essex wine report

We are going to introduce a new feature today. As I’ve managed to get the mac-book working....well I still need to get the wireless working, the new feature will be a monthly restaurant review. So here is the first one.

Our first choice for a review is Jack’s located in Kingsville. it’s located just west of the four corners and basically beside the licbo.

My first thought as we walked in was that it was basically pub food. Well yes and no. All the pub essentials are there but there are many twists and better stuff.

Let me comment first on the wine-list. It is excellent. It only features wine from the region and all the wineries (except Muscedere...why they aren’t there, nobody is sure) and the prices are great. The appear to be charging basically corkage and the wines vary from about $20 to $35. Wagner’s cider is there for $10 so why drink beer. 

They are really making an effort to support the local wineries. This is what I like to see as it is one more step to properly define the appellation and one step closer to a regional cuisine.

Now to the food. We were there twice so we had four dishes and the yute joined us once and had chicken fingers. Here is a prime example of what the are doing. Not just breaded, these were covered in parmesan and fried not just deep-fried, The little twist was nice.

On our lunch visit, we started with the artichoke appetizer. Fried artichokes breaded with parmesan with dill lemon and pine nuts. Terry liked it alot and so did I but I would have preferred a lighter batter..kinda like a tempura, but it was very good.

 Terry had the quiche with caesar salad. The salad was great and wasn’t a garlic fest. Now I like garlic but at lunch it isn’t too cool as one may have to go back to the office and vampires only come out at night. The quiche came in a single round of about six inch diameter. From the appearance it looked cooked in a proper dish and not a pre-frozen item in a tin. The pastry was golden brown and looked great. Terry enjoyed it very much. 

I had pickerel. It was baked in blackening spice with lemon. Blackening was a big deal a while ago and this twist was nice and refreshing. It gave spiciness but not a cajun firefest. The fish was beautifully done and the portion was really nice. The sides were maple glazed carrots and a smashed potatoes. No I’m a smooth mashed potato boy but the big lumps are nice and the garlicyness was just right, I really enjoyed the meal.

For wine we had Sprucewood’s Pinot Noir. It was priced really nice (~ $23) so it was a steal and meshed wonderful with the food. One complaint was that the wine came at room temperature. I know I’m a stickler for this but the were happy to get me an ice bucket to cool it down. I’m not the only one to do this btw...I first got the idea from Mario Batali and this is one of his pet peeves too. Too many restaurants have this problem.

For our second visit, we had the squid appetizer and it was excellent! The squid was served over some hot peppers which added some heat and a wonderful taste....very nice. 

 Terry had the tenderloin medallions. They looked wonderful and she really enjoyed them too! She wouldn’t let me have a taste so I know she really liked them.

I had the manicotti. Now I never make this so I order it out and this one was pretty good. The serving size was good too.

With the dinner we had the cider(~$10) to start (they brought an ice bucket to keep it chilled) and then we had the Pelee Island Merlot for dinner(~$20). I’n not sure if it was the reserve as it had a custom label, but it went well with the meal.

We had no room for desert, but did order a maple creme brule. This was well done, but mine is better, but I use alot of non restaurant ingredients.

Service both times was excellent. Not over served, but very attentive polite professional service. Myles spilled his pop and she made him not feel bad about it. On the lunch our server was happy to talk wine with us and brought the manager over to discuss the wine list and their philosophy. The made us feel right at home. As you can guess we were very pleased.

The restaurant was very clean, though I didn’t use the loo, but it looked sparkling. The decor is eclectic and informal. I just loved the old wood floor with it’s squeaks and stains...soo nice.

Oh yes....they are kid friendly.

As this is our first review it will be the benchmark. for those who follow. Food was excellent and the menu was very original. The wine list is great and the pricing was great. Service was wonderful.

So I guess you can see that we really liked it. Actually after the lunch we returned Monday for Terry’s birthday dinner. Local specialties (perch and pickerel) local wines...this is the basis for my local is good philosophy, so all in all, I give it an 85 which to me is really good. Improve the chilling of the red wine and change those tablecloths (the material itself is sticky and grabs glassware...it was clean its just a feature of the material) and a 90 would be a walk. I feel sorry for the restaurants who follow.

SUMMARY

cleanliness: excellent

menu: varied and favourites with neat twists, inventive

portion size: ample

food: very good

wine list: superb...I think the want you to drink wine over beer as the wine may be cheaper

value for money: very good