By John Atkinson
Sprouting from Shoku Izakaya, a tiny and acclaimed kitchen and bar in Banff, Alberta, the Block Kitchen & Bar on Victoria’s Yates Street will celebrate its first anniversary in mid-January and has lofty ambitions to create multiple branches around Canada.
Block Victoria is co-owned by the executive chef at Shoku, Stephane Provost, and general manager Andy Burke and Jay Ahn, while my interviewees, Tyler Thompson and Rachel Johnson are Block’s chef de cuisine and bar manager respectively.
Thompson (33) explained the origin story after serving me three scrumptious signature Block dishes:
First up, Admiral Sho Cauliflower, a vegetarian play on general chicken named after the sous chef, Sho.
Then Thompson served the Japabao Dog, a double-smoked farmer’s sausage with house kimchi, takoyaki sauce, Japanese mayo and bonito shavings followed by the Ahi Tuna Yaki Onigiri, a nice patty that was dipped in tare, grilled with a little bit of diced tuna Ahi, a little bit of spicy mayonnaise and blended with scallions and tobiko.
The Global menu, inspired by influences from Asia and other continents, also includes items like Thai mushroom risotto, Korean fried chicken, matcha cheesecake and steamed bao buns.
Block was originally a small kitchen based in Banff, packed into a tiny space which their website says promotes “engaging conversations as well as new friendships.” It then expanded into Shoku, Banff’s first Izakaya, a type of Japanese bar that serves a variety of small dishes and snacks to accompany the alcoholic drinks. In 2022, Thompson was asked to come to Victoria to help create a new location.
“We’re getting there. It’s still a work in progress. But … it’s been night and day from where it was to where it is now,” Thompson said.
The Yates restaurant bar offers an intimate and elevated atmosphere with wooden tables, brick walls, and plenty of art.
Bar manager Rachel Johnson, 24, who’s been working at Block since a month after it opened, prepared for me the signature Birds of Paradise cocktail and her new creative concoction.
“The Birds of Paradise has akvavit — a kind of Danish version of gin, with fruity bitters, like caraway and bitter orange. It’s a really popular cocktail from the Banff location which opened just over nine years ago. It’s a big crowd favourite.
“The second one I’m still trying to figure out a name for it, but I like the idea of The Smiling Pig. It’s a pork belly fat-washed rum and it’s from our char-siu pork belly buns on the menu, the same ones we use in the buns.”
Johnson takes the residual fat from the dish and infuses it with Flor de Cana 5 Year Rum, then mixes it with rosemary syrup, tiki bitter with tropical flavours, a big spritz of Alchemist nectar, a local Okanagan apple liquor and smoked rosemary on top.
Both cocktails were delicious and offered unique flavours.
“Seeing the reaction of people to the food & drinks never gets old,” Johnson said. “After that first bite of food or cocktail hits their lips they just light up.”
I ask Johnson where she thinks the Block sits within the bar culture of Victoria.
“I only moved here in January,” Johnson said. “But I’ve definitely got around and would say Block is one of two things; a casual afternoon hang-out type of place. And pretty unique for people who are more adventurous and open-minded. Those people have the best time.”
To learn more about Block Kitchen & Bar, visit blockvictoria.ca.
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