‘Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, I’m glad you could all be here because, "this town is about to party!".’ That’s what I was half-expecting to hear as I rolled into Whistler last Wednesday afternoon. Even if Cornucopia wasn’t officially starting until Thursday, there was still an atmosphere of anticipation for the eighth edition of this knock-down, drag-’em-out, festival of wine and food…and partying. In previous years, this has been a very quiet time in the alpine village. It was after golf season, just before the ski season, some shops and restaurants were closed for renovations, or just plain closed for lack of business. That’s all changed now, the village is clogged with people ready to have a good time.
I started my weekend a bit early, as Ramona, (my Accomplice in Overindulgence), and I were asked to be guinea pigs for the new winter menu at the new Four Seasons Whistler. How could we say no? 
The suites at the Four Seasons are amazing, with walk-in closets the size of Yaletown condos and beds so comfortable it’s hard to drag yourself away from them to do anything else but relax. The executive chef at the Four Seasons is Jason McLeod, we think the youngest exec to ever open a Four Seasons property, but a guy who comes with a long pedigree of working with some of the best chefs in Canada. His own style will continue to develop, but for now the restaurant in the Four Seasons, the Fifty Two 80 Bistro, has to be a bit of all things for all people not only staying at the hotel, but other visitors as well.
McLeod scored on quite a few counts that night, including some appetizer platters featuring an incredible chicken liver parfait, duck rillette, and a plate of Italian cured meats, including my favourites, prosciutto, bresaola(cured beef), salami and capicola. 
The best courses of the meal that followed included giant scallops seared and slightly caramelized on the outside, and moistly underdone on the inside, topped with a delightfully musty hazelnut and truffle foam. 
Some of our dining partners snorkeled up every bit of a lobster stew, while I shared around some moist slices of venison atop a pool of pureed parsnip. 
There are still a few rough edges to work out, but Jason is a talented young chef and will make things work. After saying goodbye to the Four Seasons the next morning, we made our way to our new home for the next three nights, a roomy suite(with hot tub on the balcony and fully-equipped kitchen) at the Sundial Boutique Hotel, very central to all the action in the Village. 
More from there later…
