The sixth anniversary is the “iron” anniversary. I wasn’t too keen on getting an iron barbell for an anniversary present, so we just did what we always do on our anniversary – go to a “new to us” restaurant.
My husband had been wanting to try the Fusion Grill for a while, and since it was his turn to pick a restaurant that’s where we ended up going. I read up on some reviews, got all excited, and away we went.
We were greeting immediately (my observations of the staff after we were seated showed me that they jumped to the door whenever they heard the buzzer), our coats were confiscated, and we were seated. After puzzling over the menus for a while, we made our decisions and the food began to arrive.
We decided to get two appetizers to share. First we got the “Proscuito and asparagus stuffed spring rolls with organic sesame seeds and sweet lemon ginger dip.” This was actually the lowlight of the whole meal. There wasn’t anything wrong with the spring rolls… They just weren’t very remarkable. I suppose that our tastebuds just aren’t refined enough to pick out the subtle flavours that the procuito and the asparagus lent; they tasted like very good spring rolls that I might find at any Asian joint. My husband liked the dip that came with the rolls, while I thought it was just ok.
Feeling a bit disappointed, we waited for the next appetizer: “White truffle perogies with duck sausage and walnut cream.” Curiously, this was the highlight of the meal. If there was one suggestion I could give to the restaurant, it would be to pretty this up with some veggies and make it an entree. The duck sausage was almost sweet, the perogies were smooth-tasting, the walnut cream was rich and complimented the other tastes perfectly… Oh, yum. This was my favorite dish, by far. My mouth is watering just remembering it.
Confident that the rest of the food wasn’t going to be reruns after all, we eagerly awaited the rest of our meal. My husband ordered “Slow roasted Manitoba bison back ribs with spicy Seagram’s Five Star glaze and garlic smashed potatoes,” which he thought was just fantastic. I tried some, but I found the sauce just a bit too spicy. My husband’s a spicy kind of guy, though, so he devoured the ribs, which fell off the bone as soon as he touched them. I ordered the “Pan seared scallops of Minnedosa elk loin with caramelized shallots, roast potato and chestnut crème frâiche.” I’ve had elk before, and it’s always been slightly dry because it’s such a lean meat. This dish somehow avoided that problem: the elk was succulent and tasty. We also ordered a 2004 Mission Hill cabernet-merlot with the meal (on our waiter’s suggestion), and it complemented our meals perfectly. Dessert was equally good, although I was starting to get full so I don’t think I appreciated it like I should have. I got a simple apple crumble, while my husband ordered an Earl Grey infused creme brulee.
The service was impeccable. We didn’t have one set waiter through the meal; they switched off seamlessly as our water glasses drained or our silverware needed changed or our food was ready. The decor was interesting, but the main dining room we were in seemed a bit small. I don’t know if there was another room upstairs or not. If not, then I’m glad we made reservations, as the dining room filled up quickly and was full the entire time we were there. (I did feel bad for the people sitting right next to the door: because of the way the front door was hinged, you had to open the door all the way (past 90 degrees) to get in past the first booth because of the close quarters. I would have been really unhappy if we had been seated there, and I can’t imagine what it’s like during Winnipeg’s -40C winters.) The restaurant has all the trappings of a gourmet, fancy restaurant, but it has the seating, energy and feel of your favorite roadside diner.
Thumbs up for using locally-grown meat and produce and Canadian wines, serving up a good feed, and being a fun place. Thumbs down for the cramped seating. A mixed rating for the food, although it was mostly excellent. I’d like to recommend this as a place for people who are looking for an interesting new place to eat, but who aren’t neccesarilly interested in the usual French fare.
