Collaboration vegan dinner event

Exciting news! Folke restaurant and Maest (Tomoko Tahara) are collaborating on a plant-based 8-course tasting dinner.

The event will take place on April 24th with 2 seatings at 5:30pm and 8:30pm.

Tickets are available now at Folke restaurant for $135, 8 courses includes 4 kinds of welcome snacks and drink, a dessert. Drink pairing is also available for an additional $45. Tips are included.

The location is Folke restaurant at 2585 W Broadway, Vancouver, BC V6K 2E9. Don't miss out on this amazing culinary experience!

*Photos are examples

About Folke : To bring people together- whole communities, friends and neighbours. Folke is a vegetable focused restaurant that strives to highlight local farms and the beautiful produce that they provide us with. Our everchanging menu is composed of a variety of small plates for a shared dining experience. 

Before chef Uyeda’s recent three year-run as the chef de cuisine at Kissa Tanto, he was at Pilgrimme on Galiano Island. Deo is a pastry chef (recently at Tsawwassen Springs). They opened a community-oriented vegan restaurant.  Their concept is something that Uyeda had come across while working at Pilgrimme and the now-closed Relae (Copenhagen)*The sentences from Scout magazine

About Maest food : Tomoko's background as a chef who has been trained by several chefs and worked at good restaurants in Vancouver for a decade indicates that she has gained significant experience in the culinary arts. Her focus on vegan cuisine and the use of locally sourced and foraged ingredients demonstrates a commitment to sustainable and ethical cooking practices.

Her work as a head chef at Harken coffee and writing their menus with original recipes showcases her culinary creativity and ability to develop unique and exciting dishes. Her participation in an internship at Inua, Noma's sister restaurant in Japan, and a class at Mad academy in Copenhagen, as well as her current work at Annalena in Vancouver, suggests that she is dedicated to continuing her education and improving her skills and knowledges as a chef.

Great grapes

I was at farmers market to look around interesting vegetables that I only can find at the market.

Stoney paradise farm. They are famous for tomatoes, their tomatoes are flavourful and sweet, they have huge line ups when they are at the market.

I saw they are selling coronation grapes - and I was wondering how do they taste like. I tried a grape berry - wow. It was amazing.

The grapes are in our second course, eye ball beets.

Cherry blossom flavoured slow cooked beets. Beets are stuffed with local hazel nut cheese.The grapes are on the centre, it is tiny part of the dish but their flavour is bold, perfect with floral flavoured beets.

Serving with plum seed flavoured dashi broth. The plum pit flavour is from Denmark’s famous distillery Empirical’s liquor.

Flax seed crackers on the side.

Our dinner pop up event at Burdock and co, tickets and details are here. Don’t miss it - this is our last pop up 2022

Cheese board, green walnut

Finished for a test for one of a menu for vegan contemporary dinner series vol.9 Far East.

We will feature Vancouver vegan’s favourite, plant based cheese shop, Blue Heron’s products.

We call it “board”, cheese samplers are on a pear compote(the cheeses on the pear are ideal, we don’t have actual products yet since we need to serve them fresh).

Pears.When I saw the pears at a farmers market, I bought it right away.

They looked like a treasure that I found in a cardboard, beautiful product.(And actual taste is perfect too)

Green walnuts. I received them from a farm where I took a field trip to, and then preserved in pickling liquid in mid summer.

I’ve tried the taste of nochino before but not pickled green walnuts.

After fermented a few days, the liquid got so black and I was excited how strange they are. Then left it about a month.

When I tried them two weeks ago, it was slightly too bitter and I thought I can’t use it for the event. Then I tried it again this week -happy surprise! It wasn’t bitter. Food science and time made a magic. Wonderful fragrance, unique texture and taste. Great addition for cheese & wine snack.

Shiso. Found them at a farmers markets then made an extract, then jelly. Very unique flavour, in between anise, basils, and mint.

Try them at our event. September 14th at Burdock & co. 7 course tastings dinner with a glass of wine, cold brew coffee & a dessert. The details are here.

Vegan shawarma weekend

Shawarma..yes, its shawarma without meat. Our next weekend takeaway pop up at Harken coffee 338 Powell street. 27 & 28 March, 11:30-4:30. Pre-order basis.

Our House made shawarma and pickles(Blueberry flower pickling liquid), romaine, tomato, avocadoes, fluffy elegant pita from Super baba on Main street.

You can order online.

Super slow cooked celeriac is the mock shredded meat.It took two days to process.

Wrap it up with flour dough - mixed some glutamine-rich flavours.

They look like giant meat balls?

Slice, then braise, then some more process.

Vegan bento pop up: Chirashi sushi

Maest food at Harken coffee : Vegan bento pop up 0.2 : Chirashi sushi.

Do you know Chirashi sushi? It’s basically like a poke, this is the quickest answer - it has long history. It have been commonly eaten in Japan since late 1800s, normally fresh fish (sashimi) on sushi rice.

This is vegan and artistically made- no fish at all, but variety of mocked fish and coulourful farm vegetables on the rice.

Ikura, marinated tuna, smoked salmon, kinshi tamago(shredded crape style egg) - all house made with vegetables.

Every content is made with thoughtful method to balance the flavour and texture, cured or marinated, etc. 

The chirashi sushi is in a beautiful wooden box, and also with Farm red potato Miso soup.

Available 20th & 21st March at Harken coffee 338 Powell street. Very limited number, highly recommend to pre-order online.

Take a glance look for vegan take away lunch box pop up on 6th & 7th March / Rose hip jam

Our pop up 0.1 : Vegan takeaway lunch box at Harken coffee.
What is in the box?

We introduced about the artisan bread on the last post.

The preserve for the bread.

Rosehip and Shiso jam.

Shiso is one of Japanese herbs. Tastes like mixed of basil, licorice, and mint.

The tanginess of the rosehip and the distinctive aroma from the Shiso herb are matching very well.

The taste of the jam reminds me plum jam, then I researched about those two plants - plums are a part of rose family. Probably that is because I reminds the taste of the plum jam?

Anyways.

Surprisingly, many of fruits such as pear, apples, cherries, strawberries and almonds, and more are Rosacae(rose) familly.

Ok, ok..back to the subject.

A mini sized jam is with the lunch box, also available full size at Maest market .

Our full menu on 6th and 7 th March.

Confit carrot, sunflower seed “cheese”, Crushed candied Tamari almonds

Charred broccoli with yuzu salt, shichimi, evo

Marinated, compressed Tempeh steak

Buckwheat Sourdough

Preserves : Shiso rosehip jam

Kale caesar salad

$18 before tax

Limited number. Pre-order the lunch box from Maest market, or just simply walk in to Harken coffee 338 Powell street.

Maest food at Harken coffee

Pop up 0.1 : Take away

Maest food (by Tomoko Tahara) will make a ¨To-go style¨ lunch pop up at Harken coffee(338 Powell street).

It will be every weekends from March 6th with a weekly rotation menu .

The menu for March 6th & 7th :

Confit carrot, sunflower seed “cheese”, Crushed candied Tamari almonds

Charred broccoli with yuzu salt, shichimi, evo

Marinated, compressed Tempeh steak

Sourdough

Preserves : rosehip jam

Kale caesar salad

$18 before tax

Limited number. Pre-order from Maest market, or just simply walk in to Harken.

Time flame: 12-2:30pm for walk in, pre-order pick up 12-5pm.

More details will be updated on closer day in this blog, also Tomoko Tahara instagram story.