Barbara — Restaurant in Vancouver

What a charming restaurant and a wonderful all-around experience. For a "foodie" that enjoys creative combinations of food and drink (if you're into cocktails, non-alcoholic cocktails, or pairings), then this is a fantastic place to geek out. If you dine with someone who will share with you, you can try up to 6 dishes and you can purchase the seasonal granita afterwards. It's such a small place with mostly bar seating, this is really best with just one other person in my opinion. I definitely enjoyed the Arctic char dish, the fried eggplant surprise snack, and the tartare that people have already pointed out in reviews. But I'm going to give some more unusual shout-outs. For example, I loved things like the crisps made of rye and spelt for the tartare, brushing something with beef fat, cool pickly things in a couple of the dishes, the spice and complexity of the two non-alcoholic cocktails, lots of interesting local liquor choices as cocktail ingredients, everything perfectly seasoned, and how there were lots of new combinations and ingredients for me to try. Even things that were familiar were not exactly familiar. So that's why I think this is particularly best enjoyed as a foodie. For example, the Arctic char dish reminded me both of a classic Hanoi (Northern Vietnamese) fish and dill dish while at the same time being different enough to be it's own dish because it was served with hummus, pine nuts, etc. that wouldn't be in the Vietnamese version. The fish was so perfectly cooked - I really enjoyed the soft texture inside with the pan-fry of the outside. I have no idea what the chef's actual influences were, but as much as I've had things that involve those ingredients, it was still a different dish and something to try. Fun! But here's the thing, as much as creativity in food and drink impress me, it means nothing if people are snobby about it or are cold when you're trying to have a good time. So the warmth from the people (Chef, GM/Bar Manager, and other chef) and the wonderful service (perfect timing included) will make it worth coming back over and over...if I can get a reservation. :) They book up. I was quite worried that I would get sick last minute and have to pay for the last-minute cancellation if I couldn't find a replacement, but it looked like there were only about 12-15 seats in there and they're getting all this attention now (partly because of the star) so they get a pass for having that system in place even though I would prefer that it was not needed. If they can swing it, I would say a little extra surprise at the end would be lovely (since dessert is not included in the three courses and there is just the granita). Doesn't need to be huge - maybe a house-made candy, biscuit, or piece of cheese with a bite of fruit, or a few bites of fruit,...

TL;DR: An arrogant restaurant with mediocre food and horrible service, I wouldn’t go back even if they pay me.

About service:

People usually go for fine-dining not to enjoy food (come on, who would actually trust Michelin guide?), but to celebrate special dates and get unique experience. My girlfriend and I went there to celebrate her birthday, and we entered ‘birthday’ in the occasion section of our booking. However, there were no preparations for her, nobody even said happy birthday. But that’s not the worst, we brought our own birthday cake to enjoy after the dishes and the chef ridiculously informed us we couldn’t have it there! We had to brought the cake back home, which messed up our birthday plan. If you don’t prepare anything for customers, not even allowing birthday cakes in the restaurant, why not save us some hassle and just remove all occasion options?

Moreover, we were asked to put away our SLR camera but were allowed to take pictures with phones. I don’t see any difference between SLR camera with flashlight off and a phone camera. This absurd and sudden restriction was not shown anywhere in our booking either.

Overall, this restaurant’s arrogant restrictions made me wonder if I was actually the customer that paid for dining. Its dining rules reminded me of my grandmama. This is my second time giving 0 tips to a restaurant in North America, so that’s also a top2 achievement, congrats Barbara!

About food (overall 5 of 10):

This is a Michelin restaurant so I’ve lowered my expectation, I know I’ll likely be disappointed otherwise. And the food was just as mediocre as I expected.

The first dishes on image 1 were STRACCIATELLA (8) and BEEF TARTARE (5). STRACCIATELLA was the best dish tonight for its brilliant combination of hazelnut with other ingredients. BEEF TARTARE is what it is, it wasn’t bad but nor good. There are restaurants with better BEEF TARTARE.

The second dishes on image 2 were Crispy Octopus (5) and Chicken Liver Mousse (2). The octopus was cooked just to the right point but the hummas base broken the balance of the dish, ended up with a weird salty yet sour flavor. The chicken liver mousse was a complete disaster, it had a super oily taste when mixing with the bread and I could only eat half of it. There are plenty of Italian restaurants that can cook chicken liver far exceeding this.

Image 3 and 4 were Arctic Char (4) and Duck (3). Arctic Char had the same hummus base as the octopus and I would rather just have the char only. The duck was cooked to medium and had some stinky blood smell that should get rid of. This is absolutely no match to other...

Updated review:

Returned to Barbara and I am changing my earlier 5 star review to 2 stars. The initial review is still below.

The reason is they no longer allow guests to use cameras to take pictures of their food. The explanation given was that "flash photography" can be distracting and a camera can be distracting in their small space. However, they do allow you to use your phone to take pictures.

I am not sure what the distinction is between a phone and a camera when my camera is compact and does not use flash. I mean, have you seen some of the giant phones out there now?

People can be discreet and fast with a camera and people can also be obnoxious and take a long time taking photos with a phone.

I suggested that we move from the bar to a table in the corner with everyone else's backs to us so no one is facing us and there is no way we can be "distracting" but they still said no.

The main issue is that there was no advance notice of this "no camera policy" and we were told after we had already sat down. There is an expectation and communication gap here. If they had communicated the policy prior to making us making reservations then I respect that and I would be able to consider whether or not make the reservations.

My suggestion to Barbara would be to make it very clear that they have this no camera policy when people make reservations so there is no expectation gap, disappointment or confrontation.

This is a shame because the food is beautiful in addition to being tasty.

Anyway, the summary of this updated review is do not bother bringing a camera of any kind and if you read this review then at least you are forewarned.

Initial review:

I was blown away by the food here! No wonder they have one Michelin Star now.

When I go to a restaurant and order food, there is usually something that is just average. At Barbara, everything was amazing, tasted delicious and executed well.

They have a three course tasting menu and three options for each course – a meat, fish or vegetable option. We decided to go for all meat and fish this time. The highlights were the octopus, pork neck and arctic char. In addition to the three courses, they also give you an amuse bouche and snacks in between the courses. It would have been nice if they had a dessert course as well but dessert is extra.

The ambiance is dim and intimate. It is a good place for a date or special occasion.

Parking can be a challenge and be aware this is not the best part of town but that adds to its character.

Highly recommend that you check out Barbara – it...