A Night at Abigail’s Party

We decided to go out recently for my wife’s birthday with friends. That means a night out without the children, so we headed down to Abigail’s Party on Yew St. for drinks and to nibble on their down home style menu.

This little hole in the wall is just that – it’s intimate, maybe 30+ seats and a small bar for a half dozen. What the restaurant lacks in size, it makes up for in atmosphere and quality and flavour of it’s food.

Before we get into the food, let’s start with their drink list, because that’s what we did. The wine list here is small but well chosen, opting to keep things moving and interesting. They also keep the price points here fairly low with all selections by the glass coming in at $10 or less. The draught beer is also very limited (one choice – it is a local brewery!), but they do have a decent array by the bottle. Add in some mixed drinks all made with fresh fruit and juices and at least a half dozen whiskeys and you are well on your way to loosening yourself up for the evening.

The menu here is a little like your favourite blanket. It makes you feels all warm and cozy. This is my kind of menu with choices like corn dogs, buttermilk fried chicken wings, poutine, local beef burgers with all the trimmings, an Italian sausage sandwich and classic steak frites. There was even a night’s special of steak and mushroom pie. The poutine has to be one of the best this side of Montreal with a chicken gravy that is dark and delicious and real cheese curds. The buttermilk wings are audibly crunchy, with a blend of seasonings that would make the colonel jealous. I also tried the local beef burger served on a Yukon gold foccacia, that has just the right amount of chew, and includes aged cheddar and smoked bacon – get it with the side of poutine! As eclectic as the menu can be, Abigail’s prides itself with serving product that local, organic, and sustainably harvested, which is always a bonus.

The dessert menu here is also small, but quite intriguing. We tried the cinnamon sugar donuts with warm Mexican chocolate sauce. The donut itself had a great cakey crumb and dipping into the chocolate sauce with it’s spicy flavours took it to another level. Next time though I’m definitely going to get the bourbon and dark chocolate milkshake with house made “Oreo” cookies.

Overall Abigail’s Party was a great place to go to enjoy one of our limited evenings on the town. I’m sure we won’t wait until next year’s birthday to spend another evening there. The food, and well as the service, is fun and satisfying. Be sure to call ahead to get yourself a table, as it can book up quickly because of it’s small size.

 

Last modified: March 10, 2009