You Feed My Soul

If Elizabeth Gilbert had Italy for the "Eat" part of Eat, Pray, Love, then France would definitely be mine when it comes to the art of nourishing your soul.

I ate my way through half a dozen villages in Provence, stopping at local cafes, boulangeries, and bistros. I'sle sur la Sorgue, Loumarin, Ansouis, Cadenet, and my favourite Bonnieux, where I stopped for tarte aux framboise.

There's something so gorgeous about simply eating what's fresh, local and in season. Aubergine caviar, zucchini tart, shaved black truffle omelet, ripe melon salad - these were the flavours of the summer. A glass or two of wine (pink or white at lunch, red at dinner) was always at hand.

Then, there's La Closerie. Recommended as a "must" by our hosts at the guesthouse, we wisely booked a table and treated ourselves to a 3-course meal under the vine-covered terrace.

To start, ricotta stuffed courgette flowers with chanterelle mushrooms and the largest shaved discs of black truffle I'd ever eaten. The earthiness of the chanterelles and truffles complimented each other, and the deepness contrasted beautifully with the freshness of the courgette flowers. The creamy ricotta smoothed everything together into one giant love-in. If I can eat my way into spirituality, then this must be the stairway to heaven.

Hubby's starter of smoked salmon, spring greens and waffle seemed unconventional but I assure you it was just about as good as my truffle decadence. The waffle was more savory than sweet, crispy on the outside but fluffy on the inside. We both believe there's more than 1 path to enlightenment and if in doubt, why not try both?

My religious food experience was just warming up when my main arrived. Roasted white fish with cherry tomatoes, squash puree, and baby potatoes. The skin was blackened and crispy while the fish was moist and flakey.

The stars came out and dessert came with it to bring me home to nirvana. Profiteroles with vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce.

It's perfect, simple, honest food that reminds me: it's been A Good Year.

I Think I Know What's On Your Mind

A quickie post to show you some pics of my new hair and dinner at a local French bistro. I'm having fun playing around with my hair - some days I've slicked it back (think Victoria Beckham), others I've pushed it forwards messily and finished with my favourite surf spray. I've glammed it up with pretty, tulle and pearl adorned handbands, or if I'm feeling a more grungy vibe, I reach for my braided suede headband. There's a style to suit my chameleon moods. NOTE: Please ignore the horribly tacky sign - I didn't realize it was in the picture and we were in a hurry to get inside the restaurant for our table.

I've used a variety of products to style my hair and I've found a few that I like:

1. Best Gel for a slicked back pixie: I tried Bumble and Bumble BB Gel and Oribe Gel Serum (thanks to BeautyMark for giving me both samples) and by far I liked Oribe for a firm hold to last all day but wasn't sticky or too stiff. The BB Gel is nice for light hold but I can't trust it'll stay all day.

2. Best Surf Spray: John Masters Organics Sea Mist hands down gives you that straight-out-of-the-surf look. I prefer it to Bumble and Bumble's Surf Spray which is a bit heavy and sticky. Plus, Sea Mist has a sweet lavender scent so you don't smell like a kelpy seawitch =D.

3. Best Hair Spray: I will go with Bumble and Bumble's Does It All Spray because it provides an airy and flexible hold that highlights the piecey-ness.


Now onto the food...Pied-a-Terre is a fave of mine because of how low-key it is and the food I've had there on numerous occasion has always been good. I just love simple, classic food, and this French bistro has it down.

We started with a French Onion Tarte with Bacon Frisse Salad.

Hubby ordered the Lamb Duo special with braised and roast lamb. Served with green beans and some pastry.

I thoroughly enjoyed the Fish Special which was pan roasted sole with morels and peas in a chive herby cream sauce. Served with asparagus, mashed potatoes and a roasted tomato.

We had no room for dessert but that was probably a good thing because I can never decide between their Creme Brulee, Chocolate Tarte, or Lemon Tarte.

Outfit:
Asymetric White Tee by Ambient (the back is longer than the front and I love it)
Distressed Jean Shorts by Ambient
Grey Coverup - from Gateau Lingerie
Fleur de Lis necklace - Pyrrah
Tulle Headband - Blue Ruby
Sandals - Elizabeth and James
Black Mini Hobo - Hugo Boss
Sunglasses - Rayban Clubmasters

The Secret's Out

Underground dining has taken off all around the world, and I jumped at a chance to experience it for myself when Teresa of Senses and Style asked me to go. Secret dining clubs allegedly started in San Francisco, and they're now commonplace in cities such as Paris, New York, Hong Kong, and Barcelona.

The premise is that a local chef caters a private dinner party, typically 8-12 guests, at a top secret location not to be revealed until 24 hour prior to the event. You really are at the mercy of the chef - there's no guessing what the menu nor the company will be.

Above: 1st course of Thai Seared Beef salad, piled on top of a corn fritter and garnished with mint and cilantro

Below: Trio of scallops - with watercress, as a ceviche, and with miso.

When hubby and I arrived at the address, I must say I was a bit anxious. In an age where technology often trumps mystery, it was very refreshing to go in blindfolds. Too often we check out Urban Spoon before we hit up a new restaurant. And hasn't Google streetview to an extent killed the beauty of a surprise? The idea of not knowing, and ultimately giving up control, added to the allure of secret dining.
Below: Slow cooked lamb shanks with lentil pilaf and honeyed carrots.

Overall, I enjoyed the food and the intimate atmosphere (you are after all, at the chef's home). I would say the food was well prepared; it was quite tasty.

Below: Seared duck breast with bok choi

Below: Port soaked berry bread pudding - most heavenly!

I would say if one was traveling to a great culinary capital, oh say, like Paris, it would be very worthwhile to source out a secret spot. It's a great way to eat like a local, and well, eat amongst them too.

If you're interested in underground dining, there's a very comprehensive list of clubs for cities around the world at Salt Shaker.

Cherry-Topped Sunday

Hope everyone had a great weekend! I'm still catching up and last week has been busy. I've taken on a part-time role (in addition to my day job) teaching e-business and marketing at a fashion design program, so things aren't going to slow down. The good news is, I think we're less than 12 weeks away to Christmas (yay Hawaii!). So please bear with me.

With all the excitement, I'm sure glad last weekend I got to take it easy and splurge at the Four Seasons in Whistler. After a day of mountain biking, I swam a few laps in the heated outdoor pool, jumped in the hot tub, and then sunned myself poolside before hitting the spa (can you believe this is possible in the alpines at the end of September?). There was no better way to top off the day then to head out to the highly celebrated Bearfoot Bistro (not to be confused with this other Bear in Tofino). Award-winning head chef Melissa Craig and her crew did not disappoint.

Above photo: me goofing around in front of a pretty painting at the Four Seasons. I love the colours!
Below: Melissa Craig (to the left) and her team pumping out perfection in a bite.

Our epicurean journey began with an amuse bouche consisting of shrimp, wasabi mayo, and pesto.

A very elegant heirloom tomato and smoked black cod salad was my appetizer. It was served with balsamic vinegar beads, dill, and olive oil powder. Simply incredible.

A lovely 2004 pinot noir from Foxtrot Winery in Naramata, BC. filled our mouths with juicy berries, hints of chocolate and caramel, and warmed our hearts.

My father ordered the whole Dover sole which was served tableside with the bones removed exquisitely by the server. The citrus beurre-blanc were to die for!

I savoured a red piece of tenderloin, served with shaved foie gras butter in a miniature pan.

But best of all, the cherry topper on a perfectly indulgent Sunday, was the dessert. Bearfoot Bistro offers their "Nitro Ice-Cream for 2" where the ice-cream is churned by hand at your table with the help of some patented liquid nitrogen (hence the smoke below).



It's served with all the toppings needed for the ultimate sundae: brandied cherries, whipped cream, caramel and chocolate sauces, crunchy chocolate pearls, and nuts. I would go back just for this!!


After the ice-cream, we got a personal tour of their very large wine cellar. We saw a Magnum of Opus One in there!

And yes, I did get to lick that wooden spoon afterwards, hence my very satisfied expression below.

Below: Me screwing around again in front of a Bear sculpture after dinner.

Wearing:
Peacock silk dress, from Hong Kong
Studded brown boots, from Hong Kong

Meat on a Stick

I promised you some food porn from the long weekend, so here it is. I took these snaps with my iPhone, not really expecting them to turn out, but some of them weren't too bad.

Zakkushi on Main Street is the third location of its kind in Vancouver. A robata restaurant (Japanese charcoal grill) well known for it's meat on a stick, it also dishes out a fair amount of yummy rolls and sushi. All this washes down very well with a cold Asahi. And located conveniently on Main and open late (til midnight), it was a perfect place for a Friday night.

We ordered a Kushi Set, which came with the above assortment of chicken, beef and pork kebabs as well as a skewer of very nicely grilled asparagus. In addition, we had a grilled corn on the cob (covered in butter and oh-so sweet), smoky shitake mushrooms, and a nori mayo tsukune (a chicken meatball around a stick - seen below). The nori mayo definitely took it to another level, and I can see how adding that stuff to a plain old weiner Japadog style can make even street-meat most addictive. What's nice about Zakkushi is the variety of kebabs they have, and of course, the lovely grilled flavour from the charcoal. All the meats were tender and juicy, and in perfect two bite sizes.

We had some rolls too, including a Triple Salmon roll and the below Unagi California roll.

We finished off with one of my favourite desserts, doryaki, which is two small pancakes stuffed with red bean paste. The pancake on its own was nothing special, but Zakkushi's version had matcha ice-cream inside, which made it to die for.

The sign outside Zakkushi is a glowing beacon in the dark for late-night hungry hipsters, and I'll be back for more delectable bites soon.

Fashionably Tasty

I'm so blessed to work with many fabulous people, and I'm very happy when I learn they blog! This week, I'm featuring the very talented and gorgeous Teresa Lee, a regular contributor at Tasting Vancouver, as my guest. She has a knack for discovering the latest great eats in town, and she's always got a pair of knock-out shoes and a funky bag.

Food and fashion doesn't sound as sexy as rock n roll and fashion (ie VH1s Rock Your Fashion) but it can be as ingenious and creative. The lovely Liv asked me to guest blog about something to do with style and food. It took me awhile to come up with a worthy topic to write. And then it dawned on me. Why the obvious!..fashion made out of food.

One of my favourite Project Runway episodes was the one with the challenge to produce a garment made out of whatever the contestants could find at the grocery store. A few of the fashion designers took the safe route and picked out items like garbage bags and curtains. The winning outfit, by the flamboyant Austin Scarlett, was painstakingly made out of corn husks. Even with the unorthodox material, the craftsmanship and the body-flattering style won the judges over.

Maybe its karma but the Project Runway favourite landed himself another food related assignment. Austin participated in the highly coveted Chocolate Show back in 2005. This show is held every year at major fashion cities like Paris, New York, and Tokyo. He used chocolate to adorn an Ascot-like hat and a very charming blue silk dress. The whole ensemble was red carpet worthy.


I think I rather wear Austin’s sweet little number than these snack-inspired hats that were worn during the 2008 and 2009 Royal Ascot Ladies Day. There were also designers that really took it over the top with creating very edible art pieces almost entirely in chocolate.


Hadley Freeman, contributor to Style.com’s blog, said it best in an article: “Food is colorful, its potentially expensive, and you can be a total snob about it. OF COURSE the fashionable are obsessed with it!”

And I wonder which fashionista is going to snag the potential Fall 09 trend (Agatha Ruiz de la Prada Fall 09 collection): wear your breakfast


Got something to say? If you would like to contribute as a guest, I'd love to hear from you. Contact me on Twitter @Abeautifullife or post a comment to this blog entry.

Tofino Wrapup

Home now after a great week trip in Tofino - I'm so sad as I miss the waves already. We didn't take too many photos as we were too busy having fun and surfing in the rain!

I did get some snaps of a really delicious dinner at The Spotted Bear Bistro. This relatively new restaurant is in the location that used to belong to the Rainforest Cafe. It's quite small, and reservations during the summer are recommended. Inside, the decor is westcoast (long cedar bar, First Nations prints and arts) but uniquely modern. Like their food, it's Westcoast with a modern twist.

We were extremely hungry after a day in the surf so we started off quickly with two appies to share. We ordered the Beef Tartare with local organic greens and thinly sliced Yukon potato crisps and a Seared Albacore Tuna with garlic foam, crunchy chickpeas and greens. Both were wonderful - really nicely balanced in terms of flavour. Not usually a big fan of foams on my food but the garlic foam added a surprisingly tactile touch which enhanced the dish. The beef tartare was marinated very nicely and the little thin chips added just the right amount of crunch.


For our mains, hubby ordered Seared Scallops with Wilted Greens and shitake mushrooms, and I had seared duck breast on a bed of roasted yukon golds (no doubt with the duck fat as it was sooo delish) and asparagus. Again, these dishes were smashing. Perfectly seasoned, just rich enough to be satisfying and light enough to want every last bite.

We were getting very full but since it's been spot on so far for this bear, we wanted a last course. I ordered a Molten Chocolate Pudding and hubby savoured a selection of cheeses. Heavenly!

Tofino has nourished not only my belly but my soul. As the carefree days of Tofino fade away, I am looking ahead to the next couple of days - the Southlands Classic Horse Show. I am ready to compete on Friday and Saturday, and there's lots to do before then. Wish me luck!