A recent burst of new restaurant openings shows Vancouverites aren’t losing their appetite for dining out
Mia Stainsby
Sun
Goldfish, Bud Kanke’s newest restaurant offering, has a casual, energetic atmosphere.
The diners who plop tony derrieres onto the Philippe Starck chairs and couches at Goldfish are not the type to ask, “Philippe who?”
This poshly casual spot is owned by restaurant veteran Bud Kanke, who has opened, sold and closed some 11 restaurants in 36 years and is a kind of dining godfather in Vancouver.
Many staff under his watch go off and open their own places but Kanke, meanwhile, had downsized to the solitary Joe Fortes Seafood and Chop House for some years.
With Goldfish, he says, “It’s their turn.” The restaurant is a patriarch’s project for longtime staff eager to spread their wings in running the restaurant; some of them are investors as well. (Kanke has been rated one of the top 25 employers by BC Business magazine for the past two years.) At Goldfish, the target market is a decade or two younger than the Joe Fortes demographics.
No surprise, but there’s a huge hospitality component here with a phalanx of servers and runners and a handsome maitre d’ (Albert Chee) overseeing their moves and adding positive energy.
The room is swishily modern (a place to see and be seen), unrolling to a sexy patio with an alfresco lounge area done up in white plastic Philippe Starck couches, adjacent to a dining area. Goldfish is another in the burst of serious restaurants to open recently, along with Shore Club, Metro and Boneto after a previous push of Gastropod, Fuel, Bistrot Bistro, Jules and So:cial. It shows the dining public isn’t suffering spending fatigue.
At Goldfish, the chef responsible for assembling a make-or-break menu is Will Tse. Although he’s not highly pedigreed (he was last the executive sous chef at Joe Fortes), I found his food inviting, delicious and worth revisiting. For such an elegant room and great service, the price point is kept in check. Small plates range from $6 to $19 (the latter for oysters on the half shell) whereas large plates are $15 to $26.
What I especially like about Tse’s food were the bright Vietnamese, Thai and Japanese flourishes punctuating the otherwise North American dishes. Fresh herbs and sauces and mini-salad extras provide flavour bursts as counterpoints to the oils and savouries.
The pan-seared Arctic char was a lovely piece of fish contrast with a snow pear salad and kaffir lime coconut sauce. A crunchy snowpea salad brightened the maple soy chicken; shrimp “cupcakes” (shrimp in a coconut and rice flour crust) came with a contrasting garlic and scallion dip.
One dish went way overboard with this contrast bit, knocking out my tastebuds — the crispy squid with fresh scallions (so far so good) came sprinkled with Thai bird chilis, little heat missiles obliterating my taste sensations for some time afterward (goodbye wine.) Sugar cane skewered prawns had me sucking the delectable sweetness out of the sugar cane. Wild B.C. salmon with hoisin glaze was lovely, although a little more glaze wouldn’t have hurt.
A duck spring roll with nuoc cham and fresh mint didn’t have enough of the brightness; had lots of duck but I would preferred it lightened with more vegetable matter.
The pice de resistance was the toasted coconut tart for dessert. I can’t believe I went ga-ga over what Tse later explained was plain yogurt with vanilla. It was nestled in a toasty tart shell of flaked coconut and topped with star anise poached pineapple and I would like a lifetime supply of this, please. How could I have forgotten to ask what brand of yogurt he used?
While I appreciate he’s putting more thought into creating desserts than most places, I wasn’t sold on the chocolate sushi with coconut rice, strawberry, kiwi and mango rolled inside a chocolate crust and cut like maki sushi — which fell apart.
The wine list pays to B.C. with backups from the Pacific Coast, Australia, New Zealand and some Old World.
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GOLDFISH
Overall: 4
Food: 4
Ambience: 4
Service: 4
Price: $$
1118 Mainland St., 604-689-8318
Open for dinner, 7 days a week
www.goldfish.com
Restaurant visits are conducted anonymously and interviews are done by phone. Restaurants are rated out of five stars.
© The Vancouver Sun 2007
