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Frenchway Restaurant & Lounge
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Has TV:
- No
One review for Frenchway Restaurant & Lounge
1 review in English
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Review from DineoutGal A.
Winnipeg, MB
8/10/2011 4 photos
So the Frenchway has expanded its empire to include a restaurant and lounge (with a small bakery counter too) on Academy in the former J.Fox's location. Their tiny bakery on Academy, near Kenaston has since moved to Lilac Street to a larger cafe/bakery location.
I dined here a couple of times and would say that I am somewhere around a 3.5 but I will give it 4 stars because I think there's definitely something to this place. Since the restaurant and lounge only opened in early July 2011, you can't fault them for little things.
I never dined at J.Fox's so I don't know how much the decor has changed or not but currently, the walls are deep red with lots of touches of dark wood. Lots of tables and a few booths in a fair sized space that could probably seat 50-60? The menu is definitely French bistro than say, French fine dining, not to take away from the food quality but it definitely has a nice casual feel to it at moderate prices.
There are about 5 choices each in the starters and salads section averaging $8 each. There are about 6 entrees ranging from tuna steak, duck breast, NY steak, steak tartare, salmon and veal between $21-$26.
The first time for dinner I had a lightly dressed salad with warm breaded camembert cheese. It wasn't the prettiest presentation but it was super delicious. I can't remember if the cheese was fried or baked but either way it was delicious with the nicely balanced dressing. The complimentary basket of multigrain bread is addictive and representative of the great breads that the bakery produces. I had the veal with risotto which was moist and flavourful though the pea risotto was different than any other risotto I've ever had. The risotto was dry, pretty much looked like rice rather than a typical risotto that's more sauced or wet. I liked it well enough but it was just different than what I expected.
On another visit, I tried the salmon served on a bed of spinach, though the spinach tasted more like the frozen chopped up spinach than fresh sauteed spinach. The salmon was cooked perfectly and served with a beurre blanc along with julienned veggies and rounded scoops of potatoes.
Service is friendly, laid back and fairly knowledgeable about the menu. The atmosphere doesn't have the bistro vibe I was hoping for nor does it feel like a lounge either. I'm sure all those things will come with time. They have a few tables if you prefer outdoor dining staring at the Academy traffic.
They are open Tues-Sun: 11:30am-11pm
Bakery counter opens at 9am-5pm Tues-Sat.
