Ryan H.'s Profile

What can I say? It was average. I'd never seen such mediocre reviews of a restaurants on Yelp, and they were right.

I was pulled in by the restaurant's design, the colors, the pictures. But such high prices for just OK food!  I had the sea bass based on a recommendation, and it was very good. Perfectly prepared.  The side bok choy and asparagus were good enough, but the mound of white rice was undercooked and basically inedible.  Of my companions, one ordered a side of steamed broccoli, which instead came as the other option besides steamed - doused in butter.  Dressing for another's side salad was forgotten, and when mentioned to the waiter, he was literally given a gravy boat full of bleu cheese dressing.  A few sandwiches were ordered, and though supposedly tasty, looked small for the price.  Constant Companion ordered the macaroni and cheese, but said she preferred a cheaper version found at a diner.  The mac & cheese was topped with crunchy bits we decided must've been smashed Goldfish, which I admit, if true, was ingenious.  Also, the waiter disappeared for about 20 minutes after we finished eating before he brought us the check.

I'd go again if I was invited. Otherwise, probably not.

Went for lunch today.  It was not busy, since it was a rainy day. Still, service took forever.  We were seated on the second floor, and apparently our food "GOT STUCK IN THE DUMBWAITER."  What? What does that even mean?  Do restaurants actually have dumbwaiters?  I tend to think our food was late because every single staff person was too busy setting up fake cobwebs for Halloween decorations.  Apparently, after the dumbwaiter got unstuck, our own dumb waiter saw it fit to bring one meal, a bowl of lukewarm soup and lukewarm french fries to the table, while the other dishes went back in the oven. So one person in our party was nearly finished eating by the time the other dishes arrived.

For what it's worth, the food was fine.  I had shepherd's pie. French fries were fine. I just can't get over that excuse.  Stuck in the dumbwaiter!  I don't care if it's true or not.  It was just stupid.  I will not be coming back.  I don't want a sticky dumbwaiter ruining my food again.

I had an unfortunate event while riding on the St. Lawrence seaway trail while on vacation. A pedal fell off my bike. Though I probably could've gotten it fixed out in Cornwall, I didn't even think of it, and returned to the American side and searched for a bike repair shop. I do have to give kudos to Canadian Tire, though, a store which really has no American equivalent because they sell such an odd array of stuff.  They have a wide selection of bike accessories and parts, but no cranks, which is what I needed. I used my GPS to search for a bike shop on the American side of the Thousand Islands, and there were NONE. The Canadian side, however, had many.  Gananoque, Brockville, Cornwall, Kingston... all of them had bike shops. Ogdensburg, Alex Bay, Clayton... nothing.  That's America, it's a problem.

Anyway, I ended up in Brockville at Cranks on a Wednesday afternoon. The repair guy, who I assume was the owner, and hence the "Crank" of the shop name, was actually cranky. Not to me, but to another customer. Coincidentally, he did have the crank I needed, and had it installed probably after an hour. We walked around Brockville and he called our cell phone when it was done. Then on we went to bike Wolfe Island. He was a lifesaver... or more accurately, a BIKE-saver!

I was not expecting much from Mick's, as it occupies a small storefront alongside a laundromat. That'll teach me to judge a book by its cover.  There are three pizza places in Cohoes, and when I first moved here, I mistakenly believed that the PIZZA CHALLENGE would be between House and Hometown, both on Remsen, but Mick's came out of nowhere and beat them both! It's all in their crust. I am normally not too concerned with the crust, but Mick's puts enough garlic and pepper in theirs to make it something you'd eat on its own. The two times I've gotten a pizza here, it's been cooked just right so that the crisp shell belies a soft chewy interior.  Even better, you can sometimes find coupons to get a 6-slice cheese pie for extremely cheap. Actually, I think it was free, but I added a few toppings. Kudos to Mick's.

I was happy to hear that Troy was getting its very own downtown hardware store, but I was skeptical of the "upscale" label that they kept pushing with it.  After a short trip to get some nuts and bolts (literally), I can agree with the first review and say that this really is like heaven for hardware geeks. The huge windows let natural light flood the aisles.  It was spotless and clean, and the layout was easy to understand.  Try to find something simple in Home Depot or Lowes and you might be there for an hour.  I didn't price out many items because it was such a nice, relaxed atmosphere, it's almost as if price did not matter.  Too bad I live in Cohoes, because this would be my hardware store of choice.  As it is, I will still head here before HD or Lowes.

I'm not a big beer person.  Usually, I'll go for wine.  But whenever I feel the need to get some beer, Waterford Beverage more than does the trick. It's actually overwhelming. I don't know what I'm looking at half the time. The selection, I think, is pretty astonishing. They have all of the locally brewed beers, and many microbreweries. There seems to be a heavy emphasis on small companies, which I can appreciate, although you can find your mass-produced swill as well.

It was my first night in Toronto, and I was on the prowl for some dessert. Near the cacauphonus intersection of Yonge and Dundas (there was a huge stage set up with a Celtic-Indian fusion band), I stumbled upon a waffle shop. Being an American, waffle shops have only existed in my dreams. I've heard tell of them before, but I have never felt the thrill of a warm, Belgian waffle with powdered sugar in a little wax paper holder. It is a small storefront, with cramped standing room for 2 or 3 people inside the door.

It must be a new restaurant, because many people stopped to gawk at the menu, but few seemed up to the task of ordering. Flavored waffles? What? Toppings? Huh? Trust me, order anything, it doesn't matter. During my short stay in Toronto, I tried plain, strawberry, and maple waffles and every kind of topping. Caramel, chocolate sauce, ice cream... This stuff is healthy, right? I figure waffles are breakfast, and breakfast is the most important meal of the day, so a second breakfast is like twice as healthy.  The warm waffle, the soft ice cream. Incredible.

There were a lot of people outside the storefront deciding whether to order or not, and if I hadn't been stuck inside waiting for mine, I probably would've been shilling for Wanda's on the sidewalk. "No, you have to try it! Just order one! It's so good!"

Hana is a nice place for sushi. Even though they have a few huge TVs behind the bar, I would dress up a little to go here. From the outside it looks huge, but inside it feels more intimate. Probably because they keep the lights low. We had sushi dinner, so I can't speak to the hibachi experience. You know what you are in for if you go for that kind of thing anyway.

The sushi nerd in me thinks this is some of the best sushi I've had. The pieces were big, flavorful, and tender. Even the squid. You must try one of their signature rolls. Usually signature rolls hew close to the commonly accepted ingredients, but Hana's signature rolls included things like mango and asparagus. The waitstaff is attentive, but not pushy (like a certain other sushi restaurant on Western Ave which shall remain nameless, but rhymes with Itchy Bond). Kudos!

After a 22 mile bike ride, nothing could be more satisfying than Seb's fried goodness. This is your typical roadside stand, selling fried food and ice cream. Looks like your ideal place for summer outdoor eats. There's a wide variety of stuff to choose from. We had fried fish, clams, and french fries. I was unimpressed by the fries, but I'm not a big french fry person. But the clams and fish were very good. Soft serve, available in chocolate, vanilla, and "twist" was fine. If I'm ever back on Grand Isle, I'll be sure to go back.

I feel like we're spoiled as far as contractors go after hiring Mark to remodel our bathroom, do some electrical work, and install windows. Each appointment he made, he stuck to it. In fact, he would try to show up 15 minutes early just in case of any hold-ups. So he definitely does not fall into that category of contractors who don't show or are perpetually late. He got to the house every day, bright and early to work on the bathroom, and we're really happy with the job he did. It looks good, clean, professional, and he stuck to his estimate, which was reasonable.