Pub Favourites with a Masters Degree
by Alan O'Doherty of Vancouver Beer Blog
Nestled near the corner of West Hastings and Carrall at 16 West Hastings Street, the Bitter Tasting Room balances industrial chic with warm pub-style informality. Bare brick walls, exposed beer kegs and open kitchen sit well with the simple but comfy furniture and the whole place doesn’t make you feel like you’ll need to stand on ceremony.
A quick glance over the menu and I feel like I’m back in London; pickled eggs, pork scratchings, beer nuts, and a host of other pub favorites are on offer. But Bitter is offering something beyond standard pub-grub; these are handmade, organic, high quality versions of pub favorites. Scotch eggs are a staple back home but I have to admit the one’s from Bitter are better than anything I’ve had in the UK; crispy and golden brown on the outside and the sausage meat is packed with flavor. The biggest surprise though are the pork scratchings. I imagined a coronary-waiting-to-happen in a sealed foil bag hanging on a hook behind the bar. These are light, chewy, without a hint of grease and dusted with just enough Cayenne Pepper to give them a kick. The closest I can think to compare are shrimp crackers in terms of texture, but the flavor is completely different.
The sausages can also come highly recommended – the Weisswurst we tried was a new one for me. When it arrives at our table our server explains how we remove the skin ourselves; this is hands on food and as I look around the room most of the guests have abandoned cutlery a few mouthfuls in. The Weistwurst is delicious – lightly spiced, soft with an almost pate texture – and it goes brilliantly with Bitter’s home-made sweet honey mustard.
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