Hawksworth Restaurant at Rosewood Hotel Georgia, Vancouver (Downtown)

Posted by nance on 2012/09/13 in Canada, Downtown, Northwest, Seafood, Vancouver No comments

Source: Hawksworth Restaurant Website Gallery

Source: Hawksworth Restaurant Website Gallery

Source: Hawksworth Restaurant Website Gallery

She is beautiful, elegant and classy. You know she will treat you right and entertain you with fine cuisine. You know she will serve you her best wine. She is like the perfect wife – playful, sophisticated and divine.

Hawksworth Restaurant is located inside the Rosewood Hotel Georgia Vancouver. Boasting four different rooms: the bar / lounge; the extravagant dining Pearl room; the refined dining Arts room featuring Psychomania by internationally celebrated artist Rodney Graham.

Hawksworth is not all about facade. Chef David Hawksworth is much adored in Vancouver’s culinary scene with a pristine resume from Michelin-starred Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons in Oxford, UK;L’Escargot; The Square ; West Restaurant; and even travelled to Hong Kong for Sevva. I even remember reading his article in a Chinese magazine! Not only is Hawksworth one of the Best in Vancouver, it is also voted Best in Canada 2012.

It’s such a romantic experience to be dining at Hawksworth with a sparkling backdrop of an oversized oval crystal chandeliers, cream colored seats, and the ultimate well-stocked wine cellar. This is fine dining where the staff are friendly, professional and knowledgeable. Given everything, the ambiance and the surroundings, one may expect prices to be outrageous, but it is not; In fact it is quite affordable. Our waitress was so attentive that she even wrote our choice of wine on a card, sealed in an envelope. Now that is customer service!

Fresh West Coast seafood and ingredients can be found with often with a twist of Asian Fusion. Often with a note of playfulness unlike some traditional white table clothed fine dining establishments.

To begin we ordered 3 appetizers to share.

House Smoked Trout: crispy herbed potato, jalapeno, meyer lemon. Reminiscent of a carpaccio, the layers of trout is impeccably fresh and the flavours are lifted with the help of lemon and a light kick of heat.

Sunchoke Veloute: crunchy sweetbread, parsley, hazelnut oil. One bowl is not enough. This breathtaking “soup” is earthy, velvety, creamy with a sweet nutty flavor, reminiscent of water chestnuts.

Foie Gras Parfait: green apple, walnut, brioche. A vibrate and playful dish. A sophisticated carnival cotton candy with pizzazz. The savory one second and sweet the next plays on your taste buds. This fluffy cloud is light and non greasy. Foie gras pate was served atop of apple gelée which helped break apart the rich creaminess with the sweet acidity. Walnuts were incorporated to add extra texture and dimensions. The toasted brioche was refined on it’s own. Served in it’s own basket, the smell of fresh bread in heavenly.

Fraser Valley Pork Press: celeriac, de puy lentil, pickled apple ribbon. Condensed pork was cooked perfectly but we found it slightly dry and hard to break apart.

Sunshine Coast Sturgeon: chorizo broth, crunchy rice, winter squash. Another well executed seafood dish where the ingredients was well matched. Sturgeons has a mild, delicate flavor and flesh is firm and meaty. This hearty fish with lifted with the light heated broth and the warmth of winter squash to balance their subtropical nature. Crunchy rice acts like a brioche to soak up the consume.

Buttermilk Panna Cotta: Not your traditional heavy cream sweet dessert. This is a light mousse with fragrant coconut flavours and a very tart-tangy spike.

Passion Fruit: tomato, white beer, white chocolate. What an interesting mix of ingredients. Who would have thought tomato or white beer would go well with white chocolate much less in a dessert? But the combination requires an acquired taste – fizzy with mild sweetness offset by the acidic passion fruit.

So after you’ve enjoyed your foodgasm and a few flutes of champagne, you should pop over next door to Bel Café and savour some maple bacon or cookies n’ cream macarons. If sweets isn’t your thing, than perhaps the Reflections lounge 4th floor upstairs of the Rosewood Hotel would been bring more excitement.