Wass Ethiopian Restaurant (May 12, 2011)

289.389.5294  207 James St. S. Hamilton, On  www.wassethiopianrestaurant.com

This visit was my second try at the place. The first time was a year ago, and I ordered something so spicy I couldn't eat it. Not their fault. But I didn't have that problem this time, I was specific with my ordering!

Oh Wass, I am so conflicted about you!

There are so many pros! Nice interior, soft music and good lighting (which is something I look for in restaurant lighting. Flourescents always make me think of school cafeterias). And the owner is very friendly and makes a point of coming around to every table to make sure everything is perfect. And the menus are educational, which I love! There's bits of info on Ethiopia, Ethiopian food and how to tear your bread to eat your food and an explanation of their coffee ceremony.

And of course the food! So good! It's all so simple, most of it is just spiced meat and mixed with sauteed vegetables. But the mix of spices makes everything perfect. Tonight I didn't make the same mistake as last time and asked very specifically how much spice things had and settled on the Wass Special. It's lamb, onions, and peppers sauteed in a bit of oil and mixed with garlic and several other spices and served with injera, which is a yeast-risen flat bread made of teff flour, with a spongy texture and tart/sour taste. It looks like a crepe, and is meant to be torn and used to scoop your food. I enjoy eating with my hands, so that's a definitely plus.

But there were some points that...leave me nonplussed. As I mentioned, I've been to Wass once before and didn't really enjoy it. I had ordered the Lamb Wat the first time and found it incredibly spicy, which doesn't really work for my poor digestive tract. But since that's my mistake, I wasn't against trying the place again.

My main issue with the place is the price. My dish was $14, and it was just meat and vegetables. So when Harli told me she had a coupon, I was all over that. With the coupon, it made the meal in the range that I needed it to be to give the place another shot.
So I guess, what I'm saying is that, I liked it. I'll go again. I'll enjoy it again. I'll hope I have another coupon. And I'm sorry I'm not able to be as verbose about it as I want to be.

Locke St: Chuck's Burger Bar (May 11, 2011)

905.525.1000  194 Locke St. S. Hamilton, ON L8P 4B4  www.chucksburgerbar.com

I need to preface this post by saying, I've spent the better part of the last five years having a sort of...passive hate on for Locke St. I felt that it had a certain vibe, one that I wasn't a part of. Very hipster, very 20-something with their dogs/babies. But I'd never been there. I was basing it all off of what I'd heard, the people I knew who went there. So Chuck's Burger Bar was my first actual experience with Locke St. And I must confess, I kinda love it. I kinda love it a lot and I kinda can't wait to try more places.

So what is it about this place that makes it so great? The place is really small, super small...maybe four tables and seating for another 8-10 people at the bars. Most of the place is exposed brick and open wall space. There is a small section along the front of the bar that has a designer backsplash, which SHOULD clash horribly with the rough brick and diner atmosphere, but manages not to. Oh and the tables! I almost forgot the tables! The four tables in the restaurant look like reclaimed wood. They're completely beautiful pieces and lend so much charm to the interior.

Their menu is a paper brochure, so they're easily changed if need be. Very practical. And chock full of delicious options! Lamb, venison, chicken, turkey, and of course, angus beef. And the toppings! I can't even list them all, but it goes far beyond the standard tomato, lettuce, condiments.

I wound up with a lamb burger, topped with creamy brie, grilled wild mushrooms, tomato and basil mayo. With a poutine on the side. I literally did not speak a word to my dining partner other than "mmmm" for about 15 minutes. I am drooling right now thinking about it. Living next door to and working for Greeks for a large portion on my life has taught me about perfectly prepared lamb. And this was perfectly done lamb. It's so easy to over or undercook lamb, but this was cooked through but not dry. Just moist enough. And the grilled mushrooms, with the brie melted on top. Just so...mmmm. Perfect.

The price was high for a burger, but not out of the question for a gourmet-other-than-beef burger in a gourmet burger bar. With all the add-ons to my food, I think my burger/poutine combo wound up being about $20.

My only criticism of the place was my side of poutine. While it was made with delicious fries and fresh cheese curds, they made it with chicken gravy. They make all their poutine with chicken gravy, apparently. I'm guessing that it works out better for their specialty poutines (options for which include but are not limited to: seafood and lobster, pulled pork, and turkey dinner all for around $9), but with a plain poutine, they really need a stronger gravy. Don't get me wrong, it was still tasty! It just wasn't as good as I was expecting after the ambrosia that was the burger.

So final call on Chuck's? I'll be back many, many times!