Went for dinner here a week ago with high expectations as we'd previously gone to the Ace for brunch and were very satisfied with our meals.
I decided to try the AAA brisket burger and my girlfriend ordered the fried chicken and cornbread. Before we got our mains we started with the deep fried Ontario Brussel sprouts-these paired with the lemon aioli were delicious and you're given sizeable portion that's easily enough for a couple to share. Unfortunately this was the lone bright spot of our meal.
My brisket burger, while cooked to medium as I requested was over salted by whoever was working the grill that night. When I bit into it all I could taste was salt, which overpowered the meat and condiments (which were very limited and barely noticeable). If we weren't sitting next to the kitchen I would've sent it back. Correction - I should've sent it back.
My girlfriends fried chicken also missed the mark. It was tough and chewy and not all that flavourful. You would think the chef would nail something simple like fried chicken but you could tell it had been under-seasoned and likely not been brined or left in buttermilk overnight to be moistened. The cornbread and collard greens were decent but I think this dish would've been better paired with a mashed potato.
Overall thoughts:
We definitely left dinner unimpressed but maybe we came into it with our expectations set too high after doing brunch a few months earlier.
We'll likely return for brunch at the Ace but with other options available on Ronce, Queen St W and the Junction at a similar price point I don't think we'll be back for dinner. In my mind the Ace failed to separate itself from its dinner competition with some very underwhelming comfort food.