Cha Baa Thai

Cha Baa Thai (Thai, 5858 Demone), visited June 21. As always, everything was good – the spring rolls, the Massaman curry (decent amount of chicken), the cashew chicken had a bit of a kick, the Pad Thai was flawless. We were a bit confused by the slices of tomato in the sweet and sour pork, and the garlic beef was a touch too salty and could have used some vegetables. Still, without question, Cha Baa is still among the best Thai in the city. Verdict: 4.5/5 (90%) chance of returning

Randy's Pizza

Randy’s Pizza (Pizza, 2380 Agricola), visited June 20. A quintessential Halifax big slice. It was kinda greasy and the crust was doughy and a bit uneven, but the sauce was flavourful and there was plenty of pepperoni and cheese. Verdict: 3/5 (60%) chance of returning

A slice of pepperoni pizza from Randy's

Tony's Donair

Tony’s Donair (Pizza, 2390 Robie), visited June 20. A decent snack, but far from a big slice. The crust was both fluffy and crispy, decent amount of cheese and pepperoni, but the sauce was kinda tinny. Verdict: 3/5 (60%) chance of returning 

 Slice of pepperoni pizza from Tony's

Rinaldo's

Rinaldo’s (Italian, 2186 Windsor), visited June 19. Although Rinaldo’s is usually pretty good, there were a few problems with this visit. The arugula salad needed some vinaigrette and the walnuts were only subtly candied; the mozza sticks tasted very fresh but needed some seasoning, and the accompanying dip is usually far superior; and the Federico Pizza is good, but it just isn’t a pizza – it’s loaded garlic fingers, and the menu didn’t reflect that. Verdict: 4/5 (80%) chance of returning (based mostly on past experience)

 Rinaldo's Federico Pizza

Sweet Hereafter

Sweet Hereafter (Deserterie, 6148 Quinpool), visited June 12. Everything on the menu was drool-worthy, it was so hard to pick just two. We went with the Peanut Butter Chocolate (impossible to resist that combination), which wasn’t too rich and didn’t disappoint; and the White Chocolate Blueberry, which had an excellent shortbread crust, but some blueberry infused into the dessert instead of a thimble full of drizzle would have been even better. Verdict: 5/5 (100%) chance of returning

Re-Open City HFX 2020 Tour Part 2 - Brooklyn Warehouse, Agricola Street Brasserie, Stillwell Freehouse & Chain Yard

We had such a delicious time at Re-Open City last week that we decided to do another tour on July 4. Here's where we went:

Our first stop was the Brooklyn Warehouse (Canadian, 2795 Windsor) to test out their Spiced Scotch Egg. M lived in England for a while so she'd had them before, and knew what to expect. J had only ever seen them on TV cooking shows, and literally yelled out “Yummy!!!!!” after his first bite (apologies to the residents of the nearby apartment building whose wall we sat on as we noshed). For the uninitiated, a Scotch Egg is a whole boiled egg wrapped in sausage, coated in bread crumbs and deep fried. This one was served with a spicy mayo that made our tongues tingle with delight. We wanted to go back for more, but knew we had to forge ahead to sample other offerings. 4.5/5 (90%) chance of returning

Brooklyn Warehouse's Spiced Scotch Egg

Next, we headed down to the Agricola Street Brasserie (French, 2540 Agricola) to take on their Jambon-beurre. This dainty little sandwich was adorably presented, but trust us, it meant business. A soft sourdough baguette, thinly sliced ham, buttery Gouda and, well, butter. That was it, and that's literally all it needed to satisfy our hunger pangs. A little taste of Paris in the middle of Halifax. Bravo! 4/5 (80%) chance of returning

Agricola Street Brasserie's Jambon-beurre

 
Our next stop was right next door: the Stillwell Freehouse (Pub, 2534 Agricola). We had our eyes on the Mini Sausage Rolls, but decided to try the Chicken Wings as well. The sausage roll was small but the pastry was buttery and the sausage delicious. The three-piece wings were right out of the oven, and coated with Sambal Oelek, Choonk & Tahini. In other words: they had quite a kick to them! They were good quality and very flavourful. The servers were also delightful. 4/5 (80%) chance of returning

Stillwell Freehouse's Chicken Wings & Mini Sausage Roll

Our final stop was the Chain Yard Urban Cidery (Cidery, 2606 Agricola). M’s reaction to the Ginxberry slushie (a dry apple cider slushie with gin) was: “yum, more plz!” It was a fun concoction (and maybe a little strong - no complaints here!). J was all about the chilli cheese dog, surprising literally nobody. The dog was quite spicy, the bun was nicely toasted and the meat was high quality. The cheese was kinda subtle, but the whole thing just worked, and it had a nice little slaw on the side. 4.5/5 (90%) chance of returning

Chain Yard Cidery's Chili Cheese Dog

Although it didn't start off as such a beautiful day, the sun was beating down on us when we stumbled out of the Chain Yard. We hope many others enjoyed a taste of what our fair city has to offer. Thanks again to all of the organizers and participants. Re-Open City is still running for the next two weekends. Don't miss this chance to check it out and show some love to your community businesses!

La Piazza

La Piazza (Italian, 6430 Chebucto), visited June 12. Our first meal out since the pandemic hit. It was as “normal” as could have been expected, despite the Plexiglas wall beside us. The Caesar salad was on point, and the pizzas were scrumptious. Great meal, great value, great service, and no dishes! Verdict: 5/5 (100%) chance of returning

La Piazza's Quatro Siagioni & Margherita pizzas