I have been very excited about a Greek restaurant opening in Fort Mac for a while now, and tried looking them up on Google ahead of time. All i found at the bottom of the page was a link to their Facebook page, so I followed the breadcrumbs and through the “Info” section of their profile was sent to their website (http://www.greek2me.ca/). The website leaves quite a bit to be desired. If I chose restaurants based on the website, we probably never would have made our way to Hoodoos, but I’m glad we don’t take everything at face value.
Walking in looked a little suspect, the spot is not fully completed yet, the atmosphere is “unfinished”. I’m not sure if they’re going for “family” or “fancy” (I’m leaning toward family, with the blue plush booths , etc).
The waitress (I think she was the owner’s wife) welcomed us in, told us to be seated wherever we preferred, brought us menus, welcomed us to restaurant and asked us for our drink orders.
When she came back with drinks, she opened up the menu and pointed out the Greek cuisine, and was explaining what she recommended and what came with it. If you have never eaten Greek before it can be a bit daunting to make a choice, and I’m just guessing that more than a few people here would just order a burger, because they would find it “safe”.
For appetizers, my hubby ordered Bruschetta, and I decided to try their Dolmades (a rice and spice mixture, wrapped in grape leaves, in a style similar to a small bite sized cabbage roll).
The bruschetta wasn’t quite as good as some I have tried, I would pass on it next time (the blend of tomatoes, garlic, onion and olive oil was perfect, it was the cheeses melted on top that threw me off, whatever kind of cheddar they used didn’t quite melt and had a very unsavory texture).
The Dolmades on the other hand was a home run. There were 6 of the delicious morsels on the plate, served warm with fresh tzatziki and a couple of lemon wedges. The grape leaves were perfectly cooked, and were not at all tough or stringy as a you quite often find with the dish. The rice mixture stuffed in was perfectly seasoned and the rice was cooked just right.
For our main course, I took the waitresses suggestion, and order the Pork Souvlaki, and my husband ordered the Keftedes (Greek Meat Balls). In the menu, the souvlaki had no information on what it was served with and the waitress informed me that it came as a full platter with rice, Greek salad, pita bread, and oven roasted Greek potatoes. This was right up my alley!
The meal came in just enough time, we had finished our appetizers and had a couple minutes of conversation when the poor waitress brought our food to the table. I say “poor waitress” because the woman’s arms had to have been ready to fall off after carrying plates as heavy as these. My plate was more like a party platter and was full to brimming with all the Greek goodness, and as she set my husband’s “plate” down, she proudly informed him that there was “1 Kilo!” (which for you non versed in metric, is 2.2 pound of meatballs and rice).
There is really nothing bad to say at all about the main courses, only gushing reviews. The souvlaki was seasoned with a loving hand and was fall apart tender, the potatoes were lemony and had just the right crust on them from the oven roasting, and the Greek salad was nothing short of amazing. The dressing used was probably one of the best house Greek dressings I have tasted in my history of ordering Greek salads everywhere i go (in all honesty, I order lasagna and Greek salad everywhere). They are generous with the feta and don’t bother to crumble it up (making you search for it underneath the vegetables), instead they give you large slices you can really get ahold of and taste.
The Keftedes… what to say about them? There were 8 golf ball sized meatballs trenched in a tomatoe-ey rose sauce, on a king sized bed of rice, served with a side plate of Greek salad. The meatballs were dense and packed with flavor, and the sauce was spot on complimenting the meat and rice fantastically.
As we ate our meal, the owner stopped by to welcome us, introduce himself and inquire if our meal was all right (which we had to grunt and nod enthusiastically, as our mouths were full).
As it was we couldn’t finish our meals (which is a feat in itself, as both my husband and I are hearty eaters), but I couldn’t make my first trip to Hoodoos without taking home some Baklava (phyllo pastry desert, layered with nuts, cinnamon and honey). I got 5 wrapped up to go (to share with my mother over coffee that evening, not just for myself, I swear!). And oh my, if you like your sweets, these bad boys cannot be passed up. They are sinfully sticky, and melt in your mouth delicious.
All in all, I would give Hoodoos Bar & Grill a 4 star Fort McMurray review (what they lack in decor at the moment, they make up for in big portions and flavors!)
