Where do I begin? We've been 3 times so far and each time we leave wanting more. Most recently it was simply to have a couple drinks and enjoy the ambiance. Luckily we sat right in front of the bar tenders and were entertained during our stay.
http://www.aydenkitchenandbar.com/
Rating: 1-Poor 5-Great
Atmosphere...................5
Music.............................5
Food..............................5
Service...........................5
Menu selection...............5
Wine selection................5
Price..............................5*
*Price based on quality of food
The first time we enjoyed this restaurant we chose the sausage platter as a starter. Fantastic. And I love that they serve so many things simply on a cutting board. 3 types of sausage each with a little garnish or sauce. The simplicity of this makes it so delicious.
The second time I opted for the shrimp. I adore shrimp, so I'm easily satisfied. But again, the batter, the spicy aioli...it's fantastic. My partner had the scallops, and they too hit the nail on the head. Expertly seasoned and cooked perfectly.
Our mains the first time were the pork loin for me and steak for my partner. We're always hesitant to order steak in a restaurant as he cooks it so well at home. But he was not disappointed. Hard to be disappointed with ribeye. My pork was so tender and juicy and the cheese grits underneath were an excellent accompaniment.
Our second time I had the simple burger. And Oh. My. God. I think I enjoyed the bun the most. Clearly housemade with a buttery top. And the fries. My my the fries. I've never had fries that good before. This could be dangerous considering my office is only a block away. My partner selected the pasta special of the evening, and I can't recall exactly what was in it, but it was good. And service. They are attentive without being annoying, and know how to serve. I like this.
We've only had dessert once, you don't need anything sweet after your main, it's that good. I believe we had the chocolate cake, and it was delicious.
Our most recent visit was just for drinks, and we may have ordered the shrimp with aioli again. :-) The bar tenders are awesome. Not in a showy way, but just entertaining while they mix interesting drinks. My new favourite is a raspberry, gin, egg white thing. I can't recall the name, but it's fun, girly and delicious.
Overall this place gets a 5.
I can't wait to go back!
Sunday, April 6, 2014
the Hollows - Saskatoon
Heard great things about this place. I think most notably is the fact that the decor hasn't much changed since it was a Chinese restaurant. The exterior still has the old signage, including "Chop Suey, Steak etc" listed on the facade. And the "Golden Dragon" sign hanging above the door. The interior retained the Chinese lanterns and I believe some of the old chairs and booths. It's eclectic.
http://thehollows.ca/
Rating: 1-Poor 5-Great
Atmosphere...................4
Music.............................n/a
Food..............................4
Service...........................2.5
Menu selection.............3
Wine selection...............3
Price...............................3.5*
*Price based on quality of food
We arrived on time for our reservation, but I'm not sure they had it, or the server just couldn't read. She seemed a bit...ditzy for the most part. We sat in the Lantern Room. It was neat.
The menu is small, but I understand the chef likes to use local fair, which in March in Saskatchewan, doesn't equal a lot. The wine list is decent, you'll find something. And the mixed drinks seem pretty standard. The server brought the wrong wine for my dining partner (see above), but once we had it straightened out, both were equally good.
We started off with a simple appetizer of poutine and a hempseed sourdough served with honey butter. The latter was delicious. I'm not much of a poutine girl, so the poutine was, well poutine.
For our main I chose a tomato and feta papperdelle, which was tasty, but nothing exciting. I could easily recreate this at home - which I will. My partner chose a trout on risotto. It was very good with a nice crusted exterior. The risotto was quite runny, which is not my preference.
Finally for dessert we selected a lemon and lavender custard. This was fantastic. I believe my comment was "we should have ordered 6 of these for dinner" :-) Creamy and tart with a generous dollop of whipped cream on top. Very good.
It was a nice night out, and I think we'd return, but certainly not eager to get there. Just little things like leaving the menus on the table and forgetting to bring the bill, they don't sit well. But this isn't the restaurant's error, it's the server.
Overall I'd rate this place a 3.
http://thehollows.ca/
Rating: 1-Poor 5-Great
Atmosphere...................4
Music.............................n/a
Food..............................4
Service...........................2.5
Menu selection.............3
Wine selection...............3
Price...............................3.5*
*Price based on quality of food
We arrived on time for our reservation, but I'm not sure they had it, or the server just couldn't read. She seemed a bit...ditzy for the most part. We sat in the Lantern Room. It was neat.
The menu is small, but I understand the chef likes to use local fair, which in March in Saskatchewan, doesn't equal a lot. The wine list is decent, you'll find something. And the mixed drinks seem pretty standard. The server brought the wrong wine for my dining partner (see above), but once we had it straightened out, both were equally good.
We started off with a simple appetizer of poutine and a hempseed sourdough served with honey butter. The latter was delicious. I'm not much of a poutine girl, so the poutine was, well poutine.
For our main I chose a tomato and feta papperdelle, which was tasty, but nothing exciting. I could easily recreate this at home - which I will. My partner chose a trout on risotto. It was very good with a nice crusted exterior. The risotto was quite runny, which is not my preference.
Finally for dessert we selected a lemon and lavender custard. This was fantastic. I believe my comment was "we should have ordered 6 of these for dinner" :-) Creamy and tart with a generous dollop of whipped cream on top. Very good.
It was a nice night out, and I think we'd return, but certainly not eager to get there. Just little things like leaving the menus on the table and forgetting to bring the bill, they don't sit well. But this isn't the restaurant's error, it's the server.
Overall I'd rate this place a 3.
Sunday, January 13, 2013
The Ivy - Saskatoon
Stagette/Shower for a very good friend of mine. We had a reservation for 10 people at 6pm. Most of us arrived shortly before to a table set for 8. (??) About half an hour later the other 2 chairs showed up, after prompting them and having the other 2 people show up as well.
Rating: 1-Poor 5-Great
Atmosphere...................5
Music.............................n/a
Food................................3
Service...........................1
Menu selection.............3
Wine selection...............3
Price...............................1*
*Price based on quality of food
We ordered wine shortly after arriving, nothing special, and around 7 our order was taken. Not the speediest place, that's for sure.
I had the tenderloin, requested medium. Showed up well-done. I wasn't about to send it back given their inability to do much quick, so I ate it. The cut wasn't particularly good so on top of not cooking it properly, it was overpriced. My veggies and potatoes were tasty though.
One of the other guests ordered mussels as an appetizer, apparently they were good, but the bread served with it was moldy. Yes, moldy. Waiter returned quite a while after us noticing and promptly took the plate away. He did return with another plate, unfortunately it was about 45 minutes later. So we all sat and waited without being offered more drinks. She didn't even want another plate of mussels.
Our reservation was at 6, we left at 9:15. If you're in any sort of a rush at all, do not try this place. About 5 years ago it was no different. Only that time I wasn't able to eat as I did actually have to be somewhere and had to cancel my order. But it was my fault for not advising them I was in a rush. Yes, 1.5 hours was clearly not enough time to prepare a meal.
I wouldn't recommend this place. And about 3 other tables there were also complaining of the service and food. The kitchen appeared to be staffed by about 6, 15 year olds, and the wait staff appeared unorganized.
They gave us 25% off, thankfully. But we won't be back.
Rating: 1-Poor 5-Great
Atmosphere...................5
Music.............................n/a
Food................................3
Service...........................1
Menu selection.............3
Wine selection...............3
Price...............................1*
*Price based on quality of food
We ordered wine shortly after arriving, nothing special, and around 7 our order was taken. Not the speediest place, that's for sure.
I had the tenderloin, requested medium. Showed up well-done. I wasn't about to send it back given their inability to do much quick, so I ate it. The cut wasn't particularly good so on top of not cooking it properly, it was overpriced. My veggies and potatoes were tasty though.
One of the other guests ordered mussels as an appetizer, apparently they were good, but the bread served with it was moldy. Yes, moldy. Waiter returned quite a while after us noticing and promptly took the plate away. He did return with another plate, unfortunately it was about 45 minutes later. So we all sat and waited without being offered more drinks. She didn't even want another plate of mussels.
Our reservation was at 6, we left at 9:15. If you're in any sort of a rush at all, do not try this place. About 5 years ago it was no different. Only that time I wasn't able to eat as I did actually have to be somewhere and had to cancel my order. But it was my fault for not advising them I was in a rush. Yes, 1.5 hours was clearly not enough time to prepare a meal.
I wouldn't recommend this place. And about 3 other tables there were also complaining of the service and food. The kitchen appeared to be staffed by about 6, 15 year olds, and the wait staff appeared unorganized.
They gave us 25% off, thankfully. But we won't be back.
Monday, July 25, 2011
Pizzeria Gusto - July 2011
mmm mmm mmmmmmmmmm! That's really all I need to say here.
It was date night, a rarity these days being a parent of a toddler and all... no definite plans, just a babysitter and hunger pangs in our bellies. We stopped by PG to see what the wait was. They could seat us at the bar for drinks and/or appetizers while awaiting a table. So glad we did that. Right in front of the wood burning oven, we got to watch them prepare the pizzas, not to mention chat with the chef!
Rating: 1-Poor 5-Great
Atmosphere...................5
Music..............................5
Food................................5
Service...........................5
Menu selection.............5
Wine selection...............5
Price...............................5*
*Price based on quality of food
We chose a 2007 Chianti, turns out the other chef (sous chef??) his brother was the owner of the vinyard where this wine is from. It was delicious. We also selected the calamari with lemon and bread crumbs for an appi. Delicious and light. Just what you want in an appetizer. Our servers (we actually had two since we switched tables prior to our entrees) were not only friendly but could easily offer options and personal favourites, plus each knew how to serve, which is a must, in my personal opinion.
The menu is primarily pizza, but you can also order pasta or other entrees. We chose pizza. I had the Nina morra (likely spelling this incorrectly) basically it has no tomato sauce, but caramelized onions, spicy italian sausage and cheese. mmm. My husband ordered the 887, tomato sauce, roasted peppers, salami, cacciatore, salami calabrese and two kinds of mozzarella. He also requested their own blend of chilis be cooked into the sauce - delicious! Oh, and just because we needed a little more food, we had some flat bread with oil and pecorino cheese as well.
So good.
And the service? impeccable. Topping up wine glasses, asking how everything was - without being annoying, and clearing plates on schedule.
You could hear music, but it wasn't too loud, just enough to make that lull in conversation not feel like a lull in coversation.
Atmosphere was casual and bistro like, but cozy enough for the intimate date night as well. It's just a perfect blend of everything to be honest.
After eating about half the pizza, we needed, okay "I" needed ,something sweet. It actually happened as I returned from the facilities that I saw a lovely hunk of choclate on another table and realized I was missing out. So we ordered the almond flour chocolate cake with fresh whipped cream. again, mmmm!
We will be back, no question about it. I think my previous review was very similar to this one. Try it, you won't be disappointed!
Overall rating.....5!
www.pizzeriagusto.com
It was date night, a rarity these days being a parent of a toddler and all... no definite plans, just a babysitter and hunger pangs in our bellies. We stopped by PG to see what the wait was. They could seat us at the bar for drinks and/or appetizers while awaiting a table. So glad we did that. Right in front of the wood burning oven, we got to watch them prepare the pizzas, not to mention chat with the chef!
Rating: 1-Poor 5-Great
Atmosphere...................5
Music..............................5
Food................................5
Service...........................5
Menu selection.............5
Wine selection...............5
Price...............................5*
*Price based on quality of food
We chose a 2007 Chianti, turns out the other chef (sous chef??) his brother was the owner of the vinyard where this wine is from. It was delicious. We also selected the calamari with lemon and bread crumbs for an appi. Delicious and light. Just what you want in an appetizer. Our servers (we actually had two since we switched tables prior to our entrees) were not only friendly but could easily offer options and personal favourites, plus each knew how to serve, which is a must, in my personal opinion.
The menu is primarily pizza, but you can also order pasta or other entrees. We chose pizza. I had the Nina morra (likely spelling this incorrectly) basically it has no tomato sauce, but caramelized onions, spicy italian sausage and cheese. mmm. My husband ordered the 887, tomato sauce, roasted peppers, salami, cacciatore, salami calabrese and two kinds of mozzarella. He also requested their own blend of chilis be cooked into the sauce - delicious! Oh, and just because we needed a little more food, we had some flat bread with oil and pecorino cheese as well.
So good.
And the service? impeccable. Topping up wine glasses, asking how everything was - without being annoying, and clearing plates on schedule.
You could hear music, but it wasn't too loud, just enough to make that lull in conversation not feel like a lull in coversation.
Atmosphere was casual and bistro like, but cozy enough for the intimate date night as well. It's just a perfect blend of everything to be honest.
After eating about half the pizza, we needed, okay "I" needed ,something sweet. It actually happened as I returned from the facilities that I saw a lovely hunk of choclate on another table and realized I was missing out. So we ordered the almond flour chocolate cake with fresh whipped cream. again, mmmm!
We will be back, no question about it. I think my previous review was very similar to this one. Try it, you won't be disappointed!
Overall rating.....5!
www.pizzeriagusto.com
Smoke's Poutinerie - July 2011
Smoke's Poutinerie, our choice for the lunch time jaunt and even better, free entertainment in Old Market Square thanks to the Fringe! We were excited, this little spot was well hyped and really it's poutine with extra fixings, how could you not like it?
Well, these are my thoughts.
Rating - 1 Poor - 5 Great
Atmosphere.................3
Music............................n/a
Food..............................1.5
Service..........................3
Menu Selection............5 (see note)
Wine Selection.............n/a
Price..............................2
*Price based on quality of food
note: it's french fries and gravy with extra toppings. Considering what it is the menu is extensive and salivating worthy.
We arrived while there was still a small lineup, maybe 6 people in front. Most people line up, order, and leave to eat their fries as there are only a few small tables inside. The place is clean and fun. You're not going to enjoy frou frou a la carte while sipping French champagne, but you also won't run screaming. It's a good spot for what it is. Anyhow, we perused the large menu, I opted for one including sweet onions, sausage, bacon and of course cheese and gravy. I can't recall the exact name. Decent price, poutine and drink was undre $10. My friend opted for a traditional poutine. As we were leaving the line up was out the door. Likely a 20+ minute wait. Wow, this must be good.
We chose a bench, got comfy and dug in. Meh. I'm glad I grabbed salt. The toppings were good. The fries were good. The gravy? not so much. a) it wasn't overly hot, my cheese hardly melted, and b) it was flavourless. Like watered down packet gravy. And come on here, gravy is the essence of poutine, if you don't have good gravy, you might as well sell fish n chips.
Really, that's all I can say. Oh, I guess I can comment that they sell Pic-a-pop...oh the fond memories!
I'd rate this at a 2.9 overall. Their menu helps to bring it up. Unlikely I'll be back.
Well, these are my thoughts.
Rating - 1 Poor - 5 Great
Atmosphere.................3
Music............................n/a
Food..............................1.5
Service..........................3
Menu Selection............5 (see note)
Wine Selection.............n/a
Price..............................2
*Price based on quality of food
note: it's french fries and gravy with extra toppings. Considering what it is the menu is extensive and salivating worthy.
We arrived while there was still a small lineup, maybe 6 people in front. Most people line up, order, and leave to eat their fries as there are only a few small tables inside. The place is clean and fun. You're not going to enjoy frou frou a la carte while sipping French champagne, but you also won't run screaming. It's a good spot for what it is. Anyhow, we perused the large menu, I opted for one including sweet onions, sausage, bacon and of course cheese and gravy. I can't recall the exact name. Decent price, poutine and drink was undre $10. My friend opted for a traditional poutine. As we were leaving the line up was out the door. Likely a 20+ minute wait. Wow, this must be good.
We chose a bench, got comfy and dug in. Meh. I'm glad I grabbed salt. The toppings were good. The fries were good. The gravy? not so much. a) it wasn't overly hot, my cheese hardly melted, and b) it was flavourless. Like watered down packet gravy. And come on here, gravy is the essence of poutine, if you don't have good gravy, you might as well sell fish n chips.
Really, that's all I can say. Oh, I guess I can comment that they sell Pic-a-pop...oh the fond memories!
I'd rate this at a 2.9 overall. Their menu helps to bring it up. Unlikely I'll be back.
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Tomato Pie Company - Feb 2011
Apprently it's been over 2 years since I've eaten out...and blogged about it. Our recent girls night started with Bingo at a local Legion, and wow, do not think you can just pop in and play a few games. No no. You must be prepared to stay until around 10:30. And they take things V.E.R.Y. seriously. (one girl had a dedicated dabber bag) We were given evil eyes, stern instruction and "if you don't want to stay until the end, you shouldn't plan to come to bingo". Yikes. So being the good people we are, we paid for the books, tucked our heads down, played a few games and then snuck out during the smoke break - also known as intermission. Fairly certain we're blacklisted and won't be playing there again.
Anyhow, after our escape from Legion #252 we decided to head to Tomato Pie Company. They were featuring Ciao Winnipeg's Dine About menu ($35, 3 course set menu, looked delicious), as none of us were overly hungry we chose the regular menu which is good, lots of options.
Rating - 1 Poor - 5 Great
Atmosphere.............4
Music......................N/A
Food........................3.5
Service....................2.5
Menu Selection......4.5
Wine Selection........5
Price........................3.5
*Price based on quality of food
Myself and another gal chose pizza, I had the Fungi (mushrooms) and she had the taco pizza. Both were good, the crust is very thin, almost cracker like. I found it better the next day when it was softer. Okay flavour, we all needed to add a touch of salt unforunately. The taco pizza came almost like a calzone, interesting presentation.
The other ladies opted for gnocchi and a penne. Both good, I would definitely try the gnocchi should I return.
For dessert, the sundae was chosen. Very cute presentation. Ice cream with chocolate chip cookies in an old teacup. Very nice. I would have hoped for more than typical store bought cookies, but nonetheless, ice cream is always good.
I like the atmosphere, mismatched tables and chairs, piano in the corner. Very casual and homey.
Unfortunately our service wasn't really there. I'm hoping it was just a long day or we were the "chosen" table for errors. He was very nice and apologetic, just forgetful and delayed in taking orders and such. I wouldn't not return based on this.
Overall I'd rate Tomato Pie Company at a 3.75. I'll likely return, but I don't think I'll be rushing to make reservations.
Anyhow, after our escape from Legion #252 we decided to head to Tomato Pie Company. They were featuring Ciao Winnipeg's Dine About menu ($35, 3 course set menu, looked delicious), as none of us were overly hungry we chose the regular menu which is good, lots of options.
Rating - 1 Poor - 5 Great
Atmosphere.............4
Music......................N/A
Food........................3.5
Service....................2.5
Menu Selection......4.5
Wine Selection........5
Price........................3.5
*Price based on quality of food
Myself and another gal chose pizza, I had the Fungi (mushrooms) and she had the taco pizza. Both were good, the crust is very thin, almost cracker like. I found it better the next day when it was softer. Okay flavour, we all needed to add a touch of salt unforunately. The taco pizza came almost like a calzone, interesting presentation.
The other ladies opted for gnocchi and a penne. Both good, I would definitely try the gnocchi should I return.
For dessert, the sundae was chosen. Very cute presentation. Ice cream with chocolate chip cookies in an old teacup. Very nice. I would have hoped for more than typical store bought cookies, but nonetheless, ice cream is always good.
I like the atmosphere, mismatched tables and chairs, piano in the corner. Very casual and homey.
Unfortunately our service wasn't really there. I'm hoping it was just a long day or we were the "chosen" table for errors. He was very nice and apologetic, just forgetful and delayed in taking orders and such. I wouldn't not return based on this.
Overall I'd rate Tomato Pie Company at a 3.75. I'll likely return, but I don't think I'll be rushing to make reservations.
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Mise - New Year's Eve 2008
Our New Year's Eve choice this year was Mise, which recently moved to Corydon not far from our house - partially chosen in the event we had to take transit again due to weather. Thankfully this wasn't a concern this year!
Rating: 1 Poor - 5 Great
Atmosphere................4
Music .........................n/a (not included in the overall rating)
Food............................5
Service........................5
Menu Selection..........5
Wine Selection ..........4
Price............................5*
*price is based on quality of food
We were promptly seated for our reservation at 8:30, greeted by our server and offered drinks. A virgin caesar for myself and a bottle of wine for my partner. (as suggested by our server for cost savings, we could take the leftover wine home - never done this before) Shortly there after our meal orders were taken. I chose the Roasted Chicken Flat Bread with Basil Pesto, Bocconcini, Sundried Tomatoes for a starter, and since my dining partner chose the Chef's special he would receive Chicken corn chowder and Duck confit.
We were also treated to a cashew curry chicken amuse bouche, which was delicious! My flat bread was very tasty with so many individual flavours fused together to make a very interesting taste. The corn chowder soup was hearty and delicious, and the duck was, well, duck (not a fan).
Our main courses were Bison BBQ Ribs for me, and lobster with Steak for my partner. I was shocked the lobster wasn't served with butter (isn't that the only reason people order seafood??) but with one small taste, you realise that butter is definately not needed. So tender, succulent and full of flavour! My ribs were spicy and tender and practically fell off the bone and melted in my mouth.
A pear salad was served with the chef special after the steak & lobster, was light and plenty with a complimentary vinaigrette.
Our dessert was a trio of capuccino ice cream, lemon mousse and franjelico creme brulee. All delicious and just enough to keep you wanting more!
Our overall experience was a pleasant one. Our server was attentive, friendly, knowledgable and dressed nicely. My only complaint, though I don't want to call it a complaint, is the attire of the other servers. They appeared somewhat unkempt. Though I'm sure it was only myself who would pinpoint this.
My overall rating is a 4.5. I will be recommending this restaurant and will be returning...even if just for the dessert!
www.miserestaurant.com
(oh, and bathrooms were clean and lovely!)
Rating: 1 Poor - 5 Great
Atmosphere................4
Music .........................n/a (not included in the overall rating)
Food............................5
Service........................5
Menu Selection..........5
Wine Selection ..........4
Price............................5*
*price is based on quality of food
We were promptly seated for our reservation at 8:30, greeted by our server and offered drinks. A virgin caesar for myself and a bottle of wine for my partner. (as suggested by our server for cost savings, we could take the leftover wine home - never done this before) Shortly there after our meal orders were taken. I chose the Roasted Chicken Flat Bread with Basil Pesto, Bocconcini, Sundried Tomatoes for a starter, and since my dining partner chose the Chef's special he would receive Chicken corn chowder and Duck confit.
We were also treated to a cashew curry chicken amuse bouche, which was delicious! My flat bread was very tasty with so many individual flavours fused together to make a very interesting taste. The corn chowder soup was hearty and delicious, and the duck was, well, duck (not a fan).
Our main courses were Bison BBQ Ribs for me, and lobster with Steak for my partner. I was shocked the lobster wasn't served with butter (isn't that the only reason people order seafood??) but with one small taste, you realise that butter is definately not needed. So tender, succulent and full of flavour! My ribs were spicy and tender and practically fell off the bone and melted in my mouth.
A pear salad was served with the chef special after the steak & lobster, was light and plenty with a complimentary vinaigrette.
Our dessert was a trio of capuccino ice cream, lemon mousse and franjelico creme brulee. All delicious and just enough to keep you wanting more!
Our overall experience was a pleasant one. Our server was attentive, friendly, knowledgable and dressed nicely. My only complaint, though I don't want to call it a complaint, is the attire of the other servers. They appeared somewhat unkempt. Though I'm sure it was only myself who would pinpoint this.
My overall rating is a 4.5. I will be recommending this restaurant and will be returning...even if just for the dessert!
www.miserestaurant.com
(oh, and bathrooms were clean and lovely!)
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