tenaya | Fuel vs. Horizons and the Stargate con (Reply)

So due to the schedule and all, we decided we'd have to do both these restaurants on the same day.

First, by the time we'd gotten ourselves together and hit the road, it was noon and time for Fuel to open. It's smallish and quite the businessman's place sort of motif. The chandelier looks like a glowy Ascended being that had been dipped in chrome--or maybe an Ancient that had been taken over by a replicator! *g* Anyway, muted dark colors that left me with a memory of dark metals. The wait staff was polite and careful--and I could see them talking about us. Well, we obviously weren't in suits so they must have wondered how/why we were there.

The food...maybe I just don't have an educated enough palate. I got the German butter potato soup for starters. It had a oval lump of pork confit that kind of dissolved when they poured the soup over it and it tasted a little like a Vienna sausage. It was supposed to have rosemary in it but it was so subtle I couldn't discern it. And that was my issue with all the dishes I sampled there that day; the flavors were very muted and blended. My entree was a schnitzel sandwich with a wild greens salad. I'd never had schnitzel before and from the way some people rave about it, I thought it was high time I tried it. The cutlet, while quite thin was still moist and the breading didn't overpower the flavor of the meat but again, nothing to write home about, particularly the bun it was made with. And the salad, well, about half way though I started trying to find the leaves that might have dressing on them and I realized that those black spots weren't herbs and spices but dirt. Great. Lastly the dessert was Roasted Dulce de leche poundcake with pumpkin confit and cinnamon cocoa sorbet. The sorbet had a very definite cocoa flavor but the rest of it had a very mild flavor. My meal was $40 before tip and while the food was okay, it really wasn't worth that much money. We left feeling that the place wasn't up to the hype that Mallozzi has showered on it and way too expensive for what we were served. They were nice people though.

Next we spent three hours walking through the VanDusen Gardens which contain fifty five acres and multiple lakes. The place is used as a site for SGA on occasion, with the latest ep being the one where Sheppard goes back to Earth and walks next to a lake with his ex-wife. The sun was out but it was a little cool which is, for me, perfect ambling about weather. Some of the rhododendrons were in bloom, and some bulbs. There were a number of plants and trees that were just about to bud. The magnolias should be magnificent in a week or so. And they had a yew maze that was fun, though it was one of those that has a number of short dead ends off the main path so it's not much of a brainer to walk through it. Marge, my roomie, hadn't ever notice/seen a monkey puzzle tree and was quite excited by them (there was one in the center of the maze.) Other nice features were streams, a waterfall, some lovely stones and Korean Pavilion. I discovered this trip I seemed to be obsessed with taking pictures of ducks with there tails up in the air as they bob for muck. It just makes me smile so go figure. I'll post some photos later.

We went back to the hotel to see Alexis Cruz talk but he was delayed. Dan Shea took the stage during Cruz's spot to entertain the fans for a second time that day. Call us jaded but we decided we'd rather do Fuel and the garden than see Shea (who we've seen multiple times before,) and David Palffy. Shea proved to be very entertaining and told a few stories we'd not heard before.

After that, we went to Horizons. It is a lovely restaurant near SFU. It was where SG:SG1 filmed O'Malleys, and the totem poles in front of the place is the site where SG1 darted out of the gate knocking down the Jaffa in Upgrades. It was a fantastic view of North Van, the mountains, the bridges and Vancouver itself. The vacation gods were smiling upon us again as without even asking for it, the waitress seated us at the table where Daniel, Jack and Sam had their dinner. It's fannish, but it was cool. :)

This restaurant has a very cozy ambience with lots of wood and windows which featured beautiful views of the sun setting over Vancouver. The waitress has been there for years and told stories about when SG was there filming. She was one of those people who is vivacious and talk to anyone about anything and leaves you laughing.

For food, I had forest mushroom risotto (Pea greens, shallots, garlic, cream, romano cheese) and it was delicious, as were the braised short ribs. Dessert was a nice tart rhubarb and apple crumble with sour cream ice cream (think "cheese cake" sour) and man was that good! Instead of the mild and merged flavors of Fuel, this had crunchy oats and smooth ice cream. The hot fruit was both tart and sweet and contrasted nicely with the sour and cold ice cream. It was an exploration of sensations and it was SO much better than Fuel. Oh, and I had a glass of lovely Canadian Ale while Fuel did not offer beer. Kinda says it all, really.