Great food, student prices
Mia Stainsby
Sun
Left to right: Chad Bibby, Shannon Smith and Alvaro Lobom show off some of the tempting pastries they make at the Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts, which wouldn’t be out of place in a French bakery. Photograph by : Ward Perrin, Vancouver Sun
Still kind of bandaged and bruised from the hit you took over holiday spending? Pacific Institute Of Culinary Arts will be gentle on you in that way.
Being a culinary school, you get a bit of a break. The cafe section has a selection of sandwiches, salads, soups and entrees as well as a gorgeous array of pastries. You’d never know it’s run by students — the food is better than most cafes.
I recently discovered a great little sandwich there — cured meat between a bun-sized gougere. I liked the idea so much I’m going to be mixing up a batch of gougere myself. At PICA, they also make focaccia, ciabatta and croissant sandwiches, costing $3.50 to $4.95.
Entrees change daily and cost around $5.25. They are pre-made so they don’t have the a la minute freshness but who are you to complain, at those prices? The day I phoned, there was chicken breast with blue cheese sauce and mashed potatoes, and grilled Arctic char with fennel sauce, roasted peppers and saffron rice. Portions are lunch size.
And now if you step around the curve of the showcase, you will be assaulted by temptation. The pastries are colourful with fruit mousse domes and glistening with glaze. These are very well-directed and taught students — the pastries wouldn’t be out of place in a French bakery. The stars of the show, I’m told, are the Pasuwa and Royale. The first has layers of chocolate cake, chocolate mousse studded with chocolate chunks and cheesecake, then enrobed in a chocolate glaze. The Royale is layered with almond dacquoise, gianduja and feuillentine (crushed crepe flakes) and milk chocolate.
While the cafe is ordinarily where you pinch the pennies, the dining area outfoxes the cafe in January and February with their annual two-for-one discount. Two can dine for lunch or dinner on a three-course meal for $24 and $36, respectively.
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PACIFIC INSTITUTE OF CULINARY ARTS
1505 West Second Ave., 604-734-4488. Monday to Saturday, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.
© The Vancouver Sun 2007
