Baked Expectations

Baked Expectations
161 Osborne Street
(204) 452-5176

I will admit to my bias right off the top. I hate paying for "fancy and overpriced" desserts and think nearly all desserts by the slice are overpriced. So, when I say that everything cost too much money, you need to take that into account!

I went to Baked Expectations with a large group of friends for a birthday party. I personally sampled the dark chocolate cheesecake (6.50$), orange chocolate cake, and key lime pie (6$). All very good, in their own rights. I really enjoyed the key lime pie--very light filling, full of flavour, and a flaky crust. My friend ordered the trifle (6$) and that was the disappointment of the night. She received a tiny bowl and was highly unsatisfied.

We had a variety of hot drinks that were not as good as the desserts, but that's to be expected, I suppose. It was a nice surprise to learn they carried different percentages of milk when another friend ordered a glass for 2$.

Service was absolutely wonderful, though. It was an incredibly busy Saturday night and the server made time to arrange us a long table, didn't charge the 5$ minimum per person, and even provided a candle for my friend's slice of cake!

Moxie's Classic Grill

Moxie's Classic Grill
Polo Park Shopping Centre (1485 Portage Avenue)
(204) 783-1840
1615 Regent Avenue
(204) 654-3345
St. Vital Centre (49-1225 St. Mary's Road)
(204) 257-1132
MTS Centre (300 Portage Avenue)
(204) 926-5757

Moxie's and I go way back. The Polo Park location was the choice hang-out in my high school years. Our fond memories, the restaurant's comfortable atmosphere, and the people-pleasing menu ensure a visit every few months, if not more often (around birthday season).

One of my perennial favourites at Moxie's is the Smoked Applewood Chicken Pizza. The small size serves as a great appetizer to share. The crust is quite thin, almost with a cracker-like texture. Spread evenly over top are carmelized onions, roasted chicken, apples, and sun-dried tomatoes. They also offer several other pizzas on the same thin crust.

Moxie's is constantly revamping their menu, and their most recent menu includes adventurous appetizers like tuna points and stand-by pub fare like beer battered fish and chips. The creative display of the tuna points could rival any sushi restaurants. Sushi-grade tuna balanced delicately on top of a triangle of cracker with a variety of tasty garnishes. The visual appeal, however, is countered by the rather difficult eating process. The tuna points are not bite-size, but because of the crunch of the base, a crumbly mess awaits.

They also have great stand-by meals, of which we sampled the penne carbonara, cheese foccacia toast, broccoli and cheese soup, prawns, clubhouse sandwich, honey dill double chicken breast sandwich, and beer battered fish and chips. All very tasty, though the prawns were on the small side. We went on bellini night and enjoyed the fishbowls! Bellinis make a girl's world go round.

My last visit to Moxie's was to the new MTS Centre location. I must say, while the atmosphere is quite nice--subdued lighting, dark woods, etc.--there are some design flaws. The biggest mistake were the long booth tables that sit adjacent to a window, literally preventing servers to do their jobs! We had to pass entrees down the table. Who wants to do that when they go out to eat? Moxie's has also matched Earl's for the female servers' short skirts now, so watch out for that as well. There were still plenty of kids around, though.