Home Restaurant - Merritt, BC

On the way to Kelowna or Kamloops and need a quick bite to eat?  Stop in Merritt and you'll find a place where the service is friendly, the portions are huge, and the prices are reasonable.  Home Restaurant is a favourite stop for our car club's annual road trip to Kelowna.

The milkshakes are pretty good, a decent size and pretty tasty.

Pretty good Caesar salad, loads of parmesan cheese.

Looking for something to stop your heart, try the Monte Christo - $10.49.  Ham, Turky, & Swiss in what is essentially two slabs of French Toast.  My pal Justin has this just about everytime we go there....I think it has a million calories.

Baked Mac & Cheese - $9.49.  Now, you may have read my review on Boston Pizza and are wondering why I'm not tearing Home Restaurant a new one.  Well, unlike Boston Pizza, Home Restaurant isn't promoting their Mac & Cheese as anything gourmet.  It is what it is - mac & cheese, dressed with cheese sauce, baked with cheese on top.  And it tastes like cheddar because they use cheddar, not just the powdered variety from Kraft (actually, for $0.99 a box, Kraft isn't really that bad as long as you don't think of it as actual cheese).  Home Restaurant serves baked macaroni (actually, when I went, they didn't have the conventional elbow noodles we call macaroni) and cheese for about 10 bucks, Boston Pizza serves a $0.99 can of Chef Boyardee baked in a handfull of Kraft's Tex-Mex for 15 bucks.

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Mountain of Mushroom - $12.29.  I think there's a burger in there somewhere.

Fish and Chips for breakfast, why not?  'Home' Cod and Chips - $10.79.  The pieces aren't huge or anything, but then again, it's only 10 bucks.  The fish is pretty good and comes with a mountain of fries...you'll be full.

We go there every year so it goes without saying whether I'll go back or not.  If there were a location here in Vancouver, I'd probably go.

Austin Fish and Chips

I never would have thought there was decent fish and chips in Maple Ridge, but I was wrong. Some of my coworkers and I stopped in this strip mall on the side of the highway and found this place called Austin Fish & Chips.

We became pretty skeptical when we saw an all-you-can-eat menu.

Pricing is average, I went with the 2 pc cod and chips for $10.95

For some reason, my meal came with a dinner bun. Nothing spectacular, but I never say no to free food.

My friend ordered the popcorn shrimp and said it was a bit bland.
The poutine was ordered by one of my co-workers from Montreal.....it doesn't compare, but apparently it wasn't a total disaster.
I was pleasantly surprised with my order. Big golden fries, which were nice and crispy, probably made from real potatoes.
The cole slaw was a little on the sweet side, which was okay for me. I've never had it that sweet, and it tasted pretty good.
The portions of fish were good, crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside. I was pretty full by the end of the meal. I have no idea how people go for all you can eat for $1 more. And, an added bonus, tartar sauce in a squeeze bottle - no need for extra tartar sauce when it's right there on the table! I'd probably go again, if I ever find myself out in Maple Ridge.