Blaze Bistro

Blaze Bistro & Lounge

Delta Winnipeg Hotel

350 St. Mary Avenue

204-944-7259

December, 2017

I haven't been to Blaze for a very long time but I have fond recollections of it being one of the best hotel restaurants in the city.  Although it underwent several makeovers since then, the name remains the same and the ambiance still feels modern with undertones of sophistication and elegance.  It could be more intimate as the entire restaurant and lounge open wide into the hustle and bustle of the reception area.  Because of its locale, all sorts of staff (maintenance etc.) traverse the dining room regularly.  If you're looking for a quiet nook to contemplate the philosophies of life, this probably isn't the place, but if you're here for a quick lunch during work hours, this is right on target.  I'm willing to be everything settles down in the evening and the ambiance would look a lot dimmer and calmer.

The service comes quickly and efficiently.  In no time, my order heads to the kitchen and I'm sipping on coffee.  Normally I would not mention the coffee but the bold taste with the soft finish makes it worth citing.  Plus, you get an insulated decanter so you can you replenish at will from the steaming hot reservoir. 

Just as quickly, the lunch arrives and I'm ready to dig in, a mere ten minutes after I sat down.  The lunch menu is very limited, confined to two soups, a few salads, and a number of sandwiches.  I hear great things about the cream of mushroom soup and since it's the special today (I suspect it's often the special), I try it. 

Cream of wild mushroom soup is one of my personal signature dishes, and this one comes very close to what I concoct.  The broth tastes rich and deep, demonstrating the authenticity of the soup, using genuine whipping cream as the base.  Augmenting the base, pulverised bits of mushroom float homogenously through the broth.  There's enough of the minced bits to endow a defined taste of mushroom to the soup.  I would like to see some large pieces of mushroom in here as well to give the dish more substance.  It doesn't take much—a dollop of sliced wild mushrooms would do it.

For the main, I go with the “Crazy Calabrese” open-faced sandwich.   Topped with a sweetish pico de gallo, this sandwich looks colourful and completely enticing.  The arugula makes a perfect partner for the spinach.  I would like to see some more arugula leaves; its spiciness and pungency tastes powerful but between the body of the spinach and the sweetness of the pico, the arugula's a bit lost.  A perfect balance of the triad would have made a nice ménage-a-trois.  The cheese provides flavour and substance to the focaccia base.  This could have been built better but as I think about it, I struggle to figure how.  The oozing yolk from the perfectly fried over-easy egg would be great if soaked up by the bread, but the coating of cheese makes this impossible.  Because of the nature of the bread, the crust side does not soak up anything well, so you can't turn it over.  The cheese forms an essential part of the sandwich so you definitely don't want to take the cheese away.  Perhaps melting the cheese on top of the egg so that it accompanies the bread would form a nice balance.  Then again, the cheese directly on the bread makes such a nice pair, I'd hate to disrupt it.  Perhaps if you flip the focaccia over and toast the cheese on the crust side, and leave the open side down to soak up goop?  I don't know—maybe it's best just to leave as is!

As an addition, I would like to see some shallots or thinly sliced onion added to this sandwich.  The flavour and depth of the onion would add greater depth to this lovely creation.  As is, this is still a superb meal and at $20 after tax and tip, it’s a good bargain.  

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