Joe Fortes (Happy Hour)

701

Joe Fortes has been around for a long time and it’s known for their seafood and steak. They are your classic North American restaurant and a prime spot for both tourists and locals. Their regular menu can be a bit on the pricey side, so what better way to enjoy than to try some of their bar items by going for happy hour! They offer happy hour from 4-6pm daily and the best part is they have buck a shuck oysters! S, N and I headed over and we were slightly earlier than 4pm, but the hostess still seated us knowing that we were here for happy hour. So be sure to get there early and you’ll be guaranteed a spot!

697

Orchard Hill Red Roof Apple Cider

We started off with some drinks, although we ordered off their regular menu. However, they do have happy hour drinks with highballs, house wine and Molson pints on deal for $5. I chose the Orchard Hill Red Roof Apple Cider instead, and this was light and crisp without being overly sweet. Very refreshing!

698

“Buck a Shuck” Oyster

Of course we had to go for the Buck a Shuck Oysters. They are literally only $1 each, which is a steal!The oysters were served on top of ice and served with a classic cocktail sauce and horse radish. They also give you Tabasco sauce for those who like it spicy. The oysters were quite large but they were still very sweet! No bits of shell at all in any of mine! That’s a sign of a good oyster shucker. I’d definitely say Joe Fortes is one of my top favourites for oysters. Probably just after Rodney’s, but Rodney’s happy hour is slightly more than a $1.

699

Joe’s Shrimp Ceviche

Their happy hour is actually quite extensive and you get to choose from a large variety of snacks. We went for Joe’s Shrimp Ceviche, which featured a mix of shrimp, jalapeno, avocado and tomatoes. This was served with corn chips. The shrimps were very tiny, but they were still fresh and bouncy. Probably not my favourite ceviche, but it’s not bad. I would’ve liked a bit more tang to it.

700

Mini Lobster & Shrimp Rolls

And then we got their infamous Mini Lobster & Shrimp Rolls. These are a must order at happy hour! The buns are filled with shrimp, Atlantic lobster meat and a classic French mayonnaise sauce. You actually get quite a bit of lobster here, so it’s definitely a good deal. Plus, something about the rolls are just so delicious. They are buttery and super soft but crispy on the edges.

702

Oyster Rockefeller

Lastly, we got the Oyster Rockefellers, which I also highly recommend. An order comes with four large local oysters, which have a spinach base and topped with hollaindaise sauce. The oysters are huge! It’s like an eggs benedict but with an oyster instead. I loved the creamy spinach along with the sauce. A slight bit of paprika sprinkled on top gives it some extra flavour.

Overall, we were extremely pleased with Joe Fortes. They are definitely the place to go for Happy Hour. Service was also very attentive, professional and friendly. Ambiance is rustic and traditional, but no need to dress up. Perfect spot to stop by while shopping on Robson.

Pros:
– Great happy hour menu (must order oysters and shrimp and lobster rolls!)
– Professional service

Cons:
– Restaurant can be busy so may need to wait sometimes

Price Range: $20-30 (Happy hour)

1: Terrible 2: Poor 3: Average 4: Good 5: Excellent

Food: 4 Service: 4 Ambiance: 3.5 Parking: 3 Overall: 4

Click to add a blog post for Joe Fortes Seafood & Chop House on Zomato

Diva at the Met

493 (480x640)

For Valentine’s Day, S took me to Diva at the Met, which is located at the Metropolitan Hotel. On the day, they only offered the set menu and you were not able to order off the a la carte menu.

494 (640x459)

Complementary bread and butter

Dinner started off with complimentary bread and butter. There were two types of bread. One had raisins, while the other had nuts. The bread was pretty good, but I would have preferred if it was served warm.

495 (640x480)

The restaurant has an open kitchen concept with glass, so you can see the cooks prepare your food. That night, they offered a four course menu for $80 a person. There are two choices: the Diva or the Divo. The Diva is supposed to be catered for the girl, while the Divo is for the guy. However, you are open to choosing either depending on which menu you prefer more. Of course, I wanted to try everything, so I went for the Diva, while S got the Divo.

496 (640x480)

Lobster Bisque

The Divo menu starts off with the Lobster Bisque, which has a truffle cappuccino foam. The consistency is rather thick and you can definitely taste hint of the truffle cappuccino.

497 (640x480)

Octopus Carpaccio

For the Diva, it starts with the Octopus Carpaccio, which was probably my favourite of the night. The dish was beautifully presented, with lots of colours. It featured lobster, quail egg, and heirloom tomatoes. The octopus was thinly cut and cooked perfectly. It had just the right chew and the tomatoes made the dish very refreshing. The lobster was fresh and the meat was tender.

498 (640x480)

Smoked Ham Hock Terrine

Divo’s second course was the Smoked Ham Hock Terrine, which featured pickles, onion jam, and bread tuile. The terrine had a smokey flavour and the ham wasn’t too salty. Paired with the onion jam, it made a great dish. The bread tuile was thin and crispy, but there could have been more of that to complement the terrine.

499 (640x589)

Arugula & Granny Smith Apple Salad

The Diva’s second course was the Arugula & Granny Smith Apple Salad. I wasn’t too happy with this dish since I felt like I already sort of had a salad like dish for my first course. Seemed like they thought the ladies only eat salads… Anyways, this was a huge portion of arugula, and it was topped with a cider vinaigrette. It also came with blue cheese, which I’m not a fan of, so it wasn’t something I really enjoyed. However, I liked the candied walnuts, grapes, and Granny Smith apples that were paired along. The apples were slightly sour so it was really appetizing.

500 (640x528)

Grilled Angus AAA Rib Eye

The Divo’s main course was the Grilled Angus AAA Rib Eye. S ordered the steak medium rare and indeed, the inside was cooked to a beautiful pink. It was dijon herb crusted with a brandy jus. The cut was perfect and so tender. I wish I had ordered this myself. It also came with roasted honey garlic and a potato and gruyere pave as sides.

501 (640x479)

Roast Pheasant Coq au Vin

The Diva’s entree was the Roast Pheasant Coq au Vin. The pheasant was stuffed with stone fruit, and came with red rice, barley and honey carrots. The meat was actually pretty moist and the fruit stuffing gave it some sweetness. It came with a red wine sauce. Everything about the dish felt a little too healthy though. Not bad, but I probably wouldn’t order this again.

502 (616x640)

Passion Fruit Curd and Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Mousse

Lastly, for dessert, both the Diva and Divo’s came on the same dish. For the Diva, it was the Passion Fruit Curd, while the Divo’s was the Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Mousse. The passion fruit curd was filled within a genoise, or Italian sponge cake, and had layers of white chocolate mousse. It came with some berry coulis and fresh fruit. I enjoyed both the desserts. The chocolate mousse wasn’t too sweet and I liked the hint of hazelnut flavour. Tasted sort of like eating a Ferro Rocher. I also liked how it was presented so you can share the plate with your significant other.

503 (640x395)

Chocolates

Lastly, as your bill comes, they bring you a plate with chocolate truffles and a rose for the girl. Pretty sweet. Service was attentive and friendly. It didn’t feel pushy at all and the ambiance was nice but not over the top. Great place for date night.

Pros:
– All our dishes were pretty good and presented nicely
– Service was attentive and friendly

Cons:
– Wish we could’ve ordered off the a la carte menu

Price Range: $80/person for Valentine’s Day set menu

1: Terrible 2: Poor 3: Average 4: Good 5: Excellent

Food: 4
Service: 4
Ambiance: 3
Parking: 3
Overall: 4

Diva at the Met on Urbanspoon

Book Kyung Ban Jeom

image

Book Kyung Ban Jeom is located on Robson St. where the rest of the Korean restaurants are located. It seems that there is this one little strip that is just filled with Koreans!

image

The restaurant is filled with mostly Korean families and young diners. The promotions on the wall are also all in Korean, so you basically don’t know what they are unless you’re Korean. The menu, however, has both English and Korean.

image

Side Dishes

The side dishes aren’t exactly the ones I prefer. They included yellow daikon and radish in a kimchi-like sauce.

image

Tang Suyuk

We ordered the Tang Suyuk, which reminded me of the Chinese sweet and sour prok. I believe this actually beef though. The outer layer is thin and crispy and not too greasy. It’s quite a large dish, so great to share. The sauce is thick and gooey, but not more on the sweet side than sour.

image

Ja Jang Myeon

We each got a Ja Jang Myeon, which is essentially the Ja Jiang Mian that Chinese people eat. However, the sauce and fillings are completely different! It’s a very gooey sauce and filled with lots of onions. I’m not a big fan of onions, so I actually prefer the Chinese style much more. The sauce is also much more focused on the sweet side, rather than the spicy side. An interesting variation!

Book Kyung Ban Jeom on Urbanspoon

Ebisu (Robson)

Friday night, I went to Ebisu on Robson St. to celebrate a friend’s birthday. The Robson store is not that much different from the one in Richmond, although they seem to have a larger menu as well as drinks.

image

Chopped Scallop Roll

I got the Chopped Scallop Roll because I pretty much get it at every Japanese restaurant. It was average and nothing too special.

image

Chicken Karaage – deep fried boneless chicken served with sweet honey-mustard and Cajun mayonnaise

I also got the Chicken Karaage which was a huge portion. They actually have a one person size too, but we got the larger one. The pieces of chicken were much larger than I had expected, but since it was boneless, all was good. The batter was decent, although quite oily. I enjoyed the honey-mustard which tasted a little like plum sauce, and the Cajun mayonnaise was a little spicy.

image

Hamachi Inferno – yellowtail box pressed in shiso, burdock, shiitake, sesame and sushi rice seared!

Ebisu is famous for their inferno sushi, so I finally decided to try it. They have 3 fishes to choose from: saba, hamachi or toro. I chose the Hamachi Inferno, and it was presented to us raw.

image

Then the waitress brought over a lighter, and seared the sushi in front of us.  Pretty cool to watch the colour turn.

image

And here’s the final product! The fish was soft and definitely a different texture from raw hamachi. I found that the sushi rice was a little harder than usual though, but it was definitely something different to eat.

Overall, I was pretty pleased with the food and service at the Robson Ebisu. They offer a variety of interesting rolls as well, so their menu is quite extensive.

Ebisu on Robson on Urbanspoon

Bel Cafe (Take Out)

image

I’ve gone to Bel Cafe for some desserts before, but I have to say their menu is quite pricey! Around $6 for each dessert…but it’s the sister store to Hawksworth, so what do you expect. Even their boxes and take out bags are so much nicer! I guess your money goes towards that stuff.

image

Dark Chocolate, Raspberry, Vanilla

This was some good chocolate goodness, but it wasn’t too sweet! I loved the little chocolate crunches on the side. The raspberry wasn’t very strong though.

image

Double Lemon Tart

The lemon tart was way too tart and sour for my liking. I much prefer the one I had at Oru. I did however like the little lemon slices at the top which were like candied lemons.

image

Crispy Choux Milk Chocolate Orange Ganache

I’ve had the orange ganache before, and it is one of my favourite desserts here. It’s basically a cream puff topped with a chocolate cream, a few slices of chocolate and orange slices. Yum!

Bel Cafe on Urbanspoon

The Refinery (Dine Out)

image

Last Thursday, I went to my last Dine Out! It was a spontaneous one, and we pretty much planned it the night before. We wanted a girls night out, and was looking for somewhere on Granville and was from the fixed price of either $18 or $28. SP suggested we go to The Refinery and off we went! A poor picture of the place, but The Refinery is basically next to Sip Resto Lounge, and you have to go up a flight of stairs. So really, it is on top of Sip Resto Lounge! It was a Thursday night, and the place was around 3/4 full. Not bad I guess.

image

Complementary Amuse Bouche – Salted Cucumber Sorbet

Shortly after placing our orders, our server brought us a complementary amuse bouche. She explained a bunch of stuff, but from what I remember, it was basically a cucumber sorbet that was salted. When I took a little nibble of it, I thought it was really salty! But I decided to take the whole spoon, and it became a mixture of salty and sour. It was supposed to cleanse our palettes before we ate, but we all felt that it just left our palettes salty and sour! It was definitely refreshing though, since it was an ice cold sorbet. Let’s just say it was interesting…

image

Albacore Tuna – confit tomato sauce, cannellini beans, basil oil, parsley

For my appetizer, I chose the Albacore Tuna. The portions were actually quite generous. There were probably around 7 slices, and each slice was quite thick. However, I wasn’t a huge fan of the sauces. I’m not a parsley person, so the flavours didn’t really work for me. I have to say that the tuna was fresh, and seared well though. The cannellini beans reminded me of chickpeas, which also aren’t my favourite. I guess I’m just a picky eater…

image

Poached Pear Salad – white wine poached, arugula, goat cheese, walnuts, yellow beets, honey-dijon vinaigrette

SP and SK got the Poached Pear Salad. It was a large plate of arugula, and they felt that it was way too much. There was also parsley in it, which they weren’t too fond of.

image

Sablefish – roasted red pepper and potato stew

For their entree, they both got the Sablefish. I was tempted to get it too, but I wanted to try their other dishes too. I tried some of the fish, and it was delicious. Cooked perfectly and the fish was smooth. It’s definitely a small piece of fish though!

image

Stuffed Mushroom – a refinery classic, stuffed with our special house mixture

For myself, I decided to try the Stuffed Mushroom. I’m glad I got this since it was full of surprises! It was one large mushroom filled with their special house stuffing mixture. The top was something that I believe was similar to bread crumbs, but the inside had cashews in it! At first, I found it weird, but for some reason, when you keep eating it, it becomes highly addictive. The nutty flavour just worked so well with the rest of the mixture.On the side, there was also some pesto sauce which added some flavour to the mushroom. On the right was more salad, which was similar to the appetizer. Lots of arugula and parsley! So I didn’t really eat much of it.

image

Tiramisu – espresso soaked lady fingers, whipped marscapone, cocoa dust

My favourite part of the meal were the desserts! I got the Tiramisu which came with a biscotti. This was extremely delicious! They had a thick layer of whipped marscapone, and it was dusted with cocoa powder on the top. The lady fingers weren’t soaked with a lot of alcohol, or I barely even tasted it, but I didn’t mind it. Because of that, it ended up being on the sweeter side, but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

image

Flourless Chocolate Cake – chocolate ganache, raspberry compote, balsamic reduction coconut cream

The girls got the Flourless Chocolate Cake which had a raspberry compote underneath. It was full of chocolate goodness and my one bite satisfied my sudden chocolate cravings. The girls both agreed that it was way too much chocolate and therefore very sweet, but that’s how a flourless chocolate cake is supposed to be like!

When we got our bill, we were also given complementary Chili Truffles, which I forgot to snap a picture of. The truffles were not spicy at first, but once the outer cocoa powder dissolved, the spice hit! It was acutally quite spicy and the server explained that she felt that this batch was a lot spicier.

Overall, The Refinery was average. I don’t know if I would come here again, but this is soley based on their dine out menu. Service was great when our server checked up on us, but where we were seated was difficult to get her attention. It literally took us 10 minutes to get a different servers attention when we wanted a picture because our own server still didn’t notice us. I don’t think the food is bad, but it might be just a personal taste preference and the ingredients aren’t items I normally enjoy. However, I enjoyed their desserts, and the place also seems like a cool place to grab some drinks. Their bar looks really nice!

The Refinery: Market.Style.Eatery on Urbanspoon

Raw Canvas (Dine Out 2013)

image

I’ve always wanted to try Raw Canvas but looking at the menu, it can be pretty pricey. It’s basically a place where you can eat some meat and cheese, have some drinks, and then you have the choice to go paint! Pretty neat idea, and an awesome place to go for a girls night out. Luckily, Raw Canvas participated in Dine Out Vancouver 2013, so I got to try it out for only $38!

$38 gets you your “appetizer”, which is a choice of cheese sampler or meat sampler. Then your “entree” is a canvas to paint on, with all paint supplied and included. Lastly, your “dessert” is gelato and port! A pretty good deal, since the smallest canvas itself is normally $55. The one for dine out is a bit smaller though, but still a deal regardless since you get food as well.

image

They have a really nice bar, and at around 9p.m, the place was filled with people having drinks. It definitely feels like a nice place to chat with friends over some drinks.

image

The place is basically separated so one side is where you eat, and the other half of the place is where the art happens! At first we thought that there weren’t that many easels, but they actually have a lot! It gets a little tight, so if you want lots of space, then I would suggest going earlier or on a weekday night.

image

I love how the wooden tables and brick walls give the place such an artsy feel to it! Along with the gorgeous paintings on the wall, you can’t help but feel inspired to paint!

image

The place actually has a decent amount of seats too. Seats for smaller and larger groups as well. The dim lighting totally works in this setting.

image

Blue – Sake, alize bleu, ginger ale, ginger

K got a mixed cocktail called Blue. Pretty nice!

image

Karmellet Tripel (Belgium) – abbeys

E got the Karmellet Tripel, which he said wasn’t too bitter. It was recommended by the guy, who we think may be the owner. He was extremely nice and professional. Awesome service!

image

Peach Italissima Nectar

For myself, I was not feeling like alcohol, so I chose the Peach Italissima Nectar. I really had no idea what it was, but it came in a tiny little bottle.

image

Then you pour it into a glass with ice, and it is actually pretty good! It’s a little thick, but the ice helps to liquify it. Not bad, and it actually was decent with the meat.

image

Water comes in a Raw Canvas glass bottle, which they reuse. It’s pretty neat though. You want to check your glasses beforehand though, because some of them have paint on them since people can take their drinks with them when they go paint. The servers were observant enough to let us know and quickly change them though.

image

Freshly Baked French Baguette

At first, we thought that we would not get full at all, since we’re really just eating meat… but we were wrong! For the 3 of us, they served us two large bowls of Baked French Baguettes. And we were totally full after our  meal! I guess the bread really fills you up.

image

Charcuterie Tasting Plate, served with freshly baked french baguette: Provence Saucisson Sec southern French sausage flavoured with pastis, Pheasant and Pistachio Terrine made in Quebec by maison du gibler, Czech Beer Salami classic Czech style salami flavoured with beer

Accompaniments:Stoneground Mustard, Fire Roasted Tomatoes, Cornichons

All 3 of us got the Charcuterie Tasting Plate, which is basically a plate with 3 types of meat and 3 accompaniments. On the far left, there was the Provence Saucisson Sec. This was basically a sausage, and was my favourite. It was soft and tasted great with the stoneground mustard. In the middle, was the Pheasant and Pistachio Terrine. This was probably my least favourite. It might’ve been the pistachio flavour that threw it off for me. Lastly, on the right was the Czech Beer Salami. Although it was lightly sliced, it was very chewy and hard. It was also extremely strong in pork, but salami is made of pork! They gave a fair amount of the salami, and it was easy to place on the bread.

For the accompaniments, it came with the Stoneground Mustard, which was my favourite! It’s basically mustard seeds that are grounded and made into a paste. It’s definitely strong in mustard flavour, and I could just spread it on the bread and I would be completely happy. So delicious! In the middle, we had the Fire Roasted Tomatoes, which were also really delicious. This can just be put on the bread and there was tons of flavour. And lastly, on the right, were the Cornichons, which are basically pickled cucumbers and are popular in Europe. I’m not a big fan of pickles, but these ones were surprisingly not too sour. I didn’t finish all of them, but they were nice to have in between all the meat.

image

Gelato and Port – Vanilla Bean Gelato with Sweet Portuguese Wine

For dessert, the item was Gelato and Port. It was a huge scoop of Vanilla Bean Gelato, and you could see the black specks so you knew it wasn’t just vanilla extract. It was served with a glass of sweet Portuguese wine, which when you smell it, smells quite strong in alcohol. I thought it was brandy or whiskey at first, but the server explained that it was a sweet wine. I poured around half the flask in, and it was already plenty to have a taste of alcohol in it. Definitely brings out the sweetness and was a great pairing to the gelato.image

After you finish dessert, they ask you if you’re ready to go paint! They don’t push you to, and you can take your time to talk some more if you want to. But of course we were ready to go paint! They provide you with a smock so you can totally get into your artsy spirit. They also have a long wall of paints, and you just squeeze them out onto you palette board. I wish I got a picture of that, because it looks really neat! Then, you go ahead and get all artsy! They also have an artist there to look after you in case you have questions, or need some help getting inspired. And honestly, you don’t need to be an amazing artist to paint. Everyone was just having fun and bringing out their creativity!

So overall, Raw Canvas is an awesome place whether you know how to paint or not. It’s definitely a place to go once in your lifetime, whether it be on a date, to celebrate or to find a place to have food, drinks, and art! It may get quite expensive if you go on their regular nights, but it is something that everyone should try. Instead of having a typical movie night, why not go painting?

Raw Canvas on Urbanspoon

Oru (Fairmont Pacific Rim)

image

Dine Out Vancouver 2013 is about to end soon! 😦 I’m sad since I wish I had tried out more places, but that also means my bank account is going to hurt! For those of you who don’t know about Dine Out Vancouver, it’s basically 200+ restaurants offering set menus that range from $18, $28, to $38. They are usually pretty good deals, but occasionally there are ones where you are paying for basically what you would if you ordered off the regular menu.

Anyways, this year, I decided to try out Oru. I really had not heard much about it, but I had a look at the menu, and it seemed like food I would want. Oru is located inside the Fairmont Pacific Rim, and it is absolutely gorgeous! When you walk through the hotel doors, you are at their lobby and when you continue walking, you see this clean bright white area and stairs leading up to Oru.

image

Oru has two sides to their restaurant. One side is more of a lounge, where people are mostly drinking. I love the red couches against the white walls. Such a nice contrast! There’s also a mini bar on one side.

image

They have an open kitchen, where you can basically see all the chefs working. Pretty neat if you sit close to them, but our table was pretty far from the kitchen. I also love how the kitchen area is all white. So classy looking.

image

Oru is supposed to be a Pan Pacific Asian fusion restaurant, so they actually serve sushi and such in their menu. I guess that’s why they also have chopsticks on their table. Orange chopsticks to be exact.

image

This is the view we had for our table. Not an ocean view, since we sat by the window that just overlooks the new convention centre. Still pretty nice though.

image

ORU Salad – sunflower seed butter, quinoa, organic greens, pea shoots, lemongrass dressing

My parents got the ORU Salad, which we stared at for quite a while. We realized that the cabage was literally still fully attached. So you really had to use your knifes and fork to eat this. That also means that they had to buy a cabbage for each dish they made! All fancy huh… Underneath the leaves were quinoa, and on the top, it was topped with sunflower seeds. I took a bite, and it was pretty good. The lemongrass dressing gave it a nice zest.

image

Yarrow Meadows Duck and Rabbit Terrine – pickled mustard seeds, radish and fennel salad

E had the Yarrow Meadows Duck and Rabbit Terrine. I didn’t try it but he said it was pretty good. Definitely a dainty piece on the large plate though.

image

Roasted Sunchoke “Mocha” – sunchoke veloute, truffled milk foam, morel cocoa powder

For myself, I had the Roasted Sunchoke “Mocha”. To be honest, I didn’t really know what a veloute was, so I did some quick googling beforehand, and it’s basically a soup. There was some cocoa powder on the top, but I didn’t really taste it. The truffled milk foam however, was powerful, but worked well with the soup. It had an interesting consistency, and was something I hadn’t tried before. Was it something I loved though? Not exactly, but I wouldn’t mind it.

image

PEI Coldwater Lobster – cold water lobster, isreali cous cous, coconut butter sauce

K had the PEI Coldwater Lobster. I didn’t try it, but apparently it was quite bland. You definitely cannot compare this to how Chinese restaurants prepare lobster. This was definitely just lobster with some butter sauce to go with. She did however mention that the lobster was a little overcooked, so it was a little tough.

image

Angus Reserve Beef Tenderloin – wild mushrooms, house cured bacon, confit fingerling potato, jus

I was debating between the lobster or the beef tenderloin, and am I ever happy that I ordered the Angus Reserve Beef Tenderloin! At first, I thought the portions would be small, because they usually are at fancy restaurants, but I was totally wrong. Medium-rare prepared, the piece of beef tenderloin was huge, and it was the most tender beef tenderloin I’ve ever had!! You still had to chew on it, but there was no fuss in cutting up the pieces, and it was just oh so tender!!! The sides were slightly crispy, and the meat inside was juicy and full of flavour. The sauce underneath was also delicious. It as a mixture of wild mushrooms, bacon, and potatoes. And I literally finished every bit of the dish. Everything just worked so well together, and I would definitely recommend this. This dish is on their regular menu too, and for $38, so it was definitely a steal for dine out, since you basically get the appetizer and dessert for free. But if I were to come to Oru again, I would highly recommend getting the Beef Tenderloin. So worth your money!

image

Chocolate Mousse Trifle – single-origin Mexican chocolate, candied banana, coconut foam

Everyone at my table opted for the Chocolate Mousse Trifle. It was presently beautifully like an art piece. The top of the chocolate mousse was a hard chocolate shell. This is definitely for the chocolate lovers. I liked how they had some candied bananas on the side, so you weren’t too overwhelmed with the chocolate flavour, and the banana flavour works well with it.

image

Lemon Tart – vanilla syrup, meringue crisp, crème fraiche Chantilly

I wanted to try something different, but I didn’t want their third option, which was cheese, so I got the Lemon Tart. The waitress said that was her favourite, so why not! I’m normally not a big fan of lemon tarts, because they can sometimes be too sour and tarty. However, this one was delicious. It was almost like a lemon creme brulee. It had some sugar on the top that was burnt and the lemon filling was smooth and creamy. I also enjoyed the meringue crisps at the top. Everyone at the table got a bite and said that it was surprisingly good. And best of all, it wasn’t super sweet!

Overall, I was extremely pleased with the Dine Out menu for Oru. I can’t comment on how the food is normally, but their food seemed to be consistent. Oh, and I cannot stress how much I loved the Angus Reserve Beef Tenderloin! Beautiful place with great views as well. Servers weren’t annoying and gave us enough space to eat, while occasionally checking up on us.

Oru at Fairmont Pacific Rim on Urbanspoon