CASUAL DINING: Off the Beaten Path

OFF THE BEATEN PATH

CASUAL DINING

FROM THAI CURRIES TO CAFFEINE-PACKED COCKTAILS, THESE THREE WHISTLER EATERIES MAKE VENTURING AWAY FROM THE VILLAGE STROLL WORTH THE EFFORT

STORY BY MEGAN LALONDE PHOTOS BY DAVID BUZZARD

since barn nork opened its doors in 2016, word of mouth spreading faster than wildfire has led Whistler locals and visitors alike to travel far from the Village Stroll in search of authentic Thai cuisine. Specifically, they’ve driven 35 minutes north to Pemberton, but later this winter, that trek will get a lot shorter. Barn Nork is currently operating from the Sunstone Golf Club in Pemberton, but the renowned eatery is relocating to Whistler’s Riverside Camping & RV Resort, with a projected opening date of March. That move to Whistler is a big change for

the little eatery. Just five minutes north of the Village by car—and adjacent to the luxurious Scandinave Spa—Barn Nork’s new home might be closer to the action, but it’s staying true to the restaurant’s out-of-the-way roots. “We were looking for a place that still allowed us to be a little bit of a destination,” says manager Judith Thompson. “We wanted people to be very thoughtful about finding us, and ordering from us … Riverside had all that for us in that it is a little bit off the beaten path.” It all began with a Craigslist seach about five years ago that brought owners and chefs Jatuporn (Jay) Nutamarn and Chanidaporn (Janice) Sriwantan to a property near Pemberton.

originally from chaing mai, the married duo honed their cooking chops at Bangkok’s five-star Mandarin Oriental Hotel before taking their talents to kitchens all over the world and, eventually, settling in British Columbia. “They jumped in with both feet and took a risk,” Thompson explains. “They figured that if they made good food, people would come. That's kind of the basic principle of Barn Nork”— which, in Thai, loosely translates to “countryside,” she adds. Barn Nork’s menu features a variety of Thai dishes, all packed with carefully layered flavours. The goal, says Sriwantan, is to make guests “feel like they've been to Thailand, but [without having] to fly there.” That, and to expand diners’ notions of what constitutes Thai food beyond beloved staples like pad Thai and green curry. (Don’t panic, those are still available.) The restaurant’s new iteration will have limited indoor seats—“12 to 14,” Thompson estimates—and an increased focus on traditional street-food dishes and takeout. That said, diners should be forewarned that Barn Nork is anything but a typical quick-service noodle shop. “Part of Barn Nork’s success is that … if you wait for it, it will be delicious,” Thompson says.

CHECKING THE FORECAST

there are many reasons to venture south to Function Junction, Whistler’s industrial hub: checking out craft breweries, grabbing a slice of pizza at Functional Pie, or indulging in a sweet treat at Purebread, for instance. These days, a visit to Forecast Coffee also ranks high among them.

When Forecast launched in early 2020, the inviting café-meetsgrocer automatically became many locals’ go-to spot for a morning jolt of caffeine. Since renovations were completed in July—eliminating the grocery section in favour of more spacious seating, coupled with a newly approved liquor licence— Forecast has also become the ideal spot for a low-key, postadventure bite to eat and perhaps an espresso martini, that offers some relief from the hustle and bustle of Whistler Village. “Our purpose is to create space … for people to come together and connect,” says Forecast owner Jim Salusbury. The decision to ditch grocery shelves and expand seating, “certainly created that community hub, more than we had before,” he adds. Today, Forecast’s food menu is filled with casual fare like Baja quinoa bowls, avocado “fries” and street tacos, alongside morning offerings like breakfast sandwiches and overnight oats. Forecast’s passion for coffee has even extended to the entirety of its cocktail menu, which includes creations like a Cold Fashioned and a Dark ’n’ Stormy made with Forecast’s house-branded espresso beans. Forecast also offers an array of B.C. craft brews on draft, and a few local wines for those who prefer to keep their caffeine and alcohol consumption separate. It was the café’s proximity to local breweries that prompted staff to think outside the box when designing Forecast’s liquor program, Salusbury explains. “Of course, an espresso martini comes up in conversation. And then as we just went down the rabbit hole, we developed a few more [coffee-based cocktails] that we knew and liked and thought could be kind of fun.”

tucked away in the upper Village’s Le Chamois Hotel, just a few steps from the Blackcomb Gondola, lies Rocky Mountain Underground. The cozy ski shop/ pub combo, better known to most as RMU, is fairly new to Whistler’s food and beverage scene, but has quickly become a favourite spot among locals to sip hard-to-find whiskies, down a craft brew or two, and peruse its ski displays before indulging in some well-earned après snacks. (Tip: you can’t go wrong with the loaded wedges.) The ski manufacturing company part of the business got its start in a Colorado ski patroller’s underground garage. When it came time to open a retail store in Breckenridge, the company’s founders decided bars were more fun, and so the dualpurpose concept was born. RMU chose Whistler for its second location, opening its doors just a few months prior to the COVID19 pandemic. Despite the company’s

W faraway roots, RMU Whistler— which features curated craft beer and a wine list comprised exclusively of B.C. products—is about as local as it gets, explains general manager Ted Low. “The whole company [tries] to be sustainable and as local as possible,” he adds. Those efforts extend to RMU’s food menu, where much of the tender meat tossed in its Traeger smoker is sourced from North Vancouver’s Two River Meats. “We actually just recently started smoking our chicken wings,” explains Low. “We brine the wings, smoke the wings, so I think that's kind of the real standout that's on the menu right now.” One aspect of RMU Whistler that’s been slightly trickier to localize? The pub’s extensive liquor offerings, which range from handcrafted mezcal to 10-year-old Japanese whisky and everything in between. Says Low, “I'm trying to get 100 whiskies on the back bar before Christmas.”