iene
Sheidon

CUISINE SCENE

SOME EXPERIENCES are
magical -- to be tucked into
your heart and never forgot-
ten.

a | gathet that you have realized -
by’ now that most of my treasured
~memories are centred around food,
“and the creative chefs that so pas-

-sionately create our great dishes.

“:..° Such was my privileged after-
noon last week with executive chef
Ernst Dorfler at the Five Sails
Restaurant i in the Pan Pacific Hotel.

And I would love to share it with

: you. The reason for my lunch with

.? Chef Dorfler was to sample some of
~ the new‘dishes on his new menu at

' the Five Sails. And clichés aside,

:. this menu is right on course for
,some. of the most exquisite dining in
"Vancouver. .

And what a view, to boot.

~ Hanging right over majestic Coal
‘Harbour with the soaring white sails

~ of Canada Place outside and (win-
Ming lights at night. 1 Romantic, -

Chef Dorfler ushered me into the
tiny inner-sanctum of the private
-Chef’s dining room, where he and
his sous-chefs dine each afternoon °

“sat 2 p.m. Table set, four forks and
«four knives each. Then the dishes
arrived, one by one, in degustation
portions so that,] could sample sev-

"Sear d fres| foie gras ¢ on crisp
"greens with pecans ina light,warm
“champagne, dressing with'a vibrant
Pow of'sun-dried cherry sauce,

- Worth the trip on its own!

*. Onto one of the prettiest salads
a ve seen, and one the chef shared
the recipe for, his baby spinach

salad with warm St. Chevrier cheese .

-.’ strudelette. Spring itself, simple to
‘do at home, utterly delicious ts cat.

“SDGEMONT VILLAGE
Corner of Edgemont Blvd. + Queens

The next dish from his new main
courses sent me swooning. Rare
grilled Ahi tuna ona puddle of truf-
fle infusion sauce with (get this!)
abi-spiked mashed potatoes, This
rendition of potatoes is going to be

copied everywhere, I predict, even
below the 49th parallel. Just mark
my wards,
a steak like no other.

Grilled filet mignon with a splash of

Pinot Noir sauce, creamed lecks,
and the best crispy potatoes I've
ever had — Chef Dorfler’s
Parmesan Potatoes,

One look at my face — and he
shared that recipe with us, too,

We finished with a stunning
plate of sorbets (three to be exact)
each served atop a miniscule maple
leaf-shaped cookie, all curled up at
the edges, with dollops of fruit
coulis everywhere. A strong espres-
so to wrap it all up.

Dorfler has a special chef’s cre-
ation menu prix fixe for three stun-
ning courses with a wine suggestion
—- for $29.50! One of this city’s
greatest bargains. It is offered daily,
along with the regular @ la carte
menu.

Chef Dorfler and his royal

- brigade of some 50 in the kitchen

know how to do it right.
“Every dish is now custom-fin-
ished, a /a minute, with just the

‘right accompaniments for each

plate,” he said, adding, “I want my

" guests to come here, to-have a good

time, to eat healthy, to dine well.”
And yes, some of those long-
time touches are still there. Like the
beloved butter swans, and the flam-
~ boyant surprise at dinnertime — bil-

lowing dry ice clouds flowing out of

_ lovely glass bewls, holding elegant
"plates of frozen chocolate-dipped
ice cream balls.

At the helm is Chef Dortler —

. he brought back the coveted Gold

Medal from the prestigious World
Culinary Olympics held in 1992 in
Frankfurt, along with Team Canada.
His uncompromising style results iv
dishes ‘that are perfection, We are
privileged to have hiin as our chef

, in Vancouver.

asked him how a little boy
from Surnitz, Austria who used to

tend Hafflinger horses and help out

in an- Alpen family-run pension,
gets to be a world-class chef with a
Gold Medal now running the whole
show at the award-winning Pan ..
Pacific Hotel.

His quiet (typical of this gentle-
man) reply, with twinkling eyes,
was: “When [ was a fittle boy, there

was 4 Saying in my family, ‘Ernstell .

(his Austrian family nickname), you

983-9330

[We reserve the right tu limit quantities. Prices in effect from Wed., April 20-Tues., April.26/94

will never be a farmer! They
noticed, atage 12, that | was
already cooking the family din-
ners,”

Thank-Gad for all of us that the
saving was true.

PARMESAN POTATOES

Reason enough to order
Dorfler’s grilled filet mignon is the
accompanying side of Parmesan
Potatoes. Chef was quick to share
the recipe with me for you to try at
home. Trust me, they are divine
(and super easy), Serves four.

8 yellow Finnish-type potatoes
Unsalted butter

Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
Salt

Cover the potatoes, in their jack-
ets, with cold water. Cook over
medium-heat until just tender in an
uncovered pan (test by inserting
long fork; do not overcook potatoes
or they will not hold their shape tor
the final dish).

Drain potatoes. When cool
enough to handle, pee! off the ten-
der skins. Slice the potatoes into
loonie sized rounds, about “4” (5
mm) thick each.

Heat a non-stick skillet until hot.
Add unsalted butter, and heat until
sizzling. Add the potatoes in a sin-
gle layer, and quickly brown the
potato rounds on both sides.

Continue to brown potatoes in
small batches until all are brown,
Drain potatoes on paper us they
come out of the skillet.

Place the potatoes separately
(not touching) onto a flat baking
sheet (nonstick-type or lined with

baking parchment). Sprinkle tops of

potatoes with finely grated fresh
parmesan, and season with a bit of
salt.

Have the oven good ‘and hot,
preheated to 375°F (190°C), Place
potatoes in oven, und bake until
golden brown and crusty, about 10
minutes.

To serve, partially overlap crisp

potatoes onto each plate. Serve with

grilled steak and fresh green beans.”

Dorfler’s steak is prime-cut filet

wo - WEWS photo Mike Waketletd oe
SET AGAINST the dramatic sails of Canada Place, Executive |'
Chef Ernst Gerfler of the Pan Pacific’s Five Sails restaurant |
presents a dish from his new menu: Baby Spinach a with.
Warm Goat Cheese Strudelette.-

mignon, his sauce is Pinot Noir, and
his green beans are tiny haricots
verts tossed with tiny lardons of
double-smoked bacon.

“BABY SPINACH SALAD -
WITH STRUDELETTE. ,

A beautiful : starter, or tight tu
cheon. Simple, stunning, : try-it!
Serves four. (The strud¢lette’ recipe .
may be doubled to ) produce, eight.

pieces: y° : ’

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