If you think the Okanagan is all about the wine, think again. One of the biggest draws for yours truly is (surprise, surprise) the food, specifically the dishes found at winery restaurants in the South Okanagan. While Vancouver has many restaurants that follow the local-seasonal-sustainable formula to various degrees, the restaurants of the Okanagan tend to live or die by the concept. Any restaurant worth its grapes has a strong preserving program, encompassing pickling, canning and freezing at a minimum. It’s hard not to when the farm that supplies your produce tends to be – almost literally – a stone’s throw away.
“We get most of our produce from Le Petit Clos,” says chef Lee Humphries, who is director of culinary operations for Vintage Hospitality, which operates several south Okanagan restaurants, including The Sonora Room at Burrowing Owl Estate Winery. “They grow exclusively for the restaurant [at Burrowing Owl] and everything is picked fresh daily and delivered by 10am.”
Humphries, who joined Vintage last year, spent most of last season working with The Sonora Room’s current executive chef Damian Mischkinis and sous chef Ian Bohun to revamp the menu. The trio has worked together before, at C Restaurant and Heather Hospitality Group in Vancouver, and this year Mischkinis and Bohun are running the show. The pair have created a menu that gives off a distinct fine dining edge, but is eminently approachable on the plate. Ingredients are allowed to speak for themselves, but are never left without their wingmen. Roast duck salad ($18) is a shining example. Yarrow Meadows breast is seared with currant, and rests over local greens. It comes with housemade bread fashioned from hops from Firehall Brewery in Oliver. The bread is toasted and topped with tapenade and a slice of brie from Upper Bench Creamery in Naramata. The whole plate is dotted with a slightly sweet wine jelly. Paired with the Burrowing Owl’s 2012 Pinot Noir, it’s a heady combination.
“We want to support our local producers and growers as much as possible,” says Mischkinis. “Even our Arctic char comes from down the road,” referring to DelicaSea’s land-based closed containment aquaculture operation in Oliver. The ethical and sustainable harvesting methods used by the family-run company mean that even the fish waste isn’t wasted. Instead, it’s sold as fertilizer to local growers.
Thanks to the winery’s extensive library, dishes are not matched so much to individual wines as they are to the overall concept. With hundreds of wines to choose from, there’s nothing that doesn’t have at least two or three excellent pairing options.
Over at Miradoro Restaurant at Tinhorn Creek Vineyards, that elevated-yet-casual concept is also in evidence, albeit with a Mediterranean bent. The restaurant just celebrated its fifth anniversary and executive chef Jeff Van Geest, who has been there since it opened, expounds on what he calls the real definition of casual fine dining.
“It’s about being approachable, yet being able to offer the best service, the best ingredients, the best preparation of those ingredients, for an incredible experience, but also be a place where local growers can meet and chat about their grapes after a long day. They’ll come in with their hi-viz vests and work boots on and feel at home,” he laughs. “We want to be a place where locals come to eat [as well as tourists]. We think about what people we know think about us. For instance, Bill Eggert at Fairview Cellars is our neighbour and comes in a lot, so we often talk about, what would Bill think? You pick someone you know and think about them when you do these things. It becomes personal that way.”
Van Geest works closely with his sous chef Courtenay Welter, who has been with him since the restaurant opened.
“I’m extremely lucky to have her in my kitchen; she’s one of the hardest-working chefs I know and she’s super-talented,” he says.
The pair have fashioned a menu that focuses on Spain and Italy, with some Moroccan influences, but that uses mainly local ingredients.
Grilled Cache Creek flank steak ($38) is served with local oyster mushrooms, and charred sweet Walla Walla onion cups that hold a delicate black garlic aioli. Served with frico, an Italian potato and cheese pancake similar to a latke, it’s a rich dish that gives hits of sweetness and spice that make for a perfect pairing to Tinhorn’s 2Bench Red. Walnut baklava with yogurt semifreddo is another hit, with its elegant sweet and tangy notes that play perfectly with a port or other fortified wine.
Oliver isn’t the only place that’s developing into a dining destination. In nearby Okanagan Falls, home to more than a dozen wineries, Liquidity Wines and Bistro is serving up some impressive wines and dishes, thanks to executive chef Rob Walker. The contemporary winery overlooks Vaseux Lake and the décor matches the food and wine concept. Wines like the amazing Pinot Gris are paired to stunning and deceptively simple dishes like the carrot salad. Liquidity also has exclusive local growers and has a strong preserving program. Heirloom raw, pickled and roasted carrots sit over a bed of fermented carrot puree and fresh greens, with herbs snipped from the kitchen garden, blood orange marshmallows, and an aged chili pepper vinaigrette ($14). It’s a symphony of textures and flavours, contemporary yet entirely comfortable. Even more homestyle dishes like the beef shortrib grilled cheese sandwich ($17) off the lunch menu is dressed up with a smoky cherry-plum ketchup that Walker made last year with late-harvest fruit. Sit on the patio overlooking the valley, take in the brilliant art on the walls, and inhale happiness with each bite.
Wine and Dine
Looking for more excellent winery dining options? Check out these spots;
Smoke & Oak Bistro at Wild Goose Vineyards
Barbecue takes centre-stage on the patio of this Okanagan Falls winery. Pair with some of the stunning Rieslings for an afternoon al fresco feast.
Terrafina Restaurant at Hester Creek
New owners Erwin Huber and Cindy Evans have brought on Jenna Pillon to serve up the classic Tuscan-influenced menu of pizzas, pastas and mains, as well as an eclectic brunch menu.
