South of the border down, Canada way...
Azteca Review - English translations in red
Saturday 4/8/06 (8/4/06)
Reviewer - John Hunt:
As someone who eats 5-6 meals on a daily basis (small North American), I recently received a call to visit Canada and try some of the local dishes. It was, therefore, as a very confused man (George Bush) that our hosts, Sarah and Ian, took us to Azteca, a Mexican restaurant in the heart of the Byward Market area of Ottawa (Sars Capital of the world c.2004).
Despite there not being a moose (big cow) burger or bear (Gentle Ben) kebab in sight, and without baseball (rounders) bats stuck all over the wall, I put my prejudices to one side stepped off the sidewalk (pavement), took the stairs to our seat on the 2nd floor (1st floor) and decided to start eating for Team England. The thoughts of the English jury (thing that precedes the electric chair) are as follows:
Drinks:
Becky - Diet Coke - of the Coca Cola (Panda Cola, but with a larger marketing budget) variety most likely from a can. This was as generic as expected.
Sarah - Sprite (Coca Cola rip off of R Whites lemonade) - as per above;
John - Mexican beer (from a bottle) very refreshing; so far so good
Ian - Some kind of mental beer cocktail including: beer (obviously), lime (not unheard of), salt (interesting) and spiced rum (completely crazy and apparently not very pleasant)
Thus, we swiftly moved on to the starter, with all involved looking for Ian's fastest route to the washroom (bog).
Starter:
All - tortilla chips (crisps) - with stuff covering them. Not what we expected (certainly not what they serve at Marlowe's in Canterbury).
Main Course:
John - Crab enchilladas - a bold move for somewhere so far from the sea, but surprisingly enjoyable.
Becky - Chicken enchilladas (KFC wrap) - less adventurous but equally as enjoyable.
Ian - Coconut shrimp (prawn) - as if a fish dish wasn't adventurous enough, Ian ups the ante and continues his Carribean trend by throwing coconut into the mix. (mentalist)
Sarah - Chicken Taco - Chicken in a big chip (crisp) - does what it says on the tin.
Dessert:
Nothing overly appealing on the menu so we left for Pure Gelato on Elgin Street, to continue the Canadian theme!! although we did have pancakes and we did cover them in maple syrup. Very good!!
Other observations:
The washroom (pisser) was a little confusing with the sink being right next to sole urinal. It took a few seconds, perhaps due to the Mexican beverage, to work out which to use first, with the faucets (taps) being the only obvious difference. I'll leave you to guess whether I was successful or not.
Decor - very nice and not a manic smiley clown or a white bearded Texan in sight.
Atmosphere - lovely although the conversation left a bit to be desired.
Overal Rating - C+. However, there is some concern about Ian coming out with shingles (cross between herpes and bird flu) so shortly after eating here.
Rating for Pure Gelato - A
Reviewer - Becky Hunt:
It was good. I enjoyed it.
Saturday 4/8/06 (8/4/06)
Reviewer - John Hunt:
As someone who eats 5-6 meals on a daily basis (small North American), I recently received a call to visit Canada and try some of the local dishes. It was, therefore, as a very confused man (George Bush) that our hosts, Sarah and Ian, took us to Azteca, a Mexican restaurant in the heart of the Byward Market area of Ottawa (Sars Capital of the world c.2004).
Despite there not being a moose (big cow) burger or bear (Gentle Ben) kebab in sight, and without baseball (rounders) bats stuck all over the wall, I put my prejudices to one side stepped off the sidewalk (pavement), took the stairs to our seat on the 2nd floor (1st floor) and decided to start eating for Team England. The thoughts of the English jury (thing that precedes the electric chair) are as follows:
Drinks:
Becky - Diet Coke - of the Coca Cola (Panda Cola, but with a larger marketing budget) variety most likely from a can. This was as generic as expected.
Sarah - Sprite (Coca Cola rip off of R Whites lemonade) - as per above;
John - Mexican beer (from a bottle) very refreshing; so far so good
Ian - Some kind of mental beer cocktail including: beer (obviously), lime (not unheard of), salt (interesting) and spiced rum (completely crazy and apparently not very pleasant)
Thus, we swiftly moved on to the starter, with all involved looking for Ian's fastest route to the washroom (bog).
Starter:
All - tortilla chips (crisps) - with stuff covering them. Not what we expected (certainly not what they serve at Marlowe's in Canterbury).
Main Course:
John - Crab enchilladas - a bold move for somewhere so far from the sea, but surprisingly enjoyable.
Becky - Chicken enchilladas (KFC wrap) - less adventurous but equally as enjoyable.
Ian - Coconut shrimp (prawn) - as if a fish dish wasn't adventurous enough, Ian ups the ante and continues his Carribean trend by throwing coconut into the mix. (mentalist)
Sarah - Chicken Taco - Chicken in a big chip (crisp) - does what it says on the tin.
Dessert:
Nothing overly appealing on the menu so we left for Pure Gelato on Elgin Street, to continue the Canadian theme!! although we did have pancakes and we did cover them in maple syrup. Very good!!
Other observations:
The washroom (pisser) was a little confusing with the sink being right next to sole urinal. It took a few seconds, perhaps due to the Mexican beverage, to work out which to use first, with the faucets (taps) being the only obvious difference. I'll leave you to guess whether I was successful or not.
Decor - very nice and not a manic smiley clown or a white bearded Texan in sight.
Atmosphere - lovely although the conversation left a bit to be desired.
Overal Rating - C+. However, there is some concern about Ian coming out with shingles (cross between herpes and bird flu) so shortly after eating here.
Rating for Pure Gelato - A
***
Reviewer - Becky Hunt:
It was good. I enjoyed it.
posted by Ian @ 9:01 pm
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