‘Twas the day before the day before the day before Christmas

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‘Tis the season for road trips and lunches on the go.

And the young Waffles had been bugging us for a stop at Tim Hortons for weeks now.

Despite my strong will, Ms. Waffle joined the fray as we headed out for Frontenac County for the Noël festivities.

I had other helpful suggestions along the way. But it seemed there was no way around it. We would have to stop around 12:30 in Carleton Place, since it would coincide with my car’s need to be fed too. I was dreading the arrival. It is the Holidays. It would be packed. It would be loud. It would smell like bad coffee and candy canes.

Neither the McDonald’s next door nor the A&W across the street could sway them. In they went into the Timmies. The thought occured to me that I could just fill up and keep driving. All the presents were in the car anyway!

Ms. Waffle brought me back to reality and asked what I wanted. Ribs, I suggested. Or maybe their Beyond Burger if they still had it. (They didn’t.)

She went in with the kids to face the crowd, order our meals and grab a table. I went in soon after, to find the location not as full as I expected. The place was busy, but mostly with people going in and out and smartly refusing to wait 40 minutes in their car for a coffee. Mel had already secured a table and 3 out of 4 drinks, her coffee missing in action.

What was not missing in action was a hot steeped tea, splashed all over the floor and retaining wall by a distracted customer waiting at the counter for her order. Ho! Ho! Ho!.

Mel wanted the Crispy Chicken Wrap, but alas, they were out of chicken. So she ordered the first item on their lunch menu: the Turkey Bacon Club, which I hadn’t had in a long time.

There were 12 sandwiches on their menu, but when you drill down, there are really only 3 different items, with options: The sandwich, the wrap and the grilled cheese.

Take their basic Garden Vegetable. Add bacon, you’ve got the BLT. Add Turkey, you’ve got the Turkey Bacon Club. Switch the bacon for jalapeño, you’ve got the Jalapeño Turkey Sandwich. Or change the Turkey and Jalapeño for Ham and Cheddar.

Then you have the Chicken Wrap. Add bacon and ranch dressing for their Chicken Bacon Ranch Wrap. Or go with crispy chicken with either the Jalapeño Chicken Wrap or the Chipotle Cheddar Chicken Wrap.

Then there is their Grilled Cheese Melt selection. Go regular, or add Bacon, Ham or Turkey. Tada! 12 sandwiches.

Now, just 23 months ago, Tim Horton’s had introduced their “New and Improved” Turkey Bacon Club Sandwich. It featured actual oven-roasted, carved turkey on a new rustic bun.

While the new rustic bun has stayed and is now their main sandwich bun, I am sad to report that Tim Horton’s has reverted to sliced turkey deli meat. Now, mind you, you rarely get the advertised slices of turkey. It was more like chunks and shredded turkey, which was not ideal for structural integrity, but in my opinion a more flavourful and healthier option than deli turkey.

But that is what I got, with a side order of Potato Wedges.

‘Twas the day before the day before the day before Christmas

The autopsy shot allows you to see a fairly stable structure: From the bottom, you have mayonnaise, tomatoes, lettuce, sliced turkey, bacon and more mayonaise.

First, let me point out the pinkish hue of the deli meat, indicative of a fair amount of nitrites. Still, the meat was fresh with a decent deli turkey flavour. The bacon was, of course, pre-cooked and slapped on. It was a bit chewy and salty for my taste buds.

The lettuce was nice and crispy, but the tomatoes were meh. The time of the year, no doubt. The bun was quite firm, if not hard in the corners. While it allows for the sandwich to hold together nicely, I like a little more softness to the touch.

On the side, potato wedges, which Tim Hortons introduced as a new menu item at all of its locations in June 2016. I was a sceptic at first, but I admit that the golden crunchy outside and soft creamy inside convinced me, along with the garlic, onion and parsley seasoning.

Meanwhile, the kids got to enjoy their Grilled Cheese Melt, and, more importantly, their festive red-nosed Reindeer Donuts: Chocolate Timbits, rolled in red sprinkles and set on top of chocolate dipped donut with two sugar eyes and chocolate antler. Chased down by a Candy Cane Hot Chocolate.

The Waffle Jr. deconstucted her donut, eating each part separately. Mini Waffle ate the nose first, with no hands.

Merry, Merry.

Is it over yet?

Tim Hortons Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Deli Chenoy’s is goner in Gatineau – a Waffle exclusive

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The Deli Chenoy’s brand is taking another step towards oblivion as the owners of the Gatineau franchise announced this evening that they had put the final touch on their rebranding, getting rid of Chenoy’s in favour of another famous smoked meat chain.

The location, which opened in the Complexe Lumière (otherwise known as Cinéma 9) in 1997, is now officially a Nickels.

This leaves the Dollard-des-Ormeaux Chenoy’s as the last one standing for the chain, which was established in 1936.

The management team remains the same, so it’ll be interesting to see the transition.

It is not the first time Nickels Delicatessen is opening stores in the National Capital Region. I recall one location on the Greber boulevard and another one on Dalhousie street in Ottawa.

In the early 1990s, Lawrence and Peter Mammas partnered with Paul Sara, René Angélil and Céline Dion to create the restaurant chain Nickels.

Originally designed as a typical North American family diner, Nickels redesigned some of its restaurants and introduced a grill and bar concept. It has refocussed as Nickels Delicatessen, with a fairly extensive menu ranging from hamburgers, chicken and ribs, to pizza, salads and a number of sandwiches, including of course Montreal-style smoked meat.

Dion and Angelil sold their shares in 1997, but the Céline chocolate cake remains a popular item.

The franchise ran into trouble in 2000, when franchisees of the group, which had around 40 restaurants in Quebec and Ontario at the time, got into trouble with the taxman for using software that saved them from paying taxes. 17 restaurants in total were involved in the scheme.

Since 2017, Nickels has been part of Foodtastic, a group of restaurants which also includes les Rôtisseries Benny, La Belle & La Boeuf, Souvlaki Bar, Carlos & Pepe’s, Vinnie Gambini’s Italian Restaurants and Bacaro, Chocolato, Big Rig, Monza and Au Coq.

The Gatineau location is the 11th restaurant under the new administration with most of them being in the Montreal area.

Fusion Poutine

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I’ve been meaning to try New York Fries‘ Butter Chicken Poutine for some time now and I got the opportunity at the Bayshore food court, where I was shopping for Christmas present.

The Butter Chicken Poutine was introduced to NYF’s line up in 2011, along with the Braised Beef Poutine. As far as I know, NYF was the first to offer it.

Whoever thought that mixing Quebec’s national dish with India’s most popular curry is a genius.

I ordered a regular size poutine. You know the drill: fries on the bottom, followed by cheese curds. Then, the twist: butter chicken instead of the classic brown gravy.

The fries were good, as usual. The cheese curds weren’t squeaking, which is always sad.

The key, though, was the butter chicken itself.

I was expecting bland, but it wasn’t. The tomato sauce was mildly spicy, with some heat, but not too much. There was plenty of chicken pieces in it. It worked quite well with the cheese curds, though perhaps it would work even better with Paneer.

The sauce was thick, which is not surprising. It meant that it sat on top of the dish, instead of pooling at the bottom. We some good forkplay, I got sauce on all fries and none of them were soggy for having sat in the sauce too long. Proper thing.

Now, be mindful that nothing has more calories on NYF’s menu than the Large Butter Chicken Poutine at 1780 calories.

But ’tis the Season and all that.
And I only got a regular. So there.

New York Fries Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Voting for the Fry Minister

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During the election, New York Fries marked the occasion by holding an election, asking Fry Society members to vote for the candidate they feel would make the ideal Fry Minister.

Now, that is an election I can get involved in.

They were three candidates running for the positon of Fry Minister:

Bacon Double Cheese
Veggie Fries
Classic Poutine

The polls closed on October 20th at 5pm.
And the results are in!

The people have spoken and the Classic Poutine won by a landslide. Proper thing! With 54% of the vote, CP has a clear majority and receive twice as many votes as Bacon Double Cheese. Finishing 3rd, unable to crack the 20% bar, is Veggie Fries.

Voting for the Fry Minister

So now that one election is settled, you can pick up a Classic Poutine, your new Fry Minister, and watch the results coming in tonight!

A breakfast poutine

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Ms. Waffle has an early hospital appointment, for which she had to fast for 32 hours prior. In solidarity, I didn’t eat in the morning either. I’m basically a White Knight.

So we got on my horse and headed to the hospital. Once she went through the appointment, I had to feed her. How did I know? She had started gnawing on her arm.

I had thought of a great spot to break her fast.

Not too far from the Gatineau hospital, there is a spot claiming to be opened 25 hours a day and offering all-day breakfast: Deli Chenoy’s.

Chenoy’s is a small delicatessen chain, the first store opened in Montreal in 1936, in the old Jewish neighborhood near the Main on Saint Laurent, near Marie-Anne. You won’t be surprised to learn that its original claim to fame was the smoked meat sandwich.

Chenoy’s would succeed and later franchise, opening restaurants in the Montreal and Laval area. Most of them are now closed, leaving only two standing. The oldest remaining Chenoy’s is in Dollard-des-Ormeaux and was opened in 1974 by Morty Chenoy and the Sigounis brothers. And there is the Gatineau location, openeed in the Complexe Lumière in 1997.

Deli Chenoy’s breakfast menu is quite extensive. There are 62 different meals on the offer, excluding the optional sides and other variations. Classic eggs, omelettes, pancakes and french toasts, in many declinations.

Ms. Waffle selected the Bacon Omelette ($9.25), served with home fries and coffee. Two slices of orange accompanied the dish, and, much to Ms. Waffle’s displeasures, some of the home fries were touching the fruit. “I don’t want my potatoes to taste like oranges!” she exclaimed.

Before pointing out that she was overreacting since only 3-4 pieces of home fries were touching the oranges, I remembered that she had not eaten all weekend, I remembered how much I loved her and I remembered how much I loved being alive and would rather not die. So I stayed quiet and looked down at my plate.

Which was quite the sight.

A breakfast poutine

Lo and behold, the Breakfast Poutine! A new menu on the item, at $7.25 for 12,000 calories, it was quite the deal! Home fries, fresh cheese curds, topped with hollandaise sauce.

Now talk about breaking a fast! This was huge! A large dish, filled with crispy home fries, squeaky curds and a very rich hollandaise sauce. I needed a Coke to cut through the richness!

It was quite delicious, but my oh my how rich! I was quite glad I resisted the temptation to upgrade my poutine with extra garnishes, such as the bacon, sausage or smoked meat as gently suggested by the menu.

Ms. Waffle quite enjoyed her omelette, with plenty of bacon and cheese. She especially enjoyed the coffee. I don’t get it.

We paid up and went straight back to the Gatineau hospital so I could get an echocardiogram.

Chenoy's Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato