9698 Jasper Ave
780-423-0969
Hardware Grill has been in business for over 15 years but it wasn't a place I was familiar with until Andrew suggested going there to celebrate our anniversary. Getting here was the hard part due to the current construction taking place on Jasper Avenue and the lack of a parking lot dedicated to restaurant patrons. When we arrived though, we were greeted and seated immediately.
Our server was patient, courteous and professional. His recommendations for a starter included the Kobe Beef Carpaccio and the Crispy Duck Leg Confit. We went with the beef carpaccio. It was topped with broad slivers of parmesan cheese and served with a dollop of truffle aioli and a side of sea salt potato chips. We absolutely loved the large, thinly sliced, and perfectly seasoned chips; they tasted even better when dipped into the aioli. While the beef was decent, I much preferred the chips and dip on the plate!
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| kobe.beef.carpaccio |
For the main course, the server suggested the Duo of Bacon Wrapped Elk & Slow Braised Beef Short Ribs or the Porcini Crust Sea Bass. I had a hard time choosing, but in the end, I went with the elk ($46) while Andrew had the 60 Day Aged Spring Creek Ranch New York Steak ($48). The short rib on my plate was by far the best short rib I have ever tasted! The elk was served medium rare and was wrapped in crispy bacon. Three sides came with my entree: butternut squash puree, creamed spinach, and a polenta square. The polenta square was my favorite; the crispy edge was absolutely delightful.
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| elk.and.short.ribs |
The taste I had from Andrew's main course was good, but I felt that my meal was better. The parmesan fries were very tasty and were really long for fries. I felt that there were too many creamed onions as a side, but the grilled tomatoes were juicy and full of flavour.
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| new.york.steak |
To end off our meal, we were intrigued by the Small Endings on the dessert menu and the variety of dessert samplings it promised ($15). Upon taking our dessert order, our server asked us if we were celebrating anything that night, and we told him that it was our anniversary. It was a lovely surprise to see "Happy Anniversary" written on a thin slice of decadent milk chocolate. Other sweets on our plate were two rich chocolate truffles, 12-year old Glenlivet butterscotch pudding, almond pound cake, rhubarb shortbread, a lemon meringue square, and last but not least, a chocolate brownie. It was a lot to take in, but my favorite was the brownie and Andrew's was the pound cake. He also loved the slab of rock the desserts were served on.
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| small.endings |
We were entirely satisfied with our meal. My glass of Duck Pond pinot noir from Oregon ($15) accompanied my meal well, but it took me too long to select a wine from their nearly 30-page wine list! The science nerd in me loved how they used Erlenmeyer flasks as wine decanters. The premium filtered Q Water served seemed to taste pure and refreshing, but I may be imagining things and I would need to do a blind taste test in the future.
The restaurant doesn't have a dedicated parking lot, so finding parking nearby can be tricky. We didn't like the table we were seated at because it didn't give us enough room to stretch out our legs. While the tables can be moved, moving it further away from our booth seats would bring it far too close to the table across the way. The host and servers were professional and knowledgeable (and surprisingly all male), but I found that our busperson had no personality and seemed too reserved to be working in a customer service area. Overall, this is a restaurant I would recommend to others to host a business dinner or to celebrate a special occasion.
4.5/5
