Christmas brunch

A double challenge today: overcoming the slight dispirited feeling of not having got to where we wanted to go, and finding a breakfast/lunch at a restaurant that was good and NOT offering only a buffet. We didn't need to pay $40-60 for a huge selection of food that has been sitting around, after all. Wow, did I say dispirited? That was outright catty.

Hotels were the likeliest places to go, and after a quick couple of phone calls, we settled on noon at Elixir in the Opus Hotel in Yaletown. The added bonus to it was that we could walk there, and so we did, using the quiet streets in many places to avoid the wet, slushy, icy sidewalks.

Brunch was great. The menu included several appealing egg dishes, which was kind of what we all wanted. Marie (eggs Florentine, not pictured) and Conrad (scrambled eggs with croissant and smoked salmon) went old school basic, but I had to foo-foo it up: warm smoked mackerel with poached egg, piquillo pepper hash, and red pepper hollandaise. Tasty!

A nice stroll on a day that brightens bit by bit found us singing and feeling happy. Ah, but now we face the challenge of flying out if we can. On to YVR for us!

Elixir

Almost a year ago now we enjoyed an evening with Marie - for her birthday - down on Granville Island. Don Letendre, chef at Elixir, was cooking/demoing a dinner at Edible BC, and it very much made us want to get to his restaurant at the Opus Hotel in Yaletown.

Finally, FINALLY (a few bookings made and then canceled), we got there last night. I'm happy to report that yes, it was good, and we will want to go back.

It was oddly quiet there when we showed up for a 6:30 Saturday night reservation. I know that the construction of the Canada Line right by the hotel can't help the foot traffic in the neighbourhood, or maybe we're just dining too early. Given that I was crashing and in bed at 10 last night, though, any later a dinner would not have been a good idea in hindsight. Anyway, we had a nice little corner table with lots of people-watching potential out the windows. Conrad and I didn't chat much, just sat and enjoyed a comfortable tranquility while seeing the world pass by outside.

The food...

An amuse-bouche of a scallop poached in court bouillon, wrapped in Tuscan bacon, and served with cocktail sauce (witty!).

My appetizer of chicken livers with spinach, a tomatoey sauce, and crostini. I can't recall when last I had chicken livers - always a welcome item.

Conrad's appetizer of pheasant and fig terrine, wrapped in bacon (it's like the Two Fat Ladies are in that kitchen!) and served with some very good grilled bread.

We each had the same dinner: roast halibut with sausage, clams, and a black bean sauce.

To drink alongside, we played it safe and went with a Garry Oaks Pinot Noir, a half liter of that. It was better with the appetizer than with the sweet-ish black bead sauce, but overall we liked it.

The menu at the restaurant had a number of appealing items, in fact. I was also keen to try to cauliflower soup among other things, and we didn't even get a chance to check out desserts. In the end, it was a good dinner, and one that entices us to go back again one day.