I've eaten at quite a few restaurants while living in the St. John's area. This was my first time dining at Mallard Cottage. I have to say that it was by far the best meal I have eaten out yet! The whole experience was amazing. Our server Des was extremely helpful and very cool and funny and took care of us so well. The appetizers of smoked mackerel and the corn battered cod cheeks were amazing. The halibut dishes were the best halibut i have ever tasted. And the desserts...oh my god..yet again amazing. Top marks to the chefs and staff for a truly amazing dining experience.
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To make a medium story long, here goes: My wife is from Newfoundland and we were visiting her family with our sons. When we are in St. John's my in-laws usually take care of our boys so that we can have a night away on our own--something that is rare for us. I had booked the nicest room at The Inn at Mallard Cottage and made a reservation for dinner a few weeks beforehand. The day before all of this was suppose to happen I received a call from Stephen, one of the owners, saying that the room would not be available due to circumstances beyond their control. He was very apologetic and had booked a room at a couple of other hotels for us so that we could have a choice and said that our dinner would be on the house. We were very disappointed that we weren't going to get our full Quidi Vidi experience (including out plan to hike from the inn up to Signal Hill) and weren't sure that we still wanted to eat there since we'd be staying at The Alt (which was very nice) and not in the Village. We decided to go anyway. We started with drinks at the bar at Raymond's (next door to The Alt) and then took a cab to Mallard. Stephen came to our table immediately, apologizing profusely about the problem with our room, and said that he would take care of us. Did he ever. We let him pick from the menu for us and he just kept bringing plate after plate. We started with a lovely amuse-bouche of flaked roasted cod on a cracker. That was followed by steak tartar with house-made potato chips and pork loin lettuce wraps. Next up was local chanterelles on toast and corn-fried cod cheeks. Then came the halibut and the parmesan-basil-tomato lobster with corzetti. We finished off with a generous sampling of pastries. It's difficult to say which dish was the best as they were all superb. If I had to choose just two I would go with the chanterelles and the halibut but I'd be delighted to have any of them again. The portions were generous and the balance of flavours spot on. The wines were matched well to the dishes and Stephen works hard to find the best Canadian vintages. The other sommelier and the waiters were friendly and professional. One gets the sense of an endeavour where everyone is working together to ensure that each guest has an excellent experience. If you are not at least a little bit of a foodie or aren't looking for new dining experiences then this might not be the place for you. If, though, you want to try the best local ingredients prepared in a combination of traditional and innovative ways then make this a destination. Next time we hope to get to stay in the inn and enjoy the beer garden. Thank you to Stephen and company for a truly splendid evening.
This is constantly rated as one of the best restaurants in Newfoundland so I had to come try it out. Situated in a historic building inhabited by the Mallard family for over a century, the decor is very rustic and cozy. The service was very professional. We came in mid-May (during tourist off-season) and the place was packed, so I would recommend making reservations in advance.
The dishes change daily based on what's in stock; I personally really liked their bread and their refreshing lobster salad. They also have a special menu that's prone to selling out quickly so I would recommend ordering from that menu first, before you order from the main menu. The flavours were decent and the price (and portions) feel in-between fine and casual dining.
Such a great experience here. The atmosphere is one of a kind. The food is exceptional quality. Just a note that it is on the pricier side for the quantity you get. Honestly, the BREAD with the butter of the day was probably the best bang for your buck. The bread was made in house and so fluffy.
Highly recommend the french toast, though the portion was slightly small, it was super flavorful and not overly sweet. My friend enjoyed the scallops. I got the Benny with the hash underneath, it was good, but not life changing. For what it was, it was solid. The atmosphere of this place is beautiful, very rustic and cosy with floral accents. Special thanks to our server Veronica, she was super attentive, very kind, and gave an honest review about her recommendations, which I appreciated. Definitely a place to check out! And make reservations during the peak season, you will thank youself 🌺
Absolutely fantastic. 11/10. My favorite restaurant hands down. They take such incredible care to cultivate each and every element of the menu. Everything is perfection. Service is excellent. Atmosphere is everything. The bread will change your life.
Simply incredible! With the 1820's water front cottage hosting the lovely east coast charm and incredible meals, this is a must try for any foodie.
Reservations are highly reccomended and needed well in advance for peek times.
The menu is changing constantly, so go often if u live on the rock. I had an incredible meal of pork belly, smoked out back ( literally) with an array of capers and cauliflower roasted to perfection. The bread and butter was 2 bucks for a side and I don't think I've had better! Soft perfect loaf with a herbed sweet butter that had clearly just been made.
Frites are a must as they are golden and seasoned to perfection. My Paris-Brest was incredible to look at and devour.
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Amazingly wonderful overall experience!
We chose this restaurant for the last diner of our honeymoon trip in St John's. We were absolutely delighted by the quality of the drinks, the food and the service. They are so creative that they create a new diner menu each day, can you imagine. The menu was composed of four choices of appetizers, four side dishes and for main courses, we would have taken all of it if we could eat that much! The restaurant is in an old 19th century cottage, as the name says, that they beautifully preserved in the cutest neighborhood called Quidi Vidi. You do need a reservation for the diner but, if like us, you are last minute, you can probably get a place at the bar. You can call in 30 mins in advance to see if they do have a place at the bar and make a reservation that they will hold for 30 mins. Or, if you're in no rush, we went for the happy hour and had a couple of drinks until it was diner time. The staff was super friendly and professional, they work as a great team to deliver the best experience possible. For drinks we had the Mallard Cottage Old Fashion cocktail and it was perfectly balanced, a must. For dinner, we took a dozen oysters for starter, it came with a special vinegar that was way better then the lemon (they also had lemon). For the main course I had the Halibut steak with the smash potatoes and my wife had the chicken with the cauliflower (she's allergic to fish and they made sure she survived the experience ;) ). Everything was uniquely tasty and cooked to the perfection, just wow. I recommend sharing the sides as they are good portions even for a gourmand like I. They do have desert but we went with an Irish Coffee instead. It's not a cheap experience but you'll soon realize that it was worth every penny, I more than recommend you try this great restaurant if you're in St John's!
Excellent restaurant. Right from the mouthwatering bread appetizer, I knew we were in for a good night. All the raw and cod appetizers were excellent, cocktails were stunning, and they had a couple craft beer from quidi vidi brewery. Five of us ate most items on the menu with just one that was not exceptional. Not a cheap place though. Be prepared.
AMAZING! This restaurant uses local ingredients to make its unique dishes and the menu changes every day. The atmosphere of the restaurant is great - it feels very cozy inside. For an appetizer we had the bread and butter and the kitchen sent out a complementary amuse-bouche- cucumber with pork belly and miso mayo. I had the brisket with snow peas, my dad had the chicken piccata with grilled potatoes and my mom had the halibut collar with a kale salad and chanterelle. All of the dishes were phenomenal, but the halibut collar was enough to feed two people and the three of us struggled to finish everything. We wish we had a smaller piece of halibut so we could have tried one of the desserts!
Catherine Cheveux-de-Feux
+4
The food was excellent. Taste was great and everything was cooked perfectly. We particularly enjoyed the cod thongues, the scallops crudo and the pork belly.
We where in a little and quiet side room, which we really loved. It felt cosy.
However, the service staff didn't come very often in our room, so we sometimes had to wait a few minutes for service. They sometimes forgot to take our plates away when we finished eating. We were also advised that the portions were very small and that we needed to order more, but ended up with too much food that we couldn't finish (we both took 1 appetizer, 1 side and 1 main dish and shared 1 extra appetizer). Staff was kind, but overall, service could be improved.
We recommend booking a few days in advance.
Definitely recommend this place if you want to eat a great meal and are prepared to pay a good amount.
The fresh bluefin tuna steak cut from a 700lb fish previously that afternoon was an unforgettable dish. Super charming and intimate dining setting in a small little cottage with a lot of history. Much thanks as well to Ben our fantastic server. I’ll be watching the Mallard Cottage instagram dreaming of the next time I can visit Quidi Vidi from now on…
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