Website: www.twistedforkbistro.ca
Last Visited: June 2012
Based on its menu offerings, Twisted Fork might be described as a French bistro. But amid a bistro's typically modest setting and simple dishes you don't usually find generous servings and homestyle plating. Twisted Fork's fare is truly French comfort food. Sourdough rolls are baked fresh daily just before dinner service. Plates are finished with more rich sauce than can possibly be consumed, even with mounds of pommes purees and ratatouille to soak it up. If you visit, make sure that you save room for dessert because Chef Corey Sullivan is a pastry chef by training.
Here were my selections:
Scallops and Bacon
Cured BC Duck Breast
Chocolate Terrine
Caramel Napoleon
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| Scallops and Bacon |
The phrase "scallops and bacon" conjured images of bacon-wrapped seafood. Happily, this appetizer was a fresh-tasting, deconstructed version. Seared scallops were topped with caramelized onions and a house-made corn relish, all served on a bed of pureed potatoes. The plate was dressed with bits of Vancouver Island double-smoked bacon. Salty, crunchy bacon pieces were a perfect foil for tender scallops. The slightly acidic and textural corn relish gave the dish a clean finish. I could have done with fewer dollops of potatoes, perhaps a bit more neatly plated, but then it wouldn't really be comfort food would it?
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| Duck Breast |
The duck was served with pureed potatoes, heirloom yellow carrots, crisp green beans, ratatouille and was finished with copious amounts of duck jus. Best of all, a house-made cherry chutney cut through the richness of the duck. The duck skin could have been a bit more crispy and the fat slightly more rendered. But the meat was so juicy that I decided I could forgive a bit of fat around the edges. That is the beauty of comfort food: love and generosity on the plate translate to love and generosity in the heart.
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| Twisted Fork's colourful interior |
Twisted Fork does not take reservations because they have only 30 seats. The restaurant is one long room with the grill area open along one side, exhibition-style. Dessert preparation happens in the back kitchen, away from the heat. The rear of the restaurant features Corey Sullivan's epic floor-to-ceiling wall of canned jams, relishes and preserved fruit which are pulled off the shelf and spooned onto dishes. During my meal I watched two chefs working together to run the grill, manage the sauces and get the food plated. They were quietly chatting away as they brought each table's food up together. I was impressed with the calm vibe emanating from the kitchen. It was pretty hot in the booth right across from the grill, but that's the price you pay for a bit of entertainment.
Dessert plating was done with significantly more care and attention to detail than in previous courses. Normally I would have negotiated a shared dessert with my dining companion. But because this was an early birthday celebration, and because Corey Sullivan's desserts are famous, we decided to order two desserts to share. That was definitely the best decision of the evening.
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| Chocolate Terrine |
Terrine: a classic technique in French cuisine. It usually involves several layers being packed tightly into a loaf pan, wrapped in plastic, compressed with a weight and chilled for hours or overnight. The chocolate terrine was a true terrine (not a metaphor as I half-suspected) consisting of a layer of raspberry sorbet sandwiched between two layers of dark chocolate mousse. After setting, the terrine was brought back up to room temperature resulting in a rich, dense slice of chocolatey raspberry flavour in every bite. The plate was garnished with a stunning quenelle of raspberry sorbet, a chocolate disk and fresh mint. I loved the artful circles of raspberry coulis on the plate. Wedges of half the size would have equally satisfied my chocolate cravings.
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| Caramel Napoleon |
I hope Twisted Fork doesn't change a thing about the Caramel Napoleon, ever. Two layers of thick caramel mousse were sandwiched between three salty crunchy almond tuiles. The dish was garnished with a large quenelle of house-made maple ice cream, fresh raspberries, raspberry coulis and fresh mint. Sweet, acid, salt, crunch in every bite, not to mention TLC infused into every component make for a dish not to be passed up. I loved the twisted fork imprinted in icing sugar on the plate. After a few bites my plate was an elegantly messy, textural dream.
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