Dalhousie Bistro            519 736 0880   

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We are open for Dinner on Friday and Saturday -  year round.  

We are open for Dinner on Thursday evenings from May 1st to September 30.  


First, a note about our dinner menu.

At dinner time we offer a choice of several appetizers, 3 or 4 main courses and our "Bistro Specialties" menu. 


For more on "Bistro Specialties" click on the tab above. 


For more on dinner, look below. The main courses change every week.

And now a note about "Themes" and "Soirées

We sometimes feature a "Themed Menu" or "Soirée"  on weekends. We announce these well in advance
via email and Facebook etc. These "Themes" have been as simple as an Irish Menu for St. Patrick's day or as
elaborate as a 5-course Romance Dinner for St. Valentine's day.   


For more on "Themes" click the tab above.
 

Restaurants these days offer the same old stuff: “burgers, steaks, chicken, pizza, wings and fries” . . . and they all buy from the same wholesalers and it all tastes the same. Soups & sauces are made from powdered concentrates, potatoes and vegetables are frozen. 


The basic idea of cooking something from scratch, with fresh ingredients, for several hours is unheard of in restaurants.  In many homes, people are just too busy to spend the time to cook meals that take more than 30 minutes to prepare.


These are unique meals which are fun to share with friends, family and a bottle of wine . . . Meals that are meant to be eaten and enjoyed casually and slowly. Meals that will offer you a sense of relaxed well being. 

Our Dinner menu is awesome and unique. The main courses usually feature French Home-style Cooking with meals like braised local Lamb Shanks, Fresh Rainbow Trout, Boeuf Bourguignon, Coq au Vin and many other dishes inspired by European and Québecois Cuisines. We even do steaks on the BBQ.(weather permitting). We use fresh local ingredients whenever possible. 
Our menu changes every week so we have listed some typical menu items further down on this page.

Bistro Specialties

We have an awesome “Specialties Menu” featuring Fine Artisanal Cheeses, Pâtés and Charcuterie. These are all served with our freshly baked French Baguettes and the right condiments to make it perfect. They could include home-made Wine Jelly, Confit d'Onions, Dijon Mustard, French Cornichons or fresh Fruit. It all depends on what you order.

And the same goes for our Smoked Salmons and Trout.

 TIP

Many folks order several "Specialty" items along with a bowl of French Onion Soup and they make a meal of it. 


Please click on the Specialties tab above for more detail.

Our dinner menu changes weekly so we can only give you some examples of entrées from past dinner menus.

 Starters


Soup du jour / Daily Soup 4.00
made from scratch and served with a thick slice of our home-baked crusty French Bread for dipping.


French Onion Soup Gratinée 7.00
Home-made, using Julia Child’s recipe. This is the real thing, made from scratch
with French bread “croûtes” covered in Emmentaler and Parmesan cheese. The Best!


Extra Virgin Olive Oil & Aged Balsamic Vinegar 4.50
We purchase really good Extra Virgin Olive Oil and quality Aged Balsamic Vinegar just so you have an excuse to eat more French Bread. It’s amazing how something so simple can be so good.


Fennel Salad 7.50
Shaved fennel, Apple and our home-made Dijon Vinaigrette.


Croque Monsieur Crostini 7.00
Yes, this is an open faced ham and cheese . . . but wait! The Ham . . . it’s cured & smoked by Wigle’s Gourmet Meats right here in Amherstburg and it’s combined with a Gruyère style cheese called Frères Jacques that is made by the Benedictine Monks of St-Benoit du Lac in Québec, about 20 minutes from where I grew up. Add a slice of Tomato and broil it till the cheese melts . . . yum.


Escargots Stuffed Mushroom Caps 10.00

with Parsley and Garlic Butter 



Croque Monsieur Crostini

Goat Cheese & Wild Blueberry preserve Crostini with Artisanal cheese

Two bowls of Lobster Bisque ready to go

Our Boeuf Bourguignon with crusty, freshly baked French Bread.

Surf & Turf - A 10 oz. boneless Rib Steak and a 7 oz Lobster Tail

Try our Authentic French Onion Soup 

Team up a bowl of soup with some Bistro Specialties.

Local Lamb Shanks braised in red wine with root vegetables

Main Courses / Entrées

Chicken Parmigiana 
Authentic Italian style! Breaded and pan fried crispy. Topped with Lawrence’s home-made Tomato Sauce and Mozzarella (from Galati Cheese Company) and finished under the broiler till it bubbles. Served with 3-Cheese Tortellini, Broccoli and Natasha’s Parmesan & Herb Bread brushed with Home-made Garlic Butter.


Pan Fried Veal Chop 
Our bone-in Veal Chop is pan seared and served with a light Mushroom Marsala Wine sauce, 3-Cheese Tortellini and Steamed Broccoli.


Lobster & Scallop Pasta 
Handmade 3-cheese Tortellini is smothered with Lawrence’s Lobster and Scallop Sauce and then topped with the meat from a 7 oz. lobster tail. Served with Natasha’s Parmesan & Herb Bread brushed with Home-made Garlic Butter.


Old Fashioned Roast Chicken Dinner 
Rubbed inside, outside and under the skin with herbed butter and slow roasted to perfection. 
This truly is the kind of roast chicken dinner that your grandmother served on Sundays and special occasions. It is served with a roasted potato and root vegetable medley and young green beans.


Fresh Rainbow Trout 25.95
This is fresh . . . Never Frozen! Pan seared in a simple lemon butter and finished with capers, a splash of white wine and lemon juice. It is served with a roasted potato and root vegetable medley and young green beans.


Escalope de Bœuf/Beef Escalopes 

Thin slices of tender beef are seasoned and sautéed to order and served in a mushroom béchamel sauce. It is served with a roasted potato and root vegetable medley and young green beans.


Black and Blue New York Strip Steak - 10 oz.  28.95
Cooked to your liking and smothered with onions and crumbled blue cheese.

The Bistro’s Mountain Duck Breast / Magret de Canard Montagnard du Bistro 24.95
Pan seared to order and glazed with a wonderful syrupy sauce made with pan drippings, balsamic vinegar, honey, prosciutto, shallots and butter. Served with Seasonal Vegetable and an ancient Grain (Quinoa, Couscous, Wild Rice or others) WE require a few extra minutes to prepare this dish. It is served medium rare.


St. John’s Seafood Pasta / Pâtes au Fruits de Mer de “St-John” 24.95
A medley of the best seafood we can find, blended into a rich, but light cream sauce made from cream, butter, fresh herbs, garlic and a touch of dry Sherry Wine and served on a bed of Pasta.


Moroccan Vegetable Tagine / Tagine de Légumes Marocain 24.95
Many different vegetables and fruits including yams, carrots, celery, rutabagas, onion, plantain, raisins, roasted almonds, dates & figs are oven roasted to bring out their unique tastes and seasoned with Cumin, Nutmeg, Allspice, Cinnamon, Saffron and other seasonings to make this unique Moroccan dish.


Local Lamb Shanks braised in Red Wine / Jarret d’Agneau du Quartier, braisé au Vin Rouge 24.95
Ewe Dell Family Farm in Woodslee supplies us with our Local Ontario Lamb Shanks. They are seasoned with Russian Red Garlic and seared in Duck Fat and slow cooked for about 2½ hours in a rich sauce made from pan drippings, Essex red wine, lamb broth, Rosemary, Tomatoes, Carrots, Parsnips, Squash, Celery, Onions and our special touches. Served with Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Braised Vegetables from the stew pot.


Coq au Vin / Chicken cooked in Red Wine 24.95
This is the classic French Chicken dish; famous all over the world. Seasoned pieces of Chicken are browned with Bacon and then slow cooked in Red Wine and Stock laced with Fresh Thyme, Garlic, Bay Leaves and Tomato Purée. It is served with Sautéed Mushrooms, Brown-Braised Pearl Onions and Roasted Garlic Mashed.