As featured in the February 16, 2012 edition of Dining Out, Waterloo Region Record. (photo credit: The Record)
Walking into Ethel’s Lounge can be a bit intimidating. To get to the seating area, you need to pass an L-shape bar lined with two dozen bar stools — most of which are occupied by regulars whom the bartender knows by name and preferred pint. A stare-down from this motley crew is probable, but not to worry — they won’t bite. Just give them a nod, have a seat on a retro diner chair and get acquainted with the back page of the menu entitled, “Everything you wanted to know about Ethel’s but couldn’t give a damn.”
The first thing it’ll tell you is “prices are subject to change at the drop of a small business loan interest point.” If you’re not smiling yet, it adds, “no fancy schmancy maître d’ will rattle off a bunch of soup du jour or pea-sized portions of Cornish hen in a light cream sauce.” And if a chuckle still impends, it warns, “if you’re expecting someone to pull out your chair, lay a linen napkin across your lap and compliment your penny loafers and argyle socks, you better just pack up the kids in the Volvo wagon and don’t look back.”
Glad I don’t drive a Volvo.
So we started with beer and the tapas platter ($9.99): a tasty sampling of barbecued pork quesadilla, antijitos, pita triangles with roasted red pepper dip, tri-coloured tortilla chips, fresh salsa, chipotle mayo and thick sour cream. Like a fiesta on a plate, this platter was fresh, bright and fun for the senses.
We could’ve stopped there but we had work to do! My husband couldn’t decide between two mains, so our server suggested a combination. Ethel’s is all about made-to-order. So my better half had the better half of the rajah ($11.99): roasted sweet bell peppers stuffed with chorizo (from the chorizo flambado dish), covered with a medley of cheeses and baked. It was topped with a spicy cream sauce, served with refried beans and a side of tangy slaw. It kinda looked like my Grade 5 Mount Vesuvius science experiment, but tasted delicious.
I had the Saturday special: chicken enchiladas ($8.99) topped with melted cheeses, chipotle sauce and served with sour cream and fresh salsa. Now ground meat of any kind freaks me out, both in terms of texture and surprise factor, so I was relieved to learn that Ethel’s uses only fresh chicken breasts. No complaints here.
Except that we were so full it felt like we swallowed sombreros. So we decided to take home what we couldn’t finish. And this is how we came to know the brilliance of Ethel’s service. After clearing our plates, our server returned with a takeout container and confession. “I dropped one of your containers,” she said. “It stayed intact, but I’m not going to give you something that fell on the floor. So I can either remove it from your bill or if you can spare a few minutes, we’ll prepare you a new one.”
That’s good service. And could explain Ethel’s faithful following over the past 18 years. Good service, good food, good prices and let’s face it: there isn’t a place like it. Where else will you find a shrine of ancient CKCO-TV memorabilia, a Colonel Sanders doll (this was the home of Canada’s first KFC in ‘61, don’t you know), an authentic Charlie’s Angels pinball machine, a Ms. Pacman arcade, two guess-your-weight scales, and walls of framed concert posters ranging from Joni Mitchell, B.B. King, Neil Diamond, Roy Orbison and George Carlin to Kiss, Yes, Anne Murray, Genesis and the Blue Oyster Cult.
Just don’t go looking for Elvis or Marilyn — this is not your typical 50s-diner-in-a-box. It’s much grittier. Much cooler. Much more ‘Ethel’s.’
Hours
Monday: 11:30 a.m. to 1 a.m.
Tuesday to Friday: 11:30 to 2 a.m.
Saturday: 11 a.m. to 2 a.m.
Sunday: 11 a.m. to 1 a.m.
Breakfast served on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Wheelchair accessibility
Not accessible.
Menu
Mostly Tex-Mex and bar food (but nothing deep-fried) along with a few specialties such as the meat loaf, pulled pork on a bun and hand-prepared burgers. Daily specials, including popular $2 taco Tuesdays (after 4 p.m. with a drink order). Hangovers lay to rest here. Takeout available.
Reservations
Not necessary.
Atmosphere
The anti-50s-diner-in-a-box. One of a kind. Great (and I mean “enormous”) summertime patio. Pool table. Plays the kind of blues music that makes you happy.
Drinks
Beer: More than 20 varieties in bottles, seven in draft. Cider, coolers, hard liquors, a couple wines. Fountain drinks galore.
Service
Our server was tough as jerky, smart as a whip and funny as hell. What’s more, she admitted she dropped our takeout container, intact, on the kitchen floor and offered to either remove it from our bill or have the cook make us a new order.
The bill
$49.86 (including tax, before tip) for two pints, a tapas platter, two mains and a side of slaw.
In a nutshell
Ethel’s is an experience and a K-W landmark
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