I am Off to Salt Spring Island!

So I Leave tomorrow for Salt Spring Island, going by BC Ferries really the only way unless I want to fly by float plane but a little pricey for me today.

I have 6 bottles of wine for 4 days, really 2 half days and 2 full days.

Plan to Visit Salt Spring Island Winery, David Woods Goat Cheese mmmm, and buy some Salt Spring Island lamb to go with the wine!

Fetzer Wine Competition 2009- Great Beginnings

Fetzer Wine Competion 2009

This event is a really good event for two reason, it promotes your restaurant with feeding of a couple hundred? people, and that we get free booze.

It happens during the Vancouver Playhouse International Wine Festival here in Beautiful British Columbia. There are like a 100 events spread over like 3 or so days. With trade tasting and everything.

(*Image - Waiting at the Loading Dock of Fairmont Hotel)

Fetzer sponsors this event with wine pairing being the goal. Ten Restaurants 2 prizes. 1st Place Judge and 1st Place peoples choice. If you win the judging prize it is a write up in Wine Access Magazine, and 1500$ Travel voucher, so it definitely gets you motivated. So what we decided to do at the restaurant was to pair with the 2008 Gewurztraminer a Confit Duck [folded in with Duck Fat, Pomegrante Reduction which had Cinnamon, Cardamon, Fennel, Star Anise, Bay Leaf, Black Pepper and some other stuff] Wrapped with Duck Proscuitto, Goat Gouda Tart, Basil Citron Vinegrette with Baby Greens.

It was a great event, I didn't win but had lots of people love the food.

I have more images but I am waiting on trying to get some from the Hired Photographer, my camera doesn't do low lightning very well I need to buy me a new camera. so hopfully I can get them up in a week or so.

on VIP Dinners

Every once and a while we get "VIP" dinners at the restaurant. Now when I say VIP I mean VIP (Very Important Person) who are they? well generally they are friends, family members or people in the industry we know (not people we don't know or care about sorry to say). When we have these VIP's come in they get stuff out side of the ordinary, because our restaurant is casual not every table gets Amuse-Bouches', so we send out an Amuse we have ones we always fall back on which you can not like Baja Diver Caught Scallops with [Pea Risotto, Asparagus Risotto, Brandade, Lemon Mash]. And when we really know them or they want a special menu or something just special we take the time to make them something out of the ordinary. We come into work early making stuff that isn't on the menu.

Funny story about making special items not on the menu at work I like to make the dessert plates that go out its what I like. So I made this dessert plate which is awesome on top of white table cloth.