Dining in Whistler – Sidecut Steak

A New Game in Town
Sidecut, located in the Four Seasons Resort is the new game in town when it come to steaks in Whistler. It has been open for more than a year but we are such Hy’s loyalists this was our first visit. The menu’s focus is Canadian prime beef from Alberta and the kitchen features an 1,800-degree infrared grill. We had also heard about the house-made rubs and sauces that are the diners choice with each protein – including fish. When you order your protein you select one of a dozen or more rubs with names like Edison’s Medicine (the Chef’s last name), Black Angus, Lemon Buddha, Herbal Ember and Blueberry Hill. When your main course is served eight cute little bottles of sauce are served on a plank with it. We tried them all – more on that later.

Not Just Beef
The menu also includes some great seafood and fish choices including locally sourced and fresh ingredients. During our visit choices included a daily oyster special, spot prawns, Qualicum scallops, Steelhead trout, Black cod and Copper River salmon. For a starter we chose the Seaside Grill which included scallops, spot prawns and lobster grilled with one of the special rubs made from nori, bonito, garlic, shallot and sesame. The flavours were great and all of the seafood was perfectly cooked, tender and juicy. Our first course was a delicious and Jeff is already talking about going back for it next time we are in Whistler. We then decided to share a Caesar salad. The dressing was good, a bit creamy, flavourful, but not enough garlic.  We still prefer the Hy’s version but this was a good second. We did really enjoy the texture of the brioche croutons though.

Staff and Service
Our experience from the moment we walked in the door was excellent.  We do know the Manager, but it was the serving staff that provided us and the tables around us with impeccable service. They were very knowledgable but also very friendly and un-stuffy at the same time making the whole experience – food and service – excellent. Our server even had a terrific food reference guide and confirmed for me that Black Cod and Sabelfish are the same fish. 

Main Course
Our main course turned into main courses, which I do not recommend because the portions are already a decent size but there was too much to try. The daily special was Copper River Salmon served with a crispy skin on a bed of clams and heirloom tomatoes. The salmon was rich with a slightly firmer texture than expected and a bit of a nutty flavour. Our server informed us that Copper River Salmon is only available for 3 or 4 weeks each year and comes from the Copper River in Alaska. Another delicious course. 

Sidecut Steak
Sidecut’s signature dishes are the Long Bone (38 oz. Bone-In Ribe Eye) and the Cowboy (52 oz. Porterhouse) carved table side. Since Jeff could not imagine that much beef for himself he went with the smallest steak on the menu, the Tenderloin, available in 6oz and 8oz portions. He chose the Black Angus rub. I ordered the Black Cod with the Lemon Buddha rub. The steak was tender and cooked perfectly. The fish was done with a crispy skin which before today I had not tried but really enjoyed on both the salmon and the black cod. We tried every one of the sauces just because they were there and we could not resist. Jeff found a favourite in the BBQ sauce and I loved the Wasabi D-40. The sauces are not yet available for sale but they assured us that they are working on it. Chef Edison currently creates them all himself every few days.

All main courses are served al la carte and every side dish on the menu sounded delicious. We tried the potato gratin and gilled asparagus and were very happy with both. The gratin was rich and creamy but topped with a sharp aged cheddar giving it a bit of a kick as well. The asparagus was grilled with a lightly poached egg at the bottom of the dish to create a sauce. (The current menu on the website is slightly different than the one currently in use but you will get the idea). We also tired a wine that we had not heard of – Moon Curser Tempranillo – and have another place to stop on our Okanagan visit this summer. All in all, a great meal!

Add it to our list
We were very happy with the entire experience at Sidecut. Our server Lison was terrific, and so was the food.  We will add it to our few must visits when we head back to Whistler. We did not have any room left to try dessert but since it was a special day I blew out some candles anyway! Thanks David for the suggestion and  getting into visit.