It’s always a pleasure when our girls join us on our adventures, but their moody ways and typical tardy teenage profile almost saw us late for our reservations at Turtle Jack’s Muskoka Grill Upper Centennial in Hamilton. Kieana, Indy and Tehya were supposed to be with us, but Tehya wasn’t feeling well (ended up having surgery a couple days later), so Felicia, (Kieana’s friend) joined us for dinner.
We were greeted by the friendly hostesses who directed us to a very roomy booth which was perfectly situated at the rear of the restaurant, directly in front of the beautiful stone fireplace. With my customary decaf coffee ordered, soft drinks for the girls and Caron was intrigued by the Pineapple Smash Martini (blueberry vodka, pineapple and blueberry juice with a splash of amaretto) so after consulting with our server Cassandra, she knew she had to give it a try. Forget elephants, Cassandra has one of the best memories we’ve ever witnessed. At no time this night did we see her write down anything we ordered and we were amazed that she got everything perfect. Keep in mind it was a table of five people.
With Caron going on how delicious her martini was in the background, we were busy sorting through the appetizer menu. We decided on getting the nacho platter, cheesy bread, Caesar salad, and I was eager to try their coconut shrimp. Ever since my experience earlier in the year with coconut shrimp in Jamaica, I’ve been on a mission to find a source closer to home. I’m not much of a nacho person, so it’s not something we would normally order…when it arrived at our table we knew we were in for a long night. This is a supposed to be an “appetizer” but it seems the kitchen didn’t get the memo… this thing was built like a volcano. It was a tower of layers of nachos, cheddar and mozzarella cheese, jalapenos, seasoned beef, olives, shredded lettuce, tomatoes, green onions and salsa.. baked, then drizzled with sour cream. Even with my help, the ladies had a difficult time leveling it. Though I’m not into the nacho thing, I crave a good guacamole and the side order we got hit the spot. Freshly made (no discoloring), with non of that bitter-oily after taste you tend to get at most restaurants. A blend of smooth and chunky avocado, with just the right amount cilantro and other ingredients.
The coconut shrimp was a bit over-battered for my liking, and had the look of chicken wing drumettes, but the accompanying Thai dipping sauce was on point and the Asian coleslaw was quite refreshing. A good balance of exotic flavors, crunch was an amazing partner for the coconut shrimp.
After continued attempts to make a real dent on the Nacho Extravaganza, we had to raise the white flag and concede. Watching the ladies struggle with the appetizers I knew they wouldn’t have any room for the entrees, but held back commenting until they were faced with the task at hand. Once again we were impressed by the courteous nature of Cassandra and we were silently hoping she would screw up one of orders so we could say “should have written it down eh!”. She’s as professional as they come and proves that she knows the menu front to back.
By this time we could hear live music emanating from the bar area (I didn’t get up to see) and we learned that there’s usually a live musician every Thursday… which was quite entertaining while we enjoyed a fantastic meal. Felicia had the Buffalo Chicken Wrap (crisp fried chicken tenders tossed in your choice of wing sauce.. then rolled into a flour tortilla with cheddar, lettuce, diced tomato and ranch dressing), which as I expected (with everyone else) she struggled to finish. Seems that big portions is the common theme at Turtle Jacks and from our experience we could safely say that just about everything on their menu could easily be shared by two people.
Kieana opted for the 1/2 rack ‘award’ winning baby back ribs (Cassandra mentioned that they won some award for their ribs) and from the reaction by Kieana and when I took a sample off her plate, we could see why. Not just your fall-off-the-bone -tender ribs, but well basted with a truly exciting BBQ sauce. Breaking away from her traditional baked potato, with her choice of side she got the coleslaw and fries. Kieana isn’t much of a coleslaw person, but she did mention that it was a bit on the vinegar side.
After many attempts by Indy to sneak a sip of Caron’s Green Apple Martini (another recommendation by Cassandra), she gave up and decided it was time to tackle her platter of chicken fingers. According to the menu it’s freshly breaded chicken tenders which was marinated in buttermilk… then deep fried to a crispy finish. Not only was this seriously good (according to Indy), Caron took the leftovers to work for lunch the next day and she came home raving how good they were too. The platter also included fresh cut fries, coleslaw, carrots and celery sticks. Take note that this is not the baby size chicken strips you’d normally get off a kids menu… parents would know what I mean.
I forgot to mention that my customary decaf coffee was excellent. I’m not sure how it’s achieved but for decaf to have this much body and flavor is something you’d expect from good regular coffee. It was so good I forced in a couple cups even though I was stuffed from all the tasty dishes.
Caron decided on the New York strip loin with fresh cut fries and coleslaw, which was surprisingly tender even though it was a bit overcooked from the medium-well she requested. The menu is one which will cause confusion as there are many appetizing sounding options, so after much inner debate I decided on the sort of surf and turf with the shrimp and scallop sirloin in a garlic wine cream sauce. This one was a hit out of the park! Not only was my steak perfectly cooked to medium rare as I had requested, the shrimp and scallops in that garlic sauce was simply delectable. The accompanying garlic mashed potato complimented the steak perfectly, but the dirty rice which was quite tasty on it’s own.. was a poor choice by me.
With good food on the table, live music in the background and tons of laughter and good times being had by all.. it was an overall excellent dinner. with no room for dessert, but thinking about our readers we sacrificed our bursting stomachs and ordered the “Fire ‘n Ice” (vanilla ice cream rolled in a cinnamon crust, fried and drizzled with caramel and chocolate syrup. A bit heavy on the cinnamon, but an absolutely delicious dessert to end the night.
After dinner I walked over to the bar area which seemed like a good spot to grab a bite, enjoy a few beverages and watch the game if you’re alone or with a buddy. There’s a nice vibe to this area and like the rest of the restaurant, there’s a comfortable feel to it all.
If you’re looking for a generally good dining experience, with friendly and accommodating service that’s not overly priced, be sure to check out Turtle Jack’s Muskoka Grill on Upper Centennial in Hamilton and remember to ask for Cassandra (try to get her to forget what you ordered). And according to Caron, you MUST try the Pineapple Smash Martini which according to her, is out of this world.
Turtle Jack’s Muskoka Grill
125 Upper Centennial Parkway
Hamilton, Ontario L8J 2T7
Tel: 905-662-3120
For a full list of all Turtle Jacks locations, see http://www.turtlejacks.com/locations
Before you go we’d love for you to leave us your comments below, even if it’s just to say hello. And don’t forget to join us on FaceBook (for our latest updates, including discounts, coupons and more pictures from our dinner at Turtle Jack’s Muskoka Grill ) and do tune in to our videos (escapades!) on our youtube channel we’ve created.
