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| Newmarket's Newest player opened Monday |
At Pat & Marios, to save labour cost when the doorman wasn't there, I'd fill in alongside the ever whiny- voiced G.M. Bernie, or the fat man as some referred to him as behind his back. I'll never forget when a cook was giving him an excuse regarding why an order had screwed up and he yelled,
"If I want excuses I'll talk to Tom!"
We all howled! I learned a lot there however including how to talk to people and deescalate explosive situations. It didn't help we were located right across from "the projects", a maze of Toronto housing units ripe with drugs. I got sucker punched in the bar area one night by a local nutbar who was always trouble, leading to his banishment and my wake-up call as to the type of crazies that are out there and how a touch too much alcohol on some can be lethal.That all began in the 80's, those were the days! Ha!
Now back to my dinner!
I'd been given some tables to put local bodies in to eat free, part of a typical procedure that every Lone Star Texas Grill now does when they open a new one, a very cool concept. In order to get prepared before opening to the paying public, it's quite common to have a mock run through whereby 1/2 the restaurant staff would greet, seat, cook & serve, while the other half would act as ordering patrons. Sometimes the menu would be preset as to what you could order to ensure the staff got practice on all the dishes. Lone Star does this but they also hold another evening wherein members of the community have been contacted and invited in with allowances for up to 4 people per table to order off the menu which gives the staff additional experience before they actually open. Lone Star does even one more preopening event as well, as part of their "Texas Charm", by hosting one last rehearsal service before opening to the public for a local charity, which is certainly an innovative idea...but hey never mind the chatter..let's eat!
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Upon our arrival we were greeted by some young countryesque hostesses and an attending manager who saw to it we were given a warm welcome - something I've often found lacking in Newmarket - particularly with some complacent chains who's managers are never close enough to the action to gauge how their customers really feel. Everyone thought East Side Marios would be here forever but they're not, because ultimately if value is relatively the same then a competing welcoming and fun atmosphere will win out every time, and frankly that place had the worst service in town and a non-caring attitude for the most part which, to that end, the staff at the new Lone Star in Newmarket seem to be a very enthusiastic crew. A quick look around and the staff was always in perpetual motion, whether singing at a table or playfully tossing bread at customers, it seems to be a prerequisite there to engage the patrons..and often! Our waiter Chris or Wild One as he's known in-house, although a little green, gave probably the best service I've had in all the years I've been in Newmarket - which is 20+. He would be right there as soon as an appetizer was done, kept on table maintenance like clock-work, checked in when appropriate, and had another fresh basket of fresh hot crisp nacho chips with cool tomato salsa, not too spicy but yummy, as soon as we were done. We were also served up a delicious conqueso tangy cheese dip splashed with jalapenos, without prompting..Mmm...These things I notice, having been a waiter / manager, and was almost floored when he told me it was his first job waitering! As it turned out he'd been working back of the house in kitchens for some time in other restaurants which really gives him superior food knowledge too a definite asset..easy attitude not phony..He got 4 stars from me out of 5 and a cool $20 on the side later that we insisted on! ha!
Of course at any Tex / Mex type of establishment, you have to try the nachos grande, and in fact to a degree a restaurant of this type could almost be judged by the dish. At any rate I was having some, as part of the run-through was that each table could order an appetizer. Our layered icon came out served with the usual salsa and sour cream on the side with the chips smothered in cheeses, a combination of Monterrey-jack and Cheddar as our waiter had offered up, and as well mounds of jalapeno slices, mildly spiced ground beef, tomatoes, black olives & peppers. I would like to have seen guacamole accompanying it, but realize its seasonal nature makes it tough to have as a menu item, nevertheless it was enjoyably fresh and the cheese was not spared. Personally, as a presentation freak used to fine dining tastes, I would like to see it layered a little higher which is how I was taught to do it, but that is more a presentation than taste or portion issue and it was still gobbled up like the last supper regardless!
For main course my friends shared a 1 lb chicken fajita which comes seasoned, grilled and served on a sizzling platter with sauteed green peppers, onions and all the fixings, along with warm flour tortillas and as usual Chris the rookie waiter with the efficiency of a robot showed up with fresh hot ones as soon they ran out. My friend, who also happens to be York Region's best DJ in Hungarian Pepper, and her son, devoured away while complimenting the tender chicken dish between bites. Sharing was a great idea as the bigger eating now bearded junior, made up for the pigeonlike eating mom at the end, making for a happy duo!
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| Mmm..cooked perfectly medium |
I ordered the Steak & Rib combo with a loaded baked potato. Hey, my mom didn't raise a dummy! Ha! I'd asked for my steak medium which was cooked to perfection and served along with a peppercorn sauce, as to waiter Chris' suggestion, that was phenomenal. I can't count how many places I've ordered steak at, only to get it nowhere near how I asked it to be cooked, so it was certainly a nice start, but this dish also has a Texas Star seasoning, almost blackened / cajun but not quite, that explodes on your taste-buds upon impact. The succulent cut was tender too and my friend's son agreed it was delicious ( Hey! I had to let him try it!) - 'Like butta!" it's smokescreen of flavour almost making me forget about the ribs half, of which I'd ordered the original Lone Star BBQ style as opposed to the mesquite. The ribs were nice and tender, but I do prefer a traditional BBQ style (slow cooked over several days) which I don't believe they do there.. nevertheless they are still quite tasty indeed and the sauce very nice, and a good value to boot in looking at the menu! As for the loaded potato....Wow! Stuffed with the house cheeses blend, sour cream and bacon this baker was almost a meal in itself...I wasn't sure even waiter Chris' constant reminders to leave room for desert were going to work, but in the end we shared a baked apple crisp concoction and a scoop of ice cream served on a fajitalike platter with a sweet sauce poured over it at the table which sizzled and oozed on the platter even as we dug in. Mmmmm! I almost had to ask for a mop to clean up our drool! Ha!
The biggest confusion came at the end of the night as we are all so used to having to wait for a cheque, but not on this night! Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeehawwwwwwwww!
TP Out!