11th Mile — Restaurant in Fredericton

Just finished eating here for the first time and what a fantastic spot. I have been in Fredericton for several years and I feel like 11th Mile for me is the same thing as those classic movies that everyone says they love, but you for some reason just never get around to watching. Well, this was our first day of my vacation Advent calendar I created for my wife for us to discover and eat our way around new spots (to us) in town and it's going to be hard to top this.

Having travelled extensively in our lives, my wife and I both agreed that this felt like the trendiest place in town with an all around great vibe.

The service was great and you could tell that the owners truly care seeing as how they were also out on the busy floor serving occasionally. That's always the first step to a great restaurant.

Then of course comes the food. I've heard many say that while the food is fantastic, it's pricey. We would agree, but pricey for a good reason. You can tell that the ingredients are top notch. The cooking was perfect. The flavour combinations, often unique for Fredericton.

The beef tostadas were a single bite but a myriad of flavours. The scallion pancake was reminiscent of our lives in China, but for folks who've lived there, it's a bit more doughy than we're used to. That said, delicious. The accompanying sauce was perfect. The flank steak at medium rare was cooked perfectly and unbelievably tender while the chimichurri sauce added a nice punch of slightly spicy flavour. Pork belly is a dish that is extremely popular in East Asia where my wife and I met and lived. This one was on par with some of the best dongporou I've ever had (it's not 东坡肉 for those who know the dish). The only thing I would say is it would be nice if there were either a salty or acidic addition to the dish to balance out the various sweet elements. The sauce does a nice job, but a little more could have perfected things I think. We also had one of the best white wines I think we've ever tasted here and are now hoping we can find it outside this restaurant. Finally, we finished things off with the peanut butter semifreddo which was Lucious, smooth and had the perfect balance with the crunch from the candies pecans.

Well done 11th Mile, I should have come here...

Overall a bit mixed on the whole experience. The service was really good and the cocktail menu is the best I've found in Fredericton (yes, better than The Provincial) but I found the food to be pretty underwhelming. Me and my wife did the sharing plates and got:

shaved brussels sprouts salad - Not bad, not great. Definitely better ways to do up brussels sprouts.

crab cakes - These were the best of the bunch but in the way that crab cakes are pretty much always great everywhere you go

cavatelli - not bad, but not much in the way of flavour.

the pork belly - This was the big disappointment. We love restaurant pork belly in general but this one just felt really plain. Really could have used something to spice it up a bit.

Cocktail menu was on point. Ordered 3 or 4 different ones, liked them all. Can't remember the names of them (looks like the online menu is different from the one we had) but you really can't go wrong here.

Service was really good two. It's a small place with only a few tables so a server is usually within range. Good loungey ambience and a great little date spot.

I guess the only real letdown was the food. You get a certain expectation with small plate dining that the food you get in those small qualities is going to really impress and I really didn't feel it did. I think they change up their menu a fair bit so your...

Finally - the kind of restaurant that Fredericton desperately needs. Unique and inventive share-plate menu and an excellent cocktail list in an intimate and cozy venue. The food is excellent and beautifully served whilst surprisingly affordable. At times the food was so good that we dove in before we remembered to take photos for this review! (Apologies for the photos of half-finished plates!). The house-made pickles are excellent, the fried olives were great and the gnocchi with pork ragu is a must. The bartenders make an excellent whiskey sour and the rotating cocktail ("Harvest Jazz and Booze") was beautiful. The staff are friendly and helpful and during our dining experience the owners welcomed us themselves and talked us through the menu. A newly-opened restaurant (we dined on only their 5th night serving) there were a few minor teething issues - the wine and beer list were lacking, the dessert option was underwhelming - but I cannot fault them at this early stage. Congratulations to the owners for taking this bold step in a small town - I wish you all the success that you deserve! Take note Fredericton - this is the direction your restaurant scene is going. I highly recommend for any local or visiting...