When Lear Faye opened on Commercial last year, it was an instant and quiet hit with locals. The coffee-shop-cum-bistro seemed to be doing it all right, serving up local ethical beans by day and small plates of deliciousness in the evenings. The brother-and-sister duo behind the shop, Jess and Dolly Reno, were awesome hosts, and the dark chocolate-espresso brownies became a byword.
Like many good things, Lear Faye outgrew its original mantra and the siblings made an amicable decision to part company (in business only). Dolly has taken over the space and re-launched it as Wishes and Luck, a cool little full-service restaurant that features the fine kitchen toolings of partner and EC Ciaran Chung (formerly of Boneta and L’Abbatoir).
The room hasn’t gone through too much of a reno, thank goodness. The utterly intoxicating cedar patio, enclosed by a garage door on colder days, was built by Reno’s dad and is still in place, as are the vinyl tunes. On a cool night two weeks ago, I sat out on the heated patio with friends and didn’t notice the chill in the air until I was walking to my car.
The menu is smart, approachable and delicious. Prices for dinner hover between $4 and $18, while brunch doesn’t break $15. Crispy pork bits ($6) are excellent, small croquettes of hock and jowl, sided with a complex grainy mustard and pickles. I’m so over beet salad on restaurant menus, but this one ($11), with red and yellow varietals roasted in brown butter and laced with mint, creamy sheep’s cheese and yogurt, I could eat all day. Lightly cured salmon ($17) with artichokes, potato and radishes sits on a thick layer of garlic-anchovy dip, known as bagna cauda in Piedmont.
The “sorta” traditional beef tartare ($15), with the ubiquitous egg and some surprising hickory accents, was heady, rich and easily lapped up, as were the meatballs with cheesy toast ($16), which was exactly as it sounds, and reminded me of something my mom used to make for me on extra-special days.
Desserts ($7) were also excellent. While the chocolate fig cake wasn’t my personal favourite, it was well-made. The buttermilk panna cotta, on the other hand, was beautiful, and one of my favourite panna cottas of all time. Caramelized pear tarte tatin with ginger ice cream showed off Chung’s amazingly deft hand with pastry. This one was light, flaky and oozing buttery flavour.
Cocktails like the Vancouver ($12) with gin, fig-infused punt e mes and Benedictine, are worth repeat orders, but it’s the tiny but well-selected wine list that’s worth close attention. Even with only one BC wine, it’s a winner. Glasses for $8 include Legado Munoz Garnacha and Misconduct Pinot Grigio, both excellent pairings for the menu.
As you walk in, pay attention to the wall sign on your left, “I got lucky in East Van.” By the time you leave, you’ll be the one saying it.
All ratings out of five stars:
Food: ★★★★★
Service: ★★★★★
Ambiance: ★★★★★
Value: ★★★★★
Overall: ★★★★★
Anya Levykh has been writing about all things ingestible for more than 10 years. Hear her every Monday on CBC Radio One’s On the Coast and find her on Twitter @foodgirlfriday and Facebook.com/FoodGirlFriday.
