A Fresh, Local Take on a Not-So-Local Ingredient

This Arctic char dish was born in the Okanagan.

Heretofore the word “local,” in terms of Arctic char, applied to only a very narrow band of hardy types that call the Far North home. But a few years ago, Okanagan entrepreneur Gary Klassen brought the fish south and started sustainably farming it near Oliver. His Road 17 (yes, it’s actually four roads away from Road 13 winery) Arctic char has been a runaway hit ever since, with chefs angling to get an allotment, but perhaps nobody has embraced the concept more than his neighbour, Jeff van Geest at Tinhorn Creek’s Miradoro. The chef sears the medium-firm fish (diners often remark that it seems like a cross between trout and salmon) with a sublime crust, plates it with a sweet pea and clam ragu, adds some puffy ricotta gnudi and then tops it with some foraged black trumpet mushrooms—a mind-bendingly local mélange.

Miradoro

Tinhorn Creek Vineyards537 Tinhorn Creek Rd., Olivertinhorn.com/restaurant