Inamona is a Hawaiian condiment made with kukui nuts, but Pabst subbed in Brazil nuts. Who knew herring could be delicious? The poke followed the Hawaiian lead with ogo seaweed, inamona sauce, avocado, sweet onion, sesame and herring roe. Let’s start with the smelt taco: Two pieces of crisply battered and fried smelt, standout masa harina tortilla, cabbage, aji amarillo (a yellow Peruvian chili pepper) creme came together beautifully and, unlike many taco experiences, no lava of sauce and filling onto my hand. Ten per cent of proceeds from Unsung Heroes go to the Vancouver Aquarium’s Ocean Wise program.Īrticle content Smelt taco. It’s obvious this restaurant doesn’t need gimmicks to draw diners, but it’s a seafood restaurant aware of risks to its larder. And on top of the regular menu, the kitchen’s juggling 14 new dishes Pabst had created two weeks before the Unsung Heroes launch. On a Wednesday evening, the room and private rooms were booked out. I tried five this year and I gotta say Pabst does a great job transforming the unusual into something familiar and delicious.

Dishes are $12.50 to $14.50 and you can order one - or 14 if you’re so inclined. He’s having a lot of fun with comforting disguises but the real test is in the tasting. And what about sea urchin hotdog with shoestring fries? OK, you say, you’ll give it a try. Doesn’t smelt taco sound OK? And crayfish cappuccino? Oh, lots of foam, please.

In this 14th year, Pabst offers 14 dishes and like a wily parent who smuggles broccoli into the lasagna, he uses a sleight of words.

This menu turned me on to sea cucumber and jellyfish a few years ago and now I’m a fan (as long as the chef knows how to cook them). Only talent like Pabst’s can nail ugly delicious food and reel in curious diners. With the Unsung Heroes festival of sea creaturely delights, he cajoles us to expand palates and try sustainable species like whelk, octopus, sea cucumber, jellyfish, mackerel, slipper limpet, periwinkles, herring, smelt, crayfish, octopus, sturgeon liver, and others.Īdmit it, they make you squeamish.

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