Summerlicious returns and this year I’ve narrowed my visits to only one place, Ēst Restaurant, that was recommended by a friend. They’ve been meaning to visit the casual French establishment and at last we had an opportunity and reason to get out to the East side.

Their Summerlicious menu ($75 per person) is at the highest price point, but still good value compared to normal prices (reflected in this post). For example, the burrata & caviar starter is typically $41, more than half of the special deal, which is surprising given its modest size.  

Hopefully, they usually give a full burrata as the palm-sized portion barely whet the appetite. Served on top of toasted pain-au-lait with a dollop of sturgeon caviar, the starter was a blend of flavours with the olive oil and honey. It’s good, but would I order it again for $40? Let’s just say I’m glad I experienced it with Summerlicious.

Unlike the burrata, they weren’t stingy with the lobster agnolotti ($39) with plenty of plump stuffed pasta to go around. The chopped lobster and ricotta (?) filling was wrapped in an al dante shell that went nicely with the light champagne butter sauce. Simply topped with chopped fermented garlic scapes and a yuzu foam, they complimented but didn’t overpower the seafood.

You can’t go wrong with the braised beef short rib ($51) a large hunk of tender beef sitting on silky pomme purée (or mashed potatoes for the English) swimming in a lovely red wine jus. It’s a classic for a reason, excellently executed at Ēst.

If you like chocolate, you’ll love the Ēst chocolate cake ($15), a rich dark chocolate dessert with sweet chocolate whipped cream and more warm chocolate sauce on the side. It’s A LOT but thankfully there’s a bit of vanilla gelato to help cut through it all.

At the other end of the spectrum, the piña colada sorbet ($15) was lighter with coconut sorbet topped with crispy coconut, pineapple, and nuts. It’s good, if you wanted to end on a more manageable note.

At the risk of sounding like Goldilocks, the crème brulee cheesecake was just right - a balanced sweetness with a creamy and not overly dense texture. The scoop of gelato didn’t hurt either. Of the three desserts, this was my favourite.

I’ll say it again; I commend restaurants that build their Summerlicious menu around dishes they normally serve. Ēst held true to the experience along with their friendly and unhurried service. Thank you for allowing diners to taste a typical meal at a deal. 

If the walls could speak at Blomidon Inn, I’m sure it would have stories to tell. From its construction as the Burgess family’s private home in the late 1800s, it has gone on to serve as apartments, the residence for Acadian University girls, before finally becoming the current inn in 1980.

The main floor of the ornate inn is largely used as the dining area for their restaurant. Where you can enjoy a 3-course meal ($62.50). Or add an extra $2.50 to receive a small salad course between the main and dessert. For those want a smaller dinner, dishes are also available a la carte (prices reflected in this post).

Their tomato bruschetta ($14) uses a decadent whipped ricotta as the base, building upon the classic ingredients of cherry tomatoes, herbs, and a balsamic reduction. With tons of flavours and not as messy to eat, this was a wonderful starting bite.

Arriving as a big chunk, the maple smoked salmon ($14) could benefit from a bit of preparation to present it in a crostini form. The candy sweet salmon was powerful on its own but balances out with the maple yogurt sauce and baguette. A bit of pickled red onion and/or arugula would add some freshness the dish needs.  

Save some of that bread for the steamed mussels ($14), classically prepared in a white wine and garlic broth. I rather enjoyed the bell pepper used throughout for colour and added flavour. The mussels just needed to be soaked longer as they were still several gritty crustaceans.

You can’t go wrong with seafood in Nova Scotia. The pan seared halibut ($37) was perfectly cooked to a flaky and moist consistency. The thick meaty piece could use more seasoning but if you get enough of the ‘hodge podge’, a medley of vegetables cooked in a cream sauce, onto the fish it helps to add flavour.

The scallops in the scallops picatta ($37) were beautifully seared and just cooked through. The natural sweetness of the seafood was also prominent since the lemon caper sauce used with the pappardelle wasn’t too strong. With a touch more salt, this dish would have been perfect.

While the lobster linguine ($44; $7 supplement with the prix fixe) smelled good, the dish was majorly lacking on taste. The spaghetti was overcooked, and everything screamed for more seasoning, butter, and acid. My nose was more impressed than the tongue.

The grilled filet of beef ($44; $7 supplement with the prix fixe) was a touch over cooked but nevertheless tender and did have a nice crust. I just found the sides of mashed potato and carrot date puree to be too similar and soft. And the red wine jus and bourbon bacon butter was non-existent on the dish. Like the other mains, it was bland.

If you still have room for dessert, I’d recommend the fruit cobbler ($14), which contained tons of berries while still leaving the sweet biscuit on top not overly soggy. Served warm, the vanilla ice cream adds a lovely cooling sensation and creaminess as it melts into the dessert.

Blomidon’s crème brûlée ($14) had a nice thin sugar crust and was flavourful of its own. The side of lemon curd was a nice touch, so you can combine into the brûlée to help balance out the sweetness.

If you like graham cracker crust, you’ll love the blueberry cheesecake ($14) since it has a thick portion of the pastry. The cake itself was a nice balance of sweetness and thickness. In the end, a solid cheesecake with plenty of blueberry flavour.

How anyone could even manage to eat a quarter of the chocolate mousse cake ($14) is a mystery. I could only manage one bite, the cake so thick and dense it’s like eating the chocolate ganache centre of a truffle. The intensity certainly didn’t make it very mousse like. Pack this up and you can have a couple bites per day to get a chocolate fix.

While the food wasn’t the greatest at Blomidon Inn, after a day of wine tasting, it was a treat to not have to leave the inn after showering and relaxing. Plus, after the filling meal, we could easily just roll into the sitting room to continue our conversation. After just spending a day in Wolfville, we had our own new stories to tell. 

Daphne occupies a great location and has a beautiful dining room, but their hosting operations needs improvement. They seem to seat people upon arrival, rather than pre-planning arrangements based on reservations, which is how we were sat beside the drafty door despite booking a month in advance.

The menu isn’t overly exciting but offers a safe selection so there will be options for all. A light spread of nibbles started our meal:

• Olives ($8) – a variety of olives in a light citrus za’atar oil.
• Bread and butter ($8) – a sizeable basket containing different breads like focaccia, sesame baguette, and whole wheat. They were all soft and fresh and went with nicely with the whipped cultured butter. It would have been even better if the bread was warmed.
• Little gem salad ($20) – your typical salad that resembled a lightly dressed Ceasar. If it had more of the garlic parmesan dressing it would stand out better but did go with the other bites and kept things light.

If you want to visit Flavour Town, hop on the black truffle pizza ($36) train. While the price may take you aback, the pie does contain slices of the fungi, you’ll find them scattered amongst the thinly sliced potatoes. The soft puffy crust was a tad soggy in the centre, but it wasn’t surprising given the egg that oozes over the pie adding a lovely creaminess. The dish was delicious with the addition of taleggio cheese, potato crema, and herbs.

The duck mafalda ($35) was equally flavourful with the crimped pasta pulling in so much of the shredded duck and spicy sauce into its crevices. Although the dish isn’t the prettiest, I loved the powerful punch of the sauce, which has a pesto-feel but still the freshness of a red sauce.  

For those abstaining from red meat, the tuna ribeye ($65) offers a 16oz hunk of protein that’s great for sharing. We’re warned the chimichurri is spicy, so we asked for the condiment on the side. In reality, there’s not a lick of heat but was heavy on the citrus and was really needed to season the tuna, which otherwise is merely sitting in a muted truffle ponzu.

The fish paired well with the sunchokes ($16), the root vegetables well roasted and tossed with sunflower tahini, brown butter, and caramelized honey that created a tasty crust. These would even work well with the little gem salad.

I can see why the cauliflower ($32) is considered a main. An entire head of the vegetable arrives covered with sauces so there’s a heartiness even without protein. Elements like the basil herb sauce gave it a freshness while the roasted grapes some sweetness. Still, it’s a lot for one person so is best shared with a large group.

I would not save room for dessert. If I liked chocolate, the Daphne bar ($16) was tasty, like a tuxedo cake in bar form with its dark chocolate mousse and caramel wrapped in a soft chocolate ganache. Alas, chocolate and I have a difficult relationship.  

We had high hopes for the coconut cream pie ($17), but it resembled a white chocolate mousse rather than pie as the dessert lacked the salty crust element. The passionfruit gel was also too tropical and took away from richness I expected from a cream pie. If anything, it’s pretty to look at.

Strawberry shortcake ($18) is usually one of my favourite desserts, but Daphne’s was terrible… give me a supermarket version any day. The makrut lime cream was overpowering giving the cake a lemongrass flavour and the black sesame adding an earthy nuttiness that didn’t compliment the strawberries.