Kenko Sushi
I'm a sushi lover, I'll admit it. So whenever friends want to go out for sushi, I am there. It doesn't matter how broke I am. Don't even care. Om nom nom nom nom etc. Kenko Sushi is located on trendy Corydon (the cool part, where there are a lot of restos and bars etc... Little Italy and a little further towards Stafford) amid many other sushi restaurants. With diners having this much choice, sushi places really have to stand out in some way or another in order to survive. Kenko Sushi stands out from the rest of the sushi joints because it is a separate building all together. Aside from that, it is painted fuchsia. You can't miss it. The restaurant inside was beautifully decorated with a lot of interesting details (the flooring, for instance, looks like typical "fake wood" vinyl flooring, but it has little flowers creeping out of it here and there). The seating was the most interesting part and it felt like you were sitting on little loveseats. They were very comfortable, but I had never seen this type of set up before.
As a party of two, we decided to order the maki combo since we were indecisive on what rolls to get. That's when the wait started (in the end I'm pretty sure we waited up to an hour for our food). Luckily this was noted by the serving staff who offered us edamame on the house so we didn't starve to death (although it was served cold - I prefer it warm, but I wasn't going to argue about freebies).
When the sushi finally did come, it was superb. The small maki combo filled us both up for a pretty decent price (around the $30 mark). It came with a mix of traditional rolls and fusion rolls (deep fryed, spicy sauces, the whole bit). To me, the rolls were very fresh and well constructed. The wait was worth it... somewhat. Although the rolls were good, I have had good rolls elsewhere too. I understand having a one-off time issue with service, but looking at Yelp/TA/US this seems to be an issue overall for the restaurant.
As a party of two, we decided to order the maki combo since we were indecisive on what rolls to get. That's when the wait started (in the end I'm pretty sure we waited up to an hour for our food). Luckily this was noted by the serving staff who offered us edamame on the house so we didn't starve to death (although it was served cold - I prefer it warm, but I wasn't going to argue about freebies).
When the sushi finally did come, it was superb. The small maki combo filled us both up for a pretty decent price (around the $30 mark). It came with a mix of traditional rolls and fusion rolls (deep fryed, spicy sauces, the whole bit). To me, the rolls were very fresh and well constructed. The wait was worth it... somewhat. Although the rolls were good, I have had good rolls elsewhere too. I understand having a one-off time issue with service, but looking at Yelp/TA/US this seems to be an issue overall for the restaurant.
7/10
Market Burger
I was so excited to try Market Burger, a new addition to the slew of restaurants on Corydon. I'm such a huge fan of Unburger that anything with a similar concept totally intrigues me. Upon entering the restaurant, you can already tell the vibe that the owner(s?) were going for, which is completely opposite the Unburger concept. It has a rustic flair to it - none of the chairs match, there is a chalkboard menu, but the bar looks lovely and new. The concept is eclectic and I like it very much.
Given that it is a brand new restaurant, it was extremely busy. We wanted to sit on the patio, but unfortunately it was full. We decided to sit inside, but the table we got was very claustrophobic - My ponytail kept touching the ponytail of the woman sitting behind me, which was probably an uncomfortable situation for us both. After about 5 minutes, we noticed another table came up in a corner, so we alerted the server and switched tables. It was much more comfortable.
The menu is extremely different to Unburger, which is nice (you can frequent both and not get sick of anything). The concept is local, not necessarily health. They had some unique options like the mac n' cheese burger, a Vietnamese style burger or a butter chicken burger. I had the butter chicken burger (done skinny style - they offer this on most burgers... it comes with a smaller patty and a smaller bun for a buck cheaper if you don't have the world's largest stomach... such a nice feature!). My dining companion (there has got to be a better word for this) had the mac n' cheese burger (he added fried onions, the server warned us that the mac n' cheese burger was devoid of any vegetables). We also decided to share an order of half fries/half onion rings (after I embarrassingly asked the waiter if the onion rings were made in house, which, of course, they are). A neat feature - all of their buns are from Stella's. Nice!
The food took a while to come. We watched the table next to us eat and pay their bill all in the time we were just waiting for our food. I chalk a lot of this up to the follies of a new restaurant. There are going to be some problems with service. When we got our burgers, we weren't disappointed. The butter chicken burger I had was delicious - just the right combination of sweet and savoury since it had chutney on it (yum yum). I had a bite of the Mac n' Cheese burger which was also delicious (and the beef was very high quality, you could tell), but was in some ways really bland and needed more cheese. The onion rings didn't disappoint - they reminded me of A&W rings but done better (I believe they were breaded with panko). The fries, however, were extremely soggy and unpalatable. They served the rings and fries with house made ketchup, which although a cute feature on maintaining an "everything local" flair, I didn't really get. There wasn't enough ketchup for all of the items. They serve everything on wooden cutting boards which, although a really cute idea, does not make it easy for tables to order multiple items since not everything will fit.
I see lots of potential here once the restaurant works out some of its kinks. I'll come back at the end of summer and see how it goes.
Given that it is a brand new restaurant, it was extremely busy. We wanted to sit on the patio, but unfortunately it was full. We decided to sit inside, but the table we got was very claustrophobic - My ponytail kept touching the ponytail of the woman sitting behind me, which was probably an uncomfortable situation for us both. After about 5 minutes, we noticed another table came up in a corner, so we alerted the server and switched tables. It was much more comfortable.
The menu is extremely different to Unburger, which is nice (you can frequent both and not get sick of anything). The concept is local, not necessarily health. They had some unique options like the mac n' cheese burger, a Vietnamese style burger or a butter chicken burger. I had the butter chicken burger (done skinny style - they offer this on most burgers... it comes with a smaller patty and a smaller bun for a buck cheaper if you don't have the world's largest stomach... such a nice feature!). My dining companion (there has got to be a better word for this) had the mac n' cheese burger (he added fried onions, the server warned us that the mac n' cheese burger was devoid of any vegetables). We also decided to share an order of half fries/half onion rings (after I embarrassingly asked the waiter if the onion rings were made in house, which, of course, they are). A neat feature - all of their buns are from Stella's. Nice!
The food took a while to come. We watched the table next to us eat and pay their bill all in the time we were just waiting for our food. I chalk a lot of this up to the follies of a new restaurant. There are going to be some problems with service. When we got our burgers, we weren't disappointed. The butter chicken burger I had was delicious - just the right combination of sweet and savoury since it had chutney on it (yum yum). I had a bite of the Mac n' Cheese burger which was also delicious (and the beef was very high quality, you could tell), but was in some ways really bland and needed more cheese. The onion rings didn't disappoint - they reminded me of A&W rings but done better (I believe they were breaded with panko). The fries, however, were extremely soggy and unpalatable. They served the rings and fries with house made ketchup, which although a cute feature on maintaining an "everything local" flair, I didn't really get. There wasn't enough ketchup for all of the items. They serve everything on wooden cutting boards which, although a really cute idea, does not make it easy for tables to order multiple items since not everything will fit.
I see lots of potential here once the restaurant works out some of its kinks. I'll come back at the end of summer and see how it goes.
7.5/10
The Nook
The Nook diner is located on the cusp of the West Broadway and Wolseley neighbourhoods and has been on my radar since I moved to Winnipeg. UrbanSpooners and Yelpers alike proclaim this spot as one of their favourite greasy spoons in the city and a fantastic place to have breakfast. Before a long (lol) trip up to Winnipeg Beach/Gimli, my friend and I decided to have a late breakfast at 'The Nook' since we had both been meaning to try it. (As a complete aside - apparently this place is "trendy" and "hipster"y?)
We were seated right away since we came between meal times (around 11:45) and noticed how eclectic the restaurant was. There were booths, some chairs, and a little dining room attached to the main restaurant. They also have a patio that looks onto Sherbrook.
I ended up having just a regular ol' breakfast (and for once, not pancakes or french toast!). Scrambled eggs, rye toast, bacon, hashbrowns. Food was fairly quick given that it is a busy little joint. My eggs were done well, which is how I prefer them, but watch out if you like them a little on the soft side. Bacon was crispy and delicious. Toast was buttery and awesome. I did have some complaints about the hashbrowns; I'm a big fan of breakfast potatoes and these felt like potato mush that was undercooked (indeed, my friend had a crunchy undercooked potato in his). Mine were also cold - such a let down.
Service was mediocre - I ordered a tea, she brought me coffee. However, she quickly corrected this error. I asked for ketchup and it was only when I was staring at her long enough while she was bussing tables did she notice we didn't have ketchup on our table and promptly brought it over. Afterwards, I had about three different people ask me if I wanted more hot water for my tea. The bill was slightly below average for breakfast.
To me, The Nook is nothing special - just one of those fandangled Winnipeg institutions.
6.5/10
On a completely different note:
Kelowna, BC (my home town) now has the highest crime rate in Canada. I'm surprised it took this long. Anyone who has lived in Kelowna for any good length of time will tell you how seedy and horrific this place is. I rarely go to visit (and my parents still live there). My folks have really encouraged me not to and in fact, they prefer to come see me in Winnipeg. There's something wrong with that statement, isn't there? Smoke and mirrors, that's what Kelowna is.
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