We have had some new (and not so new, sorry Pastiche for the late post!) products arrive on our doorstep.
One of my favourite things about the shop, is the people who come in with one of a kind products they have been passionately developing. Usually, it begins their kitchens, then friends tell them they should make more, then they set up at the farmers market, then they need to find a commercial kitchen space to meet the demand, then they're ready to hit up retailers. Often, we are a first stop for people wanting to test the waters of Vancouver retail food scene. Being small means we can't warehouse pallet loads of tomato sauce, it also means we can carry select, small batch goods by people who aren't interested in producing pallet loads of food.
This week we have Cretons from Chef Henrik (also tourtière to be posted on later) Pascal was particularly happy about this one, seeing as it hails from Québec. Whenever we visit his parents in Montreal, one of the first stops is to pick up a tub of cretons, a loaf of bread and a big bottle of Fin Du Monde. I don't eat red meat, so my go to is always veggie pâté. This is where Pâté Pastiche comes in. Vancouver has had a glaring lack of both of these products until recently. Sure, your can find veggie pâtés but none of them are quite like the ones you find in Québec, ruddy, earthy, rustic. Pâté Pastiche is the closest I've found here, blindfolded, I might not be able to tell the difference plus it's vegan and gluten free.
Yummus is another new company, maybe only a month old. Yashar, the young man who makes it, has a smile that could illuminate a city block and an unrivalled passion for the humble chickpea.
He will be hosting a Yummus pop-up at the Chinatown Experiment soon and we'll be sure to let you know when that happens.
All of the above, quoting chef Henrick "create delicious food made with 100% fresh and first quality ingredients with respect to tradition and methods."
For more info check out their sites.
here and here no website for Pastiche yet.
p.s Cretons is on the menu here so if you've never had it and you're not sure you'll like it, you can give it a try.
Now, if only we could get a liquor license!
Photographs| Janaki Larsen
thoughts| Janaki Larsen