State & Main tries to be authentic, but comes off as generic Canadian pub fare. It's an Original…read moreJoe's copycat with room for minors.
My first foray at State was on Mother's Day Sunday. Our party of 5 was greeted and quickly taken to a table on the dining room side. The high-top table was comfortable, with a leather bench on two sides, and a chair on the third (the waitresses, however, had trouble reaching the top to pour water).
The food menu is pretty typical: appetizers, sandwiches, salads, "favourites", and burgers, as well as steak. Our group got an order of wings and an order of gyoza to start, and a range of dishes for our meal. Both starters were good - the wings were extra crispy, although not terribly meaty.
I ordered the Grilled Cheeseburger for my meal, with sides of Caesar salad and poutine. This was a bit disappointing. The burger came out cold, and with an unmelted slice of processed cheddar. I sent it back to the kitchen to be fixed. The second attempt was better - the burger was on top the cheese, so it actually melted this time. The whole thing was gigantic - more than I could comfortably eat, and was flavoured enough to not need extra condiments. The poutine, however, was also a bit sad - the gravy wasn't hot enough to melt the cheese curds, so I effectively ate fries and gravy while leaving the cheese chunks to the side.
Nobody else in my party really had any issues with their meals - curry, a rice bowl, butter chicken, and ribs, so it looks like I just got unlucky. I'll likely try it again, but I'll stick to a salad or saucy dish that will be better if served cold.
3/5 due to cold food, uninspired menu, and a general inability to impress.
