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Waterloo Region has, for as long as I’ve cared about the issue, had a dearth of good, authentic Mexican restaurants. The food that calls itself Mexican is either fast food, or of the heftier, greasier Tex-Mex variety. There was Guelph’s Latino’s restaurant to fill some of the cravings, but its style was more Latin American than specifically Mexican.

So, it was with some anticipation and a little bit of dread that my wife Erin, my mother-in-law Rosemarie and I gathered up the kids and tried out Taco Bite, an authentic Mexican restaurant that has just opened up in the heart of downtown Kitchener. The good news was, the food was authentic, and worth the wait. The bad news is, if you go, you have to expect a wait.

Taco Bite is located on the second story of a small commercial building on King Street, just east of Queen. You have to go up a steep set of stairs to get to the restaurant (which is not wheelchair accessible, I believe), giving it the feel of a secretive little find. That said, the restaurant itself is spacious and although it is sparsely decorated, it manages to evoke a decent Mexican atmosphere.

Vivian ordered the chicken enchiladas, while Erin decided to try the nachos supreme. Rosemarie and I each had the Mexican fajitas. Each dish was expertly prepared, and Erin’s nachos supreme put Taco Bell’s offering of the same name to shame. The food in all cases was delicate (although the red sauce of Vivian’s enchiladas had quite a kick to it), with the ground beef on the nachos bearing a faint hint of cinnamon. The fajitas offered sizable chunks of beef, chicken and a good portion of shrimp, along with onions, green peppers and red peppers that were caramelizing on the hot plate. We ate everything and had no left overs.

The only drawback of the evening was the service. The servers seemed a little overwhelmed by all the customers, with our server taking several minutes to come to the table to take our order, but it was the kitchen that appeared to be struggling the most, almost as if each dish was worked on one at a time. My father, coming to the restaurant with two friends, noted a twenty minute gap between his first friend receiving his meal to the last meal (his own) being served.

Erin, Rosemarie and I were able to make the best of this situation, by eating our dinner family-style, with everybody sampling from every dish as they came. This provided us with a good selection of wonderful tastes which salvaged the evening and made it special, but the restaurant needs to work on their service problems, or adapt to their limitations (perhaps by encouraging family-style eating), so that fewer customers are disappointed.

This restaurant serves excellent Mexican food and deserves to stay in business. And although the place seemed busy enough when we were there, I hope that these customers remain satisfied enough to keep coming.

Taco Bite is located 24 King Street East, 2nd Floor, Kitchener.Apparently a location exists in Cambridge at 1203 King Street East, near Union Street.

Further Reading

• Waterloo Region Record: A Real Mexican Comes to Town
• Further details from the Waterloo Region Record

For a rare evening without the kids (thanks Grandma!), my wife and spent a relaxing Saturday evening savouring dinner at The Golden Kiwi Pub and Grill in Cambridge. In the Galt downtown area across from the town hall and Cambridge Fire Museum and Education Centre, the restaurant portion of The Golden Kiwi (in the back of the bar area and accessible from a side entrance) is touted as having “an emphasis on South Pacific Cusine”, and had a cozy atmosphere.

Together we sampled the appetizer muscles and samosas. Both had great flavours, but the samosas were a little over-fried. For entres we had the chicken supreme and the Bombay lamb curry, and we were not dissappointed. The flavours of the dishes were unique and the portions very satisfying.

For desert we tried the chocolate nut pastry (I can’t recall the name) and a unique apple ginger Crème brûlée. Both were tasty and not too filling.

I would certainly recommend this eatery. Reservations are recommended.

Let me start by saying I like fish and chips. I have fond memories of going to a true “chipper” in Toronto and getting an order of fish and chips wrapped in newspaper to take into the Saturday matinee. You got a choice of fish and the movie house actually let you bring in food back then.

That particular “chipper” is long gone; the whole north east corner of Carlton and Yonge long ago lost its small buildings and shops. But I remember that “chipper” with fondness so, I’m always on the lookout for a new fish and chip place here in Kitchener Waterloo.

I ate at Golden Fish and Chip (94 Bridgeport Road East Waterloo, ON N2J 2J9 (519) 888-6660) last Friday. It was a little disappointing. The décor was pleasant, more upscale than your usual fish and chip place. There was a large selection of fish just like at my childhood “chipper” but they were rather expensive - the cheapest was Pollock at $7.50 (two fillets, fries and coleslaw) and you were not given a choice of sides. The sides on the menu included that British favourite mushy peas.

My order was nothing to write home about; most pubs do fish and chips better and the fries were not anywhere as good as the family favourites for fries - Swiss Chalet and New York Fries. Joey’s Only Seafood Restaurants (370 Highland West Kitchener ON N2M 5J9) is much better, less expensive and you can choose your sides from a much more extensive list.

If you are looking for upscale and a good choice of seafood dinners then you could try Baker’s Cove Family Seafood Restaurant (355 Erb St W Waterloo, ON N2L 1W4) or near Golden and less expensive, Granny Bonn’s Fish N Chips (90 Weber St N Waterloo, ON N2J 3G8) Our favourite remains Joey’s or one of the brew pubs.

I want to thank James for inviting me to this party. I live in Waterloo and work in Cambridge. I commute down highway 7/8 and the 401 daily and suffer along with the rest of my fellow drivers, the indignities of sitting and staring at the rear end of the car in front of me. I hope to share some stories of daily life here in the region with all of you. I hope I don’t put you all to sleep.

I like beer. Specifically, I like dark ales. Whenever I can, I love to sample a brewery’s effort at creating the ambrosia of the gods. Last night I got to sample a local product from the Grand River Brewing Company, the Mil Race Mild. This is a lovely dark ale, smooth, mild and creamy. It has a very pleasant nutty aroma and the finish is not at all harsh. Sad to say, I had never heard of this small brewery before last night. Now that I have, I intend to sample more of their wares. Cheers.