Justin J.
Yelp
Stopped in with the girlfriend after discovering that Bread Winner's hours were not what were posted. Ordered the fried asparagus for appetizer, had the salmon salad, she had the pastrami Rueben and tomato soup. There was a bit of a mix up around who the server would be, no biggie, it was his second day. But it did take a fair amount of time for the right server to arrive and for us to get waters. The asparagus was really good, but almost half of it was the tough part of the asparagus and nearly inedible. Her soup was good, with a bright citrus taste to it. My salmon salad was really good, though the salmon flavor was a bit dominated by the taste of burnt wood. Her Rueben was incredibly bland, the Russian dressing had no zing, the sauerkraut was flavorless, and the pastrami tasted more like a smoked brisket than a proper pastrami. It's a shame because a Rueben is a TON of calories so if you are going to eat one, you want to enjoy it. The real standout though was... the fries? They had a perfect, crisp outside with a soft inside, burying with potato taste, minimal grease, and a decent amount of salt (though my personal preference is more salt).
As I like to say, "price sets expectations" and this meal was rather pricey by the standards of the other meals I have been eating in the area. And what we got just did not live up to those expectations. Asparagus could have been great if they gave us 6 or 8 stalks and chopped off the tough half. The Rueben - which was cooked perfectly - needed someone who has been to New York City, Chicago, or Montreal to smarten them up on what brand of pastrami to buy and how to make a great Russian (or thousand island) dressing. If I am paying near $20 for a sandwich and it is a 1,500 calorie event before we even look at the appetizer or side, it needs to be the platonic ideal of a sandwich, not the shadow puppet on the cave wall.
J.Ja