Old Surrey Restaurant

I heard about Old Surrey Restaurant from my friend around a month ago. Apparently the restaurant used to be an actual house and they farm their own animals.

If BF and I came from Cambie just for this restaurant (fine, and for OpenTable points) and you live in Surrey, you should definitely try this place.

There are different rooms to be seated in,

we got the library.

Old Surrey has a Chateaubriand Special from July 2nd to August 31st, and I really recommend this. We did not get it and pretty much spent an extra $45.00 getting almost the same thing. The special comes with prawns provencale, caesar salad, chateaubriand bouqetiere (beef tenderloin) and cherries jubilee for $47.50/person.

THE COMPLIMENTARY BREAD, BUTTER, MEATBALLS, SHRIMP BISQUE, SCALLOPS, CAESAR SALAD, FILET MIGNON, SEASON FRUITS, AND ESPRESSO CREME BRULEE.

To start, COMPLIMENTARY MEATBALLS. The meatballs taste average and are a tiny bit dry. They look really saucy but the sauce is very light which I prefer.

Following the meatballs, the COMPLIMENTARY BREAD AND BUTTER. The bread is a soft baguette that is served warm, which I did not expect (since they do not serve warm bread in France). The butter is whipped which I love! I usually only finish bread if I get whipped butter and I was worried it would ruin my appetite.

The first appetizer is the SOUP OF THE DAY, SHRIMP BISQUE ($9.00). They forgot the prawn so it is given to us on a spoon. The bisque has a very strong shrimp taste and is flavourful. I did not really enjoy because it is too shrimpy for me.

The second appetizer is the FRESH VANCOUVER ISLAND QUALICUM BAY SCALLOPS, SAMBUCA AND SHALLOTS, FINISHED HOLLANDAISE AND PARMESAN CHEESE ($14.00). The scallops are fresh and moist with a very generous amount of parmesan cheese. The hollandaise is very light which I prefer.

The third appetizer is the CAESAR SALAD, ROMAINE LETTUCE, GRATED EMMENTAL AND PARMESAN, FRESHLY PREPARED AT YOUR TABLE FOR TWO OR MORE ($13.00). BF is uncomfortable when someone makes sauce in front of him and, I had to beg him to suck it up and get this. The dressing is made from scratch with garlic, egg, anchovy paste and olive oil. 

The portion of parmesan cheese is pretty generous too, about a whole cup. 

The caesar salad is really good and I recommend it. I usually do not get caesar salads and I only wanted it this time since they make it in front of you. This is one of the best caesars I ever had (I am most likely bias because I like homemade food more and I was able to see the actual ingredients used). The romaine is fresh, the dressing is fresh, and the parmesan is freshly grated (not the Kraft Tex Mex kind lol). The croutons are most likely healthier since they become soggy after a few minutes, so no preservatives are added.

The entree is the CHATEAUBRIAND BOUQUETIERE, FILET MIGNON WITH A BURGUNDY SAUCE, CARVED AND FLAMED AT YOUR TABLE FOR TWO OR MORE ($37.50). The filet mignon is sliced and heated up.

He sets it on fire by pouring remy vsop.

He then puts the slices of meat on our plates,

and pours gravy on the flame.

Then he heats our plates on the stove, and mixes the alcohol, meat juices and gravy for au jus.

The filet mignon comes with potato croquettes, half a tomato, mushrooms, red peppers and carrots. To be honest, if this was the tenderloin I could not tell. The filet mignon is really chewy and tough. When I tried BFs, his was less chewy. What? It is from the same piece! I guess somehow my pieces were overcooked? Anyways, I did not really like the potato croquette but the rest of the sides are good. I did not enjoy the filet mignon and honestly think the tenderloin would have been better since it is the special. Other then that, it does not taste like filet mignon since it is so chewy.

My dessert is the SEASONAL FRUIT WITH WHIPPED CREAM AND ICE CREAM ($7.00). The dessert comes with a liquor but I passed. I love the whipped cream because it tastes so fresh! The strawberries are ridiculously sour though.

His dessert is the ESPRESSO CREME BRULEE ($7.00). The creme brulee has a nice caramelized hard brittle top and the espresso taste is very strong. This is a must order for espresso fans.

I recommend at least coming here once for the chateaubriand and restaurant experience. I do think the experience itself is a lot better than the food. I definitely recommend the tenderloin over the filet mignon since I was a bit disappointed. I was expecting the filet mignon to be so tender that I could just use my fork, but it was so tough that I struggled to cut it. If you come, get the special, it is a lot more worth it than our dinner. We could have saved $45.00 and had a better meal with the special.

Other then the food, I really enjoy the restaurant experience. I like the different rooms and how the salad and chateaubriand is made in front of you. We came on a Friday evening around 8:30pm and left I think around 10:45pm? The food takes longer than usual, so you have time to relax and talk. I came here for something different, and I really recommend it too.

Food: 3.5

Service: 4/5