EAT Magazine Jan-Feb 2013_Victoria_40_Layout 1 12/27/12 1:08 PM Page 12
reporter — Victoria Crooked Goose Bistro Crooked Goose Bistro | 4136 Wilkinson Rd., Victoria | 250-590-4556 | crookedgoosebistro.ca The Crooked Goose Bistro opened at Wilkinson and Interurban in early November and was near full each time I visited in its first two weeks. “At least 30 people have been here every single day, for at least a drink,” says partner Gina Basra (Zambri’s), eyes glowing, conveying not an ounce of the fatigue and toil that she, Steve Watson (Brasserie L’Ecole, Zambri’s), chef Chris Bremner (Lumiere, Culinary Capers), Andrew Moffat and Ben Peterson (Heron Rock) have expended completely renovating this longtime bar/pub hub themselves. Two solid months of sweat, focus and industry-lifer expertise. The name Crooked Goose Bistro reflects the area: proximity to the Galloping Goose, the incessant echo of the plentiful Canada geese nearby as well as a tip of the hat to the predecessor, the KnockanElizabeth Nyland
back, named after a hill up the road. On my first visit, I sat at a booth over mimosas with a close friend. It was cozy and intimate. We chose the Poor Little Piggy burger with a side of chicken confit poutine and the Crooked Goose burger with mushroom soup. The “piggy” burger is a local pork patty with pulled
left: Grilled kalamari chili marinated squid rings, sweet & sour radicchio & CGB Lager battered onion rings. right: "The Crooked Goose" moniker came from their proximity to both the Galloping Goose and the Wilkinson jail.
pork, Hertel’s bacon and smoked cheddar. It was moist, the contrast and play of textures rich, satisfying and deeply tasty, and the housemade bun the best I have ever enjoyed. The chicken confit poutine was tender, salty and satisfying. The mushroom soup, with portabella
love to see “some of the European wine bar influence come to
and button mushrooms with a garlic cream broth, was both light and luscious and I could have just supped on that all evening. The Crooked Goose burger was a blend of pork, grass-fed beef and foie gras. This was a new animal to me—feral, gamey, unusual and quietly extravagant. The menu seems consciously to play with texture while delivering good, solid food done extremely well. I sat in the sports area for my second visit sampling the calamari and the wings, along with the beef jerky Caesar and a Crooked Juice (sage-infused bourbon, cranberry and soda). I expected deep fried calamari but was greeted with pan-fried calamari with a charred lemon vinaigrette co-mingling with hot, crisp onion rings nestled on a bed of balsamic-stewed radicchio. It was surprising, crispy and tender. The stewed radicchio provided a fragrant, bitter base that worked beautifully. The plump cornmeal-crusted wings with a thick Roquefort On my most recent outing, I enjoyed the Caesar salad with lardoons and fried capers, and the mushroom soup with a White Bark. I had a bite of the messy, gorgeous porchetta sandwich: slow-roasted
Gary Hynes
dip were delicious.
Victoria” as well. Parker, with 20 years in the industry, says “it has been, and always will be, a passion and love (for food)” that keeps him in the business. Parker has brought in John-Paul Turions to be Padella’s head chef. Turions has an impressive resume in the business as well, having worked at Camilles, The Black Hat, Stage, and Rare (Vancouver), among others. Turions’ menu scoots through Italy, not restricting itself to any specific region. You’ll see influences from southern Italy in the Linguini with spiced pork sausage and sauce arrabiatta (Parker’s wife’s favorite dish), Padella Italian Bistro | 2524 Estevan Ave., Victoria | 250.592.7424 | central Italy gets Pappardelle padellaitalianbistro.com with a chicken liver ragu, and above: Chef John-Paul Turions and Padella owner Geoff Parker. there’s even a North Americaninsert: Spaghetti with clams, chili, garlic and olive oil. Italian dish, Cioppino, a fish stew Padella Italian Bistro, located in the former Paprika restaurant in Estevan Village, is a lively, casual bistro; that originated in San Francisco. the kind of restaurant you can walk into on the spur of the moment for drinks and a bite. Parker and Turions have also rid Owner Geoff Parker brings an extensive background in the food and beverage industry to the restaurant. the menu of a traditional, ItalianHe helped to open Vista 18 and, before coming to Victoria, worked in several wine bars in south London, style menu construction—primi, UK and in the French Alps. Working in Europe changed his view on restaurants, after seeing how “people secondi, etc. —and instead have in Europe eat because they want to, not because they have to and always for the love of food”. He would gone with a more open-ended
pork with chimichurri sauce and smoked onion jam as well as a bit of a kid’s cheeseburger and fries. The service, the food, the space were all seamless and lovely. Crooked Goose Bistro is a wide space of booths, café tables, bar stools and restaurant seating. A raised area houses a single flat-screen TV for sports. The space is welcoming whether you’re up for casual or something nicer, a relaxed special coffee at the window or an anniversary dinner. This is a venture that complements and furthers fantastic food by great people in Victoria. And I hear the chorizo hash is terribly addictive … BY GILLIE EASDON
Padella Italian Bistro
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EAT MAGAZINE JANUARY | FEBRUARY 2013