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By CINDA CHAVICH
The wine business is booming in the Okanagan Valley, and the food scene is finally catching up, making central B.C. a must-stop for foodies this summer.
A recent tour through Kelowna found as much excitement in the kitchens as the cellars, with new restaurants like Ned Bell’s Cabana Grill and Mark Filatow’s 764, amazing artisan goat cheese makers, and even a truffle farm, where arborists are producing hazelnut trees inoculated with black Perigord truffles, in the hopes of creating a Canadian truffle industry.
You’ll find local lavender jellies and apple cider, amazing artisan bread and new steak spots, like the upscale Sal’s Prime Steakhouse, where where an 14-ounce, organic Kobe beef filet sells for $69, in a sleek, urbane atmosphere. Early adopters - like chef Rod Butters at Fresco and Bernard Cassavant at Burrowing Owl - continue to set the bar high at their popular restaurants, while homegrown chef Grant De Montreuil champions local ingredients at the new Hanna’s Lounge and Grill.
Whether you dine on the comfortable new patio at Gray Monk, or indulge in the fine cuisine from chef Michael Allemeier at Mission Hill, winery chefs are leading way when it comes to excellent eating using the freshest local products. You’ll find local cheeses and delis with home-smoked sausages and charcuterie, and there are wonderful farmer’s markets, fruit stands and road-side stops to fill your cooler or resort refrigerator.
The Guisachan Village mall is a one-stop food shopping spot in the city. There’s Paul’s Produce, a Bernard Callebaut chocolate shop and Codfathers, a fresh fish market with a selection of fresh B.C. oysters, salmon and halibut, house-made smoked salmon pate or oysters Rockefeller, Vij’s curries from Vancouver, and a busy sushi bar.
But the true necessity for me is a daily dose of fresh artisan breads, like those created by baker Monica Walker at her tiny Okanagan Grocery Artisan Breads. From fat loaves swirled with peanut butter and jelly or studded with black olives, to fig streusel bars and “fired to order” crème brulee, this is the place for breads and baking. There’s also a cooler filled with Filatow’s Seasons soups and sauces, local Carmelis and Poplar Grove cheeses, and other Okanagan goodies to stock your pantry. Once a week, there’s a feature bread (like pumpernickel date sunflower) or you can always get crispy baguettes and hand-formed sourdough loaves.
So don’t assume the Okanagan is just peaches, beaches and burgers - it’s also a hot spot for fine food shopping and destination dining.
THE SCOOP
In Kelowna, here’s a list of great restaurants, shops and other food lover’s haunts to visit:
MARKETS AND FARMS:
Okanagan Lavender & Herb Farm – 4380 Takla Road, 250-764-7795, www.okanaganlavender.com
Come here for culinary lavendar, lavender jelly, lavender lemonade and ice cream during the summer lavender season – two acres blooming with 60 varieties of lavender.
Carmelis Goat Cheese – 170 Timberline road, 250-764-9033, www.carmelisgoatcheese.com
Visit the farm cheese shop to sample 20 kinds of artisan goat cheese and goat milk gelato.
Mediterranean Market – 1570 Gordon Drive, Kelowna 250-762-2000
This is your one-stop shop for Italian (and Greek and Portuguese) ingredients.
Illichman’s Deli – 1937 Gordon Drive – This family-owned business is the place for fresh meat and charcuturie and European imports. Try their house made sausages and home-cured bacon and hams, including their own Westfalian-style and air-dried prosciutto.
TruffiCulture Trees
13991 Middlebench Road, Lake Country 250-548-0020
Cathy and Quentin sell truffle-innoculated trees from their orchard and have a comfortable guest house available for nightly or weekly rental.
Kelowna Farmers’ and Crafters’ Market – Located at the corner of Dilworth and Springfield roads, this big outdoor market features 150 vendors and is open Saturday and Wednesday mornings, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. and Thursdays from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Gatzke’s Farm Market
Highway 97, Lake Country 250-548-3444
Kelowna Land & Orchard Co.
3002 Dunster Road, Kelowna, 250-763-1091
RESTAURANTS AND EATERIES
Cabana Bar and Grille
3799 Lakeshore Road, Kelowna 250-763-1966
Seven Six Four – 4600 Lakeshore Road
And Waterfront Wines, 102 1180 Sunset Drive, 250-979-1222 www.waterfrontwines.com
Le Triskell Creperie, 467 Bernard Ave. Kelowna, 250-763-5151 www.letrickellrestaurant.com
Memphis Blues BBQ, 289 Bernard Ave., Kelowna, 250-868-3699, www.memphisbluesbbq.com
Fresco, 1560 Water Street, Kelowna 250-868-8805 www.frescorestaurant.net
Bouchons Bistro, 105 – 1180 Sunset Drive, Kelowna 250-763-6595 www.bouchonsbistro.com
Hannah’s Waterfront Lounge & Grill
1352 Water St., Kelowna 250-860-1266
Hotel Eldorado
500 Cook Road, Kelowna 250-763-7500
Sal’s Prime Steakhouse, 366 Bernard Ave., Kelowna, 250-862-2909 www.salsprime.com
Staccatos Gelato (in the Rotary Centre for the Arts) – 421 Cawston Ave., 250-868-2113 – creamy gelato made with fresh Okanagan fruit
WINE COUNTRY DINING:
Mission Hill Family Estate
1720 Mission Hill Road, Kelowna 250-768-5125 www.missionhillwinery.com
Quail’s Gate Estate Winery
Old Vines Restaurant
3303 Boucherie Road, Kelowna 250-769-4451
Gray Monk Cellars
1055 Camp Road, Lake Country 250-766-3168
Cedar Creek Estate Winery
Vineyard Terrace Restaurant
5445 Lakeshore Road, Kelowna, 250-764-8866
GALLERIES AND ARTISANS:
Kelowna’s Cultural District is also growing – taking over the corner of the city that was once devoted to fruit packing plants. Today, some of those warehouses have morphed into museums, and there are modern loft apartments above artistic boutiques and galleries, like Funktional and the Art Ark, and public art and performance spaces, including the Kelowna Art Gallery and the Rotary Centre for the Arts, featuring nine artists’ studios and shops. Perfect stuff for setting the table and decorating the dining room.
©Cinda Chavich 2008
CULINARY TOURIST: Kelowna is cooking
Peaches, beaches, and new wineries, cheese makers, bakeries, restaurants, fish shops, delis - everything foodies need to make Kelowna a home away from home.
Cinda Chavich photos
