the apron - the westin wall centre, vancouver airport

a real delight. first time dining at this restaurant and it exceeded all our expectations (food and service).

we started off with a crisp dungeness crab cakes; it was so tasty! beautifully seasoned and the combination of salad and crab cakes were just perfect. the portion size was decent and i wouldn't hesitate to order this again next time!

for our mains, we had the wild pacific sockeye salmon and the deep coastal black cod.foodwas fresh, served in generous portions, both our fish were had crispy skin and perfectly cooked. again, it was well seasoned but not overpowering. it was fantastic!

as for dessert we decided on the apron chocolate bar and the white out. the chocolate bar was heavenly made that came with salted caramel ice cream, almond crumble and coco crisp. the white out featured a buttermilk panna cotta torchon, vanilla bean gelato and white chocolate and orange brulee. going back and forth on these sweets was so much fun! if i wasn't full already, i want to try out their other desserts too.

the service was fabulous, our waitress, christina was not intrusive but was polite, attentive and catered to our every needs.

overall it was a real treat to have dined at the apron tonight. i cannot wait to revisit this place again!

how do you feel about science and food? a kind of new introduction into thefoodworld is molecular gastronomy. some people are skeptical about mixing science withfoodbut actually science andfoodhas always been intertwined. without science how else would people be able to cook with such great kitchen stoves, ovens, blenders, torches, etc.? or maybe that is just an unrelated argument. anyways, there is a small restaurant at the westin wall in richmond called the apron that serves molecular gastronomy food. appetizers butternut squash soup  vegetable appetizer: beets, black pudding, pine mushroom, veal marrow in an almond vinaigrette not sure where the molecular gastronomy part is. assorted vegetables  this appetizer was actually kind of fun. what i mean is the blown mozzarella (the deflated white thing on the left). when you bite into it, it's airy and deflates very quickly into normal cheese taste in the mouth. there's also eggplant puree and greens. eggplant puree and blown mozzar

great chef great food. the apron restaurant
3099 corvette way, richmond
tel: 604-303-6565
web: http://www.westinvancouverairport.com/dining
details: complimentary valet parking available, also offers a 5, 7, and 9 tasting menu. located inside the westin wall centre vancouver airport hotel.

it's a modern, casual bistro feeling restaurant (versus fine dining) with a bar area and also serves more simple cuisine. we saw a burger and pizza being served at the bar that also looked very tasty.

we went to the apron restaurant last night and it was very memorable. we had the tasting menu and all the dishes we had were excellent. the real stand outs were the:

- sunchoke soup. we love sunchoke. it was beautifully presented in the bowl with an amazing stock served separately.
- puffed foie gras with apple quince puree demonstrated executive chef hamid's passion for molecular gastronomy which transformed foie, which can be heavy, to something amazingly light and flavourful. the texture is unlike any other foie dish we have experienced before. we are fans of foie and have had it in many restaurants in canada and europe including france and spain. the warm house-made brioche was delicious.
- pan-roasted scallop with an aromatic coconut curry froth and basmati rice was a concert of spice, rich flavour and texture. the scallop was perfectly cooked with great carmelization. we rarely find restaurants who can cook them to this standard. an unbelievable dish.
- lobster with the house-made gnocchi and morels was sublime; the sauce so delicious you will want bread to help you get every last drop. it takes hours to create a sauce so intense.
- salmon was slow cooked and moist with very a flavourful house-made chorizo with roasted peppers, olives and fennel.
- braised lamb with couscous, red bean puree, grilled scallions & dry lime parsley foam offered a variety of textures and unusual flavours that worked well together.
- shattered baklava with pistachio ice cream and peaches. we loved the crispy texture of the deconstructed baklava. it was light and tasty without the traditional heavy sugar/honey syrup.

chef hamid is focussed on sourcing the best local products whenever possible. we located a posting online from someone at vancouverfoodster.com/tag/executive-chef-hamid-salimian and you will find pics of a similar menu to what we had. thefoodis truly edible art.

many restaurants have forgotten that sauces, reductions, etc. are accompaniments to compliment a dish and are essential for a full experience. it is labour intensive and requires creativity and planning. we would rather have less and have these accompaniments as this is what moves the dining experience to the next level. we have had the pleasure of dining in some top-ranked restaurants in the world and thefoodexecutive chef hamid salimian is preparing is of this level.

if you want artful presentation, molecular gastronomy/innovation, excellent flavour and thoughtful execution, we highly recommend you try award-winning executive chef hamid'sfoodat the apron. we believe he is one of the best chefs in vancouver!