It’s an exciting time to be a foodie in this city.
While industry headlines so often focus on the comings and goings of celebrity chefs and flavour-of-the-day rooms that attract illustrious guests, underneath the surface of it all there is an ever-strengthening foundation, a vast, interconnected root system that is providing vital nourishment for the food scene.
I’m talking about the specialists in our city, the proud purveyors of single things.
These are the suppliers, sellers, and even hyper-focused restaurateurs who have honed a particular skill and fill a niche demand in the market.
The renowned Oyama Sausage Company on Granville Island, with their handmade, limited production meat goods, is an example of this specialized expertise, as is the Artisan Sake Maker just a stone’s throw away, a business that has worked tirelessly to cultivate rice in the Fraser Valley in order to produce premium sakes that are made from 100 per cent British Columbian ingredients.
On the North Shore, Andrew Cameron continues to source authentic, high-quality olive oils at his Olives on Tap emporium, while nearby Tama Organic mills Chilliwack-grown buckwheat to craft exceptional-quality soba noodles in the traditional Japanese style.
For people like me, who often feel happiest in the presence of amazing food, our region’s specialty scene is particularly engaging.
Michael Gelling is executive chef of Cindy’s Cafe, the long-standing, brunch-oriented restaurant in West Vancouver at Marine Drive and 19th Street.
Cindy’s has been around for about 15 years, but has enjoyed new ownership in the last two and a half years.
With the support of this new ownership, Gelling has helped to create a focused identity for the restaurant, stripping away unnecessary layers of complexity (including a now abandoned attempt at dinner service, a sharp departure from Cindy’s core offerings) in order to perfect a handful of house specialties, of which Eggs Benedict is the undisputed signature dish.
I appreciate Cindy’s resolve in not attempting to be everything to everyone and, if the throngs of diners on a recent Saturday morning are any indication, so do many others.
In restaurants for which dinner is the feature service period, brunch is often a cynical and perfunctory offering, a way to capitalize on the popularity of the leisurely, late-morning meal experience and enjoy high profit margins by charging exorbitant prices for staple items like eggs and toast.
At first glance, the pricing of Cindy’s brunch menu may seem more in line with large hotels or high-end restaurants than it is with other small cafés (Benedicts are $15, on average), but when you take into account that everything on your plate at Cindy’s is made from scratch, including English muffins and scones, the value for your investment becomes readily apparent.
As Gelling told me following my recent brunch with my wife DJ, “Nothing at Cindy’s comes out of a bag, we make it all right here.”
The proof, as they say, is in the pudding and in Cindy’s case, I feel confident in proclaiming that not only are the Eggs Benedict among the best you can find anywhere, but pretty much everything the restaurant serves with Hollandaise sauce qualifies as an extraordinary dish.
Hollandaise is a make-or-break brunch element and so many kitchens get it wrong. Not Gelling’s.
The Spring Scramble, the dish I selected for my recent meal, was a delicious combination of scrambled eggs, still-faintly-crunchy asparagus, scallion and fresh tomato topped with a dollop of light, smooth and mildly citrusy Hollandaise sauce, accompanied by buttered toast and a generous serving of coarsely chopped, fried breakfast potatoes.
DJ chose Caprese Benny, one of the morning’s specials, and thoroughly enjoyed the bright and fresh flavours of basil pesto, tomato, bocconcini, expertly soft-poached eggs, and Hollandaise atop a house-made English muffin.
I was skeptical about the texture combination of bocconcini and poached eggs, but the mozzarella proved just firm enough to contrast the softness of the eggs. The pesto was wonderfully fragrant but not overwhelming.
The Benny was also accompanied by a mountain of breakfast potatoes. Pairing orange juice, cappuccinos, and a side of bacon with our two brunch entrees, our bill came to $55 before gratuity.
Cindy’s also runs a side business in catering, specializing in breakfasts and brunches for private functions and corporate meetings.
The restaurant is located at 1850 Marine Dr. in West Vancouver. Phone: 604-925-2280. Gelling says to keep an eye out for a new Cindy’s website in the coming weeks.
Chris Dagenais served as a manager for several restaurants downtown and on the North Shore. A self-described wine fanatic, he earned his sommelier diploma in 2001. Contact: [email protected].
