The Bicycle Thief — Restaurant in Halifax

Had the pleasure of being in Halifax for work for the evening. Was told by an east coast friend to dine at The Bicycle Theif. Looked at their menu online and though I was impressed with their menu, they are an upscale restaurant and their prices reflect that. When speaking with my coworkers, at the mention of this place they all had heard of it and also wanted to try it. When we called ahead for a reservation, they had none for a group of 6 to 7 people available until after 9pm. So, we figured we'd try another place. But some in our group decided to walk up and see if tables might have come available. Low and behold, they got a table for 4 on the patio. So our smaller group of three tried right after. We were given the option of the bar or out on the patio, we of course took the patio. They made room for our group of three at a small two person table and we were more then happy with that. Once seated we all took in the views of the water, boardwalk, boats and overall view. The drink menu is extensive, none in our group even knew that the Bike Tour page had drinks on it! We decided on a few drinks and then go into looking at the food menu. It's broken up into three parts. Just before ordering, another coworker walked by and asked to join us. So we asked the server if we could add another chair. They did better by adding another small table and our group of three became a group of four. We quickly decided on food and here is what we ordered...three orders of Home Grown Mussels $14 and one order of Yellowfin Tuna Tartare $16. For our mains we picked Spaghettini ai Frutti di Mare $28, Risotto con Capesante (Scallops) $28 with two extra scallops at $5 each, Cioppino an Italian Seafood Stew $46 and I got the Halibut Piccata $38. Our appetizers came out first and they were served hot and very delicious. Though I noticed that two of the three mussel dishes were different. One of the sauces was much redder, more oily and when I tried it....it tasted more like a spicy tomato soup then the white wine base I had. When our plates were being removed, I brought it to their attention. She could immediately tell the difference and said she would bring it back to show the kitchen. Our server said she was the right person to show this to as she was the manager on staff that evening. Our main meals came out and everyone was ooooo and ahhhhhh as they took in the presentation of their food. We did not wait too long to dig in as it looked soo good. Plus, we were sitting outside so waiting too long would also cause our meals to cool down as well. Everything tasted amazing. The Parmigiano Fregola serves with my halibut was amazing, the asparagus was cooked to perfection and the halibut was sooo tender and just fell apart. Guess I hoped for a larger piece of fish at $38, but that must be the cost, even when right by the water. Everyone was happy with their meal. The service was great and they took great care of us from start to finish. There is wait staff constantly moving about the restaurant, assisting eachother to make sure everyone is attended to. I would highly recommend you come and try their food, so long as your wallet...

I have to say I came in fully expecting the raving reviews to be an over hype. I often feel like restaurants that provide a higher end menu with prices to match, often get great reviews because people need to justify spending money. However, I will say, The Bicycle Thief lived up to everyone’s great reviews and they fully deserve the 5-star rating!

First and foremost, no matter what day of the week, make a reservation!! We learned the hard way last Friday night that the only walk-ins they take are for the outdoor patio. While they do provide blankets, it is way too cold and windy to enjoy yourself during dinner (in my opinion). Luckily we were able to make a reservation tonight (Tuesday) and again the restaurant was at full capacity. Hence, make a reservation!!

From the moment we stepped foot in the restaurant, we were immediately greeted and checked in with the hostess. We were quickly escorted to our table and soon greeted by our waitress. Throughout the night, we had fabulous service, from our silverware being swapped out after each course, our plates being cleared right after finishing a dish, to our waters being quickly refilled, it was a wonderful experience.

The food itself was phenomenal. They provide a focaccia bread for the table with a red pepper hummus. My husband and I both agreed that the bread should be warmed or toasted a bit. While it was fluffy and fresh, it was just okay. But hey, it was free so we appreciate the nice gesture. Here’s what we ordered:

•Seared Local Scallops - Excellent, these were so good we ended up ordering another, highly recommended!!

•Home-grown Mussels - very good

•Linguine Fra Diavolo - Excellent! The flavors all worked so well together, between the slight spice from the chilies to the cheesy goodness from the grana padano. Highly recommend!

•Spaghettini alla Vongole- this dish was good, but didn’t wow my like the Diavolo

I wish we saved room for dessert, as I’ve heard wonderful things about the butterscotch cake and the creme brûlée. I guess we’ll just have to come back!

To recap, this place is totally worth the hype! The service was great and the food was phenomenal. I would definitely be a regular here if I was a local. Well done...

The restaurant serves a seafood forward Italian menu. And their seared local scallops ($17; 3 to an order we added a fourth) was a favourite dish for our table. Deceptively simple looking, the crustaceans are pressed into finely crushed almonds, so the golden seared crust also has a crispiness to it. The added richness and crunchiness pairs wonderfully with the yuzu beurre blanc, which made me wish I had saved bread for dipping into the buttery sauce.

I’d recommend swapping out the sesame cucumber “spaghetti” for diced cucumber instead. The long tendrils were too messy to get onto the bread and overpowers the fish in the yellowfin tuna tartare ($16). They should also substitute the too crunchy crostini for another base, perhaps large taro chips to go along with the other Asian theme ingredients. Nevertheless, the tartare was fresh and flavourful with the pickled ginger, wasabi cream, and creamy avocado.

There was the perfect amount of heat in the linguine fra diavolo ($28), the garlicky tomato sauce covering each piece of the thick and chewy spaghetti. While the five prawns were perhaps a touch overcooked, they were still meaty and delicious.

The rack of lamb ($54) was cooked to perfection, the meat juicy and tasty on its own having been covered with rosemary and Dijon mustard. On the other hand, the side was polarizing – my friends loved the sweety and salty combination of the Amarena cherries, potato, and pancetta. Cherries with meat? Not for me, thank you.

My second favourite dish also incorporated scallops, except in the risotto con Capesante ($32) they didn’t have an almond crust. Instead, they’re served with a hefty portion and creamy risotto studded with peas and crispy prosciutto. Both the seafood and rice were cooked beautifully.

We’re told the butterscotch caramel cake ($14) is the only dessert The Bicycle Thief has kept on the menu since its inception. And after seeing slices whizzing by us to other tables, I had to try this layered cake. It’s sweet, creamy, and nutty, reminding me of the caramel crunch cake from La Rocca, except the meringue is replaced with sponge cake and crusted toasted pecans. Normally, I’m not a fan of very sugary desserts but this one...