Okanagan Crush Pad’s Haywire Winery is once again releasing their Lunar New Year red and white wines in time to celebrate the Year of the Monkey. The Lunar White ($18.90) is a blend of Gewurtztraminer and Chardonnay, with small amounts of Pinot Gris and Viognier. The Lunar Red ($19.90) is a blend of Gamay Noir and Syrah. Both are available in limited supply, only 60 cases of each, at local wine retailers.
Thomas Haas is celebrating the Year of the Monkey with a handcrafted milk and dark chocolate monkey adorned with a gold foil-wrapped dark chocolate “loonie” and a white chocolate orange. $19 at both Kitsilano and North Vancouver stores.
Provence Marinaside has created two distinct Valentine menus this year. On Feb. 12 and 13, a four-course dinner, which includes seared seabream, butter-roasted lamb loin, endive and mushroom salad, and strawberry tiramisu, will be offered for $60 (optional wine pairings $30), in addition to the regular menu. On Feb. 14 only, the menu will be expanded to six courses with the addition of a crustacean bisque and a palate-refreshing sorbet. The six-course menu $80 (optional wine pairings $40).
Glowbal will once again be hosting a 100-plus item buffet this Valentine’s Day, beginning at 10am. Tickets are $49 for adults and $22 for children under eight. In addition, the restaurant will offering a four-course dinner menu in the evening for $70 per person, which will include buratta mousse with golden beets, Dungeness crab cake, beef tenderloin and fried cheese ravioli, saffron lobster risotto, bison short rib and tiger prawn satay, and dessert.
Royal Dinette has revealed the menu for their third “Ugly Duckling” dinner, which spotlights food waste and sustainability. The dishes, which are made with commonly discarded food scraps, include juice pulp croquette with blemished sea urchin custard, duck tongue with pasta trim “risotto,” blood sausage with pork skin and beef stem condiment, sake kasu sorbet with rice water and shiso stem granité, and coffee grind crémeux with caramelized whey ice cream. Tickets are $79 and include six-course menu with beverage pairings.
Rocky Mountain Flatbread has created a three-course Valentine’s menu in partnership with Koko Monk Chocolates that includes over 75 combinations to choose from, along with a raw, handmade chocolate at the start of every course.
At The Fat Badger and España, chef Neil Taylor is creating two versions of the same dish for Valentine’s Day featuring ox heart. At The Fat Badger, find peppered ox heart steak with hand-cut chips, spinach, and bone marrow-breadcrumb sauce for $23. At España, find grilled ox heart with crispy fingerling potatoes, garlic, rosemary, lardo and romesco sauce for $13.
