With the official start of summer, comes the official start of soaking up the sun on restaurant patios.
Here are a few of my recommendations in Regina:
Cafe Orange: At the moment, Orange is doing coffee and sweets, but they tell me that a full menu is coming soon. Hopefully by Canada Day. In just two years, this place has gone from a coffee house/kitchenware store; to an all-out coffee house; and now a restaurant. The latest transformation looks to be the best. And the deck out front on Robinson Street (by the 13th Ave. Safeway) is so new you can still smell the sweet scent of new wood. (306) 779-0779 (no website)
Sweet Bakery and Coffee House: An ever-expanding list of baked goods, combined with comfortable surrounds in a heritage building (and a very nice, if small, patio outside) are turning this new Broad Street place near College Avenue into a favourite of many. Recommend an Americano with a Lemon Tart, if you're at a loss. (306) 352-9338 (no website)
La Bodega: the treetop patio at this Cathedral Village favourite is... tops, no pun intended. Sip a few drinks or have lunch high above the Albert Street traffic. You won't even notice the cars going by. www.labodegaregina.com / (306) 546-3660
Fireside Bistro: while opinions on Fireside often vary, their patio on the corner of Smith Street and 15th Avenue is second to none. Definitely worth a drink or two and an appetizer on a hot day. (306) 761-2305 (no website)
Beer Bros.: Watch the people go by on downtown's pedestrianized portion of Scarth Street. Beer Bros newly refinished patio is small but full of sunshine. Stop by and sample an exotic beer whose name you can't even pronounce (and that's before you start drinking). www.beerbros.ca / (306) 586-2337
Atlantis: This downtown coffee spot isn't licensed for liquor, but that doesn't keep the crowds away. Open from the early morning until late, and offers free wireless. Oh, and the artwork on the walls is all by local artists. www.atlantiscoffee.com / (306) 565-2213
More to come! Please follow the blog for updates to this list, and new reviews. Follow me on Twitter: @The_FoodDude
1822 Broad Street Regina, SK 306-586-BITE (2483) http://www.bittenonbroad.com/ _________________________________________________________
It's slightly gutsy to open a restaurant on a semi-abandoned block in downtown Regina that has seen its share of restaurants come and go over the years.
But entrepreneur Astrid Baecker did exactly that two years ago when renovations at 1822 Broad Street got underway. After sitting empty for a few years, the building was looking in pretty rough shape when things got started. Within a few months Baecker and her team added plenty of shine.
What's now known as Bitten used to be home to Gingerz. Before that it was a satellite location of India House for a matter of months. And wayyy before that it was New Orleans. And that's all the history I know of the place.
The room itself, long and narrow with a balcony looking over the main floor, is an awkward shape for a restaurant. That being said, Bitten has made things work by modernizing the colour scheme and placing high-top tables with bar stools on the main floor that can be easily moved around to accommodate groups of all sizes.
The second floor balcony is cozy and closer to the bar. If drinking is your main reason for visiting Bitten, sit upstairs.
The menu has grown over the last two years. It's now several pages long and covers a surprisingly wide range of cuisines. If you want Asian, Bitten does that. If you want Italian, Bitten does that. If you want Cajun, they do that too. While the variety is nice, the menu lacks focus overall. Some of the appetizers, like the stuffed mushroom caps, seem like a throwback to the '80s.
On the other hand, appetizers come in very generous portions. Some might even find them large enough to be a meal. They definitely make for good sharing in a group.
As for the rest of the food, it's generally good. Some entrees, like a Surf and Turf I had around Valentine's Day in 2009, lacked flavour. However, the pizzas and salads are filling, tasty, and priced just right.
I've been to Bitten five or six times in the last two years and the service has always been good, no matter the server. Service isn't always lighting fast, but it's attentive. And Bitten isn't really the type of place you go for a speedy meal.
I can't finish this review without talking about dessert. Bitten's motto, after all, is "Life is Short... Have Dessert First."
The menu features a whole page of desserts to choose from, all of them made in-house. Bitten does a good job of classics like the Creme Brulee and Creme Caramel. The Mascarpone Toffee Parcels were delish when I tried them a few months back. I haven't had Bitten's version of Sticky Toffee Pudding just yet, but that's next on my list.
My advice: check Bitten out if you haven't been, or if it's been awhile. It's worth supporting a local eatery that's breathing life into our downtown core.
Beer Bros' bustling brewpub hosts a five-course wild game dinner on May 18. Wildlife writer/photographer Duane Radford will join diners as research for an article on the joys of pairing food with beer... a tough job but somebody has to do it.
Tickets are $55 plus taxes and tip. Dinner gets underway at 7 p.m.
Kudos to Beer Bros for yet another unique concept.
I was really happy to hear that a new restaurant is coming to the downtown 'hood. Tangerine by chef Aimee Schulhauser of Evolution Catering will be a welcome addition to the strip of shops on 14th Avenue next to Lorne Street (2234 14th Avenue, to be exact). The restaurant will be open mainly during the daytime and into the early evening hours, with later hours a possibility once the restaurant has its feet under it (the same goes for a liquor licence). Schulhauser tells me that fresh garden vegetables from her grandma's garden will be front and centre this summer. She calls Tangerine's menu a "chef's playground" featuring a handful of semi-permanent sandwiches and salads, along with whatever else she creates on any given day. Tangerine's website will be up and running in June. In the meantime, check out Schulhauser's other website: http://www.ecff.ca/
I'm excited to bring news about a new restaurant about to open its doors in Regina.
Tangerine, by Chef Aimee Schulhauser of Evolution catering, will be up and running in approximately one month. No word yet on location, but I've noticed some construction happening at Evolution on Lorne Street. Perhaps Tangerine will open in the same spot?
There's a very good chance that Tangerine, like Evolution, will emphasize fresh, local food as much as possible. The restaurant will be a welcome addition to our downtown food scene, especially since Zest closed its doors last month.
So, May is here and the outdoor Farmers' Markets started again today. Unfortunately, the weather couldn't have been much worse. Rain, snow, and cool winds did not make for a great turnout this morning at the new location next to City Hall. In fact, I only counted about 10 vendors of a possible 50-60.
It's a real shame, considering that two weeks ago we were all wearing shorts and basking in +23 degree temps.
Well, things can only get better from here. If the sun is shining next weekend expect a good turnout at the market. Get on out there and buy some local food!
It just dawned on me today that the farmers' market makes its return to the great outdoors in only two weeks.
I decided to check their website, just to make sure I had the date right.
I do.
But that's not even the most exciting part. Regina's farmers' market will be in a completely different location this year. They are moving three blocks west to City Hall! The new market will line Smith and McIntyre streets between Victoria Avenue and 12th Avenue. They will also make use of the plaza in front of City Hall. This rocks!
Of course, it's a temporary location only. Construction will begin on Scarth Street this summer to create the new City Square Project.
Bonus: there will be free parking on the 1st level of the City Hall parkade during Saturday markets (behind City Hall itself).
With all this nice weather, I predict many good things to eat at the market this year.
2135 Albert Street, Regina SK. 306-565-8894 ___________________________________________ Those who follow the blog will recall the news that Café Orange (in the Cathedral area) shut down a couple of months ago amid rumours that it will reopen as a sushi café. This is all fine and well, except it seems that just about every month a new sushi restaurant pops up in this city. At some point, sushi just isn’t going to sell enough to make a profit at each one of these places. At least that’s my opinion. So when Sake Japanese opened on Albert Street (near 13th Avenue) in February, I was only a little bit excited. On one hand, it is fantastic to see a vacant storefront turn into a thriving restaurant. There were too many empty buildings on that side of Albert Street not so very long ago. On the other hand, do we really need more sushi? Judging by the crowd at Sake on a recent Wednesday lunch hour, we do. The place was packed with groups and couples, likely from the office buildings nearby. To Sake’s credit, the restaurant is clean and decorated tastefully – nothing out of the ordinary, just a typical Japanese restaurant décor. Sake offers a mix of traditional tables, along with a number of “tatami” tables, where guests sit on cushions on top of bamboo mats. Lucky for us non-Japanese, the floor is sunken beneath the tables, making for a much more comfortable sit. As for the menu, be prepared to pig out. It’s an all-you-can-eat feast at Sake. You’re provided with a paper menu and a couple of pencils. Then you go to town marking off all the dishes you’d like to try. And there are plenty to taste. Sake offers at least 15 types of sushi rolls. Each roll consists of eight well-portioned pieces, far more than your average all-you-can-eat sushi joint. The Salmon Roll, California Roll, and Rainbow Roll that my dad and I shared were fresh – so much so that the sushi rice was moist and just a tad warm (meaning it was cooked only minutes before the rolls hit the table). Score! We also tried the crispy tempura, which comes with one jumbo shrimp per order; the fried fish; the edamame (whole soybeans); and the wonton soup. We cut ourselves off at that point, not wanting to overdo things and then go back to work in a food-induced coma. (Note: Sake, like every Japanese all-you-can-eat, will charge for food wastage, if need be.) Ice-cream fans, listen here: Sake also offers an unlimited amount of serve-yourself ice cream for dessert. Another classy touch. On offer were Tiger Tiger, Raspberry, and Pistachio the day we were there. Big Poppa and I both dug into the Tiger Tiger. Like father, like son as they say. So far, we’ve established that the food is great and the décor is good enough. That leaves the service. It was what I would call friendly, but not overly attentive. Our waiter neglected to bring one item we ordered (a rice bowl with chicken) and never came back to check if we wanted to order more food after the first round. Given that you pay a flat rate for lunch, missing an item wasn’t a big deal. Let’s just hope it isn’t a regular habit. I went in a skeptic, and I came out a believer (in the food anyway). Sake is on the right road to success.
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 ___________________________________________________________
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.
Today, we're heading back to bustling Hamilton Street, site of many changes and new businesses in downtown Regina these days.
One such business, The Great Panini, opened a few months back. Although I work at my "real" (i.e. non-blogging) job in an office tower just a couple of blocks away, I hadn't visited the shop until last week when frigid temperatures made me skip my usual walk home during the lunch hour.
The Great Panini, located a couple of doors south of the TD Bank, is a clean and cozy cafeteria style eatery that opens in the early hours of the morning and stays open through lunch until the end of the work day.
It just so happens that I timed my visit for the unveiling of a new sandwich: The Fozz. And let me tell you, The Fozz was moving fast -- I got the last one. Shaved chicken breast and a mild cheddar combined with roasted sweet red peppers and hot banana peppers were layered on a nine-grain Ciabatta bun then toasted to perfection. I have to say it was pretty tasty.
The Great Panini offers sandwiches on their own, or as a meal. I opted for the meal and had my choice of soup, salad, or a pickle. A sucker for all things canned and vinegary, I went for the Van Holten's Kosher Pickle, which comes individually wrapped in a pouch. It was a giant pickle, but I always find Koshers lack the crunch and garlic of homemade dills. Blame it on my Ukrainian roots.
As for drinks, The Great one offers much more than fountain pop, including a number of unique teas and juices, and a good range of Boylan's sodas.
So far things were going smoothly, until my grand total was rung up on the till. I admit I wasn't paying attention to prices until this point, figuring that a sandwich combo would run at about $7 or $8. Boy, was I wrong. By the time taxes were included I was almost at 11 bucks.
A bit pricey for a takeout lunch, if you ask me. Especially when you consider the all-you-can-eat Thai buffet at Siam restaurant three doors down is less than $9. But as I said, the sandwich was appetizing, the service was fast and friendly, and the selection is top-notch. Whether it's worth it again in the future will depend on how close I am to payday, I guess.
Perhaps I ought to stop in during breakfast some day when specials are priced much lower, including the 16-ounce coffee for just 99 cents. Now that's a deal.
Last week I posted news that Beer Brothers was shipping in a keg of Paddock Wood Scotch Ale from Saskatoon in honour of Robbie Burns Day.
It turns out that last week's massive snowfall across the province threw a wrench into those plans -- fear not, the keg is now safely in Regina and will be on tap in a day or two.
On the other hand, how long the keg will last is anyone's guess.
Beer Bros + Brecknock Beer: Meet the brewer and enjoy a pint 'n a burger for $14.99 (I guess that's a deal these days?) Happens tomorrow night, Tues. Jan. 19 from 5 p.m.
Jason Dearborn, Brecknock's founder, will be on hand at 8 p.m.
To me, there's something comforting about tucking into a restaurant below street level.
Those few stairs that lead down to the dining room make the noise of traffic outside seem even further away behind the glass windows. It's like discovering a secret getaway in the middle of the city.
Big Willie and I popped into J & A Restaurant across from The Bay on 11th Avenue last weekend. The place was fairly full for a Saturday so I figured we were in for a good time.
Friends told us that J & A, which specializes in Chinese cooking, does a mean dim sum. Being dim sum fans, we just had to check it out.
We settled into a table fairly quickly -- our waitress just had to wipe it clean before we could sit down. She wiped it, though I wouldn't say it was clean. But we got past that. We were hungry, after all.
We waited a few minutes for tea and then a few more minutes to order. With only two waitresses working the floor, the service wasn't exactly speedy.
Unlike most dim sum restaurants, J & A does not bring carts of hot food by your table. Instead, you are provided with a slip of paper on which to tick off your choices from the menu.
We went with a range of standbys, like dumplings and spring rolls, along with a few more unique items (like cassava cake).
As we waited for the food we started to take note of J & A's decor, which includes a strange mixture of fake flowers, pink chairs, and Walt Disney characters on the walls.
First to hit the table were the Salt and Pepper Chicken Wings. These weren't exactly proper Chinese food, but they sounded good. And they tasted good. At first.
I was on my third wing when our whole experience started to go downhill. I bit into the wing and noticed that underneath the crispy skin was a whole lot of blood. How a chicken wing can be deep fried and crispy on the outside, but bloody on the inside, I'm still not sure. I stopped eating the wings and waited for the next item to arrive.
The Vietnamese Spring Rolls were up. Three puny spring rolls came on a small white plate. That's it. No sauce, and an odd number of rolls (there were two of us, as I said).
The rolls tasted about as good as they looked. In fact, they really reminded me of frozen appetizers from Costco. I'm just saying....
We asked the waitress if she had any type of sauce for the rolls. She brought us some plum sauce. In a package.
Next we got the Cassava Cake. This dense, yellow cake was hearty and very filling. Cassava, a root vegetable common in the tropics, is mixed into a sweet cake and then cut into squares. It tasted OK but I'm no cassava expert so I'll refrain from judgement here. Big Willie grew up eating the stuff and he thought J & A's version was on the sweet side.
Next up, another item and another disappointment: the Shrimp and Vegetable Dumplings.
Unlike any other dim sum restaurant I've ever visited, J & A serves dumplings in metal steam baskets instead of traditional bamboo steamers. That's a bit of a shame because the metal seems to dry the dumplings out while bamboo seems to retain more moisture. Plus the bamboo adds a touch of authenticity.
These dumplings were overcooked and the pastry pockets weren't even staying closed. And they had almost no flavour. Good Lord, it was time to take action.
We still had at least three more items to come, but me and Big Willie had more than enough by this point. We called the waitress over, pointed out the bloody chicken and asked her not to send any more items. Oh, and Big Willie mentioned that his teacup was dirty when it came to the table.
You might be thinking that we should have pointed out the chicken incident sooner. And we probably should have. But I like to be an easygoing diner and I was willing to let it slide at first, until everything else turned out to be a disappointment too.
We asked the waitress for our bill and she brought it quickly. Thankfully, she took the chicken and the items that never made it to our table off the bill.
We settled up, threw on our jackets and made a beeline for a real dim sum restaurant: The Four Seas on Rose Street.
To read my review of Four Seas, follow this link: http://www.reginafooddude.com/2009/10/four-seas-restaurant.html
As for J & A, your quaint basement location in a convenient spot downtown almost had me at hello. Unfortunately, you blew it. Big time. We won't be back. And please lose the Mickey Mouse decorations.
$9 for lunch buffet, $13-18 for dinner or Saturday lunch. Open Monday-Saturday for lunch and dinner.
1946 Hamilton Street, Regina, SK 306-352-8424
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When I first heard there was a Thai restaurant on Hamilton Street downtown, I have to admit I was a little skeptical.
I pictured a little hole-in-the-wall place that would see a lot of foot traffic during the day (but few actual customers) and almost no one at night (when Regina's downtown transforms into a semi-deserted ghost town).
Boy, was I wrong.
First of all, Hamilton Street is undergoing a huge makeover. Over the last couple of years, new shops and eateries are popping up and filling in the holes left by vacant storefronts. There are still a few gaps, but given time they'll fill in too.
Second of all, Regina's downtown office crowd loves the place. Pay a visit almost any weekday at lunch and you'll be lucky to get a table if you're not there right at noon.
If you're new to Thai food, Siam's lunch buffet is an excellent place to start. There's always a good selection of meat, vegetable, and noodle dishes (Pad Thai is a sure bet), along with a couple of appetizer and dessert items.
Best of all, you can be in and out of the place with a full belly in 30 minutes or less. And get this, the grand total for the lunch buffet comes to less than $10 per person, tax included. I know, shocking.
Hold on now, before you drop the laptop and run down to Hamilton Street I need to talk more about the food.
On a recent Saturday morning, a group of us paid a visit to Siam for a not-so-traditional brunch (there's no buffet on Saturdays, FYI). We got off to a rocky start when we showed up at 11 a.m. (opening time) and the doors were still locked for another 15 minutes.
This didn't sit well with me -- unlike my usual Saturday morning of sleep and relaxation, I'd already done two loads of laundry, shopped for groceries, and ran a couple of other errands. I was hung-ree.
Once we were seated, things went more smoothly. Our gracious waiter was patient with us as we waited for others to arrive and took our time figuring out what to eat.
We ordered a ton of food, by the way. Siam makes this relatively easy by including pictures in the menu and on nifty digital photo frames hung on the walls next to tables.
These are my top three picks, for the first-timer:
- Appetizer: Mieng Kham (Leaf Wraps): This dish is a pleasure to behold and to eat. Crispy fresh coconut, fresh ginger, red onion, Thai chili, lime, cashews, and plum sugar sauce, served on top of bok choy leaves that you roll up yourself, then pop in your mouth.
- Entrees: Larb Moo: This item technically falls under the Salad category on the menu, but its size and filling portion makes it more like a meal. Spicy ground pork is mixed with roasted rice, red onions, green onions, cilantro, and lime juice. It's got some heat but not so much as to scare the beginner away.
Pad Thai: You haven't truly lived until you've had this Thai classic. A bed of warm rice noodles is covered in fried tofu, bean sprouts, and shrimp, then layered with sauce. Practically everyone likes Pad Thai. If you're completely unsure of what to order, start here.
On the whole, Siam is one of downtown's best restaurants with a huge menu, good service, reasonable prices and decent opening hours.
Cost - $12 lunch/$25 supper Monday to Friday, lunch and supper/Saturday and Sunday morning brunch, supper until late
2228 Albert St., Regina, SK. Phone: 306-546-3660 _______________ There are plenty of reasons why La Bodega is one of Regina's best restaurants.
OK, I guess you want me to name them. So here goes:
1.) La Bodega took an old, forgotten, decrepit house in the Cathedral neighbourhood and turned it into a hip, vibrant, intimate restaurant. That's not just luck, it's good planning. Previous owners of the building launched a bakery in the same spot and it was a massive flop within a year.
2.) So why has La Bodega succeeded? I think there are three key ingredients: a smart menu, a great location, and a design that allows La Bodega to be a restaurant, lounge, and/or concert venue depending on the time of day and the day of the week. They say you can't be all things to all people, but somehow La Bodega has always managed to attract the cool kids and the business lunch crowd and middle-aged couples just looking for a nice meal. That's no easy feat.
3.) Food -- of course, La Bodega would be nothing without the food. When La Bodega opened almost 10 years ago, no one in Regina had ever heard of tapas. Executive chef and owner Adam Sperling brought a creative, exciting menu to the Queen City and presented it in a way that was fresh and interesting to diners. Most people fell in love with the place after just one visit. And even now, the chefs continue to change and improve upon their menu, revealing new versions of it several times per year, keeping old favourites and introducing new ventures. And if a menu item doesn't work, La Bodega gets rid of it. 4.) Unless you're at Smitty's or an unapologetic hole-in-the-wall, a restaurant's decor is almost as important as what's on the plate (I said almost). La Bodega has always got the decor part right by using a mix of sophisticated yet rustic furnishings. The plain and sometimes mismatched wooden tables and chairs are jazzed up by much-more daring artwork and colours on the walls. The music -- never radio and certainly not Top 40 -- captures the worldly nature of the place without coming off as fake or, worse, New-Agey. In short, La Bodega's gypsy chic style is the Cathedral neighbourhood in a nutshell. It fits into its surroundings naturally. What more could you ask for? 5.) OK, this last reason is half-serious and half a joke. But when La Bodega first opened, they sold alcohol at ridiculously cheap prices. The food was never undervalued, but the drinks sure were. And people loved it. So they stayed for another. And another. And hey, can we see that menu again? We're hungry now. Over the years, it seems the prices of booze have crept upward, but you can still get a decent glass of wine for $5-6 per glass. So, what's the downside? La Bodega's biggest weakness is its weekend brunch. The menu is nowhere near as tasty as what's on offer for weekday lunch or suppertime. And the prices for an Eggs Benny border on the obscene. To me, the best breakfasts in the world are cheap and dirty. Get in, drink your weight in coffee, and get out $8 later. Otherwise La Bodega, you rock. http://www.labodegaregina.ca/
Another week goes by, and this blog grows another inch or two. Bear with me, folks. It is truly a work in progress.
It was tough to decide which restaurant to talk about next -- actually, that's just a cliche. It wasn't so tough this time. The Four Seas Restaurant on Rose Street downtown is a new discovery for me. Me and Big Willie have been there three times in the last three weeks. And we're now frequently trying to recruit our friends. Surely that's worth writing about.
From the outside, the Four Seas is easily forgettable. Heck, from the inside too. Mind you, the owners have done a decent job of sprucing up this old building that has clearly been through a few restaurant incarnations during its lifetime.
Anyway, the surroundings are secondary. What I really go for is the food. And what the Four Seas really does best, as far as I'm concerned, is Dim Sum.
OK, perhaps it's time for a definition. Not everyone is familiar with Dim Sum (but everyone should be!).
Essentially, Dim Sum is this: a wide range of Chinese dishes served on small plates alongside tea. You could think of it as the Chinese version of tapas. What you must not think of is Chicken Balls, Sweet and Sour Pork, or giant, greasy Egg Rolls. Dim Sum is NOT that kind of Chinese food.
The most exciting part of Dim Sum is when the waitresses come around with carts of food inside small bamboo steamers. You never know what's on the cart until they take the lid off -- and try to tempt you.
Each time I've been there are new items, but you can count on there always being Shrimp Dumplings, Pork Dumplings, Steamed Buns, Spareribs, and a few vegetable dishes. There will also be things that you have never seen before, but don't worry. The waitresses are happy to answer any questions that you have.
In larger cities with larger Chinese communities, you'll find huge, loud Dim Sum restaurants where the waitresses fly past you with carts and you practically have to scream to get their attention.
The Four Seas is on a smaller, quieter scale. It's nonetheless a welcome addition to Regina's list of restaurants. And it's definitely popular with Regina's Chinese community who fill the place by 11:30 a.m. on weekend mornings.
Big Willie, who is half-Chinese, says that the Four Seas Dim Sum reminds him of the food his grandma made when he was a kid. If that's not a compliment, I don't know what is.
The next time you find yourself bored with what Regina restaurants have to offer, head downtown for Dim Sum. A whole new culinary world awaits you....
I wish this Japanese restaurant earned a higher score -- I really do. Not only is Hanabi close to a number of downtown offices and hotels, its bland storefront hides a warm and inviting dining room that puts you immediately at ease. The lanterns, curtains, sushi bar, and large number of semi-private booths could almost -- just for a second -- make you believe you were in Japan.
Hanabi's menu is full of Japanese favourites: Sushi, Tempura, Bento Boxes, Teriyaki and Edamame (whole soy beans) are all there. For the more adventurous, there's Soft Shell Crab, Okonomiyaki (Japanese pancake), and Seaweed Salad. There are also a a few Korean dishes on the menu.
When visiting for lunch last week, my friend (let's call her Ms. Thang) and I ordered a number of our favourites. It was her birthday and we have sushi on her birthday almost every year.
We asked for Miso Soup to start, followed by Gyoza (pork dumplings), Salmon Rolls, the Cream Cheese Roll (a house specialty), and two Inari (tofu pockets).
Things started reasonably well. The Gyoza arrived in about 10 minutes. They were OK, but I am almost certain they were store-bought -- a bit of a disappointment.
After another 10 minutes or so, we got the Inari, which usually come at the end of a meal, like a dessert item. At least they tasted good.
Then came the Cream Cheese Roll. Crisp seaweed wrapped itself around salmon, cream cheese, cucumber, avocado and a "Special Sauce" (our waitress told us it was warm apple sauce). This roll was a new one for both of us, and it was delicious.
Next up, and after another noticeable delay, we got one of the Salmon Rolls. The other was mysteriously absent. We split the eight tasty morsels of soft sushi rice and tender pink salmon. And then we waited.
Finally, the next Salmon Roll landed on the table. We devoured it quickly. Lunch hour was basically over at this point. It was at about that moment that Ms. Thang, who was getting testy, had a realization. "Umm, we never got our Miso," she said, usually the first item to arrive within minutes of ordering.
"No, we sure didn't," I said, and rolled my eyes. At that point we had no further time to waste.
I asked for the bill. It came two or three minutes later, so I put my money in the billfold and waited for the waitress to come get it. She didn't.
Ms. Thang and I gathered our things and headed to the till, by this point grumbling to each other about the service.
"How was everything?" asked the sweet and smiling hostess.
We diplomatically told her that the food was great, but holy jeepers, could it have come any slower? At lunch?
Perhaps the secret to success at Hanabi is to visit their website and pre-order items off the online menu. It couldn't hurt, anyway. Or, just go in at supper hour when you have a couple of hours to kill.
The last few weeks of glorious summer have brought a couple of new eateries to our fair city's centre, in addition to sunburns and melting ice-cream cones. First, the old house on 2100-block Hamilton Street that was home to Neo Japonica for more than a decade has reopened. Welcome to Taste of Tuscany. The new owners took out the shrubs in front of the building and added a paved seating area for outdoor eats. Second up, Beer Bros. pub in the Old City Hall Mall on Scarth Street has opened its long-promised deli next door to the pub. The deli is open Monday-Saturday from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. I'm looking forward to a visit very soon. Third of all, it has been an embarrassingly long time since I posted anything to this blog. Apologies for that. Fortunately, the blog is quite forgiving.
2234 14th Avenue Regina, SK 306-522-3500 __________________________________________________________ To review a new restaurant as soon as the doors open would be unfair. It takes time for a restaurant to get its wings. Any visit during the first few weeks is more than likely to encounter a few speed bumps. Tangerine, the newest restaurant on the downtown block, opened its doors more than five weeks ago. That means it's time for a review.
Let's start with the good: Tangerine is a tastefully decorated bistro that has added a healthy dose of personality to the strip of shops on 14th Avenue between Lorne and Cornwall streets. The restaurant seems to be doing a very good business over the lunch hour. Ladies who lunch, business folks, and university kids are all common sights. Service is very fast - as it should be at a bistro that depends on the lunch hour to survive. My meals have arrived within minutes of ordering during both of my lunchtime visits. Considering that ordering is done cafeteria-style, that is up at the counter, there is no reason for service to be slow. The menu, written in chalk on a large wall next to the deli case, has a good mixture of proteins, grains and greens, and it changes often. Tangerine also brews coffee and serves up homemade biscuits and sweets. All of this lends an urbane feel to the place - Tangerine would fit right in to New York's Lower East Side or Vancouver's West End. But it's all ours and we should be proud to have it. As for the not-so-good: Tangerine needs to work on portions and prices. The other day I ordered the $11 Greens and Proteins: a six- or seven-ounce piece of salmon atop a bed of greens with a light dressing. The dish's modest size left me feeling hungry, and that I'd paid too much. Consider that Siam Thai restaurant downtown offers an all-you-can-eat lunch buffet for $9; or that La Bodega serves a mean sandwich with fries for about $12. As for the salad, I have a strong suspicion that the lettuce mixture I ate was store-bought. This is a bit of a shame in the middle of summer when fresh local produce is everywhere. Finally, Tangerine could play more heavily on the "food bar" theme that it uses as part of its name. At the moment, the restaurant is open until 7 p.m. on weeknights. But give the place a liquor licence, dim the lights, put on some groovy music, and you could have a very cool evening hangout. Of course, this may come as Tangerine matures. Owner/chef Aimee Schulhauser is wise to take a "walk before you run" approach to the place. The verdict: give Tangerine a try for your next business lunch, or if you happen to be hanging around downtown on a gorgeous summer day.
On Wednesday, I expressed some disappointment that the former Cafe Orange (now going by the name Orange Izakaya) reopened a month ago but hadn't served any food yet.
Lucky me, Orange rolled out its lunch menu today. It looks like a mix of fairly traditional Japanese and Korean dishes (mainly Korean). This is somewhat interesting because izakaya means "pub" in Japanese. Typically an izakaya serves small plates of Japanese food. Some compare it to Spanish tapas (in terms of size, not flavour).
That being said, I look forward to tasting what the new Orange has to offer.
Word has it that a full dinner menu will be up and running next week.
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