Summerlicious returns and this year I’ve narrowed my visits to only one place, Ēst Restaurant, that was recommended by a friend. They’ve been meaning to visit the casual French establishment and at last we had an opportunity and reason to get out to the East side.

Their Summerlicious menu ($75 per person) is at the highest price point, but still good value compared to normal prices (reflected in this post). For example, the burrata & caviar starter is typically $41, more than half of the special deal, which is surprising given its modest size.  

Hopefully, they usually give a full burrata as the palm-sized portion barely whet the appetite. Served on top of toasted pain-au-lait with a dollop of sturgeon caviar, the starter was a blend of flavours with the olive oil and honey. It’s good, but would I order it again for $40? Let’s just say I’m glad I experienced it with Summerlicious.

Unlike the burrata, they weren’t stingy with the lobster agnolotti ($39) with plenty of plump stuffed pasta to go around. The chopped lobster and ricotta (?) filling was wrapped in an al dante shell that went nicely with the light champagne butter sauce. Simply topped with chopped fermented garlic scapes and a yuzu foam, they complimented but didn’t overpower the seafood.

You can’t go wrong with the braised beef short rib ($51) a large hunk of tender beef sitting on silky pomme purée (or mashed potatoes for the English) swimming in a lovely red wine jus. It’s a classic for a reason, excellently executed at Ēst.

If you like chocolate, you’ll love the Ēst chocolate cake ($15), a rich dark chocolate dessert with sweet chocolate whipped cream and more warm chocolate sauce on the side. It’s A LOT but thankfully there’s a bit of vanilla gelato to help cut through it all.

At the other end of the spectrum, the piña colada sorbet ($15) was lighter with coconut sorbet topped with crispy coconut, pineapple, and nuts. It’s good, if you wanted to end on a more manageable note.

At the risk of sounding like Goldilocks, the crème brulee cheesecake was just right - a balanced sweetness with a creamy and not overly dense texture. The scoop of gelato didn’t hurt either. Of the three desserts, this was my favourite.

I’ll say it again; I commend restaurants that build their Summerlicious menu around dishes they normally serve. Ēst held true to the experience along with their friendly and unhurried service. Thank you for allowing diners to taste a typical meal at a deal. 

At first glance, dining at Aburi Hana reminded me of Tokyo. The restaurant’s entrance is tucked amongst an alleyway on Yorkville and situated downstairs in the basement. It was Tokyo all over again – locating the establishment after arriving at the address.

Yet, after checking in with the hostess, it felt like arriving at a spa. We were five minutes early, so they sat us in a small lounge playing tranquil music with a floral scent permeating the air. When we finally sat down at the “chef’s counter”, the L shaped dining area allowed us to see the kitchen but felt removed from the action. It’s the only chef’s counter where the chef didn’t even acknowledge the diners – not as a whole and definitely not intimately.

And so, we settle in for the 8-course tasting menu ($300 per person) and 6-drink pairing ($150 per person) as different staff come and went to present items. Everyone was polite and friendly but also seemed to be regurgitating a well rehearsed script. It’s felt oddly formal even as I tried cracking jokes with them.

Oh well, I’m here for the food. The meal starts with the lobster usuimame a piece of barely cooked lobster wrapped around a delicate fish paste that’s well… fishy. A swig of water helps dissipate the bad taste in my mouth as does drinking the silky sweet pea infused dashi at the bottom of the bowl. I even admire the cute bird carved from an heirloom carrot before popping it into my mouth and enjoying the sweetness.

The meal improves as the otoro and caviar sushi monaka is presented. The crispy mochi wafer is filled with a layer of well vinegared sushi rice and topped with tuna belly, pickled daikon, creamy dollops of uni (?), and of hefty teaspoon of caviar. Each bite is deliciously fresh and flavourful.

It’s then a glass of hot sake is poured for the lamb yuba, a cube of four-hour braised lamb belly topped with silky layers of yuba mixed with Japanese mustard. It’s a dish that goes well with the theme of the “early spring” menu: a reminder that sometimes in the spring, a hit of winter comes back, and you’ll want something hearty.

I’ve never liked flowers, but the maguro flower is one I’d love to get. The rose petals, made from two type of lean tuna, sit on a bed of grated radish. The tender aged tuna goes wonderfully with the thickened daikon soy and scallion oil that surrounds the plate. I can see why this is considered a timeless dish, beautiful to look at and a treat to eat.

Every restaurant seems to be doing the flash fried scale-on amadai. Don’t get me wrong, I love the dish and am not complaining, but it’s such a fan favourite that it’s gracing everyone’s menu. Aburi Hana creates an amadai cauliflower, where the tilefish is charbroiled then flash fried. We’re told that if we want a spoon to enjoy the dashi and cauliflower sauce at the end to just ask. I got it right at the beginning and was glad that I could have a spoon of the savoury sauce with every taste of the fish.

My heart went a flutter seeing the kamo akamiso containing two of my favourite ingredients – roasted duck and maitake mushroom – on one plate. While the fowl is a touch chewy, it’s nonetheless flavourful from being smoked and the skin having lovely crispiness. You really need a strong protein to hold up against the deep rich miso sauce, that gives the dish a savoury taste that’s balanced off by a sweet burst from the honey pearls. My only complaint is the wine pairing, which tasted off and was much too light for the dish.

Aburi Hana ends with what they think is their WOW dish, the wagyu uni. Essentially, a roll of sushi rice topped with tons of uni, wagyu, and black truffle shavings, I can see it’s an expensive dish. But expensive ingredients don’t always make for a delicious dish. Firstly, the seared on “just one side” wagyu needed blowtorching before serving as cold fatty beef is not for me. When something is so fat, I find it best served hot so the blubber melts. After all, bacon is also fat and does anyone want to eat raw bacon?

We’re then told it’s been cut into two to help us eat the roll. If that’s the case, it’d be even better cut into four for more manageable bites. Ever try to shove a Twinkie sized item wrapped with chewy meat and wispy shavings in your mouth? It isn’t pretty or easy. Alas, the dish was a lot of flash, but no wow.

If anything, what I enjoyed most was the shot glass of condensed Kyoto miso soup included as the chaser. The thick umami broth was tasty and special.

How the chocolate Japanese ginger dessert came to be Aburi Hana’s most “timeless” dessert is beyond me. Ultimately, it’s a fluffy flourless chocolate cake topped with ginger crème anglaise and cubes of poached pear. I like to think it’s Chef Nakagawa’s way of leaning into showcasing local Canadian ingredients but then am told that the chocolate comes from Madagascar. It was a weird ending for a kaiseki meal.

I much preferred the yuzu macaron and caramel tuille petit fours that ended the dinner. Certainly, more French than Japanese, but at least better than something I could have ordered at Moxies.   

As much as I’ve pointed out the flaws of some dishes, there were also some incredible ones in the meal (I would love to eat the monaka and maguro flower again). And while there was little chef interaction at the “Chef’s counter”, Aburi Hana offers attentive service – my water glass was never more than two inches empty; chopsticks were replaced if there’s even a drop of sauce left; and they even replaced the toothpick dish for my Manhattan just because it wasn’t shiny enough.

Prior to my meal at Minami, I did realize it was the sister restaurant of Miku. What I discovered that evening was that the restaurants were named after the daughters of the owner – is he the father-of-the-year or what?

While Miku is known for their flame-licking aburi creations, Minami’s inventiveness goes beyond the blowtorch and into how dishes are visually presented. We decided to see the restaurant in action with their Minami Shokai tasting menu ($150) and a premium sake flight ($35), which we hoped would sip well with all the food.

Slices of miso duck arrive laid on a slightly stale and hard puff pastry, which does little to add to the dish other than make it look more substantial. The duck breast, just cooked through, was a lovely balance of meat & fat and the miso just enough to give it flavour. It’s an interesting choice to start with such a strong protein, yet when paired with fruits helps lighten the dish.

Traditions are certainly thrown out the window as sushi comes before sashimi, six eye-catching pieces of it. The lovely creations take time to prepare, so the rice arrives too cold (and could benefit from more vinegar). I guess you don’t go to Minami for the rice, instead the gold leaf that caps the chu toro, a delicious and lovely show piece.

Personally, I prefer the simpler sushi: the bit of yuzu jelly and wasabi used with the kani helped bring out the crab’s natural flavours without too much fuss; and while the kinmedai was a bit chewy the fish was nonetheless refreshing against some of the heavier pieces.

Minami should consider blowtorching the wagyu tableside as it’s not the greatest cold and I’d skip the uni unless it’s a great quality as it added a slight metallic taste to the sushi. While sampling the surf and turf roll, all I could taste was orange and seaweed so sadly neither of the main elements really shone. Luckily, the bite of salmon maki helped end the dish on a higher note.

Their saikyo-miso sakekasu (try saying that three times fast) marinated sablefish was divine and I liked that other than a dollop of caviar they left the fish sauceless. I’d suggest having the fish first and leaving the “sides” until the end - the honey glazed endive goes nicely with the dish, while the way too oily shiso tempura does not.

You must love the presentation of the sashimi as the billowing dry ice flows around all the fish. Luckily, the seafood was fresh as well and the tuna always a lovely treat. Minami ever so briefly chars the cuttlefish before adding the pops of juicy roe and while this goes fine with soy sauce it would excel with a thicker sauce. Finally, I liked the fresh sweet spot prawn and their use of the entire shrimp as the deep-fried head was crispy as heck and the perfect nibble to end.

The A5 Japanese wagyu stole the show! While it could have been seasoned a little less, the wagyu was so buttery and decadent that I didn’t want the bites to end. Luckily, Minami isn’t stingy with the prized beef, you receive a decent quantity of steak and quite a few sides as well - a lovely crispy potato pave (layers of potato baked) and roasted heirloom carrots.

As a palate cleanser we are brought a plum sorbet popsicle with tart sparkling water… I had the sorbet but skipped the much too fizzy water, give me sake any day.

Despite detesting Bounty bars, the coconut mousse with chocolate was a lot better than I expected. Placed into an impossibly thin chocolate shell, the dessert certainly looked like a coconut and the light mouse and dark chocolate went rather nicely together.

Interesting elements like the house-made coconut noodles were delicious and I could see them using them in a dessert ramen, which could tie-in the Japanese tradition of ending tasting menus with a bowl of noodles. Note to chef: feel free to borrow this idea!

Another reason to visit Minami is their awesome location in Yaletown. What an ideal street to be on with the all the bars and patios, a great way to start and/or end the meal. Whatever happens, when you’re going for the shokai experience, go big or go home.