Tag Archives: Independent Eatery

Edmonton Restaurant Review: Nuovo Bistro

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Insalata Di Barbabietoli

As is often the case, I cannot pass up a good deal. Therefore, when I came across a Groupon for the new Nuovo Bistro on 124 Street, I had to snap it up. Sure, I’d seen some mixed reviews about the restaurant after their debut in the fall. Nevertheless, others since seemed to rave about it. I figured that the savings would give me ample reason to stop in and make my own conclusions.

After a couple of hours spent perusing the shops that dot the district, my boyfriend and I decided it was time for an early supper. When we stepped through the doors into the entryway, I made note of their reservation book. There was just one group coming in at around seven o’clock. We were there less than an hour after they’d opened for the evening. It was quiet and I could see that there was no one else dining. I tentatively walked into the dining room and called out a “hello” to the server who was diligently wrapping utensils in napkins. She quickly came over to greet us; happy to have some customers.

The interior of Nuovo Bistro.

With the world as our oyster, we grabbed one of the tables by the large front windows, and I started to really observe everything. The Italian eatery had taken over the space vacated by previous tenant, Dovetail Deli, and it’s essentially unrecognizable inside. They must have removed some walls in the back because it looks much larger and elongated. The square footage is utilized a lot better with ample seating running in parallel rows. The kitchen, handled by two chefs, is clean and open. While the tables and chairs are somewhat rudimentary, the bright red booth and the cityscape/wood panelled accent walls lend the place a sense of whimsy.

Glasses of water were brought over along with the menus, and it was time for us to get down to business. We waffled between several choices before settling on our selections: Insalata Di Barbabietoli, Tagliatelle Florentine and Cannelloni.

The refreshing beet salad.

Extra side plates were brought out for us to share our Insalata Di Barbabietoli ($11.95), which translates in English to a beet salad. Nuovo Bistro’s iteration consisted of thick sliced roasted beets, whole spiced walnuts, dollops of creamy rosemary goat cheese and a white balsamic reduction. Fresh ground pepper was added on top to give it some kick. Overall, it’s an extremely refreshing starter. The beets were perfectly cooked and sweet. The root veggie’s pretty pink juice mixed harmoniously with the zestiness of the lemon balsamic reduction. The rosemary goat cheese helped to mellow out the acidity and the walnuts gave it an earthy flavour. It’s actually such a simple dish, but one that is worth trying. My only wish was that there were more of the latter two ingredients utilized.

Shortly after we polished off the salad, our two main courses arrived. My first impression was that the portion sizes were very generous for the price.

Cannelloni

Once I snapped my photos, my boyfriend dug right into his plate of Cannelloni ($15.95). The large rolls of pasta ─ dough made in-house according to the menu description ─ were stuffed with ground beef, spinach and mozzarella cheese. The three tubes were then topped with a tomato cream sauce, parmesan and chopped parsley for garnish. I had a few bites of the pasta and, surprisingly, it was lighter than I expected. I tend to find cannelloni fillings to be quite dense. Yet, this was the opposite. I also really enjoyed the tomato sauce as it sort of reminded me of one that was wine based in terms of the depth of flavour. It didn’t come across as a cream sauce as the menu listed and that’s okay. I think that’s what kept it from becoming too heavy.

Tagliatelle Florentine

My dish of Tagliatelle Florentine ($15.95) was piled high with long, flat ribbons of pasta. The cream sauce was similar to an alfredo with a rich, nutty flavour and a smooth consistency. Diced tomatoes and wilted spinach added an acidity and minerality. Most of all, I was impressed with the amount of chicken provided. I often find that restaurants skip out on the protein, but not here. Although I have to admit that the meat wasn’t as tender as I hoped it would be, it was plentiful and seasoned well with fresh herbs. As much as I wanted to keep eating, I knew I had to stop myself half way through and have the rest packed up.

When our bill came, I made note of the fact that our server took the time to jot down a message on our receipt. It felt personal and I appreciated that. In all honesty, it’s hard to judge a restaurant when it’s quiet. Of course the staff will be more attentive. What else is going to fill their shift? However, I do believe that regardless of whether or not its busy, Nuovo Bistro is a place where you’ll get great service and a friendly atmosphere. No, the food isn’t quite at the level of Edmonton’s finest Italian restaurants. But, what I sampled absolutely made me want to come back.

Edmonton Restaurant Review: Vaticano Cucina

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A slice of the St. Francis Montanara pizza.

Whenever I’m making plans for an outing with friends, one of the first places I check for restaurant possibilities is the OpenTable app. I love that the ability to make a reservation is just a few clicks away. Sometimes it’ll even bring up a total gem.

During a recent search, I happened upon an eatery called Vaticano Cucina. New to Edmonton’s south side, it took over the space vacated by Koutouki Taverna on Gateway Boulevard and 45 Avenue.

As it turns out, the business opened their doors at the beginning of May. Only in operation for a few weeks before we visited, I had kept it in the back of my mind until I was planning an escape room event. Just four minutes away by car from the game venue, Vaticano Cucina was the perfect spot for our get together.

The expansive interior of Vaticano Cucina.
Part of one of the fresco ceilings and a decorative tapestry.

On a sunny Sunday afternoon, we headed over to the restaurant where we found a couple of our friends circling the building. A lack of signage and multiple doors threw them off, so they were looking for the main entrance (it’s the one facing the Travelodge). Once inside, we were greeted and led to our table. It was situated on a raised platform to the side, but it didn’t feel enclosed at all. It actually provided great vantage points of the kitchen and the expansive interior while allowing us to talk without any distractions. We also noted the fresco-like ceilings. Inspired by the Sistine Chapel, Vaticano Cucina had large scale canvas prints of classic Italian paintings made and wallpapered to raised portions of the ceiling throughout. This was a neat detail in an otherwise neutral, but stylish room.

A cup of coffee.

The atmosphere lends itself well to the idea of brunch, and I think it’s important to note that only those items are served until 2pm during the weekend. Afterwards, the regular menu takes effect. I was unaware of that before we arrived, so I wasn’t expecting to find a pared down list. Nevertheless, there was no problem finding something I wanted to eat.

In the end, two people opted for the Chicken Parmesan Panini with Chips, one selected the Italian Prosciutto & Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto (or Cubano Pork Traditional; I may have them confused) Eggs Benedict and the last of us chose the Strozzapretti Funghi.

Eggs Benedict

Off the bat, I’ll make it known that I didn’t try any of the Eggs Benedict ($15), but it looked wonderful and hearty. Focaccia bread was laid with large slices of Cubano pork, two soft poached eggs and covered in a brown butter Hollandaise sauce. Their version of hash browns was served on the side and was different than anticipated as they were prepared more like smashed potatoes. My friend reluctantly shared a bit with his wife before devouring the whole thing himself.

Chicken Parmesan Panini

I did get to try some of the Chicken Parmesan Panini since my boyfriend generously cut off a corner of his sandwich for me. It was better than I imagined it would be, too. The chicken was breaded and fried until succulent on the inside and crunchy on the outside. It was then placed between the slices of bread with the perfect amount of tomato sauce and melted cheese. In addition, the bread was incredibly buttered and sprinkled with herbs before being grilled. It was simple, but also rich and indulgent. The side of chips was prepared in-house and came with a refreshingly creamy dill dip.

Strozzapretti Funghi

My dish was the Strozzapretti Funghi. I’ll quickly note that their pasta is handmade, but it’s not freshly created at the restaurant. The dry pasta is actually imported from Italy. Taking that into consideration, it’s still very good. The noodles were cooked until perfectly al dente and stirred with cream sauce, spinach, Fontina cheese and a trio of mushrooms. The dish was garnished with some arugula to round out the flavour profile. I also sprinkled on some grated Parmesan cheese and chili flakes. Surprisingly, the dish refrained from being too dense. I polished it off without any issues and still had room for a snack.

Joe, who co-owns Vaticano Cucina with his brother and both of their wives, chatted with us while we dined. He happily shared some of his family’s Italian history with us while also taking the time to describe what a Montanara pizza is – flash deep-fried dough that is then baked in their wood burning oven – before fully convincing us to try one.

The full St. Francis Montanara Bianca Pizza.

We figured that it wouldn’t be a problem for five people to eat a whole pizza and we were correct. The most difficult part was deciding which one to order. There are over a dozen choices, and each one is creatively named after various saints. Ultimately, we went with the first one Joe suggested, St. Francis. Quite honestly, I couldn’t really decipher a change from the regular Neapolitan pizza preparation as the consistency of the baked and charred dough was so similar. But, I’ve heard that the main difference actually comes down to the taste, which is deeper in flavour with the Montanara. Regardless, the crust had just the right amount of chew and crispness. The toppings of fig, chevre (goat cheese), arugula, onion jam and balsamic glaze made for a light yet punchy pizza.

Thanks to the wonderful food, relaxed venue and friendly hospitality, we left Vaticano Cucina in a great mood and we felt more than ready to take on the day. We also unanimously agreed that each of us would be happy to go back. For such a newcomer to the Edmonton restaurant scene (especially in the south of the city), they’ve already proven themselves to be worthy of a second helping.

Edmonton Restaurant Review: ‘Ono Poke Co.

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The traditional ‘Ono Poke bowl.

As a food lover, it has been fantastic to see new restaurants popping up all over Edmonton. Within the last month, there have been about a handful of new establishments gracing our streets, including Ono Poke Co., which celebrates their grand opening today.

Located north of Jasper Avenue on 104 Street, the spacious shop will be open six days a week to serve guests. Although Ono Poke Co. is not the first to introduce the beloved Hawaiian dish of poke (raw fish salad) to Edmontonians, Executive Chef Lawrence Hui has taken a very different approach with his offerings.

Initial plans for Lawrence’s fast-casual restaurant were similar to Splash Poke‘s Build-Your-Own-Bowl concept. Yet, after an eye-opening trip to Maui at the beginning of May, Lawrence decided to focus on a chef-driven menu instead.

Chef Tom Muromoto imparting his wisdom on Chef Lawrence Hui. Photo by Liv Vors.

During Lawrence’s trip to the island, he stayed at the Ka’anapali Beach Hotel where their executive chef, Tom Muromoto, took Lawrence under his wing. In addition to teaching the history of poke and the best techniques to make it, Chef Muramoto also took Lawrence out surfing.

As Lawrence toured Maui, he also met with Chef Charlie Owen of Hula Grill Ka’anapali, Chef Jesse Anacleto of Roy’s Ka’anapali (named after Chef Roy Yamaguchi, the great pioneer and champion of Hawaiian cuisine) and Chef Ikaika Manaku of Mauka Makai at the Westin Nanea. Through and through, the hospitality of the island’s chefs shone. Each one gladly shared their version of “traditional” poke along with some modern takes that used different proteins such as beef, scallops, shrimp and beets.

It was through this educational experience that Lawrence came to fully understand the fusion of flavours in Hawaiian food. A combination of Filipino, Portuguese, Puerto Rican, Chinese, Korean and Japanese tastes and traditions can be deciphered and it’s that willingness to blend them all together that makes their dishes so unique.

As soon as Lawrence returned home, he scrapped his original idea and menu. Starting from scratch, he came up with a succinct list of items: ‘Ono Poke, The G.G., The Twitch in Tuna, Uncle Tom’s Surf Poke (inspired by and named after Chef Tom Muromoto), Prairie Luau and the vegan and gluten free Beet the Poke.

Crafting the samples of poke during our pre-opening event.

I had the opportunity to try a few of their dishes at a pre-opening event earlier this week and I was definitely impressed. What I loved most was how large and fresh the cubes of fish were. They were marinated to enhance the flavour rather than mask the taste of the seafood, which is so important when it comes to poke.

The ‘Ono (‘Ono means “delicious” and ono means “fish) Poke bowl is their most traditional offering. It utilizes Ahi tuna ─ yellowfin tuna that swims in warmer waters and is pinker in colour ─ with shoyu sauce, sesame oil, ginger, seaweed, white onion, macadamia nuts, Hawaiian salt, sea asparagus, green onion and their Asian slaw (red cabbage, daikon carrot and cilantro). Admittedly, I’m not a big fan of cilantro, but I felt that all the flavours and textures were there. As Lawrence said, it was imperative to ensure that there were layers to the bowls; each one needed to finish with some sort of crunch and had to have excellent palate profiles.

Uncle Tom’s Surf Poke

Uncle Tom’s Surf Poke was my personal favourite. This brought a creamier consistency to the tuna with the use of a spicy tobiko aioli instead of the shoyu sauce. White onion, cucumber, edamame beans, green onion, micro greens, sea asparagus and wasabi crab chips gave it several punches of colour and just a slight amount of pungency. It’s also the only selection on the menu that didn’t include cilantro in it. However, on a second visit, it was made with the herb sprinkled on top, so I’d definitely suggest letting the staff know to exclude any cilantro if there’s an aversion to the taste. In any case, the Surf Poke was a less salty offering and it felt pretty refreshing.

Prairie Luau

Of the three that I sampled, I’d say that the Prairie Luau fell in the middle for me. Rather than a protein of fish, it came with gochujang (red chili paste) marinated braised pork, gochujang vinaigrette, Chinese black fungus mushroom, cucumber, white onion, green onion, house-made kimchi (contains shrimp), chili oil and cilantro. It was certainly the spiciest option, but not in a way that scorched your taste buds. On the contrary, the pork was so succulent and the kimchi was fermented to bring out that balance of heat and acidity.

All of the bowls can be customized with a base of either short grain Japanese rice, salad greens or quinoa. Once the bowl is made and collected, I’d also recommend splashing some of their Hawaiian Chili Water into the mix as it adds a whole new dynamic to the dish.

The menu boards at ‘Ono Poke Co.

Even though the prices seem a tad high ($11.95 to $14.95 for a regular size bowl), the quality of the ingredients speak for themselves. Everything is prepared fresh daily and, if it can be made in-house, it is. Apart from the fully prepared bowls, there will even be containers of kimchi, shoyu japchae (sweet potato noodles and veggies) and fresh marinade poke, bags of house-made taro chips, and bottles of Hawaiian Chili Water for sale, so a feast can be laid out at home.

In a way, this spread of one of Hawaii’s most popular foods across the Pacific Ocean shows just how dynamic a place Edmonton is. If we can’t go to Hawaii, why not have the chance to familiarize ourselves with that State’s cuisines and culture right in our own back yard? I’m thankful that Ono Poke Co. is bringing us this authentic poke experience.

For Hawaiian’s, it’s typical to end the work day with some beer, snacks and poke. In fact, there are dozens of varieties of poke available (even in liquor stores). While the menu at Ono Poke Co. is a small one, Chef Lawrence and his team are doing their absolute best to pay tribute to their Hawaiian mentors. By providing the most genuine poke possible, I imagine that they’ve made all those Maui chefs proud.

Sou Chef Matt with Executive Chef Lawrence

Edmonton Restaurant Review: Wishbone

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The interior has been updated since it’s MRKT days.

Today marks the official opening of Wishbone. Brought to life by Chef Brayden Kozak and Head Bartender/General Manager Shaun Hicks of Three Boars Restaurant Group, this is the latest entry to Edmonton’s bustling restaurant scene.

Often times, I’m pretty late to the game when it comes to trying new places. On this occasion, I’d say I was lucky to come across Wishbone on social media and, by following their feeds, I was able to stay in the loop on the eatery’s endeavours. That includes sneak peek dinners that they’ve been hosting for the past two to three weeks. Last Thursday, I attended one of these multi-course meals to get a sense of what they’re calling refined Canadian Surf & Turf offerings as well as their potential Vegetarian menu.

My friend and I arrived to the space that previously housed MRKT (above Red Star at 10542 Jasper Avenue). While the bones of the room remained the same (curved ceiling and the natural horizontal shiplap look), the rest had been revamped with booth seating, pea/avocado green coloured leather upholstery, simple white globe lights throughout and an industrial cement based bar next to the open kitchen.

When it came to the food, I went along with the Surf & Turf option for the evening. My friend, on the other hand, is allergic to shellfish. Therefore, with an unknown menu and wanting to avoid a reaction, she decided to give the Vegetarian dishes a shot.

As the plates were brought out and descriptions were provided, we did our best to keep track of everything that we were told. Admittedly, that proved to be a difficult feat. But, I’ll do what I can to stay as true to the dish as possible here.

Fresh Oyster with Shaved Beef Heart
Split Pea Fries with Canola Aioli

To start, my friend enjoyed her appetizer of split pea fries with canola aioli. I didn’t end up sampling these. Yet, from what I could tell, the fries held together when picked up and they looked non-greasy and crisp with just a light breaded coating. The bright yellow aioli also provided a shot of colour to the plate. For the regular menu, the first dish consisted of a fresh shucked oyster sprinkled generously with shaved beef heart and served on a bed of salt. I’ve never eaten raw oyster – I prefer them fried – so this was new for me. The oyster slid out of the shell easily and it was briny, yet not in an overwhelming way. The juice was savoury and the dried beef heart shavings added texture and gaminess.

Roasted Beets with Stilton Blue Cheese

For our salad, we received roasted beets, caramelized onions, Stilton blue cheese and spicy greens. I can’t say that I tasted any heat from the greens laid atop the salad. That is unless cilantro is counted as spice. Personally, the herb sort of separated me from dish as I’m not a fan of the taste. To most, it’s refreshing. To me, it’s unpleasant. If I have to, I can get through a cilantro dish though. In this case, it wasn’t terrible. More than anything, the pungency of the blue cheese and the sweetness of the onions and tender roasted beets helped to mask any unwanted enhancements. My friend, conversely, loves cilantro and this plate turned out to be her favourite of the night.

Seared Monk Fish
Tofu Cakes

Next up was a course of monk fish laid on stewed tomatoes, onions and a sauce with Vietnamese herbs and fish sauce. I thought I sensed some cilantro in this dish as well, but it was avoidable. What I did like about it was the use of shredded mint leaves as they provided some refreshment. The fish was also nicely seared on both sides, giving it that slightly charred taste and texture. The vegetarian version of this dish was made with a similar broth, minus the fish sauce, and instead of the monk fish, it was presented with stacked tofu cakes surprisingly rich in flavour.

Hanger Steak with Clams

The Surf & Turf main course ran the full spectrum by mixing both meat and seafood on the one plate. A slice of rye bread acted as the base. From there, it was piled with ramps, lacto-fermented onions, slices of hanger steak, clams and then, if I remember correctly, a clam jus reduction. I actually found the steak to have more chew than I’d prefer. On the plus side, the meat was cooked until rare to medium rare, which was ideal for me. At first, I didn’t think I’d like the rye bread all that much due to the toasting. Yet, I’d say that it won me over. The density of it helped to prevent sogginess from the sauce, and the sour, earthy taste worked well with the meat, clams and pungently garlic-like flavour of the ramps.

Rutabaga in Cream Sauce with Nori, Fried Kale and Hazelnuts

We were interested to see what the entrée for the vegetarian meal would consist of. It turned out to be a large helping of salt roasted rutabaga tossed in a creamy dressing and topped with lacto-fermented fried kale, shreds of nori and hazelnuts. The rutabaga sits between the texture of a potato and that of a beet. It has a hint of sweetness, which is why it likely worked so well with the somewhat bitter greens, salty nori and nutty hazelnuts.

Sesame Egg Custard
Polishing off my dessert!

To complete our dinner, sesame egg custard was prepared and served alongside sesame tuile cookies and a thick caramel sauce. The tuile cookies weren’t as delicate as they traditionally are, but they were delicious. They held up as I dipped them in caramel or layered custard and caramel on top of them. It appeared to be a relatively simple dessert, but it still felt indulgent and worth the calories.

From this early experience, I can truly say that I’m looking forward to revisiting Wishbone. Compared to their other sit-down restaurant, Three Boars, there is a greater sense of polish in terms of service provided and presentation of the dishes. Yet, it doesn’t make the venue unapproachable. In fact, the opposite is true. The overall atmosphere is fairly casual, and the team is a friendly and nonjudgmental bunch (at least when it comes to joking about licking plates clean). For a place to expand the palate, give Wishbone a shot.

Edmonton Restaurant Review: Dorinku

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Dorinku Appetizer Platter ($15.30)

Dorinku, an izakaya serving Tokyo street food, had been on my list of places to visit for at least the past year. So, when my friend was able to meet me for dinner a couple of weeks ago, we took the opportunity to stop by Whyte Avenue to check it out.

The block surrounding the restaurant has ample free parking, so it was easy to find a space nearby. When we arrived at around 6:30pm on the Tuesday evening, the establishment was fairly busy. A number of the tables were already occupied; however, there was no wait. We were immediately greeted and taken to our seats.

Homemade Fresh Ginger Ale ($4)

Our server was prompt to grab us our drinks (homemade fresh ginger ale at $4 each), yet he also gave us ample time to peruse the menu when we couldn’t quite make our decisions.

Ultimately, we started our meal off with the Dorinku Appetizer Platter ($15.30), which is apparently offered in limited quantities every day. Luckily, we managed to snag an order. On this particular night, our seven tasters consisted of Tuna Tataki, Tsukune Yakko, Tuna Avocado, Tako Wasabi, Chicken Karaage, Tomato Kimchi and Pickled Eggplant. Aside from the eggplant, all of the other samplers could be found within the menu. Therefore, this is a fantastic way to go about trying a number of their items.

Tomato Kimchi

We opted to work our way clockwise around the dish from opposite sides of the plate, so the first thing I sampled was the Tomato Kimchi. Surprisingly, the heat wasn’t as strong as I expected. I’ll chalk it up to the juiciness of the fruit as I believe it watered down the spice. Granted, I don’t necessarily mean that to be a criticism. I actually quite liked it and wished I could have had another piece.

Tako Wasabi

Next up was the Tako Wasabi and I wasn’t quite ready for it. The chopped octopus mixed with a wasabi dressing was, initially, overwhelming to my taste buds. It didn’t burn, but the wasabi was incredibly strong. As such, it takes away from the flavours of the tamago that topped the octopus and the sheets of nori wrap.

Tuna Tataki

One of my preferred was the Tuna Tataki with fresh fish that was nicely seared at the edges. A mix of sesame soy citrus sauce and homemade chili oil was drizzled over the tuna and then topped with green onion. Super tasty and just a tad spicy. There was also a little bit of crunch that possibly came from panko or tempura crumbs.

Chicken Karaage

If I’m correct, the Chicken Karaage was a bite size version of the available full order. The pieces of deep fried chicken were crisp and likely sprinkled with the green tea salt and covered in the chili mayonnaise mentioned on the menu. Everything worked well together and the batter refrained from being oily.

Tsukune Yakko

Tsukune Yakko is deep fried minced chicken patty and sliced white scallions served with fresh tofu, teriyaki sauce and chili oil. Truthfully, I wasn’t sure about this appetizer. It was decent though. It came across kind of lighter than I thought it would and it utilized a variety of textures.

Pickled Eggplant

Personally, I think Dorinku is doing a disservice to their customers by not putting the Pickled Eggplant on the menu as a regular item. Maybe it’s always made as part of this platter; nevertheless, I’d go for a bigger dish if it was an option. The eggplant was slightly acidic with a wonderful spongy consistency that soaked up all of the marinade.

Tuna Avocado

The last bite I had was the Tuna Avocado. Made with albacore tuna sashimi, avocado and a pureed Japanese citrus seaweed sauce, it was a refreshing mouthful. It was easily the simplest in terms of preparation, but the tuna melted in my mouth. Combined with the avocado, it created a buttery quality.

Mozzarella Minced Katsu ($9.80)

We continued our dinner with a plate of the Mozzarella Minced Katsu ($9.80). These were balls of minced beef and pork cutlet wrapped around mozzarella cheese filling, which were then breaded and deep fried. I squeezed some fresh lemon juice onto them before dipping them into the accompanying sesame soy sauce. These were pretty delicious. Although, I would suggest adding even more cheese into the center as the first one I ate lacked in that department and that’s what makes them worth eating.

Corn and Kale Kakiage ($7.80)

As we ate our food, we’d take into account what people around us were ordering and those seated next to us convinced us to try the Corn and Kale Kakiage ($7.80). If I had my way, kale would only ever be prepared in fried form.  The patties of tempura coated corn and kale were lightly breaded, allowing for just the right amount of crunch. Any bitterness from the kale was masked by the sweetness of the large, fresh corn kernels and the butter soy sauce.  Honestly, these tasted good, but they felt a tad too greasy.

Carbonara Udon ($13.80)

Not completely satiated, we finished off our meal with one more item. The whole time we were at Dorinku, the Carbonara Udon ($13.80) on the Days’ Special Menu called to us. This did not disappoint! The thick Japanese wheat flour noodle had the perfect chew and the carbonara sauce ─ creamy with bacon and a poached egg ─ was to die for. It also came to the table in a hot stone bowl, so the sauce stayed bubbling hot. As long as it’s still being offered, it would be my top pick next time I’m there. Our server agreed that it’s his favourite, too.

Overall, Dorinku has a laid back, casual atmosphere, making it a great place for a get together. Their diverse menu should satisfy most diners and the friendly service we experienced was top notch.

Frozen grapes, in place of candies, came with the bill.