The VIP treatment at Paramount Fine Foods

Last week I had the pleasure of attending the grand opening and ribbon cutting of Paramount Fine Foods new Windsor location. They had found my blog on facebook and were cool enough to send me an invite. I mean an actual physical invite, that showed up in a VIP box along with some rose shaped, pink coloured, Baklava. It was a nice touch. 

Paramount Middle Eastern Cuisine is a new Lebanese Restaraunt that opened up at the Windsor South SmartCenters outdoor mall at 3184 Dougal, unit A5. The "WalMart Plaza on Dougal" to most locals. What I didn't know before attending this event is that this is Paramount's 60th location. Yes, 60.  Paramount began as one Middle Eastern Restaurant in Mississauga and has spread quickly and is now one of the fastest growing chains in Canada, 

The first thing we noticed when we entered Paramount was a kids' play area off to the right. It's a walled-in floor to ceiling thing that you usually only see at places like McDonald's. I don't think I've ever seen one of these anywhere that wasn't fast food or something built around play areas like Chucky Cheese. It seemed a bit odd to me but also pretty cool. It also made me wish we had brought the kids.

My wife and I were offered a choice of either having a table to ourselves off to the side and ordering off the menu or joining the grand opening celebrations, which featured ala carte items constantly flowing from the kitchen to the floor on platters by the wait staff. A third option was also offered and it's what we took: both. We found a seat in the midst of their other invited guests and browsed the menu while trying some amazing appetizers and juice. Of these, I strongly recommend the Cheese Manakeesh and the Cocktail Juice.

I was very pleased to see that the Paramount menu was not the same menu you seem to find at every Lebanese place in the city. Yes, it has all of the usual stuff: the huge family platters, the shawarma wraps, the Shish-Tawook, tabbouleh etc. But you will also find Saj Wraps, the Manakeesh I already mentioned, Arayess (stuffed Kafta), and even burgers and wood-fired Pizza. It's also worth noting they serve breakfast which includes Lebanese specialties like Fatteh as well as fried eggs or an omelet.

My wife decided on the Tabliya Saj Chicken Shawarma and I went with the Sujuk or Spicy Sausage. Paramount tossed in a Mezza Plate (Moutabbal, Tabbouleh & Hummus) and some fresh hot bread, to go with our meals. My Sujuk was very good. The sausage was very well cooked and was hot without being too spicy. I got it with rice which was also good. I was impressed, but it didn't hold a candle to my wife's Saj wrap. That Saj wrap was the highlight of the meal for both of us. It was so good. My plans for our next trip are to combine our two meals. They offer a Sujuk Sausage Saj wrap as well and that's what I plan on trying on our next visit.

While eating, we were constantly offered various samples of other items off the menu and I have to admit I didn't try anything I didn't like. Everything looked great and tasted great. There was so much food floating around that night it was kind of magical. Both my wife and I ate well and probably ate too much. Then they insisted we have dessert.

For dessert, they brought out the Paramount Special. Layers of fresh strawberry and mango juice with mixed fruits, topped with fresh strawberry, kiwi, pineapple almonds, crushed pistachio, ashta cream and honey, This thing was amazing but neither of us had the room to finish it which was a bit of a shame.

In addition to the food, it was quite the party. As well as live music and many people doing the meet and greet thing, they also gave people a chance to try to bake some bread and I even got to learn how to shave some chicken shawarma. I have to like any place that trusts me with a sharp knife.

The night wrapped up with a series of speeches and presentations. Most of these about the Paramount chain and brand and lots of congratulations for opening their 60th location. There was one part of this that I think needs to be shared. One of the things Paramount is about is giving back to the community and while we were there they put their money where their mission statement is and presented a $10,000 cheque to the Windsor Cancer Center Foundation.

It's awesome to see places like Paramount who are so generous and willing to give back to the community they are part of. Especially when giving to a community they have just joined. All of this made for a very pleasant and memorable night. One my wife and I won't forget anytime soon. I realize that the entire point of the thing was to make an impression and it worked.

Windsor has its fair share of Lebanese restaurants but I honestly think Paramount sticks out. Both in the quality of food and service and their dedication to giving back to the local community. I fully plan on heading back, next time with the whole family. Though I'm going to leave the shawarma shaving to them. 

Toothsome is the coolest place I've ever eaten

Toothsome Chocolate Emporium and Savory Feast Kitchen is part of City Walk Orlando just outside the gates of the Universal Orlando theme parks. It's also the coolest place I've ever eaten. 

Just look at that picture at the top. Isn't that sweet looking? What you can't see from this picture are the gears and wind turbines spinning and the steam coming out of the top. Toothsome (sorry I'm not typing that full name more than once) is a steampunk themed restaurant, gift shop, chocolatiere and malt shop.

The inside of the place is just as amazing as the outside. It's full of very cool steampunk decor, awesome knickknacks, themed candies, chocolates and staff all dressed in steampunk cosplay. Most of the bottom floor is the gift store and malt shop. The various shakes are so good that the wait time to get one can easily be over an hour. The gift store is filled with a huge assortment of candies and chocolates all with the steampunk theme. In addition they have a cool selection of steampunk themed household decorations. 

The back half of the first floor and the entire second floor is a huge restaurant that has to seat at least 200 people if not closer to 500. Everything sticks to the steampunk theme. There are even giant 3D video walls that make the place look even bigger on the inside by showing the rest of the Emporium at work. With automatons whizzing about and crates of chocolate being made to be shipped out and consumed. There are copper pipes everywhere. Everything is metallic and shiny. The theme is everywhere and the detail is wondrous.

The most amazing part of all of this is that the food was just as good as the decor and theme. Nearly every dish is made with chocolate. They even have a fantastic chocolate stout (named Too Chocolate Stout) that is brewed exclusively for Toothsome. This was the 2nd best chocolate beer I've ever had, beat only by BNL from Flying Monkeys (which you can never get again, sadly). Our meal at Toothsome was the best meal of our entire trip to Orlando, by far.

The menus themselves are beautiful leather bound books that contain a good variety of items. Most of the menu was signature sandwiches and burgers but there were also larger entrees. The appetizer list alone is enough to get anyone drooling. 

Before we even finished reading the menu they brought us a loaf of this incredible chocolate bread with our drinks. This alone set the tone for the meal. It was so good! Chocolaty but still savory. Not in any way a dessert. I could have probably sat there and just had chocolate stout and chocolate bread all night.

Our family started the meal with pork belly sliders with chocolate coated bacon as an appetizer and that, again, had us saying we had to come back. I also ordered some French Onion Soup that turned out to be better than the soup from Windsor's own Ye Olde Steak House (man I miss that place). For a main I got a Croque-Monsieur, my wife got the Forest Mushroom Pizza, my mother in law tried the Chicken Bercy and the kids got some pasta with red sauce I can't remember the name of. We were also treated to a Rice Krispies Shake. Everything was fantastic and I'm not just saying that because Universal Orlando picked up the bill. Seriously, this was damn fine food. 

At some point during your meal at Toothsome you can expect to meet Professor Doctor Penelope Tibeaux-Tinker Toothsome with her robot Jacques. The pair that, at least as far as the theme and story of the place goes, opened the Chocolate Emporium. Jacques was one of the most well done automaton cosplays I've ever seen, complete with remotely broadcast slightly robotic voice. The pair explained the story behind Toothsome and stopped for photo ops with the kids. In addition to this personal touch, the service overall was top notch. The staff were jumping out of their pants to help us and take care of our every need. To be honest this was true of every place we checked out in Universal Orlando.

One thing that I think is well worth noting: because Toothsome is part of the Orlando City Walk and not actually located inside one of the Universal theme parks, you don't need a park entry ticket to eat there. It's open to the public and anyone can just walk up and check the place out. You can check out the gift shop, order a shake or sit down to a fantastic meal. Though if you are going for a meal reservations are very strongly recommended. 

For me, the Toothsome Chocolate Emporium and Savory Feast Kitchen (okay, I typed it out twice, happy now?) was the highlight of our family trip to Orlando. The entire trip was great but my favourite part was checking this place out the first day and eating dinner there the next. If you are ever in the area you really have to check this place out. Unless maybe you don't like chocolate. But who doesn't like chocolate?

P.S. Even if you don't like chocolate or have some form of chocolate allergy (I am so sorry for you) there are plenty of things on the menu that don't actually have chocolate in them. Like this Rice Krispies Shake:

Tried an Essex County classic: Ducks on the Roof in Amherstburg

We spent more time than usual in the county lately. Last weekend we drove out to Amherstburg to check out Art By the River. Last Friday to start of the Labour Day weekend, we went out to Leamington and spent the day at the splash pad and Seacliff beach. On the way home we took highway 20 and went through Kingsville, Harrow and Amherstburg and tried to catch glimpses of the Tall Ships. Near the end of that trip home we passed by Ducks on the Roof. This is one of those places that's been there forever, a place my grand parents used to like to eat at. While passing my wife noted that she always wanted to try it. So we headed back out there last night.

Lots of wood, and ducks.

Ducks on the Roof was easy enough to find. It's on highway 20 about five minutes past Amherstburg. Which means it's about a 45 minute drive from most of Windsor. The place was very inviting with an unassuming outside and a very clean wood filled interior. Ducks on the Roof was, appropriately, filled with ducks. Brass ducks, wood ducks, decoys and more. Overall it had a very old school feel. Somewhat like a banquet hall. It brings back memories of the Legion and the Knights of Columbus while being more cosy and nicer than both.

French Onion soup and Walkerville Ale

The menu was a bit of a jumble. It looks like it started as one thing and then they decided to add an every night fish special. Then they decided to add a gluten free menu. Lastly they decided to offer a $20 Four Course meal option, which is also every night. It's kind of frankensteined. Their website shows this off well with different links to no less than 10 different menus. Having it all in a book in front of you it wasn't that bad though. It reminded me of The Lumberjack which I think suffers from the same problem of adding on to an originally large menu.

My wife went for the Every Night Fish Special which gives you a choice of 7 different seafood options for $15. She specifically chose the Coconut Crusted Tilapia. I went for the 4 Course Dinner Menu that included soup of the day, salad bar, choice of 1 of 7 entrees and desert. I'm a huge fan of schnitzel so went for the Breaded Pork Schnitzel in Mushroom Gravy.

Pork Schnitzel and Fettuccine Alfredo

The service was impeccable. I don't remember the last time we were treated quite this well. The waitress was very friendly and open and was very accommodating. For example the soup of the day was cream of mushroom. When she announced this I must have made a bad face as she immediately offered me some alternatives, from which I chose a small French Onion. The treatment was doubly impressive as we showed up very late. The restaurant closes at 9PM and we had reservations for 8PM. Even with the late hour they almost insisted I get coffee with my desert (A fantastic slice of Pumpkin Pie).

The food was great. It was exactly as advertised. Traditional casual food. It has that better than home cooked taste with no pretense. You won't find alioli, panko crusted or red pepper mayo here. You will find a perfectly cooked piece of meat in a traditional mushroom sauce. It's a style of food and cooking that I really enjoy.

Coconut Crusted Tilapia

Something about the place makes me want to bring the family here. I guess it's that KofC/Legion feel or something. This just seems like the perfect place to celebrate a birthday, or to have a family Christmas gathering. I would feel very comfortable at Ducks on the Roof sitting at a table of 16 and enjoying some great food.

Overall I was very impressed and didn't regret the drive out to the county at all. I'm very glad we tried the place out and I fully expect we will head back out there sometime. They have a very appealing sounding Sunday Brunch that I think would be well worth the trip. I also may just choose to host the next family get together there.

An Eastern hidden gem in the West end

Instead of heading out and trying somewhere new tonight we decided to hit an old favorite. Pho Red Mango is a hidden gem located in the West end of Windsor. You can find it in Ambassador Plaza right on Huron Church Road hidden in the middle of a strip mall between a rent-to-own place and a walk in law firm.

The Most Famous Beef Noodle Soup

Pho Red Mango (or maybe it's just Pho Mango, the sign skips the Red, the etched glass skips the Red but it's still on the menu, so I'm not sure) is an authentic Thai/Vietnamese noodle shop. Their logo shows a rather happy looking cook with a bowl full of noodles with the words "The Most Famous Beef Noodle Soup"

The place looks a bit small from the outside but is rather large inside. It reminds me a bit of a banquet hall. Lots of six seater tables down the middle with a few booths near the windows and a few four seaters up by the bar. Every table is numbered and on each you will find a set up with a selection of soup spoons, chop sticks, and sauces I haven't had the guts to try yet.

Fresh BBQ Beef Rolls App.

The menu is extensive. It starts with three types of soups each of which is available in several variations. There's Pho (Vietnamese beef rice noodle soup), Bo Kho (clear egg noodles, wanton & stewed beef) and spicy Thai (rice noodles, eggplant, tofu, beans, mushrooms and bamboo). The soups are followed on the menu with noodle bowls, a few rice dishes and then a selection of Thai dishes including both red and green curries. They also have a desert selection and serve bubble teas and fruit shakes. Prices on all the dishes are very reasonable, with most dishes hovering around $10 with nothing reaching past $13

Rice Combination Platter

My wife decided we should start off with some Fresh BBQ Beef rolls ordered as an appetizer and also got herself a small Rare Beef & Well Done Beef Pho bowl. I'm personally addicted to the Rice Combination Platter and that's what I ordered. It's $9.95 and you pick any three sides that can include Grilled Chicken, Grilled Beef, Pork Chop, Spring rolls or Fried Egg. It also includes a small cup of soup and dipping sauce. For an extra $2 you can upgrade your rice to Fried Rice, something I strongly suggest, and I totally forgot to do. Thankfully the service was awesome tonight and they had no problem making me a side plate of Fried Rice once I realized my mistake.

Small, yes Small Rare Beef Pho

I noted my wife got the Small beef noodle soup. Small. As in not big. Look at that bowl there to the left! That's a small, $5.95 Vietnamese Beef Rice Noodle Soup. I didn't even get a shot of the sprouts, lime, basil leaves and hot pepper she also received to put in there if she wanted to.

For the kids we got a second Rice Combination Platter. Usually we get them the Rice Vermicelli Combo with Vegetables. That's like the Rice Combo where you pick what you want on it and it comes with soup and sauce. It's a bit cheaper and they love dipping the noodles in the sauce. The problem is that they love dipping the noodles in the sauce. That never goes very well as far as keeping their clothes and the immediate area clean. So we went with a second Rice Combo this time around. I wish we had gotten the noodles though, just so I could get a picture to show you all how fantastic it looks.

My Fried Rice side

As is usual for Pho Red Mango we had great service. I was extremely pleased with them being more than willing to cook me up a Fried Rice Side after I realized I ordered the wrong thing. Oh right, I didn't mention that yet. This is something odd here. Maybe it's a standard Pho thing, it's not like I've tried lots of Pho places, but you fill out your bill yourself. You write down the quantity of what you want, the item number and any options. In this case I forgot to write down the "sub fried rice" and $2 in the cost column.

I'm a huge fan of Pho Red Mango. I first tried it with people from work and have been going back pretty regularly since. They have fantastic food at a fantastic price. I've yet to have a bad meal there. Not that I've tried it yet but they also have take out for those who prefer to eat at home. Now I know that this style of food isn't for everyone, but if you like this style of Asian food at all I strongly suggest you check out this Eastern hidden gem out in the West end.

Went back to Terra Cotta tonight and it changed

As a special treat for getting past a milestone at work, my wife arranged for another night out without the kids (I know we are getting spoiled). Being the smart girl she is, she remembered that it was two for one night at Terra Cotta. So we headed there after dropping off the kids.

I'm sure you are currently thinking: "What another review of Terra Cotta? You just did one." Yes, yes I did, it's right here in case you missed it: Why did it take me so long to try Terra Cotta? See the thing is, things changed in the few short weeks since we had been there.

My Wife's LaBlonda Pizza

First off you will note they got a new better looking logo, even if it is just a shot of the sign outside. That wasn't enough for me to be writing you now though. The menu changed. Not a lot but enough to make it worth mentioning. The biggest and most disappointing change was that they removed the Crostino. That's the cheese and topping covered fresh made crouton thing that the menu said had been a staple there for years and that I suggested you all try. I thought this was one of the big draws of Terra Cotta over other local Stone Oven Pizza places in the city.

Immediately upon seeing this I asked our waitress about it and she did in fact confirm that it is off the menu.  She went on to explain that the problem was that people were ordering it as an appetizer instead of a meal (it was in the appetizer section) and that it takes longer to cook than an actual pizza and that people who ordered it as an app were getting frustrated by how long their meals were taking. Now the one cool thing is that she offered to get us any Crostino we wanted right then and there, which is awesome but not good for anyone who doesn't know about the secret not on the menu items.

My Sausage, Pep, Cheddar and Prosciutto Pizza

Oh well, I guess things change and there isn't much we can do about it. Or maybe we can, maybe you can all go in and ask where the Crostino is and maybe they will put it back on the menu, and maybe they will put it in some place other than with the appetizers. I'm sure that would be a bit much though.

All that said, our meal was great, our food was awesome and we will be going back. I'm not sure if I mentioned it in the past post but Tuesdays are two for one pizza. Wednesdays are also two for one if you are a student with a valid student card. You can't beat that. Our entire meal that included a pitcher of beer and two 7" gourmet pizzas was only $33 before tip.

Found somewhere new for breakfast

Great photo used with permission from Eyes on Windsor

We had big plans today. Today was the day I take the kids to HighJinks in reward for a good report card for my oldest. Before that though we needed groceries. Even before that, we needed breakfast. That's where Matter of Taste bar & grill comes in.

I first heard about Matter of Taste on the Eyes on Windsor blog, where I read a rather positive review. I've been meaning to try it for a couple weeks and it worked out that this morning it fit in with our plans fine. So we headed over to 1158 Lauzon Rd. Now I knew that this place replaced Thai Palace which has moved across the road, but it was still a bit of a shock seeing it. It just looked odd. Thai Palace has been in that spot as long as I can remember. Most noticeable about the place was the big Now Open sign and a sign out front looking for a Broasted Chicken cook.

Photo from windsoriteDOTca's Pinterest account.

We went in after finding the proper door (the place has like 4 doors leading into it only one of which is the actual door, all the others have signs and arrows pointing you to the real door). Inside the place was kind of odd looking but inviting. It was obvious that the space used to be a couple of different places, where an arch had been put in a wall between them making this place larger. The thing is that each of the spaces was done up in a totally different style. The first half had a Thai style arch and white walls and lots of large tables, the second half was all stonework with a huge bar and wine on the walls. There were a couple of big screen TVs on the stonework side one of which was just on one of those Cogeco music channels. It was kind of like the place wasn't sure if it was a Dinner, Family Restaurant, Fine Dining with a huge Wine Selection or Bar & Grill. As I said it was a bit odd.

I love places with kids menus with activities on them

We were seated quickly and given menus, which included kids menus with activities. The kids were each given their own individual box of crayons and immediately went to work coloring. The menu was one of those, home cooking we have everything you could want kind of deals. The kind you have seen in family restaurants for years. You know, the usual mix of burgers and chicken, hot and cold sandwhiches, a selection of Italian favourites and, the requisite seafood section. The seemed to be really pushing the Broasted Chicken which had a section all it's own. Prices were all extremely reasonable with most of the items being under $10 and the most expensive item topping out at $15 for a Fisherman's Platter. The kids menu is fantastic, for only $4.99 you get the choice of 8 items that aren't all junk food and that $5 includes a drink and desert as well as a pick from the Toy Chest (I haven't seen one of those since Big Boy).

Look at the size of these kids "silver dollar" pancakes!

Well we were here for breakfast so my wife and I ordered omelets and we got the kids silver dollar pancakes. You know silver dollar pancakes right. Those small little discs of cooked batter. Do you see that picture there on the left? That's what we got, for one of them. We had two plates this full. For $5 with a drink and desert and a toy!

It didn't take long at all for our food to come. Though we were served pancakes with no syrup and I had to steal silverware off another table or we wouldn't have been able to eat. I also hadn't received a re-fill on my empty coffee yet. Oh that reminds me. The coffee was good. Not great but good. For some reason it seems like, lately, no where has decent coffee anymore with breakfast. I know awesome places with awesome food where I never finish more than one cup of coffee. Matter of Taste did not have this problem.

My Farmer's Omelet

Where was I? Oh right the food itself. I was extremely happy with my Farmer's Omelet. It was one of the best omelets I've had in a long time. Ham, bacon and sausage along with hash browns folded into three eggs with marbled cheese on top. Toast on the side. That's it there on the left. Now my wife grabbed a Spinach & Swiss Omelet made with just egg whites. It looked fantastic, but she was sad to report it was just okay. Not bad, not good, but okay.

Overall our trip to the Matter of Taste Bar and Grill was a pretty good experience. The place has an odd look and doesn't seem to know what exactly it is or wants to be. The service wasn't the best and my wife found her food to only be okay. That was all completely offset by one of the best omelets I've ever had and the amazing deal and treat this was for the kids. I think we've found a new place for breakfast.

Why did it take me so long to try Terra Cotta?

This weekend my wife and I had a rare treat. Four hours without the kids to do anything we wanted. After a bit of discussion we decided we wanted a nice meal and then to head to a favorite downtown spot, The Coffee Exchange, for some desert and coffee and a few rounds of Race for the Galaxy. This post isn't about the coffee and card games though, it's about where we ended up for dinner: Terra Cotta Pizza.

Terra Cotta has been around for a long time. As long as I can remember at least. I'm sad to say up until last Saturday night we have never tried it. I know they are known for stone oven pizza but that was about it. I also knew they had a two for one Tuesday deal but we never managed to make it out for it. I've even been told by friends to try it. For whatever reason I always thought of Terra Cotta as high end. A classy, don't bring the kids, wear a collared shirt, cloth napkin, kind of place. I'm my head it was La Guardia with a guy cooking pizza up front. Man was I wrong. 

Check out the awesome glass pitcher.

The first thing you will notice walking up to Terra Cotta will most likely be someone cooking pizza, right there in the front window. Anyone can stand there and watch traditional, dough tossed in the air, pizza making, right there from the street. How cool is that? Going inside I was amazed to see not only how small but also how comfortable the place was. This place is really small. There's the pizza prep area up front, a long bar in the middle, some two seater tables across from that and maybe 8 more tables in the back for larger groups. Okay I guess it's probably a bit bigger than say Sam's Pizza but smaller than it looks from the outside. The place is also very casual. I have no idea where my idea that this was a fancy shmancy place came from, but I was wrong. Not to say the place is a dump or anything like that, it's very casual and homey with no pretensions. They also had high chairs and there was a family in there with kids, so I guess it's a good family place as well. It's nice to be proven wrong sometimes.

Our Crustino

I was pleased to see a good beer menu that included a ton of Sleeman Products including draft. Was was even happier when they noted they had Okanagan Spring on draft and ordered a pitcher for the two of us to split. Check the pictures on this page to see the awesome solid glass pitcher this came in.

Looking at the menu, we found a full page spread about some stuff they call Crostino. This is home made, double toasted croutons topped with Pizza ingredients, baked in the wood fire Pizza oven. At about $8 and with enough food to share we decided we had to try it. We grabbed the Crostino Alla Bolognese which had mozzarella, ham and Swiss. It was very good. A really unique taste with the crunchy croutons, zesty sauce and lots of herbs and spices. I think I would try a different set of toppings next time but I do suggest you try one of these unique offerings.

For main courses my wife and I both ordered Pizzas. The menu has a wide variety of pre-made options that range in price from $8 to $14. Toppings range from the traditional bacon, pepperoni and green peppers to eggplant, turkey and calamari. They also offer white or whole wheat crust, gluten free options and even non-dairy cheese. The menu didn't stop at pizza either; there was a selection of appetizers, salads, Italian wraps and sandwiches, salads and calzones. I went with a make your own pizza, with sausage, pepperoni and my favorite pizza topping: prosciutto. My wife grabbed one of the pre-set pizzas, the Prosciutto e Funghi and ordered it with non-dairy cheese. 

Looks awesome doesn't it?

Okay look at that picture right there. Just look at it. Doesn't that alone make you want to go to Terra Cotta? I know it makes me want to go back. Not only did the food look good, it tasted amazing. By far some of the best wood fire flat crust pizza I have ever had. Why the heck did I just try this place this weekend?  It's been here for years, I could have been eating this like once a month, maybe once a week, maybe twice a week!

The food was great. The atmosphere wasn't at all what I expected but that was a good thing and it meant that this should be a great place to bring the kids. It also seems like the kind of joint my parents would both dig. What this means over all, is that I will be going back to Terra Cotta, probably multiple times and bringing along the entire family. I'm still a bit frustrated that it took us so long to try somewhere so good, but I'm very happy that we finally did and have found a new regular stop for great pizza in Windsor.

Can't see ever Craving this Grill

This week is Winter Bites week here in Windsor. This is a great annual event where a bunch of local restaurants put out special menus and meal deals in an effort to get you to try new things. This awesome event is put on and organized by the great people at Windsor Eats. Tonight we gathered up the family and decided to try somewhere new that is participating in this great event: The Crave Grill (note you can click on this link but it looks like someone forgot to pay their web hosting). It was an interesting experience.

I was totally thrown off by the location of the Crave Grill, I've driven past the location many many times and totally missed it. It's part of the complex on Ottawa that has Topps of Windsor and the Komedy Korner. After finding the place we parked in back (free after 6pm) and went in. Great looking place with a really nice atmosphere. Fairly formal without being pretentious.

We were seated quickly. The place was far from busy but wasn't empty. We had called ahead to make sure the place was okay for kids and we verified that they had booster seats. Here's where we had our first sign of things to come, though we didn't know it was a sign at the time. After asking for a booster the waitress brought back a highchair. I guess people who don't have kids don't know there's a difference? I'm pretty sure I knew the difference before we had our kids, but whatever. So I correct her and ask again for a booster. They don't have boosters, this is what we have. We note we called and asked, and she said yes we have this (points to the high chair). Okay whatever, fine, I'll sit my 2.9 year old in a chair since she's far too big for the highchair.

We get menus and all that fun stuff. She points out that they have a special menu for Winter Bites. I comment that "this is the reason we are here." We look over the standard menu. Everything looks great. Nice selection of items. A mix of steak house, pasta house and unique Mediterranean items. One thing I always look for is good beer and I was impressed, there wasn't a lot of selection but it included a good mix of beers for eating. One each of lager, porter, stout, black ale, brown ale, oh and the usual crap domestic stuff. Though they need an editor (I ordered Miller Street Coffee Porter). The adults all decide go for the Winter Bites Menu which is a three course meal for $25, we order a kids pasta for the little ones to split. Specifically I ordered Tomato Soup for a first course. Chevaps for a Second Course and Apple Crumble Cheesecake for the Third. Actually looking at the menu now in another window I realize we ordered at least one of everything on the special menu.

Our waitress takes our drink order. More than 5 minutes later she comes back to point out that the juice we ordered for the kids is out of stock. More than 10 minutes later we get our drinks, for whatever reason she doesn't take our order now and wanders away. I have no clue why. We have to point out to the kids, who are getting antsy that it's going to be a while as we haven't even ordered yet. We eventually order. 20 minutes after ordering the waitress returns realizing she forgot to ask which sides we want. One thing that has to be noted here as it matters later. My wife and I ordered all three courses, the app, the main and the desert for our Winter Bites meal, my parents only ordered their app and main.

40 minutes in we still haven't received our first course, the appetizers. Soups, salads and bruschetta, not hard to make. Note there are only about five other tables of people here and four of them already have their meals. I don't get this. Also my wife ordered coffee and has not had a single offer of a refill. At this point we are getting rather frustrated. The kids are thankfully being rather good about all of this.

10 minutes later, 50 minutes in total we get our apps. Waitress can't remember who ordered what and we give up trying to explain and just each take a plate and pass it to whoever it belongs to. The apps were pretty good. I was particularly impressed by the bruschetta as it's not a dish I usually enjoy. I'm not big on tomato or onion and this particular version had goat cheese. Getting near the bottom of her salad, my wife notes that it has no candied nuts. This was one of the main selling points of this salad and they weren't even there. My soup didn't come with crackers which was disappointing to me. At this point I'm not sure if the serve soup without them or if they made yet another mistake.

When the first round of apps came I ordered another beer, when the second round came my dad also ordered a re-fill. I got my beer, my dad did not. Every time we saw the waitress we asked about my dad's beer. We did this 3 times. 20 minutes later she stopped back and cleared some of the app. plates and asked my dad if he wanted another beer. Wait, what?!? 

At this point we are all getting frustrated. The kids are getting antsy. we are getting sick of mistakes, lack of communication, ridiculous delays etc. 65 minutes in, she starts bringing the entres. We ask where my dad's beer is and she says: "Oh sorry we are out of that beer. We even checked the basement" - wow, okay then, you weren't going to tell us? What the heck? We order my dad a different beer. This beer finally shows up, she bangs the bottle (no draft here) on the table hard enough it foams up and pours out the top a bit. She fails to notice.

Crappy iPod pic of my main. I still don't see any pita.

Right in there somewhere the food showed up. It was all delivered to the wrong person again. I realize this is a minor thing but with everything else it's yet another straw.

Things start looking up: the main courses are really good. This is the best Chevaps I've ever had. Veggies are great and well seasoned  A really nice touch is that each veg is treated differently. The carrot is al-dente and mapled. The zucchini is soft and in a red sauce. The potatoes are roasted and lightly herbed and rather good. I tried my wife's rice (the other starch option) and it was nice, loose and flavorful. My main came with their own house cream cheese, this stuff is awesome and goes great with the spicy Chevaps.

I'm near done my meal when my wife points out: "didn't that say it came with Pita" - hey that's right! what's the buttered loaf I have? Pita would have fit much better. Yet another mistake, that I wouldn't mind so much if they were transparent about it. We've been here far too long, we've had a bunch of issues but that main was so good it's almost made up for it. At this point I'm thinking maybe go back, without the kids due to the length of time everything took, but maybe give them another shot. Then we get to the 3rd course: the dessert.

We've now been here an hour and fourty-four minutes. They confirm we want our dessert. We say yes and the waitress goes away. It's at this point that my parents point out they didn't order dessert yet (remember, I mentioned this up above). So we wave the waitress down and point this out. She says, "oh! okay! So you all want dessert?" We agree and my parents try to order. Now remember we are here for Winter Bites, we told her this when we got here. The Winter Bites menu only has two dessert options on it, Creme Brulee or Apple Crumble Cheesecake. My mom tells her they both want the Apple Cheesecake. "Oh I'm so sorry we are all out." Wait what?!? You tell us this now? Your set menu item for the special menu we are here to enjoy is out of stock and you failed to tell us over the last hour and forty five minutes? The waitress offers my mom Pyramid cake (some lady finger thing) she gives up and agrees to this. It comes out, four of them, one for each of us. My wife asks first: "but where is my Creme Brulee?"  "Oh we are out of that too. I don't know why but everyone was having those two items today" No shit! Those are the two items on your special menu!

We've given up at this point. We finish the sub par cake like dessert. They apologize for the lack of dessert. Note: just the dessert issue, what about all the other issues? We pay. We leave. I pretty much vow never to go back. I'm so frustrated by the experience I feel I need to share. So I made this blog.