Botanist Restaurant: Chef's 'We’ll Take It From Here' Menu

We wanted to indulge on a culinary night out at Botanist with a few of my foodie friends – Foodgressing and Picky Diner. We decided to do the Chef’s ‘We’ll Take It From Here’ Menu for the whole table for $108 per person. A bit indulgent, but since I just came back from New York, this price was really great in comparison. We went on a Friday night around 6pm and did require reservations as it’s a pretty busy time of year.

Interior

The interior is very beautiful and the perfect setting for any occasion. They even have liven music which is a nice touch. Good for small to large groups.

Drinks and Cocktails

Drinks aren’t included with the set menu, but we got a few different beverages to go with the meal. I went with beer as usual. They do have mocktails too if you don’t drink alcohol. Just ask the staff as they have a pretty extensive drink menu.

Wine Pairings

You can also add wine pairings with each dish in the set menu. Worth it if you’re a wine lover.

Bread

As you wait for the dishes to arrive, they give you some beautiful housemade bread and some butter.

Amuse Bouche

The meal started with a Sturgeon Chicharron, fermented veggies, and dried sturgeon. It was essentially deep-fried fish skin and it was very delicious. The crunchy texture paired well with the fermented veggies. A good start to the meal. This was paired with Zanata Brut.

Course 1: Beet Salad

The next item has textured beets, pecans, orange, and Ashley Goat’s cheese. I simply adore beets, so I loved all the different variety and techniques they used on this dish. Paired with Lucien Crochet Sancerre.

Course 2: Lobster and Sunchoke

This has Sunchoke Velouté, lobster, and chive chantilly. They come to the table and pour the broth into the bowl. A fun way to see the dish come together. The lobster was cooked perfectly. Paired with Roux Père et Fils Chardonnay.

Course 3: Scallop

This has Diver scallop, brussel sprouts, guanciale celeriac foam. A beautiful sear on each side of the scallop on top of the shredded bed of brussel sprouts. The acidity of the sauce worked in the dish to go well with the foam and scallop. Paired with Domaine de la Mora.

Course 4: Bison

This meaty dish has Bison, Saskatoon berry, mushrooms, caulifower. The mushrooms were absolutely amazing to go with the bison. A fun dish to showcase ingredients from Canada. Paired with Perraton Père et Fils

Course 5: Dessert

This dessert is made with Itakuji chocolate pate, passion fruit pulp, and licorice ice cream. At first I wasn’t quite sure how I felt about the dessert after hearing it has licorice. After digging into it, I really enjoyed the passion fruit a lot. The licorice was subtle and not overpowering at all. Paired with Foneseca Port.

Sweet Treat

At the end of the meal, they give everyone a little gift to take home – Chef’s Shortbread using his grandmother’s recipe. A nice thoughtful gift to continue the experience at home.

Final Thoughts

Overall, I think it was worth what you get in the Chef’s tasting. We were all full afterwards and each dish was unique and not on the regular menu. Service was great and the staff were all super friendly. I’ll be back for any special occasion.

We Rate Botanist Restaurant: