Chefs from a seniors living provider proved that fine dining isn’t only reserved for high-end restaurants this week, taking home top prize in a culinary competition held during West Vancouver’s Harmony Arts Festival.
PARC Retirement Living, led by executive chef Robert Fortin from their Summerhill location in North Vancouver, took first place in the Best of the West event held Aug. 9 in the Grosvenor Building breezeway at Harmony Arts. The winning dish was a sous vide lamb loin, which came paired with wine from Burrowing Owl Estate Winery.
Second place in the competition went to West Vancouver’s Mangia e Bevi Ristorante, which prepared a seared duck breast, while third place was a tie between North Vancouver’s Cantina Norte for their slow-braised beef brisket, and Water St. Café for their key lime pie bites.
“We are proud to say we can compete against some of Vancouver’s most established restaurants,” PARC said in a statement.
It’s not the first time PARC has taken top spot at the Best of the West competition. Other championship-level blue plate specials include a vegan wild mushroom tart with smoked chipotle and Kraus Farm blackberry reduction in 2015; Black Apron Angus braised beef with harissa spiced tiger prawns, fennel confit and pureed local organic yam potatoes in 2016; and alder-smoked sablefish, accompanied by yuzu-marinated king oyster mushrooms and black truffle caviar in 2019.
