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THE DISH: Valentine's Day deserves good food

List looks at some local dinner suggestions

My mother worked as a florist for most of her adult life.

That business is seasonal, with predictable spikes around special occasions like Mother’s Day and Christmas. The apex of bouquet-giving, however, is around Valentine’s Day, an annual event that has endured, perhaps more than any other, a steady barrage of anti-consumerist backlash.

“It’s a manufactured holiday, created by retailers,” say cynics. “I won’t support it.”

I get that. Why spend your hard-earned money just because big business has schemed a new sales imperative loosely tied to nebulous, idealized notions of love and romance? On the other hand, what is the real downside of a little Valentine’s Day recognition? Can you ever really overdo it when it comes to acknowledging your loved one? How about a meal? A nice night out is actually one of the few mutually rewarding investments associated with the occasion. Here are some North Shore suggestions for this coming Valentine’s Day weekend (the event falls on a Sunday this year).

I recently headed to The Boathouse at Horseshoe Bay (6995 Nelson Ave., 604-921-8188, boathouserestaurants.ca) to sample a few of the dishes that will feature on their upcoming Valentine’s weekend menu, a thoughtful assemblage of their more popular items, priced as multi-course meals for either $49 or $59 per head. I hadn’t been to this truly lovely and warm waterfront chalet in years. Like for many others hailing from the depths of North Vancouver, I suspect, the haul out to Horseshoe Bay can seem daunting. In truth, the drive wasn’t bad at all and, via the Upper Levels highway, I was there in under 15 minutes, having departed from near Edgemont Village.

I took a seat at the bar and was immediately welcomed by an affable bartender, who proffered a hand and introduced himself as Craig, the bar manager. Craig, despite contending with non-stop drink orders spewing from the bar printer (it was the last weekend of Dine Out Vancouver), maintained a jovial and helpful demeanor, describing dishes and available substitutions to me and offering small tasters of wine to aid my selections. I ultimately settled on six oysters on the half shell (three meaty but compact Royal Miyagi and three Kusshi) served with grated horseradish, cocktail sauce, lemon wedges and a tasty and original sauce featuring toasty notes of sesame.

A glass of Chateau St. Michelle Riesling, with its mineral and lime notes, fresh acidity and faint residual sweetness on the back palate, paired very well. In a very sporting gesture, the kitchen, which was in the middle of a mid-evening, packed-house order crunch, assented to my ill-timed request to make the Crab and Lobster Stuffed Ravioli, usually a main course, a half-order second appetizer for me. The pasta was wonderful, bursting with shredded crustacean goodness and bathed in a chunky, subtly spicy roasted tomato, spinach and citrus cream sauce.

For my main course, I ordered a seven-ounce striploin with Crab-Stuffed Prawns (take note, fast-food pizza chains, the bar for quality but completely superfluous stuffing efforts has been raised, so you can keep your cheesy crusts), grilled asparagus, Caesar salad and, in another magnanimous gesture from Craig, a small, gratis ramekin of peppercorn sauce.

The steak arrived cooked to a perfect medium-rare in the centre and was nicely seasoned. The beef paired exceptionally well with three fat, juicy butterflied prawns jammed full of creamy and rich crab stuffing. I was grateful for the option to substitute mashed potatoes for greens; the dish would have put me over the top if ordered as described on the menu. I washed the indulgent entree down with a glass of Killer Cab, a Bordeaux-blend with a palate showcasing ripe stone fruit, reserved tannins and balanced acidity. My meal was $97 before gratuity.

The Observatory at Grouse Mountain (and neighbouring, window-lined, south-facing Cable Room, also on the top floor of the chalet) will offer a celebratory five-course, $115 prix-fixe menu on Feb. 14 only. Menu selections include Uni on Brioche, Tuna Carpaccio, Gnocchi, choice of striploin or sablefish, and chocolate cake with charred marshmallow (observatoryrestaurant.ca 604-998-5045).

Pier 7, Lower Londsdale’s most south-reaching waterfront restaurant, does a nice brunch on weekends. If the jam-packed hustle of the Valentine’s dinner experience is off-putting to you, cosy up to a window (which is pretty much everywhere in this place, by the way) and tuck into a Belgian waffle. Or, better yet, make it a slightly later brunch and sip a citrusy and delicately effervescent glass of prosecco as you knock back a few freshly shucked oysters (25 Wallace Mews, North Vancouver, pierseven.ca 604-929-7437).

The rustically chic Feast Neighbourhood Table in West Vancouver will feature a four-course menu for $55, Feb. 12-14. The menu includes Pork Rillettes with Fry Bread, Smoked Tomato and Prawn Bisque, Avocado and Beet Fries, choice of Angus striploin, steelhead trout, or Chickpea and Squash Curry, and then two dessert options, including an Elderflower Lemon Curd (2423 Marine Dr., West Vancouver, feastdining.ca, 604-922-1155).

For those celebrating with companions around whom you are more comfortable and don’t mind letting out your belt buckle at the end of the evening, head down to Burgoo for Brie Fondue, Kentucky Beef Burgoo, and Jambalaya too. It is February, after all, so comfort food is very much in season (3 Lonsdale Ave., North Vancouver, burgoo.ca, 604-904-0933).

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. He can be reached via email at hungryontheshore@gmail.com. North Shore News dining reviews are conducted anonymously and all meals are paid for by the newspaper.