Memphis Blues (Commercial) - Sooooo Meaty!

Memphis Blues Pulled Pork and Sausage Double Meat Sandwich

We like to buy our groceries on Commercial when we have the time and a big shop to do.  The prices are significantly better than Granville Island and more diverse.  That said, the quality (like on Granville Island) can be spotty.  Alot of the shops buy what I believe are 'seconds' from the supermarkets.  Some, I suspect, get 'fourths'.  Those are the ones to avoid like Triple A.  Blech.  But we tend to eat our veg right away and we know which shops get the better end of the range like Stanley's and  Santa Barbara.  We were picking up a few things at Santa Barbara when D noticed a sign for a Double Meat Special on the sandwich board of the Memphis Blues next door.

After sidestepping the drool on the sidewalk, D lured me in with promises of their fries which are yum.  Memphis Blues is an institution here in Vancouver.  When I first moved here, I met some new friends playing Ultimate Frisbee and they were obsessed with the place.  I had originally thought it was a guy thing.  Not so.  I even had to attend a work BBQ catered by Memphis Blues.  Alas, I only partook of the awesome Slaw, Fries and Cornbread.  There isn't much to the restaurant.  It looks like a cottage town shack.  The tables are wooden picnic tables and the sauces and brown paper towels are on all the tables already.  You serve yourself your beverage and the people are friendly.  I guess it's easy to be when everyone is happy to be there.

There isn't much more to the sandwich than the title would suggest.  It was a heaping portion of their famous, moist (as attested to by D, not I) Pulled Pork and joined by a large Smoked Sausage.  D thoroughly enjoyed it and after posting photos to my family, my sister O and dad wanted to hop on a plane.  Actually, I believe we were there on a Monday.  Monday is there all you can eat Rib day.  I asked D if it were worth it because it seemed like an awesome deal  to me but I don't partake.  D reckoned that it worked out to about a full back so not  really.  He happily had his double meat instead.

Memphis Blues Fries

The fries are fresh though a tad salty. 

Cost: $
Ambiance: Roadside shack
Baby friendly: didn't change T but area is tight for a stroller but easy for baby to hang out.

Memphis Blues Barbeque House (Commercial)

(604) 215-2599
1342 Commercial Dr
Vancouver, BC V5L
http://memphisbluesbbq.com

Sunday, September 19th - Green Chile with Cannellini Beans and..... chicken

Green Chile with Cannellini Beans with Chicken

Regular readers and friend will know that the only 'meat' I eat is seafood and you will know I choose to do that for purely aesthetic reasons, meaning for the taste.  Frankly, while there may be 1 or 2 dishes in the world, I might eat, it is simply easier to not than explain to whomever, why I won't eat chicken they way THEY DO IT.  Can you imagine explaining that to mom?  or your boss?  Plus it hijacks any possibility of conversation at dinner from any other topic if that were to come up. Boring.

Anyhoo, last year, I gave D small window, no, transom of an opportunity.  Convince me otherwise.  But only once a quarter max.  so far he's only taken advantage of it once it didn't work out so much.  What he didn't understand was that I don't like meat because I don't like the taste or the texture.  He was taking this from the typical male, conquerer approach of I will change your mind.  Wrong.  It's not that I was being stubborn but you don't open with the hard stuff.  He made what I am sure was a stellar of Braised Filet or some large, tender hunk of meat on a bed of Chiarello's cream-ariffic, Polenta.  To even swallow the tinies tidbit of the beef I had to take a huge scoop of the Polenta.  Then there was the 'tendons' or whatever you call the webbing material between the strands of protein.  It just wasn't working for me.  He said I didn't know what I was talking about.  I said, he didn't understand the challenge.  You don't try to recruit someone to the Conservative party by taking them to a gunshow.

I think he got the idea this time.  When I used to eat meat when it was Korean only, really or cooked by a Korean.  What does that mean?  It is heavily sauced.  It is heavily flavoured.  It is always well done.  The actual taste of the meat is not a part of the equation.  The quality is but not the actualy aroma of the animal itself.  For the Chili he chose, that he has made many times, he made further adjustments for me.  The recipe is a classic growth one.  There are scribbles, notes, strikeouts, edits all over it.  He'll had to add new ones in green ink indicating the steps needed to cook it for the likes of me.  1. Choose a lean piece of Chicken.  The fat as most of the Chickeny flavour.  2. Remove the skin.  Same reason as number 1.  3. Drain any fat from the cooking of the chicken.  Same reason as number 1.  4. Use lots of other strong flavours.

It was nice.  Dom also cut the chicken up quite small so I wouldn't be hit with any big hunks.  As well, when he served, he purposefully avoided giving me too much meat.  Easing me into the tub this time.  I had to add a dash of Green Salsa though.  I wouldn't add red because it clashes or rather bullies the Chile.  I think the Green Onions as a garnish are a mush.

Green Chile with Cannellini Beans and... chicken

6 Anaheim Chiles
1-2 T Peanut Oil
2 lbs Skinless Chiken Thighs
2 c Onion, chopped
4 cloves Garlic, minced
4 c Vegetable Broth (or half Vegetable half Chicken Broths)
1/2 c Water
1 1/2 t ground Cumin
1 t Coriander Seeds, crushed
1 t fresh Oregano, chopped
2 15 oz cans Cannellini Beans, drained
3 T Flour
1 t Salt
1/4 c Shredded Cheddar or Jack
Lime slices when serving
Cilantro leaves and Green Onion, chopped as garnish

Turn your BBQ or broiler on high. Place on the BBQ or under the broiler whole.  You want to close the lid or door.  Turn after a few minutes after it is charred, black.  Keep turning until it's black all over.

Place in a bowl and cover with foil and set aside to steam for 15 minutes.  Then the charred skin will lift/rub off with your hands.  It's best to do this over a sink.

Get rid of the stems and tough core bit.  Chop up and set aside.  D kept the seeds for a bit of heat.  Heat with Anaheims is a bit hit and miss.  Normally they're as mild as Bell Peppers.  They look like elongated bell peppers but a pale Green hue.  They do have a different flavour so substituting Bell Peppers won't quite work.

In a Dutch Oven / Creuset or large heavy bottom pot, heat some Peanut Oil.  Brown on all sides.  5 minutes on each side.  Remove from heat and let cool slightly or if you have asbestos fingers, chop up or tear up into small pieces.  Drain the Dutch Oven.  You don't have to but with the goal in mind, D wanted to remove as much offensive, gaminess from the equation.  He's heard me say time and time again, that it is the fat that holds the flavour that turns me off.  So he got rid of all the Chicken fat and then heated more Peanut Oil.

Sautee the Onions, Garlic and the Chicken pieces until the Onion is browned, 5 minutes.  Add the Broth, Herbs and Spices and bring to a Boil and immediately reduce to a simmer.  Let simmer for 20 minutes.  Add the Chiles and Beans.

Whisk the Flour and Water.  While stirring the Dutch Oven, drizzle in the flour slurry.  Let simmer for at least another 20 minutes. 

Serve in a nice deep bowl over rice or Quinoa, top with a couple T of Cheese, Cilantro and Green Onion.

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Saturday, Sep 18th - West Restaurant - Elegant West Coast Table

Amuse Bouche - Carbonated Heirloom Cherry Tomato with Olive Oil Powder

How is it that I have lived in Vancouver for over three years now and I have never eaten at West?  Even stranger is the fact that I assumed it was in Kits.  I don't know why.  I think I had even concocted an image of where I thought it was.  I was quite placed to see that the seafood dishes were unadulterated with Bacon or other meating accoutrements and if they were, the server indicated that adjustments could be made, unlike a certain Gastown establishment who claims to love you....and starts with the letter B. :^)

It is a warm and elegant setting though it is quite a large seating area.  Very neutral, unimposing and forgettable decor.  That is actually meant to be a compliment.  The design was pleasant and not worth noting because it was simply meant to frame the food.  If I leave a place and all I can remember is the heavy wallpaper or light fixtures, there is something amiss.

I was pleased to see that in addition to the Seafood and Beefy Tasting menu, they offered a Vegetarian option.  It was not in the main menu, odd.   You have to request it.  Actually, I do not know that I would have known if I hadn't visited their website beforehand.  It is Ovo Lacto and not Vegan.

Unlike, other tasting menu's I have seen, I would say that the portions per course were not reduced in size.  I had five courses to D's three and noting his portions, and they were certainly on par.  So be prepared.

We ordered a Domaine de Beaurenard Châteauneuf du Pape 2007

Domaine de Beaurenard Chateauneuf du Pape 2007

Dinner starts with a very intriguing amuse bouche.  It was a chilled, peeled heirloom Cherry Tomato dusted with Olive Oil Powder.  What was most unusual about it was the fact that it had somehow been infused with carbonisation.  It sparkled on the tongue.  Amazing.  I could have had a whole salad of them.

My starter was a Goat Cheese and Burnt Onion Crepe, Okanagan Peach, a touch of Coffee and Hazelnut Emulsion and topped with a Porcini Tuile.  The crepe was served as a roulade with the creamy Goat Cheese.  It was a cold starter.  I quite enoyed it but I did find the temperature a tad strange.  When I say cold, I do not mean that it was not warm, it was ice box cold.  Though that was fine for the cheese, it was not the ideal temperature for the crepes.  Still, very pleasant.

D went on a meatastic meal selection.  His starter was the Sweet Breads and Beef Tongue.  Deep breaths.  D offered me a taste.  Hmmm.  He insisted that they were exceptionally mild and very tender.  Since the glands and at times, brains, are pretty much fat free, the gaminess is removed.  It had a texture not too disimilar to Fois Gras, not the best way to draw me in D.  I have said that I am a taste based Vegetarian/Pescotarian with the exception of some dishes which I mentally cannot 'digest'.  Those mostly fall into the category of Offal.  The irony of the homonym cousin of that word always seemed very appropriate to me.  The Beef Tongue was sliced paper thin.  D quite liked the dish.  Oddly enough for a French Canadian, that was his first go at Sweet Breads.

Goat Cheese Crepe with Porcini Tuile

My second was lovely warm Potato and Roasted Garlic and Leek Soup.  Now contrasting the first course, this was a bit of a switch as a warm soup. It was gentle hug of warm, not piping hot.  Very smooth and velty yet not suffocating in richness.

Crispy Poached Egg Summer Corn Succotash

My third course was the odd man out in the flow of the set meal.  The other pieces have the commonality of texture and balanced richness and then there is succotash.  Strange.  I can only assume they needed to fill out the menu and this was the best price fit?  I dunno.  So on the dish alone, I would say it was nice.  It probably had a better fit on a breakfast or brunch plate.  It was a soft Poached Egg breaded in Panko Crumbs served with a Summer Corn Succotash topped with a Coriander Hollandaise.  Strange thing was that the Egg was not poached in the traditional sense.  They cooked it Sous Vide, in Shell, then breaded and quickly fried to crisp it up.  Strictly speaking, I would call that a soft boiled egg.  One very interesting difference was that with this cooking method, the egg was evenly cooked throughout unlike when you softboil an egg.  The Succotash was fresh and bright and the Hollandaise was light.

Smoked Ricotta and Artichoke Agnolotti

My main was a Agnolotti with Artichoke and housemade Smoked Ricotta, topped with Fennel, Orange, and Parmesan. The fresh pasta was very good and really nicely cooked.  The Smoked Ricotta was wonderful.  I need to figure out how to do that or buy that.  The only sad point on this dish was that someone got out of hand with the Fennel Seeds.  They were whole toasted Fennel Seeds so they added an unnecessary course texture and a very strong distraction.  Once I set them aside, the dish was much nicer.

Pork Jowls with Carmelised Apricot Risotto

D had the the Snake River Farm Kurobuta Roasted Pork Jowls aka Cheeks. It was served with Carmelised Apriocot Risotto, Kale and a Fruit Chutney. The glaze on the pork was a tad to sweet for his taste though really well cooked. It is a lament of D's that Pork is always sweet glazed.

As part of my, set menu I had a pre-dessert and they were nice enough to give us both one.  It was a Berry Sorbet.  It was a pure block of sugar.  Neither of us finished it.

My set dessert was a Dark Chocolate Bourbon Pot de Creme.  It was pleasant.

The star postre was the cheeses we ordered.  We had the Manchego, Quebec Brie and Poplar Grove Tiger Blue.  The cheeses are served with fruit, toasted Walnut bread and what I think was quince jelly.  The Quebecois Brie was spectacular.  Brie and soft cheeses here are not as punchy with the pasturised milk but this one did not hold back.  The salty Manchego was a nice balance to the creamy soft brie.  The Tiger Blue has been one of my favourite cheeses for a while.  It is a VERY strong blue cheese and is not for everyone.  If you like strong blue cheese, I insist you try this one.

The overdose of Fennel Seeds aside, I enjoyed my meal.  The only downside of the whole evening was the insanely loud, woman sat next to us.  Seriously.  She was speaking several dozen decibels over everyone else.  I could hear her more clearly than D.  I could sense by the muted tones of her friend that she was rather embarassed.  Brutal.  If I wasn't already on course 2 by the time she was seated, I would have asked to be moved.

We finished dinner with a nice frothy Irish Coffee. MMMMM

Cost: $$$-$$$$
Ambience: subdued and warm
Staff: Attentive, knowledgeable and friendly
Wine list: stellar


West Restaurant
2881 Granville St
Vancouver, BC V6H
(604) 738-8938
http://www.westrestaurant.com/

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