09/19/2026
Every once in a while, a tasting menu just... clicks. This was one of those nights.
Did the tasting menu at Touk, Contemporary Cambodian on Alberni Street in Vancouver — helmed by Chef Chanthy Yen, a Top Chef Canada winner bringing his Cambodian roots into a modern, French bistro-influenced lens using BC ingredients.
Usually with tasting menus, I find myself picking favorites — one dish steals the show, another falls a little flat. Not here. Every single course flowed into the next, harmonized, no weak link in the whole lineup. That kind of consistency is rare.
And this reinforced something I already believe — tasting menus are almost always the better move over à la carte. You're getting the kitchen's most creative, most refined work, dish by dish. I've seen this exact thing happen at places like Published — friends who went à la carte walked away underwhelmed, while the tasting menu tells a completely different story.
Service was on point all night, and the portions were generous — I left genuinely, happily full.
Touk — if you're going, do the tasting menu. This is the way to experience it.
