Local BC-Grown Citrus Inspires New Menu at Michelin-Starred Burdock & Co

The Goods from Burdock & Co

Vancouver, BC | Chef-proprietor Andrea Carlson found inspiration for her latest tasting menu in an unlikely place: a 6,000-square-foot greenhouse on Salt Spring Island growing more than 30 varieties of citrus in a province long deemed too cold for them. Citrus-Scented Rain Under a Snow Moon showcases bergamot, sudachi, Palestinian lime and other rare fruit sourced from The Garden, Jane Squier’s regenerative farm. The tasting menu runs at Main Street’s Michelin-starred Burdock & Co until early April.

“As a chef working in a community that does not normally have access to local citrus, this is such a gift to discover and share,” says Carlson, who describes the quality of the fruit as “exceptional — 15 out of 10.”

The Garden operates as a closed-loop greenhouse: rainwater supplies all irrigation; renewable heat is captured and stored through thermal-mass pools and energy curtains; organic waste is converted into fuel and fertilizer through an on-site anaerobic digester. Designed to run with roughly the energy footprint of a single household, the farm offers a compelling model for climate-resilient, cost-effective food production on the West Coast.

“Food security sits at the centre of everything I do,” says Carlson. “We are proud to support growers who are rethinking how food is produced here — and hope it inspires others.”

That philosophy carries deliciously onto the plate. Carlson opens the menu with a statement dish that signals her commitment to sea reforestation. Local red sea urchin — a species that has exploded in the absence of predators, turning vast stretches of Pacific kelp forests into underwater deserts — is served as a sauce alongside sake-kasu braised burdock and chilled burdock-peel custard, lifted with Meyer lemon. The plate is finished with pickled baby bull kelp from Moon Bay Ocean Farm on the Sunshine Coast, an emerging aquaculture model helping restore coastal habitat while returning it to the table.

Carlson changes her tasting menu every two months — a demanding pace that suits her restless creativity — and the annual citrus edition has become a harbinger of spring.

New this year is charcoal-grilled squab, complemented three ways with sweetly floral Palestinian lime: in the glaze, honeyed jus and meaty mousseline stuffing. There are also rabbit dumplings in bergamot soup, available as an optional starter or bar snack, and a distinctly Burdockian ocean-forest-orchard dessert that layers candied white kombu (slowly simmered until the green outer layer sloughs off), spruce-tip mousse, apple granita and preserved quince under a light foam made from Buddha’s hand — an unusual, pectin-packed citron segmented into long, spindly finger-like sections.

Regular guests will welcome the return of Bergamot Pommes Anna, adorned with crème fraîche, chimichurri and bubbly potato-skin cream. This year, the buttery potatoes are powerfully perfumed by what Squier is calling her “best crop ever” of the herbaceous Mediterranean orange.

Foraged further afield in the Okanagan Valley, but close to Burdock’s botanical heart, are wild rosehips cooked into a consommé and paired with yellowfin tuna and sudachi–Calabrian chili paste. “Rosehip is a serious fruit,” says Carlson. “By being on the vine over the winter, under the snow, it’s essentially doing a slow ferment. That magical maturation gives it depth of character, deep notes of dried fruit and intensity from the sugars. The sudachi is a very bright and savoury citrus. They match really well.”

Another signature standout is Carlson’s plant-based ankimo, often referred to as the foie gras of the sea — a dish that showcases her imaginative approach. She uses celeriac to mimic monkfish liver’s velvety texture. Pan-seared with a yuzu-barbecue glaze, the caramelized round is served with a confit scallop and a creamy dollop of tangy yuzu emulsion.

With the darkest days of winter behind us, Burdock & Co brings brightness and hope for a more food-secure future to the table.

Citrus Scented Rain Under A Snow Moon is available Thursday to Monday until April 6, 2026.

Tasting menu: $175
Wine pairings: $90 and $135
Zero-proof pairing: $65

Reservations encouraged
Bar walk-ins welcome