Delta Hotel
120 New Gower St.
Ph. 570-1333
Restaurants at the Delta Hotel continue to
evolve, changing almost as often as the actors playing Dr. Who. At one time the
hotel’s main restaurant was called Porto’s, then Capital Grill, and quickly
thereafter, Quinn’s Plate. Recently I was surprised to discover that their
formal restaurant, Quinn’s Plate, had been merged with the less formal, pub
restaurant, Mickey Quinn’s. A section of wall separating both had been removed and
the main entrance was now through Mickey Quinn’s.
According to our waiter, Ray, Delta management
decided to merge both spaces because they want to focus more on the food
service side of their restaurant operation and less on the “pub” business. I
was delighted to hear this because I was beginning to wonder whether the St.
John’s Delta - the largest hotel in Atlantic Canada - was even going to have a
proper restaurant in future. Prior to the current arrangement, Quinn’s Plate
was only open for breakfast, not a hopeful development. Anyone interested in
lunch or dinner had to settle in the pub. Judging from the dining activity
there, many chose to settle elsewhere.
My guest and I were seated at what used to be
the border separating Quinn’s Plate from Mickey Quinn’s, sort of a passageway
with booths and - at the time of our visit - a buffet table. It enabled us to
assess both sides of the marriage and observe a definite mismatch. Quinn’s
Plate was tall, with elegantly curtained vertical windows, coloured in muted
earth tones, furnished with classic style chairs and architectural fittings and
fixtures.
Mickey Quinn’s, according to Delta advertising
was named for some guy called Mickey Quinn who was, quote, “a
free-spirited downtown resident, known to many in the late 1800's. Of great wit
and light heart, Mickey was said to have lived in a puncheon on one of the
downtown wharfs and charmed many a folk with his funny stories and antics.”
Excuse me? He lived in a puncheon? Yeah, sure; and my grandfather was a stowaway
on Alcock and Brown’s plane. At any rate, Mickey Quinn’s was, like it’s
namesake, not elegant and in need of becoming more like its new partner. Many
of the fixtures that made it look like a pub were gone but what was left -
booths, tables and dark woods - did not seem to be blending well with the finer
side of the new restaurant. However, Ray told us more changes were planned, so
the “marriage” may yet work.
I sized-up Mickey Quinn’s menu while their sound
system pumped out a funky version of Jingle Bells. Apart from lacking anything
that really made my mouth water, I noticed that Mickey Quinn’s non-funky menu
was missing a true appetizer section. There were soups and salads as well as a
section called “fast snacks” - pub items like onion rings, fries, squid, clam
strips and bacon wrapped scallops - but nothing elaborate enough to qualify as
a fine dining appetizer.
My guest started with Mickey Quinn’s warm
spinach salad, billed as “tender baby spinach, toasted pine nuts, red onion,
tomato, smoked bacon and maple vinaigrette.” It actually contained, in addition
to the advertised ingredients, several canned mandarin orange sections. The
extra addition provided colour, not to mention extra flavour and texture. I
liked the taste of maple in the overly sweet dressing, although it had not been
warmed as promised.
On a colour density scale of 1 to 5 - with 5
being the darkest - my classic French onion soup was a 4. It came in a large
bowl with floating croutons covered in melted Swiss cheese and a sprinkling of
parsley on top. It was a deep, dark onion and beef broth that tasted intensely
of beef with a hint of tarragon. I found its texture to be somewhat thin and
would have preferred more strands of onion but that shortcoming was trumped by
flavour.
Guest’s entrée had a name that flummoxed me. It
was called Tuscan chicken and shrimp, but I found little of Tuscany in it,
Mexico perhaps. If the dish had featured pesto instead of tequila lime salsa it
might have passed as Tuscan. However, as it was it should have been labeled
Mexican chicken and shrimp. It consisted of a fruity tequila lime salsa that
was quite tasty - but tequila and lime are definitely Mexican flavours - a
grilled boneless chicken breast, blackened shrimp, seasoned basmati rice and a
medley of sautéed vegetables including asparagus, broccoli, carrot and red
pepper. The vegetables were perfect in
taste and appearance. I also found the chicken and shrimp tender but the
chicken - unlike the zesty shrimp - was slightly bland. Thankfully, the very
“Mexican” salsa helped.
Béarnaise sauce is a classic French sauce made
with egg yolks and lots of butter flavoured with wine, tarragon and vinegar. It
should taste fabulous, especially on a nice rare steak. Mickey Quinn’s steak
Oscar with béarnaise was the exception. The steak, while under salted was very
good. Unfortunately, the béarnaise was a thick unattractive paste - smeared on
top of the meat - that tasted bitter and burnt. I was disappointed to find a
sauce tasting as Mickey Quinn’s did, had found its way onto an expensive piece
of tenderloin. It was the only part of the meal - the vegetables were beautiful
- that was not good. Yet, for me, it spoiled what should have been a wonderful
entrée.
The name of another Mickey Quinn’s dish also
surprised me. This time it was a dessert called peach and blueberry cobbler.
I’ve always thought a cobbler was made in the oven with fruit and piecrust.
However, what I received was really more like trifle. A parfait glass was
filled with layers of pound cake, canned peaches, frozen blueberries and crème
anglaise topped with shavings of chocolate. It was yummy like a “cafeteria”
dessert would be, but lacked the finesse of a “fine dining” dessert.
No doubt Mickey Quinn’s menu will undergo
renovation like the rest of the restaurant. I look forward with anticipation to
that day. Perhaps then, things Mexican will be labeled “Mexican,” things Tuscan
will be labeled “Tuscan” and cobblers will actually be “cobblers.”
Our dinner for two at Mickey Quinn’s - including
cocktails and tip - cost $114.92.
Best Points:
The atmosphere of the fine dining section of the
restaurant.
Areas for Improvement:
Be careful how you describe your dishes and fix
the béarnaise.
Ratings Category:
Mickey Quinn’s gets 7.5 out of 10 points.