News

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas. Or at least it sure did on Saturday night, when we inched up to the Wedgewood Hotel amid a flurry of snow.

With the hotel's tall French windows overlooking Robson Square and its front sidewalk lit up in white lights, it was a veritable winter wonderland snatched from the pages of a storybook.

"It feels like Manhattan" one guest exclaimed as she emerged from the lobby, where the fireplace roared and a festive tree was trimmed in gold.

This European-style boutique hotel has been charming Vancouver visitors and locals alike since it opened 23 years ago. But last week came the announcement of a new feather in its cap: After many years of being courted by Relais & Chateaux, the Wedgewood has joined the prest- igious international association of fine hotels and restaurants.

It was a smart business move for owner Eleni Skalbania, who will soon be deluged with fierce competition from the new Loden, Ritz-Carlton, Shangri-La and Georgia hotels.

And it certainly seemed like a good enough reason to revisit Bacchus Restaurant.

Most Vancouverites are familiar with the Bacchus Lounge. The voluptuous room - nuzzled in cherry wood panelling, plush velvet and Venetian glass - makes a cozy retreat for cocktails, business meetings and romantic tête-à-têtes.

The restaurant, alas, has had less luck crossing over from hotel dining room to independent destination. My companion on Saturday didn't even know it existed.

That's a shame, really. With its modern French cuisine, impeccable service, impressive wine list and elegant setting, the restaurant is a perfect spot for special occasions.

The dining room is located behind the lounge, just past the piano player who tickles the ivories every night under the watchful eye of Dionysus. The massive oil painting, depicting the naked Greek god in all his corpulent glory, somehow seems suitably excessive.

We were happy to get a table right beside the piano, with a view of the busy lounge and fat snowflakes in the distance. But if you're looking for something more intimate, I'd recommend the draped banquettes in the side corridor. They were recently refitted with curved leather seats, which make cuddling so much easier.

Executive chef Lee Parsons and his crew looked calm and poised in the peek-a-boo kitchen that overlooks the dining room. You'd never even guess they were swamped that night with a full house, three private parties in the conference rooms and the threat of a late arrival from the Spice Girls after the band's dress rehearsal. (Simon Fuller, the British pop group's Svengali, stayed at the hotel last weekend.)

Mr. Parsons, who has helmed the kitchen since 2004, has a resumé that includes eight years at London's five-star Claridge's hotel and three years working under Raymond Blanc at the esteemed Le Manoir aux Quat' Saisons. He also spent three years as the executive chef who reopened the historic Prince of Wales hotel in Ontario's Niagara-on-the-Lake.

His menu is a downright jolly exchange of old-world techniques and new-world ingredients.

For an amuse-bouche, he presents a pan-seared Baja scallop so fleshy it practically bounces off citrus-marinated vegetables, finely sliced into tiny rounds that melt like wafers.

Creamy Quebec foie gras ($18) is pressed into a terrine with layers of tender pulled beef.

Veal sweetbreads ($15) are so lightly pan-seared they're almost quivering under a warm caper dressing.

What's this on the side? A hearty hunk of glazed endive and a scattering of deep-fried parsley, which packs a surprisingly tangy punch.

The delights keep coming.

A frothy "cappuccino" soup of white coco beans ($14) is poured at the table over a bowl of roasted porcini mushrooms and black truffle Chantilly cream. A frail pocket of fresh tortellini is stuffed with smoked organic chicken and ricotta ($14). The dish is bathed in a clean tarragon broth and anchored with an earthy bed of yellow foot chanterelles.

Boneless saddle of grain-fed rabbit ($36) is shaped into three cylinders, complete with savoury stuffing. The king-sized feast is served with a finely sliced stack of buttery Dauphinoise potatoes, crunchy green beans and a rich red-wine sauce pebbled with grainy mustard.

Service throughout the night is attentive without being obtrusive. Unless, of course, you count the disconcertingly short uniforms on the waitresses in the lounge. Are those skirts or hot pants? And why are the servers back here in the dining room all men?

The only disappointment is the Alaskan black cod ($34), a small dish that nearly suffocates from smokiness. The herb crust isn't bright enough to lift the heavy flavour, which drags under a second smoky helping of cod hash.

But who can complain when a plate of luscious Canadian cheeses arrives at perfect room temperature. We hoover it up with the remains of a juicy Tempranillo, then sink into our armchairs to top off the night with a glass of port selected from a vast list.

Ah, look who it is. Mr. Fuller has arrived with his entourage for a late-night dinner. His pop tarts, alas, must have scampered off elsewhere. He looks calm and relaxed on the eve of the big reunion tour.

The Bacchus Restaurant does have that wonderfully lulling effect. See for yourself. I think you'll be smitten.

Bacchus Restaurant at the Wedgewood Hotel: 845 Hornby St.; 604-689-7777 agill@globeandmail.com