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Laura's Café
Categories: Restaurants Diners Restaurants Breakfast & Brunch Restaurants Russian Diners, Breakfast & Brunch, Russian [Edit]
1022 Barrington StHalifax, NS B3H 2P9
(902) 431-5494
- Hours:
Tue-Thu 8 am - 8 pm
Fri-Sat 8 am - 9 pm
Sun 9 am - 5 pm
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- No
- Delivery:
- No
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Noise Level:
- Quiet
- Ambience:
- Casual
- Has TV:
- No
8 reviews for Laura's Café
8 reviews in English
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Review from Ashley L.
4/7/2012
This place is one of a kind in Halifax. I honestly don't see that many Russian restaurants popping up in Halifax and that's one reason why I'm a fan of it. I had tried a bit of what I thought was Russian food when I lived in Asia, but my boyfriend is pretty knowledgeable about it and he says it's quality stuff. Personally, I go because I love their cheese and egg croissant sandwich.... sooooo good :)
The thing you have to watch out for here is the size. It's really really small and quite a popular little spot so don't take a big crowd with you because you won't get a seat. There's only one waitress and the cook and therefore service is slow and when we went this weekend, my breakfast came out first, then about 3 minutes later, my friend's, and then 5 minutes later came my boyfriend's. It's understandable considering the amount of staff they have working there but I guess every small business has to start somewhere.
I would really like it to succeed and be able to move somewhere with a little more room and add another person or two on the payroll somewhere in the near future. It was my second time there and I'll definitely be going back. -
Review from Andrew P.
5/14/2012 1 Check-in Here
I read once in Saveur magazine that one of the foods to try before dying was Georgian Dumplings, so I was excited to come here...
As stated in other reviews, the decor is very 1970's kitsch with nesting dolls and elevator musak EVERYWHERE.
I was seated by the waitress brusquely and ordered the pelemeni (4.99$ for 8) and the khinkali (14.99 for 10.)
The pelemeni were... how shall we say? Extremely hard and chewy. However they were quite tasty. The biggest problem I had was that the side of sour cream was even smaller than a dollop. Way too little to be for 8 little dumplings. (They charge extra for more than this....)
The khinkali were next to arrive and were equally as chewy but very large and waaay too much food for me. The spiced lamb dumplings were in a vinegary tomato sauce that was a little too watery I think.
The waitress definitely had an attitude as well in almost everything she did. I thought that maybe she was only having a rough day but other reviews have stated similar opinions (they were also correct in the evaluation of the dumplings being over or undercooked)
I don't believe I will be back, except to try the meat kebab meal... How could that go wrong? -
Review from Justin C.
Campbellton, NB
3/29/2012 2 Check-ins Here
Typical breakfast, sausage/bacon eggs homefries, all day breakfast for $6.50
Sausage is standard, low tastes breakfast links, bacon, is better than average.
Also tried the borscht, and I liked it, as it had beef in it. Good otherwise, but if there's no meat, i don't eat.
Also has pleasant service. -
Review from Terry H.
North End, NS
3/25/2012
I came across an advertisement for this restaurant earlier in the week, so I convinced my friend to tag along even though he was attracted to the scent of barbecued steaks coming from another establishment down the road.
There was nobody in the restaurant when we took our seat which set off some initial alarm bells, but those thoughts were quickly erased when I received my meal; in addition it was very clean and had a relaxed atmosphere about it.
I went with the chicken shish-kebab, white rice, and caesar salad; it was well worth the $12.00 I forked out for this meal. There are many different dishes - Russian and Canadian - at affordable prices and I think it is in the perfect spot as it is a low-key establishment and just out of the hustle and bustle of Hollis Street.
Our server was shy, but efficient, and the meal, while it didn't 'blow' me away, left me wanting to coming back for more in the future. -
Review from Ravee C.
Halifax, NS
5/7/2012
Regular customer here. The food is great but you have to try the russian dishes not the typical Canadian stuff. The prices are also exceptionally cheap for high quality food.
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Review from Murray W.
12/28/2011 1 Check-in Here
Around lunch time on Christmas Eve, there are not many places open. Laura's is a place I've been wanting to try for a while and was blessedly open to serve myself and my father.
Seating about 25, this small but neat and clean restaurant certainly evokes feelings of old Russia, or at least 1970s North America with its colour scheme of pea green, mustard yellow and orange. Some paintings of Russian landscapes and historical scenes adorn the walls, as well as some obligatory Russian nesting dolls.
As we enter, my father and I are greeted by the chef and namesake of the restaurant, and aside from one occupied table, we have our choice of seating. We're soon greeted by a waitress who brings us menus and water. Despite not having had breakfast yet and an enticing all day breakfast special, I wanted to try something very new to Halifax's culinary scene, Russian food. Keeping it simple, I ordered a small borscht and appetizer sized order of pelmeni dumplings. My father was going to get the soup of the day, but being a pretty slow day, only the borscht was available, and apparently he isn't a borscht kind of guy, so he went with sweet potato fries instead and an order of khinkali, also a type of dumpling.
The borscht and fries arrive first. The soup is a vibrant reddish-purple from the beets, and had a very rich, stew-like flavour with the generous amounts of onions, cabbage, potato and some chunks of beef. I suggest not wearing a white shirt if you're a less than coordinated person and order this. Nothing gets borscht stains out! The sweet potato fries are crispy and nice fluffy interior but have a somewhat bland flavour, leading me to suspect that they're from frozen.
When our dumplings arrive, I'm greeted my by eight pelmeni - small meat-filled dumplings tossed in a tasty butter and vinegar sauce, with sour cream for dipping. While quite good, if you're in the mood for dumplings here, I'd suggest the khinkali over the pelmeni. Five large dumplings greeted us, topped with a tomato-based sauce. These are knife-and-fork sized, are were filled with a delicious beef and lamb mixture, and the sauce had a little bit of spice in it that announced it's presence, but didn't overwhelm. While the wraps on all of the dumplings were perfectly tender from boiling or steaming, I found the smaller pelmeni to suffer from CDS, or Chewy Dumpling Syndrome, in which the filling has a unfortunate texture from either overworking the filling in preparation or overcooking. CDS is the bane of dumpling lovers the world over, however the larger khinkali seemed to avoid it.
Service seemed to be at the bare minimum that day, somewhat attentive although not particularly friendly, although I can't really blame her since she was working on Christmas Eve.
That said, I look forward to going back and trying some more of Laura's Russian food as well as seeing how their more Canadian fare is.Listed in: South End action
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Review from Laura C.
Halifax, NS
11/6/2011
This casual small restaurant hasn't been open very long. I tried it tonight with some friends. It was the first time I had Russian food.
The people who work there are nice and friendly and give good service. There was cheerful Russian music playing in the background and there was a bouquet of red roses near us. The food tasted fresh and healthy. We could relax and talk and not feel rushed.
I noticed there is an extensive menu on their facebook page Laura's Cafe in south end Halifax. There is Canadian food as well as Russian. The prices are reasonable as well. -
Review from Hannah S.
Halifax, NS
11/1/2011
Usually when my father takes me out for lunch I hit the high-ticket places like Gio, Fid or Bicycle Thief. Since I had heard a few whispers about Laura's Russian Cafe I decided to take it easy on the old man's wallet.
We were welcomed by simple decor, a few tables and a sweet yet shy server. Although the menu boasted many North American favourites we decided to stick to the Russian specialties and both ordered a bowl of borscht and a salad. The borscht was warm, full of meat and cabbage with a dollop of cool sour cream on top and garnished with fresh parsley. It was the perfect combination of warm and filling yet fresh and not overly filling. My father had a salad that seemed to be a Russian potato salad with peas, ham, egg and I think a few pickles. Mine was similar to a Greek salad but with a light creamy dressing and lots of fresh parsley.
When the bill arrived we we astonished to see how little we spent especially since the food was such great quality. The server had warmed up to us at this point and once she knew we had enjoyed the traditional meals she went on to tell us that they will be expanding their menu to include more Russian and Georgian specialties.
I'm very excited to get back and try more of this delicious cuisine not normally found in Halifax!
