Atomica Gourmet Pizza & Wine Bar

This week, I'm dedicating the blog to my Grandma... One of my many favourite memories of growing up with her around was enjoying meals and laughing together... and I still love the opportunity when it presents itself. Recently, I was lucky enough to celebrate her birthday with her over a delicious pizza pie - I know she'd love Atomica if she could go. I love you, Grandma. 

On a VERY cold night (it was actually so cold it was hard to think) in the middle of a VERY cold week, cozying up with friends and good food was more than a welcome experience this week. There is something to be said about sitting around a dining table, seeing the blustery winter outside of the window and being nice and toasty while munching delicious food. Heaven... And this week, Atomica helped take us there.

Atomica Gourmet Pizza and Wine Bar is located in the lovely downtown Kingston on Brock Street. Yet another location for our adventure that is within minutes of shopping, Market Square and the waterfront. As I type this, I am quickly reminded of why I loved living downtown in the past... So many places to wander and enjoy. Downtown Kingston really is lovely - if you have yet to enjoy it, you should make a plan to do so.  Add it to your bucket-list!

Atomica itself isn't a very large restaurant - which isn't surprising... it is downtown after all... But it is certainly large in personality (In my notes, I wrote "it has such a nice vibe!"). With tables at the front window looking out onto Brock Street, comfortable and classy-looking booths, a brick accent wall, a long bar that is highlighted by plexi-glass panels that hang above it and glow with hued lights, single, colourful flowers sitting atop each table, and an exposed pizza oven and prep area in the back so you can watch a chef in action... There isn't anywhere that your eyes aren't drawn... On a number of occasions during our visit, I found the need to give myself gentle reminders to pay closer attention to what was going on at my table - which is a pretty good sign considering the quality of company I keep on these adventures!  Atomica truly is a restaurant that you need to experience for the look and feel of it alone - and then, the food just makes it more appealing.

And... this brings us back to the food. With a wide variety of appetizers, main courses (including pizza, pasta, paninis and more) and desserts, Atomica has a menu that can easily appeal to anyone. While I can only think of one friend who doesn't like pizza very much (a 40-in-40 adventurer, in fact; let's see if you can figure out who it is!), I think that it is always nice for restaurants to have other offerings - even if "gourmet pizza" is in their name. Now, in my opinion, pizza is quite delicious - but I also know that it can be screwed up royally. And; when you are looking for delicious, there is nothing more disappointing than an unpleasing "pie". Okay... perhaps there are things in life that are more disappointing than bad pizza, but certainly, it is high on the list.

On this night, there was a lot of food at the table (most of it in front of me, admittedly!) and I'm happy to share what we ordered.



Carrie: Hot chocolate to help warm me up! Fried olives to start (amazingly salty little bundles stuffed with sausage and deep fried, then served over marzano tomatoes); caesar salad, and the Italian Job pizza: la bomba tomato sauce, mozzarella, house made fennel sausage, mixed bell peppers, red onion. Once that was cleared away, I had Zeppole for dessert (it was a dessert kind of day): deep fried ricotta cheesecake, chocolate sauce, raspberry coulis, vanilla cream. A little cup of heaven. Actually - a large cup. A very large cup of heaven.


Tonia: Tonia was also chilled and ordered a hot chocolate. Caesar salad and the Retro Pizza: Genoese pesto, mozzarella, clarmel on the Rideau feta, Lyons farm chicken, sundried tomatoes, roasted bell peppers. Tonia also ordered a dessert - Tiramisu: frangelico, nutella served in a mason jar.

Samer: House salad and the Pan-seared wild salmon: lemon-roasted garlic orzo risotto, braised spinach, king oyster mushrooms, salsa verde.  Upon seeing the mention of "wild salmon", Samer stated "we'll see how wild this is..."

Kendra: Fried olives, caesar salad, Atomica Pizza: la bomba tomato sauce, mozzarella, local cremini mushrooms, "seed to sausage" calabrese, pepperoncini. Strawberry Gelato to finish it all off.

Jordan: Bruschetta to start: balsamic onions, cherry tomatoes, herbed chèvre; and the Pappardelle Bolognese pasta: local lamb ragu, granada padano, fresh basil. Chocolate Gelato as a dessert. 

Todd: Fried olives (we have some pickle fans in our group!!); caesar salad. Todd and Benoit shared the Italian Job pizza.

And how did things go?

Well, for starters, we were drawn to Atomica this particular week because they had their "Snowdelicious" deal on - a three course dinner "Prix Fixe" menu for only $22. In the end, only Kendra and Jordan ordered the special; but it was nice for at least a couple of people to have some savings! Sadly, though, when we sat down, we weren't given the "Snowdelicious" menu... and then we sat and waited for a server to visit our table for about 20 minutes (a major pet peeve!! As a former server, Tonia always speaks of how important it was to get to tables for drink orders within 5 minutes of arrival - and as a frequent restaurant diner, I couldn't agree more)... We had, by that point, ventured off to find our own copies of the specialized menu from the hostess table and were more than happy to order drinks; although had we had to wait much longer and we may have gone to another restaurant.  After the initial visit, service was much better through the night - and our server (regretfully, I didn't get her name) was very attentive and carried on friendly chatter with us upon every visit to our table.

Each course arrived in a well-timed fashion - which was especially nice for me since I had FOUR courses - and the comments around the table were certainly positive. Here's what we thought and our ratings:

Carrie: 4.75 forks. I will admit, if service was part of the ratings, the first 20 minute wait made me so sour that my score would have been very different, but since this is solely based on food, Atomica fared quite well. The olives were outstanding. Seriously. If you thought you liked olives before, you better get your butt down to Atomica to find out why you might LOVE olives (although I can see the faces of all of those out there who don't like olives... and while I don't appreciate your furrowed brow and crooked lips, I do appreciate that olives aren't for everyone). The caesar salad is served untraditionally - full romaine leaves on your plate - which I quite enjoyed; and the bacon bits were awesome - even without one in my mouth, the whole salad had a nice "bacony" flavour. The pizza? Delicious. I was slightly sad to be getting full because I would have been happy to continue to eat it, but since I had dessert coming, I was just as happy to pack it up for lunch the next day. And the dessert... oh my goodness. I don't know what I was expecting from the description... I guess I just thought "I like cheesecake, so I'll order that"... But what arrived was an absolutely heavenly dish. A tall cup of BALLS of CHEESECAKE (honestly - balls of cheesecake!) that have been deep fried. As if that wasn't enough, they smothered them in chocolate sauce. AND THEN they added small raspberry coulis and vanilla cream dipping sauces on the side. I don't know who came up with the idea for this dessert, but I'm certain the world would be so happy to eat it that people everywhere would forget about any anger and the chef would get a Nobel Peace Prize for distracting people from wars and fighting with balls of goodness. Maybe. We'd all be really obese. But we'd be happy. 

Oh - and why the .25 deduction? The hot chocolate! It was disappointing - lacking flavour, more than 1/3 of the cup was foam rather than hot chocolate... the only good thing about it was the biscotti on the side.

Tonia: 4.12 forks. Tonia had a similar sentiment towards the hot chocolate - and her cup had even more foam than mine... She said that the salad was "pretty darn good" and that the serving style of the salad was "neat". (Is it just me, or is the word "neat" making a comeback? I love it!) The tiramisu was good, but the pizza wasn't as flavourful as she would have liked - Tonia is a pesto fan and it was lacking this time around.

Samer: 4 forks. Samer thought his meal was good overall, but the risotto was "swimming in butter", and, sadly for Samer who isn't a big fan of cheese (have you figured out who adventurer is that doesn't like pizza much?), the dish had a cheesy taste, which of course wasn't to his liking.

Kendra: 5 forks. Kendra was disappointed with the wait, but stated that the food was "awesome". The caesar salad was very tasty (although having to cut it up herself wasn't for her). Kendra also very much enjoyed the olives - stating they were delicious - and the pizza was really great. She did mention that readers may like to know that it was a little greasy - fine for her, but perhaps not enjoyed by all.

Jordan: 4 forks. Jordan very much enjoyed the bruschetta - "it was really good - the caramelized onion was interesting with tomato on top". The meal overall was good in Jordan's opinion; the pasta tasted fresh and homemade, and dessert was delicious. The only drawback in his eyes - the lamb in the dish wasn't very noticeable - he was expecting some chunks but instead, it was more incorporated and hidden... almost mushy.

Todd: 4.25 forks. A direct quote from Todd regarding the olives: "I love those salty babies!" In other words, he thought the olives were fantastic. The caesar salad was tasty, but Todd was in Kendra's boat and would have preferred it to be served traditionally as the lettuce was hard to cut and the croutons were awkward to eat. The pizza was well cooked with a nice spicy bite.

While Benoit didn't give a score before rushing off for the evening, he definitely seemed to enjoy the meal. 

All in all, I know that we would all go back to Atomica, and I don't think there is anything other than the hot chocolate that we wouldn't venture to order again. The result? An evening in a restaurant that was cozy enough for us to sit for an extended period of time enjoying good food, good conversation, laughs while playing the "can you do this?" and "look at THIS scar" games, and an overall score of 4.35 forks. Pretty awesome night.  The only thing that could make it better? A visit from Grandma...

Next week, we will be heading to Mango - and hopefully the experience will be just as awesome.

Amadeus

While I can't understand a single word that Austrian musician Falco said in the verses of his 1985 hit "Rock Me Amadeus", I do know that the words in the title and chorus of the song were exactly what I was hoping would happen for our adventures this week. (For those of you who have yet to be blessed with the opportunity to listen to this musical marvel, or haven't listened in a long time, here's a link to Falco's video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVikZ8Oe_XA)

Yet another "downtown restaurant", Amadeus is situated on Princess street just a few blocks from the waterfront. It has been family owned and operated in Kingston since 1992. Using recipes passed down through generations, the restaurant offers authentic German and Austrian cuisine as well as a number of European favourites. The restaurant website (found here) provides a more complete picture of Amadeus' history, and upon reading, it is clear that family history is important to its owners and chefs - which translates to the potential for an authentic experience for restaurant patrons that can't be found elsewhere in Kingston. Oh - and if you're looking for a stein of beer, they have a wide variety of draughts to compliment your meal, too, which is wunderbar.

In no time, we were having a great time at Amadeus. The restaurant actually spans much further back than you can tell from the street, and with a large group this week (9 of us in total, 8 who participated in the blog ratings), we were taken to what I will refer to as "the back room" (which isn't at all gloomy or awful like it sounds) where we met Kim, our server. There was another very large group in the back room, and when we passed through the front the restaurant seemed to have a good number of tables full.  Because we were in the back room, though, it was hard to know exactly what kind of business they had for the night. 

Kim was a great server - very attentive and making sure that we had drinks and complementary bread in very little time. She was also very knowledgeable when it came to the menu - which I can't imagine being myself... So many schnitzels! And speaking of schnitzel... you wouldn't believe the number of jokes that could come from one simple word! That said, we may have been an immature group of people out for schnitzel, but... laughing is good for the soul; and as Chili Davis said, "growing old is mandatory, growing up is optional". We may have been affected by the accordion music in the background, after all... yes... that is always the source of immaturity, isn't it? (sorry to all of the accordion players out there - no offence intended... I couldn't do what you do, that's for sure... check out this guy!: Extreme Accordion Skills). But I digress... Although I would be remiss not to mention the other word that got me giggling during our visit: spatzel. Yes. I (admittedly) continue to be immature - but how could you not laugh when someone says "Oh darn... I got some spatzel on my crotch" or "You know how much he loves his thick schnitzel". 

Moving on. Hopefully you're still with me.

Here's what we ordered.  You will notice some new names - welcome to Benoit and Blair - and a very warm welcome back from sunny California to Samer!

Carrie: I was told by my friend, Will, that if I went to Amadeus and didn't get a schnitzel of some kind, then my trip shouldn't count for the blog. So twist my rubber arm, and schnitzel it was. Tiroler Schnitzel: breaded pork schnitzel stuffed with mushrooms and swiss cheese and topped with tomato sauce; served with herbal potatoes, vegetables and a starter caesar salad. I also chose to have Chocolate mousse cake for dessert. Why not, right?

Tonia: Milander Schnitzel: chicken schnitzel topped with tomato sauce and Swiss cheese; served with herbal potatoes and vegetables. Tonia also had the soup of the day (cream of cauliflower and broccoli) to start.

Kendra: Jager Schnitzel: pork loin schnitzel topped with fresh mushroom sauce, served with spatzle and vegetables. Kendra tried 2 different beers during our visit as well... I just wish I had written down which ones.

Jordan: garden salad to start; Hollandia Schnitzel: pork loin schnitzel topped with ham and Swiss cheese followed by a homemade cream sauce; served with spatzle and vegetables. Jordan said that for him, ordering this was easy because it was like "something from his homeland"  ("You ain't Dutch, you ain't much"). 

Samer: garden salad to start; Fillet of sole Viennese: lightly breaded fillet of sole served with herbed potatoes and vegetables.

Todd: Soup of the day to start (cream of broccoli and cauliflower); Rouladen: beef rolls stuffed with onion, mustard, bacon and dill pickle; served with spatzle and red cabbage.

Benoit: Since he had to leave early for hockey, Benoit had a dinner-size portion of the soup of the day.

Blair: Veal Cordon Bleu: breaded veal cutlet stuffed with black forest ham and Swiss cheese; served with herbal potatoes and vegetables.

The food was well timed. We had enough time to let starters settle and continue to chat between courses, but were never left wondering where the food was. Kim and another waitress continued to be attentive through the evening - topping up our beverages and checking in on food taste. Time between courses also gave me time to check out the decor of the restaurant... which was simple, but there were fun accents from light fixtures to wall hangings, and coasters to steins. While the wall-length booth that we were in was hard to get into and out of, it was cozy once seated, and we happily sat and enjoyed for quite some time. Like many other 40 in 40 nights, we stayed late and shared a lot of laughs (and not just about schnitzel!).

And what did we think of the food? Generally, everyone was happy - I didn't hear any major grumbles... but here's the run-down and ratings:

Carrie: 3 forks. The caesar salad was really good - it had a little "kick" to it that I can't explain well (not spicy, but tangy maybe?) but it really was delicious. The lettuce was fresh and the bacon bits tasted like real bacon chunks - not those simulated bits that you often get at restaurants. The schnitzel dish, though... it was quite bland. I really don't know if that's how it is supposed to be since I haven't ever had schnitzel, but I definitely would have preferred more flavour in the schnitzel and the potatoes. Now, that said, it definitely didn't stop me from eating the plate full (and I mean plate full - the serving size was quite large). The other small disappointment - vegetables on this particular night just meant carrots. And while I'm certainly a fan of carrots, I think that if the menu says "vegetables", there should be more than 5 carrot slices. On the up side, I'm not sure how they were cooked, but they were delicious... As was the chocolate mousse cake - which I easily finished up in spite of my full belly :)

Tonia: 3.5 forks. The soup was really good; the main course was okay to good... Tonia also felt that her dish wasn't as flavourful as she would have liked, but she still enjoyed it - it just didn't "knock her socks off".

Kendra: 5 forks. Kendra was so excited about spatzle from the moment we arrived (not surprising, given how much she loves doughy foods) and was sure to make her order based on the inclusion of spatzle. In the end, she really enjoyed the whole dish - especially the flavour of the gravy.

Jordan: 3.5 forks. Jordan was really impressed by the starter garden salad. There was a variety of greens, potato salad and carrot salad in one bowl with a hint of dill flavour. Jordan also found the size of his main dish to be a large portion and the flavours to be cheesy but bland.  Still the question remained - is this the style of food?

Samer: 4 forks. Samer very much enjoyed the potatoes - saying that they were "amazing".  The portions in Samer's opinion were "incredibly large", and the fish was a little too breaded, but the dish still warranted a good score.

Todd: 4 forks. "The meaty roll was delicious with no sour after taste." (Yup... that's the exact quote. Verbatim.)

Benoit: 3.5 forks. Benoit was a little disappointed with the size of the meal-sized soup. He felt that it was small for the cost - especially when compared to the size of the starter soup. He considered the soup a little heavy with little flavour.

Blair: 4.75 forks. Blair doesn't live in Kingston, but stated that if he was back in town again, he would definitely come back to Amadeus. He especially loves the beer offerings, saying "I like to drink beer while I eat, so it works". Overall, he thought his dish was delicious and he really liked the portion size.

Overall score: 3.9 forks. So - all in all, not too bad a score. Everyone said that they would be willing to go back again - which in itself is a very good indicator to how enjoyable a dining experience is; and I certainly saw a number of things on the menu I'd be interested to try. 

Next week, we will be meeting at Atomica Gourmet Pizza and Wine Bar - where they are hosting their "Snowdelicious" Special. Until then, I will be enjoying multiple viewings of Falco on youtube... 

"Amadeus, Amadeus... Amadeus.

Amadeus, Amadeus... Amadeus.

Amadeus, Amadeus... Oh oh oh Amadeus.

Ooh! Rock me Amadeus!"

Darbar Exotic Indian Cuisine

Happy New Year! 

The holiday seems to have gone by with a flash, and in no time, I found myself happily reunited with my friends of the "40 Restaurants in 40 Weeks" adventure. While holidays are always nice, getting together once a week with fun folks for dinner isn't too shabby, either. Sadly, we have yet to reunite with Samer, who is not back from sunny California yet, but fingers crossed - he should be with us next week. Jordan and Kendra, however, have officially become regulars, and that suits Tonia, Todd and I just fine. They are a fantastic pair after all - made all the more fantastic for putting up with our ridiculousness and even adding to it from time to time!

For week 12 of our dining fun, we found ourselves at Darbar: a restaurant of Exotic Indian Cuisine. Located on Princess Street near Queen's campus and a variety of other stores and restaurants, Darbar is certainly on a "beaten path"; and based on the steady stream of customers that came and went during our visit, I would suspect that location definitely works to the restaurant's advantage.  Tables filled and emptied, and take-out customers came and went. We sat comfortably for quite some time - even after we had finished our meal - which is always something that gets extra points in our books. The decor of the restaurant is quite lovely. Soft yellow and deep red colours with simple and elegant table settings and beautiful wall hangings all combine for a cozy atmosphere. The windows are round, which adds an additional interesting feature and would only be made better if the view outside was more enjoyable (sadly, we'd have to have major talks with the City of Kingston to change that...). 

Darbar is named after the central meeting place in the Royal Palaces of India. As stated by their website, "Here, royal guests were refreshed with delectable dishes and drinks, while they enjoyed performances by famous artists, poets, writers, singers, dancers and actors."  The restaurant offers a wide variety of traditional and delicious Indian dishes. If you are like me, and have been hesitant to try Indian food in the past because you thought that it was all too spicy or all curry-based... do yourself a favour: drop the assumptions and give it a try. There are such a wide variety of things to choose from, that I'm certain everyone can find something they would enjoy. Not sure what to have? Darbar has thought of that possibility, too.  Not only does the menu give you descriptions of dishes, but it also gives you descriptions of the traditional spices that are used in dishes and the flavours that they present. Further, Darbar offers the nice and convenient option of one- and two-person combinations that provide you with a starter, main dish samples and dessert; giving patrons the opportunity to try something new - whether you've had Indian food before or are having it for the first time. 

And what did we enjoy? Here's the run-down:

Carrie: Bhoona Chicken (a delicious medium spicy curry with extra onion, bell pepper and tomato; flavoured with fenugreek leaves), palao rice, naan.

Tonia: Onion Bhaji (thinly sliced onions seasoned with mild spices, then battered in lentils and deep-fried) to start, Bhoona Chicken, palao rice, naan.

Todd: Onion Bhaji to start and Vegetable Saambar (mixed vegetable curry cooked with extra red chillies, lentils, coconut, fenugreek leaves and lemon juice for a fairly hot and sour flavour).

Jordan and Kendra: Shared the 2-person combo "BB" consisting of Seekh Kebab & Onion Bhaji, Butter Chicken & Lamb Bhoona, Mixed Vegetable Curry, palao rice, garlic naan, papadum, and dessert - which was Gulab Jamun (an Indian delicacy: fried milk balls in cardamom flavoured syrup). 

How's that for a variety of ingredients and flavours? I have to admit that I was pretty impressed with how everything really attracted each of my senses. Smells, colours, textures, tastes... If only the plates said "Eat me! I'm delicious!", they would have tapped in my sense of sound, too... Although, I guess that is exactly why I keep good company.  My phone truly didn't take pictures that do the food justice - so if you're at all curious, please go and check it out for yourself. 

And what did we think overall?

Carrie: 3.5 forks. Spicier Bhoona than I've had in the past... which, to be honest, was partly my fault - it was mentioned in the menu. That said, it wasn't so spicy that it turned me off completely. I do wish that there had been more vegetables... but I'm not sure if that is supposed to happen with Indian food? My favourite - the naan. I always love naan.

Tonia: 4 forks. Good, flavourful food that wasn't too spicy. The onion bhaji was "okay"... and like me, Tonia loved the naan.

Todd: 4 forks. Todd stated politely and simply: "onion bhaji are delicious".

Kendra: 4.2 forks (someone is getting "sassy" in her ratings with longevity in the project!). Kendra really enjoyed her meal and stated that dinner overall was delicious. She loved the garlic naan. Sadly, the Gulab Jamun were a little too sweet... "Sweet ball was too sweet", "I'm drunk off the sweet balls". 

Jordan: 3.5 forks. Jordan really liked the butter chicken and said that the lamb was really tender with a low-intensity spice. He thought the onions in the dishes seemed raw, though. He was, however, satisfied with the combo as it was a nice way to try something new. Much like Kendra, the Gulab Jamun created some conversation with Jordan: "These balls are too sweet". 

Overall score: 3.84 forks. Another successful evening of dining in the beautiful city of Kingston, Ontario. I must say that I'm quite happy it's been going so well thus far - I wouldn't have imagined that so many restaurants would receive such good scores... but we really aren't "just being nice for the sake of the blog"! We love food, and we love to find good food - so we wouldn't spread the word if it wasn't truly good.

"Want to take a picture of my balls?"
Yes, Kendra and Jordan... yes, I do.

LOVE the naan.

Next week, we are off to Amadeus Cafe, which has been dubbed "The best German Restaurant in Kingston". I'm curious to see what they have to offer, and excited to try!!