C | Prime: First Dine Out of 2017!

It's that time of year again, Dine Out season! For those of you unfamiliar with what this is, it's an event that typically runs for two weeks near the end of January into February (before Valentines). Participating restaurants from around the metro Vancouver area offer a special 3-course menu for set prices of $20, $30, or $40. Some may have variations of the 3-course and additional options you can have with your meal, such as wine pairings. Popular restaurants get booked super quick, so best to book ahead of time! You can view the offerings on their website, but dishes may change when you arrive at the restaurant.

For our first Dine Out adventure this year, I picked C | Prime, which is an Italian restaurant located inside Century Plaza Hotel in downtown Vancouver. They offered a $30 3-course menu with an optional $20 (for 9oz) wine pairing.

We were started with some Foccacia bread with balsamic vinegar, olive oil, salt, and olives. The bread was fluffy, light and moist, quite enjoyable to begin with as we waited for our food.

I was super excited about their baked clams appetizer, but due to the recent news regarding multiple people experiencing food poisoning-like conditions with oysters, they decided to pull that option from the menu for safety measures and offered a Grilled Calimari Steak on Arugula Salad instead. Adorables ordered this and it was clear that this was a last-minute change to the menu, since the squid was not seasoned all the way through. Texture was chewy and overall an enjoyable dish.

I opted for the Mediterranean Octopus with Heirloom Tomatoes and Fingerling Potatoes. This was another surprise, since originally it was octopus with eggplant and roasted pepper puree, I didn't mind the change though.

The octopus was soft and tender, nicely marinated with flavors deep into the meat. Tomatoes burst in my mouth and the potatoes were cooked well.

To try everything on the menu, MaCherie ordered the Twice Baked Asiago Cheese with Hazelnut Salad. Aesthetically this was the most pleasing of the trio of appetizer options. It looked like a little cookie on the salad!

The texture of the cheese reminded me of quiche, and paired nicely with the salad. A little on the heavier side for appetizers though.

Onto the mains, Adorables got Lamb Loin with Parmesan Risotto, Wild Mushrooms, and Rosemary Jus. The lamb portion felt a little small, but the flavors were deliciously marinated into the meat. The risotto was creamy and rice melted in my mouth nicely. Mushrooms added a nice touch to the flavors dancing in my mouth.

ChezWil, being a chef himself opted for a medium rare variation of the dish, and it looked beautiful. He explained that this allowed him to taste the gaminess of the lamb better.

I got the Arctic Char with Chickpea and Chorizo. The char was almost white in color, which suggests to me that it might be farmed, since the color of the meat depends on the feed that is given to the fish and can be controlled to suit the purchasers' needs. Nonetheless, this was perfectly cooked, the fish was moist and the skin was crispy. I felt a disconnection between the chickpea, chorizo and fish though. It felt like they just happened on the same dish and had little interaction as a dish. It was underwhelming.

Being the trooper, MaCherie opted for the vegetarian option of Gnocchi with Wild BC Mushrooms in a Porcini Truffle Cream Sauce. This was surprisingly my favorite dish out of the three mains. The gnocchi was light, fluffy, and full of flavor. The cream sauce was rich and I could taste the mushroom which complimented the gnocchi well. This was a bit much to eat for one person, since it was so rich and creamy, but we shared it and I couldn't just stop at one piece!

Onto our favorite part of the meal: desserts! Adorables got the Paniforte Siena with Almonds, Hazelnuts, and Candied Fruits, which was a baked cake consisting of the nuts and fruits. It was plated with chocolate creme and I think a salted caramel sauce (with some sort of alcohol I couldn't figure out). The cake wasn't too dry, had some crispy bits and when combined with the bitter chocolate creme and sauce-- made for a deadly combination! I loved it!

I ordered the Lemon Tart with Lemon Curd and Italian Meringue, which was the highlight of dessert. The lemon curd was deliciously tangy, with bits of lemon in it and the consistency was perfect. The smooth and tart lemon curd contrasted well with the sweet crispy tart.

The dish was adorned with meringue pieces and marshmallow, quite pleasing to the eye and palate!

It just happened so that MaCherie ordered the heaviest of the options all meal! The Warm Spiced Pumpkin Bread Pudding with Salted Caramel Gelato although delicious, was quite filling. The bread pudding was dense but melted in my mouth. Reminded me of autumn (probably because of the pumpkin), I could taste the pumpkin strongly. Salted caramel gelato helped a little with cutting the heaviness of the bread pudding and was a great end to our meal.

The staff were friendly and helpful, but don't expect fast service here. Our meal lasted three hours as we waited to order, then our food, and the bill!