Dinner at L'Abattoir

As many of my long-time friends know, a Bart-cation is not complete without a culinary odyssey (or two). This odyssey doesn't have to be at some multi-Michelin starred restaurant with a wine cellar stocked with twenty thousand dollar bottles of Romanée-Conti. I look for good food that highlights local ingredients and staples, and whose flavors tell a story. After doing a little research prior to my trip, I settled on a well-regarded restaurant in the Gastown neighborhood called L'Abattoir. As the name suggests, L'Abattoir highlights west coast fare through French technique and influence.

Upon entering L'Abattoir

Upstairs main dining area

Upon entering this bi-level restaurant, one is greeted to an airy bar area, and a staircase to the main dining area. I arrived a little after the restaurant opened for its dinner session, and the bar was starting to fill with people either looking for a casual atmosphere, or some hors d'ourves and a drink before another dining option. I was greeted by the lovely hostess, and brought upstairs to a two-top along the brick wall that overlooked the bar area. This perch offered some excellent people watching in between courses. The waiter soon followed the hostess, leaving the dinner menu and many decisions to be made.

Don Draper at L'Abattoir
2016 Vancouver, BC

I opted to start off tonight's affair with a craft cocktail, in this case the house's interpretation on the Manhattan called the Don Draper. It was quickly fetched, just in time to be sipped while sorting out the menu and coming up with a drink program to go with it. The drink was well balanced, helping to rev up the palette for the meal to come.

Because of Vancouver's rich culinary heritage by the sea, I wanted my line-up to heavily focus on seafood. But being French-inspired, I also wanted to see how their French techniques were employed. Therefore, I settled on the following: (1) Foie Gras torchon, (2) Octopus grilled over charcoal, and (3) Scallops and BBQ pork jawl. 

To compliment the foie gras, I ordered a glass of Pietradolce eta rosso 2014. For the seafood courses, I opted for a bottle of Domaine Michelot 2013 Clos De Montmeix white Burgundy. A whole bottle of wine for only one person and two courses, but what the heck! I am on vacation. Served with the glass of wine to start was a basket of bacon brioche and cheddar cheese twists. They were quickly dispatched, and as fabulous as they were, I couldn't wait for the courses to come.

Foie gras torchon
L'Abattoir. 2016 Vancouver, BC

The first course was delivered, and I was presented a large flat circular plate with a patty of foie gras, dollop of fresh yogurt, slices of cut up stone fruit, and a plate of warm sliced brioche. I surgically assembled the first morsel, taking a piece of the brioche, and spreading first foie gras, then some yogurt, followed by a piece of the stone fruit. 

The balance was simply outstanding. The richness of the foie gras was tempered just enough by the yogurt, which in turn lent creamy notes by melding with the foie gras and turning it into almost a mousse-like consistency. This was then capped off by the stone fruit, which added sweetness that balanced out the liver notes of the foie gras. The red wine from Sicily paired nicely, bringing additional fruit notes to even out the pronounced flavor of the foie gras. 

With the foie gras and first glass of wine safely in my belly, plates were taken and eventually replaced with the charcoal grilled octopus and white Burgundy. The octopus was grilled, and served with beans, pickled cucumber, and a smoked pepper sauce. The wine was a little over-chilled, so I took my time letting that warm up slightly while enjoying the aesthetics of the plate in front of me.

Charcoal grilled octopus
L'Abattoir. 2016 Vancouver, BC

The octopus was quite good; firm in texture, but in no ways chewy. It had the consistency of a perfectly cooked steak, and a clean taste -  a little less powerful than a good scallop. The key was utilizing the charcoal, which imbued the octopus with grilled notes that brought to balance the flavor of the fish.

Pairing nicely was the beans, both the white beans easily apparent in the dish, as well as the puréed black beans that were glazed on the plate underneath. They both lent earthy notes and textures, complimenting the dense octopus texture. Finally, the pickled cucumber and smoked pepper sauce rounded out the dish by imparting both sweetness and spice.

I couldn't ask for anything more from the white Burgundy that was selected. Like most solid white Burgundy wines, it had both mineral and oak notes in perfect balance. It also was not overly buttery, which meant it did not over-power the dish and disturb the palette. An overall excellent wine, once it was brought to proper temperature, that I was happy to take with me to the next course.

Scallops and BBQ pork jawl
L'Abattoir. 2016 Vancouver, BC

And just like that, with a quick reprieve and a change in flatware, my scallops and BBQ pork jawl was served. This dish was served with chanterelles, local peaches, and a corn sauce. The pork jawl was outstanding; full of buttery flavor from the heavy marbling that was rendered exceptionally from the BBQ process. The scallop was equally as buttery, but bringing in those notes from the sea to pair nicely with the pork.

With all of the richness of the protein, the other ingredients really did bring some balance to the dish. The peaches burst with flavor, lending sweet fruit notes that paired beautifully with the pork. Meanwhile, the corn sauce and chanterelles brought more earthy tones to round out the flavor profile.

Going back to the white Burgundy, each sip went beautifully with this dish. The oak notes complimented the scallop, while the mineral elements paired nicely with richness of the pork. There is nothing better than when wine and food come together, and these two did just that.

This completed the main courses, and as the final plate was being taken away, a cup of decaf coffee was brought over along with the desert menu. Everything looked amazing, so when the waiter came back I asked from his recommendation. His response: the strawberries and cream.

Strawberries and cream
L'Abattoir. 2016 Vancouver, BC

The strawberries were served atop yuzu yogurt along with some wafer and strawberry confections, then smothered with fresh cream. The local berries exploded with sweetness with each bite. The yuzu yogurt added some nice tart elements, while the fresh cream added creaminess and body to the overall dish.

Bringing the dish home was the wafer and sugar confections. They moderated the sweet and tart of the other ingredients, while lending their texture to the overall canvas of the dish.  All in all, simply outstanding, and a great highlight of the local produce.

With desert completed, and a glass of 10 year tawny in hand, the damage needed to be settled. Really not too bad given the quality of the meal, let alone the quantity of what I ordered. The only thing missing from this sojourn into the culinary word was a proper tasting menu. I can only hope that Chef Lee Cooper decides to do one in the near future. He certainly has plenty to highlight in his current menu. The problem is the amount one has to order to get the proper experience. Simply outstanding.

L'Abattoir
217 Carrall St.
Vancouver, BC

*Reservations highly recommended*