Took a friend to the Monday dinner buffet on their nicely laid out patio. The attraction was the fresh local Pickerel and the pulled pork. Lemon roasted chicken and sides were also at the buffet. And local asparagus. Outstanding food and setting. Cheesecake or chocolate cake and ice cream included. Service was very friendly and attentive. Weather was perfect. A great way to enjoy an Ontario summer evening. Beware that the buffet stops at 7:30 pm. $45 per person is reasonable these days, especially if you have a big appetite. Lakeside setting under large trees. read more

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Frederick's is located at the wonderful Beachwood resort on Deer Bay in the Kawartha's. Staying at the resort for a couple of days in early fall, we decided to give the on-site restaurant a try and we were not disappointed. The Chef, Michael Henson, a graduate of the nearby Sir Sandford Fleming College has a wonderful flair and a burgeoning artistry when it comes to the food served here. Drawing on local suppliers for his inspirations and tastes, he adds a dimension to some standard dishes which was a pleasant surprise for this diner. Being late season, the dining room was more or less empty, and we had our pick of where we wanted to sit. My dining companion and I chose to sit near the window overlooking the lovely lake. Menus were brought to us immediately, and we chose a 2013 Merlot, from Huff Estates located in nearby Bloomfield in the Prince Edward County wine region. I also saw a good selection of beers and I sampled a Hefeweizer from a local brewery as well. The Merlot was wonderful, dry, fruity, chalky, fulsome and really good wine. We chose a crab cake and a spinach and brie soup as starters. Cautioned that the crab cake would take 'about 10 minutes to arrive' we said "Good, we don't want any pre-made cake!". A short while later the appetizers arrived and we tucked in. The soup was wonderful, creamy without being overly fatty, due to the brie being used instead of cream I am thinking, and with gorgeously green hue. A wonderful soup. The crab cake was one, single large rissole of shredded crab, coated in crisp breadcrumbs, nestled on a bed of chipotle-spiced black bean and corn salsa, with a julienne of fresh vegetables. The combination of the spiced salsa, the crusted-crab and crunchy vegetables was really outstanding. Next up was the man courses. I ordered the chefs special, a chicken-breast stuffed with wild leeks with a wild leek cream sauce with red-skinned mashed potatoes. Amazing! Perfectly cooked, the chicken was greatly complemented by the wild-leek flavour, not as strong as onion or garlic, but with hints of both. The mashed was creamy without being overly oily and served as a great foil to the chicken and sauce. My companion had the duck leg with a blueberry-balsamic gastrique with a sweet-pea risotto. Again, a real lovely plate of food. the gastrique was sweet and acidic which worked well with the salty fattiness of the meaty duck and crisp skin. The risotto was truly great, one of the best restaurant risottos I have had, and I make a great risotto so I know of what I speak of! Both meals had steamed vegetables as an accompaniment, carrots, broccoli and a half-red pepper, all tossed in butter, although I could have done without the red-pepper, it seemed out of place on this plate. This is a great little restaurant and I hope Chef Michael continues with his passion for creating some really great plates of food. read more

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