Vancouver

Presently, I am 30. My birthday recently passed. Resistance was futile. Despite my mild dismay at having entered my fourth decade, I had a most excellent celebration. Actually, there were several installments of the birthday celebration but this entry documents only the first: my birthday dinner at Blue Water Café. After New Year's Day, we flew to Vancouver to eat. There are other things we did while there – walk around Stanley Park and Canada Place, ... window shop along Robson, coffee at innumerable and ubiquitous Starbucks – but the primary reason for the expedition was to eat good food. Therefore, I can't not mention at least one other meal we had while there that, though unrelated to things birthday, was excellent. I tried a few years ago to get into Bin 941, a tapas "parlour" on Davie, but it's such a wee, little boîte that I was never able to get in the door, much less a table. Of course, that only increases the desire to go: it must be great if it is always so crowded. So this time, our plan to meet Marc's friend Eva there in the early evening met with success. We didn't get a table but at least we got in the door and were able to grab three seats at the bar. Between us, we shared: Cinnamon chili rubbed Texas Flank Steak - maple syrup chipotle glaze, black pepper pommes frites, East West Crab Cakes - burnt orange chipotle sauce, charred baby bok choy, cucumber salsa, tobiko, Hand cut Yukon gold mountain pepper pommes frites and Mussels steamed with Garlic butter - roma tomato, herbs, white wine. Sadly, I can't recall the wine I had but I think it might have been the Catena Zapata, a Malbec from Argentina. Regardless, it was all divine and well worth sitting at the bar next to the door. After dinner, Eva drove us to one of her favourite dessert bars, True Confections on West Broadway. For 10 o'clock on the first Tuesday after New Year's, it was surprisingly busy. Though they are known for their cakes, I couldn't resist having a piece of what turned out to be a killer Three Berry Pie. But I digress. The actual birthday was celebrated at Blue Water Café in Yaletown. Marc picked out this place from several places short-listed on a restaurant site on the Interweb. We planned to go early in the evening so as to take advantage of their prix fixe menu, which would've been 3 courses for about $35.00. However, after arriving and reviewing the menu and (huge) wine list, everything looked way too good to miss. "Screw it, we'll order what we want". And WHAT A MEAL: we started with a couple of glasses of Champagne accompanied by two sweet Kusshi and two Deep Bay Chef's Creek fresh raw oysters. Then, for me, an appetizer of Duck Prosciutto on an Organic Beet and frisée salad with truffle-sherry vinaigrette, and for Marc, Baked Galliano Island Swimming Scallops with tomato-lemon fondue, capers and parsley. For an entrée, I had BC Sablefish baked in sake & miso, topped with benito flakes and served on octopus ravioli with xeres and Okanagan cherry sauce, and Marc had the Seared Ostrich. Between us, we had a bottle of white from Spain and Marc had to test a couple of glasses of red before deciding on a glass to go with his meal. Finally, we shared three cheeses for dessert- chèvre noir, some Clos de St. Ambrose from Québec, and some Fourme D'Ambert, a mild blue from France. All in all, it was an outstanding meal– exactly the present I wanted. I can't imagine a better way to have spent my birthday with my favourite partner in gluttony.