The Foodie File: Vancouver Connection
I attended the tourism Vancouver event at the Gladstone Hotel and was treated by Glowbal Foods to a delicious appetizer of sweet potato ravioli with a whole beautifully fresh seared scallop on top, it was so sweet and delicious. I went back for more, which the chefs gladly fed me all night because I was asking them about the fish out west and they recognized a fellow foodie.
Emad Yacoub is the president of the Globawl group. Emad’s description of their Vancouver venue, Sanafir made me crave a visit out west. Visualize exotic eastern influenced motifs, big loungy pillows, Egyptian urns, papyrus lined walls, a Morrocan inspired mezzanine, and four beds for reclining in private luxury surrounded by silk curtains. Restaurant chef Mark McEwan’s small plates of rich eastern flavoured foods sound as eclectic as the décor. If executive chef Sean Riley’ sampling at the Gladstone that night was any indication of the quality of the food, it has to be outstanding.
When I got home, I slipped the CD that Emad gave me “Sounds of the Silk Route†into my disc player and imagined I was laying back in a heap of rose water scented silk pillows with my hooka pipe and fine young men bringing me dried fruits to munch on.
Oops – maybe I shouldn’t go, my fantasy might be better than the real thing! Has anyone been – is it as good as it sounds?
Hey Christine – yes I was here in the spring. YUM! We started out with Red Bull/Champagne cocktails with blueberries, and then about 8 of us shared their tapas menu. If I remember correctly it was divided by meats so it was easy to please everyone. I think we all fought over a very tasty lemon & rock salt greens salad.
The upstairs beds would be quite the place to take a date! They’re quite secluded, but the wait staff do rounds to make sure nothing inappropriate is happening.
It’s a cool spot. I recommend it.
If you want an authentic Japanese teahouse experience, head over to Ooh Cha Teahouse, 63 Kingsway Avenue, Vancouver. The owner/proprietor, Karen Duffield, spent 25 years living in Japan and knows what a teahouse is all about. She stocks over seventy teas in latte, iced tea or hot tea to stay or to go or loose leaf tea to buy. The teahouse is fully air conditioned.