Posts Tagged ‘DeVine Grill’
Sadly, as rumored this morning by radio stations, Devine Grill has closed, but why? They seemed to be busy the few times Taylor and I had been there, and everyone seemed to praise their cullinary art.
Recently, as heard around town, Devine had struck lunch specials from their menu. I found this surprising, since most restaurants maintain lunch menus to help drive business. Regardless, that would not stop me from going there during lunch hours. The thing I will miss most is having a good freshly prepared meal outside on their patio.
The rumor going around is that the Medicine Hat News arrived at City Hall this morning to interview the Business Development Officer regarding the closing. You can bet there will be something on the news tonight and on the radio tomorrow about it.
Check these links out to see what we said about Devine Grill in the past:
http://www.medicinehatmedia.com/2009/06/devine-grill/
http://www.medicinehatmedia.com/2009/10/devine-grill-revisited/
On October 24th, Taylor and I revisited Devine Grill, but this time we dined in the restaurant, as opposed to our last visit where we dined on the patio.
Both Taylor and I were immediately impressed with the decor inside the restaurant which created an elegant atmosphere. What is more, there was an assortment of appealing art on the walls that we later found out to be all local, which were separated into three galleries around the restaurant. As it turned out, one of the sets of art on the walls turned out to be from Donna Macauley.
Almost immediately after sitting down, our waitress arrived to request our drink orders. She returned many times during our meal to ensure everything was going smoothy and to refill our drinks. Our meals were prepared in a timely fashion despite the large crowd of people dining in the restaurant, and like last time, the experience was exceptional and memorable.
After our meal was over, our chef, Todd, came out to talk to us briefly, as we kind of knew each other through Medicine Hat Media’s previous post on Devine Grill. It is wonderful to see the owners and chefs come out to talk to their guests.
The local art on display were from the following artists/establishments:
Check out Devine Grill for an awesome, fresh and local restaurant.
A couple of months ago in Veterans-Riverside Park there were a bunch of paving stones removed from around the tank area. These pavers were lifted and used to make a large fire pit. I couldn’t help but think how long it must have taken to construct this and the fact that nobody reported a fire going in the park.
Don’t know why, but I’m always surprised to see that there is a common problem of homeless and transients downtown. I’m never downtown in the Wee hours when I guess a lot of trespassing and vandalism occurs. I don’t think most people see this side of our City.
Over the weekend I had the immense pleasure of visiting DeVine Grill, one of the fine dining restaurants in Medicine Hat. After a friendly greeting by the hostess, Sean and I were comfortably seated in a secluded area of the beautiful patio, surrounded by flowers, lamps, and a picturesque fountain. Although we arrived too early to order right away (the kitchen doesn’t open until 5 p.m.) our waitress, Jen, met us almost immediately to get us drinks while we waited.
Although the menu is relatively limited, and a little pricey, the choices are diverse, with a variety complete enough to please anyone. The wine list in itself was quite expansive and I believe even the most experienced Wino would be able to easily find something they liked. Our food arrived promptly and didn’t disappoint. With frequent visits from Jen to assure our meal was satisfactory, the dining experience was excellent.
I have only one small critique, however, the proximity of the tables on the patio could be quite uncomfortable if the restaurant was busy. As we were leaving, the table closest to us became occupied and it felt a little crowded, like the previous intimacy would be nearly impossible.
All in all the experience was both exceptional and memorable and I’ll be sure to revisit many times in the future.