Elisa – Best Steakhouse in Vancouver
Elisa, part of the Toptable Group of family restaurants opened their doors 2 years ago and it has been praised time and time again by everyone I know. For whatever reason, I never made it out to this restaurant until a month ago where I went to celebrate Meta Knight (my fiance)’s birthday.
I had really high standards coming into Elisa and my biggest question was “Is this the best steakhouse in Vancouver?”. It really has to hold it’s own if it’s going to compete with Gotham and Hy’s.
The one thing I did not anticipate was that their entire steak menu that uses the famous GrillWorks Infierno Grill would be unavailable. They had an unfortunate fire on the roof of their building which needed some fixing before they could use the grill again. I was suuuuper sad to hear that as I was really looking forward to trying the Porterhouse steak. However, this just means I have to come back again.
Starting off with some sparkling wine and complimentary bread. I was a bit surprised to find the bread cold and not warm.
Before we get onto the steaks, this is a showstopper side and a must get at Elisa. It’s the Truffle Mac N’ Cheese and it’s absolutely delicious!!! The shaved black truffles just scream decadence and even though the truffle flavour is light, it was still heaven and perfectly well done.
I also loved the pasta shape and size they used. They used huge pasta shells for the mac and cheese which I totally was not expecting!
We ordered their special of the day which was Rib Eye with Shishito Peppers and Polenta. It was an amazing piece of meat and even though it wasn’t cooked via their normal grill, the steak still had incredible flavour. The texture wasn’t the easiest to cut but that was just a small observation.
Their Prime Rib with Yorkshire Pudding was MASSIVE and I highly recommend this for anyone with a large appetite. I couldn’t even finish it in one sitting and brought almost 6oz home for another meal.
Their Wild Foraged Mushrooms were also delightful and I also highly recommend this for any fungi lover out there (like me!) :D. Even though it was sauteed with just butter and some herbs, the natural flavours of the mushroom really shined through and they’re unlike any mushrooms you’d normally fine at a supermarket.
So for the main question…. Is this the best steakhouse in Vancouver?
I actually won’t be able to answer that for now. If I’m basing it on this visit alone without trying any of the steaks from their signature GrillWorks Infierno Grill, then no, I’ve had better at Hy’s and Gotham. However, that is not a true judgement of their capability so I want to return when their grill is ready in action and I can try their Porterhouse or Tomahawk steak to compare.
*Update Jan 23, 2022: I went back to ELISA after they repaired their wood oven and I can tell you that YES, they are the best steakhouse in Vancouver. We got the Porterhouse to share and every single bite was heaven. You won’t regret going to ELISA.*
Service Rating: 5/5
Food Rating: 4/5
Price: $$$$$+
Overall Rating: 4/5
Until then…
Happy Eating!
