I am a huge fan of everything Doug McNish touches. His Public Kitchen has to be one of, if not THE best vegan restaurant in the city. So naturally, when we found out he was partnering with the Doomies gang, we HAD to try out his new diner!
We arrived at about 7:00 on a Friday evening, and were told it would be about an hour wait for a table. Just over an hour later, we were texted that our table was ready, and we waited a further five minutes to actually sit, as they were quite busy telling other guests about their wait. It might have been better to have more than one person at the door.
Once seated, we were approached by a friendly waitress who was happy to recommend items from the appetizer menu. We settled on the barbecue wings, and they did not disappoint. Holy moley, they were delicious! I ordered the "fish" and chips, which was very tasty but came with far too little tartar sauce. When I asked for a bit more, I was told I would be charged $2 (hey, at least she was kind enough to alert me). So I passed, but did not finish the food because it just wasn't as tasty without the tartar sauce. Wish they would provide enough in the first place. Sigh. The fries were a little salty, but standard. Not quite as good as Doomie's. My hubby ordered the meatloaf, which was delicious, covered in a delightful gravy. I kept nibbling off his plate.
The atmosphere was unpleasant, as there was a DJ spinning hip hop, 80s and 90s tunes. The tunes were fine, but it was just far too loud. We couldn't even hear ourselves think, let alone have a conversation beyond nodding to each other about how tasty our meals were. I imagine brunch would be quieter? I hope to find out!
Overall our experience here was very good, and we were satisfied with service, etc. But for the price, I would hope that in future they maybe consider offering a little extra sauce here and there, or just providing ample in the first place. That and the noise were really our only complaints. Will visit again!