North Vancouver's Canyon reinvents comfort fare

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      One of the starters on the menu at Canyon, a new restaurant in North Vancouver's Edgemont Village, is simply called Octopussy. The menu provides no other description or detail, but the appetizer did come highly recommended by our server on a recent sunny evening visit. It didn't disappoint. Tinged with violet, thin slices of giant Pacific octopus sit pretty atop endive, watercress, and julienned red and yellow peppers. Having been marinated in ponzu sauce, rice-wine vinegar, ginger, and a tart-and-salty umeboshi plum extract, the meaty cephalopod is crazily flavourful. It's a plate of purple pleasure.

      The starter is also a good example of what Canyon's all about: food that's local, inventive, and satisfying.

      The neighbourhood joint on this bustling little strip occupies the former home of the Edge bistro. In fact, the spot itself has been around since 1952, having first opened as the Mountaineer Diner. You can almost imagine being in a quiet mountain town as you look out the restaurant's big windows that offer a unique view of Grouse. Canyon is definitely more upscale elegance than casual café (save for the DOA print in the washroom). But with its emphasis on wood—the floors, tables, exposed beams, and some wall panels are all wooden—and use of earthy accents (such as the spherical light fixtures made of wooden strips, dark-grey colours, and a jagged, ledgestone wall), the place has a warm, chaletlike feel.

      Chef Scott Kidd is just the culinary vet to operate it. Having moved to the West Coast in his teens, the Hamilton, Ontario, native trained at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris. He got his start here in the early '80s at the Sooke Harbour House. (In a follow-up phone call, Kidd credited the idea for Octopussy to his time spent working at the acclaimed Vancouver Island restaurant.) He's held exec-chef positions at several standout B.C. restaurants, including Raincity Grill, Lola's, Whistler's Araxi, Bishop's, and most recently Lift.

      Like the octopus, many appetizers tempted, including curried crab meat cuddled up with grapefruit, fennel, and chicory as well as a plate of prosciutto, roasted vegetables, and fior de latte, the latest fresh cheese to be getting prime play around town. (It's a notch above buffalo mozzarella, all delicate and delicious.) Not so tempting were the ubiquitous pork belly and a feature appetizer consisting of crispy veal brains. A tumble of rocket and Treviso lettuce, yummified with hazelnuts, goat cheese, and fig pieces, won out; the server had advised restraint since the mains are sized generously.

      Sure enough, the pork chop with applesauce and mashed potatoes on a neighbour's plate could have been called Hungry-Man dinner: it was seriously huge. (Kidd sources Canyon's hormone-free meat from Beefway Meats on Kingsway.) Besides that old-school classic, Canyon offers other comfort food. Take the Thai coconut-and-red-curry dish with tender chicken and plump prawns. Served with jasmine rice you scoop yourself onto a plate draped with a banana leaf, it's a hearty, heartwarming meal. Just as fulfilling was rainbow trout, the tender fish (from sustainable-focused 7 Seas) served skinside up on a base of potatoes with scallions, onion, and extra-smoky bacon. Vegetables, such as broccoli with capers and anchovies or chard with bacon and currants, are ordered separately, and cost $6.

      Having just opened earlier this year, Canyon is still fine-tuning its operation. The menu is a bit confusing: there are three straightforward sections (starters, mains, and sides) but then another called “cool stuff” that's a mix of appetizers and main dishes (items like calamari, veal liver and onions, and swordfish pepper steak). White and whole-wheat dinner buns from Cobs underwhelmed, but Kidd admitted on the phone that finding artisanal bread is a priority. The salt-caramel gelato, which is served with a chocolate budini (which means “pudding” in Italian but here was more of a rounded brownie), also lacked wow. (My pick would be the salted- caramel version by local company Earnest Ice Cream—the stuff is extraordinary.)

      Service is excellent, and the coffee is rich and hot. The wine list is limited but has terrific selections, including bottles from B.C.'s Blasted Church, Blue Mountain, Nk'Mip, JoieFarm, and Okanagan Crush Pad wineries, as well as some from the U.S. (I loved California's Wente Vineyards Morning Fog Chardonnay) and South America, among other places.

      A three-course dinner for two with a glass of wine each came to $100 before tax and tip. Packed even on a Sunday evening, Canyon is worth crossing a bridge to get to.

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