New Fid is pretty fantastic

By Bill Spurr BOURGEOIS GOURMET

I’VE OFTEN JOKED that Dennis Johnston is such a perfectionist that he can’t put a carrot on a plate until he’s carved it into a replica of the Eiffel Tower.

Not that there’s anything wrong with someone taking pride in their work, especially when their work is something you’re going to eat.

Johnston and his wife Monica established their restaurant, Fid, as one of the city’s fine-dining destinations, but recently they decided it was time for a more relaxed feel. So it was out with the linen tablecloths and in with suede chairs and new tables that have a butcher-block feel.

One wall is exposed brick, another was painted red and a large blackboard for daily specials and wines was hung. The space is much less formal, and so is the menu, although it’s still a far cry from ordinary.

Fid’s slogan has changed from Cuisine Inventive to Local by Nature, reflecting the fact that Johnston would be a good bet to win any contest to choose the best customer of the Halifax Farmers’ Market.

Fid was filling up when our party of four arrived on Friday evening, and we could see into the kitchen, where Johnston and his crew were hard at work.

Servers are dressed in black and, more importantly, there are enough of them that each table got plenty of attention.

We shared two appetizers: potato gnocchi, in a tomato sauce with Indian spices, and a mushroom tart, with Foxhill aged cheddar. Fid also offers a vegan gnocchi made from chickpeas. The potato version is a bowlful of beautifully textured little dumplings in a very mild sauce. The pastry for the mushroom tart is perfection itself, but all agreed that additional Foxhill cheddar would have added to the flavour.

The bread basket consists of sourdough, seven-grain breads and crisped Melba toast. We went through two baskets.

Fid’s new menu is only a few weeks old, and the most popular dish so far has been the seven-day marinated hanger steak. I had only had hanger steak once before, in New Jersey, and loved it.

It’s a cut that gets its name from the fact it hangs between the rib and the short loin. Johnston buys his from Armstrong’s in Kingston, and he is the only chef I know of in the province selling it.

Hanger steak needs to be marinated and Johnson’s marinade makes use of achiote paste to lend a southwestern flavour. I knew days in advance I’d be ordering this and it was as wonderful as I’d anticipated.

Served already sliced, perfectly medium rare, on a bed of garlic mashed potatoes, it was worth the trip here by itself, although I wish I had made a better wine choice. Fid has three reds and three whites available by the glass and I ordered a B.C. Pinot Noir, which wasn’t a big enough wine to stand up to the intense flavour of the meat.

A glass of Domaine de Grand Pre’s Vintner’s Reserve L’Acadie Blanc went perfectly with Kath’s meal of caramelized sea scallops with pork belly, salsify (a root vegetable) and spinach, and included something else not many restaurants serve, scallop roe.

Inside a scallop shell, the roe is attached to the muscle familiar to all seafood eaters. At Fid, as in France, the crescent-shaped roe, which has a more pungent taste, is part of the meal. Kath’s scallops were cooked perfectly and the pork belly, which comes from Oulton’s in Windsor, was sweetly delicious.

BJ’s friend, Will, joined us for dinner and he ordered the grilled sausage with Puy lentils. The sausages at Fid are stuffed with coarsely diced pork, pork fat, sugar, salt and garlic and have a much fresher taste than sausages from the grocery store. Will found that the more he ate both the sausages and the dark lentils, the more he liked them.

BJ had the special, veal kidney with mac ’n cheese. He hadn’t had kidney before and the fact a 13-year old was eating it caused our hostess to exclaim in delight.

The verdict? “Interesting.”

In addition to cheddar, the mac ’n cheese is also made with blue and Parmesan cheeses, making it rich and different and intense and delicious.

For dessert, the table shared banana creme brule, trifle and sticky toffee pudding. We all found that the pudding had a strong aftertaste that was bitter and almost unpleasant, probably from the walnuts. The custard in the trifle was outstanding, and after we finished the banana creme brule, BJ said, “D.O.Y.”

“What’s D.O.Y.?” Will asked.

“Dessert of the year.”

Dinner for four, including wine, tax and a 20% tip to reflect the smooth, flawless service, was $172. There’s a new Fid in town.

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