Category Archives: $$ ($15-$50)

More than $15 per person, less than $50. Your definite mixed bag

Raja – Elegant Indian food in Stratford, Ontario


Not quite on the main drag, the Raja has survived its location because of its quality. And despite the years, it continues to impress.

Stuck with having to eat between Matinees and Evening Performances – ie: 5:00 to 7:30 – and not wanting ‘fast food’, the Raja has always been one of our go to options. The room is lovely. Dark wood, quiet carpeting, table cloths, proper napkins, and attentive waiters win me over every time. The food is good as well.

We were 3 – so we opted for a combo dinner for 2 which included an appetizer sampler, butter chicken, rice, and several other traditional Indian dishes. I opted for the tandoori Chicken, served sizzling on a platter of onions. The butter chicken was delicious, the tandoori Chicken properly cooked and appropriately juicy, and my sisters Chai tea was excellent.

Just a bit more on the Chai Tea. We were warned when we ordered it that it would take about 5 minutes to prepare because it is done to order. And they delivered a tea with the milk and tea leaves properly steamed and combined by hand into a lovely bouquet of delicious smell and taste.

Bottom line – Great look, ok Indian Food – and fast. So perfect for a quick and relatively inexpensive but nice dinner pre-theatre.

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Raja Fine Indian Cuisine on Foodio54

The Library Bar, Royal York Hotel, Toronto – Awful food in a great looking Bar


Library Bar at the Royal York in Toronto – forget it. Very expensive, and not very good.

Perhaps the problem was my timing. I ate lunch there on a Friday, and from the other reviews – I can see that they are normally open only Saturday and Sunday. But still – it was a simply terrible excuse for a meal.

I ordered an Ahi Tuna Wrap – and it came with either a salad or french fries. Since it was billed as a ‘low calorie’ option on the menu – why would you offer french fries with it. But moving past that, the wrap was actually terrible. A too thick tortilla, folded around 3 small slices of Ahi Tuna, a bit of salad, and 3 slices of what might have once been avocado. It was served chilled, and honestly looked and tasted like it had been made much earlier in the day, put in a fridge, and just plopped on the plate. The salad was mealy and ordinary – which given the price of an outrageous $22 – I’m sorry. That’s disgusting.

Too bad too because the Library Bar looks so lovely – all dark brown and woody with comfortable seats and sofas and a very pleasant feel of restrained elegance. Plus the service was very nice. Normally they charge for internet – but the matre-d’ took pity on me and let me sign on using his code for an hour. Question to consider, why do expensive hotels still insist on charging for something that less expensive hotels and most restaurants and even some airports give away for free? I’m talking of course about internet access.

In any case – stick to the ‘Bar’ part of the Library and avoid the food.

Library Bar - Fairmont Royal York on Urbanspoon

Aikawa – Best Sushi Lunch on the West Island


Ok – that’s my view, and if you disagree – let me know where else I should be going! No joking on that. I’m willing and able to try anything, but as of right now – today – I’m going out on a limb and saying Aikawa is tops.

First off – the lunch is just $15 for the ‘initiation’ – a plate of 15 maki’s – all different, all yummy. Included is soup and salad and tea. So to my mind – perfect. Well, ok – I’d rather it was less $$ – but still – it’s a pretty good deal.

The service at Aikawa is always excellent. Most of the staff has been there forever, and they know both their jobs, and their sushi. So they can answer questions, get your meal to you promptly, and disappear quickly when you look to be talking business.

And the tables are nicely spaced – you can’t hear the people at the table next to you – a delightful change from the bistro mode that is sweeping so many of the restaurants these days. The Aikawa harkens back to the old days of deep carpets and glass barriers between tables. Nice for those of us more interested in our dining companions than the people at the nearby tables.

And the maki are quite good. With 15 different tasting nibbles, you can forgive a miss here and there – because the next one is perfect for your taste. Completely works.

Complaints? I wish they’d put at least one of the really up scale maki on the lunch special – Tuna Flower say. And at my latest lunch, all the maki were wrapped in Soy wrappers not Seaweed. I liked it – nay – I loved it, but I can image some purists thinking that old school is better.

Other lunch options – none of which I’ve ever tried – include platters of sushi and sushi maki mixtures. And of course the traditional menu is always available, you don’t have to do the lunch special!

Bottom line – I like it. An easy A for effort, for food, and for surroundings.

Aikawa on Urbanspoon

Aikawa on Foodio54

Angelinas – Expensive Loser in Ogunquit


I’m not totally sure why I so frequently get disappointed at restaurants in Ogunquit. Ok – I’m not keen on restaurants that charge over $300 for 7 people – that’s a lot of money for dinner with 2 kids. And I’m even less of a fan of restaurants that work to evoke fame – pictured of the Chef with Gorden Ramsey on Hell’s Kitchen – cool or Kitch?

But I do know that Angelina’s isn’t the first restaurant in Ogunquit to seriously disappoint me. Although from the crowds – I’m guessing I’m alone out there. We were 7 – and ordered 4 different appetizers, and 6 main courses. We even ordered 2 desserts. So you can’t say we didn’t try a fair sampling. Of the 12 offerings – only one – the Eggplant tower, was impressive. And it was great. The eggplant was lightly fried to perfection, the cheese fresh and definitely yummy. Very good. The salmon was also good – but hardly a Maine tradition.

I guess my main complaint was really the Lasagna that I ordered to share with Sophie. At Varenos – we’d shared a Lasagna large enough to have half left to take home for lunch. For more money, we got about 1/2 the Lasagna at Angelinos. It was yummy – but still. 1/2 the size, more money – not thrilling.

Truly disappointing was the steak we ordered. It was easily the most tasteless piece of meat I’ve ever had. My grand-daughter the ‘steak-aholic’ couldn’t even finish the tiny piece they gave her. More risotto then steak – but given how tasteless the steak was – I guess the portion was acceptable.

Dessert – one winner, one loser. The winner was the carrot cake. Rich and creamy – quite yummy. But the loser was a commercial frozen lemon sorbet. Hey – if you are expensive, and ‘chef owned and operated’ – don’t opt for a commercial frozen dessert. We do know what they look like. And it made me wonder about the carrot cake. Was that also commercial.

Anyway – bottom line – a C. Too much money for the quality of food we got served. But I will give them points for a very pleasant restaurant, and the service was quite acceptable.

Angelina's Ristorante & Wine on Urbanspoon

Angelina's Ristorante & Wine Bar Inc on Foodio54

Italian on the Beach in Maine? Why Not?


I admit it – I love pasta. And lasagna. Particularly lasagna. It’s probably one of my favorite foods. So despite the fresh fish, amazing lobstah, and of course the clams – I need my pasta fix.

And my go to option at Wells Beach in Maine is Varano’s. We started going there when nobody else went. It was a brand new restaurant – oddly located in a timeshare resort – but it advertised fresh pasta – and it was well located for us. We tried, we enjoyed, it became a family tradition.

We quickly learned not to go on a weekend night. An hour wait for even a great lasagna is not right. So we go on Tuesday or Wednesday – when the crowds are low, and we can relax and actually enjoy our dinner.

And so we did. Service wasn’t wonderful unfortunately. Our waiter tried – and somethings got done right – like the lid on the water for my 6-year-old grand-daughter, but some things were just – well – wrong. When we asked what the vegetables of the day were – the right answer is either “I don’t know”, or the names of the veggies. The wrong answer is “What ever the chef decides to throw on the plate”. Nope – I don’t think so.

We ordered 2 lasagna’s for 3 people – which was enough lasagna for us all to feel stuffed – and to leave 1/2 of each portion to take home for a super filling lunch the next day. That’s what I call extreme portion size! My daughter opted for Clams in the style of Scampi – that’s with white wine, olive oil and garlic. Again – no control on portion size – there was enough spaghetti on the plate to feed 2. More take-home.

But the food was delicious. The lasagna is one of the best I’ve ever had – fresh pasta, fresh ricotta cheese – and a delicious if too small portion of marinara sauce. We had to ask for more – which the waiter did bring.

For dessert, we all shared a single cannelloni – made with chocolate chips and way to rich for my taste. Which didn’t stop my grand-daughter from licking the plate. It was that good.

All in all – if you stay away from the crowded nights – Varano’s in a winner. Particularly good is the lasagna – but I think I said that already!

Varano's Italian Restaurant on Urbanspoon

Varano's Italian Restaurant on Foodio54

The Quintessential Maine Experience – Nothing is quite like it!


Fisherman’s Catch Restaurant – Simple Seafood, Fresh & at it’s best!

Nothing says Maine like fried clams, fried scallops, and fried Haddock. Sorry – but that’s the truth. Even thinking about Maine brings the taste of tartar sauce on freshly fried seafood to mind.

That – and “I ate too much”. Easy to do around here. You spend the day on the beach bouncing over and under the waves and you figure you’ve earned a decent dinner. Then – to compound the problem – you go some place like the Fisherman’s Catch – a rundown shack (on purpose) – that just serves fresh fried fish, clams, and scallops. And discover you’ve got an hour wait for dinner. By the time you are seated – well – control is clearly out the window.

Oh well – at least the fish is so fresh it could have walked to your table, and the fried clams and scallops are beyond yummy. The seating is on wooden picnic tables, the napkins are rolls of paper towels hung over your head, but the prices are reasonable, the portions large, the chowder delicious, and the service – once you’ve got a seat – fast.

Not much else to say – except that the great reviews aren’t kidding. This is the quintessential Maine experience – fresh seafood, salty breezes, and a waiting line.

Bring it on.

Fisherman's Catch Restaurant on Urbanspoon

Fidhermans Catch Restaurant on Foodio54

Bennington – and the Madison Brewing Company!


I’m supposed to be in Maine – on the beach – enjoying Lobstah. So why am I currently in back-woods Vermont? Excellent Question.

Turns out that my daughter let her driver’s license lapse – and that entailed a not so quick trip to a DMV. Problem – we’re in Maine! And Vermont is not the next state over – nope – that’s New Hampshire. So we drove, and drove, and drove… What I will do for my daughter!

The first DMV was an hour closer than Bennington – which is on the far side of the state from Maine – but they closed at 2:00 – and we didn’t quite make it. In fact – we never even found it, despite the very friendly advice and oh so convenient bathroom of Mr. Baker – of Baker’s Violin Shop. First bathroom I ever visited where the reading material was Music!

But driving on to Bennington was the only option – and we arrived there 15 minutes before their closing time! Adrienne rushed in to be sure to get a place in line, and Anais and Sophie and I prowled the Main Street. A few adorable shops, including a kid’s consignment store, and 5 ‘food’ establishments. The only one of which that had customers was the Madison Brewing Company. So despite the name – and despite our clearly underage for a drinking place group – we sauntered in, past the bar and into the, well, not quite so bar – restaurant area.

The menu was a surprise. Not only was there a fair sampling of traditional bar food (the nacho platter served to the table next to us looked awesome), there was fresh grouper! That’s what I had – and it was absolutely yummy.

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Sophie chose a reasonably priced hot dog off the kids menu – it came with carbs (mashed potatoes or french fries) or apple sauce. She went for the apple sauce. My daughter enjoyed their Cajun Blacked but beautifully raw in the center sliced tuna, served on a lovely bed of fresh greens, and Anais had a Caprese Salad with a slightly too strong Balsamic Reduction. I suspect the use of a bottled product – overly enthusiastically applied. Except for that, we were well fed!

Not bad for randomly selected restaurant in a town we probably will never visit again.

Sometimes the sun does shine! Unfortunately, even with the sun shining, it was still a long 4 hours back to Maine. Oh well, at least we were full!

Madison Brewing Co. Brew Pub & Restaurant on Urbanspoon

Madison Brewery Co on Foodio54

Sahib – calling it ‘fine’ is a stretch – but for the West Island – it works


The Sahib Restaurant is not the only restaurant convenient to my office – but it is the only Indian alternative – and as such gets my business about 8 times a year or so.

Given that frequency – I’d expect them to at least recognize me – but no – every time we walk in, it’s as if they’ve never seen us before. A shame really – a better ‘host’ experience would do wonders for their popularity – because they do a lot of other things quite well.

They do quite good Onion Bhajia – a fact I had driven home when I ate them elsewhere and discovered that while the ones at Sahib are fully of onions – other people skimp! So one up there. Their tandoori Chicken is decent – the flesh not as juicy as some versions I’ve had – but still pretty decent.

Their killer dishes are the butter chicken – the rice – and the Chaat Papri. What strange is that this dish isn’t on the menu. It’s considered so authentic – that ‘tourists’ won’t enjoy it. But it is easily our favorite dish at Sahib. Made with chickpeas and fried ‘chips’ – it’s a very yummy appetizer. To try it out if you try the Sahib.

It’s not a great restaurant – but it’s a sure bet for a decent meal. I give it a B. It would do a lot better if they just made an attempt to remember their ‘frequent’ guests.

Sahib on Urbanspoon

Restaurant Sahib on Foodio54

Tratoria La Festa – Consistency Counts – and Yummy matters even more!


Eating at the Trattoria is like eating at home – except you get better food, and you don’t have to do the dishes.

We eat at Trattoria La Festa almost every time we go to Stowe, Vermont – the consistency is so amazingly – well – consistent. You know you will have a great meal, you know the service will be pleasant, you know you will be greeted like old friends, and you know the price range will be acceptable. Given all that – you know why we go so often!

This time was no exception. We arrived and were greeted by all three of the owners – Patty, Johnny and Tony. The restaurant was nicely filled, but not packed. Which reminds of one of the things I so adore about the Trattoria – it’s not noisy! For some reason, the current in thing is to create a ‘bistro’ feel with hard walls, hard ceilings, hard tables – and the result is a very noisy restaurant. But not at the Trattoria – the rough wooden floors absorb sound – not reflect it – and even packed – you can easily have a conversation with your table-mates. Such a refreshing change.

But it’s about the food and the service, too! And as always – it was great, with one tiny exception. I had two orders of the Mussel appetizer – one as my appetizer, one as my main course. The best part was the delicious sauce – I needed a bread refill to enjoy it all.

My dining partner enjoyed the Luchame (Escargo in french) with sambuca – oh my they were divine. If you go – definitely order them! I passionately enjoy their speggitti carbonara – it’s the best I’ve ever had – and that’s including many trips to Italy, but it’s not really on my diet – so this time I skipped that pleasure. My husband generally gets Vittello a la Lemon, the Duck, or the Bistecca Pavaroti, but this time he tried something new – the veal chop. Itm looked great – but the taste just wasn’t blow you away. That’s the problem with the Tratoria – you get spoiled! So not perfect is disappointing.

Patty makes the desserts – and they range from delicious – to fabulous. And this time we hit fabulous – a lemon blueberry Zuppa Englese (Triffle). Oh my was it yummy. Just the right cross between acidic and sweet. Cool and refreshing.

We gladly paid the bill – full but not stuffed – and strolled out into the night. We’ll be back. You can count on it.

Trattoria La Festa on Urbanspoon

Trattoria La Festa on Foodio54

Bob’s on the Bay – Eat at your own risk!


Oh dear – I blew it. Had I read the reviews – I would have known that Bob’s on the Bay in Brockville was a bad choice – but I got busy, forgot to check – and ended up there with no other options but to make the best of a bad idea.

Does admitting it make it better? Probably not. But at least I can join the masses in not recommending Bobs.

Or maybe I should just quip – Bob’s should swim in the Bay!

We opted for Bob’s for the reasons most other people would – the ‘On the Bay’ part of the name. It sounded lovely. And we drove up – I thought it was going to be perfect – lots of people enjoying a moment of sunshine on the High terrace. But the problem is – they are not on the Bay. There’s a huge – multi-store apartment building between them and the Bay – and to the west – another one. So yes you can see the water to the East – but on the Bay it’s not.

But it’s supposed to be about the food right. So how was the food?

If I’m not terribly hungry – I’ll order an appetizer for dinner – and at Bob’s – that was clearly the smart choice. I definitely enjoyed my Quesadilla, it was well made and yummy. But my husband thought his French Dip was downright terrible, and my grand-daughter ate her garlic mashed potatoes – and none of her salmon. Moral – if you are in a bar – order bar food, for which Quesadilla works, and salmon is a loser.

Oh well – at least the view to the east was nice and the service was fine.

My quick summary – when visiting Brockville – pick a different place!

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