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Foods from Castlegarth (White Lake)
Reviews
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Aug 13
My first visit as well, and I too feel compelled to give a positive recommendation based on this one sampling. Nothing fancy here, but an excellent "slow food" experience in quiet surroundings, with good, friendly service.
I had roast lamb leg, and it was first rate. It was sourced from local supplier Randy Robertson. I haven't been all that impressed with Ontario lamb in my few previous encounters with it, but this has really turned me around! The dish was nicely complemented by a very tasty summer bean cassoulet. The meal was topped off nicely with a plum cake with homemade vanilla ice cream, and coffee from Equator in nearby Almonte.
My wife enjoyed her beef curry dish, and her dessert (semolina cake with raspberries).
The wine list needs more wines by the glass (only two whites and two reds available), but that's about my only quibble.
This place goes out of its way to feature the products of local suppliers (plus their own organic garden), and it really deserves your attention and support.
I had roast lamb leg, and it was first rate. It was sourced from local supplier Randy Robertson. I haven't been all that impressed with Ontario lamb in my few previous encounters with it, but this has really turned me around! The dish was nicely complemented by a very tasty summer bean cassoulet. The meal was topped off nicely with a plum cake with homemade vanilla ice cream, and coffee from Equator in nearby Almonte.
My wife enjoyed her beef curry dish, and her dessert (semolina cake with raspberries).
The wine list needs more wines by the glass (only two whites and two reds available), but that's about my only quibble.
This place goes out of its way to feature the products of local suppliers (plus their own organic garden), and it really deserves your attention and support.
2007 Jun 30
Oh! Oh! GO!
I feel odd raving about a place based on one visit with a wee appetizer + dessert meal, but it's so clearly great that I'll let that pass for now, and add more on subsequent visits.
Quite a find, and I'm amazed it's not even more found. Reservations are probably a must if you're driving all the way from Ottawa. We happened by late on, and only got a table by very happy accident, and got it, a bit after 9 pm, with warnings that they were out of some things on the menu. Not a wander-in thing. That's fine. It's a sweet little place -- plain, wooden, tableclothy but not starchy.
I can't in good conscience tag them with 'vegetarian,' but I did fine there as one despite the lack of a veg main course (tonight -- menu changes daily!). A green garlic soup was outstanding. Had I been hungrier I would've thrown in a cheese plate and salad and called it a full meal; as it was, all I had with that was dessert. Strawberry pie with (their own) strawberry ice cream; both delicious, and the latter made me somewhat less proud of the strawberry ice cream I spent some time making this week.
I think both dishes were $6, which is really outstanding for the quality. This was very 'Oh my, everything else I ate today was disgusting, low-quality garbage, and I had no idea' cuisine. Main dishes averaged about $19; they'd easily be $10+ more in the city. Mine plus a lamb dish with veg (delicious-looking veg; am told it was good lamb) and a half litre of a very good riesling = $55, which felt like a steal.
All ingredients are local; we -- Pakenhamians, now -- were amused by how many of the farms &c they buy from were familiar to us. (They're listed on the menu.) I am thoroughly relieved to find somebody putting all the food goodness of the Valley to good use...
Even the service was a pleasure: nobody was snobby, surly, giddy, etc -- just polite and friendly. I'm thrilled to've found this place.
I feel odd raving about a place based on one visit with a wee appetizer + dessert meal, but it's so clearly great that I'll let that pass for now, and add more on subsequent visits.
Quite a find, and I'm amazed it's not even more found. Reservations are probably a must if you're driving all the way from Ottawa. We happened by late on, and only got a table by very happy accident, and got it, a bit after 9 pm, with warnings that they were out of some things on the menu. Not a wander-in thing. That's fine. It's a sweet little place -- plain, wooden, tableclothy but not starchy.
I can't in good conscience tag them with 'vegetarian,' but I did fine there as one despite the lack of a veg main course (tonight -- menu changes daily!). A green garlic soup was outstanding. Had I been hungrier I would've thrown in a cheese plate and salad and called it a full meal; as it was, all I had with that was dessert. Strawberry pie with (their own) strawberry ice cream; both delicious, and the latter made me somewhat less proud of the strawberry ice cream I spent some time making this week.
I think both dishes were $6, which is really outstanding for the quality. This was very 'Oh my, everything else I ate today was disgusting, low-quality garbage, and I had no idea' cuisine. Main dishes averaged about $19; they'd easily be $10+ more in the city. Mine plus a lamb dish with veg (delicious-looking veg; am told it was good lamb) and a half litre of a very good riesling = $55, which felt like a steal.
All ingredients are local; we -- Pakenhamians, now -- were amused by how many of the farms &c they buy from were familiar to us. (They're listed on the menu.) I am thoroughly relieved to find somebody putting all the food goodness of the Valley to good use...
Even the service was a pleasure: nobody was snobby, surly, giddy, etc -- just polite and friendly. I'm thrilled to've found this place.
This entry is here thanks to kmennie
Food&Think
gold
I haven't been to Castlegrath yet, but based on a variety of things I've read it has piqued my interest... now that another Foodie has been there this summer, and had a positive experience, maybe I'll finally get around to making a point of going. Thanks.