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Infinity Dining Experience
Address: 819 Pacific Street (map)
Phone: 604-684-2529
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Quick Bite: Terrific Steaks, Familiar Service, ad infinitum

By Jason Chin
Eat Vancouver Editor

Cactus Club, Earls, Joeys, Moxie’s – Vancouver has no shortage of what locals term casual fine dining (CFD). Local food critics and enthusiasts have been known to debate the merit of these chains, discussing matters ranging from the quality of food provided, to the social benefits of these restaurants’ training programs. Don’t worry, although I’m not going to get into this debate here – I doubt it would be fruitful and it is only tangentially related to the topic at hand – I will say that with the exception of Moxie’s, which I have not had much luck with, I find these chains provide a rote predictability I do not approve of, yet a nice buffer between lower and higher end restaurants at a quality level that is often commensurate with price.

Infinity Dining Experience (IDE), or so it appears from one visit, provides a nice alternative to the CFDs. At IDE, I received a level of service and price comparable to that of CFDs, but accompanied with a menu that is infinitely more interesting and soulful.

A friend and I dined last Saturday evening, hungry after a day of shopping, and craving a good steak. Cutting straight to the point, IDE serves a much better steak (dry aged Alberta beef) than any of the CFDS, with a flavor per dollar quotient that trumps just about anything in town. There are two options, a sirloin ($17-24.50) and striploin ($27-$32). My friend ordered the striploin au poivre and it arrived a perfectly cooked medium rare, and generously proportioned. The taro root accompaniment was somewhat lacking in flavor, and if asked to redesign the menu I might pair the steak with the more traditional mashed potatoes and maybe a nutmeg-rich creamed spinach. With well prepared quality beef, there’s simply no need to get overly fancy with your sides. If you are boasting the best steak in town (as Infinity is), then give it the steakhouse treatment it deserves. We also enjoyed the butternut squash fondue (a steal at $7), which was actually closer to Welsh rarebit: triangles of toasted bread with a nice garlicy squash and cheese conglomeration. I thought the butternut squash was going to be unnecessary non-sequitor, but the sweetness actually enhanced the dish. My cranberry and turkey entrée ($16) didn’t quite live up to the rest of our choices. Although it was executed well (moist turkey, well seasoned), I think the dish needs to be reconceived, a cream sauce not being a great medium for cranberries. I do, however, appreciate the attempt at reinvisioning an old classic, as well as the seasonality of the dish. In fact, the menu is full of nice touches, such good beer on tap, and fun house made sodas for the non-drinkers among us. The price range for entrees is about $15 to $25, which allows a good deal of exploring. I have my eye on the sautéed jumbo prawns in a corn tequila sauce. And do try the chocolate ganache cake with jagermeister gelato ($5), a fine dessert with the slight alcoholic flavor of the gelato serving as a counterpoint the rich cake.

The room itself is comfortable and spacey, but perhaps not as interesting as CFDs like Earls Paramount. Service is helpful and although it may have been a by-product of the empty room, a bit overly familiar and in-your-face, the type I would expect at a family restaurant like Red Robin as opposed to a CFD.

Given the above praise, it’s unfortunate that IDE was nearly empty on a Saturday night. It suffers from an out of the way location on Pacific Avenue, where foot traffic is light. Word of mouth and a great steak might save this restaurant, but to be sure, I would suggest trying it sooner rather than later.

To sum up, based on this experience, I happily recommend IDE to anyone seeking a CFD-like experience with more personal slant.