Go West, Young Man

Some say Vancouver is overtaking Toronto as the ultimate Canadian foodie town. I don’t travel much, so I can’t vouch for that personally, but love of my city forces me to say, “Is NOT!!” However, Vancouver is definitely attracting some spectacular talent, and I was lucky enough to attend a luncheon recently featuring the dishes of West: The Cookbook. West is a Vancouver restaurant owed by TopTable Group, who recently put out a cookbook of recipes from their executive chef Warren Geraghty.

While Geraghty is a UK boy, with training in some of Europe’s Michelin-starred restaurants, West features all the culinary delights of what is local in British Columbia. This, of course, means plenty of fish and shellfish, BC-raised beef, and local fruits and vegetables as well as local foraged delicacies such as chanterelle mushrooms.

Geraghty and his team, as well as a contingent from Top Table and Tourism Vancouver, flew across the country last week, ingredients in tow, to offer some of Toronto’s food writers a west coast treat. Five courses plus canapes were also paired with BC wines.

Canapes
BC Mushroom Arancini
Vancouver Island Octopus with Pemberton Beets
Ballotine of Foie Gras and Salt Spring Island Goats Cheese
Galantine of Theissen Farm Quail and Jasmine Poached Raisins
paired with Sumac Ridge “Stellar Jay” 04, Okanagan Valley

I didn’t get a chance to photograph the canapes, but they were all wonderful. I particularly like the octopus.

Continue reading “Go West, Young Man”