Tag Archives: Sandwiches

Edmonton Restaurant Review: Hart’s Table & Bar

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The interior of Hart's Table & Bar. Photo courtesy of Century Hospitality Group.

The interior of Hart’s Table & Bar. Photo courtesy of Century Hospitality Group.

About a month ago, my friends and I were trying to make plans for a girls’ night out. We wracked our brains for somewhere to eat. Most of us live on the south side of Edmonton, and, as has become apparent, there aren’t a lot of dining options when you exclude all of the chain restaurants from the list.

While there’s nothing wrong with a chain (many of you know how much I love places like Cactus Club and Joey), we simply wanted something different on this occasion. Eventually, we narrowed down our limited choices and settled on Hart’s Table & Bar.

Part of Century Hospitality Group’s collection of restaurants that dot the city of Edmonton, it was a location I hadn’t yet set foot in. Situated in a strip mall just off of 23 Avenue and Rabbit Hill Road, I’d seen the eatery’s sign while passing by on the bus, but never made the effort to stop by.

Arriving for our get together, I pulled at the heavy main door and found myself in a stylishly decorated space. With lounge-type chairs and couches near the entrance and a huge bar as its focal point, I could tell that the restaurant caters to a clientele that just wants to relax and enjoy a good time over some drinks.

The host took us to our bar height table where we started to settle in while we waited for our one friend to join us. My first thought was that the table was incredibly small for four people.

The share plates and cutlery that were set took up all the space and our menus were teetering on the brink. In fact, before our last member showed up, I had already created a loud clatter twice as I sent a couple of the menus belly flopping to the floor. How embarrassing. Those tables really should only seat two people at the maximum. By the time water and drink glasses are added and your main plates show up, there is literally no room left for a group of four to maneuver that comfortably.

The 'Not Nachos' ordered as our shared starter.

The ‘Not Nachos’ ordered as our shared starter.

When it came to the food, we decided to start off with a shared order of the ‘Not Nachos.’ The flavour was there thanks to the shredded braised short rib, but the greasy house made kettle chips left more to be desired. Once covered in melted cheese, they lost their crispness and would often break when we tried to pick them up. It was a so-so appetizer that I am unlikely to get again.

For our mains, the three people I was dining with opted for salads. Two of them went with the My Wife’s Favourite Salad. A mix of grilled chicken breast, baby greens, berries, goat cheese, red quinoa, sunflower seeds and a champagne & lemon verbena vinaigrette, it’s the one I would have opted for had I gone the salad route as well. From what I could see, the salad was large and hearty. There was plenty of goat cheese, which to me would be the most important as it almost acts as an addition to the actual dressing, making for a creamier texture overall.

My Wife’s Favourite Salad
‘Country Club’ Cobb Salad

My other friend decided on the ‘Country Club’ Cobb Salad. It was also quite large (for almost $20 it should be massive). Off the bat, because of the blue cheese and the egg, it wouldn’t be my first choice on the menu, and when it came down to it, I think my companion was also a bit disappointed as the egg was very hard boiled and not what she expected. Also, Hart’s iteration of the Cobb salad just requires more work to eat as you have to cut the romaine hearts yourself. Simply digging right in doesn’t work. You have to really be more formal with that dish.

My Pig & Fig sandwich with Caesar salad.

My Pig & Fig sandwich with Caesar salad.

To be different, I chose to dine on the Pig & Fig sandwich. It sort of seemed like the cousin of Earls Kitchen + Bar’s Chicken, Brie + Fig Sandwich, which has been a longtime favourite of mine. A toasted ciabatta bun filled with slow roasted pork, fig preserve, apple arugula slaw, crispy bacon and Gruyère cheese, I figured I couldn’t go wrong. Although it tasted pleasant, I didn’t love the slow roasted pork. The meat wasn’t super tender. Rather, the pork was fattier than I’d prefer and somewhat chewy. The side of Caesar salad was okay though.

Hart’s has a decent drink menu, which will get a group through a long night of talk, and the desserts sound pretty good. In our case, we ended up foregoing dessert since we couldn’t decide on one that we’d all be willing to share, and we just didn’t have it in us to each eat our own.

Overall, I like the atmosphere of the restaurant and the service was good; however, whenever my next visit occurs, I’ll make a point of trying something new as what I’ve had and/or seen so far hasn’t wowed me. If I ever do go back on a date, or with a larger group of people, I just hope there’s enough space for us to spread out, so we can enjoy our meal without worrying about knocking something over.

Hart’s probably won’t be my go to place in the neighbourhood, but I’m not striking it from my list either. It’s likely a place that deserves a second chance, especially in an area saturated with the same old offerings found all over town. Plus, with good company, it becomes easier to overlook any misgivings I have about the restaurant.

Edmonton Restaurant Review: Farrow

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The menu is written on the chalk board above the front counter.

The menu is written on the chalk board above the front counter.

Farrow has been around for a little over a year and a half, and, in that time, it has made The Tomato‘s list of top 100 eats in Edmonton twice. In fact, it was voted by readers to the number one spot in 2015.

Being close to the Garneau and Old Strathcona, it’s a bit out of my way, so it wasn’t until this past summer’s Taste of Edmonton, which takes place near my office, that I was able to sample their offerings. Their menu changes all the time, but during our annual food festival, they presented two choices: roast beef and pulled pork.

I tried the roast beef when I was there. It was a small little slider served with chips, but I could tell all of the ingredients were extremely fresh. The arugula was crispy and the roast beef was thinly sliced. Most of the flavour came from the horseradish mayo and the pickled onions. It was decent, but not totally memorable. When my friend finished her roast beef sandwich, she stated their pulled pork slider was the better of the options they brought to Taste.

Flash forward a few weeks to August and the both of us were hanging out at the Fringe Theatre Festival. Since we were spending a full day trekking all over the Old Scona area from show to show with ample time in between, we decided that this was our opportunity to drop by the actual shop on 109 Street.

We perused the succinct menu and, in the end, we both chose to go with the Grick Middle, which is the sandwich that has been heavily lauded by the media and fans of the eatery. It’s the only one that remains a staple at Farrow. By and large, this is basically a glorified breakfast sandwich. Filled with a Four Whistle Farm fried egg, Sangudo bacon, smoked cheddar, rosemary aioli and arugula, the idea of the “unprocessed” comes to mind.

One of the staff packing up my sandwich.

One of the staff packing up my sandwich.

As they were preparing our orders, I watched the staff in the open kitchen fry up the eggs and put everything together. They wrapped up the sandwich lovingly in thick deli packing paper and sealed it with their logo. The location itself is tiny. There are about three bar stools that look out the window and another four to six seats at the picnic table that sits outside the shop’s steps right next to the sidewalk. It’s not the most comfortable, so we took our parcels and walked over to the park between Garneau Theatre and Upper Crust.

I unwrapped my package and, after examining the sandwich and how to approach it, I took a few bites. So far, it was okay. Eventually, I hit the egg yolk and, not only was the bread now soaked, but so were my hands. It’s a messy one. Once the egg yolk breaks, it coats the sandwich and it gives it a different mouthfeel. A fried egg on anything just improves it, and I think this sandwich needs that.

You can tell that everything is made fresh and from scratch, which is great, but I wasn’t blown away by the combination or the flavours, and I sort of think that it was lacking in terms of portion size. The sandwich looks big, but it mostly consisted of bread, egg and arugula. There wasn’t enough bacon for me to really discern that taste in every bite I had. Maybe for $7.50, my expectations were too high, but considering that is over $2 more than a breakfast sandwich at Starbucks and it didn’t truly satisfy me, I probably won’t be spending that much on the Grick Middle again.

My wrapped Grick Middle sandwich from Farrow.

My wrapped Grick Middle sandwich from Farrow.

It’s not to say that Farrow isn’t what everyone says it is. To each their own, really. I can see why people like the place. They’ve brought the popularity of the sandwich back. This isn’t what your mom packed for you during your school days. These are grown up versions, and I love a sandwich that is piled high with ingredients that play off each other and make you crave having it over and over.

This one didn’t do it for me, but it’s not to say another of Farrow’s sandwiches won’t be the one that wins me over. For now, Farrow is good, but, personally, it’s not great. It might get there someday though.

Edmonton Restaurant Review: Local Public Eatery

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The crispy chicken sandwich.

The crispy chicken sandwich.

Local Public Eatery, part of the Joey Restaurant Group, took over from the previous OPM.

I’d never been to OPM before it was replaced with Local, and it took me a few years before I finally visited the latter, but I’m glad that I did.

My first stop at Local was for brunch with my friend earlier this year. I opted to skip the brunch menu (although the banana pancakes with bacon sounded delicious) and went for the tuna club sandwich. Knowing how fabulous the Ahi tuna club is at Joey, I thought it’d be interesting to see how different they would be.

The daily drink specials and menu.
The interior of Local Public Eatery.
The tuna club sandwich.

The Local tuna club sandwich comes on some sort of sliced rye-type bread, toasted. It’s a bit too crusty for my liking and not quite thick enough that it holds the sandwich together well. However, the tuna was nicely seared and the avocado tasted cool and fresh against the salty bacon. My only wish was that the cheddar be more melted. Somehow, stringy cheese just seems more decadent.

More recently, I had a gift card to use, so I treated my parents to lunch on a Saturday. I love that their drinks are all quite affordable and that they have some great daily specials. Yet, they’ve attempted to be jump on the craft beer bandwagon without really offering anything more or different from places like MKT or Craft Beer Market.

Despite that, the service on both occasions was fantastic, and sometimes that trumps extra food and beverage options. More importantly, the dishes up for grabs meet the idea of elevated pub fare.

The Brooklyn Burger with sweet potato fries.

The Brooklyn Burger with sweet potato fries.

My Brooklyn burger with the beer battered onion ring, red pepper relish and 3 year old aged cheddar was deliciously juicy and seemed to borrow the idea of the relish from that aforementioned Ahi tuna club at Joey. You can’t go wrong with the added sweet potato fries and aioli dip.

The crispy chicken sandwich that my mom ordered, was gorgeously breaded and fried, but not greasy. Placed on a soft Portuguese bun with coleslaw and BBQ mustard sauce, it had a delicious tang that played well with the chicken. My father went the more traditional route with a plate of fish and chips. 2 pieces of beer battered fish with house-made tartar sauce on the side. The pieces of fish were large and whole and not overly breaded, which is preferable.

The bar and interior.
My Iron Fist mojito.
Fish and chips

By and large, Local is the younger, less mature cousin to the Joey Restaurant. The menus, both good, are distinct. Flavours on the Joey menu are more developed, a little more refined. But, if all you’re looking for is a fun, casual atmosphere with a menu that appeals to most and some beer and cocktails to wash it down, Local is the place to be.

Edmonton Restaurant Review: Rocky Mountain Icehouse

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One of the walls when you enter the restaurant.

One of the walls when you enter the restaurant.

Housed in the Jasper Block, built in 1909, and located on 105 Street and Jasper Avenue, Rocky Mountain Icehouse took the place of what used to be Fantasia Noodle House before that restaurant had to move in order to accommodate building renovations. Having ventured out on a walk during our coffee break on a sunny summer day, my co-workers and I stumbled upon the new eatery, and I made note that I would have to go back another time.

In September, on a particularly gorgeous afternoon, I grabbed a friend for lunch and the two of us started wandering with no idea of where to go until the memory of Rocky Mountain Icehouse popped into my head. They have a small sidewalk patio situated just outside the doors, but we opted to sit inside by the front windows, so we’d get the sunshine as well as some air conditioning. I have to admit, I was a little skeptical of the establishment. For the longest time they didn’t even have a working website despite having been open for a couple of months (rest assured, they have one now and it’s quite nice), so it didn’t seem like the owners were all that organized. Regardless, I was willing to give it a try.

The large interior of Rocky Mountain Icehouse.
One of the two entrances to the space.

The space is quite a bit larger than I expected. There’s even a large, private room called The Ski Lodge that can be used for smaller events or functions of up to 90 people. We were there for a later lunch, so I shouldn’t have been too surprised to see that only a few other tables were occupied. There was only one server on staff who indicated that we could seat ourselves wherever we wanted. She dropped off a couple of menus at our table and let us mull over the options. It’s a fairly succinct list of appetizers, soups, salads, sandwiches, dips, mains and dessert.

The two of us opted to share an order of the Cajun Chicken Three Cheese Dip to start. My friend decided on a bowl of the Southern Gumbo as her entree and I went with the Crab Cakes.

The Cajun Chicken Three Cheese Dip that we did order.
The Cream Cheese Tapenade that we didn’t order.

A plate of dip and warm pita bread arrived soon after we ordered. My first thought was that it tasted delicious, my second was that it wasn’t very spicy and my third was that I was impressed with how they managed to get something that was supposed to have chicken in it to such a smooth consistency. That’s when I thought I should check the photo I took of the menu, and we realized that we were given the wrong dip. Instead of the one we chose, our server brought us the Cream Cheese Tapenade – a blend of olives and cream cheese with a hint of spinach. Honestly, I was surprised at how much I was enjoying that dip before we figured out their mistake. I usually dislike olives with a passion (olive oil doesn’t count though), but I could barely taste them in this dip. I would have eaten the whole thing, but it wasn’t what we had wanted, so as soon as our server came back, I let her know, and she took it back to the kitchen and had a batch of the Cajun Chicken dip whipped up for us. Our second go round with dip was also tasty. This time, it was much chunkier with pieces of chicken breast, peppers, onions and jalapeno coming together with the cheese to pleasantly top off our soft slices of pita. Between the two dips, I’m not sure which I’d be more likely to eat again. I might actually be leaning more towards the tapenade, which is a slightly lighter dip. The cajun chicken dip can almost pass for a meal with the meat, cheese, veggies and starch…almost.

Southern Gumbo

Southern Gumbo

Unfortunately, I did not sample the Southern Gumbo as my friend was battling a cold, but she was raving about it. The portion size looked quite large and was filled with chicken, chorizo sausage, peppers, onions, corn and rice. In particular, the sausage looked like it was housemade because, rather than the sliced cylinders of sausage often found in dishes, it was more irregular in shape, which made my friend think it wasn’t pre-prepared. If that truly is the case, I would be impressed.

My order of crab cakes with aioli.

My order of crab cakes with aioli.

My crab cakes were fairly run-of-the-mill. However, it’s not to say there was anything wrong with them. On the contrary, they were what I expected. Nicely breaded and crisp on the outside, there was a good crunch to them that gave way to a mixture of crab claw meat, boursin, feta and cream cheese. The crab cakes were then drizzled with roast tomato and garlic aioli, which helped to finish off the flavour profile of the dish. Come to think of it, I really should have squeezed some lemon juice on them to give it a better balance. I’m not sure why I didn’t do that.

In any case, I did enjoy our meal there. It’s a great space with a welcoming atmosphere that, at least during a late lunch hour, is a quiet place to sit and chat. The food is sort of what you can find in any general pub, but they do an okay job with it (other reviews I’ve read have been mixed as well), and I hope that with time, as the restaurant builds on its identity, that it’ll continue to improve.

Edmonton Restaurant Review: Absolutely Edibles (Closed)

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Waffles with the Works

Waffles with the Works

Serving customers and offering catering since 1999, Absolutely Edibles (a.k.a. AE’s on 118th) took a chance by opening their business in what has long been considered a crumbling neighbourhood. They must have known in their gut that it was the right move though. Within the last few years, 118 Avenue has continued to improve with a number of entrepreneurs opting to set up shop along the previously notorious street.

A commitment to healthily prepared foods – creating dishes from scratch with fresh, local and Canadian products where possible – I wasn’t fully aware of the establishment until I truly began delving into the Edmonton restaurant scene this past January. Around for 15 years now, it had eluded me, but I finally decided to venture towards the unknown (as many of us are not apt to do, preferring to stick to the tried and true) because – say it with me now! – I had a Groupon to use.

The outdoor patio.
A view of the small restaurant.
The right side of the establishment.
Brick walls and mosaic tables give this place a chalet-like feel.
Tables tucked in the corner.

When you drive up to the building, it’s unassuming and small. There is a cute patio space filled with tables and umbrellas that shade from the sun on hot summer days. The interior seats only about 30 people; the decor of slate brick walls, mosaic tiled table tops, a mix of red, green and brown leather upholstered chairs and beige tiled floors, which all look recently updated or, at the very least, well kept, giving the space both a modern and slightly ski chalet-like vibe. It was a quiet Saturday afternoon when my parents and I stopped by for lunch, so we had our pick of spots as well as excellently attentive service from Ryan, the lone front of house staff member that day.

Part of the Sloppy Hoggs Roed Hus menu. Also available at AE’s.
The AE’s brunch menu.

On first impression, I was happy to see that the eatery was not only stylish, but impeccably clean. My second impression was that their menu was completely overwhelming. On weekends, I assume, you receive both their brunch and lunch menus. Plus, you also have the option to order from their sister restaurant, Sloppy Hoggs Roed Hus, which is located in the adjacent building (perhaps somehow sharing a kitchen). Each list was extensive, taking full advantage of the word “fusion” as used in the establishment’s full name. Menu options pull from various influences that run the gamut from Asian (dim sum) to Southern (jambalaya) cuisines. As I found it difficult to concentrate on all the possibilities, I decided to ask Ryan what his recommendations were. Ultimately, I went with the Pulled Pork Waffles, my mom chose the Waffles with the Works and my dad ordered the AE’s Classic Club.

What Absolutely Edibles lacks in terms of physical space, they certainly make up for when it comes to portion sizes! The plates, especially the two from the brunch menu, were brimming with food enough to feed at least two people each.

My dad raved about the Chicken Cacciatore Soup that came as a side to his sandwich. The tomato-based soup looked incredibly rich, thick and full of chicken and veggies, and the sandwich’s focaccia bread was stacked high with three meats – bacon, turkey and slow roasted ham – cheddar and mozzarella cheese, lettuce, tomato and mayo.

My dad’s AE’s Classic sandwich with Chicken Cacciatore soup.
My Pulled Pork Waffles.
Lollipops with the bill.

The Waffles with the Works was a compilation of two Belgian waffles topped with fried chicken, bacon, cheddar and mozzarella and then drizzled with a spicy maple cream. I tried a couple of bites out of the approximately four or five large pieces of chicken and was met with a crispy, juicy, but not greasy meat. I couldn’t really tell that the maple cream was spicy; however, I always enjoy a mix of savoury and sweet profiles. Pulled pork has become one of my preferred foods to eat when I see it on a menu (probably because I never make it at home), so I couldn’t pass up the Pulled Pork Waffles. The pork is smoked in-house and layered with the same spicy maple sauce, bacon and cheddar and mozzarella as my mom’s dish. It’s then finished off with a “blendmore” waffle sauce, two sunny side up eggs and a bit of maple syrup. If indulgent is what you want, that is exactly what you’ll get when you dine at AE’s. The only downfall of an otherwise fantastic dish was that the sauce smothered pull pork made the waffles soggy fairly quickly. Therefore, instead of having crisp and airy waffles, it became more like a mush with amazingly tasty shredded meat. Next time, instead of leaving everything piled directly on my waffles while I dine, I’ll probably shove everything to the side to avoid that. The two waffle plates also came with large sides of sweet potato fries (the Works was supposed to be covered in cinnamon sugar, but it didn’t taste like it), some aioli for dipping as well as a cup of fruit (this wasn’t mentioned on the menu).

A positive outcome of eating here is that for about $55 for three people (tax and tip included, no drinks), you will not only leave completely full, but you’ll also likely have leftovers to last you at least one more meal. In less than two hours, Absolutely Edibles became my father’s new favourite restaurant. He has even gone back twice more with different friends who were all equally impressed. I think this is where the establishment has found its success – word of mouth recommendations from trusted friends and family. I know I would not only tell people to go, but I’d make sure that they bring me with them whenever they do!

The entrance of Sloppy Hoggs Roed Hus.
My Mac & Brisket at Sloppy Hoggs. So good!
My dad’s Brisket & Buffalo Chili with cornbread at Sloppy Hoggs.
The bar and the large booths at Sloppy Hoggs. It definitely has a country feel.

If you have a chance, I suggest that you also check out Sloppy Hoggs Roed Hus, situated around the corner, because the food is just as good and the portion sizes are equally as generous. It’s also a great place for larger groups as most of the tables can seat about 6 to 8 people, maybe even more. The service is top notch, too.