My initial attempt to visit The Red Lion Bar and Grill for this column didn’t work out.
I had enlisted the aid of my friend Gil who, on an increasingly rare night off from his restaurant job downtown during this chaotic holiday season, assented to accompany me for a meal.
With visions of pies and pints, we made our way out to Marine Drive and 24th Street on the 255 bus, a reliable transportation choice for when seasonal libation is on the agenda.
As we approached the Red Lion, Dundarave’s storied public house, a sinking feeling took hold of my stomach. Three or four patrons donning evening finery were outside smoking while through the window of the establishment I could make out dozens of patrons, all dressed up in celebratory garb, standing around making merry. A holiday party was in full swing. Blast!
On the door was a sign confirming my fear. Indeed, the venue had been rented out for the night and would be closed to other patrons. I was vociferous in my disappointment as Gil and I turned our backs to the warm pub and, jacket hoods firmly secured, ventured back into the rainy evening. We ultimately settled on another nearby restaurant for a lovely meal, which I will describe in these pages sometime in the coming weeks, but my frustration remained. Why didn’t I check first?
It’s December, for crying out loud, Chris, parties are happening everywhere. I know this. I didn’t check, you see, because it somehow didn’t occur to me that the neighbourhood pub would be rented out. But why on earth not?
As I thought it through later that evening, it occurred to me that perhaps The Red Lion is a suitable venue for a company party. After all, it is a place explicitly designed to foster conversation and a sense of community. It is a local gathering place by its very definition and it does not boast a snooty atmosphere in the slightest.
Its staff members are accommodating, down-to-earth and friendly as they serve drinks from an accessible, reasonably priced beverage list on which no selection needs muddling, layering, frothing with egg whites or any other fussy preparation.
When I did make it back to The Red Lion a few days later, this time by myself for a late weekend lunch, I left convinced that the pub is, in fact, the ideal venue for an event and that I may even attempt to chair the holiday committee at my own place of work next year in order to champion the space for our December celebration.
The Red Lion was filled with music as I entered. Not piped in satellite radio music, mind, but rather music that was more immediate, raw and unpolished but movingly authentic. I clocked a circle of uniquely dressed patrons sitting near the back of the pub.
One among them, with painted face and colourful, intentionally tattered garb, belted out soulful, slightly melancholy holiday vocals as he was accompanied by all manner of other musicians playing instruments that included the banjo, the accordion and the tuba. I could not have scripted a more festive scene and, if I’m being completely honest, for a fleeting moment a lump attempted to install itself in my throat as, for the first time this season, I felt a touch of the elusive holiday spirit. I saddled up to the bar where regular patrons called by name by Red Lion staff joked and conversed, taking pause now and then to applaud the musicians.
I sipped a pint of Kilkenny Irish Cream Ale as I reviewed the menu, which was full of brunch specialties on offer until dinnertime. While dishes like Farmer’s Sausage Perogies and Eggs, Scallop and Shrimp Crepe, and Smoked Salmon and Potato Pancake Benedict all sounded intriguing, I had my heart set on a steak and kidney pie. I asked the bartender if she would mind making a special request to the kitchen on my behalf and not a minute later she returned to say that it would be no problem to supply this dinner menu item.
Delighted, I sat back and drank in the Red Lion atmosphere and found myself chatting with pub regulars, from whom I learned that the musical group regaling us with Christmas songs was Bowen Island-based traditional Morris dance and music troupe, The Black Sheep.
The steak and kidney pie arrived, piping hot and generously portioned. The Red Lion’s pie is actually more like slowly braised steak and kidney stew served in a puff pastry shell. The filling, which contained a very generous kidney component, overflowed from the shell and had a tremendous depth of flavour.
Tender chunks of fall-apart beef mingled with deftly handled (read: not overwhelmingly pungent) morsels of kidney in a deep brown sauce. Other plate components included roasted, skin-on potatoes, tender green beans, al dente Brussels sprouts and a medallion of eggplant with a tangy tomato compote. It was a hearty, rib-sticking dish, ideal for this time of year, and represented exceptionally good value at $18.
A second pint of Kilkenny accompanied my final bites. My meal was $38 before gratuity.
The Red Lion Bar and Grill is located at 2427 Marine Dr. in Dundarave. redlionbarandgrill.com, 604-926-8838
Chris Dagenais served as a manager for several restaurants downtown and on the North Shore. A self-described wine fanatic, he earned his sommelier diploma in 2001. He can be reached via email at [email protected]. North Shore News dining reviews are conducted anonymously and all meals are paid for by the newspaper.
