YelpYEG Romp At The River House

On May 30th, The Mad Hatter cordially invited the Edmonton Elites to be his distinguished guest for a Fête Fantastique! The event occurred on the bank of the Sturgeon River, in the famed mansion that is the home of the The River House restaurant. From casual to cocktail to cosmic, all were welcome into the Wonderland where grand Head Toppers were on display. The lovely Yelp Elites were greeted by the Hatter's Mad Mavens as they arrived, enjoyed a cocktail hour with a frothing elixir made from the new Croft Pink Port and had photo's snapped by not one, but three phenomenal photographers in the Yelptastic photo booth! 

After cocktail hour the Elites settled into places at either the Mad Hatter's table, the King of Diamond's table or her majesty, the Queen of Heart's table. For it was a six-course menu that the night
was to entailed. Along side each course, Curtis Bawden from Pacific Wines &
Spirits utilized their extraordinary portfolio so each of the six courses was
paired with the perfect libation. Chef Steve Brochu started things off with
in-house marinated olives encased in jars with peach hickory smoke that oozed
out as the jar was opened, paired with Miguel Torres "Celeste"
Crianza. Then came Luigi Bosca Chardonnay with charcuterie of cured sausage,
pancetta, and prosciutto, rabbit liver pate and sauerkraut all made in-house as
well. "Not only is this a difficult task but it also takes patience,
planning and foresight to execute properly,” aptly noted George H. For the 3rd course it was baked Halibut topped with crispy prosciutto, bathed in a smoked tomato broth with goat cheese, basil and fire roasted sun dried tomato house made
ravioli paired with a light and lovely pinot noir. We were served an amuse bouche of Earl Grey sorbet infused with lavender and honey. "The delicate flavour of the
sorbet washed over the tongue and cleansed the palate. We sat back in
our chairs, ready to languish in the afterglow of our first three
courses." – Carla N.

From there the barrage of power house menu
items continued: A 16 hour Suvée Rabbit Shoulder with pea shoots, tomato fennel
gastrique and salt roasted carrots. Soy Lime Beef Short Rib on garlic
mash with green apple puree and julienned snap peas. "This delectable
carnivore's dream was also spot on paired with Luigi Bosca Malbec. The
blackberry notes were divine, simply divine and complemented the beef short rib
perfectly," purred Kristin K. Then, it was time for dessert! All would fall down the Rabbit Hole for the Orange and Vanilla Pot de Créme. Sinful and silky smooth, topped with orange granite and fresh berries along side a warm gingersnap. And what else, but Taylor Fladgate 20 Year Old Tawny Port accompaniment could bring this fabulous
evening to a close! 

Thank you to all the YelpYEG Elites who came out for this memorable event. To
Chef Steve, you are an innovator of food, a creative culinary master. To Curtis
your palate and pairing skills is truly remarkable. And to Mr Yu, Vicky Lau and Benjamin Sim for all the incredible photos!

Until Next Time…See You On Yelp.

Jennie M, your Yelp Edmonton CM!