My Blog = My Life: comfort food

THE ROUND-UP:

Food - 3.5 out of 5
Service - 4.0 out of 5
Decor - 3.0 out of 5
Total - 10.5 out of 15

1970 Hamilton Street
Regina, SK
306-205-8345
fliprestaurant.ca
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Flip Eatery opened its doors in November 2011 on a slushy mid-fall day just before Remembrance Day. The timing isn't likely the most common for a restaurant opening, but from Day 1 folks flocked to Flip in droves.

Tucked into a new addition to the Avord Tower just behind Atlantis coffee shop on Hamilton Street, Flip is all windows, wood, clean lines, and simple modernism. It's one part Ikea, one part EQ3, and a pinch of boho chic as far as style goes.
While it might not have the glam factor some people look for in a downtown restaurant, Flip has plenty of good going for it. The huge, unobstructed windows onto Hamilton Street are a big contrast from almost any other restaurant downtown, most notably Golf's, the Diplomat, Crave, and Memories (all within a couple of blocks of Flip). It's as though we're finally celebrating downtown Regina and not covering it up with drapes and heavy velvet in order to pretend we're somewhere else.
Flip's menu is classic comfort food for the very large part - several sandwiches, a couple of burgers, a risotto, a bit of seafood, wings, salads, and, of course, soups make up the majority. And there's a deadly poutine that comes with the option to add in shortribs or pulled chicken as a bonus. (Try either or both, you won't regret it, and the portion sizes are heart-friendly, for poutine that is).
Prices fall in the mid-range. You're looking at roughly $15 for lunch (with a drink) and $25 for supper (with an appetizer and a drink). It's not cheap, exactly, but Flip definitely won't break the bank.
An informal survey of my friends regarding the restaurant resulted in everything from, "Love it!" to "It's good but not quite great." Some were less excited about the decor, and others feel the menu could use some pizzazz. From my perspective, Flip could add some variety to the lunch versus supper menus (right now they're the same). While I understand the benefits of having one menu for a chef and owner as far as minimizing food wastage and cutting down on prep time and ordering, the supper menu still feels a bit too "lunchey". I'm more likely to stay home if a sandwich is what I'm craving for supper.
That being said, Flip deserves huge credit for turning a non-descript piece of land into a happening downtown hangout. As Regina grows, more people are seeing downtown as a place to live, not just to work. Places like Flip make our downtown core even more attractive, and that's always a good thing.

The Round-up:

• Food - 3.5 out of 5
• Service - 3 out of 5
• Decor - 4 out of 5
• Total - 10.5 out of 15

3255 Quance Street, Regina, SK.
Phone: 306-586-7625

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I have to admit, Regina's East End isn't a part of town I visit all that often. I make the long drive down Victoria Street East once every week or two, usually to pay a visit to Costco. The rest of the time, I prefer doing my shopping in other parts of town where the traffic is a little less likely to cause a headache and a little more likely to support local business.

As a result, I often forget about one of our city's best casual restaurants. Rock Creek Tap and Grill opened about three years ago. The sight of a locally owned restaurant among the many chains that line the East End's streets was a welcome one. To boot, the food was great and the decor was classy, without being all uppity.

I've made several more trips to Rock Creek for good appetizers and great meals since then, but my last trip was almost a year ago. Until yesterday.

We arrived around 1 o'clock and the parking lot was almost totally full. A pretty good sign for a Saturday afternoon. As usual, we sat in the lounge where a table for six was easier to come by. We made ourselves comfortable and managed to score a couple of menus (literally two). Like I said, it was busy. Drinks were a bit slow to come by, as was the waitress to take our order, but thankfully we weren't in any hurry.

When it came time to order, we stuck mainly to pub-food classics, or Comfort Food, as the menu calls it: Chicken Fingers with fries; the Hickory Barbecue Chicken Burger; the Black and Blue Burger (a Cajun-style sirloin burger with blue cheese, bacon, lettuce and tomato); and the Quance Street Club (grilled chicken breast, smoked bacon, pea shoots, tomato, avocado, jack cheese and pesto aioli).

The food hit our table in good time and we dug in with gusto. Things suddenly got very quiet. Only the sound of chewing and the odd, "Mmm, this is good," broke the silence. The portions were hearty, as were the sides. I had a spicy cup of Chicken Vegetable with my Club. With four or five slices of jalapeno pepper floating in the broth, it was an interesting soup. I'll leave it at that.

Big Poppa, my dad, was making short work of his burger with yam fries next to me. Across the table my sister, normally an adventurous diner, was munching on the chicken fingers. It was a choice she didn't regret. The Calgary Boys also had no complaints about their sandwiches. Actually, they ate them so fast that I'm not totally sure what one of them ordered.

Rock Creek's menu is a savvy one -- there's the right mix of classic standbys and new inventions to keep you interested, and to keep you coming back. On the appetizer menu, you'll find everything from Cajun Blackened Guac Scallops to good-'ole nachos (with bacon and banana peppers). The lounge has food and drink specials almost every night of the week, and a bevy of fancy TVs. Can't get tickets to the next Rider game? Try hanging out here. If you can get a parking spot, that is.

www.rockcreekgrill.com