Place in 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes
3. Broccoli and spinach: blanche (2 minutes in boiling water then into an ice water bath)

Tomato sauce:
1/8 cup olive oil
1/2 cup green onion
1/4 cup garlic (minced)
1/4 cup onions
1/4-1/2 cup celery (sliced)
flat leaf parsley
2 BIG cans tomato (or fresh stewed ones)
Crushed bullion (2-3 cubes) and prepared as directed
1-2 tsp italian herbs like basil and oregano + salt and pepper to taste

1. Heat oil in the pan and sautee garlic, onions until fragrant.
2. Add celery, parsley and sautee for 1-2 minutes until translucent
3. Add the tomatoes, stock, and herbs and simmer for 30 minutes. Make sure to stir every so often, and then add the seasoning.

Bechamel Sauce
5 tbsp butter
4 tbsp flour
4 cups milk
2 tsp salt
Dash of nutmeg

Procedure:

1. Melt the butter and add flour in a saucepan over medium heat until the mixture is smooth. Bring milk to a boil and combine. Whisk until smooth and season with nutmeg (and maybe a little cheese)

Lasagna
500g mozzarella (we love cheese.)
300g parmesan (we love more cheese)
350g ricotta (all kinds of cheese)
300g emmental (we had some spare cheese to go with our cheese)
1-2 packs lasagna noodles (we used 2 boxes to fill 3 baking pans)

Procedure (and this is where we had fun):

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Grate emmental, mozzarella in a large mixing bowl and set aside
3. In a glass baking pan, layer ingredients as follows: tomato sauce-noodles-tomato sauce-ricotta cheese-roasted veggies-parmesan, emmental and mozzarella mixture. Repeat until pan is filled.
4. Bake in the oven for 30-45 minutes, until mozzarella cheese on top begins to brown.

This is what it should look like once you're layering the ingredients

Browned cheese on top! 

Layers of cheesy and vegetable goodness in this somewhat "healthy" lasagna. Well, not really healthy, but we definitely had our share of vegetables! 

'Til next time!

Supporting local causes: Aprons for Gloves Part 1 - Bruschetta with Balsamic Reduction

Here is part 1 of a 2-post series adventure on our good deed this weekend. This weekend we're supporting Aprons for Gloves and their event called the Restaurant Rumble- where local restaurants fight to keep a boxing gym alive for the local Eastside Kids.

How? 

By throwing a fundraising feast for one of the hopeful fighters (and one of our dear friends). Proceeds went to fundraising his team, and we're hoping he gets to fight at the Restaurant Rumble (or at least we get to support the cause). 

We hosted a home cooked vegetarian friendly dinner, and charged everyone $20 (suggested donation). For an appetizer, we started out with some fresh bruschetta. Recipe below: 

Ingredients (serves 10-15):

2 French baguettes 

7-8 medium sized tomatoes 

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar (this varies depending on how much glaze is needed)
2.5 TBSP brown sugar

salt, pepper, olive oil, garlic powder, thyme, oregano

1. Preheat the oven (suggested 350 celsius). Slice the baguettes into 1/2 inch slices, place in a baking pan and lightly brush with some olive oil. Place in the oven to toast for about 10-15 minutes or until the bread is crispy on top. 
2. While the baguettes are toasting, dice all the tomatoes and place in a big bowl. Season with salt, pepper, garlic powder, thyme and oregano to taste.
3. Once the buns are nice and toasty, remove from the oven and place tomatoes on top of baguette slices.
4. In a sauce pan, combine the balsamic vinegar and brown sugar in medium heat. (WARNING: do not. DO NOT stick your nose on top to smell the concoction. This can be painful... for your brain). Once the balsamic vinegar is brought to a boil, remove it from the heat and stir it continuously until it thickens into a syrup like consistency.
5. Glaze the baguettes with the balsamic reduction QUICKLY. Balsamic reduction hardens once cool, we suggest washing the spoon and sauce pan ASAP or melting the mixture in hot water before washing. 

Mini Bruschetta Bites 

These bite-sized bruschetta appies were gone pretty fast! Stay tuned to see what's in store for the main course!