Great Sunday Brunch menu, one of only a few places open on Sundays in the area. Excellent service…read morein an adorable cafe setting.

It's always a good thing when a new generation of restauranteurs injects life into a small town…read morewith their food and flavours, and this was the case last summer when Shoebox Cantina opened up on Provost Street. While the name has a Tex-Mex vibe, the menu reflects the broad base of appeal that is often necessary to succeed in smaller communities. As such, alongside their taco menu, you'll also find the likes of steak, bacon mac and cheese, and wings. My fingers were crossed that this wouldn't be a "Jack of all trades, master of none" scenario. Showing up for a lunch with my sister, we leaned into the Tex-Mex part of the menu and ordered the carnitas fries supreme ($13) and the taco sampler ($24). They've got a sizeable rotating tap list of local beers, so I went with a rye IPA from Tatamagouche Brewing. The pork carnitas fries supreme may not have evoked the flavours of Taco Bell's famous hot mess, but they stood tall on their own. A plate of moderately thick fries somehow supported a hefty layer of saucy pork, green onions and a lime crema. Rich and savoury, I found myself wishing for some tableside hot sauce, but was too busy demolishing these to ask. My sister and I, who have both languished for years under the yoke of higher priced food in bigger cities, were very impressed by the value for dollar on this as well. The taco sampler, which is comprised of Shoebox's chicken, carnitas, fish and sweet potato tacos, was both a literal and figurative mixed plate. I appreciated that all the tacos leaned in the minimalist direction of Mexican street tacos; I'm not interested in shredded lettuce and cheddar on my tacos. My two favourites were the fish and sweet potato. The beer battered fish was airy and crisp, and the fish itself was firm and flakey; pickled red cabbage added a lightly tart counterpoint to the deep fried haddock. The sweet potato taco was comprised of ultra-crisp, hash brown-esque pieces of sweet potato, as well as some avocado to add flavour and textural contrast. Sides of a few different salsas - pico, verde and roja - let you mix and match complementing flavours. The other proteins, while far from bad, didn't live up to their potential. The carnitas was oddly heavily sauced, and lacked the crisp bits that show up in this traditional hodge podge of chopped pork. As for the chicken mole, more mole sauce and its rich, lightly chocolatey depth would have been welcome. While I'm not a dessert person, I was blown away by how good the Spanish toast ($9) was. A brioche bun got the French toast treatment and was then topped with brulée sugar, dulce de leche, whipped cream and a blueberry compote. The crisp sugar was a pleasant contrast to an otherwise soft, albeit delicious dish, while the dulce de leche will have you forgetting about maple syrup completely. On a second visit, I hit the more pub-like section of their menu and got the buttermilk fried chicken burger and upgraded the fries to the bacon Caesar salad ($16 + $2). While the sandwich was solid, there's some room for improvement. The chicken itself was a winner - really crisp batter enveloped a moist and tender piece of chicken. The toasted brioche bun held things together well, and honey and a pickle added contrasting flavours to the sandwich. In the "cons" column, some hot sauce would have been welcome to amp up the flavour and there was an awkward amount of lettuce of the sandwich. In tandem with the shape of the chicken versus that of the bun, some bites were just bun and lettuce, which is...not great. The side salad wasn't the prettiest, but it hit the spot. Iceberg lettuce took the place of romaine, and I'm not sure if the croutons were forgotten or the ultra crispy bits of bacon were doing double duty, but it worked. Shoebox Cantina is bringing a lot to New Glasgow and beyond their generally well-executed menu, they host live music events and even have a recording studio upstairs. New businesses like this are just what small towns need, and the same can be said for Shoebox and your taste buds.

An absolutely beautiful spot overlooking the water, the reviews brought us in and we were a little…read moreworried with such a large group they would not be able to accommodate but (Jaden) one of the servers who is awesome by the way, made it all happen and got us an amazing seat on the patio! With delicious food and very cool cocktails it was an absolutely wonderful night to finish off our PEI adventure! Thanks again to salt and Sol and if we are ever in PEI again we will definitely be back! The Myles'

What a great location at the marina with outdoor dining. My husband absolutely loved the seafood…read morechowder and garlic bread. While my hamburger was tasty it was overdone for my taste. The French fries were excellent, crispy on the outside and just the soft inside the way fries should be. A great place to grab a bite.

Visited this restaurant in New Glasgow NS. It is located in the downtown area…read more We were seated promptly. The service was great as was the atmosphere. We enjoyed the cauliflower appie and the seafood chowder and teriyaki bowl.

Having been back in New Glasgow for a few months now, we've started to cycle through more…read morerestaurants, after hitting old favourites and new-to-us spots fairly thoroughly. A return(s) to East Avenue was inevitable, and certainly looked forward to. It has to have one of the most beautiful restaurant interiors in northern Nova Scotia - exposed brick, soaring ceilings, and walls dotted with paintings by local artists. For our first visit of 2023, I had the Tamis anghang ($20). Filipino for "sweet and spicy", this is a slightly fancier, single-serving version of sweet and sour chicken. Replacing the cloyingly-sweet sauce at most Chinese-Canadian restaurants, East Ave's Thai chili sauce is much more balanced, with a light punch from the hot pepper that livens up your taste buds but won't scorch them. The chicken was cooked with a deft hand, and the crisp batter held up until the last bite. My wife's duck ragu gnocchi ($29) was a hearty meal, with an impressive amount of rich, shredded duck and fluffy sweet potato gnocchi. If that wasn't enough, shredded parm added even more umami. The sauce was a bit thin and served overly generously, which made the dish a bit soupy, but was otherwise quite delicious. Bonus points for this dish and many others having gluten-free options! They had an impressive crowd for a Tuesday evening and that plus a very large group that came in just after us seemed to make for somewhat uneven service. A return visit had us targeting their patio, sadly one of the few in the non-Pictou towns of Pictou County. Step it up people! We just wanted some mid-afternoon snacks, so we went for a couple appetizers. The fried sweet chili cauliflower ($15) was a tasty app. The mild crunch of the cauliflower gave further crunch to the crisp coating, which did wilt under the slathering of sauce. Said sauce did have a bit more bite than most sweet chili sauces out there, but it won't have you breathing fire. Our kale Caesar salad (side size, $10) was a bit on the healthier side than our deep fried app, and pleasant departure from the standard formula. The mix of kale and romaine paired the strengths of both greens, while chickpeas and tomatoes brought added couloir, flavour and texture. And don't worry, there was still bacon, shaved parm, and a hearty dose of dressing. East Avenue continues to put out generally great food in a killer atmosphere (both inside and out), and I love how much this new business has brought and added to the food scene in the area.

Beautiful restaurant. We went here before a show at the theatre which is conveniently located. Our…read moreserver was the best, very friendly and knowledgeable of the menu. The house made pasta was some of the best we've had.

A gem. Very innovative yet authentic cuisine which is a departure from the "Manga Cake" tourist…read morevenues usually found around town. Very attentive and friendly staff. Great vibe. Mike (I think) the host, was charming and fun. Music was great albeit a bit loud for this geezer. We'll make this a regular.

The food portion sizes are very random and the types of things you get is inconsistent...the last…read morefew times we ordered from here it was terrible....there was more breading than fish and the service is very slow...

We ate dinner here June 24, it was our choice of seating on 2 other tables taken. It took 6 minutes…read morebefore being greeted, we we're given menus and not tended to for 10 minutes. Finally our order/drinks was taken . we did not receive our drinks for 5 minutes, food came out in 25. Nachos were microwaved what wasnt soggy was stale. The platter was okay, deep fried pepperoni and onion rings were the only things half good. Left here hungry . . and not happy with a 45.00 bill. Overall people were not nice ,But it was ran very poorly

Beautiful place for lunch. Seated immediately right by the window. Friendly and attentive female…read moreserver. Food and drinks were very good. Bacon wrapped scallops were sizable. I had salmon and spouse had fried clams. We left the restaurant feeling quite full!

Good food and great, friendly staff. Quirky place, but fun. Good place for a late breakfast and…read moreburger.

Wonderful meal here in August. We sat out on the patio…read more The pasta bolognese was very good but the lemon meringue tart was one of the best I've ever had. Lemon curd filling and fresh meringue (flamed with a torch). Service was ok. It was a busy afternoon. Great location in downtown Charlottetown.

I made a valentines reservation for dinner for my girlfriend and I over a month ago. February 14, 7…read morepm, I have the emails and correspondence from the restaurant which I confirmed. We arrived at 6:55 pm, there was a couple ahead of us and they were seated at a table right beside the front entrance. We were told our table was being set up for us. After 5 mins passed, the lady from the couple ahead of us said she didn't like their table and they were moved to the table they were preparing for us. We were then offered the table they had left. I said I didn't want that table either but was told that was the table we had to take or wait 25 mins. This all happened right in front of my eyes and frankly I was shocked. So your restaurant effectively ruined our valentines date. - I made a reservation over a month ago and it was confirmed. -We were made to feel like second class, take a table someone else didn't want. - The table being prepared for us was basically stolen/given away with zero thought. Now what was I supposed to do? What would you have done? I was completely embarrassed in front of my girlfriend, made to feel like I had to settle for what was given to me. Totally unacceptable! We left because I was extremely upset. Ruined the date, ruined the night. We walked around town freezing trying to find a place to eat. We won't be returning. Apologies for no food review but you need to eat there first!

We had a great time the Nook and Cranny. Thanks to the woman at the Fundy Discovery Center for the…read morerecommendation. The meal was lovely. We started with mussels. Excellent! Our main course was crispy cod tails on lemon risotto topped with a terrific sauce of caramelized corn. The sauce was spicy and made the dish. For desert we had a lovely blueberry concoction with the unappealing name of "blueberry grunt"! This wasn't foodie food but super fresh ingredients prepared simply and beautifully. After dinner we moved into the main dining room for a terrific musician playing mostly NS folk music. All in all it was a great evening. Great food, great music, friendly people. If you're in Truro, don't miss the Nook.

Ambiance good But four of us were seated at 6:07 pm 5…read moreminutes after another group of four. We were going to concert next door at 7:30. Our order was placed at 6:14. We were keeping a close eye on time. At 6:48 we asked about the order and we were told it had only been 20 mins. Not true! At 7:10- still no sign of food - so at 7:13 we decided to get it all to go. We left a 10% tip despite slow service. The other table of four had been served, had eaten, and left by 7:05. I ordered fish and chips. Batter bit thick so uncooked inner dough in few places but fish was delicious. The chips??? I'm just going to post a picture showing total - quantity minus one chip - couldn't eat them! Cole slaw delicious. If you go before a show give them two hours! I honestly think the order was held up. Maybe lots of orders ahead?? but that other table had plenty of time! And they were literally less than 5 minutes at most ahead of us!

Great food Great timing…read more Great service , very friendly. Little loud but didn't feel unwelcome.

Somehow, I've forgotten about The Thistle since I've been back in town and it was time to rectify…read morethat with a revisit to this rebranded mainstay of New Glasgow's food and bar scene. I'm not sure when The Thistle rebranded as a "gastropub", but not too much seems to have changed with their menu or interior. Their food offerings certainly aren't the chef-driven, creative stylings of a true gastropub. That all said, I still appreciate that these guys are open seven days a week, and are actually open beyond 7-8:00pm, unlike many other places in town. I ordered the Farmhouse burger, a now-longtime fixture of The Thistle's menu, which harkens back to the Man vs Food days of food eating challenges and mash-ups of over-the-top (and belt) menus. Comprised of a 6oz patty, two chicken fingers, bacon and cheese, it's all your day's recommended calories in one meal - so efficient! My wife went with one of her go-to choices, the pulled pork sandwich. It wasn't too too busy for a weekend evening, with a wet spring day keeping some people home, so we got our food in good time. Gastropub moniker or no, pub burgers can be a bit hit or miss, depending on how much the cooks actually give a damn about their job, but my Farmhouse turned out quite well. The patty had a nice char and wasn't dry and overcooked, while the chicken fingers and bacon added some savoury crunch. I'd generally not a fan of BBQ sauces on burgers, as the cloying sweetness really isn't necessary, but the chipotle BBQ sauce had a good flavour. The cheese was good and melty, and the bun toasted - checking some more boxes in Burger 101. The fries were *incredibly* plentiful. Like Five Guys amounts of fries! They could cut back a good 20% and no one in their right mind should complain. They were on the oily side, however. I'm not sure if this is from the fryer not being up to temp after doing some orders, or just not having a proper double fry, but this was a missed opportunity for my mound of hand-cut spuds. My wife's pulled pork sandwich was a solid execution of what's now a very common sight on bar menus. Coleslaw and lettuce brought a little texture, while a large Caesar salad was shared between us (I shared fries too, I promise!). The Thistle may be trying to pull the wool over people's eyes with this rebranding, but this dependable bar is a town fixture for a reason. This meal was more hit than miss, and for that, I'll give them a star upgrade nearly 10 years (!!!) after I first reviewed them here.

Always a treat to eat here. First time I ordered the Reuben. A little on the smaller side for a…read moreReuben but done nicely.

Best pub in NS! Food is always excellent especially the "chish & fips". Beer selection is also…read moreoutstanding. Kitchen Party is my favourite. Cozy, cheerful vibe with its stone walls and wood beams. First rate service. Located downtown , street parking on nearby Provost St.