This is a case where the date may be a major player in our experience, we went Friday January 2nd 2015. Also the staff seemed pretty green.
I would like to note that we intend to visit again at another time.
Upon entering the bar we were quickly the only customers there, sitting at the far end of an extraordinarily long bar were the waitress and bartender, neither looked old enough to drink.
Our stay was rather brief and built a less than stellar opinion of the place.
Things looked bad almost right off the bat as the bartender seemed to have no interest in tending bar and told the waitress to look up and make the drink herself, promptly taking a smoke break (despite us being the only people in the bar). The drink ordered by C.A. was a Manhattan which he admits he failed to specify was not made the same as the house Jasper Ave. Manhattan made with Crown Royal Black, bitters, sweet vermouth, and Cragganmore Single Malt. We are willing to chalk this mistake up to the waitress not being a bar tender, and in general seeming new to the job.
The menu was pretty similar to what you find in all of the newer pubs, full of fusion food and quirky names. The only thing we actually ate was Mac & Cheese Maki Rolls which I could go into detail about but instead will describe as jalapeno poppers cased in deep fried Kraft Dinner. That's literal Kraft Dinner. I would have found them to be a delight at home, but not for $13.50 on a night out in downtown Edmonton.
The kitchen and service was rather slow, all the staff we saw spent all of their free time sitting at a table, eating, and buried in their cell phones.
This is the bar that actually inspired me to start writing notes on places I go to. That's how impressed I was with this place.
It has some of the best staff I've seen in Edmonton, and some pretty excellent service. The atmosphere is that of class, but they seemed accepting to less civilized people such as my friend C.A. and I.
I've been here twice. The First time on January 30th 2014 to scope it out for new years; C.A. and I had a rather pleasant conversation with one of the bartenders, who was glad to talk to us about the establishment and the owner. He seemed particularly enthused to find out that C.A. knows a thing or two about classic cocktails.
Most of the following started on the night of January 31th 2014
The place was packed except for a few seats at the bar, which worked well for us, we wanted the social experience.
I'm not much for cocktails, C.A. however had informed me at the time that North 53 may have served him some of the best drinks in the city. He sampled a number of their signature drinks however the one that stood out to him was the Smoke and Oak Fashioned, which involved oaken gin, maple syrup, orange bitters, orange oils, and legitimate wood smoke. I loved it when they made that, because we got the smell of burning wood with every order.
As the designated driver I can say that I was pleased to have something decent to drink for once, the Siberian Pineapple Express, at the time I didn't plan to start a blog so I didn't take notes, but I can tell you it was a very pleasant drink that I would get again on any night. Earlier on in the night I did allow myself a bottle of Analogue 78 which may be described as a very refreshing lager beer that comes from Phillips Brewing in Victoria, B.C.
When it comes to food, well the entrees seem a tad expensive, but for the most part the prices seem on par.
We were given a bowl of bar nuts due to some delay that we didn't even notice, don't let the name fool you these were unexpectedly delicious. After that our food arrived at just before midnight due to us ordering so late. C.A. received Rutabaga & Oxtail Tart and was kind enough to allow me a bite, lets just say that $13 seems very reasonable. I however got a Whole Fried Chicken for $50 and still consider it worth it. This may have been the best fried chicken I have ever eaten, I even ate all of the delicious garnish.
To describe the bar, it is a tiny place that has an excellent atmosphere for people who are looking to get out of the pub scene, unfortunately it seems to attract hipsters but they didn't seem feral, the staff dresses well, most of the customers are certainly not blue collar, and one thing I think more bars should have is a mirror over the bottles so you can see what's happening behind and around you (much better than starring at a wall of liquor). The music was kept at a sociable level and the songs were mostly of a soft steady beat which I can at best describe as chill-step, however the playlist seems to be a bit limited as I heard the same couple of songs I think twice over the night.
I was surprised to see a child or two there earlier in the night, but they weren't running around or screaming, I feel it is safe to say that this is not the norm.
I don't think this is the place for everyone, but I'd recommend those of you looking to change things up to head on over, maybe bring along a date?
