Amber Garden & Dalmacia Restaurant
1702 Carling Ave.
(613) 728-0000
Rating: ***
Dinner for two with wine: $60
If comfort food means Cabbage Rolls, Perogies, Wiener Schnitzel and Spätzle, then the Amber Garden is home sweet home. Even the service is friendly and homey.
The Amber Platter ($22) was a satisfying entrée that included a taste of many Eastern European dishes.
My plate was full with a deliciously smoky Debreceni Sausage squirted with ballpark mustard, a small Cabbage Roll filled with a fine blend of meat and subtle spices, Chicken Paprikash that was overshadowed by the tasty Wiener Schnitzel, softly-boiled Perogies with sour cream and onions, mixed vegetables that were slightly over-cooked, and Spätzle, the German answer to pasta.
Dressed in a crisp coating and covered with mushroom sauce, the House Veal Schnitzel ($20) was delectably filling, flavourful and the fork didn’t move fast enough.
The Spätzle was particularly tasty when dragged through the sauce.
And the Grilled Cheese ($6) was the best grilled cheese we’d tasted in our travels. It was deep-fried and the cheese oozed out of its toasty envelope slowly and sinfully. After all that heartiness, we saved a tiny bit of room for dessert.
The Apple Poppy Seed cake ($6) had a texture of steamed pudding and the sweetness of maraschino cherries.
It was devoured among many forks.
This food is best enjoyed with a loosened belt and without worrying about a trip to your cardiologist or your next Weight Watchers meeting.