Mambella's (OMG is this place amazing!)

MAMBELLA'S
160 Columbia St. West.
Waterloo
519-885-2244
mambellas@golden.net
What can be said about reliving a past experience that was totally amazing? It's terrific if you can manage it. As most of you know, I grew up in NJ where Italian food is king, queen, prince and princess. We always went to a bar called Conte's for pizza (the best on the planet) and meatball sandwiches. These flavors are part of my very food oriented childhood.


Scootor and I met Arlene at Mambella's for lunch. They have a huge menu of pastas, pizza, fresh salads, grilled paninis, fresh sandwiches (make your own or choose one of their signature paninis), toasted sandwiches, and wraps. They also have a breakfast menu until 11:30am.

So many choices it made my head spin. I opted for the Veal Parm sandwich but they had already run out of them so I chose a Meatball sandwich on a WHITE Kaiser. I normally do brown or multigrain bread but the meatballs were telling me to go WHITE. My sandwich came first and I took a big bite. I know I always say I saw God but instead I saw Conte's. It was so delicious I almost swooned! Scootor had the Pulled Pork and Arlene had the Boss Beef Panini. They also both had salads. Everything was marvelous.

Tina (the owner) doesn't buy "Deli" meats and cooks all the meat herself. It sure makes a difference!

There are Homemade cookies and squares that look scrumptious! I was too full of meatballs to partake.

So here it goes.....If you want a terrific Breakfast or Lunch this is the place to go!

It is right across the street from the RIM complex on Columbia Street. Run don't walk! When we were there they didn't do dinner; however, Tina let us know that they're planning on offering dinner service in the near future. So give her a call to see when she'll be open for dinner and weekend dining. Make a reservation as seating is limited - Note to reader: some days making a reservation is easy and others they are unsure, so you'll need to be a bit persistent.

Bon apetit!

ICEBOX CAKE

This dessert has been my favorite since I was a kid. My Mother wasn't much of a baker or cook if the truth be told. Since this dessert is a total no bake anyone can do it.

This is one of my free form recipes so just relax and have at it.

You will need:
1 Litre/Quart of Whipping Cream
4 boxes of Chocolate Wafer Cookies.
1T of Vanilla
Sugar to taste.

To Begin:
When whipping cream it's faster to put the bowl and beaters in the freezer. Don't freak out, you may omit this step. Start the mixer on LOW to start or you'll have droplets of cream all over the kitchen. As the cream thickens turn the mixer to MEDIUM. Add the Vanilla to the thickening cream and add the Sugar to taste. Try adding the Sugar a Tablespoon at a time. Keep tasting for sweetness. Stop whipping when soft peaks form.

Making the Cake

Start with a large PLATTER. Spread about 1/2 a cup of the cream on it. Pick up a CHOCOLATE WAFER and spread it with 1/2 inch of cream. Top the cream with another Wafer. Put the little cookie sandwichs on the platter. Keep going until you have a cake made. The size and shape is up to you. If you have a lot of cream and wafers left add another layer. Remember you will need to ice the cake with cream. You can always make single servings if you want.

Cover with plastic wrap and leave it set for a few hours. I always do mine in the morning and it's fine by dinner time.

To sum it all up it is a romantic cake almost as good as sex.

Bon appétit!

Jake & Humphreys' Bistro

196 Peel St.

New Hamburg, ON N3A 1E3

519-662-1143

Dine@jakeandhumphreys.com

www.jakeandhumphreys.com

I have been Tweeting this place for months thinking that Jake & Humphrey were 2 guys hence the name. Only to find out that the people who own the place names it after their cats. That alone made it OK by me.

The Restaurant is the bottom floor of one of the nice older homes that you still see in all those small picturesque little towns in the region. The decorating is Arty and the chairs are comfortable.

Our server knew we were coming as I had promised to do for months and months and introduced herself to us. She was just lovely. A really nice server can make a dining out experience a thing of joy.

The menu is on the smaller side which is fine with me. No huge laminated monsters with cutsie names and lurid photos. I do love a simple menu. The best thing is there are also a good number of specials every day.

I ordered the Pistachio Pate and the Prime Rib burger and Scoot, the Seafood Chowder and the Chicken Schnitzel Club. The Pate is lovely but more of a Terrine. It is a delicate but solid, porky, and studded with lovely and tasty green nuts and each piece was wrapped with double smoked bacon. Along with the pate was home made Melba toast and yesterday instead of Chutney there was some GRAPE KETCHUP!

OMG was that ketchup wonderful. A slice of Pate on the Melba toast with the ketchup o top made me swoon.

I got a taste of Scootor's soup and it was lovely and creamy and full of fish. I'd order it again.

So, all who dine with me know I am on the eternal quest for the best Burger. I have read menus promising me the best burger on the planet only to have my dreams of the perfect burger dashed on the rocks of dry and tasteless grey meat. With my first bite and the grin that followed I knew I had found the best burger I'd ever had not counting my own. It comes with a slice of real cheese, double smoked bacon, sauteed onions(sweet and creamy) lettuce and tomato. I opted out of the cheese and bacon as I am smokily challenged. Again I gotta say it was juicy and DAVOON! Scootor's Chicken Schnitzel Club was lovely. Crispy chicken with NO greasiness and was delicious and succulent. The bread was toasted perfectly and the Pesto Mayo was just right.

I could only eat half my burger and Scoot half his sandwich so of course we had to have dessert.

ALL DESSERTS ARE MADE IN-HOUSE. I was very surprised by this since all the Restos locally seem to get all the same cakes brought in from somewhere in T.O. If dessert isn't made in the place I don't even want to try it. I digress. There are 5 dessert selections that come with home-made Ice Cream as well. We ordered the Apple Crisp which came in it's own little gratine dish with a perfect scoop of Vanilla Ice Cream on top. OMG. It was the first time I saw God without dessert being Creme Brulee. Perfect size for two perfect scoop, perfect Perfect Perfect.

So as New Hamburg is a scant 20 minutes away you should plan a trip to Jake & Humphreys. Run don't walk and I recommend a reservation be made. It's not a huge place and I can see it filling up fast.

O'Yummy Sushi

646 Erb St. W.

Waterloo, ON N2T 2Z7

519-954-6555

www.oyummysushi.ca

This has been the busiest week-end we have had in a while. We got our Income Tax refund checks and they were burning a hole in our pockets so we decided to do Sushi. We had no idea where to go and there was O'Yummy Sushi just waiting for us as if by magic.

We pulled into the lot and went in. I'm not a decor person and ambiance means very little to me. O'Yummy Sushi is cool and clean and full of all sorts of really nice lighting features especially a small tree with LED lights at the end of each branch. We asked where they got it and the Manager said we could buy theirs. We opted out on that one.

Now to the food. IT WAS DELICIOUS. It was clean and crisp and NOT fishy in any way. We ordered a Spider Roll, Spicy Tuna Roll, California Roll, BBQ Eel Roll(for Scootor not for me I can't get passed the little bones) Salmon Skin Roll and a Shrimp Tempura Roll. They were all wonderful. They were the Dictionary definition of what Sushi should be. The presentation was fish art work and looked like the pictures of Sushi on the place-mats, which was lovely. There were only 2 very small issues for me, the Salmon Skin Roll had a few scales on it and the Pickled Ginger blew the top of my head off.

If you are looking for a new Sushi place I highly recommend O'Yummy Sushi. You won't regret it.

Tax and tip $40.00

Fratburger

247 King St. N. and University

Waterloo

N2J 4V2

519-954-FRAT (3728)

What to do for lunch is always the big question on the days Scootor has off. This past Thursday we decided on Fratburger, home of the best burgers in town because you may get a rare hamburger there. The reason every other place can't serve their burgers rare is because they buy hamburger already ground. This place grinds their own meat every day and thank God they do!

Thursday we arrived around 1:00 pm and the regular crowd was just beginning to thin out. We sat in our friend Jill's section and read the menus. The menu is very easy to read. You get to choose each option and topping.

I ordered the standard burger as rare as possible with fries and mayo. Other condiments are on

each table. Scootor ordered the special of the day the Cowboy. A patty topped with cheese frilled mushrooms and onions. He also ordered fries.

Fratburger's fries are WONDERFUL. Crisp on the outside and soft on the inside just how I love them.

My hamburger was perfect and rare and Scoot loved his Cowboy.

There are a few Veggie options which I have heard are delicious. This is not a fine dining place nor should it be, It is a good burger at a good price. The 2 of us ate for around $20.00 and when you think of all the bad burger chains run don't walk to Fratburger.

Easy Flaky Pastry

2 Crust Flaky Pastry

21/4 cups sifted AP Flour

1 teasp. salt

3/4 cup shortening (NOT Butter, Marg. or salad oil) at room temperature

1/3 up of cold tap water.

Sift Flour and salt into a bowl.

Reserve 1/4 Cup flour

Cut the shortening and Flour together with pastry blender, 2 knives in scissor fashion to the size of small peas.

Mix the water with the reserved flour to make a paste and and add it to the flour mixture.

Use a 2 tined fork to mix the wet and the dry until particles cling together when pressed gently.

Form ball between cupped hands.

To Chill or Not to chill?

I chill all pastry for a 1/2 hour before rolling out.

When ready to roll, flour the counter.

Divide the dough into 2 balls.

#1 for the bottom of the pie use 2/3 of the dough.

#2 for the top of the pie use 1/3 of the dough.

*************************************************************************************

Red(sour) Cherry Pie

1 Tablspn quick cook Tapioca

1 Cup Granulated Sugar

1/8 Teaspoon Salt

3 1/2 Cups of either frozen sour cherries or Packed in Water

1/2 cup cherry juice

1 tablespoon butter.

Combine the Above ingredients and let it stand for about 15 minutes.

Add the cherry filling to the already rolled pie shell. With a knife to the edge of the Pie plate cut around to remove excess dough.

Roll out the top and place it on top of the cherries.

Fold the edges of the top crust underneath the bottom crust and crimp as you like or use a fork to press down the edge.

Bake at 425 degrees for 40 minutes or until bubbling and golden brown.

OMG, ARLENE ACTUALLY COOKED

There's this little place in the Next town over that I have jokingly called Hams-Are-Us

or House-O-Hams because that is almost all they sell. They are really called The Canadian Honey Ham Company and boy is that great HAM. I'd say it was the Cadillac of ham. I have heard it said that grocery Store hams are like hot dogs in comparison. Who ever said that was right.

This ham was tender and juicy and even when we were late had not dried out. It's Spiral sliced and comes in many different sizes for different size crowds.

Want to empress a crowd of ham lovers, get yourself To the

Canadian Honey Ham Company

551 Hespeler Rd.

Cambridge

519-740-7447

Toll Free 1-877-819-7441

www.canadianhoneyham.com

It is a real treat that I wholly endorse!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Chez Reitzel

STAR WOK (at ZELLER'S PLAZA)

94 Bridgeport Rd. E. Unit 30

Waterloo

519-886-1688

As you already know almost every Friday night Scootor, Tracy, Alan, and I go out to dinner. This week we tried something new. Tracy had heard about this new Chinese Place right around the corner from us called STAR WOK.

STAR WOK has only been open a short time and I guess the word is being spread.

It is a brightly lit very clean little place. To order you step up to the counter place your order and pick out a place to sit. There are a few booths and some tables but I think a lot of their business is from Take-out.

Tracy and I agreed on the menu and we went to pick it up and toted it over.

As we pulled up to their place we were very impressed by the tasteful outdoor lighting, reserved and classic. When we entered it was like we were in the very heart of Christmas itself. The decor of Reds and golds was lovely. The tree was a vision and best of all the place was not too hot to bear. It was just delightful.

We retired to the immaculate and well appointed kitchen area where a cafe table was set perfectly and unpacked dinner. We ordered 3 egg-rolls, House Special Fried Rice (with chicken, pork, and shrimp) House Special Chop Suey, General Tso Chicken, Beef and Broccoli, and Honey Garlic Chicken. We all started in to eating and everything was delicious with few complaints, The General Tso chicken, a usually spicy dish, was really toned down and I could actually eat it. The Honey Garlic Chicken was good just not enough garlic for me. The Beef and Broccoli (very crispy) was good as were the Chop Suey and the Fried Rice. My only major complaint was the lack of Fortune Cookies. If not stale (or lemon flavor) they are lovely. So Alan had beer, Scootor and I had ice water(great ice) and Tracy had the house red. So $52.21 for 4 WITH leftovers seems a bargain dinner to me.

Empress of India

103 King St. South

Waterloo

519-883-1314

Arlene chose the Empress of India as she had been there before. Both she and her daughter Erin loved the Butter Chicken, which was what she ordered along with their Garlic Naan bread (a fluffy white flour bread) was very happy with her choice. She and Scootor started with the Veggie Samosas. Scootor did say his Samosas were the best he's ever had; and I agreed with that. However, I didn't like the Tamarind sauce; it was very weak and watery and without the punch that I am used to.

Her husband, Bob, a true Irish meat and potatoes man, ordered Beef Korma and was NOT happy with his choice. He just plain didn't like it. He said the meat was tough, stringy and very hard to chew. I tried the sauce and it was OK. Scootor tried it and said it gave him a large mandibular work-out. It was not a successful pairing.

We heard Scootor's meal before we ever saw it. His Tiger Prawns came out of the kitchen under a cloud of fragrant steam on an cast iron pan that was very hot. He really enjoyed his choice and the Chapatti bread we both ordered. His memorable quote: "my tongue is dancing with an array of spices." He just cracks me up.

Before I tell you about my dinner I must tell you about my inability to eat spicy food. I have this theory about people who serve spicy food that they do not understand that there is a big difference between say Indian mild and woosey-white-person mild. There just is. So when our server, the helpful Sonny, said he could "tone my dinner down", I was relieved. My relief was short lived. I'm sure they toned it down, but not enough for me.

Now to my dinner. I love Okra. I really do. I am an Okra eating fool and put it in almost everything. I figured that "toned down" okra would be perfect or so I thought. It arrived in a small bowl -- the perfect size to eat and share. It came with a very light and lovely rice. I ordered Chapati with my Okra perfect for scooping. I dug into my bowl and popped it into my mouth and OMG was it hot! WHEW! I made several attempts to salvage my dinner with some of Arlene's Butter chicken sauce and Bob's Beef Korma sauce. They helped some, but not nearly enough.

Empress of India is a nice-looking place with wide tables and straight backed wooden chairs. They were great with enough room for four to sit comfortably and a great chair for my big old butt. Service was great with Sonny and others were around all the time filling glasses and asking how we were doing.

So let's tally. Arlene loved her Butter Chicken, Garlic Naan and Samosas. Scootor loved his sizzling Tiger Prawns, Samosas and Chapatti. I would have loved mine if I could have tolerated the spice, and Bob, I think, was waiting for Scottie to beam him up. So if you like your food spicy this is the place for you. I would go back for the Butter Chicken.

TTFN

Meg

Tongue In Cheek

EMBERS

30 Fairway Road South

Kitchener ON

519-894-3511

We drifted into the Holiday Inn on a zephyr of chlorine fumes. (I wanted to say wafted in, but my editor said it was the wrong word.) Not the best way for a dining experience to begin. Embers has enough ambiance but there is that pesky chlorine smell.......We arrived on time and, shock of all shocks, Al and Tracy had arrived first.

Tracy, who is always cold, picked a table next to one of several fireplaces in the room. I was at the far end of the table as I am NOT a fireplace girl. Thankfully, it never got as warm as I had dreaded.

You remember my rant about hating large cute menus? Embers menu was anything but. It was very brief. There was the obligatory burgers and pizza to French Onion soup and Caesar salad to BBQ ribs. I didn't really think much of it.

To start Tracy ordered a wheel of smoked salmon. It was a very busy plate that came without and bread or crackers. She mentioned this loss to our server (the lovely Annette) and a few minutes later appeared with not only a basket of bread but a plate of freshly pan-toasted, buttery crostini. Those very thin slices of bread were the most delicious thing I'd eaten in a long time. They accompany the baked Brie so if you go to EMBERS they are not to be missed! YUM!

Both Scootor (my husband) and Alan (Tracy's husband) ordered French Onion soup. They said it was good and liked it. I tried it and it tasted like a beef soup with some onions instead of French Onion soup. There was no body to the soup and no richness either. The small pop of Sherry or red wine sadly was missing.

Now for my Caesar salad. A salad, any salad should start with DRY greens. If it's wet, the dressing gets diluted and won't stick. While I really hate salad with too much dressing and usually order it on the side, this time I didn't and ended up the sorrier for it. So for the first time ever I ended up with an almost dressing-free plate. I could have gotten more dressing but more dressing wouldn't have helped a soggy salad. I wasn't at my happiest.

Then as if on cue a pack of half naked screaming kids burst into the restaurant because that's where the exit to the pool is. Who in their right minds would put the pool next to where people are eating? Got me.

The entrées were a wonder. Tracy ordered the Eye of the Round Steak with grilled peppers and onions. When Annette asked Tracy how she wanted her steak and Tracy said medium, I was shocked. To me Eye of the Round is a tough piece of meat that needs to be pot-roasted. I was even more shocked when I tasted it. Medium it was and tender as well; it was good.

Both Scootor and Alan ordered the ribs. They were both happy with their choices and when I tasted the meat not only was it tender but the BBQ sauce was terrific.

Now for my dinner. The menu, however good, was kind of ordinary except for my dinner. I ordered Veal Cheeks. Don't leave me yet. I watch a many food shows and everyone is always mentioning cheeks and there they were. I was stunned and quickly ordered them. OMG were they good! Succulent and tender and perched on top of a hillock of wonderful mashed potatoes surrounded by a very velvety Jus. I was in heaven. YUMMO!

We skipped dessert and the boys had coffee, which Scootor pronounced as excellent.

EMBERS was a pleasant surprise and and any place that can produce those cheeks get's my vote. So if the smell of chlorine isn't a major issue by all means go to EMBERS. Order the Veal Cheeks too, you'll be so glad you did.

Bon appétit!

Meg

Tea Party Cookies

1 cup (250g) Butter
1 cup (250g) Sugar
2 Eggs
1 pinch salt
2 cups (500g) Flour
1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla

Method:
Cream the butter and sugar together. Add eggs and vanilla. Sift in flour and mix the rest of the ingredients until a soft dough has formed. Form cookies on a chilled cookie sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for approximately 10 minutes.

I'm going to Bulk Barn for all their neat baking decorations.

Enjoy!!!!!!!!
Meg

Awesome Leek Soup

I made some of this soup for a friend’s dinner party this weekend, and she called me during her party saying her guests thought the soup was awesome and were begging for the recipe. So, here it is. Let me know what you think.

Rinse 4 leeks well. Slice them up. If you don't care that your soup has a pale greenish tinge use some of the green part of the Leek; otherwise, stick with the bulb.

Sauté the leeks with butter in a large pot with 2 chopped onions. Add 3-4 diced potatoes the pot. When softened, add 6 cups of chicken stock (Campbell's Low Salt Chicken Stock is fine if you don’t have any made). Simmer for 40 minutes.

When the potatoes are tender remove the soup from heat and allow to cool. When cool, put in the blender in batches and process until smooth. Of course, if blended soup isn't to your liking, don't blender it.

Add 2 tablespoons of Creme Fraiche for tang or heavy cream for mellowness, both are good choices. More dairy can be added to taste.

To reheat, gently simmer on low until the desired temperature is reached. Add salt & pepper to taste. Sample it and if it needs more cream add it now.

Yum Yum Yum!

Meg

Ennios Restaurant - Great Italian

384 King St N.
Waterloo
519-893-0543

Last week, Tracy and I decided to do our standing Friday night dinner at Ennios in Waterloo. In the dim and distant past my husband and I went to the original Ennios in Stanley Park. It was a Mom and Pop Italian place that was small and always packed, and a bit noisy but well worth it.

There were six in our party on Friday. Myself, my husband Scootor, Tracy, her husband Al, their son Josh and his fiancé, Jill.

The menu was a treat. I hate large menus with cutesy names for things and this one was simple and easy to read.

We all had starters. I had crisp and tasty Calamari with a creamy sauce, which had too much dill in it for me, but everyone else loved it. Scootor had the soup de jour, which was a nice tomato and spinach mixture. He loved it. Tracy, Al, Josh and Jill all had the Caesar Salad. I had one too that came with my dinner and it was davoon!! I think it may have been one of the best I’ve ever had.

Tracy bought Pazzo Bread for the table — fingers of fried dough with a Marinara sauce for dipping. Everyone else really liked it a lot: I did not. That left more for the rest of the table and they were all the happier for it.

The entrées were very good and didn't disappoint. Now I LOVE Gnocchi, and I have never met a Gnocchi I didn't love. The usual presentation is covered with Marinara. I had mine "A la Nona." This means in the Grandmother's style. Plump and succulent pillows of potato dough fried in butter with garlic and Parmesan. The portion was so large I had enough for lunch the
next day.

Tracy and Al both had Pizza. They loved them. At Ennios pizza is crisp crusted and full of toppings. Jill and Josh both had spaghetti and meatballs. They both enjoyed theirs, and Josh finished up Jill's when she got full. The success of a restaurant is after dinner being just full enough not to need dessert.

Ennios is a nice, warm, real family place. The servers are prompt and courteous. So, if you want a nice, real, and relaxed Italian meal with really good food Ennios will be the place for you.

Reservations are recommended as they fill up fast. There is another Ennios at 655 Fairway Road South in Kitchener. You can reach them at 519-576-9552.

We are going to try this one soon, hopefully with friends Arlene and Bob. I can hear those Gnocchi calling my name.

Bon Appetit!
Meg

Beets - Roasted Bottoms & Sauteed Tops

Get a bunch of beets (or 2 or even 3) with the tops. Cut the tops off and put them in a sink full of cold water to rinse and refresh. I’ll get back to them later.

Rinse the beets to remove the dirt. Do not peel the beets or your hands will be very beet colored. Latex or vinyl gloves are an option; just don’t use the powdered kind.

Wrap the beets in foil with salt and pepper to taste and a tablespoon of butter per bunch. Fold up the foil and put the little package either on the ‘Que on Medium or in the oven at 350 degrees.

About 45 minutes later you will have a terrific feed of the best beets ever. Give them the poke test before opening to make sure they are done. Stab each beet with a fork and gently scrape the skin off with a spoon. I will guarantee you the best unpickled beets ever and no beet hands.

Cook's Tip: As you may have noticed, I am not a measurer of ingredients kind of girl when cooking. In baking however, it being an exact science, I measure carefully and have found that a lot of substitutions don’t work.


Now to the beet tops. Drain them in a colander but do not pat dry. In a skillet melt one tablespoon of butter and one tablespoon of oil. Add either half a cup of garlic scapes cut into 1" pieces or three large cloves of thinly sliced garlic. Feel free to add more if you prefer a stronger garlic flavour. When you can smell the garlic, start adding the beet greens. Saute for a few minutes; when they are good and wilted they are done. Just add salt and pepper to taste and enjoy.

This recipe may be used for all the Greens. If you are a meat eater, you may want to add a chopped up slice of bacon or a small piece of well-rinsed chopped up salt pork.

So, get your fresh seasonal produce and don’t worry about experimenting with food. It’ll be fun and taste great.

TTFN
Meg

Yummy Yum Yum Yum!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We went to Dana Short's last Friday for her seventh anniversary party. The place was packed with not only people, but all these food samplings as well. I was nibbling my way through all the goodies and found a man giving away tastes of his chocolates. Boy were they good. My tip for the day is run don't walk to Dana Shortt's place - 55 Erb St. E.

Waterloo

519-880-1555

and pick up some Ascot Chocolates.

519-603-0173

www.ascotchocolates.com

I do a lot of my Christmas shopping at Dana's place for gifts with some real OOMPH.

So try Dana's and try Ascot Chocolates.

TTFN

Meg

We're Back

At last we are back blogging away. Stay tuned for more reviews and fun food facts.

So, TTFN,

Meg

Our Milestones Adventure

Milestones, The Boardwalk Plaza, Ira Needles Blvd Kitchener, Ontario

Always eager for a new dining adventure, our monthly dinner companions Bob and Arlene, joined my husband, Scootor, and I to try out the new Milestones Restaurant. Unfortunately, the evening did not start well. When we arrived promptly for our 5:30 pm reservation, our table wasn't ready and there were no other tables available. So we waited. The hostess was so embarrassed she gave me one free starter coupon (a lovely gesture), but still we sat, and sat and sat.

I was getting tired of waiting so I went up to the hostess and upon finding out our table still was not ready, I requested three more free starter coupon cards. She was more than gracious as she gave them to me; however, we continued to sit. The waiting area was very warm and even Arlene, who is ALWAYS cold, said it was warm. After one full hour, Arlene and I both returned to find out the status of our table, and as we approached, she told us they finally had a table ready for us. It was not the table that we had reserved, but another close by.

When we sat down, our wonderful server, Julie, said that an appetizer had been ordered for the table. It arrived as we were choosing our four freebies. It was a lovely little loaf of bread with Bocconcini (little balls of fresh Mozzarella) sitting on some sort of a sundried tomato pesto sauce. It was very nice and took the edge off.

The appetizers we chose were Yam Frites, Risotto Balls, Spicy Asian Chicken Bites, Honey Phyllo Shrimp, and a Naan (more like a pita than naan) bread with Goat's Cheese and two chutney-like small dishes — fig jam and a cranberry relish — that came with only one little spoon. The fig jam was very tasty, sort of a savory sweetness, and the cranberry relish was the tartest thing I'd ever tasted.

The shrimp were wonderful, plump and moist on the inside and crunchy and non-greasy on the outside. The spicy Asian chicken bites were yummy. They tasted a lot like the General Tso’s chicken you can get at most Chinese food restaurants. It had a nice spicy sweet sauce and a sprinkling of sesame seeds. The Yam Frites (my choice) were good. They could go face to face with any others around. We figured they must be fresh-cut as some of them were still a bit crunchy in the middle. The three Risotto Balls were interesting. I've had rice balls before but the risotto made them a completely different texture. They were OK. They sat on a little puddle of a tomato-based salsa that I wasn't crazy about. I'm a sauce on the side kinda girl.

The mains listed on the menu are all over the place; they have something for every one. They will accommodate any food issues you have if they can and even have Gluten Free and Vegetarian choices. Kudos to them for this!

I ordered the Hamburger. It was good; not my favorite rare in the middle juicy yummy burger, but it was OK. The toppings were fresh and flavorful and the avocado salsa was divine. What was NOT divine were the roasted potatoes that I chose for my side. They were way over-cooked and sadly wrinkled. They really should have never left the kitchen like that.

Scootor ordered the Shanghai noodles with chicken, and he said the chicken was delicious but the noodles had a taste he couldn't recognize and didn't like much. He did, however, bring his leftovers home to have for lunch at work. Arlene was satisfied with the appetizers and chose not to order a main. Bob, the last member of our jolly crew, had the prime rib. He's a pink-in-the-middle kind of guy, and this came to the table without a hint of pink in it swimming in jus.

Now, I will admit that a major pet peeve of mine is the whole "au jus" thing. The stuff your French Dip Sammy comes with is JUS just jus. Au jus means with jus. So to say it comes with au jus is saying it comes with "with jus". Like Pizza pie, Pizza means pie, so repeating the word pie is redundant. Whew, I feel better for having set that straight.

Anyway, Bob said it was OK; but he is a very accommodating guy, who doesn’t enjoy making a fuss. I’m sure he almost had a stroke every time Arlene and me weighed in with our comments.

So to sum it all up, they have just opened up and are ironing the kinks out. We had several people stop by to apologize for our wait which was lovely the first few times, but grew tedious the fourth, fifth and sixth time. You'd have thought we were going to sue them or something to make them keep coming back.

The place was packed, so make your reservations early. I give the place a solid "B" and will probably be back.

Bon appetit!
Meg

TWICE BAKED SWEET POTATO CASSEROLE

This very VERY good and well worth the effort. It's not just for the holidays!

You will need:

3 pounds sweet potatoes
1/2 cup butter softened
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 large eggs
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon allspice
pinch of mace
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Scrub the sweet potatoes and prick the skin with a fork. Bake uncovered on a baking sheet until they are soft, about 1 hour. Allow potatoes to cool, then peel away the skin using a sharp pairing knife or any utensil you like.. Place the peeled potatoes in a mixing bowl and blend until smooth with a potato masher, whisk, or electric mixer.

Add the butter, cream, eggs, brown sugar and vanilla to the mashed potatoes and use a stiff wire whisk to whip together thoroughly. Add in the allspice and mace, then season with salt and pepper to taste.

TOPPING - You may double the topping for extra yumminess :)

1/4 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup chopped pecans (we used almonds)

ASSEMBLE THE CASSEROLE:

Spoon the sweet potato mixture into a buttered baking dish and dot with pats of butter and sprinkle with the brown sugar and chopped pecans. Bake for 30-40 minutes. The sweet potatoes will puff up slightly and the topping will be bubbly and golden when the casserole is done.

Bon appetit!
Meg

Pepi's Pizza on Old King Street

Tired and hungry after a long drive back from a Muskoka cottage, we decided to continue our search for the best pizza in Waterloo Region. We've liked the Pepi's Pizza on Water Street in Kitchener, so we decided to give the one on Old King Street a try as it is conveniently located near the Fairway Road exit off Highway 8.

I've tried really hard to come up with one good thing about our experience at this Pepi's. The servers were fairly pleasant - there, I did it.

We ordered the large 3-item pizza with one pound of wings feature and waited about 30 minutes for it to be ready. A few minutes later we were home and diving in. I'm not sure how you can ruin a pizza, but there must be a way. The dough was chewy and although the fixings were plentiful, there seemed to be no taste to it. The wings were tiny bullets of fried fat with the sauce on the side. The food was so bad, not one of us is willing to eat the leftovers.

We continue our search for the best pizza. If you have a recommendation, please let us know.

Enjoy!
Arlene