Dinner at the Old Prune

 

The battery on my camera died just as we got there.  Fortunately, Alan had his cell phone.

The food was amazing, the service smooth, the atmosphere soothing.

No wonder The Old Prune is celebrating 30 years!

Restaurant Review - Woolfy's at Wildwood

When Alan and I closed the deal on the building in Sebringville, we went out to dinner to celebrate.  Our chosen venue?  Woolfy's at Wildwood.

Chris Woolf was one of the instructors at the Stratford Chef School when Alan was there.  When we heard that he and his wife, Mary had bought the truck-stop/motel across the highway from the Wildwood Conservation Area, we thought a) they were crazy and 2) we'd have to try it.

That was many years ago.  Since then, they have grown the restaurant into a place of elegance, calm and truly amazing food.

We were welcomed in warmly and shown to a seat in the corner.  Since we had to drive home after dinner, we decided against a pre-dinner drink, but water was poured and we were given menus to consider. 

Oh, the choices!  On the one hand, we knew that anything we ordered would be good.  On the other hand, we couldn't possibly order it all...

We finally narrowed it down.  To start with, I had a charcuterie plate (complete with a piece of Monforte Dairy Fresco Pepato that I had helped to make!) and Alan chose a trio of appetizers that included melon soup, a risotto cake with tomato sauce and salmon sausage.

We asked Mary to pair each course with a glass of wine - always a good way to go if you want to stay sober.  Her pairings were inspired, but I totally forgot to make note of what they were (I'll get the hang of this one of these days, I swear!)

For our main courses we had a grilled bison steak and salmon.  Again, gorgeous food, beautifully cooked.  But by that point, the sun had gone down and the room was romantically candle-lit.  Alan's cellphone camera wasn't up for getting a decent shot and there was no way we were going to use the flash!

After the main course, I was pretty well down for the count (it had been a very long week...), but a nice pot of chamomile tea ended the meal nicely.  I slept very well that night, dreaming of good food and gracious surroundings, which made a nice change after a week of deadlines and confusion.

We will definitely be back to Woolfy's as soon as we can!

 

Restaurant Review - Foster's Inn

After a long work week, Alan and I decided to hit the town for dinner Saturday night. 

Looking for a patio, we chose Foster's Inn.  In the winter, their dining room is a lovely space to sit, but it was warm and not raining, for once, so we needed to be outdoors.

On the patio, you are given a choice of the dinner menu, or the lounge menu, which is cheaper.  I looked through both, saw the Roast Chicken and my budget went down the drain.

For appetizers, we ordered the Fresh PEI Mussels and the Shrimp al Ajillo.  They arrived and a few minutes later Alan said, "Pictures?"  Here's what remained:

Suffice it to say, both appetizers were really good!

The main courses, my Roast Chicken and Alan's Black Cod were also really good.

And we managed to remember the pictures while only a few bites in...

For dessert, we split a cheese plate.  It actually came with enough crackers, which doesn't always happen in the restaurants we go to.

With a nice bottle of red wine, an espresso after the cheese course and a decent tip, we paid $165.  If you're looking for a cheaper night out, they're happy to let you order off the lounge menu (there may be a time limit on this, though.  We got there a little before 8:00).

The street life past the patio is busy enough to be interesting, but quiet enough that you can actually hear your dinner companion.  And as a bonus for the people-watchers, Foster's is very popular with the actors and artists of the Stratford Festival.  The service is casual, friendly and prompt - the perfect combination for a great night out!

 

Rundles Restaurant - Sophisto-Bistro

Rundles is one of my favourite restaurants in Stratford.  The service, the decor, the food!  It is, to quote my sister, "Rundleful".

Unfortunately, our budget of late hasn't had room for lovely dinners at lovely restaurants (we're working to fix that....).  So I was thrilled to hear that they were starting something new this year - Sophisto-Bistro - a bistro room within the restaurant.

We took our friend Fiona there last night to celebrate her birthday.  And, people, it was amazing!

The bistro is tucked into a small room behind the main dining room.  A bit of colour creeps in to the all-white scheme.  Banquettes sprout from the walls.  And voila!  A bistro in Rundles!

The room overlooks the small, enclosed garden at the side of the building.  An intimate view for an intimate room.

The service is as attentive as in the main dining room, unlike the cheerful neglect you can find in a traditional bistro.  Our server, Andrew, kept our drinks topped up all evening and others popped in to take care of us as well.

And how's the food, you ask?  Fantastic!

For appetizers, we chose the Charcuterie Plate, the Mackerel in Citrus Escabeche and the Grilled Octopus.   And it was all just perfect.  A blend of wonder flavours and textures and goodness on a plate.

My octupus came with a salad of savoy cabbage and shredded carrot, the crunchiness of the salad playing off against the rich chewiness of the octopus.

We were kept well-supplied with bread, so mopping up the last of the sauce wasn't a problem.

The main courses, delivered covered, were Braised Veal Cheeks, Grilled Breasts of Quail and Hanger Steak.  On the count of three, our servers lifted the covers and we dug in.

My veal cheeks were rich and meltingly soft.  I had a taste of Alan's quail and tried to hijack his plate.  He wouldn't let me.  Fiona's hanger steak was served with a mushroom and black bean salsa and quacamole.  I never would have thought to put steak and quacamole together, but the combination works.

Wine accompanied every course.

And they kept the bread coming right through the main course, which never happens in the bistros in France.

We finished with a couple of cheese plates and Alan ordered the creme brulee.  All exquisite, of course.  I kept the table entertained with my tales of how Toscano (included in the cheese plate) is made.  It's kind of fun to eat a cheese that you have such a thorough knowledge of!

As the evening wound down, we started thinking... Our own birthdays are coming up in a couple of months.  I think they'll be a great excuse for a return trip.  If we can wait that long....

 

RUNDLES RESTAURANT

9 Cobourg Street, Stratford
Ontario, Canada, N5A 3E4
Phone 519.271.6442 Fax 519.271.3279

LUNCH
Saturday, Sunday 11:30 to 1:15

DINNER
Tuesday and Sunday 5:00 to 7:00

Wednesday, Thursday, Friday,
Saturday 5:00 to 8:30

CLOSED MONDAY

2008 PRICING Dinner $77.50  Lunch $29.50
WINE PACKAGE $46.50 and $56.50

OWNER James Morris
CHEF DE CUISINE Neil Baxter

RESERVATIONS 519.271.6442

 

Restaurant Review - Pearl Sushi

Now that they've stopped closing the highways, it finally dawned on me: WE COULD EAT DINNER IN STRATFORD!!!  And stand a good chance of making it back to Sebringville, THE VERY SAME NIGHT!

Sorry about the full caps.  It's been a very long winter.

We chose Pearl Sushi for our first venturing-forth.  And, whoa!  What a great choice!

It's everything good sushi should be: fresh, fresh, fresh. Expertly prepared and with the added bonus that, if you're not quite sure what to order, the owner is happy to make recommendations.

We had a good variety, including maki, sashimi and some light-as-air tempura. 

When we go back next time, we will try some new dishes, of course, but I must have more of the Dynamite Roll (tempura shrimp, avocado, cucumber, caviar and the most wonderful sauce....).

Pearl Sushi

127 Downie Street
Stratford, Ontario  N5A 1X2
Telephone: (519) 273-7275
 

Open Tues. - Sat/ 11:30 AM - 10:00 PM

Open Sun. - Mon./ 5:30 PM

Closed First Monday of Each Month.

TAKE OUT AVAILABLE

 

Cafe Charlot

When we arrived in Paris, tired, jet-lagged and in need of sustenance, we asked Sylvie, the lovely woman who let us into our apartment, to recommend somewhere close by.

"Cafe Charlot," she said, without hesitation.

We followed her directions and found ourselves in a bright and busy cafe.

The menu is not extensive and leans more toward American diner food than traditional French fare.  Well, I can understand the appeal.  I mean, when I'm in France, I want to eat all the andouillette, confit, and entrecote I can get my hands on.  But if I lived there?  The occasional cheeseburger or club sandwich would be a treat and they do them very well at Cafe Charlot.

The service was really good - not always the case in such a trendy place (did I mention it was trendy?  VERY).  Our waiter was very kind about our bad French (or total lack of it in certain cases), and sharing orders was not a problem.

Housed in a former bakery, it's a wonderful place to go for a meal, a drink or a spot of people-watching (trendy, trendy people).

We liked it so much that we made it the spot for our last meal in Paris, too.

Café Charlot
38 rue de Bretagne
75003 Paris

Le Felteu

You may have noticed a new widget in my sidebar.  It takes you to a site selling a guidebook to Paris restaurants.  It's written by Adrian Leeds, who lives and writes and eats in Paris.

Are her recommendations any good you ask?  Let me tell you about Le Felteu.

Adrian billed this as the place to get the best lambchops in the area.  The rest of the menu was also given a thumbs up.  So Alan and I ventured out last Friday night.

The entrance is the sort that, without a recommendation, you might just miss.  You walk in through the bar to a small dining room that looks.....

The focus here is on the food, people, so if you need the latest decorating touches to be able to enjoy your meal, this is not the place for you.  If you can't (or won't) speak a word of French and like to be coddled through the ordering process, this is also not the place for you.

But if you've learned the key phrases - bonjour/bon soir,  s'il vous plait, merci, and ou sont les toilettes - and can point and smile while ordering from the chalkboard menu, this is a definite must.

The portions are generous, in the same way that the Eiffel Tower is tall.  Simple, hearty food, cooked to perfection.  And the best baguettes that Alan has ever tasted.

We enjoyed it so much that we went back last night with the rest of the group.  Five of us had more food than we could handle (no room for dessert and coffee) and split two bottles of wine for less than 130 euros.

Restaurant Le Felteu
15, rue Pecquay, 4th
Tel: 01 42 72 14 51
Mètro: Rambuteau

Restaurant Review - The Little Inn of Bayfield

We received an e-mail from The Little Inn of Bayfield last week, advertising their Harvest Sundays special.

This corresponded to a feeling I was having of get me out of here!!!! So, Sunday night we hit the road for the short drive to Bayfield (Direct Marketing - it WORKS, people!).

And, ohhhh, was it nice. The staff is lovely, young and eager to please. Our room was comfy, clean and quiet. And the dinner! Well, I just have to show you some pictures.

This was the starter. Huron County liverwurst with caramelized onion, walnut and apple salad. Very good. Very hearty portions.


It's a Meal in Itself!

Next came the squash bisque with toasted sunflower seeds.


It Doesn't LOOK Filling.....

The cup was a little bigger than it looks and the soup was very thick and rich and too good not to finish. Even though we were starting to get a little full....

We didn't get a decent picture of the main course. It was prime rib with Yorkshire pudding, cauliflower, glazed carrots, fresh green beans, horseradish and pan gravy.

Oh my!

It was all delicious and yummy and far too much. But we had a lovely table right next to the window, so we could watch the garden and the sunset and take our time over all this wonderful food and some very good wine, too.

Even still, we were so full, we had to share one dessert ("Are you sure?" said our server) of apple pie a la mode.


Barb stealing a taste of dessert...

Coffee followed and then we went for a little walk around Bayfield to let things settle.

In the morning, we headed back to the dining room for breakfast. A "continental" breakfast was included in the package. It looked like this:



And was really more than enough after the night before. So even though Eggs Benedict were on the menu and they really are my favourite breakfast in all the world, I managed to actually say no!

All in all, another wonderful stay at the Little Inn of Bayfield. We'll be back soon!

If you're interested, the Harvest Sundays continue right through the fall.

Restaurant Review - Pazzo

It was my birthday this weekend.

And I have realized that 46 is both way too young to be an orphan and way too old for that realization to elicit any real sympathy. Trust me. They just look at you funny.

So Alan took me out to dinner at Pazzo where we sat on the patio and I realized that it is easier to be an orphan a 46 than at, say, 6. I don't know what 6 year-olds do to feel better. But at 46 year-old can have a gin and tonic before dinner. A whole buncha wine with dinner. And something, I dunno, maybe it was pink after dinner.

And then tumble into bed and wake up the next morning with a badly pounding head. And that, that gets you the sympathy you've been angling for.

Dinner was very nice. We sat out on the patio and watched to world go by while sharing an antipasto platter of local cheeses, Niagara-region prosciutto and home-made pickles. Yummy!

I had the striploin and Alan had the veal chop. They were cooked to perfection and accompanied by roasted vegetables for me and some lovely sauteed greens for Alan.

Alan finished his meal off with an Espresso Mousse. He even offered to share, but the portions are generous, so I had to say no.

I always enjoy my dinners out on the patio at Pazzo. They're not cheap. For the cheap and cheerful (and still very good) head to the basement for pizza and pasta.

But there's just something so wonderful about eating outdoors, especially as the summer draws to a close, that makes it worth every penny.

As we were heading into town, I realized that, yet again, I had forgotten to bring the camera. We did have Alan's camera-phone, but it was not co-operating. So we didn't get any pictures Saturday night.

But we did head back Monday morning to take a picture of the front of the restaurant. So just imagine it with tables and people, bathed in a soft and fading light:

Bijou Restaurant

It's birthday season at our house. Those who know us best know it's all about the food.

We had a wonderful meal at our friends' house on Saturday night, watching the sun set over the creek while we ate wonderful food, drank good wine and talked and laughed far into the night.

As if that wasn't enough to celebrate another year, our good friend Fiona took us to our favourite restaurant in Stratford - Bijou - last night.

It's an amazing place, with a daily blackboard menu. The choices are almost too good to decide. But no worries, we've never had a bad meal there.

The staff is young and knowledgeable. Once we'd enjoyed cocktails and placed our orders, we left it to our server to do the wine pairing. His choices were exactly right for the wide variety of foods we were enjoying - gazpacho, a charcuterie plate, and slow-roasted trout for appetizers. And then skatewing, beef and lamb for the main course. A variety of desserts and a cheese plate rounded it all out nicely.

We left sated and vowing to make it a yearly birthday tradition. And to find many more excuses to go back in the intervening months.

We realized as we walked in that we had left the camera at home. But as Fiona said, sometimes you should just eat the food and not spend all evening taking pictures of it.

Next time we go, we'll be "on assignment" and bring back lots of lovely photos for you to see.

In the meantime, head on over to the website. Read up on their philosophy, drool over the sample menus. And vow that next time you're in the area, you'll add dinner at Bijou to your list of "Must Do's"!

York Street Kitchen

Alan and I are not, by most standards, a tradition-bound couple

Yes, we were married many years ago legally and with benefit of clergy. But we pretty much went off the rails very shortly after that.

We don't exchange gifts for any occasion (preferring instead to pool our resources and go out for a really nice dinner). Our anniversary occurs in May. We are not bound to celebrating it then. June is fine, or July. I believe the record is sometime in September.

Several among our acquainances find this appalling.

We do, however, have one tradition between us that we will not relinquish, come hell, high water or really dodgy finances. And that is our Monday morning breakfast at York Street Kitchen in Stratford.

There's something really wonderful about going out for breakfast. And the breakfasts at York Street are worth getting up for! It's a diverse menu, but we always have the same thing. The coffee arrives almost as soon as we sit down and keeps on coming.

Mondays are normally fairly quiet, so we're able to take over a corner, greet any of our friends who have chosen to join us, and get the week off to a decent start. Sometimes, there's quite a crowd of us.


If you find yourself in Stratford on a Monday morning, 9 - ish, wander on down to York Street Kitchen. There's always room for one more!

(of course, if you find yourself in the area at other times of the day, they also do great lunches and dinners!)

A Trip Down Memory Lane - The Westover Inn

We went out for dinner with some friends on Saturday night. The restaurant chosen was the dining room at The Westover Inn.

Alan worked there many years ago, when he was just starting out as a chef. John Taylor, who now owns Domus in Ottawa was the chef then.

It felt a little funny to be back after all these years, a bit like sneaking back to your high-school long after graduation. But we were very glad we went. Alan and I got there early and had a quiet drink out on the deck before our friends joined us and we all moved into the dining room.

clipped from http://www.westoverinn.com/dining.html

The decor is elegant, as is the service.

The menu features local ingredients, where possible. For appetizers, we chose the Charcuterie Plate, Escargot in Vol au Vent (two of us) with Garlic and Pancetta and the Chilled Seafood Platter.

When it was time to choose the wine, we asked the waiter to decide for us. This is something I recommend doing in any good restaurant. Unless you have your heart set on something on their wine list, it can be really hard to know what to order. The waiter is usually more knowledgeable about what they have in stock and what will go with your food choices. Just name a price range and let them go to it. We've never been disappointed and are usually quite pleasantly surprised, as we were Saturday night. (And if I were any good at this job, I would have taken notes on what wine we had, but, sadly, I was too busy drinking and having fun. Will try harder next time, I promise!)

For our main course, two of us chose the Vegetarian Crepes on Basmati Rice. One chose the Seared Scallops with Lemon Basil Fettucine and one chose the Pork Rib Loin.

All in all, it was a lovely evening - good food, gracious service in a lovely setting. Keep it in mind for your next special occasion dinner, or book a room and make it a get-away.

When in Southampton - The Elk and Finch

On our way to my sister's cottage this past long weekend, we happened to be passing through Southampton at lunch time.

The roads were crazy with people making an early start home. So our restaurant choices were limited to: something on the highway and something that we could make a right turn to get into (so did not want to have to cross the on-coming traffic).

We spotted The Elk and Finch. I thought it sounded a little too much like a chain restaurant, but the patio was crowded and it fit our other criteria.

Imagine our suprise when we were seated on the patio (after, admittedly, a long wait)to look at the menu and see things like "house-smoked salmon" on offer.

We kept it simple, ordering a pizza and Caesar Salad to split. The pizza had a nice thin crust, real calamata olives and whole cloves of roasted garllic. The Caesar Salad was yummy, with real bacon and freshly-grated parmesan cheese. My only complaint was that it wasn't as salty as I would like, but that's such a personal thing and so many people are avoiding salt these days.

Our server was quite good, managing what appeared to be an unexpectedly busy day quite competently.

I think The Elk and Finch is quite popular with the locals (always a good sign)
people were greeting each other by name as they walked onto the patio.

In all, a very pleasant surprise for an emergency lunch stop. We'll add it to the itinerary should we be invited back next year. Though after the Oreo Cookie Ice-Cream Sandwiches, I'm not at all sure we will be....

Our First Restaurant Review - Artisanale

We had the most delightful evening the other night.

We were celebrating our friend Fiona's 75th birthday (somewhat belatedly - there was a line-up). Deciding a road-trip was in order, and hoping the weather would hold, we headed to The Bookshelf in Guelph.

The Bookshelf is a very cool, independant bookstore, etc. that you can dawdle through for days. The challenge is to not blow the mortgage payment while you're there!

The "etc." portion of Bookstore, etc. used to include a perfectly nice restaurant with a lovely courtyard that we've enjoyed many dinners in. It's just beautiful, surrounded by high ivy-covered walls. You'd never know you were in a downtown setting.


Since our last visit, the restaurant has been sold to Chef Yasser Qahawish and his wife Allison Mitchell, who manages the dining room. It's now called Artisanale Cafe & Restaurant (Their website is under construction.)

Alan had worked with Yasser many years ago at Auberge du Pommier in Toronto.

After happy greetings all round, we were seated in the courtyard, looked at the menu. Big improvement! The menu changes every day, to allow for seasonal finds and the best of what's available. Yasser believes in cooking locally, organically and well.

For appetizers, we had Chicken Liver Mousse with Sweet & Sour Prune,


Octopus & Lentil Salad,


and a salad of Fine French Beans with Saucisson & Hazelnuts.


The flavours were amazing, the portions hearty, but not overwhelming and very simply presented.

The main courses we chose were Steak Frites with Maitre d'Butter,


Duck Confit with Spinach Salad and Crispy Potatoes


and I had Cabbage Roll Stuffed with Brown Rice & Ontario Vegetables, in memory of my late father. He was powerless against a good cabbage roll.


I must say, I expect a good restaurant to be able to pull off Duck Confit and Steak Frites, and Artisanale does this admirably. But I'm always most impressed with a place that can take something truly humble and make it delicious. That cabbage roll was a thing of beauty - light, flavourful and delicate. Dad would have ordered another round...



We shared a selection of desserts, a lot of wine from an extensive and growing wine list and eventually made our way home, happy, full and looking forward to going back soon.