Friday, April 24, 2009

Review: Cactus Club (Bentall 5, Downtown Vancouver, BC)

Met up with some old high school friends for cocktails and catching up last weekend.

There was too much booze!

westcoast pocket trio: inari tofu pockets stuffed with seasoned sushi rice, smoked salmon, black sesame seeds and sprouts. Delicious but expensive!

That being said, I also apologize for the quality of the photos. I *swear* they looked focused and beautiful that night!

The first time I tried to go to the "new" Cactus Club on Burrard and Pender, we got there too late after a comedy show at Yuk Yuk's and we ended up going somewhere else. What a pity, we thought - it had such a good location, with a nice large patio!

So on the night in question, we decided on either Joey's or Cactus - neither takes reservations on Saturday nights, so it was first come, first served.

The location was great - near skytrain and in the heart of downtown, with a mindset for attracting customers from the business area during the weekdays, and the party crowd on weekends. The plus was the large patio - it was set off from the street, so it wasn't dusty or noisy at all!

We ordered a round of appetizers, some entrees to share, and a couple rounds of drinks.

I started out with the tuna tataki - sadly, Cactus discontinued their tuna poke half a year ago - that was my favourite dish!!! While the tuna tataki was pretty to look at and delicious (after you drained / squeezed it of soy), it was no substitute for the tuna poke. Bring back the tuna poke!!



I took the next photo to demonstrate just how much soy was left over after finishing the dish. There was too much of it for my liking. bleeh.



The photo at the beginning of the post is the trio of westcoast pockets. I've always wanted to try these, M ordered them - he said they were delicious and I have to agree! A touch on the expensive side though - the three pockets were about $12. For that price, I think they were a little stingey.



Above: We also shared a plate of calamari. 'Twas good. You can't go wrong with calamari! I downed my appys with some margaritas, as they were on special on Saturday night.

...K also enjoyed some margaritas with me. I'm sure the lime margarita went well with his beef carpaccio?



Meanwhile, the other K had the spicy chicken with sweet chili sauce. After a couple rounds of drinks, M had a burger, K & S shared a quesadilla, and the other K had the sablefish. Chef Feenie always adds his magical touch to everything - everyone finished their food!

We even shared two desserts - the cheesecake, and a chocolate peanut butter bar. I *loved* the choco pb bar. I'm going to have to try making it at home. *stay tuned*

In all, it was a nice night - the weather was cooperative and it was a great night to sit and lounge on the patio. Even if we did drink too much and not remember much. ;) Here's to summertime...



Cactus Club Cafe (Bentall 5)

588 Burrard Street [map]

Vancouver BC

Phone: 604-682-0933

Cactus Club Cafe on Urbanspoon

3 comments:

  1. That is not soy sauce on the tuna tataki, it is a Yuzu vinaigrette which is a compliment to the green papaya slaw that is under the tuna. it is not socked up by anything is the dish hence how much is left over : )

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  2. Thanks for the comment Anonymous - soy sauce or yuzu vinaigrette, the sauce was extremely salty and covered up the beautiful flavour of the tuna. It was unfortunate as I *loved* the tuna poke dish that Cactus Club replaced with the tuna tataki. From what I remember, it had tobiko, kiwi, mango, green onions, tuna, and macadamia nuts.

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  3. Do you guys know a good place to eat after clubbing? Looking for congee and late nite snacks!

    ReplyDelete

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