Frenchies

As much as smoked meat sandwiches are da bomb, there are not many places to find them in the GVRD.  Other than Dunn's, Estrella's, Anny's Dairy Bar and La Belle Patate, there is only one more that I haven't tried.  That place happens to be Frenchie's which has just recently moved into the vacated location of the former Cray Kitchen.  Yes, seafood boils are also scare here as well...  Despite the negative reviews on the internet, I had to see for myself if the smoked meat and poutine were up to snuff.

With that in mind, I had to get the 12 oz. Montreal Smoked Meat Sandwich with coleslaw and pickles.  It was piled high on soft rye bread and lightly dressed with yellow mustard. Well, it certainly looked impressive when it hit the table.  Thinly sliced and fatty, the smoked meat melted-in-my-mouth.  I would've preferred a meatier texture and a touch more smoke, but I did appreciate the mild saltiness.  Sandwiched in between 2 slices of light rye, the whole thing was not bad.  Onto the small Classic Poutine, it was a decent side for the price.  The house-cut fries were pretty brown and only slightly crisp.  They were a bit heavy and I could taste the grease.  However, topped with a thick and silky gravy (which was a bit salty), the poutine was respectable.  We enjoyed the ample amount of squeaky and not-melted cheese curds on top.

Just to change things up a bit, we also tried the 2-patty Salisbury Steak with a huge side of fries.  Consisting of 2 hand-made burger patties, the whole thing was doused in a thick and salty gravy that was spiked with sauteed onions and mushrooms.  I found the steaks to be rather dry and crumbly due to the lean meat.  I would've personally preferred the patties to be more processed like a cutlet.  The side of fries were appreciably more crispy than the poutine due to the lack of gravy on top.  They were still heavy though.

The Good:
- Decent eats despite the reviews
- Fairly large portions

The Bad:
- Not cheap
- I liked the smoked meat, but I still prefer a meatier texture