Archive for February, 2012

  • Cheese Curds it’s all the rage! but …

    Date: 2012.02.27 | Category: Eats | Response: 0

    I went to Cheese Curds to get a piece of the local culinary hotspot. I arrived about 5:30pm the line up was slightly out the door and someone came out after a  few minutes to say the wait would be ~45min I was okay with that and proceeded to wait in line. While waiting in line that long you have time to make observations. The first I noted was how slow it was going there are inefficiencies that can be overcome.

    The owner came out about every 45 minutes to thank people for waiting and they are looking to make changes like getting more fridges and another grill and then you wouldn’t see him again. That is fine but why not make more use of what you have? They had 2 guys on the grill but at no time did I see more than 1/2 the grill covered. They could have been making a lot more in the same time. Also by the time I got to order ~45min after I had initially got there, they were out of onion rings. I know growing pains but there is no reason why the goods couldn’t have been reacquired at that point of the day.

    Another thing that can improve things is table service even though they are not designed for such things they could have had someone seating people half the tables were occupied for 45 minutes plus by members of a family who were behind me in line. They also could clean the tables quicker as the garbages are trapped behind the line up. there also should have had staff or barriers direct the line up outside as for some reason the patrons decided to line up out into the parking lot instead of curving the line up to stay on the ample sidewalk.

    The menu needs some tweaking as well, It list specialty burgers and paid extras but doesn’t mention that you have a plethora of awesome toppings to choose and you don’t see them till after you have ordered. It also appears that you can only have the Lamb, Salmon, Schnitzel, veggie burger if you order the specialty burger. Also another shortcoming was beverages. It looks like someone was bamboozled by a Coca-Cola salesman as the Coke fridge was full of every Coke product available in our market Powerade, Full Throttle, Minute Maid Juices, Dasani and frankly $2.50 for a 591ml Coke is gouging.  Yes there is fountain pop but still at $2.25 seems high and fountain pop does not do the food justice if you want to charge those beverage prices and stick to local philosophy a partnership with Propeller or Garrison soda might have been a good idea.

    Now on to the actual food after 70 minutes from the time I got there I had my single with double smoked bacon and blue cheese garnished with pickled red onions, dill pickle, bruschetta tomatoes, guacamole  and cilantro, and a basic poutine I was ready  to eat and it was good 70 min good maybe not but it was really good and the poutine was the best I have had outside of la belle province. The burgers are thick and double, triple burgers just seem like overkill  though a realize there is some machismo to eating here. My dinner partner had chosen the specialty Lamb Burger and Brandy Peppercorn poutine, the poutine was good but the gravy was neither peppercorn-y or brandy-y enough to justify the $1 surcharge. The bun on the lamb was different that the toasted one I had on my beef burger and the Lamb bun was soggy before the burger had time to be finished. The lamb was also quite delicious.

    In conclusion I will go again the food was tasty they just need to work out some of the quick success bugs that they are encountering and I won’t wait an hour. If the next time it is that busy, I’ll just go a block away to John’s Lunch.

    menu here http://cheesecurdsburgers.com/Cheese_curds_menu.pdf

     

    Update: March 7th

    an update on service, it has improved dramatically I started in essentially the same spot I was in line the first time I visited and this time the line to food in my hand was a mere 21 minutes, kudos to the improvements

    and I also got to try the Onion Rings which were insanely good the drizzle of homey on them fresh from the fryer is ingenious.

     

  • Twitter Weekly Updates for 2012-02-24

    Date: 2012.02.24 | Category: Twitter | Response: 0

  • Wasted Spaces

    Date: 2012.02.23 | Category: Opinions | Response: 0

    This property has been vacant on SGR for years isn’t there anything that can be done. It was always so pretty when it was My Mothers Bloomers
    Now it’s just an empty shell. Spring GardenRoad deserves better.

    20120223-161218.jpg

  • Eating from Local Biz: Burnside & Dartmouth Crossing

    Date: 2012.02.23 | Category: Eats, Opinions | Response: 0

    In the Industrial Park and Big Box sprawl that is Burnside and Dartmouth Crossing can you eat from local business amongst the chains?

    Of course you can!

    Well if pizza is your thing, there is no shortage in Burnside. Jessy’s, Pizzadelic, PizzaTown & Burnside Pizza are there with Alexandria’s and KOD nearby. Is any of it gourmet not really is any of it greasy absolutely with Alexandria’s probably being the best. All the shops also offer sandwiches or wraps or donairs or salads and other deep fried treats you expect from your local Pizza Shop.

    Then there are cafeteria style restaurants in Burnside such as Smokey’s which has daily specials, lots more grease here but offers full breakfast and often has fried haddock or say a hamburger steak. Janina’s which offers sandwiches and wraps and the chicken salad is homemade, there are also lots of Daily Specials like Cabbage Rolls and Lasagna it’s pretty good but often lacks a kick but the quality is great.

    If you want more of a pub experience the Old Port offer decent pub fare with burgers being the go to including a Peanut Satay Burger. Brewdabakers also offer a slightly more chain restaurant feel to it’s pub fare but lots of Sleeman on tap and the bread and butter at the beginning of your meal is yummy. Rodeo Lounge which is more of a night time spot offer a basic burgers, club and nacho style menu. Then there is Angie’s which is a working class pub with deep fried goods, fried goods and club sandwiches and is packed Fridays at lunch. Just over in Highfield Park Parkside Pub which has a traditional East Coast tavern feel and decent pub grub.

    The Hotels offer some dining choices as well. Pepper Mill  in the Ramada offers a typical quality hotel restaurant experience but more economical than the downtown ones, daily themes like pasta to order where the chef cooks it right in front of you. Trendz in the Best Western purports itself to be a high end dinning experience and the menu sounds great and the plates are well presented but the flavour is lacking and it is overpriced for the market, I have been there twice and both times my server was chewing gum hard. Then there is the dining room in the Burnside Hotel they offer all you can eat buffets but I have only ever heard horror stories.

    There a couple corner stores NewsBreak offers up various good from the deef fryer and fried chicken and sandwiches, Linda’s offer a similar line of food but they are super friendly staff and The Three Bears which sells subs and sandwiches, but really it just a place for the Burnside crowd to get smokes.

    International foods are represented with East West serving up Canadian style Chinese food. Kabaji has excellent Lebanese food but the service is sometimes slow. Chabaa Thai has excellent lunch speciasl that are tasty, the Japan Deli offers up grocery store quality sushi and terriyaki dishes. Fans’ is not far from Burnside just under the MacKay Bridge and is one of the best Chinese restaurants in metro and lunch time service is quick.

    What would an industrial park be with out food trucks, Paul’s Fish and Chips offers up the greasy classic all year round and hits the spot on those days. Soups on the Move offers up a variety of tasty homemade soups and chilli changing daily and sandwiches made to go. There are other seasonal trucks that make appearances around the park.

    The recent growth of Dartmouth Crossing has brought a slew of chain restaurants nest to Burnside but there are some locals tucked in. Modern Orchid offers both Thai and Canadian Chinese lots of homemade love goes into the sauces and dishes. La Cucina a transplant from Truro offers up Italian fare but it comes off uninspired and overpriced. Sunwich Cafe has a variety of sandwiches but it comes off with a chain feel. Sushi Nami has a spot here with a teppenyaki table in the evenings a good quality sushi. Sam’s Seafood Express offers a variety of deep fried seafood, hot turkey sandwiches, salads and wraps.

    Retales Best Bets

    • Fans’
    • Soups on The Move
    • Modern Orchid
    • Chabaa Thai
    • Janina’s

     

     

  • Opinions: Is it Just Peter Kelly Who is to Blame?

    Date: 2012.02.22 | Category: Opinions | Response: 0

    Now That Peter Kelly has bowed out with the cliche “family” reason

    I ask the question is it only Kelly that is to blame for our City
    He was missing this week from council and they managed to disregard Staff recommendation and pursue the Skye development all though it contravenes HRM by Design
    It wasn’t him who continually brought Cats, Heritage Buildings and Chickens to the table

    Peter’s departure is just one vote, yes a more dynamic Mayor is what the city needs right now
    but in October the whole council needs readjusting

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