Winnipeg Restaurants Reviews by Ray Yuen

Ye's Buffet

2015-03-31T20:55:00.001-05:00

Ye’s Buffet

616 St James St

204-896-6666

http://yes-restaurants.com//winnipeg/about_us.php

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Yes-Buffet/377689999048730

I don’t like buffets, and that puts it mildly. At worst, I hate buffets—and I have two main reasons why:

1. They promote gluttony.

2. The food often sucks.

People want to get their money’s worth so they stuff their faces until they’re ready to blow. Sadly, I’m one of them. When it’s there, I can’t resist eating until I can eat no more (then sometimes, I still eat more). When you’re on your third plate, you can’t enjoy your food anymore, certainly not in the same way as your first bite, when you savour and taste every morsel. In fact, people tend to eat faster at buffets so that they beat the signals from the stomach to the brain to stop eating! It’s like racing to beat the train to the track. Yes, that’s me too.

If you go to a little local restaurant where the chef cooks on site, the chef ensures that every plate comes out sculpted and manicured. If you go to a place where people gorge out of a trough, the cooks throw it in as quickly as people snort it out—that’s if you’re lucky and you’re at a busy buffet. If you’re not lucky, the food sits under heating lamps or on chaffing dishes for hours, sometimes days. You end up with desiccated slabs that make you think you’re gnawing on dog rawhides.

Ye’s Buffet has one thing going for it—the food doesn’t suck, which then promotes gluttony all the more. Sure, there are hits and misses but some of the hits are bulls’ eyes hits. Ye’s specialises in Asian, which for them means heavy doses of Japanese, Thai and Chinese. I’ve been here before so I’m quite aware of what’s good and what’s not already. Frankly, it’s not hard to tell. The Chinese fried fish patties and the sweet & sour fried pork look absolutely dry to the bone—I can safely pass those. The fried rice has absolutely no colour and, unsurprisingly, no flavour. The same goes for the chow mein and the udon. The Chinese bun (dumpling) has a nice chicken stuffing but the dough is a sticky wad that guarantees to gum up your valuable stomach space. The Thai mushroom chicken is all mushroom and meatless, but the sauce tastes rich, which cuddles the mushrooms well. The potato pancake (much like a latke) tastes bland-bland-bland, so stay away from that.

That’s all the bad I have to say. Considering they offer about a hundred items in the buffet, that’s very good.

Now, I invite you along my journey of gluttony and let you judge for yourself how many years I will lose off my life thanks to another episode of unabashed gorging. Here’s what my first trip yielded:

From the assortment, the egg roll tastes a bit chewy, which means that it’s been out of the fryer for too long. The stuffing has crispy and tasty vegetables, which almost makes up for the wrapper. The potsticker’s dough is too tough but the meat stuffing tastes soft and deep. The fried noodles that you see come from the Thai side, which tastes a lot more flavourful than its Chinese cousin. All of the Thai curry dishes tastes perfectly acceptable; there’s nothing spectacular about them but they’re still done well. The sesame chicken has a bit too much breading but if you like sweet & sour, this will make you happy. The teriyaki chicken and the teriyaki beef both taste acceptable, although the teriyaki flavour is a bit weak. The lemongrass chicken has fabulous seasoning and is one of the best dishes here—a definite must-try. Sadly, all the meat dishes taste cold today. Our last visit found all of the meat hot and fresh out of the wok; this leads me to think that today’s entry came from the refrigerator, left over from last night. It doesn’t always pay to come early to beat the crowd. Finally, the last item on this dish is a slurry of pollock, fried with cheese. This is an odd combination but it works fabulously.

Now I’m ready for round two:

In case there’s any doubt, I love sushi—and if you’re going to offer me all-you-can-eat raw fish, I’m in deep. Starting with the white meat nigiri, the fish has a very subtle taste. There’s no placard and I have a hard time figuring out what it is—red snapper is my best guess. The salmon is sliced quite thin but there’s still enough to get the taste. The meat tastes buttery, soft and melt-in-your-mouth, exactly as raw salmon should taste. The big maki is a Spicy Dragon Roll, housing tempura shrimp, avoado and crab meat. This too tastes delicious. They don’t offer it today but at times, Ye’s also offers a similar roll with salmon, which tastes even better. Once in a while, you’ll find the same roll topped with a slice of salmon, taking the roll to a new level yet. The salmon rolls with avocado and/or cucumber taste nicely put together but the tempura in the tempura rolls are a bit chewy. Finally, there’s a deep fried roll and I would stay away from that one—the frying process strips the roll of all its flavours. It doesn’t’ matter any more what’s in the core.

Round three:

I’m done with all the other stuff and concentrating on the raw fish now. I added another Chinese bun because they came out fresh; that was a mistake. I should stick to the fish.

Round four:

This time, I enter the buffet line at the wrong time and follow a person who has the same tastes as me. He strip-mines all of the trays of the raw fish and leaves a token couple of pieces so as to not look too greedy. As you can see, I take the rest. To Ye’s credit, all the trays are replenished in no time. The pollock rolls with cucumber taste all right. I don’t like it when restaurants pass pollock off as crab but by itself, I like it (throw a strip on salmon on top and I’ve got a huge grin). Since I have room on my plate to spare, I add a piece of tempura. The yam tastes well done and not overcooked; the tempura batter could be a bit crispier but light enough that it doesn’t dominate.

Final round:

No fooling around now. I’m at the end of my journey and I want nothing but my favs. As you can see in the photo, there’s quite a bit of rice to accompany the salmon in their nigiri. Obviously, this is no mistake; they want you to fill up on rice rather than fish. Fortunately (and you didn’t hear it from me), Ye’s doesn’t punish you for scraping the rice off your fish. I left a bit of rice on each piece because I want something to soak up a few drops of soy. Many all-you-can-eat sushi houses charge you for unfinished food. In these places, I’ve seen people go to extremes such us sticking uneaten in purses, pockets and down their pants; I’m glad Ye’s lets you eat as you like.

Three pounds and 10 000 calories later, I can prove beyond a doubt that gluttony exists, but that’s no surprise. The surprise is that I can find high quality, delicious food at Ye’s Buffet, even when it comes to raw fish. I know a lot of people don’t like (or are afraid to eat) raw fish but the sheer size of their smorg means that there’s something for everyone.

***½ /5

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Pastrami & Things

2015-03-09T20:01:00.000-05:00

Pastrami & Things

400 Tache Ave

204-233-3354

http://www.pastramiandthings.com/

I’m at the age now where I spend more time at hospitals because my parents’ generation is in its golden years. As much as possible, I try to stay out of the hospital cafeterias since most of the foods need more help than the patients they’re supposed to feed. Granted, there are times where you don’t want to get out of your slippers but if you’re willing or able to take a short hike, there’s often a gem nearby serving healthy food.

Pastrami & Things sits across the street from St Boniface Hospital on Tache Avenue. Many hole-in-the-wall dives have small storefronts and sometimes they’re hard to find; you’ll definitely have a hard time spotting this site as there’s nary a sign that faces the street. As soon as you enter the mini-mall, you can’t miss it but be sure you have the address down before coming.

If I come to a place called Pastrami & Things, the title compels me to try its namesake. They offer a number of bread options but they pretty much force you to have your pastrami on rye. The sandwich starts with a quarter pound of meat, augmented by your choice of sauces and vegetables. Even though the sandwich is thick and heavy, it leaves me wanting for more. I just cannot get enough of this delicious behemoth. The tuna salad isn’t quite as thick as its meat cousin but it also leaves me wondering if I should order a second.

Coming off the deli board, you can also order a chicken filet sandwich, featuring a monstrous slice of breaded chicken breast. This moist and delicious option is a far cry from the fast food, desiccated slop. Whereas the other sandwiches wondering if I should cross the threshold from very full to groaning glutton but the chicken filet sandwich finished me off—just one is enough.

Oddly, they close at 4 pm, which means if you want dinner, you better come early. They also don’t pre-make a ton so if they’re out , you’re out of luck as well. As well, seating is very limited so I suggest coming in early or you’re having takeout.

****½ /5

Moxie's

2015-03-09T19:47:00.001-05:00

Moxie’s Grill / Bar

Five Locations across Winnipeg

www.moxies.ca/menu/

Moxie’s runs on the same formula as Earl’s and Joey’s. They all have dark, modern dining rooms, up-tempo lounge music, pretty servers in sexy outfits, and generally good food. Because of the winning formula, they’re always busy so be prepared for lengthy waits if you go during prime hours. The lounge provides a comfortable alternative. However, for some inexplicable reason, the tables are bolted to the floor so if you want to move them to accommodate a larger party, you’re out of luck.

Starting with the appetisers, the Sushi Cone has barely any semblance to sushi at all. The menu purports to the cone having nori, although I see no seaweed at all. I hoped that the cone would use nori as a wrapper but it looks like plain rice paper. The tempura prawn has a light coating of batter but it bears no resemblance to a Japanese shrimp tempura. That’s not to say that the cone’s not good—it’s delicious, but it just has nothing to do with sushi. The prawn comes perfectly cooked, lightly friend until just done and crispy. The big chunk of avocado goes great with it, and the ponzu dip messily adds some seasoning. I would like to see bean sprouts instead of pea shoots, which have little texture and even less taste.

The Beef Vindaloo leaves a bit to be desired. All of Earl’s, Joey’s and Moxie’s make good Vindaloo but none of them make a great vindaloo and they just don’t stand up to vindaloo from an Indian restaurant. The same goes for the special Thai chicken soup. There are some good sized chunks of chicken here, and the coconut-curry broth tastes Thai, but it lacks heart and soul. The ethnic foods taste perfectly fine—you might even call it excellent if you haven’t tasted the real thing. That’s exactly the formula that this class of chain follows; they count on their clientele not knowing any better. If you look at the menu, you see an iota from

India

, items from

Italy

, a touch of Thai, a Japanese gesture and a mix of Mexican—this is the true definition of “jack of all trades but master at none.”

Whenever I come to places like Moxie’s, I always stick with the plain and simple, They don’t scrimp on ingredients and you usually get good food when the recipe’s not too complicated. The chicken tenders come with competently made home-cut fries and massive pieces of chicken. They fry the batter well, just golden, and deliciously crispy. The breast meat is just cooked on one side (remaining juicy) but the thinner side tastes a bit dry. The honey dill dip tastes a bit bland so I’d go with the buffalo instead.

The Montreal Smoked Meat Sandwich stands four-inches high, loaded with delicious Montreal meat. I would like to see a bit more Dijon and the bread has just a bit too much butter but otherwise, this sandwich tastes every bit as good as what the best delis offer.

I can see how the non-adventurous can spend their entire lives eating in these modern chains. The massive advertising brings you through the door. The transnational profile keeps them comfortable and familiar. There’s enough good food to keep you coming back and if you don’t try anything else, you could be content forever.

Go try something local! But if you don’t, Moxie’s will deliver a perfectly acceptable meal.

*** /5

Magic Sushi 2

2015-02-25T20:28:00.002-06:00

Magic Sushi 2

562 Keenleyside St

204-415-7922

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Magic-Sushi-2/113603302054440

For years, I drove by Magic Sushi 2 and had no clue what the restaurant’s name was. Their “all you can eat” sign dominates the frontage where I thought All You Can Eat was actually the name.

I used to be leery about all you can eat sushi houses since they usually come with tons of rice and very little fish. I found some genuinely good all you can eat places down Pembina so I have renewed confidence to enter Magic.

The outside of the building looks a bit dumpy but I find out that’s the nice part; the inside looks like an absolute dump. I love eating burgers or fish & chips at holes-in-the-wall but sushi is supposed to be a delicate and elegant food; there’s nothing delicate or elegant about Magic. I should get over it since I’m here for the food and good food makes up for ambiance.

Too bad the food here sucks.

My fears materialise as the servings come to the table. I own a Japanese yanagiba knife and I love using the single-bevel razor edge to cut see-through slices of vegetables; unfortunately, they use theirs to carve see-through slices of fish. Look closely at the salmon and you can see the rice behind the flesh.

As I just said, sushi is supposed to be elegant; this teal blue plate looks plain cheap (the chip doesn’t help). This isn’t attractive nor appetising. I never thought I’d miss the simple but pretty garnishes; I even miss the tawdry plastic leaves. This presentation looks worse than what Mel would serve out of his diner.

You can imagine what the food tastes like—it’s rice of course. There’s so little fish in any of the rolls that the only taste I get is rice; I can’t even taste the normally pungent nori. I delicately pull the pieces of fish out of the roll to sample them but alas, there isn’t enough to get a good sense. The chopped scallop pellets are the size of boogers and for all I know, they could taste like boogers since there’s so little to sample and discern.

Aside from the rice, the only thing that I can really taste is the sweetish sauce that’s squirted on all the rolls. Being a sweet sauce, it goes well with items like eel, Japanese mushrooms, crab or shrimp. It certainly doesn’t go with spicy salmon or spicy tuna, yet they indiscriminately sprayed it all over everything.

Granted, $12.95 is a great price for all you can eat but gees, the food has to taste at least somewhere acceptable. The sushi is an absolute write-off but at least the tempura has some redeeming qualities. The batter tastes a tad chewy, which means that they’ve been out of the hot oil for a bit too long. By contrast, the shrimps came out at just the right time. The meat tastes moist and juicy, and they accompany (that same) sweet sauce nicely. For $5.95, this is a pretty good bargain.

Especially in this age when Japanese restaurants sprout like shiitake mushrooms, there’s no reason to settle for substandard sushi; Magic Sushi 2’s maki sits two levels below substandard. My phobia about all you can eat sushi has been robustly restored and I’m back to the adage of “you get what you pay for.”

** /5

Cornerstone Bar & Restaurant

2015-02-21T08:21:00.001-06:00

The Cornerstone Bar & Restaurant

93 Osborne St

204-505-7772

eat@thecornerstonewpg.ca

http://www.thecornerstonewpg.ca/

Papa George’s was an Osborne Village icon that finally shut its doors for good this year, and I’m glad. George’s service sat on the spectrum somewhere between bad and horrendous. I couldn’t even tell you about the food because the last time I visited, I waited for no less than 40 minutes with no server approaching—no food, no drinks, no nothing. We eventually left.

Turn the page and the Cornerstone Bar & Restaurant has taken Papa’s place. The location’s a lot brighter and cheerier, with unobstructed windows offering diners a direct view to some of Winnipeg’s most interesting characters outside. Not only has the appearance changed; the service has improved immensely as the array of staff flit hurriedly from table to table to kitchen.

With a great view of the kitchen, every dish that passes by our table leaves me rubbernecking. My meal starts with the Cioppino, or fish stew. My first mussel disappoints me as it tastes dry and overcooked. A well-made mussel looks very plump and tastes juicy—an overcooked mussel looks sere and shrunken. Fortunately, only two of the ~10 mussels saw too much heat; the remainder tastes delicious.

Often, when a dish comes with fresh mussels and clams, the mussels will be overcooked, as the clams normally take more time to cook. Not so here—the clams tastes perfectly made, to go with the majority of the mussels. Similarly, the shrimps also taste juicy and moist—and I’m thankful that they removed the tail for you. I know that shrimps traditionally come with tails on—but why? I much prefer poking my shrimp with a fork, over dirtying my hands to pick up the tail.

My cioppino only came with one scallop, and I would like to have seen more of the delicious molluscs. There isn’t a lot of salmon meat either, but there’s enough to give the broth a rich, full-bodied seafood essence. The crab claw on top of the mound makes a lovely topper—alas, it’s a tad overdone as well but I’ll take it nevertheless.

You get fresh and crispy toast on the side. It’s difficult not to indulge as it tastes great on its own, but as a sopper for remaining broth, it sponges everything nicely.

The Chickpea Soup is supposed to come with guacamole and crispy quinoa but there isn’t a lot. The soup has enough substance to be a good base but it needs a bit more to make it exciting. The depth of some more guac and the crunch of more quinoa would elevate this starter greatly.

The simple Pickerel main comes lightly seasoned, which is great since it lets the delicate flavours of the fish shine through. The velvety couscous also tastes very subtle, making a nice complement to the fish. I would like to see a few more mushrooms, as well as something else in the couscous to act as a contrast to the texture—perhaps something lightly fried and crispy.

The menu offers a number of interesting and unique sandwiches but if you want something more plain, you must try the Cornerstone Burger. The plump and delicious patty comes beautifully seared on the outside and wonderfully moist on the inside. Tons of onions contribute to making this simple but excellent burger a winner—I love the addition of lightly fried onions to give a bit of crunch to every bite.

The Steak Frites comes with wonderful rustic fries, expertly fried to be firm and not at all greasy. They’re perfect for soaking up the beef juice left by the steak. The steak comes exactly grilled as ordered and tastes wonderful.

Cornerstone is not a dark, quiet, romantic retreat. True to its Osborne nature, the restless and nomadic customers keep the dining room loud and lively music pumps the action. This is not the place to go for a restorative, vegetative respite, but it is a great place to go for an exciting meal to start the evening.

**** /5

NO LONGER IN BUSINESS - Chez Sofie - sur le pont

2015-01-25T08:04:00.000-06:00

NO LONGER IN BUSINESS

Chez Sofie

50 boulevard Provencher

204-942-4142

http://www.chezsophie.ca/

Three things associate with Winnipeg: arctic winters, mosquitoes, and complainers. When you put a restaurant on a bridge, you enable two of the qualities: complaints about walking and complaints about the cold while walking. In response, I’ve always told people that you often have to park farther away at some of the more popular restaurants. How far away do you park to walk to the patio on the Forks? Where can you find parking along Corydon on a weekend? Where do you park to get into St. Vital in November or December? None of that matters but when you put a restaurant in the middle of a bridge, people feel lost without an umbilical to their cars.

Today I eat my words as a torrential downfall punished us as we started to embark onto the Esplanade Riel. Karma has a funny way of punishing the champions sometimes—although I wished for a drop-off zone today, I maintain that a short walk over a beautiful bridge should not dissuade you from going to Chez Sofie.

I’ve been through much of Europe and most of France. Among the beautiful things, great drinks and wonderful foods that stuck in my mind, one thorn remains: the slow and lackadaisical service. I wonder if Sofie tries to emulate that ambiance since nary a server approaches our table, a full half hour after we sat down! Imagine sitting there for 30 minutes and no one comes to offer you a drink! I’m used to that in Francebut Canada?! Granted, the table comes with a full bottle of water but a glass of wine always eases the distress when you drip from head to toe. To their credit, two members of our party were (very) late but that’s no excuse to ignore those who are present.

Things pick up after a server finally arrives. Dinner starts with sour bread. The fluffy center coupled beautifully with the crispy crust. This is a wonderful bread; the only thing that could have made it better is if it came out when it was still oven-warm.

The mains come with soup and salad; that already sounds like a lot of food but the appetiser special sounds too good to resist. I’m glad I didn’t resist as the plump and juicy frogs’ legs eagerly jump from plate to mouth. Lightly fried and breaded, there’s just enough heat to ensure that they come cooked and moist. The legs ran through a bit too much salt, otherwise, they’re as good as it gets. The legs look like they caused a bit of a ruckus on the plate though, as the accompanying vegetables look like they’ve been kicked around for a while.

The presentation could use a bit of attention. For those unaware: frog does not taste like chicken—they taste like frog. If you must compare, they’re gamier than chicken, have a bit of a wild taste, and a hint of the sea.

The basic house salad comes with fresh, crisp vegetables and dressing in a cute dispenser on the side. The sweetish dressing tastes light and tangy, making for a nice summer intro. This tantaliser is especially nice if you intend to have something heavier for a main.

The Steak in Peppercorn Sauce comes smothered in a light, tasty sauce, although there’s no pepper taste to it at all, and a curious lack of peppercorns. Sofie grills the meat nicely, complete with a seared exterior and inside done to your desire. Although they use New York AA, this steak tastes surprisingly tough. By no means does it chew like leather but it definitely doesn’t have the tenderness you expect out of a strip loin steak. The accompanying hand-cut fries come grease-free and taste al dente! This is a perfect way to fry potatoes where they are barely cooked and you get a hint of a crunch in the texture.

The red wine sauce covers the Bœuf Bourguignon. The beef cubes taste nicely stewed and tender. The sauce has the winey edge but needs more depth. The menu boasts carrots and onions but I see neither vegetables. It definitely needs more of the mirepoix to give body and depth to this sauce. The scalloped potatoes taste competent and well-cooked. There’s a lot of it, enough where I couldn’t finish—although if the sauce had more depth, I might have used it as a conduit to soak up the rest of it.

Chez Sofie has lived on the bridge for a while now but they still need to file away some rough edges; however, they have a lot of good qualities here and I hope they can thrive here. Winnipeg deserves a great restaurant on its iconic landmark and Sofie has the unique opportunity to be both a local favourite and a must-see for travellers.

***¼ /5

China City Restaurant

2015-01-25T07:30:00.000-06:00

China City Restaurant & Lounge

1811 Portage Ave

204-415-1103

http://chinacitywinnipeg.com/

Winnipeg has no shortage of Chinese restaurants in St. James, or anywhere else in the city for that matter. What St. James desperately needs is a dim sum palace and I am ecstatic to see the flip side of the menu feature most of the dim sum favourites. As a note for China City, you need to adjust the tint of your print settings; there is an excess of green ink and trust me when I tell you that most people don’t want to eat moss coloured shrimp!

I hate to say it but the shrimp dumplings might as well be green. China City makes the dumpling well and cooks it properly (not overcooked) but unfortunately, the shrimps are old and thus, they taste very fishy. Chinese cooking uses a lot of shrimp; there’s no reason for shrimps to sit around in the fridge and get old.

By contrast, the deluxe pork dumplings, made with a combination of pork and shrimps, taste much fresher. This dumpling doesn’t have a lot of flavour but you shouldn’t find any trouble with it. I much prefer the regular pork dumplings (no shrimp), which taste moist and rich. Pork dumplings often come loaded with pork fat. Although it doesn’t treat your heart very nicely, pork fat tastes wonderful, keeps the dish juicy, and adds an attractive sheen to the presentation. The dumplings here aren’t overloaded with fat so you end up with a nice tasting morsel without hardening your arteries.

Okay, who am I trying to kid? No one comes to dim sum looking for a healthy retreat. While a lot of Chinese food augments your health, dim sum—literally translated as “a touch of the heart” may as well be renamed “grasping your heart and squeezing!” The Chinese pierogis, with their thick and spongy dough, soak up a ton of grease. The stuffing consists of ground beef in gravy and it tastes great combined with the deep-fried dough. Yup, Chinese pierogis are not much more than chilli wrapped in dough and deep fried.

A healthier alternative, the spring rolls come stuffed with shredded vegetables, rather than meat. China City fries the spring rolls perfectly, which means the wrapper snaps crisply and grease-free, and the vegetables maintain their crunch. This is a superior dish.

Also well made, the steamed barbecue pork buns have well-seasoned and moist pork as a stuffing. The dough tastes sweet, light and fluffy. I would like to see a bit more meat and sauce, and a bit less dough, but I’m a meat and vegetables type of person. Starch fans will love these buns.

The pan fried pork dumpling is essentially another version of a Chinese pierogis (probably a closer relative to the European pierogis than its deep fried cousin). The all-pork stuffing has delicious seasonings and the crunchy pan-fried wrapper acts as a wonderfully contrasting element.

The steamed shark fin dumpling has an equally satisfying crunch, but its crunch is attributed to the freshness of the vegetables, blended with pork and shrimps. Don’t worry, there’s no shark fin in the shark fin dumpling. Like most Chinese restaurants, China City’s complete menu houses over a hundred selections but shark fin is not among any of them. If dim sum is not your thing, and you can’t find anything you like within the 135+ menu items, China City offers a small buffet from 11:30 am to 2:30 pm.

The China City dining experience includes prompt and friendly service (which is a rarity among Chinese restaurants). The atmosphere looks slightly rustic yet somewhat elegant, which is in contrast to the common Chinese dining rooms, complete with cheesy decorations and garbage bag tablecloths.

The food here isn’t perfect, but they do a lot of things right. I’m glad to be able to find dim sum in the western end of the city and I hope that China City does well and stays around a long time.

*** /5

Winnipeg Mardi Gras 2015 - FEB 13 & 14 ONLY!

2015-01-21T21:13:00.000-06:00

Winnipeg Mardi Gras

http://winnipegmardigras.com/index.php

FRIDAY AND SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 13 & 14 ONLY!

Winnipeg Convention Centre

I’ve always maintained that you cannot find genuine Cajun/Creole north of the Mason-Dixon Line (unless you make it yourself). To a large extent, that’s still true. When the Convention Centre announced a Mardi Gras celebration a decade ago, I was skeptical. In fact, I was so skeptical, I didn’t bother attending. I imagined this as simply a re-imagination of the Grapes Cajun event where they dish out the same food, add some Tabasco sauce and call it Louisianan.

For years, the Mardi Gras food didn’t taste like authentic Cajun/Creole, but it tasted good. This year, it tastes better than good—it tastes fantastic. Aside from eating just the food, I’m going to eat some of my words too—there are some dishes here that taste like authentic food from New Orleans. Before we get into the “must-try,” let’s start with the “gonna pass.”

Deep Fried Pickle Spears

For starters, the deep fried pickles are not exactly Cajun/Creole, but they’re American south. This is one dish that I never fully understood. I know the Americans love to batter and fry everything, but there are some things that simply don’t work; these don’t work for me.

The batter and the intense acidity of the pickle simply don’t mix. When you bite into the pickle, the batter separates and because the pickle has been sliced, the skin falls off the flesh. You end up with batter pieces, stringy pickle skin and mushy pickle innards (yes, it’s as elegant as it sounds). With so much great food around, I suggest you skip this starter and move on.

Peel and Eat Shrimp / Freshly Shucked Oysters

There isn’t much to say about this simple yet delicious appetiser. The cold shrimps are plump but a little overdone. If you’re a shrimp purist, this will suit you just fine, but for the rest of us, it definitely needs the cocktail sauce to add some tangy zip. I don’t want you to get the wrong impression—they’re not bad. They far out-taste the pre-packaged shrimp rings, but they’re just not special.

I’m a bigger fan of oysters than shrimps and these don’t disappoint. These oysters are a nice change from the usual malpeques that you find in Winnipeg; I don’t know the species as the oyster monger could only tell me that they’re from PEI. The oysters have a strong taste of the ocean, complete with the saltiness of the seawater. Eating these sure reminds me of being in the French Quarter when you can’t walk a block without seeing oyster bars snapping everywhere.

BBQ Pulled Pork Po'boy

If you want a sandwich, “po’boy” in Louisiana-speak is another word for “sub” or “hero.” This year’s po’boy comes stuffed with pulled pork. The meat is slowed cooked to a velvety soft texture and spiked with an edgy barbecue sauce. The meat tastes good and flavourful but it’s not genuine, Deep South barbecued pulled pork. If you're not an adventurous diner, this sandwich will satisfy you just fine.

French Quarter Gumbo with a Cajun Crostini

Louisianans normally make Gumbo with oysters and crawfish, making it one of the most wildly delicious foods on the face of the earth. For people not into seafood (and I feel very sorry for you), they have a version called Gumbo Ya Ya, which substitutes the seafood with chicken and andouille (the Cajun sausage).

Last year’s gumbo ya ya was stripped down and a bit empty. They improved on it this year by adding great shredded meat to boost body and depth to the gumbo. They kept the powerful roux, which acts as the backbone to all gumbos. It’s still missing something but it’s getting very close to what you find in New Orleans.

Louisiana Style Shrimp with Pasta

Earlier, I told you that you can’t find real Cajun/Creole north of the Mason-Dixon Line. I’m not saying that’s bad—just not authentic. Whenever I hear someone say Cajun in the north, I expect this kind of dish. This pasta dish is a fundamental Italian staple, add some spicy sausage and cayenne pepper, and voila, you have Cajun.

No—you do not.

This is nothing more than a spicy Italian dish, but that doesn’t mean it’s bad. By no means, it’s delicious, but it’s just not Cajun or Creole. The rich rose sauce makes a great background to the mounds of shrimps, which are cooked perfectly. The pasta is a touch past al dente but still far from mushy. The dish comes garnished with a thin slice of lemon. In poor lighting, it looks more like sun-dried tomato than lemon—don’t make the same mistake as me and eat it.

Mardi Gras Chicken and Andouille Creole on New Orleans Black Eyed Pea Rice

Just like the previous meal, the Mardi Gras Chicken and Andouille Creole on New Orleans Black Eyed Pea Rice (despite how many Louisianaadjectives the name has), does not taste Creole. This creation tastes more Mexican than Louisianan but again, not authentic does not mean not good; this is another highly successful blend of ingredients. The sautéed chicken tastes wonderfully caramelised (although a tad salty); the sausage makes a great combination partner and the heavy garlic pulls this whole melange together. The blacked eyed pea rice tastes delicious on its own but it has enough power to act as a conduit to this flavourful and pungent sauce.

Bourbon Street Creole Style Jambalaya with Shrimp, Chorizo and Blackened Chicken

The jambalaya doesn’t taste quite like authentic Cajun but that doesn’t mean it’s not delicious—it tastes divine. It took a while to decipher what the odd taste in the sauce is but we finally discerned it to be lobster, which is used as the base. This fabulous addition gives strength, depth and power to the sauce and raises this dish to a new level. Like every other selection, this one comes loaded with shrimps. The seasoning is a little uneven on the shrimps as you occasionally eat a very salty shrimp followed by a bland shrimp. While you wade through your shrimps, don’t forget about the sausages; they have a bit of an odd flavour to them but they fit perfectly into the jambalaya. Curious though, that they chose the Chorizo sausage for the jambalaya, rather than the Cajun Andouille.

My dessert consisted of a couple of shots of Fireball Cinnamon Whisky. This mild spirit has enough sweetness to closeout a meal, and enough alcoholic punch to push you into the Mardi Gras celebration mood.

Other special beverages include the “Love Potion,” which tastes like a jacked-up champagne cocktail, or the “Oyster Shot,” which comes with a prized fresh oyster at the bottom of the drink. I can park down and drink these all night.

Festivities aside, the food line-up here guarantees that you walk away from the Winnipeg Mardi Gras with at least a hint of what Cajun/Creole food and life is all about. If you're very, very lucky, you might get accosted by a zombie (Friday night) while you wade your way through the voodoo-lined halls of Mardi Gras!

I have a few suggestions for next year’s event:

Bring back the crawfish. As Northerners, many people shy away from crawfishes, and especially the St. James alumni, who only know them as ugly mudbugs from Sturgeon Creek. Having tasted food from all over the world, I can attest that the crawfish continues to stand out as one of the most unique and best-tasting items out there.
Cut down on the portion sizes. Smaller prices and smaller portions means that people get a chance to try more dishes. If this is supposed to be a true New Orleans experience, give the people as much of a taste of New Orleans as possible.

Happy Mardi Gras and laissez les bon temps roulez!

Montana's BBQ & Bar

2015-01-21T20:41:00.000-06:00

Montana's BBQ & Bar
3 Locations across Winnipeg
http://www.montanas.ca/home.php

Montana's has always been a fun place to eat, and a good place to bring the kids. Each table sits covered with paper and crayons for your doodling pleasure. It always takes a while for the food to arrive so we often play hangperson on the table.

When the food finally arrives, it's sad to say that the highlight might have been the doodling. Specialising as a meat joint, I expect great things from the carnivorous options. The ribs taste tender as advertised but there isn't a lot of flavour to them. Montana's purports to smoke them for three hours but I barely get a hint of smoke and the hint that I get tastes more like liquid smoke than wood smoke. As a smoking professional, I would leave my ribs in the smoker for at least four hours, and up to six hours so Montana's three hours may sound impressive to the novice but it sounds inadequate to me.

The Honkin' Beef Rib is indeed honkin' in size but lacking in tenderness and flavour. Again, I can taste the searing flavour on the rib but there is a serious absence of smoke. In addition, the meat tastes liver-dry and hard to swallow. I love beef ribs but I can't finish this version.

Montana does a better job on the steaks, as they come cooked as ordered. The meat tastes moist and juicy, with nice grilling on the surface. The fried onions act as a nice accompaniment, as well as the beans and the coleslaw. The ordinary fries are adequate but skip the bland and flavourless gravy.

Although Montana is a meat joint, they serve other options as well. Called "meat of the sea," surprisingly the fish is the best catch of the day. The monstrous portions have nice, crispy battering and moist, rich meat. The batter is a bit greasy but not excessively so. The pre-fab tartar sauce doesn't add much but the fish tastes rich enough without it.

Montana's may be a fun place to watch the game with the guys, or a good place to bring the kids to draw on the tables, but if you want good, Deep South smoked foods, this isn't the place.

**1/2 /5

Aaltos Garden Cafe

2015-01-11T10:13:00.000-06:00

Aaltos GardenCafé

Canad Inns Destination Centre

Seven locations across Winnipeg

http://www.canadinns.com/eat/eat.php?entry_id=9252

The Canad Inns hotel chain has grown prolifically over the past few years in Winnipeg and it now has locations near most major destinations in the city. Inside the hotel, Canad Inns offers a number of eating choices, including the quick and easy Aaltos Garden Café buffet. For a reasonable price, Aaltos buffet features a monstrous selection of pretty much anything you want. I’m not a big fan of buffets—normally buffets equate with unrestrained gluttony. Especially here in Winnipeg, where people are known for their stinginess, people load their plates over and over again until their stomachs distend and they groan in grief.

If you want to save yourself a few calories (and your health), the salad bar teems with vegetables, and most of it comes fresh and crisp. You can choose from dozens of greens (or whatever colour of vegetable you want), and you can pair it with any of the usual dressings.

The main courses change and they often follow the occasions of the calendar. That philosophy’s great in some respects, but sometimes, it fails miserably, such as today. Here we are, less than a week after new year, and the main feature is turkey. That’s fine for me as we rarely have turkey over the holidays, but put up your hand if you’re up to your wattle in turkey.

Another reason I don’t like buffets is that the food basks under heat lamps, or roasts atop warming trays until someone whisks it away. If turnover is fast, you’re fine, but if it’s slow, your food could sit for hours and bake like the sands of the Sahara. Alas, the turkey here has been sunning for a while. I prefer dark meat over white, since it’s a lot fattier and not as susceptible to drying out. Because this meat has been sitting around for so long, it’s dried to elastic consistency with a hard crust on top (you know what I’m talking about). The gravy can’t do much to help it since it’s beyond desiccation, and you wouldn’t want to use too much of it anyway since there’s barely any flavour to it. I’m trying to cut down on the starches but that’s difficult when the herbed stuffing and the roasted potatoes taste better than anything else from the carving table. At least you don’t have to make an effort to save room for dessert.

Nothing much can go wrong with desserts at a buffet. Because of the high sugar content, it takes a long time for desserts to dry out and all of the options here look fresh and taste great. Of particular note, the cheesecakes taste firm but not dense. Both the guts and the toppings remain moist, and same goes for the crust, which sticks together nicely without going crumbly.

Most of the food on Aaltos trays taste good but they fail at the most important station, which are the main meats. I probably wouldn’t bring anyone here to show off great food but it is a fine place to stop for a quick bite to eat, especially if you avoid the carving table. There's a good reason why they call it a "garden cafe," stick to the garden part and leave the meats alone.

** /5

Browns Socialhouse

2014-12-27T08:31:00.003-06:00

Browns Socialhouse

207 – 1750 Plessis Rd

204-222-1600

http://brownsrestaurantgroup.com/brownssocialhouse/category/locations/manitoba/kildonan-winnipeg/

I’m not a big fan of transnational chains but you can’t always avoid them. We live in a society where most social outings and feasts occur at the familiar and the commercialised. Thankfully, not all chains restaurants operate the same way. There are some chains that serve plastic food and some that take great care in what they present—this is the journey through Browns’s menu.

Before I get into the food, I want to throw in the caveat that this is a “by invitation” event for food critics. Knowing that every dish will be scrutinised to detail and reported, I’m certain the staff put extra effort to ensure that our meals are perfect in every way. This is not one of my usual, anonymous samplings.

The chef and staff make great efforts to describe the restaurant’s raison d’etre and their philosophy to food. They explain that freshness is key to everything they make and they emphasise how much detail goes into each preparation. They warn that many of the dishes will taste citrusy or limey since they freshly squeeze all their juices.

The Dynamite Roll takes its origins from the sushi classic and adds some zesty edges. Starting with the lemongrass soy, you immediately taste some of the citrus. The sriracha mayo infuses a spicy sharpness that adds another dimension to this appetiser. The little extras take this Japanese classic and turn it into delicious Asian fusion. Despite the uniqueness of the sauces, the highlight of this dish comes from the perfectly fried and crispy shrimp base.

If you’re a seafood fan, you’re in luck as Browns offers a number of tasty options, including a Spiced Prawn Taco and a Lime Pepper Halibut Taco. Both the prawn and the halibut come perfectly cooked, moist, juicy and flavourful. Each comes topped with fresh pico de gallo and guac, featuring huge chunks of delicious avocado. The salsa has rich tomato flavour, reminiscent of fresh tomatoes coming straight out of your garden. The cilantro, lime and pickled onions add great body to the taco but I wish there was a bit more to augment the cabbage—I like the cabbage too but there’s a bit too much of it. Despite the great flavours of the vegetables and the fish, the strength of this dish comes with the actual taco shell. Made with half corn flour, Browns fries the shell crispy so you get the best of both worlds with the core of a soft-ish shell with the crunchiness of a hard shell.

The taco combo comes with Mexican rice, rich and deep tasting. The soft, velvety rice melts in your mouth while the beans retain an al dente bite . Together with the powerful salsa, the rice and taco combo makes an excellent Mexican entry to the menu.

Browns also serves up an Asian fusion rice, labelled the #28 Dragon Bowl. The rice tastes like a Thai rice, underpinned by coconut milk with hints of almonds. The well-prepared teriyaki chicken adds a Japanese infusion while the classic Chinese suey choy and bok choy round out the dish. Some shredded cabbage and crispy onions give texture to this creation and spicy yogurt adds a tangy exclamation point. I find the whole creation just a tad too salty but otherwise, this is a spectacular dish promoting great Asian components.

If you want something more traditionally pub-grub, Browns offers a generous selection of burgers including chicken burgers, veggie burgers, tuna or halibut burgers, and of course, the half-pound beef burger. The burgers come in a brioche bun, which looks massive. Browns Chef explains that they intentionally use brioche to look impressive and brawny enough to balance the thick, 8-ounce patty. However, come time to dine, the light bread shrinks down to nothing and doesn’t dominate your valuable stomach space.

This is brilliant.

The patty itself comes thick, just cooked and oozingly juicy, as well as seared to perfection. You know that good meats went into this burger as it tastes beefy—it tastes like biting into a steak. I’m happy to see real cheese; nothing ruins a burger as easily as processed plastic cheese. To cap it off, the vegetables look fresh and taste crisp.

The burgers come with HCDCfries. When I first heard the chef refer to them, I thought he said “AC/DC” fries. I couldn’t figure out if they’re electrified or if they come a la Angus Young. Anyway, HCDCrefers to “hand-cut, double cooked.” The hand-cutting ensures that they’re fresh, recently cut and not frozen. The doubled cooked refers to an initial blanching process, then fried to finish. This does two things: first, the blanching pre-cooks the fries so they no longer have to sit in water and get waterlogged. Secondly, precooking means that they need less time sitting in oil afterwards and come out less greasy. And I’m sold—these fries taste light, fluffy and well cooked, as well as golden and crunchy.

If you still have room, Oreo in a Jar is somewhat like an oreo cheesecake stuffed into a jar, and it tastes exactly like it sounds. The top and bottom have crusts made with shaved oreos and the filling consists of cream cheese, vanilla and butter. Even though the menu calls it “light,” it tastes every bit as decadent as it sounds.

If you’re looking for something a little lighter, the Housemade Key Lime Pie has a nice contrast of (very) tart and sweet, and yet rich. The oatmeal bottom adds a bit of crispiness and the topping comes sprinkled with crumbs.

To accompany your dining experience, Browns features three special cocktails. For starters, the Cucumber Martini uses muddled cucumber as a garnish but the essence has nice tartness from the lime juice and an earthiness from green tea. To go with your food, the powerful Caesar gets its body from the horseradish-infused clamato. Finally, the Bellini goes well with dessert, tasting sweet and peachy.

Browns built this restaurant to be a social meeting place. The chairs feel comfy and the décor looks warm and welcoming. There are plenty of TVs for the sports fans and the big bar in the middle of the dining room lends to socialising. I can see how people would want to come here after work for some relaxation but to me, the socialising takes a backseat to the food. Again, I want to re-emphasise that we were invited and treated very well—but it’s still plainly obvious that they put a lot of effort and care into their meals. The food tastes delicious and this is one of those chains that I’d be happy to visit over-and-over again.

****¼ /5

Perkins

2014-12-27T08:28:00.003-06:00

Perkins

7 Locations across Winnipeg

http://www.perkinsrestaurants.com/

I’m not a big fan of transnational chain restaurants but sometimes they’re unavoidable. For some reason, I can’t get the after-work crowd to go to a local sports bar, rather than a Smitty’s. Then there’s my parents’ generation which finds comfort in Salisbury House, which can do no wrong even if they serve up dog crap on a plate.

Don’t get me wrong—not all chains are bad. There are some that serve great food, but Perkins isn’t one of them.

Although the atmosphere feels cozy enough, the laminated menus immediately give me the icky feeling. The front cover features their current promotion, the Great SteakOut, highlighting the Steak & Mushroom Flip. The picture looks very enticing, loaded with big chunks of steak, fluffy eggs, encased with a crispy potato pancake and topped with a dollop of sour cream. Alas, the real thing looks nothing like the laminated image. I can count six chunks of beef, each severely overcooked, sere and desiccated. Despite the dish’s name, I find no more than two slices of mushrooms in the entire concoction. The eggs taste light and fluffy, so the dish isn’t a total write-off.

Another entry in their special array, the Steak & Crispy Potato Stack is hardly a stack. While the potato wedges come crispy as advertised, the nuggets of steak come from the same source as the other dish, cooked so dry that it’s falling apart. The addition of the sautéed onions and green peppers derives from the classic Philly cheese steak combination (minus the cheese). Although slightly greasy, the combination works. The side salad looks crisp and fresh; however, upon digging through the outer layer of vegetables, you find some lettuce ribs and some browning leaves. It’s a nice attempt to cover up the not-so-fresh.

From the main menu, the Fish & Chips comes with crispy, home-cut fries—skip the gravy unless cold and coagulated is your thing. In fact, you should just skip the entire meal unless you like overcooked fish that’s hard and solid. The pre-fab tartar sauce comes right from a Kraft jar, smooth and homogenised. Most mains come with a roll, which complements the meal quite well. The hardness and dryness of the bread matches the fish perfectly.

I can’t understand how these places stay in business. I know people come because of the name but why would you come back after you’ve tasted the food? It’s simply not good.

*¾ /5

Across the Board

2014-11-29T23:22:00.000-06:00

Across the Board Game Café

93 Albert St

204-691-3422

http://acrosstheboardcafe.com/

info@acrosstheboardcafe.com

Taking over for long-time occupant, The Fixx, Across the Board Game Café sits in the heart of Old Market Square. Whereas Fixx was a hub for bureaucratic power lunches, Board Café targets a laid back crowd, in for a healthy lunch, or ready to spend the day with some board games. For $5, you get access to their game library for the rest of your stay—and a considerable library it is. By my count, they have over 600 games at your disposal. Not to geekify myself too much, I spent some hours playing Dungeons & Dragons in my pre-university days. This would have been a fun place to spend time with a few glasses of wine and some all-day gaming. Sadly, I grew up and there’s very little time for games—but lots of time for food!

Board Café leans towards a healthier menu, heavier on the vegetables and legumes. The Greenhouse salad comes with mixed greens, wild greens and pickled beets, to give it a beautiful red colour. The light vinaigrette brings the dish to life and the pumpkin seeds add wonderful depth, texture and substance.

The Banh Mi sandwich also comes loaded with vegetables, although pulled pork centers this meal. As a professional, Deep Southbarbecuer, this is definitely not authentic, smoked pulled pork. It tastes moist and tender but lacks flavour and complexity—that’s where the vegetables take over. The layer of cucumber adds a tier of texture to the sandwich, while the vegetables augmented by cilantro add zest and freshness. The sriracha mayo gives moisture to the bun without injecting too much heat. The delicious baguette comes perfectly crispy on the outside and stretchy tender on the inside.

Board Café also offers a number of pizzas, made from thin crust that tastes perfectly crunchy to the bite. The New Delhicious substitutes tomato sauce with curry sauce and covers the pie with cilantro and shredded greens, rather than cheese. To me, the sauce and the cheese make the pizza; if you substitute those, you must make sure the stand-ins have lots of flavour. Unfortunately, the ingredients don’t carry enough flavour to make this pie. The curry sauce tastes a bit bland and the marinated chick peas need the sauce to support them. There aren’t enough banana peppers to add heat to the dish and the sour cream adds little to the package.

As a child, I was forced to eat cilantro as a vegetable, which gave me a bit of cilantro-phobia. When this pizza came to the table, I thought that it was a Chia Pet gone wild! The Astroturf-like surface, highlighted by cilantro, made me recoil in herb horror! Mercifully, cilantro did not make up all the greens. I tried very hard but I could not make out what the shredded greens were. That is a statement itself, since it tells you that the greens had little flavour. Some shredded basil, mint and/or fenugreek would go a long way to enhancing the flavour of this pie.

Across the Board Game Café is an odd mixture, blending two concept that I never considered compatible. I always thought of gamers as rotgut beer swillers, pizza pop noshers and Pringle chompers. By contrast, I expect healthy eaters to jog-away the calories or yoga-off the toxins—not sit around and play board games all day. Regardless, this is a nice fit for the area and I hope the healthy games setting stay for a long time.

***½ /5

Joey's Restaurants

2014-11-29T23:20:00.000-06:00

Joey's Restaurant
6 locations across Winnipeg
http://joeys.ca/ourmenu/dineinmenu.html

If you read my reviews at all, you know that I'm not a big fan of chains. There are some chains that carefully plate great food, but there are thousands of chains that employ starving university students in their kitchens, thawing food for a meal. I'm especially leery at seafood chains since seafood has such a small tolerance for error.

No mussels today, which is too bad. Mussels is one of the finickiest foods to make and even great restaurants don't always nail it; this is one of the best benchmarks for seafood preparation. No lobster bisque either, leaving me with Joey's Clam Chowder as an intro. This ultra-chunky soup tastes enormously hearty; unfortunately, most of the chunks come from the potatoes and there isn't a lot of clams around. The paucity of clams leaves the broth lacking flavour--this is a bland soup base.

If you want something with a little more zing, the Sushi Crunch looks intriguing. Rather than follow the traditional Japanese method of adding deep fried tempura bits to rolls to add crunch, Joey encases the entire roll in panko and deep fries the roll. The result leaves a lovely, crispy exterior, housing a moist and soft interior, first encapsulated by the rice, then the fish. This is a lovely creation.

Appetisers aside, Joey's bread and butter comes from their Fish & Chips dishes. The rustic fries look appetising but they taste little better than the packaged, frozen variety. The selection of fishes taste much better, although they're all a tad greasy and a bit overcooked. The fish and chips taste good, but they aren't great--and there isn't anything special about them.

As with most chains, there are some hits and some misses. The overall production is rather boring, and made competently, but not expertly.

** 1/2 /5

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Dim Sum Garden - Pembina Highway Location

2014-11-24T13:03:00.000-06:00

Dim Sum Garden

1 – 2677 Pembina Hwy

204-269-7799

North Pembina is now the new Chinatown and Dim Sum Garden was one of the first to set roots here. As with many Chinese restaurants, this one uses the obligatory garbage bag plastic for tablecloths. I guess I can understand why since it didn’t take very long for us to spill a cup of tea on the table. We asked a server for a cloth and she completely ignored us. We poked at her for her attention and she merely glared at us. We asked for a cloth to clean the table and again, she treated us like we were toadstools on a stump. We pointed at the spill; she looked, turned around and left—back to her usual activities.

The service here is atrocious.

Even during our numerous trips to the counter to get napkins for the spill, no other server offered to help clean the mess.

Onwards, after we ordered our food and the dishes started coming, a different server piled the plates haphazardly onto our table. Quickly, we ran out of room but the server continued to put plates down, including one that half hung off the side of the table. Perching precariously on the edge, this dish was destined for the floor, until I grabbed and saved it. The server never said a word as she looked at me move the dish.

I feel like we’re treated like animals here.

Service aside, the food tastes ok. The pork dumplings have great flavour and the spring rolls tastes deliciously stuffed with a nice combination of pork and vegetables. The beef balls, the rice noodles and the Chinese perogies tasted quite bland and needed some seasoning. The pan fried pork dumplings and the chive dumplings also tasted nice and the honey garlic chicken had great depth and texture.

In the end, it didn’t matter. The service was so abominable here, I could not enjoy the food. I can’t imagine coming back here and paying to be treated like crap.

The food itself would have merited three stars but as is…

* /5

Boston Pizza

2014-11-24T10:42:00.000-06:00

Boston Pizza

10 locations across Winnipeg

bostonpizza.com

Admittedly, I come to Boston more often than I like. This is quite possibly the most popular restaurant chain in the Winnipeg right now and there’s always an occasion where people want to meet at Boston. It’s also a safe place to take people who have no adventure for food—after all, how can you go wrong with pizza and pasta?

Safe is a perfect description for Boston’s food. There’s nothing adventurous here and everything tastes ok. The pizzas have an acceptable amount of goo on them (cheese and tomato sauce) to envelop the ingredients. The sauce tastes rather bland but with enough cheese, you can get away with it.

If you order a vegetable topping, plenty of it lies on the pie; they certainly don’t scrimp on the greens. It doesn’t look very fresh and comes a bit overdone, but not scorched. I would like to see more meat on the meat toppings but seeing as the beef and the Italian sausage both taste overly salty, perhaps you don’t want any more anyway.

As for the pasta, I’ve never experienced al dente noodles here—without exception, it’s been cooked to somewhere between limp and mush. Again, that’s safe. Most pasta aficionados will tell you to eat pasta with a bit of firmness, so that it still has enough life to cling to the sauce. People without culinary depth will want it mushy and have all the ingredients melt together.

For specialty items, the Smoky Mountain Spaghetti and Meatballs gives you a mountain of noodles with three monster balls. The spaghetti again is overdone, and so are the meatballs. Firm and dry, they crumble apart at the bite. There’s little flavour within them so you’ll need a lot of sauce to moisten and enhance them.

I often say that you cannot find genuine Cajun/Creole north of the Mason-Dixon line; that’s not always true but here in Boston, it definitely is. Nothing about the Jambalaya Fettuccini tastes remotely Cajun. They’re missing some of the key ingredients and they bypassed the essential cooking process. It’s not a bad dish, but it’s definitely not true Jambalaya. The shrimps taste reasonably well cooked but there’s a lot of grease to them. Add in the fatty sausage and this is definitely not an option for someone on a health-reserved diet.

I’m not a big fan of chain restaurants but there are some that create good-excellent food. This is not one of them. In fact, Boston Pizza is exactly the kind of place that pumps out McFood by the tons that keep the masses coming, but keeps the foodies away.

** /5

Nick's Inn

2014-11-15T09:36:00.001-06:00

Nick’s Inn

5400 Portage Ave

204-889-4548

Growing up in St James, you cannot miss the short drive to check out Nick’s Inn in Headingly for their burger and fries. As a teen who didn’t know much about what makes good food and why, Nick’s was always the place to go for a great burger. Now, so many years later, and as a food professional, how would Nick’s food stand?

The décor hasn’t changed much; the place still looks like a beat-up joint and the seats sit just a little lower since the padding is a more compact. You have the obligatory ripped vinyl but I think this is all part of the charm of going to a diner. The drywall in the washroom has been torn out, revealing the inner piping and workings—I smell some renovations in the air.

That’s not all I smell. If you put a blindfold on me, I would still know that I’m in a burger joint. There’s no mistaking the waft of fryer oil, mixed in with ground beef searing. This is a good thing.

The perfect patty comes nicely seared on the outside but slightly overcooked on the inside; there isn’t much juice left but it’s still tastes moderately moist. When you squeeze down into your burger, there should still be plenty of juices running out of the meat. There’s no juice here. There’s a ton of vegetable, perhaps a bit too much as it is difficult to stick the entire stack into your mouth. There’s a lot of mayo and it ends up on your hand because the Kaiser falls apart. The chilli tastes deep and rich, and there’s the perfect amount here—acting as an accent without dominating the taste of the burger. The processed cheese is a letdown. It costs so little to upgrade from processed plasticky cheese to real slices, but it upgrades the burger tremendously.

The narrow, home-cut fries have a little bit of grease but they still taste crispy. There’s just enough salt to give it good seasoning without going overboard. The side of coleslaw has no mayo and just enough vinegar to keep it moist. The vegetables taste fresh and crispy.

Our server offers prompt, friendly and genuine service throughout our experience. It’s been a long time since I’ve been here but now I remember why I used to come all the time. Nick’s offers great food at a reasonable price, among a friendly atmosphere. What more could you ask for?

If you come, beware that they take cash only. There’s an ATM in the entranceway if you need.

**** /5

Comodo Chinese Restaurant

2014-11-15T09:34:00.000-06:00

Comodo Chinese Restaurant

797 McLeod Ave

204-663-9333

Comodo means to play music at a relaxed pace; I don’t think that has anything to do with the restaurant business, unless this is one of those chichi places that features a string quartet playing Chopin comodo. Looking at the stark and dingy dining room, I don’t expect a quartet in tails to arrive any time soon.

Now I wonder if the restaurant refers to the large, poisonous lizard, the komodo dragon? Despite having the 130+ items on the menu, I don’t see komodo dragon anywhere. What I see is what you expect to see from almost every Chinese restaurant, ubiquitous to Winnipeg’s strip malls:

Staring with the appetisers, the spring rolls come crispy without a lot of grease. There’s plenty of vegetables in the stuffing, including the cloud ear fungus, which injects a nice crunch and zip of flavour. The spring rolls too have little grease with plenty of stuffing. The cabbage-dominated innards still have lots of crispy goodness.

Then it all goes downhill.

The vegetables in the Beef with Mixed Vegetables retains its crispness but has no flavour and tons of salt and/or MSG. There’s ample beef in here but the meat too needs more spicing up than a mere sodium explosion. I applaud the variety of vegetables, including broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, suey choy and bok choy—it’s nice to see an infusion of Chinese with Western ingredients.

You get a mountain of chicken balls to go with the sweet, florescent pink sauce. Some of the balls have a moderate-sized nugget of chicken, while others have a smidgen of meat, generously encased in a mass of fried dough. Giving credit where due, Comodo does an excellent job of frying, where the food comes out golden brown, without a hint of fat remaining.

The Beef Egg Foo Young is an absolute disaster. Good foo young features fluffy eggs, lightly beaten, incorporating lightly stir-fried ingredients. Vegetables should taste crispy and meats should taste juicy. Even if you order a meat foo young, you should get at least celery and onions. I don’t find any vegetables in here at all, and the tiny strips of beef hide like Waldo at a bazarre. The poor eggs have been beaten to death and the foo young looks more like General Custard. The eggs are so overcooked, it takes me three bites to determine that this actually is still egg. No lie, I looked on the menu again to verify what we ordered.

Under Szechwan, Kung Pao Chicken usually features stir-fried chicken with fried peanuts with a variety of vegetables. The dish normally has hot chillies, giving you a bit of a workout. There are no hot chillies here; instead, a sickly sweet, gooey sauce envelopes the breaded and deep fried chicken slivers. While there’s a generous sprinkling of peanuts, the vegetables are gone and the result ends up looking nothing like what you expect out of kung pao.

If you spend more than $34, you get your choice of chicken fried rice or three cans of soft drinks—take the soft drinks. Since every dish comes loaded with salt and MSG, you’ll feel the thirst very soon.

** /5

Fionn MacCool's

2014-11-01T10:18:00.002-05:00

Fionn MacCool’s

1582 Regent Avenue West

204-654-0008

http://www.primepubs.com/wp/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/winnipeg.fionnmaccools

Perhaps it’s the return of the Winnipeg Jets, perhaps it’s the opening of the Canadian Human Museum of Human Rights, perhaps it’s the expansion of the Convention Centre, perhaps it’s a combination of events but suddenly, multinational restaurant chains are exploding into every neighbourhood. While it’s great to have more representation and variety, unfortunately it takes away from those local restaurants that hang on by a tread. It seems that name and recognition trump heart and soul every time.

I don’t want to leave the wrong impression—not all chains are bad. Some have great food but some serve awful, awful slop and people continue to line up at the sties—but that’s another discussion. To continue this rant, follow: http://squidthecook.blogspot.ca/2013/01/commentary-local-vs-chain.html

Onto the business at hand, the Fisher’s Chowder comes with a cheese scone, which still hums with warmth from the oven. It’s quite solid though and judging by the size of the portions here, you might consider leaving the scone alone. The rich soup broth tastes wonderfully complex and the plentiful bits of celery add to the depth. There isn’t too much potato, which is often a trick restaurants use in gunking up their soups. I would like to see a bit more fish and I’m glad to see clams in the fisher’s chowder. There’s enough flavour in these clams to tell me that they’re not all from cans.

The mains are hit and miss. On the miss side, Ma’s Crispy Chicken surpassed crispy a long time ago—it spent enough time in oil to be dry and borderline leathery. The accompanying rainbow slaw in honey mustard seems to be missing honey and mustard. The vegetables taste fresh and crisp but it seems like there’s barely any dressing at all. The creamed corn tastes good but it’s an odd combination. The bowl of corn looks and tastes like it’s the result of immersing your corn into gravy. If you’re a corn purist, you’ll hate this, but if you like all of your foods oozing into each other on the plate, this tastes just fine.

The Fish & Chips come with the same rainbow slaw and thick-cut fries. These massive fry sticks hold lots of potato. If you like chewing on starch, these fries are for you—but if you prefer crunching fry sticks with lots of surface area, these definitely won’t impress you. The well-prepared cod retains its firmness within the crispy beer batter. I’m not sure what Dungloe Sauce is but it tastes suspiciously like tartar sauce, with lots of chunky pickles.

The huge and meaty Lamb Shank comes moist and delicious. Unfortunately, there isn’t a lot of sauce to go with it; I would love to have had some of the braising liquids for both the meat and the potatoes. By itself, the buttermilk mashed potato tastes rich and creamy but I love the sauce so much, I want to slather it over everything. There isn’t a whole lot of mashed potatoes but the mounds of grilled vegetables make up for it. I’m not normally a fan of zucchini but the grilled slices tastes wonderful.

If you have room for dessert, Fionn makes everything on site. The French Vanilla Ice Cream tastes rich and buttery on its own, but it tastes so much better when coupled with the crispy, Dark Chocolate Brownies.

MacCool just opened this week so I can forgive some of the opening day jitters. The servers are friendly, helpful and attentive, but there are stretches when they’re gone for a long time. As far as chains go, they could take some lessons from Earl’s but they’re heads and shoulders above Olive Garden.

*** /5 (extra half because of opening week)

Swiss Chalet

2014-11-01T10:17:00.002-05:00

Swiss Chalet Rotisserie & Grill

1663 Kenaston Blvd

R3P 2M4

1-866-439-0439

https://www.swisschalet.com/

There are chain restaurants, and there are CHAIN restaurants. Some chains hire an Executive onsite to somewhat customise their corporate menus, while some run everything from headquarters, wherever headquarters may be. Witness Swiss Chalet where the telephone number is toll-free, and the online ordering menu asks for your location among dozens of dots speckled on a continental map. For more on multinational chain restaurants, read my article at: http://squidthecook.blogspot.ca/2013/01/commentary-local-vs-chain.html

This location sits in the burgeoning Kenaston Common area among the micro-metropolis of restaurants, shops and mega-stores. Although the building is quite new, the style and décor derive from a bygone time, and not in a good, stylish or retro manner. The dining room just looks like it needs an update even though it’s new. The understaffed servers run frantically but they continue to do a satisfactory job (but the uniforms need to go).

As for the food, you find the usual diner-like fare, with some more upscale items. The Fish & Chips come with competent fries, not too greasy and not too soggy. There are a few burnt edges but nothing overwhelming. The side of slaw tastes all right, but plain and ordinary (like the kind you order out of your grocery store deli). The fish has a nice crispy batter that’s fried well. Unfortunately, the cod itself tastes fishy, telling me that it’s been sitting in the freezer a long, long time.

The strip loin steak comes as ordered, medium-rare in our case. It looks nicely done with charred grill marks on the outside and a beautiful pink hue on the inside. The searing tastes fine as well, but it seems like the griller forgot to season the meat. There’s no flavour at all to this steak. Adding some salt and pepper helped immensely but this should be grilling 101.

The Pesto Penne could also use some seasonings but the rich and garlicky pesto makes up for it (kind of). There are only two slices of mushrooms and I would have liked to see a lot more, if nothing else, for the texture. The texture needs quite a bit of help as the pasta is cooked well beyond al dente and approaching the point of mushy. By contrast, the rock solid sides of toast have the consistency and density of bagels.

The Chalet boasts about taking 50 years to master the art of hand-basting and slow-roasting their chickens in a rotisserie oven. Apparently they need another 50 years of learning since the chicken tastes has hard as the toast. The outside of the overcooked meat approaches plastic consistency, hard and peeling off the interior meat. The interior tastes so bone, dust dry that if feels like a vacuum hose has been sucking all the moisture out my mouth for the last 20 minutes.

To replenish your moisture, the scant beverage menu offers little more than the most basic beers and wines. I would like to drown away my memories of this meal but it’s better just to move on. Swiss Chalet may have had its day but its food, philosophy and ambiance is an echo of a time long gone.

*½ /5

Sura Korean / Japanese

2014-10-25T10:42:00.001-05:00

Sura Sushi

2795 Pembina Hwy

R3T 2H5

204-269-1077

877-815-3861

http://surasushiwinnipeg.com/

People call South Pembinaaround the University of Manitoba the new Chinatown but a better moniker would be New Asia. Yes, Chinese restaurants pop up like tulips in spring here but along side, you see numerous Japanese, Vietnamese, Indian and Korean eating spots.

I’m not sure what Sura’s full name is: their website lists them as “Sura Sushi” and the takeout menu says “Sura Korean/Japanese.” Regardless, Sura offers an ample selection from both countries. For $16.69, you can access all-you-can-eat from most of the menu and for $25.69, that includes all-you-can-eat nigiri and sashimi as well.

This is a lie.

I write down my order and immediately, the server returns my slip to tell me that I’m limited to 10 pieces max of any nigiri or sashimi. I know that sushi grade fish is expensive—if you’re not willing to offer a bottomless barrel, don’t state it. Let me know beforehand there’s a limit rather than falsely advertise that it’s all-you-can-eat.

Starting with the Korean side of the menu, the mains start with an intro of kimchi, sliced cucumbers and potatoes. The sweetish potatoes tastes soft with a spicy edge. The cucumbers too have a bit of a spicy side, complemented with garlic flavour. I’ve never gotten accustomed to kimchi. I can understand how some people would like the freshness—even though Sura’s tastes milder than most, it’s still too pungent for me.

The menu lists the Chicken Gangjeong as “deep fried chicken with teriyaki or spicy sauce.” Our server never offered the option of either teriyaki or spicy—it just came spicy. To chilli-heads like me, that’s fine but if you’re not accustomed to eating spicy, this packs a considerable punch. Aside from the spiciness, the dish can easily be renamed “sweet and sour chicken balls.” Although the nuggets aren’t perfectly round, the pieces of chicken come dipped in batter, deep fried, with a sweet, sour and spicy sauce.

The meal ends with cubes of lightly battered, deep-fried tofu. Immersed in a sweet sauce, this is a nice, light dessert to end the meal.

Move onto the Japanese side of the menu and things aren’t nearly as good. I often use the ubiquitous California roll as a benchmark to sushi. Great sushi houses use lump crab in their rolls—this rarely arises in Winnipeg. The Cal roll is adequate with canned or flaked crab. I think it’s a misrepresentation to use pollack as a substitute to crab. Sura takes it another step as the sliver of pollack has been shaved so thin that it’s little larger than a matchstick. The huge slices of cucumber dominate this roll, leaving it rather bland and flavourless. Similarly, the Rainbow roll (a Cal roll with sashimi on top) has the same paucity of fish. The expert carvers wield their sushi knives like samurai swords as the topping pieces of sashimi are sliced so thinly, I can see right through them.

Massive wads of rice dominate the other rolls. The tuna rolls have tiny morsels of tuna, wrapped by a thick layer of rice, much like bundling in a sleeping bag when camping in the dead of winter. The Volcano Roll, listed as the spiciest item on the menu, has barely an edge to it. With very little scallop, roe or vegetables, this essentially becomes a mountain of rice with mayo on top. Rolls with tempura bits also fail miserably. A light sprinkling of tempura adds a slight dimension of grease to enhance the meal (much like spreading butter on starch). In addition, the tempura provides a wonderful texture through it’s crunchy nature—but not if the tempura is old. Then it becomes a gooey, chewy, gum-like mess. That’s what you get here.

While my rolls came in a timely fashion, the remainder of my order makes no effort to come to my table. I guess it doesn’t bother me that the rolls come first. Normally, you want to eat your sashimi first, nigiri next, then your rolls, but I love sushi so much, I’ll eat it in any order. Not having anything in front of me however, gives me plenty of time to observe my environment.

The dining room definitely needs a bit of refreshing. Some of the ceiling tiles look like they’ve endured flooding and are in desperate need of changing. The benches look bright and fresh but they’re as lumpy as mattresses on a curb. If you want me to sit here for 50 minutes waiting for my food, I expect at least a cushy place to sit.

As a background, we have two servers in the restaurant, which sits about half-full. Both servers appear to be twenty-some in age. I guess I’m not their target favourite patron, being in my forties. Neither is the thirty-some fellow waiting at the counter for ten minutes to be seated. Nope, their favourite customers are the blonde and brunette 20-ish customers who just sat down at the other side of the dining room. Their orders are taken right away, and surprise, in two minutes, there’s food on their table. They return five times to replenish their all-you-can-eat, while nothing / no one has come to my table for over a half-hour. I thought it was curious that there’s a call button on the table—now I understand the necessity of it. The call button should say, “press for service if you’re not female and in your 20s.”

After the girl table leaves, miraculously, a server returns. He asks if I want another slip to order more food.

How about bringing me the food that I ordered previously?

He apologises profusely and returns to the kitchen. Two minutes later, my sashimi comes—amazing. The pieces of tuna taste fine, except that they’re warm, room temperature warm. Sashimi is supposed to taste fresh out of the fridge, cold and sharp. This tells me that my dish has been sitting on the counter for a while but no one bothered to pick it up since it isn’t destined to go to a blonde with long hair.

The salmon sashimi tastes ok, but not melt-in-your-mouth like great salmon does. The scallop sashimi rolls in the next disaster. Scallop sashimi is supposed to be a thick cut of a colossal scallop—what I have here is a mass of baby scallops, each about the diameter of a dime. To make matters worse, none of the pod feet were removed; this is the chewy tough piece on the side of the scallop that you don’t want to eat.

I’m having my doubts that this is sushi-grade scallops. They look suspiciously like the kind of scallops that you can find at any grocery store with a live seafood section. They taste flavourless and slimy—not at all like what scallop sashimi is supposed to taste like. I can choke this down with heaps of soy and wasabi, but like many of my other dishes, I had to ask for a wasabi refill. Thankfully, they have a “press for service if you’re not female and in your 20s” button.

If I stand outside and throw a rock, I can hit a better Japanese restaurant than this one. With all the choices around here, there’s absolutely no reason to return to Sura-whatever. I Sura never come back here again.

*½ /5

Sushi Ai

2014-10-18T03:36:00.002-05:00

Sushi Ai

4 – 680 St. Anne’s Rd

R2N 3M6

204-415-5445

Fax: 204-415-5415

Sushi houses spring like shiitakes on a stump in Winnipeg; they’re everywhere and there’s a new one every time you look. Some make good food, some make excellent food, and some barely get by. Because there are so many sushi houses, I have a couple of litmus tests that I apply, just as a benchmarker to begin.

First, are the owners/operators Japanese? I don’t want to stereotype too much but I often find the best sushi comes from Japanese chefs. While many sushi houses have Asian cooks, you’d be surprised how many are actually Chinese (Cantonese) in heritage. Speaking Cantonese, it’s easy for me to discern. The staff at Sushi Ai aren’t Cantonese; they’re Mandarin. I don’t speak Japanese, but I speak food—they don’t. I order the standard hokkigai, hotategai, unagi, maguro and sake and she doesn’t have a clue what I want. I have to reorder in English for her to get it.

My second litmus test uses the California roll as the benchmarker: a great Cal roll uses lump crab meat, and you won’t find that often in Winnipeg. Most Cals use canned crab, which gets a passing grade. The corner cutters use pollack and disguise it as crab, which is a travesty. Sushi Ai takes it to a lower level—they use so little pollack that I can’t taste it. I cannot tell if this is real crab or pollack because there isn’t enough to taste and the avocado dominates the palate. After I pluck out the piece of seafood, I’m not surprised to see that it indeed is a sliver of pollack.

Similarly, I have trouble making out the chopped scallop in the chopped scallop roll. I can taste the mayo, fish egg and the tempura bits but I cannot make out the scallop—and that’s the raison d’etre of the dish. The surf clam too has little flavour. I eat them side-by-side with the scallop roll and it takes a lot of effort to determine which is which. They both look similar and they both lack in taste. The slight bit of texture in the clam sets them apart, a tad.

By contrast, the spicy salmon hand roll explodes with flavour, but it’s one-dimensional. The fish eggs dominate the flavour, even overtaking the spicy sriracha. The seaweed has enough gusto to hold its own but the poor salmon is completely lost in the creation. Again, I want to taste salmon in my salmon hand roll.

It’s not all bad. The freshwater eel has a good taste. They don’t use a lot of the barbecue sauce, which easily overpowers the delicate nuances of the fish—that’s good. However, the portion of fish is tiny compared to the wad of rice sitting under the meat. I normally eat the nigiri as it is meant to be eaten, in one bite, but the massive clump of rice vis-à-vis fish is like having Godzilla sitting on one side of a teeter-totter with Bambi on the other. The same goes with the toro nigiri. I dig out the rice so that I get better exposure to the delicate fatty tuna. Great toro should melt in your mouth, literally falling apart as you pick it up with your chopsticks. This isn’t great toro, but it’s not bad. Toro tends to get very fishy, very quickly when it becomes older or stale—at least it’s very fresh here.

If you’re not into sushi, Ai has the usual alternatives. The Chicken Teriyaki comes with a good helping of diced chicken in a sweetish yet mild teriyaki sauce. The stir-fried vegetables are cooked well so they maintain their freshness and crispness. If you absolutely do not like Japanese food, Ai offers a breaded, fried chicken breast that’s also cooked well and sits on the same bed of vegetables.

Sushi Ai’s strong suit lies in its ability to present food—the appearance of their dishes is absolutely gorgeous. The sashimi comes on a mound of shaved carrots, looking bright, bountiful and beautifully inviting. The salmon sashimi tastes fresh and rich, the way Atlantic salmon should taste. The other sushi dishes come equally well-dressed; unfortunately, the dressing masks the lack of taste and distinction. It appears that the dressing is enough to keep the customers coming as this small dining room (capacity ~30) is packed and the take out orders keep rolling through. The food sure is impressive-looking—I wish it had the taste to go with it.

** /5

Salisbury House

2014-10-11T10:40:00.001-05:00

Salisbury House

16 locations across Winnipeg

204-237-8305

http://www.salisburyhouse.ca/index.html

Mains start with garlic toast, slathered in butter. I know many people love to soak their bread in butter but I don’t know anyone who wants their butter cold and coagulated. Sadly, I must declare this toast a success, as I’ve had much worse toast at other Sals locations, including one incident where they tried to hide the burnt side by turning it over. What a terrible debacle. The food is completely inedible and yet, they try to hide it from you, to fool you into eating it. Folks, we’re talking about two pieces of bread that likely costs them a penny each. This is an offensive, abject disgrace.

Sals serves breakfasts all day, including the usual breakfast options. The Hearty Breakfasts are hardly hearty as the wee strips of bacon are lost on the dish. I never thought that there’s more than one size to bacon, but I guess there is. The hard and rubbery omelettes contain plenty of eggs, probably more than you want to eat.

The side of coleslaw has fresh and crispy vegetables, but the complete lack of dressing leaves the slaw bone dry. The side of chilli provides a better option. The rich sauce has lots of meat, although little less salt would improve the dish.

The fish & fries comes with two of the smallest pieces of cod that I’ve ever seen. The batter tastes light and crispy but the fish itself tastes leather-firm from being overcooked. The best thing about this dish is the tartar sauce.

Known for their burgers, Salisbury House coined the term “nip” to denote a hamburger. The Mr. Big Nip comes with raw onions, a slice of processed cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato and Sals Sauce. Sals promises fresh ingredients and indeed the vegetables come garden fresh. The lettuce tastes crisp; the onions taste clean; and the tomato slices are firm. Unfortunately, these aren’t home-grown tomatoes and they are mostly tasteless. The wafer thin beef patty is dry and also tasteless. The Mr. Big Nip is big in vegetables but small in meat. As well, the slice of processed cheese is so thin that I had to search dedicatedly to find it. I’m still not quite sure it was ever there. I don’t think the burger has any condiments. Although the Nip purports to have Sals Sauce, I can’t taste anything but a dry meat on a dry bun. For some reason, the regular Nip patty has a lot more substance than the Mr. Big Nip.

We all know what zombies are, right? If a zombie bites you, you get infected and you yourself become a zombie? What happens if a zombie bites a cow? Does the cow become a cow-zombie? And what would the cow-zombie look like? I imagine it to have grey flesh, much like the ground meat that makes up this Nip. There’s absolutely no searing, resulting in no caramelising (and thus the greyness), Although there’s no browning, this patty still sees plenty of heat, so much that it comes completely dry and liver-tasting. To make matters worse, there’s no seasoning whatsoever, contributing to the blandness of the meat. Yuck. Instead of raw onions, this Nip comes with fried onions, adding some grease (and much needed moisture) to this sandwich.

Mercifully, it’s not all terrible. The mushroom soup has some depth and richness. The plentiful chunks of mushrooms ensure that every bite has lots of substance.

Last time I dined at Sals, the poutine tasted absolutely awful—tasteless, cold and crusty. They must have read my tirade since today’s poutine comes much improved. The home-cut fries taste soft and limp but they’re ok for sopping up the gravy. The gravy lacks flavour and has too much salt but at least there’s plenty of it. The cheese curds make the dish and there’s enough of it to keep you satisfied.

The next time you step into a Salisbury House, take a close look at their laminated menu and its plentiful photographs. What you see is exactly what you get—and what you see isn’t very good. The meals from the menus all look dry and plastic! Honestly, the photos look terrible and what you get isn’t any better. Sals has been an institution in Winnipeg for a very long time and it’s amazing they stay in business serving this kind of food.

Looking around the dining room, I see that I am the youngest person with a burger-toss radius. Most of the patrons in here outdate me by decades, and I’m no spring-chicken, being in my forties. Now I understand that no one comes here for the food; they come here because it’s an institution. Everyone knows each other and Sals is the geriatric version of kids at 7-11. People socialise and jibber-jabber, casually passing the time. They’re not here for the food—they’re here for the company. Judging by the customers, this restaurant chain should be out of business in the next ten years.

½ /5

Nicolinos

2014-10-03T18:47:00.000-05:00

Nicolinos
4 - 2077 Pembina Hwy
204-269-5004
Pick-up/Delivery: 204-269-5934
http://www.nicolinosrestaurant.com/

Prior to South Pembina becoming the new Chinatown, restaurants were few and far in-between in the area. Now, eateries dot Pembina like feathers on a chicken. Serving Italian among a sea of Asian cuisine, Nicolino’s has been standing here for over 20 years and remains one of the etched names in the neighbourhood.

The simple restaurant looks unassuming from the outside, as another face in a long line-up of strip mall tenants. Inside, the austere dining room looks bright and modern, but not fancy nor opulent. Servers dart through the dining room and we can hear the chef singing in the kitchen. Fine opera this is not, as we giggle with the opposing table, but fine food it is.

The meal starts with bread, toasty warm and fresh from the oven. The beautifully browned crust encases the soft and melty innards. I’m not much of a bread fan but it’s still difficult for me to resist filling up on these twisty openers. I’m going to regret this.

On the lighter side, the mussels swim in a deeply rich tomato sauce, wonderfully herbed and just a tad spicy. Unfortunately, the mussels come slightly overdone and some of the mollusc meats have shrunk to raisins. Mussels are one of the most challenging foods to cook; if you catch them after their shells just open, the meat should come plump and juicy—an extra 30 seconds of heat and the meat becomes dry. The wonderful sauce isn’t enough to make up for the overcooking but that doesn’t stop me from drinking it with a spoon. I wish I would have saved some bread for sopping.

Fresh and colourful greens highlight the house salad. The wild taste of the vegetables stay prominent among the light but flavourful vinaigrette. The lightly herbed dressing has a distinct background, highlighted by basil.

Under pastas, the Asiago Fettuccine comes with well cooked, al dente broccoli and just-cooked strips of chicken. The noodles also come al dente, swimming in the cheesy, basil-backed cream sauce.

Meat lovers have a fair choice, including a generous bone-in, grilled pork loin. I love the bed of spicy purple kale and I could easily make a meal of this alone. The pork comes nicely seared on the outside but a bit overcooked on the inside. The meat still tastes juicy but today’s pork should come medium, pink on the inside.

No Italian menu would be complete without pizza and Nicolino’s serves a number of interesting and classic combinations. The special pizza comes with salami, ham, beef, mushrooms, onions and green peppers. They layer the salami and ham nicely over the sauce and the beef sprinklings complete the scene. I don’t see a lot of mushrooms here but the other vegetables pile plentifully atop this pie. I would like to see more cheese here but otherwise, this competent pizza tastes delicious.

Dishes here aren’t perfect, but they’re very good. Despite the growing competition in the area, I’m sure that Nicolino’s will be here for a long time to come. As for the singing chef—don’t quit your day job!

**** /5

l'Bistro

2014-09-21T21:52:00.001-05:00

‘l Bistro

Canad Inns Destination Centre

Health Sciences Centre

720 William Ave

R3E 3J7

204-594-9472

Fax: 204-505-1521

hsc@canadinns.com

http://www.canadinns.com/stay/stay-main.php?entry_id=12166

As part of the bridge between Baby Boomers and Gen X, it means that I see a lot more relatives, parents and friends moving into the golden years than ever before. Unfortunately, it also means a lot more visits to the hospitals. In the past while, I made a number of visits to the cafeteria in the Health Sciences Centre (HSC) and let’s just say that it’s not worth more than a couple of sentences here. The sandwiches taste old, stale and hard, and the pizzas resemble Frisbees. It’s a very bad omen when Salisbury House carries the flag for the cafeteria. The Sal’s burnt toast, puck-like burger patties and grease-dripping fries dictate that you cannot find a palatable meal here.

Fortunately, Canad Inns opened a location, conveniently attached to the HSC. Although Canad Inns’s restaurants don’t serve great foods, they offer some passable options. This location features a quaint little eatery called l’Bistro. From a distance, the dining room looks elegant yet casual, subdued yet alive. The dark wood ambiance gives a relaxed feeling, yet the array of sports screens adds excitement. I can do without the plastic plants though, which look as sterile as the adjacent operating rooms. ‘l Bistro also offers a takeout menu, in case you want to bring something into the hospital.

The menu concentrates on Italian selections, which coincides with the small, but adequate buffet. The attendants replenish the warming trays frequently, so if you use some surgical precision, you can grab yourself some al dente pasta and avoid the overheated mush. The white and the red sauces taste a bit bland, but both blow the heck out of the slop you would find in the cafeteria. As a bonus, the prices of the buffet and off the menu are very reasonable, meaning that you won’t spend much more than you would if you stay in the hospital.

The buffet also has salad, with fresh and green leaves, but my favourite is the pizza. Again, you need to use some guile as you don’t want to end up with a cold or stale slab. During the rush hours, you should be fine as fresh pies come out frequently—be sure to get up there fast so that your slices remain hot. Also beware that a variety of pizzas come out of the kitchen. If you don’t like the one on the shelf, hang tight and see what comes next.

The pizzas here come with nice sized chunks of vegetables and measurable morsels of meat. The sauce tastes a bit bland but the plentiful cheese makes up for it as each piece pulls away with delicious strings of goo. The competent crust holds it all together, and if you want, the dining room is licenced so you can enjoy the beer and pizza break before heading back to the HSC.

***½ / 5