Those that have experienced dinner at Published are likely aware that foraging is an integral part of our seasonal prep work. From April to December Executive Chef Gus spends most of his down time in the woods with his tent in hand foraging with his friends. Upon his return to the restaurant, he works with the team to incorporate those ingredients into seasonal features and dishes for our a la carte menu. If you’ve dined here recently, you’ve probably tried a dish featuring BC Fire Morels foraged by Chef Gus himself, like the beef striploin with black pepper glazed beef shin and a morel cream sauce.

Foraging is a team effort, with many of our staff venturing out far and wide to collect ingredients for the menu. Our talented pastry chef, Maddy Goreski, has been experimenting with what she’s collected around the city this past spring. With a careful and delicate hand, Maddy forages maple blossoms, wild beach rose, magnolias, sakuras, and salmon berries around the city, making sure to maintain the integrity of the plant. Sakura (or cherry blossoms) are a beautiful addition to have in the kitchen while they’re in season, they have an earthy, subtly floral flavour that work well in both savoury and sweet dishes, and because sakura flowers are ornamental, picking them doesn’t damage the fruit of the plant!

Maddy’s been playing with her foraged goods by drying, salting, and pickling her findings in small quantities. If you join us for a tasting menu soon, you may be lucky enough to taste our rose mousse made with Maddy’s foraged wild beach rose she’s been collecting this month, topped with candied roses. As Maddy’s foraged magnolias are being transformed into vinegars and syrups, and her foraged sakura is pickling, expect to see summer dessert features with vibrant meringues made from the vinegars, parfaits made from the syrups, and anticipate even more beautiful and elaborate garnishes and sauces.

In May, bar manager Dylan Riches used some of his spruce tips and beach coriander found locally, to create the Dirty Foraged Martini. It included vodka slowly infused with spruce tips, and a blend of dry vermouths that had been emulsified and strained with beach coriander, giving the cocktail a bright green colour, and a salty finish you might expect from olive brine. Expect to see more foraged ingredients in cocktail features this summer, like our elderflower wine we’ll be serving up chilled very soon. This past spring, Dylan and Chef foraged elderflower in Delta, some of which can be found pickled on our wagyu carpaccio or in the beurre blanc served with our lightly smoked Steelhead. Dylan fermented it for two weeks with champagne yeast to make an elderflower wine we’ll feature this weekend – you won’t want to miss this one. 

So the next time you visit Published, ask your server about tasting some items on the menu that include foraged ingredients and ask the bartender to shake up a cocktail infused with something from the wild!