farmer's apprentice

a place where you can get food comparable to fine dining yet with very relaxed, leisurely casual setting that is accessible to everyone. it was very packed - it only has 30 seatings. the server actually had to move the small square table for me in order for me to snag my seat. it features a large open kitchen that has approximately 7-8 people (at least) working in there - which surprised me since the restaurant only has about 30 seatings. however all kitchen staffs were quite occupied. i could see each table ordered quite a few dishes since their servings were very small that i could literally finish the food in 2-3 bites. food were served fast. menu changes very frequently as the restaurant serves what come fresh from the farms to the table. despite its packed and casual setting, the presentation of food was great; the food in fact beats many corporatized, upscaled restaurants that come off snobby yet with only average food. i was impressed how taste-buds stimulating the food was (bas

please increase your value - cost ratio!!!. i love the food, but can't recommend because you will leave very hungry. the food is delicious, but so spare that in order to have enough, you must order two or three of everything.

the farmer's apprentice on west 6th - vancity's no. 1?. i love trying new things. whether it is new flavors, cuisine types, places with different ambiance. as a vancouverite, i also like to keep up with the happenings, so i follow vancity buzz since the traditional newspaper isn't really my thang.

upon reading this recent article, i had to try the farmer's apprentice. located on a small street on the west end of vancity, i would definitely call it a hidden gem. although, it is not so hidden anymore after this article.

http://www.vancitybuzz.com/2014/04/best-restaurants-vancouver-2014/

it has a small patio up front great for vancouver summers.

the farmer's apprentice had a nice atmosphere; open kitchen, small and cozy, and variety in the menu. the portions are small enough to try a few things, but big enough to share. i enjoyed my time dining here, and it is a great rising restaurant..(but to be honest, i'm not too sure about it being no. 1). i did enjoy the flavors of these dishes overall - it seemed more fusion than i would have imagined. my favorite dishes were the sweet gem oysters and olives, and my least favorite was the smoked octopus - i was actually a bit disappointed at the dryness of the texture as this was the dish i was really looking forward to. the staff were friendly, despite a small seating mix up. the restaurant opens at 5:30 pm, but i saw people lining up around 5 pm!

read a review about top restaurants in canada so tried #4 farmers apprentice unfortunately not impressed not only by the dessert and drink but by the fact that one of the chefs took a spoon in his mouth repeatedly (4 or 5 times to try) and put it back in the bowl to stir the food then proceeded to dish out the customers food with the same spoon definitely won't be coming back!!

really interesting menu, always something new to try and always good.

weird meat and terribly fat. two words i never like together, weird meat on the menu. meat was 90% fat. awful. i would not go back.

...i was instantly intrigued and thrilled at the opportunity to check out the recently named vancouver magazine’s 2014 restaurant of the year. it’s located a short walk from my office and i’ve passed by numerous times and thought the space looked charming, and i’d heard and read many rave reviews about the food. the room is c

very friendly staff, beautiful ingredients and meal composition. can't wait to go back.

the farmer's apprentice had a nice atmosphere; open kitchen, small and cozy, and variety in the menu. the portions are small enough to try a few things, but big enough to share. i enjoyed my time dining here, and it is a great rising restaurant..(but to be honest, i'm not too sure about it being no. 1). i did enjoy the flavors of these dishes overall - it seemed more fusion than i would have imagined. my favorite dishes were the sweet gem oysters and olives, and my least favorite was the smoked octopus - i was actually a bit disappointed at the dryness of the texture as this was the dish i was really looking forward to. the staff were friendly, despite a small seating mix up. the restaurant opens at 5:30 pm, but i saw people lining up around 5 pm!

oddcooki. where have you been all my life?
love this food.
not your everyday chef.

much like the show with the same name, you enter the unknown and get exposed to trials and tribulations of trying to guess the way the ingredients will co-exist based on the loose description or the kinder egg philosophy of searching through soggy hay for a chance at an “oyster”. like the apprentice, the fun and funky gamesmanship is overshadowed by the feeling of being judged. after all, you should feel privileged to be drinking from a enamel cup and opening a barn door to go to the washroom within one of canada’s most touted restaurants.

the menu was ambitious, used fine dining techniques but without the snobby pretentiousness, while still using local ingredients. it delivered focused flavors and paid psychotic attention to texture while highlighting subtle asian accents.

[3.5/5] i like the fact that the restaurant has switched to the tasting menu format. and the price is quite reasonable for the amount of the food and the quality of the ingredients. for our dinner, there were dishes of brilliance, such as the tomato and plum salad, the salmon, the quail and the agnolotti. but overall the meat-focused menu is much better than the vegetarian one. it seemed like they had to use the same ingredients in different courses for the vegetarian menu. portion wise, some of the meat courses could be smaller by using fewer ingredients, which could help to avoid repeating the same ingredient in different dishes. if you go with another person for dinner, it's better for both to take the same menu. we thought we would taste more things if we took one meat and one veggie, but ended up having a lot of redundant components going through the 6 courses on both menus.  but overall, we enjoyed the flavours from the quality local produce.

these pictures were taken years ago....well...2015.  decided to post them anyways since they have been in the drafts.  for my references if i want to go back in the future, since i am heading to vancouver soon~. farmer's apprentice is at point w at places part 2 in the map below:. farmer's apprentice restaurant - vancouver, canada

i've only been to this restaurant once a year ago and found their charcuterie plate absolutely ridiculous. i was given one slice of cheese, one scoop of a jam and 2 crackers for like $15-$20. however, the mains that we ordered were delicious. small portions but the price point was reasonable for what we got. i liked the overall local, casual, farm to table feel and the flavourful food for each simple dish. however, i had taken my mom that day and she felt at the time that there wasn't much service.