Showing posts with label elk. Show all posts
Showing posts with label elk. Show all posts

Boom & Batten Restaurant & Cafe (Victoria)


British Columbia’s hospitality industry mints trendy resto bars. You know, the restaurants that occupy a lot of space so there is a large bar, plenty of seating for tables of various sizes, often a patio area, and soaring ceilings so you feel it’s size, but with warm tones and lighting so it feels casual as well. Some restaurants have become chains that have scaled across Canada, such as Joey’s and Cactus Club, and I bet Boom and Batten may join the club.

Located by the harbour in a luxurious residential neighbourhood, Boom and Batten’s cosmopolitan vibe could almost seem out of place. As the well-heeled crowds of Victoria make their way into the restaurant on a weeknight, the place is busy and seemingly draws all age groups and occasions.

Their menu is extensive and includes a multitude of shareables that will entice even those who are just there for drinks to sample one nibble. The elk carpaccio ($17) is a lighter choice with paper thin slices of lean meat (don’t worry, it’s not gamey) that’s topped with black garlic aioli, puffed rice, and what seems like a lot of mustard seed but works. Eat the carpaccio on its own or on top of the lavash crackers, both create a great snack. 


The meatballs ($16) and spicy clams ($16) both incorporated a lovely sauce that had us reaching for the grilled sourdough to sop up. While the pork and beef meatballs were large, they broke apart easily and were wonderfully tender and delicate. I thoroughly enjoyed the smoked tomato butter and romesco sauce that covered the spicy clams but found that they could up the chili peppers as its heat just began to tickle the tongue. 


It wouldn’t be a B.C. resto bar without pizza; Boom & Batten showcases their pizza oven prominently at the front of the restaurant where we watched the chef prepare pie after pie as we waited for our reserved table. The show enticed me to try the prosciutto pizza ($23), which oddly uses a cream sauce as its base yet, when combined with roasted pear and truffle honey creates a sweet and sticky element against the cured ham and peppery arugula. This pizza is made for sharing as it’s also fairly heavy. 


Of course, trendy restaurants also need to feature local ingredients and the wild sockeye salmon ($36) was a good dish. While the fish appeared to be overdone upon arrival, it was nonetheless moist and flaky. The dish could have done without the rye crisps as it already included blocks of crispy potatoes that could rival McDonald’s hash browns any day. Instead, it would have been nice if the main had another vegetable, other than just roasted beets, to balance out the meal better. 


Boom & Batten’s atmosphere and our unexpected seating in their private dining room was likely why we had to stay for dessert. Truthfully, I didn’t need a bite of their chocolate bar ($14). By this point, I was stuffed to the gills, and we were carrying out half the pizza. However, if you’re a chocolate fan (I’m not), you’ll love their decadent deconstructed version incorporating a mound of crunchy hazelnuts, a wedge of silky chocolate mousse and malt chocolate caramel, and some ice cream, because why not? 


In fact, there’s something about B.C.’s resto bars that makes me think, why not? Dishes are enticing yet not overly fussy, price points are reasonable, and as you look over to other tables you want stay and enjoy the moment a bit longer. It almost conjures up images of old Keg commercials where people are laughing, women alluringly toss their hair back, and wine glasses are raised at the table. Boom & Batten, when you make your way to Ontario and need someone to feature in your ads, give me a call. I’ll take wine and meat balls as payment.   

Overall mark - 8 out of 10


How To Find Them
 Location: Victoria, Canada
 Address: 2 Paul Kane Place


Follow me on twitter to chat, be notified about new posts and more - https://twitter.com/GastroWorldBlog
____________________________
Gastro World's Grading System

  • Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
  • 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
  • 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
  • 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
  • 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
  • 10 - absolute perfection!


Is That It? I Want More!

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Celebrating National Rum Day at Miss Things


If rum conjures up images of overly sweet slushy drinks at an all-inclusive or a particularly messy night in university, Miss Things and Flor de Caña aims to change that perception. During National Rum Day, the two combined to host a dinner and rum pairing ($65 per person), showcasing the popular spirit in a more refined light. Prices are provided on dishes offered on Miss Thing’s normal menu.

After a day working, the rum punch was a warm welcome and the first hints that Miss Things’ cocktails are something else. Sure the punch incorporated the traditional rum and juice, but the splash of ginger beer added such a great kick of flavour and the mint, when infused into the drink, mellowed it out.  


As the crab toast motoyaki ($8) appeared, its rich creamy seafood aroma preceded the dish. Sitting on a well toasted sourdough crostini was plenty of warm crab meat mixed into a buttery lobster hollandaise. A delicious way to begin the meal and a starter to try if you enjoy lobster rolls.


Chef Jasper Wu’s Pan Asian creations incorporates fresh fruits with a host of other ingredients, to give dishes an interesting twist. Two fruit salads served that evening had varying love-or-hate elements, but were nonetheless different from the generic green salads.

The watermelon salad ($12) takes the fruit and compresses it with a bit of lime. Then comes plethora of flavours with a briny spicy XO sauce, mint, shallots, cotija cheese and deep fried burdock root chips for crunch. Having had something similar before, the fishiness from the XO sauce was a bit too much. Also, I  prefer the watermelon in its natural state, as I found pressing it with the lime juice gave the fruit the soggy texture and slightly off flavour of watermelon that’s been sitting around in a fruit salad for too long.


Meanwhile, the pineapple jicama salad ($12) was a hit, also having a sweet and savoury twist but in a balanced manner. The thin slices of sweet pineapple and crunchy jicama slivers were so refreshing, and you could customize how much of the spicy peanut satay sauce to mix into the fruit. Normally, I’m not a fan of savoury dishes incorporating roasted peanuts, but in this case, it worked with the salad and the crispy rice noodles crowning it.


The intricately put together mosaic of thinly sliced octopus in the carpaccio was beautiful. Having been lightly grilled, it wasn’t raw and retained a light sweetness. Under the seafood were piles of soft beluga lentils and crisp pineapple salsa, both worked nicely with the tender octopus. Around the plate, a shrimp paste vinaigrette and squid ink salt, to add even more of a seafood essence – I scooped up every bit of the condiments.


Our main, an espresso rubbed elk loin, was a swift change from the otherwise tropical dishes previously served. For such a lean cut of meat, I was pleasantly surprised by how tender and juicy it remained. The rich foie gras sauce and chanterelle jus were fantastic, both strong but complimenting flavours. With the crisp asparagus, roasted Jerusalem artichokes and meaty chanterelles, the dish had a French flair and was a satisfying ending.


Throughout the meal, progressively aged shots of Flor de Caña rum were presented. As we moved from the light and fruity 5-year old to the slightly richer 7-year old, the rum’s harshness mellowed out a bit and had a sweeter finish. Then we sampled a “sipping” rum, the 12-year old is meant to be enjoyed plain, although still strong it had a pronounced molasses taste without the sweetness.  

Karen Moodie, ambassador for Flor de Caña, explains what sets this Nicaragua rum apart: aside from the long periods of aging in barrels, they won’t add anything after the barreling period (where natural evaporation occurs) so you’re able to sample the true aged product. Moreover, they are a vertically integrated company owning everything from the sugar cane fields to the bottling facility – they essentially control the quality at every step of production. Due to these factors, their rums have been awarded numerous accolades amongst the World Spirits community.

Still a newbie to the sipping spirits category, the evening was a great palette developing experience. I’ll be honest, even with the sipping rum, the drink still had a kick to it… the finish not unlike what you’d find in scotch and whiskey. But as you taste them side-by-side, the small nuances start to peek through – slightly smoother and the flavours turning richer.  

Sadly, due to an early morning meeting, I wasn’t able to stay for the grand finale: a chocolate banana mousse paired with 18 and 25-year old rums! One can only imagine how nicely the spirits would pair with a sweet dish incorporating the same banana flavours infused into the rums since their leaves line the barrels. Oh well, until next National Rum Day. Thank you Miss Things and Flor de Caña for a delicious development experience!

Overall mark - 7 out of 10
Disclaimer: The above meal was complimentary. Rest assured, as noted in my mission statement, I will always provide an honest opinion.


How To Find Them
 Location: Toronto, Canada
 Address: 1279 Queen Street West

Follow me on twitter to chat, be notified about new posts and more - https://twitter.com/GastroWorldBlog
____________________________
Gastro World's Grading System

  • Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
  • 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
  • 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
  • 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
  • 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
  • 10 - absolute perfection!


Miss Thing's Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato