Friday, April 29th - Shore Club - Anniversary Dinner

Key Lime Pie - Shore Club

Let me be clear, I am not a royal watcher.  I selected our day purely based on availability of venues.  I had entirely forgotten or was thankfully oblivious to the fact that it was Prince William's birthday.  When I lived in England, there'd be random fireworks on the day but I ascribed them to nothing in particular, except when he turned 25.  There was a bit of a to-do.  Anyhoo, that was a while ago.

Suffice it to say I was less that thrilled to find that 'the couple' had announced their nuptuals on the same day as ours, April 29th.  Well ours was not this year but 'our day' nonetheless.  I mean, how lame is that, Wills picks his birthday as his wedding day?  Seriously, like he's not going to have a full army of staff to remind him of his wedding anniversary?   So trust me when I say, we did not get up at the crack of dawn to watch the wedding.  To this day, over a month later, I have not seen but clips of the wedding from the news.

I hadn't originally planned on being able to escape to celebrate since my parents were in town and we've been shackled to the house.  They offered to stay home with T so we could go out.  Hoorah!  We started the evening out at home with a toast with a nice bottle of Champagne that D had saved from our Korean Tea Ceremony. MMMMM

Crusty Fresh Bread

D chose the Shore Club after we looked through the menus of a few new and buzzy places in town.  We wanted to make the most of our liberty and this special night.  We were going to try Oru, this new Pan Asian place in the Fairmont but after a week with my parents, I was not in the mood for fancy Asian.  D thought Shore Club was a good compromise for our respective diets.  I'd been for drinks a few times but never for food and had always thought it had a clubby feel, so was rather surprised to find the wonderfully chic decor upstairs in the dining room.

D had called ahead to mention it was our anniversary so I was touched when the hostess offered us her well wishes as did our server. The dining room is on the second floor of a New York style lofty bar/resto.  There was live jazz playing below in view.  It was a cozy yet chic feel.   We felt secluded in such a big room which is rare.

The menu is a 'surf and turf' concept.  They are well known for their steaks which is what D was looking forward to.   I started off with an intriguing starter of Steamed Black Bean Clams.  I didn't want it to be super asiany and the server assured me it was not and I do love fresh clams.  D ordered the Prawn and Scallop Ceviche.  The two dishes couldn't have been more different and both wonderful.

Steamed Black Bean Clams - Shore Club

Prawn and Scallop Citrus Ceviche - Shore Club

I had anticipated a small bowl of steamed clams and instead received a heaping steamer pot of Clams much like you might have when you order Mussels.  They were in a light yet flavourful Black Bean broth.  The Black Beans were subtle and not too salty and definitely did not detract from the Clams.  When I was ordering, I had asked the server which I'd prefer, the Crab Cake or the Clams.  He admitted that though the Crab Cake was delicious, they were small compared to the Clams... as crabcakes are.  I would definitely order those Clams again and try to make them at home. D's Ceviche was a more classic and showy presentation.  That is not to say it wasn't delicious.  The Citrus and Cilantro set off the seafood well.  The Scallops were not at all 'fishy' as Scallop Ceviche can be when done with inferior fish or imbalanced marinade. 

Bone In Rib Steak - Shore Club Vancouver

Macadamia Crusted Halibut - Shore Club

The Mains concept is like a traditional steakhouse where you order your protein and your sides separately in family style.  We ordered the Scalloped Potatoes and Sauteed Baby Beets.  As a protein, I had the Macadamia Crusted Halibut and D ordered the Bone In Rib Steak.  The Scalloped Potatoes were lovely, slightly soft in the middle and the top could have been crustier but delicious and rich.  The Baby Beets were not Baby Beets and that might be my only real complaint.  We were not told in advance that they'd be full sized Beets cut up.  Not quite the same for me.  That said, they were perfectly cooked and we did finish the lot.  My Halibut was perfectly cooked.  Just cooked through without a trace of dry with a lovely Beurre Blanc that didn't overly coat or cloy.  D's steak was generous and tender.  Cooked just as he had ordered. 

Scalloped Potatoes - Shore Club

Sauteed "Baby" Beets - Shore Club

We weren't sure about dessert but decided we were celebrating so I caved in and had the Key Lime Pie and D had the Sorbet.  My pie came with Congratulations written in Ganache on the plate....which we promptly swiped up :^).  The pie was delicious, not too tart nor sweet.

Sorbet - Shore Club

Overall, thoroughly enjoyed my evening. Would return on any evening for their food and SERVICE!

Cost: $$$$
Ambiance: NYC chic (event rooms available)
Service: Thoughtful, attentive and professional
Wine list: Well balanced

Shore Club

688 Dunsmuir St
Vancouver, BC V6B
Downtown
www.theshoreclub.ca
(604) 899-4400

.