Soup

I've been researching soup packaging over the last few months, and we've decided to switch over our packaging to a 600 ml clear boilable bag. We'll start off with a few flavors to "test the waters". I think it is going to work great. It's a CFIA approved clear bag that is not made using BPA (BISPHENOL-A). Other advantages are that you can now heat the soups by simply placing the bag directly from the freezer and into a pot of boiling water and heat for 20-30 minutes. It can also be heated in the microwave, or it can be thawed and heated on the stove in a pot. It's going to be a big improvement for our customers.

Pork Terrine

I've been toying with the idea of making our own terrines at les amis. In case you are wondering...no, i don't think I can keep up production just using the grinder in the picture. However, old technology sometimes is more than adequate. I borrowed this grinder from Alice and it worked great. I tried the basic recipe out of a recently purchased cookbook Charcuterie: The Craft of Salting, Smoking, and Curing by Ruhlman and Polcyn. The recipe was straightforward. I didn't have any Italian parsley, but I did have some lovage that is growing like crazy in the yard. I added some Madagascar green peppercorns and I placed a seared pork tenderloin with Esplette pepper down the middle. It worked like a charm. I'll have to tweak it a tiny bit, but I think I'm on the right path. Alice has a few recipes she is going to share, and maybe I'll practice with those next.

Robiola a Tre Latti

Robiola a Tre latti is made from cow, sheep and goats milk. It has a sour richness that is simply delightful. Max McCalman describes it as "...very approachable and quite irresistible to the taste". This may be my new favourite cheese to pair with German Riesling. We're bringing it along to dinner tonight at friends to pair with a 1996 Huet sec (chenin blanc) and 2003 JJ Prum Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese. Works for me.

Pecorino with Truffles

I opened up an Italian aged pecorino with truffles today. The smell is so incredible. Thinking of it finely diced and mixed in with some steak tartar from Pied a Terre makes my mouth water...

Hastings Update

Meetings with the city were positive today. We now have approval to dedicate part of the main floor for cheese tasting events. That will be a real plus. The space should be able to seat 40-50 people.

I've had a few people asking me about vacancies in the area around our new spot on East Hastings over the last few weeks. It seems like people are starting to eye the area with long term business aspirations. What we need is a good butcher and a baker.

Best Cook Book Store

Our neighbor on 2nd avenue Barbara-Jo's Books to Cooks has been written up in this months Saveur magazine, where they are listed first in the section of the Worlds Best Cook Book Stores! It must feel great to be recognized like that.

Used Equipment

We scored big at the expense of another business today. A local company that specializes in home replacement meals closed it's doors after two years in business. All of their equipment was in excellent condition. It never experienced the wear and tear of a busy restaurant line. I'm glad I woke up early to take a chance and be there before anyone else, as everything sold in the first 30 minutes. We were able to secure commercial wire shelving, stainless steel tabling, some refrigerated prep tables, carts, an under counter dishwasher for the cheese cutting area (yay!), a robot coupe and lots of storage containers. We're going to need these items for when we start production at Hastings, so it doesn't hurt to get them at a better price now.

I bumped into another chef at the equipment sale who has purchased a building with a restaurant on East Hastings between Dunlevy and Gore. He plans on changing the restaurant into something with an Eastern European theme to it. He said he used to own a Ukrainian or Russian restaurant on Main Street.

Our final plans are ready to submit to the COV for approval. I'm glad we are not in a rush so we can take our time and do things right. We've got Russell Food Equipment on board to help with the design of the kitchen. They built our very first kitchen at 10th & Alma over 20 years ago. I'm sure they will help think of the things we haven't planned for. We still have the original Quest double oven at the 2nd avenue store. We've taken good care of it, and it has served us well. The dilemma with it being at 2nd ave is that we put it in the kitchen first because it is so big, then we built the walls around it. Russell/Quest is confidant that they can disassemble it and rebuild it on Hastings for a fraction of the price of what a new one would cost today, which is about $11,000. We've decided to go with electric steam kettles and tilting skillets in the kitchen. We've got loads of power, and the cost is substantially cheaper than the gas units. I can't wait to cook in those. They are great for making things like onion jam and red wine veal jus. I'm really looking forward to having an increased selection of prepared food items at the East Hastings location.