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From comfort food to contemporary West Coast cuisine, Enigma has something for everyone.
Another evening dining indecision brought us here. I had heard good things so I was long sold before but our evening here sealed the deal.
The space looks rather formal, but casual is more than welcoming. It's simply kept with contrasting wall art against the dark and dim setting.
The menu does have something for everyone, but it was difficult to choose since there weren't any standouts. Everything seems like a safe bet. We shared the baked brie but it was the garlic prawns and the house bread that really spoke to us. Around the table everybody ordered something different including the braised lamb shoulder, a goat cheese salad, baby back ribs and the seafood pesto fettuccine. The former two were the best prepared while the latter two had a couple of quips, the ribs on the lean side while my pasta was past al dente. A minor spoil which otherwise were fine entrees.
We had timely service without being overbearing and she showed a touch of grace that you'd normally see in more formal dining situations. We asked her for some recommendations but as we expected, even she had a hard time picking the standouts.
Though on the conservative side, this is a good bet for dates to parties and everything in between.
I used to go there for dinner but I recently noticed some change in the food, tasting a little bit spicy for me. Then I told the server and he brought me a new plate free of charge. I don't think making a new plate is the solution, it helps to the overall experience but I like it right at the first time. We were offered a sticky toffee which was extremely sweet for my taste and I couldn't finish it. Never had this problem before. There is a new chef but I really liked the previous one. I liked Enigma because they offer consistency in the food but that was something I did not like.
I have gone for dinner a couple of times. Once I had the combo with Moroccan soup, Moroccan lamb and creme brule, the other only a trout provencal style. Both were excellent. Bright, fresh flavors, perfectly seasoned, well prepared, nicely served. The house pinot noir is also very good, although the lamb needed a more robust wine, but it was my fault. Service is attentive but non intrusive. Excellent value, specially being in the expensive UBC area. This will be one of my favorite places.
Went on Canada Day and not as crowded as some of the popular Kits place which is why it was chosen. Very nice decor and some outside seating. Tried the south african sausage and eggs. Very good but wished the sausages were a bit bigger. Nice touch of free banana bread to start.
Reasonable prices and good service.
Food is great, and the weekly live jazz performances is even better. Solid price for a pasta place.
Service is great. One of my friends was a bit of a complainer and said the pasta was a bit hard for his liking. They brought him a whole new plate, no extra charges.
I have eaten here about a 1/2 dozen times now, and the consistent food quality deserves comment. As a prior reviewer said, there is nothing on the menu that jumps out at you at first visit, but you will develop favourites, as you try things. Mine is the goat cheese salad presently on the menu (great balance of flavours and a nice amount of goat cheese) and the sticky toffee pudding (with extra sauce). Tonight it was a moroccan lamb, not a cinnamon-based sauce as I was expecting but a little spicy and very good with a wonderful slice of lamb. But the nice thing is that there is something for everyone, including your grandmother, (as they often have specials like prime rib and yorkshire pudding). AND they list their specials on their website daily!. Always several specials, and plenty of the bottles of wine are within the $30 range. Portions are sufficiently large enough that appie, main and dessert is generally not doable for me, but after reading the other reviews I will definitely look into the baked brie.
We ate at Enigma on a Saturday at about 2:00 pm, and ordered off of the brunch menu. I ordered the Belgian Waffles, which, for $10, included a full plate of waffles with whip cream, fruit compote, syrup, and a variety of fresh fruit. My boyfriend ordered the Hungry Man special, and sure enough, was a full plate of food for about $13. Breakfast was excellent, service was good, and the atmosphere was relaxed. The location is great - about 8 minutes from the university, with lots of free parking.
We will definitely return!!!
I came here for brunch with 3 other people today. Today is Mother's Day so I expected the wait would b long but fortunately we were seated immediately regardless of the crowded place. The wait for food was super long though, more like 45 mins counting from the moment we ordered. The resto is good that they serve banana cake during our wait and the server refilled our orange juice cuz of the very long wait. The food I think is very mediocre. I ordered the crab benny but it wasn't as good as the one in figmint. The eggs were nicely done but the crab was very little and i think it was frozen. The price was very good though especially for the huge portions. I think I would come back here again if I wanna eat some inexpensive brunch with great service.
This place has been one of our favorites for a while. The service staff is always attentive and friendly. I've held a gf's bridal shower here (15 women for brunch on seperate bills) which was not a problem. Lynette the owner is lovely; kinda pushy at times but always on the floor and accomodating. Very nice lady.
The food is consitant and very good. Price point is great and the menu has a variety of dishes to choose from for lunch, dinner and brunch. We always 'forget' to go here but when one of us remembers we always say how much we love this place. Recenlty we had lunch there, I had the beef burger and a soup which were awesome, the burger is flamed grilled which is fantastic and the soup was the pumpkin fall feature - great.
An awesome place to have any meal.
The first visit was good but the second visit was great!!
Food: I would have given them "outstanding" but I found my BBQ Beef Short Rib Burger a little tough; loved the fries though! The Vegetarian Enigma was done very well; the flavour was rich and the display of the dish was appealing. The pasta of the day was also delicious too!
Service: Apparently they "lost" our reservation but I didn't even know about it until the owner or manager came to apologize with a couple of free desserts! I was impressed by their service and goal to keep their customers happy. The server was friendly, helpful, and attentive throughout the night. It was great!
Value: Comparing the quality of the food and the price, I think it was really reasonable.
Ambiance: Relaxing and romantic but also very suitable for small dinner gatherings. I loved the corner window view of West 10th. Pretty paintings on the walls. Clean and classy washroom!
Four of us went on a Saturday night for dinner and were greeted by the owner and seated far away from the hockey game and live band (yes, both on at the same time), The giant TV hanging from the ceiling does face the bar but looks ugly from the restaurant. Even far away the band was loud but the music was OK. I agree with the last reviewer, the menu is gigantic and the soups/Guinness beef stew were tasty but only warm and on a snowy evening that's not on. To his credit our waiter comped us an amazing dessert, treacle pudding and ice cream. Calamari and mussels were good, this place is worth going back to but one of the golden rules of a small restaurant is....... don't complicate the menu, offer fewer choices and do them well!
My friends introduced me to this restaurant a few months ago and I have been a loyal patron ever since. I love eating here for Sunday brunch. The food is very good, with a varied menu, served quickly, and the service is always attentive and efficient.
Enigma offers nice little touches like chocolate banana bread instead of a bread basket, and extra salad and fruit with the eggs benedict. Coffee and water are always topped up.
The atmosphere is very relaxed; I've never felt rushed eating here. Diners are invited to linger, relax, and enjoy the food, the art on the walls, and the good music playing in the background.
I don't know what to say about this restaurant. Here are my random thoughts: very modern, delicious thai curry prawns (excellent bread came with the dish, sauce was very tasty, prawns were cooked to perfection), generously-portioned, to-die-for brie dip with oh-so-yummy apple crisps (i could have just came here to eat the brie dip and apple chips for the whole night), wine list is very affordable and the selection is pretty good (around $30 for most bottles), snapper was a bit overcooked, lamb was delicious, short rib has a very nice smokey flavour and their fries and onion rings reminds me of those you get at sports games! The restaurant was slightly hot. I think I saw the owner serving dishes as well. I will definitely come here again. It's a very cozy neighbourhood restaurant.
We went for dinner a while ago and had the most delicious meal. Our server was quite busy but seemed to have a good handle on all of us. The carpaccio starter and brie dip starter were delicious. The 6oz steak on the specials menu was cooked and seasoned to perfection and the calamari was a treat. The curried prawns and naan bread were also outstanding. This restaurant is definitely worth the drive, the food is delicious. The portions quite large. There is a lot to choose from, and even though it does get very busy at times (especially brunch - brunch can be crazy but is SO worth the wait, definitely the best brunch in the city; worth the line up, worth the wait for food) you will not be sorry you went. Lest I forget: Do not leave without having a sticky toffee pudding for desert. How on earth this is not gracing the cover of every food lover magazine in North America I do not know. It is without a doubt, one of the best deserts I have ever eaten. I was going to keep this review short but find myself digressing over a pudding that is so delectable, so mouth watering, and so elegant that words do not aptly describe it. God bless the lovely lady (I was told it is the owner) who created this little moist and slightly wobbly ball of caramel toffee sticky cake goodness that will keep me going back, and back, and back again. People! You have not lived until you have eaten this desert. Truly. You have not lived!
I decided to review Enigma as my 1st on dinehere. I have been here many times for brunch (although it has been awhile since my last visit). It is always great. The service is always solid (however there was one time where I found it a little on the slow side) and the food is always delicious. I love the banana bread that they start you off with. A very nice touch. All in all a great place for brunch....I will return soon.
The food here was great. They serve delicious banana bread before the entrees. I ordered breakfast and the scrambled eggs were exactly the way i wanted it (creamy and fluffy). However, the waffles needs to be worked on a little because they were too hard on the side. The service was ok, the food took around 40minutes to arrive. But overall, it was a good experience.
I really like Enigma, not only because it's cose to where I live, but the food is pretty decent, and they have a nice selection of martinis. Kids are welcome there - they have a children's menu. We've had the curry platter for two a couple of times now - a selection of curries (chicken, lamb, etc.) served with rice and naan, and it didn't disappoint! Enigma is also great for a burger or appies. We only had one minor problem the last time we visited Enigma; our server forgot to place our appetizer order with the kitchen. However, she was very apologetic and quickly came up with options to resolve the problem - order the appetizer for us to eat there or take home, or free dessert - we chose the latter, and thoroughly enjoyed it. I look forward to returning for brunch some day - and sitting on their patio!
i was shopping around west 10th and decided to drop by this place while debating whether i should try some kinda pasta. i'm glad i tried this place out.
the decor outside looks kinda ordinary and doesn't appeal me, but the inside was much more "classier" than i expected. we were placed near the windows, beside the outside patio. the cool breeze was very nice, but the doors kept shutting and opening, making loud noises. and no one bothered to check up on it...which was disappointing. but their service with food was very professional.
i ordered the special...wild salmon on rye(?) and my friend ordered the coconut chicken curry pasta. it came just on time, not too fast, not too slow.
my sandwich was piping hot! the salmon was nicely grilled and seasoned. the only negative was the hard hard crusts...not so fun! the fries were AWESOME. crispy and hot...a bit too oily, but thats what you get with fries... and the pasta was delicious, which large portions. the price is also very affordable.
i think this is a great place to just go for a quick lunch, or casual dinner with friends. i wouldn't really want to go here to impress a date, cause it seems much too casual.
My friends and I were wandering 10th Avenue and came across this restaurant, which caught our eye. First thing that stood out was the ambience and decor - very warm, classy and nicely decorated. It was a Saturday night, so the place was busy, but we were greeted right away, and waited a few minutes for a table to be cleared.
The server was friendly and helpful, and the food was delicious. My friends and I tried the satay appetizer which was better than we expected. All the entrees were delicious including the baby back ribs (very tender), the lamb (very flavourful), and the New Orleans style jambalaya. My order (jambalaya) was delayed as the cooks made a mistake with my order, and the server was kind and gracious to offer me a complimentary salad while I waited for the correction (my friends already received their own meals and already started on their entrees). I was very impressed with this offer and service, and just 5 minutes after receiving my salad, my entree was served.
I would definitely return to this place, not only for the tasty food and calm and classy ambience, but also for the very affable and friendly service.
Went here for brunch yesterday and ordered the Smoked Salmon Eggs Benny with a side of South African Sausage. The Eggs Benny were done very nicely, not overdone like some of the restaurants I've had them at. The sausage was delicious, but I think that my eyes may have been a bit bigger than my stomach, as the eggs benny with accompanying hash browns and little side of fruit would have been plenty of food on its own.
When we were seated, there was complimentary banana bread on the table, instead of the usual cut up baguettes. I felt that this was a very nice touch, especially as it gave us something to eat right away while waiting for our food.
The service was quite good, though once the bill was deposited at our table, our server did not return for quite a long time afterwards (around 20 minutes maybe?). Still, our coffee/teas were refilled promptly, and our food came within a reasonable amount of time.
I would say that Enigma is a safe bet for brunch. The space is quite big, and is mostly naturally lit by the big windows along two walls. Overall, a pleasant experience - also, ideal for groups if you enjoy dining with more than one friend.
| 1. | Tim Hortons (5 m) | |
| 2. | Some Kinda Pasta (31 m) |  |
| 3. | Ginger and Chili (61 m) | |
| 4. | EN Japanese Restaurant (61 m) | |
| 5. | Subway (65 m) | |
| 6. | Mix The Bakery (79 m) | |
| 7. | Burgoo (85 m) | |
| 8. | Cafe Katzenjammer (99 m) | |
| 9. | Tokyo One Sushi (103 m) |  |
| 10. | T Room Bakery & Kitchenware (112 m) |
