When you want to go out for an upscale dinner where do you go? Probably downtown Vancouver; maybe West Vancouver; or North Granville. What about Burnaby? There are not too many restaurants I can think of in Burnaby that I would categorize as a place for a special dinner.
One of the Burnaby restaurants that you may want to consider is e.b.o. restaurant & lounge, located in the Delta Hotel at Willingdon and Canada Way, beside the Grand Villa Casino. I was invited by the restaurant to try some of Executive Chef Keith Pears’ creations. Chef Pears, by the way, was filmed in Chopped Canada, Season 3, and last July, won 1st place with a $10,000 prize!
Along with other social media people, Chef made for us:
BEEF CARPACCIO
Triple Crunch Mustard, Horseradish Aioli,
House Pickles, Reggiano Crackers
Wine Pairing: Quails Gate Rose, BC
HEIRLOOM TOMATO SALAD
Heirloom Tomato, Compressed Okanagan Peach,
Stracciatella, Serrano Ham, Almond Praline
Wine Pairing: Kim Crawford, Sauvignon Blanc, New Zealand
LOCAL SALMON
Bacon and Manchego Gnocchi, Pine Nuts,
Ikura, Hollandaise sauce
Wine pairing: Inniskilin, Pinot Grigio, BC
ALBACORE TUNA
Avocado, Ponzu, Watermelon, Cilantro
Wine Pairing: Jackson-Triggs Reserve, Sauvignon Blanc, BC
MOROCCAN SPICED LAMB CHOP
Tabbouleh Salad, Smoked Yogurt,
Pickled Mustard Seed
Wine Pairing: McLarens on The Lake, Shiraz, Australia
INTERMEZZO – Champagne freezie
CHICKEN DUO
Truffle, Shoo Xing Sauce, Crispy Chicken Skin,
Chanterelle Mushrooms, Carrot Puree
Wine Pairing: Quails Gate, Pinot Noir, BC
PEACH MILLEFEUILLE
Almond Financier, Brown Butter Powder, Popcorn Ice Cream
Wine Pairing: Warres Warrior, Port, Portugal
Enjoy the pictures below of our dinner pairings and my comments.
The first pairing was a nice way to start; Beef Carpaccio with Quails’ Gate Rose. The carpaccio was soft and silky. To that you had crunch of mustard seed, pepperiness from the horseradish and tartness from the pickled beets. The Quails’ Gate Rose has a tart strawberry nose, with tasty strawberry flavour continuing to the palate. Light bodied with medium plus acidity. this was a complementary pairing, with the wine acidity matching to the tartness in the beets and silkiness in the carpaccio. A recommended pairing.
The Heirloom Tomato Salad was paired with the Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc. The salad was quite nice with the acidity of the tomato, sweetness from the compressed peach, creaminess from the stracciatella, and saltiness from the Serrano ham. Lots of flavours and textures happening here. The Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc was dry, with high acidity. Lots of jalapeno pepper on the nose and palate, as well as other herbaceous flavours. This was an OK pairing, as the strong herbal flavours competed with the fruity flavours in the dish. Maybe a dry sparkling wine, like Champagne would have been a nicer pairing, was suggested by my dining partner. I agreed.
The Salmon was lightly cooked and topped with a Hollandaise sauce. To complement it there was some smokiness from bacon that was combined with Manchego cheese and served in gnocchi. Our wine pairing was Inniskillin Pinot Grigio from BC. It was a medium bodied, slightly off-dry wine, with very ripe stone fruit flavours. Pinot Grigio’s fruitiness tends to be a nice match to our BC seafood, and it was in this case it was a complimentary pairing.
The Albacore Tuna dish had the tuna prepared in different ways; poke. There was a nice thinly “sashimi” slice, a thicker slice that had a light sear around all edges, and small tuna cubes topped with roe. To this there was avocado and pressed watermelon. Watermelon is always refreshing, and I enjoy having the freshness and sweetness of the watermelon with the softer texture and meatiness of the tuna. The Ponzu sauce added some saltiness to the dish. The Jackson-Triggs Reserve Sauvignon Blanc had both herbal and green fruit aromas. It was slightly off-dry, but had medium plus acidity to balance it out. Green fruit, honey and some bitterness on the palate. The Sauvignon Blanc was a complementary pairing to this dish. It was not overly herbal or green fruit, so did not overpower the tuna. The hint of sweetness and medium plus acidity in the wine, also worked with the fruitiness of the watermelon and saltiness of the Ponzu sauce.
Our fullest bodied dish of the evening was the Moroccan Spiced Lamb Chop paired with McLarens on the Lake Shiraz. The lamb chops were deboned, and one was stuffed. The lamb was mildly spiced and cooked till tender. It had a nice, lemon flavoured tabouli salad with it. The McLarens on the Lake Shiraz had dark, ripe black fruit and black berries on the nose. Off-dry, with ripe raspberry and purple fruit flavours, and was quite peppery on the palate. The rich fruit in this wine paired with the rich flavours of the lamb. A recommended pairing.
A brief Intermezzo was welcome before our last two dishes. We were treated to a Champagne freezie, which did have Champagne in it. I enjoyed it, but would have preferred if it was a little less sweet. Personal preference.
For the Chicken Duo, we had Chef shave truffle on our dish as it was presented to us. A nice touch. I quite enjoyed this dish, especially the compressed chicken with crispy skin. The compressed chicken was full of flavour. To that add some of the earthiness from the truffles and the Chanterelle mushrooms, and a sip of Quails’ Gate Pinot Noir, and you have a wonderful pairing in your mouth. Quails’ Gate Winery, consistently produces good Pinot Noir, and I recommend it quite often to people. The Quails’ Gate Pinot Noir had smoky strawberries on the nose. Dry with high acidity. Smoke, dark fruit, nutmeg and spices on the palate. I enjoyed the fruitiness and high acidity of this wine with the flavours and textures of this dish. Recommended.
Our dinner finished with a Peach Millefeuille and Warres Warrior Port. The layers of crisps that made the Millefeuille were compressed, which concentrated the flavour in the crisps, but did not make them hard to break with your spoon. The flavour of the popcorn in the ice cream was delicate and complemented the peach flavour and crisp crunch. The Warres Warrior Port was sweet and spicy, with dark fruit, cherries, and oak. There was a good balance of acidity in this port so that the sweetness was not overpowering. The pairing was complementary, but either one could be enjoyed on their own for a nice close to dinner.
Closing Note
e.b.o. is offering a tasting menu that will change monthly. The menu will use seasonal products and offer some creative twist to the dishes. So come out and enjoy e.b.o. and experience beyond ordinary.