ciao! reviews
BLACK RABBIT BISTRO
Neighbourhood. Osborne Village
Address. . . . . . . 135 Osborne St.
Phone. . . . . . . . . 204-615-1130
Entrées. . . . . . . . . . . . . $13-$28
Some of the city’s best restaurants
satisfy on a basic level, with creativity,
consistency and accessibility. Places
where inventive cocktails, a hip crowd,
and live music explain, just as much
as the menu, why it’s packed every
night. One such spot is Black Rabbit
Bistro, a new addition to the Village’s
foodscape, which has found instant
success in its long vacant space. The
restaurant upgrades well-loved dishes
with sophisticated flavours pulled from
cuisines around the world.
Offering a menu for traditionalists and adventure seekers alike, chef
Michael Day shines with killer creativity and presentation. Expect to see
trending ingredients like wasabi aioli
and sweet potato purée amping up
comfort classics.
The sprawling space has minimal
decor, with an inviting and buzzy
atmosphere. In the lounge, bartenders
sling inventive concoctions behind a
curved bar, while a hip crowd mingles
over boozy tinkerings and small plates.
Drinks like the subtly sweet barrister,
made with lemon juice and ginger
beer, show creativity. Staff is friendly
and knowledgeable, with servers
raving about the night’s features.
Flavour mash-ups frequent the
menu, such as bacon lardon mac
and cheese, or pork belly with apple
gastrique. Microgreens, grown by
Osborne Farmers Market just a few
blocks away, decorate dishes with
peppery perk. Showstoppers include
succulent French-style mussels swimming in a pool of white wine and
brown butter, accompanied by a crisp
baguette. The menu changes each
season, keeping the spread fresh and
exciting, but favourites like the Black
Rabbit classic sandwich are a musthave. Crispy fries share the plate with
toasted bread, holding crispy bacon
that falls out with every bite.
Mains are hearty and gutsy, presenting traditional staples with
unexpected twists. Chef Day’s pork
chop is pan-fried to perfection, each
bite bursting with savoury juices that
melt into smooth sweet potato mash.
Crispy kale tops the dish, a light and
addictive rendition of the trending
veg.
The high-energy crowd makes this
watering hole great for catching live
music, chatting or cheering on a game,
but the continuous traffic of plates
makes it clear: visitors to this grub
hub come for the food.
Black Rabbit is open Tues & Wed 4
pm-12 am, Thurs 4 pm-2 am, Fri &
Sat 11 am- 2 am, Sun 11 am – 12 am,
closed Mon.
BLAZE BISTRO & LOUNGE
Neighbourhood. . . . . Downtown
Address. . . . . . . 350 St Mary Ave
Phone. . . . . . . . . 204-944-7259
Entrées. . . . . . . . . . . . . $15-$18
More than a decade ago, Blaze Bistro
opened its doors on the forefront of
Winnipeg’s push for regional cuisine.
With a recent facelift and some menu
tweaks, this chic restaurant is still
roaring strong, with contemporary
applications of local product.
Housed in the downtown Delta
Hotel, Blaze balances the cater-toeveryone spirit of hotel dining with a
love for local flavour. Beets, wild rice,
pickerel, elk and bison can all be spied
on a menu of fun and filling classics.
The space is as comforting as the
food. A brief closure to refresh the
decor has yielded an open restaurant
and lounge replete with invitingly
cushy seats and warm autumnal colours. Oil paintings of prairie sunsets on
the walls and a Tyndall-stone fireplace
remain from the restaurant's previous
iteration, a nod to the space's local leanings. The cozy room lulls visitors into
the feeling of dining in a living room –
albeit a living room with excellent table
service. Shareable apps along with meat
and cheese boards (like a classy take on
the typical social spread) are perfect for
nibbling in the lounge.
Entrées meld fine dining finesse
with home-cooking comfort, like
traditional but impeccable beef bourguignon, rich with red wine. Local
brew Fort Garry Dark Ale adds a malty,
deep note to chicken, cooked until fragrant and served with a piped rosette
of smooth, garlicky mashed potatoes.
Perky Saskatoon berries step outside
the pie crust, instead topping a flaky
pink cut of Arctic Char to bring out
the fish’s natural sweetness. A swirl of
sautéed peppers and a mound of buttery pearl barley accompany the dish.
Midday visits are rewarded as well,
with a menu of filling and flavourful sandwiches. The double decker
Voyageur club enlivens chicken and
thick back bacon with zing from
horseradish mayo and a sweet smear
of tomato jam. Exceptional burgers
are an antidote to fast food cravings.
Thick, charred patties of ground chuck
would be excellent unadorned, but are
even better atop a sweet, slow burning
jalapeño relish. A crisp edged potato
bun flecked with scallion completes
this crowd pleaser.
Long, loungy meals beg an excuse
to stave off leaving. Individually sized
apple pie fills this need nicely, tart
apples liberally accented with cinnamon and topped with a plate-dwarfing
scoop of ice cream to end the meal
the way it began: with indulgence in
simple, unfussy pleasure.
Blaze Bistro is open Mon-Fri 6:30
am-9 pm, Sat 7 am-12 pm, 4:30 pm-9
pm, Sun 7 am-12 pm. Lounge is open
Mon-Sat 11 am-12 am.
ciao! / feb/mar / two thousand sixteen
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