Ondus on the Waterfront

Vancouver Waterfront

I had dinner at Ondus which is in the AC Hotel on the waterfront. Ondus is a scratch kitchen headed by Food & Beverage Director/Chef, Tanner Genck. He took a few minutes to talk with me about the restaurant. His level of passion for creating and serving excellent food is impressive. For example, it takes Ondus 16 hours to make their French onion soup. It’s 3-4 hours just for the onions. That’s dedication.

He says that they even make the BBQ sauce for the pork ends. Tanner is on the board of the Culinary Institute. He hires the students and gives them real time experience. “Our menu is team driven. All my cooks have the opportunity to get their recipes on the menus. All food including mine get peer reviewed before they go on the menu. I truly believe I’m nothing without this team. I’m so proud of them front and back”.

We ordered a lot of different dishes to really get a solid impression (and have lots of leftovers). They serve 6 starters and 13 different appetizers which makes it a target rich environment. You could just order a few in lieu of entrees. We had to try the soup. My wife loves French Onion soup and says the soup stock is the best she’s had. The Ricotta & Spicy Meatballs are very good, but not spicy. My wife enjoyed them. She also had the Brussel Sprouts & Spicy Honey and thinks they’re really good. Although the spice level was just a little more than she likes.

We ordered the Steak Tip Skewer with truffle parmesan fries to learn what Ondus’ steak is like. They were tender and nicely seasoned. This could pass for a meal if you weren’t very hungry. Next time I’ll try the Steak Frites.

The Waterfront Burger is top notch. The pepper bacon is legit. The focaccia bun has a different look and texture than a garden variety bin, but pairs amazingly with the burger and toppings. I don’t know if it’s the Facerock cheddar, the black garlic aioli, or what. But this is an amazing combination. For several years the cheeseburger at The Multnomah Whiskey Library has been my high watermark for a gourmet burger. The Waterfront Burger has surpassed it. The Marry Me Chicken was tender and perfectly seasoned. The polenta with the cheese sauce was delicious. The broccolini was steamed just right which resulted in an excellent texture and flavor addition to the dish.

The Sausage Stuffed Shells pasta are stuffed with whipped burrata, sweet Italian sausage, herbs and parmesan that are baked in a marinara sauce. It’s a nice dish but too polite for me (I like bold flavor), though for some folks this will be just right.

The carrot cake is a show stopper. It’s massive. It looks like they took an entire round cake and cut off the curves. I put a fork in the photo to indicate the scale. SIDE NOTE: The carrot cake tastes delicious.

Cocktails were good. The AC Hotel bar has decent, but not amazing stock, though Jeff the Bar Manager aims to please. He went above and beyond to work with the recipes I gave him. The result were very enjoyable drinks that paired well with our meal. The bar has savvy crystal clear king cubes with “AC” engraved on top. I just learned since my visit they have stepped up their sweet vermouth game and now have Carpano Antica Formula in stock.

Price is a common Achilles heel for corporate restaurants. But if I understand correctly, Ondus has more autonomy. Regardless, I was surprised to discover Ondus’ prices to be fairly reasonable. Starters are $14 each which is a little high, but appetizers start at $12. The highest price is $15 for the Steak Tip Skewer. Sandwiches are $18-$20 including the Waterfront Burger. Multnomah Whiskey Library charges $26 for their burger. They offer 11 entrees ranging from $16 (Pasta Pomodoro) to $55 (Baked Jumbo Lump Crab Cakes). Ondus serves a variety of pizza ($15-$18). I’m a pizza evangelist that has many wonderful pizzerias to chose from, so I chose to try theirs on another visit. In my opinion, the price for the food they serve in an elegant setting and being serenaded with live music is an excellent value.

On top of it all, the staff have so much heart and a strong desire for their customers to enjoy the experience of dining at Ondus. Every staff person we saw was on mission to make everyone feel special. Perhaps the greatest compliment is my wife asking for us to come back often.