La Pentola and OPUS Bar welcome spring with fresh new flavours
Spring has sprung at Yaletown’s boutique OPUS Hotel with fresh ingredient-driven dishes and cocktails at La Pentola and OPUS Bar. Enjoy the lighter springtime flavours of La Pentola’s rustic Northern Italian cuisine and stop by the recently renovated OPUS Bar for a refreshing libation.
La Pentola has introduced a range of springtime menu items, drawing on local seafood and seasonal vegetables. Chef de Cuisine Travis McCord’s new menu has inventive dishes like endive salad with house made braesola, gorgonzola and walnut pesto; whole quail with red pepper puree, leeks, crispy prosciutto and poached quail egg; cavatelli with pork ragu and nettles; grilled Humboldt squid, parsley puree and scarlet runner beans; and ling cod with spring vegetables and humpback shrimp in a lobster ‘brodo.’
“With the changing season comes a new set of ingredients to play with,” says Chef McCord. “I love cooking with fresh herbs and nettles, as well as seasonal seafood like humpback shrimp and spot prawns.”
Dine a la carte or let Chef McCord create a custom family style menu of five or seven courses, priced at $60 or $75 per person. Satisfy your sweet tooth with a seasonal dessert, like La Pentola’s take on the classic s’more: chocolate fondant on pine nut and graham cracker crumble with bourbon ice cream, torched for a smoky campfire flavour.
Pull up a stool at La Pentola’s bar between 4-6pm, Wednesday to Friday, for special Happy Hour deals: from 25% off whiskey and bar snacks on a Wednesday, to three oysters + two white wine flights ($5 / $10) on a Thursday; $5 Peroni draft and prosecco to celebrate Fridays and $5 Four Winds ‘saison’ draft and bellinis on Saturday evenings.
La Pentola’s cocktail menu has a spring makeover with the addition of new tipples such as the pink fizzy Elsa Schiaparelli with Bombay Gin, Cocchi Americano, citrus, raspberries and egg whites, which is named after the famous Italian fashion designer. Try a taste of Italy with the Sangiovese Sour; a foamy cocktail made from Chianti red wine and Ramazzotti, a dark Italian aperitif. Call 604-642-0557 or visit lapentola.ca for more information.
Imbibe at OPUS Bar for handcrafted sips that will lift the spirits and get you in the mood for summer. Bar Manager Barry Jackson is mixing up unique concoctions using house-made syrups and bitters, like The Coco, made with Mezcal, allspice syrup, fresh mandarin juice and chocolate bitters. For something light and floral, try the Offshore Affair, made with pisco, Crème Yvette, grapefruit, lavender syrup and egg white; or the Rose Water Martini made of Ketel One vodka, gin, lillet, chamomile syrup and rose water. The cocktail connoisseur will love the Jalapeño Smoke, an authentic blend of Cazadores tequila, Calvados, Amaro, jalapeño syrup and cedar smoke.
Springtime dishes and drinks are on the table and behind the bar at OPUS Hotel. Visit vancouver.opushotel.com for more information.