Monday, May 3, 2010

An Afternoon at the Art Gallery of Alberta and Dinner at Zinc

My birthday came a week early this year. Dave's working nights all next week so we celebrated on Saturday with a trip to the new art gallery and dinner at Zinc. I'd been eagerly anticipating a visit to the gallery since they first announced it was being built. I'm happy to say it more than met my expectations. The architecture is stunning and we really enjoyed the exhibits. It's wonderful that Edmonton now has a gallery that I'll be proud to show off to friends from out of town. The Karsh exhibit was my favourite and the kid in me can't wait for the upcoming Art of the Warner Bros. exhibit that starts June 19th.

After touring the gallery we headed to Zinc for our 5:00 pm reservation. I was a bit hesitant to eat there after the mixed reviews that I've read. I decided to try it anyway. At least then I'd know for sure and could then form my own opinion.

Our dinner started with warm brioche served with herb butter.

The brioche was followed by an amuse bouche of blueberry panna cotta with balsamic drizzle and a chiffonade of fresh mint.

For some reason nothing on the appetizer section appealed to me that night, so we skipped it. Since it was my birthday dinner, I headed straight for the rack of lamb. Billed on the menu as: Herb panko crusted rack of lamb, couscous and anchovy tapenade, baked apple and pear chutney, eggplant ratatouille involtini and lamb jus. While it wasn't the best rack of lamb that I'd ever eaten, it was very good and cooked perfectly to my order. I have to add that I have pretty high standards where lamb is concerned. If it's on the menu, I order it. The couscous and chutney were OK, but didn't add anything to the dish. I really enjoyed the eggplant ratatouille involtini, which is just a fancy way of saying ratatouille rolled in thin strips of eggplant. The chunks of Parmesan melted on top were a nice touch.

Dave had the Trio of: Caribou, Amberlane Elk Saskatoon Berry Sausage and Carmen Creek Bison Short Rib with Braised Red Cabbage, Gnocchi and Spiced Dark Chocolate Sauce. He was nice enough to give me a little taste of everything. We agreed it was a great dish with intense flavour.

Instead of the regular sweet dessert we decided on the cheese plate, a selection of three cheeses served with crackers, a bit of fruit, pineapple compote and baked apple and pear chutney.

For $12 they offered wine pairings for each of the 3 cheeses served. The offerings for that night were: Le Riopelle de I'Isle, a triple cream cheese from Quebec, paired with Road 13 Pinot Noir; Jarlsberg from Norway, paired with Renwood Viognier; and Comte from eastern France, paired with Anvers Cabernet Sauvignon. It was a nice selection to what I thought was the end of the meal.

We'd mentioned that we were there for my birthday when we'd made the reservation, but it was still a pleasant surprise when our waitress brought out a plate of 4 kinds of ice cream for me, the birthday girl. I did share with Dave, although reluctantly. The selection was interesting. The pink stuff was a wine ice, I've forgotten exactly what kind. Below that in the photo is avocado ice cream. It didn't have much flavour, but it was incredibly rich and creamy. Next to that is the coconut ice cream, not much compared to the others. Lastly, the salted caramel, which was heavenly! After having it at Sensi in Las Vegas, it's become my all-time favourite ice cream.

I really enjoyed my dinner at Zinc. While the service was not as polished as some of the other fine dining establishments in town, everyone seemed to be trying very hard. They went through all the right motions and said the right stuff, but they still need a bit of practice to be really professional. Our waitress was exceptionally friendly. When I asked her to write down the names of the cheeses and wine pairings she brought out what I'm sure was her "cheat sheet" with all the information on the cheeses and their origins. I'm looking forward to going back for either brunch or lunch once the Warner Bros. exhibit opens.

Zinc
2 Winston Churchill Square
Hours: Tues. & Wed. 11 am to 2:30 pm and 5 pm to 9 pm; Thurs, Fri, Sat: 11 am to 2:30 pm and 5 pm to 10 pm; Sunday Brunch 10 am to 2 pm