After a couple of failed attempts in the location that once held the Amsterdam Brewing Company (http://www.yelp.ca/biz/amsterdam-brewing-company-limited-toronto#hrid:DYDkXYHhIMDO5vnuYloAhA/query:amsterdam%20brewing%20company), the Bier Markt has decided to attempt to duplicate the success of its Esplanade location in the upwardly-mobile location that is my neighbourhood. Now admittedly, outside of special dinner nights at the Esplanade version of the restaurant, I've never really been a fan of the somewhat pricey menu (really, $10 for fries?) and the pricey-yet-overwhelming beer menu. The selection is good, don't get me wrong, but I find it hard to spend an evening there and not feel out of pocket. I thought I'd give the new place a go and see if I'd feel different.
I did feel different. It's worse. Maybe it's the newness of the location as I did see it in its first fortnight of being open, but the place seemed somewhat frantic. There was initial confusion as to where I ask to get a table, be it on the patio or in the restaurant. The maitre-d' area became congested quickly and there seemed to be no sense of order as to who would be sat when. When I got to my table it seemed every staff member had a wide-eyed look of terror in them that made me wonder if everyone started that afternoon. I stuck to their sweet spot of Trappist and Abbey-style beers and that seemed to suit fine.
The final shot for me was the food. When you purport yourself to be definitively Belgian and place your mussels (or "moules" in the local vernacular), it'd be really handy if half of them were not slammed shut and inedible. I appreciated the fact that I was offered replacement mussels, but by then it was by far too much of an okay thing. I had better luck making my own.