If the rising trend of caviar bumps is any indication, diners are increasingly opting for opulence—and that’s just what Vancouver’s newest seafood restaurant, Osetra, delivers.
The 65-seater located at the corner of Homer Street and West Georgia Street (the old Bar Haifa spot) is the first offering from a brand new hospitality group, The Key Collection, which is set to open eight more spots across dining and entertainment in Vancouver within the next year.
Osetra sits at the bottom of the Deloitte Summit building (also known as the “the stacked cube tower”), with floor-to-ceiling windows set back slightly from Homer Street. There’s sculpted lighting and warm, rippled glass textures—perhaps set to mimic the translucent and cooling quality of ice (fitting, since many things on the menu here veer toward raw).
On the opening weekend menu are stunning, coastal-inspired dishes such as the scallop crudo (a spicy, delicate raw dish made with melon, cucumber and serrano pepper in an avocado vinaigrette); a caviar-topped buttermilk and chive waffle with egg-yolk gel and smoked creme fraiche; a baked motoyaki-style lobster with watercress gomae and ikura and, of course, caviar-topped fior de latte gelato.
“Our approach is to let ingredients speak for themselves,” writes chef de cuisine Tim Nguyen, who leads the kitchen, in a release. “We focus on clarity of flavour and the craftsmanship behind each preparation.”
Cocktails and beverages—which include an inventive seafoam cocktail in a fluted glass (Ketel One vodka, grapefruit basil and elderflower topped with foam)—are led by Zoe Bates, whose earlier haunts include Sula and Ellipsis, and Shawn Jones of Coast, Hawksworth and the recently shuttered Jungle Room.
Also on the drinks menu is the tide pool, a siempre plata, cucumber and jalapeño margarita in a low-ball glass splashed with black salt; the Estuary, a lush, tropical cocktail made with Flor de Caña rum, coconut, berry vermouth and campari and, for a zero-proof options, the Current, a refreshing mint, ginger, pomegranate and apple cider cocktail.
If the first delivery from this all-star crew is any indication, the next eight concepts across dining and entertainment from the Key Collection are going to be stellar—there have been rumblings that the group will even revive ‘90s party haven, Bar None. Hey, we’ll raise a glass to that.
Osetra
Open Wednesday to Sunday, 5 p.m. to midnight
410 W Georgia St.
