Monday, May 27, 2013

Spring Rolls: Hamilton, Ontario


Assorted Spring Rolls Platter
Among the many renovations currently taking place at Limeridge Mall on Upper Wentworth in Hamilton is the arrival of Spring Rolls, a Pan-Asian restaurant chain from Toronto. When I was living in Toronto, I had eaten at Spring Rolls a few times and while it was always enjoyable, it never blew me away. I was pleasantly surprised on my recent visit to their Hamilton location, both for the overall dining experience and the food itself.

Cashew Chicken
In a beautifully renovated space, the restaurant feels bright, welcoming and very modern. Unlike some of their Toronto locations, the tables feel spacious and we didn’t feel rushed or crammed in. They have a contemporary menu, with many options divided by type of cuisine – Japanese, Thai and Chinese – along with a few specialty items, soups, salads and desserts. There is a lot to choose from and I would imagine that almost anyone could find something on the menu to suit their tastes.

We started our meal with the assorted spring rolls platter. This came with a variety of hot and cold rolls as well as hoisin sauce and sweet chili sauce on the side. It also came with a good-sized portion of mango salad in the centre of the platter. The rolls all tasted very fresh and the salad was crisp and refreshing.

Singapore Noodles
For the mains, we ordered the Singapore noodles (with whole wheat noodles), the cashew chicken and the mango salad with chicken satay which came with a bowl of miso soup. Everything was delicious. The noodles came in a tasty curry sauce with shrimp and veggies. The cashew chicken was equally good with lots of nuts and big pieces of chicken. Everything tasted fresh and came out hot. While I likely would not have ordered the mango salad as a main had I known we were getting some with the appetizer, I still ate most of it and the chicken satay was a great addition; grilled skewered chicken breasts with a warm peanut sauce on the side.

Mango Salad with Chicken Satay
The portions were perfect for lunch – in fact we had some to take home – and we all thoroughly enjoyed our meals. The service was friendly and prompt and the food was fresh and filling. Is it my personal favorite Pan-Asian in the city? Probably not. But it is none-the-less an enjoyable dining experience with a lot of fresh menu choices and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a good meal after a day of shopping at Limeridge.