British Columbia’s valley high
By Chris Johns
The Okanagan becomes a destination for top chefs. Almost every weekend in the summers when I was a kid, my parents would load us into the car and we’d drive up and down the Okanagan Valley from Kelowna to Kaleden seeking out fruit and vegetable stands. Those colourful stands are still there, and the region, with its long hot days and cool fresh nights, remains one of the finest producers of fruits and vegetables in Canada. For years, though, this fact remained a bit of a best-kept secret. Now, however, the word is out. Okanagan wines have won more international awards than can be listed here, and the industry is thriving. Cheese makers, charcuterie producers and organic farmers all followed suit, and the region is now a hotbed of culinary sophistication. This has led to an inevitable demand for quality restaurants, and lately the area has seen an influx of renowned chefs leaving behind the big cities to set up shop in the valley. The results are delicious. Hot rod
Rod Butters was one of the first to arrive. A celebrated chef who earned his reputation cooking for the Four Seasons in Toronto and Vancouver, he brought a new sophistication to the valley with dishes like anise-cured rainbow trout and roasted Dungeness crab “cappuccino” at his restaurant, Fresco, in Kelowna. Last year, however, Butters reinvented his restaurant as RauDZ, a more casual but no less impressive venue. The crab “cappuccino” is still there along with North Okanagan venison pasta Bolognese, but the menu revels in updated takes on the kinds of comfort foods many of us grew up with. A towering BLT gets healthy with the addition of grilled salmon; plump steamed mussels are served with a paella broth and chorizo; and there’s even a take on that most Canadian of foods, poutine, but with housemade chicken confit. Cabana boy
The kind of reinvented comfort food that visitors and locals in the Okanagan are responding to right now is also behind the success of Cabana Grille in the Lakeshore neighbourhood of Kelowna. Like Butters, Cabana chef Ned Bell brings an impressive resumé with him. His early training at Vancouver stalwarts Le Crocodile and Lumière led to his opening successful restaurants in Ontario and Alberta. With Cabana he’s opened a bright, modern space with an emphasis on the family. There are excellent wood-fired-oven-cooked pizzas (capicolla and pineapple’s a hit with the kids), sablefish with a choice of sauces (caramelized shallot butter for the grown-ups) and caipirinhas by the pitcher (for the partiers). Comfort and joy
Further south toward Penticton, a young couple from Toronto by way of Montréal and San Francisco are doing some of the most exciting cooking in the valley in one of its most impressive locations. Cameron Smith and Dana Ewart’s Joy Road Catering isn’t a restaurant, but their phenomenal dinners in the vineyard at God’s Mountain Estate celebrate both the wines and produce of the region to create a true cuisine du terroir. The timeless alfresco setting overlooks Skaha Lake, and the golden light of dusk beautifully illuminates the gorgeous food. This is simple, country cooking elevated by incredible ingredients. Marinated and slow-cooked pork shoulder is served with sweet baby carrots, bright green beans, sharp pickled onions and creamy roasted potatoes. Pair chef Dana’s peach galettes with a glass of Elephant Island’s apricot dessert wine and you’ll be planning your next trip before the first is even finished. Getting here RauDZ, 1560 Water St., Kelowna, 250-868-8805, raudz.com
Cabana Grille, 3799 Lakeshore Rd., Kelowna, 250-763-1955, cabanagrille.com
Joy Road Catering, 250-493-8657, joyroadcatering.com
God’s Mountain Estate, 4898 Lakeside/Eastside Rd., Penticton, 250-490-4800, godsmountainestate.com
Tourism British Columbia, 1-800-HELLO-BC (1-800-435-5622), hellobc.com Chris Johns is a Toronto-based food writer. Photo: Okanagan - Ellen Ho Photography / www.hong-photography.com
Top Banner Photo: © Ray Kachatorian
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