The Reef (Main St.)

The Reef was featured on You Gotta Eat Here, which is the Canadian equivalent to Diners, Drive-Ins, & Dives, so I wanted to give it a try. It was a Saturday so we called ahead and made reservations at the Main Street location. Half of our party was late because the parking situation along Main Street and King Edward is bad, even on the best of days.

Our reserved table was available right away so we sat down and got settled in quickly. Our server came by and took our drink orders soon after we sat down. I ordered a virgin Pina Colada and J ordered a regular one. Both drinks were quite bland. My guess is that they used less than half the suggested serving amount for whatever Pina Colada flavour mix they used.

For our dinners, we ordered a Mo-Ca Burger (jerk beef) with plantain chips, the Trini Roti wrap with chicken curry, and a Fish Dinner for H. The food took about 20 minutes to arrive, but while we waited we were served some complimentary fried bread with butter. This was probably the highlight of the dinner because they were hot, fluffy, and soft on the inside and crispy on the outside. The butter added to the flavour, but really wasn't necessary. We tried the bread with the house hot sauce that they have placed on every table and it was spectacular.

Our dinners all arrived at the same time and it didn't feel like any of the dishes had been sitting under a heat lamp (like some other restaurants). I really wish I took some photos, but I didn't have a camera with me and the restaurant was too darkly lit for my phone to take any decent pictures. My Mo-Ca burger was served in an open fashion and presented very well. It came with some soft of aioli dip for the plantain chips that was really delicious. The burger was simply fantastic. The beef was lightly marinated and spiced, but very loose and moist on the inside. The pineapple ring really added to the overall package of the burger, which also had a sweet and mildly spicy relish.

J's Trini Roti was quite large, filling move than half her dinner plate. I found the curry a little salty, but it went well with the roti wrap, which was a little on the thick side but soft enough that it wasn't tiring to eat. The coleslaw was very fresh and lightly seasoned with just the right amount of dressing. It was a little tangy and very light (unlike traditional coleslaw dressing in a bottle).

H's Fish Meal was a good size for a kids' meal. The tilapia covered more than a third of the dinner plate and came with quite a bit of rice and some steamed vegetables. The fish was lightly seasoned and H gobbled it up (which is quite rare). The veggies were a little undercooked for her baby teeth so I ate them for her.

The restaurant atmosphere was nice, although it was a bit too dark for my liking. There wasn't any noticeable trend of demographics for the other patrons. Ambient noise volumes were moderate to high, but the open patio may have contributed to that. There was an empty table with a Reserved sign next to us throughout our visit, which was odd because the rest of the restaurant was busy the entire time. I certainly hope they didn't miss out on potential customers because some idiots made reservations and didn't show up or cancel.

Our server was very nice and she was around most of the time whenever we needed something. Although it was busy, I never felt like I was waiting for her to come around.

The Reef is definitely worthy of a return visit and I would recommend it for diners who want to try urban dining with a Caribbean twist.

Summary

Food: Very Good. The food is tasty, unique, and comparable in price to most urban dining chains. Drinks were weak in taste.

Service: Average. Nothing good or bad to mention.

Setting: Average. Parking is a pain. The restaurant was very dark with moderate to loud background noise/chatter.

Value: Average. Urban dining is urban dining. Main and drink will run you about $20 each.