Having been back in New Glasgow for a few months now, we've started to cycle through more…read morerestaurants, after hitting old favourites and new-to-us spots fairly thoroughly.
A return(s) to East Avenue was inevitable, and certainly looked forward to. It has to have one of the most beautiful restaurant interiors in northern Nova Scotia - exposed brick, soaring ceilings, and walls dotted with paintings by local artists.
For our first visit of 2023, I had the Tamis anghang ($20). Filipino for "sweet and spicy", this is a slightly fancier, single-serving version of sweet and sour chicken. Replacing the cloyingly-sweet sauce at most Chinese-Canadian restaurants, East Ave's Thai chili sauce is much more balanced, with a light punch from the hot pepper that livens up your taste buds but won't scorch them. The chicken was cooked with a deft hand, and the crisp batter held up until the last bite.
My wife's duck ragu gnocchi ($29) was a hearty meal, with an impressive amount of rich, shredded duck and fluffy sweet potato gnocchi. If that wasn't enough, shredded parm added even more umami. The sauce was a bit thin and served overly generously, which made the dish a bit soupy, but was otherwise quite delicious. Bonus points for this dish and many others having gluten-free options!
They had an impressive crowd for a Tuesday evening and that plus a very large group that came in just after us seemed to make for somewhat uneven service.
A return visit had us targeting their patio, sadly one of the few in the non-Pictou towns of Pictou County. Step it up people!
We just wanted some mid-afternoon snacks, so we went for a couple appetizers.
The fried sweet chili cauliflower ($15) was a tasty app. The mild crunch of the cauliflower gave further crunch to the crisp coating, which did wilt under the slathering of sauce. Said sauce did have a bit more bite than most sweet chili sauces out there, but it won't have you breathing fire.
Our kale Caesar salad (side size, $10) was a bit on the healthier side than our deep fried app, and pleasant departure from the standard formula. The mix of kale and romaine paired the strengths of both greens, while chickpeas and tomatoes brought added couloir, flavour and texture. And don't worry, there was still bacon, shaved parm, and a hearty dose of dressing.
East Avenue continues to put out generally great food in a killer atmosphere (both inside and out), and I love how much this new business has brought and added to the food scene in the area.
