Vancouver restaurant sheds steak and frites for more culinary freedom

You may recognize the name Handson from the former steak and frites restaurant located on the corner of Denman and Haro. Unsurprisingly, the restaurant quickly became known for the popular steak and fried potato dish from its name, drawing many — including celebrity guests like Hudson Yang — to visit. But walking past now, you’ll notice in big, bold, red font a new name on the window: On The Other Hand by Handson.

Intrigued? So were we. Which is why we decided to pop in for a visit.

The space is still operated by the same team behind the original concept, which includes chefs Kyle Lee (formerly CinCin, Elisa, and Bao Bei Chinese Brasserie) and Cassidy Nguyen, alongside Wine Director Sean Nelson, but the trio said that they opted to remove the “steak and frites” from the name for this second chapter because they felt it was hindering them creatively.

“We wanted to show guests in Vancouver that we could do more than just a steak, because having a steak and frites in the name limits what we can put around the table,” Lee explained over the phone following our visit. 

So, On The Other Hand By Handson was born, intended to be a more refined concept that Lee told us was missing from the neighbourhood. Don’t think of this as a new restaurant, but instead the second chapter in what the team hopes will be a longer, ever-evolving story.

Inside, the space hasn’t changed dramatically since its previous iteration, with some updated paint and decor throughout. The room features plenty of dark tones and was moodily lit to create this tucked-away atmosphere that felt like we were dining at a true hole-in-the-wall destination.

The restaurant also has this maximalist aesthetic to it: pickled veggies lined the wall, bottles of alcohol were left on display, and the dishware felt curated but eclectic (including little paper crane utensil holders). There’s no hiding for the team here, with the whole kitchen very much on display.

We were seated at the bar with a view into the small and mighty kitchen, and quickly got the rundown from Lee.

This is one of those restaurants where it’s best to sit back and let the team take control of your dining experience. Or, in By Handson’s case, for the team to tell you the story they want to tell.

Upon sitting, we were quickly presented with Olives coated in fire-charred tallow alongside a Seasonal Farm Salad and House Pickles (which were pickled beets served with chips during our visit) and one of the many cocktails that Nguyen is proud to call their own.

Nguyen explained that the cocktails are designed from a chef’s perspective rather than a bartender’s, with the aim of capturing a specific moment with each drink.

The theme of By Handson’s current cocktail program is called Her Side and is centred around a love story told from the woman’s perspective. You’ll understand what they mean by cocktails from a chef’s perspective when you see the elaborate and delightful accompaniments to each drink.

I Knew It Was Over was one of the highlights among the first round, a concoction featuring gin, strawberry, orange blossom, cream, rose, and lemon that visually resembled cotton candy in a liquid form that was light and fruity. The other drink, the I Saw Him First, was stronger and warmer, featuring tallow-washed whiskey, raisin, warm spices, and gin served with a side of honeycomb.

“I want guests to set themselves in one specific moment, and my best way of putting together a greater menu is always to put everything in one story, and this time I decided to put all the cocktails into one love story through one girl’s side perspective,” explained Nguyen. “Every cocktail is a different time during her love journey.”

Each cocktail is also paired with a snack that Nguyen said is meant to match the feeling and energy of the chapter that drink represents.

On the topic of snacks, following the first round of cocktails, we were presented with some more small bites from the menu.

Highlights included Shrimp Tartare piled high on a piece of croissant pudding, alongside bites of luxurious and rich uni with house-made garum — a special snack not listed on the menu that Lee had prepared the day of our visit. Both were topped with an arrangement of edible flowers, and the uni with gold leaf, adding to the elevated feeling of our dining experience. The same maximaist approach to the decor was very evident in the presentation of these and the following dishes.

A dish where you could see Lee’s work shine was the Sunchoke Agnolotti served with maesaengi (a delicate, dark green seaweed from South Korea’s southern coast), fumet, and pollock floss presented on a small plate shaped like an eye.

“[The] dish itself was inspired by my childhood memories of seeing my dad eat this bizarre dish with rice, dried anchovies, and gochujang. Then, when I tasted this caramelized sunchoke, it just hit me that this was going to go so well with the seafood,” explained Lee. “All the flavour profile was coming from the dish that my dad made when I was a kid as his hangover dish, and it carries that nostalgic memory.”

Something that became evident during our visit is that By Handson doesn’t limit itself to just one cuisine. Lee and Nguyen draw on inspiration from their lives and lived experiences to create an ever-changing menu inspired by seasonal ingredients from local farms whenever possible.

Subsequent dishes included Mussels served with potato pureé and roasted pepper under a blanket of leek, and Rossdown Farm Chicken presented on a bed of nettle mousse and a lemon garlic vinaigrette, in addition to one of the most visually stunning courses of the night: the Wild Lingcod. 

Lee explained that both the lingcod and the chicken were inspired by his experiences cooking in Spain and New York, the latter of which, he said, uses a style of brining he learned during his time at a Korean restaurant that he incorporated to suit a more refined French cuisine.

This was around the time we were presented with our second wave of cocktails, both just as stunning as the ones that came before. As coffee lovers, the We Shouldn’t Have Stayed was our favourite of the night, consisting of cold brew coffee, rose, date, and caramel. Plus, any cocktail served with a side garnish of ice cream is great in our books.

Speaking of ice cream, dessert is a must-order when visiting By Handson. Specifically, the Everything Caramel. This dessert truly consists of all sorts of caramel, right down to a miso caramel ice cream. From the description, you would think that this would be simply too much caramel, but, while sweet, the dessert was very well balanced both taste-wise and texturally, with crispy wafers paired with creamy ice cream. This dish also truly reflects the mission that the team has set for themselves, to highlight how versatile singular ingredients can be.

“It’s unexpected for [guests] to have caramel in many different ways… and when you eat it together, it’s not that sweet. I want to make people experience something unexpected when [they have] our desserts,” said Nguyen

There’s no chasing trends or trying to fit in a box when it comes to By Handson. It’s just a team cooking whatever delicious food they want, inspired by local ingredients. That’s to say, go in with an open mind and an empty stomach, because Lee and Nguyen will definitely serve you something you’ll be thinking about for days to come.

But perhaps the best way to describe By Handson is through a recent post on the restaurant’s Instagram.

“So what is By Handson? Honestly, it’s just us.”

On The Other Hand By Handson is currently open Wednesday to Sunday, starting at 5 p.m.

On The Other Hand By Handson

Address: 847 Denman St., Vancouver

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