Moxie's

On Saturday the 28th my wife and I went for dinner at Moxies restaurant. I like that this restaurant has the menu posted outside the door. Very few restaurants in Lethbridge do this. When we first arrived there was a line up to get in but there was only a few minutes wait and you could see that it was actually because all the tables were full, not because they have insufficient staff or want to look busy. We were seated and had prompt service. I was surprised though by the prices of their steaks. They were not high for a restaurant in general, by no means. The steak prices were high though for a restaurant that crams as many tables as possible into such a small space, and in which you can see into the lounge from the dinning room and view sports on the TV. I didn’t order a steak, I plan to next time, but I hope that they are as good as their price appears to claim they are.
For an appetizer we ordered the Three Dip Med Bread. I was a little disappointed. The bread was just a pita brushed with butter and then sprinkled with seasoning (I thing oregano and thyme) and then baked. It was then sliced into strips and stacked in a poor attempt at gourmet presentation with the three dipping bowls holding the stack up. The dips were garlic and sour cream, an herb (I couldn’t make it out) and sour cream, and diced tomatoes with cilantro topped with parmesan cheese. I though it was funny they thought that last one was a dip. It had to be scooped with a fork and then placed on the bread strip. It was un-dippable. When we got close to the bottom of the stack we noticed the plate looked as though it hadn’t been cleaned. It looked as though someone just wiped it around the edges. You could see the oily rag smears across the plate. And there was the definite print of a hand in the smear marks (you could make out all the finger prints down each finger) directly under the stack of bread. I was far from impressed.
For my meal I ordered the Madras Penne. My wife ordered a chicken shanghai noodle dish. The Madras Penne was amazing. I was surprised to find a meal like this at a restaurant like this. It was a combination of mango chutney, penne noodles, chicken, pineapple, red bell peppers and curry topped with coconut shavings. The combination was phenomenal. This meal was not for those unable to handle the spice as the curry was quite strong, but not too strong for my liking (I was once fed a curry dish that had so much curry it tasted dirty and gritty, that was too much). It was served with lightly curried flatbread. My wife was a fan of her meal. She too claims that it was not for those unable to handle the spice. She ordered a mild dish and claimed it was still quite spicy but good.
Overall the experience was okay. If it were not for the surprisingly incredible dish I ordered and the great waitress it may not have been a very good experience. The waitress did very well. I was impressed that she did not make us ask for refills for our drinks but rather brought them to us, then took our empty glasses. Many restaurants in Lethbridge make you ask for the refill and they also take your glass and leave you without a beverage while they go to fill it up. She even brought refills for my wife’s Jolly Rancher. Many restaurants in town will not give free refills on specialty drinks. It didn’t really matter but I was again surprised and liked the gesture. Those were just a few of the things that impressed me about the service.
A few things that did not impress me would be the crowded space, the dirty pate, and the cold air that seemed to be constantly blowing through our area. It felt as though they had the air conditioning on directly beside us. I am not sure what that was about.
Like I said, overall it was okay.