Living it up at Leo's

Mel and I dined at Leo's, downtown on Ottawa and Louis, Feb 28. Before I go any further I need to say thank you to my mom and dad in-law for giving us a 2 for 1 entree coupon that  enabled us to be able to eat there.

The restaurant is pretty classy looking on the inside, with a lot of natural colors such as various shades of tan. It has the feel of an upscale eatery. The restaurant is known for serving seafood, but also has dishes without fish such as steak, chicken, and lamb. It is generally on the pricey side with many entree's over the $30 mark. However there are also quite a few plates that come in under $30. The service was good. At first our server seemed a little awkward, but as the night went on that went away. He was able to explain dishes well and even took my lobster claw into the back to bash it open with a hammer after the shell cracker couldn't break through (seriously, that was the thickest shell I have ever experienced on a lobster, and I have cracked through a few! Now that is service. Also of note is a fairly healthy wine list for bottles. The wine by the glass is limited and not as extensive as the by the bottle list.

On to the dinner. (Regrettably my pictures did not turn out very well. I will still post them but they may be blurry and hard to see)

We started with an appetizer of their chicken spring roll with sweet and sour hoisin sauce. It was a good start to the meal. The wrappers were crispy and fried. The chicken was very flavorful and here were quite a few veggies as well. It was a perfect portion to start with for two people.

 Mel ordered the filet mignon with sour cream and chive mashed potatoes and fresh saute'd asparagus. The filet was covered with a merlot demi-glace. The potatoes were good with a nice garlic and sour cream flavor. They also were kind of chunky which was nice. I like a rustic mashed potato. I think it tastes better personally. The steak was cooked perfectly and the demi-glace added a nice flavor that complimented but didn't overtake the flavor of the steak. Our server said he thought it was the best in the city; I am not so sure about that. I think Ruth's Cris may still have a better steak from the places I have been to. The asparagus was well cooked and seasoned as well.

First off, this is a horrible picture and I apologize for that. I had the Bouillabaisse. Bouillabaisse is basically a French seafood soup/stew. This one had clams, mussels, scallops, salmon, shrimp, snow crab leg, and half a lobster in a saffron-sherry tomato broth with leeks. The broth was amazing. It was probably the best part. It was light and all the flavors worked in complete balance as not one thing dominated. The saffron was present but not overpowering, the tomato was not too acidic and it wasn't thick like tomato soup. The sherry also was able to be tasted. The seafood overall was spot on. The clams had a smokey taste to them like they had been smoked before being put in the broth. The mussels were very good and were not rubbery at all, which can happen if over cooked, like most seafood. The snow crab was really sweet. The shrimp were good but slightly overcooked, but still cooked better than most places. The scallops were perfectly poached and sweet and meaty, as was the salmon. The lobster was hit and miss for me. The flavor was spot on. It was sweet and perfect with the broth. However I thought the tail meat was a little over cooked as it was on the tough side. The claw was good and was cooked better than the tail. That could be because it was whole while the tail was cut in half. Overall though I would order it again. The flavor overrode the slight flaws of the overcooked lobster tail and shrimp.

 For desert we had a vanilla cheesecake topped with fresh berries and kiwi, a gram cracker crust and a berry puree. The cheese cake was very good. The vanilla came through very nicely. The texture was good too, not too dense but not very airy either. The berries added a nice burst of freshness, acidity, texture and sweetness. A very satisfying end to our meal and night out.

I liked Leo's over all. The ambiance was pleasant and the food good. It was a bit pricey, so for us, at least, it is a place that we would visit only once in a while. I would recommend it as an alternative if someone had never been, but had visited some of the other good restaurants downtown, or to someone who likes seafood. Does it get my highest marks? Sadly no. I think there are better restaurants around. But it is worthy of eating at and I do recommend it is given a try.