Dine Out Vancouver Festival 2017 – Sai Woo
Located in historic Chinatown, Sai Woo showcases asian cuisine paired with unique craft cocktails. Their Dine Out menu offers a choice of 3 appetizers, 3 mains, and 2 desserts for $40. You’ll love the locally sourced ingredients and adventurous menu. It’s almost hidden away on chaotic Pender street, but once inside, you are greeted by 16ft ceilings with exposed brick walls from the early 1900’s. Salli, the owner, showed us what the original building looked like pre-restoration. Her and her team stripped layers and layers of drywall to unearth the building’s natural beauty and heritage. Sai Woo is a perfectly intimate setting to enjoy some delicious eats.
Asian Casual Eats
The meal commenced with a grilled romaine kimchi salad and a Korean beef tenderloin yukkae. The latter was a decadent take on beef tartare with an egg yolk to tie everything together.
Paired with the appetizers was Sai Woo’s most infamous cocktail, The Smoking Gun. Dark rum is combined with bitters, sugar, and oak and then infused with tea smoke. Dave the bartender served it table side as we were mesmerized by the “magic” that was happening in front of us. This cocktail was a real highlight of the meal and one of the finest cocktails I’ve had.
On to the Next
Our server, Jake, brought the main courses in a flourish of beautifully plated entrees. The Cantonese style garlic prawns delivered bite after delicious bite with garlic flavours shining through. It was nested on top of a sweet and spicy bok choi and gai lan medley.
The Szechuan veal cheeks were perfectly tender and melted with flavour. The cauliflower puree and vegetables were quickly devoured as we couldn’t get enough of this dish.
We sipped the elegant Anna May cocktail garnished with a blueberry as well as the refreshing Chinatown Mule with Jack Daniels and Ginger Beer. We felt at ease as we finished the last bites and took in the ambience.
Sweet Finale
This journey of asian cuisine ended with a matcha coconut panna cotta that tasted as exotic as it sounds alongside their interpretation of nama chocolate. A richly smooth chocolate and cream with a truffle-like texture, it was garnished with a yuzu curd and crispy puffed rice to add dimension.
Sai Woo’s Dine Out menu was an adventurous journey that paid homage to its heritage building and vibrant neighbourhood. The creative cocktails and stunning backdrop brought the cuisine to life. We would quickly return for dinner or a seat at the bar. #DoYouSaiWoo
For more information:
