I was yet again bestowed the honour of being one of the judges for another Vancouver Foodster challenge, this time it was pasta and I was raring to go for this year’s #PastaChallengeYVR. Eight restaurants, eight different pastas and sauces plated, eight vying for the best of them all and your votes for the people’s choice.
My job is to try them all and grade them on a scale out of 40 for presentation, originality, and taste. Your job is to try them all and vote for your favourite to win the people’s choice category between October 6th to the 30th.
I know you have seen it, I know you have past by it, so let this be your sign to go. Nellos is a newer Italian restaurant in Coquitlam, opened as of February 2022. It is a restaurant that I would not have known about, or think to visit if it weren’t for the Vancouver Foodster allowing me to judge such a delicious competition. Therefore I was excited to see what he deemed a restaurant and pasta worthy of competition; and coming out on the other end, I can see why Nellos is competition ready.
For service and the environment alone, they are a must visit. This is old school service and a reminder of why we pay more and want to dine out. I have never felt so welcomed to a restaurant, and this was well before they knew I was here as a judge. The level of engagement from everyone was consistent: from the bar manager, consulting manager, and head server. Everyone gave each other credit. The culture developed was evident and you could tell everyone working tonight was happy to be here. This trickled down to and resonated with all the customers seated. As the staff had a great report with one another, and cheeky banter ran rampant. I loved it. The great personalities literally spoke to their slogan: “welcome to our family”.
We began with a couple of cocktails from the very enthusiastic and caring bar manager. He was very conscious of what we were drinking and was willing to go over and beyond to ensure it was the right spirit in our glass; whether it be a house made cocktail or the right shade of wine.
For this one we asked for a smokey or peated whiskey cocktail and what we got was the “Old Bear”. House made clove infused bourbon, Walnut bitters, Maple syrup, and Smoked oak bitters. You can taste the maple from the start to finish in this, softening up the spirit and partnering well with the sweetness of the cherry garnish.
For our second cocktail I wanted something visually stunning to take a photo of, and this was it. A classic “Rosemary Blue” prohibition style cocktail with Bombay Sapphire and Blue Curacao. Like a sweeter, more party-driven gin and tonic. where you breathe in the scent of the burnt rosemary first before getting to the herbaceous nature of the cocktail.
For food we started with Shayne’s Black Sambuca Prawns dressed in garlic and Luxardo black sambuca, served with a side of garlic bread. As per Wikipedia, “Sambuca is an Italian anise-flavoured, usually colourless, liqueur”. Don’t let its shade throw you off, this is just juicy prawns with a sweet licorice hint to it. A taste like none other, that had me going back for more to figure it out.
We followed that up with the much heavier Braised Pork Arancini Balls. Slow braised pork shoulder risotto, balled up and battered for a crispy deep fry. Served in a pool of classic marinara sauce, along with charred cherry tomatoes. The flavours were mild, whereas I was wanting more salt and seasoning. The filling could have used more cheesiness to better adhere the ingredients as one, and I found the whole of it on the hard and grittier side. Sadly, the tomato sauce didn’t have enough salt to carry the dish, or to fully flavour the arancini. Not my favourite rendition overall, but I did like the base flavour of the marinara.
For entrees we started with the Spaghetti carbonara with guanciale, buttermilk, egg yolk, and parmigiano. Another richer dish that ate as clean as it was fatty. The flavours and butter fully coats the mouth. The char on the pork reminded me of Chinese style roast pork. Another one you ought to share family-style.
Next, it was time to try and judge the #PastaChallengeYVR contender: Cefalopodi Pasta Verde. Squid ink pasta tossed in a Thai basil cream sauce with blistered gem tomatoes, and prawns. Topped with toasted pine nuts and grated Parmesan cheese. The black noodles were sourced from a local eatery on Commerical Drive, its slightly briny taste was contrasted by the use of the sweeter Thai basil. You still got the familiarity of pine nuts here, but not ground up in the pesto as normal; but left as is, for crunch instead. That and the smokey blistered tomato gave the dish a Mediterranean feel, a flavour that leaves you smacking your lips and going back for more, as it grows on you.
And to end our visit, we indulged in their House made tiramisu, making note that it won the people’s choice award for tiramisu when it competed in that Vancouver Foodster’s challenge. I don’t typically like tiramisu given its soft mushy texture, but I did like this one as it ate more like a chocolatey pudding with cream custard base. You don’t get much coffee flavour in this one, but it did remain rich and comforting as is typical of the dessert and much like all the dishes we had and could not finish before it.
In closing, for a great family friendly spot to take your family and become part of their’s, Nellos is a great option for Italian comfort classics made with locally sourced and/or authentic imported Italian ingredients. A great addition to the area with nothing else like it. Come for the service and the ambiance and return often for the prices and the food. And if visiting between now and October 30th, be sure to try their #PastaChallengeYVR creation and vote for you favourite to win the coveted spot of people’s choice.
Bar+Restaurant Nellos
925 Brunette Ave, Coquitlam, BC V3K 1C8
(604) 777-0300
barrestaurantnellos.ca
