Hubby and I went to Chambar on Friday evening to participate in DineOut, our first one in a long time. The restaurant is very conveniently located close to a Skytrain station, and thus was easy to find. The restaurant has low lighting with high ceilings, and lots of wood and brick. Very cozy space. We were seated near the back of restaurant, which gave us a "view" of Rogers arena and the surroundings condos. I completely understand now why people like to use this place for wedding receptions or similar gatherings.
For drinks, hubby had wine, and since I couldn't partake, the server recommended their virgin drink list. I chose the spiced pear, which was a mix of macerated pear, ginger ale and cinnamon. It was very tasty and extremely refreshing on the palate.
Our appetizers arrived quite quickly after having a few sips of our drinks. I had the salade d'hiver (charred baby carrots, macerated kale, crisp pappadum, pomegranate, tahini & miso emulsion espelette vinaigrette), and hubby had the gambas & chorizo (olive oil poached prawns, grilled chorizo, escabeche vegetables, avocado & Peruvian peppers). My salad was very earthy, but I enjoyed the combination of ingredients together. I loved the spices they used on the pappadum, and I also really enjoyed the emulsion. It was incredibly smooth and had just a hint of nuttiness. The kale had some very interesting spices added to it, but it was very tasty. The vinaigrette was quite subtle, but went well with the dish. Hubby quite enjoyed his salad, but I think he was hoping for a slightly bigger portion.
Our mains came a few minutes after finishing our appetizers. I had the canard aux marrons (spiced rubbed duck breast, wild berry, chestnut hummus, Brussels sprouts & pistachios) and hubby had les gnocchi de chevre (goat cheese gnocchi, tarragon, hazelnuts, grapes & arugula). I had a bite of hubby's gnocchi with a teeny bit of goat cheese, and it was incredibly flavorful and smooth. My duck was excellent; the meat was perfectly cooked and I quite enjoyed the spices used on the skin. I really enjoyed the hummus included with my duck; it added an extra dimension of flavor to the duck overall. The pistachios had a slightly candied crust, and they tasted wonderful with a few bites of duck. I was surprised that I liked the Brussels spouts; they had tossed them in some kind of vinaigrette prior to grilling, and the flavor came out quite nicely.
Finally, our meal ended with our desserts. I had the meli melo de fruits (coconut raspberry pannacotta, green apple sorbet, macerated Asian pear) and hubby had the cheese platter (three different cheeses, tomato jam, mulled wine jelly, mixed nuts and thin baguette slices). Hubby offered me a bite of the cheddar with some of the tomato jam, which was very tasty. I loved, LOVED my coconut pannacotta; it was so smooth and velvety, and the raspberry wasn't too overpowering. The green apple sorbet was incredibly refreshing on the palate, and was incredibly flavorful. The pears were a nice finish to the dish. Overall, fantastic meal at Chambar!
We were still feeling a bit peckish after dinner, so we headed to a cafe for some hot drinks (steamed milk for me!). We ended up at Faubourg, a French cafe close by the gallery. We decided to have some more dessert, and shared a lemon tart, brioche and a peanut butter banana chocolate macaron. Their macaron is not as good as Thierry, but they're not bad either. The lemon tart was quite yummy; the crust wasn't too sweet and the lemon custard was very smooth and had a perfect balance of lemon and sweetness. Yum! Their brioche was just okay; their recipe clearly isn't as rich as other places where I've picked up brioche (Thierry and the Swiss Bakery come to mind). A lovely end to a fantastic date night with hubby. :D
Here's the meal plan for the week. I'll be attempting a second try on the one-hour chicken, the rest are oldies. Have a great week, and happy cooking all!
January 26-31st
Sunday: One-hour roast chicken with sage & garlic, mashed potatoes & salad
Monday: Potato-leek soup with bacon
Tuesday: BLT wraps
Wednesday: Leftover frozen lasagna
Thursday: Sweet & sour pork, rice
Friday: Take-out