My love of food often brings me to some unexpected places. Today that was Montauk in Chinatown for their grand opening. Where local caterer Gather Chef and Ono had teamed up to bring Montauk’s guests an impressive collection of fusion style Taiwanese canapés.
The space is now home to this custom artisan sofa shop. They have moved from Gastown to their new Chinatown residence, and to celebrate they thought to embrace the culture that surrounds them, hence the chosen cuisine.
Honestly, I walked into this not knowing what to expect. I did not get a formal invitation and wasn’t even sure what they were celebrating. Irregardless I was impressed by the setting, noting how modern their collections felt, while still offering a distinct personality.
Their invited interior design guests would get to enjoy the space and attend a material and pattern pairing workshop. All while getting up close and personal with their furnishings that includes a lamp designed to look like a wok, drawers that automatically close with a gentle push, and swivelling fuzzy seats.
Everyone who got to the mid way point was welcomed further with a glass of sparkling wine. Each flute was given a hint of the tropics with a whole syrup soaked lychee at the bottom. A simple addition that read volumes and had me enjoying a couple of glasses.
I was able to chat up Cheryl from Gather Chef and she gave me a brief on a few of the new projects that they are working on, and have coming up on the horizon. Of which includes a meal prep, delivery box subscription that focuses on global fusion. Asian fusion dishes that you prepare at home. Each with all the necessary ingredients, pre-measured and prepped for easy cooking. This is not unlike similar food box delivery companies, but with dishes to serve the diversity of ethnicities and cultures that call Vancouver and its surrounding areas home. A welcomed addition considering that, the recipes are one of the reasons why I have never participated in such programs before. The flavours just don’t excite my tastes.
Their goal is the have friends and family gathering together, while educating them on the flavours present and the background of the cultures they represent.
Expect foodstuffs like lotus root, mustard greens, and beef shank. Ingredients you might not have been exposed to and wouldn’t know what to do with, if you did. And best of all gluten-free and plant-based options are available to give those with dietary restrictions equal access. And speaking from my own childhood, this is often not addressed in traditional Asian cuisine, with the expectation that you simply eat everything that is placed before you.
As for what was on the menu today. Ono Catering and our Gather Chef have collaborated with local Chinese business to further harness the power of community.
They brought in barbecue pork and roasted duck from neighbours Chinatown BBQ, which they have made a Chinese charcuterie board with. I loved the idea and the execution, as the tangy pickled sides helped to cut into the rich fattiness of the meats.
You select your cuts and pair it with an assortment of your choosing. Tangy radish, pickled eggplant for a creamy texture, lotus root for some crunch. My favourite was the shittake. Each element tasty on its own, but wonderful together with the authentic Chinese style bbq meat.
I was just as impressed by the clever way they made Braised Taiwanese Beef Noodle into a one-bite canapé. This is crispy noodle spun and topped with beef shank and microgreens. Served at room temperature the sauce pooled and congealed, so it was hard, if at all possible to taste any of it. I would suggest pouring it over the noodles for a more even distribution of flavour. And although it might make the noodles soggy, parts of it will still retain the crunch, thus cutting into some of its dryness.
The Cucumber and Wood Ear Salad with watermelon radish and a Thai chilli garlic dressing was also deceptively tasty. A cold appetizer that is easy to maintain its desired crisp texture. This made for a great aperitif and palate cleaners in between meatier bites.
Honestly, at this point I was realizing everything they have made is delicious, and incredibly impressive considering this was a catered event with no full kitchen to work out of.
The Sticky Rice Cabbage Roll offered an easy solution to enjoy sticky rice without the need to scrape it off of a lotus leaf. A vegan option with shittake mushroom and fried shallot. This made for a tasty dim sum bite.
The Cucumber Wrapped Prawns was fragrant with their own scratch xo sauce.
And the Bao station was a show, assembling pork belly baos to order. I have never had it with shisho leaf before. I thought it a clever way to introduce an Asian herb that also helped to cut into the fattiness of the pork, while offering a variation on this dish for those already familiar with it.
They have also teamed up with local bakery chain Maxim’s Bakery to bring small bite desserts. In time for pomelo season they had two offerings. A classic pineapple bun accented with pomelo and a creme filled egg tart, topped with pomelo syrup.
The former I found basic and in need of a spread of filling. The latter was amazing and delivered on exactly how you would think and want it to taste. I could use one now.
In short this was a fun and unexpected event, I was over the moon impressed with the food. This just proves that you should go into everything with an open mind and not turn something down just because you are unsure and weary of what it could be.
