GOODS: Dale Mackay’s Next “Ensemble” Concept Is Looking To Staff All Positions
October 26, 2011
Ensemble Restaurant is located at 850 Thurlow in downtown Vancouver, BC | www.ensemblerestaurant.com
The GOODS from ensemble
Vancouver, BC | Ensemble restaurant is opening a new casual restaurant and is taking resumes for all positions. The new space is in a busy downtown location and we are looking to fill our roster with friendly, good humoured staff. All interested applicants can send their resume to info@ensemblerestaurant.com. More details to follow! Read more
In Praise Of Demons: Thoughts On Local Boy Dale Mackay’s “Top Chef Canada” Victory…
July 5, 2011
by Andrew Morrison | Our hearty congratulations to Ensemble chef/owner Dale Mackay for his victory in last night’s Top Chef Canada finale. That’s a pretty big deal. I imagine he’s not a little enthusiastic about the new GE kitchen set-up coming his way, and I’d wager he’s especially besotted by the $100,000 cash prize. The win and the added notoriety will go some way in assuaging whatever initial anxieties he may have had about his new restaurant’s long term survival. That the location - 850 Thurlow – had felled quite a few restaurants in the past seems a bit of a moot concern now.
Money and national fame aside, I suspect that the real prize for Dale is the victory itself. I don’t think I’ve ever met a more driven chef. I don’t know what his demons are, but they’re there, yanking him ever forward by the lapel of his short-sleeved jacket. For whatever reason, Dale just needs to win.
It’s a quality that I really admire and a need that I’ve seen up close before, having twice judged his food at Gold Medal Plates, the biggest professional cooking competition we have here in BC, and the precursor to the Canadian Culinary Championships. He blew our panel away with his finesse and near-robotic poise, and our accrued scores landed him podium finishes on both occasions… Read more
GOODS: Flooded “Ensemble” Re-Opening This Coming Tuesday June 28th At 5pm
June 26, 2011
Ensemble Restaurant is located at 850 Thurlow in downtown Vancouver, BC | www.ensemblerestaurant.com
The GOODS from ensemble
Vancouver, BC | We are very happy to report that, after a speedy restoration and laying of beautiful new hardwood floors, the restaurant will re-open this coming Tuesday, June 28th at 5pm. We thank you for your patience and kind words of support, and apologize again to those who had to cancel or re-schedule their reservations. It takes more than a burst hot water tank to dampen our spirits! Learn more about us after the jump… Read more
GOODS: Dale Mackay’s “Ensemble” Looking To Hire On A Full-Time Food Expediter
June 7, 2011
Ensemble Restaurant is located at 850 Thurlow in downtown Vancouver, BC | www.ensemblerestaurant.com
The GOODS from ensemble
Vancouver, BC | Ensemble restaurant is looking for a full time food expediter. Must have experience and maintain good communication skills. Ideal candidate should be passionate about service and food, and must be thick-skinned and able to work under pressure with grace and calmness. Bring resume to 850 Thurlow St. between 3pm and 5pm, Tuesday through Friday. Learn more about the restaurant after the jump… Read more
GOODS: Dale Mackay’s “Ensemble” At 850 Thurlow To Plate First Service Tomorrow
May 9, 2011
Ensemble Restaurant is located at 850 Thurlow in downtown Vancouver, BC | www.ensemblerestaurant.com
The GOODS from ensemble
Vancouver, BC | During the final week before opening his first restaurant as Executive Chef and Proprietor, Dale MacKay is wishing for more hours in the day. Mackay’s ensemble restaurant and bar begins dinner service on Tuesday May 10, 2011, offering reservations from 5pm-11pm Tuesday through Sunday, with plans for weekend brunch service commencing June 11th. “I’ve opened restaurants for Gordon Ramsay and Daniel Boulud, but this is the first for me, so the excitement level is super high.” says MacKay. “I’m not so much nervous as I am excited about my team and what we are offering the city – something new and different”. Read more
DINER: Chef Dale Mackay’s “Ensemble” To Officially Open On Tuesday At 850 Thurlow
May 4, 2011
by Andrew Morrison | I took a look inside the soon-to-open Ensemble this afternoon. They were up to their eyeballs in menu fiddling and construction, but the highly anticipated restaurant from former Lumiere chef and current Top Chef Canada competitor Dale Mackay appears to be coming together nicely. They plan to softly open this weekend with the first ever reservations being accepted for Tuesday. Read more about the restaurant here and here. I’ve added a few new photos below, none of which give the whole place away. Break a leg, fellas!
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Opening Soon: First Look Inside Dale Mackay’s New “Ensemble”
March 26, 2011
To follow up on the news that Scout broke last week on the coming of Ensemble, I met up with Dale Mackay off Robson yesterday at the location in the old Corner Suite space at 850 Thurlow (I realise the brand is spelled with a lower case “e” - as in ensemble – but I reserve the right to sanctimoniously ignore that in the dickish name of the English language).
He and his crew were already hard at work at the 115 seater. Take a look… Read more
Dale Mackay’s New “Ensemble” To Open In The Old Corner Suite
March 14, 2011
by Andrew Morrison | We’ve respectfully kept this on the extra-double-down-low while talented chef de cuisine Dale Mackay’s tenure at Lumiere was coming to a close, but since it did just that last night it’s time to break the good news: the Top Chef Canada competitor has indeed figured out his next step, and it will be to open a new restaurant of his own.
We can confirm that Mackay has taken over the recently vacated Corner Suite Bistro De Luxe location at 850 Thurlow Street (just south of Robson) with plans to open his first restaurant – dubbed Ensemble – hopefully before the end of this May. We are also especially glad to hear that some Lumiere employees are going along with him for the ride, among them sommelier Kevin van Hullebush and sous chef Brad Hendrickson.
Expect a 30+ seat oyster and cocktail bar and an 85 seat dining room. Further details soon, but in the meantime see below for images of the location…
UPDATE | The official press release…
March 15, 2011 – Vancouver, BC – Chef Dale MacKay announces the spring, 2011 opening of ensemble restaurant, just off Robson Street in Vancouver, British Columbia. Best known for his award-winning, Five Diamond, Grand Relais & Chateaux class, modern French techniques and exquisite presentation, Chef MacKay will break from tradition, when ensemble opens in May.
“ensemble is a new dining concept for Vancouver,” says MacKay. “we will combine classic French techniques with influences and flavour profiles from around the world, and offer a wide variety of flavours and textures in tasting size dishes priced from $8-$24. The kitchen will be doing what I’ve always done, but with a more casual and modern approach.”
Chef MacKay’s resume, like his culinary style, is condensed and flavourful. Highlights include time spent as a private chef in Italy; as Executive Chef at an exclusive BC resort; protégé to Chef Gordon Ramsay at his restaurants in Tokyo, New York, and London; then most recently, as Executive Chef of Lumière, Vancouver’s Five Diamond, Four Star, Relais Gourmand establishment managed by New York Chef Daniel Boulud’s Dinex Group. Dale is a contender on Top Chef Canada, premiering April 11, 2011 on Food Network Canada.
“For me, ensemble represents the culmination of my life so far as a Canadian chef and what I want those experiences to mean to me, to my team, and to our clients. Of course I have no illusions about how tough the restaurant business can be in these times and in Vancouver but, I believe my path to prosperity will be about working with people I respect and care about, doing what we love, and making other people happy by sharing our talents and enthusiasm … and keeping it real and affordable for them.”
ensemble’s interior design mirrors Chef MacKay’s fresh, clean and modern culinary vision. An open concept space features a cocktail bar/lounge with 30 comfortable seats and plenty of standing room for busy times like game nights and live music weekends. The 85 seat dining room, separate from but flowing seamlessly into the lounge area, is at once intimate and social – what Dale describes as a reflection of Vancouver’s contemporary dining scene. The 850 Thurlow Street address, at the northeast corner of Smythe/Haro and a stone’s throw from busy Robson Street, takes no chances on location as it’s situated at the epicenter of one of the city’s highest concentration of shops, restaurants, theatres and hotels.
A longtime friend and client of Chef MacKay’s has come on board as silent partner and business advisor, but the day to day operations and creative license of the restaurant will remain the domain of MacKay and his hand-picked ensemble cast, including Sommelier/Maitre d’ Kevin van Hullebush, and Sous Chef Brad Hendrickson.
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Department of Tragedy: The Last Call At Broadway’s Lumiere & DB Bistro Moderne
March 14, 2011
Tonight was the last service by DB Bistro Moderne & Lumiere, two excellent restaurants on West Broadway that closed before their time, lasting just two years. Whatever the why of it, it’s still a damn shame.
Rob Clark of C Restaurant Wins Vancouver’s Gold Medal Plates
October 30, 2010
by Andrew Morrison | The Vancouver Gold Medal Plates went down at the Sheraton Wall Center last night. The chefs vying for gold and the opportunity to compete at February’s Canadian Culinary Championships were as follows: Neil Taylor (Cibo Trattoria), Quang Dang (Diva at the Met), Darren Brown (Coast), Nico Schuermans (Chambar), Cam Smith and Dana Ewart (Joy Road), Nicholas Nutting (The Pointe at the Wickaninnish Inn), Roger Sleiman (Quails’ Gate Winery), Stuart Klassen (Delta Grand) and Robert Clark (C Restaurant). The wineries in pairing action were all local: LaStella, Black Hills, Sandhill, Aces, Tantalus, Painted Rock, 8th Generation, Quails’ Gate, Laughing Stock, and Foxtrot.
It was the fastest GMP I’d ever judged. At our table (joined by last year’s winner, Rob Feenie, and sequestered away from the 700+ crowd), we plowed through the 10 dishes in just under two hours. We saw very little in the way of drama, but there was some negligence. One dish arrived stone cold, another was fumbled in delivery, and one of the wine pairings arrived corked (swiftly replaced). Temperature aside, there certainly weren’t any duds in the lot; the level of cooking being absolutely top drawer.
We structured the order with the gentlest flavours and lighter whites starting us off and the bolder reds (both meats and wines) shutting us down. Scoring was done for presentation (20 points), texture (20 points), taste (30 points), wine compatibility (10 points), originality (10 points), and wow factor (10 points), adding up to a possible 100 points. The lowest score that I gave was 62, while my highest was 83. The judges scores for each chef/dish are added up at the end in a private room, and the math determines who wins.
