vickichowder: WATERLOO

ABE ERB, WATERLOO

I'm a really lazy kind of friend. The kind that doesn't bother meeting up with my other friends because there is no one to drive me (because I don't drive unless it's to take my brother out to his extracurricular activities or friends' birthday parties = get mistaken for being a young mom).

Although I'm fully aware of it, I still haven't gotten rid of my lack of motivation. So here is to declaring yet another improvement I need to work on starting this year *yay*

So when I do get to see my friends who I don't see in a while, it is nice, and we go to eat food.

When we wake up early enough, we go for breakfast. But most of the time we don't and so we go for brunch.

My girlfriend had raved about how good the lamb sausage was one night after she went to try from their night menu. The bread was not a crusty roll as they had described on their menu. The disappointing bread was saved by the sweet caramelized red peppers. Could also be saved with a denser toasted bread that was not used as a vehicle for the sausage. Fries were sweet, salty, and just beautifully seasoned. I also asked for a side of mayo (to eat with the fries). Minus the bread = Good

I didn't eat the burger but had more of the fries from this (friend that visited and I shared the sausage and eggs benedict below). Loving the fries = Very good

Spinach would've been good if wilted slightly with some olive oil and garlic. Nothing special here, but the homefries were not amazing - no sweet/salty/seasoned flavours like the regular fries, but just the usual salt and pepper. Crunchier than the regular ones too because they're smaller. I prefer my fries a little soggier and softer. Okay

Bottomless self serve coffee from morning to midday all weekend. If you have a caffeine addiction that cannot be cured, this is the place.

Long communal tables, booths, smaller tables with shorter/higher chairs all available.

They're known for their guest beers, and their own brews. But it was too early for a beer flight.

Want to come back again for their late night menu + beers.

P/S

Sometimes when I discover something new and amazing I'll tend to make it whenever I get the chance. Like that one holiday season when I made a croquembouche to every holiday party.

Or last holiday season when we bought 7+ bries and baked them all in a similar fashion.

A very childish (impromptu) cake for a 24th birthday

Nowadays it's Peking duck at home.

I feel like this maybe (stressing the maybe here) deserves its own post. Again, maybe.

Dear readers, what is the new thing you've discovered this week?

, by vickichowder

ARTICHOKE

KING CRAB OYSTER BAR, KITCHENER WATERLOO

We had our eyes on the groupon for this restaurant for a while, after looking at the menu and only really wanting the hot crab dip.

Hot/warm cheesy dips always pull me in - it's something ridiculously easy to make, but so decadent and rich that I don't have the guts to not make a large portion at home and eat it all in one sitting (hence baked bries are only concentrated towards the holiday season so I only get fat off bries once a year).

Warm bread with olive oil, balsamic, sun dried tomato

Originally we were to order a bunch of appetizers so we can try more dishes without filling up on the heavy carbs from entrees (potatoes, pasta, rice).

But there wasn't a great choice of apps (they're highlights are the seafood entrees and shucked or grilled oysters, which we didn't order).

Artichoke and crab dip with an unnecessary layer of breadcrumbs on top. Micro-greens were also unnecessary. The baguette was over-toasted, and too hard, considering the thickness of each slice (too thick!). If each slice was thinner then it would be okay. Or keep it the same thickness and toast it 30s less. Would've also been better if this bread wasn't so similar to the bread from the bread basket. Bad

And we ended up with a lobster + mac and cheese

Lobster was saved by garlic butter, which stayed warm and melted over a tea light. They didn't pre-crack the claw (which is usually hammered for diners to easily pull out the meat in one fell swoop). Lobster was just boiled and cut in half. Nothing not doable at home. Veggies were blanched and only tasted good when dipped in the garlic butter or mac and cheese sauce (then again, everything tastes good in mac and cheese sauce or butter). Bad

The breadcrumbs make an appearance again, on the truffled mac and cheese. They used penne, so there was a nice layer of sauce coating the outside, and a pocket of sauce stored inside. Very convinced that the truffle is coming from truffled cheese. But who knows, I didn't bother asking either. Only dish on which I didn't get let down. Okay

Small-sized restaurant with a door that lets the cold draft in unless you sit in the farthest corner opposite to the entrance.

Tables for 2 are conservatively sized (unless you can ask to sit at a 4-seat table), and dress code is casual.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

It's an open concept kitchen so you get to see the chefs in action. You also get to see the wait staff lined up against the kitchen counter every 5 minutes or so to wait on the dishes.

As it is a seafood restaurant perhaps you say that I should give it a shot and go back for their oysters and fish. But for the price they serve everything at, it isn't worth it unless the meal was 50% off'd with the groupon.

P/S

Perhaps my most prominent eating habit is the necessity to have dessert after a savoury meal. So after breakfast, lunch, and dinner, I need to end it off with something on the sweeter side.

Usually this means I cut a fresh fruit (there was a time when oranges were so on sale and so in season that I had 2-3 oranges a day for over a week). But in Waterloo, we live a dangerously close proximity to McDonald's = dangerously accessible after-meal soft-serve

And after having soft serve too often, I would like to declare my hypothesis:

The male workers serve more soft serve than the female workers

At least at this location. Proof: