There Are Very Few Restaurants Like Canlis Anymore

There are very few restaurants like Canlis anymore.  It is old school in every way from the Mid-20^th Century Modern architecture to the formal service to the food and drink menu.  Everything comes together beautifully to give its diners a fine dining experience from a bygone era.

Canlis, now in the hands of the third generation, was opened in 1950 as a high end seafood and charbroiled steak house with a staff of Japanese ladies in kimonos and fresh orchids flown in daily from Hawaii.  Since then, its interior has been renovated three times.  These days the inside is cedar, stone and glass, in complete harmony with the time-honored architecture.  Spacious tables with perfectly smooth and crisp white tablecloths are kept reasonably apart for privacy (the waiters steam iron the tablecloths after they lay them on the tables).  The walls of slanted windows offer a grand view of the lake below and the city skyline in the far.  ‘Updated retro’ food -- classic dishes with current cooking techniques and presentation styles -- has replaced steaks long ago.

Arufa & M arrived early for their 6:45 reservation.  They were shown to the bar, and soon informed by a maitre’d that their table would be available on time.  They were amused as there were a couple of open tables nearby.  At 6:45, they were seated at one of them.  Why the wait, they wondered; could that be a way for Canlis to manage the kitchen workflow?

Their dinner began with a trio of amuse-bouche – a croquette encasing a soft egg yolk, a cornet of salmon foam and wasabi tobiko, and a tiny tart topped with a bit of morel – followed by their first course of foie gras and steak tartare.  The foie gras was plated with blanched celery and leaves, tiny pickled red onion rings, cherry puree and clear Sauternes gel.  On top of the torchon were candied pistachios and celery powder that melted in the mouth.  The accompaniment of a thick slice of cocoa brioche toast was delicious but very crumbly, making it a mess to eat.

Foie gras

The steak tartare was made with raw local Wagyu tenderloin in the original Canlis’ recipe.  Instead of the typical meat patty, the chopped meat was formed into two ‘quenelles’ and decorated with edible flowers.  Interestingly, the meat was not mixed with egg or strong seasoning.  Instead, it had a refreshingly clean, mild flavor.

Steak tartare

The second courses were the ‘Peter Canlis Prawns’ and pan seared halibut.  Five large prawns, sautéed in dry vermouth, garlic and lime, were perfectly cooked.  They looked plain with just a pale-colored sauce drizzled over them, but their taste had made up for the lack of decoration. 

"Peter Canlis' prawns

The halibut was served with cauliflower, quinoa and taggiasca olives.

Halibut

One of the meat courses was a roasted dry aged Muscovy duck.  The whole duck (for two) was presented to the table before craving in the kitchen.  The breast was halved, sliced and plated with rillettes of leg meat, orange marmalade, green fennel puree and pearl onion brulee.  The duck was cooked well to near perfection.  There was very little fat under the crispy skin, and the medium rare meat was tender.     

The duck on a tray

The duck on a plate

Another meat course was two grilled lamb chops with braised lamb croquette, fried leeks and piquillo pepper marmalade.

Lamb chops

Both Arufa & M had Grand Marnier soufflé with orange zest and crème Anglaise for dessert.  Afterwards, their waiter brought them two kinds of macaroons with coffee, and each a parting gift of chocolate bar in a box.      

Grand Marnier souffle, creme Anglaise

Arufa and M were very satisfied with their dinner.  Their concern that the restaurant might be riding on its past glory was unfounded.  The professional and nonintrusive service at Canlis was almost impeccable.  There were a couple of minor hiccups that were quickly rectified.  They were also impressed by the valet system (there is no self parking).  The friendly valets did not hand them a claim ticket, and yet their car was waiting outside the door for them before they walked out of the door.

Canlis prides itself as a swanky restaurant.  It reminds its guests during reservation that there is a dress code, meaning no casual attires and a jacket for men.  But that is more a request than a requirement, as the restaurant recognizes that nowadays many people do not care to dress appropriately for an elegant meal.  Sadly time has changed, even for an institution like Canlis. 

the Walrus and the Carpenter: an Oyster Bar & More

In his book Through the Looking Glass, Lewis Carroll told the story of the Walrus and the Carpenter.  “O Oysters, come and walk with us!” the Walrus said.  And they were followed by four young oysters, and four other, and yet another, and more, and more, and more.  All was well until the Walrus proclaimed that

                “Now if you are ready, Oysters dear,

     We can begin to feed.”

…..

“I weep for you,” the Walrus said:

     “I deeply sympathize.”

With sobs and tears he sorted out

     Those of the largest size,

Holding his pocket-handkerchief

     Before his streaming eyes.

 “O Oysters,” said the Carpenter,

     “You've had a pleasant run!

Shall we be trotting home again?”

     But answer came there none —

And this was scarcely odd, because

     They'd eaten every one.

So it is most appropriate that one of the best oyster bar calls itself by that name, the Walrus & the Carpenter.

For the first timers, W&C can be hard to find.  It is hidden in the back of a renovated century old brick building in an industrial area that is under redevelopment. The front of the building is occupied by a different restaurant and a bike shop cum café, both without visible signs.  Painted on the wall above them are faded letterings “KOLSTRAND MFG CO.” and “MARINE HARDWARE”.  Only when one looks carefully would one see the small white cloud-shaped sign over a glass building door by the bike shop.  Walk past the door, down a long corridor to the metal wall sculptures at the end, turn left, and there it is.

Look up, there's the sign

The metal wall sculpture by the door

It is understandable why some people mistake W&C for a restaurant.  Its small menu offers small plates of seafood, meat, soup, salad, cheese and dessert besides raw oysters.  But the owner-chef insists that it is a bar and as such, W&C does not accept reservation.  

Arufa and M arrived before the opening time (4 pm) and there was already a long line at the door.  They were pleased to get a table on the back porch.  It was a mild-weather sunny afternoon, perfect for al fresco snacks and drinks.  They ordered four kinds of raw local oysters, deep fried oysters with cilantro aioli, cured halibut, steak tartare, lardo, vodka on rocks and Pouilly Fume.  

The raw oysters were impeccable.  The ones from Samish Bay were particularly sweet and at the same time briny as the ocean.  The batter of the deep fried oysters had just the right amount of corn meal to make it crunchy but not hard; the oysters within were plump, creamy and flavorful.

Fried oysters, cilantro aioli

The steak tartare was traditional.  The chopped meat patty looked pretty with an egg yolk on top, but it became soggy after the two were mixed.  It was also a bit salty because of the salt crystals on the yolk.  

Steak tartare

The lardo was not what they expected.  Instead of pure solid fat, the thin ribbons were more like Italian smoked pancetta.  Pistachios and pickled blueberries provided a nice visual impact but not much more.

Lardo and garnishes

Arufa and M thoroughly enjoyed the food and drinks even if the meat plates were not as successful as the oysters and fish.  W&C’s casual space was inviting.  Its loud and festive music befits a bar.  They would like to stay longer but W&C was hardly a place for lingering when tables around them turned quickly and the crowd at the door growing in size.  They just had to plan for another visit to eat through the W&C menu.

"Hot and Spicy" from Taiwan

The highlight of today's Taiwanfest at Toronto's Harbourfront is the culinary demonstration by "Hot and Spicy Chef" Cheng-Chung Chen from Taiwan.  Not normally a hot and spicy fan, I would never have walked into a Sichuan restaurant on my own and Mr. Chen is famous for his Sichuan specialty.  It's a good thing I stayed and tasted the dishes he made - I was pleasantly surprised.

Even the raw prawns were nicely arranged - they had been marinated with egg white, salt and corn starch.  The Chef then proceeded to butterfly them with their shell on.  He then laid them tails up on a bed of glass noodles that had been soaked in water.  

The chef explained the sauces.  He used a sauce that is made up of marinated chopped peppers.  There was a mix of hot, mild and sweet peppers and this looked like it's the key to the flavour of the dish.  Of course, there is the garlic, which he first smashed and then chopped into a million fine bits in no time at all.  (I just realized that I need to get myself another sharp and thin chopper like his!  I was trying to do the same thing the night before using my forty-year old chopper.  It was great for chopping chicken bones but for fine cutting and mincing, it just didn't make the cut.   A knife manufacturer should have been at this show!)

Chopping garlic

He put everything into the sauce - juice of one lemon, marinated chopped peppers, chopped garlic, salt, mushroom essence (another new find*), sugar, vinegar and honey.  He drizzled the sauce over the prawns and the glass noodles, steam the whole thing for 10 minutes and it was done.  The final touch - sprinkle some chopped parsley and green onion on top,  heat up some oil and pour over the top.

We were offered a plate of the prawns over glass noodles and the following dish - Szechuan Hot & Spicy Mussels - all for $2 - a bargain compared to the street food being served outside in the square.

Done!

* Learned something new again when the woman next to me asked me what was that mushroom essence the chef was using.  Never heard of it but a couple of the Taiwanese workers behind us knew what it was - dried mushrooms powder.  The woman beside me extrapolated that she could use dried shitake mushrooms and ground them up.  She had done the same with porcini mushrooms and used them as flavouring - she said it went right into the food and the flavour was very intense.   She then suggested that I buy a large bag of porcini mushrooms to bring home next time I'm in Italy.  What a great idea!

Seattle Food Tour

Mr and Ms Gotts went on a  Seattle Walking Food Tour recently. This tour was top rated by tripadvisor, and it was fun to visit the kitchens, meet with the chefs, and had special food prepared for us.

We started out at the Yellow Leaf Cupcake Co, where we were treated to 2 mini cupcakes baked just for the tour. [OK, so I took a couple bites before I remembered to take the picture]. The right one has a special cream topping, sprinkled with bacon; the left one is Belgian chocolate. I was never too fond of cupcakes, but these were absolutely delicious!

Next we walked to a Tom Douglas restaurant, where we were led to a long table in the kitchen for our tasting. There were 11 people total, plus the guide, Brad.

I wasn't fast enough to take the photo before people dug into the pizzas. The top one was margarita with buffalo mozzarella; the bottom one was chanterelle mushroom and truffle cheese. The mushroom pizza was rated by Tyler Florence on the Food Network show as "the best thing he ever ate". It was excellent.

 Inside the kitchen.

The special wood burning pizza oven (behind the guy with the apron), is set at more than 100 degrees hotter than normal pizza ovens. They keep the oven going all night, as it will cool down too much if they turn it off, and it won't be hot enough when the next day's lunch comes around.

Next we went into RN74, a railroad themed restaurant. The chef (or manager, since he wasn't wearing a chef outfit) came out and talked about the restaurant.

We were served  tomato soup with truffle oil, and maitake tempura with citrus mousseline.

As I requested non-alcoholic service, I was served a pomegranate drink with mint.

The next stop is Pike Place Market's il Bistro, which normally is closed for lunch, but set up just for our group. This is one of the first (oldest) "fancy" restaurant in Seattle, as defined by having white tablecloths. We had risotto with clams and mussels. I was served Pellegrino sparkling water.

 And the chef came out and talked about the restaurant and  its history.

Next we went to the Pike Brewing Company, right next to the grossest germiest place on earth, Seattle Gum wall. The chief brewer educated us on brewing beer, and after listening to her speech, I was very interested in trying it out myself - even though I normally hate beer.

Unfortunately I had already indicated I was non-alcoholic, so I got an apple-raspberry drink, followed by an apple juice with 2 different cheese pairings. The other people had the "Pike Kilt Lifter", which smelled floral and almost tasted acceptable based on the small sip that I took. The second one was the Pike IPA which again smelled nice but tasted "hops-sy". Even for a beer-hater like me, I could tell that these were artisan beer and much superior than the grocery store varieties.

The next stop was the truffle store at Pike Place Market, where we got to sniff 2 different kinds of truffles (smell, but don't touch). We were served a small cup of potato soup, before and after infusion of truffle oil with the eye dropper.

There were also samples laid out for tastings.

I was so impressed that I bought some truffle salt. It was discounted by 15% because of the tour, so it only set me back about $20 for 2 oz.

Brad the tour guide making sure nobody got lost at Pike Place Market.

Next was Von's GustoBistro, where we were served sour dough flour linguine with an alcoholic based tomato sauce. 

We ended by at a gelato place Gelatiamo, where we had an almond and raspberry gelato, followed by coffee. It will be interesting to compare it with the real thing that we will soon be getting at Florence, Italy...

All in all, a most pleasant experience. The 2 best choices voted by the group were the mushroom  pizza and the risotto. We also received a 15% discount card at all the partner restaurants and shops, too bad it expires in a week or so. Another disappointment was we did not end up back at the Yellow Leaf cupcake, as I would have liked to purchase additional bacon cupcakes!

Le Pichet, a Perfect Neighborhood Bistro

Whenever Arufa & M are in town, they eat at Le Pichet, a small old-fashioned bistro complete with menu written in cursive on black chalk boards, wood bar and tables, sidewalk service, and a floor of small while tiles dotted with black ones.  

Sidewalk tables outside Le Pichet

Menu boards

Le Pichet is known for its charcuterie.  Pork blood sausage made with cream and egg is smooth and flavorful; duck liver and pork pate earthy and meaty; chicken liver pate as smooth as foie gras.  There are also various saucissons, jambon, beef tongue, and in all a total of 12 selections.

Charcuterie - (clockwise from top) duck liver pork patre, chicken liver pate, beef tongue, salami, pork blood sausage.

For entrée, there may be escargots, and better yet a decadent plate of roasted beef marrow bones sprinkled with coarse salt served with fava beans in a demi-glace.  The beans offered a nice balance to the richness of the marrow.  The sauce added complexity to the flavor.  On one evening, the plat du jour was an incredibly tender octopus, slow-simmered in a rich ragout of charred tomatoes, fennel and Pastis, that tasted of ocean. 

Escargots

Roasted marrow bones, fava beans

Slow-simmered octopus

Arufa & M like to order quiche for their weekend brunch.  The Le Pichet quiche is light and fluffy, simply the best.  Another popular brunch dish, eggs broiled with ham and gruyere, may be better if a dry cured ham (such as jambon de Bayonne or d’Auvergne) is used in place of the jambon de Paris, and if the yolks are runnier.

Quiche

Oeufs, jambom et fromage

Le Pichet has an excellent clafoutis, a classic baked dessert of cherries with a thick flan-like batter, dusted with sugar, and served lukewarm.  The Le Pichet version is traditional except that the Bing cherries have been pitted for the diner’s convenience, at the risk of offending the purists who swear that the pits release a particularly wonderful flavor during baking.  Another lovely dessert is the chocolat chaud -- a large cup of hot chocolate served with a quenelle of thick cream on the side.  One can eat spoons of chocolate and cream in whatever order and proportion one likes.  It is heavenly for lovers of bittersweet chocolate.

Cherry clafoutis

Chocolat chaud

Le Pichet is a real gem.  The all-French food and wines are not only good but also reasonably priced (by the way, all wines are available by the bottle, pichet, demi-pichet or glass).  For anyone who looks for a classic Parisian neighborhood bistro, this unpretentious comfortable place is the destination.  One can hardly find a better alternative outside France.