Food flying high at the Flying Fajita Sisters

On one of the 'hotter' days in September, I arrived home to my housemate's news that: "We're going to The Flying Fajita Sisters for dinner.  You have 20 minutes to get ready."  Having trekked around the 'hood in the heat all day, I felt less than stellar, but with the thought of an icy cold, salty Margarita in my future, I pulled myself together...quickly.  

We met three of our pals for dinner at 7:30 and were seated at a little table in the garden.  The bonus about restos on GPR is the fact that many of them have an outdoor dining area hidden away in the back.  Most of us ordered a Margarita to start - mine being the classic; lime flavoured with a nice, salty rim.  I ordered it frozen as it goes down slightly less quickly that way. 

The Classic Frozen Margaritas ($13)

And..."when in Mexico"...we also ordered some shots of tequila.  Giving our sever a relative budget and saying "No way(!) to Jose", we asked that she excite our palate with something a little more exotic that the typical shots you'd get at a bar.  What she brought out was heavenly and we ended up with another round later in the night.  The tequila itself was sweet and luscious. With a honeyed texture and beautiful orange blossom notes, the shots were topped with a slice of orange dusted in a layer of cinnamon which brought out the liquid's sweet and slightly spicy notes.

Tequila ($8/shot)

My housemate ordered one of the daily specials: fish tacos.  Though the tacos featured grilled sea bass, the resto had run out and offered red snapper as an alternative. Served with a wedge of lime, citrus served to elevate the fish's flavour and add a nice zing to the dish.  Tender, flaky fish; chunky salsa; creamy guacamole; rich crema, and robust corn salsa were all on offer to be packaged up within the warm, soft flour tortillas.  

Fish Tacos ($18ish)

w/ guacamole, crema, green salad and corn salsa

I wasn't ravenous when we arrived so I ordered something small.  I'm always a sucker for specials because I know that they'll only be available for a limited time.  I decided on one of the other options listed that evening; taquitos filled with potato and chorizo sausage, topped with salsa verde, queso freso and served with a marinated tomato salad.  It was a great little meal: the crispy shell was wrapped around soft potato and spicy sausage; the salsa verde and crumbed cheese added a richness to the dish while the marinated tomato salad provided a touch of sweetness - and a great textural contrast as well.

Taquitos ($12)

 w/ potato, chorizo, salsa verde and queso fresco 

I will definitely be a repeat customer here.  The quality of the food was fantastic, the margaritas were 'just right' and the presentation was really nice for Mexican food - which can admittedly be a little sloppy.  Great service topped off the night.  Once we were all sorted, we headed down the street to The Little Guy - also on GPR, one of Sydney's 'small bars', and a laid-back spot that's perfect for a weeknight drink or a Sunday session.

Fid's Pad Thai: eat-in or take-out!

Since I deprived Mitch of his Fid Resto Pad Thai earlier in the month, I planned a Saturday brunch later in the month to make up for it.  After a good run in the am, we got ready for a day of good food, booze and sunshine - you know, those days when you just wanna get 'day drunk'!

When we got to Fid, we ordered two muddy gin Caesars and reviewed the menu.  Obviously, he had PT on the brain, but I - like I always do - wanted eggs, so I chose the Fisherman's Breakfast w/ smoked salmon and potato rosti.  I forgot my phone so the image quality of these pics isn't fantastic, but you'll get the 'picture'.

The bean soup was fantastic.  Who knew lima beans could be so tasty?  The broth was creamy and rich with a velvety mouthfeel. Served with the soup was one of Fid's crumpets; a little morsel that's just perfect for dipping.

Lima Bean Soup ($6)

The soup was served with Dennis' delicious crumpets

Fisherman's Breakfast ($14) 

I had the Fishermen's Breakfast, which was one of my favourites in Halifax.  With an uber-crispy, savoury potato cake topped with luscious smoked salmon and a poached egg cooked to a medium, all the textural elements were there to please my palate.  I asked for the Hollandaise sauce on the side, into which , I dunked every other bite.  In order to add a bit of greedy to the meal, we also ordered the Simple Salad, which is simple to be are, but with a playful element of popcorn to garnish.  

A Simple Salad ($6)

D's Pad Thai ($14)

Mitch had the Pad Thai, which was perfect.  With tender noodles, crunchy toasted peanuts, crisp bean spouts, egg, scallions and cilantro, this dish is a good balance of hearty comfort food and fresh food.

But the best part of this blog is the great news that I have to share!  Fid Resto is now doing 'back-door take-out!  They're offering just the one dish - the Pad Thai - but at just $10 a pop for the full serving (as compared to $14 in-house), it's a great deal!

We picked up some drinks and settled in on a sunny park bench in the Public Gardens and muched happily away for the better part of an hour.  With that food, the entertainment of a motorized toy boat show, and the background music of a brass band playing in the bandstand, it was a pretty sweet (and cheap) afternoon! 

Post-run dinner at Saege

As of this past February, I joined a running team.  It was a pretty good idea, since I eat out quite regularly - that maaayyy be an understatement!  Anyhow, on this particular running session we had to do hill training!  That's right - the very words made me quiver with fear.  

As it turned out though, it was a cinch.  I ran up and down Citadel Hill 18x, and was barely breathless at the finish.  To celebrate my athletic aptitude...I wanted a drink.  A glass of bubbly was the only thing on my mind, and when Mitch suggested that we go to Saege Bistro for dinner, I happily agreed.

Once inside with my sparkling flute in hand, we made some choices for dinner.  With my metabolism running at a feverish pace (yeah right), I decided to share the Appetizer Tasting Plate ($13) with Mitch and order the uber-delicious sounding scallop entree.

The Appetizer Plate was OK; but I wasn't thrilled.  The crab cake was very nice; light and with a crisp breading, but it was almost falling apart when the dish arrived at the table.  The shrimp was cooked well and had a great, bright and spicy flavour.  I let M have the spring roll as I was saving room for my main event.  

Appetizer Tasting Plate 

Chili  Shrimp, Spring Roll & Crab Cake

Glass of bubbly post-run

When the entrees arrived, I was ready to dig in.  My scallop dish ($22) was excellent.  The scallops were anchored in a creamy butternut squash & pumpkin puree that had just the right amount of sweetness.  Always one to appreciate some veg, the addition of spinach and tomato was a great choice, with the ripe red fruit bursting in my mouth.  I moved one of the scallops to the side of my plate and made a decadent discovery; hidden seductively between the squash puree and the incredibly supple scallops was a slab of salty, delicious Oulton's bacon.  I would, 100%, order this dish again.

Seared Digby Scallops

Braised Oulton's Bacon, Butternut Squash & Pumpkin Puree

Grape Tomato & Spinach

Ah, the bacon!

Unfortunately, M wasn't so lucky the first time around.  I've since convinced him to order his steak 'rare' instead of his usual (groan) "rare to med-rare", as he almost always ends up with a medium-well steak.  Minor rant here, as it's happened at 3 different restos in the last month.  Anyhow, when the second attempt at a rare steak arrived, it was a very nice plate. The meat was super flavourful and tender.  I also put away several forkfuls of the earthy wild mushroom risotto - I could have eaten a whole bowl!

Getaway Farms 6 oz. Striploin $22

Wild Mushroom Risotto & Braised Shallot Jus

Since I have a salty tooth and M, a sweet, I could do without when the dessert menu appeared.  But I did have a taste of his for good measure. ;)  I had mixed feelings about the Vanilla Bean Cheesecake ($8).  On one hand, the blueberry compote was lovely and the luscious lemon cream 'to-die-for', but the cheesecake had a very granular texture that I really didn't care for.  I'd think twice before ordering this dessert, but some of the other options sounded pretty decadent, and were a nice change from other resto's old standards.  

Vanilla Bean Cheesecake $8

w/ Blueberry Compote & Lemon Cream

Even with the minor disappointments of this meal; we had an excellent time.  The atmosphere in Saege is comfortable and unpretentious.  It's one of those casual fine dining spots that allows you to have a great meal at a reasonable price point, but still feel like you indulged. I will go back again, and have a couple times since.  It's well worth the visit - especially if it's scallops that you're craving!

'Eat Your Heart Out' Halifax!

I want to write about a great event coming up, here in Halifax on Tuesday, April 24th.  Save room for dinner that night, because over ten restos in Halifax will be participating in 'Eat Your Heart Out', a fundraiser in support of the Maritime Heart Centre. 

The inaugural ‘Eat Your Heart Out, Halifax’ event is a unique approach to fundraising that celebrates the HRM food scene while raising critical funds for heart disease care and prevention in the Maritimes.

‘Eat Your Heart Out’ is a novel concept; on Tuesday April 24th 2012, participating restaurants will donate 15% of their food sales for the evening to the Maritime Heart Center. This gives diners an opportunity to support the Maritime Heart Center simply by enjoying a meal at one of a number of local restaurants.

“This is a unique fundraising model that holds great benefit for everyone involved” says John Britton, Executive Director for the Maritime Heart Center. “We hope to make this an annual fundraising event that removes the need for expensive tickets and dressing up. We want Haligonians to go out en-masse on this one night and have dinner with friends and family at one of our numerous participating establishments. This means raising money for heart disease is as easy as raising your fork”.

In addition to raising money, the event also celebrates HRM’s incredible restaurant industry. “Halifax has such a vibrant food scene” says Nancy Tissington of the Spring Garden Area Business Association. “This initiative showcases both our city’s innovative cuisine and social conscience. The restaurants get health-centred exposure and promotion and the Maritime Heart Center receives the proceeds, which stay right here in the Maritimes supporting heart disease care and prevention. It’s a win-win all round”.

The fundraising model is based on other wildly successful dine-out events that take place across North America, and as HRM doesn’t have a city-wide charitable dine-out fundraiser the Maritime Heart Centre is hoping to grow this event year-on-year to include more and more restaurants and, eventually, more communities across the Maritimes.

“Heart disease is Canada’s biggest killer” says Britton, “and nowhere is this more obvious than right here in the Maritimes, where 1 in 3 people will die of a heart-related condition. This is a fantastic opportunity for people to contribute to our charity simply by doing what they would normally do – enjoy a great meal at a great restaurant. When you choose to eat at any of our participating establishments on April 24th you are automatically supporting heart disease care and prevention in your community”. Early reservations are highly recommended.

‘Eat Your Heart Out’ takes place on April 24th 2012. For a full list of participating restaurants visit the Maritime Heart Centre or call 902 446 3669.

Currently, participating restos include: 
Onyx, Saege, Moda, Estia, Fid, Chives Bistro, Economy Shoe Shop, Mexico Lindo, Vinnie’s Pasta Bar, Rockbottom Brewpub & Morris East.