Botanist x Lazy Bear: Michelin Collaboration
Botanist, the acclaimed restaurant and bar at Fairmont Pacific Rim, is thrilled to announce a two-night collaboration with San Francisco’s distinctive dining experience, the two-Michelin starred Lazy Bear (Food & Wine’s Best New Chef, James Beard Award finalist), and its sister bar, True Laurel (Esquire’s The Best Bars in America, TimeOut San Francisco’s Best New Bar) on Wednesday, August 30 and Thursday, August 31.
Botanist continues to usher in extraordinary culinary and cocktail experiences to Vancouver, and for the summer edition, brings renowned tastes from San Francisco to the table. On August 30, Chef Hector Laguna and Lazy Bear’s Chef/Partner David Barzelay will design a six-course tasting menu with a focus on locally sourced and seasonal ingredients, with three courses by each chef and a collaborative dessert. Menu highlights will include Broiled Oyster with Redwood Tip Glaçage and Lardo, Wagyu Ribeye with Blistered Sungolds and Sungold Raisins, and for dessert, Figs Foster with Fig Leaf Ice Cream and Toasted Fig Leaf Oil. Guests will be greeted with a welcome and finale cocktail – one from each participating bar – while expertly paired wines will complement dinner.
On August 31, the award-winning Botanist Bar team led by Jeff Savage will welcome True Laurel, a beloved San Francisco cocktail bar since 2017, for a custom menu of hero cocktails and bar snacks from both venues. True Laurel, under the direction of Bar Director Nicolas Torres, shares a similar philosophy to Botanist with technique-driven cocktails and attention focused on local and sustainable ingredients. Guests will enjoy a menu of original cocktails from each bar, as well as one cocktail designed in collaboration that provides the best of each concept in one unique libation. True Laurel’s signature bar snacks, including the Fried Maitake Mushrooms, will also be available.
“Similar to our ethos of celebrating the biodiversity of the Pacific Northwest, Lazy Bear pays tribute to the incredible ingredients local to the San Francisco Bay area,” said Chef Hector Laguna of Botanist. “Lazy Bear and True Laurel push the boundaries of hospitality experiences, and we’re thrilled to introduce a taste of their exceptional restaurant and bar concepts to our city.”
“I’ve heard about Botanist for years; with so many people raving about it, I knew there had to be something special happening,” said Chef David Barzelay of Lazy Bear. “While Lazy Bear serves San Francisco Bay-area cuisine, we’re known to incorporate Pacific Northwest ingredients—we can’t wean ourselves off the amazing seafood, mushrooms, and other wild ingredients that come out of British Columbia. We’re excited to work with Chef Hector Laguna and see the True Laurel and Botanist Bar teams unite for a genuinely synergistic experience.”
The Lazy Bear and True Laurel collaborations at Botanist join a lineup of past events with industry friends across some of the world’s best bars and restaurants, including Katana Kitten (New York), Overstory (New York), Hanky Panky (Mexico City) and Manhattan (Singapore), Odette (Singapore) and SAGA (New York). Botanist Bar was most recently announced as a Top 4 finalist for the “Best International Hotel Bars” award at Tales of the Cocktail as well as joining the ranks of North America’s 50 Best Bars, crowned No. 19 Best Bar by North America’s 50 Best Bars Academy.
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The six-course guest chef collaboration experience held on Wednesday, August 30 is $275 CAD per person inclusive of cocktail and wine pairings (excluding taxes and gratuity), while the evening at Botanist Bar is à la carte and walk-ins only. Reservations for the guest chef dinner are now open to the public and can be booked online.
