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.

Water kefia fermented kale

Experiment for our vegan dinner pop up -

I tried to ferment kale with water kefia grains. Water kefia is easy way to say, probiotic. It contains lots of probiotic.

On the second day, it started to have acidic smell, and next day, the kale smell got stronger. I added salt and yuzu citrus juice to harmonize sulfur-ish smell.

I tasted both days, it gets better and better. Lots of umami and probiotic flavour.

This kale is a garnish for smoked blue hubbard squash, these are side item for the main dish.

Celeriac and zucchini, lentil patty roulade, aburi pine mushrooms, carrot and seasonal fruits salad, miso mole, quince sauce.

Our event tickets are here.

Apple tarte tatin

Let’s talk about this dessert course for our vegan experimental farm to table dinner pop up vol.11

At burdock & co. Tickets link is here

A lot of coincidence made this dessert dish special.

When I was thinking about flavour, I was planning with fig leaf flavor. It’s vanilla-y autumnal when they are with heat. However I wanted to have one more flavor- something Japanese- I was having a cup of hojicha tea. And I tried smelling with the fig leaf- it was perfect combination.

Another day, I was planning for the plating. Disassembled style tarte tatin maybe good. But sounds a bit boring.

Then went farmers market to get apples for my experiment. Then found these cute tiny apples. These aren’t crab apples. A little bit tart, yet lots of sweetness.

Perfect. My idea was completed with the apples.

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

Trick, or…Dinner

Finalizing the menu ideas for my event on 18th October.

Today is a test for a snack. Planning to make a “black tart”.

My experiment went well. I was originally thinking to make it very thin crusts but, it looks neat and ancient when I made thicker crust with unfinished touch of shapes. It is perfect for my theme.

The dough is made with activated charcoal, Canadian ancient grain red fife flour from Flourist.

The filling is made with local potato with truffle flavour, chestnuts, vegan caviar.

Vegan farm to table dinner vol.11 at Burdock and co “Nightmare before halloween” tickets link is here.

It’s quince season

I love smell of quince. I’m looking forward to have it this time of the year. Conversely to the aroma, they are tuff, dry taste when you try it raw.

I cooked them as savoury with yuzu, Mexican mint, organic sugar, vegetable dashi broth and salt.

Additional, Mexican mint has great aroma, it smells like tarragon and mint, a hint of vanilla.

You will try this sauce with a rulade dish, at my vegan dinner pop up at Burdock & co. 18th October.

This is the last pop up 2022. Don’t miss it. Tickets link is here

Vegan farm to table dinner vol.11 at Burdock & co

Maest food presents - Vegan farm to table dinner vol.11 at Burdock & co.

October 18th. Full 3 course and a snack. The ticket price is including a glass of wine or soft drink. Tickets and details are here.

Introducing one of the course.

Zucchini roulade with lentil pate.

Roulade is a French dish, usually a rolled shape meal made with meat or pastry. This one is without meat, rolled with zucchini and pate.

The pate is made with lentil and with some umami improving Japanese ingredients.

Zucchini is marinated with sage oil. Will serve with sliced pine mushrooms.The photo is oyster mushrooms since I am asking forager to get pine mushrooms.It is still early for this year.

The sauces are exciting too.

Miso mole. Mole sauce made with white miso, cacao butter and other ingredients. Flavourful mildly spicy sauce.

Quince and yuzu sauce. Quince are cooked with Mexican mint, the details are here.

For the side, seasonal local vegetables and sourdough.

Vegan Farm to table dinner pop up at Burdock and co

This will be 10th of my Vegan dinner event - I have been doing the event for 5 years, I used to call it “Far East”, but not anymore.

Still I’m using traditional Japanese methods but it isn’t visually noticed when you served the dishes at the table.

This time, foods are European inspired.

I went Denmark in April for joining Mad symposium which is hosting by Mad project, they are doing hospitality related symposiums.It was very inspiring days, but won’t write about this subject here, I will write about it in the future.

Back to main subject, the menu is inspired by the trip. and wanted to do this event light after, but I got long covid symptoms for two month.

.Anyways, it is 6 course, introducing a few of dishes of the menu..Ticket link is here

I will donate 10% of ticket sales to Vancouver farmers market. I saw many farmers are struggling with weather this year, and I wanted to do something to support them.Using local farm veggies as usual.

Kohlrabi.

Kohlrabi-ravioli. Say it three times ',) with smoky potato filling.Pressured lemon. Kelp caviar.Lemon kohlrabi sauce

Carrots.

Carrots are braised with wild ose hip paste, nice acidity and sweetness. Serving with rose hip and almond paste, lentils, aged pickled garlic scapes, carrot crapes.

Squash pave.

The pave is roasted 12 hours with fig leaves, serving with a pie crust, emerald oil that made with wild sorrels and spruce tips, squash sauce.

Event ticket price is $120 including a glass of wine, also non-alcholic refreshment in the end. The gratuity is not included. Ticket link is here.

On this day,

June 24th 2019, I started working as an intern at Inua(Noma’s sister restaurant). It was just a month long internship but it changed my view of working in restaurant kitchen, ideas, and everything.

I was wishing to go back later year, sadly the restaurant was closed by covid in 2021.

Three years passed since I was there. I still miss the restaurant and hope they will get back in the future.

But I am not only looking back the past. I feel my new chapter begun.Stay tuned.

Maest food YouTube cahnnel

We just launched home cooking playlist on our YouTube channel.

The Playlist recipes will be pretty simple and humble, using basic cooking technique, some are how to handling foraged item at home.

Update randomly, please subscribe.

Ancient Japanese tofu dish

Do you know Gisei tofu? It is one of ancient menu item made by a Japanese monk.

It is like a tofu based cake or baked tofu terrine. Made with tofu, lots of vegetables… and normally, eggs.

The original story behind this dish is the vegan monk who wanted to eat eggs secretly made it, it is hard to tell it looks like including eggs.

My version is made with tofu, some Japanese burdock, carrots, other vegetables and nettles.Instead of eggs, it is with long taro.

You can try it at our event, Will travel for food. Event tickets are here

Will travel for food

WILL TRAVEL FOR FOOD

The Dessert Club aka Sam Shem will be collaborating with Mæst Food aka Tomoko Tahara at Grapes and soda in south Granville, Vancouver, BC.

March 13 and 14 th, starting time 5:30 or 8:00 $45 (+5% processing fee through website order) Tickets are here

There will be 2 different Menus that are inspired by using airline cutlery, tableware and trays, as it would be on a airline flight. Both menus will consist of a 6 pcs meal set. There are two options:

Set 1: Sam of the Dessert Club will make an Indian inspired food

Set 2: Tomoko of Mæst food will make a Japanese food

Sam Shem is an artist, pastry chef and founder of The Dessert Club. Sam has spent the last ten years travelling to India and other countries to learn and to teach yoga. During his time in India, he learned how to cook Indian food from many skilled chefs and home cooks. Sam will be serving some of his favourite Indian dishes at this collaborative event. All dishes will be vegetarian or vegan.

Tomoko Tahara is the founder and chef of Mæst food. She is originally from Japan and has worked at some of the best restaurants and cafes in Vancouver and Japan over the last 10 years. Tomoko has been creating vegan pop-up dinners in Vancouver for over four years. Her interest include using local and home grown ingredients to create dishes that reflect seasonality and distilling this in the ingredients inherent flavours. At this time, she will serve you fancy but casual style of farm to table Japanese food. Please see more details.

Beets carpaccio

Beets carpaccio. Sounds like ordinary? Ours is special.

10+ hours roasted charred beets that inspired by a dish that Christian Puglisi was doing at Relae.

He charred the beets with a jasper and roasted long hours, with a few process like carefully cut them like sashimi and with unique seasonings, he called it fish.

Our version is the roasted charred beets with a few processes, will serve them with almond crackers, sorrel aioli, salted plum, grapes, pickled chive flower buds.Using elder flower vinegar is also Puglisi’s idea but the vinegar is house made, also the flower is from wild that I harvested in the summer.

You can try the menu at our event, Maest food presents vegan contemporary dinner series Far East vol.9 “Fruits rules” at Burdock and co(2702 Main street).

14th September, 5:45pm seating / 8:00pm seating. Ticket holders only. (you will be required to show vaccine passport at the door, the gouverment order effective from 13th Sep)

The ticket price is including a 7 course tastings dinner, a glass of wine, cold brew coffee and a dessert. We will have a wine bar for your extra glasses of wine.

Ticket order is here. Limited numbers. We only have a few spots left for each seatings.

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.

Autumn Eggplants

Don’t let feed autumn eggplants to your wife - The same proverb they have it in Japan.

Because it is too good, because it makes human body chill..But I wonder why it says “wife”? How about “husband”?

People think it is feminism issue, or mean grandma buries her daughter in law, but I would take the second reason, as thoughtfully caring for the women’s health.

Anyways - the photo is about one of a menu for our next vegan contemporary dinner event, Far East vol.9 “Fruits rules”.

The eggplant menu is bbq eggplants with clear fig leaf & kelp dashi stock sauce, mint flavoured English pea, yuzu miso.

The dinner event is at Burdock & co on 2702 Main street, Vancouver BC. Only for ticket holders, the ticket is including 7 course tastings menu with 1 glass of wine, cold brew coffee and a dessert.

The wine selection from Burdock & co, the cold brew coffee is from Harken coffee. Tickets & details : www.maestfood.com

Vegan contemporary dinner series Far East vol.9 “Fruits rules”

Mæst Food(@tomokotahara) presents..

#Vegan contemporary dinner series - Far East Vol.9- Fruits rules.

This event is 7 course tastings menu including 1 wine, cold brew coffee with a dessert.

The wine selections from Burdock & co, Cold brew coffee from Harken coffee.

This time, we highlight fruits on each menus with end of summer / early autumnal vegetables.

Tomoko Tahara is a founder/ chef of Mæst food, she is originally from Japan and she have been worked at several good restaurants and cafes in Vancouver and Japan for over 10 years, doing her own pop ups for over four years. She is keen to combinations of local ingredients and flavour balance.

PNW vegan food with a Japanese twist. Focussing on seasonal local farm, foraged ingredients.

$95 (+5% processing fee through website order, message if you would like to make an e-transfer) .

Please note:

Gratuity is not included, please prepare it with you when you attend the event. We also have a wine bar for your extra drinks, we take cash or credit card, debit.

If you can’t drink coffee, please let us know. We will prepare non caffeinated hibiscus tea.

The menu is a tastings menu, which is a collection of several dishes in small portions. Each menu might look small, but you will be full when it’s end of the event.

Seats are very limited -

Following coastal health guidelines - we will maximum 6 per table.

Each table have 2m distances.

September 14th (Tuesday)

Venue : Burdock & co

2702 Main street

Ticket holders only, no walk ins.

2 seatings : 5:45 - 7:15pm / 8:00- 9:30pm

Vegan fillet o tofu

Next our pop up at Harken coffee - 5 & 6 June, 11am-4pm.

Fillet o f*sh was a special treat when I was a kid. I was such an 80’s child.

Inspired by the memory - I started researching how can I make it with vegan.

I saw many people tried to make vegan tonkatsu(fried pork cutlet) sandwich with tofu or tempeh, it was good but I felt missing something.

Then researched, think, tried & reached my method. It is 3 days process. I don’t tell this trick but this one has good texture & flavour.

I was also thinking to improve the brioche-sweet bun recipe that I made it for Harken coffee when I was a head chef.

I finalized the recipe. Good richness & crispy outside, soft inside.

Try the burger at our event - limited numbers as usual, a combo with roasted potato wedges & farm salad.

Pre-order on our market page.

The detail:

Vegan fillet o tofu. House made vegan buns, bredded tofu(air fried), house made tartar sauce (original Japanese mayo, original dill pickles), farm greens, Blue heron cheese(Apricot cashew).

The tofu is three days processed to make juiciness and good texture.

A combo with mini house green salad (ginger dressing) & roasted farm potato wedges.

Weekend vegan bento pop up is back

Mæst (Tomoko Tahara)weekend take away at Harken coffee - next one is country style Inari sushi bento box.

Inari sushi is popular Japanese portable food, normally sushi rice is wrapped with puffed tofu pocket. This one is open faced, and special toppings on the sushi. Lots of garden flowers, vegan kinshi tamago, preserved cherry blossom. Enjoy late spring blossoms.A pair with seasonal vegetable miso soup.

Pre- order basis, order and details from here. Photos are ideal. Actual item will be slightly different since ingredients are seasonal.

Mæst food : sweets pop up

Normally we do pop ups at Harken coffee, once in a while, different concept & at different shops.

Today was “Dorayaki- Japanese pancake” pop up at Iktsuarpok coffee stand.

The coffee stand is run by a couple, Kento and Rika. Kento is talented barista, Rika is at the window to chat with customers.

The cafe is doing only window service, their work ethics & beverages are amazing with their strong concept.

Anyways our pop up.

In north America, pancakes must be warm, but this dorayaki pancakes are good even so when it gets cold.

The pancake sandwich is with bean paste, and normally is non vegan, but we made vegan version.

May do it in the future the dorayaki again, however when next one happens, it will be with different item. Stay tuned.

Cherry blossom cheese?

Tomoko Tahara Weekend takeaway pop up at Harken coffee - 8th and 9th May. Vegan charcuterie board kit.

I made two kinds of floral cheese, one is lightly fermented with flowering currants, another one is cashew sake-kasu & cherry blossom.

The last one wasn’t fermented together with cherry blossom because the flagrant is delicate.I was afraid to loose the flavour so I just tried to put fermented cherry blossom petals on surface. Hopefully you can smell the fragrant.

The cashew sakekasu cheese has unique miso kind of flavour from the sakekasu, good matching with floral flavour from the blsooms. Pre-order and details are here, walk-ins welcome at the Harken coffee, but the numbers are very limited.