Menu
When I arrived at the restaurant, I was greeted and shown to the table as I Love Hotdogs was already there. The first thing I noticed was that the restaurant was quite dark and the second thing I noticed was that the chairs in the restaurant looked like the chairs from db Bistro.
After browsing through the menu and debating what to eat, we finally placed our order.
Beef Tenderloin Carpaccio
Fresh Peas, Crisp Shallots, Rosemary Bannock
The beef was really tender and the sweetness of the peas complimented the dish really well. The bannock (a dense type of fry-bread) had a slight rosemary taste to it and I really enjoyed it.
Overall, this dish was fresh and tasty.
The beef was really tender and the sweetness of the peas complimented the dish really well. The bannock (a dense type of fry-bread) had a slight rosemary taste to it and I really enjoyed it.
Overall, this dish was fresh and tasty.
Sweet and Sour Eggplant
Baba Ghanoush, Yogurt, Tomato
This dish was listed in the 101 Best Things to Eat and Drink in Vancouver 2011 (Vancouver Magazine). The eggplant was cooked just right and it had a bit of an Asian flavour to it. I really liked the presentation of this dish. It reminded me of sushi rolls!
Cornmeal Crusted Scallops Corn Succotash, Smoked Masataki, Sea Asparagus, Chicken and Scallop Jus
I thought that this dish was okay. The scallops were cooked well, but the flavours didn't really stand out for me. But the sea asparagus was tasty.
Apple-Horseradish Slaw, Watermelon, Fried Pickle
The pulled pork sandwich was good. I Love Hotdogs favourite part of the dish was the parsley watermelon. The small cube of watermelon was really refreshing and the parsley surprisingly paired really well with it. The deep fried pickle was interesting as I never ate anything like that before.
Pea shoots, Coriander, Chili Oil
When this dish arrived, it smelled soooo good. The cod was cooked perfectly. And I must say that this was the best broth I've ever had! It's full of flavour and it is something I will definitely order again!
Peas, Chanterelles, Red Wine Braised Pearl Onions
Out of all the dishes we ordered, this dish was probably my least favourite. The poached chicken didn't have any flavour and the crispy chicken wasn't that crispy. The chanterelles and peas were good, but it was unfortunate that the main part of the dish wasn't good.
And finally dessert! I already knew what I was going to order, a souffle! I Love Hotdogs ordered a Chocolate Fondant.
Chocolate Fondant
Hazelnut-Nougatine Ice Cream
The chocolate fondant was really good! The cake was light and fluffy and the chocolate tasted like really good quality chocolate. The ice-cream and nougatine was good and complimented the chocolate really well.
The chocolate fondant was really good! The cake was light and fluffy and the chocolate tasted like really good quality chocolate. The ice-cream and nougatine was good and complimented the chocolate really well.
Raspberry souffle with chocolate ice-cream
The waiter mentioned that it will take about 15 minutes for the souffle. I was more than happy to wait! And this is worth the wait! The souffle was incredible! It was light, fluffy and had a hint of raspberry flavour to it.
And the damage:
The cheque
Overall Impressions: The food was good. I was almost hoping for a bit more and may have had my expectations too high. The dishes that stood out for me were the Black Cod with Thai Broth and Souffle. I will definitely go back and order those two dishes. I Love Hotdogs thought the portion sizes were small for the price we paid (which I agree). He was still hungry when we left the restaurant! While there is room for improvement, Ensemble has enough potential to warrant a return visit (for the the souffle and black cod with Thai broth!!)
Ensemble
850 Thurlow Street
Vancouver, BC
604.569.1770
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