Hawk and Hen, Downtown Victoria

I'd seen that "Hawk and Hen" was coming into the spot once occupied by The Podium.  The Podium was a big "sports bar" that failed to offer up sports in any way that differed from the other 15 places in town. I can watch a TV with sports on and drink beer in many places.  If your not giving the live commentary on the feature matches, and really pushing the 'place to watch' angle, then your just another bar.

So Hawk and Hen has a big location to fill, with lots of seats, so I was a little surprised to see the soft opening (no website I could find till very recently) and the west-coast niche it was filling.  Seems like a big ask to fill and 100+ seater place on a regular basis.  But, I did see that Liam Quinn was named as executive chef.  Liam runs the "Salt and Pepper Fox" (review), and if you work downtown and haven't had sandwich delivery from him yet, you should try it.  So, I was expecting good, fresh local food.

I got good, fresh food.  I have no idea where the albacore tuna I ate came from.  In fact, I have no idea where you find albacore tuna in general, and who smokes it to this rich, velvety, powerful flavour.  But I do know that the Tuna Melt I had was great.  Thick slices of the beautifully rich, meat, slapped onto a thick wedge of crusty white bread, covered in cheese and grilled to a cheesy, gooey mess.  The cheddar had enough bite to balance the soft white bread, and the tuna itself.  Yes, you can make a tuna melt at home... but this was a really good one.

I had mine with a side of Rösti potatoes.  These are grated potatoes, cooked into a crisp pattie.  Like a (proper) hash brown that had been cooked longer and with more fat.  Crunchy, and still rich and earthy.  Yum.  Would order these again and not be disappointed.  The dish was completed with a small pile of greens, which featured long shavings of celery, and a simple french dressing.

My friends complimented the meatballs as being big, rich and juicy, though the tomato base they were in was a little too chunky... the smoother sauce with the hash met with much more approval. The bacon served with the benny was big, thick and cooked to a stiff crisp... but not so far that the tasty bacon grease had all dried up.

The service had a couple of small problems: one item we ordered was no longer being made (the bread and butter pudding), but it took a trip to the kitchen to find that out.  Apparently it was not selling.  We mentioned that was odd to take it off for a place that had just opened.  We were told it had be at least a month they'd been in business... I guess long enough to know what doesn't sell.

Our table and another also had to have follow-ups to check how some of the orders should have their eggs cooked.  In a brunch first place, this should be a second nature to always ask.

That said, the service was fast, there were plenty of refills on coffee and water. The staff did seem enthusiastic about the food they were serving as well, which is key when for a place pushing local produce.

This has definitely gone on the revisit for brunch list. We all said we'd go back again, highly enjoying the food.

SüLT Pierogi Bar, Downtown Victoria

SüLT. I keep reading it as Slut.  An unfortunate name, if you ask me.  Or maybe a good name as it has at least stuck in my head. The name in Danish means hunger, while in Estonian, its "head cheese". Norwegian it can also mean famine. In Hungarian, it means 'baked'. I have no idea where it comes from (Polish doesn't have a word that matches).

But what it means in Victoria is a long under construction eatery, offering a "pierogi focused restaurant serving new Canadian cuisine".   It seems likes there's been something being built in the Lower Yates Street location for a long time. Formally the home of a dark and foreboding internet café, it's not a big open loft-style space.  The ubiquitous polished wood that's modern interior design.  There's exposed ducting and lighting wires, a long table in one corner and a full-length bar seating in front of the kitchen window. The kitchen looks huge and takes up much of the back of the building.

We went in for brunch today, to check out what they had to offer overall.  The menu sells triplets of pierogies, fresh made and in a few different flavours: chicken, pork, kale, clam and bacon, traditional. With fancy names like 'cluck', 'oink' and 'green'.  Three doesn't seem much, but for $4 or so, that's not too bad, and all serving can be topped off with sauerkraut and cream, or a pile of poutine, or a bunch of other combos.

I ordered the breakfast special, five 'squeak' pierogies with two poached eggs, some pork belly and a dollop of Hollandaise.  The dumplings are big, fat and well stuffed.  Six would be a good solid meal, especially coupled with the trimmings.  It was a big solid breakfast.  They are soft on the inside, with a punch of cheese and garlic savoury goodness.  The outside had been crisped up after the cooking process to add a bit of a crisp texture, but just slightly.

The eggs were poached very runny, and the yolks were a pale yellow, and slightly watery.  To me, at least, not a sign of a great egg, and there wasn't the richness of flavour from the eggs you can get from some local hens.  Still, they were cooked perfectly well. The pork belly was a little over cooked. It was an inch or so cubed, with layers of crisp pork fat and flavourful meat.  As it was just on the wrong side of done, the meat had dried out a bit.

I got mine with a big fat coffee, which was dark and smooth.  The sort of coffee I want for breakfast., Not burnt, Not too, too strong or fancy.  But sitting up in the cup, and giving you a wake-up pinch at least.  The staff were more than attentive to bring around refills, as well as refills of water.

I really did enjoy the pierogies, as will have to try the other styles.. especially the kale ones for Andrea's quest for the kale dishes in Victoria.  The rest of the breakfast was average. I really liked the environment and the staff, so definitely one to revisit... and I reckon it will feed a good niche being able to get a smaller meal for under $10, if that's what suits you.

Tumeric, Langford

After watching "Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation", myself and the lovely Brunette of My Acquaintance wandered into Langford proper for something to eat.  I was on a tight budget that day, but sharing a curry seemed like a good idea, so we walked into Tumeric on Goldstream road to see what we could get.

 The outside doesn't look very exciting, being part of a strip mall.  Glass doors, slightly faded signage in the windows and no real view inside.  Even just through the door, you are in a narrow walkway between a cashier's desk and a low wall seperating you from some of the dining area.  Once through, the space opens out, with a large area for small groups, a patio space outside, and a raised area with large bench tables for bigger family groups.

This was much more welcoming, and we got seated pretty much wherever we wanted, so we took a large solid wooden table, out of the way of the patio doors.  The weather was cooling down that weekend, and we wanted warmth and coziness.

The menu's a decent length, with plenty of options, but not trying to have every possible version of curry known to man.  We select a vegetable biryani, daal Maharani and a large plain naan.  This we got with some chai tea.

The tea was great, a warming mix of spices, served strong but with plenty of milk too. Warming, and comforting.  The daal, a creamy lentil stew, lacked a bit in flavour and texture.  It needed some bite. Either in the lentils, or the garlic, or the ginger... or something.  It wasn't bad, just not particularly inspiring.

The biryani was decent, a nice mesh of flavours in the spices, and a nice mix of vegetables.  We ordered it medium, and it had a warmth to it that was hotter than I expected, but not unpleasant.  It was just a rice dish, and not served with a vegetable curry sauce that I would often get in a british curry house.  No matter, the daal worked with it instead.

The Naan bread was excellent. It was soft and pliant, with a bit of a crisp edge to it. It wiped up the juices from the daal, and was easily big enough for us to share one with out feeling left out on the breads.

Overall, for $14 each (including a tip), this was a decent evening meal, in a nice surroundings, with plenty enough in the portions to satiate us.  They did tell us all about the buffet lunch special ($12.99), which, if out in Langford, sounds worth trying once. We had a conversation about UK curries. We talked about how butter chicken doesn't seem to be a thing over there, but the balti dish is.  The servers had never heard of the balti, Seems it is a very UK-centric style of the cuisine.

Ah well.  Compared to Amrikko's and the Sizzling Tandoor, it's not as good. But it's helping dissolve the idea I had that you can't get a decent curry in Victoria.

The Victoria Fringe, One Show

Last night, I saw my last fringe show, For Body and Light's "Bear Dreams" at the Metro Studio.  In short, it was excellent.

There. Done. Can I go now?

Not really.  It's probably useful to now write some words that help the reader understand why I liked it so much, so they can judge whether my reaction is something they would share.  Some description, some short analysis, and then we can be done.

Recently, the UK Guardian's literary critic wrote a piece about how bad Terry Pratchett is as a writer, and how is mediocre writing is a waste of everyone's time.  Problem is, he hasn't read the authors work beyond a few pages, and his break down of the work he's reviewing is somewhat lacking.  Contrast with this piece by Jacqueline Rose on "Gone Girl" and "Girl on a Train". Here the critic breaks down the work, in context, on why they are disturbing and un-rewarding books.

That makes a great piece to read. The author has given you something to muse over, and you can think more about whether you'd like to read the books anyways.  You can understand much more about them, and also, if you've read them, think about your own reaction to them in a different way.

What's this got to do with "Bear Dreams"?  Well, it got a One Star review from the Times Colonist arts reviewer.  Of course he can give any level of review he so likes. But the review itself, to me, was not a good review, as it left anyone reading it with a view of the show that is different from what I saw, and throughly enjoyed.  If you are giving out such low marks, it's really got to be something devoid of merit.

"Bear Dreams" is a mix of spoken word poetry, dance, spectacle and audio guitar loops.  The poet, Ian Ferrier, recites in hushed tones a story about travel, discovery and a love of Canada.  A journey through time and memories of the cold, dark winters that the original (and later) settlers to this place came across, struggles against and made their home.

The music is simple, emotional and moody. Use simple chords and rhythms, looped and varied, the sounds keep a tempo with the words, and with the on stage action.  At times it's simple movement of the three dancers, moving light around, cast shadows and beams over the audience and the stage.  At other times, the music and movement intensifies, with the two principals running, diving and rolling over the entire space. They use lights, pillows and their own bodies to recreate and retell the words spoken.

Stephanie Marin-Robert, the choreographer, paints the pictures of love, of winter and the voyageurs with her dancers, and herself. The two principals, Danika Cormier and Joachim Yensin-Martin, use the space to retell a love story of the Thompsons. The Thompsons, David and his Metis Wife Charlotte, discover and explored many parts of central Canada. They show the finding new space in the wilderness, and use a large silk net to create further images and patterns on the stage, as Ian narrates an audio tapestry.

In the finale, some of the audience is invited on stage to create a tent with this large silk net, and use small green and violet torches to re-image the aurora borealis. The shows builds to this point, with the music and the dance becoming more and more urgent, until we are left with the tension relieved as the tent whisks away, and the music and story ends as the Bear awakes from his dreams.

This show is more than it's parts.  It's creating a large, mood driven piece, that's intense, that's trying to create a tight emotional response in your belly.  That's trying to make you feel something more than laughter or joy.  A sense of belonging and sense of place.

How it does that may not be for everyone.  But it does what it's trying to do well.  There's no bum notes, or overly earnest appeals to the crowd.  It's a piece of moving, living art, that you look at, and either accept or reject.  It's a time for reflection, and a space for thinking.

It's really not the sort of thing on paper that I would of thought I'd like.  But I did.  I loved it, like I loved "Coming and Going" last year.

I hope I have fulfilled some of my brief as a reviewer, and you can now judge whether you think it is a show worth seeing when it comes to Vancouver, or if its not for you.  If I have swayed you in either direction, mission accomplished.

[[ I know Ian Ferrier, the poet, from last year's fringe when he billeted with me, and he billeted here again.  I say this for full disclosure of any bias. ]]