BC Business
The spacious patio at Glowbal Telus Garden
The Gold Room, a private dining space that can accommodate up to 60 people
Glowbal’s Caesar salad
The robata grill and bar
Must-try order: The truffled spaghetti and signature meatballs
Insider tip: A couple of items from the original restaurant have been incorporated into the new lounge: the metal wall feature and five brass rings on the ceiling were reconfigured from what was formerly a single pendant light fixture
The Mezzanine, the upstairs dining room at Glowbal Telus Garden
The Executive Room, a private room with group menus for up to 14 guests
Glowbal–the namesake of a fast-growing chain that includes Coast, Italian Kitchen and Black + Blue—opened as Glowbal Grill Steaks & Satay in Yaletown in 2002. At the end of 2014, it closed to prepare for its move into the brand-new Telus Garden building at Georgia and Seymour.
The new space, launched in August, is 17,000 square feet broken up into rooms and nooks of various sizes, each with its own ambiance. At the heart of the restaurant is a custom robata grill. “We wanted to bring back the satays, but we wanted to do it properly so we got them to design the robata grills for us to fit the restaurant,” says Emad Yacoub, president and CEO of Glowbal Restaurant Group. Still, “the restaurant’s not built on the robata grill,” he adds. “That’s one out of a hundred of what this restaurant offers. The style of the cuisine is North American with a hint of West Coast to it.”
BEST TABLE | The key here is choice. Depending on your mood and your business, there is a central bar, quiet nooks, places to see and be seen, four private dining rooms or a 150-seat patio.
MUST-TRY ORDER | The truffled spaghetti and signature meatballs are made with Kobe-style steak, pomodoro sauce and tête de moine cheese. The cheese brings out the truffle flavour, and with the spice of the tomato, “That dish is unbeatable,” says Yacoub.
DRINK UP | Glowbal’s 1881 Old Fashioned is prepared tableside using Eagle Rare bourbon, Grand Marnier, Old Fashioned bitters, raw cane sugar and orange peel, used to rim the glass, then slightly burned and placed in the drink.
INSIDER TIP | A couple of items from the original restaurant have been incorporated into the new lounge: the metal wall feature and five brass rings on the ceiling, once one huge light fixture.