For an anniversary celebration we chose Restaurant Dubrovnik in downtown Winnipeg. Its a well known establishment that has won several awards and has top notch service. The restaurant is in an old mansion along the Assiniboine River and you quickly feel as though you are elite.
http://www.restaurantdubrovnik.com/home.html
Rating: 1 Poor - 5 Great
Atmosphere................5
Music .........................3 (couldn't really hear it, might have added a bit more)
Food............................4
Service........................5
Menu Selection..........4.5
Wine Selection ..........5
Price............................4.75*
*price is based on quality of food
Reservations were recommended and ours was set for 7:30, we were slightly late, but not a problem. We were greeted by the maitre d', dressed in a tux, and seated at a cosy table for two by the window.
An amuse bouche was given to us just before ordering. Delicious! Some sort of prime rib, I think (missed the explanation). Our view of the wine list confirmed they were rather over-priced. We usually look for Wolf Blass Yellow label as a factor. ($17 in the store, usually $30-35 in a restaurant) They were asking $49. Rather inflated. We chose a really nice Beaujolais.
For our first course, I selected the shrimp stuffed calamari with garlic, lemongrass, ginger and sherry glaze. Oh my god. So delicious. And lots of it. Very Asian inspired taste!
My husband chose the lobster bisque, which was a cappucino sort with vanilla froth. Very tasty also. The vanilla muted the lobster flavour - but in a good way. We were very eager for our next course considering our savoury first course.
Of course I went with the chicken. Chicken Supreme stuffed with dried Cranberry, Chive and Duck Confit Mousse served with vegetables - just blanched and a potato that was sliced yet molded together. The chicken was good. Nothing over the top exciting, but good.
My husband chose the New York Steak with Shiraz Reduction and Horse Radish Emulsion, served with the veggies and potato. He also agreed it was good, but nothing he's never had before.
Not to say we were disappointed, but the lead up to our main course hinted at something more.
You can not beat the service here. Males in tuxedos offering prompt and efficient service. We did not have to touch our wine bottle - something we enjoy. The silverware is real silver and is not the cheap run of the mill sort that some restaurants try to pawn off. I really appreciate good silverware and have commented to restaurants when their choice is poor. Sort of like dressing yourself up and putting a jean jacket over top. Just doesn't "fit" right.
The atmosphere is very elegant. Lots of woods and antiques. Very clean. I could faintly hear music, and think if it was slightly louder it would make for a more intimate experience.
Since we were celebrating our 2 years of wedded bliss! we decided dessert was a must. I have to say I was a little disappointed with dessert. The selection is quite large, cheesecakes, pies, creme caramel, meringue etc. We chose the chocolate torte. The filling was tasty, but the cake part was quite dry and mealy. I think it sat for a little longer than it should. Not sure I'd order dessert again if we were to return. I always think of dessert as a nice ending to a fab meal. But when the dessert is mediocre... Sort of rounds out the meal in an unflattering way.
Overall, we'd return for a special occasion. I wouldn't say this is "the best" restaurant in Winnipeg for the food, but the service would be hard to surpass, not to mention the elegance of the place.
My overall rating is a 4.25. It's different than others. Somewhere you dress up and want to feel special for an evening. The food is tasty, the wine is expensive, but you leave not regretting you came.
