Restaurant Antonyme — Restaurant in Gatineau

My family reserved a spot at this place for a Mother's Day brunch with five of us including two kids, myself, my wife and my Mother-in-Law.

The menu presented approximately 10 items with prices ranging from about $15 to $30 but most items in the $22+ range.

As there was nothing on the menu to specify appetizer versus main we simply assumed that all the dishes (each of which seemed quite substantive and hearty from the descriptions) were mains. Each of us ordered one dish excepting my four year old son, who ate from our plates.

The quality of the food was quite good, but unfortunately, the portions were skimpy and more what one would have expected from an appetizer.

My pork belly dish included perhaps a couple ounces of meat tops, an unusually small poached egg and a sprinkling of perhaps 4-5 baby roasted potatoes. My wife's dish (a red snapper fish tartar) was even more miserly leaving her unsatisfied and quite put off at leaving a Mother's Day brunch still hungry.

At a standard upscale dinner restaurant these dishes would have undoubtedly been sold as appetizers, not mains. The steak dish ordered by my 10 year old daughter was probably the only dish that seemed substantive enough to be called a main, so we scavenged a bit off her plate to supplement our meagre lot.

I'll note here that there was no bread basket, no croissants, nothing supplemental whatsoever either gratis or extra as one would typically see at most brunch places and waitstaff made no effort to offer us any drinks apart from coffee and soda. My wife probably would have ordered a mimosa or specialty drink if something was on offer but there was no drink menu and the staff mentioned nothing in this regard.

I would add that we are by no means large eaters and ironically our biggest complaint with many brunch places has been sickeningly enormous portions heaped onto the plate. This restaurant may be the rare example of the opposite phenomenon, especially for brunch.

When the waiter asked my wife if we were happy with the meal she informed them she was still hungry and found the portions to be inadequate. Upon hearing her complaint the waiter shrugged and nothing more was said. As my wife was uninterested in the two dessert options listed on the blackboard (the waitstaff didn't ask us if we wanted dessert) we simply paid and left.

The only other thing I'll say here in the restaurant's (partial) defence is that the price ($120 tax included) for four people was quite a bargain given some of the upscale set menus you can get in comparable trendy Ottawa establishments.

What makes the whole experience so puzzling is I would have not raised an eyebrow if the bill was double the price given the quality of the food and assuming respectable portions, and two dishes per adult would probably have been more reasonable given the portion sizes, especially with a dish like the tartar. A little more education by the wait staff about the menu would probably have turned this into a better experience for everyone.

Bottom line I want to give this place good marks for the food (despite the poached eggs being underdone) but any Mother's Day brunch where the Moms leave hungry can't, in my book, be considered anything...

Came here on a whim about an hour before closing. The outdoor patio was very cute but it was a bit cold for outdoor dining. Got a table for 2 without a reservation on a Friday evening inside. Though, I would definitely recommend making a reservation!

The ambiance was wonderful, decor, lighting, and colour scheme were cozy and moody. The vibe was simply cool and the playlist set the mood for easing into the weekend perfectly. The restaurant doesn’t seat many which made for an intimate dining experience, though there weren’t many other guests at the time.

The service was exceptional from the greeting to billing. Welcoming, relaxed and professional. The staff knows their sh*t, the value this provides to the dining experience cannot be underestimated!

We opted to share three dishes.

Bison tartare 9/10 only reason why I’m not giving 10 is that there were no accompaniments for scooping other than what I think was a seaweed type cracker (not my thing) which my partner devoured. The flavours were well-balanced between salt, acid, savoury and a touch of sweetness with the modest and perfect amount of pickled veg on top.

Duck breast 10/10 flavours were top notch and the presentation was beautiful. Asparagus was well-cooked, crisp and perfectly tender. The parsnip and carrot accompaniment, finely sliced and layered, was totally unexpected and I would certainly order this all on its own!

Potato and mushroom salad 5/10. Unfortunately, the potatoes were slightly undercooked but the flavours were great and it wasn’t a huge deal to us but it was a bit disappointing.

Strawberry something or other for dessert, at our server, Jonathan’s, recommendation. I LOVE dessert and let me say that this was simply delicious! A balance of sweet and a gentle acidity from lime zest topped with fresh whipped cream. A nice textural variety with the biscuit and the amount of strawberries was generous. This wasn’t over-powering and didn’t leave me feeling blah (like many desserts can) due to overcompensating with tons of sugar. The portion size was great for sharing but I certainly could have eaten my own!

We really appreciated the dining experience, our server’s candour, and of course the food! The prices were reasonable for high quality, intentional menu items made with fresh, seasonal ingredients.

Will definitely return to this gem of a restaurant. At a time when so many restaurants are cutting corners and offering little value (or experience) for unreasonable prices, this restaurant...

The preamble: In fairness to restaurants we didn’t care for, we have omitted reviewing them. If your restaurant doesn't have a review on our board, we either didn’t love it, or we haven’t eaten there yet. If you are interested in having us dine at your establishment, send us a note and well get you on our list for future meals. We’re not here to trash the restaurants we believe have some work ahead of them, rather to applaud the restaurants we feel are above the bar.

Being tremendous fans of the mid morning smorgasbord, we felt it was time to visit this relatively new establishment in our home town of Aylmer. The menu was interesting and offered a variety of elevated mainstream brunch items, like crepes (actually pancakes), to the more creative and unusual, like veal tongue or scallops. We ordered one main brunch platter and two tapas. The main dish was the Magret de canard (duck breast) with roasted potatoes, braised endives, lemon carrot mousse, beer pickled cauliflower, and one sunny side up egg. The platter was interesting, and I really liked the endives and the cauliflower. The duck was well cooked, but cooked the same as pretty much every other place I’ve had magret in. The presentation was ok, though I personally don’t really care for the cutting board as a plate (as many bistros have adopted), but it didn’t really affect the quality or flavour of the foods. The first of 2 tapas was the veal tongue benedict, served with beet caramel with smoked rosemary and roasted yams with dates and lemon hollandaise. The dish was quite nice, well cooked, and the flavours worked well together. The veal was a little “beefy” tasting, but otherwise excellent. The second tapa was seared sea scallop with curried beet puree, carrots with dill, candied kumquat, and poached egg. This was the best of the bunch, and the candied kumquats were quite nice. As other reviewers have noted, the tapas portions are a bit on the small side, although the quality of the ingredients is very good, hence the price (think 7 to 8 dollars a plate). The table next to us who had wrapped up eating as we arrived, advised the waitress that they were still hungry and so ordered another main dish. Realistically, you are looking at $20 + a bit per person for brunch to leave feeling that you have...