Vij's

We decided to try Vij's during our day trip to vancouver after having seen it on several television shows including "No Reservations" with Anthony Bourdain and Giada de Laurentis' "Weekend Getaways" on the food network. Vij's is heralded by many as one of the best Indian restaurants in the world, so we definitely wanted to see what all the fuss was about. As we approached the restaurant we realized there was a long line out the door, in fact, it was even going around the block. Upon being greeted by the hostess we were informed that there would be a two hour wait.

We were hungry but we decided to be patient and hang out in the lounge area and order some wine. I ended up ordering the vinho verde, a Portuguese white wine, and enjoying some of the many complimentary appetizers they offer to you while you are waiting (all of them excellent, by the way). After about an hour and a half we were seated, and were finally able to enjoy the wonderful food at this restaurant.

One thing I can definitely say about Vij's is that the menu is very creative, and there are many non-traditional ingredients used in their dishes, for example beef, wine and fruits. Also, French culinary techniques can definitely be seen in these dishes, so if you are looking for your average, traditional Indian restaurant then this is not the place for you. Vij's is somewhat of a fusion restaurant, using local, seasonal ingredients and adding modern touches to Indian food. As an appetizer, we ordered the halibut in ground fennel and fenugreek seed curry, as well as the dungenness crab in coconut and cilantro with candied beets. The presentation of both dishes was impressive, especially the crab, which came in spoons and tasted delicious. The halibut was cooked to perfection and had a melt-in-your-mouth texture. As a main dish I ordered the garnet yam curry on brown basmati rice pilaf with celeriac and orange salad. This dish was very interesting to me because the curry was exceptionally flavorful, not very spicy, light in texure and had chunks of oranges (and what appeared to be plums) in it, which I had never seen before at any other Indian restaurant. It was amazingly good, and I did not feel guilty after eating it because all in all, it was a pretty healthy dish. For dessert, we had chai and rice pudding- so good!!!

The food doesn't seem to be very spicy here, which I can imagine may be a dissapointment to some. However, I did not mind since the food was so well executed. The service was amazing too- in fact, the owner himself waited on our table and gave us suggestions on what to order. I definitely recommend a visit to this restaurant.