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| - Attended Lot St. on an easy Wednesday evening while working-up an appetite for dinner at much-beloved La Palette. Always eager to discover new spots in the neighbourhood, Lot St.'s menu was hanging in the window. Not over-thought and concise, it is inclusive of many of a many an epicures' staples: ceviche, shrimp cocktail, and rack of lamb.
After reviewing the menu (gluten-free friendly), we decided to stopped for cocktails (many named after city locales), and an appetizer.
DRINK: His "South of the Border" (~$14) was reminiscent of a tart margarita, but skipping the traditional salt-rim for a salted meringue egg-white foam. I ordered a "20th Century" (~$10) - also citrusy, fresh, and smooth, not too-sweet. Other cocktails included elements of cassis, thyme; their bourbon maple old-fashioned will be a future try...
FOOD: We'll return for dinner another time, but the Shrimp Cocktail ($6, whipped avocado, caramelized mango, peppery shrimp - eaten with a spoon) was very pleasant, and good for sharing.
THE VIBE: Long banquet seating with sultry lighting highlighting the exposed brick, and clever copper pipe-lighting to parallel the already exposed pipes - all designed to leverage the heritage of the space. Not overly-designed, and very inviting. Nice bar-seating, also at the front window for those who prefer to indulge in people-watching.
THE FUTURE: Their kind (and talented) mixologist advised that they'd be starting up brunch in the next month and would include a Caesar/Bloody Mary station (yum!) to look forward to. They were really excited for what I anticipate to be a bright future.
Definitely warranting my return, in addition to the great service at sensible pricing. Hats-off for a great first-impression!
POINT-FORM FOR THE LAZY:
- no arrogance; friendly/welcoming staff; a proud and smiling owner happy to greet us
- intelligently priced (cocktails ~$10, apps ~$6-10, mains ~$25-30)
- warm decor
- great attention-to-detail (beautiful plating, fine stemware)
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