Zambri's at the new location

<2010-10-08 Fri>

For my previous review of Zambris, please see this

The big question that was in my mind, is the new restaurant still Zambri's?

Few days ago I was talking to a person who said that she did not want to have a fancy dinner in the back of a London Drugs, thus never went to Zambri's for dinner.

The new Zambri's opened in an-almost-finished building: the Atrium. This building is a good addition to Victoria, which lacks good architecture, and its atrium lives up to the name of the building. It seems to be destined to be a gathering place. Pig BBQ Joint was packed. Maybe there is something in that little hole in the wall that has sprouted two people's favourites (the other being Hernande'z). Habit is getting ready to open.

The lunch service now feels like dinner. This is no longer the "family" style trattoria. It has changed dramatically, and it is now a fancy restaurant. I recognized some faces around the tables, but most of them were probably curious of the "new" restaurant. The bar is now large and it is a center of the new restaurant. Gone is the "order from the board" style. Now you have to wait for a table. Perhaps what I liked the most of the old Zambri's was the ability to greet the kitchen staff. Now that is gone. They are well beyond the prying eyes of the audience. Throughout the years I had build a relationship with them. They knew how to cook my food, and usually asked me for my opinion. It was one of the reasons I soo much enjoyed Zambris'.

I feel like a foreigner. This is no longer the Zambri's I knew. The question is, do I like the new restaurant.

The restaurant is in a beautiful location. Its floor to ceiling walls of glass overlook the corner of Blandshard and Yates. It will be interesting to see what happens during the hot days of August (although it seems to have air conditioning). The old furniture is gone, and replaced by modern, swanky one. A computer system has replaced the old "hand-written" ticket system.

The service staff has grown considerably too. From 2, there are now around 6-7, including a metre die. Many are new to me.

Coming by myself, I was offered to sit at the bar. I originally declined, but decided that it was a good idea.

The menu is printed, and the big novelty is pizza. Yes, there is a pizza oven. I am not crazy about pizza, and decided to ordered the salmon.

When it arrived it, I was surprised it came with a separate salad (simple lettuce dressed in a vinagrette). The smells of the dish were Zambri's. The olive tapenade was absolute delicious. But the salmon was dry. I mentioned this to the bartender, Brendan, who relied the info to the kitchen. I was offered a replacement. I hesitated. i don't like to be a pain. But he really pushed it and I accepted. Ok, New-Zambri's cares.

What came back was delicious, and reminded me why this has been my favourite restaurant since I came to Victoria.

I like the place, the extended hours.

It is hard to accept that the old cozy place is gone. Like many things over time, change comes whether we like it or not. Zambri's continues to serve good food, and that is, or should be, my primary concern. It is time to build a new relationship.

Verdict: Beautiful restaurant, serving excellent lunch food, but it is a different Zambri's.

Paid: 19.04 + tip

Discovery Coffee Oak Bay Avenue

Coffee Review

No. 94

<2010-09-01 Wed>

Discovery has become one of my favourite coffee destinations. There are many reasons why.

First, it has excellent coffee, prepared by baristas that care for their trade. They usually ask me how the coffee was, something that, sadly, is not very common.




Second, I love the place. I like the reused sawing tables, and the planters made from recycled objects.

Third: I like their vinyl music collection and the request for donations.



Forth: the place is large, bright and comfy.

Verdict: I have become a regular. Too bad they don't stay open too late. Highly recommended.

For more information, including address, visit:

Hernande'z

<2010-08-24 Tue>

No. 86



Hernande'z secret to success is extremely simple: hand made tortillas, a very good salsa, and fresh ingredients. They are absolutely the best tortillas in town. I am not surprised they have stopped selling tacos to go (you can't have a taco 1/2 hr later, it would have disintegrated by then).

They have two menus: the slow and the fast, depending on how long you are willing to wait. It is unfortunate the pressure that some customers impose on the speed of preparing food in a restaurant. Some of us would prefer a richer, better cooked meal than a fast one. I think Hernande'z approach is the right one: state, upfront, that some items in the menu will take longer to prepare, and let the customer decide. When you order you get a card. It is a "Loteria" card, which is similar to Bingo but for kids. They will call your card when your food is ready, and bring it your table; you can sit and relax while waiting for your food (other places in Victoria should learn from this simple method of keeping your customers happy while waiting).



I tend to order el Huarache (they call it "La", which is wrong. It is "El"), which is a central Mexico staple. Their version is not very authentic but I enjoy it. A true huarache has beans filling sandwiched in the "masa", not on top. This huarache is closer to a big "sope". Their interpretation is a also "healthier" (it lacks the lard that enriches the authentic ones) and has a good salad to top it. The flavour of fresh cooked corn and the salsa does to me what good comfort food should always do: brings me back memories (in this case, of my years in Mexico). I have tried other items in their menu and I have enjoyed them, but keep going back to the huarache.

A final note: they stay open for most of the day, from 11:30 to 21:00, making it an ideal place for a late snack.

I am a regular.

Verdict: Very good prices, and highly recommended.

Paid: ~7.50

For more information, including location, visit:

Ulla

Update (Nov 21, 2010): See how this dish is made.

<2010-08-20 Fri>
No. 82

(Dinner only)

Out of the 82 restaurants I have visited so far, Ulla is the first that truly wows me.

I was busy with work and I didn't have time to fix dinner. I decided to go downtown and find a place to eat. My idea was to visit a restaurant that didn't open for lunch. My first thought was Wild Saffron, but as I passed in front of it I recalled that Ulla had opened just around the corner.

As I entered Ulla, my first impression was of a bright, modern, and comfortable restaurant. I liked it (some restaurants in town should learn from them). I was by myself, so I decided to eat at the bar.

I wasn't too hungry. Because I eat well at lunch time, I find full entrees at dinner time too big for me. I can eat out every day for lunch, but I can't at dinner time; it is just too much food. For this reason I tend to order apetizers. Another reason is that they tend to be more creative, both in content and presentation, than the entrees.

I ordered the tuna tataki, and the octopus. Both were delicious. In the tuna I particularly enjoyed the chanterelles, and I liked the way the avocado had been spread at the bottom of the plate as a "surface" in which the rest of the food rested. Its only defect is that some of the toasted garlic was chewy.




The octopus was sublime. It was as tender as butter and full of flavour. I could not stop eating it.



I usually don't order dessert, but I was enjoying the time, and had more work to do. I followed the bartender suggestion and ordered the chocolate cake. It was, like everything else, delicious.

The service matched the quality of the food.

In this first visit, Ulla delivered very interesting food in terms of flavours and presentation. More important, it was delicious. I can't wait to come back for more. If Ulla is consistent, and continues to deliver this level of food, it will be in my top 3 dinner destinations in town (perhaps the top one). I wished it opened for lunch.

Verdict: We need more restaurants like Ulla.

Paid: 35.84 + tip (2 appetizers + dessert)

For more information, including prices, visit:

Zambri's, Revisited

Update Nov 16, 2010: since writing this review, Zambri's has moved to a new location.

<2010-08-11 Wed>

I recommend you first read my original review of Zambri's.

In my last visit to Zambris, the food was not to the standards that I am used to. Furthermore, ever since I started my quest to visit every restaurant in Victoria I have been missing eating at some my regular restaurants (Zambri's is one of them).

I like eating, and I usually get excited about eating at Zambri's. My visitor, MG, is a foodie, and I felt I was putting him enough through the paces by eating at restaurants I didn't know, thus I decided for Zambris.

I ordered rockfish. It was delicious. Perfectly cooked, the smell of the food, the sauce (the kitchen at Zambri's makes delicious sauces).

Hopefully the next visit will be equally satisfying.

Paid: approx 18 + tip

Devour

No. 61

<2010-07-26 Mon>

Food to devour: another of Victoria's secrets.

It is not uncommon that my conversations with strangers typically end around food and restaurants. I am always curious to know what people think about restaurants, and find out which ones they like.

It was around 2 months ago that somebody mentioned to me Devour as being really good, but didn't really paid attention to it. Then I started to notice how good reviews it was receiving.

It is located in the old "Metro" Spanish restaurant, one that I never visited, in what I believe is the most competitive food area in Victoria (there are at least 15 restaurants in that block).

I knew it was small, and it had its following. On Mondays I usually have to eat early, I thought arriving around 11:15 was perfect.

Devour is a beautiful little restaurant. It is comprised of a bunch of small tables, very close to each other. It also has two tables outside, if you like your food smoked.

Imagine a little Zambri's at lunch time. That is what Devour feels like. Like Zambri's, it is wall menu, cafeteria style. I ordered the Smoked Tuna salad---which was the special of the day--picked my cutlery, a glass of water, chose my table and waited for my food to arrive.

Which brings me to the real special feature of this restaurant: the food changes daily. I love that. Once I trust a restaurant, I love that the person cooking has the flexibility to cook as they wish, and wants to take advantage of it. Cooking is a form of expression, and I often wonder how disappointing it must be to be forced to cook the same day after day, particularly in those restaurants that are clones of another one, where the customer expects the same every day.

I believe Devour's secret is that its chef loves to cook, and it shows.

I tend to avoid salads, and particularly smoked tuna ones because I can buy exactly the same tuna from the Fish Store in front of the Wharf. But given that it was the special of the day, well, I had to have it.

I am glad I did. Good cooking is about transforming ingredients, and in the process, elevating their whole into a new level that by themselves could not achieve. That was my salad. Every ingredient was fresh and flavourful.

It was beautifully presented and it was full of colours, textures and flavours everywhere: quail eggs, wheat, tomatoes, olives, greens, the tuna of course. It was a delight.

To top it all,JZ. who manages a restaurant I like, was there having lunch too. We talked about food, restaurants, the restaurant business, and life in general. It was possible because the place is cozy, and promotes socializing (rather than the awful, uncomfortable booths so loved by many). JZ was having lunch in her table, I on mine, next to hers, and yet, we, unexpectedly, were able to make our meals into what they should be: an unplanned daily social event that celebrates life with food. And Devour was the conduct.

Verdict: Highly recommended.

Paid: $15.68

For more information, including address, visit: