Saturday 9 May 2015

Restaurant Review: Barley Mow

We took a drive yesterday. It kept me off my feet! I needed more bird seed, and a birthday gift for our granddaughter who turned 5! We like shopping in Almonte.

We had lunch at Almonte Barley Mow (there are several locations). I've featured them before. They had a massive flood in spring, 2014), with a sudden snow melt. It's a lovely spot, with the water rushing by. There is much controversy, as Enerdu wants to harness the power of the water. The bridge, no longer used, is falling apart. I am hopeful, if Ontario keeps going in the right direction, we won't need to wrestle with HydroOne, or use the Athabasca Tar sands anymore. But I digress.

I was so disappointed with lunch. We've been before, quite a few times. We took the kids after the Puppets Up! festival in 2013. Thursday, it was to be grilled veggies, with chicken, but the chicken was overcooked. The veggies were, to quote my ex-late father-in-law, "Burned on the outside, scared on the inside." They weren't actually burned, but that is how he liked his steak! My veggies were crunchy, raw, and hardly grilled. The chicken dry. I love my veggies. In some restaurants it is hard to get veggies, especially in a pub. I was most discouraged. This isn't even the shoulder season, never mind the high summer tourist season.

We arrived at noon, and it appeared that none of us were in a hurry: couples holding hands, family, or good friends having a nice meal. There is no excuse for this. I asked the server, there were two on the patio, if they expected all these people, an unexpectedly hot spring day. She said no, they had lots of time, this is hardly busy at all. (You'd think that would be a clue for her!) That said, they were very slow at bringing drinks, menus, etc. I don't mind waiting for 2nd drink, or a freshly cooked meal. She was juggling several groups. It was a disappointment. I went to their website and told the manager. The tip was not a large one, hubby tells me!

It is a lovely spot, with condos all about. Converted mill buildings.

9 comments:

Debbie said...

looks like an awesome spot....i LOVE dining outdoors!!!!

William Kendall said...

An off day for the place, perhaps, but what a setting!

Nancy J said...

Looks lovely, pity the service didn't come up to standard. Never mind, a day out together, some shopping, and photos to share.

Yamini MacLean said...

Hari OM
Deary me - perhaps shaking off their winter hibernation? At least you had sun and water to fill the gaps on the table! YAM xx

Gill - That British Woman said...

that setting is just gorgeous; such a shame about the meal.

Linda aka Crafty Gardener said...

It looks like a lovely location, too bad the meal didn't live up to expectations.

Red said...

It is an awesome setting. How were you able to look at your food?

Unknown said...

I'm sorry lunch was a dissappointment, but the spot is awesome.

carol l mckenna said...

Fun place and great family shots ~

Happy Week to you,
artmusedog and carol

ps I am traveling so comments may be dated ~ or delayed