Soup-to-nuts dining at The Cellar in Elora

As featured in the December 1, 2011 edition of Dining Out, Waterloo Region Record.(photo credit: The Record)

A cellar conjures all sorts of images: a fruit cellar sparkling with homemade preserves, a root cellar amassing harvested vegetables, a storm cellar providing shelter during inclement weather, and my personal favourite, a wine cellar, aging row upon row of Domaine Romanée-Conti pinot noir. A girl can dream, can’t she?

And then there’s the cellar (read: basement) you’d find in an old fieldstone farmhouse: home to a mishmash of soup-to-nuts sundries and wares with the odd hidden gem. This is what you can expect to find at The Cellar Pub and Grill in Elora.

Tucked behind a Mill Street jeweller, The Cellar’s entrance is authenticated by rickety stairs descending to what appears to be a pub, with exposed beams, wine barrels, a flatscreen and bar. But round the corner, and you’ve entered a dining space adorned with espresso tables, oversized chairs and contemporary art amidst gilt-framed landscapes, silk flowers and cascading ivy. Step onto the deck and you’re transported again, this time to a stonewall patio framing Grand River views.

The eclecticism continues on the menu: Smoked pork Kesseler, pad thai, salmon Wellington, chicken curry, jumbo chicken wings, Cajun calamari and Italian sausage penne to name a few.

While part of me wanted to embrace this eclecticism that’s quintessentially Elora, the Type A in me wanted to focus! What was this place all about – what was it known for? And who better to ask than our server, whose friendliness and wit made us feel like regulars.

Trusting her suggestions, we started with steamed mussels ($11), which were fresh, tender and soaked in a spicy white-wine garlic sauce. We also shared the baked goats cheese ($10), pursed in flakey phyllo pastry and floating in a delicate raspberry ginger sauce. I’m sure it comes as no surprise that this app was heady goodness, I mean let’s face it: when sweet seduces tangy and then rolls around in a blanket of phyllo, nothing short of magic happens on the palate.

Next came the suggested mains, along with my unfortunate desire to stuff them back into the cellar.

My salmon Wellington ($19) was a disappointment, especially since I was on such a roll with phyllo. Unlike the appetizer, this pastry wasn’t cooked evenly, causing the outside to appear very brown while the inside felt like raw dough. The salmon itself tasted burnt to me, and the criss-cross grill marks were quite black in parts. The saving graces for this dish were the chunky, steamed vegetables, fluffy basmati and scrumptious dill sauce that I could’ve quite easily bathed in.

My husband’s AAA NY striploin ($24) was a mixed bag. While he appreciated its simple seasoning and size (no man-versus-beast Medieval Times portions here), he was visibly bummed when it arrived medium, not his requested medium-rare. My husband will eat anything (except creamed corn), but couldn’t understand why this was considered a house specialty.

Then came the desserts: chocolate brownie torte ($6.25) and sticky toffee pudding ($6), both hidden gems, although I say this in trust because I didn’t actually taste the sticky toffee pudding (my husband devoured it quicker than I could say ‘Werthers’). However, he did offer this review: “It had raisins. And cinnamon?” Proof of its delectability was clearly in the pudding.

Now I’m a girl who’s sweet on the underdog, so while I long to write about a rare and magnificent find you must check out immediately, I would be remiss if I didn’t warn you of the unpredictability that lies within The Cellar. Treasures – such as those mouthwatering appetizers – are there, you just need to know which shelf of the menu to search.


The Cellar Pub and Grill
13 Mill St. E., Elora
(519) 846-1333

Hours
Monday: 11 a.m. – 10 p.m.
Tuesday: closed
Wednesday and Thursday: 11 a.m. – 11 p.m.
Friday and Saturday: 11 a.m. – midnight
Sunday: 11 a.m. – 10 p.m.

Wheelchair Accessibility
Through the back patio doors.

Menu
Pub grub, barbecue, seafood, pasta, elegant-sounding entrees – a true mixed bag. Ignore the website’s drool-inducing gourmet pizza pics: pizza isn’t on the menu (at least not while I was there).

Reservations
The website recommends it. We made reservations but only two other parties dined while we were there one early Thursday evening in November, along with a few bar patrons.

Atmosphere
An exercise in juxtapositions. Go ahead and wear your jeans.

Drinks
Draft and bottled beers, selection of wines, cocktails, frozen drinks and teetotaler options.

Service
Friendly, attentive, anticipating your next need.

The bill
No pub change. $105.37 (including tax, before tip) for two glasses of wine, two appetizers, two entrees and two desserts.

In a nutshell
Two forks.