Dachi likes to keep its menu fresh
Pby Tammy Kwan
lenty of restaurants serve up local and seasonal fare in Vancouver, but few work with farmers and producers in ways that enable them to print out new menus every other day. Enter Dachi (2297 East Hastings), East Van’s latest neighbourhood hot spot.
The simple yet cozy 40-seat dining establishment, run by Aburi Restaurant Canada veterans and business partners Miki Ellis and Stephen Whiteside, offers a Pacific Northwest menu that rotates consistently.
“We’re a small restaurant, but all of us are coming from larger-restaurant backgrounds,” Ellis told the Georgia Straight in an interview at the new eatery. “The ability and freedom to be able to play around with it [the menu] a bit and change it whenever we like keeps it really fun for us.”
It’s exactly what the restaurant co-owners wanted for Dachi (the name is Japanese for “pal”): a short-butsweet list of food and drink offerings that are seasonal and sustainable.
“We buy all of our produce in small quantities. Our shellfish comes at 4:30 p.m. and service starts at 5 p.m.,” Whiteside explained. “Some people ask what the specials are, but the menu shows everything. If we have the item, then we will print it. It all depends on what we have.”
Dachi opened in December 2018 in the 1,200-squarefoot space formerly occupied by Campagnolo Roma. The tight-knit team, with the help of some very good friends, included wooden elements, lush greenery, and a do-ityourself upholstered booth banquette in the warm and welcoming interior.
“If you came to each of us a few years back, we’d be on the same page and have the same vision for a restaurant,” Whiteside said. “We’ve always wanted plants and books in the restaurant.”
Its latest menu, created by executive chef Tyson Viteychuk, features three-year-aged cheddar and buttermilk biscuits, roasted-winter-squash stew with cashew butter, country-fried steelhead trout with salted beets, and 24-hour-roasted beef chuck flat with red miso. Desserts include poached Granny Smith apple with ginger mascarpone, and 72-percent-cocoa chocolate ganache with hazelnut streusel.
Alongside an ever-changing culinary roster, Dachi’s beverage offerings also rotate.
The owners value building relationships with those who frequent their dining spot.
“At the end of the day, we’re both servers at heart, and it’s nice to have that one-to-one conversation with others,” Whiteside added. “Regulars have helped us build this as much as our friends have. I think that really helps us set ourselves apart in creating an atmosphere where people feel like they’re part of it.” g