I will take any excuse to visit the Michelin recommend Wildlight. Located in UBC it is a touch far to travel to, but honestly the food, drinks and wine are worth it. I have never had a bad time. Plus it only takes 15 minutes to get there from downtown Vancouver.
I am fan of the entire front of house team with General Manager Margo, Bar Manager Aman, and in house Sommelier Mike. All led by the newly inducted 40 under 40 Chef Warren Chow, recognized for his efforts in and out of the apron.
This Saturday night was one of their busier services, one of the last weekends leading into the holidays, and all four were front and centre.
The room was a buzz, decorated with a single wreath and one Christmas tree. I was lucky enough to be next to the latter. Honestly I could have used more holly and jolly to help better showcase the season. I can see them not wanting to deter from the elevated appearance of the room, with its wooden light fixtures and single LED sign. However, as a destination restaurant and one for celebrating special occasions at, I want a lot more fan fare coming up to the building, when I enter, and then sit to eat.
We came at 4pm to be able to enjoy the space from day light to night lights, and honestly couldn’t really tell it was the holidays outside their seasonal festival meal, which we were here to try. But first drinks.
On the same vein as the above, there were no holiday cocktails. The menu spoke to last season with two featured cocktails that used pumpkin purée. Thankfully, as I mentioned earlier, Bar Manager Aman was in tonight and he took it upon himself to shake us up holiday cocktails off the menu. Popular items from years past that could help get us more in the festive mood today.
We started with a glass of sparkling, then quickly moved on to Wildlight’s take on a French 75, named the “French Reconnection”. Coastal and citrusy with Lillet Blanc infused with spruce tip, Midori Japanese melon liqueur, gin, lemon juice, in house made yuzu syrup, and finished with their house sparkling wine. Elegant and refined with juicy fruit, but at its core it is still everything you like about a French 75, with effervescent bubbles.
For our second round, I insisted on my friend trying the Matcha & Ube Espresso Martini, as she is a fan of all three things listed in its name. I had it the last time I was here and found it equal parts delicious and boozy, while drinking like a creamy parfait. This was a mix of Nodo Coconat tequilana, Cantera Negra Café, agave liqueur, Amaro dell’Etna, matcha and ube syrup, cold brew, and espresso. Finished with a purple matcha ube condensed milk foam and a ube wafer that you can use as a straw. A must try for any espresso martini lover looking for a fresh take.
Seeing as I like a more savoury cocktail, I was recommended the Negroni Sour that was described as bitter and complex. Its maroon hue was from Empress ‘Elderflower Rose’ gin, shaken with Esquimalt Rosso Vermouth, Antica Formula, Italian bitter blend, Arbutus ‘Amaro No.4’, citric grapefruit juice, egg whites, and orange bitters. Given the rose flavouring it was a touch on the floral-potpourri side, with the sweeter foam cutting into the bitterness that I am actually not a fan of.
Later, wanting something more holiday inspired, Aman brought forth a spiked egg nog for my guest and a bold stiff number for me.
The rift on the egg nog was made with a whole egg, Fernet Branca, Amaretto, and Flor de Caña 7 year rum. It is finished off with a fresh shaving of nutmeg and tasted like a caramelized sweet cake.
Whereas in contrast, the Pacific Spirit Manhattan was bold and in your face, dominating any conversation it is in. It features Sheringham’s 5 year single malt whisky, which Wildlight has partnered with. This was in limited quality with only a few left when I visited. It was mixed with Averna and couple of Italian Vermouths. Aman described it as a Boulevardier meets Negroni meets Godfather. This was one of many cocktails past, originally created in celebration of National Bartenders Day.
All the cocktails above carried us through the three course tasting menu, which we ended up trying all the options of. This was to be able to report on it here, and to be able to recommend our favourites.
This festive menu is only available until the end of December, offered from 5-10pm daily. It is 3 courses for $80 plus tax. You have your choice between 3 appetizers, 4 entrees, and 3 desserts. There are vegetarian options, but none for the vegans. The kitchen asks for no substitutions, and suggest customers look to their extensive regular menu if they need any. There is also no wine pairing, however if their house sommelier is in, he is more happy to make suggestions, which we did take advantage of for our second course. So more on that below.
As for the appetizers, if dining with at least one other, I recommend ordering the Smoked Sablefish Chowder to start. Here, the restaurant split a single serving between us two, and we still found the portion supremely generous. Generous in general and for the price. It felt like we each got a full portion and left course one stuffed. I would honestly suggest smaller servings for this, and everything else to be able to finish the three courses more comfortably.
The Seafood Chowder was smoked sablefish, surf clams, dungeness crab, scallops, prawns, double-smoked bacon, and chive oil. Wildlight is well known for their chowder and this is a delicious way to try it, if you haven’t yet. There was such a good variety of ingredients for a unique taste and texture in each scoop. I just could have used some bread or a cracker to help change the experience in between bites, and to create additional longevity in the dining.
The appetizer I recommend after the soup is the Crispy Humboldt Squid. I have had it before and will continue to order it upon each revisit. I have not had a tastier deep fried squid. An ideal soft yet chewy, gently yet crispy texture. This are the perfect, slightly saltier one bite to pair with any drink. Deep-fried squid noodles, dashi emulsion, greens mix, squid ink vinaigrette, and pickled radish. However delicious it didn’t read all that festive.
The third appetizer option was the Grilled Beet & Burrata salad, and honestly this was delicious as well. Therefore you are better off dining with two others, to be able to try it all. All the appetizers were a hit, and I liked them more than the entrees.
It is actually out of character for me to recommend greens on a plate, so that ought to count for something right off the bat. The depth of the vinaigrette made all the difference, and it had us finishing this plate with ease. Never mind the creamy Burrata cheese that was meant to be the star of the dish. Its spreadable texture is a lovely contrast to the crunchy nuts and crisp fruit. Fresh burrata cheese, heritage greens, endive, shaved fennel, dill crème fraiche, compressed apples, roasted hazelnut, and chervil powder. This was so flavourful with a refreshing, sour, tart, and sweet profile. Be warned, given how well coated the leaves are, it is best to eat this one fast, as the greens do get soggy quick.
We paired entrees with wine, sommelier Mike brought us two whites and two red wine options to mix and match with our cream pasta, salmon, steak, and lamb. Each did well to elevate the dish or cut into some of its richness with acid or citrus.
The Blue Mountain Chardonnay Reserve 2022 was from OK Falls was $98 a bottle and $18 a glass.
Domaine Bernard Defaix Chablis Chardonnay 2023 was $128 a bottle and $26 a glass.
Clos du Soleil Similkameem Valley Signature, Cabernet Sauvignon dominant 2020 was $119 a bottle and $24 a glass.
Our second red was Maiso Champy Savigny Les Beaune, Les Vergelesses, 1 er Cru. Pinot Noir 2016. At $179 a bottle and $35 a glass.
The Braised Lamb Neck was recommended straight from of Chef Warren’s mouth. He reassured us that it was boneless and that the meat was tender. Vadouvan masala, coconut tadka, gouda polenta, chermoula roasted carrots, and pearl onions. It ate like a stew, warming for the season with strong herbs. Here, our bold wines helped to cut into all the gravy and slightly fatty lamb pieces with stringy sinew.
If looking for something a lot more filling, the Fennel Sausage and Mushroom Ravioli is enough food for two, but served for one. Fennel sausage, sautéed wild leek & seasonal mushrooms, pea tips, 3-cheese cream sauce, and spruce tip vinegar. Heavy and rich with cheese and cream, we couldn’t finish this in one sitting.. Everything was punchy here from the salty sausage to the umami mushrooms, and buttery crumb with crunch. I reached fro the refreshing Chardonnay to help inject some acid into things and to refresh our palates. It was overwhelming without the wine. Worth mentioning is that this can be made vegetarian.
My least favourite was the Steelhead Trout. I found in bland by comparison to the other dishes above. Although appreciated the addition of manila clams, fregola, saffron broth, and smoked butter beans to make this a well rounded and fulsome dish. This is ideal for those who like a more lighter entree. The Chablis did help perk things up, while rejuvenating and brightening up the dish.
However, if I was to go back and order any of the dishes again it would be the Steak Frites for the fries alone. They were golden fried, crispy, and addictive. We couldn’t just eat one. It doing so, we almost ignored the the steak. 8oz Mcleods Leap striploin, black garlic jus, green salad, and beef tallow vinaigrette. Perfectly prepared medium rare, sliced evenly for easy eating. Each piece well seasoned with a smokey hickory accent, furthered by the side of gravy to self pour over. Only a drizzle of the latter was needed to inject some depth, it felt like a waste leaving the rest behind. Overall this was a solid steak that was exactly as expected and then some, there were no complaints here.
Not on the festive menu, but on the regular one was the scallops. My guest really likes scallops and remembered how good they were the first time she had them, so wanted to relive memory today. Seared Hokkaido Scallops with pan-seared Hokkaido scallops, lobster and truffle risotto, preserved lemon, confit fennel, paprika oil, and squid ink tuile. The scallops were prepared perfectly. I would have liked them as is with the tuile as an appetizer, to best nightlight the scallops. Here, the risotto felt so heavy around it and we ended up utilizing the charred buttery scallops as a way to cut into all the cheesiness.
And as full as we were, we had room for dessert. These three were the most to theme of the entire menu.
The Winter Frost was for the chocolate lovers. Dense and rich Fleur de Cao chocolate mousse, chocolate crunch, and orange poached cranberries. I found it one monotonous texture, a simple and clean darker chocolate. Ideally taken with the fruit and cream, to add a bit of silkiness to moisten up the dryer texture of the mousse.
For something softer and sweeter, look to the Wildflower Grant with honey and pear entremet, sable biscuit, white chocolate, and haskap berry. The sweetness was all in the white chocolate shell. It had this looking like a popsicle. The tart berry helped to cut into the sugars from everything else.
Forest Echoes was my favourite of the three, not too sweet or chocolatey, this was just right with chestnut sponge cake, vanilla crémeux, chestnut crumble, espresso sorbet, coffee gel, and almond tuile. Light and fluffy, the ice cream melted into a sauce to bring everything together.
In closing this was a wondrous meal and we left completely stuffed. Once again I have never had a bad meal at Wildlight and that streak continues. The Festive Menu will only be around until the end of December, and then they move into their Dine Our menu as of January.
Wildlight Kitchen + Bar
5380 University Blvd #107, Vancouver, BC V6T 0C9
(604) 915-0722
wildlightrestaurant.ca
